Takeaways from the Twins-Yankees series

[Melissa Berman]

 The Twins just wrapped up their final 2023 season series vs. the Yankees! Weird to say in April, right? This series was arguably the Twins' best showing of the season, and it was packed with upper-deck home runs, sharp pitching, dramatic pitching entrances, and even a cameo from some cheerful construction workers. Here are some of the top things I noticed and learned from this series.   

Image courtesy of Nick Wosika-USA TODAY Sports

1. The Twins won a series vs. the Yankees! And really, the Twins looked like the better team. For the first time since 2001, the Twins won a series vs. dreaded foe the Yankees. After watching this series, I couldn't help but think, "come on, was that really that hard?" Given the history and the fact that it's been twenty years, the obvious answer seems yes, even though the Twins made it look easy this time. Even Byron Buxton was surprised it had been that long since the Twins had a Yankees series win. “Twenty-two years? I was 6,” Buxton said after Tuesday's win, which won the series. “This one felt extra good after hearing that then." From shutting out the Yankees Monday night to keeping Aaron Judge mostly at bay to knocking out three home runs on Wednesday, the Twins looked every part of the stronger team the last few days. Yes, the Twins dropped Wednesday's day game, but Kenta Maeda was clearly hurt, and the Twins' bats and defense came to play (more on that later). But one can't help but feel that the tide might be starting to turn between these two teams, and Twins fans should leave this series feeling optimistic about the team's direction.

2. Twins starting pitching is the real deal. For the most part, the Twins starting pitching was a shining star of this series. Before the season, Sonny Gray was publicly clamoring to go longer in his starts, and Monday night, he went seven scoreless innings, allowed only one hit, struck out eight batters, and lowered his ERA to 0.62 through five starts, which is the best in the entire MLB. Words can not describe how dominant he has looked this season, and Gray got a massive ovation from the crowd following the 7th inning. Joe Ryan cruised Tuesday night and became the first five-game winner in the major leagues this season. However, Kenta Maeda allowed an uncharacteristic seven runs Wednesday, and his fastball was topping out at 87-89 miles per hour, so it was little surprise when he left the game with injury. One has to wonder what his future with the Twins looks like the rest of the season given that young, promising arms like Bailey Ober and Louie Varland are lying in wait in AAA. The Twins’ starting staff is currently 7th in MLB in ERA, and the Twins have three pitchers in the top 25: Gray, Ryan, and Pablo López at #25. When was the last time the Twins had three starting pitchers ranked so high?

3. The Joey Gallo revenge tour came through, and this is really looking like a great signing. Man, is it great to have Joey Gallo back from the Injured List.  Gallo hit two home runs this series on Monday and Wednesday; Monday’s was a towering blast into the right field second porch (just imagine how much further the ball would have gone in warm weather). This past offseason, the Gallo signing was eyed with a degree of skepticism due to his infamously high strikeout percentage, but Gallo certainly came to play vs. his former team, going 1-for-3 on Monday, 1-for-1 with a double on Tuesday, and 1-for-4 with another home run Wednesday. Gallo currently leads the team in home runs with seven and has been solid defensively at first base, and according to Statmuse, he is the only player in MLB to have 5+ HR and an .800+ SLG this season. Mr. Falvey, thank you for signing Joey Gallo! (the reference behind that line here.) 

4. The Twins got more than they bargained for by trading for Michael A Taylor. When the Twins traded for Michael. A Taylor in the offseason, it was for his Gold Glove-caliber fielding; the Twins knew they would be playing Byron Buxton in the DH spot to start the season, and they needed a reliable glove in the outfield to fill in for him. Any hitting he would do would be a great bonus, and the Twins started the season (and have consistently continued) to put him 9th in the batting order. However, he’s been one of the most reliable and consistent Twins bats on the field this year: he has one of the highest batting averages on the team (of the everyday Twins players who haven’t missed time due to injury thus far this season), he is second on the team in home runs behind Joey Gallo, and has both of the Twins’ only two stolen bases of the season; he swiped his second on Monday night. Taylor went 2-for-3 Monday night plus a walk, It will be interesting to see what the Twins do when they transition Buxton back into the field this season. We know that Buxton would prefer to be playing in the field, but if a player can bat around 0.250 in the #9 spot and play phenomenal defense, it’s hard to argue that he deserves a spot in the lineup. 

5. Cold temperatures and the series occurring earlier in the season kept the crowds at bay. The announced attendance at Monday night’s Sonny Gray masterclass was 16,242, the smallest Twins-Yankees crowd in recent memory. Tuesday had 19,201 fans and Wednesday had 20,511 (these figures might be a little generous too). However, early season attendance is always relatively low at Target Field, especially on weekdays. This spring has been colder than usual: temperatures during gameplay were mostly in the 40s throughout the series. Tuesday’s game went almost three hours, so it felt just like the old days, and fans packed under the concourse heaters by the end of the game. This week’s series was also earlier than the Yankees typically visit- usually in June. Still, it was odd to see Target Field so empty during what is usually one of the most in-demand series of the year. Thankfully, the Twins took care of business on Monday and Tuesday nights, so the pinstripe fans in attendance did not have much to heckle about, and Wednesday's day game had a beautiful, strong sun for fans to bask in. The Yankee fans in attendance (a good number) had a lot more to hoot and holler about on Wednesday. 

6. Duran and López’s entrances are two of the best in baseball. The Twins have turned both pitchers entering the game into a show within The Show. Before López entered the game on Tuesday night, the Twins prompted fans to take out their phones and turn their flashlights on. The Twins did the same thing the very next inning, when Jhoan Duran entered the game to shut the door.

 

These dramatic entrances, complete with turning off then flickering the stadium lights, is something that needs to be experienced by Twins fans and is best when under the lights. The entrances of these two Twins pitchers rival only Fernando Rodney's Twins entrance song to me. It's pretty impressive that the Twins' bullpen is so deep that they have not one but two pitchers who are deserving of the Edwin Diaz-treatment; even the 8th-inning setup pitcher (whether it be Duran or López) is good enough to turn Target Field into a concert. 

7. There were a lot of fun in-stadium moments in the series. Two hilarious moments happened during Wednesday’s day game: the Twins showed two construction workers on the big screen working on the new apartment going up across the street in left field. The entire crowd roared while they obliviously continued working. Then, somehow the two workers caught on, and with huge smiles, they waved to the crowd. I wonder if they looked down at the field and saw themselves on the big screen in the right field.

Regardless, it was a wholesome, fun moment. I'm not a fan of heights, so the closeup of the workers showed that they were connected to harnesses, thankfully. Fans noticed that other construction workers seemed to be watching the game during their lunch break, too. In another humorous moment, The Twins showed two guys who were clearly “working from home” on their laptops at the game. Hopefully their boss doesn't see! 

Tuesday night was a massive sports night for the  Minnesota: the Wild were playing game 5 in Dallas, the Timberwolves were playing an elimination game 5 in Denver, and at home, the Twins were taking on the Yankees for a series win. The Twins put the scores of the Timberwolves and Wild on the visiting team scoreboard, which, although the scores were slightly delayed, made it a little easier to follow them. 

There was also that bat flip from Buxton on Tuesday.

Last, I noticed that the "T" on the "Win Twins" sign is already burnt out! That didn't lost too long, did it! However, of all the possible letters to burn out, the "T" is probably best; once it gets dark, the sign reads "Win! wins!" Double the Twins wins, right?

Up next is a four-game series vs. the Kansas City Royals! Hopefully the Twins can carry this momentum and take care of business against a division "rival." The state of the Twins could not be much better right now, especially if top bats like Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa heat up even more. Twins fans should feel good about how the team looked this series. See ya at the ballpark!

 

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[mikelink45]

Nice summary - no debates here.

My take-aways are that Ober needs to have the Maeda spot and Maeda needs to get healthy and start in the BP.

Second, for now my disgust with the Gallo signing is lost in the destroyed files section of my office. 

Third, I thought we had a chance for a sweep when we scored 6 runs in game three, but I blame management.  Maeda should have been pulled quickly.  I also question why we would bench our best players when playing the Yankees.  

[LastOnePicked]

Great article but the Twins traded for Michael A. Taylor, not signed him. Regardless, a good addition. 

 

[Melissa Berman]

10 minutes ago, LastOnePicked said:

Great article but the Twins traded for Michael A. Taylor, not signed him. Regardless, a good addition. 

 

Ha, great catch, thank you so much!

[Omgbenji]

Appreciate the notes and recap. It was indeed a pretty good series for the hometown nine. Thanks for pointing out the entrances for Lopez and Duran. Hopefully our big boys (Correa and Buxton) can start to get hot. We'd look awfully good with our pitching and some additional hitting.

[Doctor Gast]

Polanco with his clutch hitting and nifty defense is the spark this team needed. Hopefully Kiriloff isn't too far behind.

[Dman]

A couple of things I wondered about in the Yankee series is they are down two pretty top notch starters and if they were healthy that could have made a big difference in the outcome of the series and their lineup seems as inconsistent as ours to start the season.  I think playing them early might have been the advantage the Twins needed to take the series.  Otherwise I think the streak would have continued at least IMO. 

Still you have to play when you have to play regardless of who is hurt and I am happy the Twins came out on top.  It was fun to come out on top after 20 years of seeing things go the other way.

I agree with you that the other big difference in this series was the Twins starting pitching which for the most part held their lineup to very few runs (sans the Maeda start). I also agree that right now today as things stand the Twins look better than the Yankee's.  That could easily change once they get Rodon back and their lineup heats up.  Still I have hope that this Twins team can play with the big boys now.. 

[stringer bell]

27 minutes ago, Dman said:

A couple of things I wondered about in the Yankee series is they are down two pretty top notch starters and if they were healthy that could have made a big difference in the outcome of the series and their lineup seems as inconsistent as ours to start the season.  I think playing them early might have been the advantage the Twins needed to take the series.  Otherwise I think the streak would have continued at least IMO. 

Still you have to play when you have to play regardless of who is hurt and I am happy the Twins came out on top.  It was fun to come out on top after 20 years of seeing things go the other way.

I agree with you that the other big difference in this series was the Twins starting pitching which for the most part held their lineup to very few runs (sans the Maeda start). I also agree that right now today as things stand the Twins look better than the Yankee's.  That could easily change once they get Rodon back and their lineup heats up.  Still I have hope that this Twins team can play with the big boys now.. 

Looking at the numbers, the Yankees have scored almost exactly the same amount of runs as the Twins and their home park is home run friendly. They are missing two projected starters--Stanton, who was an All-Star last year and Donaldson and three top starting pitchers, so yes it is probably best for the Twins to have played them early.

[Squirrel]

1 hour ago, Melissa Berman said:

Before López entered the game on Tuesday night, the Twins prompted fans to take out their phones and turn their flashlights on. The Twins did the same thing the very next inning, when Jhoan Duran entered the game to shut the door.

If I get to the games in Chicago (work will be crazier than usual next week, so not sure I can manage it), if either comes in, I'll flash my phone light ... lol ... 

[Nashvilletwin]

1 hour ago, mikelink45 said:

Second, for now my disgust with the Gallo signing is lost in the destroyed files section of my office. 

You and me both.  Haha 

Hang in there though. Hope I’m wrong, but one month does not a season make.  He sure looks good, though. 

[jmlease1]

It was a good series for the Twins. They've still got some things to work through, but having a top three of Pablo Lopez, Sonny Gray, and Joe Ryan has me more confident in this rotation than I've been in a very long time. Tyler Mahle hasn't been bad (in previous years we would have been thrilled with his production), he just hasn't been as great as the others. Maeda is definitely struggling, but how many years have we been worrying about our #3 starter struggling instead of our #5?

Polanco being back has made a significant difference. I felt going into the season he was the Twins 3rd best position player so there's no wonder that his bat was missed. And with Farmer out and Nick Gordon having a nightmare start to the season we've really needed him back and he was a huge contributor in the wins against the Yankees.

It's early in the season, but it sure looks like I was wrong about Joey Gallo. I didn't think he was a good fit for this team, and he's been a fantastic fit so far. he hasn't just bounced back from a dreadful season, he's looking like Texas Joey again. Great to see him hammer a couple of dingers against the Yankees. he's been great, and I've never been so happy to be wrong.

[Nashvilletwin]

Great article, Melissa - I enjoy reading your posts.

A couple of other takeaways: 1. The Twins legitimately have at least three, and possibly five, All-Star pitchers at the moment in Ryan, Lopez, Duran, Gray and Lopez. 2. Solano has me worried - his play in the field is atrocious. His hitting has been a huge spark plug, but if that falls off, he will be a liability. 

[chpettit19]

39 minutes ago, Nashvilletwin said:

Great article, Melissa - I enjoy reading your posts.

A couple of other takeaways: 1. The Twins legitimately have at least three, and possibly five, All-Star pitchers at the moment in Ryan, Lopez, Duran, Gray and Lopez. 2. Solano has me worried - his play in the field is atrocious. His hitting has been a huge spark plug, but if that falls off, he will be a liability. 

My hope is that Solano can hold on until Lewis is ready. I wouldn't be surprised if that was the Twins thought, too. He's a horrid defender, but if he's only playing 1B against lefties for the next month and a half until Lewis is good to go I think his bat can make him serviceable. But I think he gets released without much concern at some point. Don't think they fight to keep him around longer than he's useful.

[USAFChief]

Just wanted to concur with the above...I really enjoy reading your work, Melissa. 

[Melissa Berman]

3 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

Just wanted to concur with the above...I really enjoy reading your work, Melissa. 

Thanks so much for taking the time to read and the kind comment! 😄I appreciate it so, so much!

[Melissa Berman]

52 minutes ago, Nashvilletwin said:

Great article, Melissa - I enjoy reading your posts.

A couple of other takeaways: 1. The Twins legitimately have at least three, and possibly five, All-Star pitchers at the moment in Ryan, Lopez, Duran, Gray and Lopez. 2. Solano has me worried - his play in the field is atrocious. His hitting has been a huge spark plug, but if that falls off, he will be a liability. 

Thanks so much for the kind compliment, and I totally agree with you about the 3-5 All Star pitchers. When have the Twins ever been able to say that? Definitely something to feel really good about.

I agree about Solano. I know the analytics show that it's best to play righthanded batters vs righthanded pitchers (RHP Germán started), but I was annoying that they started RH Solano in place of LH Gallo on Tuesday night; despite what the analytics say, I would favor Gallo's odds of getting a hit over Solano's despite handedness. Sure enough, when Gallo came in, he got a double. I saw that the Twins have one of the most varied starting lineups in all of MLB

Edited April 27, 2023 by Melissa Berman

[LonelyseatinMOA]

just a note: it is not possible to read this article in dark mode.

 

Nice article though

[Melissa Berman]

1 hour ago, Squirrel said:

If I get to the games in Chicago (work will be crazier than usual next week, so not sure I can manage it), if either comes in, I'll flash my phone light ... lol ... 

Yes! The games next week would be a blast! I love Guaranteed Rate Field. I'm planning on going to the September 15 series in Chicago! Next week is a little too busy for me to make that trip, but excited to get there!

[Melissa Berman]

2 hours ago, mikelink45 said:

Nice summary - no debates here.

My take-aways are that Ober needs to have the Maeda spot and Maeda needs to get healthy and start in the BP.

Second, for now my disgust with the Gallo signing is lost in the destroyed files section of my office. 

Third, I thought we had a chance for a sweep when we scored 6 runs in game three, but I blame management.  Maeda should have been pulled quickly.  I also question why we would bench our best players when playing the Yankees.  

I agree with everything you say. If they had been quicker to pull Maeda, with how the Twins hit yesterday, we would've had a real chance to win that game. Sounds like Maeda is going to need some time off, and Ober looked great last weekend, so I bet that move will be coming soon 

[Jocko87]

2 hours ago, stringer bell said:

Looking at the numbers, the Yankees have scored almost exactly the same amount of runs as the Twins and their home park is home run friendly. They are missing two projected starters--Stanton, who was an All-Star last year and Donaldson and three top starting pitchers, so yes it is probably best for the Twins to have played them early.

They have a full MLB payroll on the IL, $117m or more than 9 teams in MLB.  Bader would also be a starter over Hicks.  Safe to say they will look quite different when we see them again.  Yes, this was fun for the most part, but leveling up continues.

 

 

[farmerguychris]

Between this, and the earlier Houston series I believe this proves that IF we can stay healthy - we can play with anyone in the AL.

Long season ahead, but we belong with the teams trying to make noise in the playoffs.

[Squirrel]

1 hour ago, Melissa Berman said:

Yes! The games next week would be a blast! I love Guaranteed Rate Field. I'm planning on going to the September 15 series in Chicago! Next week is a little too busy for me to make that trip, but excited to get there!

Remind me next September ... maybe we can meet up in the park and clink a beer ... hopefully because the Twins will have clinched by then! 🙂

[TCSquad]

2 hours ago, Nashvilletwin said:

2. Solano has me worried - his play in the field is atrocious. His hitting has been a huge spark plug, but if that falls off, he will be a liability. 

When Buxton is ready to play center again, Twins will have a right-handed DH or pinch-hitter off of the bench then.

[Melissa Berman]

35 minutes ago, farmerguychris said:

Between this, and the earlier Houston series I believe this proves that IF we can stay healthy - we can play with anyone in the AL.

Long season ahead, but we belong with the teams trying to make noise in the playoffs.

I agree with you completely- this series was really promising. We *started off* the season with injuries, so hopefully now that we're getting guys back, we can stay healthy 

[Craig Arko]

My first takeaway is that the Yankees may have a tough time making the postseason, and if they do it would be as a wildcard. 

[Heiny]

I hate to say "I told you so"  but,  I was behind the Gallo signing from day 1.  New York and LA would probably be the the absolute worst places for him to play,   He seems to have a great comfort level in Mn.  and the potential he brings with the power and on base% outweighs the K's.  Just hope it continues for the rest of the season.

[Melissa Berman]

9 hours ago, Craig Arko said:

My first takeaway is that the Yankees may have a tough time making the postseason, and if they do it would be as a wildcard. 

Chalk this up as "things we love to see." Aaron Judge was mostly absent throughout the Twins series; once he really gets cooking, he has the ability to singlehandedly influence/win games, but I agree the Yankees are not as good as we're accustomed to

[Melissa Berman]

9 hours ago, Heiny said:

I hate to say "I told you so"  but,  I was behind the Gallo signing from day 1.  New York and LA would probably be the the absolute worst places for him to play,   He seems to have a great comfort level in Mn.  and the potential he brings with the power and on base% outweighs the K's.  Just hope it continues for the rest of the season.

I agree completely, and I also think New York was just not a good fit for him. Brutal, unforgiving place to play. Plus, that facial hair ban.. lol. He has the most extra base hits for the Twins right now (including most home runs too)

[Doctor Wu]

The first takeaway in Melissa's article:

The Twins won a series vs. the Yankees! And really, the Twins looked like the better team

I think that's a huge observation. In both this series, and in the last one that we split (I think that's correct) the Twins looked more confident and less overwhelmed by the specter of the "mighty Yankees." I really hope this year is a turning point in ridding ourselves of the Yankee curse!

 

[Doctor Wu]

I love watching Buxton play, but I have to admit that I hate seeing batters doing those bat flips. Hey, call me a Scrooge, but I'm old school and don't see the need for that sort of stuff.