2010 Minnesota Twins

[klo626]

i didn't see a thread for the twins so i decided to make one.
I just wanted to see what you guys thought of the twins offseason.

[Bigworm]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

i didn't see a thread for the twins so i decided to make one.
I just wanted to see what you guys thought of the twins offseason.

So far so good - I like the direction the team is heading in. Our bullpen should be much better this year with Neshek coming back and Lariano apparently looking very good so far (though he may end up being a starter and not a bullpen guy). Our lineup should also be better with the acquisitions we made so far this off season even though it was pretty good last year already. Hopefully they can get the Mauer deal finalized soon though so it isn't a huge distraction. One of the big questions that remain will be our starting rotation. At this point anyway, we really don't have a staff 'ace' which may be a problem if/when we get into the playoffs...which I'm pretty confident the Twins will. Should be a fun season though

[sweny5632]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

I think the offseason has been great. Definitely one of the better that I have seen in the 25 years I have been a Twins fan.

It will be nice to have a power threat off the bench with Thome and also when an outfielder needs a day off you can put a guy in the lineup that can actually do some damage.

The Hudson signing was awesome imo. A gold glover that can get on base. It also puts Punto one step closer to his real position for good which is utility man/defensive replacement. He is not an everyday player.

The real question is 3rd base. Im assuming right now it will be a Harris/Punto platoon. Personally I think if Valencia has a decent spring training, they should hand him the keys and see what the kid can do. The lineup is pretty solid top to bottom, so its not like he is going to have to tear the cover off the ball all the time, just hold his own. In fact with how deep the lineup is he going to see alot of fastballs as it is. If Gardy doesnt trust his defense come the late innings then you bring in Punto or Harris.

[dust247]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

Who do you think will be our closer come opening day?

[Juiceman]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

Offseason - B+ grade. I think Thome was a nice (good priced) addition and so was Hudson. I think they needed to pursue 3rd base a bit harder than they did and they left pitching pretty iffy. I do think Slowey is underrated and maybe even Blackburn. Punto isn't an everyday player and I'll never understand that signing back when it happened. Harris I think could be an every day player, but not sure about 3rd base.

I think our batting lineup looks fantastic right now.

I'm not so confident on signing Mauer as others seem to be. I don't think he feels any ties to staying here in Minnesota. He's changing in terms of what he wants professionally and it's going to cost the Twins a LOT of money to keep him and I'm not sure we'll get it done. I'm not trying to be pessimistic either. I'd love to keep him. I just don't think it's a can of corn.

As far as our closer, boy...I don't know who can do it. I think the Liriano idea is intriguing and might be a good fit for him. It's a very different kind of pressure vs. being a starting pitcher and I wonder how he'd handle it. I think right now Guerrier is a better fit than Rauch. In fact, I think Guerrier can do it. We'll see. That would give us Mijares and Rauch for set-up which is a nice combo.

Can't wait to hit up Target Field!!

[klo626]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

Who do you think will be our closer come opening day?

i hope nathan but probably rauch or liariano

[klo626]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/spring...ory?id=5015108


Its official Nathan out for the season

[klo626]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

http://minnesota.twins.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100321&content_id=8860832&vkey=news_min&fext=.jsp&c_id=min

Im sure you already know

[snepp]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

I can't believe there are still people out there that think because Delmon hits .290 that he hasn't been a terrible player.


[/rant]

[bergie56]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

I can't believe there are still people out there that think because Delmon hits .290 that he hasn't been a terrible player.


[/rant]

Was his second half more valuable from a sabrmetric POV? I'm sure it was since his first half was so terrible, but was it at least worthy of being a big league player? It's probably because of how lopsided that trade has worked out, but I still have a little bit of hope for Delmon. I know it usually doesn't work out like this, but it would be nice if he carried over his power from Aug/Sept.

Also, a side question, but what would be a resource (preferably a book) to start to get into advanced stats? I have a decent understanding of some of them but I'd like to not have to look up definitions all the time and be able to use them correctly.

[snepp]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

Was his second half more valuable from a sabrmetric POV? I'm sure it was since his first half was so terrible, but was it at least worthy of being a big league player? It's probably because of how lopsided that trade has worked out, but I still have a little bit of hope for Delmon. I know it usually doesn't work out like this, but it would be nice if he carried over his power from Aug/Sept.

He didn't really hit all that well in the 2nd half either, at least not until the last couple of weeks. He barely played in July, then from the beginning of August until the middle of September he only had a .700 OPS, which included a .275 OBP (barf). It took the last 2 1/2 weeks of OPS'ing 1.000 to finally push his season OPS over .700 for the first time.

Also, a side question, but what would be a resource (preferably a book) to start to get into advanced stats? I have a decent understanding of some of them but I'd like to not have to look up definitions all the time and be able to use them correctly.

It depends on how hardcore you want to get. Moneyball isn't a bad place to start, it's an interesting read. If you want to dive right into the deep end, "The Book" from Tom Tango and company is loaded.

Otherwise I just suggest just reading sites like The Hardball Times and Fangraphs, especially any relevant intro topics they have. The Fangraphs glossary links specifically to some articles (most relate to Wins Above Replacement aka WAR). USS Mariner has a couple excellent intro topics.

A google search for "intro to sabermetrics" or similar gives a ton of good starter info too.

[bergie56]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

He didn't really hit all that well in the 2nd half either, at least not until the last couple of weeks. He barely played in July, then from the beginning of August until the middle of September he only had a .700 OPS, which included a .275 OBP (barf). It took the last 2 1/2 weeks of OPS'ing 1.000 to finally push his season OPS over .700 for the first time.


It depends on how hardcore you want to get. Moneyball isn't a bad place to start, it's an interesting read. If you want to dive right into the deep end, "The Book" from Tom Tango and company is loaded.

Otherwise I just suggest just reading sites like The Hardball Times and Fangraphs, especially any relevant intro topics they have. The Fangraphs glossary links specifically to some articles (most relate to Wins Above Replacement aka WAR). USS Mariner has a couple excellent intro topics.

A google search for "intro to sabermetrics" or similar gives a ton of good starter info too.

I actually read Moneyball and fully enjoyed it, however I felt it did a good job of explaining why advanced stats are important but didn't explain a ton beyond that. I've started checking Fangraphs quite often and have been browsing the glossary. I'll have to check out the other links. I appreciate them.

As for the Delmon part, I must've mistaken his last few weeks for his second half. There was so much drama for the last weeks of the season so it must have seemed longer to me.

[snepp]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

Let's hear it for your 2010 starting third baseman!

[Molarmite]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

I have one Opening Day to Target Field ticket that I'm looking to sell in section 126.

But mostly I'm looking to sell my four tickets to Wednesday's game in Section 327 for $30 a piece, please let me know if you're interested.

[bergie56]

Re: 2010 Minnesota Twins

Is Delmon Young's performance real, or is he just on an incredible hot streak? I'm inclined to think that he may be maturing as a hitter. He's lifting the ball more and pulling the ball a lot more.

It looks like his BABIP is right inline with his career average so luck doesn't appear to be involved. His HR/FB rate is the same as last year, it just looks like he's hitting more fly balls. I would've thought he was hitting more line drives, but it looks like he's also very close to his average. He's also been huge in higher leverage situations, but I'm not really sure if there are stats out there to prove that. Hell according to UZR he's even been better in the field (how couldn't you improve though?). Snepp, I'm particularly interested in your take given your rightful doubt about Delmon in the past.