Search the Community

Friday night was the non-tender deadline and the Minnesota Twins made a couple of moves that surprised me. With news of the payroll being scaled back some, I figured Kyle Farmer was as good as gone either by trade or non-tender. Nope, he's still around. Another surprise was that Jovani Moran needs Tommy John surgery and so the Twins decided to remove him (and Ronny Henriquez) off the 40-man roster. Here is my reaction to these moves. View full video

Minnesota's front office was quiet at the trade deadline, which can frustrate fans. Instead of trading for upgrades, the Twins will rely on the group of already assembled players. Here are five players that must be relied on the most during the season's final two months. Image courtesy of Rhona Wise-USA TODAY Sports The Twins weren't expected to make significant moves before Tuesday's trade deadline. However, many believed the club would add to an overworked bullpen and a line-up that has struggled mightily versus left-handed pitching. Instead, the front office will stick with the roster they assembled, which has the highest payroll in team history. Following the trade deadline, the message from the front office was similar to recent weeks. Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said. "We've seen stretches of our performance as a team that we think can go do that. I don't think that there were clear opportunities here that we felt were going to be achievable based on the conversations that we were having that would change that significantly, so I feel like we think this is a good roster. We think this is a good team. We believe in it. We believe in the group that's in the clubhouse." For the Twins to win the AL Central, the team must be more consistent in all facets of the game. Here are five players critical to the team's division title hopes. 5. Joey Gallo, 1B/OF The Twins announced that Alex Kirilloff's shoulder injury will cause him to miss more time, pushing Gallo into a more regular role at first base. Gallo started the season hot but has been arguably the team's worst hitter for most of the season. Since June 1st, he is hitting .153/.231/.378 (.609) while also providing negative defensive value (-2.1 DEF). Gallo's calling cards for his career have been an ability to get on base, hit for power, and provide strong defense. He's failed to deliver in all areas for the Twins, so does he have anything left in the tank for the stretch run? 4. Jovani Moran, RP Caleb Thielbar recently returned from injury, but there are no guarantees when it comes to the performance of a 36-year-old pitcher. Moran has made the third most appearances in the Twins bullpen behind Griffin Jax and Emilio Pagan. Over his last 21 appearances, he has a 7.64 ERA with a 5.60 BB/9. His walk rate is too high, but there are signs that he might be getting unlucky. His 3.61 FIP and 4.34 xFIP are significantly lower than his ERA, and his .354 BABIP is higher than his career average. Moran can upgrade the bullpen if he pitches closer to some of his peripheral numbers. 3. Jhoan Duran, RP Duran has been a revelation over the last two seasons while shifting from a starting pitching prospect to one of baseball's best late-inning relievers. Unfortunately, the Twins tend not to add to their bullpen mix through free agency, which puts added pressure on Duran. His performance has suffered in recent weeks. Since June 1st, he has a 4.43 ERA with 3.54 BB/9 and 25% HR/FB. Duran must perform at his best for the bullpen to succeed. Minnesota didn't add to the bullpen, which will force Rocco Baldelli to use Duran regularly. He will be responsible for some losses down the stretch without his best stuff. 2. Joe Ryan, SP Minnesota's starting pitchers have struggled in the second half, none more so than Ryan. His first half was tremendous, putting him in the conversation for making his first All-Star team. However, he has posted a 5.90 ERA with an .821 opponent's OPS in his last 11 appearances while surrendering 17 home runs. Ryan is part of the team's long-term plans, and he must make adjustments to succeed in the season's final months. Last season, he pitched around 150 innings, and he's approaching 130 innings during the 2023 campaign. The team needs to monitor his performance as he gets closer to a career-high innings total. 1. Byron Buxton, DH Buxton is arguably the most critical player to Minnesota's success. It's seemingly more unlikely for him to step foot in center field this season, but that doesn't make his performance less valuable. Many expected the Twins to add a right-handed bat at the deadline, but an improved Buxton is the easiest way to increase the team's offensive output. Many of the team's struggles against lefties are tied to his streakiness in the batter's box. There have been signs that Buxton's bat is starting to wake up since he returned from paternity leave, including five doubles in three games. Can Buxton stay hot for the remainder of the season and carry the Twins to the playoffs? How would you rank the players that need to improve the most? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. View full article

The Twins scored seven runs, including four in the first inning. Pablo Lopez left the team a 6-2 lead in the top of the eighth inning. And yet, the Mariners seized the victory. Here's all of the gory details from one of the most deflating games of the season. Image courtesy of Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Pablo Lopez: 7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K (94 Pitches, 63 Strikes, 67%) Home Runs: Matt Wallner (2), Michael A. Taylor (12) Bottom 3 WPA: Oliver Ortega (-.439), Jovani Moran (-.189), Emilio Pagan (-.176) Win Probability Chart (Via Fangraphs): After surviving two consecutive extra-inning walk-off victories, the Twins looked to win the season series against the Mariners and to keep their good times rolling against right-hander George Kirby. Kirby held the Twins scoreless last week in Seattle over seven innings of work, so the task looked formidable from the start. Turns out scoring runs against Kirby was the least of the Twins' worries, as he only lasted four innings in this game. Yet the Twins still found a way to lose a virtual lock of a game. Twins Pick Up Where They Left Off Offensively The Twins started their offensive attack against Kirby right from the first pitch. Carlos Correa took a fastball to the opposite field for a double and the Twins didn't stop until they put a four-spot on the board. Edouard Julien worked the count full, before bashing a triple off of the left field wall, scoring Correa in the process. Max Kepler followed up a few batters later with a seeing-eye, thanks-for-not-shifting-anymore single through the hole at second. Before Twins fans could even say "Thank goodness Max is back!" Matt Wallner stood up to the plate and torpedoed the first pitch fastball he saw, hitting it 111 mph off of a human in the right field overhang to complete the four-run first inning. Pablo Deals, but the Mariners Hung Around Lopez only gave up three hits over the first five innings, but unfortunately, two of those were home runs. Julio Rodriguez took Lopez deep in the top of the second, and Cade Marlowe followed in the fifth inning by crushing a no-doubter to the bullpen for his first career home run. One might argue that Lopez was pitching as if he was spotted a 4-0 lead in the first inning, but he has already given up 17 homers on the year, and is on pace to set a career-high by the time the playoff push rolls around. Lopez ended up completing seven innings, and only surrendered the two runs. That should be the main point of the story here. It really should be. A few base runners scattered around when those homers launch, like in his July 15th start against Oakland, and the story changes dramatically. Will Lopez be able to make the necessary adjustments for the nights when the offense isn't adding on? The Twins Add On a Little, and Strike Out Far Too Much One of the plagues of the first half of the season for the Twins involved failing to add on to leads when opportunities presented themselves. Slamming extra base hits with runners on base continues to be an effective way to overcome that trend. Willi Castro was the first man up to get it done in the bottom of the third, when laced a triple to right and forced Kepler to run really hard all the way around the bases to make the score 5-1 at the time. The flip side of this quality offensive outburst was the 12 strike outs that Twins batters amassed in the first five innings. 12. In the first five innings. Granted the Twitter-verse disagreed with a few of the called strike threes to Trevor Larnach, but flailing and missing accounted for eight of them, including all three of the vaunted lefties when southpaw Gabe Speier came in to relieve Kirby in the fifth. The Twins Add On a Little, and Strike Out Far Too Much This is a different section than the one above. I promise. Except that it isn't different. It's the same story just shared two innings later. Willi Castro look a walk to lead off the bottom of the sixth for the Twins. Then Castro stole second and third while Larnach was working a strike out. Ryan Jeffers walked, and Donovan Solano came in to pinch hit for Joey Gallo. Solano received a fortunate no-call on what should have been strike three at the knees, and hit a fly ball to right for a sacrifice fly to plate Castro and to put the Twins ahead 6-2. The strike outs kept piling up through the late innings, and the Twins struggled to add more baserunning threats to bolster their lead. This came back to bite them in a big way. Pitching as Though the Twins Need to Trade for Bullpen Help With the game time temperature of 90 degrees and no breeze to speak of, the Twins depleted bullpen faced a slight challenge, but the Twins had a 97% chance of winning when Jovani Moran got the ball in the top of the eighth with a 6-2 lead. He proceeded to walk the first two batters that he faced. Moran delivered a changeup for a strike to Cal Raleigh, but unfortunately for the Twins, the M's catcher drove that pitch to the left field gap to make the score 6-3. Moran exited stage left without recording an out, and Emilio Pagan was brought in to face the heart of the Seattle order in hopes of keeping the lead. Thanks to Julio Rodriguez, those hopes went unfulfilled, as he went opposite field for a no-doubt, game-tying home run off of Pagan. The Twins Strike Outs Kept on Coming The Twins came to the plate in the eighth ready to respond, and Wallner started things off by striking out (called, not flailing) against hurler Matt Brash. Castro was next up, and he struck out. Larnach was next up, looking to avoid the golden sombrero. After getting two strikes early, Larnach managed to work a walk to keep the inning alive. Ryan Jeffers then struck out. That's 18 Twins strike outs for the game if you were keeping track. The Bullpen Kept on Imploding Oliver Ortega got the call to pitch the top of the ninth for the Twins, as the majority of the bullpen was unavailable for the evening. Ortega walked Marlowe, allowed a stolen base, successful bunt, and hit a batter to load the bases with nobody out. The extra innings and inability to put away teams finally came to call upon the Twins bullpen, and things looked dire. They were dire, and Eugenio Suarez placed a double down the left field line to score two and give the Mariners into the lead at 8-6. With runners at second and third with nobody out, the Mariners continued to add on with a sacrifice fly (see sections above for why it's important to make contact when opportunities present themselves). Eventually the Twins came up for the bottom half of the ninth needing three runs to tie the game at nine. A lead-off ninth inning homer for Michael A. Taylor gave a glimmer of hope, but the Mariners were inevitable tonight. Three up and three down followed, and the Twins were left wondering what might have been. What’s Next: The Mariners series wraps up with an afternoon affair to determine the season series victor. The Twins send RHP Joe Ryan (9-6, 3.88 ERA) to the mound, while Seattle counters with RHP Bryce Miller (6-3, 3.50 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 12:10pm on Wednesday at Target Field. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Chart: FRI SAT SUN MON MON TOT Ortega 0 0 36 0 28 64 Pagán 15 0 11 0 19 45 Jax 0 16 8 19 0 43 Morán 22 0 0 5 14 41 Durán 0 21 16 0 0 37 J. López 0 0 9 12 0 21 Balazovic 0 7 0 12 0 19 Sands 0 0 0 0 0 0 View full article

I suppose there's nothing uncommon about Lance Lynn giving up a lot of runs at Target Field. Image courtesy of Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Joe Ryan: 6 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 10 K Home Runs: Alex Kirilloff (8), Byron Buxton (16, 17), Ryan Jeffers (5) Top 3 WPA: Byron Buxton (.209), Alex Kirilloff (.202), Edouard Julien (.045) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) The first pitch couldn’t have gone any worse, as Andrew Benintendi blasted a fastball out to right field, making his second homer of the year a rare lead-off shot. Joe Ryan recovered, but the Twins would now need to respond in a timely manner. They did. Carlos Correa didn’t join the fun—he simply lined out sharply to center field—but Edouard Julien did, crushing a line drive deep to left field. Benintendi played the ball well, collecting the bounce and unleashing a throw to second base that should have nailed a lethargic Julien. Elvis Andrus muffed it. Oh well, surely the base-runner wouldn’t matter soon. Alex Kirilloff homered two pitches later. One of Lance Lynn’s cutters didn’t cut, and all Kirilloff had to do was lift the offering a little, earning his eighth homer of the season. Byron Buxton homered eight pitches later. Max Kepler reached on an infield hit—perhaps botched a little again by Andrus—and Matt Wallner walked on five pitches. Despite being 0-July (not really, but emotionally, perhaps), Buxton lasered a first-pitch fastball at 114.3 MPH, giving the Twins a sudden 5-1 advantage. The game calmed down, entering the usual see-saw to nowhere that many baseball games see for a few innings. Until Buxton, again, somehow, hit his second homer of the night, breaking free from the arctic grasp the baseball gods had on him; this time with a bomb less prodigious, but still effective. Ryan Jeffers joined him quickly. The runs were needed, because Ryan wasn’t as sharp as usual. The strikeouts were there—he whiffed 10 and elicited 17 swings and misses—but Chicago found a way to hit him hard; Yasmani Grandal’s two-run shot in the sixth inning was especially brutal. What should have felt like an untouchable lead was now well within reach. Lynn was battered, ineffective, and tiring, but he remained in the game, tasked with keeping the lead at three. He should have, having earned a flyout from Correa that should have ended the frame, but right fielder Zach Remillard booted the ball, giving Minnesota extra life. Oh well, surely the base-runner wouldn’t matter soon. Julien worked his second walk of the night before Kirilloff plastered Lynn’s final offering of the night: a fastball turned two-run double pelted off the right-center wall. And that was it. Emilio Pagán shut down the White Sox in the seventh and Jovani Moran carried the pitching effort to the finish line, tossing a pair of scoreless innings to end the game 9-4 in favor of the Twins. Notes: Byron Buxton's multi-homer game was his first since June 22nd against the Red Sox. Joe Ryan's 10 strikeouts tied a season-high; he's punched out 10 in a game five times in 2023. Alex Kirilloff has four homers since the All-Star break ended; he had four homers before the break. Edouard Julien extended his hit streak to nine games. Post-Game Interviews: What’s Next? The Twins and White Sox will play the second game of their weekend series on Saturday, with first pitch at 6:15. All-Star Sonny Gray and somehow-not-an-All-Star-in-2022 Dylan Cease will face-off on the mound. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet View full article

Yes, it is possible for a win to feel gross. Image courtesy of © Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Kenta Maeda: 3 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 6 K Home Runs: Joey Gallo (16) Top 3 WPA: Donovan Solano (.362), Joey Gallo (.331), Jovani Moran (.142) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Fresh out of the All-Star break, the Twins were handed a gift from the baseball gods: the Oakland A’s. Despite over 90 games already played, Minnesota had yet to establish a consistent, positive offense identity; the team recently leaned on the all-important semi-religious “players-only meeting,” to save their season, but the results hadn’t improved—outside a date with the lowly Royals. Would an entangle with the worst team the west coast could scrap up prove similar? Twins bats exploded with a mighty crash. Ken Waldichuk thought he had more time, more opportunities to toss his weaker stuff. Still, Minnesota offered no quarter, attacking quickly with a double from Carlos Correa and a single from Donovan Solano. Byron Buxton flew out deep enough to plate Correa. With a critical potential run on second base, Kyle Farmer crushed a changeup nearly as far as a batter can hit a ball without earning a free jog around the bases; instead, he earned a triple for his efforts. The game was underway. Unfortunately, Kenta Maeda was not sharp. He fired off a ton of pitches—entirely too many of them—to fend off Oakland in the 1st, and his frame proved prophetic: he would not last beyond three innings. He labored again in the 2nd, handing back a portion of the lead his offense earned. With another rally in the 3rd, Minnesota’s advantage was now a deficit—and Maeda’s day was over. These are the A’s we’re talking about—intentionally bad; served as a self-evident excuse to bolt cities—so the game was far from decided. A few walks inspired Rocco Baldelli to pinch-hit early, sending the rookie Edouard Julien to the plate with a pair of runners on the bases. He delivered. Julien smashed a double to left field, tying the game at three as the teams settled into their equal struggle for victory. And so the game entered its bullpen stage. This was not a smooth affair; batters often reached base, threatening to change the balance of power only to remain stagnant, forced to watch their teammates come up short. Twice the Twins loaded the bases. Both times they failed to net that critical damage-inducing knock. Twins hitting coach David Popkins was tossed in the 7th—the strike zone was nebulous all day—following a called third strike to Joey Gallo. Ironically, the call in question was correct; it was one of Nic Lentz’s best calls all night. So was the lone spark between the 4th and 9th. Both teams displayed a hideous understanding of hitting, working poor at-bats in crucial situations, leading to a slow and muddy affair—one dragging on far beyond any reasonable person’s tolerance for mediocre baseball. Until the sudden jolt. Gallo stepped up against Shintaro Fujinami, with Solano standing on 2nd. He received a fastball—Fujinami’s special—and turned it around with vigor, smoking a two-run shot into Oakland’s right field seats to give Minnesota the lead. The game was not done being mischievously annoying, though, as Jhoan Duran wobbled in the 9th, enough to sow real doubt regarding the potential win. He allowed a double and a single, bringing Brent Rooker to the plate as the go-ahead run. Duran plunked him with a curveball. Seth Brown now stood in the batter’s box, but he could not muster any magic, and his groundout to Julien mercifully ended a brutal 5-4 win for the Twins. Notes: Joey Gallo is now three homers away from tying his total from 2022; he has 234 plate appearances this year and earned 410 last year. Griffin Jax has not allowed an earned run since May 19th. Donovan Solano has reached base at least three times in three of his last six games. Post-Game Interview: What’s Next? The Twins and A’s play the second game of their weekend series on Saturday. Pablo López returns from his first All-Star game to pitch against Hobie Harris; first pitch is at 6:07 PM. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet View full article

The same old story took place in Atlanta this afternoon. Kenta Maeda limited to Braves to only two runs through five, the bullpen was mostly solid, but the offense was unable to spark a rally against the strong Braves’ pitching. The Twins get swept for the second time this season and may lose first place for the first time since April 10 with a Cleveland win later today. Image courtesy of Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Kenta Maeda, 5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K (82 pitches, 53 strikes, 64.6%) Home Runs: none Bottom 3 WPA: Kyle Farmer (-.109), Joey Gallo (-.103), Michael A. Taylor (-.098) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) The Twins came into this game looking to avoid their second sweep of the season and perhaps gain some momentum ahead of the Baltimore series. But that would be no simple task: the Braves, who currently have the best record in the National League, have kept the Twins' offense on a leash in the first two games of the series. This afternoon, they brought lefty Kolby Allard to the mound, and with the Twins having the third-worst OPS against lefties in all of baseball (.666), the task seemed even harder. If the Twins were to have a chance in this game, they would need to rely heavily on their pitching to keep them alive, and based on their starter’s track record against today’s opponents, their chances looked good (in theory). Making his sixth start of the season, the second since returning from the Injured List, Kenta Maeda was looking to have another solid start, similar to the one he had last Friday when he tossed five scoreless with eight strikeouts against the Tigers. Maeda had a 2.00 ERA against the Braves in his previous three starts against the Braves, his lowest ERA against any single opponent in his career. After the offense fell down in order with three strikeouts in the top of the first, Maeda was off to a strong start, but a defensive miscue in right field allowed the Braves to get on the board first. Joey Gallo dropped an apparently easy foul ball near the railing, allowing Ronald Acuña Jr. to work out a walk and later score on a Matt Olson two-out double. Without any sign of life from the Twins lineup, the Braves scored another run in the third, taking advantage of back-to-back singles given up by Maeda to open the inning, followed by an RBI sac-fly. Allard looked fantastic through four, allowing no runs, just two hits, and striking out six, having tossed only 51 pitches. But in the fifth, the Twins' offense put together its first real threat of the game. Alex Kirilloff hit a leadoff single and was followed by a Christian Vázquez walk, and for the first time in the game, the Twins had two men on with no outs. Allard fought back and retired the next two batters but was removed from the game despite having thrown only 71 total pitches. Kirby Yates took over and struck out Donovan Solano to end the inning. With that out, the Twins were 0-for-22 with runners in scoring position in this series. After giving up back-to-back hits in the third, Maeda went on to limit Braves hitters to 2-for-10 with a walk, completing five once again. This was the second time this season in which he’s tossed at least five innings in two consecutive starts, but only the first time he does so while also allowing two or fewer runs in each start since July 9, 2021. He did his part by keeping the Twins' chances alive, but the offense would need to step up if Minnesota was going to steal this game. Jovani Morán took over in the seventh and, like Maeda, kept Minnesota alive by tossing two scoreless frames next. Yates retired the side with ease in the sixth, but hopes went up when Willi Castro hit a leadoff single in the seventh. But after a couple of short-lived at-bats, Vázquez grounded into an inning-ending double play, and all hope was gone. The offense was a no-show again in the eighth, but Jordan Balazovic got two quick outs in the bottom of the inning, seemingly keeping the Twins’ chances alive too. But that didn’t last long: in the very next at-bat, he gave up a solo home run to Olson, making it 3-0 Atlanta. A three-run deficit isn’t an impossible one to overcome… if you’re not the current Twins offense. The bats went down in order in the top of the ninth against closer Raisel Iglesias. Postgame interview What’s Next? The Twins travel to Baltimore, where they’ll enjoy a day off on Thursday and start a three-game series against the Orioles on Friday (6/30). Taking the mound for Minnesota is Pablo López (3-5, 4.41 ERA), while the O’s turn to Dean Kremer (8-3, 4.50 ERA). The series opener’s first pitch is scheduled for 6:05 pm CDT. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet SAT SUN MON TUE WED TOT Balazovic 6 18 0 0 18 42 Headrick 0 6 0 35 0 41 Pagán 30 0 8 0 0 38 Morán 0 0 0 0 36 36 Ortega 0 0 0 32 0 32 Winder 0 0 19 0 0 19 Jax 0 17 0 0 0 17 Durán 0 15 0 0 0 15 View full article

Relief pitchers and bullpens as a whole are volatile by nature. Often times it can months for pitchers and bullpens to “recover” statistically from even one bad outing. While it can be challenging to not magnify bullpen blow ups, it’s important to understand that the Twins actually have a good bullpen. View full video

The Twins hit a lefty, the bullpen holds serve, but Buxton leaves the game early. Image courtesy of © Jonathan Hui-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Louis Varland: 5 IP 6 H 2 ER 1 BB 4 SO (92 P, 62 Strikes, 65.2%) Home Runs: Gallo (11), Top 3 WPA: Jovani Moran (0.226), Kyle Farmer (0.119), Trevor Larnach (0.10) Win Probability Chart (Via Fangraphs): Buxton Uses Speed, Then Leaves Game Byron Buxton was all over the bases in the early innings, going first to third by way of deking the outfielder on two separate occasions, pretending to slow down as he approached second base before turning on the jets and reaching third easily. Both times, as well as after beating out a double play, Buxton got up slowly while grimacing. This has been a common occurrence this year, although Buxton has made numerous game changing plays with his speed despite the pain. Today may have been a bridge too far, as he was removed for a pinch hitter in the sixth, with the initial diagnosis being “leg tightness.” The Buxton-playing-center-field train retreats deeper back into the station. Varland Holds it Together, Continues Run of Success Coming off of two excellent outings against the Padres and Cubs, Louie Varland was solid for the most part. He got off to an auspicious start, with both his pitchcomm and backup pitchcomm devices malfunctioning and home plate umpire Roberto Ortiz gesticulating like he was just told his plane was overbooked. Varland kept his composure and even struck out Shohei Ohtani looking to end the first, although the pitch was a fastball right where Ohtani likes it. Varland settled in and continued to dot the edges of the strike zone with his fastball while working in some decent cutters. A misplaced slider and cutter to the middle of the Angel’s order in the fourth led to an Angels run, and a fat fastball in the sixth allowed Ohtani to get extended and make the game 4-2 with a long home run to right center. Twins Hit a Lefty? The Twins have struggled against left-handed starters all year, and were thoroughly deconstructed by lefty Reid Detmers on Friday. On Saturday, the Twins faced a more accomplished lefty in Patrick Sandoval, who finished with a sub 3.00 ERA in 2022 and is off to a good start this year. Armed with an effective changeup and slider, Sandoval struggled to spot his fastball in the first, allowing the Twins to work deep counts, and for Kyle Garlick and Farmer to contribute RBI singles. Sandoval settled in after that, but Twins batters still worked him hard and he was done after striking out Garlick with two outs in the fifth. Bullpen Pitches Four Scoreless Starting with Jovani Moran’s great effort cleaning up Varland’s mess in the sixth, Jorge Lopez, Brock Stewart, and Jhoan Duran made quick work of the powerful Angels lineup, looking dominant and delivering a relatively stress-free win after struggling as a unit for the first four games of the current west coast road trip. Rocco Biffs His Challenge There was a curious play in the first inning, when, after Garlick’s single made the game 2-0, Willi Castro was asked to sacrifice and did so successfully, bringing in Farmer for the third run of the inning. Castro hustled down the line and was close enough to being safe that Rocco Baldelli decided to challenge the call. The replays were pretty inconclusive so the decision was potentially damaging. Jared Walsh Returns, Doesn’t Kill Twins Wisconsin native Jared Walsh, an All-Star in 2021, made his return to the Angels' active roster after recovering from a disturbing neurological disorder in which he lost depth perception, experienced intense tremors, and was unable to sleep with any regularity. He also underwent surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome, a difficult condition to come back from in its own right, during his recovery. He went 0-4 and popped out a bunt attempt, but it is good to see him back. What’s Next: Pablo López (2-2, 4.00 ERA) will try to deliver the Twins a road series win opposing wunderkind Shohei Ohtani (5-1, 3.23 ERA). López has been inconsistent since signing his extension, logging a 6.11 ERA in five starts. Ohtano has been human on the mound lately, giving up five runs to the Orioles in his most recent start. Postgame Interviews: Bullpen Usage Chart View full article

The only way to beat the Dodgers: have their old players on your team. Image courtesy of Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Bailey Ober: 6 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K (102 pitches, 65 strikes) Home Run: Kyle Farmer (3) Top 3 WPA: Bailey Ober (.259), Jovani Moran (.165), Kyle Farmer (.135) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Even the gruffest amongst us could not fault him if he did it. Clayton Kershaw lost his mother on Saturday. Suffering a painful Mother’s Day and coming to terms with life without one his most crucial supporters, Kershaw insisted on making his scheduled start, hopefully using baseball as the emotional crutch so many others before have done. Heartless—and cruel—the Twins allowed no time for grievance: a leadoff double by Donovan Solano begat a Kyle Farmer single beyond the infield, plating a rare early run off the future Hall-of-Famer. And so the game stayed during its first act. Bailey Ober found similar challenges in his time on the mound—hits, general chicanery—while his command swayed in the gentle California breeze. Perhaps fortune or gumption aided him, but in any case, Ober was able to avoid the damaging blow Minnesota earned against their opponent. It wasn’t from a lack of trying by the Dodgers: they placed two runners on in the opening frame before flailing meekly to end the inning. Things got crazier in the 4th, however; Max Muncy attempted to swipe home on a double steal; a wise Solano anticipated his move and promptly threw him out by many feet. The Dodgers likely felt the need to press because the Twins again jumped on Kershaw. A walk and two singles added a second run to Minnesota’s total, with Willi Castro providing the clutch hit on a slicing single into left. Underpinning all the offense was a truly bizarre inability by Austin Barnes to throw the baseball to second base. The catcher has struggled with baserunners all season, and—despite their stagnant nature—the Twins pushed firmly on that pressure point at all times, leading to four total steals and a disengagement violation when Kershaw tried to save his backstop from embarrassment in the 4th. The opportunity for small-ball shenanigans was great, and Minnesota embraced it fully in the 5th, earning a run off a walk, steal, groundout, hit by pitch, and safety squeeze bunt. And Ober held up his end of the bargain. A shaky opening to his start gave way to solid, effective, normal Bailey Ober proceedings; the big right-hander ended his night after six innings with one earned run to his name and more than a few warning track threats. The Twins could avoid it no longer, though, and the game shifted to a battle between the bullpens. Both exhausted after a nightmare game on Monday, the onerous was on Minnesota to defend the lead, placing their relief arms in a much more precarious position. Brock Stewart was the first hero, and he could only muster two outs after his 28 pitches last night. Jovani Moran then stepped up the mound, immediately walked Freddie Freeman on four pitches, and coaxed a soft fly out from Chris Taylor on the only strike he threw in the inning. The Twins needed six more outs. Yet, somehow, as if the forces surrounding the game joined together in one miraculous effort, Moran made it through a clean 8th inning, eliciting three outs with relative ease. And the same forces grew from a quiet grin to a shining smile in the 9th, observing the Twins’ lost work from the previous night and realizing that a correction was in order: Farmer extended the lead with a relieving two-run shot just above the outfield wall. Dodgers fans left their seats in frustration. It finally ended. Minnesota’s 18-year drought of winning at Dodgers’ stadium, Clayton Kershaw’s nearly two-year grip on winning on his home turf, and whatever demons have cursed Griffin Jax in 2023 all came to an end. Post-Game Interview What’s Next? The Twins and Dodgers will partake in a day game on Wednesday as Sonny Gray will face off opposite Dustin May. The game starts at 2:10 PM central time. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet View full article

A lot of discussions have been had this season about the long relief role in the Twins bullpen, but middle relief is becoming more of a topic as those they have in place continue to struggle. Who could step in and fill such a role? Image courtesy of Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports The Twins have a strong top of the bullpen in Jhoan Duran, Jorge Lopez, Griffin Jax, and Caleb Thielbar. They also have a surplus of long relievers they’ve cycled through to begin the season. The bullpen problems have mostly fallen into the low-leverage, middle-relief tier, which so far has been occupied by the ineffective duo of Emilio Pagán and Jovani Morán. It may be time for the Twins to get creative. The Twins have already begun searching for an internal addition for what it’s worth. Brock Stewart was called up Tuesday after 8+ innings and 17 strikeouts in Triple-A to begin the season. The 31-year-old former top prospect may not be the most exciting option based on his age and career thus far, but the recent performance gives hope that Stewart has made some changes and can carry them over to the big league level. However, the Twins should pivot to other options if it doesn't pan out. The depth of the aforementioned “long reliever” group in Triple-A is nice in theory, but one could argue that such depth for this role is a bit overkill. Cole Sands, Simeon Woods Richardson , and Brent Headrick are all on the 40-man roster and have been used at the big-league level thus far. Jose De Leon and Randy Dobnak remain as options who could be added if needed. Their performances aren’t as inspiring, but considering they’d be pitching almost exclusively in blowouts, it’s easy to argue it doesn’t much matter. Woods Richardson remains a legitimate starting pitching prospect, with Headrick and Sands less so. Rather than having five candidates for a role that may come in handy once per week, the Twins should be looking to transition one of these options into a traditional reliever. Focusing more on Headrick and Sands assuming Woods Richardson will continue taking the mound every fifth day, there’s reason to believe either one could come up and settle into a traditional middle innings role. The benefits of changing a bulk innings pitcher into a traditional reliever have been covered plenty at this point. The velo ticks up, and they can throw their best pitches more often. Brent Headrick is averaging around 92 mph on the fastball in his debut season, and he grades out tremendously in command with a usable changeup to equalize his left-handedness against right-handed hitters. He’s a prime candidate to be one of the many fringe starting pitching prospects who move to the bullpen and flourish as we’ve seen in recent years. Sands has been an option for a similar move for a year-plus now because of his wicked breaking ball. He hasn’t been a full-time starter since 2021, and it may be time to crack the door open to a consistent big-league job and see if he can kick it in. They could also pivot on Josh Winder, who’s on the rehab trail in St. Paul, though he’s also filled a multi-inning role in four of his five outings thus far. His inability to hold up to a starters' workload could be solved by putting him into a traditional reliever role given his issues with the fastball and impressive slider. The Twins have no shortage of options, and it’s becoming untenable to maintain such long relief depth to cycle guys in and out of a role at the MLB level that’s so unplanned and rarely utilized. Especially when it’s become clear that there are little to no situations in which the Twins have a lead where Emilio Pagán and Jovani Morán can be trusted to get even three outs. Hopefully, Brock Stewart’s minor league stuff translates, but the Twins should be working on a backup option now in case it doesn’t. Worst case scenario, Stewart grabs the job and runs with it, and another option establishes themselves in Triple-A in case they’re needed. They have more than enough long relief depth with not many answers in middle relief. Is it time to start actively seeking out more internal relief options? View full article

A patient approach from the Twins lineup, Joey Gallo’s biggest home run on the year, and Sonny Gray dominating hitters to recapture the number one spot as Major League Baseball’s ERA leaderboard. All this and more in Monday night’s Twins' victory over the New York Yankees. Image courtesy of Jesse Johnson, USA Today Sports Box Score SP: Sonny Gray 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 8 K (107 pitches, 66 strikes (61.6% strikes)) Home Runs: Joey Gallo (6) Top 3 WPA: Sonny Gray .267, Jorge Polanco .165, Michael A. Taylor .078 Win Probability Chart It was the top of the eighth. Griffin Jax versus Anthony Rizzo, bases loaded with two outs. The Twins were in crisis mode. Sonny Gray had dominated through seven innings shutting the Yankees down 5-0, but it could be an entirely new ball game with one swing from Rizzo. What would happen? Pitch one; 96 mph fastball, called strike one. Pitch two; 86 mph sweeper, fouled off. Pitch three; 87 mph sweeper; swing and a miss by Rizzo. Crisis averted for the Twins, a 5-0 lead maintained as the Twins went to bat once more in the bottom of the eighth. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be the last Yankees rally of the game. The ninth inning went to Jovani Moran with a 6-0 lead. His struggles showed before an out was made. A walk, a single, then another walk. The nightmares caused Twins fans by the Yankees were awakening once more. However, the baseball gods felt a need to show grace to the Twins just as the nightmare came alive. First a force out to Jose Miranda at third. One out, but a run scored, 6-1, Twins lead. Then a fly out to Trevor Larnach in foul territory, out number two. Finally, Moran would have a moment of redemption on the mound by striking out former Twins outfielder Aaron Hicks to end the game. Gray improves his MLB-best ERA Sonny Gray looked as sharp as ever Monday night against the Yankees. With his command of the strike zone and strong defense behind him, the Yankees couldn’t get any momentum against him. Gray wasn’t striking hitters out constantly, but averaging a strikeout per inning had him keeping the Yankees hitters in check. His biggest strikeout of the game came against Aaron Judge with two out and a runner on in the bottom of the sixth. Gray retired him on a nasty 83 MPH slider Judge chased outside the zone, and kept the Yankees from chipping at the Twins' 4-0 lead at a pivotal moment. Even with a low strikeout total, Gray still had a good number of swings-and-misses which showed his sharpness. The Yankees swung and missed on his pitches 18 times missing on his curveball eight times and cutter seven times. Gray’s seven shutout innings brought his ERA on the season down to 0.62. Exiting after the seventh, he had the Major League lead for ERA, passing Shohei Ohtani who held the lead going into the night at 0.64. A Different Approach Against Brito Last time the Twins faced Yankees starter Jhony Brito he didn't make it out of the first inning. This time Brito went deeper, but the Twins' offense took a different approach against him; working his pitch count up early in the game. Brito faced the minimum in his first inning and only walked one batter in the second, but with Twins hitters working the count in each at-bat, he had thrown 42 pitches through two innings. Working a high pitch count through two innings paid off for the Twins' offense as they mustered a bases-loaded threat with no outs in the bottom of the third. With one out and the bases loaded, Jorge Polanco drove in the first two runs of the game with a single to right field. Yankees manager Aaron Boone had enough of Brito before the third inning was over. Seven of the Twins almost doubled his pitch count at 80 for the evening which resulted in two walks, three singles, a strikeout, and an RBI ground out by Byron Buxton. No Brito, no problem Brito’s early exit from the game made no difference for the Twins hitters as the Yankees bullpen would be dealt further implosion from their offense. It began with another Joey Gallo home run, perhaps his most satisfying of the season so-far, which put the Twins up 4-0 in the bottom of the fourth. The Twins knocked out the Yankees' first reliever, Greg Weissert, in the next inning with a career-high pitch count at 39 following a two-out single to Larnach. Albert Abreu was next out of the Yankees bullpen. He walked the first two hitters he faced but got out of his jam with a lineout by Christian Vazquez. The Twins still managed to get Abreu’s pitch count to 15 with just three batters. Only one Yankees pitcher managed to throw fewer than 20 pitches against Twins hitters. Wandy Peralta had a nine pitch, one, two, three, seventh inning. Otherwise, the Twins hitters were cooking Yankee arms all game on the mound. Other notes The Twins last run of the game came from an impressive RBI triple by Carlos Correa. With some luck and a bad read by Yankee right fielder Franchy Cordero, Correa got the big break he needed at the plate in the game to put the Twins up 6-0. His triple made him the last Twin to reach base in the 6-0 victory. What’s Next? The Twins play their second game of the series against the Yankees on Tuesday night with Joe Ryan facing off against All Star lefty Nestor Cortes. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. Postgame Interview Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet View full article

Jovani Morán has had a rough start to the season that came to a head Tuesday night in Boston when he entered in the 10th inning and turned a two-run lead into a loss. Should we expect more from him moving forward? Image courtesy of Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports Jovani Moran has been far from the pitcher he showed he could be in 2022. Granted, he mostly saw low leverage, but his 2.21 ERA across 40+ innings was enough for the Twins to pencil him into a bullpen role in 2023. Despite his rough start, there are reasons to continue to hope for more from the left-handed reliever. Morán’s biggest flaw has been control throughout his entire career. He’s rarely been able to put up walk rates under 10% but has ascended to the MLB level because of the rest of his skills. Morán is a unicorn, as his out pitch is a wicked changeup that has helped stave off traditional platoon splits against right-handed hitters. He’s managed eye-popping strikeout rates at every level and has avoided the longball to an impressive degree. Morán’s walk rate has increased from 11% in 2022 to 14% in 2023. It’s a fine line to walk, but a familiar one for Morán thus far in his career. Unlike past seasons, the rest of his skills haven’t been up to snuff to bail him out. The strikeout rate has been acceptable at 25.6%, but it's a far cry from the near 33% mark from 2022. More importantly, Morán has already allowed two homers in seven innings pitched so far. He’s never allowed even one home run per nine innings pitched in his career across a full season. Can we hope for a bounce back? It’s worth noting that Morán’s ugly outing on Tuesday could have gone a lot differently had his strikeout to begin the inning not resulted in the hitter reaching first base. He did walk a batter, but allowed three hits, none of which surpassed an 80.6 mph exit velocity. It was the weirdest game the Twins have played all season, and Morán was on the tough end of plenty of said weirdness in the 10th. Most of his ERA indicators aren’t great, but they all show some bad luck regarding his 7.27 ERA, and his xERA weighing the quality of contact he’s allowed is only 3.45. The walks aren’t going away, but some of the poorly hit balls should start finding gloves. It's also fair to wonder whether Morán has a stretch of avoiding the long ball in him after showing such a strong aversion throughout the minors and into his big league career. Morán may not be perfect, but he should be better. In regards to Morán’s role, I think we all know that he’ll likely never be the first to get the call in situations like Tuesday. The Twins were out of their traditional high-leverage relievers and didn’t want to turn to rookie Brent Headrick or open the door for another Emilio Pagán disaster. It was an unfortunate situation with a poor result, but Morán was scheduled for a return to low leverage regardless of the outcome. Jovani Morán should be better moving forward. The walks may keep him from moving too far up the bullpen hierarchy, but the strikeouts and aversion to homers should make him a perfectly usable MLB reliever. The Twins also don’t exactly have another reliever beating down the door in Triple-A. As frustrating as the loss was, he’s still a 25-year-old with team control through 2029. It’s very possible we look back on Tuesday’s nightmare outing as having little bearing on the pitcher he is. It’s not time to give up on Jovani Morán. View full article