Guzman is Gone

[B. Amish]

So now that Guzzy is gone to the expos, what is the Twins plan for shorstop? I didn't know the Twins were thinking of letting Guzman slip away likt that

[Captain B.R.K]

The Twins weren't going to pay 5.2 million on his option for 05',so they let him go. He is a good glove and a decent hitter....sad to see him go. Hopefully we have some SS prospects in the minors.

[Jarrod32]

Between Barrett and Punto, the Twins will be fine at SS. One of those guys will win the job early in the year, and put up numbers similar to Guzman. Barrett might have a bit more power than Guzman, Punto will have a good average and steal at least as many bases as Guzman.

[Cicada]

Guzman was a great shortstop but not yet a super shortstop. We have not yet seen any of the brilliance he showed his rookie year. If he matures with his attitude, he still could be something really special. Maybe like Ortiz, he may need to get off of a turf field to stay healthy.

[The Grebe]

Jarrod32 pretty much nailed it. If Punto can stay healthy, I think he is our man and will do at least as good as Guzman, who in my opinion, had eased off the throttle in the last year?

[Jarrod32]

I misspoke earlier...it's not Barrett, it's Bartlett...Jason Bartlett. I think the Twins hope that he can take the job, and Punto (who is probably better suited as a second baseman) can be their utility guy, and ultimately replace Rivas.

The key will not be so much how the Twins replace Guzman at SS, but rather what they do with the money. If they use the money they save to sign Radke, or lock up Santana to a long-term deal, then letting Guzman go is a good move...

[Bushwacker]

Guzman led the AL in fielding percentage last year. That will be hard to replace. He is one of the fastest players in the league and that will be hard to replace. I really enjoyed watching him play and am sad to see him go. Punto may be an average player in the league, but I really hope the Twins go another direction besides average. I predict that Guzman will be an all star in the NL at shortstop within the next two years.

[IFallsRon]

We'll check his numbers when he plays a majority of games on grass.

[bigbucks]

I wonder if they'll consider moving Rivas to short, his original position, & then just having Cuddyer take over at second. They'd lose some defensively, but they'd get Mike's bat in the lineup, which they want to do.

[Big Ick]

I was just going to mention that bigbucks. I guess it all depends on Koskie and if he stays. Otherwise, there's a good chance Cuddyer will be playing 3rd. So, how does everyone think Hunter is going to feel when his buddy Jones is traded away? Will he soon follow?

[Bushwacker]

Do you think they will pull the trigger on a Jones trade this year. That was the big talk all last off season too. He swings like the 2nd graders I used to coach in jug ball. I don't know of another major leaguer that pulls his head off the ball so much when he swings. He seems like a heck of a nice guy though and the Twins have chemistry that is hard to replace when you dump all the guys that won three division titles in a row.

[The Grebe]

As of a couple of days ago, no one was beating down the door to get to Koskie, nor Radke?

Maybe the Guzman deal and thus far, a lack of interest in the other two, will allow the Twins to renegotiate contracts and free up somemore money?

If and when they do, I'am wondering if they want to sign Santana to a long term deal, or if he wants a long term deal?

Might be he could be wooed by, or would want to go to a more

glamourous team? It is going to be interesting to find out what lies in store! Baseball second guessing is fun!

[B. Amish]

i hope they don't trade jones. i like the way he plays the game, it's true watching him hit can get frustrating, but thats the way he plays the game - full throttle (at least i think so) the chemistry between jones and hunter is something you can't get in a trade, but the twins have found a way over the last three years to make things work, so i guess i trust their decision making.

i also hope they don't let koskie go, he seems like a player that the other guys respect a lot, he's been here a long time, and he seems to be a leader in the clubhouse, i think he'll put up some big numbers if he's healthy this year

anyways, have you seen the yankees are trying to go after Pedro - thats a whole other topic in itself

[Cicada]

My point was, with Gusman's speed and being a switchhitter that plays most of his games on turf ( the new turf is slower,but it's still turf), he should have hit better than .274. The defense was fun to watch and I don't think you can replace his range, but then again, I thought trading Doug M. would hurt more than it did. The player asked to fill his spot will just have to step it up.

[ssaamm]

As fast as he is supposed to be he stole less than 10 bases last year. Lew Ford stole more than 20. I am sure that at some point Molitor must have worked with him on taking advantage of his speed to swipe a few more bases. He must not have taken it to heart. Kind of like how the CandyMan didn't care to stick around and work with McHale in the off season. I think all the money puts 'em in a comfort zone, but what do I know. Go Vikes

[pikehunter]

I've spent the duration of Guzzie's career trying to figure out how someone can be so fast and such a bad base stealer. He's just horrible at it, when you factor in the advantage his speed should give him.

I can't say I'm all that sad to see him go ... he's a very good player when he wants to be, but I just didn't see him wanting to be enough.

I am sad about the way this off-season looks like it's going to go though. In the free-agent, big-money era, you've got a certain window to win a title and I'm afraid ours is going to close this year. It's going to be tough to handle if we have to go back to being a third-tier team and we don't even have a World Series appearance to show for it. It was a pretty fun squad to watch though!

[MrSenarighi]

Even though Guzman will be missed, I wouldn't throw us into a Third-Tier Team just yet. If Morneau and Mauer have a season like they should, and we can find some middle relievers, we will win the division again with ease and possibly push deep in the playoffs with Santana.

[knoppers]

guzman was a great base stealer until he dislocated his finger on a head first slide into 2nd base. ever since then, he chickened out and slide feet first, and was thrown out many times. he's a puss, I glad he's gone. we need to sign a shortstop, or like said earlier, rivas should move over, and have cuddyer play 2nd. even if koskie moves on, we have good minor leagers than can play 3rd. twins need to sign radke, and santana to a long term contract.

[pikehunter]

I'm not throwing us into the third tier because of the loss of Guzman, just saying that the way it looks things will go, we're going to need to be in rebuilding mode next season. I think Mauer and Morneau will be great players, but thinking that we'll run away with the division because of two guys who are yet to play a full major league season may be a little wishful. Needless to say, however, I hope you're right!

I am starting to think, though, that they should just let Radke walk and use that money to sign Santana to a long-term deal. Radke is getting up there and he's starting to show signs of it. Plus, next year, you likely won't have Koskie, Rivas or Jones, so why not start the new era Twins right now and see how the pups do?

Go Twins!

[The Grebe]

Blanco is also gone...I liked him as a catcher, I thought he called a pretty good game and had a pretty good arm for throwing out runners.

Boy, I'm hoping we don't have to fart around for a couple of years waiting for Mauer and then have him go belly up?

This new Mike Redman sounds familiar, or am I thinking of Mark Redman the pitcher? I still think I've heard of this guy?

One thing, I hope he is better then Borders! Even being an elder statesman as far as ball players go, I still thought Borders would be better then what he turned out to be.

[knoppers]

even thou blanco did not have good offensive numbers, he always seemed to hit in the clutch.

lets hope mauer is healthy, and continues his great play.