stringer bell

C'mon Gibson!

He doesn't look hopeless at the plate and he has really good wheels.

Too bad that Dozier couldn't have stolen second before Vargas rolled that one through.

I thought the slide was borderline. While Hunter didn't touch the bag, he could have.

I am liking this offense!

Is there any chance that Schafer could amount to something?

Really didn't cost them because of the DP, but Hunter wasn't going to allow them to turn it.

Bad play, Dozier.

The Twins season has five weeks to go. They aren't going to have a winning record and probably the best they can hope for is a 4th place finish in the division, but there is a lot to play for for all the individuals who take the field. I think it is a bit more important to finish the season strong after three straight death marches through September. The schedule looks pretty tough, but the Twins are pretty healthy and seem to be playing with more focus than in the tail end of the last three seasons. More than in past years, we will probably be seeing contributors to 2015 staking their claims in the fall. Here are five guys (hey sounds like a good name for a hamburger chain!) to watch: 1) Ricky Nolasco--The most expensive free agent the Twins have ever signed. He has had a lost season. The question is whether the elbow injury was the cause or not. He has proclaimed himself healthy, now he has to get results on the mound. Nolasco pitching effectively late will help the Twins stop their string of 90-loss seasons. 2) Tommy Milone--Supposedly a very serviceable middle of the rotation left hander, Milone has had three outings for the Twins and hasn't looked very good at all. I'm sure the Twins' front office would be more comfortable with Milone and Nolasco pitching effectively along with Gibson and Hughes. If they could be confident that all four will be average to above average, then filling one spot with a prospect (Meyer or May) looks practical. If both Nolasco and Milone continue to look like AAA call-ups, the Twins will probably sign another projected mid-rotation starter. Gee, I hope not. 3) Kennys Vargas--Vargas has provided a real spark. He has done everything on the field that the Twins were hoping for from Kendrys Morales. If his hitting continues, the Twins can focus on preventing runs much more than adding more offense. For this season, Vargas makes the middle of the order pretty formidable, and provides protection for Mauer and Arcia. 4) Oswaldo Arcia--At times, he looks like one of the easiest outs in baseball. He is currently swinging well and when he's going good, it bodes well for the Twins. Arcia consistently putting up good at-bats will likely seal his ownership of right field and cause the Twins to count on him for next year. Arcia can carry the club to a few extra victories as well as help his own cause. 5) Joe Mauer--Is Mauer back? Do the Twins still have a potential batting champion playing first base? Will he ever hit for more power? A productive September might calm all of those fears, plus also providing interest for the balance of the season.

Gonna catch home run #10,000? or 10,001?

"Little Debbie"? Never heard that one before. Romero is much like Plouffe but without a major league resumé. He's not fast and he is not reputed to be much of a glove man at third base. He is less than a year younger than Plouffe IIRC and also is a RH hitter. TJ surgery for position players is much more uncommon, but recovery is less uncertain. There is a very high probability that Sano will get back all of his arm strength next year. Yes, range could be an issue, but it isn't solved with D Romero or really with Trevor Plouffe.

Here is Detroit's Lineup (Twins posted earlier) 8. Davis 4. Kinsler 9. Hunter Martinez, V 7. Martinez, JD 5. Castellanos 2. Avila 6. Suarez 3. Kelly 1. Scherzer No Miggy. It will be crucial for Gibson to not let V-Mart beat him.

Not in the sequence most would have projected, but the Twins have graduated a couple of players (Vargas and Santana) while guys with even higher ceilings have languished because of injury. This weekend gives us reason to be optimistic and while wins and losses will depend more on pitching and execution, I think there is reason to be optimistic about the offense and the prospect of a more consistent lineup in 2015 and beyond.

Of course, this is both speculation and projection. My point was that the Twins project to have 10 or more league average or better hitters on their roster by midseason. None of them is now a leftfielder, but I have been of the opinion that Plouffe could move out there if and when supplanted by Sano. Santana could also move there, if he can handle center, with some work I think he can be capable as a left fielder. Finding the right guy for the outfield might be a good idea, but IMHO it is threading a needle to find the right guy at the right price with the right number of years.

With just over a week to go, it looks like three of the Twins top five affiliates will be making the post-season. Fort Myers has clinched by virtue of winning their division in the first half of the Florida State League season. New Britain has been eliminated although the Rock Cats do have a .500 record with eight days to go. Still in doubt are playoff spots for Rochester, Elizabethtown and Cedar Rapids. The AAA Red Wings have a lot of work to do in a short time. They trail by six games in their division, and by two and a half in the wild card race. It seem unlikely that Rochester can make up six games on division-leading Syracuse. The Red Wings would have to pass both third-place Buffalo and second-place Pawtucket to secure the wild card. They trail Buffalo by a game and a half and Pawtucket by two and a half games. Elizabethtown is a perennial power in the Appalachian League. The E-Twins lead their division by a game and a half and the third place team is two and a half back. The top two teams in each division advance, so the E-Twins are a good bet to be playing beyond Labor Day. Cedar Rapids is a near lock to make the playoffs based on a strong second half. The Kernels are in second place in the second half of their season and their magic number is 1 to advance. They can advance as second half division champions if they finish ahead of Wisconsin and they lead them by seven games. It has been a pretty good year for Twins farm teams, despite injuries to top prospects.

The Twins face reigning Cy Young winner Max Scherzer today, so their run of big offensive games could come to an end. It is also important to note that a week ago, the team was struggling to score one or two runs. However, today the Twins are fifth in the AL in runs scored, they are second in walks, fifth in OBP, eighth in OPS, and 10th in home runs. They have three guys, Arcia, Santana, and Vargas, all 24 and under, who look like they could be stars for years to come. The Twins have two top prospects, Buxton and Sano, who also profile to be great offensive players. Currently, according to BB Ref, regulars Plouffe, Escobar, Dozier, Mauer, and Suzuki all are over 100 in OPS+. Adding the five youngsters gives the Twins a pretty good and deep offensive nucleus. Do the Twins need to add any more offense in the off-season or should they concentrate on pitching and defense?

Based on his numbers in Rochester, Herrmann has probably earned another trip to the Big Leagues. I don't know if the Twins want him up if they already have three catchers, but Herrmann has hit well for the Red Wings. Hicks has been OK, but I wouldn't say he's been "killing it" at Rochester (.263 BA w/ a .691 OPS). What is best for him is open for debate.

That would be a decision to be made next off-season. We shall see if some of Hughes' stats regress and by how much.

I said it before and I'll say it again, the Tigers are going nowhere if Miggy isn't right, and I don't think he is right.

May qualifies for a win. Does Gardy send him out for the sixth?

The other part of this is that it isn't Josh Willingham and Ryan Doumit getting the big hits. Vargas, Arcia, Santana, Escobar are all here for quite a while and figure to get better overall.

Don't do anything foolish! Ya' know, like expecting the Twins to score 5 or more runs, or counting on RB to make sense!

With now 74 walks and 7 HBP he has 81 free passes plus his 112 hits. He has reached 192 times and his OBP is a pretty solid .339. Yes, the BA is low, but the free passes trump that. My point is that he's not really suited to the "put the ball in play and advance the runners" mantras that traditionally come with hitting second. Further, hitting in front of Mauer, Vargas, Arcia, and Plouffe does limit the base stealing portion of his base running tool.

Thielbar is having a tough run right now.

Back to the dreaded five-run lead.