Are Twins Starters Pitching Longer in 2023?

The Twins' front office knew it needed to add to the organization's starting pitching depth, and that's what they have done in recent years. Currently, every member of the starting staff was acquired via trade from Kenta Maeda in 2020 to Pablo Lopez in 2023. On paper, this is an unsustainable strategy to build a rotation unless the front office has a lot of faith in its ability to win trades. 

Minnesota has been winning on the field, which can erase the memories of unfavorable trades. Throughout the spring, the Twins coaches and players discussed starters pitching deeper into games. Sonny Gray is the veteran leader on the pitching staff, and he made it clear that the starters won't be satisfied with short outings.

In recent seasons, the Twins have needed to bring in veteran starters to fill the fourth or fifth spot in the rotation. Many of those moves did not work out in the Twins' favor. Last season, Dylan Bundy and Chris Archer were among the team leaders in innings pitched, but the Twins couldn't leave them in for a third time through the order. That's one reason those players remained unsigned for most of the winter. 

Will the Twins be able to get more innings from their starting pitchers? Let's dive into the numbers in the first trip through the rotation. All statistics are through games played on April 4, 2023. 

During the 2022 season, Twins starters averaged 4.83 innings per start. Three teams ranked lower than Minnesota in average innings pitched from starters, the Washington Nationals, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays' inclusion on this list is skewed because they continue to utilize an opener, which is why their starters pitched over 14 fewer innings than any other MLB team last year. Injuries obviously played a role in the players the Twins used last season, with 14 different pitchers making at least one start. 

Entering play on Wednesday, the Twins ranked fifth in baseball in innings pitched by starting pitchers (5.26 IP/G). The teams that rank ahead of Minnesota include the Dodgers (5.83 IP/G), the Padres (5.72 IP/G), the Brewers (5.67 IP/G), and the White Sox (5.33 IP/G). Every Twins starter has pitched at least five innings, with Joe Ryan completing six frames in his first start. The bullpen has also been vital to start the season, but starting pitching is key for clubs looking to contend. 

Twins starters have also been effective in how many total pitches in each outing. Minnesota ranks 20th among teams for pitches thrown by their starting staff, but nine teams have played more games than the Twins. On a pitches-per-game basis, Twins starters have averaged 82.6 pitches per game, ranking 18th in baseball. It has been a small sample size so far, and Maeda likely would have added to this total had he not been removed early from his first start.  

Minnesota's starters rank near the top of baseball in multiple pitching categories, including ERA (1st), K (7th), BA (2nd), WHIP (3rd), and FIP (3rd). The Twins have also been able to strand runners at an incredible rate (99.2 LOB%), which is a total that is not sustainable. In 2022, the Twins ranked 16th in MLB with a 72.9 LOB%, while the Dodgers led baseball at 79.4%.

It's been a great start to the season for the starters, and there will be some regression in the weeks ahead. However, there are signs the Twins are more willing to let starters pitch deeper into games than in previous seasons. What have been your impressions of the Twins' rotation so far? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.