http://www.startribune.com/twins-young-sano-has-some-growing-up-to-do/373684911/
Good read. Certainly some concerns. I think he should be a DH and worry he will come out of the gates slow this year.
Say it ain't Sano
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JasonIsDaMan [enjin:7981157]
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Re: Say it ain't Sano
Wow. Reusse has a negative view towards someone. That never happens. The only thing more surprising would be a link from Grandpa Sports saying he talked to several former MLB's who say Sano will hit 800 HR's.
I have a contrarian view. The same one I have always had. If The Pope of Randolph Avenue is such a "Pro", then why didn't they just move him out there? Why are they trying to pound a square peg into a round hole? I don't disagree with Terry Ryan too often (if ever), but they are way off on this move.
I have a contrarian view. The same one I have always had. If The Pope of Randolph Avenue is such a "Pro", then why didn't they just move him out there? Why are they trying to pound a square peg into a round hole? I don't disagree with Terry Ryan too often (if ever), but they are way off on this move.
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khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]
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Re: Say it ain't Sano
Who could have possibly seen Sano in right as a potential disaster? This whole situation has been dumb from the start for the sake of keeping Plouffe at the hot corner. Sano's bat is better so he gets the spot and Plouffe needs to get traded. Mauer, Park, Sano, Plouffe. Weakest bat gets kicked to the bench.
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longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]
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Re: Say it ain't Sano
I like Terry's call here. They wanted to get all four bats (Sano, Mauer, Plouffe and Park) in the lineup, and they needed to come up with the best solution. Mauer and Plouffe have both turned out to be plus defenders at first and third, and are too old and slow to learn to play outfield well, so the logical choice was to keep them where they were. Park was considered a good first baseman in Korea and will probably get a few innings there this year, but they didn't believe he would be a better fielding first baseman than Mauer, so he has to be the DH. Then there's Sano. He came up as a SS, but quickly showed he wasn't going to last there so they moved him to third. While he displayed some athleticism there, his glove and arm were erratic and the Twins decided that wasn't the right position for him. He has also gotten some chances at first and has been adequate, but first is crowded with Mauer, Park and maybe Vargas already there. Since Sano runs better than any of the other guys and is the youngest, he was asked to move to the outfield.
The problem here isn't Terry's decision...it's Sano's lack of work in the offseason. I find Reusse's article troubling...the first negative bit of news on the Twins this spring. Sano was told last fall to practice in the outfield in the offseason. When his winter league team played him at third, the Twins recommended that he quit and practice OF on his own...which he did, at least the first part. But Reusse makes it sound like he hasn't really put in much work. When I was in Ft. Myers last month, some of the spring training regulars told me that Sano had been taking a lot of flyballs on the back fields and was looking very smooth. I have always believed that any good athlete can learn to play the OF if they work at it, so I was encouraged. But Reusse's article makes it sound like Sano hasn't really put the effort in.
So far the results haven't been bad. While he did misplay one slicing fly ball a couple weeks ago, other than that he has been fine...recording 11 put outs and 1 assist (he does have a big arm). But Reusse's article casts a cloud over the situation. Jason's right...Patrick does tend to go negative most of the time. But he also knows baseball (Tom Kelly once told me he thought Reusse was the most knowledgable baseball writer in the country) and he generally praises a player who works hard and plays the game the right way. Sano is a lovable guy, but he also has annoyed his coaches throughout his stint in the minors. I think he can be as good as he wants to be, but he also could eat himself out of the league in a few years if he doesn't watch it. I hope the Twins use the tough love approach with him, because I don't know if Miguel can do it on his own.
The problem here isn't Terry's decision...it's Sano's lack of work in the offseason. I find Reusse's article troubling...the first negative bit of news on the Twins this spring. Sano was told last fall to practice in the outfield in the offseason. When his winter league team played him at third, the Twins recommended that he quit and practice OF on his own...which he did, at least the first part. But Reusse makes it sound like he hasn't really put in much work. When I was in Ft. Myers last month, some of the spring training regulars told me that Sano had been taking a lot of flyballs on the back fields and was looking very smooth. I have always believed that any good athlete can learn to play the OF if they work at it, so I was encouraged. But Reusse's article makes it sound like Sano hasn't really put the effort in.
So far the results haven't been bad. While he did misplay one slicing fly ball a couple weeks ago, other than that he has been fine...recording 11 put outs and 1 assist (he does have a big arm). But Reusse's article casts a cloud over the situation. Jason's right...Patrick does tend to go negative most of the time. But he also knows baseball (Tom Kelly once told me he thought Reusse was the most knowledgable baseball writer in the country) and he generally praises a player who works hard and plays the game the right way. Sano is a lovable guy, but he also has annoyed his coaches throughout his stint in the minors. I think he can be as good as he wants to be, but he also could eat himself out of the league in a few years if he doesn't watch it. I hope the Twins use the tough love approach with him, because I don't know if Miguel can do it on his own.
Re: Say it ain't Sano
Lavelle Neal who seems to be a pretty level headed guy had some pretty solid tweets today about the subject like how Sano didn't lose the weight he was supposed to on playing 3b "ain't exactly falling on a mattress".
Let's be honest if the Twins really aren't sure he can play 3rd base long term what are they supposed to do with him? They have a bunch of big bats in the minors and sure Sano is the top guy but are they just supposed to throw up their hands and say I guess we will just DH they guy for 155 games the next 10 years (yeah it's hyperbole). Let's see what happens for at least 20 games with him in the OF before we get too riled up.
Let's be honest if the Twins really aren't sure he can play 3rd base long term what are they supposed to do with him? They have a bunch of big bats in the minors and sure Sano is the top guy but are they just supposed to throw up their hands and say I guess we will just DH they guy for 155 games the next 10 years (yeah it's hyperbole). Let's see what happens for at least 20 games with him in the OF before we get too riled up.
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khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]
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Re: Say it ain't Sano
monsterpile wrote:Lavelle Neal who seems to be a pretty level headed guy had some pretty solid tweets today about the subject like how Sano didn't lose the weight he was supposed to on playing 3b "ain't exactly falling on a mattress".
Let's be honest if the Twins really aren't sure he can play 3rd base long term what are they supposed to do with him? They have a bunch of big bats in the minors and sure Sano is the top guy but are they just supposed to throw up their hands and say I guess we will just DH they guy for 155 games the next 10 years (yeah it's hyperbole). Let's see what happens for at least 20 games with him in the OF before we get too riled up.
Yes. I would love to have a new version of David Ortiz for this franchise for the next 10 years. I don't care if he's not the perfect professional. He's gonna be a damn good hitter and you don't throw that away for petty things like he's not willing to dedicate his life to becoming a decent outfielder.
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JasonIsDaMan [enjin:7981157]
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Re: Say it ain't Sano
Little pressed for time before, but I had two more points I would like to address now:
1. So, you're Patrick Reusse. You literally get the shakes if you go 4 days without saying something negative in S/T. Your easy, non-white targets like Dennis Green and Clem Haskins are gone, and if you say one more negative thing about The U of M or women's sports you're going to be fired. So what do you do? Do you point out that leadership made a gross miscalculation, or do you blast the guy who barely speaks English and was never going to be your go-to quote anyhow? Toughie.
2. Gosh, if there was just an example from our recent past that correlates perfectly to this. Oh, my mistake, there is: Kent Hrbek. Sano was drafted as a SS, and while Hrbek was always a 1B, he did start at goalie for two years for the Kennedy Hockey Team and didn't embarrass himself, also no small feat. Sano did hit much better his first 75 or so AB's in the bigs (there is a perception that Herbie flew out of the gate because of his extra-inning HR in Yankee Stadium in his first game, but that was his only HR that year), but Hrbek only spent 1.75 seasons in the minors. And though Hrbek treated his gullet like a trash compactor, he had a reasonably productive career, and Sano can eclipse that.
Now think about it: It's October 1982. Clark Griffith has just announced that Hrbek is playing LF, whether he wants to or not, because Boomer Wells is playing 1B. Or Randy Bush. Or moving Tim Laudner to 1B to make room for Jeff Reed (before you laugh, he did had a better career than Laudner). Hrbek barely maintained proper weight for a 1B, so LF was out of the question. It would have been an abysmal failure, way worse than Sano in RF will be. So what would you have done? Blamed Hrbek? Doubt it. Blamed Wells, etc? Maybe, but still doubtful. You would have blamed the Griffith family. You would have said they were too cheap to put a proper LF out there.
Though money is not the issue this time, it's still wrong.
3. And do we know for sure that they didn't approach Mauer and he said no way? Yes, you are absolutely correct, I am looking for a way to blame Mauer.
1. So, you're Patrick Reusse. You literally get the shakes if you go 4 days without saying something negative in S/T. Your easy, non-white targets like Dennis Green and Clem Haskins are gone, and if you say one more negative thing about The U of M or women's sports you're going to be fired. So what do you do? Do you point out that leadership made a gross miscalculation, or do you blast the guy who barely speaks English and was never going to be your go-to quote anyhow? Toughie.
2. Gosh, if there was just an example from our recent past that correlates perfectly to this. Oh, my mistake, there is: Kent Hrbek. Sano was drafted as a SS, and while Hrbek was always a 1B, he did start at goalie for two years for the Kennedy Hockey Team and didn't embarrass himself, also no small feat. Sano did hit much better his first 75 or so AB's in the bigs (there is a perception that Herbie flew out of the gate because of his extra-inning HR in Yankee Stadium in his first game, but that was his only HR that year), but Hrbek only spent 1.75 seasons in the minors. And though Hrbek treated his gullet like a trash compactor, he had a reasonably productive career, and Sano can eclipse that.
Now think about it: It's October 1982. Clark Griffith has just announced that Hrbek is playing LF, whether he wants to or not, because Boomer Wells is playing 1B. Or Randy Bush. Or moving Tim Laudner to 1B to make room for Jeff Reed (before you laugh, he did had a better career than Laudner). Hrbek barely maintained proper weight for a 1B, so LF was out of the question. It would have been an abysmal failure, way worse than Sano in RF will be. So what would you have done? Blamed Hrbek? Doubt it. Blamed Wells, etc? Maybe, but still doubtful. You would have blamed the Griffith family. You would have said they were too cheap to put a proper LF out there.
Though money is not the issue this time, it's still wrong.
3. And do we know for sure that they didn't approach Mauer and he said no way? Yes, you are absolutely correct, I am looking for a way to blame Mauer.
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longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]
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Re: Say it ain't Sano
I always enjoy your posts, Jason, even if our takes are different.
I agree it is difficult for Reusse to go so long without a negative article, and I think all the lollipops and roses of spring training optimism gets to him after a while. But I think there is more to this story than Reusse's surliness. AP Sports Guy Jonny K just threw out an interesting theory on Barreiro's show. He suggested that the Twins wanted to send a message to their lazy youngster, and used Reusse to do it. He said Reusse wouldn't play that messenger role unless he believed in the message. I'm not saying this is true, but it might be.
I'm not seeing the Hrbek parallel. You're right...he didn't hit very well at first, and Sano did. But one thing he did well right from the start was play first base...you could see Gold Glove potential there right away. Yes, there would have been a huge uproar if Kent had been moved to the outfield, but that's because everyone could see he was really good at first. In contrast, Sano has been below average everywhere the Twins have played him (SS, 3B and 1B), while Plouffe and Mauer are very good defensively at 3B and 1B. Sano isn't David Ortiz...he's a much better athlete. It would be a waste of athleticism to turn Sano into a DH at age 22. I'd rather see Park or Vargas there. Now, if Sano fails in the OF and neither Park nor Vargas can hit major league pitching, I think the Twins have a backup plan...move Sano to DH and put Kepler in the OF. But until those things happen, I like the Sano in RF experiment.
I like to blame Mauer too. It pisses me off the see that low-energy guy blocking everyone at first and striking out 100 times with no power while stealing $22 million per year from the Twins. But the contract is what it is, and maybe fixing his vision issues will improve his hitting. I'm choosing to drink the Mauer Kool-Aid this spring. I think he is going to be a nice #2 hitter for us this year...maybe even over .300 with way fewer K's. He should see a lot of fat fastballs this year with Sano hitting behind him, and Bruno seems to be having some success in convincing him to jump on the first one. We'll see, but I'm hanging onto some optimism for Joe this year.
I agree it is difficult for Reusse to go so long without a negative article, and I think all the lollipops and roses of spring training optimism gets to him after a while. But I think there is more to this story than Reusse's surliness. AP Sports Guy Jonny K just threw out an interesting theory on Barreiro's show. He suggested that the Twins wanted to send a message to their lazy youngster, and used Reusse to do it. He said Reusse wouldn't play that messenger role unless he believed in the message. I'm not saying this is true, but it might be.
I'm not seeing the Hrbek parallel. You're right...he didn't hit very well at first, and Sano did. But one thing he did well right from the start was play first base...you could see Gold Glove potential there right away. Yes, there would have been a huge uproar if Kent had been moved to the outfield, but that's because everyone could see he was really good at first. In contrast, Sano has been below average everywhere the Twins have played him (SS, 3B and 1B), while Plouffe and Mauer are very good defensively at 3B and 1B. Sano isn't David Ortiz...he's a much better athlete. It would be a waste of athleticism to turn Sano into a DH at age 22. I'd rather see Park or Vargas there. Now, if Sano fails in the OF and neither Park nor Vargas can hit major league pitching, I think the Twins have a backup plan...move Sano to DH and put Kepler in the OF. But until those things happen, I like the Sano in RF experiment.
I like to blame Mauer too. It pisses me off the see that low-energy guy blocking everyone at first and striking out 100 times with no power while stealing $22 million per year from the Twins. But the contract is what it is, and maybe fixing his vision issues will improve his hitting. I'm choosing to drink the Mauer Kool-Aid this spring. I think he is going to be a nice #2 hitter for us this year...maybe even over .300 with way fewer K's. He should see a lot of fat fastballs this year with Sano hitting behind him, and Bruno seems to be having some success in convincing him to jump on the first one. We'll see, but I'm hanging onto some optimism for Joe this year.
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khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]
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Re: Say it ain't Sano
Is 3B defense really that worth it to keep a better bat on the bench (not just talking Sano, but Vargas and Arcia among others who may become MLB bats this year). Teams have been getting away with poor defenders at 1 spot for years as long as the bat is there so why are we so stuck on defense?
Re: Say it ain't Sano
khans2k5 wrote:Is 3B defense really that worth it to keep a better bat on the bench (not just talking Sano, but Vargas and Arcia among others who may become MLB bats this year). Teams have been getting away with poor defenders at 1 spot for years as long as the bat is there so why are we so stuck on defense?
Plouffe ain't a bad bat himself. He is more proven hitter than anyone else you named and a much superior defensive player. Sure Sano should and likely will be a better hitter but he will have no problem getting ABs if he keeps hitting.