Riverbrian

Maybe... I think you bring up a potential issue. However... on the other hand. Those Tigers have a 17-9 record and a 2.82 ERA in the past 30 days. They are youth from top to bottom right now. All the Vets were traded away at the deadline. Maeda the one vet that they couldn't trade has been minimized to mere occasional work. Same thing on the other side with the offense. Nothing but youth sparking this run. Our problems may not be that simple.

Streaks stop and start on a dime. It takes a while to recognize that you are in one but after awhile it becomes clear that you are. I would say our recent stretch began on August 18. We were about to sweep the Rangers in Dallas. Alcala gave up a 4 run lead. Since that day... the Twins have gone 9-19. 5-9 in games decided by two runs or less. 4-10 in blowouts, Over that 28 game stretch. The Twins rank 21st in Runs Scored and they rank 21st in OPS. The Twins rank 27th in team ERA with a 4.95. 26th in runs allowed which is a repeat of the ERA ranking for obvious reasons. During this stretch of games. Royce Lewis, Willi Castro, Jose Miranda, Edouard Julien, Christian Vazquez, Brooks Lee and Max Kepler have produced shouldn't be in the major league numbers. The first 5 names on the above list rank #2, #4,#5, #8 and #9 in AB's during this stretch. During this stretch of games. 4 of our 5 starters Ober, Festa, SWR and Zebby have ERA's of 5.86, 5.24, 5.66 and 7.97 respectively. The Bullpen sports a 5.47 ERA. Streaks stop and start on a dime. All of the numbers that I list above are Yesterday. Today is a new day.

I have no conditions. I attach no filters. I want the Twins in the playoffs.

I want to watch the Twins in the playoffs.

Buck hit a nice shot in his first game and it is nice to have Correa back. My post wasn't a knock on either of those guys... They are potentially big additions. I was just trying to say that they are most likely NOT the missing ingredient at this moment. The team needs to remember how to play baseball. They have seemed to forgotten how for a stretch. If they can get the team playing baseball around them like they did on Sunday without them. Then Buxton and Correa can be Cinnamon and Nutmeg in the team cookie and people will buy that cookie by the dozens. I admit that I don't know if cinnamon and nutmeg go into a cookie.

We got Buxton back on Friday and we lost. We had Buxton and Correa back on Saturday and we lost. Sunday... they both sat out and we win. I'm not diminishing the importance of Buxton and Correa by pointing that out. I'm not saying that Buxton and Correa out is why we won. Those two are very important but why I'm pointing out is this. It's a team game. Just having them on the field means nothing,,, if the other 24 players are not getting the job done. We need everyone to step up... Offense, defense. bullpen, starters... right here.. right now. We are trying to make the playoffs and in order to do that... we need to realize that we are in the playoffs right now. Cleveland is going to throw two left handed starters at us. They have two more in the bullpen.

It's real simple... Just win. Doesn't matter who you play. Just win baseball games for this 13 games stretch run. Don't care if its Cleveland or the White Sox. Just win. Kansas City vs Detroit is a big matchup for the Twins. If either of those teams sweep each other it's potentially a game changer in our race... if... if,,, we can get some W's while it's happening. If we get some W's against Cleveland while Detroit sweeps KC. It pulls us tighter with KC to make the Royals the team that Seattle or Detroit could catch. If KC sweeps Detroit... while we win... it takes Detroit out or at least close to the edge but Seattle still remains and KC gets a stronger grasp on the 5 spot keeping us as that last horse for horses to catch. Nothing matters if Cleveland manhandles the Twins in this series. Detroit will pull past us or KC will cement the 5 spot. With sweeps by either squad. Only one thing matters. W's... the Twins just need to win baseball games. Don't be that horse in the money on the home stretch that fades to 7th in it's last steps.

When Kepler comes back. Right now we are talking about the 15th guy. Come playoff time you will have to tack on one more... the 14th guy to get down to 13. My guess is that platoon will be the driving force in the decision. It would make no sense to not let lefties face lefties consistently and violently all year long and then all of sudden say... OK... Go do it now. Because the Twins have done that all year. Margot and Farmer have become essential. Julien would require an extra Margot/Farmer type guy. Lee doesn't have a job. Miranda... Shouldn't be facing lefties based on his splits but he should be in the lineup against right handers based on his splits. IMO... Miranda gets the last spot on the roster. When does he play? Who comes out?

You have to question the necessity of ranking pizza in North Dakota when the Minot Pizza Hut came in 4th. Grand Forks has some good pizza places. A shout out to Rhombus Guys, Up North, Slap Shot, Deeks and Popolino's.

438 different players across MLB have had at least 100 AB's so far this year. .712 is the league average OPS. From Xavier Edwards at .812 to Mitch Garver at .612 -- 302 of those 438 players currently have an OPS .100 points + or - of the league average. From Garrett Mitchell at .762 to Kyle Manzardo at .662 - 176 of those 438 players currently have an OPS .050 points + or - of the league average. There is a lot of average play on rosters. Slumps are what bring players down to average and Hot streaks bring players up to average. Creating a big big pile in the middle. Hot and Cold streaks stop and start on a dime. Timing is everything. The players you mention are getting a little too prolonged though. Royce is not playing at a superstar level but I think he is a superstar talent and I think there is only a handful of superstars so you got to ride this one out and hope that he corrects himself back to superstar while remaining healthy. Jose Miranda... I think he will get back to swinging the bat well. He goes bad when he starts swinging at everything and he seems to be chasing a bit. Brooks Lee... I like him getting some AB's right now... Getting AB's in 2024 was supposed to happen. Whatever he is right now... he is. I'm not worried about it but also hoping for team health to the point where he doesn't need to be rostered for the playoffs. I'm excited about his future... but was always cautious about his beginning and I am not afraid of youth at all. I think Castro has been over relied upon. I like him... he's a solid member of any roster... I don't want to be negative toward him... he has earned praise... however... we've managed to create a world where he is has become essential and is utilized like he is essential. He is leading the team in AB's by a fairly significant margin... he has regressed to major league average. Alcala... He's got stuff... Bullpen small sample size volatility can be misleading. 18 appearances for a total of 17.2 innings since the all-star break. 13 Earned Runs over that time frame. He hung zeroes in 11 of those 18 appearances. Crooked number in 3 of those appearances for a total of 9 of those 13 runs. The 5 runs against Texas over 0.2 is going to take awhile to overcome for improved statistical optics. He won't have enough time to hang zeroes to make his post all-star break numbers look decent. I still think he can hang a zero when we need him.

Every day is a new day. Whatever happened up from the beginning of the season to September 12th no longer matters. It's a 16 game sprint to the finish line. We currently have 3.5 game head start over the closest competitor behind us. Each win by the Twins and each loss by the Mariners, Tigers and Red Sox is big because it's a sprint now. I'll place extra importance on the Red Sox series but in no way will I diminish the importance of the other 13 games. Buckle Up... This is what I want every single year. I want September to matter and it matters. Hats off to the players, coaches and management for getting us this far. Bring it Home

All 5 places were inside the walls of North Dakota. The other 12 pizza places in North Dakota not included in the list are wondering why.

Feltner vs Skubal... Of course Colorado won. I absolutely love September baseball. In Seattle... Kumar Rocker made his MLB debut. Pulled after 4IP... 74 Pitches. 7 K's... Just a Justin Turner home run for his only blemish. The folks on Rangersdaily are calling for the head of Bruce Bochy for pulling Rocker after 74 pitches. It's debut weekend for the Rangers... Rocker, deGrom and Scherzer is what the Mariners will face in succession. Which is fine... as long as they don't have to face Ryan Feltner. September Baseball... How can you not love it.

Good thread! Thanks for starting this.

I downloaded this news ap on my phone. My intentions were good. I Wanted to be informed if anything major happened. It sends me stuff like "5 best pizza places in North Dakota". I click on it... and it's somebody who listed 5 pizza places in North Dakota. I often wonder what happened to "News" on my newsfeed. It's my fault... I clicked on it.

The Twins trade deadline was disappointing. But... then there is the case of the Tigers. The Twins didn't do anything. The Tigers in regards to 2024 playoff chances was worse than not doing anything. They Sold themselves into contention. The Vets are gone.

When it comes to the trade deadline. I say buyers buy and sellers sell... anything else is standing still. I say it all the time and I will continue to say it in the future because I believe it. Buying at the deadline, hopefully makes you stronger for the playoffs but the main reason you do it, is to supply for the stretch run in order to make the playoffs. You never know what you will need in August and September but you don't want to get get caught short at such a critical time. With that said... There are no guarantees in the sport of baseball. Buying doesn't guarantee success and selling doesn't guarantee tanking. Case in Point - Since August 1. After selling at the trade deadline. The Tigers are 23-14. Just one game behind the Dodgers and D-Back at 24-13 who are tied for best record in MLB since August 1. The Dodgers bought and D-Backs bought - The Tigers Sold. We can also add the Cubs at 23-13 to this mix if we can figure out how to categorize their trade deadline behavior. Which adds another dynamic to this discussion by including the team that did a little bit of both. I have no conclusions but would like to read some thoughts.

Yep Bump Bailey. Roy Hobbs, the greatest baseball player in the world... had to wait for Bump Bailey to actually die before getting playing time opportunity. What chance does Jair Camargo have? One more thought, Couldn't Roy or Bump play LF. Just a little positional flexibility may have saved lives. One more thought... Back in the 30's... they must have made stadium lights out of fireworks. When you strike a bank of lights with a baseball today. Broken Glass falling is all you typically get. The Statcast numbers on that Roy Hobbs home run would have been impressive to reach the light stands while still rising. No matter the exit velocity, launch angle... I'm sure the IBM system that we use to calculate distance today would have said 450 feet.

I can speak from experience. I've tested wall padding multiple times over and over again and I came away injury free every time. Padding works. Through extensive research I can also say without reservation that straightjackets make it real hard to scratch your butt when it itches.

You and I have spoken about your idea of improved wall padding. I honestly think it's an idea that MLB should not only explore but implement. Traditionalists may not like the idea but there is no reason for a brick wall outfield at Wrigley Field. Without a doubt... there are players that exist that will run through a brick wall for their team and fans. However... I've never seen anyone successfully run through a brick wall. Other than the Kool Aid Man.

My Nose Runs Runs win Baseball Games Therefore My Nose wins baseball games.

Throw away the starter label and the bullpen label for the playoffs. In the playoffs... you have 13 pitchers. All hands on deck... utilize as needed. 162 game schedule rules or guidelines do not apply.

It was an enjoyable game to watch yesterday. All of it. Good to see Farmer jump on some pitches. He replaced Lewis in the lineup and did a nice impersonation of what we all want Lewis to be. Farmer has been struggling real hard all year and I've been hard on him as a result. He probably wouldn't be on the roster right now if it was my decision. With that said... I want to point out that he has an OPS of 1.032 the past 30 days. Leads the Team in OPS over the past 30 days. HIs time on the IL seemed to fix some things because he has returned from it looking like a major league player that can help a team win games. I'm not suggesting that injury was the reason for his poor performance or his resurgence because I have no idea if he had any health issues causing him performance issues. Just saying... that he got better when he came of the IL and that is the only clue that I have and that clue means nothing. Credit where credit is due. I have no problem with him getting some increased playing time while he is somewhat locked in. Including against Right Handers. The past is the past. Go with anyone getting the job done.

Time that fancy thing for the playoffs if at all possible. 😉

Starting Pitching health has been good again this year. It's been Two years in a row of above normal health. Knock on Wood that we continue to have comparatively good health on the mound. Or should I say... knock on Woods Richardson that we continue. The Twins have utilized 10 starters this year. Make it 8 really if you take out the two opener starts by Okert and Henriquez. In comparison... the Brewers have utilized 17 different starters to get through the season and they have impressively gotten through the season. The pipeline that has produced SWR, Festa and Matthews is key to the survival of a franchise like the Twins and it's the key to survival for teams like the Brewers. It's Key for the survival of the Dodgers. You can't just pick 5 at the start of the season and survive 162 games. SWR has done a nice job... He has thus far thrown 11 innings more than he threw last year. 3 more starts left for him with 17 games left on the schedule. Projects to maybe 26 to 29 innings over last year. They are supposed to increase work load year after year. Come playoff time... It's all hands on deck. Starters will work out of the pen if necessary. He's got a playoff roster spot at this moment. Let's see how he finishes. I have no reason to doubt him. I will take this opportunity to say this: This is why Buyers Buy at the deadline.