Athletics 14, Twins 3: Twins Thumped in Finale, Settle for Series Win in Sacramento

[Aerodeliria]

9 hours ago, Gamblerssoftball said:

I must be in the minority here, but I will take Gladden alone before Chatterbury. I like his brutal honesty at times. He likes being the hard nosed guy..

That's why I loved him when he played...

[Aerodeliria]

Can I ask an outta the blue question? Is Gasper so poor defensively behind the plate that it's better to ride with Vasquez? I'm big on defense, but Gasper with some time must be an upgrade as a hitter...

[Mark G]

I worry about the bullpen tonight with Alcala, Funderburk, and especially Bride not being available.  

[Doctor Gast]

Many wanted to give up on Varland last season but the Twins finally put him in the pen & left him there, then Voila! Everybody loves him.  Same with Duran, they thought he was washed up. They kept him steady at closer. Voila, he's back! Now, with Alcala, he came back late after a long rehab. They pitched him often multiple innings, also on consecutive days & sometimes for long periods of not pitching. Every time a pitcher pitches, he damages his arm; the damage depends on how long, how hard & condition of his arm & needs time to heal before his next outing, especially if his arm is vulnerable due to past injury. If the Twins want consistency from Alcala, then they need to consistently pitch him no more than 1 inning every other day. Then maybe Voila! He's finally consistently pitching high-leverage games dominantly.

Twins needs a long RP but Alcala isn't him.

[FlyingFinn]

1 hour ago, Aerodeliria said:

Is Gasper so poor defensively behind the plate that it's better to ride with Vasquez?

Yes, Gasper is that poor defensively at catcher.

[Bodie]

9 hours ago, chpettit19 said:

Before this start Festa had given up 2 earned runs in 13 innings with 15 Ks and a 2.38 FIP to go with that 1.38 ERA. Not sure what else you're looking for to "look like an MLB pitcher" in that small of a sample size.

Probably just that!  The same way I have always said Eddie Julien has never looked like a MLB player...

Though the call on EJ was a much easier call!  Some guys just look like they don't and won't cut it.  Now, or in the future. Pretty simple concept!

[mikelink45]

One game - not enough to judge the pitcher.  Note that the rotation have all had clunker games - it happens.  Stick with Festa, bring up SWR or Adams and have them in the pen, ready to piggyback or step in if anyone falters.

[Whitey333]

Tough game, bad look all around.  Another of Roccos throw away game where he appears not to care about winning the game.  The excuses are coming to Target field if they lose Friday.  They will blame the long road trip.  Fact us they got smashed by A's.  So what.  But they make a 5-5 road trip sound like they won a playoff series.  I hate when teams use a fielder to pitch.  It makes a total farce of the game.  Good thing is they used both Alcal and Funderburk extensively so we won't have to stomach them for a couple of days.  I believe Alcala has mo options left so if the Twins dfa him he would probably be picked up.  Go Twins!!

[Hubie29]

10 hours ago, AceWrigley said:

We have a rotation of Ryan, Ober, Paddack, Matthews and Festa for the resta.

Gonna have to score 6 runs a game

[DJL44]

12 hours ago, Blyleven2011 said:

Someone needs to work with him to improve

Brilliant idea. They should hire a pitching coach in AAA. I'm sure other teams would pick up on that and eventually every minor league team would have a pitching coach. Your idea might revolutionize minor league development.

[chpettit19]

12 hours ago, h2oface said:

And that was against the Tigers, Mets and White Sox. 64, 76, and 84 pitches. 4.2, 4.1 and 4 innings. Only gave up 2 earned and that was to the White Sox when he walked three (and none actually scored while he was on the mound - thank you, Sands). 19, 19 and 18 batters. Baldelli Ball. He was lucky to see 2 total batters for the 3rd time, even when pitching like an MLB pitcher 😇. That was when not coming back from arm fatigue. Today 80, 3.2, and 19. He did real well those first 3 starts. I guess the Athletics were due to win a game, eh? 

In general, I'd like to see guys like Festa who are putting up good games get to stretch it out more and get some experience going deeper into games, but I can't be too upset with him being taken out in a 1-1 game after giving up an unearned run and having the heart of their order coming up with a lefty taking over to face their back to back lefties with a runner in scoring position (Tigers game). Or him being pulled after he gives up 2 singles and hits a guy in a 0-0 game with Juan Soto coming up and being replaced by a lefty who then gets a double play ball (Mets game). The White Sox game was the game he left while handing the bullpen the best situation and Sands was pretty awful. Festa had a 2-run lead and walked a guy and gave up a single before Sands came in and him and the defense let Festa down.

Festa has been really good for 4 innings but has struggled from there. That's his next step as a pitcher. Be more efficient through 4 to be able to get deeper in games. It's a vital part of his development if he wants to be a major league starter. But the suggestion that he hasn't looked like a major leaguer is pretty aggressive in my view. Even last year he had 77 Ks in 64.1 innings. He's not a finished product by any means, but there's a lot to like in what he's shown so far. 

[jmlease1]

Learning experience for Festa. Hopefully Pablo or someone like that puts a hand on his shoulder and tells him to shake it off and gives him some tips for how to handle it when the ump is squeezing him early. Because he got hosed in the first; should have been out of that inning with only 1 run at most. It was actually kind of funny (in a frustrating way) hearing Plouffe stopping himself multiple times in the booth from outright saying the ump blew pitch calls (I'm guessing he's been told "don't call the ump outright trash, please"). Really put Festa in a tough spot, but he needs to learn how to adjust on the fly when he's not getting the calls he';s expecting and find a way to still get outs. Talent is there, and despite getting hammered in that bandbox, he still got 6 Ks in 3 2/3.

Hope Correa's back problem doesn't keep him out long: he's such a difference-maker, and had been finding his hitting stroke recently.

A long, cross-country road trip with two minor league parks. 5-5 isn't a bad result, really. Time to come home and get it going again.

 

[Danchat]

34 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

But the suggestion that he hasn't looked like a major leaguer is pretty aggressive in my view. Even last year he had 77 Ks in 64.1 innings. He's not a finished product by any means, but there's a lot to like in what he's shown so far. 

And at worst, I think his floor is a quality major league reliever. He has good stuff that can get strikeouts, and that'd be amped up if he were to transition to the bullpen. Not that he should make the move now, it's way too early to give up on him as a starter. But like Varland/Sands/Jax/others it will be worth a shot if he can't figure out how to go through the lineup a third time around.

[Mike Sixel]

1 hour ago, chpettit19 said:

In general, I'd like to see guys like Festa who are putting up good games get to stretch it out more and get some experience going deeper into games, but I can't be too upset with him being taken out in a 1-1 game after giving up an unearned run and having the heart of their order coming up with a lefty taking over to face their back to back lefties with a runner in scoring position (Tigers game). Or him being pulled after he gives up 2 singles and hits a guy in a 0-0 game with Juan Soto coming up and being replaced by a lefty who then gets a double play ball (Mets game). The White Sox game was the game he left while handing the bullpen the best situation and Sands was pretty awful. Festa had a 2-run lead and walked a guy and gave up a single before Sands came in and him and the defense let Festa down.

Festa has been really good for 4 innings but has struggled from there. That's his next step as a pitcher. Be more efficient through 4 to be able to get deeper in games. It's a vital part of his development if he wants to be a major league starter. But the suggestion that he hasn't looked like a major leaguer is pretty aggressive in my view. Even last year he had 77 Ks in 64.1 innings. He's not a finished product by any means, but there's a lot to like in what he's shown so far. 

Imagine this site while Viola was pitching year one.....

[chpettit19]

16 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Imagine this site while Viola was pitching year one.....

Or year 2.

[LambchoP]

The combo of Mathews, Festa and SWR as our number 4 and 5 in the rotation worries me. I'm imagining a LOT of short starts, meaning we are going to need a true long man in the pen. They are calling up Adams. Hopefully he pitches well and can be that guy who can piggyback any short starts. Alcala and Funderburk clearly need to go. Adams should replace Alcala today and hopefully Coloumbe will be back soon to replace Fundy. That will help the pen a lot. I also saw Blewitt was released. Maybe we can get him on waivers and stash him at St Paul. He's actually looked pretty good this year. It's starting to look like our SP pipeline isn't what they hoped. Raya, Morris and Lewis are all struggling in AAA. Looks like we may need a SP at the deadline. That is, if the Twins decide to upgrade the roster at the deadline, which they haven't even tried to do in a couple years ....

[IndianaTwin]

16 hours ago, stringer bell said:

…Incidentally, Festa gets an extra day of service time than if he were recalled tomorrow since that is supposed to be an issue. 

Good point. Now Minnesota will be a more attractive destination for free agents…