The Twins Can't Keep Platooning Austin Martin... Can They?

[Riverbrian]

I haven't updated last nights game yet but in the Twins talk forum... I'm tracking Wins and Losses and Runs per game vs RH starters/LH Starters. 

Many don't care or understand why I'm doing it and I fully admit that the information is full of holes for a true picture and should certainly be taken Buffalo Springfield For What it's Worth but in it's most basic form... I'm hoping it will tell me: Is the platooning producing Wins and on what side of the coin are the wins occurring. 

Just working off the theory (more than a theory) that daily lineups are typically being set based on the handedness of the pitcher and working off the theory that the starting lineup is going to get the majority of AB's over the course of a game. That starting lineup is going to determine the defense and baserunning along with hitting. 

BTW... I think it is no longer debatable that the handedness of the starting pitcher is the primary factor in lineup construction with the Twins and has been for the past 4 years. 

I just want to see what lineups are produces in the simplest form. Wins and Losses. Not OPS... BA or OBP or BABIP or WRC+. Just wins and losses. Compare the same team against each hand.   

We are currently 7-3 against right handed starters and 5-8 vs Left Handed Starters. We got a full season to go  and I'm sure things will change but right now... the lineup against right handers is producing more wins.

We are running three Right Handers, three Switch and three left handers against a right hander tonight. If Jeffers was catching instead of Caratini... it would be 4 right handers, two switch and 3 left handers or if Caratini was playing 1B instead of Clemens... it would be 4 right handers, 3 Switch and two left. 

That's 6 batters standing in the left handed batters box or 5 batters in the left handed batters box against the Right hander. Compare that to what we do against a left handed starter. 

Typically against a left handed starter we run 5 Right Handed hitters, three switch and one left handed hitter (Wallner).

That's 8 standing in the right handed batters box. 

Is the left handed hitter protection against the left handed pitching working?  So far it has produced more losses than wins. This isn't case closed because the answer is lacking sufficient data and it's probably more complicated than that. 

I'll just continue to believe that talent regardless of the box it stands in is what will produce wins.

Talent... you have to find it... you have to develop it and you have to play it. 

This is stuff I look at it so when I go on my tangents... I can say I come by it honestly.