Game Thread: Twins @ Cleveland, 9/27/17 @ 6:10 PM CT

[AlwaysinModeration]

Hello Twins Fans!

 

Today’s game is being brought to you by the number 5. Entering today, the Twins have a 5 game lead over the Angels for the 5th seed in the American League with 5 games to play. As we all know, they can wrap up a playoff seed tonight. This is also the 5th week that #5, Eduardo Escobar, has taken over the #5 position on the diamond (3B) after Miguel Sano went on the DL with a stress reaction Aug 21.

 

In the time-honored tradition of RiverBrian’s revered format, here are 5 Things To Think About:

 

1. The Last 5 games of the final 55. Exactly 50 games ago, as some of you may recall, I posted “My Wish List for the Last 55 Games,” http://twinsdaily.com/topic/27053-my-wish-list-for-the-last-55-games-of-the-season/page-2?do=findComment&comment=675676, which I thought was a reasonable, and somewhat ambitious, set of goals for the team to finish out the last two months of the season. I hoped for Buxton to raise his average to .240 and hit some triples, Mauer to get his average up to .290 and set himself up for next year for another .300 season and be the veteran presence for a playoff team, Dozier to get on a roll and approach 30 home runs, Mejia and Gibson (I hadn’t given up on Gibson, in fact thought he was showing signs of improving) to make some good starts, a few of the bullpen arms like Hildenberger and Busenitz to emerge, and for the team to win as much as they could, going at least 30-25 to finish the season above .500. I also hoped to see as few Colon starts as possible. And I noted that by winning a lot of games down the stretch, it would be hard for Falvey and Levine not to bring Molitor back.

 

Now, if I had known that all of my wish list was going to come true, I’ll be honest, I might have gone with a different list, perhaps focusing more on world affairs or personal wealth or whatnot. However, I am sure none of you are complaining with these results. Let's see…Buxton, yep, Mauer, absolutely, Dozier, yes, Gibson, right on, Mejia…ok, working on it, today is another chance, bullpen, excellent, and wins, wow. Instead of going 30-25, they have gone 31-19, with, as noted, 5 to go. As they said in the Renaissance, Huzzah! Granted, we got a lot more Colón starts than we may have wanted, but perhaps last night was the last one?

 

2. 5 star plays. Last night Byron Buxton cashed his third 5-star play of the season with an amazing diving catch at a crucial time. There is a cool website (https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/catch_probability_leaderboard) that has all of the 5-star, 4-star, 3-star, 2-star, and 1-star plays listed. Buxton is lapping the field in these plays. He only has made three 5-star plays this year, but he has caught 26 of 27 4-star plays chances (only Mookie Betts also has more than 20), 21 of 22 3-star chances, and all 88 of his 2-star and 1-star opportunities. If he doesn’t win the gold glove this year, there will be riots in the streets, or at least on the TD forums.

 

3. 5 key position players. These five position players have turned it on in the second half, each playing a crucial part in the late season turnaround:

 

· Mauer PreASG: 286/360/402 Post ASG: 332/410/440

· Buxton PreASG: 5HR, 594OPS Post ASG: 11HR, 921OPS

· Polanco PreASG: 3HR, 596OPS Post ASG: 9HR, 878OPS

· Dozier PreASG: 13HR, 745OPS Post ASG: 20HR, 946OPS

· Rosario PreASG: 10HR, 784OPS Post ASG: 17HR, 917OPS

 

(Aside: Last night during the game, my 9-year old, who is quickly learning to root for the Twins, asked "Why is Dozier batting lead-off? He should be batting third, and Buxton should be leading off!")

 

4. 5 pitchers. Here are five pitchers who have been the key to the second half surge:

 

Alan Busenitz:

PresASG. 6 Games, 2.08 ERA, 1.50 WHIP PostASG: 21 games 1.21ERA, 0.72WHIP

 

Ryan Pressly:

PreASG 27 Games, 7.33 ERA, 1.50 WHIP PostASG 28 games 2.73 ERA, 0.72WHIP

 

Trevor Hildenberger

PreASG 5 Games, 2.16ERA, 1.32WHIP PostASG 30 games 3.06ERA, 0.96WHIP

 

Matt Belisle

PreASG 37 Games, 5.82 ERA, 1.56WHIP PostASG 24 games 1.78 ERA, 0.67WHIP

 

Kyle Gibson

preasg: 16 Games, 6.32 ERA, 1.77WHIP Postasg. 12 games 3.58 ERA, 1.25WHIP

 

5. And of course, today's Joe M. conversation:

 

Joe Mategna: Hey guys, can I join your foursome on the links this afternoon?

 

Joe Montana: We already booked our tee time for four, Joe, like we always do.

 

Joe Morgan: Yeah, Joe, it’s always just the four of us, Joe, Joe , Joe, and me.

 

Mantegna: But guys, it’s #5 day on the Game Thread! You have to let me play!

 

Joe Mauer: I’m sorry, Joe.

 

Mantegna: I’ll tell you what, I will only use my 5-iron all day!

 

Montana: I'm not even sure the course allows groups of five.

 

Joe McCarthy: Plus, we only rented two carts. Get in Joe, I’m driving.

 

Mantegna: Guys, come on! I’ll even walk! Hey! Wait a second, Joe, you are a ghost! How can you drive, let alone play golf? Are you guys really going to let him drive?

 

McCarthy: Man, enough with the making broad generalizations and indicting everyone, Joe. It's like your trying to turn us Joes against each other!

 

Morgan: And anyway, quit trying to be such a 5th wheel.

 

 

Let’s go Twins! Punch your playoff ticket today (celebrate like crazy), win in New York, then get ready to return to Cleveland...on October 5!

[TwinsCD]

Your son is wise beyond his years.  I've always thought Buxton would be a great leadoff guy but right now, don't mess with anything!!

 

Hard to believe after last year's disaster and then the sputtering through late June and July that we would be at this point where we can watch these guys get the champagne out.  Call me crazy (you're crazy) but I'm having a good feeling about next Tuesday, wherever they play the game (let's go to Fenway!).

[Smarterthanyou]

 

Your son is wise beyond his years.  I've always thought Buxton would be a great leadoff guy but right now, don't mess with anything!!

 

Hard to believe after last year's disaster and then the sputtering through late June and July that we would be at this point where we can watch these guys get the champagne out.  Call me crazy (you're crazy) but I'm having a good feeling about next Tuesday, wherever they play the game (let's go to Fenway!).

I wish I could have good feelings about playing the Yankees, who I am pretty sure will be there waiting for us. I've been following the Twins long enough to have nothing other than a feeling of impending doom.

[Smarterthanyou]

 

I wish I could have good feelings about playing the Yankees, who I am pretty sure will be there waiting for us. I've been following the Twins long enough to have nothing other than a feeling of impending doom.

and even worse, I have this dread that Jaime Garcia will come into the game at some point and just shut the Twins down, adding insult to injury.

[gocgo]

 

I wish I could have good feelings about playing the Yankees, who I am pretty sure will be there waiting for us. I've been following the Twins long enough to have nothing other than a feeling of impending doom.

I have just the opposite feeling.  I can't wait to play them.  I think we have a chip on our shoulder and something to prove even as all the experts have us getting beat before we've gotten on the plane.  I see an ambush coming.

[Mike Sixel]

GREAT INTRO!

 

I went all caps, I almost never go all caps. 

[AlwaysinModeration]

I forgot to add this note. The other day I was talking to a friend of mine who happens to be a Yankees fan, and I mentioned that it appeared the teams were headed towards the Wild Card. He said it was impressive the Twins had done this well this year, and I said it might be moot, as the Yankees always seem to have the Twins' number.

 

His reaction....they do? When? That must be a long time ago now.

 

Just goes to show the maybe the Twins' Yankee bugaboo is all in the mind...of Twins fans only.

[Circus Boy]

This Salazar fella has five wins this year. Two of those wins came against the Twins. I would like to see us hurt his ERA tonight.

[Circus Boy]

 

GREAT INTRO!

 

I went all caps, I almost never go all caps. 

My ears are still ringing from all the shouting.

[AlwaysinModeration]

My ears are still ringing from all the shouting.

Agreed. The Joes got a little heated.

[Dantes929]

 

I forgot to add this note. The other day I was talking to a friend of mine who happens to be a Yankees fan, and I mentioned that it appeared the teams were headed towards the Wild Card. He said it was impressive the Twins had done this well this year, and I said it might be moot, as the Yankees always seem to have the Twins' number.

His reaction....they do? When? That must be a long time ago now.

Just goes to show the maybe the Twins' Yankee bugaboo is all in the mind...of Twins fans only.

Reminds me of two great Everyone Loves Raymond episodes.    One is where Deb and and Ray have a contest to see who can last without sex the longest.   After a month Raymond explodes and says "OK,   I can't take it anymore. You win the contest. " and Debra says "Oh, we're still doing that?"

The other one is where Marie talks about a fight her and Frank had 40 years ago about  an ugly fork and spoon hanging on the wall and how she thinks about that fight  every time she sees them every day for forty years .   She finally yells at Frank about them and Frank's response is "When did we get those?"

Pretty sure Mauer is the only one left the the jinx might even apply to.

[Bark's Lounge]

Go get it tonight boys! 7 years seems like an eternity, but because I am not in the youth demographic anymore, it seems like a few hours ago.

 

If we get in, as improbable as it seems, anything can happen in the playoffs... it's not impossible to go deep into the tournament. We have Santana and Berrios, if they step it up who knows. Lot of questions, I don't have the answers to so whatevs.

 

When and if you clinch it this week. Don't rest the Line-Up. Play them everyday, they have been clicking for a while. Keep Mauer in there too. One day off should suffice for him. I seen them rest their players back in 2010 the last couple of weeks of the season and it did not work out.

[twinsnorth49]

"There's no fear when you're having fun".

 

-Will Thomas

 

That's how I see this team's approach. I don't think they fear the Yankees, they aren't yesterday's Twins, the beatdown in the Bronx probably did more to help them than hinder them.

 

I think they'll go right after them.

[Smarterthanyou]

 

I have just the opposite feeling.  I can't wait to play them.  I think we have a chip on our shoulder and something to prove even as all the experts have us getting beat before we've gotten on the plane.  I see an ambush coming.

If the Yankees look past the Twins and don't take them seriously, your ambush scenario may be valid.  I don't believe under any circumstances will Girardi or his players take the Twins for granted.  They know just as well as the Twins that it is only one game, and because of that anything can happen.

[gocgo]

 

If the Yankees look past the Twins and don't take them seriously, your ambush scenario may be valid.  I don't believe under any circumstances will Girardi or his players take the Twins for granted.  They know just as well as the Twins that it is only one game, and because of that anything can happen.

I've just got a feeling....it might be the guacamole that I ate with lunch though.

[DaveW]

So we adopted this good looking doggo on the left last week, ever since then the Twins have been on fire (ditto with Vikings)
Twins win tonight 9-1, and lose tomorrow 7-1 due to the hangover

Meet Frank  [Viola]

[Circus Boy]

 

Go get it tonight boys! 7 years seems like an eternity, but because I am not in the youth demographic anymore, it seems like a few hours ago.

 

If we get in, as improbable as it seems, anything can happen in the playoffs... it's not impossible to go deep into the tournament. We have Santana and Berrios, if they step it up who knows. Lot of questions, I don't have the answers to so whatevs.

 

When and if you clinch it this week. Don't rest the Line-Up. Play them everyday, they have been clicking for a while. Keep Mauer in there too. One day off should suffice for him. I seen them rest their players back in 2010 the last couple of weeks of the season and it did not work out.

StabCI.jpg

Mr. Bark, so good to see you around these parts again. Hope all's well. (On second thought, maybe it's me that's been gone mostly.)

[DocBauer]

 

So we adopted this good looking doggo on the left last week, ever since then the Twins have been on fire (ditto with Vikings)
Twins win tonight 9-1, and lose tomorrow 7-1 due to the hangover

Meet Frank  [Viola]
image2.JPG

 

Seriously! Neat!

 

I have 4 dachshunds of my own and used to be involved heavily in Nebraska Dachshund Rescue here in Omaha. Still help out when I can, but too full up to foster any longer. 

 

Great looking babies there! 

 

[Craig Arko]

On to the bubbly.

[Bark's Lounge]

 

Mr. Bark, so good to see you around these parts again. Hope all's well. (On second thought, maybe it's me that's been gone mostly.)

Hey CB. Haven't been around, not that I don't want to be. Other things take precedence right now in the world of Bark.

[h2oface]

Houston wins again. They keep putting the pressure on the Indians to win for home field. 

[Puckett34]

C'mon Mejia.  Lets have a good one tonight and pop the bubbly in about 3.5 hours.

[FlauerPauer]

Let's get in there, boys!

[Monkeypaws]

Smalley and Cuddy like this thread.

 

All the better argument to NOT retire numbers.

[h2oface]

There goes the no hitter.

 

[sampleSizeOfOne]

Are we winning yet?

[notoriousgod71]

I forgot my post from the previous game, "Mejia inspires little confidence."

 

Prove me wrong again!

[FlauerPauer]

Need to make that play.  Can live with the broken bat single.  Let's get these bats going!

[h2oface]

I score an error for Dozier, or should I call him..... ahem..... Dr. Clutch?

[Circus Boy]

I'm stuck at work watching gamecast. Man, what hex does Salazar have over our hitters this season?