Twins #1 Fan

Minnesota Twins Falter Before Break: How Will They Turn the Season Around?

2010-07-13T10:11:00.000-05:00

Let's face it: The AL Central is the Minnesota Twins' division to lose, and they did just about everything they could to lose it in the last month or so before the All-Star break. The starting pitching was atrocious and the offense faltered.

So what should the Twins do? With Mauer and every starting pitcher besides Pavano underperforming, it's looking pretty rough. I've got a few ideas to entertain:

Trade for Dan Haren or Ted Lilly

Cliff Lee already slipped by. I'm sick of seeing the Twins wait and wait for a great deal to land under their nose, only to get stuck with a lackluster upgrade right before the trade deadline.

Supposedly the Twins would have had Lee for Wilson Ramos and Aaron Hicks, but backed out. I understand that Minnesota values their prospects, but they've been developing some great young players for the last 19 years with no championships.

Why not trade the young guys? Looking ahead to the future is a good thing, but not if there is never a "present."

Dan Haren would come to Minnesota with an option for 2013 if they could land him, and would be a better deal than Cliff Lee because he is young, proven, and isn't just a rental. Roy Oswalt has been great this year, but hasn't been given any run support and comes at a high price. Either pitcher would be a great upgrade, and the Twins absolutely need to make a push for one of the two. Shoddy pitching is not how teams win divisions.

Some other starters that should be on the move are Ted Lilly and Fausto Carmona. Lilly could benefit from a change of scenery, as he has posted a 3-8 record in a Cubs uniform. The Twins would love another lefty starter as much as I'd like to see Lilly pitch in the American League. Carmona looks to be back to 2007 form, going 8-7 with a nice 3.64 ERA before the break.

Shop for a Starter at Third Base

I've heard rumors about the Twins eyeing Miguel Tejada. He would bring great defense, and is currently hitting .276/7/35. Not too bad for an old guy. The problem is he likes playing in Baltimore. If the Twins could hoist him over to Minnesota, he would be a nice upgrade both offensively and defensively.

What about Joe Crede? He is apparently healthy and would sign for next to nothing. He promises stellar defense at third, but his offense is questionable. At this point, I don't see why the Twins don't sign him for $1 mil or so and spend some real big bucks on another offensive upgrade.

Mix Up the Starting Rotation

Trade Nick Blackburn. Cut your losses. Blacky has shown nothing but his inability to compete at the major league level, and hasn't been effective since the end of May.

Something else I'd like to see is Brian Duensing in the starting lineup. He's been lights-out as a reliever and even showed great starting stuff last year, ending with a start against the Yankees in game one of the ALDS. Putting Duensing in the starting five would give the Twins another proven (although briefly) lefty starter.

I wouldn't even be opposed to sending Alex Burnett to the mound for some starts. He's thrown 40 innings so far this season and boasts a 3.60 ERA from the bullpen. Sure beats Blackburn's 6.40 or Baker's 4.87.

Grab Some Relievers and a Real Closer

Neshek is injured, Condrey is injured, and Guerrier has imploded as of late. It's about time to shore up the bullpen. A lot of guys could be moving, and I would expect one if not more to land in a Twins uniform by the end of July.

A diamond in the rough down the stretch has been Jesse Crain. He's been electric lately, although his numbers don't really show it. I expect Crain and his rejuvenated slider to see a lot more time in the second half.

Matt Capps is somebody I would love to see end up in Minnesota. While I haven't heard anything involving the Twins and Capps, he makes perfect sense. Matt has had some issues with the long ball this year, and Target field seems to be a pitcher's ballpark through and through. The Twins need a good closer, and Capps could fit the role nicely.

Another (more likely) option for the Twins is David David Aardsma of the Mariners. Aardsma is a proven closer, but holds a rough 0-6 record and a sub-John Rauch 16-for-20 saves. At this point, I'd stick with Rauch unless the Twins can land a Matt Capps or Heath Bell kind of closer.

Just Make Some Moves!

The Twins are going to need to be busy before the trade deadline. The White Sox have already been linked to some big players like Prince Fielder, and the Tigers don't appear to be going anywhere. A new third baseman, a veteran ace, reliever and closer are what the Twins need. Here are my suggestions and hopefuls for said deficient positions:

Third Base Suggestion: Miguel Tejada .277, 7 HR, 35 RBI

Third Base Hopeful: Kevin Kouzmanoff .266, 8 HR, 40 RBI

Starter Suggestion: Ted Lilly 3-8, 4.08 ERA

Starter Hopeful: Dan Haren 7-7, 4.36 ERA

Reliever Suggestion: Todd Coffey 2-2, 4.41 ERA

Reliever Hopeful: Mike Wuertz 2-1 5.60 ERA

Closer Suggestion: Kerry Wood 8 SV, 6.30 ERA

Closer Hopeful: Matt Capps 23 SV, 3.18 ERA

There's the blueprint. A handful of moves could put the Twins back on track in 2010, and will hopefully help Ron Gardenhire win his sixth division title and first World Series as manager of the Minnesota Twins.

Roster Locks for Twins

2010-02-09T10:24:00.000-06:00

After adding Orlando Hudson and Jim Thome the Twins look set with a great roster here are there locks on there roster right now.

* These people will be on the roster no matter how bad they do in spring training*

Its Age then War
C Joe Mauer 27 7 War
1B Justin Morneau 29 3.2 War
2B Orlando Hudson 32 2.5 War
SS JJ Hardy 28 3.0 War
INF Nick Punto 32 1.5 War
LF Delmon Young 25 1.1 War
CF Denard Span 26 4 War
RF Michael Cuddyer 31 1.8 War
DH Jason Kubel 28 2 War
BN Jim Thome 40 1 War Batters Avg Age 30 Added War 27.1

Spots Not Filled Yet
3rd Baseman
5th Outfielder
Backup Catcher

Pitchers
SP Kevin Slowey 26 3.5 War
SP Scott Baker 29 3.5 War
SP Carl Pavano 34 3.0 War
SP Nick Blackburn 28 2.8 War
CL Joe Nathan 36 2.0 War
SU Matt Gurrier 32 0.5 War
SU Jose Mijares 26 0.5 War
LR Jon Rauch 32 0.7 War
Ptichers Avg Age 30 War 16.5
Spots Not Filled Yet

5th Starter
2 LR
1 MR

Overall thats a 3 year jump from last year mostly cause of Thome and combined war is

43.6

I will be back with who could fill the open spots..

2010-01-26T17:20:00.000-06:00

posting break

2010-01-17T10:43:00.001-06:00

i will not post againg until the twins make a move or the seasons starts. sorry but with school its to hard to post right now.

January 8th

2010-01-08T15:48:00.000-06:00

"I didn't have evil intentions, but I guess I did have power." - Harmon Killebrew

Birthdays
1915-Walker Cooper died 1991
1934-Gene Freese
1953- Bruce Sutter
1971-Jason Giambi
1976-Carl Pavano
1981-Jeff Francis
1984-Jeff Francoeur

Quotes I dont have yesterdays but heres some others!
Two words: show cowdown

Segment 1

I should keep my words soft and sweet in case I have to eat them

Segment 2
One thing I can give and still keep: My word

Segment 3

2010-01-07T13:39:00.002-06:00

Life is not a cabaret. It’s a dive bar.

Note: During the introduction, Woody claimed he would shave his beard if he could make it through the show without a mute. Tony immediately muted him.
Segment 1
Life in not a bowl of cherries. It’s the pits.
Segment 2
Life is not a box of chocolates. It’s a bag of nuts.

Birthdays

2010-01-07T13:26:00.005-06:00

I will also try to post baseball players birthdays. I will bold current players of former Twins.
January 7th. Also in this post i will include a quote of the day from the past or from the present.

"Bert (Blyleven), forget the wins and losses. You finished almost five thousand innings. You pitched in 700 games. You struck out almost four thousand guys. What more does one arm have to do, to prove to people that this was a gift from God, and a guy who busted his butt for 22 years, and completed 242 games, and shut out sixty teams?" - Pitcher Rob Dibble

1984-Jon Lester
1983-Edwin Encarnacion
1982-Francisco Rodriguez
1978- Kevin Mench
1976-Alfonso Soriano
1976- Eric Gagne
1950- Ross Grimsley
1945-Tony Conigliaro
1942-Jim Lefebvre
1922- Alvin Dark
1913- Johnny Mize died 1993

About not posting lately

2010-01-07T11:12:00.003-06:00

I apologize for not posting lately. School starting back up means lots of tests. I haven't had the time. Today we have the day off because of snow. Hopefully something will happen today on the Twins front. If any of you are fans of the T.V. show Around the Horn you know there is a man named Woody Paige who has some very funny quotes that he puts on his chalkboard. I am going to try to tell you them everyday. I hope you enjoy them and get some laughs. (Dont worry I will still post Twins stuff just something to post when there is nothing else to!) I will start with yesterdays later today.

Heres a nice article about the show

'Around The Horn' is a sports discussion show on ESPN. It's a little different than your garden variety panel discussion show because, while they discuss topics somewhat seriously, they don't take themsmelves or the show seriously at all. To really understand what the show is and how it works either watch it(on ESPN or their web site) or check out the entry about it on wikipedia ( which is way too detailed by the way)

One of the regular guests is Woody Paige of The Denver Post. When he's on from his newsroom, and often times when he travels, he has a chalkboard over his right shoulder that has little messsages on it. The messages are sometimes pithy, sometimes insulting ot his other panelists and, every once in a whild entertationg.

I will try to post them every day

Twins sign..... Clay Condrey

2010-01-07T08:20:00.002-06:00

The Twins Agreed to terms with reliever Clay Condrey yesterday afternoon
acording to a team press relase.

Jose Lopez Twins?

2009-12-31T09:14:00.000-06:00

Today On mlb trade rumors it reported that "Dave Cameron hears (via Twitter) that the Mariners are "kicking the tires" on Francisco Liriano" if you go on to his twitter page it says this "Rumor of the day - M's kicking tires on Francisco Liriano. If there's one team who Jose Lopez makes sense for, it is Minnesota." So could that mean Lopez could be coming to the twins if he did it would be a OK move not as good as a Hudson or f Lopez but pretty good. Hes 26 years old so just going into his prime a big strikeout guy but I'm all right because he would probably hit pretty low in the lineup and Hardy is are #2 hitter what do you think about the twins trying to get Lopez is it a fair trade leave your comments please!

Hudson vs Lopez

2009-12-30T11:57:00.004-06:00

Many Twins fans are wanting the Twins to sign either Orlando Hudson or Felipe Lopez both coming off exceptional years. I am going to break down there pros or cons and if i ever get and followers leave your comments or ideas here!

Orlando Hudson
Pros:

4 time Gold Glover

Good veteran presence

ideal #2 hitter

decently fast

Cons:

overrated

injuries

late season slump

Hudson is my favorite his cons aren't very bad and he would be ideal with the glove and the bat

Felipe Lopez

Pros:

high obp
ok defense

Cons:

not consisant
bad defense
not that fast

I like hudson better who do you like better

Anthony Slama

2009-12-28T09:33:00.003-06:00

Anthony Slama is a pitcher in the Twins minor leagues who I feel is ready for the big leagues. He was drafted in the 36th round of the 06 draft. This year he put up numbers of 4-4 with a 2.67 era in 62 games with 81 innings pitched. He started the year in double AA but mid season he got a promotion to AAA where he post a 0-2 3.45. That may be high for some of you but he only had one bad outing where he gave up five runs. I think he could put up the same production as Crain in 2010 his pitching reporitre consists of
Fastball
Slider
Change up

Control: 43
K-Rating: 90
Efficiency: 70
vsPower: 78
his baseball cube ratins

About me

2009-12-28T09:04:00.000-06:00

I'm new to the blogging world so let me introduce myself my names is Jacob. i started following baseball when i was about 7 and i liked the Yankees yuck i know cause my dads a fan. I'm from a small town in Minnesota close to mankato In 2006 i started to like the twins i went to my first game which the won against the white sox since then they have become my life and i watch every game unless if i have a game. I love to make up ideas about the twins so i decided to make a website to share my ideas and opines. Enjoy!!!

The Twins Needs

2009-12-28T08:51:00.001-06:00

Its seems like a normal twins off season nothing going on at all. The twins still have a few needs. Who will bat second? Who will play 2nd base or 3rd base? Will Nick Punto be used in his best role a utily infielder? Who takes up the last spot in the rotation? Who will fill in the bench? Whats the bullpen going to look like?
Today i am going to show you the most cost efficient pen

CL Nathan 12.5 M
SU Neshek about .44 million last year should rebound well
SU Gurrier 2 million last year with a Arbitron raise
MR Rauch 2.9 M
SU Mijares .4 million last year should be around the same
LR Delahney i know this might be surprising to some of you but he dominates AAA and is cheaper then crain 300 k better than 3m
LR Slama yes the other dominate AAA pitcher he'll be better than Perkins or Liriano (sorry couldn't find contract info on cots)
so there is my idea of a cost efficient pen
i think keppel will be released. Crain and perk will probably be traded