Athletics 8, Twins 3: Twins Swept Away by Last-Place A’s

[LA Vikes Fan]

3 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

Urena, Gasper, Julien, Clemens..... Should not be on the roster. 

Agree. At least replace Urena with Abel, Gaspar with Cardenas, and Clemens with Sabato, and use Julien in a 1B platoon with Sabato. At least you feel like we're learning something for next year.  

[sweetmusicviola16]

53 minutes ago, IndyTwinsFan said:

I thought some of those, too.  But purposely left them out for the exact reason you stated.

I also agree with your checking out statement, and I've been a fan for about 55 years.

I think many of us Twins fans have checked out. I'm one of them. I'm still a fan, but something is different. I've been following since the very late 70's. Been through some lows. Maybe none was lower than the strike year of 81. But as bad as that team was I to this day didn't feel as if they were intentionally losing. This team of August 2025? I'm not so sure that isn't the case. The players no. But management.......

[RpR]

I do not have connections internally, but in the old days, a manager who seemed to be incompetent, was removed, fairly quickly.

Some thing internally is very, very wrong, from the head of MLB, down to the Twins front office.

[Aggies7]

3 hours ago, Vanimal46 said:

Two interesting nuggets I heard on the Skor North Twins podcast today.

The players Declan Goff spoke with in the clubhouse also hate TBD days because it puts pressure on everyone to not screw up the game.

Also, he mentioned that Joe Pohlad has still not addressed the team since the trade deadline. Which I guess is normal for other owners. However, you would think after a historic sell off of 10 players he would want to show up and give empty platitudes like “We’re behind you guys!”

Pressure not to screw up the game? They’re like ten games out of the last playoff spot with a month-ish to play. They think that’s pressure? Good grief, I’m sorry but a lot of the comments coming from players make it sound like the clubhouse is full of softness. And I suppose when you consider the big collapse last season, I may not be too far off in my assessment.
 

You can say whatever about Correa, I certainly didn’t think he ever came off as a genuine guy and am happy we got out from under his contract. But I wonder if a guy like him who played in more big games than the entire twins franchise over the last almost 35 years, could see we did not have a winning makeup from players to staff, to front office. Took a look at all that and hopped on the first flight to Houston the minute he got the chance. Guys who have won can figure that stuff out real quick.

[Vanimal46]

3 minutes ago, Aggies7 said:

Pressure not to screw up the game? They’re like ten games out of the last playoff spot with a month-ish to play. They think that’s pressure? Good grief, I’m sorry but a lot of the comments coming from players make it sound like the clubhouse is full of softness. And I suppose when you consider the big collapse last season, I may not be too far off in my assessment.

The way Goff described it from the players’ perspective is the offense feels the pressure to score a ton of runs, and each pitcher feels the pressure to be perfect for their 1-2 innings. 

Who would have guessed that people like routine and TBD days is anything but routine. 

[Aggies7]

2 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

The way Goff described it from the players’ perspective is the offense feels the pressure to score a ton of runs, and each pitcher feels the pressure to be perfect for their 1-2 innings. 

Who would have guessed that people like routine and TBD days is anything but routine. 

I agree with that, and it definitely stinks to have these low level guys throwing so many innings. That being said, we’re not in the midst of a playoff push. Everyone knows the season is lost. No one expects wins. But jeeze, play the game loosely. You shouldn’t be feeling pressure 12 games below .500.

[T.O.]

3 hours ago, IndyTwinsFan said:

Disgusting.  Pathetic.  Embarrassing.  Uncalled for.

Pick your term, as they all apply equally well here.

abhorrently abominable, in an abysmal way
or is it abhorrently abdominal, in a pepto bismol way

[Danchat]

2 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

We were disappointing before the deadline. After the deadline, the Twins might have the worst record in that time. There are some the Twins have given a long leash, maybe it's time to bring in new blood to see what they can do. Especially pitching. Some hitters are frustrated & said they'll go back to their old swing & abandon the approach the Twins want. Maybe we'll see some change for the better,

Supposing our hitting problems were because of Popovik. Toronto was terrible last year & they quickly picked him up & now they turned it around. Rooker seems to be doing very well with the A's. Could it be possible that Twins don't have an idea what they are doing? 

Maybe our hitters just aren't very good?

[Mike Sixel]

51 minutes ago, Aggies7 said:

I agree with that, and it definitely stinks to have these low level guys throwing so many innings. That being said, we’re not in the midst of a playoff push. Everyone knows the season is lost. No one expects wins. But jeeze, play the game loosely. You shouldn’t be feeling pressure 12 games below .500.

Some of these guys are playing for their future. 

[Aggies7]

4 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Some of these guys are playing for their future. 

I feel like most players in the league are always playing for their future unless they’re established stars. Always playing for a contract at least. Having these TBA starters (which I hate) shouldn’t make anyone fold under pressure. But if this is how they react then maybe it’s best we find out now in a lost season. 

[terrydactyls]

Minnesota moved up one space in the race for the top pick.  They are now tied for the third position.  Go Twins!

Team	W	L	PCT	Eligible
Colorado Rockies	37	91	0.289	N0
Chicago White Sox	45	82	0.354
Washington Nationals	52	75	0.409	N0
Pittsburgh Pirates	54	74	0.422
Atlanta Braves	58	69	0.457
Minnesota Twins	58	69	0.457
Whatever Athletics	59	70	0.457
Baltimore Orioles	59	68	0.465
Miami Marlins	60	67	0.472
Tampa Bay Rays	61	67	0.477
San Francisco Giants	61	67	0.477
Los Angeles Angels	61	66	0.480
Arizona Diamondbacks	62	66	0.484
Texas Rangers	63	66	0.488
St. Louis Cardinals	64	65	0.496

[rv78]

29 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Some of these guys are playing for their future. 

The Twins are really good at playing guys that have proven they can't play. If Gasper, Urena, Julien, Clemens, Roden, Hatch, Fitzgerald, Topa, Funderburk, Ramirez, Kriske, and so on, are the future, then start laughing. A lost season should be used to evaluate future talent. Not the crap they are using. 

[RpR]

21 minutes ago, rv78 said:

The Twins are really good at playing guys that have proven they can't play. If Gasper, Urena, Julien, Clemens, Roden, Hatch, Fitzgerald, Topa, Funderburk, Ramirez, Kriske, and so on, are the future, then start laughing. A lost season should be used to evaluate future talent. Not the crap they are using. 

Future crap is better?👽

Evaluating the future has been filled with crap.

[Western SD Fan]

The more that this team descends into madness, or maybe that this team's fans, the more that it becomes an indictment on Rocco & Company, including Falvey, leadership abilities.  When asked about the uptick in stealing bases, Rocco said that they now need to be more aggressive on the bases.  Where did this revelation come from?!?!  You're taking a team, for the last six years didn't know that second base existed like a shy teenager. to trying to push them out and stealing bases.  When you're sending Mickey Gaspar, Brooks Lee, and Wallner, you have no plan on how to get better but just reading headlines on how you think you should improve the team.  The coaching staff still hasn't addressed the player's ability to go from first to third on a single or how to recognize times to tag up and get into scoring position.  It's looking more and more apparent that Correa really did have a stranglehold on the locker room and that virtually nobody listens to Rocco as a source of authority.  That's not Correa's fault, that's Rocco's.  Now that Correa is gone, nobody respects Rocco as an authority and there's nobody left to listen to.  We essentially heard that today on the broadcast where Austin Martin, after 5 years of tweaking his swing and approach at the plate, is reverting back to his approach that he had at Vanderbilt.  That response sounds like someone who has no faith in the current coaching staff to help him stick around as a professional player, and it starts from the top.  Lastly, I would, just once, actually like to see Rocco take a player out of the game when they do something so unprofessional that it warrants the move, such as Outman walking back to the dugout on a strike three call where the ball got away from the catcher.

I used to see a few shirts and sweaters around in purple and gold with a silhouette of a Viking on it (not the actual logo) with the phrase across the front: "This team makes me drink."  It's been a long time coming for a Twins version of said garment to find its way to the shelves.

[Vanimal46]

5 minutes ago, Western SD Fan said:

We essentially heard that today on the broadcast where Austin Martin, after 5 years of tweaking his swing and approach at the plate, is reverting back to his approach that he had at Vanderbilt.

Another interesting nugget today. Who remembers when Buxton ditched the hitting program pushed on him and did his own thing? Weird, he became an .850 OPS hitter since he defied Twins logic beginning in 2019. 

[Aggies7]

6 minutes ago, Western SD Fan said:

The more that this team descends into madness, or maybe that this team's fans, the more that it becomes an indictment on Rocco & Company, including Falvey, leadership abilities.  When asked about the uptick in stealing bases, Rocco said that they now need to be more aggressive on the bases.  Where did this revelation come from?!?!  You're taking a team, for the last six years didn't know that second base existed like a shy teenager. to trying to push them out and stealing bases.  When you're sending Mickey Gaspar, Brooks Lee, and Wallner, you have no plan on how to get better but just reading headlines on how you think you should improve the team.  The coaching staff still hasn't addressed the player's ability to go from first to third on a single or how to recognize times to tag up and get into scoring position.  It's looking more and more apparent that Correa really did have a stranglehold on the locker room and that virtually nobody listens to Rocco as a source of authority.  That's not Correa's fault, that's Rocco's.  Now that Correa is gone, nobody respects Rocco as an authority and there's nobody left to listen to.  We essentially heard that today on the broadcast where Austin Martin, after 5 years of tweaking his swing and approach at the plate, is reverting back to his approach that he had at Vanderbilt.  That response sounds like someone who has no faith in the current coaching staff to help him stick around as a professional player, and it starts from the top.  Lastly, I would, just once, actually like to see Rocco take a player out of the game when they do something so unprofessional that it warrants the move, such as Outman walking back to the dugout on a strike three call where the ball got away from the catcher.

I used to see a few shirts and sweaters around in purple and gold with a silhouette of a Viking on it (not the actual logo) with the phrase across the front: "This team makes me drink."  It's been a long time coming for a Twins version of said garment to find its way to the shelves.

It’s odd how they shipped Miranda down immediately after his baserunning blunder but then tolerate a lack of effort/attention the rest of the year from various guys. Guess they were just done with him.

[David HK]

[knothole61]

6 hours ago, sweetmusicviola16 said:

Though I didn't enjoy deadline day I actually had a ton of hope that day. But with the news since that day that the Pohlad's would retain control and Rocco would return and Falvey will be continuing, that hope is completely gone. I continue to check in only because it's something to do. I don't look forward to the "hope" that we'll be "competitive", meaning we are asked to get excited about a 83-79 team that can compete in a weak division in the "competitive" seasons. I want more. I want legitimate WS teams to be built. This regime has proven they aren't up to that task. 

No, they are not up to the task! The salary cut following the hopeful 2023 season is all that you need to know about Pohlad priorities. I sometimes hear people say: "Look, it's their business and they have every right to make sound business decisions. They owe us nothing." And I cringe every time a "rational" apologist starts down that cut-and-dried road. You see, it's not really that simple if one cares anything about ethics and decency that is.

What they "owe" us, and what every owner of a major sports team owes all of us, is to make a decent effort every season, and within reason, to win it all, even if that means a loss of profit form time to time. They owe it to the folks who bring their families to the game at the cost of 100s of dollars; to the little kids with pennants on their walls and a schedule pinned up next to the bed; to the cities and states that are proud to lend them their names; and to deeply-loyal fans, (many found on TD, myself included) who live and die a little with the team each game and each season...and on, and on, and on.

To answer such devotion with disregard is an damnable offense.             

[David HK]

2 hours ago, David HK said:

Hey, when I posted that photo, my text disappeared --  it said: How fitting that on a day when Gulfa Tonkin gets lit up, here I am right next to the actual Gulfa Tonkin! 😅

 

[Nshore]

I hope they don't give up on Royce Lewis.  The good hitting Royce still lurks in there somewhere.  He often lunges and looks off balance at the plate, so something is definitely out of whack. It kind of reminds me of the bad times of early Buxton.

[David HK]

8 hours ago, T.O. said:

abhorrently abominable, in an abysmal way
or is it abhorrently abdominal, in a pepto bismol way

Absolutely awesomely alliterative.

[Woipadinga80]

12 hours ago, glunn said:

They won't "catch" the White Sox or the Rockies, but I think they have a shot at the Pirates.

The Rockies and Nationals are not eligible to draft in the top 10

[Doctor Gast]

9 hours ago, Danchat said:

Maybe our hitters just aren't very good?

That's exactly what they want you to think. What are the odds of so many hitters that had looked so good that turned out so bad over years with most of them slumping at the same time & going through so many hitting coaches? Heaven forbid that they're wrong.

[Doctor Wu]

14 hours ago, Aggies7 said:

A’s have been one of the better teams since the ASB. They hit the ball “with authority” as they used to say.

Yes, the A's have been playing well lately. They have the makings of a good team. No shame to lose games to them ... but then again, could we at least put some men on base and put up a fight?

[Doctor Wu]

2 hours ago, Woipadinga80 said:

The Rockies and Nationals are not eligible to draft in the top 10

Good point. The Chisox weren't eligible for top 10 pick last season, because they had one the previous season, so I assume that applies to the Rockies and Nationals this time around. 

[Doctor Wu]

3 hours ago, Nshore said:

I hope they don't give up on Royce Lewis.  The good hitting Royce still lurks in there somewhere.  He often lunges and looks off balance at the plate, so something is definitely out of whack. It kind of reminds me of the bad times of early Buxton.

Yeah, his decline this season mystifies me. I wouldn't give up on him yet either. Like you said, somewhere in there, a great baseball player is ready to emerge. But what will it take to make that happen?

[DJL44]

11 hours ago, Vanimal46 said:

The way Goff described it from the players’ perspective is the offense feels the pressure to score a ton of runs, and each pitcher feels the pressure to be perfect for their 1-2 innings. 

Welcome to Major League Baseball.

[Rhyno006]

Sounds like anyone who goes to games now should just start wearing bags on their heads.

[David Maro]

I'm watching the Vikings per season game tonight. Even with the 3's and 4's playing it will be better than watching this team. Just think they still could lose 100 games.

[jmlease1]

I don't understand why Urena is on this team. I get that we need innings from someone, but why are we giving them to a bad cast-off who is nearly 34 and has no future with this team? He's given up 17 hits and 8 walks in 17 2/3 innings in 4 outings since coming over to the Twins. That's not good. (nice error to add to the pile, too) He's definition of fungible, being on his 4th team in 2025 alone. Make him go away.

I get that SWR is a ways away because of illness, Lopez just made a rehab start, etc...but why not Mick Abel or Taj Bradley? Why not someone who might possibly have a future? Because Urena does not.