MIN 4, BAL 3: Gibby Good, Hildy Holds, Rogers Saves the Sweep

The Twins need to decide how much they like Adalberto Mejia. He didn’t pitch today. He didn’t pitch in either game yesterday. Meanwhile, Hildenberger and Rogers threw at least 18 pitches both days.

That’s how guys get overused. By not using guys that are there.

The Twins need to keep sending him out there until Falvine decides to take him off the roster. Not using him is simply not an option.

The Twins need at least two more “good” bullpen arms. Maybe three. Whether that is May or Mejia improving, Reed and/or Magill helping or someone else. A team can’t contend with 3 reliable relievers in today’s game.

I really wanted to make some comments after the double header sweep but just didn't have opportunity. But after winning today, and sweeping the series, my points seem just as prevalent today.

Winning, and being 12-7 at this point is the most important thing. (Just stinks it feels like we gave up 2-4 wins we should have had, but you can't win them all). Despite a few questions and concerns, this has the loom of a pretty good and competitive team. Don't want to speak for anyone else, but I'm having a lot of fun right now!

A few thoughts/opinions:

 

2] This offense is just warming up and already looking dangerous.
 

 
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Umm,  Top team OPS last year was Boston with .792.   Twins are sitting at .860.   I would love if this offense was just warming up but it is more likely that it is peaking.    3 years ago it was just absurd how badly the 9 guys projected as starters performed the first month of the season.  Not a single one played up to expectations or to his history and the buy brought in as a reserve (Nunez) was the only one hitting worth a darn.   Now we have everyone meeting or exceeding expectations except the guy brought in as a reserve (Gonzalez).    I would love if it is sustainable but that .860 OPS is really likely to come down rather than go up.    How much of a decline is what will define the season.   The 2-4 losses you think we should have won is probably equaled by 2-4 wins other team fan bases thought they should have won but lost.

I think they will need Mejia and Harper for length in the Astros series. Both are ready to go.

I find it interesting that I've heard a lot on the broadcast about the difference between "pitchers" and "throwers." I would like someone to share that with our pitching staff. I grow weary of watching these guys throwing the same pitch 3 or 4 consecutive times in the same quadrant of the strike zone, or just staying in the lower (or upper) part of the zone. My feeling is that they are not capable of making the hitter guess wrong very often, and it is only the effectiveness of the pitch itself that works. I would be curious to know how many of our pitchers actually had an in-game conversation with Colon or Rodney about how they would pitch a hitter or just get some pointers on what they need to be working on. 

Today it appeared that by the third inning Bundy had nothing, yet our guys looked totally out of sorts when he was pitching from the 4th to the 6th. Sure, we got a couple of hits, but it wasn't really impressive to me to watch them.

Fun to play the Orioles! Lets see if that team from the crappy park in the crappy town down south is still any good. A good test. MESS WITH TEXAS! Texas is responsible for the all caps.

I know this is beating a dead horse, but when the bullpen's best assets still end up making a game interesting against a team like Baltimore, it doesn't give me any warm fuzzies inside...

You have higher standards than I do.    Baltimore has scored more runs per game than Boston, Houston, Cleveland and 10 other teams this year.    When  the best reliever in Twins history has given up just under 3 runs per 9 and when the best reliever in MLB history gave up over 2 runs per 9 I'm not going to complain about the guy that just had two saves in two days and has a 2.31 ERA.    Did you ever watch Nathan pitch?   Did he ever give you the warm fuzzies?    Perkins had a strong tendency to make things interesting as well.   Every reliever gives up runs to every team eventually.    

Hildy may just prove the second half last year was the outlier and he is quite ready.

Twins Daily Brothers and Sisters:

Go check out ESPN.com MLB page and CBS Sports.com MLB page and 

see if you can find ANY story on the Twins sweep of the Orioles or 11 home runs in Saturday's double header? Answer: Nope

If Yankees, Red Sox, Nationals, Phillies, Astros and/or the Dodgers, it would be a greater story than Babe Ruth and hot dogs at stadium concessions?

Minnesota will be perpetually dismissed until the Twins win 3 consecutive World Series and then teeth-gnashing grudgingly by National Media...

We're off the radar guys....lets do a NORAD surprise attack in 2019?

Twins Daily Brothers and Sisters:

 

Go check out ESPN.com MLB page and CBS Sports.com MLB page and

see if you can find ANY story on the Twins sweep of the Orioles or 11 home runs in Saturday's double header? Answer: Nope

 

If Yankees, Red Sox, Nationals, Phillies, Astros and/or the Dodgers, it would be a greater story than Babe Ruth and hot dogs at stadium concessions?

Minnesota will be perpetually dismissed until the Twins win 3 consecutive World Series and then teeth-gnashing grudgingly by National Media...

We're off the radar guys....lets do a NORAD surprise attack in 2019?

Two teams that lost 90 games last year played each other. Can’t imagine why no one cares nationally.

Woah woah woah - who whizzed in your Easter Ham, guys?

Twins are 12-7. First place.

Buxton's hitting. Polanco's hitting. Garver's hitting. Cruz is launching moonshots. Scoop is looking like the 2017 All-Star again. Rosario is absolutely on fire. Astudillo's hitting....did I mention BUXTON is hitting!?!?!

Just imagine when Sano gets back. Where do you bat him? 5th behind Cruz? That's borderline scary. And think about when Gonzalez starts hitting. No more snow-outs, no more 30-degree games.

The talent is here folks. Down year in the division. Twins could take the Central and avoid the dreaded wildcard. This team could be very, very good. Will the Twins realize that talent? That's the question. But this is the most dangerous Twins team I've seen in a long time.

They just have to execute.

Fair enough. Let's not pretend that even the best pieces of the bullpen have locked things down otherwise this season though. I'm not expecting perfection, but they have a tendency to make games far more interesting than one would hope. You're correct, relievers will allow base runners and runs at some point. My point is that these guys seem to do it nearly every outing. 

 

I find it amusing that you mentioned Nathan and Perkins, but no Every Day Eddie? That guy made those two look like The Sandman. It seemed like he was always pitching with the bases loaded.

Fair enough. Let's not pretend that even the best pieces of the bullpen have locked things down otherwise this season though. I'm not expecting perfection, but they have a tendency to make games far more interesting than one would hope. You're correct, relievers will allow base runners and runs at some point. My point is that these guys seem to do it nearly every outing. 

 

I find it amusing that you mentioned Nathan and Perkins, but no Every Day Eddie? That guy made those two look like The Sandman. It seemed like he was always pitching with the bases loaded.

I don't know the audience so I didn't know how far back to go.    I lived through the Ron Davis era so everyone seems like Mariano Rivera to me.

My concern is the bullpen overuse.  Yes Rogers and Hildenberg look really good, but the season is young and already we are seeing them accumulate more than their fair share of innings and appearances.  It is what Molitor was condemned for, but I understand - when you have only a couple you really trust there is a real tendency to keep going to them.  But there is a bench coach and a pitching coach that need to help put the brakes on.  We need them at the end of the season with live arms.  

Yes, the bullpen overuse can become a big problem quickly. But don't forget Harper and Parker and are also looking good, plus we should a couple of guys back from the IL soon too. And Meija is bound to improve, right? I wouldn't have said this in spring training, but at this point I have faith in this bullpen.

I'm not quite ready. I don't hate it, but we had a similar player in Austin who is 27 instead of 29 and is being paid at the dime a dozen rate, rather than costing us a quarter.

From what I've seen i'd rather have Cron all day long. His glove looks good enough to have nobody mentioning how we miss Joe's and he seems to me to be a more well rounded hitter than two outcomes Austin.