Andrew Thares

After a three-game sweep of the Cleveland Indians, the Minnesota Twins will travel to Chicago to begin a four-game series with the White Sox. The Twins trail the White Sox by just one game in the AL Central standing, so this upcoming series will go a long way in deciding who the eventual winner of the division will be in a few couple weeks’ time.Yesterday’s Game Recap Twins 7, Cleveland 5: Twins Complete Sweep, Shift Focus to White Sox Today Twins @ White Sox 7:10 pm CDT Betting Line: Twins -140, White Sox +120, O/U: 9 Twins Starter: Jose Berrios, RHP 4.40 ERA Jose Berrios seems to have found his groove over his past four starts. Over that stretch, Berrios has a 2.78 ERA while holding opposing hitters to an OPS of .552. A big reason for this has been Berrios’ improved strikeout to walk ratio. Over his first five starts of the season, Berrios had a K/9 of 8.9 and a BB/9 of 4.8. However, over his last four starts, his K/9 has jumped up to 12.3, while his BB/9 has decreased down to 3.6. This is the perfect time of year for Berrios to have settled into form, as he will likely make just three more starts before the end of the regular season. This will be Berrios’ third outing this season against the fearsome White Sox lineup. After struggling against them his first time out, Berrios was lights out when they squared off a couple weeks ago, allowing just one run across six brilliant innings. Overall, Berrios has plenty of experience facing this White Sox roster, with seven different hitters having at least 20 career plate appearances against Berrios. Download attachment: 5CB7ACC5-EC2B-4FDE-B9ED-E5DC3AD5C450.png White Sox Starter: Dylan Cease, RHP 3.33 ERA At a quick glance, it would appear that second-year starter Dylan Cease is have a strong bounce back season after a rough rookie campaign, as he comes into tonight with a 5-2 record to go along with a 3.33 ERA. However, this is the exact reason why advanced metrics were created, as Cease has been blessed with a ton of lady luck to start his season. While Cease has a 3.33 ERA, his FIP and xFIP stand at 5.95 and 5.81, respectively. This is due in large part to Cease’s dreadfully low 5.9 K/9 and a not all that impressive 3.9 BB/9 rate so far this year. Cease has been helped a lot by an opposing BABIP of just .233 and a stranded runner rate of 83.3%. Both of which should expect some regression, which would drastically hurt Cease’s run prevention numbers when that happens. Cease has yet to face the Twins so far this year, but he got demolished by the Bomba Squad in his two outings against them in 2019. In those two starts, Cease managed to give up 13 earned runs in just seven innings pitched. While three home runs paved the way for some of that production, the Twins main weapon of attack was a relentless barrage of getting on base, as they accumulated 17 hits to go along with four walks in those seven innings against Cease. Download attachment: 664082FE-F188-4BD9-9878-9A2A66A973C8.png Twins Lineup Scratch that ... Here are the updates: News & Notes - Eddie Rosario, Miguel Sano and Trevor May all appear to be relatively fine after all leaving Sunday’s game early with injuries. With the extreme sense of caution the Twins have had all year, don’t be surprised to see any of them miss a game or two so they can recover. - Albert Pujols hit his 660th career home run on Sunday, pulling him even with Willie Mays for 5th on the all-time home run list. Pujols will need another 36 home runs to reach Alex Rodriguez for 4th on the career home run list. - Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Alec Mills threw a no-hitter on Sunday against the Milwaukee Brewers. Around the AL Central White Sox 5, Tigers 2 Royals 11, Pirates 0 1. CWS 30-16 (+77) 2. MIN 30-18 1.0 GB (+48) 3. CLE 26-21 4.5 GB (+31) 4. DET 20-26 10.0 GB (-58) 5. KC 20-28 11.0 GB (-21) Click here to view the article

In his second start back with the club, Michael Pineda held the Tigers to two runs on three hits over seven innings pitched, eclipsing the 100-pitch mark in the process. The Twins beat Detroit on a cold, wet day at Target Field, giving them wins in four of the five games this series.Box Score Pineda: 7.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 8 K Home Runs: Jeffers (1), Buxton (6) Top 3 WPA: Pineda .226, Jeffers .156, Rosario .150 Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs): Download attachment: Winchart.png The story of the game today was the Twins getting yet another impressive performance on the mound from Michael Pineda. After impressing in his first start back from his suspension, Pineda was even better today, going seven strong innings, allowing just two runs on just three hits and two walks, while striking out eight. Of his seven innings pitched, four of them were 1-2-3 innings. This was a great time for a Twins starter to go deep into the game, as the bullpen got worked pretty hard in yesterday’s game, and they will need to be fresh for tomorrow’s doubleheader in St. Louis. Ryan Jeffers got the scoring started in the third with a one out blast to straight away center field. For Jeffers, it was a statement home run coming off the bat a scorching 111.3 MPH. It was not only Jeffers first career MLB home run, but also his first career MLB extra base hit. It will likely be the first of many from a catch the possess power rarely seen from the catching position. The Twins were not done score after that, however, as LaMonte Wade got a one out rally started with a bloop double in the very next at-bat. Josh Donaldson and Brent Rooker followed that up with a walk and an opposite field single to load the bases for Eddie Rosario. After a Tigers pitching change, Rosario proceeded to come through with this bases clearing double. For the second consecutive day, Eddie Rosario made a stupid base running mistake that likely cost the Twins runs early in the game. This over aggressiveness has been a trend with Rosario throughout his career, but unlike in his early years, the excuse of Rosario still being inexperienced is gone. By this point, you would expect a veteran leader on your team to play smarter baseball than that. The Twins were able to play small ball to scratch across another run in the fifth. Jake Cave got the inning going with a one-out bunt single to beat the shift. Cave was then able to advance to second on an Ehire Adrianza groundout. This gave Ryan Jeffers another chance to come up big in this game, and he did just that, as he hit a groundball single just under the glove of a diving Jonathan Schoop into the outfield, bringing Cave around to score the Twins fifth run of the ballgame. Cody Stashak made his return from the injured list, after being out since August 11th with a lower back injury. It wasn’t the cleanest of outings from Stashak, as he allowed a rare walk, but in the end he got the job done, and maintained the Twins 5-2 lead. It was a strong day at the plate for Byron Buxton. In the sixth, he hit a hard groundball back up the middle that deflected off the glove of Tigers pitcher Daniel Norris past the infield shift, and trickled into the outfield. About as soon as you thought that was a good luck single, Buxton was standing on second, as he was hustling out of the box, and used his world class speed to turn his good fortune into what will look like a flyball in the gap in the box score. Buxton didn’t need any good fortune in his next at-bat, as he blasted this no-doubter into the second deck. Even though it was no longer a save situation, Taylor Rogers still came in in the ninth, as he was already warmed up. It was undoubtably the most impressive outing for Rogers on the season, as he struck out the side to close out the Twins 6-2 victory. Hopefully, this is the outing that Rogers needed to get things going back in the right direct as we head into the final weeks of the regular season. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet Download attachment: Bullpen.png Postgame Pint John, Nick and Seth discussed the game with Twins Daily's live virtual audience. Download The Postgame Pint Podcast You can also listen to the Postgame Pint and never miss another one. Just head over to our iTunes page and subscribe. Every morning you'll have a new episode waiting for you. Or listen wherever you download your favorite podcasts. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

The Minnesota Twins are looking to put a pretty ugly loss on Sunday afternoon in their rearview mirror, and finish off this five-game series against the Detroit Tigers on a positive note. While the focus is still clearly on the Postseason, the Twins find themselves in a tight three-way race for the American League Central crown, as they now stand a game and a half behind the Chicago White Sox for first, and a game behind the Cleveland Indians for second.Yesterday’s Game Recap DET 10, MIN 8: Bullpen Finally Breaks Today Twins vs Tigers 1:10 pm CDT Betting Line: MIN -220, DET +190, O/U: 9 Twins Starter: Michael Pineda, RHP 3.00 ERA It was a promising return back to the hill for Michael Pineda in his first start back from the nearly yearlong suspension. He gave up a couple early runs, but after that he settled in and cruised through the very tough White Sox lineup. In total, he went six innings, allowing just two runs on six hits and a walk, while striking out four. The Twins front office will be eager to see what Pineda can do today, and the rest of the regular season, to determine if he will be in line for one of the starting spots on the Postseason roster. This young Tigers lineup does not have a lot of experience facing Michael Pineda, as only three of their hitters (Miguel Cabrera, Jonathan Schoop and Christian Stewart) have every faced Pineda before. Here is how they have fared as a collective against him. Download attachment: A1186D67-FE01-465E-BBD0-2B4F897C6F77.png Tigers Starter: Michael Fulmer, RHP 7.27 ERA It has been a rough go of it for the once promising Tigers young starter. After missing the entire 2019, while recovering from Tommy John surgery, Michael Fulmer’s long-awaited return to the Tigers rotation this season has been very disappointing. In six starts, Fulmer has managed to pitch just 17 and 1/3 innings, which is less than three innings per start. While some of this can be explained by the Tigers taking it easy on Fulmer, it can also be explained by his poor performance, as Fulmer has given up multiple runs in four of his six starts this season, despite not throwing more than three innings in any of them. While none of the Twins hitters have had any extended looks at Fulmer over his still relatively short career, seven of them do have at least five career plate appearances against Fulmer. How much they will be able to draw on those experiences is up in the air, as they all came prior to his Tommy John surgery. None the less, here is how the Twins active roster has done against Fulmer, as a whole, throughout their careers. Download attachment: 013D7D10-DC50-4A50-9561-DF9B5FF328D2.png Twins Lineup News & Notes - Hall of Famer Lou Brock passed away on Sunday at the age of 81. Brock finished his playing career in 1979 with what is still a National League record 938 career stolen bases. - After losing 3 of 4 over the weekend to the Baltimore Orioles, the New York Yankees have fallen into 3rd place in the AL East and are tied with the Astros for the current seventh and eighth spots in the AL Postseason race. - Fernando Tatis Jr. homerd again on Sunday, pulling him back even with Mike Trout atop the MLB home run race at 15. Around the AL Central Indians 4, Brewers 1 White Sox 8, Royals 2 1. CWS 26-15 0.0 GB (+53) 2. CLE 25-15 0.5 GB (+51) 3. MIN 25-17 1.5 GB (+34) 4. DET 18-20 6.5 GB (-15) 5. KC 14-27 12.0 GB (-48) See Also Week in Review: Bucking a Bad Trend 3 Twins Players Heading to Free Agency at the Wrong Time You are Hereby Circled: The Legacy of Bert Blyleven MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

We have seen time and time again the tremendous work that the Twins front office and coaching staff have done in identifying pitchers to bring into the organization, and then finding ways to get the most out of their game. In 2020, the have found a couple more diamonds in the rough and turned them into strong contributors in the Twins bullpen.Ever since the current regime took over control, after the 2016 season, we have seen a drastic philosophical shift in how the Twins approach pitching. This includes everything from the pitchers that they target to bring into the organization, to their coaching methods to get try and maximize the ceilings of each of their pitchers. This has paid off huge dividends, as in a few short years they have transformed the Twins pitching staff from perennial bottom dwellers to one of the best pitching staffs in baseball. One of their great abilities has been their ability to take players who were once thought of as a lost cause and turn them into viable weapons in the bullpen. Last year, we saw this work exhibited with failed starter turned shut down reliever Tyler Duffey. As you may recall, Duffey was not even on the Twins 25-man roster to begin 2019, and by then end of the season he was one of their most trusted relievers. The main reason for this turn around came from a revamped approach to Duffey’s game. This year, they dug even deeper into the well and pulled out Caleb Thielbar and Matt Wisler and helped transform them into new and improved relievers that the Twins should be able to count on for outs in October. We saw this growing faith in both Thielbar and Wisler on full display in Tuesday night’s win over the Chicago White Sox, when they were called upon in the seventh and ninth innings to help close out the one run victory, putting an end to the Twins six-game losing streak. While neither is among the first choices for Rocco Baldelli out of the pen at this point, Thielbar and Wisler have still shown that when called upon, they can get the job done. Outside of Twins fans, Caleb Thielbar is a name that most baseball fans have probably never heard of, or don’t remember. After his initial stint with the Twins ended in 2015, Thielbar spent two seasons pitching for the St. Paul Saints in 2016 and 2017. This led to another shot in affiliated ball, as the Detroit Tigers signed him and sent him to Double-A Erie. He spent the next three years in both the Tigers and Braves organizations before finally making his way back up to the major league level with the Twins this season. Throughout his career, Thielbar has never been much of a strikeout pitcher. In his first stint with the Twins, from 2013 through 2015, Thielbar had a strikeout rate of just 19.9%. During his next few years in the minors, that remained the case for Thielbar. However, everything changed for him in June of 2018, when he was sent back down to Double-A Erie after starting the season in Triple-A Toledo. Up to that point in the season, Thielbar had struck out just 9 batters in 17 innings pitched. After that point, though, Thielbar ramped it up, as he struck out 42 batters over his last 40 innings of the season. He continued that trend into 2019, where he struck out 94 batters in 78 and 1/3 innings pitched. For the Twins, it was clear that Thielbar was a new and improved pitcher, even though nobody else saw it. Unfortunately, we do not have public access to the same tracking information for minor league players that we do for major league players, so it is hard to know exactly what led to this drastic improvement in Thielbar’s strikeout ability, but if I had to take a guess based on the limited amount of data we have on him so far this year, it is his pitch movement that has been giving hitters trouble. Here is a tweet from Jeremy Maschino that does a great job of illustrating this. After giving up two runs in his first outing, both coming in the third inning of that appearance, Thielbar has thrown 8 and 1/3 scoreless innings, across 8 appearances. Over that stretch, Thielbar has struck out 12 batters, while allowing an opposing OPS of .315. Note, that is not an opposing OBP of .315, but an opposing OPS of .315. While it is still a small sample size, this is a side of him we never saw before, and based on his performance in the minors the last couple years, it is clear that this really is a new and improved Caleb Thielbar. Matt Wisler, on the other hand, was a case of a new approach in 2019 that taken for face value was a failed experiment. Wisler had been slowing working on expanding his slider usage ever since he first moved to the bullpen in 2017. Last year, he went all-in on this approach, as he spiked the usage of his slider up from 47.0% in 2018 to 70.5% in 2019. The results were not that appealing, as his ERA in 2019 was 5.61, causing both the San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners to all but give up on him. However, the Twins didn’t see this as a failed experiment, but rather one with incomplete results. This led them to take a low risk flyer on Wisler, where they have encouraged him to go even further, as Wisler has increased his slider usage all the way up to 81.3% so far this year. So, what was it that the Twins saw that led them to this hypothesis, and thus take a flyer on Wisler? The first thing was the small sample size of just 51 and 1/3 innings pitched by Wisler in 2019. In addition to that, nearly all of the underlying metrics were saying that Wisler was a much better pitcher in 2019 than his 5.61 ERA suggested. His FIP and xFIP stood at 4.17 and 3.83, respectively. Wisler drastically increased his strikeout rate from his career average of 16.4% up to 28.1%, while at the same time decreasing his walk rate from his career average of 8.5% down to 7.1%. The Statcast metrics also like what Wisler was doing, as he produced career lows in Hard Hit Rate (34.5%), Barrel Rate (6.2%), xwOBA (.301) and xERA (3.84). For reference, Wisler’s xwOBA of .301 ranked 108th of the 362 qualified pitchers in 2019. Those are all very good numbers for a guy that nobody seemed to want this offseason. Relying on these advanced metrics, as opposed to the more traditional metrics, has paid off big for the Twins, as Wisler has allowed just two runs in the 16 and 2/3 innings he has pitched so far this season. While neither Wisler nor Thielbar should expect to be featured heavily in the backend of the Twins bullpen before the end of the season, baring injury, both pitchers should absolutely expect to be in contention for a spot on the Twins Postseason roster, and look to help give them big outs in the stretch run of the season. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

Twins Win Woo-Hoo!!!

The Twins were in desperate need of a boost, and tonight they got one. Michael Pineda delivered a quality start in his first outing in nearly a year while Buxton robbed a homer and drove in the go-ahead run in his return from the Injured List.Box Score Pineda: 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K Home Runs: None Win Probability Chart (via Baseball Savant): Download attachment: WinChart.png Michael Pineda’s first start back from his seemingly never-ending suspension got off to a rocky beginning. After allowing a couple singles, Pineda gave up a two-out double to Eloy Jimenez, and before you know it the White Sox has a quick 2-0 lead. After that Pineda settled in nicely, as he faced the minimum over the next three innings. He got himself into a two-out jam in the fifth, as he loaded the bases after retiring the first two batters of the inning. Fortunately, Pineda was able to get the hottest hitter on the planet in Jose Abreu to hit a squibber to Miguel Sano at first to end the inning. Edwin Encarnacion got ahold of one to leadoff the sixth, but Byron Buxton was there to save the day with this incredible (for all human beings not named Byron Buxton) catch. In total, Pineda had a strong return to the mound for the Twins. He went six strong innings, allowing just the two runs that he gave up in the first. He gave up six hits and a walk, while striking out four. While Pineda reportedly was ramped up to throw more pitches, Rocco Baldelli pulled him after just 81 pitches, though that was probably situational more than anything else. The Twins' bats were silent through the early innings of the game. They got a two out rally together in the third, but failed to cash in on two-out hits from Jorge Polanco and Nelson Cruz. It took until the fifth for the Twins to finally break through, thanks in part to a drop from Jose Abreu at first, which if it had been caught would have likely been an inning ending double-play. Rocco Baldelli pulled all the right strings in the sixth to help the Twins tie the game back up at two. After a Byron Buxton pop out to leadoff the inning, Baldelli had Jake Cave pinch-hit for Ildemaro Vargas, and Cave promptly rewarded that decision with a one-out triple. Baldelli went back into the well for the next at-bat, having Luis Arraez pinch-hit for Ryan Jeffers in the nine hole. On the first pitch of the at-bat Arraez drilled a ground ball down the first base line, past Jose Abreu, and into the outfield for a game-tying double. Caleb Thielbar had another impressive relief appearance in the seventh inning for the Twins. After giving up a couple runs in the third inning of his return to the majors, Thielbar has had eight consecutive scoreless outings, including tonight. Thielbar has been dominate in those outings, striking out 12 while allowing just four hits and one walk across 8 and 1/3 innings. After scoring single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, the Twins added another in the seventh to take a 3-2 lead. Nelson Cruz doubled to start the inning, which was Cruz’s third hit of the game and fourth time reaching base safely. Then, after a pitching change, Marwin Gonzalez drew a gritty walk to give the Twins first and second with nobody out. After Eddie Rosario and Ehire Adrianza both failed to advance the runners, it was Byron Buxton who came up clutch, in his return to the lineup, with a two-out single. Sergio Romo had another 1-2-3 inning tonight, showing that he has put his blow-up outing in Cleveland in the rearview mirror. Romo had a minor injury scare in the inning, that was reminiscent of the leg issues he was going through at the end of last season. In the end, Romo appeared to be fine, as he stayed in the game and finished off the inning. After much of the bullpen got used up in last night’s ballgame, it was Matt Wisler who was called upon to close the game out in the ninth. Much like he has been all season, Wisler was very impressive. Firs, he needed some help from his defense, as Ehire Andrianza made a diving play to take away a double from Eloy Jimenez, that was completed by a great pick from Miguel Sano at first. Then Wisler struck out both Luis Robert and Nomar Mazara with his trusty slider to finally put an end to the Twins six-game losing streak. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet Download attachment: Bullpen.png Postgame Pint Immediately following the game, Nick Nelson, John Bonnes and David Youngs are joined by Twins Daily's virtual live audience to discuss the return of Michael Pineda and Byron Buxton and a Twins win. Download The Postgame Pint Podcast You can also listen to the Postgame Pint and never miss another one. Just head over to our iTunes page and subscribe. Every morning you'll have a new episode waiting for you. Or listen wherever you download your favorite podcasts. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

The Minnesota Twins were cruising through the first half of the season, as they stood at an impressive 20-10 record at the halfway point. However, the second half of the season has gotten off to a dreadful start, as the Twins have dropped five straight, including getting swept by the Tigers in Detroit over the weekend. Today the Twins return home to face the Chicago White Sox, though the big news of the days expects to come before the game, with the MLB Trade Deadline at 3 pm central time today.Yesterday’s Game Recap Tigers 3, Twins 2: This Is Not What You Want Today Twins vs White Sox 7:10 pm CDT Betting Line: MIN +130, CWS -140, O/U: 9 Twins Starter: Rich Hill, LHP 3.55 ERA Rich Hill will be making his third start back from the IL stint that caused him to miss about three weeks. His task this time out will be difficult against this young and dangerous White Sox lineup. So far this season, the White Sox rank second in Major League Baseball with a team wRC+ of 121. Having spent his last few years in the National League, Hill does not have a ton of experience against this White Sox lineup. Here is how he has fared against this current White Sox roster. Download attachment: 2A6E9881-0936-4215-A1DF-BB3C1D6270DD.png White Sox Starter: Lucas Giolito, RHP 3.09 ERA Lucas Giolito is coming off no hitting the Pittsburgh Pirates his last time out. Over his past two starts, Giolito has thrown 16 scoreless innings, while striking out 13 batters and walking just 1 on both starts. After getting rocked by this Twins lineup on Opening Day, Giolito has been dominate in all but one of his next six starts. Over those six starts, Giolito has an ERA of just 1.80 and is holding opposing hitters to a staggeringly low .463 OPS. This struggling Twins lineup will certainly have its hands full trying to get things going back on track tonight. Download attachment: 3E65B862-D327-4E80-A11A-AD8F9E3AB4B7.png Twins Lineup: News and Notes - There will be plenty of action happening throughout today, so make sure you stay up to date with what is going on in the Twins trade front. - Both Dylan Bundy and Lance Lynn are reportedly on the Twins trade radar. - Last night, the San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners completed a seven-player trade that sent Austin Nola, Dan Atlavilla and Austin Adams to San Diego in exchange for Ty France, Taylor Trammell, Andres Muñoz and Luis Torrens. See Also Week in Review: Road Worriers 2020 Minnesota Twins Mid-Season Superlatives The Potential Trade for a Relief Ace Nobody Is Talking About MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

Over the past week or two here at Twins Daily, we have brought up a number of potential trades that the Minnesota Twins could make before Monday’s trade deadline. There has been a scattered array of starting pitchers, relievers, and position players mentioned, but one name that has not been discussed is Arizona Diamondbacks closer Archie Bradley.Archie Bradley has been a big name since he was a high schooler in Oklahoma. He was selected 7th overall in the loaded 2011 MLB Draft. In addition to Bradley, Gerrit Cole, Trevor Bauer, Dylan Bundy, Anthony Rendon, Francisco Lindor, Javier Baez, George Springer, Jose Fernandez and Sonny Gray were all selected in the top 18. While Bradley did not have what it takes to make it as a starting pitcher, he has thrived as a reliever ever since the Diamondbacks moved his to the bullpen before the start of the 2017 season. In that time, Bradley has a 2.98 ERA with 10.1 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9. Bradley has been a workhorse for the Diamondbacks out of the pen, throwing at least 70 innings in each of his three full seasons as a reliever. In 10 innings so far in 2020, entering play on Sunday, Bradley has a 3.64 ERA with a FIP of just 1.64. Bradly has been able to strike out 12 opposing hitters while allowing just three walks and zero home runs. Though Bradley has yet to give up a home run this year, he has still been hit pretty hard. So far, Bradley has allowed 26 batted balls in play, and a shockingly high 11 of them have been hard hit balls (above 95 mph exit velocity). This offers up a good explanation as to why Bradley has a BABIP of .423 to begin the season. While avoiding hard contact has never been a strength of Bradley’s, even in his dominate 2017 season, you could expect that as the sample size of the season progresses, Bradley’s hard-hit rate will start to settle back down to his norms. By all aspects, Archie Bradley seems like an excellent player to target in a trade for the Twins. He is on a Diamondbacks team that should be looking to sell, and he has one additional year of team control in 2021. He will also be a cheap addition payroll wise for 2020, as he has a little over $600K left on his deal this year. Additionally, Bradly shouldn’t require the Twins to give up one of their top five or so prospects in order to get him, something I am sure the Twins are hesitant to do. While Bradley has not been the pitcher that he flashed in 2017, he has still been a quality reliever in the time since. At a minimum, he would certainly add another quality arm that Rocco can trust for key outs in the Postseason. However, there is always the chance that the Twins could tap into something that was missing with Bradley’s game, and get him back close to his lights out 2017 form. Additionally, Bradley has the ability to pitch multiple innings in a relief outing, as he has thrown more than one inning in 25% of his career relief appearances. This is a role the Bradley has thrived in, as he has posted a 2.50 ERA with 9.6 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in those outings where he has gone more than one inning since becoming a reliever. With the backend of the Twins bullpen more secure than that of the Diamondbacks, the Twins would have more flexibility to use Bradley in that stretch multi-inning role than the Diamondbacks, who have been using him more as a traditional closer the last couple of years. This flexibility is a great thing for Rocco Baldelli to have, as he can use Bradley in the middle innings to bridge a short start to the backend of the bullpen, or as a guy to eat up a couple innings early in one of the bullpen games that the Twins have started throwing with regularity this season. Though it likely that the Diamondbacks are looking to move Archie Bradley before Monday’s trade deadline, it remains to be seen if the Twins are at all interested in him. For me, Bradley is certainly someone that peaks my interest. If the Diamondbacks give them a reasonable offer, he is a player that the Twins should strongly consider, especially with the lack of high upside relievers available on this year’s trade market. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

Francisco Lindor led a Cleveland comeback, delivering a counter blow as he slugged a go-ahead two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Twins now hold a 1 1/2 game lead in the division heading into the final contest of a three-game series.Box Score Hill: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K (78 pitches, 50 strikes) Home Runs: None Bottom 3 WPA: Alcala -.374, Polanco -.086, Wade Jr. -.122 Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs): Download attachment: Winchart.png Rich Hill had a promising bounce back start, after getting knocked around for four runs in just 2 and 2/3 innings his last time out versus Milwaukee. The lone run that Hill gave up was in the first. After that, Hill was sharp, as he pitched four scoreless innings while striking out five Indians hitters, which included striking out the side in the fifth. Jose Ramirez got the inning going for Cleveland with a one out single. The Twins had Ramirez picked off, as he attempted to steal too early, however, a poor low throw from Miguel Sano that skipped away from Luis Arraez and into the outfield allowed Ramirez to get in safely. Ramirez wouldn’t stay at second long, as he proceeded to steal third on the very next pitch. Suddenly, the Indians had a runner on third with just one out. Hill was able to get Francisco Lindor to ground out to third, without advancing the runner. However, Hill wasn’t out of the inning, as Carlos Santana came up with a two out hit to bring home the first run of the game. Franmil Reyes put in a bid to make it a big inning, but Eddie Rosario was having none of that, as he threw out Reyes trying stretch his hit to a double. That was already Rosario’s fourth outfield assist of the 2020 season. After Shane Bieber shutdown the Twins offense the first time around, the Twins entered tonight’s game with a patient approach that paid off for them. Of course, it helped that Bieber did not have his best command tonight, as he threw just 58.8% of his pitches for strikes. The Twins were able to work three walks off Bieber, who had only six on the season entering play tonight. When they weren’t walking, the Twins also worked a lot of deep counts, which helped inflate Bieber’s pitch count, and get him out of the game after six innings. The Twins got their two long runs of the game in the second inning, after Miguel Sano had a leadoff walk, followed by Marwin Gonzalez who drew a one out walk a couple batters later. That set the table for Luis Arraez, who delivered with a opposite field double, scoring Sano from second. Then, after Ryan Jeffers reach on a fielder’s choice where Marwin Gonzalez was thrown out from third, Max Kepler came up big with this two out hit. The extensive use of the Twins bullpen over the past few games finally caught up with them in tonight’s ballgame. After Rich Hill’s five strong innings, it was Jorge Alcala who Rocco Baldelli called to in the sixth to protect the Twins one run lead. Though Alcala had been pitching well to begin the season, tonight was not his night. After giving up a leadoff single to Jose Ramirez, he left a center-cut 0-2 slider to Francisco Lindor that he wishes he could have back. Unfortunately, Alcala’s struggles did not end there. After walking Carlos Santana, Alcala gave up a one out double to Tyler Naquin which brought Santana around to score, giving the Indians a 4-2 lead, which would ultimately be the final score of the game, believe it or not. The Twins had a threat working in the seventh, thanks to an opposite field single by Ryan Jeffers and a walk from Max Kepler, giving the Twins runners on first and second with just one out, and Jorge Polanco up at the plate. That threat would immediately be neutralized, however, as a hot groundball right to Indians third baseman Jose Ramirez would lead to an inning ending double play. Sean Poppin had a quality outing pitching the seventh and eighth innings for the Twins. He gave up walks to the first two batters he faced, but then retired the last five batters that he faced, which included an inning ending double play and two strikeouts. If nothing else, this helped save the Twins bullpen for the next couple of games. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet Download attachment: Bullpen.png Postgame Pint Immediately following the Twins 4-2 loss to Cleveland, Nick Nelson, Matthew Taylor and Matthew Trueblood reviewed the game with a live virtual audience. Download The Postgame Pint Podcast You can also listen to the Postgame Pint and never miss another one. Just head over to our iTunes page and subscribe. Every morning you'll have a new episode waiting for you. Or listen wherever you download your favorite podcasts. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

Coming off a series victory in Kansas City, the Twins can now put the Royals in their review mirror and look forward to perhaps the most important part of their 2020 schedule. Of the Twins next 23 games, 13 of them come against either the Cleveland Indians or Chicago White Sox. That stretch kicks off tonight, with a three-game series in Cleveland.Yesterday’s Game Recap MIN 5, KC 4 : Bullpen Steps Up Again Today Twins @ Indians, 6:10 pm CDT Betting Line: MIN -120, CLE +100, O/U: 8.5 Twins Starter: Kenta Maeda, RHP 2.27 ERA Kenta Maeda is coming off the best start by a Twins pitcher in quite some time and it was arguably the best start of Maeda’s MLB career. After throwing eight no-hit innings, which included striking out a Twins record eight consecutive batters at one point, Maeda went back out for the ninth, just to have his hopes of the first no-hitter by a Minnesota Twin since Francisco Liriano in 2011, dashed by a soft line-drive off the bat of Eric Sogard. After five days of rest following that 115-pitch outing, Maeda will look to continue his success in what will be his most important start, thus far, in a Twins uniform. After a slow start to the season for the Cleveland bats, who averaged just 2.6 runs per game through their first 13 games of the season, they have picked it up of late, averaging 5.2 runs per game over the last 15. A leading catalyst for the Indians offense emergence has been outfielder Franmil Reyes, who has a 1.158 OPS over the Indians last 15 games. Indians Starter: Aaron Civale, RHP 2.91 ERA In a starting rotation where Shane Bieber steals all of the headlines, Aaron Civale has quietly been the second-best starter in what is probably the best starting rotation in Major League Baseball. In his second season at the big-league level, Civale has already improved on the ten excellent starts that he made as a rookie in 2019. He’s done this by doing what every team would like to see from their young pitchers, he has increased his strikeouts, while at the same time decreasing his walks. So far this year, Civale has 32 strikeouts and just 3 walks in 34 innings pitched. Download attachment: 07A1CB21-B741-4204-92DD-26931400E5CE.png Civale is not an overpowering pitcher by today’s standards. Instead, he is a master of keeping opposing hitters off balance. He features a strong five-pitch mix that includes a low-90s sinker and an upper-80s cutter. Civale also has both a curveball and slider in his repertoire, both of which he has learned how to throw from strikes with consistency in 2020, to go along with a solid changeup. Against right-handed hitters, Civale with typically attack them with his sinker-slider combo and mix in his cutter when he falls behind in the count, and his curveball when he gets ahead in the count. Contrast that with Civale’s approach against lefties, where the cutter becomes his primary pitch, with his sinker, curveball and changeup all being available as secondary offerings. While righties can expect a heavy dosage of first pitch sinkers, lefties will need to stay balanced, as Civale throws an almost equal distribute of cutters, sinkers, curveballs and changeups to them. Twins Lineup 1. Max Kepler, RF 2. Jorge Polanco, SS 3. Nelson Cruz, DH 4. Eddie Rosario, LF 5. Miguel Sano, 1B 6. Jake Cave, CF 7. Marwin Gonzalez, 3B 8. Luis Arraez, 2B 9. Alex Avila, C News & Notes - The Twins place Jake Odorizzi on the 10-day IL with a chest contusion, as a result of the comebacker he took off the chest that ended his start against Kansas City on Friday night. - The Twins have also moved Homer Bailey to the 45-day IL, retroactive to July 28th. It is unclear at this point if the Twins expect to have Bailey back at all this season. - After two positive COVID-19 tests last Thursday, the New York Mets did not have any further positive tests over the weekend and are set to resume play with a doubleheader against the Miami Marlins on Tuesday. AROUND THE AL CENTRAL Cubs 2, White Sox 1 Tigers 7, Indians 4 1. MIN 19-10 (+40) 2. CLE 17-11 (+28) 3. CHW 17-12 (+30) 4. DET 11-15 (-31) 5. KC 11-17 (-12) See Also Week in Review: Riding the Roller Coaster Watch Out, Miguel Sano's Bat Is Starting to Click What Happened To Jorge Polanco's Sota Pop? Snap, Crackle, Pop Time: What it is and how the Twins' Catchers Fare MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

Throughout his career, Miguel Sano has always been a head scratcher about what you will get out of his bat. He will have elongated slumps where he struggles to even put the ball in play, then out of nowhere, he will turn it on and become one of the most feared power hitters in all of baseball. 2020 has been no different, as Sano struggled mightily out of the gates, but has seemed to have found something of late and is turning it on.After not getting much of a tune up to the season, as a result of his positive COVID-19 test, Sano struggled out of the gates. Through his first 13 games, Sano had a dreadful .111/.149/.356 slash line. The main reason for Sano’s struggles was his alarming swing and miss rate, which lead to a lot of strikeouts. In those 13 games, Sano took 96 swings and whiffed on a staggering 46 of them, for a whiff rate of 46.9%. With such little time to prepare for the start of the season, it should come as no surprise that Sano needed some time to get back used to the speed of in game pitching. As Ted Schwerzler pointed out, this issue seemed to be one more of timing than poor pitch selection. Sano’s chase rate through those first 13 games was just 20.3%, which was easily below his career average of 24.9%. This was an encouraging sign, as it meant he was seeing the ball well, despite his lack of timing and ability to make contact. Another thing holding Sano back was his lack of success on balls in play, as his BABIP stood at just .105. While a lot of this can be explained by the number of popups and high flyballs Sano hit, which generally leads to a lower BABIP, Sano also had some bad batted ball luck which contributed to this too. During that time, Sano had four batted balls with an expected batting average above .500 that resulted in outs. If those would have gone the other way, his BABIP would have tripled up to .315. That just shows how a little luck here or there early on can drastically change a player’s fortunes. In the 12 games that Sano has played since, Sano has really started to turn it on, with a much more impressive .395/.521/.763 slash line. This is due in large part to Sano gathering eight doubles, two home runs and ten walks in just 48 plate appearances over that time. So, this brings forward the question, has the timing suddenly clicked with Sano, or is something else going on? The first place we will look to try and answer that question is in his whiff rate. Surprisingly, this metric has barely improved, despite Sano’s drastic turnaround in success. In the past 12 games, Sano’s whiff rate was still an atrocious 42.3%. Given that this played so much into Sano’s early struggles, it is hard to believe he could be playing so much better without improving much in this key area. Instead, the reason for Sano’s improved success has actually been from the drastic turnaround on the balls he has put in play. He has lowered his average launch angel down from 27.2 degrees in the first 13 games, to a much more optimal 18.5 degrees in the last 12. As a result, those hard-hit popups and flyballs are now peppering the gaps for a seemingly relentless barrage of doubles. This is highlighted by his BABIP that stands at an incredible .722 during this stretch. While Sano is certainly receiving some good batted ball luck to have that high of a BABIP, you can’t put it all on luck either, as Sano has an expected BABIP of .529 on the 18 balls he has put in play since this hot streak started on August 11th. It also helps when Sano can just take the fielders out of play and mash home runs way over the fence like this one. As we can see from the data, it’s not the frequency in which Sano is putting the ball in play that is making the difference, but rather what he has done with the ball when he does put it in play. Since this hot steak started, Sano has a blistering 100.4 MPH average exit velocity. For reference, in the five full seasons since Statcast started measuring average exit velocity, there has only been one recorded season of an average exit velocity above 95 MPH, and that was Aaron Judge in 2019, who had a 96.0 MPH average exit velocity in 102 games. Miguel Sano still has some work to do on his timing to keep cutting down on his whiff rate. However, it does appear that something certainly has clicked with Sano’s swing, and that something is allowing him to drive the baseball with the proper trajectory to do damage, as opposed to just missing the pitch and hitting a popup or a towering flyball that gets caught in the outfield. With Sano’s bat back to form, he should be able to start providing some protection to the middle of the order, as opposed to hoping we can get any production from him at all hitting out of the eight hole. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

The Minnesota Twins struggles with the Kansas City Royals in Kansas City continued last night, as the Twins dropped to 0-4 on the season there following last night’s 7-2 loss. To right the ship, the Twins will send the reliable Randy Dobnak to the mound to face the Royals rookie Brady Singer for his third consecutive starts.Last Night’s Game Recap MIN 2, KC 7: Royal Pain TODAY Twins at Royals, 6:05 pm CDT Betting Lines: MIN -160, KC +140, O/U: 9.5 Twins Starter: Randy Dobnak, RHP 1.42 ERA The Twins have had their fair share of struggles with the starting rotation being healthy and available, and if it weren’t for the continued pleasant surprise of Randy Dobnak, who knows where they would be right now. In Dobnak’s five starts this season, the Twins are 4-1, with the only loss coming in the second game of the season, where Dobnak allowed just one run over four innings against the White Sox. Download attachment: 781C326A-BDC0-4473-9E27-B01B203E4FEC.png One of the encouraging things in Randy Dobnak’s game has been the improved Statcast metrics that he has. Earlier in the season, some of these metrics, like his xwOBA for example, were not all that compelling, despite how well his baseline numbers looked. However, those have improved drastically over the past couple of starts, as his xwOBA is .309 which ranks in the 60th percentile of MLB pitchers this season. Still, we should expect some regression from how he has been pitching, but the longer he can keep up his success the better. Royals Starter: Brady Singer, RHP 4.56 ERA The Twins should be quite familiar with Royals rookie Brady Singer by this point. In his last two outings against the Twins, Singer has surrendered five earned runs on six walks and six strikeouts in 10 and 2/3 innings pitched. Walks have been a bit of an issue for Singer early on, has he has allowed at least two in each of his five starts to begin his MLB career. This comes as a bit of a surprise, as Singer’s career walk rate in the minors was just 2.4 BB/9. Download attachment: 325AA3B4-F46D-480A-B6A2-3C43DDCCF070.png While there is certainly a lot of potential in the young arm of Brady Singer, it is apparent early on that he still has some room to grow to become the front of the rotation starting pitcher that the Royals one day envision him becoming. While his stuff is impressive, it seems as though MLB hitters have been able to handle it much better than the minor league level bats he was facing previously. However, we are still just five starts into his career, so the book is far from being out on Singer. Twins Lineup 1. Max Kepler, RF 2. Jorge Polanco, SS 3. Eddie Rosario, DH 4. Marwin Gonzalez, 3B 5. Jake Cave, CF 6. Miguel Sano, 1B 7. Luis Arraez, 2B 8. LaMonte Wade Jr., LF 9. Alex Avila, C News & Notes - Jake Odorizzi left Firday’s game in the fourth inning after taking a comebacker off the ribs off the bat of Alex Gordon. Fortunately, X-Rays came back negative, but the situation was inches away from being much worse. - Zack Littell also left last night’s ballgame with quote “some inflammation, tendinitis-type soreness that’s progressing.” - Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg is set to have season-ending hand surgery to help with the carpal tunnel issues he is having in his pitching hand. AROUND THE AL CENTRAL Tigers 10, Indians 5 White Sox 10, Cubs 1 1. MIN 17-10 (+34) 2. CLE 16-10 (+26) 3. CHW 16-11 (+28) 4. KC 11-15 (-6) 5. DET 10-14 (-29) MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

Kenta Maeda nearly pitched the sixth no-hitter in Twins history, carrying a no-no into the ninth inning Tuesday night. He set a new franchise record by striking out eight consecutive batters at one point. Taylor Rogers blew the save, but the Twins pulled out the win in the 12th inning.Box Score Maeda: 8.0 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 12 K Home Runs: None Win Probability Chart (via Baseball Savant): Download attachment: Screenshot 2020-08-18 at 11.44.30 PM.png There have been five no-hitters in Minnesota Twins history, and seven in franchise history if you count the two by the Washington Senators, which includes one by the great Walter Johnson in 1920. Kenta Maeda gave himself a great shot at becoming the sixth pitcher to throw a no-hitter in Twins history, taking the no-no into the ninth.. Unfortunately, that wasn’t meant to be, as it was broken up by an Eric Sogard base-hit into centerfield, that was just out of the reach of Jorge Polance, to leadoff the ninth. The new Twins record streak of eight consecutive strikeouts for Kenta Maeda began with the second out in the third inning, when Maeda got Eric Sogard on a changeup. He then polished off Avisial Garcia with three straight fastballs to end the third. Maeda then work his most impressive inning with the Twins, striking out the heart of the Brewers order, that includes Christian Yelich, Keston Hiura and Justin Smoak. In the fifth, Maeda tied the previously held Twins record of seven consecutive strikeouts by getting Omar Narvaez on a changeup for the second out of the inning. The table was then set for Maeda to break the record, which he did with ease, taking care of Ben Gamel on three pitches for his eighth consecutive strikeout. Overall, it was an excellent outing for Kenta Maeda, beyond just not allowing a hit until the ninth. He struck out 12 batters for just the fourth time in his MLB career, allowed just one run on one hit and two walks. So far, Maeda is looking like an excellent offseason acquisition for the Twins, and is up there with Nelson Cruz and Randy Dobnak for the early team MVP. Brewers pitcher Corbin Burnes was matching Maeda pitch for pitch through the first four innings of the ballgame, having retired 13 of the 14 batters that he faced. Yes, he retired 13 batters in just four innings of work, as Max Kepler reached first base on a dropped third strike, which remains the dumbest “written” rule in baseball in this writer’s opinion. The Twins were finally able to break through in the bottom of the fifth, when Luis Arraez leadoff the inning with a double, for the first hit of the ballgame. He was immediately brought in, as Miguel Sano delivered a double of his own. The Twins were able to load the bases with two outs for Nelson Cruz, which has seemed like a guaranteed run scoring situation of late. However, Cruz showed that he is indeed human, as he struck out to end the inning. Jorge Polanco was able to tack on an insurance run in the seventh, with a clutch two-out base hit past the first basemen. The inning got started with yet another Miguel Sano double, his third in the last two games. Ehire Adrianza then came in to pinch-run for Sano, and replace him in the field. He would later come around to score on the RBI single from Polanco. The offense helped make the decision to send Maeda back out for the ninth by tacking on another insurance run in the eighth. Eddie Rosario drew a four pitch walk to leadoff the inning. He then stole second on what was originally ruled a strike’em out throw’em out double play. However, after a Twins challenge, the call was overturned, and Rosario was ruled safe. Rosario advance to third during the next plate appearance on a Angel Perdomo balk. After Luis Arraez walked, Ehire Adrianza brought in Rosario on a perfectly placed squeez bunt. The bunt was so well placed, the Adrianza actually got a hit. The inning came to an end the next batter on a very rare Byron Buxton double play. The top of the ninth was brutal to watch as a Twins fan, and quite frankly I don’t really want to write about it, and I’m sure none of you guys want to read about it, so here is the gist, 2020 sucks. After they failed to score in the bottom of the ninth, the Twins went to extra innings for the first time this season. That means this was the first look for the Twins with the new runner starting on second base rule. Caleb Thielbar came in to pitch in the top of the inning for the Twins, and did an excellent job, as he sent the Brewers down 1-2-3, without even allowing the runner to advance from second. Josh Hader came in to pitch for the Brewers in the bottom of the inning and was able to match Thielbar’s performance. The 11th inning was more of the same, as both teams were still unable to advance the runner on second over to third. Jorge Alcala pitched a gem of an inning, as he allowed a one out walk to Christian Yelich, but kept the runner at second from getting to third. Then the Twins set a new franchise record in this game, by having just two hitters come to the plate in the bottom of the 11th. Ehire Adrianza hit a chopper to first, and Ildemaro Vargas was thrown out trying to advance from second. Byron Buxton then ended the inning on the very next pitch, as he grounded into yet another shocking double play. The 12th inning was anything but a replica of the first two extra innings of this ballgame. With Alcala still pitching for the Twins, Ryan Braun leadoff the inning with a single to left, finally advancing the lead runner to third. Then after a Manny Pina popout, Max Kepler made this incredible diving catch on what looked like a sure fire go-ahead base hit by Orlando Arcia. Fortunately for the Twins, Jedd Gyorko was not tagging up on the play, and did not score. Jorge Alcala then picked up the biggest strikeout of his life, getting Luis Urias to end the inning. With Byron Buxton making the last out in the 11th, the Twins were able to start the bottom of the 12th with his speed on second, and did that ever come in handy. Alex Avila advance Buxton over to third with a swinging bunt to the first basemen to leadoff the inning. This led the Brewers to bring Ryan Braun in from the outfield to be the Brewers fifth infielder. After Max Kepler was hit by a pitch, Jorge Polanco came up big again, as he hit a weak groundball to second base, and Byron Buxton was able to slide in head first just ahead of the tag to secure the 4-3 win for the Minnesota Twins. Polanco’s groundball measured at just 45.6 MPH off the bat, and was the second slowest hit ball all game, behind only Ehire Adrianza’s squeeze bunt in the seventh inning. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet Download attachment: Bullpen12.png Postgame Pint You can check out our nightly discussion of the game below: We do these immediately after the last out of most Twins’ games, and you can join us by checking out PostgamePint.com. Download The Postgame Pint Podcast You can also listen to the Postgame Pint and never miss another one. Just head over to our iTunes page and subscribe. Every morning you'll have a new episode waiting for you. Or listen wherever you download your favorite podcasts. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article