Twins Notes And Lineup
Posted on March 21st, 2008 – 9:56 AMBy La Velle
The Twins cut Randy Keisler, Ricky Barrett, Tommy Watkins, Garrett Jones and Randy Ruiz this morning. Jones was outrighted, which means he cleared waivers. There are now 35 players in camp.
Nothing too surprising here. Ruiz was entertaining to watch at the plate but he really has no defensive position. Who knows? Ruiz may get a shot during the season if the Twins are in a jam and need to call someone up.
Keisler and Barrett officially moving on means that if the Twins want a second lefty in the bullpen it will be Glen Perkins.
Jones clearing waivers isn’t a surprise but I wonder how much playing time he’ll get at Rochester.
Lineups:
Phillies
1. Victorino. CF. 2. Bruntlett, 2B. 3. Dobbs, 1B. 4. Burrell, LF. 5. Snelling, DH. 6. Helms. 7. Taguchi. 8. Ruiz, C. 9. Olemdo. Pitching: Eaton.
Twins
1. Span, CF. 2. Mauer, C. 3. Cuddyer, RF. 4. Morneau, 1B. 5. Young, LF. 6. Kubel, DH. 7. Lamb, 3B. 8. Punto, 2B. 9. Everett, SS. Pitching: Livan, followed by Bass, Neshek, Reyes, Daigle.
Trevor Plouffe and Dustin Martin have been added as extra players today.
209 Responses to "Twins Notes And Lineup"
LaVelle, with Jones being outrighted, who has the edge for the last bench spot between Pridie and Buscher?
IMO I think Tolbert is gonna get the last spot.
LaValle, Does this mean that the Twins waived Jones off the 40-man roster as well? Or was he just outrighted to Rochester and remains on the 40? Thanks!
While I would like to see Pridie the most polished of the Centerfield candidates make the team. I believe they are going to keep Go-Gomez simply for his raw talent and show we got something for Santana. Now the last bench player will be either Tolbert or Buscher. I think the Twins want Buscher however they may give it to Tolbert who has played every well in ST.
Ruiz could be a future DH if Kubel/Monroe don’t pan out as expected this year. I like today’s lineup. It looks like Gardy’s starting to settle on his main lineup and is trying to inject a few changes to see what fits (Span/Gomez, Kubel/Monroe, Harris/Punto).
Yeah, I know I said I like a lineup that contains Punto. That’s because the rest of the lineup looks fairly solid and pretty much matches what we’ve all been expecting.
LaValle, isn’t there also a possibility that “The Franchise” could be a second lefty in the bullpen? Interesting spring, isn’t it?
I would advocate Pridie being the 25th guy, even though an infielder would be a better fit.
Kubel/Monroe are going to likely be the primary DHs this year, and I wouldn’t be surprised if whoever isn’t in lineup is kept on the bench as a PH option late in the game. That would make Pridie your better option as the 4th outfielder and the primary go to guy as a backup for an injury replacement or/rest day.
I would kept Riuiz, over Busher, I think that he,s more of a bat over Busher, we shouldn,t need any more defence, anyway,
I’m not at all surprised that Jones cleared waivers. I will be surprised if Bass does, however. Given the uncertainty of Baker and Liriano, the just about have to carry 12 pitchers back to Mpls. I would advocate Pridie being the 25th guy, even though an infielder would be a better fit.
Okay, there’s something seriously messed up with this new message system.
Unless I’ve found a way to travel through time or read minds…how was I able to quote a post that was written after me!
There’s no “future” in Randy Ruiz. He’ll be 31 by the end of the season with no MLB at-bats. He’s Crash Davis, without the wisdom or defensive viability.
I think the 25th guy should be a guy that can hitthe ball, in a pinch-hit,not just cuz he,s an infielder,
I would vote for Buscher. I’m pretty sure I don’t have a vote though.
I think the original plan was to keep buscher, but tolbert has caught the eye of Gardy and Buscher’s .148 ba kills his chances
And if you’re posting before other people, it means either your or somoene elses clock is off. Since you are constantly doing it, i would bet it is yours, T.
So this means Buscher right?
I don’t think they keep Tolbert to sit on the bench. I think they see him as the future SS, so they’d rather have him play everyday, and I agree with that thinking.
Gardy thinks Tolbert can play everyday. They will keep him in the event harris or Everett doesnt produce. He would have already been sent to AAA if they were going to cut him.
T, that same thing was happening yesterday with me…
Sign Sidney “Piñata” Ponson. Even the blindfolded can hit him.
I’d keep 24 on the roster and add Barry Bonds. His demands for salary are probably realistic since nobody has shown interest. Cut Kubel and bring in a real DH with the capability to hit a HR (or get walked) every AB. If he’s cheap and acts like an idiot they can cut him and it won’t matter. That would be the type of move that would make the Twins relevant this year.
I’d assume that the CF (Gomez), Kubel, Young, Cuddyer and Monroe would be enough.
Can someone post the gameday link please?
Come on, there has to be at least a 1% chance, right? Give him #48 and I’ll change the nameplate on my Torii Hunter jersey and I’ll be able to wear it again this season. A man can dream…
LaVelle- How do you see the rosters/lineups of the minor league teams like Rochester shaping up? Where do you think we can expect to see guys like Plouffe, Moses, Winfree & Valencia?
What kind of success do you expect for the Rochester & New Britian teams for 2008?
Ben D, that is a possibilty, but there was speculation that they still have him because he is the only back middle infielder still in camp.
Tolbert will be up sometime in 2008, its just a matter of when.
If it was up to me, I’d keep Tolbert and Buscher and get rid fo Punto.
Signing Bonds wouldn’t make the Twins relevant, the Twins would need a big change in the roster to challenge Detroit and Cleveland this year.
I would bet on Buscher. I don’t think you look too closely at the spring training numbers. He’s done everything the coaches have asked for and then some. And he provides the team with what it really needs: a lefty bat off the bench who can hit for a little power. Offensively, he’s a lot like Kubel. Defensively, he’s a work in progress, but he’s making strides. Also, the other candidates still in camp are prospects for potential starting roles down the road. Tolbert, in particular, could be the everyday second baseman before the end of the season. He would benefit more from playing every day in AAA than Buscher would. Buscher’s about at his upside offensively, which is a solid bench bat.
I guess I wouldn’t mind Pridie because he is just a solid all-around player, but it’s tough to carry six outfielders and only five infielders.
Sorry, but their is a 0% chance that the Twins sign Bonds.
I think there no way the Twins will keep more than 5 Outfielders especially when they think LNP can play in the Outfield. It is either Buscher or Tolbert. If Buscher hits they keep him, otherwise they give it to Tolbert.
Me too! Punto taking a spot drives me crazy. They may move Tolbert to Rochester so he and Casilla can work together. I think Gardy wants Casilla at SS.
Bonds would be a cancer for this team he is self-centered and arrogant and Gardy would probably strangle him within a day’s time. Tolbert seems to be the logical choice (ST numbers) but it’s just an issue of if Gardy wants him to get the AB’s & playing time in the minors or be a bench player in the majors. Punto has to step it up very shortly or I can see the Twin’s letting him loose (he has no trade value) so they can get some of their younger talent with the big club.
0% chance anyone signs Bonds unless he can make his legal problems go away. The Pirates might have 2% chance of doing it only because some fans might remember him the way he was. And the Pirates are not going to seriously compete this year
I think it’ll be Buscher, because they’ve taught him all these new positions.
Buscher now can play 1B, 2B and 3B. Plus, his bat hasn’t been bad this spring.
Tolbert is probably the keeper.
They need four middle infielders and Buscher doesn’t qualify.
If they keep only three MIF,
when they pinch-hit for Everett or Punto and replace him with the last MIF, they are vulnerable to a MIF injury.
Why is everyone so freaking anti-punto? Fine, he probably shouldn’t have been a starter. He was on webgems about once a week last season and made probably the best play in the entire MLB. His .210 batting average is well below his career average. He hit .290 the year before. I don’t think there’s any reason to believe he’ll repeat either, which puts him in the .250 range as a defensive wizard utility player who can jump in just about anywhere late in a tight game. That’s a huge asset to any team.
Sane, the Twins have been working with Buscher at 2B. If they didn’t want him up in the majors, there would be no point to it.
Also, Punto would be on the team and can play SS.
I wish both could make it and Punto would be gone, but the Twins just won’t do that.
Im good Gardy’s decisions he has done a nice job in the past. I still think Punto will have a good year and I love his glove and determination. I’m anxious to see how the lineup plays and and know there are options if needed. I’m betteing we will al be plesently surprised this year and have possibilities of a late playoff run……..::::::another beer please::::
They planned on keeping Buscher, but his .148 ba is making it hard to justify keeping him. I would rather keep Buscher and Tolbert and cut Punto. There are 2 million reasons why that wont happen!
“Why is everyone so freaking anti-punto?”
Because not everyone is a homer like you?
“Why is everyone so freaking anti-punto?”
Because not everyone is a sad homer like you?
“Buscher now can play 1B, 2B and 3B. Plus, his bat hasn’t been bad this spring.”
Buscher is hitting .148 this spring, worse than Everett (.290), Harris and PUNTO. His bat HAS been bad.
He has played 2B, but that doesn’t mean he can play MLB 2B.
Tolbert should be kept ahead of Buscher.
… and for all the Buscher love here, he’s hitting for an even lower average than Punto this spring with even less RBIs. So much for the bat “TwinsTerritory” suggests “hasn’t been bad this spring.”
Is there any chance that the Twins use Francisco Liriano as the second left-hander out of the bullpen.
All the reports imply that they want him to start this season, but are they at all considering using him in the bullpen like they did in ‘06?
Sane, you can’t go off of Spring Training stats to judge a player. Buscher has hit some balls very hard this spring (that I’ve seen) and has been robbed of hits a few times.
Just a lesson on not going off Spring Training stats:
Ramon Ortiz led the Grapefruit league last season in ERA, look how that turned out…
I am not anti-Punto. I think he belongs on the team. I like his defense he truly can play a variety of positions above average. I think it can be pointed out he has shown a streak of uncoachability. An example would be sliding into firstbase head first. It looks like your trying but when you don’t have to stop at the bag you are actually slowing yourself down. Another would be his upper cut swing he should be contact hitter not trying to kill the ball. That is why people are so down on him on this sight. I think he should make the team but he has some short comings.
Buscher has looked much improved this spring from last season. He has been patient at the plate and shown some good signs at the plate.
Gardy even said that…
Why are they working Tolbert so much at SS? If they are going to send him down and move Casilla to SS. U think they would be working him at 2B and give Punto work at SS if he is going to be everett’s back-up
the only thing on the lineup I would change would be to have Monroe in there instead of Kubel and Gomez over Span and I would be satisfied. I also would like to keep Bass, Humber and Blackburn at the pro level to start out the season
They worked with Buscher at 2B, hoping he could do the job.
I don’t think they have played him there in a Grapefruit game recently to get him familiar with gamespeed 2B.
That indicates to me that THAT experiment is now on the back-burner.
I’m not anti-Punto, I like him as a person. Its just that in a season that we may not have the greatest succes, I’d rather see young guys like Tolbert and Buscher get spots over someone who isn’t going to take us anywhere.
Actually, Buscher just started working out at 2B a few days ago. Gardenhire said he’d like to put him there incase they need him.
He took groundballs for the first time there yesterday, and it sounds like he did a nice job:
“The drill was mostly about footwork at second, with Nick Punto and Brian Buscher taking the throws and relaying them to first base. Buscher, apparently working on cradling the ball as it comes to him, was playing without a glove. It obviously focused his mind on what he was doing, because he was nearly flawless.“
Jimmy Bee, last night’s lineup is what you’re looking for then…
Also, while it’d be nice to keep all of those pitchers in the majors, there isn’t room for all of them.
Assuming Slowey locked up his spot last night, Humber, Perkins, Bass and Blackburn will be going after the final bullpen spot (maybe Liriano’s too if he isn’t ready to go).
This lineup should produce some runs but our pitching staff should give the runs right back
Just think of the promotional ideas
“First 10,000 lucky fans get an ugly stick when Bass pitches
Pitching Rotation
Livan Hernandez
Lirano(might be May
Baker
Boof
The Jury is still out 5th
Blackburn still has lead
Slowey is catching up
Humber outside chance
Perkins (heading for the bullpen
can we trade Boof for a bag of Florida oranges?
Can someone post the gameday link
How big is this bag of oranges?
I love our lineup but getting rid of some of the dead weight on the Twins would actually improve are team
3 players that I would like to lose
1/Kubel
2/Boof
3/Punto
Keep at the major league level
1/Humber
2/Bass
3/Blackburn
5 pound bag should do the trick.
I think Slowey locked up the 5th spot.
Depending on Liriano’s next couple starts, I wouldn’t be shocked if Blackburn makes 1 or 2 starts while Liriano spends a little more time in Florida.
Beyond that it’s going to start:
Livan
Liriano
Baker
Boof
Slowey
Livan
Liriano
Slowey
Bass
Humber
Blackburn
Boof trade for a bag of oranges
Baker packaged with Punto and Kubel for a used Datsun
The Twins can choose their fourth MIF from:
Buscher who was a butcher last year at 3B, started learning 2B yesterday and is hitting .l48 in ST; or
Tolbert,a lifetime SS-2B who is hitting .296 in ST.
My choice is Tolbert, but the Twins have fooled me before.
Liriano
Slowey
Bass
Humber
Blackburn
Boof trade for a bag of oranges
Baker packaged with Punto and Kubel for a used Datsun
Livan just drop him off at Old Country Buffet and hope he does’t find his way back to the dome
How many quality starts do the Twins expect from Livan and Liriano in April?
1. Gomez, CF. 2. Mauer, C. 3. Cuddyer, RF. 4. Morneau, 1B. 5. Young, LF. 6. Monroe, DH. 7. Lamb, 3B. 8. Harris, 2B. 9. Everett, SS
Liriano
Slowey
Bass
Humber
Blackburn
Jimmy bee, I would hold out for 25 lbs the amount of weight Bonser lost for the season.
Actually I would wait and see the new Bonser on the field and while Pohlad might need a new (used) car, Kubel and Baker have more potential than a Datsun
I would give them another year too.
Can Craig go to opening night with a shirt that just say’s I’m Craig
How we be taken seriously with a pitcher named “Boof”
We could rename the other 4 starters in Boofisms
Liriano-Biff
Slowey-Buff
Bass-Baff
Humber-Boff
Blackburn-Berf
TwinsTerritory, ok I’ll be nice 2 bags of florida oranges instead of one
You guys are going to be pretty surprised I think in Bonser this season.
Also, Blackburn does not have the lead. Slowey basically has the fifth spot locked up.
TwinsTerritory I would have Boof work out of the bullpen because he can not make it past the 5th inning. He should not be a starter because he takes up a starter’s spot in our rotation and also when he pitches we have to go to our bullpen more often
Jimmy Bee, why would you want Bass in the rotation over Boof?
I believe Bass would be better and Boof can not make it usually past the 5th inning and he is inconsistant
Thanks CCTwinsFan!
Baker I think should battle it out with the other 5 I named
this blog is weird with all the jumping around
I’m just wondering what’s so nice about Bass and so bad about Bonser? And, with your rotation:
Liriano-Biff
Slowey-Buff
Bass-Baff
Humber-Boff
Blackburn-Berf
Are you saying that we don’t need Baker too?
Twins territory, I like Slowey a lot but other than last night he has not shown he can keep the ball down in the strike zone. I think like Baker in 2006 needs some time in AAA. Now if Slowey can be more consistent and has a couple more good starts he will pass Blackburn by. Who has been solid all spring.
This commenting is terrible right now. I hate how its moving things around based off the time…
Jimmy Bee,
Remember when I used to tell you, “It stops being funny after awhile” back when you repeated 1st grade?
Mrs Robinson is that you
Does anyone know if the Twins have any options on Buscher or is he under contract? If he’s under contract i doubt seriously they will cut him.
They have options with him. No way they’d cut him. It’ll be AAA or MLB…
Buscher has options left and will not be released.
Span caught stealing. He has a 60% success rate in the minors not acceptable for the table setter, GO = 80%, Pridie = 70%. Span and Pridie are starters on a bad team, 4th OF on a good team. There is no doubt in my mind anymore, I want to see Gomez.
Two scoreless innings for Hernandez…
60% success steal rate is fine for a table setter, it just means he shouldn’t try to steal. I would take a guy with a high OBP and no steals over a guy with low OBP and a lot of steals with a high success rate. Of course, i don’t think Span has a very good chance of being either guy in the majors.
It looks like Baker won’t be ready by opening day.
They plan on starting him on a minor league game tomorrow and if that goes well they plan on starting him every 4 days including 1 extra game after the team heads north. If everyting goes to plan they expect him to make his first start on April 9-10 against Chicago.
So it looks lake Baker is going to be on extended Spring Training for the 1st 10 days of the season. So the Twins will need someone to make 1-2 starts in place of Baker.
TT,
That isn’t what I read.
Span hasn’t been convinced yet that he’s not Rickey Henderson. He’s long overdue for a rude awakening. Lots of talent. Can’t put it together. Like LaTroy Hawkins with a bat.
Here are the comments from the Twins’ website:
Twins manager Rod Gardenhire said that he plans on having Baker pitch three to four innings or toss 55-60 pitches, whichever comes first. If all goes well, the team anticipates having Baker pitch every fourth day through the end of Spring Training with an extra start added once the club breaks camp.
“We have a lot of ifs with Baker, but if everything goes according to plan, that’s what we’re looking at,” Gardenhire said.
Pitching coach Rick Anderson said that it’s typical for a starting pitcher to add 10-15 pitches each outing, so the coaching staff hopes that Baker can go 6-7 innings and toss 85-90 pitches by the end of spring. If Baker reaches that point in his additional start in Ft. Myers without problems, then the club sees the 26-year-old righty pitching when the Twins visit the Chicago White Sox from April 9-10.
SweetOne, they said if everything goes well on Saturday, he should be ready to start with the club.
Punto’s relay to home is a 2-hopper. Run scores. His arm is overpraised. He throws quick and hard but does not have a canon. He’s no Cuddy.
TT,
If you look at the dates and he pitches every 4th day, his extra minor leagues start would be on 4/3. Then his next scheduled start would be 4/9.
Hmm, they added more since they posted that first…
I don’t understand why MLB.com says he’ll need 10 extra days when the first game of the season is on March 31.
TT, Baker’s got 10 days to regain his strength lost from the flu, all the while pushing himself to hurry and catch up.
Sounds a little impossible. So, he may be ready, and he may be ready and willing, but I doubt he’ll be ready, willing and fully able.
Victorano triples on a line-drive to Cuddyer. How badly did he misplay it?
Plus, I’m going to wait because they word it weird. If he is at 85-90 pitches and 6-7 innings by the end of spring training as they say, that is ready to be with the team, not extended spring training.
1 hit and 5 K’s for Livan through 3.
Now they’re coming after him a little.
Ryan, Victorano advanced to 2nd on the play at the plate…..Punto’s 2-hopper.
I just read it on Gameday. Wondering.
This could be the slippery slope all year. Down early and Punto, Everett and Span batting 8-9-1.
I don’t know why the credited Victorano with a 3B, when (as romer stated) he advanced to third on Punto’s play at the plate.
Victorino was credited with a triple. Not a double/advanced on throw. Would like to have seen it.
Did Cuddy make the play? If he’s got the hose, why did Punto have to cut it?
SweetOne, I’m going on what Gladden said.
Maybe official scorers are having their ST too.
Doesn’t sound like they’re teeing off on Livan. Sounded like he was gonna get out of the inning without Philly scoring.
But this is how it probably will be with Livan………a run here, and a run there, eat the innings up.
roger,
Garrett Jones is no longer on the Twins 40-man roster.
Philly pitcher Eaton has had a pretty limp ST. Twins aren’t getting to him yet.
Now the Philly shift beats Morneau as he grounds into the DP.
I’m just busting Cuddyer’s chops.
sane, I thought he hit the cutoff, Punto.
Cuddyer’s job is to hit the relay, not throw it from the wall to the plate.
There’s another inverted pair of blog entries.
LA VELLE, fix the blog!
Yeah La Velle, just get the manual out and make the adjustment.
:)>
romer,
fix your PC clock.
Apparently Brian Onora is in love with the Livan style today. Gladden says he has an expanded strike zone.
No, SweetOne, my clock is correct.
T was having trouble too.
time test
the blog is time-stamping my stuff weird, too
Time test…
It isn’t my PC clock. The time when I posted that says 1:17. My PC clock says 1:14…
Of course, I’m on apple network time. I know that PC time is a little different because it’s based on the sun’s revolution around Bill Gates. HA!
Livan’s (probable) final line:
5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 6 SO
i think gardys 1st substitution today will tell a story….infield that is…
Livan has to keep going, the pitch count is too low.
Buscher playing 1B.
????
Tolbert replaces Lamb.
Everett Fan, Livan doesn’t put a lot of strain on his arm. So no history of stamina problems with him, right?
I could be wrong.
And if you’re posting before other people, it means either your or somoene elses clock is off.
What kinds of backwards system uses the poster’s clock to determine when an entry was submitted?
Buscher playing 1B.
I know it’s odd, but if he can add 1B to his list of backup positions he becomes more valuable as a bench player.
Especially if Lamb is only a short term solution.
No problems for Bass in the 6th.
romer - Ha, he doesn’t appear to strain much but I don’t know his history that well either.
romer,
Cuddyer did hit the relay. I was responding to Ryno’s 1:01PM post.
“Did Cuddy make the play? If he’s got the hose, why did Punto have to cut it?”
It turned out that Ryno was giving Cuddy a hard time and I took him seriously.
My bad!
It looks like Gardy is doing versatility checks on Buscher (1B) and Tolbert (3B). My guess is that job is up for grabs until March 30 unless one of them lays a big egg before that.
Dan Gladden quote: “Punto’s a kid you might see going over to the minors to get his 5, 6 at bats in.”
And go, and go, and go, and go………..
Hey fellas. Cute little lineup you have going today. We’ll have to see what happens when Cuddyer, Span and Young are reducted to “turning their heads and watching it go. Looong authoritive base clearing homerun for Pat Burrell and the Phillies strike first.”
Did everybody get pissed off and leave?
Burrell’s line today — 0 for three with one strike out. No word on Cuddyer, Span or Young’s reaction…
T,
agree with you on Buscher at 3B, Morneau needs a guy to spell him, at least so he can DH. He hasn’t gotten a day off in 2 years really
Ploufe replaced Everett.
Punto is the only starting infielder still in.
Fun in the sun for Gardy and Punto.
Wait, I mean Buscher at 1B, what a MORON I am
Hey! No namecalling please, LNP4Life.
When is Neshek going to get into regular season form? I am worried about him.
I’m thinking you probably already knew SweetOne, but all blogs were down for a half-hour.
ST for the blogs….
Fun in the sun for Gardy and Punto.
I thought we were done with this discussion. Punto’s getting play time now so he has as much opportunity as possible to work out the kinks before the season starts and somebody else is starting at 2nd.
Seriously…
T, like I was referencing at 1:36, he can do it in the minors.
Funny that Gladden referred to him as a kid.
I wish the kid well, and would love to see him come in with .280 BA this year.
T,
That is a jinormous kink for LNP.
If Lamb is getting no time as a backup 1B, maybe Buscher is leading Tolbert for the final spot in Gardy’s eyes.
I wonder why they didn’t stretch Bass out some. With Baker and Liriano, looks like the Twins will need some long relief for a few weeks.
With Cali and Jones off the 40-man, maybe that opens things up for the Twins to sign Bonds and Clemens
Just kidding
Hello again. Blog beserkia today.
Buscher goes 0-2, now at .138. Looks like he’s through.
No one but Punto at 2B today. Where’s Harris? Flu? Injured? Over in the minors to get his 5, 6 AB’s?
romer-
Atleast they’ve improved at DH. Hopefully.
Brendan Harris could come around. Let’s not make hasty propostions.
what’s going on
Somebody is using my name. The last two comments were not made by me.
La Velle could you look into this?
I think BC and some others had this happen to them.
Columbo, how about signing a secnd baseman?
It’s been a hole ther, La Velle called it a pothole, and now it’s a black hole.
I’m getting deja vu of 3B and DH last year.
This isn’t a matter bloggers or Gardy or journalists can really say anything useful about.
But I want to know what Bill Smith is gonna do. He’s got the payroll. Let’s hear from him.
romer — who would you have him sign? Graffanino? I think everyone else has found a home…
Romer,
I would like to see them trade for Brian Roberts.
It would be similar to when we picked up L. Castillo. Roberts is the same age as Castillo was going into 2006 and the Twins were coming off a third place finish.
Roberts as I understand it has two years left on his contract. Another blogger had mentioned he has a partial no trade clause….so he could be traded later like Castillo, but with some restrictions?
I’m thinking more of keeping him though and if they can get him I would try to extend his contract an extra year.I would like to see him at second for the next Twins run at the playoffs.
The problem would be in who (prospects)we would be willing to give up?
BTW, is anyone else having problems with this site today? I noticed earlier that their was two post under my name that were not mine…but I also noticed that when I was going to reply here, to Romer, that the name and email address was someone else?
Maybe someone was not impersonating me but my name came up inadvertantly and they posted without knowing this.The Strib needs to look into this.
Anyone can use any name they want. There’s no login feature here.
I’m a little sad everyday that Gomez is not in the lineup……
Columbo,
when I tried to get on here about 4:30, it had your name and comcast email. when i tried to post something, it came back as error.
This site is going about as well as our second basemen
whooo hooo, it posted,
no server encountered an error
Could it really be possible that the Twins could send Punto and his 2.4 mil down and keep up Tolbert and Buscher??
Maybe the Dazzle Man needs to be reminded of the company line.
I’m not a Punto hater, but I’d rather see him elsewhere. He can’t hit and he’s stupid. I think someone mentioned that he doesn’t learn well.
Anyway, he’s a good utility man. That should mean 1 start every 2 weeks and late inning defensive replacement.
The problem is Gardenhire. If Punto is in the ballpark in uniform, Gardenhire has to start him. He can’t help himself. Wait and see: Punto starts 155 games this year.
So I spent 13.5 minutes composing a brilliant thesis on LNP. It didn’t post, and apparently my name and email address have changed as well: Drunk4Life? something like that.
GBG, it’ll still probably be Harris, won’t it. Maybe he’ll turn the corner.
Looks like there are no FA’s to fill the bill. Like I said, I’d leave it up to Bill Smith. An early-season trade.
And with Slowey’s apparent success, he can feel much more comfortable trading a AAA pitcher. Twins are loaded for a couple years there, and Manship isn’t far behind.
lilbiscuit,
I hope you weren’t refering to me. LaVelle will have to come on and admonish you for calling names.
Harris is a lock to get 6 weeks of at bats before they begin to look around
I have seen all of the st games this year. None of the cuts should ever see the inside of the Dome this year before the September call-up - if even then! If any do, the Twins are really in trouble1
Soocroix
who has impressed you this far, from what you have seen??
Regarding spring training performances–I think that since Harris has been underwhelming this spring his leash will be shorter than it would have been if he hit .400 with three or four bombs. The same for Buscher, if he gets the final position.
I don’t think fans should read too much into Morneau’s “struggles” or that fact that neither Lamb nor Cuddyer has homered and Adam Everett is the same hitter whether his average is below the Mendoza line or above .300 (as it is now).
yeah,
I don’t think Morneau’s “struggles” are going to affect his leash any.
LNP4Life:
It’s pretty slim when you get beyond JoMa! Among the non-big boys: Pitchers -Blackburn, Slowey, Bass, Humber(???); infielders - Tolbert(???); outfielders -Gomez will start the season because he will sell tickets for a while - then to AAA, Span will be only adequate; Young -if he can stay out of trouble, Priede is steady; Monroe - can hit; catcher - Butera can’t hit, Whiteside is my #3 pick. The big trouble in st has been the awful clutch hitting - including Cuddy & Morneau & the pathetic situation @ 2nd & 3rd! 73 wins is probably tops unless things improve dramatically!
I’m not worried, they look okay, looks like an adequate ST. It’s undeniably a transition year, so no reason to jerk yourself around.
Soocroix, I’d be interested in your take on Casilla. You think he can’t settle down and do the program in AAA? It’s just that he looks so talented. And someone said he always has a high OBP.
And be reassured that I won’t argue with you and whatever. I’m not trolling.
hey
thanks for the info. I suspect this team may stuggle at first and hit their stride later. Too many new guys and the rotation is looking to not be 100% to start. Matching last years finish would be a good year from this team. Hope they can suprise like Indians did 3 years ago.
Actually, my first paragraph above was meant for me as anyone else. (I wrote it before Soocroix’s 2nd entry.)
And actually, I’m only worried about 2B.
True, there are enough inadequacies to go around. So expectations are low and I don’t want to complain very much. What can ya do?
Weird, now the same thing happened to me.
LNP4Life’s info was in my name and address lines, and it looked like my entry hadn’t been sent.
But I brought up the page again, and there the entry was.
are you sure it wasn’t Drunk4life??
mmmmmmmmmmmm beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeer
so tasty, so cold
TESTING
Romer:
I posted this reply once, so I hope that I don’t duplicate. Cassila has a world of talent & speed. However, I fear that, as Calvin once said about David West: “he has a million dollar arm, but a 10 cent brain”. Hopefully, he’ll grow up this year, because the Twins sure need someone better at 2nd than they have now! I don’t think that pitching will be the problem a lot of people think that it will be this season.
Boy! Is this blog messed up! My first page was from Mar. 20 of last year and selling Levitra and Extenze and viagra style stuff. The rest of the entries were typed like every finger was on the wrong keys! I was afraid I was banned for something I said on Access Vikings! Good to read you guys again!
Well, Soocroix at 6:41 refers to the “awful clutch hitting” of Morneau and Cuddy this ST.
If ya extrapolate out Morneau’s stats this ST into a full season you get about 110 RBIs. After today’s game, Cuddy is even higher.
And that’s with Morneau’s lousy .233 BA.
Yup, soocroix, a 10 cent brain. Or maybe his brain is located somewhere other than his cranium.
Columbo, I just gave up on Roberts cuz I just found out he’s a lifetime .208 hitter on turf.
All our hopes rest in Harris…….and Liriano.
Columbo, I just gave up on Roberts cuz I just found out he’s a lifetime .208 hitter on turf.
Huh? Robert’s career line in roughly 500-some PA’s on turf…
.291/.369/.435/.804
Columbo, I just gave up on Roberts cuz I just found out he’s a lifetime .208 hitter on turf.
Huh? Robert’s career line in 500-some PA’s on turf…
.291/.369/.435/.804
I got the stat from the MLB Orioles site. Where did you get yours please, snepp?
Just read a report that said Morneau had raging allergies a week ago in the heat and humidity. He’ll be ready to go opening day.
whoooo hooooooooo
that there Morneau is just gonna turn 27
yeeeeeeeeeeeee haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaw
Just a baseball game site- try to pitch a perfect game.
Woo-hoo. Just pitched my first perfect game. The trick is to learn the slooooooowww curve ball. 25-30 mph.
2008 Scapegoat: Nick Punto
2007 Scapegoat: Carlos Silva
2006 Scapegoat: Kyle Lohse
My predictions (not all my choices) for the last 10 cuts:
Span (not Gomez)
Pridie
Buscher (not Tolbert)
Perkins
Bass (will lose on waivers, but I hope not)
Humber (not Blackburn)
Daigle
Whiteside
Butera
Knott
Keepers:
Gomez,Tolbert,Blackburn
Does anyone know when the next televised game is? Today??
agreed, the switch-hitting tolbert has hit to well and fielded to good at short, second, and third not to make this team. he also played first and outfield in the futures game, looks like a new star rising with this kid. tolbert makes team because of impressive spring and Gardy likes him too…
Mike Cincotta,
Game today DIRECTV ch.647 at Noon CDT.
Romer,
Here is Roberts stats for Dome and Turf.
Dome (from ESPN):
2003:52 AB .346/.414/.442/.856
2004:82 AB .354/.413/.537/.950
2005:48 AB .271/.368/.500/.868
2006:66 AB .348/.405/.470/.875
2007:64 AB .250/.351/.391/.742
Turf (from MLB site):
2003:63 AB .302/.389/.397/.786
2004:98 AB .357/.418/.541/.959
2005:73 AB .274/.379/.493/.872
2006:94 AB .298/.368/.404/.772
2007:77 AB .208/.311/.351/.662
Of course this data shows a small sample size from year to year, it does show that he can hit on turf and he is even better in a dome.
I think it is also on mlb.com if you have the subscription that is.
surprised neither joe or lavelle have lineups posted for today…would love to hear some updates …let us know whats happening in the sunshine state…
Tomorrow’s game is on FSN North I think…
here’s the gameday site
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/y2007/gd.html?2008_03_22_minmlb_slnmlb_1
Well, I guess we’ll have to discuss here:
Anyways, Twins lead 1-0 after a half inning of play. Gomez lead off the game with a double and scored on a sac-fly by Young.
Gomez is now hitting .283 this spring.
No undates maybe they dont want their lap tops to get wet.
I wonder if there is no wireless there because the Pioneer Press blog has no post either.
Stats come from baseball-reference.com, if you’re not using it you don’t take baseball statistics seriously.
[…] the team begins to assemble in New York: 1. Tight End Bubba Franks was just signed to a 1 ymvn.comTwins Notes And LineupTwins Notes And Lineup Posted on March 21st, 2008 ?? 9:56 AM By La Velle The Twins cut?Randy […]
