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Since Rocco Baldelli took over as manager in 2019, the Minnesota Twins have been built to slug. That first year, the “Bomba Squad” shattered records, launching baseballs into the seats while Baldelli mostly sat back and let the lineup do the heavy lifting. The half-decade since has been marked by attempts to recreate that magic, with lineups stacked with power but lacking speed and athleticism. The result? An offense that too often stalls when the long ball isn’t there.
Now, Baldelli and his staff are pushing a new agenda—one that looks nothing like the passive, station-to-station approach of recent years. On Sunday’s Inside Twins broadcast, Baldelli pulled back the curtain on the team’s new emphasis on basepath aggressiveness.
Why Now?
Baldelli admitted that the shift had been on his mind for some time, but it wasn’t until bench coach Jayce Tingler presented the idea that the wheels started turning.
“Jayce Tingler, our bench coach, actually came to me last week and said, ‘Hey, what do you think about doing something drastic? What do you think about really opening this thing up on the bases,’” Baldelli said. “Knowing that it might get a little wild out there at times, but leaving it in the hands of the players to be more aggressive in every possible way.”
The timing, Baldelli explained, felt right for experimentation.
“I thought to myself, if we are ever going to do this, there’s no better time than right now to see what it looks like if you allow our players to open it up,” he said. “We’ve seen some great, seen some good, seen some not so good, but overall I’ve been really pleased with what I’ve seen from it. I like this team more aggressive than not-aggressive.”
Minnesota has added players to the roster in the second half, like Luke Keaschall, James Outman, Austin Martin, and Ryan Fitzgerald. While they have seen various levels of baserunning success, there is more speed on the roster compared to earlier in the season. There’s also nothing to lose in a season heading toward 90 losses. Let the players run wild and see if the team can perform better than expected.
A Missed Opportunity Earlier?
Of course, some fans might wonder if the team waited too long to make such a shift. Outside the team’s 13-game winning streak, the offense struggled to find consistency. However, Baldelli pushed back against that narrative.
“It’s always easier to say after the fact that something could have been done,” Baldelli said. “I think at that point, we were actually playing really good baseball. Say we didn’t play well for a week, that I was going to make a massive overhaul to let our players go wild and aggressively on the bases. I don’t think that was the right time to do it.”
That restraint, though, may give way to a new identity for this roster, a team that makes opponents uncomfortable by applying pressure on the bases.
|
Player |
Sprint Speed (ft/s) |
Extra Bases Taken |
|
30.1 |
3 |
|
|
James Outman |
28.7 |
1 |
|
Luke Keaschall |
28.5 |
0 |
|
Austin Martin |
28.3 |
0 |
|
Ryan Fitzgerald |
28.0 |
0 |
|
27.8 |
1 |
Aggressive vs. Reckless
Of course, with freedom comes the risk of chaos. Fans watching from home will wonder: how do you know if it’s aggression or simply recklessness?
“Truthfully, I’m watching it the same way that fans are watching it,” Baldelli admitted. “I’m used to putting signs on dictating when we do what, and right now, the players are going to have a little more openness and ability and freedom out there.”
It’s a fine line, but one Baldelli seems willing to live with as the Twins shift gears. Baldelli was known for his aggressive approach as a player, so it makes sense that that’s the type of team he’d want to manage. For fans looking to spot the difference in this new approach, Baldelli pointed to a handful of cues.
“There’s a lot to watch,” he explained. “The jumps, the leads. It’s going to be the number of times we go out there trying to take extra bases. You do that out of the box and on your initial first couple of steps on the base paths. You should see guys on their toes and trying to make things happen and not just waiting for things to happen.”
In a season where power production has not come easily, the Twins are looking for an edge. Speed and aggressiveness may not be as flashy as 400-foot home runs, but they can grind down opponents, turn singles into doubles, and manufacture the kind of runs that win close games.
The “Bomba Squad” identity carried Minnesota for a season. If Baldelli’s vision takes hold, this new style might carry them further.
Have you noticed the Twins approaching base running differently in recent weeks? Leave a comment and start the discussion.
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