Minnesota Twins 2012 Thread

[mb625]

Just wanted to see what everyone thinks about the Twins this season... personally, I see 70-75 wins this season. Hopefully Mauer and Morneau can get back to 100 percent and help out the cause... though looking at Morneau's stats this spring (.220, 3 HRs and uninspiring numbers across the board) that may not be the case. Here are the projected lineups ESPN had on their preview of the Twins and my thoughts:
CF Span- Not too many qualms about him leading off... he is probably the best option to lead off.
SS Jamie Carroll- I'd put Revere up in the 2 slot, but I would start Carroll at short over Plouffe. Really glad they sent Nishioka down... he was absolutely awful last year. Not worth what we paid to get him.
C Mauer- Hopefully he gets back to his MVP caliber numbers.
1B Morneau- Ditto
RF Willingham- Interesting pickup here, and I think a bit underrated too. Could be a great addition.
DH Doumit- Another interesting pickup that could help out a lot. Can also give Mauer a break behind the dish and if I remember correctly, he played a little bit of 1B and RF too (Pirates fans, correct me if I'm wrong) so he can help out when other regulars need a break
3B Valencia- Hopefully he keeps improving
2B Casilla- Not thrilled about him, but right now, I don't see a better option.
LF Revere- As previously mentioned, I'd switch him and Carroll, but that's just me though.

Pitching Staff:
#1 Pavano- He is aging, but hopefully he can get back to the success he had a couple of years ago.
#2 Liriano- I'm starting to wonder if he'll ever get back to his rookie year success.
#3 Baker- And from here our rotation goes to mediocre. Serviceable pitchers who always seem to be able perform well, but are very inconsistant at times. Hopefully they can step up this year
#4 Blackburn
#5 Marquis- Another interesting addition. Hopefully he can help out.
Bullpen:
Perkins
Duensing
Closer: Capps- Ugh... this bullpen isn't very inspiring.
Just my thoughts. What say you?

[mb625]

Those first three games were absolutely ugly. The reliever we bring in to be a groundball pitcher (Jared Burton) gives up 2 solo shots in one inning in the second game and the offense didn't score a run before the seventh inning in the whole series. Absolutely awful. This looks like it's going to be a long season.

[ImTellinTim]

70-75...that's looking optimistic. We're seriously looking at about 3 April wins with the schedule as it is.

[mb625]

Quote: Originally Posted by ImTellinTim

70-75...that's looking optimistic. We're seriously looking at about 3 April wins with the schedule as it is.

No kidding. I was hoping that number would be underestimating them. Instead, we score a total of 5 runs in four games and have the 5th highest ERA in the majors (5.25) This is going to be an extremely frustrating season. At this point, I'll be happy with one win.

[snepp]

My post from the other 2012 Twins thread.

Quote: Originally Posted by snepp

They aren't going to lose 100 games, but they're going to have a hard time finishing .500.

I'm an optimist, who knew!

[mb625]

On the plus side though, Willingham is absolutely raking right now (by this team's standards anyway). Hopefully he keeps this up. Also, Morneau doesn't look too bad at all. Here's hoping that he can stay healthy for the rest of the season.

[mb625]

Quote: Originally Posted by snepp

My post from the other 2012 Twins thread. I'm an optimist, who knew!

There's another one!?!?! Oops.

[snepp]

You didn't miss much, there were only two posts in it.