Week in Review: Compiling Wins, Closing In

Weekly Snapshot: Mon, 8/12 through Sun, 8/18
***
Record Last Week: 5-2 (Overall: 70-54)
Run Differential Last Week: +16 (Overall: +70)
Standing: 2nd Place in AL Central (2.0 GB) 

Game 118 | MIN 8, KC 3: Early Homers from Castro, Lewis Build Big Lead
Game 119 | MIN 13, KC 3: Twins Rout Royals in Zebby's MLB Debut
Game 120 | KC 4, MIN 1: Bats Go Silent Against Ragans, Relievers
Game 121 | MIN 3, TEX 2: Ober Delivers Again, Beats Rangers in Opener
Game 122 | MIN 4, TEX 3: Santana's Key Homer Fuels Another Close Win
Game 123 | MIN 5, TEX 2: Pitching Leads the Way Again in Series Clincher
Game 124 | TEX 6, MIN 5: Nightmare Inning from Alcala Costs Win, Sweep

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NEWS & NOTES

After homering twice the previous day against Cleveland, Byron Buxton exited Monday's series opener against Kansas City following his third at-bat, complaining of hip soreness. An ensuing MRI thankfully revealed no structural damage, but the pain persisted for Buxton, who still wasn't game-ready when the Twins embarked on their road trip to Texas, necessitating an IL move. Edouard Julien returned to the big-league roster in his stead. 

Buxton's injury is officially being deemed inflammation, but I wouldn't assume he'll be back after the minimum 10 days. This hip has been problematic in the past. As with Carlos Correa – who himself remains sidelined with no clear return date in sight – the Twins need to make sure this thing heals as well as it can. They can't afford to push Buxton back too quickly, even though being without your star shortstop and center fielder is obviously a major blow in the short term.

As expected, Zebby Matthews was called up from Triple-A to make his major-league debut on Tuesday against the Royals, picking up a win. Scott Blewett was designated for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster. (Blewett was outrighted, elected free agency, and then re-signed with the Saints.) Louie Varland was called up for a start the following day, then optioned afterward. Josh Winder was sent down to make room for Varland, and Ronny Henriquez was recalled to replace him. 

Finally, the Twins activated Steven Okert from the bereavement list on Monday, shuttling Randy Dobnak back down to the minors.

HIGHLIGHTS

We usually mention them near the end of the Highlights section, because the bullpen tends to be such an afterthought relative to the rotation and lineup, but this week, Jhoan Durán and Griffin Jax deserve head billing. These two relievers really are near the top of the list in terms of reasons for believing in this team, and its potential to make a legitimate run. 

Durán pitched on three straight days for the first time all season, and he handled it well, allowing one (meaningless) run over three innings, while picking up one-run saves on Thursday and Friday against the Rangers. He took the loss on Sunday's game but by no fault of his own: Entering in the 10th with a runner starting on second, Durán got a strikeout and then a weak grounder to third, which the infield managed to bungle into a game-losing defensive flub.

For the week, Durán struck out six with no walks allowed in 3 ⅓ innings. He has posted an 18-to-2 K/BB ratio over his past 14 appearances; he was at 12-to-5 in his previous 14. Durán's velocity still isn't back to where it was in the past, and maybe it never will be, but he does look healthy and he's still plenty effective.

Jax made four appearances over the course of the week, each time facing the top or middle of the opposing lineup with the game tied or the Twins narrowly leading. Each time he held the opposition scoreless. That's been the consistent story for him this month; the Twins are 7-1 in games where he has appeared in August, in no small part because of his contributions. 

Jax and Durán were instrumental last October to Minnesota's first postseason advancement in almost two decades, and they will be crucial to any such aspirations this year. You just hope they're not going to wear down from overuse, which is the one note of caution about this past week: Durán has pitched four times in five days and Jax was used three times in the four-game Rangers series.

The Twins rotation, now relying on a pair of rookies alongside the established trio of Pablo López, Bailey Ober and Simeon Woods Richardson, continues to get the job done despite its setbacks. Matthews was very impressive in his debut on Tuesday, tossing five innings of two-run ball with five strikeouts and no walks. David Festa put up a very similar line in Texas on Saturday: 5 IP, 2 ER, 6 K. 0 BB. If the two 24-year-olds can keep throwing like this, the Twins are gonna be in fine shape. 

Down two of their best bats, the Twins have needed help from wherever they can get it in the lineup. Veteran Carlos Santana is answering the call to the utmost, and he delivered in a big way once again this past week. Although he was only 4-for-22 in seven games, three of the hits were home runs and Santana made them count: a solo shot to (briefly) draw the Twins within one in Wednesday's loss, a decisive three-run go-ahead homer in Friday's win, and a game-tying blast in the ninth inning of Sunday's loss. Santana also drew seven walks against four strikeouts while continuing to play spectacular, game-changing defense at first.

Some other noteworthy performances in a solid week for the Twins offense:

• Royce Lewis notched at least one hit in all six of his starts, three of which came at third base and the other three at DH as he maintains a pretty even split. Lewis doubled, homered, and drove in three.
• José Miranda broke out of his post-break slump with two doubles, a triple and a homer among his six hits. His three-hit outburst on Tuesday helped fuel a blowout victory over Kansas City.
• Ryan Jeffers launched a pair of homers in Texas over the weekend, and drove in three runs on Sunday – his first multi-RBI game since July 4th. 
• Kyle Farmer is starting to hit the ball with some authority, suggesting that maybe a little time on the sidelines to rest up his ailing shoulder did him some good. His 4-for-15 week included a home run and a triple, which turned into an inside-the-park homer.

LOWLIGHTS

With both Correa and Buxton sidelined, and Alex Kirilloff seemingly out of the picture, the Twins could really use the infusion that Julien's bat would bring to their lineup if he could even remotely approximate the player he was last year. But it's just not there. Julien struck out five times in his seven plate appearances, looking rough enough at the plate on Friday and Saturday that Rocco Baldelli opted for Farmer at second base against a right-hander on Sunday.

Coming into the season, second base looked like such a deep, formidable position on the Twins roster. But with Julien unable to find himself, Brooks Lee injured, and Willi Castro needed at short in Correa's absence, the position's quality depth has been decimated.

Center field is another spot where the Twins are thinned out and feeling the impact. Here too, Castro's ability to contribute is limited due to being regularly needed at shortstop. That leaves the underwhelming duo of Manuel Margot and Austin Martin to split duties in center.

They're doing their best. It should be noted that the Twins were initially hesitant to use Margot in center at all – he didn't make his first start there until a week into May – and Martin is of course a rookie, who primarily played infield while coming up. 

They've looked expectedly rough defensively, especially in contrast to Buxton's brilliance. And while the past week was a relatively good one for the duo at the plate – Martin and Margot combined for 10 knocks in 35 at-bats (.288 AVG) – it was characteristic in that nine of the 10 hits were singles, and the pair totaled just one walk.

While it was a very good week for the Twins overall, they unfortunately fumbled away a chance to make it a great one by blowing a late four-run lead on Sunday, letting a series sweep in Texas slip away. Jorge Alcala came in for the seventh, up 4-0, and got absolutely clobbered. Rangers hitters were all over him. He surrendered five earned runs on five hits, including two home runs, while recording only two outs. 

Alcala's ERA still sits at 3.09 even after the disastrous outing, speaking to how effective he's been generally, but Baldelli's decision to use him in that spot is worthy of scrutiny. Alcala's track record for durability is precarious, and he'd pitched the previous day, as well as throwing 20 pitches on Thursday. 

Meanwhile, Trevor Richards was fresh as could be, four days removed from his last appearance. Baldelli still didn't trust him with a four-run lead, turning to Richards only after the Twins were trailing. That's about as much of an indictment of the team's lone trade deadline acquisition as one could imagine.

TRENDING STORYLINE

The Twins are 11-6 in August and they've shaved 4 ½ games off Cleveland's division lead this month. That they've been able to do it without Correa and largely without Buxton makes this feat all the more impressive. But there's no question that the Twins are going to need their best players back in order to maintain momentum and finish the job with a challenging schedule still ahead.

In the coming week, I'll be looking for positive signs on both fronts. Buxton will be eligible to return from his 10-day IL stint when Friday's home stand opens against the Cardinals. Will he be activated and back in the lineup? If not, the implications may be troubling. 

And what of Correa? Will he finally embark on a rehab assignment, signaling that his own return to the lineup is in sight? Or will this be another week of stagnating progress for the shortstop? Dan Hayes of The Athletic reported over the weekend that, per head trainer Nick Paparesta, Correa "needs to be comfortable running daily without feeling sore the next day" but has yet to reach that point. It's a disturbing state of limbo right now.

LOOKING AHEAD

A week of interleague competition lies ahead, with the Twins heading to San Diego for a three-game set before returning home to face the Cardinals. Following their matchup against Tyler Mahle on Sunday, the Twins have a couple more old friends on the docket in the coming week, with Martín Pérez scheduled to pitch for the Padres and Sonny Gray for the Cardinals. That pairing on Saturday is especially intriguing: Minnesota's Game 1 starter from last year's playoffs versus their Game 2 starter.

MONDAY, AUG 19: TWINS @ PADRES – RHP Zebby Matthews v. RHP Michael King
TUESDAY, AUG 20: TWINS @ PADRES – RHP Bailey Ober v. LHP Martin Perez
WEDNESDAY, AUG 21: TWINS @ PADRES – RHP Simeon Woods Richardson v. RHP Matt Waldron
FRIDAY, AUG 23: CARDINALS @ TWINS – RHP Andre Pallante v. RHP David Festa
SATURDAY AUG 24: CARDINALS @ TWINS – RHP Sonny Gray v. RHP Pablo Lopez
SUNDAY, AUG 25: CARDINALS @ TWINS – RHP Erick Fedde v. RHP Zebby Matthews