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Miguel Sano is Off to a Worrisome Start
#1
Posted 07 April 2021 - 07:34 PM
He showed a lot of potential in 2019 that made us think 2021 should be a bounce-back season. Unfortunately, that has not at all been the case so far.
Through his first six games (I know, small sample size,) Sano has just two hits in 23 at-bats with 12 strikeouts. He has a career-high Whiff% at 46.9% and a career-low exit velocity at 87.1 MPH. For context, in 2019 the Whiff% was 37.7% and exit velocity was 94.4 MPH.
With Josh Donaldson going down immediately, the Twins need the power and consistency from Miguel Sano that we saw in 2019. If he can just hit for a .240 average with an OPS of .850 that would be more than enough production.
He is off to a terrible start so I expect Sano to raise those numbers, but can he raise them above the rough 2020 numbers? Right now I think I would bet he looks more like the 2020 version of himself than the 2019 version, which is not good for the Twins.
By the end of this month we will have a much better sample size to determine what kind of year Sano will probably have. Right now we can only go off of a very rough first five games.
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#2
Posted 07 April 2021 - 07:46 PM
Yeah I want to give him the benefit of the doubt but the K's are just killing his ability to be a MLB player.He did have three walks the other day and IMO the umps have not been kind to him especially on high strikes and off the plate strikes that appear pretty wide.Still it doesn't seem like he is seeing the ball as well as he needs to.Add in the fact that he has a huge hole in his swing with trouble making contact and things don't look good right now for the righty slugger.
Maybe he is thinking too much.Maybe he is isn't thinking enough I don't know all I know is that it would be nice if we had a more productive bat in that spot right now. When he comes up to bat he is an almost automatic out.Often times the pitcher only needs three pitches and he is done.Can't have that from a MLB player.
It is early can't panic yet but he needs to at the very least start making contact with the ball or benched for someone like Astudillo who can at least put the ball in play.
- TopGunn#22 and bighat like this
#3
Posted 07 April 2021 - 07:46 PM
jk jk
He’s in year 2 of his contract, right? Trade value likely at an all time low and Kirilloff/Sabato forcing the issue here sooner or later. Twins may end up deciding between Kepler or Sano here shortly.
- TopGunn#22 likes this
#4
Posted 07 April 2021 - 08:07 PM
- Twins33 and TopGunn#22 like this
#5
Posted 07 April 2021 - 08:08 PM
We need to check this on May 1; it is early. The big man is having some long at bats and a few quick ones.
- BBAM likes this
#6
Posted 07 April 2021 - 08:09 PM
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#7
Posted 07 April 2021 - 08:12 PM
Rookie Sano was the best Sano. Whatever he has done since then it hasn't been working. Occasionally he will get red hot but then its more of the same old, swing and miss.
- Twins33 and bighat like this
#9
Posted 07 April 2021 - 08:59 PM
#10
Posted 07 April 2021 - 09:22 PM
I concur--not a small sample size really. Just a continuation of who he probably is. The k's have never stopped. yes he will hit a mistake a mile, once in awhile. But you can't have a guy in the lineup every night that can't make contact.50% of the time.
I have to believe he may have a short leash this season.
- TopGunn#22, laloesch and bighat like this
#11
Posted 07 April 2021 - 09:24 PM
- Dave The Dastardly likes this
#12
Posted 07 April 2021 - 10:02 PM
Sano always does this. He's basically a league-average starting first baseman. Sure, he goes through these slumps - if he didn't, he'd be a superstar - but he's ultimately been pretty consistent throughout his career, once you account for swings in BABIP. He's keeping the spot warm for Kirilloff, Larnach, or Sabato.
- TopGunn#22, laloesch and wabene like this
If you ain't got no haters, you ain't poppin'.
#13
Posted 07 April 2021 - 10:34 PM
My opinion does not qualify as "an extreme take." The sample size is not small and he is not going to suddenly become Big Pappi. Time to stop holding out hope IMHO.
He is what he is. Not sure how the start of this season changed your view of him at all
- BBAM likes this
#14
Posted 07 April 2021 - 11:29 PM
My opinion does not qualify as "an extreme take."
The sample size is not small
23 ABs and we're 7 days into the season....
- BBAM likes this
#15
Posted 08 April 2021 - 01:25 AM
Regardless of how small...... I agree. Worrisome performance by Sano. Hard to watch.
- bighat likes this
#16
Posted 08 April 2021 - 04:59 AM
Troublesome, worrisome, frustrating - all of the above. But what else is new?
Sano's career in a nutshell has been marked by long, deep hitting slumps followed by short bursts of amazing power and skill. He's not 21 anymore, he's not even 24. The guy's 27 and this is who he is. His home runs are incredibly noteworthy, but so are his strikeout numbers. This spring he batted .159 with a 50% strikeout rate, he's basically not made any improvements on that so far this year.
He's fallen to batting in the 6th and 7th spots, respectively. Yesterday he was batting 7th against a lefty - I think that tells you all you need to know.
Concerning for sure.
- USAFChief, TopGunn#22, Dman and 2 others like this
#17
Posted 08 April 2021 - 05:40 AM
I think Sano pretty much is what he is. He'll go stretches were it seems like making contact is nearly impossible and he's swinging out of his shoes. Then he'll go on stretches were everything he hits goes 450'. His only consistency is in inconsistency.
It is troubling to see him dropping in the order though. Even with the guys in this lineup, he should be at the heart of the order. He simply doesn't produce well enough consistently to put him there though.
- Minny505 and bighat like this
#18
Posted 08 April 2021 - 06:04 AM
He is what he is. Not sure how the start of this season changed your view of him at all
AZ - while I agree with this comment in general, the article had this quote "He showed a lot of potential in 2019 that made us think 2021 should be a bounce-back season."
I don't know who "us" is, but I believe that is at the crux of the posters angst.
Many of "us" are more realistic about Sano - that being he does hit some majestic HRs but the majority of time he can not be trusted at the plate, and if he hasn't figured it out at this point in his career, he never will....
- laloesch, Dave The Dastardly, rv78 and 1 other like this
That Twins 2nd baseman - #29 - he doesn't run, he "ca-rew-zes" - Earl Weaver
#19
Posted 08 April 2021 - 07:26 AM
Sanó seems on his way to Mark Reynolds territory. Yes, he'll hit a lot of homers, but will have prodigious strikeout totals. The slumps are too long and deep and the periods of elite hitting are too short. Alex Kirilloff may find a home at first base instead of left field.
I do want to say that I don't think Sanó's problems are weight or attitude. He plays hard and seems to be a good teammate. He hasn't developed into an all-around hitter despite hard work.
- Danchat, wsnydes and bighat like this
#20
Posted 08 April 2021 - 07:28 AM
No, this is not a small sample size.Most of us thought something of Cruz had rubbed off on Sano after the 2019 Bomba squad but even in 2019 there were HUGE holes in his swing.I was pushing all off-season for a trade of Sano.I liked Colorado as a possible landing spot due to the temptation of his power---then they signed Cron.
He will always be a rally killer with his strikeouts.It's not really a decision between Kepler and Sano at all.Sano will be gone in 2021, possibly 2022.Kiriloff, Larnach, Rooker and Sabato give the Twins plenty of BETTER options than Sano.The sooner the Twins make a change, the better.
- denarded, laloesch, Dr. Evil and 6 others like this