Twins Do Everything Right Against Blue Jays

Rocco Baldelli’s squad could not have cared less about the previous ineptitude of Twins postseason teams of the past. Sure, history was reality, but Kyle Farmer stuck to the tone that it did not matter. He couldn’t have been more right in suggesting that this team was ready to turn the tide, and the American League Central Division Champions had something new in store for Twins Territory.

So, after sweeping the Toronto Blue Jays, how did Baldelli’s Twins do it? Well, they did just about everything right.

Royce Lewis
The entirety of this Minnesota Twins season, they found players who showed up when they were needed. Byron Buxton couldn’t go on Opening Day, and ultimately never got in the field, Michael A. Taylor took over in center and had his best season. Willi Castro made his presence felt all over the diamond and even at the plate. Alex Kirilloff's season started late due to cautiousness in his return from wrist surgery. Late-signing Donovan Solano stepped in and was a consistent contributor. All through the roster, players continued to step up, but no one made a greater impact than the Twins rookie class.

Lewis, Edouard Julien, and Matt Wallner were nothing short of exceptional when called upon. Lewis went on a prolific grand slam tear, and he brought Wallner along with him. The two combined for six slams during the season. They set new records. For much of the second half, it was the rookies (along with a resurgent Max Kepler) that stirred the drink. After showing ineptitude with the bases loaded to begin the year, they couldn’t have shown a greater turn as the bats came alive.

When the Twins needed it most, Lewis stepped in and delivered in the biggest way. That was certainly the case in Game 1. With only one healthy hamstring, Royce was relegated to designated hitter duties. His first postseason plate appearance was a two-run blast, and he followed that up with a solo shot the second time he stepped into the box. Despite being doubted and discredited by some along the way, Lewis has continued to rise to the challenge even in the biggest moments.

Pitching
Since the Wild Card series went just two games, Baldelli was able to use only Pablo Lopez and Sonny Gray from his starting rotation, his co-Aces. Coming into the year, it was apparent that this team was going to be different. Nelson Cruz and Miguel Sano were long gone. This was not a reincarnation of the Bomba Squad.

Knowing that they were built around pitching and defense, Baldelli leaned heavily on the top of his staff. Both Gray and Lopez will garner Cy Young votes, and each are deserving of the honor. Neither will best Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, but being in the conversation indicates how good they have been. Lopez pitched well in Game 1. He gave up one run in 5 1/3 innings. Gray threw five scoreless innings in Game 2, but he really had to do some work and get some help. He gave up five hits and walked two batters. He had just one perfect inning. He had at least two base runners to strand in three of those five innings. 

Toronto manager John Schneider inexplicably lifted Jose Berrios after just 47 pitches during the second game of the series, and his move was something out of a horror story. Looking to avoid what may come, he instead gave Minnesota an advantage that Toronto never came back from. Baldelli stuck by his horse, and Gray delivered as he has all season.

In the two games, the bullpen combined to give up zero runs in 7 1/3 scoreless innings. Caleb Thielbar pitched a perfect seventh inning in Game 1, and then coaxed a huge double-play to end a sixth-inning, bases-loaded threat in Game 2. Brock Stewart dominated the seventh inning in Game 2. Griffin Jax has had his ups and downs all season, but he faced the middle of the Blue Jays order in the eighth inning of both games, and he shut things down. And finally, Jhoan Duran had a save in both games. Who could ask for anything more? 

Defense
Along with the prowess on the mound, Minnesota has held themselves to a higher standard defensively than we have seen in previous seasons. Byron Buxton is not available in center field, but the acquisition of Michael A. Taylor has all but made up for it. Early in the game, Alejandro Kirk hit a soft liner to left-center. Taylor charged in and dove to make the catch.

In the sixth inning of Game 1, Matt Chapman crushed a Louie Varland pitch deep toward the wall just right of center. Taylor sprinted back and turned a difficult play for many into a routine catch to end the Blue Jays threat.

With Lewis shelved at the hot corner, both Edouard Julien and Jorge Polanco found themselves in less than ideal roles. Julien has grown as a defender, but he’s not as strong as Polanco at second base. Polanco has long been an unselfish, team-first player, but the reality is that he hasn't played a lot at the hot corner. It wasn't idea, but having Carlos Correa back at shortstop has proven invaluable. He made a couple of great plays that stood out as elite.

Twins fans are familiar with Joe Mauer’s diving play in Yankees Stadium to tag out Brett Gardner just before he reached home plate. Former Twins shortstop Roy Smalley compared it to Derek Jeter’s flip to nab the non-sliding Jeremy Giambi before he could score during a playoff series.

In Game 1 of this wild card series, it was a sprinting Carlos Correa that made the kind of play that will be talked about for decades. A bounding ball was hit toward third. It was a play where Polanco had to attempt to make a scoop and get rid of it quick, a do-or-die play. The ball got by Polanco. Bo Bichette started the play at second, but when he saw it get by Polanco, he darted toward the plate. Correa instinctually sprinted toward the loose ball, bare-handed it and in one motion threw a dart to Ryan Jeffers who tagged Bichette out to end a Blue Jays threat. The Twins shortstop showed an improbable level of perfection. 

And sometimes you need to do a little bit extra. Correa called for the pickoff move that nabbed Vlad Guerrero at second base for the third out of the fifth inning. It was arguably the biggest play of Game 2. That's a couple of veterans doing veteran things. It's baseball IQ and situational awareness.  

Now the Twins will head to Houston to take on the defending World Series champion Astros. Minnesota will need to continue to do things well, make the routine plays and occasionally make some great plays. They will obviously need more pitchers to step up in a longer series, and the offense needs to show up and provide some run support, much more than they did in the Wild Card round. This club is capable of more, and we have seen it, but they’ll need to show it on the field starting on Saturday.