Game Thread: Twins Vs. Red Socks, 6/11 @ 1:10pm CT

[LaBombo]

 

When was the last time we had a young starting pitcher who showed promise move to the next level and be a consistent reliable pitcher?

http://minnesotaconnected.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/jim-mudcat-grant-world-series.jpg

[Circus Boy]

 

Inconceivable!

 

My head reels. "Princess Bride" or "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"?

[twinsnorth49]

Is there something in his physical makeup that causes him to be inconsistent from game to game?

Yeah, i think it's the "not very good" part.

[S.]

Turn on the game, top of the 2nd, down 4. This team. What a ****ing joke.

 

On the bright side, at least uhhhh...I got nothing.

[twinsnorth49]

This team needs more baseball players, I think that's the problem.

[ashbury]

 

http://minnesotaconnected.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/jim-mudcat-grant-world-series.jpg

Quite a while back, you're saying.

[ashbury]

My head reels. "Princess Bride" or "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"?

YES!

[twinsnorth49]

Well, unfortunately my daughter has a dress rehearsal for her dance recital this afternoon, so I won't be able to watch the game.

 

 

Whew!

[ashbury]

This team needs more baseball players, I think that's the problem.

If I were hiring a GM I would agree with the assessment, but fail to see it as a blueprint.

[LaBombo]

 

My head reels. "Princess Bride" or "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"?

 

Princess Bride by a nose, 52-48 over MPHG,  because the internet hates an unanswered question.

 

fwiw,  my guess is that Holy Grail is probably hurt at least a little by its vastly smaller number of airings on cable resulting in fewer young'ns seeing it.

[S.]

 

If I were hiring a GM I would agree with assessment, but fail to see it as a blueprint.

Terry Ryan's printer only prints in black and white. What is this blueprint you speak of?

[LaBombo]

 

Quite a while back, you're saying.

Yup.   Chose the sepia Mudcat picture because sepia = old.   Universally recognized, like McDonald's or The Finger.

[ashbury]

Well, unfortunately my daughter has a dress rehearsal for her dance recital this afternoon, so I won't be able to watch the game.

 

 

Whew!

I... just remembered... I have a daughter too... yeah, she's living at home I just remembered... she has a dance recital dress rehearsal too... I can't stay for this game either... yeah, that's the ticket...

[twinssporto]

Thursday night I went to the Twins game with my sister from Miami.  She has been a part of the MLB for 17 years.  She told me something about baseball I had never thought of:  Baseball is one of the only sports where the defense controls the ball and not the offense.

 

She also mentioned that unfortunately the Twins this year are not controlling anything.

[LaBombo]

 

Terry Ryan's printer only prints in black and white. What is this blueprint you speak of?

 

But it does do graphics, as depicted below.  And the cessation of the raspy, grating sound lets you know when it's done!

 

http://images.macworld.com/images/news/graphics/150845-apple_imagewriter_original.jpg

 

Only downside is that it only works with a Mac, which is still struggling to understand Terry's voice commands.

 

http://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/scotty.jpg

[glunn]

Let's remember that this is Gibson's first game back from the DL and he is facing a very good roster of hitters.  

[twinssporto]

Suzuki showing some pop today.  Missed it by that much...

[LaBombo]

Offense has the scuffling Gibson's back;   hitless through three.

 

Ever the Company Man,  Dick notes that the Twins "need help behind the plate" as Suzuki walks to the plate to take his lumps.   Then he quickly corrects it to "Well, depth anyway".

 

Because Lord knows we wouldn't want to imply that maybe Suzuki isn't very good.

[D. Hocking]

 

Let's remember that this is Gibson's first game back from the DL and he is facing a very good roster of hitters.  

 

An internet message board is no place for reasoned thinking!

[LaBombo]

 

Let's remember that this is Gibson's first game back from the DL and he is facing a very good roster of hitters.  

 

Good and bad.  He looks healthy, which is good, but also looks eminently hittable, which is very typical for the Bad Gibbie outings.

 

If he shakes off some rust and has a second half approximating last year,  the Twins will have a solid #4 who will probably open the 2017 season as the #2.   Given his pedigree that's not so great, but it's quite a bit better than nothing, which is what several #1 Twins picks have turned into over the past decade.

[USAFChief]

Nunez gets thrown out at second on a hit to right, with 2-3-4 due up behind him, trailing 4-0.

 

There's a lot of reasons this team isn't very good.

 

EDIT TO ADD:  Mauer watches a FB sail by, right down the middle, on the way to a two strike count, putting him on the defensive, and works a walk...leaving it up to Robbie Grossman to drive in the runner from third.

 

Mauer's "OPS w/ RISP" goes up, Twins don't score.

 

There's a lot or reasons this team isn't very good.

[ashbury]

Let's remember that this is Gibson's first game back from the DL and he is facing a very good roster of hitters.  

But I also remember he sometimes comes out in the first inning with no command. Bad trait for a starter. (Even worse from the bullpen of course.) I rarely chalk things up to mental unpreparedness - I think there is something physical where he can't get the grip and the motion to work together for a while, and eventually he finds it. Longer preparation during warmups? Even if it limits him to 5 innings for a while?

[jimbo92107]

Bert had a very key point about Kyle Gibson. A pitcher wants to throw about 2 of 3 pitches in the zone. If Gibson either can't or won't throw enough balls in the zone, then hitters are much less likely to offer, producing lots of high-ball counts and a far too many pitches per inning. Gibson threw fifty pitches in just two innings, indicating that his k to b ratio is not good. If that's because he's afraid of getting near the strike zone, then he doesn't have the stuff for the majors. 

 

It's pretty clear now that Gibson isn't going to get much better than what he is today. He may have better outings, but on the whole he's probably never going to win half his games in a season. Unfortunately, I could say the same for every other starter in the current rotation. Duffey may at some point win 15 games, but I doubt Dean will ever get more than 12 wins. Santana could possibly win 15, but not with this team. Most mediocre pitchers require excellent fielding and decent offense to have much of a chance of winning. Duffey yesterday was a good example - even with only one error, the infield blew a few chances to get outs that allowed Boston to capitalize. 

 

One thing we can all testify: If your team has bad pitching, bad hitting and mediocre fielding, you could wind up losing two thirds of your games. 

[ashbury]

Nunez gets thrown out at second on a hit to right, with 2-3-4 due up behind him, trailing 4-0.

The Igniter! This is what Glynn or maybe Quade promised us with Mastroianni, but he failed to deliver. So we go with Nunez as our sparkplug.

[ashbury]

but I doubt Dean will ever get more than 12 wins.

You apparently fat-fingered your keyboard. Which digit there did you intend?

[USAFChief]

Even when things go well, they go bad.  If that liner by Kepler doesn't hit the bag, it's at least 2nd and 3rd.

[ashbury]

Welp, the daughter actually is in town, and we are meeting her for lunch.

 

I'll leave it to the rest of you to bring this win home!

[Danchat]

Suzuki!! Wow!!! And with runners on base!

[jimbo92107]

You apparently fat-fingered your keyboard there.

Clumsy of me. Pat Dean came close to getting 123 wins!

 

Game of inches...

[jimbo92107]

Zuki Bang?