Bill Smith ... Mahay

It seems like the work Bill Smith has done (is currently doing) could be too little, too late. He knew that the bullpen needed help at the trading deadline last summer and he has done nothing to help/bolster/upgrade yet. Well that is until now - hopefully. It's hard to believe that it takes over 1 year to find one half-way decent reliever to help out a bullpen desperate for help (and while Mahay has been decent in the past, he is not a huge upgrade).

Also, while you could say that the Twins have been unlucky with their starting staff, it would not have been bad thing to add one veteran starter to the rotation this spring as some people said he should do. But instead of going out and adding depth like say Ken Williams of the White Sox has done, Bill Smith just sits on his hands and makes decisions that other people tell him to make (remember he said he is not an evaluator, but he is an organizer and decision maker).

The main issue, is that Bill Smith has waited until August to make moves that would have helped this club since the start of the season. Imagine if this team had a veteran starter to help the younger starters or if the team had one reliable starter not named Nathan, Guerrier, or Mijares. They would most likely be at least a few games better, if not in first place. Boy, it sure would look nice to have Brandon Lyon available in the bullpen to pitch the 7th or to give Guerrier a night off. He is the one guy I had hoped the Twins pursue hard last offseason and instead they signed Punto for $4 million and signed Luis Ayala - did anyone really think he would be any good after the poor season he had in the NL last year? I guess Bill Smith's advisors probably did and I guess that's who Bill Smith will blame.

It's time to get a real GM - one who actually can evaluate talent!