Twins Rotation… What now?

[weimy froob]

If the front office/ownership gets cheap (I think they are and will be) with the rotation this offseason and we roll into next year with the rumored Lopez/Ryan/Ober/Paddack/Varland five, that would be a recipe for disaster.

Joe Ryan has been consistently inconsistent so far and to peg him as your #2 is shaky at best.

Ober has been decent, but I feel he’s more of 4/5 guy.

Paddack and Tyler Mahle have proven nothing other than that they can’t stay healthy.

Varland has had some decent outings but also some terrible ones.

Even if the division is comparable in weakness next season to how it was this past, I think the team struggles to win it again and also stay healthy.

Bring Gray back or sign an above average proven starter to replace him as pitching was the main reason to the success of last year along with a weak division.

The team should NOT make their greatest strength weaker.

according to the strib article today they're just going to make sonny a one year 20.5 million dollar offer and he'll go the free agency route. they said they're comfortable going into the season with that rotation--but if they're not going to foreclose the idea of bringing in another arm. i think you can have some optimism with paddack if he can stay healthy. they want louie to find another pitch if he's going to be in the rotation. he could be asked to go back to the bullpen too. ryan as a #2 seems folly unless he finds another pitch to miss bats with. too many two strike pitches fouled off in the second half of the season which drove up his pitch count along with all those HRs.

ober might be the key. is he going to get better?

I agree with everything here, but if Sonny doesn't resign the Twins have to get someone stable and reliable to anchor the middle of the rotation. The replacement doesn't have to be better than Sonny, but it should be close or a solid #3.

Twins like the look of 2024 starting rotation, but won't rule out seeking more talent

https://www.startribune.com/twins-start ... fresh=true

[feekdogg]

Gray's spot should be a FA, preferably a LHP. Snell, Eduardo Rodriguez or Jordan Montgomery would all be excellent choices.
If they don't go that way, I wouldn't be opposed to a typical Twins contract where they gamble on a broken guy getting right. Take a shot on Frankie Montas.

[The Real Ted]

Gray's spot should be a FA, preferably a LHP. Snell, Eduardo Rodriguez or Jordan Montgomery would all be excellent choices.
If they don't go that way, I wouldn't be opposed to a typical Twins contract where they gamble on a broken guy getting right. Take a shot on Frankie Montas.

I don’t like it when they trade for pitchers who need Tommy John surgery.

[Hornets]

If you don't have Gallo and Sonny back then you use that money to go get anotha solid SP......BOOM!

[ForCaleb]

Gray's spot should be a FA, preferably a LHP. Snell, Eduardo Rodriguez or Jordan Montgomery would all be excellent choices.
If they don't go that way, I wouldn't be opposed to a typical Twins contract where they gamble on a broken guy getting right. Take a shot on Frankie Montas.

If the Twins are going to go cheap this offseason, Montas is a great low-risk, high-reward option to fill the rotation.

I was impressed with how Rodriguez pitched on that shitty Tigers team, I think he'd fit in well the Twins as well. Wouldn't be surprised if a big market team gives him a big multi-year deal.

[feekdogg]

Gray's spot should be a FA, preferably a LHP. Snell, Eduardo Rodriguez or Jordan Montgomery would all be excellent choices.
If they don't go that way, I wouldn't be opposed to a typical Twins contract where they gamble on a broken guy getting right. Take a shot on Frankie Montas.

If the Twins are going to go cheap this offseason, Montas is a great low-risk, high-reward option to fill the rotation.

I was impressed with how Rodriguez pitched on that shitty Tigers team, I think he'd fit in well the Twins as well. Wouldn't be surprised if a big market team gives him a big multi-year deal.

Kind of meaningless, but one of the projections I read had Gray getting 72 million over 3 years, and Rodriguez getting 80 mil over 5. Give me Rodriguez all day if those are likely salaries. Plus, he's from Venezuela, so maybe there's a a connection with Lopez.

[ForCaleb]

Gray's spot should be a FA, preferably a LHP. Snell, Eduardo Rodriguez or Jordan Montgomery would all be excellent choices.
If they don't go that way, I wouldn't be opposed to a typical Twins contract where they gamble on a broken guy getting right. Take a shot on Frankie Montas.

If the Twins are going to go cheap this offseason, Montas is a great low-risk, high-reward option to fill the rotation.

I was impressed with how Rodriguez pitched on that shitty Tigers team, I think he'd fit in well the Twins as well. Wouldn't be surprised if a big market team gives him a big multi-year deal.

Kind of meaningless, but one of the projections I read had Gray getting 72 million over 3 years, and Rodriguez getting 80 mil over 5. Give me Rodriguez all day if those are likely salaries. Plus, he's from Venezuela, so maybe there's a a connection with Lopez.

I agree, and this rotation needs a LH starter.

Montgomery is a lefty and his numbers are pretty good, but imo he just doesn't do much for me.

[Ask Not]

What role are they hoping Mahle plays next season, 6th starter? Reliever?

edit. Nevermind. It looks like they paid him to rehab this year. Top 5 worsiest Twins trade ever.

[Phil Leotardo]

What role are they hoping Mahle plays next season, 6th starter? Reliever?

edit. Nevermind. It looks like they paid him to rehab this year. Top 5 worsiest Twins trade ever.

Wouldn't shock me (in fact, I kind of expect it) if they bring Mahle back on a 1 or 2 year deal. He won't command much in the way of salary, and the Twins likely want to try and salvage something out of that trade.

[ForCaleb]

As it stands now:

Pablo Lopez
Joe Ryan
Bailey Ober
Chris Paddack
Louie Varland ??

[Phil Leotardo]

As it stands now:

Pablo Lopez
Joe Ryan
Bailey Ober
Chris Paddack
Louie Varland ??

I think Varland's future in the majors is as a reliever. Ober and Paddock both have to prove they can pitch an entire season, something Ober's never done, and Paddock, if he has at all, hasn't done so in several years. The rotation needs significant help.

[Ask Not]

As it stands now:

Pablo Lopez
Joe Ryan
Bailey Ober
Chris Paddack
Louie Varland ??

I think Varland's future in the majors is as a reliever. Ober and Paddock both have to prove they can pitch an entire season, something Ober's never done, and Paddock, if he has at all, hasn't done so in several years. The rotation needs significant help.

Starters are harder to find. I think they should keep him as a starter until he proves it's the wrong spot. Then again, maybe Randy Dobnak is ready to start earning his salary. GO UBER GUY!

[weimy froob]

joe ryan has to find another pitch to put hitters away with two strikes. also lose the gopher ball pitch. not excited for a rotation with him being the #2 until he's done that. a lot of wishful thinking if that's the rotation that's going to reward the fans with october baseball.

[ChrisPaulGeorgeHill]

If the Twins are banking on Paddick staying healthy, they’re dumber than we thought.

I don’t understand why they would think a guy with extensive injury history would all of a sudden be healthy?

I don’t get it.

Then the talk about Varland, Dobnak, etc?

Puke.

This is one of the reasons I don’t go to games. It’s ALWAYS about watching the bottom line with these scam artist Pohlads.

You saw what a strong rotation could do last year. If they had better hitting, who knows what could have happened.

But no. Pohlads decide to watch their pockets and make payroll cuts. Then they’re gonna tell this fanbase bullshit like they always do through their derp puppet PR people and the majority of MN is a mostly vegetable fanbase that will eat up what garbage they spew out with a spoon.

[weimy froob]

With Sonny Gray and Kenta Maeda gone, what's next for the Twins rotation?
The Twins could trade for a starting pitcher, but they don't have a lot to offer in such a deal.

If the Twins don't add a frontline starter, they're banking on their internal options filling the void. The Twins are optimistic about Paddack, especially after what he showed in the bullpen, but he hasn't thrown more than 108 innings in a season since 2019.

"You're always going to have some uncertainty in the group that you walk in with," Falvey said. "Last year people weren't sure about where Sonny was. People weren't sure about where Pablo was, if he could take that next step. Joe Ryan was probably the most promising coming off of his previous year. Bailey was a question mark. When we walk into the season, we expect that there will be some uncertainty on the roster. But I feel really good about the group that we're already walking in with."

The Twins prioritized depth last season and they're expected to add at least one pitcher who can compete with Varland for the fifth spot in the rotation. David Festa, Brent Headrick and Simeon Woods Richardson loom as Class AAA depth and they plan to keep prospect Matt Canterino, who missed the 2023 season recovering from Tommy John surgery, stretched out as a starter.

It wasn't just depth that spearheaded the Twins' rotation last season. Gray played a major role in the regular season and playoffs, and now the club will move ahead without him.

https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-t ... 600322666/

[Hornets]

HATE the way this is heading....

[Mandatory]

It's amazing how there's this pool of old mediocre pitchers and they just make the rotation between teams on 1 yr deals. Every once in a while one of them will have a good year, then go right back to being old and mediocre.

[ForCaleb]

As it stands now:

Pablo Lopez
Joe Ryan
Bailey Ober
Chris Paddack
Louie Varland ??

I think Varland's future in the majors is as a reliever. Ober and Paddock both have to prove they can pitch an entire season, something Ober's never done, and Paddock, if he has at all, hasn't done so in several years. The rotation needs significant help.

I agree. I was just plugging in players because it's November

I also don't think Ryan is a strong #2. Like Weimy said, he doesn't have a third pitch and his fastball just didn't have any life on it for last half of the season.

I think another concern is our options at the AAA and AA level. I'm just not seeing anyone that could make a positive impact.

[Coach X]

Canterino is promising. Need to add a #2 and this staff will do just fine

[feekdogg]

AL FAVORITES

1. Pablo López, RHP, Twins
2023 CYA finish: 7th

No pitcher increased his strikeout rate more from 2022 to 2023 than López (minimum 150 innings in each season), whose 29.2% mark ranked fifth among qualified starters. He went from primarily using a four-seamer and changeup to adding a sweeper to that main mix, and went from a good pitcher with a lot of promise to a Cy Young contender. López made his first All-Star team in 2023 and received Cy Young votes for the first time. I can't wait to see what he does in 2024, continuing to build off of his changes and improvements. He would be the first Twins pitcher to win a Cy Young since his idol, Johan Santana, in 2006. Imagine the emotions there.

Maybe he can go every third day?

[salamander]

Fuck the Pohlads, fuck the Twins.

[Mandatory]

Fuck the Pohlads, fuck the Twins.

What did they do now?

[HeHateMe]

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/02/ ... omery.html

"we're not in the market for 30 mil a year" ... are all those free agents going to make 30 mil a year?

[R403]

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/02/ ... omery.html

"we're not in the market for 30 mil a year" ... are all those free agents going to make 30 mil a year?

Ownership is so out of touch with the public. What a great message to send your fan base after you finally win a playoff series in 20 years. They are just out of touch.

[jffl_commish]

Someone really needs to tell Joe to STFU

[Tommy_Hawk]

I mean, I respect him for telling us they weren't spending money. I dont know why they ever did, though.

[feekdogg]

I mean, I respect him for telling us they weren't spending money. I dont know why they ever did, though.

Whoever the PR guy or gal is over there should have been fired the second Falvey publicly announced they intended to cut payroll.
That'd save them some money.

[Sidewinder2k2]

Someone really needs to tell Joe to STFU

Would you rather have him lie to you the way Jim did for the last 20 years?

I guess I respect the candor, but the timing is terrible. You don't say that to your fans on the eve of Spring Training.

[Phil Leotardo]

Someone really needs to tell Joe to STFU

Would you rather have him lie to you the way Jim did for the last 20 years?

I guess I respect the candor, but the timing is terrible. You don't say that to your fans on the eve of Spring Training.

If he really wanted to be candid, he'd tell the whole truth. ''We don't want to lose money, so we're going to slash payroll and HOPE we can emulate the most successful small market team in maybe the history of baseball. Most likely we'll fail, so get used to watching (if you can find our games) a mediocre product for the foreseeable future.''

[weimy froob]

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you can take the man out of the bank--but you can't take the banker out of the man.