All Things 2026 Minnesota Twins In-Season Thread

Just heard on the radio that are new SS gray is 15th in RBIs amongst SS, which is only one less than that bum Bobby Witt Jr.
 


Pretty coo!

Interim manager and ... father of the GM? Mattinglys form historical combo for Phils​



PHILADELPHIA -- It's no secret that the relationship between a manager and the front office is an important one.

Well, Phillies interim manager Don Mattingly may just have the best relationship ever between a field general and a general manager.

"I mean, I like the kid," Mattingly joked prior to his first game at the helm on Tuesday night at Citizens Bank Park.

Of course, "the kid" is Mattingly's son, Preston, who has been the Phillies' general manager under president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski since 2024 -- and a member of the organization since 2021.

While having a strong relationship is typically a plus, this particular dynamic -- believed to be the first father-son manager-GM combo in MLB history -- obviously presents its share of questions.
Is that uncomfortable at all?

"It's not," Don Mattingly said. "We both want to win games. ... We're here to win, right? Our coaches are here to win. Players are here to win. Preston's here to win. Dave's here to win. I'm sure ownership is here to win, and the fans want to win."

Though Tuesday's managerial changeobviously gives the elder Mattingly more responsibility, the Phillies likely never would have hired Mattingly as their new bench coach this offseason if they had any concerns about a potential conflict of interest.

“I'm not worried about anything coming from the clubhouse up to us that shouldn't,” Dombrowski said in January. “That is not a concern. I think you also have to be cognizant of the people that you're talking about and the credibility that they have. When you start talking about Don and Preston, you’re talking about two people that have immense credibility, and so there's nothing that's going to come down there. Confidentiality is still confidentiality.”

Similarly, Don left no doubt that his priority will be on his players and he'll approach the job just as he would with anyone else in the GM chair.

“I’m very protective of the locker room relationship. With players, they have to be able to trust that I’m not a voice that’s just running upstairs and talking about anything and everything,” Mattingly said when he was named bench coach. “That’s just not the way I operate. I came from a different era where that is not something that happens. I’m going to have to build that trust with players so that they’ll trust me that that’s not going to happen.”

Mattingly has had a few months now to build those relationships, though it's admittedly still a work in progress just one month into the regular season. Plus, as with any new manager, the change in leadership will likely take some getting used to for the players.

The same goes for the Mattinglys.
Despite Don being around Major League Baseball for more than 40 years and Preston for his entire life -- the two have never had a professional relationship quite like this one.

"Him and I are a little different," Don said. "Obviously, he looks at things -- he's a little outside the box at times, which I appreciate. It's helped me grow and things like that."

The first few months of working together within the same organization have gone well -- and Don sees no reason why Tuesday's news would negatively impact that.

After all, the two joined forces in Philadelphia to chase one common goal: Winning a World Series. Don came within one game of winning his first ring last season as the Blue Jays' bench coach, but he acknowledged this offseason that it was tough at times knowing that he and Preston were chasing the same thing -- but even in the best-case scenario, only one of them could win it all.

"I'm enjoying being here on the same team, fighting for the same thing," Don said, "instead of being on another team fighting for the same thing."
Donnie doing his best to avoid awkward conversations with his kiddo.

Phil’s are ahead 3-2 going for another W tonight; they currently have a 21-10 record under his tutelage.
 
Last edited:







Great effort from Prielipp tonight with 6-innings and a QS, especially bouncing back after his last couple of efforts😃.
 






It will be full when the Savannah Bananas are in town
True dat, but the love comment was for the accepted marriage proposal on the big screen.

Not sure $1 Dog night is the way to go, hopefully that allowed him to put more dough towards the stone.
 




Lee had time to make a better throw and a tough, but make able scoop by Clemens. Then, bad throw by Jackson on steal.
 


I wasn't quick enough to get the scoreboard fireworks.

Screenshot_20260602-212301.Photos.jpg
 



Go Go Gomez should be the new closer.
He is now the Twins 2026 Saves Leader with...




....3.

I would like to know if there has ever been an MLB Team with that low of a "stopper" by June 2 since the statistic was invented.
 

Good. They should have started this long ago. 1B Keashall, 2B Lee, 3B Lewis, SS Culpepper.

Goff/SKOR North indicated that Lewis if/when he is back will be at either 1B or 2B primarily with Lee staying at 3B (barring injury).
 

Goff/SKOR North indicated that Lewis if/when he is back will be at either 1B or 2B primarily with Lee staying at 3B (barring injury).
There’s a good story by Hayes regarding it with none of the above position changes mentioned 🤷‍♂️.


FWIW, Lewis has played third the whole time in St. Paul, thus far. If the above scenario is correct, they may want to to address his offense first, before making him switch to another position.

Or, they’re guessing and have no clue.

Per baseball savant, Lewis fielding value is 26 , while Lee is a 4; granted it still lists Lee as a SS and therefore those stats are also included, however, I find it hard to believe Lee is a better long term solution than Royce at third.

Royce also hit his 6&7 dingers since moving east
From the story regarding his stat line -

Including Tuesday’s numbers, Lewis is batting .341/.413/.927 with three doubles and 14 RBIs in 46 plate appearances since being sent down. Now that he’s performing, the Twins want to see him continue to prove he’s ready to return to the majors.
 

There’s a good story by Hayes regarding it with none of the above position changes mentioned 🤷‍♂️.


FWIW, Lewis has played third the whole time in St. Paul, thus far. If the above scenario is correct, they may want to to address his offense first, before making him switch to another position.

Or, they’re guessing and have no clue.

Per baseball savant, Lewis fielding value is 26 , while Lee is a 4; granted it still lists Lee as a SS and therefore those stats are also included, however, I find it hard to believe Lee is a better long term solution than Royce at third.

Royce also hit his 6&7 dingers since moving east
From the story regarding his stat line -

Including Tuesday’s numbers, Lewis is batting .341/.413/.927 with three doubles and 14 RBIs in 46 plate appearances since being sent down. Now that he’s performing, the Twins want to see him continue to prove he’s ready to return to the majors.

Goff's report was that prior to the Saints game yesterday Lewis got work in taking grounders on the right side of the infield at both 1B & 2B.
 

Goff/SKOR North indicated that Lewis if/when he is back will be at either 1B or 2B primarily with Lee staying at 3B (barring injury).
They were also working Keashall at 1B pregame. I think he's the weakest defender of the 3, so Keashall at 1B makes the most sense to me. He's too short, but so was Luis Arreaz and he managed to do pretty well. As for Royce/Brooks and 2B and 3B, I guess it could go either way, but Lee seems to have more range and a scatter-shot arm, so he makes more sense for 2B to me.
 

They were also working Keashall at 1B pregame. I think he's the weakest defender of the 3, so Keashall at 1B makes the most sense to me. He's too short, but so was Luis Arreaz and he managed to do pretty well. As for Royce/Brooks and 2B and 3B, I guess it could go either way, but Lee seems to have more range and a scatter-shot arm, so he makes more sense for 2B to me.
After attending yesterday's game, I was reminded that I am longer sure which attributes make sense any more.

Lee was assigned to 3B yesterday. More than half the time yesterday he was within 3-5 feet of where the traditional SS was positioned for well more than a century after the game was invented. Often shaded to the left of where I would usually see the SS until roughly 2010.

The SS now most often stands directly behind the pitcher, less than a foot away if you drew a line from the plate/rubber through 2B.

Also the 1B needs to be agile. There are times with nobody on base, the 1B is positioned more than a 3rd of the way towards 2B. Have to read it quick and quickly scamper to 1B in order to receive the tosses from the left side of the infield.
 
Last edited:




Top Bottom