Hans Birkeland

Image courtesy of © David Dermer-Imagn Images Box Score: Bulk Pitcher: Kendry Rojas: 3 1/3 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K (60 Pitches, 34 Strikes, 56.6%) Home Runs: None Top 3 WPA: Kody Clemens (0.23), Brooks Lee (0.18), Anthony Banda (0.11) Win Probability Chart (Via BaseballSavant): Well, the Twins won a close game in extra innings in Cleveland yesterday. That, alone, was a revelation, given the past four or five years of results. It also gave them a chance to take a series at Progressive Field for the first time since the 1990s (or so it's felt). The starter would be Andrew Morris, but the bulk assignment fell on rookie Kendry Rojas. Morris, for his part, pitched an easy six-pitch scoreless first, with Rojas coming in to face the lefty-heavy Guardians lineup to start the second. Rojas has trouble throwing strikes, and that trend continued today, but he did show some reasons for optimism, including a nice changeup to strike out Angel Martínez in the second. His slider was sliding, and his sinker has some pop to it, so he has the makings of an effective major-league pitcher, but can he deliver on that promise in his rookie year? The Twins lineup had to deal with big Gavin Williams, who has built upon his 2025 breakout. Hes always looked the part of a big-time prospect, but injuries and some poor luck delayed his takeoff for a couple of years. Last year', he was able to make 31 starts, and while he led the league in walks, he was extremely hard to hit, posting a 129 OPS+ with a .211 batting average against. His heavy sinker/four-seam combo kept the Twins off-balance early, but Kody Clemens dunked a ball down the third-base line in the second for a Guardians Double™ and scored on a wild pitch for the game's first run. Ryan Jeffers scalded a ball through the middle that ended up getting all the way to the warning track for a leadoff double. Unfortunately, the Twins now employ Cold Josh Bell™ (not to be confused with the legendary Cool Papa Bell), who struck out in his sixth straight plate appearance to derail that potential rally. Meanwhile, Rojas gave up three singles and a walk in the third, but managed to give up just a single run on a José Ramírez tapper up the middle. He was wobbly with his command, but showed some composure pitching in a tough environment, including striking out All-Star Steven Kwan with two men on to end the third. It was probably the worst swing I've seen Kwan take. The fifth inning was the pivot point. Clemens led off with a more legitimate double, to the gap in right-center field at 105 MPH. Brooks Lee singled to bring home Clemens, and Royce Lewis showed some life by roping a double down the left-field line. Byron Buxton legged out a tapper to third base, and Bell broke out of his slump with a single up the middle to make the score 4-1. Austin Martin then continued his hot streak by staying with a fastball and flipping it to the opposite field to make it a four-run lead. Travis Adams took over for Rojas with one out in the fifth and got the second out pretty quickly. But he walked Kyle Manzardo, fell behind hitters, and allowed two more hits and a walk before striking out new catcher acquisition Patrick Bailey (who looked rough in his Guardians debut) with the bases full. Those bad Giants vibes will follow you, I guess. Adams allowed another run in the sixth, but got Ramírez to pop out as the tying run before giving way to Anthony Banda, who was able to retire pinch-hitter Rhys Hoskins on a fly ball. There was some Guardians Ball in the eighth, with David Fry singling and Bryan Rocchio dumping a broken-bat single into center off of righty Luis García. Kwan then bunted them over (on a 3-1 count, ouch) before Chase DeLauter grounded out to trim the lead to one. García was able to get Hoskins to ground out to preserve the lead. Clemens led off the ninth inning with an opposite-field single, and was bunted to second by Lee (somewhat surprisingly). Clemens then stole third, but was left stranded with Lewis striking out and pinch-hitter Victor Caratini flying out to deep right field. Yoendrys Gómez got the ninth, which speaks to some level of concern for Justin Topa, who hasn't pitched since Wednesday. Gómez, who has not had any sustained major-league success, threw strikes and looked good, working a 1-2-3 inning to secure the victory. Things I'm Tracking: -Brooks Lee looks like he may truly be part of the solution, delivering a couple hits with runners in scoring position. He even stole a base, despite looking like he was pumping his legs through molasses. -Travis Adams made his debut and threw some good changeups, but was largely ineffective in allowing four hits and two walks in 1 1/3 innings. -Jeffers is setting himself up for a big payday this offseason, with his OPS now over .900 and having built a reputation as an elite ABS challenger. -The Guardians may have found yet another demon in their relief corps, with Franco Aleman making his debut and pumping 99 MPH with deception. He allowed two singles but also went two scoreless in relief of Williams. -The Twins' bullpen hierarchy is a mess, with two recent waiver claims taking the eighth and ninth innings protecting a slim lead. The options Derek Shelton has late in games are pretty brutal right now. What’s Next: The Miami Marlins are in town, with electric young righty Eury Perez (2-4, 5.01 ERA) taking the mound against Bailey Ober (3-2, 4.19 ERA). It might be one of the tallest combined pitching matchups ever, with Perez standing 6'8", an inch shorter than Ober. The Marlins are league average on both sides of the ball in contrast to their recent past of being dependent on dominant pitching to sustain a nothing offense. They also are feisty, leading baseball in steals, so it will be an interesting test for the Twins at home. Postgame Interviews: Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Banda 0 20 22 0 19 61 Funderburk 17 0 22 10 0 49 Garcia 14 0 0 13 20 47 Rogers 0 26 0 17 0 43 Adams 0 0 0 0 43 43 Topa 32 0 0 0 0 32 Orze 0 0 16 15 0 31 Morris 14 0 0 11 6 31 Gómez 0 0 2 5 10 17 View full article

Image courtesy of Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images Box Score Starting Pitcher: Joe Ryan: 1/3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K (9 Pitches, 5 Strikes, 55%) Home Runs: None Top 3 WPA: Andrew Morris (0.22), Victor Caratini (0.11), Luke Keaschall (0.09) Win Probability Chart (Via BaseballSavant): The Twins' slide into irrelevance continues, as they entered Sunday's game against Toronto losers in 13 of their past 16 games. To make matters worse, today's game was shown exclusively on Peacock, a streaming service used by approximately no one and which has lost NBC/Universal half a billion dollars and counting because our media landscape totally makes sense. At least the Twins were trotting out their ace, Joe Ryan. Except he exited with elbow soreness nine pitches into the game, forcing the Twins to turn to their beleaguered young swingman, Andrew Morris, who threw well enough to escape the inning without any damage. Does anyone remember the last time Joe Ryan exited early with injury? I remember. Opposing Morris was postseason hero Trey Yesavage, who still has more playoff innings than regular season. His command was a little wobbly, but his rising fastball and devastating splitter were a big challenge regardless. After retiring Byron Buxton in the first, Yesavage allowed a base hit to Trevor Larnach and Austin Martin drew an impressive walk. Victor Caratini then singled through the right side to bring home the game's first run. Meanwhile Morris was really good, hitting 97 MPH on his fastball and locating his sweeper to keep the Blue Jays honest. He allowed two hits and a walk in 3 ⅔ innings, striking out three. He didn't allow much hard contact and really didn't face any trouble while keeping the Twins in the game. The offense loaded the bases in the third, making Yesavage work and putting him on the ropes before the young righty got Royce Lewis to swing through a fastball in the zone to end the threat. He was done after 81 Pitches and four innings. Braydon Fisher came on for the fifth inning, and the Twins jumped all over him. Caratini walked and scored on a Luke Keaschall double. Keaschall would score on a Kody Clemens double to the same spot in left center. Then, in a moment that surprised everyone, Matt Wallner made contact off of a lefty, and scorched it to the same gap and off the wall to score Clemens. By my unofficial count, this was the first hit by Wallner against a lefty and his first hit to the opposite field since the Biden administration. Aaron Gleeman was then awoken like the undertaker to post some cherry-picked stats (probably). The Jays made some noise in the sixth against the withered husk of Taylor Rogers. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a single off his fists, followed by a deep drive by Jesus Sanchez over Wallner's head in right. Sanchez slipped making the turn around first, making it a long single. Rogers managed to strike out Lenyn Sosa on a backup slider, but Dalton Varsho hit a perfect bunt up the first base line, beating Rogers to the bag and scoring Guerrero for Toronto's first run. Rogers ended up allowing three hits and hitting a batter, but escaped the inning by inducing a pop-up from catcher Taylor Heineman. Things quieted down a bit from there, with the Twins putting up goose eggs against Blue Jays reliever Tommy Nance, while Rogers, Eric Orze and Kody Funderburk did just enough to keep the Jays offense dormant. The ninth inning was handed to Justin Topa, who allowed an infield single before Kazuma Okamoto hit his fourth home run of the series to cut the deficit to one. Guerrero then smashed a single right under Keaschall's glove to put the tying run on base. Sanchez hit one nearly as hard that nearly took out Topa, but Sosa hit a hard grounder to Keaschall that he turned into a game ending double play. Things I'm Tracking: Austin Martin looks unconscious, spitting on anything remotely close to being out of the zone and squaring up everything in it. With him, Larnach and Buxton all scorching hot, its kind of crazy that this team is losing so much. Caratini has cooled off after a fairly competent start to his Twins career, with his OPS below .600. He did reach base a few times today and his OBP is acceptable, but him being a professional hitter was a big reason why the team won eight of nine in that one good stretch that now seems a distant memory. Luke Keaschall is showing signs of life, with three doubles, including two today, in the past two games. Lewis looks pretty cooked, swinging out of his shoes and whiffing against fastballs in the zone What’s Next: The Twins head to the nation's capital to face the Nationals in a three game set. Taj Bradley (3-1, 2.85 ERA) will face Cade Cavalli (1-1, 3.82 ERA) in a matchup of post-hype prospects. Cavalli has been hittable (1.66 WHIP, .772 OPS against) but has a good strikeout rate. Bradley has been great and should have a good matchup provided he can handle Washington's main stars, James Wood and CJ Abrams. Postgame Interviews: Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THUR FRI SAT SUN TOT Orze 28 0 33 0 24 85 Morris 0 19 0 0 57 76 Banda 22 14 0 18 0 54 Rogers 13 0 8 0 32 53 Topa 0 12 0 10 17 39 Garcia 0 0 9 18 0 27 Funderburk 0 0 0 14 3 17 Klein 0 0 0 12 0 12 View full article

Image courtesy of © Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Simeon Woods Richardson: 4 1/3 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 2 K (78 Pitches, 47 Strikes, 60.3%) Home Runs: Brooks Lee (5) Bottom 3 WPA: Woods Richardson (-0.21), Matt Wallner (-0.13), Josh Bell (-0.10) Win Probability Chart (Via BaseballSavant): Well, the Twins are bad again. The starting pitching has sprung a few leaks, and the opportunistic offense has been silenced by the regression monster. When the team has managed to take a lead, the bullpen has given it right back. Add it all up, and the team is 1-9 in its past 10 games, immediately following an 8-1 stretch that had them at the top of the American League. Today featured Simeon Woods Richardson squaring off against old friend Griffin Jax, who was operating as an opener for bulk pitcher Jesse Scholtens. Woods Richardson has been less than great in 2026, with his encouraging strikeout ability from the second half of 2025 abandoning him. Jax looked good, keeping the Twins off balance and pitching around a few bloopers and infield hits in 2 1/3 innings. Woods Richardson got in trouble early and often, allowing a leadoff base hit to Chandler Simpson, only to be bailed out by a hard ground ball from the dangerous Junior Caminero. It was fielded perfectly at second base by Luke Keaschall, who converted it into an easy double play. A walk and a single brought the heat back up in the second, but Woods Richardson got Taylor Walls looking on a misplaced fastball (Ttrget outside, pitch hit the inside corner) to end that threat. He ran out of magic in the third. Hunter Feduccia led off with a swinging bunt that he beat out. He advanced to second on an errant throw from Woods Richardson. Simpson followed with another hit, then stole second. Woods Richardson fell behind Caminero 3-0, which would have prompted many pitchers to give in and put him on via the intentional walk. Woods Richardson somehow got Caminero to pop out on 3-1, but Jonathan Aranda singled to the gap in right-center field to bring home two runs. Yandy Díaz then rifled a fastball that was nearly in Ryan Jeffers's glove the opposite way for an impressive home run. All of a sudden, the score was 4-0 Rays. The Twins put two runners on in the third and fourth inning, now facing Scholtens, but Josh Bell hit a liner at 107 MPH that was caught to end the third. Royce Lewis popped out weakly to end the fourth. Three more Rays would reach in the fourth. Walls tried to score from second on the third single of the game from Simpson, but was thrown out by Trevor Larnach from left field. Caminero then tapped out to end the threat. A walk to Díaz in the fifth was the end of the line for Woods Richardson. The final line wasn't pretty: eight hits allowed, a homer and more walks (3) than strikeouts (2). His fastball did hit 94 MPH a few times, but he had quite a few in the low 90s and upper 80s. He floated his splitter into hittable locations more than once, though his slider was relatively sharp, Meanwhile, Scholtens was settling in, allowing a few walks but using his slider and splitter to precent the Twins from generating hard contact. He kept cruising until the seventh, when he hung a couple of sliders to the murderer's row of the Twins lineup: James Outman and Brooks Lee. Outman cracked a double, and Lee snuck a liner inside the right-field foul pole for a two-run home run. Cole Sulser came on and got the Rays out of the inning without any further damage, and pitched a quick eighth inning, as well. Minnesota never seriously threatened to get closer than the 4-2 final score. Things I'm Tracking: -Brooks Lee batted leadoff, contributing a home run and a walk. He wouldn't have been my choice for that lineup slot, but sometimes picking a leadoff hitter doesn't need to make sense. Remember when the Royals were perennial World Series contenders with Alcides Escobar hitting first? -Are Woods Richardson's mechanics out of whack? Is he dealing with a physical issue? Is he some kind of right-handed Shaun Marcum (feisty pitcher without a lot of "stuff" who was pretty good for a few years, but when he lost just a tick on his fastball he was basically unplayable)? -Good to have Kody Funderburk back. He pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings to lower his ERA to 1.74. If he keeps this up, he'll have closing opportunities, given the bullpen's lack of talent. What’s Next: The Twins welcome the Mariners to Target Field Monday, as they begin a four-game series. Connor Prielipp (0-0, 4.50 ERA) will face Luis Castillo (0-1, 5.21 ERA) as the Twins look to get off the mat against an underperforming Seattle team. Prielipp was inefficient but solid in his MLB debut against the Mets last time out, pitching four innings, walking none and striking out six. Castillo isn't the ace he once was, and hasn't looked good thus far in 2026, but he has a track record, and the Twins don't have a ton of threats in their lineup. Postgame Interviews: Coming soon Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Morris 0 37 0 0 0 37 Orze 11 0 10 9 0 30 Topa 17 0 0 0 10 27 Rogers 12 0 0 15 0 27 Banda 0 9 7 0 9 25 Funderburk 0 0 0 0 20 20 Acton 0 0 0 18 0 18 Sands 0 0 0 0 7 7 View full article

Image courtesy of © Matt Blewett-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Bailey Ober: 6 1/3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER 4 BB, 10 K (102 Pitches, 61 Strikes, 59.8%) Home Runs: None Bottom 3 WPA: Andrew Morris (-0.70), Garret Acton (-0.40), Byron Buxton (-0.14) Win Probability Chart (Via BaseballSavant): Things have leveled off for the Twins following their brief stay at the top of the league table, and they entered Sunday's series finale with the Reds in danger of losing their fourth straight game. Their defense and bullpen, thought to be major weaknesses entering the year, were just that on getaway day. On the positive side, the Twins were facing Brady Singer, who has endured a 9.00-plus ERA in his Target Field career. On the downside, Bailey Ober took the mound for the Twins, and he had paired an 88-MPH fastball with a 5.49 ERA over his four starts in 2026. Things started nicely, as Ober induced extremely weak contact while featuring mainly his changeup and sweeper. He allowed a bloop single in the first and a walk in the second. He finished the second inning with a Javier Báez-esque sword of Rece Hinds, courtesy of a sweeper a foot off the plate. Meanwhile, the Twins squeezed across a Byron Buxton run against Singer in the first. We've seen it many times before: Buxton beats out a squibber, the fielder rushes the throw, allowing Buxton to advance to second, and then two productive outs bring Byron home. The Twins were unable to make anything else happen against Singer and his 91-MPH sinker, though, which he was locating in the middle of the zone. The Twins took advantage in the third. After James Outman's customary easy out, Buxton drew a walk, Trevor Larnach ripped a single to right and Josh Bell followed suit, as did Victor Caratini, making the score 3-0. The Reds would answer in the fourth. The electric Elly De La Cruz led off with a broken-bat double down the right-field line. Outman bobbled the ball, which allowed De La Cruz to reach third. He would score on a grounder up the middle from Sal Stewart. Following a walk to Eugenio Suárez, Ober was then bailed out by former Twins farmhand Spencer Steer, who took strike three on a 3-2 count. The ball was six inches outside, but Steer inexplicably decided not to challenge. Ober retired Tyler Stephenson to minimize the damage. Ober was pretty good, shielding his fastball as much as possible and throwing his typical array of changeups that dart away from lefties and come back into the zone against righties. The sweeper was particularly good, and Ober mixed in some fastballs late in his outing that got key strikeouts against Stewart and Suárez. The velocity was up to 90 MPH at points, but I think Ober is making adjustments to try to be that Mark Buehrle/Jered Weaver type of pitcher who can have success throwing in the 80s. It worked today, as Ober struck out 10, the last of which came on an 87-MPH four-seamer that somehow got past the bat of Stephenson. He also induced 14 whiffs. Andrew Morris pitched the eighth with a 3-1 lead, and his velocity was a little down, sitting 93-96 MPH. It was a little rocky, requiring 28 pitches, but he got a key strikeout against Suárez on a sweeper to end the frame. He came back out for the ninth, and quickly gave up two opposite-field singles to the bottom of the Reds' order. He recorded an out, then walked nine-hole hitter Hinds. The struggling TJ Friedl then roped a middle-middle fastball to the gap in right-center, to clear the bases and turn the game on its head. The Twins were not done, as the alleged corpse of Outman followed up his first hit of the year with a ringing leadoff double in the ninth. Buxton was unable to advance Outman, but Austin Martin smashed a double down the left-field line to tie the game against old friend Emilio Pagán. Bell lined a ball at 102 MPH to deep center, but it held up for Myers. Caratini would fly out to end the threat and send the game to extras. After finishing the ninth, Garret Acton was brought back out for the 10th. He allowed a missile off the bat of Stewart (109 MPH) that Martin made a leaping catch on. Suárez then grounded to third, Tristan Gray booted it, and then Martin bobbled it in left, allowing the speedy "Manfred Man" De La Cruz to score. Hinds would then double in two to put a bow on the game. Things I'm Tracking: The baserunning was pretty good to start, with Buxton and Larnach taking extra bases and then Brooks Lee taking third on a hit (gasp) from James Outman in the fourth. Lee was perhaps feeling himself a bit after that, as he tried to steal home on a throw down to second with Outman running. Lee was out by, uh, a lot. Red Sox fans sometimes describe OF/DH Masataka Yoshida's running style as running as if he were made of LEGOs and I think Lee has the same affliction. I wondered if the Reds had some sort of mandate not to challenge pitches as hitters, as they let two important strike threes go by in the fourth and fifth innings, when both were clear balls. I get the philosophy, as catchers have the better view of pitches, and their challenge percentage is higher than hitters, but it really impacted the Reds from a WPA perspective today. De La Cruz then unsuccessfully challenged a strike call in the sixth, and Dane Myers followed suit in the seventh. It is surprising a Tito Francona-led team would do so much self-inflicted damage. Kody Clemens' walkup song is "Confidence," and for a guy hitting under .150 that seems a little on the nose. The "redundant trade candidate" Trevor Larnach reached base four times today, raising his OBP to .468. He's definitely not useful at all. "Really cool underrated slugger" Matt Wallner sat due to the after-effects of getting hit in the ribs last Monday. His 71 OPS+ and emotion-based ABS challenges were surely missed. The defense is a struggle, man. Outman's bobble allowed the first run to score, and then the play in the tenth involved two separate errors. What’s Next: The Twins travel to Queens to face the Mets, featuring a neat matchup between promising young starters Mick Abel (1-2, 3.98 ERA) and Nolan McClean (1-1, 2.28 ERA). The Mets are currently in the midst of an 11-game losing streak, which is pretty funny considering how big their payroll is. (probably not to them, but.) Postgame Interviews: Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THUR FRI SAT SUN TOT Morris 0 0 0 0 47 47 Topa 13 0 11 10 0 34 Sands 0 0 20 12 0 32 Funderburk 14 0 8 10 0 32 Acton 0 0 0 0 29 29 Orze 12 0 0 15 0 27 Banda 24 0 0 0 0 24 Rogers 0 0 0 0 8 8 View full article

Image courtesy of © John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Taj Bradley: 5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 7 K (106 Pitches, 62 Strikes, 58.5%) Home Runs: Tristan Gray (2), Kody Clemens (2) Top 3 WPA: Gray (0.25), Matt Wallner (0.10), Josh Bell (0.07) Win Probability Chart (Via BaseballSavant): In a baseball landscape in which no team (other than the Dodgers, perhaps) really looks that impressive, the Twins had mjuddled their way to 8-7 entering Sunday, after sweeping the Tigers and splitting the first two games against the AL Champion Blue Jays. Adding the competent veteran bats of Josh Bell and Victor Caratini has helped, but the starting rotation has been the team's greatest strength—despite the absence of injured ace Pablo López. Chief among the early rotation success stories has been Taj Bradley, who was utterly dominant against Detroit on Tuesday night, striking out 10 and working into the seventh inning. His command of his 91-MPH splitter (in conjunction with his high-octane fastball) has unlocked the long-dormant upside that made him a top-50 prospect just a few years ago. Opposing Bradley was the withered husk of Max Scherzer, who came in seeking strikeout number 3,500 for his career. Scherzer had an MRI on his right forearm after leaving his most recent start. The MRI was "clean," but that's like saying a politician over 80 passed a cognitive test. In any case, Scherzer worked a smooth first inning. That was not the case for Bradley. Ernie Clement led off and roped a double down the left-field line, and Dalton Varsho singled past a diving Luke Keaschall, making the score 1-0 almost instantly. Bradley's command was all over the place, which led to falling behind hitters. He was lucky to get away with a few hanging breaking balls. He did bear down and got Jesús Sánchez to tap into a double play. A walk would follow before Bradley got the strikeout on an elevated fastball to Nathan Lukes to end the frame. That was key, because Tristan Gray was due up in the second. With two runners on, Gray got a cutter to his liking and smashed it over the bullpen in right field to make the score 3-1 Twins. At his peak, Scherzer was ruthlessly efficient, but he did tend to give up a home run or two—making him similar to fellow legends Justin Verlander and Johan Santana. That number has spiked in recent years, however, and Kody Clemens led off the third with a 417-foot moonshot off a Scherzer slider left up in the zone. The damage wouldn't end there. Trevor Larnach and Keaschall singled, followed by a walk to Josh Bell. Matt Wallner then laced a single to right, Caratini hit a sacrifice fly, and Brooks Lee scorched a two-run double down the left-field line. All of a sudden, it was 8-1 Twins. Scherzer was done after 2 1/3 innings; the Lee double came off of reliever Joe Mantiply. Bradley appeared a little rusty after the long layoff, falling behind every hitter he faced in the third, but got Sánchez swinging on what would have been ball four, and Kazuma Okamoto flied out harmlessly on a 3-1 fastball that ended the inning. Bradley just couldn't land strikes with anything but his fastball. Eloy Jiménez sat on the pitch and turned around a 97-MPH heater for a sharp single in the fourth, and Andrés Giménez hit a fastball on the ground that Keaschall made a nice play on to retire the lead runner. Bradley threw fastball after fastball to the nine-hole hitter, Brandon Valenzuela, on 3-2, before throwing a non-competitive curveball high and out of the zone. On the ropes, he threw a couple of cutters in the middle of the zone to get ahead of Clement, before a curveball was laced on a line—right to Gray at third base to end the inning (a .720 expected batting average). The Twins are in the midst of playing quite a few games in a row, which may have played into Derek Shelton allowing Bradley to pitch the fifth. Bradley fell behind Varsho 3-0 before allowing a rocket double down the right-field line to start the frame. He retired Vladimir Guerrero Jr. on a splitter and struck out Sÿnchez on a challenge fastball. He then threw one of his better cutters of the day to strike out the struggling Okamoto. His ERA won't rise much today, but this was Bradley's worst start of the year, by far. His last inning was better, as he at least got the Blue Jays hitters off his fastball a little by landing some cutters for strikes. On one hand, he held a solid Toronto lineup to one run, but on the other hand, different sequencing and more batted-ball luck could have resulted in a brutal outing given his general lack of command. But that's showbiz. Andrew Morris made his debut in the sixth and looked good, hitting 98 MPH on his fastball; staying in the zone (for the most part); and dropping a sharp, slow curveball at 75-76 MPH that kept hitters honest—except for Giménez, who stayed on a curveball and roped it into the corner because he is not an honest man. Morris also seems to come from the Joe Ryan school of reacting to everything that happens in pretty comical ways. He got out of the sixth, but ran into some trouble in the seventh and eighth, with spottier command and some louder contact. He also threw a lot of pitches (67) over his three innings of work. Things to Track: The defense was good, with some nice plays made by Keaschall and Gray on the infield that kept innings from mushrooming. James Outman went hitless again. He still does not have a hit in 2026. Trading Brock Stewart for him was one of the most inconsequential (but still frustrating, somehow?) transactions in recent memory. Gray has 11 RBIs, second on the team to Bell, who has 12. Lee has been hitting well lately, but it seems a little precious, kinda like Bartolo Colón hitting that one home run. We'll see how long it lasts, but if this team somehow remains competitive, Kaelen Culpepper might be the better option, pushing Lee to a utility role. What’s Next: The Twins host the Red Sox as Bailey Ober (1-0, 5.27 ERA) takes on Garrett Crochet (2-1, 3.12 ERA). The Red Sox have been cold to start the year, but have tons of talent, with a lot of hitters with good track records who have yet to get going. The Twins' porous bullpen might be just the thing to warm those bats up—but so far, that pen has been surprisingly competent. Postgame Interviews: Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Morris 0 0 0 0 67 67 Banda 21 0 36 0 0 57 Funderburk 20 0 0 17 0 37 Acton 0 35 0 0 0 35 Topa 10 0 12 0 12 34 Sands 9 0 0 22 0 31 Rogers 0 0 30 0 0 30 Orze 0 14 0 0 0 14 View full article

Image courtesy of © Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Simeon Woods Richardson: 6 2/3 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K (88 Pitches, 51 Strikes, 58%) Home Runs: Matt Wallner (3) Bottom 3 WPA: Justin Topa (-0.44), Kody Clemens (-0.15), Byron Buxton (-0.12) Win Probability Chart (Via FanGraphs): The Twins drifted through their first eight games, their offense (largely dormant) paired with inconsistent pitching performances, a lot of ABS challenges and some crummy weather. You could easily see this season spiral out of control pretty quickly, given the lack of overall talent. Byron Buxton, Luke Keaschall and Royce Lewis have struggled, but so far, newcomers Tristan Gray and Josh Bell have kept them afloat. Today, Simeon Woods Richardson made his second start of the year after posting a quality showing in Kansas City. He was a little rocky to start, falling behind several hitters but getting weak contact in the air when he needed it. His fastball sat between 90 and 93 MPH, which isn't great, but Rays hitters had a hard time squaring him up the first time through the lineup. Opposing Woods Richardson was Nick Martinez, who has had a unique career, starting as a supposedly high-floor prospect with Texas who couldn't strike anybody out. He lasted for a couple years as a fifth starter type before heading to Japan for four years. When he came back, he immediately flourished in the Padres bullpen, his strikeout rate nearly doubling from his time in Texas. Teams loved his under-the-hood numbers, and he has signed eight-figure contracts with San Diego, Cincinnati, and now Tampa Bay, even while his performance has declined a bit in his mid-30s. His cutter and changeup remain above-average pitches, and he showcased them well Sunday. He made quick work of the Twins in the first, but Matt Wallner got a hanging cutter to start the second, and crushed it out onto the pavilion in right field for the game's first run. The two starters settled in from there, inducing lots of weak contact and quick outs. Woods Richardson had a lot of success pairing his splitter with his curveball. The next hit from either side was with two outs in the fourth inning, when Junior Caminero golfed a splitter well below the zone for a 397-foot home run. Certain hitters are just freaks. That did seem to loosen up the Rays hitters, as they started taking some bigger hacks against Woods Richardson, making some loud outs and putting runners on the corners in the fifth for the dangerous Yandy Díaz, who was facing the starter for the third time. He watched three strikes go by, however, and Woods Richardson escaped any damage. He had a much easier time in the sixth, including getting Caminero to tap out to complete a quick frame. I thought that may have been it for him, but he was brought out to start the seventh and allowed two hits to put runners on the corners with one out. Richie Palacios stole second, but Woods Richardson struck out Johnny DeLuca on a nasty slider to end his day. Kody Funderburk came on to retire pinch-hitter Nick Fortes on a weak chopper to quell the threat. Old friend Griffin Jax pitched the seventh, gave up an infield single to Wallner (at that point responsible for both Twins hits)—and then promptly picked Wallner off leaving early from first. Cole Sands got the eighth inning, and allowed a leadoff single to Díaz before falling behind Jonathan Aranda. He fought back to get a double-play grounder from Aranda and retired Chandler Simpson to leave Caminero in the on-deck circle. He would go on to complete a 1-2-3 ninth in dominant fashion. After the Buxton, Luke Keaschall and Wallner contingent went down in order, Palacios greeted Justin Topa in the 10th by crushing a two-run home run. Topa allowed another hit and a walk before Taylor Rogers was brought in, and the lefty walked two to force in another run, making the score 4-1. The Twins couldn't answer; Tampa took the rubber game of the weekend series. Notes: -Austin Martin started in center field despite the Twins facing a right-handed pitcher. This speaks to A) Buxton being eased back into action following what looked to be a brutal hit-by-pitch on Friday; and B) perhaps some dissatisfaction with James Outman, who has no idea what he's doing in the batter's box these days. Martin has looked terrible in center field thus far in his career, but he's looked decent at the plate in 2026, so maybe that's a worthwhile tradeoff. He wasn't tested much today and made every play he should have made. -Buxton celebrated 10 years of service time prior to the game, but his hitless streak continued. He's now in an 0-for-19 skid. That isn't uncommon for Buxton, but he had better at-bats today, including a lineout and a fly ball to right that was just off the end of the bat. When he gets going, maybe this congregation of average-ish hitters plus a hot Josh Bell can find a spark. -Rogers might be cooked. After allowing three hits and two runs Saturday, Rogers struggled to hit 90 MPH on his fastball while walking two, the second one forcing in the Rays' fourth run. What’s Next: Joe Ryan (0-1, 4.89 ERA) opposes Casey Mize (0-0, 1.50 ERA) as the Twins welcome the Detroit Tigers to Target Field to begin a four-game set. The Tigers are certainly not bereft of talent and so far have the eighth-best OPS in MLB and the 11th-best ERA as a pitching staff, despite a middling 4-4 record. The Tigers have crushed the Twins in recent years and have made the postseason two years running, so this will represent perhaps the biggest test of the young season for the Twins. Postgame Interviews: (Coming soon) Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Laweryson 36 0 10 9 0 55 Topa 0 13 17 0 15 45 Rogers 0 4 0 23 18 45 Banda 12 0 17 15 0 44 Orze 0 0 37 0 0 37 Sands 0 11 0 0 21 32 Funderburk 0 15 2 0 3 20 Acton 0 0 0 0 0 0 View full article

Image courtesy of © Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Bailey Ober: 4 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 1 K (56 Pitches, 37 Strikes, 66 %) Home Runs: Royce Lewis (2) Bottom 3 WPA: Mick Abel (-0.59), Matt Wallner (-0.17) Byron Buxton (-0.15) Win Probability Chart (Via FanGraphs): The Twins entered the third game of the new season with a chance to take two of three games from the Orioles in Baltimore. The bats have been predictably inept thus far, but the pitching had been decent, and the team managed to manufacture four runs despite just four hits in Saturday's 4-1 win. On Sunday, Bailey Ober took the mound looking to fight back against allegations that he is "cooked," working with lower velocity, struggling to reach 90 MPH in spring training, and coming off a brutal 2025 season. He shied away from the fastball early, throwing a barrage of changeups and sweepers to keep the Orioles hitters off balance, inducing numerous grounders and pop-ups. The fastball didn't return to his 2023-2024 peak by any means, but the exit velocities were low, and he was efficient early. The Twins hitters were up against Shane Baz, who has been a hot prospect for approximately 15 years, first sent to the Rays in the Tyler Glasnow and Austin Meadows-for-Chris Archer trade of 2017. He was dealt to Baltimore this winter and signed a five-year, $68-million contract extension this week, a big bet on his potential despite just one healthy season in his five years in the big leagues. He throws hard and has a wicked breaking ball. He showed his upside in a 1-2-3 first inning, including two weak fly outs from Kody Clemens and Luke Keaschall and a challenged strike three call to Byron Buxton that was upheld. The Twins got to work in the second inning, however. Matt Wallner roped a single to center, Josh Bell was hit by a pitch, and Victor Carratini checked in with his second hit as a Twin. The much-maligned Trevor Larnach bounced a ball to the hole between first and second, reaching an infield single to score the game's first run. Royce Lewis then got ahead in the count before striking out looking for Baz's 99-MPH fastball; it was a well-located 92-MPH cutter instead. No matter, Tristan Gray was up next and clobbered a 107-MPH double to right, clearing the bases and giving the Twins a surprising 4-0 lead. Gray, 30, is a journeyman who has shown some power in the minors but hasn't gotten much run in the big leagues. If the Twins are planning to outperform logic and reason this year and actually compete, it will take a couple of Willi Castro-style success stories to provide the necessary variance. Maybe Gray can be that. Who knows? Ober took that four-run lead into the fourth inning, but the Orioles were ready for him the second time through the lineup. Pete Alonso singled, as did Samuel Basallo. The hulking Tyler O'Neill then worked the count to 3-1 before unloading on an 88.8-MPH fastball at the top of the zone from Ober. His 391-foot blast cut the Twins' lead to one run. Baz struggled with his command in his tragic second inning, but otherwise was sharp with his knuckle-curve, tying Twins hitters into knots. The most the Twins could muster were bloop doubles from Bell, Larnach and Buxton in the fourth and fifth innings, but Bell was cut down unnecessarily trying to advance on a grounder to short in the fourth, and Buxton overran second base and was caught trying to scamper back in the fifth. Mick Abel made his 2026 debut in the bottom of the fifth, a major yin to Ober's yang. He began by striking out Jeremiah Jackson on a challenge fastball and dotting another 97-MPH fastball on the corner to catch Taylor Ward looking (after a nice ABS challenge by Caratini). The sixth was more of a struggle, as Abel was unable to put away numerous Orioles hitters with two strikes, letting O'Neill come back from 0-2 to draw a walk; getting ahead of Coby Mayo before allowing a bloop double; and seeing Dylan Beavers rope a 3-2 changeup into right field for a two-run double to flip the game. That lead would not last long, as Royce Lewis jumped all over a breaking ball from Yaramil Hiraldo, launching a 377-foot home run to tie the game. He'd also given the Twins the lead in Saturday's tilt with a two-run blast. That WPA is looking pretty good early on. Perhaps a bit shaken by that, Hiraldo proceeded to walk the bases loaded for Wallner, who showed there is something worse than a typical strikeout in 2026: a strikeout where you challenge the call on an obvious strike, costing your team the ability to challenge the rest of the game. That proved costly right away, as Abel walked Gunnar Henderson in the bottom half of the inning on a clear strike to put two men on with no outs following a Ward single. Alonso then poked a single just over Keaschall's outstretched glove to reclaim the lead. Adley Rutschman delivered a pinch-hit double off the wall in dead center field to further the unraveling. The Twins didn't quit, at least. Bell walked and Caratini singled against righty Tyler Wells to bring the tying run to the plate, but that tying run was James Outman. He walked somehow, which brought up Lewis—who struck out on a high change. Gray then singled up the middle to keep the line moving and add to his legend. Clemens struck out, bringing up Buxton with two down to face old friend Yennier Cano. It was a lengthy battle, but Buxton ended up swinging over the top of that patented sinker Cano throws to end the inning. Running on fumes, Abel was brought back for the eighth and allowed a single and a walk, bailed out by Blaze Alexander getting caught stealing by Caratini. Anthony Banda was finally brought in to face Henderson with one on and one out. He was able to retire Henderson on a fielder's choice, then caught him taking off early from first to end the frame. Keaschall led off the ninth against All-Star closer Ryan Helsley with a single, but the rally fizzled from there, despite a Henderson fielding error. Things to Watch: -Brooks Lee sat in favor of Gray after starting the year 0-6 with three strikeouts. -Trevor Larnach made his second straight start in left field, as Twins manager Derek Shelton has shown his preference early on is to have Josh Bell DH against righties with Clemens at first base. I question the defensive upgrade of DH-ing Larnach over Bell, since Clemens could conceivably play a better left field than Larnach, but what do I know? -Abel began warming up in the top of the fourth, with Ober having not had much trouble to that point. That invited the question of how much the Twins trust Ober even when he is "cruising." Was the intention to get Abel some work with all the early-season off days, or is Ober getting the Simeon Woods RIchardson treatment, i.e., not being trusted to go through a lineup more than twice? On that note, Abel was allowed to stay in the game and take a beating, throwing 71 pitches over his three innings, allowing multiple runs in two of those. With the game hanging in the balance, it was a little surprising a fresh reliever was not brought in for the seventh, and again when Abel got into trouble that inning. But wait, there was more! Abel came out to start the eighth for some reason, his velocity dropping down to 94 MPH with the fastball. He didn't get anyone out outside the caught stealing, and ended up with twelve baserunners allowed in 3 1/3 innings. -Josh Bell reached four times with two doubles. He runs hot and cold, so it's nice to see him coming out of the gates getting results. -Austin Martin pinch-hit for Larnach in the sixth, and was pinch-hit for by Outman in the eighth. This could be Shelton getting cute with the logic of playing the platoons and improving his left field defense more as the game went on. The problem is that Outman can't hit, and are we even sure Outman is an upgrade defensively at this point? What’s Next: The Twins head to Kansas City for the first time in 2026 with Simeon Woods RIchardson (7-4, 4.04 ERA in 2025) opposing Kris Bubic (8-7, 2.55 ERA). SWR finished 2025 on a high note, perfecting his new splitter and showing the ability to put away hitters for the first time in his career on a consistent basis. Bubic was dominant for Kansas City, with nasty stuff from the left side, his only weakness being health, never surpassing 130 IP in his six years in the majors. Postgame Interviews: (Coming soon) Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Abel 0 0 0 0 81 81 Topa 0 18 0 12 0 30 Funderburk 0 17 0 13 0 30 Orze 0 0 0 21 0 21 Banda 0 0 0 15 3 18 Sands 0 0 0 16 0 16 Rogers 0 10 0 0 0 10 Laweryson 0 0 0 0 0 0 Kent 0 0 0 0 0 0 View full article

Image courtesy of © Eric Hartline-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Simeon Woods Richardson: 6 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 9 K (81 Pitches, 58 Strikes, 71.6%) Home Runs: None Bottom 3 WPA: Christian Vázquez (-.236), James Outman (-.233), Génesis Cabrera (-.189) Win Probability Chart (Via FanGraphs): Well, the nightmare is finally over. Or maybe it's just beginning? Either way, the Twins had a chance to take a series against the Phillies in Philadelphia, against a team that had lost just three home series all year to this point. Of course, with yesterday's loss, the Phillies had absolutely nothing to play for, with Milwaukee clinching the top seed in the National League. They had their de facto ace, Cristopher Sánchez, pitching in his final tune-up for Game 1 of the NLDS Saturday, and he looked the part, not throwing a single ball until the third inning, 22 pitches in. Sánchez is a dominant pitcher, throws left-handed, and the Twins lineup (absent Byron Buxton, Matt Wallner and Luke Keaschall) was never going to have any answers. The Twins also were battling the Pirates for the second-best odds for the number one pick in next year's draft, one game "better" than Pittsburgh at 70-91. Simeon Woods Richardson took the ball for the visitors, and looked similar to what he has shown since his return from the IL in August: throwing strikes, sitting 93-95 with his fastball and baffling hitters with his newish split-changeup. He struck out nine while only allowing a cue-shot single from Bryson Stott over six dominant innings. He had more strikeouts against the Yankees in his other recent gem, but that was a New York team with major jet lag. Today may have been his best showing of the year; the Phillies had absolutely no solution for him. Sanchez left after 5 2/3 innings, having allowed two hits while striking out eight. The second he left, with no runners on in the sixth, Lou Trivino proceeded to walk Austin Martin, who would score on a sharp double off the bat of Ryan Jeffers for the game's first run. The 1-0 lead would hold until the eighth inning, when Génesis Cabrera served up a game-tying home run to (who else?) old friend Max Kepler. Extra innings ensued, and the Twins quickly went down 1-2-3 against Philly right-hander Orion Kerkering. Weston Wilson got his bunt down in the Phillies half, and Nick Castellanos hit a fly ball deep enough to win the game off Cody Laweryson. Other trends I'm tracking: Woods Richardson is starting to look like a building block, and will play a big part of any gutted, low-expectations team somehow managing to contend next year. If you heed the recent words of Cory Provus, and the Twins see Pablo López and Byron Buxton traded, then the 2026 rotation would be Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober, Woods Richardson, Zebby Matthews and Taj Bradley, with Connor Prielipp, Mick Abel and Andrew Morris around for some depth (assuming David Festa isn't able to return next year). That's no 2011 Phillies rotation, but this version of Woods Richardson significantly improves that calculus and perhaps the returns on a hypothetical López and/or Buxton trade supplement it further. I also personally like the idea of having Abel replace Jhoan Duran as the closer—if only to make the trade look like a win within a year, while Eduardo Tait marinates in the minors. The lineup has high upside guys on the way, as well, but they also have to hit right away, and that has not been a trend for young Twins hitters in recent years. Royce Lewis was a little better in the second half this year, but still posted just a .289 OBP in that time. He hit 11 second-half home runs, played good defense and stole 12 bases, but that is a far cry from the Kirby Puckett comparisons he garnered just 24 months ago. Trevor Larnach made a pinch-hit appearance, delivered a chopper turned double, and then was lifted for a pinch-runner. I'm probably in the minority on this, but I think Larnach gets better as he becomes an older hitter. He hits too many ground balls, but he doesn't go into many major slumps and can hit a ball 450 feet at a moment's notice. Through the lens of him being a first-round draft pick who was supposed to hit 30 bombs and bat .275, he's a bit of a bust. Through the lens of a guy who has had two straight solid years with the bat and who can improvise and battle against tough pitchers, I do kind of like him as a platoon bat. The defense has been pretty rough, though. James Outman and Brock Stewart, what a trade. Austin Martin and Woods Richardson: the roller coaster of this trade for José Berríos is maybe at its high point, with Berríos shifting to the bullpen for the Blue Jays' playoff run. We wanted a leadoff hitter and number-three starter out of that trade, and although it took a while, we may just have it. What’s Next: The Pohlads trim payroll to 75M. The front office will trade Buxton and López, acquiring three more post-hype prospects with big-league experience. The Pohlads release a statement using the Chat GPT prompt "deliver a message to the fans of our baseball team that conveys that we know more than them, if you had any brains you would cut payroll too, then use a bunch of corporate jargon to describe absolutely nothing while totaling over 250 words. Say something about like community and tradition or something." Baldelli is retained as manager, and the team makes one free agent signing: reliever Kyle Finnegan for one year and $5 million. Season ticket holder figures are revealed to have been cooked by including deceased fans of the old Washington Senators. Derek Falvey calls it an accounting error, while expressing "optimism about our group." Matt Wallner is visited by the ghosts of Richie Sexson, Adam Dunn and Dave Kingman, and becomes even more predictable. Due to a baserunning error on a home run, he becomes the first hitter in league history to hit more home runs than he has RBIs. Aaron Gleeman bursts a blood vessel defending him, while insisting it's just a bit and he's totally chill. Postgame Interviews Coming soon Bullpen Usage Chart WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Adams 16 0 30 0 9 55 Funderburk 0 14 0 31 0 45 Ohl 0 20 0 22 0 42 Cabrera 11 0 12 0 17 40 Sands 0 12 0 0 11 23 Laweryson 12 0 0 0 6 18 Misiewicz 0 0 0 0 15 15 Tonkin 0 0 11 0 0 11 View full article

I want him to be Gene Larkin so bad!

Image courtesy of © Matt Blewett-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Simeon Woods Richardson: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K (80 Pitches, 47 Strikes, 58.8%) Home Runs: Brooks Lee (16), Royce Lewis (13) Top 3 WPA: Lee (.365), Lewis (.170), Pierson Ohl (.095) Win Probability Chart (Via FanGraphs): If you still needed proof that the Guardians simply play a better brand of baseball than anything the Twins could possibly approximate, this series provided it. Guardians pitchers know exactly what Twins hitters are trying to do and countered them perfectly, and Guardians hitters are similarly inside the heads of Twins pitchers. It helps that they are the hottest team in baseball and about to complete one of the greatest division comebacks in recent memory. Well, not so fast. The Twins threw their hottest pitcher, Simeon Woods Richardson, at them today. That immediately went south, like (seemingly) everything these days. Steven Kwan got a fastball to his liking and smoked it 373 feet to begin the game 1-0. George Valera, who among Guardians fans ranked in the Jose Miranda/Edouard Julien space in terms of being just a massive, useless bust that wouldn't amount to anything just a few months ago, was hitting second, and walked. He reached third on a Kyle Manzardo single; Bo Naylor hit a sacrifice fly to bring him home and double the lead. Classic Guardians. Twins hitters had to contend with Joey Cantillo, who struck out nine the last time he faced them. During that game, Cantillo was actually rocked pretty hard, before settling in and reverting back to dominance. He looked good again today, outside of allowing a bloop double to Byron Buxton and a subsequent RBI single to Kody Clemens in the third. Woods Richardson kept the Guardians off the board the rest of the way, and in the sixth (following a double from Luke Keaschall), Brooks Lee launched a 411-foot home run to flip the game and give the Twins the lead. This came after Guardians manager Stephen Vogt chose to take out his lefty, Erik Sabrowski, to flip Lee to his "weaker" side with Matt Festa. It's weird when a strategy backfires against Cleveland. They always seem to have a horseshoe handy. This time, they got kicked. Strategy backfired again for Vogt in the seventh. Following a Clemens squibber and another infield single from Austin Martin, Royce Lewis was called upon to hit for Trevor Larnach against lefty Tim Herrin with two outs. Vogt called for his setup man, Hunter Gaddis, and Lewis made him pay, jumping all over the fourth straight slider of the at-bat and launching it 402 feet to extend the lead to 6-2. Lewis seemed pretty pumped: Kody Funderburk, Pierson Ohl, Cole Sands and Travis Adams pitched scoreless frames to seal the win. Other tidbits from this game: Remember when Ron Gardenhire batted Nick Punto second? I've been trying to find the logic behind the Guardians insisting on hitting their worst hitters in the number two spot in the lineup. Will Brennan and Amed Rosario have been assigned this duty in the past, and during this series, we've seen Daniel Schneeman and the aforementioned Valera in that spot. My theory on why teams like the Guardians and Brewers have done so well lately is that their analytics have gotten so advanced that they've moved past the need for some of them and are able to exploit other teams' over-reliance on said analytics. Perhaps there is an element of human psychology in putting a crappy hitter between Kwan and José Ramírez? Here are my best guesses: A bad hitter is 100% okay with giving himself up, either by sacrificing himself or by taking pitches without being concerned about falling behind in the count. That gives Kwan a couple of chances to steal a base if needed. Teams that game plan to focus entirely on Kwan and Ramírez might take the number two hitter for granted, especially if he has crappy numbers. The hitter prepares as if that is the case and waits for a fat pitch he can swing out of his shoes at. If he doesn't get it, it's no big deal; no one expects him to do anything anyway. How many clutch home runs have we seen the Quad-A Brennan hit over the years? Far too many. The ability to pinch-hit in the later innings is there. Jhonkensy Noel is always lurking, and being able to pinch-hit him late in the game has proven to be a winning formula. Not having to take a good player out in order to do so is the icing on the cake. Is Ryan Fitzgerald making a case for a role next year? Fitzgerald famously took forever to make his major-league debut, and even when the Twins brought him up after the fire sale, he wasn't playing much. But he has made the most out of limited opportunities, played decent defense, hit a few nice homers and has an .800-plus OPS to show for it. Brooks Lee certainly has more present upside, but the Twins aren't long on guys who can play competently at third, short and second and who possess a bat that isn't a pool noodle. Then again, if Lee doesn't amount to anything, maybe FItzgerald is one of those guys who figures something out after they turn 30. Maybe not José Bautista style, but maybe he can be a poor man's Scott Brosius? SWR: 2026 Ace of Staff? Stay with me here: If Joe Ryan and Pablo López are traded away, and Bailey Ober requires surgery to fix a hip labrum or something, I don't think the Twins have a starter more accustomed to getting big-league hitters out than Woods Richardson. His splitter is still new, and might get better. On that note, the Guardians really didn't swing at his splitter at all, and still couldn't score in innings two through five. Of course, the start against New York last week lingers in our minds and paints the righty in a better light, but he threw by far the best out of the starters against Cleveland, a team that cannot be denied. He's just been good since his recall (outside of that crazy parasite that sidelined him in August). The splitter plays, and with a newfound ability to miss bats, he might be a breakout candidate for 2026. Edouard Julien: Not that Bad? Stay with me again: Julien hasn't been particularly impressive, but he is striking out less than he ever has, his BABIP is the lowest of his career, and he hasn't seemed as overmatched as he looked earlier in the year. His batted-ball metrics indicate more of an average hitter than the black hole his surface-level stats would imply. He had competitive at-bats today. Maybe learning the league a little more has had an impact on a guy who does tend to get down on himself. If he is a .230/.330/.420 guy, that isn't the worst player to have at the end of your bench. I also think a confident Julien can act as something of a mascot for the team, a little like Bartolo Colón or José Iglesias. What’s Next: The Twins are off Monday, before heading to Arlington, Texas to play the fading Rangers. Zebby Matthews (4-6, 5.97 ERA) takes the ball. He was absolutely awful his last time out against the Yankees. Whether he was tipping pitches is irrelevant, because he was throwing batting practice against a New York team eager to make amends after getting shut out the night before. The Rangers were showing some life in August, but are now losers of six in a row and all but mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Their starter hasn't yet been announced. Postgame Interviews: Coming soon Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT 1 SAT2 SUN TOT Abel 0 0 0 0 71 0 71 Sands 15 0 25 0 0 20 60 Hatch 0 0 0 52 0 0 52 Funderburk 10 0 20 0 0 14 44 Adams 14 0 0 0 0 14 28 Cabrera 23 0 0 0 0 0 23 Ohl 13 0 0 0 0 9 22 Laweryson 0 0 20 0 0 0 20 Tonkin 0 0 17 0 0 0 17 View full article

Image courtesy of © Matt Blewett-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Bailey Ober: 6 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 9 K (101 Pitches, 71 Strikes) Home Runs: Matt Wallner (22), Mickey Gasper (2) Bottom 3 WPA: Ober (-.201), Carson McCusker (-.159), Matt Wallner (-.148) Win Probability Chart (Via FanGraphs): It's roster evaluation season in Minnesota! (Also yard waste collection season. Coincidence?) The Twins welcomed the Arizona Diamondbacks to Target Field, and after a fairly exciting first two games, they had a chance to take a series against a team fighting for a playoff spot. Bailey Ober made the start and carried over some of the swing-and-miss success from his last outing against Kansas City, striking out nine over six solid innings. His velocity once again peaked at 91 MPH, and outside of James McCann, who destroyed the Twins in a similar point of the year in 2024, he kept the desert denizens thirsty. The Diamondbacks have some excellent hitters, but it was the backup catcher, McCann, who singled in the game's first run in the second, and delivered a two-out, three-run homer in the fourth to give Arizona the lead. Hopefully, the Twins front office doesn't get enamored with that dominance and sign McCann on for significant at-bats in 2026. There are worse catchers out there, but Ryan Jeffers deserves to put up numbers in his walk year. (Of course, if Jeffers is traded, that calculus may change. And heck, they need a backup for him, either way.) Outside of McCann, Ober had six scoreless innings and two hits allowed. We're researching the feasibility of a rule change to disallow one hitter in the opposing lineup each day; we'll update you ASAP. The early offense from the Twins was mostly thanks to Arizona prospect Jordan Lawlar, long considered a can't-miss guy who has mostly missed over parts of three seasons. In the second, Royce Lewis delivered a one-out single, and with two outs and Lewis on second after a steal, Mickey Gasper grounded to Lawlar, who was (perhaps) screened by Lewis and booted the ball. After Edouard Julien laced a single to left that scored Lewis, Byron Buxton chopped a ball to Lawlar, who had to rush the throw and committed a throwing error, allowing the second run to score. Gasper hit a homer, and the rest of the lineup kept the pressure on, but the bullpen couldn't give them any margin for error, as they allowed runs in the seventh and eighth innings. The Twins had a chance in their half of the eighth, with Carson McCusker pinch-hitting against a lefty with the bases loaded, but he would ground out to end the threat. They loaded the bases in the ninth, as well, but Wallner flied out to end it. Since it's all made up and the games don't matter, here are some other things I'm tracking: Buxton's pursuit of 30/30, or 25/25, or just having a nice, healthy year: Buxton was in swing mode, making an out on the first pitch in the first, and chopping a reached-on-error on the first pitch in the second. He fought a bit more in the fifth, but ended up striking out on a changeup from starter Nabil Crismatt. I wonder where his mind is at, knowing the team is going nowhere and may purposely get worse over the offseason. He has figured out a way to stay healthy-ish, and I wonder if he is doing himself a disservice with admirable levels of loyalty to an organization that deserves no loyalty whatsoever. I just feel like if he played for the Phillies, he could have some great October moments. It is such a shame that he has played on four playoff teams and been healthy for half of one game during the playoffs—injuring himself on a catch at wall in 2017, then being hurt for 2019, producing one of the most depressing playoff moments in Twins history in 2020 as he tried to play through a concussion, and then pinch-hitting on one leg in the elimination game against the Astros in 2023. Brooks Lee providing any optimism for his future: There have been plenty of instances of guys who come into the league and take a while to adjust on both sides of the ball, before settling in as a two- to three-WAR player. Lee has popped 14 homers, provided some clutch moments, and kept his head above water at shortstop. But that has come with bad numbers as far as defensive metrics, a sub-.300 OBP, and a somewhat sleepy disposition. Having said that, he has struggled initially at all minor-league levels, and it wouldn't surprise me if he started hot in 2026 and rides that into a .275/.330/.450 season with average defense. Would some sort of mechanical or mental adjustment make that sustainable? Or is his real skill level something like .250/.300/.380, with below-average but acceptable-looking defense? I don't think that plays on a winning team. But hey, we may not see a winning team for a year or two, anyway. Today, Lee had a weak ground out, a weak pop out and a strikeout, while making every play at shortstop. What is Matt Wallner? I was initially very skeptical about Wallner as certain media members frothed at the mouth about him taking the place of the incumbent right fielder in 2023. Said incumbent was one of the team's MVPs down the stretch, but Wallner surprised me with his ability to make some adjustments, bouncing back from brief slumps to post great rate stats down the stretch. He's been up and down since, but I still think Wallner can be a good hitter in the right situation. He just needs to learn how to Anthony Rizzo his way into messing with pitchers' plans against him. If he can find a way to get fooled and still flip a single the other way when behind in the count, he can develop into a real problem for pitchers—instead of a puzzle with an easy solution (fastball up, offspeed for chase). He has put up a fight against lefties, though, with a .794 OPS, including a battle in the last at-bat of the game. As it stands, the Twins are suddenly flush with high-upside Triple-A outfielders, with Gabriel Gonzalez, Walker Jenkins and Emmanuel Rodriguez all nearly ready for their shot. Wallner is still minimum-salaried for now, but he's set to turn 28 in December (right when Joey Gallo began his sharp decline). If the Twins aren't convinced he can be a reliable regular, they should trade him while his value still exists. He delivered a big home run today, cutting the deficit to 4-3 in the sixth inning with a 421-foot blast. What is Royce Lewis? Lewis took good at-bats today, delivering a rally-starting single, and has quietly been an above-average player in the second half, with a .764 OPS including 10 home runs and a .464 SLG. That's fine. If he can be a poor man's Matt Chapman, he'll have a long career. It just seemed, for a while, like he could be a Ryan Braun-caliber slugger who was able to stick at third. Now there seems to be some risk that he's a Ryan Braun-caliber personality who slugs like a shorstop. How good can Luke Keaschall be? Keaschall has done a little of everything. His fielding still leaves plenty to be desired, but he's hitting .310 with speed and a little power. I wonder if he thrives on adrenaline like Lewis, and once the shine wears off and he settles into the grind, he's more of a .270/.340/.420 type hitter. He has a sub-700 OPS for September after going 1-3 today, although he did steal a base, his 13th. What will the bullpen look like in 2026? The bullpen hasn't looked great since they traded five really good relievers at the trade deadline. Cole Sands has been pretty good, outside of a recent blowup, and Kody Funderburk has settled into a maybe-okay sixth-inning guy. The walk and strikeout numbers ain't pretty, though. I wonder if Mick Abel is being groomed as a potential option, given his high-octane stuff and struggles with control. Connor Prielipp and Marco Raya also are options at Triple A, but Raya has been pretty bad as a starter and Prielipp has had so many health issues since high school that it's hard to project him for anything. Perhaps Michael Fulmer is available on a minor-league deal? Today, handed a 4-3 deficit, Génesis Cabrera (probably the highest-upside of the waiver claims the Twins have shuttled into their bullpen) looked pretty bad again, allowing a run and not getting through his inning before Michael Tonkin came on in relief. Cabrera has a great name, and his stuff looks kinda nasty, but matching 17.4% strikeout and walk percentages are about as brutal as it gets. Tonkin stayed on and loaded the bases with no outs in the eighth, before settling down and allowing just one run. Thomas Hatch pitched the ninth, and didn't look great, falling behind hitters and allowing two hard hits, although his inning was scoreless. Also, check out the season Geraldo Perdomo is having for Arizona: 19 homers, a 132 OPS+, great shortstop defense, and 26 steals in 32 attempts (Hatch did pick him off). He also has an 11.2% strikeout percentage, and walks 13.2% of the time. He's in 2009 Ben Zobrist territory for under-the-radar great seasons. He also leads the NL with 6.3 bWAR. Imagine this team without its entire bullpen getting hurt! What’s Next: The Twins welcome the Yankees to Target Field Monday, as Simeon Woods Richardson (6-4, 4.58 ERA), takes on Carlos Rodón (16-8, 3.11 ERA). New York has been better lately, as they fight for playoff positioning. They have an outside shot at the division, 3.5 games back of Toronto. Rodón was hurt, bad and pouted during his first year in the Bronx, but has been pretty good since, and has owned the Twins since becoming a Yankee. Woods Richardson is looking to finish the year strong, as he auditions for a spot in the 2026 rotation. Postgame Interviews: Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Sands 18 0 21 26 0 65 Tonkin 0 0 20 0 19 39 Ohl 0 0 0 35 0 35 Funderburk 0 0 7 15 0 22 Cabrera 0 0 0 0 22 22 Laweryson 0 0 0 20 0 20 Adams 0 0 17 0 0 17 Hatch 0 0 0 0 17 17 View full article

Image courtesy of © Denny Medley-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Bailey Ober: 5 1/3 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K (85 Pitches, 54 Strikes, 63.5%) Home Runs: Byron Buxton (30), Kody Clemens (16) Top 3 WPA: Ober (.206), Clemens (.144), Cole Sands (.097) Win Probability Chart (Via FanGraphs): It's a race to the bottom now for the Minnesota Twins. After a nice series win against the Padres, they got swept at home against the White Sox and lost the first two in Kansas City against the Royals. The way things stand, they have the second-best odds for the first pick in next year's draft—but hey, even if they got it, the Pohalds would probably try to sell it. Sunday's tilt featured Bailey Ober against Michael Lorenzen as the starting pitchers. Ober has been a tough story this year. His velocity has been down, at least partially due to a hip issue that appears to still be lingering, and he's allowed a truckload of home runs as a result. Lots of folks want him shut down for the year, but as a second-year arbitration guy, Ober surely has no designs on allowing that to happen. He showed it Sunday. While his velocity was down again (he exceeded 90 MPH just thrice), his changeup was the sharpest I've seen it in months. He played that off of his sweeper, which also played up a tick, and the result was tons of weak contact and even some swings and misses. The first inning featured two groundouts and a pop-up. Then, he struck out four of the next six hitters. His first baserunner reached in the fourth, in the form of a leadoff double from Mike Yaztrzemski. He even worked around that, with Matt Wallner making a nice catch in foul ground to retire Maikel García; a soft liner from Vinnie Pasquantino; and a strikeout of Salvador Perez on a sweeper to escape with no damage. The Twins played from out front, as Byron Buxton lifted off against a Lorenzen fastball at the top of the zone to make the game 1-0 after one batter. Lorenzen did look pretty sharp, and generally kept the ball under the bats of Twins hitters with his slider, sinker and changeup. He allowed a softly hit Royce Lewis double in the second, but Edouard Julien lined into a tough-luck double play to end the frame. After a quiet third inning, the Twins mounted a rally in the fourth. Austin Martin began the inning with a single, and Wallner produced a single of his own. That brought up Luke Keaschall in a spot to do damage, but the rookie second baseman grounded in a 5-3 double play to temporarily squelch the rally. Then, blessedly, Lorenzen left a changeup in the middle of the zone to Kody Clemens, who demolished it 451 feet to dead center field. Ober got the first two outs in the fifth quickly, before allowing a double to Nick Loftin. Kyle Isbel would then walk, which brought up waiver claim catcher Luke Maile. He battled Ober to a 2-2 count before swinging through an 88-MPH fastball to end the inning. The Royals would pay the next frame. Keaschall punched a one-out single to end Lorenzen's day, and after a steal of second, Lewis beat out an infield single. He appeared to get caught off of first base, but Keaschall darted home as Lewis got in a rundown and the throw home was late, allowing a fourth run to score while Julien stood at home plate. It was probably a designed play, and if so, Lewis and Keaschall executed brilliantly. Kansas City would chase Ober in the sixth. García hit a one-out double, and Pasquantino poked a single the other way to score the Royals' first run. Cole Sands came on to face Perez, and retired him on an easy ground ball double play. I wonder if Kansas City fans care that Perez doesn't run out ground balls, or is he just so slow that it just looks like he doesn't run them out? The Twins would add on in the seventh on a single, two walks and a hit by pitch against Daniel Lynch IV. Sands pitched a scoreless bottom half of the inning, including yet another double play—this time, a 5-4-3, including a great scoop at first by Clemens. The Royals threatened in the eighth against Kody Funderburk, even after leadoff hitter Isbel (who had reached on a hit by pitch) was successfully back-picked by Jhonny Pereda. Maile and Yaztrzemski singled, and García drew a walk after fouling a ball directly off his toe earlier in the at-bat. But Funderburk struck out Pasquantino, and Justin Topa came on to retire Perez on a grounder. Topa got the first two outs of the ninth before exiting due to what appeared to be a leg injury. Génesis Cabrera came on and recorded the save. Stray Observations: -Buxton left the game after being hit by a Lorenzen fastball on his left knee. He initially stayed in the game both to run and play center field in the bottom half of the inning, but exited in the bottom of the sixth in favor of James Outman. Buxton's career is truly a Greek tragedy: getting healthy and playing 100 games two years in a row only to have the team collapse around him, and now hitting his 30th home run only to exit with injury in the very same game. -I know some folks think because Wallner can consistently post decent OPS numbers he is infinitely undervalued, but it's 2025, not 2005, and I don't think there is anyone on the Twins who puts up less of a fight when the pitcher executes his plan. With him struggling lately, I also would love to see what a certain cherry-picking media member has to say if Larnach finishes with a higher OPS. -Jhonny Pereda ain't much, but he has two pick-offs in two starts this year, making a great scoop and throwing out Isbel at first in the eighth. -James Outman looks cooked. What’s Next: Simeon Woods Richardson (5-4, 4.53 ERA) takes the hill Monday, as the Twins head to Anaheim to take on Caden Dana and the Angels. Woods Richardson was pretty good his last time out, and will be making his third start since returning from dealing with an intestinal parasite (a literal one, not the figurative one you've been fighting since around the time this team's 13-game winning streak ended). The Angels are four games "behind" the Twins in the race to the bottom of the standings. Postgame Interviews: Coming soon Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Hatch 0 0 0 66 0 66 Topa 18 0 13 0 28 59 Funderburk 11 0 15 0 22 48 Sands 18 0 0 0 14 32 Adams 0 31 0 0 0 31 Cabrera 0 20 0 0 8 28 Tonkin 0 11 0 12 0 23 Ohl 0 0 0 0 0 0 View full article

for this bullpen yea

Image courtesy of © Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Joe Ryan: 7 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K (104 Pitches, 75 Pitches, 72.1%) Home Runs: Byron Buxton (29) Top 3 WPA: Ryan (.276), Buxton (.180), James Outman (.050) Win Probability Chart (Via FanGraphs): As their listless, depressing season enters its final month, the Twins have given a surprising amount of fight to the division-leading Blue Jays and (now) the recently NL West-leading Padres. And, in a sentence I haven't been writing much lately, the Twins had the advantage on paper, with Joe Ryan taking the mound at home against a Padres team without the IL-bound Xander Bogaerts, running a bullpen game. The Twins went quietly in the first two innings against right-handed reliever David Morgan, but the Padres turned to lefty Kyle Hart to start the third. Austin Martin drew a one-out walk (his OBP is up to .363, in case you weren't paying attention), and Byron Buxton pulverized a 2-2 change-up on the outside edge for his career-high 29th home run. Ryan looked back to his old self after a few uncharacteristically rough outings, relying mainly on his fastball but keeping hitters honest with his offspeed stuff. He ran into a bit of trouble in the fourth following an error by Royce Lewis that allowed leadoff batter Manny Machado to reach. Ryan O'Hearn followed with a single, and you started to wonder if history was repeating itself. But Ryan rebounded to strike out Ramón Laureano (who has 22 homers and a .900 OPS?) and Gavin Sheets, before getting Jake Cronenworth to pop out weakly to end the threat. The Twins even decided to add on! After working ahead of Luke Keaschall 0-2, Hart plunked the Twins second baseman. Ryan Jeffers then worked a tough one-out walk against stud reliever Jeremiah Estrada, before James Outman lined a single into the gap to extend the lead to 3-0. Ryan worked a nine-pitch fifth inning, setting the Twins up to feast against new reliever Wandy Peralta in the bottom of the frame. Peralta's first pitch was driven to the right-center gap by Buxton, and only a fine play by Fernando Tatis Jr. prevented it from becoming a triple. Keaschall singled to bring home Buxton, Kody Clemens produced a sacrifice fly, and Royce Lewis singled up the middle to take the lead to six. Ryan walked Machado in the sixth and allowed a two-out hit to Laureano to put runners on the corners for Sheets, but the resurgent former White Sox flied out harmlessly to left to end the inning. He hung a breaking ball to Cronenworth to begin the seventh, and Cronenworth advanced to second on a grounder. Ryan was upset at a couple of borderline ball calls to Freddy Fermin before striking him out on a high fastball at 96 MPH. He battled Tatis, and eventually struck him out on 96 down the middle to complete his seven scoreless innings. Michael Tonkin took over for the eighth and worked a clean inning, but began the ninth by allowing a single to Sheets, hit Mason McCoy with a pitch and fell behind 3-0 to José Iglesias. Tonkin battled back against Iglesias to induce a grounder to Lewis at third, who stepped on the bag and fired to first for a nice double play. Fermin then doubled in McCoy to break the shutout. Another run would score before Tonkin finally sealed the game via flyout by Arraez, on his 37th pitch. Stray Observations: -I feel like so much is made of Martin's poor defense at every position he plays that we forget what he actually contributes offensively. He had a few good moments last year and kept his head above water, with a 90 OPS+. His slash line for 2025 now sits at .271/.363/.371. For all those clamoring for Luis Arraez to return, the Padres' first baseman sports a .282/.316/.386 line, for comparison. Martin can contribute on the base paths, too. It would be a weird DH profile, but this figures to be a weird team no matter what happens this offseason. -Today's game was broadcast on Roku, who curiously pair one team's color commentator with the other team's play-by-play analyst. It's pretty interesting to have someone calling the game who is plugged into the inner workings of the opponent, and having Cory Provus diplomatically explain the Twins to an innocent bystander is a pretty fun watch. The Twins seem to play on Roku a lot. What’s Next: The Twins welcome the White Sox to town for four games beginning Monday. Bailey Ober (4-7, 5.14 ERA) starts for the home nine, while Chicago will scrounge up someone from the minors after losing would-be starter Aaron Civale on waivers earlier Sunday. First pitch is at 1:10 PM CT. Postgame Interviews: Coming soon Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Abel 0 0 0 59 0 59 Tonkin 15 0 0 0 37 52 Kriske 0 0 0 44 0 44 Cabrera 11 0 0 31 0 42 Funderburk 18 0 23 0 0 41 Sands 17 0 17 0 0 34 Hatch 26 0 0 0 0 26 Topa 0 0 24 0 0 24 View full article