Twins Daily Pitcher of the Month - June 2023

[Cody Schoenmann]

The Twins' pitching staff started to show some ups and downs in June, but who stood out among the group?

Despite the Twins lineup being horrible, awful, no good, and downright bad in June, the starting rotation was once again outstanding, and the bullpen was middling around average while producing some elite performances. According to FanGraphs, the Twins were the sixth-best rotation and the 17th-best bullpen in baseball. The Twins were generally solid as a staff overall, but four pitchers stood out. Here is how they rank.

Honorable Mention
Jordan Balazovic - 5 G, 1.29 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 7.0 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 4 K
Balazovic performed well in a small sample but is only on this list because he made his long-awaited Major League debut. Congratulations to Jordan. Hopefully, he and Brent Headrick can step up in mid-to-high leverage short-relief roles. 

Joe Ryan - 5 G, 4.83 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 31.2 IP, 27 H, 2 BB, 29 K
Ryan's June was a story of ups and downs. Ryan was the first Twins starting pitcher to throw a nine-inning complete game since Jose Berrios did in 2018. Ryan also walked only two batters in 31 2/3 innings pitched while producing a WHIP of just 0.92. 

On the other hand, Ryan imploded in his start before and after his nine-inning complete game, giving up a combined 12 earned runs and pitching to a combined Home Run to Fly Ball Ratio (HR/FB) of 49.35%.

Overall, Ryan was adequate in June, and I plan on buying one of his new Grateful Dead-inspired limited edition tee shirts. 

June Pitchers of the Month
#4. Jhoan Duran - 8 G, 1.86 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 9.2 IP, 5 H, 5 BB, 13 K
Appropriately dubbed "The fireman. The closer. The set-up guy. The multi-inning hurler. The weapon.", by Twins Daily's own Nash Walker, Duran has yet again been one of the best all-around relief pitchers for the Twins and in all of baseball during June. Despite experiencing some lows, like giving up a walk-off home run to Rays outfielder Randy Arozarena on June 7, Duran has helped the Twins by shutting down hitters in high-stress and high-leverage spots. Duran did an exceptional job of not allowing runners to reach base. 

In June, Duran generated a BABIP of just .211, and when runners did get on base, 93.8% of the time, they were left on base. The flame-throwing Duran has been incredible all season for the Twins, and fans should be excited as Duran will likely make his first all-star appearance representing the Twins during the 2023 MLB All-Star Game in Seattle on July 11. 

#3. Bailey Ober - 5 G, 3.38 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 29.1 IP, 26 H, 4 BB, 29 K
Ober, who would be the odds-on favorite to win the sixth man of the year award if it were an MLB award rather than an NBA award, was the Twins best-starting pitcher during June. Through 29 1/3 innings pitched, Ober was incredibly effective despite getting little-to-no help from his offense during his starts. 

Ober gave up 11 total earned runs in June while never giving up more than three earned runs in a start. Ober also left 80% of runners on base, an incredible number for a starting pitcher. When teams would generate runs off of Ober, it was usually through solo home runs, but when Ober was on, he was virtually untouchable. 

Ober is an incredible developmental story, and hopefully, he can continue his strong performance into July. 

#2. Brock Stewart - 9 G, 0.00 ERA, 0.62 WHIP, 9.2 IP, 6 H, 0 BB, 15 K
The miracle that was and will continue to be Brock Stewart was incredible for the Twins in June. Unfortunately, Stewart was recently placed on the 15-day IL with right forearm soreness. According to Stewart's agent Joe Speed (I'm not sure if Stewart's agent has any relation to his fastball velocity), Stewart's injured list placement was hopefully precautionary. Stewart should return to the Twins to continue pitching during the second half of the season.

Despite the somber news of Stewart having a sore right elbow, Stewart was incredible during June. In 9 2/3 innings pitched, Stewart, like Duran, saved the Twins repeatedly. Stewart allowed minimal runners, as evidenced by his FIP of just 0.17, and when runners did get on, Stewart left 100% of them on base. Along with not giving up a run, Stewart didn't give up a single walk in June. 

Stewart's performance in June was one of the best in recent Twins history, and he would have been the pitcher of the month if it wasn't for the exceptionally high-performing reliever below.

Winner: Griffin Jax - 11 G, 0.00 ERA, 0.00 ERA, 0.47 WHIP, 10.2 IP, 4 H, 1 BB, 8 K
In June, Air Force Reserve Officer and Minnesota Twin Griffin Jax was the best relief pitcher on a Twins team that also employs Stewart and Duran. For his services, Jax is getting bestowed with the grand title of Twins Daily Pitcher of the Month for June. Certainly, this Fourth of July will be extra sentimental for the Jax family.

In June, like Stewart, Jax left 100% of runners on base while also allowing a BABIP of just .154, a FIP of 2.05, and a BB/9 of 0.84. Jax dominated the strike zone with his five-pitch mix, including an elite sweeper and fastball.

What makes Jax's performance in June so impressive is that seemingly nothing went his way in the first two months of the season.

Jax started the first two months of the 2023 season going 2-6 with a 4.63 ERA while surrendering a .357 BABIP, leaving only 58.8% of runners on base through 23 1/3 innings pitched. Despite struggling, Jax still had promising underlying numbers and hadn't given up a home run all season, so there was still reason to be optimistic that Jax would turn things around.

Finally, things started going Jax's way in June, as evidenced by his BABIP and LOB% exponentially progressing. Jax was able to supplant himself as one of the best relievers on the Twins as he was most of the 2022 season. 

Congratulations to Jax on a stellar month of June, and hopefully, his elite performance will continue for the rest of the 2023 season. The Twins are going to need it. 

What do you think? How would you rank your top Twins pitchers of June? Comment below.

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[JD-TWINS]

Looks very accurate!

Hopefully, Maeda will be in the mix for July honors!

Getting Stewart & Thielbar healthy & effective  by August 1  could be a really big deal for the club.

Headrick - Moran - Balazovic - Jax - Duran - Ortega?…….Stewart - Thielbar looks pretty good for stretch run!

Gray has to get to 5 2/3 regularly to get a chance for some wins.

“Most underrated” - Bailey Ober……nothing but super consistent!!!

[roger]

Over sure is starting July like a man slighted by not winning the award.

[jimbo92107]

It is sneaky fun watching Baily Ober pitch, because hitters clearly are wondering why they aren't pounding the ball on him. 

On the other hand, Griffin Jax's innings are kind of boring, because nothing ever happens. Which is kinda like saying a bowler is boring because all he does is throw strikes.