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darwin22

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Everything posted by darwin22

  1. darwin22
    Mentioned this a few weeks ago: Is the time approaching that the Twins make a legit effort to re-sign Santana for next season? My answer: A strong "YES" Yes, I know he's OLD, but he has produced with the bat in key situations all season and has proven he's the best defensive 1B we've had since Mauer---maybe even better. I'm completely DONE with Kirilloff and I don't want to hear anything about Julien. Miranda is a viable option at 1B, but imo, his best position is 3B/DH.
  2. darwin22
    Just wondering the following after such an excellent MLB debut by Zebby tonight: When was the last time a pitcher won his MLB debut after progressing through 3 minor league levels in the same season? I was fortunate to see Matthews pitch the second week of July in Springfield for the Wind Surge against Springfield. A high pitch count forced him out after only 3 innings, which was quite disappointing at the time. Boy, he sure didn't disappoint at all tonight! Don't want to get too hyped over just 1 game, but Matthews showed tonight against a very good hitting team what he's done the vast majority of his time in the minors: Command of the strike zone, aggressiveness in attacking the strike zone and an excellent pitch mix over his 5 IP. Welcome to "The Show" young man and hoping for a long and prosperous career in our starting rotation.
  3. darwin22
    Wow...not sure how many fans remember Eddie Bane, but a few nuggets from his MLB debut: 1. After pitching to an outstanding 40-4 record at Arizona St and leading his team to the championship game in the CWS against USC, the Twins signed him to a whopping 55K bonus. 2. His 1st start came on July 4th at Metropolitan Stadium against KC. Hoping to (literally) cash in on Bane's debut like the Rangers did with David Clyde, who followed the same route out of college, Calvin Griffith promoted Bane to start without any minor league experience. 3. The game was a sellout---45,890 at the Old Met, which prompted a 15-minute delay in getting the game started. 4. Bane's 1st MLB strikeout came against Lou Piniella. 5. Bane pitched an excellent game allowing only 1 run over 7 IP. That proved to be his best game as he finished the season 0-5 with a 4.92 ERA
  4. darwin22
    Any postgame update on Buxton? Didn't see the game as I cannot (and will not) listen to the annoying, Rex Hudler as I'm forced into watching the Royals feed as I live in the KC area. Very good bounce back victory after the bats hibernated mostly the last 2 days. Crucial for the offense to pick up the pitching staff as we move toward the end of the season. Lopez appeared to regroup after allowing 2 early runs to get through 6 IP. Absolutely a MUST he be the leader for this staff the rest of the season. Having seen Zebby Matthews pitch just a month ago in Springfield, I was a little surprised to see him get promoted to start tomorrow night. I'm hoping he is aggressive and can command the strike zone. He WILL throw strikes as evidenced by his numbers all season. Hopefully, he can give us at least 4 strong innings tomorrow night and then patch things together with bullpen.
  5. darwin22
    After an unexpected sweep Friday to slice division deficit to 1.5 games, I made the following comment to my spouse: "Is it too much to hope for a split the next 2 games?" Answer: Yes it was Just a totally frustrating last 2 days. Wasted an excellent start by SWR yesterday and then Festa pitched like a rookie today. 41 pitches through 3 innings then appeared to lose his command and confidence after serving up game tying HR to Ramirez. 29 pitches in 4th to record 1 out. No mystery to me why CLE has dominated Twins this season. Hitters that work long counts, put the ball in play and come through with RISP. On the other hand, we continue to trot out 37 year-old Caleb Thielbar and have hitters that can't hit with RISP. Something like a putrid 8-65 with RISP on the season vs. Guardians. Season and playoffs are still definitely within our grasp, but the last 2 days along with the loss of Ryan doesn't have me in an optimistic mood.
  6. darwin22
    Spent the afternoon on the golf course and see that the Twins pretty much played as poorly as I did, which is quite depressing. Got to believe, well at least hope, that after the unmitigated disaster of an outing that Richards had today he will be demoted/ DFA'ed. He's not good and have no idea what Falvey saw in him. Dobnak needs to be jettisoned back to SP also. Should those two things happen, is it reasonable to expect/hope that Topa ( 0.00 ERA over 6 IP since July 23rd) and Ronny Henriquez (2.51 ERA at SP since July 1st over 14.33 IP) get promoted to add bullpen depth? IMO, I absolutely believe Topa and Henriquez have earned that opportunity. Losers of all 5 this season against CLE, I'm not as optimistic as others facing them this weekend. With our bats in hibernation the last few games and our bullpen leaking, I'd be pleased with a split. Things tilt in a BAD direction if Ryan is out for any extended period.
  7. darwin22
    Forgot about Disco Danny Ford and won't disagree with you. I'm sure others--Bombo Rivera comes to mind had major blunders, but I still stand by my comment. Larnach is a MLB player and one that I do like. Saying that, it doesn't excuse his pathetic lack of effort. That was a BAD play for a Little Leaguer. Absolutely atrocious for a high school or college player, For a MLB player just totally inexcuseable.
  8. darwin22
    An absolute gem by Festa tonight! Was aggressive throughout his 5 IP and attacked the strike zone. Got to give credit to Margot for his HR to extend the lead to 2-0. Castro played very well at SS as did Martin with each making a very good play on tough ground balls. Can't ask anymore out of our bullpen! 4 scoreless IP with only 2 hits allowed and ZERO walks. Thielbar looked very good with his dominant (3 Ks) 6th inning. Hate to end on a down note, but the baserunning BLUNDER by Larnach was absolutely disgraceful! Not only did Larnach JOG to 2nd base on Wallner's 2-out---yes 2-out---drive to right center, but he STOPPED--not a pause after rounding 2nd base looking at the Cubs OFers. That was the WORST baserunning play in that situation, that I've ever seen in 50+ years being a Twins fan! In an earlier era, Larnach should've been IMMEDIATELY benched. TK would have done it. So would've Paul Molitor as well as other managers. Not Rocco. I know he wanted to give Buxton a day off, but he had options on the bench with Miranda and Lee both sitting out. I would like to believe that this will be addressed by Baldelli. At minimum, Larnach should be fined and imo, he should step up in the clubhouse and apologize to all his teammates. Totally pathetic effort.
  9. darwin22
    For a guy making $17m this year and next you'd expect a professional effort. Not good
  10. darwin22
    Good W to finish road trip and to see bats finally wake up this afternoon. Hopefully our players don't "assume" a sweep or series win against the White Sox as their due eventually to get a win to snap their brutal losing (17 game) streak. Frustrating to see Stewart regression back to IL. Missed his performance last night. Did he have awful command? Was his velocity down? Definitely a RP we need down the stretch. Wondering how soon we might see Topa promoted from SP? Very short sample size as he's only made 2 appearances (2 scoreless IP) since being moved from Fort Myers to the Saints. Difficult to count on him (or Stewart) at this point to be counted on to help our top 4 RPs, but since the front office FAILED miserably to acquire talent at the trade deadline, they are the main 2 that feasibly could deliver key IP over the last 2 months.
  11. darwin22
    Just an absolute gem by Ober today. In command all day and just refused to allow DET hitters to get anything going. Have to admit I darn near did a double take when I saw Vazquez sit in the left handers batters box on the 2-strike pitch to Baez in the 8th! The homeplate ump sure looked surprised also. Nice to see Baez whiff on that pitch! The next thing I'd like to mention is our current catching situation. I'm sure most would agree that Vazquez is far superior defensively as well as with pitch calling/framing than Jeffers. On the flip side, Jeffers bat has been far better (until recently) than what Vasquez has done since coming to the team last year. Never thought I'd EVER and I mean EVER be writing this, but has the time come for Baldelli to bench Jeffers and give Vazquez 5+ starts each week? After an outstanding April----.338 avg with 5 HRs, 18 RBI with a .424 OBP and .636 slug--Jeffers has totally cratered at the plate as evidenced by these putrid numbers: May: .214/.295/.536, but that was mitigated by good production..7 HRs and 18 RBI June: .161/.238/.232--------other numbers were gruesome: 1 HR and 5 RBI for the month in 56ABs July: Hitting .222 (12-54) with only 1 HR and 6 RBI. Even with hit today, Jeffers is in a 3-31 funk since July 13th. Vazquez on the other hand in July has proven to be much more productive: Now hitting .324 this month (12-37) with 3 HRs and 7 RBI to go along with a plus .360 OBP. Finally, even after Thielbar's scoreless inning today--can anyone argue against the front office/Falvey making a deal to bring in a LHRP? Thielbar's command was BAD---needed 25 pitches to get through his inning. His best days are gone. Okert: Who trusts him in any tight situation? Not me! Funderburk: IMO, the best in the group, but is on IL and has struggled with his command all season. Yes, it would take giving up a legit prospect (Raya) or two to acquire Tanner Scott from MIA, but the payoff is worth it. Saying that, I doubt anything of that significance will happen.
  12. darwin22
    Echoing the comments of others, the detailed analysis of games and features on our players is one of the main reasons I check out TD on a daily basis. Seth and the other TD writers do a great job! The only suggestion I'd make is trying to update readers on the injury status of players ( ie: Rodriguez, Canterino) that have missed substantial time. Keep up the awesome work!
  13. darwin22
    No---Rocco is not obligated to do so, but we all know he's committed to pinch hitting him in ANY situation in which a LHRP is facing Wallner or Larnach. I Seriously wondering what the MLB record ( a dubious one) is for futility as a pinch hitter. Margot is now a BIG GOOSE EGG for 25 this season.
  14. darwin22
    Agree with you on Lee moving over to SS as long as Correa remains on IL. Castro would be much better suited to move over to 2B as he's shown, imo, to be lacking with glove and arm at SS. If both Miranda and Lewis are activated before Friday series in DET, I'm guessing Miranda gets the lion share of starts at 3B with Lewis serving as DH. If that happens, that would result in Larnach moving into a 4th OF role. He could also serve as a DH against RH pitching when Lewis or Miranda need a day off.
  15. darwin22
    Huge series win for the hometown team today! A few observations/thoughts with now only 61 games left: 1. What happens with Brooks Lee when Miranda is activated? After an excellent start, Lee has regressed over his last 10 games. Since July 10th, Lee is now in a 5-41 slump (.122 avg) with only 1 EBH. IMO, Lee could benefit from a SHORT reset in SP. 2. How long of a leash does Julien have? Very small sample size, I know, but since his recall he's 2-12 with 8K's. Moreover, his defense leaves a lot to be desired. Not advocating for Kyle Farmer when he's ready to come off IL, but Julien is not the answer--at least at this point in the season. 3. With recent IL of Funderburk, Thielbar's continued struggles (season ERA at 6.20) and Okert being less than desirable, I would think that a LHRP has GOT TO BE at the top of the list at the trade deadline. Now for some more positive comments: 1. SP upgrade at deadline: Still think is a priority but not as much as acquiring a good LHRP. Festa showed some significant improvement today. Unsure what happens next time that slot in rotation comes up, but Festa, imo earned another start based on what he did today. Adding on, in case anyone has missed it: Varland has put together 2 back to back impressive start for SP. 11.67 IP/ 0 ER/ 4 hits/ 4 BB with 13K's. Still like him as a bullpen option as its very uncertain to count on Stewart to remain healthy or hoping Topa progresses to the point he can contribute down the stretch. 2. Don't want to jinx him, but Wallner looks VERY good at the plate recently. If he can contribute anywhere close to what he did in the second half of 2023--thinks look much better. 3. Carlos Santana: Beyond his recent clutch hitting is his stellar play defensively at 1B. Is it reasonable to start to consider re-signing him for next season? I say "yes" 4. Cole Sands: Like comment on Wallner, I don't want to jinx him, but he's gone from..."OMG they're putting Sands in a close game," to now expecting him to thrive. In case anyone has missed it--Sands in July has now pitched 10 scoreless IP in July with 13 Ks and 0 walks. Very impressive and happy for him. Time to rest tomorrow and minds right to win a series this weekend against an improved DET team!
  16. darwin22
    No----he did NOT get rocked in his last start as I was in Springfield last Tuesday to see him pitch. Matthews allowed 1 ER in 3 IP with 4 K's and 2 walks over that span. Yes, his shortest outing of the season, but that was dictated by Springfield extending him to a 37-pitch 3rd inning. Matthews was dominant in his first 2 IP striking out three on only 23 pitches. The only ER he allowed was on a seeing eye ground ball single to Tommy Edman (on rehab) on a 0-2 count. The other 2 runs were unearned as a 2-out ground ball was butchered for an error. Matthews has easily leapfrogged Raya, imo, in our SP ranks.
  17. darwin22
    Steve; Thanks for the analysis for our minor league affiliates. Attended the game in person last night and getting ready to head out for Game #2, which I hope has a better result. Would absolutely agree with your point that Hammons Field is as good a AA ballpark in the country. Although others have commented on last nights game, I will offer a few observations: #1 Zebby Matthews is the real deal. Yes, he had his shortest start of the season, which was a huge bummer for me, for he was extremely unlucky with his 37-pitch 3rd inning. As noted, he dominated the 1st two innings- striking out 3 on only 23 pitches. If not for a 2-out little dribbler ground ball single by Tommy Edman (on a 0-2 count), Matthews would've escaped the inning with under 20 pitches. I will give Springfield hitters credit for pushing up his pitch count as they hit numerous foul balls and didn't chase borderline pitches. If Matthews can get back on track over the next 6 weeks, I'd expect a promotion to SP in September. 'Would be interested to hear your (and others) take on that possibility. 2. Luke Keaschall: Looking forward to seeing his progress as he's been the best hitter for this team over the last 2 months. His lead off HR was impressive as he pulled a 2-strike heater off the fair pole in LF. Although given credit for three hits---he really only had 2 as the Springfield official scorer was very generous giving him a hit on a routine groundball their 2B misplayed. 3. Aaron Sabato: Maybe a better game coming tonight, but Sabato continues, imo, to be one of the biggest BUSTS as a 1st round pick in Twins history. Having seen Sabato now for 3 straight years (2022 in CR and last 2 years with Wichita), his bat is slow and his propensity to whiff reminds me of Sano. Box score shows he had a hit, but again that really was an error (groundball in 7th that SF 3B butchered). Another 2 K's last night. 4. Carson McCusker: May be not well known by many (26 year-old drafted by MIL in 2017 in 26th round), but he's having a good year for Wichita. A big dude (6'6/ 250 lbs), McCusker moves well and had 2 hits last night. Finishing up, what is the status of E-Rod? I know he's been on IL and think he's been on a rehab assignment with Fort Myers. His presence in the lineup would be a big upgrade. Hopefully a better report coming tomorrow after tonights game.
  18. darwin22
    Have to give props to Vazquez for his game today (minus his baserunning foibles). In the category of who would be the LEAST LIKELY to hit a walk off HR against Hader---CV had to be the top candidate on this roster. Saying that, he has (finally) looked like a serviceable hitting catcher over the last 3 games (6-12). With Jeffers hitting in a rut for a long period we need Vazquez to at minimum be an average hitter. Happy for him and will refrain from bashing him until after the ASB. SWR showed me a lot today. After his rough 2nd inning--2 walks---he looked to me like he told himself, "Ok..enough of the ^#$# nibbling---I'm going to be aggressive and go after these guys".....I honestly think Festa has better overall stuff than SWR, but SWR has shown a great amount of maturity since securing a slot in our rotation. His confidence appears to be growing with every start. Maybe Lopez should pay attention to what he's doing. Absolutely thrilled with the series win! Just hoping C4 is back in the lineup by Tuesday. Can't afford a letdown on upcoming trip to CHI and SF as CLE is still 6 games ahead and faces DET at Comerica for their next 4 games. Sure wish Skubal had pitched yesterday as he won't get a start. Like what Baldelli has done with lineup recently against RHP with Kepler-Buxton and Lee hitting in lower third of lineup. Not sure how sustainable this is as Larnach is in a 2-15 slump over his last 5 games hitting in the 2/3 hole.
  19. darwin22
    Twins haven't made a substantial trade to acquire a hitter at the deadline since the acquisition of Shannon Stewart in 2003------yes--more than 20 years ago. This year will no different.
  20. darwin22
    Very interesting recollection of that day as I also (12 at the time) was at the game with my 2 brothers and my dad. Having attended several Twins games as a youth---we lived in northeast Iowa---this game stands out as the BEST GAME I ever attended at Metropolitan Stadium. Not only was the Met filled to capacity it was an electric atmosphere with the Twins playing well battling for 1st place. Our seats were along the 1B line in the 2nd deck. Not sure how long I held onto the replica Rod Carew jersey, but it was at the top of my list of possessions for years to come. Only thing in error in this write up---was that the fan who delayed the game did so climbing up the LEFT FIELD foul pole---not the one in RF. My 12 year old mind remembers the game was delayed for at least 10 minutes as Thornley (who later became a SABR member) kept security at bay scrambling further up the pole as security tried to coax him down. I'm guessing significant consumption of Grain Belt, Ice cold Oly or Hamms played a contributing factor in Thornley's actions. A final memory was staying (our tradition) at the Howard Johnson's--a stone's throw from the Met along Cedar Avenue. For a young kid, an indoor swimming pool COMBINED with a putting green made for a great time.
  21. darwin22
    Not to damper the mood tonight, but are the recent inconsistent results from Paddack (4+ ER allowed in 3 of last 4 starts) a serious enough concern that may warrant keeping Varland around? May be a moot point as I haven't seen if Varland was optioned back to AAA tonight. If not the case, I will make the argument to keep Varland around as a spot starter/long relief out of the pen. The corresponding move would be the DFA of Jay Jackson. Albeit against weaker lineups, Varland, imo, deserves the opportunity to stay after delivering two quality outings (2 ER in 9.33 IP this week). For those who disagree---that's fine, but I'd welcome the argument/discussion of how Jackson is more beneficial than Varland?
  22. darwin22
    Randy Bush was a MUCH better player than Kirilloff has ever demonstrated. Just my opinion.
  23. darwin22
    Echoing comments of others, but the time has come for Thielbar to be DFA'ed. Absolutely appreciate his grit and solid performance over the last couple of seasons, but the time has come. Its over. Saying that, nothing will change as its "not the Twins way" I sure would've liked to hear Baldelli's postgame explanation (not broadcast) for yanking Varland when he was working on a 1-hit shutout with only 1 walk over 63 pitches through 5 IP.
  24. darwin22
    Very good article Matt despite a rough day with our affiliates. Most impressed with the pitching line by Zebby Matthews----very impressive outing! With a road trip (from KC area) planned to Springfield in early July to see a couple of games, I'm hoping to see Matthews get a start. Will hopefully see Rodriguez back in action by then.
  25. darwin22
    Ok.....if that seems rash (last 10 games for Kepler), lets look at what he's done since 2019 (.252/ 36/90/ .855 OPS) 2020: .228/9/23/.760*-----Covid 60-game season 2021: .211/19/54/.719 OPS 2022: .227/ 9/43/.666 2023: March thr June 30th .203 avg/ 11 HR/ 25 RBI/ .692 OPS Yes, Kep had an excellent 2nd half last season, but that doesn't discount his dismal offensive output for almost 3 full seasons before that.
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