stringer bell

I wonder if Castro would already be on the active roster if he weren't going to be absent very soon for paternity leave.

Am I wrong about this? "Beaned" when referring to a hit by pitch is supposed to mean being hit in the head. Jeffers took a pitch on the arm. Beaning is very serious and can end careers. Getting hit in the wallet or the arm hurts and leaves a mark, but usually the batter walks away from the plate.

Best possible lineup except I might want Edouard DHing and Jorge at second base.

Another way to look at this is from the perspective of the veteran right handed hitters--when are the depth guys better utilized than batting against a left handed pitcher, especially when the left handed hitters have not produced as of yet. Solano and Farmer, based on their records, should be playing when a left hander is on the mound. This year's ineffectiveness against left handers is due to both the reduced production of guys with a history of clubbing lefties (Buxton, Farmer and to a lesser extent Correa and Solano) and with the lack of success from the young guys--Kirilloff, Julien, Wallner and Larnach when he was here. Baldelli has started Wallner against two lefties lately (yesterday and the Keuchel Pittsburgh game) instead of Kepler. I know Kirilloff started against a couple of lefties (in the outfield) and Julien has maybe one or two starts against same sided throwers. I agree with Brian about the pinch hitting, particularly when it makes the defense worse and I don't know how it can be quantified that having viable pinch-hitting options late in a game may be more valuable than in early or middle innings. Do we know who was on the bench as a result of Willi Castro being in the lineup. It is my recollection that this was when the club was at least a player short (Miranda or maybe Polanco injured but not on the IL). I'll also state that Willi Castro has value not reflected in his hitting stats. Having the flexibility provided by his versatility is a plus, as is his base running and his fielding, hence his relatively high WAR despite pedestrian offensive numbers. Left handed starters probably only face a team's very best left handed hitters. Guys like Freddie Freeman and Cory Seager hit no matter what hand pitchers throw with. It may be why guys like Sears look like they are vulnerable to same sided hitters

Do remember that the Twins can add two players on September 1. Only one can be a pitcher, but adding all of Castro, Kirilloff and Buxton could require only removing one position player. Of course, injuries can also occur and are likely. I do believe Luplow is on thin ice and if all three players come back healthy that Gallo could be DFAed.

Max Kepler certainly isn't a favorite player of mine. Perhaps the reason for this is he seems to have the swing and the athleticism to be a .300 hitter, Gold Glove winner with 25-30 home runs a year. Somehow, that has never come to pass. As a matter of fact, Max had only had one very good year (2019) and was only average to below average every other year (COVID year excluded as SSS). Kepler has missed time with two leg injuries and might not have enough plate appearances to qualify for rate stats, but he is the Twins top hitting regular. His batting average stands at .251 and his OPS is at .805 with an OPS+ of 117, rivaling 2019 when his OPS+ was 123. Max leads the club in homers and is second in RBI. He's improved his hitting against left handed pitching (.703 OPS) and continues to be a good defensive outfielder. There was a thread on TD about a month ago discussing Kepler and picking up the club option for 2024. Kepler's performance in the last six weeks has moved me from a hard "no" to a probable yes.

Audra Martin's clubhouse report noted that Kirilloff may be going on rehab assignment next week and Buxton and Alcalá won't be far behind him. Reinforcements are on the way. Willi Castro probably will be back on or before September 1 and Kirilloff and Buxton by mid-month. I'm guessing that would eliminate Luplow and perhaps Gallo and force the mob to find a new scapegoat.

Just wanted to mention that the home plate umpire was rated very good last night. Only two missed calls all night, both benefiting the Twins. I assume that doesn’t include borderline calls, just clear misses.

Quick inning for Ober. Wondering why Kepler isn’t in the lineup. He’s had a decent season against left handers and is going good right now.

I don’t think it’s optimum to go with rookies with no major league experience. I don’t want Gallo to sniff post-season, but I doubt the team feels the same about that. It’s going to be tough to get the 60-day IL guys back without losing a player or players the Twins want to keep.

It appears everyone on Injured Lists has a chance of returning to play for the Twins in the last 30 games, except for De León and Mahle. Currently, Nick Gordon, Chris Paddack and Brock Stewart are on the 60-day Injured List and room would have to be cleared to have them return to the active roster. The Saints play until September 23rd, I believe and they might make it to post-season. Wichita has a chance to win their second half and extend their season and Cedar Rapids has already qualified, so there will be places for the players to rehab. The Twins can add two players to the active roster on September 1. The most certain to be placed on the active roster is Willi Castro, who has already started his rehab assignment. I would expect he will be back at least by September 1, if not sooner. Next would be Alex Kirilloff and/or Byron Buxton. They are both doing baseball activities, but not yet ready for rehab in St. Paul. I suspect the Twins are using Buxton's hamstring issue to get the rest of his body as right as it can be, hence the long layoff for a strained hamstring. Barring setbacks, these three players will all be on the playoff roster if the Twins prevail in the Central. Nick Gordon hasn't played since May 17th and would certainly need a rehab assignment before going on the active roster. I don't think there is a place for him unless someone gets injured, so it wouldn't surprise me if he stays on the Injured List. The same is true for Jose Miranda, who hasn't played since July 9. He could be transferred to the 60-day list to make room for someone returning from the 60-day IL. On the pitching side, the Twins have Oliver Ortega on the 15-day list. He could return on about the 10th of September, but doesn't figure to be part of the Twins post-season roster. In addition, he can be optioned, so he'll likely go back St. Paul and rehab unless he is needed with the Twins. Jorge Alcalá has thrown several bullpen sessions and could give the Twins a lift if he is finally healthy. Again, it must be near mandatory to send him to St. Paul first, both to see if he is really healthy and to see if he can be effective. Chris Paddack has been pitching in Florida and according to the Athletic, is throwing as high as 95 mph. It seems to me that it would be a long shot for either Paddack or Alcalá to be a factor for post-season. Finally, and most hopefully, Brock Stewart is throwing and feeling good. A September 10th return is the optimistic timetable for him. If he is healthy, he could step into the bullpen in high leverage situations. Again, after being out over two months, some time in St. Paul is to be expected. New injuries will most likely pop up, but here is my rough timetable for rehab assignments, activations and other transactions along with a playoff roster: September 1--Willi Castro activated and added to the active roster. Jovani Moran also added (a last chance to show he can throw strikes). Stewart sent to St. Paul for rehab. September 5--Kirilloff and Buxton to St. Paul for rehab. If Chris Paddack or Alcalá have a chance to contribute, they are also sent to St. Paul. September 10--Stewart activated, Ortega to St. Paul for rehab, Sands, Moran or Winder optioned to make room for Stewart and Miranda transferred to the 60-day list. September 12--Rehab for Gordon. Recall to the majors for Buxton, Luplow optioned. September 15--Kirilloff activated. Some random player placed on the IL. Here's my playoff roster: Jeffers, Vázquez, Kirilloff, Polanco, Correa, Lewis, Farmer, Solano, Castro, Wallner, Taylor, Buxton, Kepler, Julien, Gallo (position players). Pitchers: López, Gray, Ryan, Ober, Maeda, Paddack, Floro, Thielbar, Pagán, Jax, Stewart, Duran.

A lot to quote, but I do want to point out there are severe platoon splits for Wallner, Julien and Kirilloff, three young LH hitters. Farmer has always hit left handed pitching very well (not so much this year). Sending Farmer up in the eighth against a lefty is a move I’d make.

MAT is in the starting lineup today. Castro should be back shortly, but will go on paternity leave at some point. If Kirilloff and Buxton return by mid-September, I expect Luplow to be optioned along with a possible Gallo DFA or benching.

Luplow replaced Gallo the other night because MAT has had a tight hamstring. MAT is in the lineup today.

I think it is pretty unrealistic to expect Stewart or Alcalá or Paddack to return from injury to solidify the 'pen, but that appears to be exactly what the front office is thinking. https://theathletic.com/4809140/2023/08/27/twins-brock-stewart/ The article gave more information on Alcalá than I've seen since he went on the IL. I know he's mostly been forgotten by the fan base, but it seems the Twins think he could help in September and October. The same for Paddack.

The bullpen needs more arms. I think asking somebody like Funderburk to contribute is a huge stretch. Error—front office.

Tight zone all night and Jax didn’t challenge hitters. I thought maybe Grossman swung at the 3-2 pitch but the replay shows he didn’t.

Ryan activated, Jordan Balazovic optioned to St. Paul. One comment, Ortega is fortunate in a sense to be injured. He will accrue MLB service time and if he were not injured, he probably would have been optioned to make way for Ryan.

Two opportunities to open it up squandered.

I’m thinking four runs won’t be nearly enough today.

Good pitchers have bad innings. Dunning is better than that, but taking advantage is great. Excellent job by Wallner and Jeffers to get the runs in.

Correa says "thanks Rook".

The inconsistency is pretty telling. The same pitch getting called for a strike makes it hard to pitch and hit. Wallner and Julien took called thirds that really weren't close and ball four to Seager in the ninth was in the box. The ump missed on a strike three call to Jankowski that was just as bad. I agree that the Box we see is inaccurate and especially changeups and breaking balls that look low are really in the zone as they cross the plate, but received below the zone.

This is a quote from the Twins' website and I think the wording is awkward. I assume he means that he will discuss rehab with the Twins' medical staff. Time is getting short and hopefully all rehabbing players will use less than the 20 days they are authorized.

The Twins have moved up to 24th (out of 30) in OPS against left handed pitching. Yesterday four of the five homers they hit were against lefties as well as most of the hits. Individually, here are the OPS results vs. left handed pitching for this year's team: 1) Lewis .915 2) Jeffers .861 3) Taylor .842 4) Luplow .833 5) Correa .812 6) Polanco .740 7) Gallo .733 8) Farmer .724 9) Solano .722 10) Gordon .700 11) Kepler .696 12) Vázquez .677 13) Castro .647 14) Buxton .628 15) Miranda .573 16) Larnach .478 17) Kirilloff .470 18) Garlick .468 19) Julien .448 20) Wallner .400 The team OPS against lefties is .701. Many small sample sizes for the players.