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Blog Entries posted by GoGonzoJournal

  1. GoGonzoJournal
    We talk about the Twins winning the most winnable division in the history of Major League Baseball, how sexy Royce Lewis is, and how smart Brian Flores is. Also, the NBA liked the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup so much they copied it, and Foul Players of the Week returns for obvious reasons.
    Listen here or on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
    Watch here.
    Brian Flores Looks Like a Genius in Preseason Loss to Seahawks
    Linebacker Ivan Pace, Jr.’s stock is rising, according to Alec Lewis of The Athletic Andrew Booth, Jr. got beat for a touchdown, but he’s 22 Safety Theo Jackson was on the field for more plays than any other Viking Twins Take Two from Philly, a Bonafide Playoff Team
    Matt Wallner, Carlos Correa, Max Kepler, Jordan Luplow, Joey Gallo, Ryan Jeffers, and Donovan Solano have all posted an OPS over .800 in August Royce Lewis is back and sexy as ever Pablo Lopez has a 0.47 ERA in three August wins, Kenta Maeda has a 1.50 ERA over 12 innings, and Sonny Gray has posted a 1.89 ERA over 19 innings Even Emilio Pagan has a 2.08 ERA in 4.1 August innings Louie Varland needs to get Dallas Keuchal’s innings Hasn’t allowed a run and has a 0.92 WHIP in two wins spanning 13 innings this August Foul Players of the Week
    Bronze medalist: The King of Television and Ring of Honor Television Champion, Samoa Joe, came out of the crowd to put CM Punk to sleep during his match with FTR against House of Black for the AEW Trios Championships. Punk proceeded to talk **** about Hangman Adam Page after the show, against whom I saw him win the AEW Heavyweight Championship despite wrestling like ****. He has since apologized, but the Anxious Millennial Cowboy is going to buckshot lariat his ass back to the Pepsi generation.
    Silver medalist: The family of Michael Oher, as depicted by white folks like Sandra Bullock and others in the movie, The Blind Side, blindsided Oher by allegedly tricking him into signing over control of his name, image, and likeness, and he was never paid for the movie about his life story. He says they lied about adopting him and tricked him into agreeing to a conservatorship.
    Gold medalist: Major League Baseball is investigating Wander Franco for allegedly grooming a 14-year-old girl. He was given the day off on his giveaway day. The giveaway: a snapback cap for children 14 and under.
    Talking Movies with Mike
    Oppenheimer was a yawnfest, Barbie was fun, but TMNT: Mutant Mayhem was the best movie I saw this week
  2. GoGonzoJournal
    Listen to the Mar. 5 Minnesota Foul Play-by-play podcast here. We start talking Twins at 11:40.
    Spring Twinkies Look Mostly Good, a Little Damaged, Pagan Ugly, but Never Expired
    The Good 
    Joey Gallo was 3-for-3 on Sunday (with a long ball). He’s hitting line-drives. 
    Max Kepler has also been hitting line-drives, and depth piece Elliot Soto has been on fire. 
    Correa looks like Correa (he had a nice line-drive to right field, Sunday)
    Duran was making 101 MPH look easy today (1 walk, 1 strikeout in one inning of work)
    Kyle Farmer is playing like a stud (great off season addition)
    The Brook’s Lee boner is still rock hard. “Man, that kid is a stud,” shortstop Carlos Correa said. “I really, really, really like this kid. I’m very, very high on him. Don’t be surprised if we see him up this year.”  
    19-year-old Jose Salas (who the Twins got in the Luis Arreaz trade) is fun to watch…cherry on top of that deal. He’s got a helluva hit tool.
    The Bad
    Gilberto Celistino (6-8 weeks, thumb), Jose Miranda (shoulder), Nick Gordon (high ankle sprain) all hurt
    Miranda will not play in the World Baseball Classic because of shoulder concern 
    Miranda homered twice on Sunday, so the shoulder isn’t effecting his swing
    The Future
    Brooks Lee, SS (MLB No. 31)
    Royce Lewis, SS (MLB No. 45)
    Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF (MLB No. 88)
    Edouard Julien, 2B (has had a great Spring Training so far)
    Connor Prielipp, LHP
    The Ugly
    Emilio Pagan continues to leave the taste of throw-up in your mouth
    The WBC Injects MLB Spring Training with Steroids
    Twins playing in the WBC make up much of the Puerto Rican team, which is always good
    Remaining Twins’ Spring Training players will play the WBC favorites from the Dominican Republic on Thursday, March 9 at noon CST
    Probably the most competitive game they’ll have all Spring
    Other players to watch:
    Yoenis Céspedes is playing for international powerhouse Cuba (he’s 37 and hit the longest homer in the dinger derby at Target Field in 2014), as are White Sox Luis Robert and Yoán Moncada
    Shohei Ohtani (Japan) could end up pitching to Mike Trout (USA)
  3. GoGonzoJournal
    With the Tampa Bay Rays set to make the 2019 MLB Playoffs and turn the 115-year-old approach to playoff rotations on its head, it’s well past time for questioning the effectiveness of the traditional approach to postseason pitching. But it’s the Minnesota Twins and José Berríos who present the most interesting postseason pitching situation.
     
    This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com.
     
    The Tried and Not-so-true Approach
    I get it. Put your best pitcher out there in Game 1 of a playoff series to give him the best chance to pitch in as many games of the series as possible. But is that really the best way to go? We’ve seen Madison Bumgarner win three World Series games, but not every team has a Madison Bumgarner. In fact, most MLB teams don’t have a Madison Bumgarner. Most MLB teams’ best pitcher isn’t their best pitcher against every MLB team.
    The Tampa Bay Rays aren’t even the best example of a playoff team without a bonafide number one starting pitcher, or ace. They have 2018 Cy Young Award-winner Blake Snell, who’s struggled in 2019, especially against the Yankees recently, but Brent Honeywell, Jr. might be even better someday. The Rays will still probably run an opener out there at some point if they make the postseason, but they shouldn’t feel the need to start their best pitcher in their first playoff game.
     
    The Minnesota Twins shouldn’t either. Their ace is undoubtedly José Berríos, but even he’s a question mark, especially when it comes to throwing a new baseball with seams harder to grip in cold, October weather. Berríos himself has proven to struggle late in the season, with his career strikeout-to-walk ratio plummeting from 5.13 in March/April to 1.88 in September/October. That could be a mute point if Berríos continues to mow down batters into September, but that isn’t evidence that the Twins’ best shot to win the American League Division Series is to start Berrios in Game 1—or at all for that matter.
     
    If the American League standings remain unchanged and the Twins win the pennant, they’d play their first postseason game at cavernous Target Field. It’s 29th in runs allowed and 28th in home runs allowed. That’s crazy considering the Twins are leading MLB in home runs with 140 through 73 games. Meanwhile, Boston’s Fenway Park is 12th in allowing runs and 25th when it comes to allowing home runs. Yankee Stadium is 28th and 22nd, respectively, and Minute Maid Park in Houston is 11th and 11th, respectively. Basically, regardless of whom Minnesota faces in the American League postseason, its coaching staff will want to consider the ballpark factors and opponents’ past success against its starters. If they do, they’ll find José Berríos shouldn’t necessarily start Game 1 of the ALDS or any playoff series.
     
    Play Aces like a Poker Hand…Slow
    Baseball’s been going about postseason pitching all wrong because instead of treating aces like aces in the hole, they’ve been playing them as if they’re bluffing—like they’re over-representing their hand as if they’re already beaten. And that could just be scared managers succumbing to the uncanny and inexplicable commitment to tired traditions in baseball. After completing a 162-game schedule providing plenty of data like ballpark and head-to-head splits repeatedly indicating that any pitcher or group of pitchers can win any game when put in a proper position to succeed given the circumstances, why is all that ignored as soon as the postseason begins?
     
    Twins vs. Tampa Bay Rays
    Just for fun, let’s assume the Twins face the Rays in the ALDS, a best-of-five series. At most, Berríos would be able to pitch two games, but should he, and if so, which games should he pitch? Judging from a simple analysis of pitching splits over a career, Odorizzi would be the Twins’ best option to start Game 1 of the ALDS against Tampa Bay at Target Field and Game 4 at Tropicana Field. Odorizzi has allowed the lowest OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage) to Tampa Bay’s hitters, and is second to only Berríos in OPS allowed at Target Field. Odorizzi also has the lowest OPS allowed at Tropicana Field—a measly .655—while Berríos is considerably better at Target Field (.645 OPS allowed at home) than he is at Tropicana Field (.812 OPS allowed).
     
    Michael Pineda’s .796 OPS allowed in Tampa Bay would be a perfect fit in Game 3 at The Trop, with Berríos taking the hill in Game 5, if necessary.
     
    Twins vs. Boston Red Sox
    Berríos doesn’t makes sense as an ALDS Game 1 starter against Boston either, even though he’s allowed an OPS of just .625 when facing the Red Sox and proved he can get them out on Monday, going eight innings and surrendering just five hits and one earned run. His .645 OPS allowed at Target Field is also a team-best, which is why he should only be pitching at Target Field, but not necessarily in Game 1.
     
    Kyle Gibson is better at Fenway Park (.450 OPS allowed) than he is at Target Field (.757 OPS allowed). In fact, he’s the Twins’ best option to pitch Game 3 of any American League playoff series in which Minnesota has home field advantage and doesn’t include the Rays. His .593 OPS allowed in Houston is lowest on the team, as is his .647 OPS allowed in Yankee Stadium. But who should the Twins start in Game 1 against Boston?
     
    Answer: Martín Pérez. Pérez’s .738 OPS allowed at Target Field is second-best on the team, and his .548 OPS allowed to Red Sox hitters is best on the team and 77 points lower than Berríos’. He gives the Twins the best chance to beat Boston in Game 1, and setting Berríos up to pitch Game 4 at Fenway Park (.871 OPS allowed at Boston) instead of Game 5 at Target Field (.645 OPS allowed) is setting him up for failure.
     
    Twins vs. New York Yankees
    To finally end the Twins’ playoff curse against the Yankees, it’ll take Michael Pineda pitching Game 1 at Target Field. His .689 OPS allowed against the Yankees is second only to Jake Odorizzi’s, who should only pitch in Minnesota because his .684 OPS allowed at Target Field is much better than him working the upper part of the strike zone with his sneaky fastball in the little league ballpark that is Yankee Stadium against the biggest hitters in baseball. Pitching Game 2 would line Odorizzi up to pitch Game 5, at home, if necessary.
     
    Pineda pitching Game 1 lines him up to start Game 4 in familiar Yankee Stadium, where he has the second-best OPS allowed amongst Twins starting pitchers. Kyle Gibson would pitch Game 3, and Berríos could be used out of the bullpen in high-leverage situations against lefties. That’s right. José Berríos is a bullpen arm against the Yankees—and the Astros.
     
    Twins vs. Houston Astros
    Martín Pérez is the perfect pick for the Twins to start Games 1 and 4 in an ALDS against the Astros. His .711 OPS allowed against Houston is second only to Odorizzi’s, and his .655 OPS allowed at Minute Maid Park is also second to only Kyle Gibson’s .593 OPS allowed in Houston. Games 2 and 5 should go to Odorizzi, where his .684 OPS allowed at home will pair well with his team-best .689 OPS allowed to Houston’s hitters. Gibson should get Game 3.
     
    Bad Arguments Against
    People will incorrectly argue that Martín Pérez beating Justin Verlander is less likely than Berríos doing so. But it was Jake Odorizzi getting the shutout win over Verlander, pitching seven innings on April 29. And it was Pérez getting a win over Houston, pitching eight innings of four-hit, shutout baseball on May 1. Berríos backed him up with a win the next day, pitching seven innings and allowing two earned runs on seven hits.
     
    People will incorrectly argue that not pitching Berríos as a starter in potential ALDSs against Houston and New York would negatively affect his ability if asked to start in the ALCS. But this, like any other, and especially in the randomness of the postseason, is a sport you approach one game at a time. You can’t worry about the ALCS until you get there. Also, it’s more likely, given the season thus far, that Minnesota meet either Houston or New York in the ALCS. Speaking of, how does this all look in a seven-game series?
     
    ALCS: Twins vs. Yankees
    In a seven-game series against the Yankees, do everything the same. Start Pineda in Games 1, 4, and 7, Odorizzi in Games 2 and 5, Gibson in Game 3. Pineda’s last action in an ALDS against Tampa Bay would be in Game 4 (if necessary), so he’d pitch on regular rest in Game 1 of the ALCS. ALDSs against Boston and Houston wouldn’t pose any problems. Use José Berríos out of the bullpen against lefties.
     
    ALCS: Twins vs. Astros
    Start Pérez in Games 1, 4, and 7. His last game in an ALDS against Boston would have been Game 4 (if necessary), so if it went five games, he’d start on regular rest. Start Odorizzi in Games 2 and 6, and give Game 5 in Houston to Gibson and his team-best .593 OPS allowed at Houston. Use José Berríos out of the bullpen against anyone but George Springer (6-for-12 with two extra-base hits) and Alex Bregman (4-for-7 with three extra-base hits).
     
    ALCS: Twins vs. Rays
    Start Odorizzi in Games 1, 4, and 7, unless he has to pitch Game 5 against the Yankees or Astros in the ALDS. If that’s the case, start Berríos in Games 1, 4, and 7, whose last game in an ALDS would be in Game 4 against Boston, which would be regular rest if it went five games. Start Odorizzi in Games 2 and 6, if necessary, and Pineda in Game 3.
     
    ALCS: Twins vs. Red Sox
    Pitch Pérez in Games 1, 4, and 7. His last action in an ALDS would come in Game 4 against Houston, so if it went five games he’d start on regular rest. Start Berríos in Games 2 and 6. That keeps his .871 OPS allowed away from Fenway. Gibson pitches Game 3.
     
    So José Berríos doesn’t make sense as a Game 1 starter for the Minnesota Twins in any American League playoff series unless Jake Odorizzi is unavailable. Forget all that in the World Series, though, but worry about that when you get there.
  4. GoGonzoJournal
    The Minnesota Twins’ acquisition of second baseman Jonathan Schoop has been considered by most as a low-risk, high-reward move by general manager Thad Levine and president Derek Falvey. It is that, but going ignored is the immediate impact the move has on the Twins’ chances in the American League (AL) Central Division.
     
    The AL Central was really bad in 2018. Three teams posted winning percentages below .400, which was one more than the rest of Major League Baseball (MLB). Cleveland, the eventual division champions, were seven wins better than the Twins within the division despite winning the season series over Minnesota 10-9. The Twins just weren’t good enough in games against the AL Central’s worst teams in 2018, especially at the plate. The addition of Schoop for one season at an affordable $7.5 million salary addresses that issue.
     
    Schoop Scorches the AL Central
    The AL Central rosters as of this writing bode well for Schoop and the Twins. Over his career, Schoop has a combined batting average of .357 against Minnesota’s division opponents in 168 at-bats. In fact, the only team in the Central with which he’s “struggled” is the Twins, with a .275 batting average but .833 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS). Let’s look at how Schoop has fared against the AL Central teams the Twins will have to beat to make the playoffs.
     
    Kansas City Royals (32 AB, 12 H, .375/.394/.406)
    The Twins didn’t win nearly enough games against the AL Central’s worst team last season. Minnesota lost the season series to Kansas City 10-9, allowing four more runs than they scored over the course of those games. Minnesota was considerably worse on offense against the Royals than the rest of the league, as evidenced by its sOPS+ of 95. Schoop could make an immediate impact in games against the Royals.
     
    Schoop wouldn’t mind if Danny Duffy returns healthy for Kansas City, having accrued eight hits in 16 career at-bats against him. He has two hits in six at-bats against Ian Kennedy, too. While Schoop hasn’t shown much power against the Royals (0 HR, 1 2B) his .394 OBP would be a welcome addition for a team that only reached base at a .347 clip against the Royals last season.
     
    Chicago White Sox (28 AB, 12 H, .429/.433/.571)
    There wasn’t a divisional opponent the Twins struggled with more than the White Sox. Despite winning the season series 12-7, relative to the rest of the league, the Twins were terrible at the plate against the White Sox. The Twins’ sOPS+ of 91 was only better than their performances against five other teams. Schoop again can make an immediate impact.
     
    Schoop’s career batting average (.429) and on-base percentage (.433) against the White Sox is better than what he’s posted against any other AL team. Only his slugging percentages against Houston and Texas are better than the .571 slugging percentage he’s posted against White Sox pitching. Schoop especially likes hitting against Carlos Rodon and newly acquired closer Alex Colome, against whom he’s a combined seven of 19 with five RBI.
     
    Detroit Tigers (49 AB, 18 H, .367/.404/.531)
    The Twins were 12-7 against the Tigers in 2018, too, but only hit them as well as they did Cleveland relative to the rest of the league. Schoop, however, has hit Detroit pitching pretty well, especially Michael Fulmer. In eight at-bats, Schoop has four hits including a home run, a double, and four RBI. Schoop also has four hits in 12 at-bats against newly acquired free agent Matt Moore, whom the Tigers intend to use as a starter.
     
    Cleveland Indians (59 AB, 18 H, .305/.311/.441)
    While Schoop hasn’t hit Cleveland pitching like he has the rest of the AL Central, he’s still a potential upgrade at his position against them. With the performance the Twins got out of the second base position last season, it wouldn’t take much. Only production by Twins’ catchers and designated hitters were worse than the production they got from second basemen last season, and Minnesota’s .365 slugging percentage from second basemen was worst amongst its roster of hitters.
     
    Schoop will have an immediate impact on games against Cleveland’s ace, Corey Kluber, against whom he is four of 12 with a double and a homer in his career. He’s also six for 11 and has driven in four against Cleveland starter Trevor Bauer. Against Danny Salazar, Schoop has two hits in five at-bats. Coincidence Schoop's now a Twin? I think not.
  5. GoGonzoJournal
    Baseball quite literally is not making ballplayers like Joe Mauer anymore. In fact, he’s potentially the last of a bygone era, during which striking out was still frowned upon by coaches and downright despised by some players.
     
    Joe Mauer hates striking out — so much so he struck out just once in high school. Even as Major League Baseball evolved into a game with more pitchers throwing harder and nastier pitches than ever before, Mauer refused to change his approach and was good enough to not only get away with it, but force defenses to adjust to him just as Barry Bonds before him. Mauer received one of the most extreme defensive outfield shifts in baseball, and he got his hits despite it.
     
    Of the top 21 seasons in overall strikeouts in MLB history, Mauer played in 15. He struck out more than 100 times just once, and his OPS+ was under 100 in just two seasons of his career. But some still think Mauer was overpaid given the expectancy for him to catch full-time.
     
    Addressing Mauer’s Haters
    Mauer, a soft-spoken, Minnesota-nice guy, has his share of haters who think he should have cowboyed up and got behind the plate to earn his $23 million every year despite a concussion issue that not only threatened his career but his life off the field. An issue that reappeared this season upon a dive for a ball at first base and might be responsible for Mauer’s indecision regarding his playing future.
    Mauer’s haters should know over the course of his career, the Twins paid Joe just $374,856.42 more per win above a replacement player than the Marlins and Tigers paid Cabrera, and the Tigers still owe him at least $154 million. The Twins paid just $728,825.30 more per win above a replacement player than the Cardinals and Angels have paid Pujols, who’s still owed $87 million. If you average the WAR of both Cabrera and Pujols over their last seven years across the remaining years of their contracts, their cost per win above a replacement player balloons to $381,619.65 and $80,136.39 more per WAR than Joe, respectively.
     
    Not being overpaid relative to his fellow first basemen won’t make Mauer a first-ballot Hall of Famer like Pujols and Cabrera, but it doesn’t hurt.
     
    The Hall of Fame Question
    Most will say Mauer’s six All-Star appearances and 2,123 hits aren’t enough. Most will say he never won a playoff series. Most will say his 55.1 career Wins Above Replacement (WAR) isn’t even as good as another former Twin (David Ortiz, 55.3) despite it being top-100 all time amongst Hall of Fame position players and 151st all time in MLB history, according to Baseball Reference.
     
    Mauer’s integrity and humility are Hall-of-Fame caliber, however. Unlike Ortiz, who failed a 2003 performance-enhancing drug test, Mauer’s legacy is unquestioned and untarnished. Although Mauer only played in the post-steroid era of Major League Baseball (the drug policy as we know it was first implemented and enforced in 2004), he’s someone who might have benefited from steroids and had an “opportunity” to use them after sustaining a knee injury in his rookie season. At 21, Joe knew better, and at 28, when his body struggled recovering from surgery and then fell ill with pneumonia, Mauer probably never even considered using steroids.
     
    Mauer came back in 2012 to lead the league in on-base percentage (OBP), beating his 2011 OBP by 56 points (.420). His .351 OBP in 2018 is the worst of his career and was still the 50th-best in baseball and 10 percent better than the MLB average (.318). He was top-10 in league OBP and batting average seven times and top-10 in Adjusted OPS+ six times in his career.
     
    Mauer’s .3063 career batting average is, ironically, identical to his Hall of Fame manager’s, good for 138th-best all time. But Paul Molitor has 1,196 more hits than Joe. Regardless, Mauer’s career batting average is sandwiched between Hall of Famers Ernie Lombardi and George Kell, and is better than that of the next-best hitting catcher of his era, Buster Posey (.306). Mauer’s the only catcher ever to win three batting titles, too.
     
    But what makes Hall of Famers is their relative dominance of their respective eras. Barry Bonds didn’t have to beat Babe Ruth in career home runs; he just needed to dominate his era like Ruth his. Mauer is a Hall of Famer given his place amongst his peers.
     
    When compared to his peers, from 2004 to 2018, Mauer’s batting average ranks ninth, between Mike Trout and Buster Posey. His OBP is twelfth, between Hall of Famer Chipper Jones and Bryce Harper. His Weighted Runs Created (WRC) is tenth, whereas Posey ranks 94th. On an All-MLB 2004–18 Team, Mauer would clearly be the catcher, and he’s probably the fourth-best first baseman of his generation, behind Miguel Cabrera, Albert Pujols, and Joey Votto — all first-ballot Hall of Famers.
     
    Mauer’s numbers aren’t first-ballot-Hall-of-Fame worthy, but the way he represented the game of baseball and himself on and off the field is worthy of first-ballot consideration, which he’ll receive. Joe might even be a victim of the Hall of Fame shrinking the length of time players stay on the ballot from 15 years to 10. Mauer won’t be eligible for induction until 2023 at the earliest, but judging from the lack of retirees expected this season, he could benefit from a lack of competition. We don’t know if this is Adrian Beltre’s final season, and if it isn’t, Mauer could be sharing the ballot with holdovers from previous years, not including Bonds or Roger Clemens, who will fall off the ballot in three years.
     
    Even if Joe isn’t voted into the MLB Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, he will most certainly get support from the Hall of Fame’s Veterans Committee. One way or another, Joe Mauer is a Hall of Fame player. Personally, I’d like to see if he’s a Hall of Fame manager.
  6. GoGonzoJournal
    The one sport that stands to benefit most from advances in technology is America’s Pastime. My colleague Ben Beecken shares that sentiment and understands baseball’s big problem and how to solve it. But as a semi-traditionalist baseball fan, I’m not ready to take the umpires off the field in favor of robots.
     
    This was originally published at Grandstand Central.
     
    Something must be done, obviously, and Major League Baseball owners are apparently pushing Commissioner Rob Manfred to make “bold” changes to address what they believe to be a pace-of-play problem caused by the increased employment of defensive shifts. But baseball doesn’t have a pace-of-play problem; it has a lack-of-action problem that an electronic strike zone can solve without taking umpires’ jobs.
     
    Increased Action Makes Pace of Play Irrelevant
    “Time flies when you’re having fun” they say, and that goes for a three-plus-hour-long baseball game, too. Shortening the game or speeding it up isn’t going to make the game more appealing to young people. You need action to appeal to the all-time low attention spans of young people, or they’ll just find their entertainment on that computer in their pocket. MLB isn’t providing that action and hasn’t for a decade or so.
     
    Thus far this season, MLB’s collective batting average is .248 — the 21st-worst league batting average since 1871, according to Baseball Reference. Runs are down to 1956 levels, but on-base percentages, upon which run production depends, have remained steady, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney. But there’s never been more strikeouts in the bigs.
     
    The league is on pace to break the strikeout record set last year, and the year before that, and in each of the eight years prior. That’s a decade’s worth of record-setting strikeout totals, so no one should be surprised by how often professional hitters are failing to hit. And you can’t blame defensive shifts for strikeouts.
     
    This idea that the increased employment of defensive shifts has forced hitters to alter their approach at the plate to increase their “launch angle” and “exit velocity” to hit over the shift is ridiculous. Defensive shifts don’t force hitters to do anything except exactly what hitters have been expected to do since the game’s inception: hit it where they ain’t. If any professional ballplayer could bunt these days, and every one of them should be capable, or if managers valued baserunners over extra-base-hit potential, defensive shifts would all but disappear except for pull-happy, power hitters who aren’t paid to bunt — ever. The defense is the one taking a risk by shifting; most hitters risk nothing except their batting averages trying to hit over the shift and into the stands. We shouldn’t want more hitters bunting, however. We should want more action occurring from hitters hitting — or better yet, driving the ball.
     
    Some of those hitters, like the Cubs’ Daniel Murphy, have explained why they don’t bunt against the shift despite having a gimme single if they can get it in play past the pitcher on the vacated half of the infield. Murphy’s reasoning is that he’s more valuable to his team pursuing extra-base hits rather than occupying first base and waiting for another two teammates to hit singles to score him given his lack of speed. “It’s really difficult to get three hits in one inning,” he told ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick, citing “how good pitchers are now” as a reason.
     
    The Evolution of Pitching is to Blame for Baseball’s Problem
    Young fans are avoiding baseball because it’s boring. Hitters can’t hit because pitching is too good. Many hitters, like former MVP and batting champion Justin Morneau, say a hitter can expect one hittable pitch per plate appearance, and hittable pitches are fewer and farther between in today’s MLB than ever before.
    Batters aren’t looking to get the ball in the air more often to avoid hitting into defensive shifts. Batters are looking to get the ball in the air more often because there are fewer pitches thrown they are physically capable of hitting hard in the air. There are fewer pitches thrown that have extra-base-hit potential.Since 2002, swings on pitches outside the strike zone have increased 12.7 percent, resulting in an all-time low contact rate and all-time high swing-and-miss rate.
    In 2010, 50.2 percent of all pitches thrown in MLB were in the strike zone, according to FanGraphs. This season it’s down to 47.9 percent, and despite the percentage of swings at pitches in the zone at an all-time high over the 11-year history of this research, the contact percentage on those strikes is at an all-time low. Contact on pitches outside the strike zone is also at an all-time low, but why?
     
    Reliance on Relief Pitchers Contributes to Baseball’s Problem
    Before defensive shifts became the norm and launch angle was ever uttered, the approach to pitching had already evolved immensely in MLB. John McGraw had a dedicated relief pitcher on his New York Giants roster as early as 1905, according to the research of Bryan Soderholm-Difatte for “America’s Game.” That tactic became more popular in the 1920s after Mordecai “Three Finger” Brown’s career was shortened considerably having served as the Cubs’ ace starter and ace reliever from 1908 to 1911.
     
    Even though the lengths of MLB pitchers’ careers were shortened by the now-incomprehensible number of innings pitched over a hundred years ago, there are still pitchers calling for starters to go longer in games and ignore pitch counts.
     
    Hall of Fame pitcher Bert Blyleven reminding MLB’s aging audience that starters were expected to finish games as recent as the 1980s should consider how effective he and his peers were the third and fourth time through a lineup instead of calling it evidence that throwing more pitches leads to fewer injuries.
     
    Real research conducted by real physicians found that throwing fastballs, not curveballs, is linked to Tommy John surgery, according to Sports Illustrated’s Ian McMahan. Blyleven made his living with his curveball, which is why he’s a terrible spokesperson for getting rid of the pitch count and treating today’s starting pitchers like it’s 1971.
     
    Over his career, Blyleven allowed an OPS of .679 when pitching to opponents for a third time and a .711 OPS when seeing hitters a fourth time in a game. That’s respectable, but according to Total OPS+, or tOPS+, Blyleven’s teams, on average, would have been better off had Blyleven never pitched to a hitter a third or fourth time. That is, of course, if there was a relief pitcher on the team with a better tOPS+ when facing hitters for the first time in relief than Blyleven’s tOPS+ when facing hitters a third or fourth time in a game.
     
    In 1971, at age 20, Blyleven’s tOPS+ against batters in their third plate appearance of a game was a fantastic 77 (the further below 100 the better a pitcher was in that particular instance). Only Minnesota closer Tom Hall was more effective in his first time facing batters as a reliever than Blyleven was facing batters a third time as a starter. And while Blyleven struggled a bit when facing batters a second time (107 tOPS+), he certainly had a good feel for his curveball when they stepped to the plate a third time.
     
    Blyleven’s struggles the second time through lineups persisted throughout his career, but he actually got better as the game went on because he was throwing mostly curveballs, not fastballs. In 1986, Blyleven allowed an .853 OPS to hitters in their second plate appearance. But in their third plate appearance, opponents’ OPS was down to .733 and back up to .828 in their fourth look at Bert. So Blyleven, besides a knuckleballer, is the last person who should be calling for today’s pitchers to go longer in games because he was spending the early innings “finding” his curveball so he could throw it more often and more effectively late in games while pitchers today are throwing far more fastballs and fast breaking balls than he or anyone else in his era was throwing.
     
    Reliance on Velocity Contributes to Baseball’s Problem
    Since the 1980s, when the curveball gave way to the slider as the breaking ball of choice, pitchers have been throwing more fastballs and are understandably less effective against hitters a third and fourth time given that approach, losing their velocity and, in turn, movement. A curveball is difficult to track regardless of inning, but a fastball can be timed in a single plate appearance and exploited in the next. Sliders and cutters slide and cut less with less velocity, which is lost by pitchers faster in games these days due to the volume of fastballs and fast breaking balls thrown.
     
    Since pitchers have been relying on fastballs more so than breaking balls, and rather effectively given the aforementioned statistics, pitchers ought not throw as many pitches as a curveball specialist given the medical research previously cited. Hence the advent of the pitch count.
     
    Managers want to keep their starting pitchers healthy and able to start every five days, and the pitch count provides them with a guide for attempting to do so. But managers’ number one priority is winning ballgames, and throwing four or five electric arms at a lineup instead of one or two increases their chances to win games and preserve the health of their pitchers. But it doesn’t matter how fresh the arm or how electric the stuff if pitches thrown in the strike zone aren’t called strikes. Reliance on Humans Contributes to Baseball’s Problem
    Baseball purists like my attorney and Blyleven think it’s the human element home plate umpires provide that makes the game of baseball great. Each home plate umpire having his (and “his” sadly is the proper pronoun, at least in MLB) own unique, strike zone does make the game great. It sparks dugout chatter and builds camaraderie as teammates badmouth that day’s enemy behind the plate while trying to figure out the one 60 feet, six inches in front of it.
     
    Then questionable calls lead to looks of “whoa” directed at the home plate umpire, culminating in confrontation and eventual ejections followed by the truly inspired, laid-bare performances in response, as if these men, like all great thespians, forget they have an audience. Now that’s drama.
     
    There’s nothing more entertaining in baseball than a player or manager getting their money’s worth after being tossed from a game. Maybe a three-homer game or a straight steal of home could rival Ron Gardenhire’s red-faced rants or the legend of Lou Piniella’s interpretive, dirt dances, but hitting for the cycle pales in comparison. An ejection can invigorate both a team and crowd for the entirety of the game like winning a fight in hockey. The cycle climaxes with a curtain call lasting a few minutes, while the ejected entertainers, also deserving of a curtain call, make for a lonely locker room to find some semblance of solace in a cold shower and comfort food.
     
    Frankly, I think the decline in ejections has been detrimental to baseball and contributed to baseball’s problem attracting young fans, who have gravitated toward the soap operatic drama of soccer instead. Bad actors with no respect for the theatre of sport are taking advantage of baseball’s dwindling drama thanks to a surplus of soccer drama performed by characters like The Zlatan — too unreal for even MTV’s Real World.
     
    The advent of replay has scrubbed the sport of baseball relatively clean when it comes to disputing plays on the bases, and that’s an unfortunate but necessary sacrifice to get the calls right. An electronic strike zone will have a similar effect, removing some of the drama that makes a baseball game both joyous and enraging for all involved.
    I like when an incorrect call goes my team’s way as much as the next fan, and I scream at the television when an umpire or official misses one. Officiating-hating is part of the fun for fans of all sports. There’s a problem, though, when pitches outside the strike zone are called strikes in a game where even the best players fail seven out of 10 times. It makes a game ESPN’s Tim Kurkjian calls “the hardest game in the world to play” even harder for hitters.
     
    Reliance on Spin Rate Contributes to Baseball’s Problem
    Pitches these days are harder to hit than they’ve ever been. On average, they’re being thrown harder than they’ve ever been. Fastballs, split-finger fastballs, sinkers, sliders and even change-ups are being thrown harder in 2018 than they have since 2007, which is where FanGraphs’ dataset starts. Pitches are moving more, too. Sliders, on average, have more horizontal movement than ever, with a focus on spin rate making pitches move more and making it harder for hitters to recognize pitches.Not only has fastball velocity increased almost annually in MLB, but almost every pitch is being thrown faster than ever before.
    So not only are we expecting MLB hitters to hit the nastiest pitches ever pitched, but we’re expecting them to hit the highest volume of nasty pitches despite an inconsistent strike zone that changes everyday, or twice daily for doubleheaders. The players are quite literally playing by different rules every game, and while Babe Ruth and Ted Williams dealt with similarly subjective strike zones in their eras, neither they nor the umpires of the day had to track an exploding slider or sinking and cutting fastballs thrown in the mid-90s all game, every game. Williams was subjected to defensive shifts, though, and they didn’t ruin the game back in the 1940s and won’t now.
     
    The Solution to Baseball’s Problem
    Baseball is a contact sport in that it requires contact between bat and ball to provide audiences action. “Strikeouts are boring. Besides that they’re Fascist,” as Crash Davis correctly claimed in Bull Durham. “Throw some ground balls. It’s more democratic.” Contact equals action, and a lack of contact is a lack of action.
     
    Baseball’s problem attracting young fans is a result of that lack of action, not pace of play. You could shorten games to a two-hour time limit and without contact, the game would still be boring to young people. But the game wasn’t boring when Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire were launching steroid-fueled bombs into the stratosphere back in the 1990s because we had contact — epic contact.
     
    Since ending MLB’s performance-enhancing drug policy is unlikely, using technology already available and already being used to train umpires to provide players with a consistent strike zone will lower chase and swing-and-miss rates, increase contact rates and, in turn, increase action. If baseball wants to attract young fans, instead of Commissioner Manfred altering the rules to limit defensive shifts or defensive positioning, he should consider implementing an electronic strike zone that’s consistent from game to game, umpire to umpire.
     
    The most fun I have watching the lowly Twins is when Logan Forsythe runs out to left field from second base to serve as a fourth outfielder and then running back to the infield. Players are probably getting more exercise than they ever have in the history of the game, and movement is action.
     
    Defensive shifts are the most interesting thing baseball’s had to offer since the Steroid Era. That is until Tampa Bay’s use of relief pitchers to start games becomes the norm so starters can relieve the “openers” and face hitters during their higher-leverage plate appearances the second, third and fourth time through the lineup. But instead of hitters figuring out a starting pitcher in their second or third at-bat, they’re figuring out a new pitcher in their second at-bat. If you thought strikeouts were out of control now, just wait until flamethrowing relievers are facing hitters at their most vulnerable — their first plate appearance — and then starting pitchers come in and make hitters relive the horror of their first plate appearance all over again.
     
    Not only do both hitters and pitchers have to figure each other out throughout the course of a game, but they have to figure out the home plate umpire as well. Pitchers test the edges of the plate to see how wide the umpire’s strike zone is that day, resulting in plenty of pitches thrown out of the strike zone slowing play to a halt. A ball off the plate that doesn’t entice a swing is a complete lack of action, and a ball off the plate that does entice a swing tends to result in poor contact and little action. Until pitchers are forced to throw strikes, why would they? Greg Maddux carved out a Hall of Fame career pitching out of the strike zone, and he didn’t have the velocity or wicked movement pitchers feature today.
     
    So what’s the answer to baseball’s problem? No, not robots, but technologically enhanced umpires. I’m not talking about creating special headgear that projects the strike zone on a see-through visor like Google Glasses and makes blue look like RoboUmp, although that’s a cool option. That way home plate umpires still feel useful and in control of the game, with technology assisting the umpire in calling a consistent strike zone instead of dictating balls and strikes. Technology is a tool humans should use to do work better; it should not be a means to do away with work altogether.
     
    A less cool but effective option would be to put a microphone in the ear or a buzzer in the pocket of home plate umpires that indicates when a pitch is thrown in the electronic strike zone, and the technology is close to doing so accurately. That way hitters come to the plate every game knowing exactly what a strike is and is not, so they swing at more strikes instead of chasing balls incorrectly called strikes, which will result in more contact, better contact and fewer strikeouts despite defensive shifts. It will also give managers one less reason to argue with umpires, which, unfortunately, might be one of the last reasons left. But the electronic strike zone will make a three-plus-hour game more appealing to the short attention spans of young fans.
  7. GoGonzoJournal
    Ehire Adrianza has no business playing shortstop everyday, and Gregorio Petit has no business on an MLB roster. Ryan LaMarre should be nothing more than a fourth outfielder and pinch runner. And it’s way past time for the Minnesota Twins to call up Nick Gordon.
     
    This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com.
     
    The Ehire Adrianza Problem
    On Wednesday night in Minneapolis, Ehire Adrianza started at shortstop because Logan Morrison’s back was still a bit stiff, moving Miguel Sano to first base and Eduardo Escobar to third. Miguel playing first makes a lot of sense, but Adrianza being in the lineup with Gordon hitting .357 at AAA Rochester just doesn’t compute.
     
    Adrianza even had two doubles and drove in a run before booting a ball that led to a four-run sixth inning. Adrianza wasn’t given an error on the play. How I don’t know, but it was the play that forced the Twins to go to its bullpen, specifically, the overused Ryan Pressly. Pressly has appeared in 31 of the Twins’ 58 games, and he’s starting to show signs of fatigue. In his last three appearances, he’s allowed three earned runs over two innings, allowing four hits and a walk.
     
    The Pressly problem I’ll save for another rant. This rant is about never seeing Gregorio Petit and Ehire Adrianza in Twins uniforms again. Even if Gordon struggles to hit in the bigs, which hasn’t been a problem for him at any level, he’s better defensively and on the bases than Petit and Adrianza right now.
     
    Gordon is an Upgrade Defensively at Shortstop
    Adrianza is three runs below average over 1,200 innings at shortstop. Petit is 48 runs below average over 1,200 innings. And while I don’t have access to the same stat for Gordon, Baseball Reference does tell me his range factor per game (3.46) is higher than Adrianza’s (3.28) and Petit’s (2.67).
     
    Gordon is an Upgrade on the Bases
    It’s also safe to assume Gordon to be a better base runner than both Adrianza and Petit. I can’t tell you how many runs Gordon is worth on the bases, but I can tell you he’s faster than Adrianza and Petit. Baseball Prospectus’ editor Aaron Gleeman indicates as much with regards to Adrianza on Twitter.
     
    Adrianza and Petit have each cost the Twins a run on the bases this season and have combined for three stolen bases on four attempts. Gordon is seven of 11 on stolen base attempts this year.
     
    Gordon is an Upgrade at the Plate
    I know what you’re thinking: “It doesn’t matter how good Gordon is on the bases if he’s not on base.” Well, his batting average at AAA is higher than Adrianza’s on-base percentage and Petit’s batting average. Gordon is hitting .357 with an on-base percentage of .379. Adrianza’s on-base percentage sat at .281 at the time of this writing, and Petit’s average is .308 in 30 plate appearances.
     
    The Lineup with Gordon
    Assuming Morrison and Joe Mauer become available soon, which seems to be the case, you might think Adrianza’s playing time will diminish, and that’s true. But until Byron Buxton is healthy, which could take considerable time, LaMarre will still play center field, where Max Kepler is 35 runs above average over 1,200 innings to LaMarre’s -56. That’s a difference of 91 runs over 135 games.
     
    I don’t know about you, but I’d also rather have Nick Gordon’s bat in the lineup instead of LaMarre’s. LaMarre might be hitting a respectable .288 with a .681 OPS, but just three of his 18 hits have gone for extra bases. Consider this:
    Joe Mauer, 1B
    Brian Dozier, 2B
    Eddie Rosario, RF
    Miguel Sano, 3B
    Eduardo Escobar, LF
    Max Kepler, CF
    Logan Morrison, DH
    Mitch Garver, C
    Nick Gordon, SS

    I think this lineup is better defensively, better on the bases and better at the plate than Paul Molitor’s, but I’m not the reigning American League Manager of the Year. Molitor might not be able to convince president of baseball operations Derek Falvey and general manager Thad Levine to call up Gordon, and I don't know what they're doing claiming Taylor Motter, but Molitor should be in their ear every day, because it’s way past time for the Minnesota Twins to call up Nick Gordon.
  8. GoGonzoJournal
    The Minnesota Twins reportedly offered Yu Darvish $100 million over four years to be the ace of their starting pitching staff. Instead, president of baseball operations Derek Falvey and general manager Thad Levine invested almost the same amount of money in three players who make them better than Darvish could have.
     
    This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com.
     
    Darvish signed with the Cubs for five years and $126 million guaranteed and for good reason. He’s projected to be worth 2.8 WARP for the Cubs. And the Cubs are one of those teams, along with the Astros, with their championship window wide open. The Twins’ championship window is just opening, but thanks to some clever spending, that window is expected to open up even more for the Twins this season.
     
    On March 4, Jim Bowden reported that the Twins would be unlikely to sign any of the top remaining free agent starters on the market, including Lance Lynn, who declined a qualifying offer from the Cardinals in the amount of $17.4 million. Six days later the Twins signed Lynn for one year at $12 million. Lynn called the two-year, $12-million offer from the Twins “non-starter” just days earlier, but a lack of long-term offers with Spring Training in full swing made a one-year deal worth $12 million look pretty good for a pitcher entering his second season removed from Tommy John surgery.
     
    Overnight, according to Baseball Prospectus’s PECOTA projections, the Twins went from 82 wins and out of the playoffs to 83 wins and in. But despite an appearance in the American League Wild Card game last season, the Twins were projected as a .500 team prior to spending the money they had reserved for Darvish.
     
    In another affordable surprise, Falvey and Levine scored free agent first baseman and designated hitter Logan Morrison for one year and $5.5 million. Morrison hit a career high 38 home runs last season -- good for 2.8 WARP. He’s been projected to be worth one win more than a replacement player.
     
    The Twins wouldn’t have likely traded for Jake Odorizzi had they landed Darvish, either. He’s been projected to be worth .7 wins above a replacement player at a measly $6.3 million this season and is still eligible for arbitration next year. Add it all up and you’ll find Morrison, Odorizzi and Lynn to be worth just a tenth of a win less than Darvish at $1.2 million less than the Twins were willing to pay Darvish.
     
    Consider the 1.2 wins added by the combination of Fernando Rodney and Addison Reed at the back of the Twins’ bullpen, and you not only have a playoff-bound roster, but a formidable playoff foe that can shock an American League divisional champion. Remember, they could get Michael Pineda back for the playoffs. They’re paying him just $2 million this season while he recovers from Tommy John surgery.
     
    If Jose Berrios becomes the ace arm the Twins expect entering the playoffs, they’ll have a starting pitcher who can win them a Wild Card game. And even if he isn’t the ace the Twins expect, Ervin Santana or Lance Lynn could win that game.
     
    The Twins’ rotation can now hang with anyone in a five- or seven-game series. A playoff rotation of Santana, Berrios, Lynn and Odorizzi can finally hang with the Yankees’ Tanaka, Severino, Gray and Sabathia or the Astros’ Keuchel, Verlander, Cole and McCullers.
     
    The Twins are going to be one of the top three teams in runs scored with the addition of Morrison. They were second in runs scored in the second half last year without Morrison. They’re also going to be one of the top three defensive teams in baseball, which will make Lynn, Odorizzi, Reed and Rodney very happy to be in Minnesota.
    Falvey and Levine won the offseason for the Twins. They recognized the perceived values of free agents were inflated for whatever reason -- whether it be collusion or analytical analism -- and they were rewarded for not overpaying Darvish. They managed to do all this without adding a single contract beyond 2019.
     
    The Twins enter the season with a franchise-record payroll around $130 million, but will have just under $56 million on the books entering the epic offseason that will likely feature free agents Clayton Kershaw, Josh Donaldson, Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Nelson Cruz, Charlie Blackmon, Dallas Keuchel, Zach Britton, Cody Allen, Craig Kimbrel and Andrew Miller.
  9. GoGonzoJournal
    I’ve mentioned Brad Hand as a trade target for the Minnesota Twins in two previous blogs, and now that we know the Twins’ surprising performance has Thad Levine targeting trades for long-term assets prior to the July 31 trade deadline, it seems Brad Hand is the Twins’ perfect trade target. Here are the reasons:
     
    This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com, a community of foul-mouthed, sports broadcasters providing uncensored, commercial-free play-by-play and color commentary during select games. Follow us @FoulPlaybyPlay.
     
    The Twins need relievers
     
    Tyler Duffey and Taylor Rogers have worked out nicely in high-leverage situations, and the Twins have struck gold with closer Brandon Kintzler. But Kintzler’s a free agent at the end of the season, and is likely trade bait. Glen Perkins has a team option for 2018 that won’t be picked up, and while the Twins expect to get Trevor May back next year, they have no idea what to expect from him after Tommy John surgery (his recovery from which he’s documenting at MLBTradeRumors.com).
     
    Hand has the stuff to close, and the Twins could trade Kintzler and transition to Hand without damaging their chances to contend this season. Depending on who they give up, they could actually improve their chances. Plus, Perkins won’t have to pitch in high-leverage situations upon his return.
     
    Hand’s controllable
    Hand won’t be a free agent until 2020, and while he’ll make more in arbitration next year than the $1.375 million he’s making this year, he’s still a steal given his .984 WHIP this season.
     
    Hand’s really good
    Hand not only limits runners on the bases, but he misses a lot of bats. His K/9 (10.8) is down slightly from last year (11.2), but his K:BB ratio is better this year (4.25) than last (3.08).
     
    Hand’s affordable
    Glen Perkins will make $6.5 million this year. Hand will be lucky to make half that next season. The Twins' budget of $108 million is one of the highest in Minnesota's history, too.
     
    Hand won’t cost the Twins a ton of prospects, either. While he’s one of the top relievers on the trading block, he’s not a closer and won’t command a return like Aroldis Chapman or Andrew Miller did. The trade market is also deep with relievers, so the Twins could probably part with a pair of prospects that are a few years away from contributing at the major league level.
     
    Hand’s local
    Hand attended Chaska High School in Chaska, Minnesota. While the local talent angle was taken by Levine’s predecessor, Terry Ryan (Joe Mauer, Glen Perkins, Caleb Thielbar, Cole DeVries, Pat Neshek, Michael Restovich, Terry Steinbach and Paul Molitor all graduated from Minnesota high schools), Andy MacPhail seemed to make it work (Kent Hrbeck, Jack Morris and Dave Winfield). Plus, fans love cheering for locals.
     
    The Twins have what the Padres need
    We all know the Padres have a giant hole at shortstop, but the Twins shouldn’t move Nick Gordon to get Hand. They don’t have to, either, as the Padres are fielding two outfielders 22 or under -- Manuel Margot and Allen Cordoba. I don’t know if that means the Padres would be interested in Eddie Rosario or Eduardo Escobar, but if they are, that might be a deal the Twins could make with Zach Granite knocking down the door to the majors with his bat.
     
    The Padres need help at the lower levels of the minors, too. Shortstop Javier Guerra (22) has struggled at high-A this season and last, as has outfielder Taylor Kohlwey (22) this year. And Peter Van Gansen (23) might not make it out of high-A, so there are some holes in San Diego’s lower affiliates that could be filled by Twins talent like Jermaine Palacios or Max Murphy. My guess is the Padres feel they’re probably three or more years away from contending, so a couple of 20-year-old prospects with high upside might be a perfect fit.
     
    Twins fans might not like the idea of letting go of a young player with promise, but that’s what you have to give up to get someone who’s good right now and will be good for quite some time.
  10. GoGonzoJournal
    The Minnesota Twins started a catcher in left field on Saturday in Cleveland and walked out of the ballpark with a win and a chance to sweep the Indians. That catcher, Chris Gimenez, would later move to first base defensively and hit a mammoth home run in the ninth inning to pad the Twins' one-run lead by one more.
     
    This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com, a community for foul-mouthed, sports broadcasters providing commercial-free, uncensored play-by-play and color commentary during select games. To join our webinar for Monday's game, visit here and fill out the registration form at the bottom of the page.
     
    On Saturday, Twins’ manager Paul Molitor had to scratch right fielder Max Kepler after fouling a ball off his right foot on Friday, and left fielder Eddie Rosario due to illness. And since Eduardo Escobar had to play third base for Miguel Sano (illness) for a second straight day, he couldn’t play left field for Rosario. Enter Gimenez, the Twins’ backup catcher, mop-up reliever and, now, fifth outfielder.
     
    Despite liabilities in both corners of the outfield, Gibson walking four over four and two-thirds innings, and Kennys Vargas repeatedly getting in Brian Dozier’s way defensively, the Twins found a way -- like they have all season. Matt Belisle almost blew it for the Twins but battled after falling off the first base bag and missing a double-play throw that allowed the tying run to score. Dozier didn’t miss a big mistake on a fastball up and in and broke the 2-2 tie in the eighth inning, and Rosario came on to play left, moving Gimenez to first so the Twins wouldn’t lose their backup catcher for the rest of the game.
     
    Brandon Kintzler, a closer averaging six strikeouts per nine innings, gave up a two-out double to Francisco Lindor before locking up the save. He’s tied for the league lead in saves at 20. The Twins bullpen, the worst in baseball, picked up Kyle Gibson, who failed to complete six innings for the tenth time in 13 starts. He also failed to complete five innings for the fourth time in his last 13 starts. Taylor Rogers and Tyler Duffey carried the bulk of the load again, and the Twins got their most unlikely and impressive win of the season to pull within a half game of Cleveland in the American League Central Division.
     
    Then the Twins went to work on Sunday, taking an early 2-0 lead thanks to a two-run double by catcher Jason Castro. And with Ervin Santana finding his command and pounding the strike zone, the Twins completed the sweep of Cleveland and moved into first place in the AL Central with two weeks until the All-Star Break. It was the vintage Santana the Twins will need to remain competitive this season. He was getting swings and misses on sliders buried in the dirt and painting the corners with 95-mile-per-hour heat while walking no one and striking out seven over six shutout innings.
     
    Twins fans keep awaiting the regression, and you feel it’s got to show itself over this stretch where the Twins face quality starter after quality starter everyday for over a week, all on the road. Luckily, the Twins can’t seem to lose on the road, winning over 70 percent of their road games. That’s better than everyone but the MLB-best Houston Astros.
     
    The Twins play 21 games in 20 days entering the All-Star Break, with four of those games coming against the surging Kansas City Royals. They have 15 of those games to go, so if the Twins can hang around the .500 mark entering the All-Star Break, they’d not only be in contention, but potential buyers at the Trade Deadline.
     
    Instead of searching for pitching prospects for the near future, Falvey might be forced to consider pitching rentals for this season. Maybe free-agent-to-be Jake Arrieta could be had for Eduardo Escobar now that Kyle Schwarber’s been demoted. San Diego’s Clayton Richard is also a free agent after the season, and with the Padres’ glaring needs in left field and at shortstop, Falvey could target Brad Hand as a relief pitcher to include with Richard. Hand won’t be easy to acquire, though, given his stellar K:BB ratio (4.25) and the fact he won’t be a free agent until 2020. I’d say only Nick Gordon and maybe Zach Granite are off the table if your Falvey, but it might take one of them to get Hand if Escobar, Polanco, Grossman or Rosario aren’t desired.
     
    The Twins just got bullpen reinforcements in Dillon Gee and sidearmer Trevor Hildenberger, so they’ll get a sense of whether baseball’s worst bullpen is trending up entering the All-Star Break. Phil Hughes could even join the bullpen sometime soon, and while we don’t know what to expect of Hughes, just having another guy out there who can throw more than one inning would be a blessing for a starting rotation that rarely pitches six innings. Hughes has tossed two scoreless innings with AAA Rochester, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out one. Glen Perkins is still a long way from contributing to the Twins, but would be a welcomed addition come mid-July or early August.
     
    One thing is clear -- the Twins’ rebuild is way ahead of schedule.
     
    F@*k Dick and Bert will be trying something a little different on Monday, as Jose Berrios takes on Chris Sale and the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park starting at 6 p.m. CST. We’re doing a webinar so you can get involved with the show. You can register for the webinar by following the link above and filling out the registration form. Then use the login form below it to join us for a drink, and we'll talk Twins baseball and real life.
  11. GoGonzoJournal
    Fans will get to see if the Minnesota Twins truly can hang over their next nine games. Starting Thursday, the Twins will see starting pitchers Jose Quintana (8.7 K/9, 2.47 K/B), Trevor Bauer (7 IP, 2 ER, 2 BB, 8 K in last start against Twins), Corey Kluber (11 K/9, 4.71 K/BB), Josh Tomlin (9.33 K/BB), Chris Sale (12.2 K/9), Drew Pomeranz (10.4 K/9), Rick Porcello (4.72 K/BB), David Price (BOS 3-1 in his four June starts) and Jason Vargas (200 ERA+). All those games are on the road.
     
    This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com, a community of foul-mouthed, sports broadcasters providing commercial-free, uncensored play-by-play during select games.
     
    The premiere games will be when Jose Berrios takes on Chris Sale in Boston on Monday, and when veterans Ervin Santana and Jason Vargas do battle in Kansas City next Friday. The Twins have to be underdogs in just about all nine of those games, though.
     
    The Twins better hope they get some pitching reinforcements. Right now the Twins are running Nik Turley out there, but they just signed Dillon Gee, so expect him to get a start over that nine-game stretch.
     
    Hector Santiago is getting a rehab start on Wednesday for the Rochester Red Wings, and if all goes well, he could pitch as early as Tuesday against Pomeranz. That could end up being a big game for the Twins and Santiago, who has fallen and can’t get up.
     
    The bullpen could also use reinforcements, and Alan Busenitz doesn’t seem to be the answer. Phil Hughes could also pitch out of the bullpen for Rochester on Wednesday. Expect Hughes to take longer to get back to MLB ready, but he’d be a welcomed addition to the worst bullpen in baseball. If Hughes can even get through a lineup once, he would leave fewer innings for guys like Matt Belisle (5.1 BB/9) and Craig Breslow (5 SO/9). Hughes will likely be forced back up during that brutal nine-game stretch for the Twins whether he’s pitching well at AAA or not.
     
    This is the stretch of games that will turn contenders into sellers. Consider if the Twins go 2-7 over that nine-game stretch. They’d be two games under .500 at best, and with Cleveland’s offense finally taking off (and three more games coming against them) the Twins could be looking up from farther down in the AL Central than the 1.5 games they are entering Wednesday.
     
    The Twins will have 10 more games after the nine-game stretch against playoff-caliber starting pitching to avoid becoming sellers at the deadline. Regardless, you can bet new chief of baseball operations Derek Falvey will be active over his first Trade Deadline. It won’t take much for him to be as active as Terry Ryan ever was.
     
    So who do the Twins move? Santana’s value has plummeted lately, and given the Twins don’t have enough MLB-caliber pitchers to start every fifth day, it’s a safe bet anyone capable of eating innings will be sticking around.
     
    Brian Dozier’s value has dried up a bit, too, which isn’t all bad. He’s still signed through 2018, and at a very reasonable rate next season ($6 million). This offseason or the deadline next season would be a good time to shop him, depending how Nick Gordon performs if he gets a cup of coffee when rosters expand this season. Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press said it’s a possibility. Gordon would likely push Jorge Polanco to second base.
    The most valuable players on the team aren’t going anywhere. Zach Granite can bang on the door all he wants, but Byron Buxton is going nowhere. Neither is Max Kepler, and I doubt Eddie Rosario would be moved given he’s not even arbitration eligible until 2019.
     
    Robbie Grossman is one of the most valuable trade chips the Twins have, and I expect him to be shopped. He’s not an everyday outfielder, but man, can he hit. I think Falvey really likes Grossman. But what’s not to like? His OPS+ is 112, and he’s absolutely wrecking right-handed pitching (6 HR, .435 SLG, .801 OPS). He’s not bad against lefties either (.441 OBP, .741 OPS). He still has the highest on-base percentage amongst designated hitters at .389 and should be an All-star. He has a higher OPS than Hanley Ramirez, Victor Martinez, Mark Trumbo, Albert Pujols and Carlos Beltran. Grossman will be arbitration eligible next year and would be a fantastic addition as a designated hitter for a playoff team, but I can’t expect any of the teams of the players mentioned to make a move for the position.
     
    That leaves Eduardo Escobar, who is on fire to say the least. He has hits in seven straight games and is 22-for-45 in June. His .838 OPS is fourth amongst shortstops, and his OPS+ is a team- and career-high 121. While he’s a below-average defensive shortstop, there are plenty of playoff-bound teams who would love to have a utility bat with a 1.066 OPS against lefties. And the Twins don’t need to be “out of it” in the Central to move Escobar. He’s arbitration eligible for the final time next year and will make considerably more than the $2.6 million he’s being paid this season. He’ll also be a free agent after next season.
     
    Escobar can play just about everywhere, which makes me think the Chicago Cubs would be a perfect fit. Escobar could give Addison Russell a breather against lefties (Russell is hitting .219/.349/.346 against them this season), and play the outfield for Kyle Schwarber against lefties (Schwarber has a .567 OPS against lefties this year).
     
    What should the Twins ask in return? Well, lefty starter Jen-Ho Tseng with the Tennessee Smokies (AA) is intriguing. He’s just 22, and his K:BB ratio is 3.1 and he’s striking out 7.7 per nine innings. Future relievers could include righty Pedro Araujo, 23, who has a K:BB ratio of 7.0 through 31.2 innings with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans of Advanced-A ball. His teammate and fellow righty Craig Brooks, 24, is actually striking out more batters than Araujo (13.3 K/9 over 20.1 IP).
     
    If Falvey and the Twins want to take advantage of Escobar’s hot bat, now’s the time, especially with Gordon knocking on the door in AA. While Jorge Polanco has struggled in June, he is in the Twins' long-term plans. Nick Gordon is also in the Twins' long-term plans, and Escobar is not. That's why it won't matter where the Twins are in the standings come the Trade Deadline. Players will be shed to give playing time to youngsters. Escobar is the most obvious trade chip.
  12. GoGonzoJournal
    The Minnesota Twins are running out of options when it comes to pitching, but the consummate professional Ervin Santana is back on the mound to right the ship once again. It's even dollar dog night on Wednesday against the Seattle Mariners at 7 p.m. CST, and F@*k Dick and Bert will be at Target Field and better than ever. We've got new gear that will allow us to be more mobile with the broadcast and include more fans.
    Ervin was his usual, fantastic self in his last start, tossing a complete game shutout against the worst offense in baseball. I wrote a blog about why his complete games are so important, which basically boils down to "the Twins bullpen is really bad." Things have actually gotten worse since I wrote it, with the Twins' bullpen ERA ballooning from 5.20 to 5.55. Twins relievers allow the highest batting average in baseball by almost 20 points (as of this writing).
    The Twins are basically down to three pitchers who belong in the bigs: Santana, Jose Berrios and Brandon Kintzler. Yet they've found a way to score enough runs to remain in first place. It seems once or twice a week the Twins will lose by eight or more runs, but if you win more than you lose, you're going to be in the hunt, despite a -39 run differential (as of this writing).
    Ervin will face the Mariners' best pitcher of late in rookie Sam Gaviglio. The righty has been huge for Seattle in five starts, pitching to a 2.67 ERA. None of the Twins have seen him at this level.
    The Mariners sure like hitting off Ervin, though. Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz are hitting .300 and .429 in 10 and seven at-bats, respectively. Kyle Seager is hitting .231 off Ervin in 13 ABs.
    The weather should be warm and sunny, which bodes well for Santana, who seems to have his best control in the heat. We'll talk about robo-money managers, give you another cocktail recipe perfect for summer, tell you how to turn a dollar hot dog into a deluxe dog at the ballpark, and give you some tips on how to feed yourself and family if you lose SNAP or WIC benefits. We'll also review the Twins first few picks of the draft, with more in-depth analysis coming in Thursday's broadcast. Wednesday's broadcast kicks off at 7 p.m. CST from Target Field. Click here to join us live.
  13. GoGonzoJournal
    Ervin Santana tossed his third complete game shutout of the season Friday night. That's one more than the rest of the league combined despite it coming against a San Francisco Giants team with the lowest team OPS in baseball (.651). But the "Maddux" Santana pitched Friday night in San Francisco is so important given the recent stress on the Twins bullpen and the struggles it has experienced all year.
     
    This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com, a community for foul-mouthed, sports broadcasters providing uncensored, commercial-free play-by-play. Follow us at @FoulPlaybyPlay.
     
    The Twins bullpen allows the highest opponent batting average in baseball (.273), which has resulted in baseball's worst bullpen ERA of 5.20. So when Santana doesn't pitch a complete game shutout, there's a pretty good chance the bullpen will allow a little more than one run every two innings (1.155 to be more precise).
     
    If you take the average start of all Twins starters besides Santana, you get a dismal 4.68 innings pitched per start. Santana has nearly raised that by an inning by himself (5.5). So if we can depend on a Twins starter to go four and two-thirds innings instead of Santana's three complete game shutouts, 16 more innings would have been pitched by Major League Baseball's worst bullpen. That would take the Twins from 12th in fewest bullpen innings pitched (197.2) to 20th, which would likely inflate the bullpen ERA, too.
     
    Given that run every two innings the Twins bullpen allows, you're looking at nine more runs allowed. That's the difference between first place and not first place for a team with a -39 run differential (fourth worst in the American League).
     
    It's not only what Santana has been able to do in his three complete game shutouts that's been important to the Twins. Even in games he's not right he's given a break to the bullpen. Despite allowing five runs to Colorado on May 18, Santana went seven innings. He went six innings against Boston despite allowing six runs. In fact, only one of Santana's starts has not been longer than the rest of the team's average start length of 4.68 innings (last week in Anaheim). Santana is tied with Clayton Kershaw with most innings pitched so far this season (90).
     
    With Santana throwing just over 90 pitches in his third complete game shutout, he actually saved the Twins an inning for later, which is another half run the bullpen can't allow. So regardless of who Santana is facing, his ability to pound the strike zone and get out of innings with low pitch counts will continue to pay off for the Twins because of their bad bullpen.
  14. GoGonzoJournal
    For a lot of people (just under 95 percent according to an MLB Trade Rumors poll), the Minnesota Twins' selection of California shortstop Royce Lewis with the first pick in the 2017 MLB Draft was a surprise. It shouldn't have been. Most knew there was no consensus number one pick in this draft. There were five potential number ones. The Twins took one of the five.
     
    This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com, a community for foul-mouthed, sports broadcasters providing uncensored, commercial-free play-by-play. Follow us at @FoulPlaybyPlay.
     
    Lewis can play anywhere and received the highest possible grade for his speed. Unsurprisingly, the Twins might have found another impact center fielder. Lewis already has a swing that stays in the zone a long time and allows him to barrel up a lot of balls. He struck out just seven times in 116 plate appearances this season. The mental makeup is everything you want in a player -- natural, born leader. He is still years away from the majors, so Byron Buxton fans need not worry.
     
    Many Twins fans bemoaned the pick, hoping for high school shortstop/pitcher Hunter Greene or college first baseman/pitcher Brendan McKay. Those fans shouldn't be disappointed.
    The Twins likely saved nearly $1 million by taking Lewis number one overall, which allowed new chief of baseball operations Derek Falvey to allocate more money to later picks. Since the Twins also selected at 35 and 37 overall, Falvey could use that money to sign more expensive or harder-to-sign draft picks that fell out of the first round.
     
    Falvey was rewarded with the best college hitter of the year. Mississippi State outfielder Brent Rooker (great baseball name) had a 1.371 OPS in 2017. He's set to become only the second player ever (Rafael Palmeiro) to win the SEC Triple Crown, batting .387/.495/.810. Some were surprised Rooker got past Oakland with the sixth pick.
    Then, Falvey scored Canadian high school right-handed pitcher Landon Leach. Leach is committed to Texas but could be persuaded to sign with Minnesota given the money the Twins have to offer. The approximate pick value is $1.8 million.
     
    You could say the Twins should have gone with pitching at number one overall, but that would have severely limited Falvey when offering Rooker and Leach contracts. And there's a lot of draft to go.
     
    The Twins next picks are 76 and 106. They will pick first in each of the next 36 rounds of the 2017 MLB Draft. I fully expect Falvey to target high school pitching he can develop, since that's sort of his thing. But I wouldn't be surprised if he takes Oregon State starter Jake Thompson if he's there at 76.
     
    Other pitchers ranked around that 76th pick for the Twins are right-handed pitcher Kyle Hurt (another great baseball name), and lefty Daniel Tillo, who the Twins drafted in 2015. Jackson Rutledge is interesting at 106. He's six-foot-eight and throws 94 mph with an expectation for more.
     
    While I can understand Twins fans' frustrations given the downfall of their pitching staff, there's no solution to that problem in the draft. Even Brendan McKay would likely be a year away from the majors, and perhaps more if given the time to adjust at the plate as well as on the mound. Hunter Greene has even more development time ahead of him. Evaluating a draft that can't be evaluated for at least three years is completely pointless. Reacting as if the Twins organization was "cheap" is incorrect. The Twins were "frugal," and it's already paying off.
  15. GoGonzoJournal
    This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com, @FoulPlaybyPlay on Twitter.
     
    Last week I urged the Minnesota Twins front office to acquire pitching — any pitching — and not to wait too long in doing so. Well, here are five pitchers the Twins could target if they want to remain competitive this season, but most of them will cost something you might not like to lose. Pat Neshek
    Neshek is familiar to Twins fans, and his side-armed delivery should play well out of a Twins bullpen that can’t miss bats. He misses plenty (8.4 K/p) despite going on 37. He’s a free agent at year’s end and playing on a bad team in rebuilding mode. I can’t imagine Philadelphia would have interest in bringing back Neshek, so the Twins should bring him home. It’s only money after all (over $6 million per year, so $4 million as of this writing). But with the year Neshek’s having (.797 WHIP), the Phillies could ask for a lot. So what do they need? Well, starting pitching, which the Twins can’t afford to lose.
     
    The Phillies seem set on letting 22-year-old, third baseman Maikel Franco work through his struggles (68 OPS+). But the Phillies also have a 30-year-old, light-hitting, bad defensive right fielder who will be a free agent at the end of the year. Michael Saunders (73 OPS+) is not the future. Of Philly’s minor league outfielders, center fielder Cameron Perkins (26) is closest, and he’s more likely to take light-hitting, center fielder Odubel Herrera’s place (82 OPS+). Nick Williams fits the bill as a power-hitting right fielder (11 HRs and 10 2Bs for a .515 slugging percentage). He’s even got okay range and has logged quite a few innings in right field.
    Anyways, it’s going to be hard to find something to pluck from Rochester unless you’re talking about Daniel Palka, and I doubt that’d be enough. So now we’re looking at something more complicated than a one-for-one deal, which isn’t really a problem. David Phelps
    Phelps is another one who will cost the Twins plenty because Miami won’t want to give up his final arbitration year for anything less than young, starting pitching. I got nothing. Drew Storen
    Storen is quietly having a pretty good year (196 ERA+) but a regression is on the horizon given the massive difference between his ERA (2.25) and FIP (3.80). He can still miss bats, though (7.5 K/9). But the Reds need the same thing as everyone else: starting pitching. Brad Hand
    San Diego is a most interesting trade partner because they have glaring need at shortstop, and the Twins have a really good, young one in Nick Gordon. He’s untouchable, however. Sam Dyson
    It sure seems like the Twins are the perfect landing spot for Texas Ranger relief pitcher Sam Dyson. The Twins are in the mix and the Rangers are nearing a deal, according to Darren Wolfson. GM Thad Levine came over from Texas, and Dyson could probably use a change of scenery (10.80 ERA, 9.05 FIP). He’s given up more homers this season (6) than last (5) for a HR/9 of 3.2, but maybe the depths of Target Field, where nothing but rain drops, will help Dyson get back on track.
     
    It’s pretty sad that the best the Twins front office might be able to do to fix a broken bullpen and bending rotation is picking up a guy allowing 16.7 hits per nine innings, but trading for any kind of pitching is expensive. I can’t imagine any team with a competent reliever giving him up for anything else than high-upside, starting pitchers (think Kevin Jepsen for Chih-Wei Hu).
     
    Hey, the Twins should get Glen Perkins back in mid-June, though, which will be nice now that Brandon Kintzler is becoming Brandon Kintzler. And Joe Nathan is available. He only allowed 10.7 hits per nine innings in AAA before being released by the Nationals. He was striking out 8.4 batters per nine, though. I guess I’m saying the options suck, and the Twins are stuck. Hey, at least they claimed Chris Heston, right (12.66 FIP, 23 ERA+, 5.4 HR/9, 25.2 H/9, 5.4 K/9 this year and last)?
  16. GoGonzoJournal
    After seeing the Minnesota Twins hold off USA Baseball 3-2 on Wednesday, a dangerous thought for any Minnesota sports fan crept into my head: these guys might not suck.
    The Twins are projected to improve more than any other team, but given last season, that’s not saying much. Many of the 14 more games the Twins are expected to win are due to an expected improvement in defensive runs saved. The addition of Jason Castro has a lot to do with it. He came through in an RBI situation in the second inning and coaxed two scoreless innings out of Trevor May after he surrendered three consecutive hits and two runs to open the game.
     
    May, nor any Twins pitcher, saw a Spring Training lineup, either. Craig Breslow managed to strand the tying and go-ahead runs at second and third in the ninth by striking out Christian Yelich, and getting Daniel Murphy and Alex Bregman to groundout. Those are no slouches.
    Byron Buxton made another run-saving catch, Max Kepler roped another double, and it was off Andrew Miller! The Twins’ biggest offseason addition had the game’s biggest hit. Granted, it came off Twins pitcher Drew Rucinski, who was one of many players on loan to USA Baseball prior to the World Baseball Classic.
    In fact, the only Twin who looked out of place was Danny Santana, who had a throwing error at shortstop (while Nick Gordon played second base?), and misplayed a foul popup that he really should have yielded to the left fielder. He also struck out in his only at-bat, but he is dealing with the death of his mother.
    Twins relievers were perfect. Matt Belisle got Jonathan Lucroy to ground into a big double play in the sixth. He then snuck some heat by Giancarlo Stanton of all people. Ryan Pressly struck out Daniel Murphy! I know what you’re thinking: it’s Spring Training. These hitters don’t have their timing. But there was a moment I felt a joy that most fans would find depressing.
    The moment I felt these guys might not suck was when Nick Gordon doubled to lead off the bottom of the sixth inning, and the Twins didn’t strand him. I know that’s a low bar, but Twins fans have low bars. Brian Dozier provided great commentary on the situation, praising Miguel Sano’s productive at-bat, moving Gordon to third on a long, fly ball to right. J. B. Shuck walked to continue the productive at-bats, and then ByungHo Park wasted no time scoring Gordon from third, lifting the first pitch he saw (a ball up in the zone) to right field for a sacrifice fly and game-winning RBI. “Good teams find a way to manufacture runs in those situations,” Dozier said.
    While I’m not ready to call this team good, I’m confident they’ll be competitive and could even be buyers at the trade deadline. Sano, Buxton, Kepler, and Park are all going to be better this season. The starting rotation will be better, albeit still probably one of the worst in the league, and the bullpen is going to be better than it lets on. Having Brandon Kintzler and Glen Perkins at the back end of your bullpen isn’t terrible, and Breslow and Belisle impressed on Wednesday. So instead of shopping Dozier at the deadline, the Twins could be in a position to add a pitcher…or maybe they’ll do both.
  17. GoGonzoJournal
    The Minnesota Twins can win the World Series next year. They have the lineup, mostly. They just need a bat and more production from the catcher position. The pitching is on the way in the form of Jose Berrios, Tyler Duffey, and Trevor May, and they have the defense. They need a left-handed reliever, a bat, and more production from the catcher position, and hope that Byron Buxton becomes the player we all expect him to be.
     
    This blog was originally published at Go Gonzo Journal.
     
    Offseason Moves
     
    Trade Trevor Plouffe to the Angels for José Alvarez and a player to be named
     
    The Twins must make room for Miguel Sano, and the Angels did not extend a qualifying offer to David Freese because they are looking to avoid the luxury tax, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register noted. Freese will likely demand a multi-year deal at a higher rate than Plouffe’s arbitration figures for the next three years. They are both worth about 2-2.5 wins above replacement. The Twins should oblige the Angels and get their much-needed left-handed reliever.
     
    Alvarez pitched 67 innings last year, struck out 59 and walked 23 for an ERA of 3.49 and a WHIP of 1.209. Lefties hit just .219 off him last year.
     
    Trade Ricky Nolasco, Phil Hughes, Jorge Polanco and a player to be named to the Padres for James Shields, Joaquin Benoit, and Austin Hedges
     
    The Padres need a shortstop of the future, and although a move to second base is predicted for Polanco, he’s already better than the entire Padres’ depth chart at shortstop. Clint Barmes will be 37 next year, and his option has been declined, but Alexi Amarista is not the answer either.
     
    The Padres will also have plenty of openings in the starting rotation, with Cory Luebke’s option being declined, and Ian Kennedy and Brandon Morrow becoming free agents. Petco Park is a pitcher’s dream, although the Padres don’t exactly have outfielders who can go get it.
     
    The money is nearly even between the two teams in this deal, so it should work from that respect. San Diego doesn’t need Hedges with Derek Norris in his first year of arbitration eligibility and just a year removed from an All-Star Game appearance. So the Padres end up with an MLB-ready shortstop under team control until 2018 and a couple of starting pitchers who can take advantage of the abyss that is Petco Park, and the Twins get a big arm out of the bullpen, a starter to take advantage of the Twins’ “go get it” outfield, and their catcher of the future to stash at Rochester for a year while he learns how to hit.
     
    Sign Justin Morneau to a one-year, $5 million deal
     
    Morneau isn’t worth much at this point given his injury history, but a reunion would be super cool, and he can still hit. I’d hesitate to put him in the field. He could trip and end his career, so a full-time DH role is likely best, as is a one-year deal. He could be the addition that takes us over the top, or the addition that allows Kennys Vargas to finally earn the full-time DH spot.
     
    Sign AJ Pierzynski to a one-year, $2 million deal
     
    This is a no-brainer. Kurt Suzuki’s OPS dropped 114 points from last year’s All-Star season. He hit lefties pretty well with an OPS of .658, but struggled mightily against righties (.587). He’s also a terrible defensive catcher, and AJ doesn’t fix that, but a righty/lefty platoon could keep both catchers fresh. AJ crushed righties, recording a .799 OPS in 2015.
     
    Starting Rotation
    James Shields
    Ervin Santana
    Kyle Gibson
    Trevor May
    Tyler Duffey

    Bullpen
    Glen Perkins, CL
    Joaquin Benoit, SU
    Kevin Jepsen, MR
    Casey Fien, MR
    José Alvarez, MR
    Caleb Thielbar, MR
    Tommy Milone, LR

    Lineups
     
    MIN vs. LHP (AL)
    Aaron Hicks, RF (.272/.360/.447)
    Brian Dozier, 2B (.267/.340/.487)
    Joe Mauer, 1B (.292/.362/.384)
    Miguel Sano, 3B (.284/.363/.519)
    Justin Morneau, DH (.253/.298/.410)
    Eddie Rosario, LF (.289/.311/.500)
    Byron Buxton, CF (Who cares?! He needs to play everyday!)
    Eduardo Escobar, SS (.277/.297/.492)
    Kurt Suzuki, C (.248/.311/.356)

    MIN vs. RHP (AL)
    Brian Dozier, 2B (.207/.301/.445)
    Joe Mauer, 1B (.264/.344/.374)
    Justin Morneau, DH (.297/.374/.520)
    Miguel Sano, 3B (.263/.393/.535)
    AJ Pierzynksi, C (.309/.342/.457)
    Eddie Rosario, RF (.260/.281/.445)
    Eduardo Nuñez, LF (85 runs saved above avg. in LF; .809 OPS vs. RHP in 2015)
    Eduardo Escobar, SS (.254/.314/.423)
    Byron Buxton, CF (.256/.297/.407)

    The addition of Shields makes things interesting. Berrios gives the Twins a really good chance in a Wild Card Playoff Game, and Shields isn’t a bad way to start an ALDS, with Santana pitching Game 2, and Gibson going in Game 3. Berrios will be ready for Game 4, and Shields will go again in Game 5. Sounds almost like a Playoff rotation.
  18. GoGonzoJournal
    After the bullpen blew two leads in New York in as many days on the way to being swept by the Yankees, the Minnesota Twins’ playoff chances have taken a massive hit. Now with closer Glen Perkins leaving the team to have an MRI on his neck, it looks as though Terry Ryan sitting on his hands at the MLB Trade Deadline and using kid gloves with Byron Buxton, who is raking in Rochester and was Pioneer League Player of the Week, will be the difference between the Twins playing in October and fishing instead.
     
    This blog was originally published at GoGonzoJournal.com.
     
    If Terry Ryan thought this team would be competitive down the stretch with the addition of Kevin “Call Me Maybe” Jepsen, he doesn't deserve his job. I know he expected this to be a rebuilding year and couldn't believe he'd be battling for a playoff spot, but when you're in a playoff race, you try to win the race. You don't just stand pat and hope for the best. He also has a manager in Paul Molitor who has no idea what he’s doing when his starter gets fatigued, evidenced by his decision to bring in JR Graham to pitch to A-Rod with the bases loaded and none out on Monday night.
     
    Well, my F@*k Dick and Bert co-host has a solution for Paul Molitor and the Twins – a 10-man starting rotation.
     
    Before you throw your arms up in disgust, let me explain. By 10-man rotation, I don't mean 10 starters. I mean 10 starters swapping starts every five days. With a 10-man rotation, the Twins could pair starters based on ability while providing valuable experience to youngsters.
     
    Twins’ starters have been averaging just six innings pitched per start, and that number will fall as the season continues. The Twins also have a surplus of good starters in Rochester, and now with Perkins’ health in question, it would be best to have some arms in the bullpen that aren’t JR Graham, Brian Duensing, and Ryan O'Rourke. The 10-man rotation doesn’t require a closer, but Jepsen and Fien (and Perkins?) would be available in case of an emergency. This also makes Molitor’s job easier, as he can either call in the designated reliever paired with the starter, or call on Jepsen or Fien (or Perkins?) based on match-ups. It will also keep the relievers’ innings down.
     
    Righty Trevor May has been the most effective starting pitcher for the Twins this year, with a FIP of 3.26, which just goes to show how clueless Paul Molitor has been in his rookie season as manager. Aaron Gleeman has been saying May didn’t deserve a demotion to the bullpen for quite some time on the Gleeman and the Geek podcast – probably since his implosion in Milwaukee I was unfortunate enough to witness. But a lot of May’s success is due to the fact he’s been moved to a relief role and has experienced an uptick in velocity. He’s the pitcher I'd pair with my most inconsistent starter, Ervin Santana. You could swap spot starts or keep May as strictly a reliever, but each will be stretched out to 70 pitches or so. This way May can step into the starting rotation if the Twins make the playoffs and Santana’s postseason suspension goes into effect.
     
    Since Pelfrey (ERA+ of 113) and Milone (ERA+ of 112) have been the most consistent starters, they would be paired with a couple of deserving call-ups — the righty Pelfrey with lefty Pat Dean (nearly a 3:1 K/BB ratio, 1.18 WHIP, 2.92 ERA in 157 AAA IP) and the lefty Milone with righty Michael Bowden (nearly a 3:1 K/BB ratio, 1.13 WHIP, and 2.57 ERA in 98 AAA IP). Then, if you fall out of the race, or just want to take advantage of a team who struggles against lefties or righties, you work Bowden and Dean into the starting rotation that day, with Pelfrey and Milone available in relief. It also provides a structure for unique mentorship.
     
    Gibson, who Molitor would call the most consistent starter, has actually been worse than his 3.99 ERA (FIP of 4.20). A good pairing for him would be Tyler Duffey (nearly a 4:1 K/BB ratio, 1.07 WHIP, and 2.53 ERA in 85.1 AAA IP), who’s seen a couple of Major League starts and can also be worked into the starting rotation.
     
    Then there’s the injured Phil Hughes, who has discovered how to give up home runs again. Jose Berrios should be pitching in his spot, and when Hughes returns, the Twins can move him to a relief role on days Hughes pitches. You'd swap spot starts between the two in order to protect Hughes and give Berrios experience in both starting and relief roles. Berrios is the best pitcher in the Twins organization, period. He deserves to be called up and should have been weeks ago when Milone went on the disabled list.
     
    So here’s your 10-man rotation and three-man bullpen:
     
    1-2) Phil Hughes, Jose Berrios
    3-4) Tommy Milone, Michael Bowden
    5-6) Mike Pelfrey, Pat Dean
    7-8) Kyle Gibson, Tyler Duffey
    9-10) Ervin Santana, Trevor May
    11) Kevin Jepsen
    12) Casey Fien
    13) Glen Perkins
     
    The only problem with this is if you have a starting pitcher in a groove and you don't want to mess up a good thing. Granted, that doesn't happen too often for the Twins, but when it does, it leaves your other paired pitcher with 10 days between starts, which would require more bullpen sessions in lieu of actual time on the field. So let them throw in the bullpen starting in the fifth inning regardless of the score. Get them good and warm, and if they don’t get into the game, let them throw 70 pitches or so to get stretched out. Eddie Guardado should be able to handle that.
  19. GoGonzoJournal
    Mike Pelfrey has a lot of making up to do in order to earn the $18.66 million the Minnesota Twins have paid him these last three years, but he's finally starting to pay off. Pelfrey made roughly $150,000 per inning the last two seasons, but this season he's All-Star trade bait.
     
    This blog was originally published at Go Gonzo Journal.
     
    Pelfrey has made a solid case to make the American League All-Star pitching rotation. He's 5-2 with a 2.28 ERA, 1.224 WHIP, 178 ERA+, and 2.6 WAR. He's fourth in the American League in ERA and fourth in WAR. He hasn't been worth more than one win above the replacement player since 2010, when he went 15-9, tossed 204 innings with an ERA of 3.66 and ERA+ of 107. He's putting up better numbers than when he was 26!
     
    The most valuable thing about Pelfrey is that he's cheap – maybe if you're not a Twins fan and are familiar with his past two seasons – but teams like the Houston Astros, Seattle Mariners, San Diego Padres, New York Yankees, and maybe even the Mets and Cubs, will happily offer a quality prospect and pay Pelfrey $3.5 million to take them to the Playoffs and go away at the end of the year. I'd love to get some bullpen arms – close to MLB-ready pitchers who throw gas.
     
    This is why I hope the Twins are sellers at the MLB Trade Deadline. We have starting pitching depth for the first time in a while, and Pelfrey should be made available. He won't be back, so why not get something for the guy who has cost the franchise a pretty penny recovering from injury the past two years. But if the Twins are in it, and Pelfrey continues to look like an All-Star, I don't see Terry Ryan dropping the dead weight that has been Mike Pelfrey – especially if he's still our best pitcher after Ervin Santana returns from his suspension.
     
    ----
     
    @GoGonzoJournal is a free, literary journal featuring the rants of sports fans, educational essays, book and movie reviews, and news coverage written in the Gonzo style of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson. They also host @****DickandBert – a live, explicit Minnesota sports podcast on Mixlr and iTunes.
  20. GoGonzoJournal
    Terry Ryan and the Minnesota Twins extended Phil Hughes through 2019, effectively making his contract a five-year, $58 million deal. He will earn $9.2 million in 2015 and 2016 before earning $13.2MM annually from 2017 to 2019. Considering his 2014 numbers, the $11.6 million per year average salary is more than reasonable.
     
    This blog was originally published at Go Gonzo Journal.
     
    If you consider the Twins’ recent signing of Ervin Santana, the extension looks even better. Ryan cut a check to Santana for four years and $55 million – a reasonable price to pay for a proven middle-of-the-rotation starter. But that’s roughly $2 million more per year for a guy whose numbers weren't in Hughes’ ballpark. Santana’s FIP (3.39), xFIP (3.47), and SIERA (3.63) indicate he was better than his ERA (3.95), but not nearly as good as Hughes.
     
    Hughes had the best strikeout-to-walk ratio in baseball history last season at 11.63, allowing less than a walk per game. He gave up as many homers (16) as walks in 2014. His 3.52 ERA was inflated due to terrible outfield defense and below-average infield defense. In fact, Hughes’ sabermetric numbers make him look like a god. FIP (2.65), xFIP (3.18) and SIERA (3.17) all show that Hughes was a lot better than his ERA. He finished seventh in the 2014 Cy Young voting, however, most wouldn't consider him an ace, despite finishing tied for fourth among all pitchers with 6.1 Wins Above Replacement last season. The two guys he tied, David Price and Jon Lester, will both make more than Hughes next season. Price made $14 million in arbitration last year, and Lester signed a monstrous six-year deal worth nearly $26 million per year on average.
     
    The extension includes a limited no-trade clause allowing Hughes to block trades to three teams each year, so if Hughes can repeat his ace-like 2014 season, Terry Ryan will have an excellent trade chip with a team-friendly contract. If Hughes gets hurt or takes a step back, the deal doesn't look as good, but given his strategy of limiting free passes and forcing harmless fly balls in big Target Field, I don't think it’s likely he regresses. He’s a new man in Minnesota.
     
    I mostly like the deal except I would have waited until after the 2015 season to do it. Hughes was set to make just $8 million next year, but the difference between $8 million and $9.2 million or even $11.6 million is negligible. Also, Hughes could have performed even better in 2015 and priced himself out of Minnesota, so Terry Ryan hit it out of the park with this deal. Hughes and Santana look to be the veterans that will lead this young Twins squad into the future, and if they're still around when Byron Buxton roams center field, their numbers will look even better. Let’s just hope Ryan doesn't fail to trade Hughes or Santana when they're most valuable.
  21. GoGonzoJournal
    Terry Ryan and the Minnesota Twins made their one move of the Winter Meetings, reaching an agreement with Ervin Santana on a four-year, $55 million deal that features a vesting option that goes into effect if Santana tosses 200 innings in 2018, which would make the deal worth $68 million. It’s the biggest free agent deal in Twins’ history, which says a lot. It’s a smidge bigger than what Ryan gave Ricky Nolasco this time last year, which says even more. Terry Ryan doesn't dip his toe into the free agent market very often, and when he does, it’s just a toe. No splashes will be made in Minnesota, because all the water’s ice most of the year, but according to Mike Berardino’s source, Santana really likes pitching in the cold, which he’ll be doing a lot in April, and hopefully October, at Target Field.
     
    I called this one way back in September. Ryan offered Santana a three-year, $33 million deal before last season only to be turned down for a make-good, one-year deal with Atlanta worth $14.1 million. He did make good, although he was inconsistent, and will now have job security through 2018 at least.
     
    Santana’s inconsistency last year isn't a concern, especially if he follows in Phil Hughes’ footsteps and just stops walking folks. He also had terrible run support in Atlanta, and that won’t be the case with the Twins the next four years. They were seventh in runs scored, averaging 4.4 per game, and the lineup has only gotten better. The defense, however, has gotten worse with the arrival of Torii Hunter, but Byron Buxton should be covering a lot of ground at Target Field before this contract ends.
     
    Santana is a nice addition to Minnesota’s crowded, mediocre rotation. He’s shown flashes of having ace-like stuff, especially his slider, per Parker Hageman of Twins Daily.
     
    Santana has provided around 3 wins above replacement or better five times in his career, including a season in the American League Central with the Kansas City Royals just two years ago. His strikeout numbers were a bit inflated in his first National League season, but you can expect him to strike out seven batters per nine innings, something the Twins have sorely missed since another Santana was traded to New York, and it’s something they'll sorely need given their below-average defense everywhere except the left side of the infield.
     
    What this signing does tell us is Terry Ryan isn’t afraid to create competition for his up-and-coming starting pitchers, and he’s not likely to sign many bullpen arms this offseason. Tommy Milone, Mike Pelfrey, Alex Meyer, and Trevor May will likely fight for the fifth spot in the rotation, and losers of that fight will likely pitch in the bullpen, be released, or optioned to Rochester. Money isn’t really an issue for the Pohlads, and paying someone not to play or even play for someone else does have value considering the young players the Twins have coming up. It is telling that Ryan would sign three starters to three-year deals or better in consecutive years. Perhaps he doesn't see Meyer or May as top-of-the-rotation starters anymore. Take from it what you will, but there’s a method to his madness.
     
    The Twins will also have to take someone off their 40-man roster to make room for Santana, and my money’s on recent Rule 5 pick JR Graham being sent back to Atlanta. Why not? We're already giving them a second round pick for signing Santana. Might as well give up the bullpen arm that throws 100 mph. I like Graham, and wouldn't be against releasing Milone. Billy Beane knew something Terry Ryan didn’t. He sure looked like damaged goods at the end of last year, and his stuff wasn't great before that.
     
    So Terry Ryan made good on his promise to improve the pitching staff, but until Meyer or May or Berrios turns into an ace, the Twins will continue to be irrelevant. If they can stay in the race until after the All-Star break, it'll be a successful year for rookie manager Paul Molitor. Judging by the moves of the rest of the AL Central, though, it’s highly unlikely the Twins stick with Detroit, Kansas City, Cleveland, or Chicago. It'll be another season in last place for the Twins, but it might be their last, and they may not lose 90 games.
  22. GoGonzoJournal
    Minnesota Twins’ GM Terry Ryan is putting his neck out, again, signing Torii Hunter to a $10.5 million, one-year deal. Frankly, this Twins reunion **** is getting old – literally. Hunter will be 39 years old next year, is the worst defensive right fielder in the game, and will be severely overpaid. He should be making low-end DH money, yet he’s being paid ten times more than any outfielder the Twins have, despite being worse than any outfielder the Twins have (I think Arcia will hit much better than Hunter in 2015). Surprising, right? Not if you're a Twins fan.
     
    This blog was originally published at Go Gonzo Journal.
     
    As a fan that said “good riddance” to Torii when he refused to play for a contender in Minnesota to make more money and play for a contender in California, I can honestly say that this is the last straw. I didn't become a season ticket holder to watch 40-year-old men who can't play outfield play outfield, and I didn't stick with the Twins with hopes of a Torii Hunter reunion. I never wanted him back and still don’t. Torii's a self-righteous, selfish prick, despite him calling Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press the same for asking tough questions at today's press conference about whether his conservative and out-dated stance on gay marriage effected his free agent value. And I don't buy all that "clubhouse leader" bull****. Do you think a single team offered Torii more money than the Twins? If you do, you're out of your mind.
     
    You'd think at least one of those great teams he was on would have won a championship with him leading in the clubhouse, right? Wrong. But AJ Pierzynski did. You want to lead my team? Do it on the field. Torii hasn't been doing that lately. Kirby Puckett did. That was your hero. Remember, Torii? Yet you bolted when Twins fans needed you most. Kirby didn't do that. He played for some of the worst teams in history, and did it with a smile on his face. He made you what you were.
     
    Why do the Twins need a clubhouse leader, anyway? The new manager, Paul Molitor, should set the tone in the clubhouse, yet he was pushing for a reunion with Torii. Is he not confident in his ability to do the job? Maybe we should have hired someone else. Perhaps Rusty Kuntz or Ozzie Guillen would have been better. Rusty could have provided outfield instruction at a fraction of $10.5 million Torii will be paid. Ozzie would have single-handedly rebuilt the winning attitude that’s been lacking in the Twins’ clubhouse. Did we replace nearly the entire coaching staff for nothing? The answer is a resounding “YES.”
     
    Ron Gardenhire wasn't the problem, although I’ve wanted him gone for years. Terry Ryan and the entire front office is the problem. There will be no championships won, lost, or even dreamt of until the entire front office is fired. When the front office pays no attention to the opinion of educated fans who resoundingly said “NO” to a Torii Hunter reunion, the front office is no longer doing its job. Its job, if you don’t know, is to keep fans happy and coming back to the ballpark. Years ago I thought it was all Bill Smith’s fault, but I realize now that the Twins organization is no better than our own government – a fraternity of rich, entitled pricks that never listen to their constituency and rarely lose their jobs unless ownership changes hands.
     
    What this team needs is a new owner, and that owner should be the fans. Hell, I think most of us have a better handle on how to run this team than those in office. I could say the same about this country. With new technology comes new ways to determine your consumers’ wants and needs. Ignoring those wants and needs is not only stupid, but costly. The media have employed this technology to better determine what fans want, yet no one seems to be listening. It’s as simple as reading blogs, forums, and comments, yet the Twins organization seems to devalue these technologies, despite them being a direct reflection of their consumers – the people who pay their salaries. I've worked in many businesses, and marketing is all the same. Knowledge is power, and Terry Ryan and the Twins have neither, because they willingly ignore the people whom they are employed to entertain.
     
    Some say this is a gimmick to sell tickets, and to them I say, “Sure, if you're an idiot who enjoys bad baseball.” Frankly, I'm not too thrilled with Twins fans and never have been. They’re too quiet, too reserved, and too indifferent. They just don't care enough. That may sound stupid, but fans should be proud of their home team – not satisfied that they stuck around as long as they did. And they certainly shouldn't welcome back a former star who left for the big money and big lights when he was needed most.
     
    But we don't have to take it. If you truly care about the future of baseball in Minnesota, you won't attend a single game at Target Field next season. I know I won't – not until Hunter is traded at least.
     
    ----
     
    Anthony Varriano is editor of Go Gonzo Journal, a blog presenting the the rants of fans and outlaw journalists.
  23. GoGonzoJournal
    I have just two problems with answers new Minnesota Twins manager Paul Molitor gave in response to fan questions in a recent interview. First, he said he'd like his nickname to be spelled ‘Mollie,” citing that it looks more masculine, but I suggested his nickname be Paulie, as in a guy named Paul from St. Paul and the big sign in center field featuring a guy from St. Paul named Paulie. It’s common sense people.
     
    This blog was originally published at Go Gonzo Journal.
     
    My other issue is with his answer to a question from Andrew Pint about developing Spanish-speaking prospects. Molitor said, referring to he and Terry Ryan, “We feel it’s on the players who come here from various parts of the world, particularly Spanish-speaking players, to learn our language.” This is simply an insanely outdated concept. The fact that Tsuyoshi Niskioka, which I can still spell correctly despite not having to do so for nearly three years, was never expected to learn English and was allowed a translator in the dugout, is ass-backwards.
     
    It should be on the organization to correctly develop their talent, not on the talent to do it all themselves. These young kids have enough on their minds trying to make a big league ballclub to have to learn English as well. I just watched the ESPN’s “30 for 30″ film Brothers in Exile, featuring the stories of Livan and Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez, who had great Major League careers despite having never learned English because they had bilingual coaches in the minor leagues (Livan) and bilingual players in the majors (Orlando) to help them adapt. Hell, El Duque’s catcher, Jorge Posada, served as his translator in interviews.
     
    Spanish is the second-most popular language in the world with 110 million more native speakers than English. If Ryan and Molitor blow an opportunity to bring in a Spanish-speaking coach, even an assistant coach, because of their outdated beliefs, the organization will suffer for it. I've pitched plenty of options, including Julio Franco as an assistant hitting coach and strength and conditioning coach. Franco would jump at the opportunity to coach in the bigs based on what I've read, and I think he has valuable experience despite limited time as a coach. The guy was basically a player/coach for a decade while still playing professionally.
     
    Don't blow this opportunity, Paulie. Adapt, like you expect the Spanish-speaking kids to.
     
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    Anthony Varriano is editor of Go Gonzo Journal, a blog featuring the rants of fans and outlaw journalists.
  24. GoGonzoJournal
    Terry Ryan kept with company policy and made the long-expected and unsurprising decision to offer Paul Molitor a contract to become the new manager of the Minnesota Twins. Molitor, a St. Paul native, has been expected to take over as Ron Gardenhire’s replacement for at least a year, if not longer depending on the rumors you choose to believe, and could have taken over for Tom Kelly in 2002 had he not removed himself from the running due to the contraction fiasco. So Terry Ryan and the Twins got the man they wanted 13 years ago. No surprises in Twins Territory.
     
    This blog was originally published at Go Gonzo Journal Sports.
     
    The move means absolutely nothing. There is no discernible difference between Molitor and Gardy. They're both infield and baserunning specialists, although Molitor may be more in tune with today’s dependence on statistics when it comes to defensive play, and will hopefully be more open to platoon players with extreme splits to increase overall productivity. That’s a difference of winning a few extra games per season. It won't make the Twins a contender.
     
    The ONLY thing that will make the Twins a contender is an ace, and I'm not talking about Phil Hughes. I’m talking about Madison Bumgarner, or someone with comparable talents. Although, after his World Series performance, comparable talents may not exist. Bumgarner proved that in almost 150 years of organized baseball, nothing has changed. Starting pitching still wins championships. Kansas City’s bullpen approach didn't work. You can have as many high-powered arms in the pen as you like, but one man can still shut you out and win three games in a seven-game series despite an average offense that had very little pop in the MLB Playoffs. The Royals could have run a different pitcher out there every inning and still would have lost. Cliff Corcoran of Sports Illustrated found the Royals’ bullpen ranked seventh in runs allowed in all-time postseason history. Even they couldn't hang with Bumgarner and were rocked in Game 4. Starting pitching still wins championships.
     
    You can make all the noise you want about the Royals being sound defensively, especially in the outfield, but they didn’t win, and the Giants did despite a two-base error by their center fielder in the ninth inning of Game 7. Starting pitching still wins championships.
     
    You can make the argument that you need the bats of Hunter Pence and Pablo Sandoval in order to score enough runs to win, but you'd be wrong. Gregor Blanco drew a bases loaded walk and scored again after drawing a walk when rookie Joe Panik tripled in Game 1.
     
    Blanco got the scoring started with another walk in Game 4, took second on a wild pitch, and took third because he could, later scoring on a groundout by Pence. Matt Duffy, who had just two plate appearances in the World Series, scored on a single by Buster Posey after slapping a leadoff single of his own and taking second on a groundout. Then, in the bottom of the seventh inning, Brandon Crawford hit an infield single and Michael Morse walked to put Blanco in a bunting situation. He laid it down and reached on an error allowing Crawford to score. The rookie Panik then doubled to score Morse and Blanco. That would be all the Giants needed to win Game 4.
     
    Juan Perez, a defensive replacement, scored an unearned run in the bottom of the eighth inning of Game 5 on a single by Crawford. In fact, the only game the Giants truly needed the bats of Sandoval and Pence was Game 7. They accounted for every run scored, but it was Morse and Crawford that drove them in. Pence and Sandoval had stellar performances that would have been MVP-worthy any other year, but starting pitching still wins championships.
     
    Without an ace on the staff, like Bert Blyleven, Jack Morris, Johan Santana, or even a young Francisco Liriano, the hopes and dreams of Twins’ fans will continue to be dashed by the front office at Twins Way. Unless Terry Ryan and the rest of his disciples learn the Twins’ way isn't the winning way, Molitor replacing Gardy as manager is meaningless, and every job in the front office should be made available.
     
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    Anthony Varriano is editor of Go Gonzo Journal, a blog featuring the rants of fans and outlaw journalists.
  25. GoGonzoJournal
    Coaches are underrated, underpaid and picking a coaching staff is hard. That’s what I’ve learned since attempting to dig into all the coaching candidates to fill positions on the 2015 Minnesota Twins coaching staff. Choosing a coaching staff is largely the manager’s job, but Terry Ryan will certainly play an active role in who the new manager hires, especially if the new manager is young and influential. Although recently it seems anyone Gardy wanted Terry allowed. Perhaps we’re seeing and feeling the effects of that now.
     
    This blog was originally published at GoGonzoJournal.com
     
    The right collection of coaches makes all the difference, but the problem with forming a staff is the coaches you want the most already have jobs they wouldn’t leave except for a promotion to manager, which forces promotion from within rather than seeking outside. There’s not enough money devoted to MLB coaching staffs, and too much devoted to owners and players. If the coaching market and players’ market had the same amount of money devoted to each, it would make this Twins’ rebuild even more interesting. But as it stands, it’s pretty damn boring, so in an attempt to spice up the search for Gardy’s replacement, here’s a Gonzo list of coaches I’d like to see on the Twins’ staff next season, some of which may be untouchable or a little too Gonzo, but I’ve provided runner-up choices as well.
    http://i0.wp.com/gogonzojournal.com/wp-content/uploads/Julio-Franco.jpeg?zoom=2&resize=159%2C200
     

    Julio Franco, 55, prepares to hit as a player/coach for the Fort Worth Cats. 
    Strength and Conditioning Coach/Assistant Hitting Coach – Julio Franco
    I think Mark Berardino tossed his name out there on Gleeman and the Geek this week and I was immediately interested in what Franco’s been up to. Well, he most recently became the only person to play professional baseball in five different decades. He returned, at the age of 55, to act as a player/coach for the Fort Worth Cats, and is looking for an opportunity to get back into affiliated ball after some time coaching in Venezuela. Although he has no experience as a strength and conditioning coach, he obviously has a personal fountain of youth. This 2006 article describes Franco’s diet and exercise, saying he “stays fit and chiseled through intense workouts and cross training in the off season. In addition to regular cardio workouts, he lifts weights and uses plyometrics, exercises to maintain power and explosiveness.” If he’s fit enough at that age to swing a baseball bat and run to first base, I think he can hold the Twins together better than Perry Castellano has. He’d be a great addition to serve as an assistant hitting instructor for the young, Spanish-speaking Twins players as well.
     
    Runners-up: Ichiro Suzuki, Torii Hunter
    If these guys don’t get contract offers this winter, they should both be strength and conditioning coaches in Major League Baseball. Their run has been more than impressive. Suzuki’s 41 years old and still looks 21, and Torii, 40, can still swing the bat. Hell, the Twins might pay either of them to play a little left field and do some instructing if the price is right. The language barrier may be a barrier for Suzuki, but the point is I’ll take anyone but Castellano. Either give me somebody who can make Mauer a horse or give me somebody who can make him bend so much he never breaks. I’d prefer the horse.
     
    Athletic Trainer – Larry Bennese
    I don’t know many trainers, but Bennese must be a good one. He won the Florida State League’s Trainer of the Year award five times, and he’s put in the time in the Twins’ system – 19 years with the organization. He’s only been in Rochester for two years, but he’ll be familiar with a lot of the bodies on the Twins’ roster and how to handle them, especially the pitchers. It seems like a move Terry Ryan would make.
     
    Bullpen Coach – Marty Mason
    Mason is an easy choice to be the Twins’ bullpen coach because he’s put in the time – 28 years as a coach, including 11 as Tony La Russa’s bullpen coach – and he knows the kids that will be pitching out of the Twins bullpen pretty well. I also think Mason was hired in 2012 as a possible replacement for Rick Anderson. He’s got quite the reputation for turning soft-tossing pitchers like Johan Pino and Logan Darnell into successes, and his pitching staff in Rochester was second in ERA and third in WHIP this season in the International League.
    A negative may be his inability to right Vance Worley. Mason didn’t have much in the cupboard in 2013, either. And maybe Alex Meyer and Trevor May could have developed faster, but I think with the right cans in the cupboard, Mason can make a mean casserole.
     
    http://i1.wp.com/gogonzojournal.com/wp-content/uploads/Minnesota-Twins-Paul-Molitor-.jpg?zoom=2&resize=300%2C168
    First Base/Infield Coach – Paul Molitor
    I’d like to see Molitor stay on the staff, but I don’t know if that’s possible if he’s denied the manager job. He could even end up in Milwaukee. I just think this is the best spot for him. He’s a baserunning and defensive shifting wizard. He belongs on the bases, but if he does get Gardy’s job or decides to walk, there are some options.
     
    Runner-up: Jake Mauer
    The man played every infield position except catcher and wasn’t terrible at any of them. He’s also got a ton of energy and a winning attitude. Plus, maybe Joe will smile a little more with his bro down at first base.
     
     
    Third Base Coach – Gene Glynn
    I don’t think there’s any way he’s not on the Twins’ coaching staff in 2015. He certainly deserves it. He’s been a coach or scout for 20 years, and most of it as a third base coach. It just makes sense to promote him given his success at Rochester, and I think he’s being groomed to take over as manager in a couple of years.
     
    Hitting Coach – Tom Brunansky
    Brunansky proved his worth this year, getting through to Brian Dozier and Trevor Plouffe regarding plate discipline. The whole team walked early and often until pitchers realized who they were throwing to. Dozier and Plouffe continued to excel, and I don’t know anyone else I’d rather have teaching young, Twins talent the importance of patience.
     
    Pitching Coach – Jim Benedict
    This is just payback. Benedict fixed Vance Worley; he fixed Francisco Liriano with three words – “right back pocket.” The special assistant to Pirates’ GM Neal Huntington should get just about anything he wants. I don’t care what it costs, just bring him to Minnesota. He’s obviously the best there is in the game when it comes to pitching. He’s been turning other teams’ garbage into Pittsburgh’s treasure for years now.
     
    Runners-up: Dom Chiti, Frank Viola, Marty Mason
    Chiti worked wonders with Baltimore’s bullpen in 2014 and certainly has impressive credentials. He’s been coaching since 1982.
     
    Viola is coming off open heart surgery this spring, but rejoined the Las Vegas 51s, the Mets Triple-A affiliate, as pitching coach.
     
    Bench Coach – Terry Steinbach
    I wouldn’t mind Steinbach sticking around as bench coach, but I have a feeling he’s headed to Arizona.According to Mike Berardino, “Twins catchers have praised his work on their fundamentals,”but why is it that pitch framing has been largely ignored? Hiring him despite no major or minor league coaching experience was quite the shock.
     
    Runners-up: Gene Glynn, Doug Mientkiewicz
    Everybody seems to love Gene Glynn, or it could be a great learning opportunity for Mientkiewicz to do some of the manager’s grunt work. He’s never done that in his career, and it could change the way he treats his own bench coach.
     
    Manager – Ozzie Guillen
    Anybody who reads this blog knows Ozzie’s been my man for three years, and I’m not easing of the gas pedal now. Ozzie wouldn’t. Terry Ryan is interviewing the first minority candidate, Sandy Alomar, Jr., so the odds of Ozzie becoming “Don Piranha” are getting worse everyday. Terry Ryan doesn’t seem like an Ozzie kind of guy. He’s not one to put up with bull****, so here are some backup plans.
     
    http://i1.wp.com/gogonzojournal.com/wp-content/uploads/Minnesota-Twins-Rusty-Kuntz.jpg?zoom=2&fit=300%2C300
     
    Runners-up, in order of preference: Rusty Kuntz, Paul Molitor, Torey Lovullo, Sandy Alomar, Jr., Gene Glynn, Doug Mientkiewicz
    I really like Rusty Kuntz, and not just because of his name. He’s regarded as the best outfield and baserunning coach by Nick Cafardo, and you can see it in Alex Gordon, Nori Aoki, Lorenzo Cain, and Jarrod Dyson. And what was one of the biggest problems for the Twins in 2014? Outfield defense. He looks good in the powder blue uniforms, and there aren’t many internal candidates with a specialty in outfield instruction, either.
     
    Molitor seems like a good fit. I’ve heard Twins players respond well to him, and considering his willingness to shift defensively and ability to teach good baserunning skills, I’d say he’s an upgrade. And you can’t deny the awkward way he was brought in as the seventh coach on the staff in charge of baserunning, infield defense, and “in-game strategy.” Sure sounds like a manager to me. Funny thing is hiring Molitor was all Gardy’s idea. Seems to me Gardy wanted a way out.
    Torey Lovullo has a reputation for being an encouraging guy, and maybe with all these young players coming up, the Twins could use more positive reinforcement than negative. I think this Twins team would be an ideal fit for Lovullo, and he would thrive in Minnesota.
    Sandy Alomar, Jr. is an interesting candidate because he’s a former catcher who can teach both Suzuki and Pinto the proper way to play the game defensively. I’m not sure I want Steinbach to be the only coach in that role.
     
    I think Glynn is going to groom Mientkiewicz into the job. Molitor may only stick around for a few years if he gets the job. It’ll be another Tom Kelly situation. Whoever inherits this team in three or four years is going to be given the keys to an old-fashioned, gas-guzzling, American muscle car with the power to get out of the parking lot in a hurry. Something tells me it’ll be Glynn or Mientkiewicz, but not this year.
     
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    Anthony Varriano is editor of Go Gonzo Journal, a sports blog featuring the rants of fans and outlaw journalists.
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