The Twins Series

[btdart20]

2 minutes ago, Just Regular said:

Minnesota may also be an okay yardstick what it looks like if Rubenstein's Orioles settle around 20th in MLB payroll.

Fangraphs today has 2024 MIN there on the dot at $128M.

The 2023 team finally got the playoff monkey off its back, and spent just over $150M in that effort.    This winter they did not really try to retain Sonny Gray, and are replacing him with lower cost pitchers.     Jorge Polanco was also dealt off the top of the deck.

The market did support the Carlos Correa splurge, and the ALDS berth is the high achievement so far with perhaps Correa's best funded team in the rearview mirror.   Correa now at age 29.5 was enjoying having his foot speed back in the early going, but had the oblique strain this past week that has him off the board this series.

Buxton, Kiriloff, Lewis, Correa...  probably a few more.  But talk about an org snake bit then embracing the injury risk.

[SteveA]

1 hour ago, Moose Milligan said:

IIRC, the Pirates started off hot last year too before cratering.  

The Royals are in a poverty division, I like their chances better.

Last year they lost O'Neil Cruz for the season.

Last year they didn't have Skenes ready to come up in May or June.

Last year their placeholder pitchers waiting on the young guys weren't as good as Martin Perez and Marco Gonzales.

I think they can be a .500 team this year.   And I don't think it will take a record that much over .500 to win the NL Central.   Milwaukee isn't going to keep up what they are doing.

It's actually a pretty interesting division.   Reds have a ton of young talent.   Cubs and Brewers off to good starts.   Cardinals trying to keep it going with a geriatric pitching staff.   Interesting Pirates.

[Moose Milligan]

18 minutes ago, SteveA said:

Last year they lost O'Neil Cruz for the season.

Last year they didn't have Skenes ready to come up in May or June.

Last year their placeholder pitchers waiting on the young guys weren't as good as Martin Perez and Marco Gonzales.

I think they can be a .500 team this year.   And I don't think it will take a record that much over .500 to win the NL Central.   Milwaukee isn't going to keep up what they are doing.

It's actually a pretty interesting division.   Reds have a ton of young talent.   Cubs and Brewers off to good starts.   Cardinals trying to keep it going with a geriatric pitching staff.   Interesting Pirates.

It's not a bad division, I agree.  I do believe the AL Central is worse.

[DirtyBird]

We need 8 innings from Grayson tomorrow.

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

 

[Frobby]

10 hours ago, Tony-OH said:

I guess I don't start scoreboard watching until June at the earliest. Obviously we don't want the Yankees or anyone else getting off to a great lead, but the key is for the Orioles to win series. this team is not perfect, but it's very good and will be fine. 

Couldn’t agree more about scoreboard watching. We just need to worry about winning 90+ games and not worry about  what other teams are doing until the all-star break or so.  Look at how Tampa played at the start of last year.   

[Just Regular]

BP ran a feature this morning how the Twins have codified the catcher job share 1 game on, 1 game off between Jeffers and Vasquez.

In the playoffs they went 100% Jeffers.

Obviously there must be the thought the regulated Rest value exceeds any day-to-day in how the hitter's swing path intersects with the opponent's pitch shapes.

[Just Regular]

Twins demoted Matt Wallner and promoted Trevor Larnach.

Larnach was the next college bat selected after Orioles high school RHP Grayson Rodriguez in the 2018 draft, and oh yeah do I think if Elias/Sig were here at the time of the 2018 draft it's a pretty good bet we'd have had Larnach instead.

But now it is 6 years later, Grayson has survived so far and enters tonight's turn leading MLB SP in Sigbot's cousin PitchingBot's ERA estimator.

[Malike]

5 hours ago, Just Regular said:

BP ran a feature this morning how the Twins have codified the catcher job share 1 game on, 1 game off between Jeffers and Vasquez.

In the playoffs they went 100% Jeffers.

Obviously there must be the thought the regulated Rest value exceeds any day-to-day in how the hitter's swing path intersects with the opponent's pitch shapes.

Vazquez had a 65 OPS+ last year, it's 8 this year. He played 102 games and I guess they like his defense and prefer Jeffers offense. They definitely aren't keeping him fresh for his bat.

[DirtyBird]

On 4/15/2024 at 9:23 AM, Moose Milligan said:

Gotta take 2/3. 

We did it!!!

[Moose Milligan]

13 minutes ago, DirtyBird said:

We did it!!!

Get your broom out. 
 

Jays up on the Yankees 5-2.  We can be a half game back tomorrow morning.  

 

 

[OriolesMagic83]

Most Valuable Oriole is whoever brought back the hose/hydration station and got rid of the stupid motorcycle.

[Moose Milligan]

2 minutes ago, OriolesMagic83 said:

Most Valuable Oriole is whoever brought back the hose/hydration station and got rid of the stupid motorcycle.

Absolutely.