Twodogs

I hope he doesn't have any real serious health issues, it's different that someone would retire with only a week left in the season. Hope he is ok.

Don't look now, but I think the Yankees are just as far out of 1st as the Twins are. They've won 7 straight.

No off-days in playoffs: Here's who benefits https://www.mlb.com/news/how-postseason-with-no-days-off-affects-pitching No off days probably helps the Twins deep pitching with a lack of an Ace or two. Those guys probably won't be able to start 3 times in a series anymore with no off days.

But even hitting home runs is dependent. Petco park is not very home run friendly, Yankee stadium is a band box. So one player could be a pretty good hitter in Yankee stadium, and another player could hit every ball exactly the same as the first player but due to air pressure and park nuances they can be not such a great hitter. I mean if you are saying that a ball hit out of the park is a ball hit out of the park regardless of outside factors then someone could argue that all of the colorado rockies hitters from the 90's should be in the hall of fame, I mean they hit the ball out of the park

I agree that everyone in the game gets to steal off of Astudillo in that instant, but when you look at numbers you look at them over a course of time. Nobody narrows down how many RBI's you got on August 12th. Or how many home runs you got on June 15th. It's always over the course of a definite period of time. Usually a long period of time such as the whole season. But even then, even if you are in the same game stealing off of Astudillo when one pitchers is on the mound is different than when another pitcher takes the mound, even with the same catcher baseball stats are dependent. Even with the same swing same launch angle same everything will have a different result when you barrel up a Chapman 100mph fastball as opposed to a Greinke 50mph ephus pitch. Same swing, same hit, same ballpark, still will create a different result. Stats are dependent on outside factors no matter what.

You can make that argument about home runs also. Hitting a ball out in San Diego or Anaheim is a lot different than Yankee stadium where if you can clear the infield it has a good shot at going out. Just ask Mo Vaughn. So you can make those kinds of arguments about almost anything. Racking up stolen bases off of Astudillo is a lot different than getting that many SB's vs Molina. Everything in baseball is dependent on who you are facing. I mean we look at pitchers and their swing and miss stuff, but how would those guys swing and miss stuff percentages play out if they were facing guys like Carew, Gwynn, Boggs, Brett, and guys who played in that era? It would be a lot different. So just like with Buxton or Cruz on 3rd is dependent on whether someone gets an RBI so is every other stat in baseball.

It's amazing that the White Sox took the lead with small ball. Adam Engal didn't really hit the ball through a shifted infield, he hit a slash bunt, because Engal tried to drop down a bunt in the first pitch and then he squared around, Donaldson charged and Polanco was wheeling over to cover 3rd and then Engal slashed and put the ball right where Polanco vacated. Nice example of small ball working. The Twins didn't really have a lot of chances for small ball yesterday. I mean Kepler came up with a guy on 2nd and he hit a grounder to the right side and moved the runner anyway. About the only time I think they should have bunted was with Astudillo up to bat with Cave on 2nd. Had Astudillo successfully bunted there Cave gets to 3rd and probably scores to put the Twins up 2 - 1. Who knows what happens from there? All of the sudden Cruz might hit his 17th bomb because bases wouldn't be loaded and the pitcher might pitch differently? Who knows. Also I don't think Rogers was brought in to close. Rocco brought him in to face the bottom of the lineup in the 8th. I'm almost thinking that Rocco was planning on using Alcala to close it out had they taken the lead? JMO? It was interesting on the mlb channel yesterday. Leiter, Pedro and the other guys were discussing the best playoff rotations. The Twins were brought up and Pedro said no way, he said that the Twins are a good example of having a guy who could win the Cy Young, (Maeda) but Pedro said he would not have him in his (playoff) starting rotation. Then someone brought up Berrios. Leiter then said that Berrios is also good, but to be a top playoff pitcher you have to go longer than 5 innings. Not saying that I completely agree or disagree. But these are the opinions of a hall of famer and a guy who pitched big games in the playoffs. Interesting take.

I'm just glad to see KC is still causing trouble. I see they have tripped up Cleveland a few times lately. I was worried that the Twins played them early when they had hope and now Cleveland is playing them after the trade deadline when a lot of teams kinda give up. As long as KC and Detroit in the AL and the Brewer's and the Pirates in the NL can steal a couple of games here and there that will help the Twins a lot.

Just my opinion obviously. But at this point I would have a rotation of Berrios, Pineda, Maeda with Dobnak being #4 swingman. Obviously he wouldn't be needed that often especially since the first series is only 3 games. But that gives you 4 on the staff. Then I'd try to prepare for best case scenario is that your starters give you 6 minimum; then you need 3 guys to get you to the end of the game. Now I think the Twins bullpen has been good this year, but they aren't great pitchers in my mind, I think they do a great job, but when they get seen by the same team too many times that they start to get figured out, just like that game in Detroit where May and Duffy blew up. They hadn't pitched back to back games, but the tiger hitters saw them on Friday and now seen them again. So hopefully with the bullpen depth the Twins can limit how many times these guys get seen. Maybe have like 6 main relievers for innings 7 through 9. May, Duffy, Alcala, Rogers, Romo, Clipboard. Then maybe keep Hill because he has a lot of playoff experience, he can start and he can relieve he has in the past done it all, and over the last 4 - 5 years or so has had a very nice K%. That gives you 11, now the decision centers around keeping 2 more guys for those ooops just in case games. Maybe the Twins are up by 15 or down by 15 regardless the Twins don't need to burn another pitcher. So now you have to pick between Stashak, Theilbar, Wisler, and Odorizzi. If you take Wisler and Odorizzi that gives you 13 pitchers? Berrios Pineda Maeda Dobnak Rogers Romo Alcala Duffy May Clippard Hill Odorizzi Wisler That gives you 13 pitchers.

I hope I'm wrong but I have a bad feeling that both Buxton and Berrios will be gone as soon as they can be.

Well it's a good thing that dudes who write on a blog don't get to make any decisions when it comes to who the twins sign and or phase out, etc.... I mean if the writers had any input whatsoever then the twins would have signed Cole, Ryu, and Wheeler this off-season. But they didn't, and I'm pretty sure that most of the dudes who write this stuff didn't really anticipate signing Hill and trading Grateral for Maeda. So the twins front office will do what they feel is best for the twins regardless of what any of us think or what any of these smart writers think also. My personal opinion is that the Twins will keep Rosario, and in 2021 if the Twins are in the thick of a playoff run they will keep him and probably let him walk because he will be a FA in 2022. If the Twins are not in a playoff run in 2021, then they will probably trade him at the deadline for a couple of prospects similar to Eduardo Escobar. It's how the Twins have operated for a long time. Plus just because the Twins have guys like Kirlloff, Rooker, etc.... doesn't mean those guys are going to produce anything over the course of a MLB season. They might not produce close to Rosario's supposedly terrible numbers, we aren't going to know unless someone gets hurt and they are thrown into duty. If that happens and one of these guys rake for 2 or 3 months straight then you have a log jam but right now for a team going for the playoffs the guys who got the twins here are going to be everyday type of players. So there is no real reason to get mad if someone suggests to quit playing this guy or that guy because they have absolutely no influence on a professional teams front office decisions. It's also good to know that guys like Rosario, and Sano, and Buxton etc.... could care less if something bad is written about them on here by people who don't make any decisions about this team. These guys are going to show up everyday and play as hard as they can at the time and I will be cheering for them to win. And I'll get mad because some guy didn't do well and I'll be excited when some other guy hit a game winning hit. I'll probably come in here and complain about this or that but I realize that I have zero influence over what is going on in those offices where the decisions are being made.

For sure, Pineda is #2 in my mind right now, with Berrios #1 and probably Maeda #3. Berrios and Pineda give us the best chance to limit the bullpen usage down to the best couple of guys when they pitch. Not that it will happen every time, but they have that chance to go deep into games.

But the way Dick reacts to any pop fly you'd think it was going into the 3rd deck, so who knows about how close it could have been with Rooker had they not thrown Eddie out at 3rd?

Yeah, Morneau might have been saying that that out at third isn't necessarily uncommon, but running over your base coach to blow through his sign probably is a little uncommon?

I know it's from the old book, but the old adage is not to make the 1st and 3rd outs at 3rd base. Because if he makes it then a fly ball scores him. So I don't think anyone on the twins staff was really upset about today. Had yesterday not happened we probably wouldn't even be talking about it. Man it was nice to see a pitcher throw 7 innings for once. I was shocked when I heard that it was only the 2nd time a twins pitcher had pitched into the 7th inning this year. Lamont Wade is making a nice name for himself. Looking like he could be Jake Cave's replacement in the future? Don't wish anything bad on Cave, but if Wade keeps doing well he has to take someone's spot.

The last two wins were huge. It really stunk that the Twins lost 6 straight. I think had they gone 3 - 3 over that stretch no one worries about anything. But when you lose 6 straight you kinda feel that panic mode hitting and then they rip off 5 straight that kinda evens it out, but to rip games away like they did today is huge for the team in my opinion.

Yeah it seems to me that if it was just the hitters trying to get base hits instead of home runs then you'd think they'd have better batting averages, but they don't, infact it seems like their averages are down by quite a bit. So I really think the league has adjusted to them and are pitching them differently and the twins hitters have yet to adjust to the adjustments. Because the first week seemed like they came out smashing, Kepler with two bombs in the first game etc.... So I think the guys are still swinging for the fences it's just they aren't getting the pitches they want as often in order to do that. I think the only hitter who has been able to adjust is Cruz, and I remember him hitting a lot of just singles in those first couple of weeks. I think he took what they gave him. Just my opinion.

I wonder if the twins hitters are just seeing different pitches this year. Less fastballs, more pitches with spin etc....

The Twins need one of those 7 or so days off due to a Covid infection. Then when they come back everyone would be off the injured list and ready to kick butt. This is obviously a joke, so don't get all mad at me because I'm only joking around. But hey a week off would be nice for the team to gather itself. Maybe a couple of Bull Durham rain outs?

Yeah so far he has done more than he has done in the past. That is for sure. This however is the first time in his career and like you said, we can hope for a solid 6, but when teams throw Cole, or Scherzer, or guys like Bieber they aren't looking for 6. They might get 6 on a not so great night, but when those guys take the mound teams are looking for 7+. Right now most would look at Maeda as the Twins #1, he's really a #3 just based on past performance and lack of going deep into games. I was watching the Astros and the Angels on Monday and a relatively young guy Valdez was on the mound. The Astros were up 5 - 1 and in the 4th inning Valdez gave up a bomb to Upton. Then in the 5th he got knocked around again a little and gave up 2 runs to make the score 5 - 4. You know if Valdez was pitching for the Twins he wouldn't have even finished the 5th in that situation, after he gave up the 4th run he would have been outta there. But the Stros left him in and he ended up pitching 7 innings and 113 pitches and some of those pitches were under duress in the 4th and 5th innings. But now Houston knows that this dude can get out of his own jams. They know he can be effective late into games and not just games he's dominating in, he can be effective in games where he's been touched up a little. How many Twins starters do you know who can be touched up a little and still minimize the damage and came back out and pitch 2 or 3 more innings going over 100 pitches if need be. I don't know of too many. Hopefully they come through.

Which 3 of those pitchers wins a playoff series for the twins? The twins do have a real good set of about 6 - 7 quality pitchers who really supply a ton of depth for a baseball season. However, playoffs are different. Almost every year, except the year Kansas City did it with their bullpen, the team who has won has won it with starting pitching. Pitchers that regularly go 7 innings shortening the games for their bullpens. Every once in awhile they have to throw their bullpen out there for 4 innings or so, but when you have a Scherzer or a Strasburg you know that at least 2 games out of 3 or 4 you won't need the bullpen. Maeda has done great, he never made the Dodgers playoff rotations however because he never really pitched deep into games. Now we are considering him as the Ace? I still think Berrios has more Ace capabilities just due to him showing in the past that he could go 7+ innings. Don't get me wrong, all of these guys have done well, but they don't fit the bill as far as what is usually needed to win in the playoffs. I thought Pineda looked to fitting that role a little last year before the suspension, but hard to say this year what's going to happen when he comes back? Maybe the Twins luck out and get a horse at the deadline. Playoff rotation Horse (Bauer type) Berrios Maeda Pineda Bp Hill, Odorizzi, Dobnak No Horse at the deadline Berrios Pineda Maeda Odorizzi Bp Hill, Dobnak JMO

I don't think it's worth wasting resources on this. They should have enough hitting. Playoff baseball to me is centered around top of the rotation pitching. Look at the teams that have been winning there is one constant, stud starting pitching that can go 7 - 8 innings. Scherzer, Stasburg. Cole, Verlander, Greinke etc..... Twins starters are only lasting 4 - 5 innings each. They don't stand a chance, about the only guy who has proven he can pitch beyond 6 innings is Berrios and he is more of a solid #2 or #3 starter which is something, but if they want to be relevant in October they need to get someone who can drop 7 innings and 110 - 115 pitches whenever it's needed. The Twins rotation is great for the long haul of a season as they have depth and they have quality that can go out there every day and perform well enough to keep the Twins in it, but Maeda and Odorizzi and such tossing 4 - 5 innings in the playoffs isn't going to cut it. Especially when a team like Cleveland throws a Bieber out there and we can't hit those guys, hell no one can, that's why the Twins need to counter with their own Bieber, but they don't really have him. You can't expect guys like Odorizzi and Maeda to throw 7 innings in the playoffs if they never do it during the season so unless they find someone really good then the twins are stuck with 4 - 5 innings out of the bullpen in every game that typically doesn't work well for 4 straight playoff series. It can work fine for a game or two, but you need 2 - 3 horses who can go 7 - 8 innings so your not relying on your bullpen every game. Pineda was doing well last year before being suspended of going deep into games, but I doubt he will be ready to accomplish that once he is back. Hopefully?

Eh, it's a business. The owners and front office treat it as such and now most of the players treat it as such now also. I don't think Lynn would give a rats a... What happened in the past if he were traded to a contender at the deadline. Plus I don't think Baldelli would care either about what happened over 2 years ago. Right at this point however, I'm really glad the Twins didn't get Workman. He has stunk in Philly so far.

Arraez has struck the ball hard quite a few times, he has hit some line shots that have been caught. So eventually he will go through a streak where those line shots fall in and it will even out.

Well yeah, and the Braves starters are falling like flies so looks like he landed in a good place for him.