Twins 8, Brewers 6: Twins Dig Out of Early Setback and Secure Game One Win

[shimrod]

Elevating KC was supposed to improve our defense. Last night was the first time I've seen him play and he was flat out bad. 

Really hoping that was first game nerves. The team is running out of positions to hide defensive liabilities. 

[stringer bell]

17 minutes ago, shimrod said:

Elevating KC was supposed to improve our defense. Last night was the first time I've seen him play and he was flat out bad. 

Really hoping that was first game nerves. The team is running out of positions to hide defensive liabilities. 

A bumpy ride on defense today for sure. His dad says he wants Kaelen to win gold gloves, so I guess defense is a priority. I don't think Culpepper is supposed to be a better defender than Kreidler, but he should be an improvement over Gray or Lee. 

[tony&rodney]

52 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

I don't think Culpepper is supposed to be a better defender than Kreidler, but he should be an improvement over Gray or Lee. 

Correct. 

[DJL44]

56 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

A bumpy ride on defense today for sure. His dad says he wants Kaelen to win gold gloves, so I guess defense is a priority. I don't think Culpepper is supposed to be a better defender than Kreidler, but he should be an improvement over Gray or Lee. 

If he wants gold gloves, he probably won’t get them at SS.

[DJL44]

1 hour ago, shimrod said:

Elevating KC was supposed to improve our defense. Last night was the first time I've seen him play and he was flat out bad. 

Really hoping that was first game nerves. The team is running out of positions to hide defensive liabilities. 

Culpepper was brought up to elevate the offense. Kreidler was hitting below .100 recently.

[jmlease1]

A very nice win. Good to see the offense get it done against a good LHP.  They really tried to stack up the RH bats and it paid off. Bell and Lewis were stinging the ball and we definitely needed it.

Did it lead to a less than optimal defensive alignment? It did, but that's the way it goes. With Lee scrabbling at the plate there weren't exactly a lot of other choices. Could they have swapped in Larnach in OF to get Clemens back at 2B and Lewis at 1B? Sure, but would that have made that much difference? I did like how Clemens pushed a bunt, considering how cold he's been lately. He was bunting for a hit, with the secondary bonus of moving runners up and he's been rough against LHP. 

Culpepper did fine. A little rocky on D, but on a couple of the plays where he couldn't find it the likelihood of him actually getting the runner was pretty low. The double play he hit into looked like a rookie not waiting for his pitch after ripping a homer. But the homer looked great! There's going to be some bumps, but I think he'll be fine. Great to get that first hit out of the way. He's got the first game done and it should smooth out some nerves. (man, his family looked so damn happy out there! was nice.)

Not a great outing from Zebby. Left too many pitches out over the plate, wasn't finishing guys off well enough...but he gutted through it without a lot of help from the D. Bullpen on the other hand stepped up. Made it a little nervous, but the results were great.

 

[CharlieDee]

Love the bunts!  

[VivaBomboRivera!]

2 hours ago, stringer bell said:

Two back in the division. Six games left with the Pale Hose, three left (at home) with Cleveland. The easiest way to postseason is to win the AL Central. 

There for the taking.

[VivaBomboRivera!]

2 hours ago, stringer bell said:

Two back in the division. Six games left with the Pale Hose, three left (at home) with Cleveland. The easiest way to postseason is to win the AL Central. 

There for the taking.

[VivaBomboRivera!]

2 hours ago, stringer bell said:

Two back in the division. Six games left with the Pale Hose, three left (at home) with Cleveland. The easiest way to postseason is to win the AL Central. 

There for the taking.

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

Culpepper defense will be above average. Just shuffled 1 step too many.  Kreidler has provided elite defense with the bat.  If Lewis makes the play at 2nd I don’t think it’s as noticeable. 

[VivaBomboRivera!]

2 hours ago, stringer bell said:

Two back in the division. Six games left with the Pale Hose, three left (at home) with Cleveland. The easiest way to postseason is to win the AL Central. 

There for the taking.

[Linus]

The best part of this team is resiliency. They make mistakes but don’t quit. Speaking of mistakes, here is one way to reduce them: stop forcing Caratini into the lineup. It’s just not worth moving so many guys around. Culpepper has a strong arm which is a requirement to be a good SS but he looked rough in the field. I’m betting it was nerves and he will be better. Milwaukee is a tough team to debut against because they have a bunch of guys that can really run. 

[HarmonK03]

56 minutes ago, jmlease1 said:

Not a great outing from Zebby. Left too many pitches out over the plate, wasn't finishing guys off well enough...but he gutted through it without a lot of help from the D.

We need to start looking at the results that Zebby is producing.  I always see comments he didn't do this or this should have been better.  But he is consistently getting into the 6th inning giving up 2 to 4 runs and keeping his team in the game.  As noted, he got no help from the defense.  But sometimes we have to stop looking at the analytics and look at the final results.  And he is doing his job more times than not and for a # 4 or 5 pitcher that is pretty good.

[Saxophone Joe]

1 hour ago, jmlease1 said:

 I did like how Clemens pushed a bunt, considering how cold he's been lately.

My theory is Kody’s pressing for homer number 20. He was stuck on 19 for the last two weeks of 2025 after his 3-homer game. No doubt he badly wants it this year. 

[twinssporto]

I absolutely loved the bunts!!!!

I thoroughly enjoy watching this team play.

 

 

[Over The Hill Again]

9 hours ago, USAFChief said:

I wish they'd just park him at 1st and be done with it.

Especially if it’s a result of forcing Caratini’s bat into the lineup. 

[stringer bell]

Players have peaks and valleys, some deeper than others. Caratini is deep in a funk and I see no reason to use him just to get a platoon advantage. I’d prefer Jackson to Caratini for offense right now, but it appears the pitchers like throwing to Vic.

A whole bunch of guys aren’t hitting, but they’ll get over it. 

[TheLeviathan]

42 minutes ago, Linus said:

The best part of this team is resiliency. They make mistakes but don’t quit. Speaking of mistakes, here is one way to reduce them: stop forcing Caratini into the lineup. It’s just not worth moving so many guys around. Culpepper has a strong arm which is a requirement to be a good SS but he looked rough in the field. I’m betting it was nerves and he will be better. Milwaukee is a tough team to debut against because they have a bunch of guys that can really run. 

I wasn't able to watch last night because parenting ought to come with free shuttle service for small humans.

He looked rough in the field?  That's my biggest concern is that he needs to move to his long-term spot as soon as possible.  I figured that was bound for 2B.  So any insights would be appreciated!

[HarmonK03]

19 minutes ago, TheLeviathan said:

I wasn't able to watch last night because parenting ought to come with free shuttle service for small humans.

He looked rough in the field?  That's my biggest concern is that he needs to move to his long-term spot as soon as possible.  I figured that was bound for 2B.  So any insights would be appreciated!

While he may have to move when Houston is ready to come up I think it is a little early to make a declaration about his position based on one game.

[TheLeviathan]

7 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

While he may have to move when Houston is ready to come up I think it is a little early to make a declaration about his position based on one game.

Definitely don't want to imply using a small sample, more based on the scouting from his draft day.

[saviking]

11 hours ago, Dman said:

Great to see Culpepper with the home run and the bats come alive.  I had the Brewers possibly sweeping the Twins so it's nice to see them put up a fight and get the win.  Let's keep it going and find a series win.

I had said we need to win atleast one game. Done! But let's get one more.

[Over The Hill Again]

23 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

Players have peaks and valleys, some deeper than others. Caratini is deep in a funk and I see no reason to use him just to get a platoon advantage. I’d prefer Jackson to Caratini for offense right now, but it appears the pitchers like throwing to Vic.

A whole bunch of guys aren’t hitting, but they’ll get over it. 

As compared to last season, this one has been more enjoyable for me because Shelton done better with in-game decisions IMO than his predecessor. A little less analytical lockstep and a little more creative with calling/allowing for bunts, putting runners in motion, etc. He’s stuck with a flawed roster construction (that we regularly bemoan) but uses it well I think. That said, Caratini, regardless of switch hitting, shouldn’t be forced into the lineup for his bat, at least while he’s tanking. And he’s no great shakes defensively at 1B either. 

[LA Vikes Fan]

10 hours ago, TWTwinsFan said:

and not a fan of Keaschall playing OF

We have to play him somewhere. Keaschall has been the best hitter on the team since June 1, hands-down. Only Bell is even close. He has to play every day. I prefer right field over centerfield for obvious reasons, but he’s got to play somewhere.

[JD-TWINS]

3 hours ago, HarmonK03 said:

But how would you get Caratini's bat in the lineup if you did that. 😀

I think it’s more about getting Roden’s bat out of the line-up. Clemens to RF.

Kreidler’s appearance at 3B was about getting Lee out of the line-up.

I do not think that either Caratini nor Kreidler were in for any sort of high expectations with the bat ….. lesser of two evils in both cases.

[JD-TWINS]

33 minutes ago, Over The Hill Again said:

As compared to last season, this one has been more enjoyable for me because Shelton done better with in-game decisions IMO than his predecessor. A little less analytical lockstep and a little more creative with calling/allowing for bunts, putting runners in motion, etc. He’s stuck with a flawed roster construction (that we regularly bemoan) but uses it well I think. That said, Caratini, regardless of switch hitting, shouldn’t be forced into the lineup for his bat, at least while he’s tanking. And he’s no great shakes defensively at 1B either. 

They forced Lee (.200 from right side) & Roden out of the line-up.

[HarmonK03]

1 minute ago, JD-TWINS said:

I think it’s more about getting Roden’s bat out of the line-up. Clemens to RF.

Kreidler’s appearance at 3B was about getting Lee out of the line-up.

I do not think that either Caratini nor Kreidler were in for any sort of high expectations with the bat ….. lesser of two evils in both cases.

My comment was in response to keeping Lewis at 1B every game.  Caratini has been playing there almost every game against LH pitching.  It is not helping the offense and making the defense worse.  Play either Larnach or Roden, at least they can play their defensive positions better than Caratini at first.  Any offense from any of those three would be a bonus.

[HarmonK03]

Just now, JD-TWINS said:

They forced Lee (.200 from right side) & Roden out of the line-up.

Roden hasn't played against LH pitching and he shouldn't even be in the lineup every day regardless of who is pitching.

[stringer bell]

41 minutes ago, saviking said:

I had said we need to win atleast one game. Done! But let's get one more.

I dreamed a dream--Cleveland sweeps Chicago, Minnesota sweeps Milwaukee and San Francisco sweeps Detroit. The Twins go home in a virtual three-way tie for first.

[Linus]

2 hours ago, TheLeviathan said:

I wasn't able to watch last night because parenting ought to come with free shuttle service for small humans.

He looked rough in the field?  That's my biggest concern is that he needs to move to his long-term spot as soon as possible.  I figured that was bound for 2B.  So any insights would be appreciated!

I probably wrote that poorly. His issues last night were probably nerves and timing. He played some balls where his timing and footwork was off and resulted in plays not being made. They weren’t errors but were outs not recorded. The Brewers are a tough team to debut against because they have a bunch of guys that can really run and they hustle out of the box - I bet Culpepper was feeling that. The good news is you can see the guy is really athletic and has a really strong arm. His throws were noticeably stronger than any other Twins infielder. I think initial scouting concerns were range related but he’s one of those guys that could play deeper because of his arm strength. I bet in one month we will be very excited about him in the field. If Houston pushes him off SS he will be really good at second or third.