Rockies 5, Twins 4: Varland Strong in Return, but Four-Run Sixth Frame Costs Thielbar, Twins

[Ted Schwerzler]

Making a spot start to allow the Minnesota Twins starting pitchers some breathing room, Louie Varland was lifted early by Rocco Baldelli and the Colorado Rockies punished a handful of relievers.

Image courtesy of © Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

Box Score
SP: Louie Varland 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K (63 pitches, 42 strikes, 8 whiffs)
Home Runs: Byron Buxton (4)
Bottom 3 WPA: Caleb Thielbar (-0.399), Alex Kirilloff (-0.135), Ryan Jeffers (-0.101) 

Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs)

Louie Lifted Too Soon?
The Twins promoted Louie Varland to give the starting rotation a rest. With Chris Paddack looking like he could need a blow, and Simeon Woods Richardson still being raw, the initial fifth starter came into play. Blanking a bad Colorado Rockies lineup for five innings on just 63 pitches, Rocco Baldelli decided the imminent threat was worth pulling him.

Putting Caleb Thielbar in to take over in the sixth inning, it couldn't be more apparent that the aging lefty was cooked. Charlie Blackmon immediately singled before Thielbar issued a walk to Brenton Doyle. Ezequiel Tovar then took him deep for his 11th home run of the year to make it a 3-0 game. Ryan McMahon followed with a double and Cole Sands came on to limit the damage. Michael Toglia scored McMahon on a sacrifice fly, and while Sands shut it down, Thielbar once again looked like he was in over his head.

Buxton Blasts Off
There have been very few Twins hitters that have struggled like Byron Buxton has this season, and coming back from his stint on the injured list, he’s failed to do anything offensively. With Willi Castro on first base, he blasted a 3-2 pitch to center and halved the Rockies lead. Carlos Santana singled to keep the threat going, but Jose Miranda’s line out to Jake Cave in left field had the veteran looking clueless on the base paths and getting doubled up.

With Sands still in during the eighth inning McMahon teed off for a solo shot, his 11th of the season, to make it a 5-2 game. Correa singled in the bottom half to lead things off against Jalen Beeks, but Minnesota couldn’t make it count, and they entered the final frame trailing by three runs.

Josh Staumont stayed on for the final inning, and despite Cave kicking it off with a single, he was nailed trying to steal second base. Getting Greg Jones and Adael Amador on strikes, Staumont did his job wonderfully.

With just three outs left Castro kicked things off with his 13th double of the season. After a Buxton line out and Kirilloff strikeout, Santana stepped in a blasted his tenth home run of the year. Bringing Minnesota within one, it felt like they had life despite being on life support. Unfortunately Miranda punched out to end the game and Minnesota lost by a run.

Notes
With Diego Castillo optioned to make room for Varland, the Twins will need a roster move for the bullpen on Wednesday. 40 man options include Ronny Henriquez, Kody Funderburk, or Josh Winder.

Brock Stewart hasn’t made any notable progressions in his throwing program. Shut down last season as well, Stewart is looking to return for a Twins team that could use the late-inning production he provided earlier this season.

Twins 2023 Minor League Pitcher of the Year Cory Lewis has rejoined the Wichita Wind Surge after being activated from his minor league rehab assignment. St. Paul Saints catcher, and potential Christian Vazquez replacement, Jair Camargo has rejoined the Triple-A squad.

What’s Next? 
Having been given a break with Varland starting to push everyone back a day, Pablo Lopez will throw on Wednesday afternoon with a Pablo Day taking place. His special jerseys should pair nicely with the recently released Twins City Connect offering.

Postgame Interviews

 

Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet

 

 

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[BH67]

Looking for Mr. Thielbar no longer, alas. Caleb has been a rock in the Twins bullpen for so long. But the sun is setting, and the horse is saddled.

So far in June (continued):

Jeffers, .240 OPS (28 PA). Not a misprint.

But Louie...well done tonight.
 

[mnfireman]

Putting Caleb Thielbar in to take over in the sixth inning, it couldn't be more apparent that the aging lefty was cooked. 

Time to cut bait, but that is not "the Twins way"

[Patzky]

11 minutes ago, BH67 said:

Looking for Mr. Thielbar no longer, alas. Caleb has been a rock in the Twins bullpen for so long. But the sun is setting, and the horse is saddled.

So far in June (continued):

Jeffers, .240 OPS (28 PA). Not a misprint.

But Louie...well done tonight.
 

Kirilloff needs a reset worse than Julien did. Helman? Kemp? Wallner?  Honestly I'd be ok seeing Thielbar released and keep Varland up as BP help this weekend. 

 

Seems Buxton has been getting a little luck lately, if him. Correa and Lewis could get hot at once that would be helpful.

[mikelink45]

Sorry to see Caleb struggle, but the Twins cannot afford to let this continue to be the case.  We need wins and if Caleb is indeed cooked like so many say, maybe Varland should step in.  I do not care which are they throw with >  I just want good pitches.

Glad Byron got a HR, but his totals are still ghastly.  

And losing to the Rockies is not good - the white Sox, Rockies, and A's should not be allowed to beat us (I know they will, but it is still frustrating after our NY/Pittsburgh series. 

[Schmoeman5]

"the Rockies punished a handful of relievers"?

[darwin22]

Echoing comments of others, but the time has come for Thielbar to be DFA'ed.  Absolutely appreciate his grit and solid performance over the last couple of seasons, but the time has come. Its over.

Saying that, nothing will change as its "not the Twins way"

I sure would've liked to hear Baldelli's postgame explanation (not broadcast) for yanking Varland when he was working on a 1-hit shutout with only 1 walk over 63 pitches through 5 IP. 

 

 

[Peter]

Bad bad bad loss! Can’t lose to Colorado! Time to dfa theilbar, he was great last few years but not now! Win series tomorrow all is good!

[gmwannabe]

Rocco goes with his left on left  "match-up" when Varland has given up 1 hit with 60 pitches and the right handed batter hits a 3 run homer off Thielbar who has been awful. Shouldn't we try to actually win the game at this juncture instead of putting in your worst reliever because the Rockies led off the inning with a left handed batter?

[Patzky]

11 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

Sorry to see Caleb struggle, but the Twins cannot afford to let this continue to be the case.  We need wins and if Caleb is indeed cooked like so many say, maybe Varland should step in.  I do not care which are they throw with >  I just want good pitches.

Glad Byron got a HR, but his totals are still ghastly.  

And losing to the Rockies is not good - the white Sox, Rockies, and A's should not be allowed to beat us (I know they will, but it is still frustrating after our NY/Pittsburgh series. 

Sadly Henriquez, Funderburk and Boushley all went multiple innings today for the Saints. And Eddy Julien 0/5 with three Ks.

 

Guess Jay Jackson could re-emerge..

[Patzky]

11 minutes ago, Schmoeman5 said:

"the Rockies punished a handful of relievers"?

Just One And It Was Enough. :(

[Alex Wilde]

13 minutes ago, Patzky said:

Sadly Henriquez, Funderburk and Boushley all went multiple innings today for the Saints. And Eddy Julien 0/5 with three Ks.

 

Guess Jay Jackson could re-emerge..

Jackson isn’t on the 40 though. Could be Winder as well. It would be an odd time to DFA Thielbar after a spot start because then you would have two BP spots to fill. Realistically, if Thielbar is DFA’d, he should get through waivers because of his relatively high salary. I don’t see a team taking a chance on him with the bag he is carrying with him. He would be solid depth at St. Paul just like Jay Jackson.

[mnfireman]

7 minutes ago, Patzky said:

And Eddy Julien 0/5 with three Ks.

 

 

Time to move on, and for those of you with a man crush, orMon béguin,he has never been considered a top prospect 

[Jocko87]

 

[jorgenswest]

The offense could have helped by scoring some runs in the first five innings. Give Varland a lead of two or three runs and they can afford to let him at least start the 6th and see the line up the third time through.

I don’t know if Thielbar is done. He entered having an ERA of 2.84 over his previous 17 appearances. He allowed runs in only 3 of the 17 outings. Was that luck or was something off today?

[Patzky]

9 minutes ago, Alex Wilde said:

Jackson isn’t on the 40 though. Could be Winder as well. It would be an odd time to DFA Thielbar after a spot start because then you would have two BP spots to fill. Realistically, if Thielbar is DFA’d, he should get through waivers because of his relatively high salary. I don’t see a team taking a chance on him with the bag he is carrying with him. He would be solid depth at St. Paul just like Jay Jackson.

Can't get Castillo back soon enough. Ope!

[mnfireman]

5 minutes ago, Jocko87 said:

 

Oh FFS. Let's impose a mental limit on a player, reinforce it, and never give the player a chance to disprove it. Company line BS.

[h2oface]

I was saying it this off season when all writers were declaring Thielbar a lock and a rock for the back end of the 2024 bullpen. His end of season performance and playoff outings convinced me he was toast. To count on him another year was a bad move. I was saying it in ST, I was saying it as the season started. Not bragging. I just knew. I don't know why. And I hope we all know now, including a manager that is really making me sick. 63 pitches and a one hitter with one walk....... through 5. What a _________.

[mnfireman]

16 minutes ago, Alex Wilde said:

Jackson isn’t on the 40 though. Could be Winder as well. It would be an odd time to DFA Thielbar after a spot start because then you would have two BP spots to fill. Realistically, if Thielbar is DFA’d, he should get through waivers because of his relatively high salary. I don’t see a team taking a chance on him with the bag he is carrying with him. He would be solid depth at St. Paul just like Jay Jackson.

If another team claims Thielbar, let them have him. At this point he is who he is. If another team thinks they can fix him, let them try.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

8 minutes ago, mnfireman said:

Oh FFS. Let's impose a mental limit on a player, reinforce it, and never give the player a chance to disprove it. Company line BS.

What’s even worse is that Park is supposedly in a neutral role of just reporting on the Twins, not jumping to their defense when something questionable happens. 

[Parfigliano]

1 hour ago, BH67 said:

Looking for Mr. Thielbar no longer, alas. Caleb has been a rock in the Twins bullpen for so long. But the sun is setting, and the horse is saddled.

So far in June (continued):

Jeffers, .240 OPS (28 PA). Not a misprint.

But Louie...well done tonight.
 

To bad for Varland Rocco was there to hold him back

[Jocko87]

 

[USAFChief]

Rocco's decision to remove Varland after 18 batters was made sometime last winter.

We need a MLB manager. 

[USAFChief]

11 hours ago, Jocko87 said:

 

1. Is Park an employee of the Twins?

2. "Several nuanced factors"?? Your first paragraph layed it all off on ONE factor: 3rd time through the order.

 

[knothole61]

1 hour ago, Patzky said:

Kirilloff needs a reset worse than Julien did. Helman? Kemp? Wallner?  Honestly I'd be ok seeing Thielbar released and keep Varland up as BP help this weekend. 

 

Seems Buxton has been getting a little luck lately, if him. Correa and Lewis could get hot at once that would be helpful.

Agreed...I gave up on Thielbar last year after he surrendered that 2-run homer in the 4th against Houston and took the loss in our last playoff game of 2023. He is out of place as a LOOGY in our brave new "must face at least three batters" world.

Kiriloff is a bigger day-to-day problem, I think. Whatever Lewis exudes at the plate (call it a supreme confidence and joie de vivre?) Kirilloff right now is his polar opposite. He reflects the countenance of a small boy who has just broken the neighbor's window while playing backyard catch and now must face the consequences. He seems very unsure of himself, almost frightened, these days. Whereas Kepler (and I might be wrong) at times seems a bit lackadaisical at the plate, Kirilloff's problems more likely stem from trying too hard and caring too much. If he can find his confidence again, Kirilloff can become a major part of the Twins' quest to make September meaningful this season...time will tell. 

[howeda7]

A struggling .500 team would be easier to tolerate if they would get the cooked veterans off the team and hold anyone accountable. Theilbar is cooked. Farmer is cooked. Margot is of no value versus Austin Martin. Vazquez we're stuck with, but catching him 80+ times is idiotic. Kiriloff needs to go down to AAA two weeks ago.

Get Martin, Wallner, Funderburk etc. up here and cut bait with the dead wood. Including the hitting coach, probably. Move Kepler and Jeffers down in the order when they're slumping. These are not difficult adjustments. 

[mickster]

9 hours ago, darwin22 said:

Echoing comments of others, but the time has come for Thielbar to be DFA'ed.  Absolutely appreciate his grit and solid performance over the last couple of seasons, but the time has come. Its over.

Saying that, nothing will change as its "not the Twins way"

I sure would've liked to hear Baldelli's postgame explanation (not broadcast) for yanking Varland when he was working on a 1-hit shutout with only 1 walk over 63 pitches through 5 IP. 

 

 

Over managing at its finest.

[karcherd]

Let's go with the youngster's and get the cooked veterans out of here.  And let them play, stop with the third time of the order, LH hitters have to sit against against LH pitchers.  Let them play and give them confidence.  AK looks totally lost, this is a massive failure on the coaching staff.  What would happen if they just let him play and not sit him halfway thru every game.  This is becoming a self fulfilling prophecy, they can't hit lefties, but they never face them and the couple of times they do, they don't have success.  They can't go thru the order a third time, so pull the pitcher.  Then if they do it one time and they give up a run, they say see we told you so.  Players need to play and learn by playing.

[Riverbrian]

8 hours ago, Jocko87 said:

 

Since I can't watch the game. I really can't comment on last nights nuance. 

I do find it amusing that Park is claiming several nuances as an explanation why Varland was pulled.

At the same time... fans who don't understand why Varland was pulled are asking Rocco to consider nuance and let him pitch. 

If there are several nuances... Rocco wouldn't consistently make the same moves at the same moments.

Several Nuances produces several variables. His decisions are too consistent for variability.  

 

[Karbo]

AK looks completely lost. Needs a reset in St. Paul.