How to Build a Team for Target Field

[strumdatjaguar]

I think the Twins have strayed from the formula that made them successful in the Metrodome and would translate even better to Target Field.  I understand that (as Donald Rumsfeld said), we go to war with the Army we have.  But here are the most important factors imho for building that army.

 1. Speed in the outfield to cover the big area and to create outs on balls that would fall in as his with slower outfielders.  Unfortunately, this year's outfield will not be speedy, with an aging Torii back and Arcia in the other corner.  The Twins need at least two speedy outfielders to help cover that large outfield. This year could be brutal to watch, at least if and when Byron Buxton shows up.

2. Be willing to sacrifice speed-related defense in return for hitting and power on the corners  (Very little foul ground means that speed is less of a need on the corners, and at catcher too).  Suzuki,  Plouffe and Mauer are adequate, but the arrival of Miguel Sano will help more to further this goal. 

3. Look for above-average range and defense in the middle infield, even if it sacrifices some offense. 

4. "Pitch to contact" ain't so bad, if you have speedy outfielders to run down the fly balls and above-average defense up the middle.  There should be no whining about mixing in a few PTC pitchers with the young power pitchers that the Twins are developing.   In the future, the Twins will have trouble bidding for the flashy strike-out pitching free agents and should concentrate on attracting those less exciting FA pitchers who are willing to let good defense bring them outs.  Hopefully, we have and will draft and develop those flashy pitchers in our system.

[diehardtwinsfan]

I still prefer guys who can miss bats to go with that speedy OF.  That said, Arcia in particular should be a lot better than he is defensively.  He's young, athletic, and not exactly a slow plodder.  I'm not a fan of the Torii signing, but while he's not a premium defender anymore, he should know quite a bit about the nuances of good defense, and I hope that he's able to impart a lot of that on to Arcia and Hicks in particular. 

[TheLeviathan]

 He's young, athletic, and not exactly a slow plodder.  

 

I love this thread and agree with most everything said but....huh?  Are we talking the same Arcia?

[diehardtwinsfan]

He's 23.  He can still move.  He's not Vargas out there. 

[strumdatjaguar]

My point is that the Twins need to have a longterm plan that combines outfield defense with control pitchers.  If those control pitchers can also strike out a high number of batters, then that's even better.  I'm very worried about having a Torii Hunter/ Oswaldo Arcia outfield with a journeyman/Jordan Shafer (you spell it) type in center.   When Buxton arrives, it would be nice to pair him with at least one other speedster.

[maxisagod]

I think the Twins do have a plan. Arica arm should be in right and though he's not an excellent defender I agree with diehardtwinsfan, He young, he has played center field in the minors, he's not a DH in the outfield, he just needs to be used correctly, and in Target Field that means Right field. Roserio or Hicks (whoever hits better going forward) are center fielders you can use in Left, Buxton is in center shading right. 

 

What get's in the way of the plan is hiring veterans, luckily Hunter is only on a one year deal. If The outfield prospects start showing they're ready, There will be a hugh uptick in OF D, over the next two years. 

[stringer bell]

Overall, Target Field plays "fair", with early and late weather perhaps suppressing offense.  If the weather is good early and late, the numbers for Target Field should be pretty close to league average.  I think  the prescription by the OP are fine, but basically it is the same for any park--speed and range up the middle, power on the corners, surehandedness everywhere.  Probably the only exception is that range is helpful on the corners in Oakland because of the massive amount of foul territory.

 

Within the "fair" rating for Target Field, it seems that home runs are suppressed overall a bit, particularly to right field, while homers to left are perhaps a bit more generous than average, but still not enough to make up for the suppression to right and deep power alleys. 

[Boom Boom]

I believe that a big reason TF seemed to be a pitcher's park early on was that the Twins lineup was a holdover from the Metrodome era. It's no secret that the Twins built those lineups to lean heavily left-handed.

 

Guys like Kubel and Morneau certainly didn't have the same success at TF. Unless you're a lefty hitter with prodigious power it is difficult to hit homers to right field. The Twins have learned since then that the park is more generous to righties.

[jorgenswest]

Target Field was the most offense friendly park in the AL last year according to runs. Every aspect of offense increased.

 

http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/parkfactor

 

It wasn't just last year. Target Field's park factor has been above one in each of the last three years. Fangraph's does a break down by side of plate and it is more difficult for lefties to hit home runs than average.

 

With the increase in doubles and triples at Target Field, it might be wise to build a team where the outfielder's have better than average range.

[gunnarthor]

Target Field was the most offense friendly park in the AL last year according to runs. Every aspect of offense increased.

 

http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/parkfactor

 

It wasn't just last year. Target Field's park factor has been above one in each of the last three years. Fangraph's does a break down by side of plate and it is more difficult for lefties to hit home runs than average.

 

With the increase in doubles and triples at Target Field, it might be wise to build a team where the outfielder's have better than average range.

Hicks could be the real X-factor in all this.  If Buxton is all we want in a CFer, Hicks could take over a corner and their combined range would (arguably) help Arcia in right.  But until Hicks fixes things, it's just a wish.

[JB_Iowa]

  But until Hicks fixes things, it's just a wish.

 

It's also just a wish until Buxton shows us he can stay on the field and that he belongs in MLB.

[gunnarthor]

It's also just a wish until Buxton shows us he can stay on the field and that he belongs in MLB.

Well, yeah, but with Buxton you see him moving in the right direction despite the wasted season.  Hicks, ... man, I hope he has a great season for us.

[stringer bell]

Hicks could be the real X-factor in all this.  If Buxton is all we want in a CFer, Hicks could take over a corner and their combined range would (arguably) help Arcia in right.  But until Hicks fixes things, it's just a wish.

Here comes the cold water....Hicks hasn't been able to hit well enough to hold down center field. Why should we expect him to improve enough to hold on to a corner spot? Don't see it and never have. I hope Hicks has a good year and maybe establishes himself as a major league center fielder. That would be great, but I just don't ever see Hicks being a staple as a corner outfielder.

[SwainZag]

Target Field was the most offense friendly park in the AL last year according to runs. Every aspect of offense increased.

 

http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/parkfactor

 

It wasn't just last year. Target Field's park factor has been above one in each of the last three years. Fangraph's does a break down by side of plate and it is more difficult for lefties to hit home runs than average.

 

With the increase in doubles and triples at Target Field, it might be wise to build a team where the outfielder's have better than average range.

 

I wonder how much the offensive park facrors went up because the Twins abysmal defense played half the innings at Target Field this season.

[TheLeviathan]

I wonder how much the offensive park facrors went up because the Twins abysmal defense played half the innings at Target Field this season.

I thought the same thing. I just don't get how this team seems to ignore that the best, and easiest, way to make your whole pitching staff better is fielding a competent defense.

[jorgenswest]

I wonder how much the offensive park facrors went up because the Twins abysmal defense played half the innings at Target Field this season.

They had the same defense in road games so it shouldn't be a factor.

[SwainZag]

They had the same defense in road games so it shouldn't be a factor.

 

That makes no sense.  Their defense in road games was split in roughly 20 different stadiums.  Half of the defensive innings that were seen in Target Field this year were by the Twins.  If they Twins had say....the Royals defense this past season, Target Field might still be looking like a pitcher's park.

[jorgenswest]

That makes no sense.  Their defense in road games was split in roughly 20 different stadiums.  Half of the defensive innings that were seen in Target Field this year were by the Twins.  If they Twins had say....the Royals defense this past season, Target Field might still be looking like a pitcher's park.

Short and long explanations about how park factor is computed can be found at the espn link above (short) or the fangraphs site (long).

 

Simplistically, the number of runs (or hr or triple) scored and given up at home are compared to those scored and given up on the road. Since the same bad defense goes on the road, the number extra runs due to the defense should be the same both places. When the numbers are different and the players are the same, it might be the park. When a park has three consecutive years (as Target Field does) of having more runs scored and given up then on the road, it probably should be thought of as a hitter friendly park.

[Brock Beauchamp]

I think the Twins have strayed from the formula that made them successful in the Metrodome and would translate even better to Target Field.  I understand that (as Donald Rumsfeld said), we go to war with the Army we have.  But here are the most important factors imho for building that army.

 1. Speed in the outfield to cover the big area and to create outs on balls that would fall in as his with slower outfielders.  Unfortunately, this year's outfield will not be speedy, with an aging Torii back and Arcia in the other corner.  The Twins need at least two speedy outfielders to help cover that large outfield. This year could be brutal to watch, at least if and when Byron Buxton shows up.

2. Be willing to sacrifice speed-related defense in return for hitting and power on the corners  (Very little foul ground means that speed is less of a need on the corners, and at catcher too).  Suzuki,  Plouffe and Mauer are adequate, but the arrival of Miguel Sano will help more to further this goal. 

3. Look for above-average range and defense in the middle infield, even if it sacrifices some offense. 

4. "Pitch to contact" ain't so bad, if you have speedy outfielders to run down the fly balls and above-average defense up the middle.  There should be no whining about mixing in a few PTC pitchers with the young power pitchers that the Twins are developing.   In the future, the Twins will have trouble bidding for the flashy strike-out pitching free agents and should concentrate on attracting those less exciting FA pitchers who are willing to let good defense bring them outs.  Hopefully, we have and will draft and develop those flashy pitchers in our system.

I like the general idea of this but will add the caveat that speedy, rangy middle infielders are marginalized if you don't build a pitching staff that puts the ball on the ground.

 

I'm a big believer in focusing your defense on your pitching strengths and minimizing its weaknesses. Right now, the Twins are a pretty flyball-heavy staff and the OF defense should complement that attribute, not the opposite.

[Paul Pleiss]

The best way to build a team that can win at Target field is to build a team that can win anywhere.

 

The strength of this team is their offense. Which is exciting and unusual, but the issue that needs to be addressed is the pitching and defense. The Twins defense, as currently constructed looks to be even worse than 2014, which doesn't bode well for the pitching staff. Ervin Santana will be a welcome addition to a rotation in need of durable mid-rotation arms, but if the defense, particularly the OF defense is not improved, fans aren't going to be able to see any noticible return on the investment made on the hump.

 

If you want to win at Target Field get better pitchers who are protected by better defenders who are somehow even better hitters than they were in 2014.

 

I don't know that there's much that an organization can do to leverage TF dimensions to their advantage other than getting guys who can crush the ball over the fence on a more regular basis, but that's not unique to TF, that works everywhere.