OSR:You managed the Royals for 10 seasons, including 3 straight 100 win seasons with a World Series appearance in 2018. That has to be one [...]]]> OSR: Joining us today is ScheckDiesel, former GM of the Kansas City Royals and currently with one of the new expansion teams, the Las Vegas Desperados. Thanks for being here.
ScheckDiesel: You’re welcome.

OSR:You managed the Royals for 10 seasons, including 3 straight 100 win seasons with a World Series appearance in 2018. That has to be one of the best runs ever for a small market team. Can you tell us a little bit about why you decided to move to an expansion team?
ScheckDiesel: My whole goal with the Royals was to make a run, which I did, and then build them back up until I felt they could contend again. If you look at the Royals system, they have a LOT of good players coming up. Brislin,Burkill, Dawson, and Oskwarek will be dangerous for the next 5 years. And that’s just the rotation! If you look at the lineup, names stand out like Scaparo, Clark, Snavely, Harris, Volkman, McCrury. It’s a team that has a LOT of potential.

OSR: I agree…but what exactly made you decide it was time to move on?
ScheckDiesel: The reason I moved on was because I wanted a team I could truly call my own. KidCavalier largely drafted the team I took to the WS and I wanted to see if I could compete as quickly as thenation is in Montreal. I also liked the idea of having a larger market to work with.

OSR: I’m sure that the NL West being a tad less difficult than the AL Central had nothing to do with it. Anyway, let’s move on to the initial draft. This was a 4 team expansion, compared to our 2 team expansion previously…so it was probably a bit more competitive of a draft. How do you feel you drafted compared to the other teams involved?
ScheckDiesel: Well, for the short term, I think Vancouver did the best out of anyone. However, my view towards the draft was getting the best pitching available, and then grabbing prospects I liked. This offseason I flipped first and second pick Jamie Torresola and John Watson for 2 solid spects and 2 2nd round picks. My 3rd pick Joe Trotter has great potential, and I just flipped Glenn Weaver for two amazing spects in Luis Chapa and Mike Neale, who I have loved since he was drafted.

OSR: I notice you qualified your statement on Vancouver with “for the short term”–overall, both short term and long, out of the 4 teams, how would you rate your draft? Simple answer, first through fourth.
ScheckDiesel: Wow, bringing out the tough questions. I feel like it is hard to really rank 1-4 right now, because we are only in the 2nd year of the expansion teams. If I HAD to rank the teams I would say Las Vegas, Vancouver, Monterrey, San Juan. I put myself because I feel like I have the best chances for the future with my farm system, Vancouver 2nd because he won the AL West, and Monterrey and San Juan I would tie because both of them have a decent farm, but the ML teams are struggling right now

OSR: Let’s move on to your current team…you have a couple of star players with big contracts. 3B Kevin Ilderton who you signed to a 4 year, $56 million deal, and RF Carlo Maderros who was signed by SFG this last off season for a 4 year, $64 million deal. How do these guys fit into your plans–are they part of your future or just potential trade bait?
ScheckDiesel: As of right now, they are part of my future, when you can have those two guys in the middle of your lineup, you know you are going to score runs. However, if the right deal comes along with some close to ML-ready spects, I will be willing to deal them. As of right now, the NL West should start loading up, because it looks like 2028 is the year that I feel I can make a run at the division, which is also the year that Maderros and Ilderton’s contracts are up

OSR: Onto your pitching, you definitely have some diamonds in the rough. Ian Vaughn and Matt Constantine have both been solid in the rotation, and Araki Yamamoto, a former top Japanese IFA is having the best season of his MLB career at 39 years old. Also of note is your closer, Phil Speirs, who you drafted as the 47th overall pick in the expansion draft. What’s the key to your ability to scout these underrated pitchers?
ScheckDiesel: Performance Enhancing Drugs.
OSR: : We legalized those in 2018 though, so drugged up players are the norm.
ScheckDiesel: LOL. In all seriousness, Ian Vaughn was a guy that I loved with the high control/movement numbers, and he has always been decent. Yamamoto was more of a shot in the dark, evidenced by his 1yr 600k contract. Constatine was a decent SP with an arb contract, and I felt a move to the NL would help him. Speirs is an 81 overall closer who performs way above that. My “scouts” think he is a clinch for 30+ saves a year. Overall, I love my high control/movement pitchers, especially in the hitters park that I have.

OSR: Any big names in your farm system we should expect to see in future All-Star Games? Scouts have always raved about SP Joe Trotter, but he’s already 27 years old and hasn’t hit the majors yet.
ScheckDiesel: Trotter could have a few years where he impacts, but he won’t be in the league very long. I feel that SS Mike Neale and C Luis Chapa have a very good chance to be an all-star. In the long term, I really like the potential of OF Bobby Clements and OF Gregory Lee. Those two could become my new Ilderton and Maderros when all is said and done.

OSR: Okay…now onto the future of the franchise. When do we expect to see a division title from the Desperados? Or even a championship? I heard you mention something about 2028 earlier in the interview…
ScheckDiesel: I feel like 2028 is definitely could be a cornerstone year for us. Luis Chapa, Marc Downes, Scott Seth, Mike Neale, Carlo Villegas all will be peaking…I will still have Kevin Ilderton and Carlos Maderros, and oh, Bryan Heseltine will be peaking in CF as well. My pitching staff could be suspect, but there is always FA. I can always count on a diamond in the rough, finding that low 80′s SP who will perform like a 90, a so-called “Sanji Cheater Pitcher”.

OSR: Let’s wrap it up with the 60 second drill. Who do we see in the WS this season, and who wins?
ScheckDiesel: Montreal vs Baltimore, and Montreal finally gets over the hump.

OSR: The OSR is picking Minnesota, so we’ll disagree there. Favorite player in Outahere not on your team?
ScheckDiesel: [Minnesota SP] Josh Gartner.

OSR: Great pick! Teams to watch out for 5 seasons from now?
ScheckDiesel: The Chicago White Sox and the Las Vegas Desperados,

OSR: Okay, one last question, who’s your biggest rival in Outahere? Team, GM, other league, whatever. Which team do you just really want to beat?
ScheckDiesel: Wow, tough question, back in the day, cfeedback (wink), now, thenation.
OSR: I’ve heard about that first guy. No one can beat cfeedback it seemed.
ScheckDiesel: Except the Royals between ’17-’19.

OSR: Thanks for being on the show, and good luck with the remainder of this season!
ScheckDiesel: Thanks, and also the Desperados are announcing free Topperstix night at Mandalay Bay Park, free Topperstix for all in attendance!

OSR: Well, obviously you’re having one of the best seasons in franchise history, and [...]]]> OSR: In the return of out interview series, the Minnesota GM SankTheTank stopped by our offices today to talk to us a little bit about the Twins, who currently have the best record in baseball at 77-22. Thanks for joining us.
SankTheTank: Any time.

OSR: Well, obviously you’re having one of the best seasons in franchise history, and at 21 games up in the AL Central, a virtual lock to win the division. Any surprises this season on how your team has performed?
SankTheTank: Not really about the way we’re performing, but I’m definitely surprised at the way Detroit came out of the gate in April and struggled to put themselves in this hole. A lot of our guys are performing at the level they should be and it’s allowed us to deal with the “growing pains” of younger players like Shawn Leeburn and Lequentin Harris. Initially, I was concerned about them being in the line up and potentially costing us the division as they grew up, however I’m plesantly surprised that everybody else is able to pick up the slack. So that’s the one small surprise that I’ve had this season.
OSR: Interesting…and even given those growing pains, you still have the top offense in the majors at 6.15 RS/G. Very impressive!

OSR: Let’s talk about a few trades you made this season. RP Jared Helmuth, who was very solid in his 2+ seasons in Minnesota, was traded to Boston for a 3rd round draft pick. What was the thinking behind this deal?
SankTheTank: It wasn’t anything with Helmuth, he’s a great pitcher who got the job done and made everybody’s job easier. He essientially eliminated an inning from the game and I know the fans loved him because he was striking out close to eleven batters per nine. However, it came down to us being in debt and not being able to afford him. We have the largest payroll in the league [Editor's note: Now currently 3rd in the league at 160.4M] but don’t make enough money to cover that, so we had to make some moves and Helmuth unfortunatley was making a lot of money. We left like Matt Hawkers could pick up the slack as he’s been pitching incredibly this season.

OSR: The other major trade you made this season was sending 2B Kent Jeeves to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for OF Peter Fortner, in a rare straight exchange of two young top prospects. Rumor has it that the Twins had concerns about Jeeves staying healthy, but Fortner has his own problems in that area as well. How did this trade come to be, and what does it mean for the future of Minnesota?
SankTheTank: We just didn’t have any room for Kent Jeeves. We discussed it constantly and I was looking for any way to fit Jeeves in somewhere. Unfortunatley, there just wasn’t a spot for him going forward and Chicago was open to trading Fortner for him straight up. I liked the deal because Fortner fills a need at right field and has the potential to be one of the game’s best hitters.

OSR: One last trade related question. Minnesota is said to be shopping RF Raymond Tyler, who is having perhaps the best season of his career since his breakout season at age 22, which was all the way back in 2014. Can you tell us anything about the reasons behind looking to move him?
SankTheTank: He’s a great hitter and we love him on our team. A lot of people critisized me for trading a great prospect in Ed Radin for him but I feel like it’s finally paying off. Unfortunatley, next year Seattle will be finished paying for his salary and it’ll be completely on us to write his check. We most likely will not have the money to do that while taking care of Chanthar Thomas, Jeff Ratcliffe, and Josh Gartner at the end of 2026.

OSR: Let’s move on and talk a little about the state of your farm system. Minnesota has mostly been a seller of draft picks over the last few seasons, leaving the cupboard somewhat bare. Any plans to address that or have you entered a “go for broke phase” and just focusing on bringing home a title?
SankTheTank: Yeah, I feel like we needed the cash more than we needed the draft picks. I couldn’t pass up Boston’s offer of $19,000,000 which will greatly help us this offsesaon when we’re paying for our arbitration elgible players. There won’t be any of this for the 2026 draft, we understand that our farm system – especially our pitching specifically – is a little on the weaker side. While we have guys that we’re hoping will be productive major leaguers like Lucas Chambers and Ron Martin, we’re lacking in the starting pitching department and it’s essiential that we get somebody if we want to compete in the future. Josh Gartner and Albert Everard unfortunately won’t be around for ever and we’ll hopefully be able to draft their replacements next June.

OSR: Okay, let’s wrap it up with our 60 second drill (short, quick answers). Name your two favorite players in Outahere, at least one not currently a member of the Twins.
SankTheTank: [Boston 3B] Edward Harder and [Minnesota SP] Nagafusa Satoya.

OSR: Biggest rival in Outahere, whether on a personal or team basis?
SankTheTank: The Tigers definitely! Both a personal and team basis, a huge division rival, and he took advantage of my Mogul virginity by stealing Sam Harrell!

OSR: World Series match up this season? And who wins? In how many games?
SankTheTank: Minnesota in five against Montreal!

OSR: Twins with the best chance of winning the MVP, Cy Young, or ROY this season?
SankTheTank: MVP – Raymond Tyler. Cy Young – Edgar Maldovado. Rookie of the Year – Lequentin Harris.

OSR: Okay, I think that about wraps it up. Thanks for taking the time to chat with us and good luck in October!
SankTheTank: Yup, no problem. thanks!

A few tidbits:

- The Twins have made an offer for [...]]]> Word around Detroit is the Oakland Athletics (due to their no money state) and the Chicago White Sox (due to rejected offer) are out of the Cody Johnson sweepstakes. Though, the Twins stay interested and now the Florida Marlins and the Baltimore Orioles may possibly be involved.

A few tidbits:

- The Twins have made an offer for Johnson, but it could have been interfered with when SP prospect Nathan Christie was moved to the Reds.
- The Marlins have reportedly been in on Johnson, and the Tigers have been known to be interested in their young pitching, specifically SP Ted Potter.
- The Orioles have not yet made an offer, but are known to like Johnson in the past.

Once again, the asking price for Johnson is known to be three good things, most likely involving a first round draft pick.

Update, 4:30: The Marlins and Tigers deal seems to have fallen apart due to Johnson’s NTC.

Diamond has fallen off the last few years, but has proven to be a reliable pitcher, posting a career 3.77 ERA.

Update, 11:33pm: The Mets will receive the Twins 2017 3rd rounder [...]]]> The Mets and Twins are confirming a deal that will send SP Thomas Diamond to the Twins in return for the Twins 2017 third-round draft selection.

Diamond has fallen off the last few years, but has proven to be a reliable pitcher, posting a career 3.77 ERA.

Update, 11:33pm: The Mets will receive the Twins 2017 3rd rounder ONLY IF the Twins neglect to sign a FA where the compensation involves the pick. If the Twins sign a player that requires it’s use for compensation, the Mets will instead receive the Twins 2018 3rd rounder.

Sources say that Berg could possibly end up getting a three-year deal, possibly a bit below 10 million dollars each year. Berg, 31, [...]]]> The idea that starting pitching is always at a premium has been proven true by Justin Berg this offseason, drawing tons of interest from five different teams: The Twins, Dodgers, Rockies, Brewers and Rangers.

Sources say that Berg could possibly end up getting a three-year deal, possibly a bit below 10 million dollars each year. Berg, 31, has spent most of his major-league career with the current Cutthroats and the former Devil Rays. He has a career 4.29 ERA, but boasts a 3.88 DICE.

The Twins are said to be the frontrunners for Berg.

Peralta, 33, hit .340 last year for the Twins, and is joining his 8th ballclub. Aviola, 23, [...]]]> Word coming from the commish’s office is that the Minnesota Twins and the Los Angeles Dodgers have agreed on a deal that will send veteran SS Jhonny Peralta to the Dodgers in exchange for OF prospect Etienne Aviola, pending approval.

Peralta, 33, hit .340 last year for the Twins, and is joining his 8th ballclub. Aviola, 23, played in 43 games for the Single-A Vero Beach Dodgers, hitting .310 with 6 HRs and 32 RBIs.

Butler, 29, had a bit of an off year [...]]]> Free agent OFer Billy Butler is drawing intrest from the Royals, Athletics and Cutthroats. The Cutthroats are said to be the leader for Butler. The Minnesota Twins could possibly jump in on the Butler sweepstakes, if they fail to land Cody Johnson or Delwyn Young.

Butler, 29, had a bit of an off year last year. He hit .254 while jacking 11 homeruns and driving in 75 RBIs.

The known asking price is three good prospects, most likely [...]]]> Various rumors suggest that Tigers’ LF Cody Johnson may be on his way out of Detroit. With the Tigers rebuilding, trading the 27 year old Johnson seems odd, but the Tigers may have concerns that his servered elbow ligament could have lingering affects on his production.

The known asking price is three good prospects, most likely involving a first-round draft pick. The Twins, Athletics, and White Sox have all made offers on Johnson.