David Ortiz got credit for the game-winning hit again, tapping a slow dribbler toward first base that Phil Dumatrait failed to field because he tripped over his own feet attempting to get the out. A fitting way for Minnesota to allow the go-ahead run to score, and an epitome of their season as a whole. It was their sixth consecutive loss, and they still have one more game against Boston tonight.
That's a pretty swift fall from grace, as the Twins are now 14 games under .500. After a middling road trip, the Minnesota Twins returned home and have completely fallen apart. They suffered a demoralizing sweep at the hands of the White Sox, a team they've owned over the past few years, and followed that up with two losses to open their series with the Red Sox. The starting pitching has been disastrous, with the only even decent start being Carl Pavano's from Sunday, when he went 8 innings and allowed two runs. Unless, of course, you want to count Francisco Liriano's "quality start" yesterday, a game in which he walked a career-high seven batters. He didn't even manage to throw half of his pitches for strikes, missing the zone on 56 of 109 pitches. Somehow, though, he squeezed and squirmed through six innings, giving up only three runs.
Liriano has been just one of the Twins' many problems in the starting rotation. In fact, with Scott Baker headed to the disabled list again, every piece of the rotation has become a problem. Liriano can't throw strikes, as evidenced by his 5.09 BB/9 rate for the season. The issue has been particularly acute of late: over his last seven starts, he's struck out only 1.16 batters for every walk and as a result has allowed opposing batters to get on base over 40% of the time. And, oddly enough, Nick Blackburn has had the same problem. Now, normally Blackburn allows hits like he's throwing the game, but his control and ability to limit walks makes him at least sort of effective. All of a sudden, though, he can't do that either, as he's walked 11 batters over his last two starts. Amazingly, in his last three starts, Blackburn has pitched 12.1 innings and given up 28 (28!) hits and 39 (39!) baserunners. That's a problem if I've ever seen one.
Throw in Brian Duensing, whose struggles against right-handed hitters have seriously limited his effectiveness, and Carl Pavano, whose already-low strikeout rate has dropped to the worst in the majors this year, and the Twins have a rotation that ranks among the worst in the league, and certainly as one of the most hittable. And, finally, with all that being true, Kevin Slowey gets his first starting opportunity only because the Twins' sole starter having a good season finds himself on the DL for the second time.
It's amazing that it's taken this long. Obviously I don't know exactly what caused a seemingly enormous rift between the Minnesota organization, Ron Gardenhire in particular, and Slowey, but it's unfathomable that through all these struggles Slowey has yet to make a start this season. Sure, Slowey figures to give up just as many hits as the other guys in the rotation, but his proven ability to maintain one of the lowest walk rates in the league makes him a superior option. The guy is in his prime at age 27 and has a 4.43 ERA, a 4.21 FIP, and a 1.28 WHIP over 488 career innings--he should never have been demoted to the bullpen in the first place. Those numbers may not look all that impressive, but they compare favorably with all of the pitchers currently in the rotation (with Baker injured). Unlike the Minnesota organization, I am glad to Slowey returning to the big league club in a starting capacity.
Showing posts with label scott baker. Show all posts
Showing posts with label scott baker. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Twins Crank 5 Homers to Beat Angels
Coming off of three consecutive losses in which the starting pitchers had combined to allow 36 walks-plus-hits and 19 runs in 14.1 innings, the Twins could really have used a strong start from Scott Baker. Instead Baker continued the miserable run of starting pitching, tacking on just 3 innings to the totals, but adding 6 walks-plus-hits and 4 runs. Anthony Swarzak was up to the task, however, pitching 5 excellent innings of relief, allowing only one hit and one walk.
The game actually started smoothly for Baker, and through the first two innings he was looking effective. Everything completely unraveled in the third frame, though, as he was forced to throw 46 pitches to make it through the disastrous inning. While Swarzak held the Angels down, the bats ensured the win. The Twins tied their season high in runs with 11, hit 5 home runs, and tallied 7 extra base hits. The 5 home runs are also a season-high, and a feat the team has accomplished only two other times since 2008. Michael Cuddyer and Delmon Young had two home runs each, the first time that two Twins players have both had multi-homer games since October of 2009. That time it was Young and Jason Kubel who victimized the Kansas City Royals. Kubel also added the fifth home run in this game.
Minnesota was aided by Horacio Ramirez, who was brought up by the Angels to toss batting practice before games, but was mistakenly identified as a real pitcher by Mike Scioscia. Seriously, since he was called up he has faced 20 hitters and given up 10 hits and 2 walks. Of course it's a really small sample, but so far the returns indicate that when you bring in a a 31-year old pitcher who was never very good to begin with, has a career WHIP of 1.49, and has almost as many strikeouts as walks over his career... well, he's not really going to pitch that well. The Twins, one would hope, learned this lesson long ago after their attempts to bring in Sidney Ponson, Ramon Ortiz, Livan Hernandez, and every veteran innings eater who can't get a contract with any other team because they are terrible.
The game actually started smoothly for Baker, and through the first two innings he was looking effective. Everything completely unraveled in the third frame, though, as he was forced to throw 46 pitches to make it through the disastrous inning. While Swarzak held the Angels down, the bats ensured the win. The Twins tied their season high in runs with 11, hit 5 home runs, and tallied 7 extra base hits. The 5 home runs are also a season-high, and a feat the team has accomplished only two other times since 2008. Michael Cuddyer and Delmon Young had two home runs each, the first time that two Twins players have both had multi-homer games since October of 2009. That time it was Young and Jason Kubel who victimized the Kansas City Royals. Kubel also added the fifth home run in this game.
Minnesota was aided by Horacio Ramirez, who was brought up by the Angels to toss batting practice before games, but was mistakenly identified as a real pitcher by Mike Scioscia. Seriously, since he was called up he has faced 20 hitters and given up 10 hits and 2 walks. Of course it's a really small sample, but so far the returns indicate that when you bring in a a 31-year old pitcher who was never very good to begin with, has a career WHIP of 1.49, and has almost as many strikeouts as walks over his career... well, he's not really going to pitch that well. The Twins, one would hope, learned this lesson long ago after their attempts to bring in Sidney Ponson, Ramon Ortiz, Livan Hernandez, and every veteran innings eater who can't get a contract with any other team because they are terrible.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Twins Update: Starting Rotation, Morneau, Mauer
The Twins hit the All-Star break in a bit of a slide. They lost four games in a row before their series-salvaging win yesterday against Detroit and enter the break in third place. Of course it was none other than Carl Pavano who stepped up and pitched an excellent game to put the Twins in position to win. That followed terrible outings from the Twins' previous two starters, Francisco Liriano and Nick Blackburn. Blackburn has been nothing short of horrendous the entire year, which is unfortunate considering a) the Twins signed him to a 4-year deal in the offseason, and b) he's been in the starting rotation the entire year!
I continue to have faith in Liriano, despite some struggles over his last couple of starts. Maybe that's just the fantasy owner in me--since I own him in both of my leagues--but his FIP is still a dazzling 2.19, even after Friday's meltdown, and his xFIP is just 2.97. Blackburn, however, has no such redeeming features. Since the beginning of June, he's lasted more than four innings in just three of his eight starts. Not coincidentally, those three starts are the only ones in that span in which he's walked more batters than he's struck out. In total, he's walked 14 batters against just 17 strikeouts and allowed 43 runs (40 earned) in 36 innings. Yes, his ERA is over nine during that period, which is pretty easy to do when you've surrendered at least 4 runs in all but one start.
Scott Baker is another guy who I have a fantasy investment in, and a lot of patience with. The cortisone shot he had this past weekend is a little worrisome, but hopefully the extra rest will solve that problem. Otherwise, I am very confident in Baker. It's just maddening how poorly he's doing considering his peripheral stats. He's walking a career low number of batters, and he's striking them out at a career-high rate. His K:BB ratio on the season is an even 5.00, good for third in the Majors, and he still continues to be battered around on the mound.
That number ranks behind only Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay, and just ahead of Jered Weaver, Dan Haren, Zack Greinke, and Josh Johnson. That sounds like some pretty good company to me. Incidentally, the Twins have 4 of the top 16 pitchers in K:BB ratio, with Liriano placing 12th (3.90), Pavano 13th (3.82), and Kevin Slowey 16th (3.58). The one starter not ranked near the top is, of course, Blackburn, who ranks in the bottom ten with his typically embarrassing mark of 1.26.
Back to Baker, though. His recent run has been particularly frustrating. Even though he has struck out 25 batters in his last four starts (23.1 innings) and walked ZERO, he's managed to give up 17 runs. If you go back one more start, he's struck out 37 batters and walked one over his last 30.1 innings, so suffice to say, I just don't understand how he can possibly continue putting up those ugly surface numbers.
The MVPs are both banged up now, with Justin Morneau suffering from a blow to the head and Joe Mauer dealing with general catcher fatigue. Generally I think baseball players are pretty much wimps, but anything involving a head injury or the soreness from catching have my sympathy. (A quick aside: physical exhaustion from DHing a few days in a row certainly qualifies as one of the things that gives me that impression. I'm looking at you, Jim Thome.) With Morneau, I think back to the time when he was hit in the head with a pitch all the way back in 2005. He never seemed to fully recover during the season, and struggled to his worst statistical year by far. This, however, seems much less serious--and Morneau has said it doesn't feel anything like that time--but I still keep that in the back of my mind.
While Morneau's injury will prevent him from starting or playing in the All-Star game on Tuesday, all indications are that Mauer will play. If he was sore enough that he couldn't play yesterday, I'd like to see him sit it out, but then again I would be disappointed if neither Mauer nor Morneau were able to play since it would also mean the Twins would not be represented on the playing field.
Just as I have faith in Liriano and Baker, I have faith in the Twins as a whole. I still think they are the best team in the division, and I think they will prove it in the second half.
I continue to have faith in Liriano, despite some struggles over his last couple of starts. Maybe that's just the fantasy owner in me--since I own him in both of my leagues--but his FIP is still a dazzling 2.19, even after Friday's meltdown, and his xFIP is just 2.97. Blackburn, however, has no such redeeming features. Since the beginning of June, he's lasted more than four innings in just three of his eight starts. Not coincidentally, those three starts are the only ones in that span in which he's walked more batters than he's struck out. In total, he's walked 14 batters against just 17 strikeouts and allowed 43 runs (40 earned) in 36 innings. Yes, his ERA is over nine during that period, which is pretty easy to do when you've surrendered at least 4 runs in all but one start.
Scott Baker is another guy who I have a fantasy investment in, and a lot of patience with. The cortisone shot he had this past weekend is a little worrisome, but hopefully the extra rest will solve that problem. Otherwise, I am very confident in Baker. It's just maddening how poorly he's doing considering his peripheral stats. He's walking a career low number of batters, and he's striking them out at a career-high rate. His K:BB ratio on the season is an even 5.00, good for third in the Majors, and he still continues to be battered around on the mound.
That number ranks behind only Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay, and just ahead of Jered Weaver, Dan Haren, Zack Greinke, and Josh Johnson. That sounds like some pretty good company to me. Incidentally, the Twins have 4 of the top 16 pitchers in K:BB ratio, with Liriano placing 12th (3.90), Pavano 13th (3.82), and Kevin Slowey 16th (3.58). The one starter not ranked near the top is, of course, Blackburn, who ranks in the bottom ten with his typically embarrassing mark of 1.26.
Back to Baker, though. His recent run has been particularly frustrating. Even though he has struck out 25 batters in his last four starts (23.1 innings) and walked ZERO, he's managed to give up 17 runs. If you go back one more start, he's struck out 37 batters and walked one over his last 30.1 innings, so suffice to say, I just don't understand how he can possibly continue putting up those ugly surface numbers.
The MVPs are both banged up now, with Justin Morneau suffering from a blow to the head and Joe Mauer dealing with general catcher fatigue. Generally I think baseball players are pretty much wimps, but anything involving a head injury or the soreness from catching have my sympathy. (A quick aside: physical exhaustion from DHing a few days in a row certainly qualifies as one of the things that gives me that impression. I'm looking at you, Jim Thome.) With Morneau, I think back to the time when he was hit in the head with a pitch all the way back in 2005. He never seemed to fully recover during the season, and struggled to his worst statistical year by far. This, however, seems much less serious--and Morneau has said it doesn't feel anything like that time--but I still keep that in the back of my mind.
While Morneau's injury will prevent him from starting or playing in the All-Star game on Tuesday, all indications are that Mauer will play. If he was sore enough that he couldn't play yesterday, I'd like to see him sit it out, but then again I would be disappointed if neither Mauer nor Morneau were able to play since it would also mean the Twins would not be represented on the playing field.
Just as I have faith in Liriano and Baker, I have faith in the Twins as a whole. I still think they are the best team in the division, and I think they will prove it in the second half.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
A Look Back at August
For the third time in five months, the Twins played exactly .500 ball, finishing August at 14-14. It was not a steady month, though, as the Twins played horrible baseball for the first half of the month, winning just 4 of 15 games, and then finished strong by winning 10 of their final 13 games. That culminated in Minnesota being above .500 for the first time since July 31st.
Record: 14-14
Best record at any point (games above .500): 66-65
Worst record at any point (games below .500): 56-62
Days in first (and biggest lead): 0 (2.5 GB)
Days in last (and furthest out of first): 0 (6.5 GB)
Longest win streak: 5 games
Longest losing streak: 3 games
Runs scored/runs against: 148/151
Most runs scored/most runs allowed: 11/14
Shutouts/times shut out: 2/1
Extra inning games: 1
Longest game: 10 innings
Hitter of the month: Joe Mauer (115 AB, 21 R, 8 HR, 23 RBI, 12 BB:9 K, 3 SB, .391/.449/.652)
It was another spectacular month in a monumental season for Joe Mauer. If not for a sub-par final week, this may have looked very similar to his performance in May when he hit over .400 and got on base half the time. In August, though, he threw in an added bonus of a few stolen bases to make his skill-set complete.
Bizarro World hitter of the month: Nick Punto (51 AB, 6 R, 0 HR, 5 RBI, 6 BB:16 K, 1 SB, .235/.310/.294)
For the fifth time in as many months, a middle infielder lands in this spot, and Punto receives it for the second time this year. Despite finally finding the bench towards the end of August, he did enough damage in his playing time to warrant this. He struck out in almost 1/3 of his at bats and yet again had a slugging percentage under .300, something he's avoided in only one month this season.
Pitcher of the month: Scott Baker (4-0, 39.2 IP, 33 H, 5 BB, 29 K, 3.18/0.96)
Baker continues to pitch well after a stint on the disabled list to start the season and a rough few weeks after that. In August he had his lowest ERA of any month and allowed opponents to bat just .220. In four of his six August starts he pitched at least seven innings, and in six of his last nine starts he's allowed 2 runs or fewer. Jose Mijares was the best reliever for the Twins in August.
Bizarro World pitcher of the month: Anthony Swarzak (0-4, 13.1 IP, 33 H, 3 BB, 8 K, 14.85/2.70)
He's back in Rochester now, but Swarzak made four starts for the Twins in August. He lost each of those four starts, lasting until the fifth inning just once, which isn't surprising when he allowed at least 5 runs in each start. In 16 fewer innings than Baker, he allowed the same number of hits because of the ridiculous .471 batting average opponents had against him. He also gave up as many home runs (8) as he had strikeouts.
Record: 14-14
Best record at any point (games above .500): 66-65
Worst record at any point (games below .500): 56-62
Days in first (and biggest lead): 0 (2.5 GB)
Days in last (and furthest out of first): 0 (6.5 GB)
Longest win streak: 5 games
Longest losing streak: 3 games
Runs scored/runs against: 148/151
Most runs scored/most runs allowed: 11/14
Shutouts/times shut out: 2/1
Extra inning games: 1
Longest game: 10 innings
Hitter of the month: Joe Mauer (115 AB, 21 R, 8 HR, 23 RBI, 12 BB:9 K, 3 SB, .391/.449/.652)
It was another spectacular month in a monumental season for Joe Mauer. If not for a sub-par final week, this may have looked very similar to his performance in May when he hit over .400 and got on base half the time. In August, though, he threw in an added bonus of a few stolen bases to make his skill-set complete.
Bizarro World hitter of the month: Nick Punto (51 AB, 6 R, 0 HR, 5 RBI, 6 BB:16 K, 1 SB, .235/.310/.294)
For the fifth time in as many months, a middle infielder lands in this spot, and Punto receives it for the second time this year. Despite finally finding the bench towards the end of August, he did enough damage in his playing time to warrant this. He struck out in almost 1/3 of his at bats and yet again had a slugging percentage under .300, something he's avoided in only one month this season.
Pitcher of the month: Scott Baker (4-0, 39.2 IP, 33 H, 5 BB, 29 K, 3.18/0.96)
Baker continues to pitch well after a stint on the disabled list to start the season and a rough few weeks after that. In August he had his lowest ERA of any month and allowed opponents to bat just .220. In four of his six August starts he pitched at least seven innings, and in six of his last nine starts he's allowed 2 runs or fewer. Jose Mijares was the best reliever for the Twins in August.
Bizarro World pitcher of the month: Anthony Swarzak (0-4, 13.1 IP, 33 H, 3 BB, 8 K, 14.85/2.70)
He's back in Rochester now, but Swarzak made four starts for the Twins in August. He lost each of those four starts, lasting until the fifth inning just once, which isn't surprising when he allowed at least 5 runs in each start. In 16 fewer innings than Baker, he allowed the same number of hits because of the ridiculous .471 batting average opponents had against him. He also gave up as many home runs (8) as he had strikeouts.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Connect four!
Perhaps my heart was right? With four consecutive victories, and six wins in their last seven games, the Twins are just 1 game under .500 and 1 game behind the White Sox. And depending on the outcome of the Tigers-Angels game, they could be only 3.5 back of division front-runner Detroit. Sure, their starting rotation is still a shambles, but with Scott Baker and Carl Pavano pitching well and Nick Blackburn doing much better in his last start, perhaps guys like Brian Duensing and Armando Gabino can do just enough to make it work.
The win against the Orioles, their fourth in a row, ties their longest win streak of the season; they've done it twice before, once in mid-May and once at the end of July. They could really use a longer one to help make up some of the remaining ground in a hurry. And their schedule right now is only helping, as they'll play 8 more games at home before they must leave the Metrodome. In all, 15 of their remaining 37 games are against winning ballclubs; what's amazing, though, is that after this weekend's series against Texas, they won't play another winning team outside of the AL Central. And now that Minnesota seems to be playing better, maybe that will actually gave them the edge they need.
In yesterday's game, Scott Baker was excellent, allowing only one run in seven innings. The Orioles managed just four hits and one walk, while striking out five times vs. Baker. He finally got some run support in the sixth when Alexi Casilla tripled to lead off and scored on a wild pitch. Jason Kubel pushed the go-ahead run across with a sacrifice fly that plated Denard Span.
After that, Baker got of a dangerous seventh, and then turned it over to Jose Mijares and Joe Nathan. Mijares breezed through the eighth, and it was looking like more of the same as Nathan struck out the first two batters in the ninth. Two walks later, however, had the tying run at second and Matt Wieters at the plate. He worked the count full--the third straight such count--before Nathan got him swinging to strike out the side and finish the game.
It was the Twins' first win while scoring fewer than 5 runs since July 29th, and their first victory while scoring 2 runs or fewer since June 30th.
The win against the Orioles, their fourth in a row, ties their longest win streak of the season; they've done it twice before, once in mid-May and once at the end of July. They could really use a longer one to help make up some of the remaining ground in a hurry. And their schedule right now is only helping, as they'll play 8 more games at home before they must leave the Metrodome. In all, 15 of their remaining 37 games are against winning ballclubs; what's amazing, though, is that after this weekend's series against Texas, they won't play another winning team outside of the AL Central. And now that Minnesota seems to be playing better, maybe that will actually gave them the edge they need.
In yesterday's game, Scott Baker was excellent, allowing only one run in seven innings. The Orioles managed just four hits and one walk, while striking out five times vs. Baker. He finally got some run support in the sixth when Alexi Casilla tripled to lead off and scored on a wild pitch. Jason Kubel pushed the go-ahead run across with a sacrifice fly that plated Denard Span.
After that, Baker got of a dangerous seventh, and then turned it over to Jose Mijares and Joe Nathan. Mijares breezed through the eighth, and it was looking like more of the same as Nathan struck out the first two batters in the ninth. Two walks later, however, had the tying run at second and Matt Wieters at the plate. He worked the count full--the third straight such count--before Nathan got him swinging to strike out the side and finish the game.
It was the Twins' first win while scoring fewer than 5 runs since July 29th, and their first victory while scoring 2 runs or fewer since June 30th.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Back on Track
After that sky-is-falling road trip, the Twins have now won three straight, including the last two over the rival White Sox. That also means the Twins are just two games behind Detroit, who lost again to Texas, and are tied with the White Sox at 51-50.
It didn't start so well last night, as Mark Buehrle picked up right where he left off from his perfect game, retiring the first 17 Twins hitters of the game. With that he broke the all-time record for consecutive outs recorded, putting him at 45 (41 was the previous record). Buehrle, I noticed, works very quickly, and that was evidenced by the fact that the Twins were only batting for 22 minutes total for the first five innings. A game that moved that fast would be over in 1 hour and 19 minutes.
But then Alexi Casilla walked to take away the perfect game, Denard Span singled to break up the no-hitter, and Joe Mauer doubled--on a play Scott Podsednik probably should have made--to tie the game at one. They came back out for the seventh with more of the same: 3 singles, a hit batsmen, and a sac bunt chased Buehrle, and Octavio Dotel followed with 3 walks before he was able to finish the inning. By then it was 5-1 Twins and Jose Mijares was in line for his first Major League win.
That's not to say that everything was positive. Scott Baker again struggled with his pitch count, despite not having any control problems. Though he pitched very well, it took him 115 pitches to get through six innings, even with 82 of them (71.3) being for strikes. And Bobby Keppel struggled again, continuing a recent trend (last 4 games: 3.2 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 4 BB, 1 K) showing that he, and the long relievers in general, are not going to be sufficient plugs for the bullpen.
This division is emminently winnable and a deal for Freddy Sanchez, as discussed in the last post, or a reliever, as I'll discuss later today, will make it the Twins for the taking.
It didn't start so well last night, as Mark Buehrle picked up right where he left off from his perfect game, retiring the first 17 Twins hitters of the game. With that he broke the all-time record for consecutive outs recorded, putting him at 45 (41 was the previous record). Buehrle, I noticed, works very quickly, and that was evidenced by the fact that the Twins were only batting for 22 minutes total for the first five innings. A game that moved that fast would be over in 1 hour and 19 minutes.
But then Alexi Casilla walked to take away the perfect game, Denard Span singled to break up the no-hitter, and Joe Mauer doubled--on a play Scott Podsednik probably should have made--to tie the game at one. They came back out for the seventh with more of the same: 3 singles, a hit batsmen, and a sac bunt chased Buehrle, and Octavio Dotel followed with 3 walks before he was able to finish the inning. By then it was 5-1 Twins and Jose Mijares was in line for his first Major League win.
That's not to say that everything was positive. Scott Baker again struggled with his pitch count, despite not having any control problems. Though he pitched very well, it took him 115 pitches to get through six innings, even with 82 of them (71.3) being for strikes. And Bobby Keppel struggled again, continuing a recent trend (last 4 games: 3.2 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 4 BB, 1 K) showing that he, and the long relievers in general, are not going to be sufficient plugs for the bullpen.
This division is emminently winnable and a deal for Freddy Sanchez, as discussed in the last post, or a reliever, as I'll discuss later today, will make it the Twins for the taking.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
April in Review
Be sure to scroll down and check out the monthly Minor League summary too!
April 2009 was a month without Joe Mauer, a month in which the pitching struggled to find its way, and a month in which the Twins wholly outperformed their Pythagorean win-loss record. But most importantly, it was the start of a new baseball season! Without further ado, let's run down the statistics from the month.
Record: 11-11
Best record at any point (games above .500): 3-2
Worst record at any point (games below .500): 4-7
Days in first (and biggest lead): 3 (0.5 games)
Days in last (and furthest out of first): 0 (2.5 games)
Longest win streak: 3
Longest losing streak: 3
Runs scored/runs against: 93/116
Most runs scored/most runs allowed: 12/12
Shutouts/times shut out: 0/2
Extra inning games: 1
Longest game: 11 innings
Hitter of the month: Jason Kubel (76 AB, 11 R, 4 HR, 16 RBI, 0 SB, .303)
It was a toss-up between Morneau and Kubel, with Denard Span an easy third. But I decided to reward Kubel because his April showed a bigger improvement over his career performance than Morneau's April, and he is typically a slow starter. Over the last two years, Kubel has hit .261/.288/.348 and .229/.250/.365 through the month of April, compared to his overall line for those two years of .272/.335/.461. Clearly, I don't think he's going to have a similar improvement the rest of the year as compared to his first month, but hopefully he'll be able to finish the year with much better stats because he didn't have a slow start holding him down.
Three more up
Justin Morneau (88 AB, 16 R, 5 HR, 18 RBI, 0 SB, .318)
Denard Span (81 AB, 10 R, 1 HR, 12 RBI, 5 SB, .321)
Brendan Harris (40 AB, 7 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 0 SB, .350)
Bizarro World hitter of the month: Alexi Casilla (69 AB, 6 R, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 2 SB, .174)
With Carlos Gomez, Delmon Young, and Michael Cuddyer's struggles (among others), you wouldn't have thought this decision would have been so easy... but it was. Casilla has been so much worse than any of them, it's just plain shocking. Casilla's OPS thus far is .447. That's almost a full 100 points lower than Gomez's, who has the second-lowest OPS on the team. That's also well over 100 points worse than Kubel's (or Morneau's) slugging percentage! Out of 198 qualified batters, he ranks 193rd in average, 194th in OBP SLG, and 197th in OPS. Now you know why it was an easy decision.
Pitcher of the month: Glen Perkins (29 IP, 2.48, 1.00, 6 BB, 16 K)
While all of the other, more-heralded starters struggled, Perkins put up three consecutive 8-inning outings before getting knocked around a little in his fourth (and most recent) start. All in all, though, Perkins finished the month with the lowest ERA of any of the starters by a full run and a half, and only Jose Mijares and his 3 scoreless innings had a lower ERA among the relievers. He also maintained a WHIP of 1.00 and allowed zero home runs. What is most telling about the pitching this month is that, despite their poor starts, Slowey and Blackburn were both able to rebound and get listed below.
Three more up
Nick Blackburn (31.1 IP, 4.02, 1.37, 7 BB, 12 K)
Joe Nathan (7 IP, 2.57, 1.00, 2 BB, 7 K)
Kevin Slowey (26.1 IP, 4.44, 1.44, 2 BB, 19 K)
Bizarro World pitcher of the month: Scott Baker (14.2 IP, 9.82, 1.70, 4 BB, 12 K)
Baker missed his first start due to an injury, but his return was not as sweet as a Twins fan would have hoped for. He gave up seven home runs total and six runs in each of his two starts, and not coincidentally did not make it out of the fifth inning in either. His last start was decent and most likely indicates those horrible times are behind him, though it wasn't enough to keep him from this unfortunate honor.
April 2009 was a month without Joe Mauer, a month in which the pitching struggled to find its way, and a month in which the Twins wholly outperformed their Pythagorean win-loss record. But most importantly, it was the start of a new baseball season! Without further ado, let's run down the statistics from the month.
Record: 11-11
Best record at any point (games above .500): 3-2
Worst record at any point (games below .500): 4-7
Days in first (and biggest lead): 3 (0.5 games)
Days in last (and furthest out of first): 0 (2.5 games)
Longest win streak: 3
Longest losing streak: 3
Runs scored/runs against: 93/116
Most runs scored/most runs allowed: 12/12
Shutouts/times shut out: 0/2
Extra inning games: 1
Longest game: 11 innings
Hitter of the month: Jason Kubel (76 AB, 11 R, 4 HR, 16 RBI, 0 SB, .303)
It was a toss-up between Morneau and Kubel, with Denard Span an easy third. But I decided to reward Kubel because his April showed a bigger improvement over his career performance than Morneau's April, and he is typically a slow starter. Over the last two years, Kubel has hit .261/.288/.348 and .229/.250/.365 through the month of April, compared to his overall line for those two years of .272/.335/.461. Clearly, I don't think he's going to have a similar improvement the rest of the year as compared to his first month, but hopefully he'll be able to finish the year with much better stats because he didn't have a slow start holding him down.
Three more up
Justin Morneau (88 AB, 16 R, 5 HR, 18 RBI, 0 SB, .318)
Denard Span (81 AB, 10 R, 1 HR, 12 RBI, 5 SB, .321)
Brendan Harris (40 AB, 7 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 0 SB, .350)
Bizarro World hitter of the month: Alexi Casilla (69 AB, 6 R, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 2 SB, .174)
With Carlos Gomez, Delmon Young, and Michael Cuddyer's struggles (among others), you wouldn't have thought this decision would have been so easy... but it was. Casilla has been so much worse than any of them, it's just plain shocking. Casilla's OPS thus far is .447. That's almost a full 100 points lower than Gomez's, who has the second-lowest OPS on the team. That's also well over 100 points worse than Kubel's (or Morneau's) slugging percentage! Out of 198 qualified batters, he ranks 193rd in average, 194th in OBP SLG, and 197th in OPS. Now you know why it was an easy decision.
Pitcher of the month: Glen Perkins (29 IP, 2.48, 1.00, 6 BB, 16 K)
While all of the other, more-heralded starters struggled, Perkins put up three consecutive 8-inning outings before getting knocked around a little in his fourth (and most recent) start. All in all, though, Perkins finished the month with the lowest ERA of any of the starters by a full run and a half, and only Jose Mijares and his 3 scoreless innings had a lower ERA among the relievers. He also maintained a WHIP of 1.00 and allowed zero home runs. What is most telling about the pitching this month is that, despite their poor starts, Slowey and Blackburn were both able to rebound and get listed below.
Three more up
Nick Blackburn (31.1 IP, 4.02, 1.37, 7 BB, 12 K)
Joe Nathan (7 IP, 2.57, 1.00, 2 BB, 7 K)
Kevin Slowey (26.1 IP, 4.44, 1.44, 2 BB, 19 K)
Bizarro World pitcher of the month: Scott Baker (14.2 IP, 9.82, 1.70, 4 BB, 12 K)
Baker missed his first start due to an injury, but his return was not as sweet as a Twins fan would have hoped for. He gave up seven home runs total and six runs in each of his two starts, and not coincidentally did not make it out of the fifth inning in either. His last start was decent and most likely indicates those horrible times are behind him, though it wasn't enough to keep him from this unfortunate honor.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Healthiness
Both Scott Baker and Joe Mauer are looking to return soon, which will certainly give a boost to the (currently) first-place Twins. Baker is scheduled to pitch this Wednesday, which likely means R.A. Dickey will head right back to AAA (although it's possible it will be Brian Duensing). Mauer, meanwhile, is no longer feeling any pain and will start running this coming week, which is what was giving him the most pain before. Lavelle is guessing that he'll be back shortly before the end of the month, and I think that's an accurate, and encouraging, estimation.
Also, A.J. Pierzynski is not playing today for the White Sox, but a former Twin is still manning the catching duties: Corky Miller. Sadly enough, the career .176/.264/.290 hitter already has a hit in the game. Last year he had five hits in sixty at bats, equalling a .083 average. But, compared to a 3-year span in which he went 1-55 with three different teams (including his 0-12 season with the Twins), that's earth-shattering.
Also, A.J. Pierzynski is not playing today for the White Sox, but a former Twin is still manning the catching duties: Corky Miller. Sadly enough, the career .176/.264/.290 hitter already has a hit in the game. Last year he had five hits in sixty at bats, equalling a .083 average. But, compared to a 3-year span in which he went 1-55 with three different teams (including his 0-12 season with the Twins), that's earth-shattering.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Twins Notes
-The Twins have signed RHP Scott Baker to a 4-year deal worth $15.25 million. The deal starts with this year and goes through 2012, with a $9.25 million option for the 2013 season. Since Baker is under team control through 2012, the contract really just provides cost certainty for the club, at the expense of paying Baker whether he is healthy and effective or not. Of course, the option year is big, as it puts one of Baker's free agent years under the Twins' control. Locking up young players early in their pre-arbitration years has become a trend in baseball lately, with guys like Dustin Pedroia, James Shields, and Evan Longoria signing deals early on in their careers. I've always thought this was a good strategy, and I am encouraged to see the Twins following suit with their signings of Jason Kubel and now Baker.
-Though I don't usually trust anything that Charley Walters writes, I hope that this note about Joe Mauer in his "Don't Print That" is true:
"This week, general manager Billy Smith was expected to meet with Mauer's agents, who were spotted at spring training in Fort Myers, Fla."
Obviously, it can be presumed from this that there will be some premliminary talks for an extension done, with each side feeling each other out on what their expectations and ideas for Mauer's next contract are. It will probably take a contract in the 9 digit range, but whatever it takes, the Twins need to do it. Despite all his accolades, including his Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards, Mauer is still somewhat underrated, partially because his positional value as a catcher is often not taken into proper consideration and partially because he doesn't hit for the power he was once expected too. Hopefully the Twins surprise me and come out of spring training with a new contract for their still only 25-year old catcher.
-After being the only team last season to start the year with no players on the DL, injuries have been one of the biggest stories thus far down in Fort Myers. Pat Neshek was lost for the year back in the fall when he underwent Tommy John surgery, while Boof Bonser went down for the season due to a shoulder injury just a couple weeks ago. With an already weak relief corps hit by two major injuries, the fact that the Twins' best reliever, Joe Nathan, had to pull out of the WBC with a shoulder injury was a panic-inducing bit of news for some. However, he has been throwing fine since then, and is on track to pitch on Sunday, so hopefully the injury was just a convenient excuse to skip the Classic and stay in camp. Another pitcher, Nick Blackburn, has been struggling with an inflamed knee after having surgery in the offseason. His situation is a little more questionable than Nathan's, but after having the knee drained Blackburn says he doesn't feel any pain. He was supposed to have a bullpen session today, and if all went well he should be back in the rotation soon. Finally, of course, there's Joe Mauer, who still hasn't participated in any game action. Personally, I wonder if his surgery was more serious than the Twins let on, because it has taken longer than the six weeks they originally claimed for him to recover. Whatever the case, though, I am just excited to see him take the field for opening day, whether he plays in the spring or not.
-Lastly, a bit of non-Twins news. Last week I mentioned Jerry Seinfeld's new show, "The Marriage Ref", but this week there's some even better Seinfeld news: Jerry, Elaine, George, and Kramer, or at least the actors who play them, will be reuniting for a few epsiodes of HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" this fall. Aside from "Seinfeld" itself coming back, I don't see how there could be better news for fans of the show such as myself. This makes me even happier that we get HBO on Georgetown cable (though don't get me started on all of its negatives), and I'll be anxiously awaiting these episodes in a way that I haven't done in a long time for a TV show.
-Though I don't usually trust anything that Charley Walters writes, I hope that this note about Joe Mauer in his "Don't Print That" is true:
"This week, general manager Billy Smith was expected to meet with Mauer's agents, who were spotted at spring training in Fort Myers, Fla."
Obviously, it can be presumed from this that there will be some premliminary talks for an extension done, with each side feeling each other out on what their expectations and ideas for Mauer's next contract are. It will probably take a contract in the 9 digit range, but whatever it takes, the Twins need to do it. Despite all his accolades, including his Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards, Mauer is still somewhat underrated, partially because his positional value as a catcher is often not taken into proper consideration and partially because he doesn't hit for the power he was once expected too. Hopefully the Twins surprise me and come out of spring training with a new contract for their still only 25-year old catcher.
-After being the only team last season to start the year with no players on the DL, injuries have been one of the biggest stories thus far down in Fort Myers. Pat Neshek was lost for the year back in the fall when he underwent Tommy John surgery, while Boof Bonser went down for the season due to a shoulder injury just a couple weeks ago. With an already weak relief corps hit by two major injuries, the fact that the Twins' best reliever, Joe Nathan, had to pull out of the WBC with a shoulder injury was a panic-inducing bit of news for some. However, he has been throwing fine since then, and is on track to pitch on Sunday, so hopefully the injury was just a convenient excuse to skip the Classic and stay in camp. Another pitcher, Nick Blackburn, has been struggling with an inflamed knee after having surgery in the offseason. His situation is a little more questionable than Nathan's, but after having the knee drained Blackburn says he doesn't feel any pain. He was supposed to have a bullpen session today, and if all went well he should be back in the rotation soon. Finally, of course, there's Joe Mauer, who still hasn't participated in any game action. Personally, I wonder if his surgery was more serious than the Twins let on, because it has taken longer than the six weeks they originally claimed for him to recover. Whatever the case, though, I am just excited to see him take the field for opening day, whether he plays in the spring or not.
-Lastly, a bit of non-Twins news. Last week I mentioned Jerry Seinfeld's new show, "The Marriage Ref", but this week there's some even better Seinfeld news: Jerry, Elaine, George, and Kramer, or at least the actors who play them, will be reuniting for a few epsiodes of HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" this fall. Aside from "Seinfeld" itself coming back, I don't see how there could be better news for fans of the show such as myself. This makes me even happier that we get HBO on Georgetown cable (though don't get me started on all of its negatives), and I'll be anxiously awaiting these episodes in a way that I haven't done in a long time for a TV show.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Royals No Longer Unbeaten
The lone remaining unbeaten team fell today, at the hands of the Twins, which means that yet again no team will go unbeaten. I'm still waiting.
But seriously, the Twins played well today against the Royals, and Justin Morneau even collected his first hit of the year. Joe Mauer and Carlos Gomez continued to produce, combining to go 5 for 8 with 2 runs and an RBI. Gomez had two more infield hits, one being a bunt single, but also mashed a solid double, and was electrifying again in stealing two bases. I wouldn't want to be behind the plate with him on first!
Scott Baker had a solid performance, settling down after some early troubles. Despite allowing three runs in the first two innings, he had thrown 41 pitches, with 33 of them being strikes. He was unable to miss bats early, exemplified by Billy Butler's at bat in the first inning in which he fouled off eight pitches, which caused him a lot of trouble. Despite this, he still managed to finish with a very respectable line. Pat Neshek and Joe Nathan followed him with another great set-up and close combination.
The second casualty in two days, Michael Cuddyer left the game in the third inning after sliding awkwardly into third base. Jason Kubel pinch ran for him and ended up scoring. Hopefully, Cuddyer will only be day-to-day, but it would most likely ensure regular at bats for Kubel as either the designated hitter or right fielder if he was out longer. Although, it'd be much better if Gardy just wised up and put Kubel in the line-up over Craig Monroe and Cuddyer isn't injured (incidentally, Monroe went 0-4 with three strikeouts against a left-handed starter).
This was also my first game listening on the radio. It did provide a lot of information, but I found it odd that Gameday actually updated faster than the radio announced things. There must be a significant delay on the radio broadcast.
But seriously, the Twins played well today against the Royals, and Justin Morneau even collected his first hit of the year. Joe Mauer and Carlos Gomez continued to produce, combining to go 5 for 8 with 2 runs and an RBI. Gomez had two more infield hits, one being a bunt single, but also mashed a solid double, and was electrifying again in stealing two bases. I wouldn't want to be behind the plate with him on first!
Scott Baker had a solid performance, settling down after some early troubles. Despite allowing three runs in the first two innings, he had thrown 41 pitches, with 33 of them being strikes. He was unable to miss bats early, exemplified by Billy Butler's at bat in the first inning in which he fouled off eight pitches, which caused him a lot of trouble. Despite this, he still managed to finish with a very respectable line. Pat Neshek and Joe Nathan followed him with another great set-up and close combination.
The second casualty in two days, Michael Cuddyer left the game in the third inning after sliding awkwardly into third base. Jason Kubel pinch ran for him and ended up scoring. Hopefully, Cuddyer will only be day-to-day, but it would most likely ensure regular at bats for Kubel as either the designated hitter or right fielder if he was out longer. Although, it'd be much better if Gardy just wised up and put Kubel in the line-up over Craig Monroe and Cuddyer isn't injured (incidentally, Monroe went 0-4 with three strikeouts against a left-handed starter).
This was also my first game listening on the radio. It did provide a lot of information, but I found it odd that Gameday actually updated faster than the radio announced things. There must be a significant delay on the radio broadcast.
Saturday, March 29, 2008
More Predictions!
As if my last ones weren't bad enough, I'm coming back with my predictions for the Twins pitchers. I've tempered my expectations for Liriano, but still include him as one of the five starters.
Livan Hernandez: 11-15, 5.09, 1.51, 151 K/82 BB
Scott Baker: 12-12, 4.32, 1.29, 173 K/56 BB
Boof Bonser: 14-9, 4.11, 1.30, 189 K/69 BB
Kevin Slowey: 11-10, 4.47, 1.23, 160 K/43 BB
Francisco Liriano: 12-7, 3.41, 1.11, 196 K/47 BB
---------------------------------------------------
Joe Nathan: 2-3, 2.09, 0.97, 85 K/22 BB
Pat Neshek: 7-3, 2.95, 1.04, 91 K/24 BB
Matt Guerrier: 4-5, 3.55, 1.19, 67 K/31 BB
Dennys Reyes: 2-1, 4.18, 1.43, 37 K/20 BB
Livan Hernandez: 11-15, 5.09, 1.51, 151 K/82 BB
Scott Baker: 12-12, 4.32, 1.29, 173 K/56 BB
Boof Bonser: 14-9, 4.11, 1.30, 189 K/69 BB
Kevin Slowey: 11-10, 4.47, 1.23, 160 K/43 BB
Francisco Liriano: 12-7, 3.41, 1.11, 196 K/47 BB
---------------------------------------------------
Joe Nathan: 2-3, 2.09, 0.97, 85 K/22 BB
Pat Neshek: 7-3, 2.95, 1.04, 91 K/24 BB
Matt Guerrier: 4-5, 3.55, 1.19, 67 K/31 BB
Dennys Reyes: 2-1, 4.18, 1.43, 37 K/20 BB
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Ugh!
It was a rough game for the Twins today, resulting in an 8-3 loss to the White Sox. This is the first time I've started the entry before the game was over, but I just didn't feel like thinking about this game much after it ended. I almost put it off until the conclusion of the game immediately following Jason Kubel's opposite field home run, but then Torii Hunter, Justin Morneau, and Michael Cuddyer each struck out swinging to suck out any momentum I thought the Twins might have gained. As a whole, the offense couldn't get anything going, striking out eleven times against Javier Vazquez, and fourteen times in the game. Jason Tyner was the only Twin not to strike out, while Kubel and Nick Punto struck out three times apiece. Punto's 0-4 game ended his seven game hitting streak and his streak of three consecutive games with multiple hits. On a bright note, Brian Buscher had his first career double.
Scott Baker was not good to start the game, giving up three earned runs in two innings, but Boof Bonser was even worse, allowing eight hits, two walks, and five earned runs in just three frames. Baker, however, did not leave just because of his sub-par performance; he was hit by a line drive on his pitching hand, which, although evidently not serious, may cause him to miss his last start of the season. This brings up the question of who will pitch in his place. Bonser certainly didn't make a very good case for it to be himself, but he would presumably be the first option. To finish the game, Julio DePaula, Glen Perkins, and Juan Rincon combined for four scoreless innings.
As Jim Thome hit his 32nd home run in the third inning, it dawned on me that he has really been killing the Twins of late. In fact, he has homered in six straight games against the Twins, batting .541 (13-24) with 8 runs and 14 runs batted in during that span. Let's hope that he can be contained tomorrow, because I am hanging on to the slim, slim chance of the silver lining that is a .500 record.
Scott Baker was not good to start the game, giving up three earned runs in two innings, but Boof Bonser was even worse, allowing eight hits, two walks, and five earned runs in just three frames. Baker, however, did not leave just because of his sub-par performance; he was hit by a line drive on his pitching hand, which, although evidently not serious, may cause him to miss his last start of the season. This brings up the question of who will pitch in his place. Bonser certainly didn't make a very good case for it to be himself, but he would presumably be the first option. To finish the game, Julio DePaula, Glen Perkins, and Juan Rincon combined for four scoreless innings.
As Jim Thome hit his 32nd home run in the third inning, it dawned on me that he has really been killing the Twins of late. In fact, he has homered in six straight games against the Twins, batting .541 (13-24) with 8 runs and 14 runs batted in during that span. Let's hope that he can be contained tomorrow, because I am hanging on to the slim, slim chance of the silver lining that is a .500 record.
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