2019 Minnesota Twins In-Season Thread

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Nelson Cruz left the Twins game after reinjurying his wrist. We can't have nice things Twins.
 

Injured on swing. And miss! Is baseball a contact sport:confused:
 

Gibson strikeless. Relievers throw hits. Game in doubt.
 

A team with cheap ownership is going to win the division. The chances of that team being the Twins are getting worse by the moment.
 

per Sid:

Baldelli is prepared

With the Twins starting their biggest series of the year Thursday night with Cleveland at Target Field, it can be easy to forget that this club — which is on pace to win 100 games — is being managed by a rookie.

The Twins could to have their second American League Manager of the Year in the past three seasons, because if this club wins the American League Central while dealing with all of their injuries and their limited payroll, Rocco Baldelli will merit consideration for the award, which Paul Molitor won in 2017.

Only five rookie managers in MLB history have won 100 games: Alex Cora last year with the World Series-winning Red Sox (108 wins), Ralph Houk with the 1961 Yankees (109), Dusty Baker with the 1993 San Francisco Giants (103) and Sparky Anderson with the 1970 Cincinnati Reds (102).

Twins Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey said one of the things Baldelli brings to the table is that he has worked at so many different roles — as a player, coach and a member of a front office. That experience has helped him navigate this season.

“Everything he is going through is for the first time,” Falvey said. “Whether it was the first spring training or the first couple of months or the first trade deadline or otherwise, he has really taken everything in stride — poised, calm, collected. He has been in that seat as a player, he has been on those staffs as a coach, been around a front office. He understands all of the dynamics.”

And how does Falvey think his coach has done at steering a young ballclub in their first pennant race?

“He is always planning ahead and thinking about what may come in the next 10-15 days and how can we prepare for that? We are getting into that stretch of August and playing meaningful games and there is nothing better than the stress of playing late August baseball and getting into September when the games matter. This is it.

“He’s a great leader for our guys. I think he continues to communicate and that is the key: talk to our players, make sure they’re aware.”

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-...ng-quarterbacks-in-past-13-seasons/528878272/

Win Twins!!
 


It would nice if the hustle to first by Adrianza proves to be a difference-maker for the Twins in this game, but they still have a little ways to go.
 

Barring a heck of a comeback, a double digit division lead has now been erased. Even if they do win the division, there's major cause for concern. This reflects very badly on the organization.
 
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Indians now pull into a tied for 1st place in the AL central. Twins choke away the double digit lead.
 

Fact. The Twins built their 11.5 game lead faster than they lost it.

But they still lost it in 59 games.
 



Breakin' The Plane said:
Barring a heck of a comeback, a double digit division lead has now been erased. Even if they do win the division, there's major cause for concern. This reflects very badly on the organization.
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Maybe they just plain knew they didn't have the pitching this year. Even with the hot starts by Perez and Odorizzi and even Gibson, I'm sure they knew this regression to the norm was a possibility?

One more thing, not to make excuses for anyone but maybe Cleveland is just plain a lot better than the Twins right now? I mean, good grief, they've been playing like .750-.800 baseball it seems like for well over 2 months now. I think the lead vanishing has at least a LITTLE more to do with Cleveland playing unbelievable baseball than it is the Twins "collapsing". They will be hard for anyone to beat.

Lots of baseball left, but this is a major downer, no doubt about it.

Edit: I stand corrected; since the Twins largest lead of 11.5 games on June 2, the Indians are 41-16, a clip of .719; Yikes.
 
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Cleveland traded away a starting pitcher - and their starting rotation is still better than the Twins' rotation. then you throw Puig and Reyes into their lineup, and it's pretty darn respectable.

As things stand today, with Buxton and Cruz out of the Twins' lineup, Cleveland has a better overall team.

That does not mean the Twins cannot come back and win the division, but they will need better starting pitching and tighter defense.
 

The Front Office let this offense down. Maybe it didn't matter, and Cleveland is just better. But this is the best offense in team history and they refused to go out and get the pitching to help it.

They will probably still grab a wild card spot, but advancing past the Divisional round now appears to be a pipe dream.
 

Ogee Oglethorpe said:
Maybe they just plain knew they didn't have the pitching this year. Even with the hot starts by Perez and Odorizzi and even Gibson, I'm sure they knew this regression to the norm was a possibility?

One more thing, not to make excuses for anyone but maybe Cleveland is just plain a lot better than the Twins right now? I mean, good grief, they've been playing like .750-.800 baseball it seems like for well over 2 months now. I think the lead vanishing has at least a LITTLE more to do with Cleveland playing unbelievable baseball than it is the Twins "collapsing". They will be hard for anyone to beat.

Lots of baseball left, but this is a major downer, no doubt about it.

Edit: I stand corrected; since the Twins largest lead of 11.5 games on June 2, the Indians are 41-16, a clip of .719; Yikes.
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The Indians are a very good team. So if they knew they just didn't have the pitching, why not make a move? I think Jim Pohlad decided to sit on his wallet, I think Falvine isn't real skilled at the trading game and I'm real, real tired of Baldelli's "Hey dudes, do whatever you want" management style.

But hey, there's always next year.
 



howeda7 said:
The Front Office let this offense down. Maybe it didn't matter, and Cleveland is just better. But this is the best offense in team history and they refused to go out and get the pitching to help it.

They will probably still grab a wild card spot, but advancing past the Divisional round now appears to be a pipe dream.
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Agreed but in the end I'm not really surprised, this has been the story of the team my entire life.
 

Breakin' The Plane said:
The Indians are a very good team. So if they knew they just didn't have the pitching, why not make a move? I think Jim Pohlad decided to sit on his wallet, I think Falvine isn't real skilled at the trading game and I'm real, real tired of Baldelli's "Hey dudes, do whatever you want" management style.

But hey, there's always next year.
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I'm frustrated too but two things stick out to me as possible reasons why they weren't more active. First, like it's been said, it takes two to tango and it sounds like the sellers just weren't in the selling mood, asking price was way too high. No sense being held hostage.

Second, what if they thought (like it sure looks like now) that they weren't just one pitcher away? Kinda tough to revamp the starting rotation at the trade deadline, especially in a tough buyer's market.

I'm not trying hard to make excuses for them, just pointing out a few possibilities.

It's not over yet and at this point I trust Berrios - 1 and Pineda - 2 if they went into the postseason; after that, who knows. The other 3 are CAPABLE of putting out a strong performance but those are getting fewer and fewer between.
 

I still believe that Falvey and Levine never really expected to have a World Series level team this year. I suspect the goal for the year was just get back to respectability- get over .500.

When they found themselves leading the division, they had to make a decision - go "all in" for this year, or continue building the organization. I suspect they decided to continue building. When push came to shove, they were just not willing to give up top prospects for a starting pitcher who may only be in MN for a half-season.

at AA, Lewis, Kiriloff and Larnach all homered in the same game Friday night. That's the future right there - along with Graterol, Duran, etc.

My gut tells me that the front office will be ready to go "all in" in about two years. get the kids up to the majors, and then fill in the pieces. you know, like trading for Jack Morris before 91. that worked out ok.
 

howeda7 said:
The Front Office let this offense down. Maybe it didn't matter, and Cleveland is just better. But this is the best offense in team history and they refused to go out and get the pitching to help it.

They will probably still grab a wild card spot, but advancing past the Divisional round now appears to be a pipe dream.
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If only it were that easy. One team can’t just make a trade happen. Because it didn’t happen doesn’t mean they refused to do it. Most of the regular buyers did virtually nothing this year. That’s not a coincidence.
 

Breakin' The Plane said:
Barring a heck of a comeback, a double digit division lead has now been erased. Even if they do win the division, there's major cause for concern. This reflects very badly on the organization.
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70-46 overall record. Most people predicted 80-85 wins at the most. Unless they have a complete meltdown down they’ll win 90-100 games. I’m not sure how that doesn’t reflect very positively on the organization. The next 5+ years could be a lot of fun.
 

GophersInIowa said:
70-46 overall record. Most people predicted 80-85 wins at the most. Unless they have a complete meltdown down they’ll win 90-100 games. I’m not sure how that doesn’t reflect very positively on the organization. The next 5+ years could be a lot of fun.
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Could be. Nothing is guaranteed. Injuries, suspensions, etc. You never know what the future will bring. The fact that this team has never, ever gone for anything substantial at the deadline is disheartening.
 

Breakin' The Plane said:
Could be. Nothing is guaranteed. Injuries, suspensions, etc. You never know what the future will bring. The fact that this team has never, ever gone for anything substantial at the deadline is disheartening.
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Just like making a big trade does not guarantee anything. Bringing in one starter doesn’t make the other starters better. If Berrios, Odo and Gibson don’t start pitching better they’re not going far even if they had traded for a top player.
 

GophersInIowa said:
If only it were that easy. One team can’t just make a trade happen. Because it didn’t happen doesn’t mean they refused to do it. Most of the regular buyers did virtually nothing this year. That’s not a coincidence.
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But, fire Falvey! Terry Ryan 2.0!
 

I'd like to keep believing in this team but if Berrios isn't going to pitch like an ace they have zero chance.
 

bottlebass said:
I'd like to keep believing in this team but if Berrios isn't going to pitch like an ace they have zero chance.
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Have to wonder if it's a case of what we called back in the day, reading your own headlines. I had one of my worst games in college right after the All Conference and All-American teams were announced. Berrios needs to get back to being young and hungry.
 

Ogee Oglethorpe said:
Have to wonder if it's a case of what we called back in the day, reading your own headlines. I had one of my worst games in college right after the All Conference and All-American teams were announced. Berrios needs to get back to being young and hungry.
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I'm just hoping he isn't hurt.
 

Breakin' The Plane said:
Could be. Nothing is guaranteed. Injuries, suspensions, etc. You never know what the future will bring. The fact that this team has never, ever gone for anything substantial at the deadline is disheartening.
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+1. They forever kick the can down the road to a future that never comes.
 

howeda7 said:
+1. They forever kick the can down the road to a future that never comes.
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I wasn’t saying they shouldn’t try to make a big move. I believe they did try. My point is I think they’ll have opportunities to make a big move in the next few years. Because it didn’t happen this year doesn’t mean it can’t happen in the future or that they didn’t try. What happened 5, 10, 15 years ago has nothing to do with the current front office.
 


Twins 3rd base coach Diaz has some explaining to do. Diaz sent Pinch runner Ehire Adrianza around trying to end the game. Ehire Adrianza get thrown out easy. Horrible decison.
 

That was the season, right there. Not the game, the season.

Won’t see first place in the division again. Wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t make it to the postseason.


Minnesota sports in a nutshell: as soon as you start caring, they s___ the bed.


Time for football:
 

The terrible decision to send the runner in the 9th and blowing the game in the 10th. This feels like a season turner in the wrong direction.
 

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