Orlando Cabrera is a Twin
There you go guys, you got your man. Now shut up and win some ballgames.
Kidding aside, I think this ended up being an okay deal for the Twins. They gave up toolsy 21 year old shortstop Tyler Ladendorf but were able to shore up their atrocious middle infield. Scutaro probably would have been a better acquisition, but considering the prices involved I think Bill Smith went with the safer choice (not that that is a bad thing, not at all). Since he’s gone at the end of the year, lets hope Cabrera can stay hot. He’s not the best on-base guy and his defense has deteriorated but he’s a veteran who knows how to play the game.
While I don’t think this will make the Twins much better, it will keep the players happy. Who knows, it might spark the others to play harder now that they feel that the “front office is behind them”. It’s always sad to see talented players like Ladendorf leave, but it was a necessary evil to both keep the players happy and remove at least one black hole from the line-up. Cabrera is not a big bat but he’ll certainly hit better than Punto or Casilla. Actually, he’s pretty much another Brendan Harris who might actually see regular playing time; It would be nice if Harris could get out of his currently slump and learn how to turn double-plays at second base. A batting order containing Harris and Cabrera is much better than one containing Punto and Casilla, though the defense wouldn’t be anything to brag about.
Fun Fact: Apparently Cabrera hasn’t been very good against lefties this year. (So says Baseball-Reference). That gives up at least two right-handed hitters that don’t hit lefties (Cabrera and Crede).
One Year Ago in Twins History:
Twins don’t find fit in potential trades – Unlike this season, Bill Smith was unable to do anything to improve the team at the non-waiver trade deadline last year. Maybe if they had gotten someone to help them win just one more game…
The Quiet Before the Storm?
Well, the Twins just lost out on another middle-infield candidate. With Sanchez being traded to the giants, the only two serious options left are Orlando Cabrera and Marco Scutaro. Though it depends on what the Jays end up doing with Halladay: if they don’t end up trading him, Scutaro might not go anywhere (I don’t see why not though. He’s going to be a free agent anyway and they aren’t exactly in contention). Let’s hope that Billy Smith has something big up his sleeve for today or Friday because I’m sure there will be an uproar from fans and players if nothing is done to improve the team.
On that note, I’m hoping they don’t go and get Cabrera. He is a good ballplayer but he’s only a slight improvement over Harris and I don’t trust Gardy to go with a Cabrera-Harris combo in the infield. I also think that the Twins will end up overpaying for him; he’s a 34 year old short stop with diminishing range and power and I just have a bad feeling that the Twins will overpay in prospects. If they were going to give up prospects of any worth, I would have preferred Freddy Sanchez.
If the Twins are still looking for infield and bullpen help, should they now also be looking for a starting pitcher? Liriano was scratched last night due to “forearm inflammation”. The team and Cisco say that it’s nothing serious, but I’m not sure I’m buying it. Is it just me or has “forearm inflammation/tightness”, more often then not, led to a visit to Dr. Andrews? Considering Cisco’s history, I’m worried about him and the fact that they are having him throw again this weekend. Check out this series of events from 2006:
Liriano scratched from start with pain – “The Minnesota Twins are scratching pitcher Francisco Liriano from Wednesday’s start against the Rangers because of discomfort in his left forearm.”
Liriano injured as Twins fall to Tigers – “But this time, the pain returned in what Liriano deemed a different spot and it seems to be worse than before. It’s something that has even caused Liriano to be a bit scared of what may be causing the pain.”
Liriano to land on disabled list – “On Tuesday they took another precaution, as the club decided to place the left-hander on the 15-day disabled list due to the pain he has been experiencing near his left elbow.”
Spooky, huh? Lets hope the Twins are extra special careful with him. They had better not send him out to pitch Wednesday if he’s not 110%. I guess it is a good sign that Liriano isn’t too concerned with the situation. After all, he’s already been through this and he’d be the one who could tell if it was the same kind of discomfort as 2006. If the Twins lose Liriano and don’t pick up any more starting pitching, they could be toast. Even if they do pull off a playoff appearance, there is no way a shaky top three of Baker-Blackbern-Perkins goes very far. I was still waiting for Liriano to get back into 2008 form to carry the team during the second half, but I think that is a forgone conclusion now. If he came around, and Slowey was healthy, Baker-Slowey-Liriano would have been much more formidable. Who knows, maybe all the pitching injuries has the front office throwing in the towel. I guess we’ll find out by Friday.
I had fun looking up those old articles, so lets see what was going on one year ago today for the Twins:
Gomez getting back into groove – Gogo!
Two Years Ago:
Luis Castillo traded to the Mets – Ah yes, this one went over well with the team.
Time for the Twins to Get Crazy
Up until today I applauded the Twins for refusing to blow their prospects on rent-a-players at the deadline; I didn’t want them to become a team that sacrificed the future to ‘win now’. Then I read LaVelle’s article this morning and I got scared. All Twins fans should be scared. Morneau, Nathan and Mauer all voiced their frustration with the front office for not getting them the “missing piece” at the trade deadline. What happens if these guys lose faith with the Twins and jump ship at the end of their contracts? Tell me, in this “future” we are protecting, who will be the next Joe Mauer? Justin Morneau? Joe Nathan? Sure, there are talented arms down on the farm that could develop into a dominant closer, and there are talented hitters down there, but there are no guaranteed successors to the Big Three. We do, however, have those guys playing for us right now and they need help. I also happen to think that this year is the perfect time to go all-in: Cuddyer, Kubel, Nathan, Mauer and Morneau are all having career years, yet the team still has some major holes to fill if they want to be a World Series caliber team. Can we guarantee that everyone performs like this next year? Remember 2006 when we had the same “perfect storm” of career-years but were knocked out in the first round by Oakland? The following season (2007) showed us we can’t count on something that special happening again, or for guys to stay healthy.
I’m going to get crazy here and propose a deadline move the Twins could make. Not only would it give the club a boost this season, but it would show our Core that management wants to win. Not to mention it will show the fans that the Twins will put a winning product on the field, encouraging them to brave the snow next season at the new stadium. This move is totally hypothetical, maybe even whimsical, but I don’t think it’s 100% impossible:
In my opinion (and don’t get me wrong, I am no expert) the Twins major holes are: Middle Infield, Relief Pitching, Starting Pitching. Perhaps even in that order, though the middle infield and bullpen have been equally atrocious at times. Actually, the Twins starting pitching had been pretty terrible lately as well. Here’s my idea: work out a trade with the Blue Jays. I know, I know: “Not another Halladay idea!” right? Hear me out though because I’m going to get much crazier than “Perkins and scrubs for Halladay”. Read more