5 Takeaways from the Twins-Guardians Series

[Melissa Berman]

After getting swept by the Houston Astros in frustrating fashion last week, it was imperative that the Twins answer back by rattling off a few wins against their division rival the Cleveland Guardians. The weekend series had it all; grand slams, manager ejections, electric Target Field crowds, the 1000th home run hit by a Twin at Target Field, and two separate fan proposals. Ultimately, the Twins emerged from the series with a three-game lead in the division over both the Guardians and the Chicago White Sox. Here are my five takeaways from this series. 

 

1. Royce Lewis is here to stay
Between Friday’s grand slam, superb fielding at shortstop and consistent hits elsewhere, long-held #1 Twins prospect Royce Lewis has made a strong statement since he was called up a little over a week ago. Lewis has a .310 average and a top 6 on the team OPS of .719. On WCCO Radio, President of Baseball Operations Derek Falvey expressed optimism that Royce Lewis can play around the field similar to the Dodgers' super-utilityman Chris Taylor. This indicates that the Twins will likely find a spot for him somewhere on the field once shortstop Carlos Correa returns to the lineup. And if he continues to perform on the field, why wouldn't they?

Lewis' debut has been a long time coming, and after having gone through ACL surgery and rehab, it has been rewarding to finally see him on the field after all that hard work. He received a standing ovation from the crowd for his grand slam on Friday night, and afterwards, he expressed gratitude for the warm welcome he's received from Twins fans.

"I really appreciate it. This fan base has always been really, really special to me. They've always been great to me. Minnesota nice," Lewis said.

2. Jose Miranda needs a little more time
Preheat to 350° and pop Jose back in the oven for a little bit- he needs some more time to cook in AAA. So far, Miranda has looked a bit outmatched at the plate and his .114 batting average reflects that. His .111 batting average on balls in play (BABIP) and few strikeouts show that while he is making contact, the contact he makes does not give him a good chance to succeed. The Twins are depleted at first base, and injuries to first basemen Alex Kirilloff and Miguel Sanó have necessitated Jose’s spot in the lineup recently. Some fans questioned why Miranda was sent out to hit in the 10th inning on Saturday in a critical down-by-1, do-or-die situation with Byron Buxton on the bench. Manager Rocco Baldelli was quite clear after the game that rest days are rest days and that the direction the game takes does not affect that. But if Mike Trout can come off the bench to hit in the 10th inning to a huge ovation, to some it seemed that Buxton could manage as well, though Buxton is coming back from injury.

I am a firm believer in Miranda’s talent, but it seems a little more time in AAA would be of benefit, and he's still very young at 23. Some infield shuffling could fill Miranda’s spot at first if he was sent down- perhaps Lewis, Luis Arraez, and even Gary Sánchez could share time there. Utility player extraordinaire Arraez made some good scoops at first during Sunday’s game, which Miranda was on the bench for.

3. Runners left on base will haunt
Saturday’s game can be summed up as a game of missed opportunities, as the Twins left a whopping 12 runners on base. The biggest example of this was in the 5th inning, where the Twins had bases loaded with no outs and Shane Bieber emerged unscathed due to an unfortunate home-to-first Gio Urshela double play followed by a Miranda groundout. This half-inning was nothing short of deflating. The Twins only got three more hits in the rest of the game, two of these occurring with 2 outs and no runners on. We all know that Walks Will Haunt, but runners left on base certainly will too. The offense returned on Sunday, where Buxton and Urshela both got solo home runs, including Buxton hitting the 1,000th home run hit by a Twin at Target Field- his 11th of the season. 

4. Joe Smith is one of the team’s most underrated assets
Through 15 appearances, Joe Smith still has a 0.00 ERA. Some might say that’s because the Twins have used him sparingly; Smith is used in high-leverage situations, so often in late-inning, close games with runners on. He leads all AL relivers with a +1.11 win probability added (WPA). Though he has somehow never been an All-Star, he is arguably the most prolific bullpen workhorse of the last 20 years. The Twins used Smith in all three games of the series (Pagán too). So regardless of his limited pitch count (146 pitches thrown in 15 appearances equating to an average of less than 10 pitches per game), owning a 0.00 ERA this far into the season when used as a high-leverage pitcher is impressive no matter how you dice it. If this keeps up, there is no way the league won't start to take note. 

5. The crowd is starting to wake up at Target Field
After decidedly light attendance thus far, the weekend’s series featured the best attendance with the most hyped-up fans Target Field has seen this season. Friday’s game can be summed up as nothing short of electric due to the Twins piling on 12 runs. The crowd dutifully got into it when Baldelli got himself ejected in the top of the 10th inning on Saturday while arguing about an interference call, but many fans in the seats expressed confusion on why he was arguing about what seemed to be a clear-cut call. The series also featured the first big screen fan proposals at Target Field this season- one on Saturday and one on Sunday. 

Officially, the Twins announced 61,500 fans visited Target Field for the three-game series, which, while still feeling low, is a massive improvement from even a week ago. The Twins are near the bottom of MLB in attendance, averaging 17,944 fans per game. As the weather continues to be beautiful, kids get out of school, and the Twins hopefully keep winning, fans will continue to return to Target Field in droves. 

Bonus takeaway: Urshela and Sánchez had a solid series

This series saw great production from former Yankees Urshela and Sánchez: Urshela hit two home runs (including a 434-foot monster blast on Friday night) and Sánchez had one home run and two doubles. Urshela continued his arguably exceptional play at 3B this series. Considering the Twins have leaned on Sánchez in the DH role when not playing catcher, hopefully this series is a sign of more good things to come at the plate. 

***

What were your takeaways from the Twins series against the Guardians? Leave your COMMENTS below. 

 

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[tarheeltwinsfan]

My main takeaways are that I like to win and I hate to lose. I like hustle and I hate watching a batter jog to first base. I like a good bunt and I hate not seeing one. I like strong throwing arms at SS and at 3B. I like a good fielding first baseman and I hate errors. I like a game where the umpires are not even noticed and I hate a game where the umps are noticed. I like Minnesota nice and I hate pitches which hit Twins' hitters' hands. I like nachos with cheese and peppers and I hate pike on a stick. I like the Twins and I hate the Yankees.

[Epravens]

The reason for not using Buxton on Saturday can only make sense in the playland called RoccoWorld. Between snickers opposing managers have to be breathing sighs of relief that this gentleman is so incompetent.

[Dman]

That was a nice summary.  Thanks!

[Trov]

For me the take away is the pitching is still good overall, and we need to start getting more hits with runners in scoring position.  Other than Friday, which had the 2 big HR, we again struggled to get hits with runners in scoring position.  

I also had a take away that Urshella will drive me nuts all season while at same time I will be happy with some of his big plays.  Yesterday he made 2 great plays on defense and hit a HR.  However, his at bat with bases loaded on Saturday drove me nuts.  So many things wrong with it.  First, he check swung at a strike in the zone on the first pitch.  Then to make matters worse, he jogged out of the box looking back to see how the play is developing only to then run harder when he realized they will try for a double play.  Not saying he would not have still got the double play, but why look to see what the fielders are doing, run as hard as you can to first until you are out or told to run to second. 

It was like he either forgot there was bases loaded, or he just figured they would give up the run and toss to 1st.  Similar in the series a Cleveland hitter busted down the line on a comebacker to Duran who made a bad throw.  Hustle is one thing that every player should do.  All you are doing is burning some cals.  

[Rosterman]

Soon the team should have 20,000+ fans on a regular basis at Target Field. More if they run some great deals.

Can Royce Lewis play first base? Yes, Miranda should work out kinks in St. Paul, and would probably be one of the casualities if and when Larnach and Correa come back. Does Lewis need to play shortstop evryday if he is the future guy? Better yet, Correa NEEDS to play shortstop everyday if he expects to get some offers in the off-season, or he ahs to allow himself to be traded if and when the time comes. 

I hate the thought of Lewis in one of the corner outfield spots. Suddenly, we have an embarrassment of riches if Larnach and Celestino continue to dominate so Kepler becomes the spare (can Max play first base?).

Of course, the Twins have no TRUE DH!

[PDX Twin]

10 minutes ago, Rosterman said:

(can Max play first base?)

Max played a lot of 1B in the minors. Given his general athleticism, I imagine he would be very good there. Those ballet genes will be useful at times handling the tricky footwork.

[Melissa Berman]

2 hours ago, Dman said:

That was a nice summary.  Thanks!

Thanks for the kind words! ? Hopefully the Twins keep rolling!

[Melissa Berman]

3 hours ago, tarheeltwinsfan said:

My main takeaways are that I like to win and I hate to lose. I like hustle and I hate watching a batter jog to first base. I like a good bunt and I hate not seeing one. I like strong throwing arms at SS and at 3B. I like a good fielding first baseman and I hate errors. I like a game where the umpires are not even noticed and I hate a game where the umps are noticed. I like Minnesota nice and I hate pitches which hit Twins' hitters' hands. I like nachos with cheese and peppers and I hate pike on a stick. I like the Twins and I hate the Yankees.

Could never have said it better myself, I think you speak for a lot of us! ? Luckily a lot of your likes have seemed to be the case thus far- Arraez was solid at 1B yesterday, Lewis has been great at short, and hopefully the Twins can keep it rolling into Oakland! Can't attest to the pike on a stick though

[Melissa Berman]

2 hours ago, PDX Twin said:

Max played a lot of 1B in the minors. Given his general athleticism, I imagine he would be very good there. Those ballet genes will be useful at times handling the tricky footwork.

I'm a believer that 1B is a position that can be played by many MLBers- especially infielders. Kepler definitely could if needed

Ah, I forgot to put Celestino is excellent in CF as a takeaway too. All our centerfielders are so good 

Edited May 16, 2022 by Melissa Berman

[Doctor Gast]

Arraez stole 2B and then scored on a hit, Has he sprouted wings or something? It's a 1st for me.

[Minny505]

4 hours ago, Trov said:

For me the take away is the pitching is still good overall, and we need to start getting more hits with runners in scoring position.  Other than Friday, which had the 2 big HR, we again struggled to get hits with runners in scoring position.  

I also had a take away that Urshella will drive me nuts all season while at same time I will be happy with some of his big plays.  Yesterday he made 2 great plays on defense and hit a HR.  However, his at bat with bases loaded on Saturday drove me nuts.  So many things wrong with it.  First, he check swung at a strike in the zone on the first pitch.  Then to make matters worse, he jogged out of the box looking back to see how the play is developing only to then run harder when he realized they will try for a double play.  Not saying he would not have still got the double play, but why look to see what the fielders are doing, run as hard as you can to first until you are out or told to run to second. 

It was like he either forgot there was bases loaded, or he just figured they would give up the run and toss to 1st.  Similar in the series a Cleveland hitter busted down the line on a comebacker to Duran who made a bad throw.  Hustle is one thing that every player should do.  All you are doing is burning some cals.  

Risking injury. I don't disagree with hustling in that specific situation, but 99% of the time that players don't hustle, it's the right decision. 

Unfortunately that may have been one of those 1% plays.

[Minny505]

Sanchez better start hitting. A weak hitting, poor fielding catcher is not really an asset. At least be decent at one of those things.

[RpR]

2 hours ago, Minny505 said:

Sanchez better start hitting. A weak hitting, poor fielding catcher is not really an asset. At least be decent at one of those things.

And Jeffers is better?

[Minny505]

3 hours ago, RpR said:

And Jeffers is better?

Jeffers is a borderline elite defensive catcher. In addition, his Baseball Savant swing results scream breakout. If he ever learns some patience at the plate, he's going to be a monster.

Sanchez, on the other hand, is one of the worst defensive catchers in MLB that gets regular time behind the plate. In addition, his Baseball Savant offensive profile would lead you to assume he must be a defensive wizard since he has a job.

He's not.

[operation mindcrime]

Good summary!!!!!  \m/