Matthew Taylor

The 2021 Minnesota Twins have quickly dug themselves into an unexpected 8-15 hole. While there are plenty of reasons to feel down about this team, there are plenty of reasons to feel hopeful.1. The Minnesota Twins have the unluckiest record in baseball While the Minnesota Twins have gotten off to a miserable 8-15 start, they have also been extremely unlucky. The unluckiest team in baseball, in fact. According to pythagorean win/loss which is the expected record for a baseball team based on their run differential, the Minnesota Twins should be an 11-12 team and just 2.5 GB of the division lead. The 3 game difference between the Twins’ actual win/loss and their expected win/loss is the largest in baseball. The luckiest team in baseball thus far? The AL Central leading Kansas City Royals. The biggest reason for this discrepancy between expected and actual win/loss for the Minnesota Twins has been their miserable performance in one-run games. Typically one-run games are coin flips in baseball, but thus far the Twins have been 2-6 in one run games and an unfathomable 0-5 in extra inning games. While much of that poor performance can be equated to what has been a poor bullpen, a lot of it can also be equated to bad luck, and bad luck that you would expect to regress back to the mean over the course of a 162-game season. 2. The Minnesota Twins are hitting the ball extremely hard Only the Atlanta Braves and the Toronto Blue Jays have a higher average exit velocity than the Minnesota Twins who on average are hitting the ball at 90 MPH. What has hurt the Twins up to this point has been the lack of launch angle that they are putting on the baseball. While each of the past four seasons, the Twins have finished in the top three in all of baseball in average launch angle, to this point in the season the Twins are 20th in Major League Baseball in average launch angle. With the bat speed already there, as soon as the Twins start hitting the ball up a bit more, the extra base hits and bombas should follow. 3. The Minnesota Twins’ batted balls are not finding holes If it seems like many hard hit balls are not finding holes for the Minnesota Twins up to this point in the season it’s because they aren’t. In fact, the Minnesota Twins have the third largest differential in the American League between expected slugging percentage (.488) and actual slugging percentage (.409). This is another statistic that one can assume will even out over the course of a 162-game season and all of those holes that the Twins have failed to find to this point will soon turn into seeing-eye singles and doubles down the line. 4. The Minnesota Twins are finally past their COVID-19 Issues With the report that Max Kepler and Kyle Garlick have cleared COVID-19 protocols, the Minnesota Twins appear to finally be out of the woods with the COVID-19 virus that has spread through their locker room over the past two weeks *knock on wood*. Because of their mini outbreak the Minnesota Twins were without Kepler, Garlick and Simmons for a prolonged period of time and have been forced to rely heavily upon guys like JT Riddle and Willians Astudillo. The virus issues have eaten into the Twins depth a ton and has crippled them greatly over the course of their losing skid. With Kepler and Garlick re-joining the team this weekend, the Twins should hopefully be back at full strength for the first time this season. 5. The Minnesota Twins have yet to play the top two teams in their division In any given season, what typically decides the division winner is the team that performs the best against their top competition in the division. In the case of the Minnesota Twins, they still have yet to play the Chicago White Sox and just this weekend are starting competition against the Kansas City Royals. The Twins find themselves in a deficit in the American League Central, but there is no quicker way for them to make up ground than to perform well against the best. 6. The Season is only 14% over While many of our brains are still used to the 60-game sprint of 2020, we are back into the marathon that is a 162-game season, and the Minnesota Twins have only played 21 of those 162 games, or 14%. The start of the year has not gone the way that anyone has wanted, but there is ample time for them to make up ground. The season is extremely young, and time is on the side of the two-time reigning American League Central champions. What other reasons can you think of for reasons to have hope in the Minnesota Twins? Leave a comment below and start the conversation? 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 suffered one of the most discouraging losses you are ever going to see on Wednesday afternoon. There is plenty of blame to go around for what happened, but the Minnesota Twins’ skipper deserves some of it.The Minnesota Twins again suffered a loss in a game in which they were in a prime position to win. Kenta Maeda had an uncharacteristically rough start, the bottom of the Twins’ order was inept, and the defense failed to convert routine plays. Additionally, though, Rocco Baldelli made some questionable decisions that contributed greatly to the Twins losing Wednesday’s series finale in Oakland. Let’s dive into the three head scratching moves. Questionable Move #1: Letting Alexander Colomé Throw 49 Pitches Though he had been shaky to start the season, bringing in Alexander Colomé in the ninth inning for the save was the clear move for Rocco Baldelli. Colomé was signed to the club to close out games and was the last high-leverage arm that Baldelli had remaining in his bullpen. Even bringing Colomé back in the 10th inning was defendable. Although he blew the save, Colomé threw 19 pitches in the ninth inning, and two right handed hitters were due up in the 10th for Oakland with the Twins owning a two-run lead. The problem with Rocco’s decision-making was just how long he allowed Colomé to stay in the game in the 10th. After Colomé got the first two righties to make outs in the 10th inning, left hander Seth Brown was due up with Colomé now at 29 pitches. After cruising through the first two batters, Colomé began to show some clear signs of tiring, throwing a five-pitch walk to Brown to put the tying run on base. Left in to face Elvis Andrus, Colomé, clearly exhausted, walked his second straight batter to load up the bases. After not having walked a batter all season, Colomé just walked two consecutive batters and was now at 40 pitches. Although ineffective and running on total fumes, Baldelli inexplicably left Colomé in the game with the bases loaded to face Matt Chapman, arguably Oakland’s best hitter. At this point Colomé was now throwing the most pitches he had thrown in an appearance since 2015 (!!) when he was still a starting pitcher. In Devin Smeltzer and Jorge Alcala, Baldelli may not have had the greatest options remaining in the bullpen, but it was clear to everyone that Colomé was tiring quickly and that a lesser name would give the Twins a better chance at that point than Colomé throwing a pitch count that he hadn’t thrown since Barack Obama left office. Colomé was clearly going to be in the game until the end, and while he did produce grounders that should have turned into outs, the reckless handling of allowing a tired Colomé to walk the bases loaded and continue facing the heart of the Oakland order was inexcusable. Questionable Move #2: Pinch Running Travis Blankenhorn for Josh Donaldson Heading into the top of the 10th inning with the “Runner on second” rule in effect, Rocco Baldelli made the questionable move to swap out his Gold Glove-winning third baseman in favor of utilityman Travis Blankenhorn as a pinch runner. This move was questionable from the jump as Blankenhorn, a well-built corner position fielder, is not exactly the fleetest of foot and is only marginally faster than Josh Donaldson on the basepaths. If a play occurred where there was a blooper into the outfield and Blankenhorn were to need to score on a bang-bang play at the plate, then any speed advantage you can get on the basepaths is an advantage. Majority of the time, though, that runner on second will score in a different manner, and one where a very marginal difference in speed isn’t going to make a huge difference. That runner on second could score easily on a double in the gap. Or on a couple of sacrifices. Or a home run (like was the case on Wednesday). Or potentially not even get a chance to score at all. There were so many variables at play that substituting a pinch runner in that spot for a very minimal gain in speed was not worth the subsequent consequence of taking Donaldson’s glove out of the game for the bottom half of the inning with a pitch-to-contact pitcher on the mound and plenty of ground balls incoming. While it didn’t come to fruition, the swap also removed Donaldson’s bat for a potential later inning, should extras have continued past the 10th inning. The decision came back to haunt the Twins in a big way, too, as the domino effect of Josh Donaldson’s removal from the game caused two new players to enter the field on defense, each of them making consecutive errors that caused three runs and lost the Twins the ballgame. Which leads to questionable decision number three... Questionable Decision #3: Moving Luis Arraez to Third Base and Putting Blankenhorn at Second Rather than making the clean swap with putting Travis Blankenhorn in the field at third base for the bottom of the 10th, Baldelli decided to completely mix up the defensive alignment in extra innings by moving Luis Arraez to third base and slotting Travis Blankenhorn in at second. This now put the Twins in a situation where they were not only without their Gold Glove third baseman, but they had two defensive players playing in a totally new position that day, one of them completely cold, in a high leverage situation with a tiring pitch-to-contact player on the mound. This decision reared its ugly head quickly as Blankenhorn botched a ground ball to second base to allow one run to score before Luis Arraez made a throwing error on the next at-bat to allow the tying and winning runs to score. Sure, Major League Baseball players should convert those plays 95% of the time, but in a high leverage situation with all of the pressure in the world, a manager is not setting up his team for the best chance at success by taking out his Gold Glove veteran in favor of two young, stretched defensive players. Rocco Baldelli was not the only reason that the Minnesota Twins lost to the Oakland Athletics on Wendesday afternoon. Baldelli is still the best manager for this ballclub, and better days and decisions are ahead. He did make some poor decisions, though, that contributed to the Twins losing Wednesday’s ball game, and does deserve some of the criticism for those decisions. What did you think of Rocco Baldelli’s decision-making on Wednesday afternoon? Were there any other questionable decisions that stuck out to you? Leave a comment below and start the conversation! 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

After an impressive rookie debut in 2020, Ryan Jeffers has had a slow start to the 2021 campaign. Is Jeffers experiencing a sophomore slump, or are the Minnesota Twins setting up Ryan Jeffers to fail?Ryan Jeffers burst onto the scene with the Minnesota Twins after getting called up in August of last season to fill in for an injured Mitch Garver. In 26 games in 2020, Jeffers posted an OPS of .791, demonstrating hard-hit ability as well as patience at the plate. Jeffers was equally impressive behind the plate, where he quickly became a defensive savant, ending the season in the 90th percentile in all of baseball in pitch framing. Through the first handful of games in the 2021 campaign, Ryan Jeffers has had a quiet start at the plate. Through the first two weeks of the season, Jeffers has collected just four hits and is slugging a mere .190. Of course, these numbers come from a minuscule sample size of just 19 plate appearances and, while no true conclusions can be gained from these numbers, the usage plan for Rocco Baldelli’s catchers has been made crystal clear — one day on, one day off, but Mitch Garver gets to hit against lefties. Through the first 13 games of the 2021 season, the Minnesota Twins have faced four left-handed starting pitchers, and Mitch Garver has gotten the start in all four of those games. The reasoning for this is obvious, Mitch Garver destroys left-handed pitching. In the 2019 season, Garver posted a 1.170 OPS against southpaws, absolutely destroying every left handed pitcher he saw. The adverse effect that this is causing, though, is that it is leaving Ryan Jeffers in the position where he is strictly facing right-handed pitching in every game in which he appears. While Jeffers has been successful against righties up to this point in his career, nearly every baseball player is going to struggle more against same-handed pitchers than if they had a platoon advantage. Additionally, Mitch Garver simply hasn’t been that same hitter, even against lefties, since the 2019 season came to an end. Since the beginning of 2020, Garver has posted a .761 OPS against southpaws. While we have already seen what Garver’s ceiling against lefties has been, just how much leash can he have while not exactly destroying the ball, especially when it is coming at the expense of Ryan Jeffers getting advantageous batting matchups? When the Minnesota Twins made the decision to move from the traditional righty/lefty catchers split in favor of their two right handed mashers, the question of how the playing time would be divided was a big one. In the early going the Twins have clearly made that decision and it has resulted in Ryan Jeffers getting 4x the number of his plate appearances against righties rather than lefties. If Mitch Garver can get back to his mashing ways against lefties, the decision will pay off, but if he continues his marginal hitting against the opposite handed pitchers, Rocco Baldelli will need to adapt quickly and adjust his catching plan. Garver is 30-years-old and hasn’t looked impressive at the plate in 18 months, while Ryan Jeffers is 23-years-old and slated to be the catcher of the future for the Twins for the next 6+ seasons. It might be time to start setting up Ryan Jeffers to succeed. What has been your impression of the Minnesota Twins catching split to start the season? Do you think that Ryan Jeffers has been set up to fail? Leave a comment below and start the conversation! 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

Max Kepler ended an ugly homestand on a high note by delivering a walk-off hit to snap the Twins' five-game skid. Read more about the game in today’s recap.Box Score Pineda: 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K Home Runs: Sanó (2) Top 3 WPA: Pineda .392, Arraez .280, Kepler .231 Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs): Download attachment: chart.png After a string of miserable performances with runners in scoring position, the Minnesota Twins got the scoring started with a key bases loaded, two out hit from Luis Arraez in the second inning to give the Minnesota Twins a 2-0 lead in the second inning. Then, after the Twins’ offense failed to get anything going in the next three innings, Miguel Sanó tacked on another run for the Twins with a much-needed solo shot into the upper deck of left field in the bottom of the sixth inning to push the Twins lead to three runs. On the mound, Michael Pineda had arguably his best start as a member of the Minnesota Twins. Pineda pitched seven innings, allowing just two hits, zero runs and striking out six. Pineda allowed a leadoff hit in the first inning, not allowing another hit in the game until the top of the seventh inning. Pineda was solid throughout the game, never sensing any trouble and cruising through seven innings while only throwing 88 pitches. In a controversial move, Baldelli opted to remove Pineda from the game before the eighth inning to prevent his starter from facing the Red Sox lineup for a third time, and instead turn the game over to Hansel Robles. Robles, who had been nearly perfect for the Minnesota Twins over his first two weeks on the team couldn’t find the strike zone at all and proceeded to load the bases on two walks and a hit batter. With two outs, the bases loaded and left hander Alex Verdugo at the plate, Rocco called on southpaw Taylor Rogers who was unsuccessful, allowing Verdugo to smack a bases-clearing double to tie the game. After Alexander Colomé navigated his way through the top of the ninth inning, the Minnesota Twins moved into the bottom of the ninth, where their offense has been completely non-existent over the first two weeks of the season. Today, though, the Twins offense produced in a clutch spot, with Arraez hitting a leadoff single, followed by a Polanco HBP, before Max Kepler walked off the Boston Red Sox for the third time in his young career with a single that scored Luis Arraez, avoiding a sweep and and ending the Twins’ five-game losing skid. Miguel Sanó is Finding His Groove It was a miserable first two weeks of the season for Miguel Sanó, who prior to this game was slashing .079/.271/.158, but the first baseman showed some real signs today that he might be turning things around. Sanó showed excellent patience and discipline today, walking twice as well as hitting his second home run of the season, a 107.3 MPH missile. Sanó’s on-base percentage is now up to .308 and trending towards his average mark of .331. Arraez’s Big Day Luis Arraez had another monster day at the ballpark, going 4-for-5 with two RBI and scoring the winning run, all the while playing three different positions in the field. The Twins got a good one. What’s Next After a 2-5 homestand for the Minnesota Twins, the team will head out west for a six-game west coast road trip where they will play three games against the Angels (7-5) and three against the Athletics (5-7). After the game, manager Rocco Baldelli announced that RP Shaun Anderson has been optioned to the alternate site and Lewis Thorpe has been recalled and will start for the Minnesota Twins on Friday in Los Angeles. Postgame With Baldelli Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet Click here to see the bullpen usage over the past five days (link opens a Google Sheet). Click here to view the article

The Twins hit three home runs, including Byron Buxton’s fourth of the season, in a dominant performance in their home opener Thursday. It was the first time Target Field hosted fans in 549 days. Much more on the game in today’s recap.Box Score Berríos: 5.2 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 8 K Home Runs: Garver (2), Buxton (4), Arraez (1) Top 3 WPA: Garver .148, Berríos .141, Garlick .122 Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs): Download attachment: chart.png After a 2020 season in which the Twins struggled to get anything together against left-handed pitching, the Minnesota Twins exploded against southpaw Marco Gonzales on Thursday afternoon. The scoring parade started for the Twins in the third inning when Kyle Garlick drove in the first run of the day on an RBI single. Then three batters later with two runners on, Mitch Garver connected on a 2-2 changeup off Marco Gonzales to hit his second home run of the 2021 season. The Garver home run was just the beginning for the Twins offense as two innings later Byron Buxton continued his scorching hot start to the season, hitting his fourth home run of the 2021 season on a towering 435-foot home run to the left field upper deck in the fifth inning. The Twins pushed across two more runs in the fifth inning and one in the sixth before Luis Arraez pushed the Minnesota Twins into double digits in the run column for the second time this season with his first home run of the 2021 season in the seventh inning. On the pitching side for the Minnesota Twins, José Berríos got the start for the home opener at Target Field. Berríos wasn’t as sharp as his start on Saturday, but still got credited with a win on a solid outing, allowing just two runs in 5 2/3 innings while striking out eight. Berríos struggled with his command, allowing 3 free passes, but was able to get key strikeouts when he needed them and limited himself to damage on a RBI single in the third and a José Marmolejos home run in the sixth. Home Opener Excitement Today’s home opener was arguably the most exciting one in team history as it was the first time in over a year that fans were able to cheer on their home team Minnesota Twins. It was a sellout crowd for the hometown faithful of 9,675 and they had plenty to cheer about. Max Kepler Removed From Game After reaching base on an infield single in the bottom of the sixth inning, Max Kepler was removed from the game with what appeared to be some leg discomfort. It appeared that the injury wasn’t serious and was precautionary, but more information will be coming out to confirm. Byron Buxton ... MVP? It was another incredible game in an unbelievable start to the season for Byron Buxton who went 3-for-5 with a home run and just a triple shy of the cycle. After today’s performance, Buxton’s slash line is now up to .421/.476/1.211. Now finally getting the chance to play in front of fans at Target Field, Buxton received “M-V-P” chants. It’s much too early for any MVP discussion, but after so many years of theoretical potential, it’s so refreshing to watch Byron Buxton put it all together at the plate as well as in the field. Postgame With Baldelli Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet Download attachment: bullpen.png What were your thoughts on today’s game? How confident do you feel about the prospect of this team moving forward? Did you attend today’s game? Leave a comment below and start the conversation! 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

After a rough string of injuries to open the season, the Minnesota Twins have needed to dip into their depth. They may have unearthed a player who is ready to contribute.When Josh Donaldson was injured on his first plate appearance of the 2021 season, it suddenly shifted the entire plan for the Minnesota Twins roster. Suddenly Luis Arraez was thrust into an everyday role leaving behind a hole in the utility spot for the Twins. Enter La Tortuga. Now as the lone utilityman on the Minnesota Twins roster, Willians Astudillo was called to fill in mid-game for Luis Arraez on Monday afternoon, before starting at 3rd base on Tuesday. Since getting real playing time, Astudillo has appeared locked in at the plate. The utilityman went 3-for-4 with two doubles on Monday before backing it up with a 2-for-4 performance on Tuesday. Astudillo has racked up hits with some oomf, too, connecting with 3 balls deemed as “hard hits” of 95+ MPH, including two of them over 107 MPH. Where there is always the most hesitation with Astudillo comes in the field, as he is able to play a multitude of positions, however you really aren’t super comfortable with him playing most of those positions. To this point, Astudillo has primarily played at third base, which suits his game well as 3rd base doesn’t require as much range as some of the other positions. Thus far, Tortuga has more than held his own at the hot corner, making the plays that he should make up to this point, and yet to look over-matched. Further, Astudillo’s ability to play catcher has allowed Rocco Baldelli the flexibility to use his catchers as pinch hitters on Monday and Tuesday, knowing that he has a third catcher he can utilize in a pinch, if needed. Willians Astudillo burst onto the scene with the Minnesota Twins in 2018 as a July call-up, slashing .355/.371/.516 in 29 games. In the 66 games in which he has appeared since, though, Astudillo has posted an OPS of just .684. Astudillo has shown that he can make contact with the best of them, however his lack of patience at the plate has consistently prohibited him from putting together quality at-bats and capitalizing on pitches that he can drive. As a result, Astudillo was no slam-dunk to make the roster. Through his first handful of at bats in 2021, the Venezuelan utilityman has found pitches he can drive and shown the pop that he possesses when he gets pitches in the zone. As with any article written 5 days into the baseball season, small samples are extremely dangerous to put any stock into. The very, very initial returns on Willians Astudillo at the plate, though, have been promising. Championship teams are built on depth, and while at full strength the Minnesota Twins will not need Astudillo, the first week of the season has shown us just how important depth can be. What has been your first impression of Willians Astudillo in 2021? Do you think he could come into play as a key depth piece for the Minnesota Twins? Leave a comment below and start the conversation! 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

Josh Donaldson was forced to exit Thursday’s game following what was called a pulled hamstring. While we do not yet know the severity of the injury or how much time (if any) the former MVP will miss, let’s look at potential replacements.Opening Day for the Minnesota Twins reminded us just how real the risk of injury is in baseball each and every day. On just the second at-bat of the game, Josh Donaldson pulled his hamstring rounding first base and was forced to leave a 0-0 ballgame. After the game, manager Rocco Baldelli didn’t give out too much information regarding the severity of Donaldson’s injury saying, “Obviously there has to be some concern, but we’ll wait and see until we know a bit more to comment further.” While we do not yet know if Josh Donaldson will go to the injured list or not, it’s clear that a contingency plan needs to be in place. Let’s look at the four minor league call-up options should Josh Donaldson land on the injured list. Brent Rooker When Brent Rooker was surprisingly left off of the Opening Day roster, the primary reason given was that Baldelli did not want Rooker to be up with the Twins if he was not going to get every-day at bats. If Donaldson were to hit the injured list, and Luis Arráez were converted over to be the every-day third baseman, there would be a full-time opening at left field, with Jake Cave then able to act in his usual fourth outfielder role. Brent Rooker has always had the bat to compete in the Major Leagues, however his outfield glove is a major question mark. Additionally, with Kyle Garlick already up with the Big League club, Rooker’s right-handed power bat would be a bit redundant. Alex Kirilloff The controversial decision to start Alex Kirilloff at the alternate site was similarly made with the primary reason being that Kirilloff would need to get consistent work. A decision that fans were largely disappointed by, could be corrected here, calling up Kirilloff to cover the void in left field caused by Donaldson’s injury. This decision would cause Alex Kirilloff’s service time clock to start earlier than ownership may like, and his readiness for the Majors is still a question mark after his troublesome Spring. Extra Infielder Calling up a fifth outfielder to replace an injured infielder might not make the most sense. Calling up a replacement infielder for Donaldson, might be the most prudent decision as currently, Willians Astudillo would be the only backup infielder on the roster. Under this line of thinking, infielders Travis Blankenhorn, JT Riddle or Tzu-Wei Lin would give the Twins more defensive flexibility and allow them to not need to rely as heavily on La Tortuga as a backup infielder. Of the three mentioned infielders, Blankenhorn is the only one currently on the 40-man roster. One other option would be Nick Gordon, who is also on the 40-man roster, but it’s not totally clear how Major League ready he is at this time. Extra Reliever The final option for the Twins would be to not call up another bat, but instead call up an extra arm for Josh Donaldson’s roster spot, should he hit the IL. Heading into the season, some thought that the Twins should roster 14 pitchers, however they opted for 13. With this injury, the Twins could bring up another reliever such as Shaun Anderson or Lewis Thorpe who are both on the 40-man roster. The Twins could then roll with Arráez as the everyday third baseman, a Garlick/Cave platoon and left field, with Astudillo filling in as the utilityman across the diamond. This option would give the Twins much more flexibility with their pitchers in a season in which pitchers will need to be handled with care, however having Astudillo as the lone utilityman isn’t the most ideal option. Which call-up option do you think the Twins should go with should Josh Donaldson be forced to go on the injured list? Is there a fifth option not mentioned above? Leave a comment below and start the conversation! 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 blew a 5-2 lead in the ninth inning and lost in extras. The game got off to an ominous start, as Josh Donaldson suffered a hamstring injury in the top of the first inning. Read all about it in today’s game recap.Box Score Maeda: 4.1 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K Home Runs: Buxton (1) Bottom 3 WPA: Colome -.455, Dobnak -.355, Garver -.104 Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs): Download attachment: chart.png In an emotional roller coaster of an opener for Minnesota Twins fans, the coaster ended in a valley as the Minnesota Twins blew a three-run ninth inning lead and lost in extra innings to their border rivals. Let’s take a ride: Kenta Maeda had a solid, yet not spectacular start for the Minnesota Twins as the Opening Day starter. While he only allowed one earned run, Maeda was only able to go 4 1/3 innings and allowed six hits, two walks and a hit batter over his start. Maeda flirted with trouble throughout his start, stranding a total of seven batters in the four complete innings that he pitched. The right hander did show increased velocity, tossing his fastball at an average of 92.8 MPH, 1.2 MPH above his average in 2020. At the plate, the Minnesota Twins kicked off the scoring with two runs in the third inning on a Woodruff wild pitch and a Max Kepler RBI single. After trading runs in the middle innings, the game seemed like it was sealed in the seventh inning when Byron Buxton blasted a 114 MPH two-run home run into left-center field. This gave the Minnesota Twins a three-run lead with Rogers, Robles and Colomé set to close out the game. After two perfect innings from Taylor Rogers and Hansel Robles in the seventh and eighth innings, newly acquired Alex Colomé gifted the game away by allowing two hits, a hit batter and three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to force extra innings where the Brewers walked off the Twins on a walk-off single by Avisail Garcia to give the Brewers a 6-5 victory. Donaldson Injury While a loss is never fun, the most important development from Opening Day was the injury to Josh Donaldson. Donaldson injured his leg in the top of the first inning running to second base on a double. At first glance, it appeared that Josh Donaldson re-injured the calf that has plagued him throughout his career. As more information came out, though, it was revealed that the injury was a hamstring pull. We still don’t know the severity of the injury or how much (if any) time Donaldson will miss, but after an injury-riddled 2020, this is just about the worst way to begin the 2021 season for the former MVP. Rocco Baldelli indicated that the team would re-evaluate Josh Donaldson tomorrow on the team’s off day. Poor Defense While defense was a priority in the offseason for the Minnesota Twins, Opening Day was not the best showcase of their gloves. The Minnesota Twins made two official errors with a third error not being officially called as such. The first error came in the fifth inning from newly-acquired shortstop, Andrelton Simmons. Simmons dropped a Miguel Sanó throw that should have been a double play. That runner later went on to score in the inning. The second error of the game came from Alex Colomé when he tried throwing out the lead runner at second base rather than taking the easy out at first in the ninth inning. Additionally in the ninth inning, Max Kepler dropped a fly ball off the bat of Christian Yelich in right field that should have been out number two, but instead turned into a run-scoring single. Better days will surely be ahead for the Minnesota Twins defense, but it was disappointing watching a unit that was supposed to be a strength struggle so much. Big Day for Max Kepler After a miserable Spring Training in which he went 3-for-43, Kepler matched his Spring hit total in today’s opener, going 3-for-5 and just a home run short of hitting for the cycle. Kepler is in a prove-it year in 2021 after a down season in 2020 and is already showing that his Spring struggles are behind him and he is primed for a bounce-back season this year. Up Next The Minnesota Twins have an off-day tomorrow before facing off against Milwaukee again on Saturday where José Berríos will make his season debut. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet Download attachment: Bullpen.png 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

Injuries and suspension have kept Michael Pineda from putting together a full campaign since coming to Minnesota. With those issues behind him, Michael Pineda is primed for a big 2021 season.When the Minnesota Twins acquired Michael Pineda in 2018, he was entering into a season of recovery from Tommy John surgery, due to miss the entire season. In 2019, coming off of his recovery, Pineda was a revelation for the Minnesota Twins, arguably performing as the team’s best pitcher down the stretch of the season. In a 14-start stretch from June 13 to Sept. 6, Pineda posted a 2.96 ERA, allowing opponents to hit just .234. Unfortunately for the Twins, his momentum was halted when he was suspended in September for the use of a diuretic and his season ended, keeping Big Mike from pitching in the 2019 postseason. Last season, the breakout for Pineda again didn’t happen. Though the 2020 season was shortened by nearly two-thirds, the remainder of Pineda’s suspension was not, and he was forced to miss a much greater proportion of the 2020 season than if the season were its regular 162-game length. As a result, Pineda was only able to start five regular season games for the Minnesota Twins in 2020 and was again unable to pitch in the postseason as the Twins were knocked out after just two games. While he has not been a pitcher who throws big time velocity or misses lots of bats, Pineda has been the king of consistency for the Twins by limiting walks, eating innings and avoiding disaster. In his 31 starts since coming to the Minnesota Twins, Pineda has allowed more than four runs in an appearance just three times, and just once in his last 25 starts. While he has done it quietly, Pineda has produced excellent numbers in addition to providing consistency — since July 1, 2019, Pineda owns an ERA of just 3.03. Now heading into the 2021 season, Big Mike is healthy and free from the need to serve any suspension handed down by Major League Baseball. Pineda has the opportunity to put up an entire season’s worth of production and will hopefully be afforded the opportunity to pitch in the postseason for the first time in his career. Pineda will benefit from being in the shadow of Kenta Maeda and José Berríos as the team’s #3 pitcher, and free from the lofty expectations given to his starting counterparts. The Minnesota Twins have an incredibly deep pitching staff with potential aces at the top and promising prospects hoping to get a chance down the roster. In the middle, though, is maybe the most consistent and underrated starter of all. Could 2021 be the season that Michael Pineda puts it all together? Don’t sleep on Big Mike. What are your expectations for Michael Pineda heading into the 2021 season? Do you think he’s primed for a breakout? Leave a comment below and start the conversation! 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

Tuesday marked the first day of full-squad camp for the Minnesota Twins in Fort Myers. On their first day the Twins announced another signing, a new voice was announced to be joining the TV booth, and Josh Donaldson showed off some dance moves.Though many members of the team arrived at Hammond Stadium last week, today marked the first day of full-squad workouts — signifying that Spring Training is officially here. There were stretching sessions, infield drills, and live batting practices. Baseball is back, baby. Let’s dig into everything that happened in Twins Territory in today’s notebook: Twins sign Utilityman, Andrew Romine to Minor League Deal The Minnesota Twins announced this morning that they have signed 35-year old utilityman, Andrew Romine, to a minor league contract. Romine joined the club today in Fort Myers. In his 10 year Major League career, Romine has spent time with the Angels, Tigers, Mariners and Rangers, spending time all over the diamond in the field. In fact, in 2017 Romine became just the fifth player in Major League history to play all 9 positions in a single game. With a career OPS south of .600, Romine doesn’t figure to make the big league club out of camp, but should provide some flexible depth in AAA St. Paul. Twins Release Spring Training Broadcast Schedule There will be plenty of opportunity for fans to follow the Minnesota Twins this Spring, as the Twins announced today that 13 of their 19 Spring Training games will be televised on Fox Sports North, with an additional 3 games being broadcast on the radio. Perhaps the biggest surprise of the announcement, though, was that former Twins Cy Young Award winner, Johan Santana, would be making his debut in the booth. On March 26, Santana will act as the co-color commentator with LaTroy Hawkins on March 26, while acting as the lone color commentator alongside Dick Bremer on March 27. Majority of the Spring Training games will pull in the audio from the radio feed of Kris Atteberry, Dan Gladden and Cory Provus. The Bringer of Dance Moves Filed under the category of “things you love to see” was a video sent out by Minnesota Twins Communications Director, Dustin Morse, of Josh Donaldson dancing during morning workouts. Donaldson didn’t know he was being filmed until he turned around and saw Dustin standing there with his phone. Based on the slick dance moves, it appears Donaldson’s calves are in great shape. Baldelli Feeling Optimistic In his introductory press conference, Rocco Baldelli didn’t shy away from the expectations that he is placing on the 2021 Minnesota Twins team. According to the manager, “We again have everything we could possibly want to go out there and win a World Series frankly.” It’s a long season, but setting clear goals and expectations for the team and fans alike sets the tone for what’s truly a World Series-contending season. Hammond Stadium COVID-19 Precautions In addition to Tuesday being the first full-squad day at Hammond Stadium, it was also the first time that the media was in attendance for Spring Training. One nugget that came out of this was a look into how Hammond Stadium will handle fans in attendance. With zip tied seats and drawn rectangles enforcing social distancing, it’s clear that the Minnesota Twins will be doing everything they can to provide a safe return for fans to the stadium. Expect the same precautions to be followed at Target Field this Spring when fans return as well. See Also: The Twins Should Make Alex Kirilloff the Opening Day Left Fielder Twins Daily 2021 Top Prospects: #3 Trevor Larnach AL Central Rundown: Left Field 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

It was an eventful day in Minnesota Twins Territory after the signing of Alex Colomé. What’s next? Which former Twins pitcher ripped the team's signings today? Find out in today’s Twins Daily Notebook.Twins Sign Colomé The biggest news item of the day today was the Minnesota Twins signing former Chicago White Sox closer, Alex Colomé to a one-year, $5M deal with a mutual option for a second year. Minnesota Twins fans were all over Twitter voicing their excitement for the move, such as Twins Daily writer, Ted Schwerzler, who gave the Twins an “A” for their offseason after adding the right hander: Be sure to check out Twins Daily’s story on the Alex Colomé signing and watch the Offseason Live show with Nick Nelson, David Youngs and myself when we broke down the signing and discussed much more. What’s Next? After making two giant additions in Nelson Cruz and Alex Colomé, the thing that all Twins fans want to know is ... what’s next? Currently the Twins have ~$125M in committed salaries, right around the payroll that we expected them to have heading into the season. Are the Twins done making moves or should they sign someone else? Darren Wolfson says that they are done making splashes, but potentially the door could still be open to bring back Jake Odorizzi. Dan Hayes thinks they still have some payroll to play with to add a reliever and potentially a fifth starter What moves would you like to see the Twins make next? Selling Point for Nelson Cruz Re-Signing with Minnesota was ... the Food? While the $13M and the comfort with Minnesota was enticing for Nelson Cruz, the final selling point in bringing back Cruz ended up being the Twins adding Cruz’s personal chef to the gameday staff. Maybe the Twins can add Jake Odorizzi’s butler to the gameday staff and lockdown a deal with the former Twins right hander as well? Former Minnesota Twins Pitcher Slams Minnesota’s Offseason Additions Casey Fien pitched out of the bullpen for the Minnesota Twins from 2012-16 before being DFA’d by the Twins in May of 2016. Fien fired off a few different tweets criticizing the Twins today, most notably this tweet calling out the Twins for signing players who were suspended for performance enhancing drugs. Evidently Casey Fien did not leave the Twins on great terms and has burned some bridges since leaving Minnesota. Joakim Soria Signs with Arizona Prior to signing Alex Colomé, many thought that Oakland A’s reliever, Joakim Soria, could have been a good fit for the Twins. It was announced today that Soria signed a one-year deal for ~$4M. Though the Twins had some interest in Soria, the right hander was committed to signing with the D-Backs. Twins Get Approval for Fans at Spring Training We heard there was a good chance that there would be Twins fans able to attend Spring Training games this year, now we have confirmation as Seth Kaplan confirmed that Hammond Stadium will be at 28% capacity for Spring Training for the Twins. Depending on how things go, that could be a primer for limited capacity games at Target Field this summer. SEE ALSO 2021 Winter Meltdown Pint Glasses on Sale Now Did Nelson Cruz Start To Decline at the End of 2020? BREAKING: Twins Agree with DH Nelson Cruz on One-Year Deal Click here to view the article

You may have missed out on investing in GameStop or AMC over the past week, but there are three Minnesota Twins players worth investing in right now, while their values are at their lowest.Over the past week the stock market has dominated the national conversation and terms like “hedge fund” and “short squeeze” have entered the mainstream vocabulary. While many of the skyrocketing stocks on the market have already reached their peaks, there are three Minnesota Twins players worth investing in right now. These players' values are at their lowest, but figure to be in for big years in 2021. Buy now and ride these players to the moon! Randy Dobnak Randy Dobnak had an excellent start to the 2020 season, posting a 1.78 ERA through his first six starts and looking like a real piece in the Minnesota Twins rotation. The wheels started to fall off for Dobnak, though, as he posted an ERA of 8.27 over his next four starts and was eventually removed from the Minnesota Twins rotation. Though 2020 ended on a sour note for the right hander, his arrow is pointing up for the 2021 season as a result of the offseason changes made by the Minnesota Twins and the all-world infield defense that the Twins front office has assembled. Randy Dobnak is an extreme ground ball pitcher and excels the most with a great infield behind him. The Minnesota Twins improved their infield defense in a big way this offseason with the addition of Andrelton Simmons and shifting Jorge Polanco over to second base. Those changes combined with a (hopefully) healthy season from Josh Donaldson and Miguel Sanó could bode extremely well for the 26 year old heading into his third season as a big leaguer. It remains to be seen whether or not the Minnesota Twins will acquire another starting pitcher this offseason, but as things currently stand Randy Dobnak will begin the season as Minnesota’s #5 starter, and he’s one you should invest in now. BUYBUYBUY! Taylor Rogers The Minnesota left hander is coming off of the worst Major League season of his career in 2020. Rogers posted a career-high ERA of 4.05 with a 1.50 WHIP and opponent batting average of .302. Rogers repeatedly failed to come through in big moments for the Minnesota Twins and some thought he could be a non-tender candidate this offseason as a result. Rogers ultimately came to a deal with Minnesota this offseason for $6M. After such a poor season in 2020, why should Twins fans invest in him for the 2021 season? Although Rogers’ statistics last season were poor, his underlying numbers point to him being unlucky rather than bad last season. Although his ERA was a career-high 4.05, Taylor’s FIP (fielding independent pitching) was actually better in 2020 than it was in 2019. Further, Rogers posted a BABIP of .400, the sixth-highest mark of all MLB pitchers with at least 20 IP in 2020, indicating that he was extremely unlucky all season and balls were just finding holes in the field time and time again. After a season of bad luck in 2020, regression figures to flip back in a positive direction for the southpaw in 2021, especially with a season 2.7x longer than the shortened season last year. BUYBUYBUY! Josh Donaldson The 2020 season was nothing short of a lost year for the Bringer of Rain, who was only able to play in 28 games for the Minnesota Twins and was held out of both postseason games due to an injury to his calf. Because of the lost season for Donaldson, it’s easy for Twins fans to forget just how key of an addition he is to this club at the plate, and just how impactful he can be at the hot corner. The former MVP has posted an OPS of .900 or higher in each of his four healthy seasons since 2015, and even in his disastrous 2020, still posted an excellent OPS of .842. Though health is never a guarantee in the game of baseball, the load that Donaldson will need to shoulder in 2021 figures to have been reduced with the increased infield flexibility that came with the Andrelton Simmons signing. Now with Luis Arráez at the super utility position, the Twins can give Josh Donaldson routine days off without needing to suffer in the lineup. This figures to reduce the load on Donaldson’s calves, and keep him healthy for what should be a massive bounce-back season in 2021. BUYBUYBUY! Which Minnesota Twins player stocks are you investing in prior to the 2021 season? Leave a comment below and start the conversation! MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email — Follow Matthew Taylor on Twitter here Click here to view the article

Keith Law released his annual top 100 prospect rankings, a free agent pitching target came off the market and a former Twins pitcher found a new home. Read about all that and more in the latest Twins notebook.Alex Kirilloff