stringer bell

Was there an accident or injury?

Totally mitigates the (thus far) disappointing season of Alex Kirilloff.

I presume Castro will be in the starting lineup at second base again tonight. This will mark the fifth position in where he will have played 20 games (in the 83rd game of the season). Willi has played 164 innings at SS, 144.2 innings in LF, 144 innings in CF, 141.1 innings at 2B and 99 innings at 3B. The injuries to Buxton, Lewis and Correa have given him time in CF, at 3B and SS. I've never seen someone divide their playing time so equally in so many positions. I hope attention to this can get Willi some All-Star buzz.

I think Rocco is an okay manager. I've disagreed with the early pinch hitting and catcher usage. The catcher usage has been less of an issue since Jeffers has cooled considerably this month. However, he's still the superior offensive option to Vázquez and not hitting for Vázquez in the tenth doesn't make sense. Bigger picture--with other capable options available to DH, Jeffers only gets more PAs while catching, so he should be catching more.

Kepler is due......

Not much of a swing from Garver. It's been a big zone for both pitchers, but consistent.

Goodrum now has signed a minor league deal with Baltimore. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/06/orioles-sign-niko-goodrum-burch-smith-to-minor-league-deals.html

I'm thinking Ober doesn't talk much on days that he pitches.

A pleasant surprise has been the relative health of the roster, especially since the first week of May. Lewis was injured on Opening Day, Correa and Kepler spent time on the IL early and there was a whole host of pitching injuries, including Brock Stewart. Since May 3, the only player to go on the IL is Alex Kirilloff. The only pitcher is Paddack. That is eight weeks of play with only one position player and one pitcher missing time.

Jorge López gets another chance--this time with the Cubs. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/06/cubs-select-jorge-lopez.html

Farmer is not offering much utility with three guys ahead of him at third base and two at shortstop. Martin could fill Farmer’s role and offer outfield play and pinch running in addition. We’re halfway through the season and it will be difficult for Kyle to put up positive numbers (and WAR) with the current limited use.

Farmer did hit a ball to the track in center field, which Provus said would have been a homer in 13 parks. Since the ball doesn't seem to carry in AZ, I think the quality of contact was pretty good. That said, it's the last week of June and a guy who hit double-digit homers last year in limited play doesn't have any. It may be time to DFA Farmer, but he's a utility guy and calling up Lee to fill his roster spot isn't a fit.

Brooks Lee isn't going to be recalled to be a part-time player. He's a top prospect and if recalled, he'll be in the lineup almost every day. Kyle Farmer is starting against left handed pitchers (approximately 25% of the games), so Lee replacing Farmer to take his plate appearances isn't going to happen. Add in that Lee has about 50 plate appearances in St. Paul so far this year. We've seen hot streaks from guys for short periods and then have them struggle. It could happen with Lee. Also, Lee has played just a handful of games at second base and asking him to be a full-time second sacker with such little experience could easily go sideways. The idea that Lee can take over second base and Willi Castro can play elsewhere makes sense to a point, but if Castro is elsewhere, he is taking plate appearances from other good to excellent hitters--Santana, Miranda, Larnach or perhaps Castro himself would not be in the game.

Martin doesn't really fit the roster the way it is constructed right now. If Farmer were shown the door, he could get some reps at second base and he could also fill Margot's role. I like that the Twins do have a bench player who could be used to pinch run and who can fill in both in the infield and outfield, but Austin is getting a lot of pine time, which doesn't help his development.

The Twins got the better of the Ms in Minneapolis, now they get them in Seattle. This will be an excellent test to see if the offense is really going well or if they just ran into poor pitching recently.

I think Buxton always has and always will be streaky. Adding a couple knocks because of his speed helps smooth things out and (I think) less than 1% of big leaguers can convert a grounder to shortstop into a hit as he did yesterday. Buxton and the Twins will face much better pitching in Seattle. I wonder how many runs they will put up in the three game series. One win against the Mariners would give the Twins their third (fourth if March is counted) straight winning month--I guess that means there is consistency in their inconsistency.

It's crazy to see players' ups and downs over the course of the season. Right now Max Kepler and Royce Lewis are having problems squaring up balls, but during the Twins twelve game winning streak, Kepler was getting key hits every game. Lewis came back from injury and looked like he was going to hit a long ball every game or two. Ryan Jeffers started hot, but has cooled. Byron Buxton had a long period of minimal offense, but this last week or two, he looks like a player of the week candidate. Carlos Santana has come on after looking like he was finished in April. No one player has carried the team for the season or even a month at a time. April's successes become subsequent month's struggles or vice versa.

Brooks Lee is not coming to the majors just to take the at-bats of Kyle Farmer. The Twins aren't going to bring Lee up so that he can be the short side of a second base platoon. If they are to recall him, he will take away plate appearances from other players who have been more productive than Farmer. That would include Trevor Larnach, Austin Martin, Jose Miranda, Carlos Santana and Willi Castro. All of those guys are going pretty good right now and it is less of a sure thing that Lee can outproduce any or all of them. I expect Lee to get his chance within a month or so and maybe it will end up being this weekend. I hope he hits great and is never sent down as soon as he arrives, but I'll believe it when I see it.

Responding to my own thread (classy!), here are some observations. 1) The Twins need better performance and consistency out of their rotation. Ober, Paddack and especially López had too many noncompetitive outings in the first half. Joe Ryan was easily the best starter and the most consistent. 2) The bullpen has been a mixed bag all season. Injuries limited them early and poor performance from Durán and Thielbar (among the trusted arms) along with injuries to Stewart and Topa make it hard to be confident going forward. The best relief pitcher has been Griffin Jax, and it isn't close. Alcalá has been very good so far and Josh Staumont looks promising. 3) While maddening with their inconsistency, the offense has been quite good. The homers haven't been as frequent, but scoring runs without homers has made up for it. They are striking out at a markedly lower rate than last year. 4) The disappointments of three young left handed hitters (Kirilloff, Julien and Wallner) have been made up by unexpected contributions from Willi Castro, Trevor Larnach, José Miranda and Carlos Santana. Given the struggles of the guys who were platooned, maybe it was wise to do so. While contributions from Kyle Farmer and Manuel Margot have been minimal overall, they have performed better of late and are probably as good of options as the three disappointing left handed hitters. 5) Willi Castro has blossomed into a full-time regular who is used all over the infield and outfield. He deserves to be an All-Star as a utility player. 6) Cleveland has emerged as a top team this year. They have had a lot of things going for them and it is unlikely that they will continue to be as hot as their first half. They have a large lead and the Twins will be hard pressed to make up all the ground they need to in order to win the AL Central 7) A Wild Card might be the Twins way to advance to the postseason. I think they are likely to be in the fight for a wild card and a good bet to claim a spot. It makes winning in postseason tough, but last year, we had two Wild Cards playing in the World Series.

We've reached the halfway point of the Twins' 2024 season. The club stands at 45-36, which projects to 90 wins for the complete season. What has surprised you? Who deserves credit for exceeding expectations? Disappointments? Predictions for the second half? Will there be a postseason for our favorite baseball team?

Henriquez back to St. Paul.

So, everyone knew that Marte was going to wear it for the HBPs to Correa and Buxton? The advantage of hitting a guy in the bottom of the ninth was that no one would retaliate for the retaliation.

Good(?) news that the initial x-rays don't reveal a break in Correa's wrist or forearm. CC got hit a couple years ago and missed a couple weeks. I wonder if we get an audition for Lee?

Not a great inning for Festa. Glad he got through it. I guess I dread a Thielbar appearance.

Looking at Festa with his hat off makes me feel very, very old.