Twins Outright Missed Opportunities

In my 2017 Minnesota Twins wish list I touched on the fact that I am looking forward to new President of Baseball Operations, Derek Falvey, coming in and cleaning up the 40 man roster. There is no shortage of players that can be moved on from, and the Twins must do so in order to turn the page on what was an abysmal 2016. Before he has even gotten into the building though, Minnesota began making moves.

Admittedly, I have no idea if the Twins were in touch with Falvey prior to outrighting five players this week. Tommy Milone, Andrew Albers, Pat Dean, James Beresford, and Jordan Schafer were all sent packing off of the 40 man. Whether Falvey was involved or not, it was all but certain none of them belonged. Milone wasn't going to be given arbitration, Albers and Schafer are veteran retreads, and both Beresford and Dean are nothing more than minor league depth pieces. You really shouldn't need anyone to sign off on moves like that.

As Falvey comes in though, the hope should be that those types of players don't continue to find their way to Minnesota. Now, to be fair, Tommy Milone really doesn't belong grouped in with that lot. He's a capable big league starter, and while he struggled at times for the Twins, there's little doubt that he can go fill out a big league rotation elsewhere. Terry Ryan acquiring him in returning Sam Fuld to the Oakland Athletics a couple of years ago was about as shrewd a move as it gets. Right now though, it was just time for both parties to go their separate ways.

If there's a problem with the five outrighted players though, it's that the represent opportunity. I'm a firm believer in the idea that if you aren't going to be good now, you should either be creative or have a plan for being good again in the immediate future. What players like Schafer, Albers, Dean and Beresford don't represent is creativity or future success.

It's hard to be too harsh on the Twins for giving a hat tip promotion to James Beresford. He was signed by the organization out of Australia and has toiled away in the minors for over 1,000 games and 10 seasons. He paid his dues, and on a 103 loss team, he found his time in the sun.

When quantifying what the four players not named Tommy Milone represent though, we come up with this:

• 2 hitters (Beresford/Schafer) 36 G 98 plate appearances .233 AVG .597 OPS 5 XBH
• 2 pitchers (Albers/Dean) 25 G 84.1 IP 11 starts 6.05 ERA

No matter how you cut it, that's a significant chunk of exposure. Now Dean throws off the numbers a little bit as he was called up as early as May, and made appearances in both June and August as well. Regardless, giving nearly 100 plate appearances, 11 starts, and 80+ innings pitched to four players that have no future benefit to the organization seems like a silly allocation of playing time.

If you remember correctly, it was Jose Berrios (the Twins top pitching prospect) who was repeatedly threatened (and was) sent down to the minors after poor outings. There was talk of him going to the bullpen following some late season starts, and he had to scratch and claw his way to finish the year with 14 starts. It wasn't an isolated incident however.

J.T. Chargois was passed over multiple times for a promotion in the middle of the year, and players like D.J. Baxendale, Jake Reed, Mitch Garver, and Adam Brett Walker (on the 40 man) were never given a shot at all. Each of the above names fits both the criteria of being creative, or contributing in future winning seasons, yet the Twins went with the lowest possible options across the board.

At some point, a bad team has to stop giving away time to players who've shown they aren't big leagues. Schafer is a 29 year old with a career .611 OPS in 318 games, Albers flopped in Korea and has been passed on by everyone not named Minnesota in the major leagues. It's moves like these that do little to help a franchise now or in the future.

Throughout the rest of the offseason, you can bet there will be more changes to the Twins 40 man roster. As players fall off, go unclaimed, and become free agents, Falvey must steer the Twins in the direction of meaningful talent at every corner. For a team that will rely upon its internal processes, they have to start practicing them at a much higher level.

Why Do Twins Doubt Themselves?

In 2016, the Minnesota Twins have been among the worst teams in baseball. While that's far from an ideal situation, the reality is that it's provided an opportunity for the organization to get a look at a lot of different players. In too many cases though, they haven't taken it. Why not remains a realistic question.

You can almost take your pick as to which players you may want to shake your head at getting significant time for Minnesota. Danny Santana has played in 75 games this season, Juan Centeno has caught 44, Ryan O'Rourke is currently on the big league roster, and Neil Ramirez was given over a month of poor performances before being sent packing. Over the course of the season, Paul Molitor has gone with plenty of low ceiling options.

Now, if the Twins were looking to field the team with the most veteran presence, there's probably some merit to their roster construction. The reality however, is that this team hasn't been good since the get go, and they really owe nobody anything. Poor performances didn't need to be compounded by lengthy stays on the 25 man roster. While Minnesota would have been promoting inexperience, it's that youth that is going to be relied upon to turn things around.

Highlighting the scenario as a whole is a current member of the starting rotation, Andrew Albers. Albers hasn't started a major league game since 2013, for a Twins team that finished the year 66-96 while also having Cole DeVries and P.J. Walters make starts. Since then, he was a failed starter in Korea (5.89 ERA in 28 starts), and played a game in the Atlantic League for the Lancaster Barnstormers. Now starting for Minnesota, he was added to the 40 man roster over a more deserving option in Jason Wheeler.

Wheeler, a 25 year old 8th round draft pick by the Twins, owns a 3.23 ERA in 23 Triple-A starts this season. He's not a high strikeout guy, owning just a 6.4 K/9 over 131 minor league starts. He pitched the final game for Double-A Chattanooga a season ago to win the Southern League title, and he's owned a 3.04 ERA in 2016 after resurfacing in Triple-A. By all measures, Wheeler has earned it at this point.

It's in these situations that the Twins appear to be operating with a confusing knowledge of their own organization. Sure, Wheeler is far from a sure thing, but when a 40 man roster move is needed regardless, putting the developed player with some upside in position to compete seems like a better bet than the castoff retread. In failing to understand these principles, the Twins turn an already bad season, into one that they learn little as well.

You have to ask yourself what the Twins may have been able to learn from Mitch Garver, D.J. Baxendale, or Jake Reed at the big league level right now. As rosters expand, they could easily be called up. No matter the 40 man situation, Minnesota is far from a position in which they don't have warm bodies occupying roster spots. Rather than lose and do so without purpose, using the stretch run as an acclimation process seems to be an ideal scenario.

At some point, you'd hope that the Twins would put stock in the players they've drafted, and seemingly developed. You can't assume they'll all work out, but rather than going out and cycling through the Neil Ramirez's and Edward Mujica's of the world, playing time at the highest levels for those expected to carry some realistic weight would be a good idea.

Sooner rather than later, the Twins need to understand (and covey that) what they have at their disposal, and actually use it.