DocBauer

If you look up a player on MLB.COM you will see at the top of the page the past 7 days, 14 days, and 30 days of production and numbers for a player in that time frame. BASEBALL REFERENCE will show the past 5 games at the top of the page. But I believe you can break it down more but I don't recall how to at the moment.

Fair. But while a small increase, 55. 57, and 60 is still an improvement. Only speculation on my part, of course, but if he hadn't struggled so badly in this last appearance, I'm wondering if he might have gone up to 70 pitches. If so, that could/should have put him on pace for 5 innings. I'm as frustrated as anyone that he's promoted so aggressively, but not yet turned loose. Going to hope the Twins know what they're doing. But Festa had mentioned how he was being released to go 70 plus a couple turns ago, and we're seeing that now. I think the reigns have been loosened on Raya a bit now as well, but the kid has to pitch well enough to warrant receiving those extra pitch opportunities.

I'm excited to have Byron back and patrolling CF. I really hope the bat begins to take off because we know that at any minute he can just explode. Watching him run the bases, and racing across the OF grass is one of the most enjoyable things there is to being a Twins fan. Unfortunately, even in a "healthy" season, he's going to miss time. I have no problem with Castro in CF on an occasional basis. In theory, Margot was a small step down but legitimate option to replace MAT when he and the Twins just couldn't come to terms early enough in the offseason to make a reunion possible. But Margot has simply not been close to the player he was the previous 7 seasons. If he were, we'd have that solid backup to Buxton and slightly below league average bat...but good against LHP...that would be perfectly acceptable in a part time role. What we've seen in Byron's absence the past couple of weeks is exactly why a lot of us were saying we didn't think Castro as the primary backup, or Martin...just a half a season of good production/play at AAA...made sense as a primary, daily backup when Buck went down. And now we're seeing that playing out exactly as thought/feared. Again, I like Castro out there on an occasional basis. I still have some hope for Martin, though he didn't exactly impress in his debut yet. Margot was a move that made sense on paper based on age, under 30yo, and career numbers. And he's almost certainly going to get a few more weeks to see what happens. But so far...sheesh! BUT, if a couple things don't turn around over the next couple of weeks, I tell you what I'd do: 1} Just accept Margot isn't going to work out and you didn't get the guy you thought you were. Time to move on. 2} I'm a huge fan of Kirilloff and still have hope he can become the hitter everyone thought he could be, or at least close to it. But HR against Cleveland in the opening game notwithstanding, he's been awful for about 3-4 weeks now. Even if he's healthy, he needs a Wallner type of re-set to get going. 3} Even without manipulating the 40 man, if Margot is just gone, there's a spot for Keirsey to be brought up. Is he ready? Can he be a viable ML starter? Can he be at least a viable, quality reserve/part-timer? Well, we don't know until he gets a shot. But he adds speed and defense to the team in a big way. He's got some power. He finally learned how to hit in 2022 when things finally started to "click" for him. He really couldn't be any worse, or less productive than Margot has been. It's time to see if we've got something in the late bloomer....or not.

They've been ramping him up the past few starts, just not as many pitches as some of the older guys. 60 is a lot better than 40, but I can't wait until 70-80 becomes normal. But he sure didn't have a good day,.

For Sands' sake, and the Twins, I sure hope the early season version is for real, and he gets back, or close to, that version. I don't know that he is really as good as he looked previously, but I think he's better than he's looked lately. I'm still confounded on how he's being used though. Alcala has a history, when healthy, of being highly productive and sometimes downright nasty when he's used as a 1 inning guy. Meanwhile, Sands, a recently transitioned starter, has suddenly become a 1 inning pitcher while they insist on using Alcala as a multi inning arm. I just don't get it. I don't know that I'd compare Sands to Balazovic though. Balazovic wasn't striking anyone out with the Twins and seemed to be getting the job done with some smoke and mirrors. Sands lacks some consistency, but his breaking stuff is generally pretty good and he's got his velocity up. Whatever his role...I'd still be using him for multi innings...I'm just hoping he gets back on track.

I'm a little more optimistic on the catching situation in the minors than some. I think Camargo has a chance to be a solid #2 with pretty good power, average or slightly below average bat, and solid but probably not great defense. I've soured somewhat on Winkel as his bat and pop was starting to play up in 2023 but he's pretty much cratered here in 2024 despite playing in a league that is generally considered to be offense heavy. Wichita is sitting pretty right now with Cardenas...solid bat, good contact and OB%, a little pop, great defense...Cossetti....big bat and power potential but needs defensive refinement....and Morales, who looked solid his first couple of short seasons, began to break out in 2021, then virtually disappeared for about a year and a half, before coming on strong again. Oliver is super intriguing at A+, as long as he can refine his defense enough to stick behind the plate. While he's off to a slow start this season, Nate Baez is way more athletic than your typical backstop and has real potential, but is rough around the edges after becoming a full time catcher his last year of college. The Twins aren't going to want Jeffers to catch more than 100 games max, and Vazquez is gone after 2025, unless moved before then. So the Twins need someone to step up and be that #2 or co-catcher pretty soon. The draft this year isn't going to produce that guy that quickly. And I agree with you, Jamie, that the Twins seem to believe they can develop a catcher with a little time as long as the bat and some basic skills are there to work with. Jeffers was a bit of an outlier being drafted so high. But this draft offers a real opportunity to add a quality backstop in the first couple of rounds. And drafting in the 21st spot, in a weaker draft than last year, the best value might just be to grab a Moore, or Cozart with one of our first couple of picks. I'd be pretty happy to get one of the top guys listed here with one of the first 3 selections. But even though the Twins have taken just about every approach...HS, college, bat, arm...in the first round(s), I just have a hard time seeing them selecting a catcher at #21. Still, there's enough potential here that one of these names might be selected with the supplemental or 2nd round choice.

I remember when Morales had a big 2021, after a couple solid season leagues, and we thought we had something. The bat disappeared in 2022. It seemed to come back some in 2023 but it was only 52 games. IIRC, he had an injury that slowed him at some point? It's still early, of course, but he's off to a heck of a start for this season.

Since Varland was sent down and SWR took over, roughly 20 games, I believe the Twins are 2nd in innings thrown by starters. Can't recall if that was all of MLB or just the AL. But important to note nonetheless.

Something I had never in a million years thought of until listening to Aaron and John recently discussing the pen and the recent winning that was what, 17 wins in 20 games, right? Unless you are blowing out your opponent in some of those games, or getting yourself blown out in a loss or two, winning that many games is awesome, but it also means your pen is getting a fair amount of work in order to hold on to leads, or keep the game close for a comeback, vs maybe a day "off" where someone can take a hit for the team. But also, the Twins just completed a stretch of 13 games in a row, followed by another 10 game stretch. That's 23 games with a single day off between each stretch. That's a lot of bullpen innings over 24 days, yes? I say this as I'm wondering if there isn't maybe a little bit of fatigue present vs just a collection of guys being bad all at once.. That might help explain a really good first 3 weeks, and a not so good 3 weeks following, even though the Twins were winning. I applauded want the FO did this offseason for the pen. The depth created has been very important, even though some of that depth is already gone, or hasn't appeared yet. I thought Topa as probably the 5th man in the pen was pretty big. Okert isn't outstanding, but he's got a solid track record overall and as the probably 6th man, second lefty in competition with Funderburk, I liked that acquisition as well. Smart flier on Staumont who could be important if he could get back to 90% of his old self at some point. Then we add in Sands, Funderburk, Alcala, Winder, all for depth and competition and things looked pretty rosy. Topa has yet to pitch and there are no feel good reports at the moment as to when. Duran, Theilbar, and Stewart have had only a handful of games all together. Duarte, the camp surprise, lasted all of a week before his arm blew out. (of course it did). But despite some recent bad outings, I don't think the sky is falling at all. And I'm hoping Monday being an off day allowed for a couple arms to refresh some. Duran, Jax, and Stewart were 3 of the top 4 when plans were laid. That's a great trio! Stewart may have need to be monitored a bit, but he should be back fairly soon, and nothing wrong but a little inflamation. (knock on wood!) As @stringer bellpoints out, Thielbar hasn't been great since he's been back, as the #4 man and top LH in the pen. But he may indeed be having a little bit of bad luck so far, he's probably shaking a little rust off, and his curveball has been one of the sickest I can ever remember seeing. I still feel good about that 4. As to the rest of the pen? 1} Keep Funderburk up unless absolutely necessary to send him down for a roster swap out. He's been solid, he's been pretty good in his career against RHP, and it doesn't matter if 3 of your 8 man pen arms are LH. There's a lot of good hitting LH bats that let you counter that way. 2} Keep running Okert out there. Like the rest of the pen, good 3 weeks, not so great 3 weeks. Solid veteran with a decent history. I sure wouldn't give up on him at this point. 3} Use Duran the way he's meant to be used, 1 inning at a time unless absolutely necessary, in an emergency, for more. He's shown the ability to dominate for that 1 inning at a time, and could be used...I think reliably...in the 7th inning often. Racking up innings and pitch counts the way they have works counter intuitively to the kind of pitcher he is. 4} Sands may or may not be turning back in a pumpkin. I think he's been over used a bit lately not only in games, consecutive games, but also by warming up too many times and not being used. But he's been a SP entirely until 2023's conversion to the pen. He's literally built to be a guy in the pen capable of going more than 1 inning without wearing himself out. The fact that he showed some progress last season, and started this year off great, only shows growth and development to, perhaps, be a long term fixture in the pen. But why does he have to be the next Jax? That MIGHT be the best 8 overall. Buuuuut...... 5} I don't know that Staumont is back after limited rehab innings and a brief appearance with the Twins. But again, if he's even 90% of the way back at some point, he's a big boost and might shuffle the pen hierarchy some. 6} If and when Topa is able to contribute...even for the second half...he's probably an even bigger boost than Staumont and definitely changes the complexion of the pen. 7} Henriquez, Winder, and even Balazovic are former starters turned relievers that might be able to replace Jackson...who's suddenly no longer a ground ball pitcher, has lost velocity, and has frankly looked bad...if nobody else does, to provide another multiple innings arm for the pen. Yes, I know Balazovic is a long shot, but there's some arm talent there, and he's looked fairly decent for St Paul recently. Henriquez has flashed a little promise and is on the 40 man, as is Winder, who's now doing his rehab. 8} A dark horse option? What about 30yp veteran Diego Castillo who was a quality setup man for 5 straight seasons before the blip that was 2023. So far, he's off to a good start with St Paul. Is the stuff still there, or close to being ready? Yes, there could be late year options like Varland in the pen like he was at the end of 2023, or Canterino, or someone else stepping up, or even a deadline deal for a solid arm. But if we don't keep having a rash of injuries, there's a really good looking pen available, with at least a little depth, if we can just keep everyone relatively healthy, remove the worse denominator, and use a couple of arms in the manner they seem best fit for.

I don't recall ever seeing a "make your final record guess" before the season began, though many mentioned it on their own. I don't believe I ever did. But as constructed, I felt the Twins had an 88 win team that could hit 90 easily, and 92 without much trouble. More than that would probably take a few too many good things happening, so in my head I pretty much had 92 wins. I thought there'd be a couple speed bumps for the "new" bats after such an impressive 2023 debut, I didn't feel good about 1B, and I was a little worried about the 5th rotation spot, and who was up next when someone inevitably got hurt. Nothing major, just enough questions to temper my opinion somewhat. And then the first 3 weeks happened and I was in shock. Even with the injuries, I saw ZERO reason for this team to be so bad. What's been so interesting to me in the huge turnaround...Twins currently on pace for like 95-97 wins...is how it's been done. Despite a rash of injuries, including a couple guys who haven't even appeared yet, the pen was strong initially, not as good lately, though not horrible. A few less close games...a bad loss...and a day off here and there might just help settle the bullpen and get it a little more back on track. I thought Kepler might be really good again and being part of the torch and pitchfork brigade previously, but I didn't see Larnach as his fellow LH OF producer in Larnach. I saw Kirilloff having his best season so far, nut didn't see him suddenly going in to a whole. I was hoping Castro would be as good as last season, and he's actually been better. I don't know if he's going to be able to sustain anything close to the past 3 weeks or not, but Santana has surprised me. Wasn't sure SWR would look this good, but never expected Varland to struggle so badly. My whole point is the team has been winning collectively, with contributions from all area and phases of the game, often despite a rash of early season injuries. It's just been interesting and a little surprising who some of those contributions have and have not been coming from. This team is not a finished product by any means. With all the injuries, they may need to find one more good pen arm. There's still a major question about Margot. But imagine Wallner getting back on track, same with AK, Larnach being for real, Stewart back, Lewis back, Santana keeps approximating his younger self to some degree, SWR keeps being solid, there's a real chance the TEAM might, as a whole, be better a few weeks from now than the one we've been watching the past 3 weeks.

If I had to pick who I think is still going to be the better, more dangerous and productive hitter between Wallner and Larnach, I think I'd still predict Wallner. But that doesn't mean I'm not excited about what Larnach is doing, or that there isn't room for both of them. On the one hand, we're talking a SSS, as has been pointed out. Also pointed out is a pretty high BABIP that's going to inevitably come down to earth a bit. But on the other hand, Larnach is striking out less, showing more power, while seeing a SIGNIFICANT drop in fastballs being presented to him. That tells me he's grown and matured as a hitter and for the most part, what we're seeing is not an illusion, just natural progress from a former top prospect who STILL has less than 800 ML PA in his career. (As to Kirilloff playing more OF than Larnach, I believe part of that was Larnach still having some issues with his toe, or at least having the toe be protected a bit longer.)

I understand the whole option issue. I really do. And it's definitely a factor. And I'm pretty sure Alcala's options have a lot more with him being sent down than failure to cover a base. You don't send down a quality arm with a 0.00 ERA due to a brain cramp. Another factor...and the one that confounds me the most...is that SOMEONE has to throw more than 1 inning at times. This is all the more true when you're on a streak of winning so many games and closing out those wins. And winning is a GOOD thing, but it can change how you are forced to use the pen at times. But Alcala has had injury issues in the past. So why is he tossing more than 1 inning at a time? (almost 3 another time). Alcala has a history of throwing hard and well for a 1 inning, often not so favorable results for a second inning. So why is he the guy pitching 2 innings at a time so often? With Duran out at the beginning of the season, and Stewart out now, Alcala's pure stuff makes him probably the next best filler option for a 7th inning role. But instead, he's been regulated to 2 innings and farm outs to St Paul after he throws 30+ pitches in a game for someone else. MEANWHILE, Cole Sands has been a SP his entire career up until 2023. I get that he got off to a really nice start to begin this season...but so did Alcala. If anyone's arm is built for and used to throwing multiple innings it should be Sands, and not Alcala. Now, I appreciate @Riverbriancommenting on the Twins possibly not wanting to use Sands' remaining option this season, holding it in reserve for 2025 if needed. I can see a logic in that. But.... A} 2025 is a whole season away yet. Why are we so worried about the 7th or 8th man in the pen who hasn't exactly established himself as a bona-fide stud? Why are we swapping roles between Alcala and Sands...seemingly creating a poor usage conundrum between the two...for the sole reason of MAYBE not having someone better than Sands available in 2025? B} If 8th man Jackson is performing this disappointingly...and I'm not saying he was a bad sign...and there is nobody better to replace him, that's a FO issue. I understand we've had a virtual epidemic of injuries to the bullpen going all the way back to ST. Duarte is out for the season, Topa might not be far from him, Winder has been out, Canterino has been out, signee Weiss has been out, and Duran, Thielbar and now Stewart have spent at least a little time on the IL. That doesn't make things easy, that's for sure! But should an older, poor performing 36yo veteran arm with no options have that much sway over how the pen is being used when he's supposed to be a multi-inning arm? For the most part, I'm really not complaining. The moves for the pen were all smart, despite the injuries. We'd be a lot worse off if we didn't have the depth we have now, even though it's depleted. And for the most part, the pen has gotten the job done and contributed greatly to the win total, despite a handful of really bad days. But it's hard to ignore what appears to be poor usage of the available arm-assets on hand, and the resistance to remove the weakest link that doesn't appear to have a future with the club.

Just to be clear, I never "hated" the Santana signing. But he was pretty bad for about 3yrs before a bit of a resurgence in 2023, though he was still only a little above league average in OPS, and that's low for a 1B. I thought it was an unspectacular but solid signing for a 38yo part time player and late inning defensive player. So far, his 2024 numbers are all below his career norms. And in truth, he hasn't been the "on base machine" of his younger days for some time now. And to be fair, his first few weeks were pretty awful. However, again to be fair, the past 30 days he's had an OPS above league average and has produced power and timely hits. And his defense has been excellent. My personal issue is can he maintain what he's been doing over the course of the season, or come close? Or is this just a hot streak and he's going to wear down really soon? He's doing better now than I expected. If he can pretty much match what he did in 2023...much less keep up his current 30 day pace...I will admit his signing was better than my initial, tepid opinion. I don't see him leading the Twins in any category, but at the moment, he's looking like he might be winning the battle against Father Time for one more season.

Margot was an excellent defensive CF just a couple years ago. His regression in 2023, from my understanding, was a leg injury that hampered him. Healed up, supposedly, I don't think the Twins believed he was going to suddenly fall of a cliff defensively, OR suddenly go in the tank offensively like he has. For his career, Margot is about league average as a hitter, with a better split against LHP. We all know this. In a reserve, platoon type of role, THAT Margot wasn't a bad pickup. Again, I don't think the Twins, or anyone, saw him falling off that same cliff with the bat. BUT, being a not a relatively "old" player at 29, he probably deserves a little more time to see if he can rebound. Once he's gone, he's gone. Some have compared Keirsey to Stevenson from last year. The comp is SOMEWHAT fair in that they are similar types of skillset players. Where I think the comp is unfair is Keirsey is younger, and a late bloomer who's been ascending, not a AAAA journeyman who's been hanging around. I'm not ready to jettison the veteran Margot just yet. And I'm OK giving Keirsey a little more time to bake at AAA. But he appears to have a solid HIT tool, solid OB ability, speed, some pop, and is excellent defensively. Having a balanced roster with a couple RH role guys is not a bad thing to have. But about 75% of the arms are always going to be RH. So a guy who hits LH and has potential vs a RH veteran fading fast, I'm just not that concerned about what side of the plate he hits from. Keirsey may or may not turn out to be a really good/solid or OK player. We won't know until he gets a shot. (Martin pretty much the same, though he's shown some encouraging signs). I suspect he'll get his opportunity at some point. While he's old to be considered a top prospect, you just can't deny his huge step forward in 2022, 2023, and so far in 2024. To simply dismiss him because he's 27yo would be roster malpractice. Sometimes guys just figure it out later due to many factors. I don't see a move, barring injury, until after May is done. If Margot doesn't turn it around come June sometime, and Keirsey keeps doing what he's doing, to blazes with any RH/LH debate, just give him his shot and move on from Margot.

Going to pause for just a moment to lament "what might have been" in regard to a sweep. (Sigh) OK, moment over! Tremendous job from Ober, but I've almost come to expect that from him. We've still got a lot of season left for 38yo Santana to continue to prove a lot of people wrong, including me. Is he just on a hot streak? Or can we actually get a full "normal" season from him? At this point in his career, normal would be about league average or slightly better. I'd take that for the season as a whole. Agree that Sands doesn't look the same at all. But he almost threw 3 days in a row when you consider how ramped he was up a few days ago without coming in to the game. Will he rebound? Or is it time to give him a re-set with the Saints? Can we just accept the fact that, while imperfect and still missing a couple key pieces, this Twins team is actually pretty damn good? Bring on the Yankees!

The offense quit. SWR wasn't what we've seen so far, and hope to see. Toronto had some very good players who are dangerous. They broke through today. Despite today, the pen has been very good so far, despite being pieced together due to injuries. The Twins BLEW this game. Period! But despite being an embarrassing performance, it's still ONE GAME. The Twins have been on a winning role! The sky is not falling. I do think the Twins need to take a hard look at Jackson. I'm still sold on Okert overall. I believe Alcala should be up and pitching 1 inning at a time. Period! He's proven to be damn good in that role. I think the Alcala and Sands roles have been used incorrectly. I'm ready to move on from Jackson, better K numbers than his previous performance, but not the ground ball arm he has been previously, and not really contributing much so far. He's been mediocre at best. I'm willing to move on for SOMEONE to get a shot as the 8th man at this point. Topa is STILL out. Stewart is out for now. Jackson didn't lose this game by himself. But he was responsible for inherited runners, as he had been too many times previously. Alcala should be throwing ONE inning. Sands should be throwing 1-2 innings as needed. But this was still a BS loss where SWR didn't have it, and the pen didn't have it, and the offense went to sleep. Next game!

There will be bad days at the office...err...ballpark. Sometimes things just go crazy and blow up in a way you never saw happening. You can't and will never win them all. But man....that was embarrassing.

I always appreciate stories like this where a guy gets to at least touch his dream for a moment or two. I think there's a pretty good chance to appears in a game for the Twins at some time this season, whether as a fill in or double header starter or out of the pen.

Is he the best/top pitching prospect? Mmmm....maybe, maybe not. Is he the most ready? Yes. He's off to a good start, and that's awesome. I hope he keeps it up, even with some expected speed bumps here and there. But doesn't it depend on what you determine individually as to what a "best" prospect is? Is it the highest ceiling despite how far away you are? Is it the best arm closest to the ML? I'd have to probably go with Soto as the highest ceiling in the system. I'd probably say Festa as the best arm closest to the ML if and when he gets better command. His stuff is just more electric than SWR. Matthews is in a limbo land between ceiling and proximity and stuff, too early in the year to make a determination, but check back come August/September. But none of that undermines SWR being only 23yo and looking good and off to a good start, and MAYBE a quality fixture for the next several seasons. He just might be the most ready arm, but not necessarily the best arm in the system.

Not a great start by Raya, but he's clearly been moved to the 55-60 pitch range hisnlast couple of starts. (Festa up to 70 now). So I can see the method to the madness with how he's being brought along. Nowlin is someone I've been watching close for some time. I have little doubt he's going to be a ML pitcher in the near future. The question remains if he can have enough control/command to stay in the rotation with his velocity and good secondary stuff, or will he have to move to the pen due to lack of said control/command? Good for Dobnak! Great start by Langenberg. Doncon is making the Dodgers/Margot trade look better.

Umps have an almost impossible job. To be fair, they are generally good. The box we see on TV isn't considered accurate 100%, and there is about an inch or so allowance in reviews in regard to accuracy. I can a accept that. I don't hate the human element to the game. I see very close, borderline pitches called against and for our beloved Twins. All I've ever wanted is consistency from an umpire. Some are. Some aren't. Some even change their zone later in games. Unfortunately, there is little to no repercussions for the truly bad or inconsistent umpires. (Why is Angel Hernandez still employed?) Tossing a manager for a loud fan, or yelling at an injured player to get off the field is inexcusable. I Ike the milb challenge system. It's quick and concise and seems to work. I'm not yet sold on the robot ump system as there is a TON of X-Y-Z in pitches thrown that hasn't been ironed out yet, IMO, from what I've seen, read, and heard. JUST AS AN EXAMPLE, Wallner may strike out quite a bit as a power hitter, but he's also a disciplined hitter who knows the zone and works the count. Julien the same. But Wallner, in this example, has been jobbed a few times earlier in the season letting a pitch or two or three go by based on what he believed to be a ball, only to end up being a strike, or a punch out. Baseball is hard enough without having two differing strike zones. I believe at SOME POINT, the robo ump method may be accurate enough to implement it. And it will require adjustments for EVERYONE, not just rookies and young players, but veterans as well. I just don't feel it's ready for MLB yet. I think the challenge system comes in to play first. One step at a time.

Great game and a big win taking the first one of 3 on the road. Ryan was tremendous. After a tough inning...the 5th?...and then a couple really quick innings from Kikuchi where Ryan didn't get much recovery time...Rocco showed a ton of confidence sending Ryan out for the 7th. Boy did he respond! What can you say about Kepler off the bench facing a LHP and coming through? Big HR from Santana who still seems to have a little life left after a horrendous start to the season. But let's not forget Miranda is showing real life again with another big RBI. He's hitting .295 with a .799 OPS since they brought him back up, and looking decently solid at 3B as well. Next for him is to tap more in to HR power, but that seems to be true for most of the club. I liked using Duran for the 8th against the top 3 in the lineup. Jax had to battle, but I thought he looked good. He was ahead of everyone, just barely missed with a few pitches, and might have been squeezed on one potential strike. The Twins aren't 100% healthy, and aren't firing on all cylinders yet, but they are confident, solid, and performing as a good, overall TEAM. My ONLY complaint might be Sands warming up so much he might be limited tomorrow. Speaking of tomorrow, VERY interested to see how SWR responds after his last performance, on the road, against a good team, and his former team. He's not the same pitcher the Jay's knew. But it's still a game against his former organization and a good team. Will he stay within himself? Let's keep it rolling guys!

Referencing @jmlease1, a couple guys may have been batting above their expected levels of late, but some aren't yet at expected levels, so it evens out. Now, basically, no Lewisbyet this year, a shadow wearing Wallner's jersey/name/number, Correa gone for a couple of weeks when he was off to a good start, and Kepler gone with a bad knee for a time as well. And a pretty much league average Buxton so far. And yet, they have been raking. And they've been doing so while behind almost any expected/projected HR pace. They've been doing it as a team, while previously they were losing as a team. Some of the names have changed...Larnach instead of Wallner at the moment for example...but this club was built to be a good offensive team. There will be highs and lows for everyone, some progression and regression, but there's also little reason to not believe they will remain one of the better offenses in the league.

I've been a believer in Jeffers for some time. I saw good game handling, good handling of the pitchers, and a ton of offensive potential. When he struggled in 2021-22 he still flashed at times. And I kept saying to give it time, don't ignore the injuries and the limited number of AB/PA he had so far. I wasn't surprised when he broke out in 2023, and I'm not surprised how well he's continued to perform this year. I do wish Vazquez brought more TO the plate, rather than just behind it. I'm disappointed he hasn't been able to just match his career averages, despite regular but balanced playing time that should keep him fresh. But he's been very good as a caller and receiver and blocker behind the plate. As someone else pointed out, his presence as a quality "backup" catcher allows Jeffers more time to stay fresh and productive and spend some time at DH as well. I am wondering a bit if next year, only a single season left on his 3yr deal, if Vazquez might be enticing in a trade for someone? Would the Twins feel Camargo and or Winkel...Winkel clearly not ready just yet...would be a solid replacement at a much lower $ than Vazquez? I mean, going younger and cheaper with some offensive upside is appealing, yes? But then again, for all the talk about how much Vazquez is being paid, Jeffers isn't very expensive. You're getting a great mix of veteran and younger player, solid defense from both, great offense from one, for only a little over $12M. That's pretty affordable.

I liked Cory Lewis better than Matthews initially. The hard knuckleball being just a fun, but functional reason. I just thought he had a little more velocity and pure stuff. And he did have the better 2023 overall. But Matthews has raised his game another level this season, and it's exciting to see. Festa has now been unleashed to go 70 pitchers plus, as long as he doesn't have one of those bad 30 pitch innings. Raya moved up to 55 pitches last time out and I'd suspect he'll be 60 plus pretty soon. Matthews is looking great. Culpepper is back on the mound again for Cedar Rapids and a lot of season still ahead. Hopefully, Lewis will be back in time for at least a half season of work to build on last year. Andrew Morris is quietly off to a solid start this season as well. HOPEFULLY, Pierson Ohl will get back on track and start looking like the prospect he was last season. No more injuries, no more setbacks for this group listed, the second half of this year could have us really excited about what's coming up and really, really close. Matthews keeps rolling like he has been...keep in mind it's not even mid May yet...I could see him at St Paul come August. But a single really nice start isn't going to get my "hope meter" up and running that he'll be ready sooner than that. But it's hard not to be at least a little bit excited about what the rest of this year might bring in terms of younger arms getting pretty close.