Comments on: Offseason outlook: Trevor Plouffe

By: Larence

Larence — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 15:13:58 +0000

Who we crapping here? We all know Gardy wants to see this kid fail so that he can put a scrapper over there.

By: Snortwood

Snortwood — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 21:31:08 +0000

Best case scenario the Rangers are desperate for a left-handed hitter with some power and overpay the Twins in a trade with a young shortstop as part of the exchange. This opens up 1B for Parmelee and RF for Plouffe. Or the Twins move Willingham for value and Trevor moves back a few dozen yards in left.

Either way is okay because he’s not going to improve enough to hold down a position in the infield on a championship caliber club, but what’s for sure is that the power he showed is not an accident. Play everyday and hit 30+ and hurt not the team too much in the field and we’ve got something.

OTOH, that doesn’t fix 3B for the Twins infield. Sobolewski, anyone?

By: ML

ML — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 00:51:59 +0000

And who exactly is the competition for those middle infield positions?

I agree, let him play.

By: Josh

Josh — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 20:26:17 +0000

I think there are several good reasons to bring in a little competition for Plouffe: 1) insurance against his power numbers not being sustainable 2) getting a potential defensive replacement if he doesn’t improve to consistently adequate 3) have a quality backup in case of injury again

I do think Plouffe can be a quality player for the Twins. His lack of strike zone control is the biggest concern because it will reduce his ability to hit HRs if enough pitchers can just get him chasing all the time. That said, 30-hr RH power is a nice addition to this lineup and with just a decent improvement in controlling the strike zone he could be a fearful hitter in the 6th spot (which seems his most likely home, behind Morneau)

The lineup is pretty nice in the heart of the order: Mauer, Willingham, Morneau, Plouffe, Parmelee, Doumit could be a grind for pitchers to get through. Unfortunately, we could be looking at a struggle in 1-2 & 9 slots. Carroll would be a solid #2 hitter with his ability to work counts, draw walks, etc but you like for someone to step up at SS or 2B so he could play his best spot: utility man. I don’t know who leads off and there are definitely more contenders to hit 9th than 1st right now.

By: Dave Andrusko

Dave Andrusko — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 17:21:41 +0000

For the Twins to be even quasi-respectable, a lot of players with questionable pasts will have to experience a lot of improvement. How many of those are currently on the roster? How many on the roster–or close to it–with anywhere near the potential upside of Plouffe? You move him to a new position, never let him forget you’re impatient with his development to date, and then add for good measure he needs some competition. Even by the Twins’ standard, that’s pretty stupid.

By: Jeff K

Jeff K — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 15:49:53 +0000

The reason I have a bit of confidence in his ability is his streak wasn’t based on a fulky BABIP or something that could be attributed to luck. You can’t luck your way into 13 HRs in 22 games. Whether or not he can actually figure out how to sustain excellent power is one thing, but it’s clear that it’s a real possibilty.

By: mike wants wins

mike wants wins — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 14:47:28 +0000

Super bad idea not to play him every day. They need to find out if he can be the answer.

By: Spoofbonser

Spoofbonser — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 14:40:54 +0000

I think it is quite possible that the Twins under value Plouffe because he doesn’t have a nice looking batting average and had a very low RBI total. Let’s be honest, those are the stats they focus on.

Also, he can hardly be blamed for having a bad year in the field. He was learning a new position at the major league level, not to mention his finger injury. He also had more balls hit to him than any other 3rd basemen in the American league.

By: ds

ds — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 12:51:53 +0000

I don’t get why they want to bring in competition for Plouffe.
The Twins aren’t winning 70 games this year. Throw him out there for 600 at bats and a 140+ games at 3B and let that decide if he is a player or not. If his defense continues to suck and he can’t hit, what have they lost?!?!? Another couple games?!?!? Big deal.

By: jfs

jfs — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 03:48:58 +0000

brandan inge is available. old, but still plays solid defense. late-inning replacement for plouffe? thoughts?