stringer bell

Not good news. PF seldom gets better on its own. If he’s out for an extended time, I’d bet on Lee taking over at shortstop.

Boushley DFA’d to make room for Castillo on the 40-man. It wouldn’t surprise me if Castillo is DFA’d as soon as tomorrow.

My daughter and another Joe moment.

Yes, the Twins really only need to worry about themselves. In the last 60 games, they'll play the Guards eight times. Whoever wins a majority of those games probably wins the Central.

It's another "Meatloaf" rubber game. While I think the Twins have a decent chance, they've won a bunch of deciding games in three-game series. At some point, they'll lose one. I assume Castillo will get the start somewhere (second base?) depending on Correa's health and if he got to SF at a reasonable hour.

It appears (with an extremely small sample size) that Lee is the second best defensive shortstop and the best defender at both second and third base. Slotting him at second, but moving him to short or third in the event of a Correa or Lewis injury makes sense. Lewis’ injury history makes it essential that there is a guy to step in.

The other Diego Castillo is being called up. A 40-man move will have to be made with the active roster move of Miranda going on the IL.

So, two days of basically running in place. Cleveland, KC, Detroit, Boston, Houston and probably Seattle all split the first two days this weekend, not changing the standings.

When the Twins were en route to SF, the most banged up player was probably Jeffers. There seemed to be enough depth that adding Camargo would allow DHing of Jeffers/Vázquez plus allow running for Jeffers or hitting for Vázquez. But the baseball gods seem to have a sense of irony (or humor) so we have scratches of Miranda and Correa in consecutive days with Buxton also being out today. If any of the three can’t play tomorrow, it would make sense to place any of them on the IL with five days off after Sunday.

Ward was a good all-around player who got a late start in major league baseball, still a rookie at age 27. He was the best position player on the Twins when they moved to the Metrodome in 1982. The Twins made a savvy move trading him when they did and getting two starting pitchers in return.

That’s my daughter giving Joe a high five.

As we approach the All-Star break, Arráez has not been a difference maker since the Padres acquired him from Miami. He was quickly switched to first base and with the return of Bogaerts, looks to be the team's primary DH. Arráez' BA is .305 and his OBP is .338. His slugging is .372, lowest among the top 50 qualifiers in MLB. His OPS is .710, 89th among batting qualifiers. As mentioned before, Arraez' walk rate is down considerably (3.7%, less than half of the league average of 8.5%) and he's hitting with even less power (career low ,067 ISO) so that .300+ average is pretty empty. His next arbitration contract should be fascinating. It wouldn't be surprising if Arraez wins another batting championship, but with his limited defensive and base running skills and lack of power, he's a bit of a one-trick pony. He's the best contact hitter in baseball and it's not even close,

I believe they ran for Jeffers. I don't think he was pinch-hit for. Yes, it looked like he was limping a couple times in the past ten days or so. Having Camargo will allow substituting for either Jeffers or Vázquez. the Twins do face two left handed starters from the Giants and then there is the All-Star break. I wouldn't be surprised if Camargo is up for the three days only.

And Willi Castro makes two! Great news for Willi. Will the Twins add a third or even a fourth? For any outfield vacancy, I would think Buxton would get consideration. Miranda might have a chance as well, but choosing Westburg over him might have been that chance. A catcher going down could open the door for Jeffers and Jax and Ryan have posted good seasons.

I recall a game during the COVID year when the Twins were playing the Tigers. The Tigers started a utility guy at third base and he was brutal--a couple of rollers for infield hits, a throw to the wrong base and a booted grounder--I'm pretty sure it was Willi Castro. Willi has worked hard (not effortlessly) to become decent to good at five defensive positions. He showed outstanding results on the base paths last season and this year has hit well enough to become a regular player although he doesn't really have a single position to call his own. It's a great story and Willi's skill set works perfectly with a manager like Baldelli, who uses his bench and doesn't overwork his regular players.

Ryan should have a lot of friends and family at the game. If the Twins hit a homer in all three games this weekend, they tie the record for consecutive games with a long ball. They still project to +90 wins, it has been a good season so far.

I don't know if we will get all of the hitters swinging well at once, but there's plenty of hitting talent. The radio guys were saying that since sometime in June, the White Sox have the second best starter ERA in MLB. Maybe Chicago will be be better after the All-Star break. I do hope they beat other contenders more than once in a while.

The Buxton "double" is what won the game and not many if any players could have advanced to second without a mistake from the defense. When he turned first base i blinked and he was sliding into second. If i heard it right Rocco mentioned Buck's inability to decelerate. I hope he can stay healthy for the rest of the season. He's a special talent.

Right this moment, there doesn't look like there's any room for Kirilloff with the Twins and the injuries may or may not have limited his upside to the point that he'll never be a game-changing player. I'd suggest caution however because three active members of the 2024 Twins were in the same position in the past year. José Miranda, Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner all looked to be down and out (and done) with the Twins. Kirilloff's chances might be limited and the club needs to have their best players playing down the stretch. I still believe he can be a far-above-average hitter, but there aren't any guarantees. The Twins likely will lose their first baseman and their right fielder next year, so there could be a roster spot and plenty of at-bats available. AK has an option remaining so the Twins can send him to St. Paul when he completes a rehab and he could start afresh in 2025. Getting someone like Detmers for him isn't much of return IMHO. If that's all he can generate, it is probably better to wait until 2025.

Paddack can’t be sent to the minors without his approval. He’s either in the rotation, the bullpen or the injured list.

They don't need a starter. With the All-Star break starting on Sunday, it only gives Ober an additional day off.

Much like Brock Stewart and Justin Topa, I'll believe the Twins are playing Lee at second base when he actually does it. Stewart and Topa may be rehabbing, but until either or both of them take the mound and throw a pitch for the Twins, I won't count on any contribution from either player. I'd be willing to bet that Farmer would play second if Willi started this game in center field.

I don't know where the Twins will draw the line, but I hope there is a point where they say a left handed hitter is a regular player, no matter who is pitching against them. The current roster has Larnach, Wallner, and Kepler as LH hitters and there might be some justification for not feeding any of them to the wolves, but the two best prospects in the system are Jenkins and Rodriguez, both LH, and I hope they aren't completely platooned as they progress and when they make the big leagues. Very good and great hitters hit no matter what arm the pitch is thrown from.

There's Vázquez!

There are several opinions out in Twins Daily-land. I think most have some merit, but I'm not buying all of it. 1) Farmer should be traded or if they can't trade him, he should be DFA'd. Farmer's role and productivity have shrunk. He is a trusted backup at second and third base and can play shortstop. He is reputed to be a lefty killer, but he hasn't hit much at all against lefties or righties. I doubt there is any real market for a $6M infielder who may have slipped past being productive. However, the Twins will likely hold onto him because of the money and the fact that injuries come in bunches and he could suddenly be a valuable player again (in the FO's eyes). 2) Margot shouldn't be on the major league roster and could/should be replaced by Keirsey, Martin or Willi Castro. Again, like Farmer, here is a veteran player that seems to have slipped. He hasn't played well in the outfield and has seldom been used in center field. He's hit okay as a platoon option, but he is hitless in over 20 appearances as a pinch hitter and has more plate appearances against right handed pitching that left handed pitching. IMHO, this is where the manager has gone too far. The early pinch hits and subsequent at-bats for Margot (and Farmer) against right handed relievers can be avoided by leaving the lefty hitters in the game for the middle innings. Originally, the right handed side of each platoon looked to be a better defender and a more veteran presence (Margot/Wallner, Santana/Kirilloff, Farmer/Julien). With Margot's shakiness on defense plus the emergence of platoon-proof hitters Castro and Miranda, that formula has changed. Let Margot start against lefties, don't let him pinch hit in the middle innings and I think the results will be better. 3) Platoons hurt the development of young left handed hitters. It sure seems that way. Kirilloff struggled and was originally optioned, Wallner and Julien were optioned. My college stats professor reminded us often that correlation does not prove causality. It seems very apparent to me that (in general) Rocco minds much less a right handed hitter facing a right handed reliever as compared to left handed hitters facing left handed relievers. I have come around to accepting the all right handed lineups versus southpaws. I am not on board for pulling the left handed hitters as soon as a lefty steps across the line out of the bullpen.