Observations & Questions

[stringer bell]

I watched Sunday's game on DVR (great afternoon to be on the golf course) and then skimmed the game thread.  I have some thoughts and some questions:

 

1)  What did the M's manager get thrown out for?  I actually thought the ump was pretty good at balls and strikes (I know he was a Triple A call-up).  I didn't see any particularly bad ball/strike calls before McClendon came on the field, seemingly with intention of getting tossed.

 

2)  Was anyone surprised that Arcia got taken out of the game (replaced by Schafer) instead of Escobar? 

 

3)  Outfield defense was satisfactory to good for the three-game series in Seattle.  That is a big outfield, too.  Schafer made a couple of good catches on Friday.  Torii and Robinson made nice catches and not one ball that should have been caught was allowed to drop.

 

4)  Bremer made the point, but it is worth repeating--starting pitching has been pretty good for a while now.  I don't know how long the magic beans will hold out for Pelfrey and Milone, but the Twins haven't been out of games early and the seventh isn't automatically a bullpen inning (a good thing considering the bullpen).

 

5)  Aaron Thompson seems to be pretty capable.  The K percentage is pretty low, but with the exception of Jackson's homer on Saturday, he gets outs.  Thompson, Fien, and Perkins are at this time a decent back of the bullpen.

 

6)  The last three position players to make the Twins in the spring won't be among the first to be released or sent down.  Robinson has been good in the outfield and hitting above his head.  In limited play, Nuñez and Herrmann have done well.  I know Nuñez has made one glaring fielding error and one terrible base running mistake, but he's hitting over .500!  (SSS).  Herrmann seems fine behind the plate and he had a couple of excellent plate appearances yesterday (both walks). 

 

7)  Lineup:  For now, there is no doubt Mauer should be hitting third despite his lack of XBH.  Dozier is hitting .200 and still is the best choice to lead off.  I guess Plouffe should be hitting fourth even thought he was 1-10 in the cleanup spot this weekend.

 

8)  So many struggling players.  Schafer isn't of much use unless he can use that base stealing speed.  Vargas looks totally lost, Santana isn't much better, ditto for Arcia.  Escobar isn't stinging the ball often enough to truly push Santana, but I'm certain I like his defense at short better than Santana's.

 

9)  The team is 8-10 despite the hitting dearth and some so-bad-it's-comical defense.  They've played 12 road games and only six at home.  They have a long homestand coming up.  I think we'll have a pretty good idea how competitive this club is by the end of that homestand.

[big dog]

Yeah, things look a little less dire than after the first four games, anyway.  Hopefully we can compete with Detroit the next few days.  If they club us like baby seals again the balloon will deflate pretty quickly.  If we win a couple I will of course become hopeful beyond rational thought.

 

Vargas looks beyond lost.  He struck out on a pitch Saturday night where it looked like he had completed the swing before the pitch bounced a foot in front of home plate.  Hopefully Bruno can work some of that Hitting Coach Magic.

[chopper0080]

I agree that SP has been good, which most would have guessed heading into the season.  I'm not too worried about hitting because hitting is down around the entire league, and most of our guys have never been great hitters.  My issues were and continue to be about the team's defense and relief pitching.  IMO, those are fixable offseason issues and were left unaddressed for the most part.

[jimmer]

Our starting pitching ranks 28th in FIP, 24th in ERA,  26th in xFIP, 23rd in IP, last in K/9, and 21st in BB/9.

 

Is this good?

[Seth Stohs]

The Twins have gone 8-7 since getting swept by Detroit (and the same three pitchers that they'll face the next three days), and 7-4 in their last 11. 

 

At some point, we need to step back and say, "No, this isn't a perfect roster, but they're not playing terrible."

[Danchat]

Our starting pitching is going to decline - Milone and Pelfrey are not going to maintain their current ERAs. Both have a FIP of 5.42. When Nolasco returns, I have a [bad] feeling that he'll replace May, making our rotation worse. 

 

Our batting is going to improve eventually. I doubt we'll return to being the 7th best offense in the league, but we're going to crawl out of the top 10 batting teams in the league.

[Rosterman]

Yeah, can the coaching up here work with the Vargas, Arcia and Santana situation. Are they better served working out kinks at AAA. The problem is that when you play in the majors, the games really do count. If you win, you shine with the entire team. If the team stinks, and you do to, it hurts. Not to say that minor league aren't important, they are, but do you send down Arcia, Vargas and Santana. Bring up Hicks, Pinto and Polanco?

 

I don't think you can send out the youngsters and just replace them with tired vets. We opened the season with enough of that action going on.It's a killer when prospects struggle. Makes you realize that it a growing process, that few of them walk up to the plate and hit .300 or 40 homers or strike out 200 batters or win 20 games (or even 12) in their first year. And then you have the sceond. You should know if they are worth more effort by the third. But do they become, say, Plouffe and Dozier then. Guys that may still have more promise than downside, and are solid players, but not superstar you desire (i.e. Cordova comes to mind).

 

A young guy has to play more often than not. Better to have them everyday, I say, than on the bench. Be it in the majors or the minors. What hurts is when multiple guys go into a slump.

 

The job of a hitting coach is tough. The player has to give things a try. They have to work (not just swing). Like in any profession, work is involved to stay in the game.

[Linus]

There was something about Herrmann's work behind the plate that I liked.  He looked "athletic" or something like that.  I wonder if his versatility has caused people to dismiss his catching skills.  He looked every bit as smooth as Suzuki and far more comfortable than Pinto.

 

Mauer hit the ball on the nose five times - hopefully a sign of things to come.

 

We have enough starting pitching candidates that anybody that doesn't pitch well is going to be replaced.  Milone has an option so if he does decline he can go to AAA just as easily as May.  If Pelfrey keeps on pitching well, he can get flipped just in time for E Santana to take his spot.

 

I also would like to Robinson get some starts against right handed pitching.  He knows what he is doing in the field and could probably help pick up the slack.

[ashbury]

 

1)  What did the M's manager get thrown out for?  I actually thought the ump was pretty good at balls and strikes (I know he was a Triple A call-up).  I didn't see any particularly bad ball/strike calls before McClendon came on the field, seemingly with intention of getting tossed.

http://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/lloyd-mcclendon-ejected-for-1st-time-this-season/

 

"In the fourth inning, Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon visited the mound to talk with his young starter, Roenis Elias. But from the very beginning of McClendon’s stroll from the dugout to the mound it was clear McClendon had another purpose in mind: He wanted to let home-plate umpire Sean Barber know he blew a strike-three call in the third inning that led to a run. 'Something to that effect,'McClendon said in shorts after the game."

 

My recollection is that he jawed with the ump for a bit, then headed for the dugout, but evidently thought of "just one more thing" when he was about 20 feet away and turned to say it, and immediately got the thumb. You aren't technically allowed to argue balls and strikes anymore, if I'm not mistaken, and the ump let him argue it anyway and then finally had had enough.

 

Incidentally, after the ejection was called, McClendon felt empowered to come back and really let the ump know what he thought about things for half a minute or so. I thought the ump handled himself well throughout, and McClendon didn't really cross any major lines either though he clearly instigated for whatever purpose.

 

I interpret this as much as rookie hazing of the ump as anything. Another unwritten rule or some damn thing.