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Hey Joebanzi, how 'bout them Twins....
Skinpinch
Posts: 1,531
in Sports Talk
Hey, Joebanzi, how is it going!
I posted in the pre season about the Twins, and three of my main points/analysis were right on...
1) Joe Mauer will be a stud!!
2)Liriano would be excellent!! I have no idea why Liriano was wasted in middle relief...while they sent out some of the worst starting pitching in MLB outing after outing...that cost them dearly this year! I knew they were going to do that too.
3) I just don't get what they saw in Tony Batista. I am profoundly confused on why MLB General Mangers cannot understand how detrimental a .below .300 OB% is, they must take Dusty Baker pills(I name them after Baker because he somehow trotted out a lineup last year that featured the number ONE and TWO hitters with OB%'s cemented below .300)
JOE MAUER IS THE MVP!
No, not the stupid MVP award that is currently given based on faulty criteria...the criteria where the MVP is awarded to the player depending on who their teammates are, or are not. That award doesn't carry true significane. They will give it to a lesser player who has better teammates(causing a division winner), or to the lesser player who has teammates that are real good, but just bad enough to make the player look more 'valuable'.
The MVP is simply the best player, the player that contributes the MOST to producing/preventing runs, which ultimately leads to being responsible for creating more wins.
Right now he is in the top five offensive players in the league, and the others are DH's or Non defensive outfielders, so Mauer's numbers carry more weight. He is throwing out 40% of his runners! He isn't some ornament behind the plate like Piazza...Mauer actually has high defensive value at a thin position to go with his top five offense.
The guy is hitting .430 with men on, and slugging .561, so his offensive numbers get more of a boost there as well.
The bottom line is that he is the best player in baseball this season, and certainly the most valuable as a result. The man would be a MONSTER upgrade for EVERY SINGLE team in MLB at catcher! Yes, a big upgrade over Victor Martinez too! After that, there are worlds difference between him and every other catcher in baseball. There isn't another player in MLB that can make such a claim. That is what separates him from his top five offensive peers. That is what makes slightly him better than them.
There is still a lot of season left, so he could fall some, but man this guy has a future. I emplore the Twins to keep him at catcher, and to not be cheap and to go after one of the heavy hitting Outfielders who are much easier to attain. Add Carlos Lee and one more bona fide bat, then Minnesota wins the division next year.
AND NEVER LET CARLOS SILVA START ANOTHER GAME FOR AS LONG AS BASEBALL EXISTS!!!
I posted in the pre season about the Twins, and three of my main points/analysis were right on...
1) Joe Mauer will be a stud!!
2)Liriano would be excellent!! I have no idea why Liriano was wasted in middle relief...while they sent out some of the worst starting pitching in MLB outing after outing...that cost them dearly this year! I knew they were going to do that too.
3) I just don't get what they saw in Tony Batista. I am profoundly confused on why MLB General Mangers cannot understand how detrimental a .below .300 OB% is, they must take Dusty Baker pills(I name them after Baker because he somehow trotted out a lineup last year that featured the number ONE and TWO hitters with OB%'s cemented below .300)
JOE MAUER IS THE MVP!
No, not the stupid MVP award that is currently given based on faulty criteria...the criteria where the MVP is awarded to the player depending on who their teammates are, or are not. That award doesn't carry true significane. They will give it to a lesser player who has better teammates(causing a division winner), or to the lesser player who has teammates that are real good, but just bad enough to make the player look more 'valuable'.
The MVP is simply the best player, the player that contributes the MOST to producing/preventing runs, which ultimately leads to being responsible for creating more wins.
Right now he is in the top five offensive players in the league, and the others are DH's or Non defensive outfielders, so Mauer's numbers carry more weight. He is throwing out 40% of his runners! He isn't some ornament behind the plate like Piazza...Mauer actually has high defensive value at a thin position to go with his top five offense.
The guy is hitting .430 with men on, and slugging .561, so his offensive numbers get more of a boost there as well.
The bottom line is that he is the best player in baseball this season, and certainly the most valuable as a result. The man would be a MONSTER upgrade for EVERY SINGLE team in MLB at catcher! Yes, a big upgrade over Victor Martinez too! After that, there are worlds difference between him and every other catcher in baseball. There isn't another player in MLB that can make such a claim. That is what separates him from his top five offensive peers. That is what makes slightly him better than them.
There is still a lot of season left, so he could fall some, but man this guy has a future. I emplore the Twins to keep him at catcher, and to not be cheap and to go after one of the heavy hitting Outfielders who are much easier to attain. Add Carlos Lee and one more bona fide bat, then Minnesota wins the division next year.
AND NEVER LET CARLOS SILVA START ANOTHER GAME FOR AS LONG AS BASEBALL EXISTS!!!
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Comments
What a year for my 2 Twin draft pics (by the way, I'm in first place in a 12 team league).
Jay
Morneau is really driving the ball, if you get a chance watch how the ball seems to jump off of his bat. He can hit it out to left field without getting good wood on the ball.
Kubel is finally recovered from his devastating knee injury and looks pretty darn good at the plate, he won't win too many foot races, but he has a good arm and a quick bat.
Bartlett is another good young player at short, he has a cannon of an arm, good speed and doubles power.
With the best one two starters in MLB in Santana and Liriano and one of the finest closers in Nathon, this team could be VERY good for quite awhile.
I didn't dislike Batista as much as most, but he was certainly not the answer at third. At least he played Rueben Sierra has been hurt all year.
It's exciting to watch the young group that is playing right now. Mauer is totally a stud! Don't give up on Silva, he has pitched very well his last couple of times out.
JoeBanzai
For Twins fan's sake, I sure hope they don't cry poor and then miss the window that is presenting itself. They have to break the bank this off season(or at the deadline), and take a shot at it. They need to keep the young nucleus, and get the free agents to fill in, and that is the way to do it.
Anyway, it could get interesting in the Central down the stretch.
Santana and Liriano look to be two of the best, Radke has turned it around, he's pitching a one hitter so far tonight. Some of the young position players are really coming into their own.
This is a solid team, Santana and Nathan are locked up for the next few years and most of the young "guns" are too young to get huge contracts in the next couple of years.
The Twins are going to have to play well against Detroit and the White Sox AND continue to dominate the second division teams to have a chance this year. I think they can do it, but the odds are against it. The teams ahead of us are playing with as much confidence as Minnesota is.
This division is playing some awesome baseball, the fans should be enjoying this!
JB