NeverSeenATwinsPlayoffWin

Across all four of the WC games, there were 22 runs scored. Only three of these 22 were charged to bullpens, with two of the three coming off of Devin Williams doing his best Rex Brothers impression. All four game one winners had their bullpens pitch shutouts, and overall, the bullpens pitched as well as the could have against some of the top lineups in the game. Texas: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K from two relievers Tampa Bay: 4.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K from three relievers **Two of the runs charged to Glasnow came with a reliever on the mound** Minnesota: 3.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K from four relievers **Stranded two runners** Blue Jays: 4.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 K from five relievers Arizona: 6.1 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 7 K from six relievers **Stranded two runners** Milwaukee: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 5 BB, 5 K from seven relievers **Stranded two runners** Philadelphia: 2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K from three relievers **Stranded two runners** Miami: 4.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K from four relievers Overall, relievers combined for 31.0 IP, 20 H, 3 R, 15 BB, 34 K (80% strand rate), while the starting pitchers combined for a not-so-great 39.0 IP, 45 H, 19 R, 13 BB, 43 K. I know there have been some people decrying the quick hooks that managers tend to have in postseason play, but the sheer dominance that 34 different pitchers participated in on Tuesday night helps illustrate why this is the case. Heck, the D-Backs basically got a quality start from their 'pen. All of these guys had at least one full day of rest, so I definitely do not expect this to be sustainable, but relief pitching is often a thankless task, especially in the postseason. Someone needs to give some love to the bullpens before (inevitably) someone, hopefully not wearing a Twins uniform, throws a backup slider over the heart of the plate in the eighth inning of an elimination game, and we have an entire fanbase calling for the head of someone who probably makes less in a year than Carlos Correa makes in two weeks. If we are going to be harsh on relievers when they fail, we need to recognize when they succeed, and relief pitching in every game one was a success.

What should I change my name to?

Time for some Duran-induced face-melting against the 7-8-9 hitters. I hope they show the awesome entrance

We've been pitching Guerrero in all season, and then we go fastball away in his biggest AB. What am I missing?

Dingers and good pitching win games in October. I have been reliably informed that the Twins have hit 2 homers and have only given up 1 ER in 7 IP. That's a good recipe for success.

The Twins got MAT for a pitcher not in the Royals' top 30 and a swingman who posted a 6.88 ERA in AAA this year (also unranked in their system). That's not a trade that will constantly be talked about on broadcasts as a fleece, but I don't want to know where the Twins would be without him.

Take your bad juju and go elsewhere. We got this

If your plan all along was to walk Royce and then bring in Mayza for Kep, why would you take Gausman out?

Which inning do we get to see Castro/Solano at 3rd? Maybe bring one in a PH or PR and then take Polanco/Julien out?

Wtf was that 0-0 call. That ball was lower than Gallo's batting average

Fun fact: if Correa had signed with the Mets or Giants, he'd be on his couch today, eating some extra salty guasacaca

What part of "If it's high let it fly, if it's low let it go" does A-Rod not understand? Gausman has not been able to locate his 4-seamer down in the zone. Therefore, if a pitch starts at the knees, hitters are well inclined to let it go, as it's likely a chase split. It's not non-Euclidean geometry, it's one of baseball's oldest batting adages.

Rounders_Pay_that_man_his_money.mp4

Wtf is John Schneider complaining about? The perpetual underperformance of his lineup? The inability of his team to be motivated by anything other than a players-only meeting? Should not be the umps after that brutal strike-three call on Julien.

And defense. I can't believe he said that after the Polo error

Gausman is shitting his pantalones

See ya!

Michael Kay sounds like he's dead inside calling a postseason game not involving the Yankees

Would be a wonderful day to continue doing horrible, awful things to Kevin Gausman. He sounded scared in his comments to the media when discussing his history versus the Twins.

For whatever reason, the Twins have had Gausman's number (he has given up an average of 4.09 runs/game against the Twins), and I feel that Bassitt and Berrios are not as scary as say, Civale/Eflin or Verlander/France when it comes to game 2/3 starters. Again, every postseason matchup will be exceptionally tough, but if we can get to their starters early (which we have had a propensity to do), we will have a good chance to make something happen.

One of the big issues in the 2019 playoffs was the lower-end relievers coming into the game in the game early. In game one, we were tied 3-3 when Berrios was pulled after 4 IP. Zach Littel entered and gave up two runs without recording an out (5-3), with Tyler Duffey coming in to clean up the mess. We got a run back in the 6th, before Cody Stashak got used and abused by Aaron Judge and Brett Gardner (7-4). We then got to see Kyle Gibson give up three runs, and that was all she wrote. In game three, when the Yankees pulled Severino after 4 IP, the Yankees got 5 IP of 1 run ball from Tommy Kahnle, Adam Ottavino, Chad Green, Zach Britton, and Aroldis Chapman. This year, I feel much better about Maeda/Stewart/Thielbar/Jax/Pagan/Duran in the case that something goes awry than I ever did about Littel/Duffy/Stashak/Gibson/Graterol.

How do the Mariners have permutations that would make them the 2nd seed, then? Would they come out on top of a 3-way tie between them, Texas, and Houston?

Seattle still controls their own destiny, right? If they sweep the Rangers, they'll probably be the 6th seed- I am still holding out hope for the Astros to be sitting on the couch during October.

I disagree with the "there's no such thing as a low-leverage reliever" sentiment, but in the postseason, you have to be comfortable with every single one of your RP in a high-leverage spot. I am very glad that we will not see Balazovic, Moran, Headrick, Winder, Sands, or Ortega take the ball in a key spot. With Maeda, Duran, and even possibly Stewart able to go multiple innings, I feel really good about our ability to have our best pitchers on the mound at all times.

The Twins have still scored the 11th most runs this year, while teams heavy on the contact-first, small ball approach like the Marlins and Guardians sit in a tie for 26th. The Twins have scored 99 more runs than both teams, and the only good offense in the bottom-5 strikeouts is the Astros. You win games by scoring more runs than the other guys, not striking out fewer times. Thus, your approach at the plate should be to maximize the amount of runs your team scores, not to minimize the number of strikeouts. In other words, guys should focus on hitting the ball hard, not avoiding Ks.