Punto at third

[bassphish2005]

Sparkplug at third last year...

Two year deal now....

Will he still be the same "Smell um" guy to get things going??

[FishingDVM]

Punto's a good player. Twins can win it all with him at third if everyone else stays healthy & the pitching somehow comes around. If Punto or Luis C. get hurt we have a pretty solid backup with Cirillo. He is a very smart hitter whom the Twins may want to see get 300 at bats this year. Maybe even at DH. I sure would have liked to see him last year in the playoffs instead of Nevin or maybe even Rondell.

[bassphish2005]

(Contact Us Please),forgot about Jeff C.,he will be a dependable back up.Very good,I feel better now

[bassNspear]

Punto is a great player to have for the Twins. Brings alor of fire to the field. THey need him ont he field to help them get to there Champ Level.

[IFallsRon]

If the Twins can keep Punto from slidding into first base and getting hurt, he should have a solid season.

[bassNspear]

Good Point. But i like the way the guy plays

[Harmonica Bear]

Down right gritty is how he plays. You think his mom washed a few uniforms when he was a kid?

[blue_healer_guy]

I'll start off by saying I like Punto. But to me he is still a utility player playing 3 days a week. As I look around the infeild, 1 power hitter. The only reason he got a chance last year was because of the Batista failure. It worked out for them, but not enough power or run production for me for the position he plays.

[First Ice-Mike]

The Twins haven't had a power hitting third baseman since The Rat - unless you think Koskie was a power hitter. Punto makes up for his lack of power with speed and hard-nosed play. The Twins will get production from the catcher position, which most teams will not get. Mauer will hit 20+ homers and hit over .300 year - only a handful of catchers are capable of that kind of production.

[Fishhawk150]

I think Punto will be fine at third and he is a tough out at the plate. I also think that R. White is one of the key guys in the line up. For the Twins to get deep into the play offs he will have to 20+ home runs with 80 RBI's. His bat low in the order will make the line up very good. All the rest of the guys will have to have a year like last year of not a little better.

Pitching can keep them in a lot of games if not win a lot of games....I'm excited for the season.

It's awesome to hear and read about baseball again!!

[Harmonica Bear]

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I'll start off by saying I like Punto. But to me he is still a utility player playing 3 days a week. As I look around the infeild, 1 power hitter. The only reason he got a chance last year was because of the Batista failure. It worked out for them, but not enough power or run production for me for the position he plays.

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You would prefer to have a little more power at the corner that's for sure. And I'd agree I will always look at Punto as a utility guy vs. an everyday third baseman.

[koonie]

If Punto can back up his last season with another good one I'll be very happy. I'll admit I have my doubts. I like his glove and his guts though.

I'd still like to see more power out of the 3b position.

[bassNspear]

there is a reason that you have your doubts. He has not proved it yet. If he comes out this season, and proves himself to everyone else, that he is a player for the future.

[FishingDVM]

I agree Bass Spearer, Punto has to prove that he can stay healthy for a whole season. I think all of us are hoping he can do it because of the way he plays the game. If he gets hurt I really think Jeff Cirillo can help at third. He could also help with his veteran bat at DH because he has a different hitting approach than some of the other DH-outfield veterans have. He has a history of having good at bats without striking out alot which has always worked at the Dome & the Twins. As far as the outfield-DH spots Jason Kubel was shown on the news swinging with the bat speed, hip turn, & intensity that made him one of the American Leagues hottest hitting prospects in 04-05. If this guy returns to form we may be forgetting about R. White by July.

[Coach1310]

I love Punto, but he has to prove himself. One solid year isn't enough. He has great passion and a great glove, but he will need to be on base a lot. A lot of Twins had career years last year, so we could be dissappointed. Not to mention we were looking at having maybe the two best lefties in all of baseball on the hill as our #1 and #2 starters and now are down to one and a whole bunch of good arms(not necessarily good pitchers) battling for the other spots. Detroit could be tough. Great young pitching, added some power with Sheff and improved the bullpen. I guess we will see.

[Juan Grande]

Punto isn't what you'd consider a traditional "power hitting" third baseman, but he definitely makes up for it in other areas.

He could/should have won a gold glove at third, had he started all year. Along with making all the routine plays, he had at least one highlight reel play per game.

He's never going to have the power of ARod or Troy Glaus, but he could hit .300, steal 20 bases and play shut down defense which would be good enough for me.

If the Twins could get more than 5 HRs (or whatever they had last year) from their DH then maybe they woudn't need power out of Punto. Now there's a position that needs improvement.

[bassNspear]

No he aint like the big power hitters, but he brings alot of things towards the team. He has alot of energy, and he comes to the park to play every day.

If you look back, the twins have never really had a huge power hitting third baseman. Hes out there to play D, and to help the team get to the big dance.

We will see what happens this year.

[Cicada]

Punto + health = good year. My fear is for left field. White may give you 80 rbi's but give up 20 runs with his defense, particularly his weak arm. I think I would try to tag up on him and a medium deep fly ball and I come in around 300lbs. Nice guy or not he doesn't seem like the typical Twins kind of guy.

[bassphish2005]

No doubt,our outfield is getting slower a foot this year,and beside Cuddy,the throwing arms out in center and left are very weak.I guess we will see what happens,but why can't we have a solid defensive left fielder???

[bassNspear]

becuase we are spending our money elsewhere.

[Bobby Bass]

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No doubt,our outfield is getting slower a foot this year,and beside Cuddy,the throwing arms out in center and left are very weak.I guess we will see what happens,but why can't we have a solid defensive left fielder???

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I would not call Hunters arm "weak" White has lost some weight and his arm is stronger this year. Besides if you hit the cut off like you are suppose to you don't need a cannon for an arm ( but it is nice to have )Twins have always played small ball, get on base, advance, run smart and score. Just as fun to watch.