The Weekday Ramble is a daily dose of sports, music, culture, and more from Rambling On founder Erik Ritland. For more information check us out on Reddit, Twitter, Facebook, or at our website.
Monday March 16, 2015
Moves from the Vikings and Twins
The Vikings out the old
The Vikings made a couple interesting moves over the weekend, first trading a fifth round draft pick to the Miami Dolphins for occasionally explosive wide receiver Mike Wallace and a seventh round pick. The idea is that Wallace’s gift as a deep threat will fit into Norv Turner’s offense better than it did in Miami (where he’s floundered under a more conservative approach). Because his talent fits the Vikings better I think he will. They followed the Wallace move by cutting overpaid, underachieving nice guy Greg Jennings. While it would have been nice to keep them both – the Vikings receiving core is still pretty weak, even with Wallace – I’ll take the gamble for more talent.
The Twins out the new
Fans of the Twins have been told to be patient for years. We have one of the best minor league systems in baseball and eventually our young talent will help us be competitive again. The fan base collectively sighs, then, when this young talent is continually kept in the minors as the team flounders. This trend continued today as three of their top prospects, Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano, and pitcher Jose Berrios, were all sent to minor league camp and will not join the Twins on Opening Day.
I’m no Pohlad Pocket Protector and I understand fan frustration. But the worst thing an organization can do is pander to impatient fans. Buxton and Sano showed this spring that they are simply not ready for the big leagues yet. Berrios may be, but why bring him up on a non-contending team when keeping him in the minors for just a few weeks will give the Twins another year of his service time? It makes no sense and no team would do it.
My message, then, is this: be patient, Twins fans. It’ll be worth it.
Erik Ritland is a writer and musician from St. Paul, Minnesota. His blog and podcast Rambling On features commentary on music, sports, culture, and more. He is also a contributor for Minnesota culture blog Curious North. Support Erik's music via his Patreon account, reach him via email, or find him on Facebook and Twitter.
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