So, Because You Are Lukewarm, and Neither Hot Nor Cold, I Will Spit You Out of My Mouth.

[Matt Braun]

After holding still at the trade deadline, the Twins inspired the kind of Greek Chorus of consternation typically reserved for teams actively spiting their fans. People threw flaming trash into the streets as women and children lamented in their homes. The Twins Daily group chat exploded with stunned revile.

Image courtesy of Nick Wosika-USA TODAY Sports

And, surely, this isn’t an unexpected reaction; the team had been linked everywhere as they sought the few additions clearly needed to round out the team. A left fielder. A relief arm. A time machine to reverse last year’s deadline moves. A cannon to fire Joey Gallo out of. They needed at least two—preferably all four—before the clock struck 5 PM. Instead we got nothing, and all that was left was overthinking the Dylan Floro trade and rankled opinion pieces.

I’m not here to argue that this was the correct choice for the team this season; the 2023 Twins are a muddled mess; striking out entirely too often; failing to crush lefties; running the bases like a Molina brother; turning Reese Olson into prime Pedro Martinez. These are the common characteristics of a mediocre ballclub—one ill-suited for a healthy shot at postseason glory—but fixing them would require time and a hard reboot to the system—two things that the trade deadline does not offer. 

At the moment, the Twins’ offense ranks 17th in runs scored, 14th in wRC+, and 14th in fWAR from position players. The strikeouts—aesthetically abhorrent and brutally hazardous—are exactly where you already know them to be: dead last. The end product is an ok offense. Deadly by itself, the issue strains itself further as Minnesota has failed to budge from acceptable since COVID hit; that’s two full seasons and plenty of change for no results to speak of. The 2019 season may as well have been an eon ago. 

That speaks, then, to a philosophical issue within the organization; the team has prioritized power at the expense of contact for years now, and even one of their younger bright spots, Matt Wallner, is built precisely in this image. We know the advantages of extra-base hits, but the league blew by the Twins in strategy, and their current whiff-heavy approach needs to be re-examined and corrected. It can only take them so far.

And—critically—it’s not something that can change overnight. Telling developed major leaguers to just stop missing the ball is not a real plan of action; coaches needed to be fired and hired as the team looks to franchises like Atlanta and Texas to develop dynamic hitting in the era of robotic pitching. 

Could they have done more? Certainly. An extra bat didn’t cost much at the deadline, and the Twins absolutely have the minor-league depth to absorb losing their 26th-ranked or so player. But, taking a step back, how much more would that have accomplished? Is a solid hitter the difference between a forgettable, sufficient offense and one capable of playing deep into the postseason? Are we more annoyed at the lack of an addition, or at the lack of eyewash proving that the team is “doing something” to fix the problems? I believe they tried that last season. I forget how those trades worked out.

The team trusted itself. They learned the painful lessons of 2022 and understood that ballplayers, while sometimes appearing to be static, can be manipulated and taught in unpredictable ways. Minnesota's talented bats and arms alike can breakout old—just ask the Giants and Orioles. 

“Complacent?” Perhaps, although I’m sure Derek Falvey and Thad Levine are well aware of what happens to MLB executives lacking in tangible results. I think the realities of the situation were this: Byron Buxton is evidently not healthy enough to man center field, and Carlos Correa suddenly lost any and all ability to hit the ball. Forget the ancillary details—the complimentary players and the fundamentals—and those two points create the foundation from which the rest of the team is supposed to work from. Without them, there’s nothing. It would be like building a house on sand.

View full article

[weitz41]

Sometimes when you're driving down a road in the middle of nowhere and your car is acting up. It's better to get to the next town before you shut the engine off to try and fix or figure out whatever is wrong.

Bubble gum and duct tape probably won't fix the issues...

[USAFChief]

My house has a leaky roof, an undependable heating system, there are cracks developing in the foundation, and my wiring keeps shorting out whenever it gets wet. 

A wet, cold and windy winter is just around the corner. 

But I don't have enough money to fix all four problems. What to do, what to do?

The heck with it...I'll just ignore ALL the problems. I mean, I can't fix them all, why fix any?

[dxpavelka]

The best thing about this team is also the one that likely prompted said deadline inactivity.  HOPE on the farm.  Just look at the list of guys who have contributed this year that were NOT on the opening day roster:  Julien, Larnach, Wallner, Ober, Varland, Stewart, Balazovic, Headrick, DeLeon, Ortega, Kuechel.  Then think about guys getting turned to in years past:  Riddle, Shoemaker, Ildemaro Vargas, Littell, LaMarre, Mejia, Bobby Wilson, Matt Belisle, Chris Giminez, Nik Turley. HOPE.

 

[Dale Powers]

The issue with Correa is that players signing big $$ contracts always seem to press during the 1st year of the contract. Expect better going forward. 

The issue with Buxton is simple: For the 80 games (or so) he plays, he's elite. This team simply can't afford a PT player. If it were up to me, I'd offer him an injury settlement of his contract and move on. 

The issue with the "3 true outcomes" approach to hitting may not be solved soon within the organization, but it can be solved via trade in the short term. Whenever the team is trading for offense, it should look for players closer to the Arraez model than the Gallo model. I know - easier said than done. 

I do believe the team has not yet figured out Target Field and used it to it's advantage. Target Field is a pitcher's park when the game time temps are under 60 degrees; it's a hitter's park when the game time temps are above degrees. The other teams seemed to have figured that out. Too bad the Twins haven't. 

 

[Hubie29]

1 hour ago, dxpavelka said:

The best thing about this team is also the one that likely prompted said deadline inactivity.  HOPE on the farm.  Just look at the list of guys who have contributed this year that were NOT on the opening day roster:  Julien, Larnach, Wallner, Ober, Varland, Stewart, Balazovic, Headrick, DeLeon, Ortega, Kuechel.  Then think about guys getting turned to in years past:  Riddle, Shoemaker, Ildemaro Vargas, Littell, LaMarre, Mejia, Bobby Wilson, Matt Belisle, Chris Giminez, Nik Turley. HOPE.

 

You are being way, way over generous with no less than a half dozen of the guys you say have "contributed".  I really don't have to list each one. 

[Craig Arko]

This seems overly melodramatic. :)

[mikelink45]

I just remember the difference that Shannon Stewart made when he came in.  Sometimes it is psychological and if it works that is enough reason to make a move.

[gman]

I think the Twins win the division no matter their Jekyll and Hyde routine. This should(?) be a very good period to get their up and coming core plenty of playoff experience and season end playing experience, which hopefully will do them good going forward.

Getting the kids playing experience is more vital then seeing if the veterans want to contribute and/or trade for new veterans. I think it would be good to bring in whatever kids may be part of this roster next year and give them some innings down the stretch.

[Boswell]

36 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

I just remember the difference that Shannon Stewart made when he came in.  Sometimes it is psychological and if it works that is enough reason to make a move.

Shannon Stewart was a stone cold ballplayer who indeed turned the 2003 Twins around.  One of my all time favorite Twins. 
 

Save the curse upon the church in Laodicea for the Chicago White Sox.  The 2023 edition of our club may yet be clothed in white garments by the baseball gods.  

[dxpavelka]

3 hours ago, Hubie29 said:

You are being way, way over generous with no less than a half dozen of the guys you say have "contributed".  I really don't have to list each one. 

Every single guy on the first list has "contributed" more than the guys on the second list.  That's the whole point.

 

[NotAboutWinning]

3 hours ago, Craig Arko said:

This seems overly melodramatic. :)

Really? Because I thought is was just enough melodrama 🤣🤣🤣 JK

[rv78]

Hindsight is easy. Reason #1, last years acquisitions blew up in their faces. No way they are going to make those mistakes again at the deadline. #2, I also suspect the FO figured since it doesn't have much for competition within the division, holding pat with what they have and riding it out will probably suffice. And like everyone says the playoffs can be a crap shoot. Reason #3 for not doing anything at the deadline is their problem lies mostly within the offense and the veterans of Correa, Buxton, Gallo, and Kepler are the main culprits. They aren't easy problems to move on from and more likely impossible. Can't envision any other team wanting to take any of those 4 guys the way they are playing, especially a team looking to rebuild. Their best bet was to double down on those 4 guys and hope they get hot the last 2 months of the season. If they do, and probably even if they don't, they'll make the playoffs in the weakest division in baseball and end up looking like they did the right thing. 

[nclahammer]

Good points made Matt.

"Better to sticks with cards in hand, than to build house on sand." - Lahammer (2023)

 

[Karbo]

Its almost like the fun of 2019 ruined this team. All those homeruns. Now that the ball isn't juiced, and the rules have changed, this management team from Falvey all the way down to coaches, haven't adjusted. I'm not a big Rocco fan, but he can only play the guys he has. The gamble taken on Gallo will rate up there with the worse moves ever made by a Twins FO. What seems even worse to me is they never adjusted and just kept playing him. I could go on and on with what seems to be mistakes made by mgmt, but it starts in the FO being to slow to adapt.

[wabene]

Up here in Duluth we are burdened with clay under our thin topsoil. 100% clay. A remnant of the lakebed of the much larger ancient Lake Superior. SE of us in NE Wisconsin is the shoreline of that ancient lake and wonderful sandy soil. Ah to be able to build on that dream substance. As a builder and digger of holes, I assure you sandy soil is the bomb. The great drainage eliminates the frost heaving problems we fight up here. 

[John Belinski]

I wanted the FO to add a right handed hitter and RP, but think after Cleveland traded away their good players our FO decided we would be in the playoffs. I think if Cleveland doesn't trade those players our FO makes some trades.  With good pitching and some players returning the Twins have a chance to win a playoff series. We still have too many lefthanded outfielders so trading one of them would have helped the Twins win. When the IL players return the Twins will have to remove at least 2 players that are currently playing and except for Gallo it will mean removing a player that has helped the Twins win.

[saviking]

Okay, that has got to be the most unique title of an article this year. Can't decide if it's the worst or the best  😜

[Larry Janisewski]

On 8/13/2023 at 12:20 PM, Dale Powers said:

The issue with Correa is that players signing big $$ contracts always seem to press during the 1st year of the contract. Expect better going forward. 

The issue with Buxton is simple: For the 80 games (or so) he plays, he's elite. This team simply can't afford a PT player. If it were up to me, I'd offer him an injury settlement of his contract and move on. 

The issue with the "3 true outcomes" approach to hitting may not be solved soon within the organization, but it can be solved via trade in the short term. Whenever the team is trading for offense, it should look for players closer to the Arraez model than the Gallo model. I know - easier said than done. 

I do believe the team has not yet figured out Target Field and used it to it's advantage. Target Field is a pitcher's park when the game time temps are under 60 degrees; it's a hitter's park when the game time temps are above degrees. The other teams seemed to have figured that out. Too bad the Twins haven't. 

 

Hard to consider Buxton "elite" batting .207 while striking out 36% of the AB's.