insagt1

thanks guys, I knew SOMEBODY fired their hitting coach! Twins should probably follow suit though. Something has to be shook up.

did I hear the hitting coach was let go? Twins unfortunately caught the O's at the wrong time this past weekend. Taking advantage of the Rays first slump, they pared 4 games off their deficit with some very inspired play against a very uninspired team and are now even in the lost column with TB. O's came off their 5 game losing streak with a 5 game win streak. Thats how its done! Gibson has 'won' 9 games despite some pretty ugly pitching this year. Helps to have some bats bail you out. As for Hicks...he isn't a bad ballplayer. He was pretty abused in NY over the past couple of seasons and he has been re-born in Baltimore. Making major contributions and the clubhouse loves him. Change of scenery was perfect. Returned to NY last week. Yanks gave him a video tribute and the fans booed. Classless response. I have always maintained that every time the Yankees lose a game, an angel gets its wings. Twins definitely need to make major adjustments 2nd half. While their pitching couldn't contain the Orioles, the bigger issue is the dead lineup. They looked OK against KC...but everybody looks good against them. They have a few days off now to try and figure things out.

I really hate MLB jumping all around so many streaming channels you have to pay extra for. One night its Apple+. Another is Peacock. And so it goes. Wish they would stay with one and leave it there. And I will never go for the '7 day or 1 month "free trial". You still have to sign up, give them your credit card and then hope you remember to cancel..and also hope that when you do they haven't already taken a payment that could be hard to get back right away.

Ober was great again...was not rewarded. Mullins with a highlight reel catch against Buck. O's really wanted to win this one and didn't trust anyone to close it out but Bautista, who pitched 2 full innings. O's now just 1 back of TB in the loss column. TB really slumping at the moment. Neither team did much hitting tonite. The pitching was pretty good. (Arraez was 1-4 dropping him to .384..thought he might get to the ASG at .390, but guess not)

We don't have to get into 'the trade' every time he pitches do we? Pablo was magnificent tonite and he was also excellent in his last start. Yeah it was KC, but still complete game shutouts are a thing of the past in MLB...so this one was special. If he can pitch like that 2nd half, Twins will be in business. And suddenly Kepler has rejoined the ballclub! His 'd' and his streaky bat have returned. For now! Twins and O's series will be very interesting. O's finally beat the Evil Empire tonite 6-3. They and Twins are two teams who really need wins right now. Twins to try and stay ahead of Cleveland and O's to try and not waste a great first half and stay in the wildcard race.I wish these teams didn't have to play each other (I'm probably the only one here who has allegiance to both teams since they represented collectively around 60 years of affiliation with Rochester)

Kepler has always been a very streaky hitter. Right now for the last 15 games, he has been one of our best hitters. Wish he could maintain most of that. Buxton is hitting the ball hard. He even stole a base. Sure hope he can keep this up. OTOH, Miranda is not squaring up the ball. Hasn;t had a hit since his return, but his outs have been weakly hit balls, which was his problem earlier in the season. Wonder how long his leash is? There are other options in St. Paul.

k's 'generally not productive?? Try never productive. Ever. Its a wasted out. Yes cue the GIDP argument. But putting the ball in play always gives you a chance for something to happen. If players hit into same number of DP's as k's...there would be a legit argument. Comparing Gallo to Killebrew is just plain not reasonable. How many of Gallo's HR have made a difference? A few maybe but who do you want at the plate with the game on the line, trailing by one run with two outs and a runner on 2nd or 3rd? We said the same thing about Sano. The odd chance he might hit one out is negated by the more likely event he will strikeout. While you realistically would want a power hitter up in that spot, not one who strikes out more than 40% of the time. having said that, Gallo is a hard worker and he tries hard. Can't question his effort at all. And I don't just view his low BA as a huge negative. But he just doesn't make enough contact to see him in the lineup everyday. Still, there is half a season to go and if his bat wins a fair number of games we will applaud of course. The Twins have a roster of players who don't make contact enough. Will that sink them? Maybe. Maybe not. You just don't cavalierly ignore this many k's game in and game out. It's an out that produces nothing. It doesn't move runners. Doesn't score a guy from 3rd with less than 2 outs. It greatly helps the pitcher wiggle out of jams, especially in extra innings where they have to deal with the ghost runner. But all of this is still why we all watch, right? Its baseball. Played everyday. You lose one day 14-3 and win the next 1-0. We cheer and boo. We ride the crest when we win and lament the trough when we lose. Its still a great game and we love to discuss, debate and analyze everything about it. All good!

I have to really wonder if Miranda is going to make it this season. He isn't at all the same guy we watched 2nd half last year. So far since his recall (small sample size I know) he hasn't looked good. It sure would be nice if he could get it back together though. He could add a lot.

Tell Carew or Rose or Ichiro that they didn't contribute majorly to their teams offense. For heavens sake...different players, different teams, different compositions on how to score runs. You are doing everything in your power to try and discredit Arraez's contributions because clearly you are a fan of the longball. I like it too, but I also hate all the k's that often go with. Occasionally a Sano or Gallo will hit a meaningful HR...but like singles hitters, not all HR's are meaningful from game to game. Marlins like Arraez and they are playing winning baseball. Apparently they are content with that. BTW--comparing any player to Acuna Jr this season is sheer folly. Why not also compare with Othani? Players having monster seasons...and yet in the latters case, the team still can't win despite his 31 dingers. Baseball is a team game. They all contribute and you need all kinds of players to do it. Comparing a spray hitter with a power hitter has very little value other than just for fun.

the original article here was written around the middle of May. Since that time Gallo has regressed badly (last couple of games he has perked up a tad with some long balls, but he is still on a pace to strike out minimally 1,000 times this season😅) His value to the Twins from that point in May to the end of June was abysmal. Same timeframe Arraez was cruising towards .400. And Marlins were a team on the upswing. Now I really doubt Arraez will hit .400. I don't doubt he can win the battling title and get 200 hits this season. So far he is at .389 with 36 runs scored and 41 driven in (not bad for a leadoff slap hitter) he has also fanned a grand total of 17 times (which is about what Gallo does in a week or less) OPS is ,922. He has walked 25 times + 8 more intentionally. You never hurt your team overall when you get hits or walks. You rarely ever help your team when you strikeout. Since that May post we now see Gallo with OPS of .798. He has 87 k's in 187 AB's. 27 runs scored and 28 driven in (15 of those driving in himself) His BA is .193 which is only 6 points lower than his career BA of .199. The 'comparison' of those two players has taken a major left turn. FWIW.

I don't agree with the analysis at all. Comparing the 'value' of Arraez vs Gallo is just disingenuous IMO. I agree that if Gallo was offered to Miami for Arraez,,,1000 out of 1000 people would say 'no way' so fast your head would spin. Devaluing Arraez because of his ( at the time) 14 runs scored; and over-valuing Gallo's modest HR total doesn't make any sense. How many rallies has Gallo killed by striking out about once every two AB's? How many rallies does a base hit ever kill? Its a team game and you can't do it all by yourself. Whether the trade was a good one or not will probably be debated until the season ends and see how things shake out. But trying to make us believe that Gallo is more valuable than Arraez just doesn't make sense. They are totally different players with different skills. I think many here are kinda fed up with the homer or nothing approach the Twins lineup brings to the table.

fair enough. I guess we'll have to see. Logic would dictate: Arraez is not going to bat .400 and Lopez won't be winning the Cy Young!!

even the very best closers will miss once in awhile. Bautista was sailing along as he usually does against Cincy last week two outs none on 1 run game...and he inexplicably gives up a tater to a guy who was hitting under .200 and was not a HR hitter (could argue I guess he already had hit one earlier...but the odds of another one against the guy with the best k to IP ratio in baseball were enormous) Blown save. What he usually does is what he did today. Duran has been pretty sharp this season. Today he wasn't sharp. I get the walk to O'Hearn..I think that was semi-intentional all the way...so he could face a raw rookie who may have been impatient to make an impression. I HATE that games are being shown on Peacock. How many streaming services does one have to buy? Moving baseball games around like this stinks.

You kinda knew the Orioles were not going to lose back to back 1-0 games, although they are in a little funk right now. Props to Hicks, who continues to validate the O's taking a chance on him. Major clutch hit. And rookie Westburg for taking one for the team to drive in the winning run. Finally Bautista, who hasn't had a chance to pitch in a few games doing what he has does a lot this season...strike out the side to get the big save. Orioles still have not been swept in a series this year, although they have dumped the last two 1-2. Can find things to complain about on both teams this series. Both teams wasted great pitching. Twins hit well in one game only. O's basically didn't hit at all and got lucky today..although good teams seem to make their own luck. Miranda has been presented with a golden opportunity to earn back a spot on this roster after a terrible start this season. He wasn't very good today, but its just one game. Hope Hays isn't hurt too bad. He has been the O's most consistent hitter all year. Rutschman is sort of in a sophomore slump (based on his immense talent) His BA is in the ,260's (not exactly where the O's expect it to be) and his 'd' has slipped a bit. He is really struggling to throw out base stealers. Despite all that, he's a pretty exciting player.

strategy wise--it was probably the right thing to do. O'Hearn has been hitting well and Westburg is a rookie just called up from AAA Norfolk. While he hit a ton down there, the thought is, he would be over-eager to make a big splash and swing at Duran's good stuff. Getting HBP was a huge bonus for Baltimore..not expected at all..even though Duran was a bit erratic. That Pagan got the 3-2 strikeout to leave the bases full was as close to a modern baseball miracle as it gets!

I am stunned that TWins pulled off a 1-0 win..with the game winning hit from Gallo. O's are suddenly ice cold. their first real slump of the season. Sometimes you catch a good team having a tough time of it and you take advantage. Like what the Twins have done so far in Baltimore. O's hitters looked very Twin-esque these last 2 games. Ober is really starting to impress this season. Hope this is a trend! One sorta nice thing is when your two favorite teams play each other...one favorite team always wins. oh yeah, then there's the other part of that equation.....

So 'the big 4' disappointments had a night! HR's for Buck and Kepler and Gallo and a couple of hits for Correa. I always have mixed feelings when Twins and O's play each other (since I have been an O's fan longer than Twins fan---O's were Red Wings parent for over 40 years, before Twins became the Wings parent) Twins could be catching the O's at low tide pitching-wise. They haven't lost 3 straight too often this season) That being said, it was good to see the bats wake up. Will be interesting to see if O's push back. I don't think they have lost 4 straight this season.

Come on...snarky comments like that (whether intended or not) are beneath your normal solid takes. The article was well written and thoughtful. And yeah, maybe we all need a deep breath and some air cleansing regarding the trade. What we also need is some change in direction. There are a few players who either need to be moved, some to be called up and perhaps some to be sat down for a spell. If Twins FO is serious about winning this year they just can't stay the course anymore. Fans justifiably are frustrated. How many post season GAMES have the Twins lost in a row? Just getting there is not enough anymore.

ok--Mike, its clear you want to defend the Arraez trade (and I don't) so we have a respectful difference of opinion here. Twins THIS SEASON, with a lineup full of free swingers who can't hit the ball would certainly benefit from a guy who does get on base (a lot) and was a sparkplug of sorts while he was a Twin. Twins gambled that they could do better with a starting pitcher (still mostly untested) to bolster their rotation rather than a guy who plays everyday, makes regular contact, won a batting title and was a real fan favorite. That trade, IMHO started the spiral downhill, although we didn't know it at the time maybe because the FO couldn't possibly have known just how badly the remaining hitters were going to perform. That was my humble point. That trade lit the fuse for me. Arraez was not a 'spare part' (although some have tried to make him so by focusing not on his assets but rather his weaknesses) and i dare say probably every team in MLB would happily find a place on their 40 man for him. Is he a 'complete' player? Probably not...but honestly who is these days? Right now, the Twins lineup is broken badly. It is dysfunctional and in need of a major overhaul. And it begins with being able to not strike out over 10 times every single blasted night. He'd look good in our lineup and I wish he were still here. You clearly disagree, but do you disagree just to be disagreeable? To justify the trade? You don't like Arraez? You don't like what I say? For years I have always felt (as do many) that its dangerous to trade an everyday player (let alone a batting champ) for a part time pitcher, unless the pitcher is a bonafide established star. Even then, that pitcher is just one pitch away from TJS these days We can't change what happened last year. But we can this year. And I hope they do make adjustments. The FO has made some miscalculations and they also gambled that the guys they have would be much better than they are. Buxton and Correa have been huge disappointments. Kepler and Gallo have been pretty useless. Vazquez not the guy we hoped for. Kirilloff has lost his power. And so on. One player isn't going to transform this team. But that one trade signaled (for me) a change in direction and philosophy from the Twins FO for 2023. They must have felt they would have a better chance to win without Arraez and with Lopez. We'll see. So far, I'm not impressed, but we'll see. 40-42 isn't where we wanted to be, is it? Would be interesting to take a poll of Twins followers to ask if they would undo that trade, if they could. Or did they agree with it in the first place. Has Arraez 'saved' the Marlins? No, but he clearly has made them better collectively. They are a playoff contender and they are better than the Twins, who are only contending, so far, because of the putrid AL Central. Anyway, my thoughts. For better or worse.☺️

This season began to unravel when they decided to offload their batting champion and the one guy still around that didn't strike out every other AB, for a pitcher who had yet to be an impact 1st or 2nd starter. It was a huge gamble and to date it hasn't worked. Arraez didn't have to hit .400 or even .330 to still have a positive impact on the lineup, with staggering holes. Those who still try to defend this trade by making it sound like Arraez can't play 'd'; is slow afoot, has no power, and wouldn't have a place to play has to admit, there are probably several places in the Twins woeful lineup where he would be a massive upgrade...and lets start at DH, where Buxton is striking out at frightful regularity. At the very least, would Twins fans enjoy watching Arraez hit every day less than seeing Lopez pitch 5 or 6 innings maybe 4 or 5 times a month? Lopez may turn out eventually to be what the Twins thought they were getting, but they gave up too much to roll those dice. But thats water under the bridge. Right now Twins need a flush...a royal flush. They don't need a power hitter. They need guys who can get on base and guys who can make contact to get them home. It would help if some of the key guys would stop having terrible season's too. But all of this has been stated and re-stated. Next up are the Orioles. They are pretty good, but they have huge holes in their pitching, as we just saw in the 3 game series against the surprising Reds. Can the Twins find their bats against the O's; or will the O's struggling pitchers feast on the weak Twins hitters? We'll soon see.

A nothing game. A nothing series. 31 games where they have scored 2 or less. A lineup full of guys who just can't hit the ball.

Buck's AB was pathetic. Swung at 2 pitches way out of the zone. think he went up just saying, 'I'm going to swing at anything no matter where it is.'

Our pitching has been strange this series. HR's did us in game one late. 5 HR's in first 2 innings yesterday so Braves had a huge lead early. that they didn't score again wasn't really necessary. So our pen looked good. Today the pitching was terrific (and oops just gave up a solo HR as I type) but our offense was totally out to lunch.

was thinking the same. There are plenty of candidates for 'worst hitter'..I would put Gallo first on that list. Then Kepler. The booth is making it sound like just 'bad luck'. Maybe..but Twins are so screwed up at the plate, its hard to blame luck of any kind. Kepler leads off..out. Gallo--does he even have a clue where to swing the bat when he's up there? Another 'k'. No where near making contact. Quick inning. Ho hum. Orioles next. Anyone believe Twins will have an easy time with them?

Kirilloff really meant to strike out but he accidentally made incidental contact moving the runner to 2nd. Now, down to business. Another runner in scoring position with less than 2 outs. And the unconventional DP because a Twin had the audacity to actually hit the ball.