Woof Bronzer

30% of balls in play become hits. 0% of strikeouts do. A strikeout is factually the worst of the available outcomes of a plate appearance. As you say, a player needs to have a very long career to end up on a list like this. A guy who strikes out too much isn't going to last long in the league, because strikeouts are bad. Let's look at single season K rates. Here are the 5 highest in history; Mark Reynolds Adam Dunn Chris Davis Yoan Moncada Joey Gallo As my dog likes to say: woof.

The Astros have finished in the bottom 5 every year since 2016 I believe. How has avoiding strikeouts worked for them?

Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure you need baserunners in order to score runs. Not striking out means either putting the ball in play or walking/HBP, which leads to baserunners, which leads to runs. Do you have any examples where a strikeout led to runs?

Direct quote: The quality and depth of Minnesota's rotation this year gives them an advantage heading into the playoffs that few teams have ever enjoyed. And I'm not just talking about Twins teams. Rarely will you ever see a playoff-bound club this loaded with high-end starting pitching. Unless we have different definitions of the words "ever", "rarely", and "I'm not just talking about Twins teams", that's exactly what you said.

an advantage heading into the playoffs that few teams have ever enjoyed. And I'm not just talking about Twins teams. The only team the Twins will have a clear starting pitching advantage over is Texas, and they're so hot it's looking increasingly unlikely that we face them. Implying that the Twins top 2 is one of the biggest advantages in the 120 year history of the playoffs is just hilarious. Hawt take culture is alive and well! Here on planet earth, starting pitching is definitely the Twins strength. Bullpen is one of, if not the primary, weakness. However, no Twins starter has ever gone more than 5 IP in a playoff start under the Falvine regime. I'm already seeing articles on TD on how long the pitchers are going to pitch. If the Twins are going to yank their starters after 4 or 5 irrespective of actual performance, they are neutralizing their strength in order to lean into their weakness, and they will lose both games just like they lost G1 in 2019 when they yanked Berrios after 4 in order to pitch legendary reliever Zach Littel. If the Twins actually want to win a series they are going to need their starters to go deep. Otherwise any "advantage" we have will be meaningless.

This isn't the first TD article to suggest that the Twins would have been worse off if they'd acquired better players at the deadline. The hottest of hot takes. Bigger indictment is the theory that underpins this article: that the only goal for the Twins is winning the putrid Central. Says so, so much about this franchise.

Is anyone else getting an ominous feeling about the silence re: Lewis' MRI yesterday?

Agree but WAR is perhaps the most egregious "expected stats" projection out there. Don't get me wrong, WAR has a place in front offices trying to evaluate talent, but it absolutely should not be used for awards. And don't get me started on WPA. I'd also sub in RA/9 for ERA to take the judgement call out of it.

Gallo over Buxton.

He's 10th on the team in WAR among hitters. His performance is very similar to our last SS, Andrelton Simmons in 21, at 3x the cost. Simmons' performance gets him run out of town; Correa, for some reason, gets praised. Truly baffling.

The Twins did not face any of the Stros top 3 starters, and the games were all early in the season when Houston was still sleepwalking. The season series is not particularly meaningful. I'm guessing a similar article was written in 2020 before the playoffs. Houston is a serious franchise. They do what they need to do in the regular season, and ramp it up in the playoffs.

I cannot believe the Twins would consider starting him at DH for the playoffs.

WAR disagrees with you...at a minimum I'd say it's "questionable"...either way not impactful enough that a mid season IL stay would have had any meaningful impact on the Twins' season.

I hope so, but given the past few years I think it's fair to question the club's approach to injury management. It would just be so silly if he's at 50% for the playoffs when he could have sat for, whatever, all of July with zero negative impact to the team. Then again, it does sound like a challenging issue to deal with, not like your typical injuries where rest is the cure, so maybe it wouldn't have helped. And who knows, maybe he'll be all good for October. Just another frustrating injury issue for a club very familiar with them.

Counterpoint: being a "gamer" hurt the team due to his very poor performance, and it sure looks like it will hurt the team's playoff chances because he didn't take the time during the season to allow his foot to heal in time for the games that really matter.