Week in Review: Cold Bats, Hot Mess

[Nick Nelson]

Last Sunday's implosion gave way to another lousy run of baseball that deepened Minnesota's early hole and prompted a roster shakeup. But at least this week ended on happier note than the last.

Image courtesy of Jordan Johnson-Imagn Images

The Weekly Nutshell:
It seemed as though the Minnesota Twins were emerging from their early-season lull when they won three of four following an embarrassing blowout in Chicago. They were on their way to moving within a game of .500 last Sunday before the bottom fell out, and that blown six-run lead set the stage for a 2-5 week featuring some of the most uninspired, sloppy, disgraceful baseball you will ever witness on a major-league field.

At the end of last season, the Twins looked like a team that ran out of gas. Early this season, they look like one that had no juice to begin with. Despite all the proclamations of lessons learned from the collapse, and a restorative offseason that had everyone raving about the team's clean bill of health in spring camp, Minnesota generally looks even more lethargic.

On the bright side, the Twins did punctuate their week with a win after dropping six of the previous seven. Will it be the start of a true turnaround or just another blip on the radar? We shall see, but for now, let's dive in and dissect the past seven days.

Weekly Snapshot: Mon, 4/7 through Sun, 4/13
***
Record Last Week: 2-5 (Overall: 5-11)
Run Differential Last Week: -1 (Overall: -13)
Standing: 4th Place in AL Central (4.5 GB) 

Last Week's Game Results:

Game 10 | KC 4, MIN 2: Offense Comes Out Flat in Kansas City

• Correa, Buxton, Larnach: 0-12

Game 11 | KC 2, MIN 1: López Exits with Injury, Defense Implodes

• Buxton, Miranda: 0-7, 7 Ks

Game 12 | MIN 4, KC 0: Ryan Continues Mastery Over Royals

• Ryan: 7 IP, 0 ER

Game 13 | KC 3, MIN 2: Lackluster Twins Drop Another Game, Series

• Offense: 1-9 RISP

Game 14 | DET 7, MIN 6: Alcalá Unravels Again as 3-Run Lead Evaporates

• Alcalá: 0.0 IP, 4 ER, 2 H, 2 BB

Game 15 | DET 4, MIN 0: Another Lineup No-Show Equates to Another Loss

• Offense: 4 H, 1 BB

Game 16 | MIN 5, DET 1: Pitchers Take Over as Twins Salvage Series Finale

• Woods Richardson, bullpen: 9 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 12 K

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NEWS & NOTES

Good breaks have been hard to come by for the Twins early in this season, and they caught another bad one on Tuesday night when Pablo López was forced out of his start against the Royals in the fifth inning due to hamstring tightness. He had been dealing in the game. López was placed on the injured list with the diagnosis of a Grade 1 strain, which is on the mild side. The team is hopeful that the right-hander will spend the minimum 15 days on the IL, only missing a couple of starts. 

López's injury seemingly opened the door for Zebby Matthews to step into the rotation, and it might yet, but David Festa was first to get the call, making his season debut on Friday night in impressive fashion with 4 ⅔ scoreless innings. Rocco Baldelli indicated that Festa will stick around and start again on Wednesday. Matthews could potentially find his way into a big-league start next weekend, but for now Festa looks to be one of the team's top five with Pablo sidelined.

The continuing trend of short starts from the rotation – partially as a byproduct of Baldelli's decision-making – has forced Minnesota to cycle through arms at the back end of the bullpen, risking the loss of depth on waivers. The Twins were able to keep Darren McCaughan, who re-signed and returned to St. Paul after being DFA'ed. We'll see if they can do the same with Scott Blewett, designated on Saturday to make room for Kody Funderburk (who immediately announced his return to the bullpen by giving up a two-run homer).

After Saturday's game, the Twins optioned struggling José Miranda to Triple-A, paving the way for Brooks Lee's activation from the injured list. Lee started at third base on Sunday and had a much better re-entry than Funderburk, delivering an RBI single in his first at-bat. Lee figures to become the primary starter at the hot corner for the foreseeable future.

HIGHLIGHTS

In the 12th game of the season, Joe Ryan finally delivered the rotation's first quality start against a non-White Sox opponent. He was brilliant in Kansas City on Wednesday night, stopping a three-game skid with seven innings of shutout ball. Ryan was effective and efficient, throwing 63 of 85 pitches for strikes. Through 17 innings he has yet to allow a walk. This was business as usual for Ryan when it comes to facing the Royals, against whom he is now 7-0 with a 1.30 ERA in nine career starts.

 

In a season where almost nothing is going right, it's kind of funny that a rare exception happens to be one we (or at least I) least expected: Ty France has been great. Signed to a non-guaranteed $1 million at the end of the offseason after drawing little interest league-wide, the first baseman is looking much like vintage form in early action. He had a monster week: 11-for-25, two homers, two doubles, two walks and zero strikeouts. If this is for real, that's huge.

Finally I've got to give a shout to my guy Byron Buxton. He was well on his way to the Lowlights section this week, going 0-for-8 with five strikeouts in the first two games at Kauffman, including a golden sombrero on Tuesday night. In retrospect, you have to wonder if he was a bit distracted. 

Buxton left the team on Wednesday's and Thursday to attend his cousin's funeral in Georgia, as Phil Miller reported in the Star Tribune. The center field returned for the weekend home series against Detroit and looked like a different man, notching five hits including a pair of homers and also swiping his third base. Buck continues to look healthy and leads the majors in sprint speed.

 

LOWLIGHTS

The start to this season has really been a complete debacle of untold magnitude. If you've followed the Twins for as long as I have you've seen some bad years and ugly stretches, but nothing can quite compare to the steady drumbeat of inept, mistake-filled, scared-of-the-moment play that has been put forth through these first 16 games. There have been no convincing signs of relief or turnaround, although they at least managed to snap another three-game losing streak at week's end. Day after day this looks like a team with no will or ability to overcome their opponents, no resilience in the face of adversity. 

Beyond the lackluster plate appearances and pitching performances, it is the endless lapses in judgment and execution that are most baffling. Defensive plays were missed constantly in a week where the Twins committed eight errors, including Griffin Jax's game-deciding overthrow Tuesday on a routine grounder to the mound that put Bobby Witt Jr. on third base as the eventual winning run. 

Twins hitters ran into outs repeatedly, erasing baserunners that their languishing offense could not afford to lose. Most egregious was on Saturday when José Miranda slid toward second base safely after Detroit's infielder missed the bag on a double-play turn, but failed to notice the umpire's call, and got tagged out while walking back to his dugout. A demotion to Triple-A quickly followed.

 

In terms of individual laggards, it's a bit tough to single anyone out since almost everyone across the roster is floundering, but here are a few strikingly poor performances from last week that are worth a deeper look:

• Carlos Correa can't get going. Even in a week where he finally showed a bit of pop with four doubles, he still posted a .217 average and sits at .164 for the season. With each successive unproductive game, it gets harder to chalk this up to bad luck or a common cold spell. His plate approach is decent and he's making plenty of contact but it's generally been into the ground. He tapped into two more double plays in Kansas City, putting him at five already through a couple of weeks. That's a 50-GIDP full-season pace. In 2023, Correa led baseball with 30 GIDP.
• It feels unnecessary to pile on Miranda given that he's been banished to the minors, but we do need to acknowledge the brutal series of events that precipitated his demotion. At the plate he stayed cold last week, producing two singles in 11 at-bats. He struck out four times with no walks, pushing his overall ratio to 13-to-zero. He committed an ugly error at third base in Kansas City. And then Saturday's baserunning blunder became the final straw. Miranda hasn't looked like a big-league caliber player since the first half of last year, but at that point he was playing like a man on fire. We know it's in there. Hopefully he can recapture it with help from this reset.
• One of the hallmarks of this prolonged stretch of futility for the Twins has been the Jorge Alcalá sudden meltdown. He infamously set off the landslide last August by giving up five earned runs in two-thirds of an inning in Texas, zapping away a four-run lead. Friday night's series opener against Detroit carried a similar tune, as Alcalá entered with a 4-1 lead and proceeded to allow four straight baserunners, all of whom came around to score as another lead vanished, five days after Minnesota's bullpen frittered away a six-run advantage at Target Field. Just great shows for the home fans. The much-hyped Twins bullpen has been good in some respects, but woefully bad at coming through when it matters most.

TRENDING STORYLINE

Miranda's spiraling performance left the Twins with little choice but to make a move. Mickey Gasper might be well on his way to the same fate. The 29-year-old rookie underdog made the team this spring based on the hope he could contribute offensively after raking in Triple-A. But he looks overmatched and incapable at the plate; in 21 plate appearances he has managed two singles, both grounders that bled through the infield. He's now 2-for-35 with zero extra-base hits as a big-leaguer.

The other problem is that he appears unusable defensively, which kinda matches the rep. The Twins curiously decided to start Gasper at second base on Tuesday night, with Edouard Julien at designated hitter. It took less than four innings for Gasper to commit a grievous error on a routine grounder in an eventual one-run loss. In fairness to him, he has made only 20 total starts at the position over six pro seasons. I don't think we'll see him there again for the Twins, barring an emergency.

Gasper should be an option only at first base or DH, and for such a role, you want someone who is less of a long-shot to produce at all offensively. Those players can be found, even in mid-April and with sparse resources available. On the internal front, it will probably be some time yet before Minnesota is ready to turn to a prospect like Luke Keaschall or Jeferson Morales, though these names are worth keeping an eye on. Another is Saints teammate Armando Alvarez, signed to a minor-league deal during the offseason following a big Triple-A campaign in the A's system (.967 OPS in 75 games in 2024). 

Alvarez, 30, has been playing third base regularly with St. Paul, but has experience at second, first and the outfield corners. He is off to a slow start at the plate this year, with an OPS south of .550, so there's a decent chance he won't hit much more than Gasper. But at least he can be functional defensively as the Twins bide their time and await the return of Royce Lewis – still likely weeks away.

LOOKING AHEAD

Can the Twins channel their spark of momentum from Sunday's victory into a stabilizing stretch of winning baseball? They'll have their work cut out for them in a week that features showdowns with two formidable interleague opponents. The Mets and Braves were both among the top-five World Series favorites entering this season. New York has played like it, whereas Atlanta is off to an oddly Twins-esque start with  a 4-11 record through 15 games. Perhaps we can take that as a bit of comfort in context.

MONDAY, APRIL 14: METS @ TWINS — RHP Clay Holmes v. RHP Joe Ryan
TUESDAY, APRIL 15: METS @ TWINS — RHP Tylor Megill v. RHP Bailey Ober
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16: METS @ TWINS — RHP Griffin Canning v. RHP David Festa
FRIDAY, APRIL 18: TWINS @ BRAVES — RHP Chris Paddack v. TBD
SATURDAY, APRIL 19: TWINS @ BRAVES — RHP Simeon Woods Richardson v. LHP Chris Sale
SUNDAY, APRIL 20: TWINS @ BRAVES — RHP Joe Ryan v. RHP Grant Holmes

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[tony&rodney]

The Twins have not been scoring much but maybe they just were waiting for warmer weather. There are some odd decisions being made within the organization but the boss always knows best as we know from this past week globally. A couple of examples from the Twins top teams. Why is Mickey Gasper still a thing? Matthews? If the Twins were not going to use Zebby Matthews on Monday, why didn't they let him take his turn with the Saints instead of pushing him back and off schedule? Matthews is being lightly used already but needs to pitch and while side sessions are always useful pitching in competitive games is better. Messing with a top prospect is probably not a good idea.

Kansas City and Detroit are good teams. Perhaps the Twins take a look at the coming week and play better. Ryan, Ober, and Festa versus the Mets could be positive. Other than Chris Sale next Saturday, the Twins should be relieved to escape the KC and DET staff.

Seattle needs infielders. Falvey should see what types of deals can be made with them. The Twins sent Jose Miranda down but where are they going to play him? 1B, 3B, and DH are already full. Miranda for Harry Ford?

[Whitey333]

I think you would be hard pressed to get a batboy in a Miranda trade lol.  Miranda blew it at second base.  That's inexcusable.  Unfortunately it seems people are putting most of the Twins problems pinned on Miranda.  There is plenty on this team to share the blame.

[TheLeviathan]

You know it's bad when a castoff from the Oakland As is on our radar as a beacon of hope.

[Blyleven2011]

I always thought the week started on Sunday and ended on Saturday  , huh  ... 

I guess in baseball it's different  ...

Finally a great first day of the week  sunny Sunday win , Joe Ryan tomorrow verses Mets  , he been pitching very well , so should be a low scoring game  ...

The week was hard to swallow  , more downers than uppers  , that sums it up the best  ...

[D.C Twins]

I would be very curious to see a deep dive on Correa from TD.

Is his bat speed down?

 

[mikelink45]

I always enjoy these weekly summaries even when they are about a bad week.  The name I am disappointed in is Trevor Larnach. Batting 185 with no HR.  He started as the clean up hitter, but seems lost again.  His career has been so uneven I see him being the OF replaced by the next round of prospects.

[stringer bell]

A nice win on Sunday can't cover up what has been a continuation of what happened late in the 2024 season. Buxton and Correa have been less than stellar and the third Twins' "star" (Lewis) hasn't played due to injury. Everyone else on the position player side seems to have struggled. It's early, but Miranda's struggles and France's success seem to justify the move to get France in the first place. Bader started hot, but hasn't hit much since the first week. His usage seems about right and he definitely looks like a better player than the 2024 version of Manny Margot. 

Despite the injury to López, Twins' pitching seems to be finding the range, with six straight acceptable to good starts and most recently a dominant bullpen effort in Sunday's game. One other note--it's really hard to trust Jorge Alcalá. Too many brutal blowouts where he can't get anybody out. The next time he looks dominating. It has to give a manager gray hair (unless they have no hair). 

[stringer bell]

12 hours ago, Whitey333 said:

I think you would be hard pressed to get a batboy in a Miranda trade lol.  Miranda blew it at second base.  That's inexcusable.  Unfortunately it seems people are putting most of the Twins problems pinned on Miranda.  There is plenty on this team to share the blame.

At this point anyone trying to acquire Miranda would be calling him a reclamation project. I think he's get another shot with the Twins, but his struggles make me question what he will become as a player. 

[TwinsDr2021]

Got to be honest if you would have told me that 10% of the way though the season that Wallner, Larnach, Julien, Miranda, Castro, Jeffers and Correa would have a combined 4 homers there is no chance I would believe you. (Ever harder to believe it ties them for 21st)

[PDX Twin]

You're missing the obvious selection for hitter who is the most "clutch." Let's face it; the only answer is "none of the above."

[Riverbrian]

Good News and Bad News

The Bad News: We are one tenth of the way through the season. One Tenth of the season is a long enough portion of the season where legitimate concern can be expressed about the offense. This isn't one week... This is 16 games of an almost team wide slump at the plate. 

The Good News: There is still 90% of the season to play. 

[Riverbrian]

These major league players are fighting for careers.

Congrats to Brooks Lee and his call up to the major leagues. 

And I feel genuinely sorry for Jose Miranda. 

I'm happy for Brooks and sad for Jose. 

Roster spots are limited and there is only one way to be fair to all of the players who want to be major league players.

Let the best man win. Jose Miranda will have to move back and make room for someone else to take a shot at being the best man. 

I feel bad for Jose but it's fair that he is down in AAA right now.   

 

 

[Mike Sixel]

I'm shocked at how bad it is. I didn't have high hopes, but they just cannot hit at all. 

Good luck to Brooks, I hope they give him time to adjust, as he's done at every level so far. 

[LambchoP]

Really sad showing on offense so far. Larnach looked like he was ready to break out early on, now he's doing nothing. Gasper and Miranda have no business on a MLB team. Not sure yet about Bader. He started out great, now he's a strikeout machine. At least he's solid defensively. Good to see Buck coming around. Low avg but he's at least got 3 hrs and 3 steals. Correa looks completely lost. He cannot continue to hit into double plays and kill any momentum we might be building. My guess is, if he doesn't start hitting soon, when Lewis is activated we will get a report on how Correa has been dealing with an injury all year and that's why he's sucked. He'll replace Lewis on the IL for a month or so.

[Nick Nelson]

18 hours ago, D.C Twins said:

I would be very curious to see a deep dive on Correa from TD.

Is his bat speed down?

 

Bat speed is normal but that's about it. He just seems to be on top of everything. I just tweeted this but will share it here too:

Carlos Correa launch angle by season

2021: 12.1
2022: 11.6
2023: 10.6
2024: 8.9
2025: 6.2

He ranks 13 out of 177 MLB hitters in GB% — bad news for a guy who cannot run — and the scary part is it seems like he's been trending this direction for a half-decade.
 

[LA Vikes Fan]

The facts regarding his launch angle bring to mind a comment he made earlier this year. He said he was coming up out of his legs too early and hitting the top of the ball, resulting a lot of ground balls. That's something that can be fixed with a tweak of his swing or, more ominously, he may have trouble "sitting" on his legs because of the foot injuries or something else wrong with his legs. I know I had to change my golf swing due to knee issues making it hard for me to sit back on my haunches without pain during a golf swing. Could be something similar going on here with Correa. 

[D.C Twins]

1 hour ago, Nick Nelson said:

Bat speed is normal but that's about it. He just seems to be on top of everything. I just tweeted this but will share it here too:

Carlos Correa launch angle by season

2021: 12.1
2022: 11.6
2023: 10.6
2024: 8.9
2025: 6.2

He ranks 13 out of 177 MLB hitters in GB% — bad news for a guy who cannot run — and the scary part is it seems like he's been trending this direction for a half-decade.
 

Very interesting...  thanks Nick!