Welcome to part five of this series, in which we look at the all-decade teams comprised of only guys selected to an All-Star team in that decade. You can refer to part 1 for the full methodology. Without further ado, let’s dig into the 2000s. Will they be the team to finally  overthrow the 1960s all-decade team?

The 2000s Twins Teams

At the turn of the century, the Twins were facing contraction. Rumors flew regarding plans to move the team. The Metrodome was one of the worst ballparks in the league, and the Pohlads weren’t interested in investing in significant upgrades or building a new stadium on their dime. Contraction would have meant a $250M payout for ownership. Owners collectively voted 28-2 in favor of contraction, and plans were only halted when a judge ruled that the team was contractually obligated to finish their lease. Then, the team started to play well, and public funding was approved for a new ballpark - Target Field. The 2000s brought some very fun players, including one being inducted to the Hall of Fame this weekend. It also saw us non-tender players like David Ortiz, who went on to have a HOF career. How do these teams stack up against the earlier decades? Read on to find out!

Starting Pitchers

SP1 - Johan Santana - In 2006, Johan went 19-6. He led the league with a 2.77 ERA, led the league in strikeouts (245), ERA+ (162), WHIP (.997), Wins (19), and strikeout rate (9.4). He won his second (should have been third) Cy Young, and was utterly dominant throughout the entire season. He only lost one game in his final 11 of the season. He won the pitching triple crown that year. By WAR, he was the most valuable player in the American League that season, and it wasn’t close. His WPA was an incredible 4, and he held hitters to a collective .618 OPS. That’s Manny Margot territory. He was truly special. What’s wild is that he was the second-best pitcher on the team for half that season. Check out SP3 for more info on that one. Unfortunately for the Twins, Johan’s dominant peak meant they would not be willing to extend him, and they traded him away a year later. Post-trade, he was middling, and injuries ended his HOF-trajectory career too soon. Sound familiar, Twins fans?

SP2 - Joe Mays - in 2001, Mays had his one great season, where he was worth 6.6 WAR, 2nd best in the AL. He also finished first in ERA+He pitched to a 3.16 ERA (although his FIP was a full run higher). He didn’t really strike anyone out, with just 4.7 K/9. But, this was still the steroids era, and this kind of output was well above average. What got him selected as an All-Star was his first-half output. He had 11 wins, a 3.02 ERA, and a FIP that more closely resembled his actual ERA. After this season, Mays went on to be the mediocre pitcher he had been before 2001 and was out of the sport at 30.

SP 3 - Francisco Liriano - in 2006, Liriano showed Twins fans what a healthy super-prospect is capable of. He also showed Twins fans the crushing disappointment of injuries derailing said prospects’ careers. In this case, Liriano began the season with maybe the most impressive first half of a rookie season as I’ve ever seen. I remember watching his first start and being utterly blown away by his fastball/slider combo, and watching hitter make embarrassing swings  was a highlight of Liriano days. In just 16 starts, he went 12-3, with a 2.16 ERA. In the steroids era. He struck out 10.7/9. His ERA+ was 208. His FIP was just 1.0. His numbers were that of the best relievers in the game - as a starter. He was on track to the the Cy Young favorite over Johan. If not for blowing out his elbow, he may have been the true ace we have not seen since Johan was traded to the Mets. He is also a key part of maybe the best trade the Twins have ever made, receiving Liriano, Joe Nathan, and Boof Bonser for a year of AJ Pierzynski.

Relief Pitchers

Joe Nathan - in 2004, Joe Nathan was a dominant closer. He earned 44 saves, with a 1.62 ERA. His ERA+ was 294. That might be the highest I’ve seen. He let the AL in WPA that season, with a remarkable 5.8 WPA, the definition of clutch. And again, I want to remind you this was the steroid era. Watching Nathan’s quirks on the mound was one of my favorite parts of the late innings, with his head-shaking and neighing being truly unique. He went on to save more games than any other closer in team history

Eddie Guardado - 2002 - Everyday Eddie was not a good starting pitcher. However, after he was converted to the bullpen, he was pretty good. It was sometimes an experience, but he made back-to-back All-Star teams. In 2002, he led the league in saves (45), striking out over a batter per inning. He received MVP votes as a relief pitcher, which is uncommon to say the least. He was instrumental in the Twins’ postseason run, in which they took down the Moneyball As. In his career overall, he appeared in 908 games, 22nd-most all time. He eventually joined the Twins HOF.

Lineup

C - Joe Mauer - 2009 - Mauer’s 2009 season was incredible. Despite missing the first month of the season with an injury, he led the league in most offensive categories, winning his third batting title, MVP, Silver Slugger, and Gold Glove. He led the league in batting average (.365), OBP (.444), SLG (.587), and OPS+. He was 71% better than an average hitter, and he did it while playing great defense and the most physically-demanding position. The 2009 season was also Mauer’s only season with significant power. Overall, he posted the 5th highest WAR total for any catcher in baseball histroy. Back in 2009, I was not yet well-versed in analytics and advanced metrics, and unfortunately, I didn’t fully appreciate how special he was in those early seasons. Luckily, he’s being rewarded for a legendary career by being indicated into Cooperstown this weekend.

1B - Justin Morneau - 2008. We can’t have an all-decade team without BOTH of the M&M boys being represented, so it’s nice that that storyline fit into this methodology as well. Morneau is a great example of an incredibly talented player’s career being diminished by injuries. If not for his concussions, he may have been joining Mauer in the Hall of Fame. Instead, he burned bright and faded a bit. In 2008, Morneau played in all 163 games. He took almost as many walks (76) as strikeouts (85). He hit 23 homers and another 47 doubles. He hit .300, with a .499 slugging, good for an OPS+ of 134. He won a Silver Slugger at 1B for his efforts, and was runner-up for his second MVP. Oh, and he won the Home Run Derby, beating Josh Hamilton in the finals. Of note, he became the only Canadian to win the HRD.

SS - Cristian Guzman - 2001. Coming to the Twins as part of the Knoblach trade that also brought Eric Milton and Brian Buchanon to the team, Guzman had two very good seasons, and one occurred in his All-Star season with the Twins. En route to accumulating 4.8 WAR, Guzman was very good on both sides of his game. He led the league in triples (14), stole 24 bases, had a .302 BA, walked more than he struck out, and was good for a 111 OPS+ at a premium defensive position. The best memory of that season for him was his inside-the-park home run on a bunt. To be fair, a three-base throwing error was involved as well, but still, four bases on a bunt requires some wheels.

OF - Matt Lawton - in 2000, Matt Lawton made an All-Star team for the Twins. Did he play well enough to deserve it? Not really. He was fine, rather than great. But, he fills a spot in our lineup. Offensively, he was fine. Lawton finished the year with a 116 OPS+, hit .305, and got on base at a .405 clip. He had more gap power than homer power, but did hit 44 doubles. However, he was a bit of a butcher in the field, costing the team 11 runs compared to an average fielder.

OF - Torii Hunter - 2007. Hunter was one of my favorite players in the 2000s. His speed, enthusiasm, and sense of fun made him really stand out. He also had a propensity to ground out to short in key spots (this showed up in his WPA pretty frequently, as over his 18-year career, he accumulated just 3.8 WPA). So, it was a bit of a love/hate situation. However, he was very good overall, and ended up having a borderline HOF career. In 2007, he made his second of five All-Star appearances. While playing Gold Glove caliber defense, he also hit to an .839 OPS, 23% better than average. He received down ballot MVP votes as well. Following the season, he signed a 6-year deal with the Angels.

The 2000s all-decade team accumulated 45.7 WAR. With the 52 replacement wins, this decade was good for 97.7 wins overall. Not bad, but still not as good as the 60s or 70s.

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s look at the 2010s. And, comment below your thoughts on this all-decade team!