All Things 2024 Minnesota Twins In-Season Thread

Here’s the details -

 

Here’s the details -

Here’s his baseball savant scorecard, apparently he’s a good fielder -

 


Here’s his baseball savant scorecard, apparently he’s a good fielder -

So what exactly am I missing? They traded away the #36 overall pick from a couple years ago to essentially pay Margot $9.5MM for one year. Maybe I'm the minority, but what was wrong with just bringing back Taylor in CF? You wouldn't have to pay him even that much, and he doesn't cost a prospect.
 



So what exactly am I missing? They traded away the #36 overall pick from a couple years ago to essentially pay Margot $9.5MM for one year. Maybe I'm the minority, but what was wrong with just bringing back Taylor in CF? You wouldn't have to pay him even that much, and he doesn't cost a prospect.
Doesn't make a lot of sense. Margot and Taylor are basically the same guy.
 

So what exactly am I missing? They traded away the #36 overall pick from a couple years ago to essentially pay Margot $9.5MM for one year. Maybe I'm the minority, but what was wrong with just bringing back Taylor in CF? You wouldn't have to pay him even that much, and he doesn't cost a prospect.
There's little chance the Twins are paying the full amount of his contract. I could be wrong but I don't see that happening.

Edit:
2:12pm: The Twins are also receiving infield prospect Rayne Doncon from the Dodgers, reports Daniel Alvarez Montes of El Extra Base. ESPN’s Jeff Passan adds that the Dodgers are including cash to cover some of Margot’s $10MM salary as well. Whether that’s in addition to the $4MM of Margot’s salary that’s being covered by Tampa Bay remains to be seen.
 

They have traded their first 5 picks from the 2021 MLB draft and have Manuel Margot and a competitive balance pick to show for it.
 




So what exactly am I missing? They traded away the #36 overall pick from a couple years ago to essentially pay Margot $9.5MM for one year. Maybe I'm the minority, but what was wrong with just bringing back Taylor in CF? You wouldn't have to pay him even that much, and he doesn't cost a prospect.
Don’t shoot the messenger ☮️

A guess, not necessarily a correct one, is that they see Danny De Andrade as their SS of the future; my guess is that he’ll be ranked higher than Noah Miller’s spot as the 23rd prospect in our new Top 30 which will come out before the season - he was in the high 20’s last year as a 19 year old and is ranked in the Top 100 players by another ranking service. They also paid him $2.2M to sign, significantly more than Miller got.

In case you’re not familiar with him, here is a nice write up on him -


You’re looking at prospects as guys on the roster; most don’t make it. They are in essence assets to build your team, one way or another.

You also left out Sonny’s two years of stellar service, without him last year, we don’t advance on the playoffs, from my vantage point.

I give FO types the benefit of the doubt on moves, as they get paid to do it and no one else on here does. They, just like everyone, doesn’t bat a 1000%, nope just 600, 3 out of 5 👑 in our division, the true measure is why the moves are made and games are played.
 

Don’t shoot the messenger ☮️

A guess, not necessarily a correct one, is that they see Danny De Andrade as their SS of the future; my guess is that he’ll be ranked higher than Noah Miller’s spot as the 23rd prospect in our new Top 30 which will come out before the season - he was in the high 20’s last year as a 19 year old and is ranked in the Top 100 players by another ranking service. They also paid him $2.2M to sign, significantly more than Miller got.

In case you’re not familiar with him, here is a nice write up on him -


You’re looking at prospects as guys on the roster; most don’t make it. They are in essence assets to build your team, one way or another.

You also left out Sonny’s two years of stellar service, without him last year, we don’t advance on the playoffs, from my vantage point.

I give FO types the benefit of the doubt on moves, as they get paid to do it and no one else on here does. They, just like everyone, doesn’t bat a 1000%, nope just 600, 3 out of 5 👑 in our division, the true measure is why the moves are made and games are played.
There's a little bit of damned if you do, damned if you don't right now. For years the Twins were criticized (rightfully so) for not wanting to part with prospects. This new FO has been willing to take chances with prospects to acquire MLB players. But they also probably can do it more because they've done a good job replenishing the prospect pool too.

Sometimes the move works out (Gray), sometimes it doesn't (Mahle). I think it's fine to be critical of some of the moves like the Mahle trade but I'm really glad they are making moves.
 

Noah Miller has never really hit. 3 seasons in the minors good for a slash line of .220/.326/.340 for an OPS of .644 - 21 yrs old.

Rayne Doncon not much better: .237/.305/.414- OPS .719 but he was 19 yrs old last year in A ball.

for Margot - broke into majors at age 21. got some votes for NL Rookie of the Year in 2017. 8 seasons in majors with Padres and Rays. generally a .250 to .260 avg with OPS right around .700. in 732 games as a fielder played CF 521 times, RF 198 times and LF 50 times. His Defensive Runs Saved rating dipped a bit in 2023 compared to earlier in his career.
 

Think the Twins will end up paying between $4 & $5 million of Margot's salary this year from what I've read. Probably could have had Taylor back for a little less but have to assume Twins like Margot better.
 



Think the Twins will end up paying between $4 & $5 million of Margot's salary this year from what I've read. Probably could have had Taylor back for a little less but have to assume Twins like Margot better.
I have to wonder if Taylor was asking for more than that and that is why he still hasn't signed anywhere. The Twins didn't want to wait anymore.

Or yeah they like Margot more.
 



There's a little bit of damned if you do, damned if you don't right now. For years the Twins were criticized (rightfully so) for not wanting to part with prospects. This new FO has been willing to take chances with prospects to acquire MLB players. But they also probably can do it more because they've done a good job replenishing the prospect pool too.

Sometimes the move works out (Gray), sometimes it doesn't (Mahle). I think it's fine to be critical of some of the moves like the Mahle trade but I'm really glad they are making moves.
I love the fact that they are aggressive; I never got a base knock without swinging.

It’s exciting and hopefully they get more right than wrong. To that end, I hope Paddack has a good season - his stuff is dynamic.
 

Noah Miller has never really hit. 3 seasons in the minors good for a slash line of .220/.326/.340 for an OPS of .644 - 21 yrs old.

Rayne Doncon not much better: .237/.305/.414- OPS .719 but he was 19 yrs old last year in A ball.

for Margot - broke into majors at age 21. got some votes for NL Rookie of the Year in 2017. 8 seasons in majors with Padres and Rays. generally a .250 to .260 avg with OPS right around .700. in 732 games as a fielder played CF 521 times, RF 198 times and LF 50 times. His Defensive Runs Saved rating dipped a bit in 2023 compared to earlier in his career.
If you haven’t hit in your first three seasons in the minors, it’s unlikely that’s going to change moving forward; the best predictor of future results is past performances.
 
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Some Bill Veeck fun and the history of little people in the game; Altuve slipped by unnoticed.

 

Here’s the details -

I know you are waiting for my review of this trade. I am all for it. Got some cash back in the deal too. They needed a right handed outfielder and he fits the bill.
 




They really Qwesi'd that one.
So, the Mahle trade where they gave up Encarnacion-Strand and Steven Haidjar from this draft (in addition to Spencer Steer) was definitely a bum deal.

Giving up Miller for Margot (and the other minor leaguer) doesn't seem to be too concerning. If they feel that Margot was their best option as the 4th outfielder for the team, a light-hitting minor league shortstop (at an area of depth) isn't going to worry me much.

I can't get down with anyone criticizing giving up Chase Petty for Sonny Gray; for years, Twins fans have been used to caution at all steps with the FO and trading minor league prospects for proven talent. Gray gave us two very good years and without him, as mentioned by NYC, I doubt they have the success they did last year. Maybe Petty turns out to be an ace, but this wasn't exactly Larry Andersen for Jeff Bagwell territory.

Finally, a question of wonder--and I truly say this as someone who generally has enjoyed your opinions across a wide range of topics--is there anything positive you have to say about the Twins, ever? When I saw this trade pop up yesterday, I didn't know anything about Margot, so as my usual course of action, I popped over here to see if there were insights/sources that would help me know more--but as I was headed this way, the first thought that popped up was, "I'm sure howeda's going to rip this deal". It seems your default mechanism with the Twins is to be highly critical and I can't recall a time where you've been optimistic with this franchise, in any vein. I get that there is reason for wariness--but at the same time, in my lifetime of fandom, this is the only franchise that's delivered championships and generally is at the top of their division (yes, the AL Central is weak, yes, the losing playoff streak was mind-boggling, yes, spending good money on Joey Gallo seemed a fool's errand for everyone to see. . .). I understand healthy skepticism--hell, any MN sports fan better have it in supply--but I don't understand how everything Twins related is an immediate negative reaction.
 


So, the Mahle trade where they gave up Encarnacion-Strand and Steven Haidjar from this draft (in addition to Spencer Steer) was definitely a bum deal.

Giving up Miller for Margot (and the other minor leaguer) doesn't seem to be too concerning. If they feel that Margot was their best option as the 4th outfielder for the team, a light-hitting minor league shortstop (at an area of depth) isn't going to worry me much.

I can't get down with anyone criticizing giving up Chase Petty for Sonny Gray; for years, Twins fans have been used to caution at all steps with the FO and trading minor league prospects for proven talent. Gray gave us two very good years and without him, as mentioned by NYC, I doubt they have the success they did last year. Maybe Petty turns out to be an ace, but this wasn't exactly Larry Andersen for Jeff Bagwell territory.

Finally, a question of wonder--and I truly say this as someone who generally has enjoyed your opinions across a wide range of topics--is there anything positive you have to say about the Twins, ever? When I saw this trade pop up yesterday, I didn't know anything about Margot, so as my usual course of action, I popped over here to see if there were insights/sources that would help me know more--but as I was headed this way, the first thought that popped up was, "I'm sure howeda's going to rip this deal". It seems your default mechanism with the Twins is to be highly critical and I can't recall a time where you've been optimistic with this franchise, in any vein. I get that there is reason for wariness--but at the same time, in my lifetime of fandom, this is the only franchise that's delivered championships and generally is at the top of their division (yes, the AL Central is weak, yes, the losing playoff streak was mind-boggling, yes, spending good money on Joey Gallo seemed a fool's errand for everyone to see. . .). I understand healthy skepticism--hell, any MN sports fan better have it in supply--but I don't understand how everything Twins related is an immediate negative reaction.
howeda's negativity has really spiked recently. It's absolutely tiring.

My guess is that's what years of OT board nonsense does to a person. He's not the only one it's happened to.
 

Happy 40th birthday to former Twins center fielder Denard Span.

Span tied the modern (since 1900) major league record (and Ken Landreaux's team record) with three triples on June 29, 2010. He went 4-for-4 with a walk, five RBI, and two runs scored in an 11-4 win over Detroit.
 

howeda's negativity has really spiked recently. It's absolutely tiring.

My guess is that's what years of OT board nonsense does to a person. He's not the only one it's happened to.
The best thing that ever happened for my mental health (in relation to this site) was when the off-topic boards were split. I know I wouldn't have continued to be as active on here if I had to continually wade through that cesspool to access pro sports, movies, music, etc.
 

Happy 40th birthday to former Twins center fielder Denard Span.

Span tied the modern (since 1900) major league record (and Ken Landreaux's team record) with three triples on June 29, 2010. He went 4-for-4 with a walk, five RBI, and two runs scored in an 11-4 win over Detroit.
Happy birthday Denard. I just happened to catch him on the radio a few weeks ago with PA, he was on just after Joe's HOF nomination was announced. He of course raved about Joe's abilities. But I also learned that he is doing a lot of charitable work to help people get access to transportation in the Tampa area. Always seemed like a great guy and I'm glad he's enjoying life post-baseball.
 




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