Minnesota Twins: Why I’m Still Optimistic About the Future
With the disappointing 2016 campaign coming to an end for the Minnesota Twins, the focus will be on the front office and what they do to help bring some clarity to the future of the franchise.
First off will be the hiring of the next Minnesota Twins General Manager.
Whoever that may be, they will have a tall task ahead of them as they try to sort out what has been a messy six years of baseball.
After that, the Twins will need to decide who to keep around in an attempt to bring a competitive product to Minnesota, ASAP.
Whoever the new GM is will have a roster with a lot of work to be done.
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All season, I’ve talked to friends and family about how the Twins really aren’t that far away from being competitive.
But with an unclear answer at third, a logjam at first, a pitching staff and bullpen with no real standout players and a player with power but no real position, it’s clear there’s a lot of questions that need answers.
Now there are a few positions that are, as it stands, set for a while. Byron Buxton’s bat is starting to come around and his defense is surely enough to keep him in center.
Max Kepler has proved he is ready to be the Twins’ everyday right fielder. The same can be send for Eddie Rosario who shined after returning from his demotion to Triple-A.
Of course there’s Brian Dozier and Joe Mauer in the infield with Miguel Sano finding a place somewhere. Jorge Polanco could also potentially be ready to be the starting shortstop.
But as seen by this season, a solid offense can only get a team so far. If the pitching staff isn’t up to par, then it’s all a moot point.
So how far away are the Twins from competing? It will depend on what moves the new GM makes to bolster not only the starting staff but the bullpen.
Realistically, the Twins hopes of postseason play may rest on a healthy Glen Perkins, some backup for the overworked Ryan Pressly and Bradon Kintzler and of course the starting staff.
Aside from Ervin Santana, the Twins have seen nothing but inconsistency.
Hector Santiago has shown signs of being a solid No. 2 while Kyle Gibson has had his moments but overall, not one guy has shown a desire to step up.
The hope is Jose Berrios will be ready to take over a starting spot but he struggled this year.
Perhaps minor leaguers like Stephen Gonsalves or Adalberto Mejia can help but again, will their impact be immediately felt?
Let’s hope so.
Until then, we really can’t expect the Twins to contend for a few seasons.
Once Mauer’s contract is up, that would give the Twins some financial flexibility as well as open up first base, but that’s not for a few seasons.
Retaining Dozier should be of the upmost importance as he has even said he would prefer to stay.
Constantly trading away talent for minor leaguers may eventually work out but as seen by the trades of Denard Span and Ben Revere, are these trades worth it?
Alex Meyer is no longer with the Twins and Trevor May has turned into an okay bullpen arm but not the starter they anticipated.
At some point, there must be a time to be aggressive in the market.
This offseason could be a strong opportunity for them to be aggressive players in free agency. It could also allow them to do what they failed to do last year.
Find bullpen arms to strengthen the relief core and maybe a starter or two take the pressure off the offense.
If the Twins realistically want to compete within the next few years and believe Paul Molitor is the manager of the future, it’s time to give him some firepower and see what he can do with it.
At that point, maybe we’ll get some clarity as to whether Molitor is the answer or not.
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And who knows, maybe we’ll see a return to the postseason.