Results tagged ‘ Denard Span ’
Zzzzzz…..
Sunday’s series finale against the Astros was essentially two hours of my life that I will never get back. I think I passed out fell asleep on the couch around the fifth inning or so. The Twins had to go with their C-squad lineup since Justin Morneau was out, Jason Kubel got sick in the middle of the game, and Denard Span won’t be back at least until Thursday. I guess one run on two hits is about all that can be expected of a lineup comprised of all the worst hitters on the team. Glen Perkins didn’t have a terrible outing, the Astros got a bunch of lucky breaks in the first inning that scored three runs, but he also walked as many batters as he struck out and benefited from some run-saving catches by Carlos Gomez. So, I guess I should be glad that one of the most boring 4-1 losses I’ve ever witnessed could have easily been more like the most boring 5-or-6-to-1 loss I’ve ever seen.
In an effort to make moves for the sake of making moves address the bullpen issue, the Twins have called up Bobby Keppel and DFA’d Luis Ayala. Yes, cycling through replacement-level relief pitchers is exactly the sort of bold vision and creative thinking from the front office that will bring us straight to the top of the division.
By the way, it’s been almost a year since Bill Smith said about the dumbest f***ing thing I’ve ever heard a GM in baseball say. This, ladies and gentlemen, is the man in charge of your Minnesota Twins.
Yeah, Harold Reynolds said something dumb about OPS or something, too. I think he was just trying to point out that OPS isn’t perfect and shouldn’t be the decisive factor in determining a player’s worth, albeit in a semi-literate way. He’s actually right about that. I dunno. I guess it doesn’t bother me that much when analysts don’t seem to have a basic knowledge of stats and how they work because HAROLD REYNOLDS ISN’T RUNNING MY FAVORITE BASEBALL TEAM.
Brother, can you spare Brad Pitt $50 million to finance the Moneyball movie? Columbia has suspended production on the project, citing problems with the script. It’s probably just as well. I can’t imagine that a film based on the use of advanced metrics to identify undervalued skills (like drawing walks) and help a small-market team remain competitive in the era of free agency would be compelling to anyone other than baseball nerds.
Don Fehr is stepping down after more than 20 years as president of the MLBPA. I actually have kind of mixed feelings about this. He did play a central role in the whole steroids mess by resisting PED testing for years (and then failing to have the results of the 2003 tests destroyed, as he was supposed to). However, I don’t think there has ever been a stronger advocate for the rights of players, and without his leadership the MLBPA would now be about as powerful as the NFLPA. It was, after all, Fehr who successfully took on the borderline criminal tactics employed by the owners to screw players out of their money, and I’m sure guys like Mark Teixeira and C.C. Sabbathia are grateful for that. Unfortunately, it was probably his unwavering opposition to MLB and the owners that kept him from having those initial test results destroyed, and the ensuing PR nightmare has ultimately screwed over the very players he fought so hard to protect.
Oddest Game Ever
- Twins ground into five double plays, still beat Pirates 8-2
Well, not really. But this was a statistically strange game for the Twins. I mean, how in the hell do you ground into five double plays and still manage to score eight runs? Obviously a good number of those came with a runner on third and nobody out. I guess if you’re going to ground into a lot of double-plays, it should always be with less than one out. And a runner on third. While it’s certainly an unusual occurrence, it isn’t unheard of and isn’t any kind of record or anything. The Tigers also grounded into 5 double plays on the way to a 13-8 victory over the Blue Jays on April 16, 1996.
Joe Mauer went 4-for-4 with an RBI double, but no home runs. Slacker. Although, he was robbed of his last chance to hit one when Brendan Harris grounded into an inning-ending double play in the eighth. Right now, Mauer is batting .429/.497/.756 with 13 home runs. While it’s unlikely that Mauer will finish the season batting over .400 (he is a catcher, after all), he will most certainly be in contention for his third batting title as long as he remains healthy. Which is important because the Twins are probably going to try to sign him to a long-term deal, and obviously his numbers are going to have a significant effect on his value. The front office is obviously aware of the PR nightmare that would ensue if they failed to re-sign their native son, not to mention that they can’t seriously expect to contend for a World Series title if they keep letting their top talent go.
Glen Perkins was pretty effective, if not exactly dominant, in his first start since coming off the DL with elbow inflammation. He surrendered seven hits, but only two runs, and struck out four through six innings. His one mistake was to Nyjer Morgan, who blasted a two-run homer that cut the Twins’ lead in half. Paul Maholm wasn’t exactly sharp, but he also got a lot of tough breaks. Delwyn Young lost a Joe Crede fly ball in the lights for a Dome double that scored a run. And then there was that bizarre stikezone.
One of the things I hate the most about the Twins’ broadcast team (both radio and tv) is their obsession with pitch counts. Well, that and their inability to pronounce Muhollam Mahalo Maholm’s name correctly. Obviously they had to bring it up last night, since Perk was on a relatively short leash. This has been the subject of heated debate for years, and Rob Neyer wrote an interesting piece that sort of defends the concept behind the pitch count. I actually agree that pitch counts are unnecessary, but not for the same reasons as Bert Blyleven. Yes, they’re arbitrary and probably don’t really help prevent injury (it’s a lot more important to avoid a dramatic increase in workload, but that’s for another post), but they’re also, well, arbitrary. That is, unless they’re dealing with a rookie, most managers don’t really adhere to them too strictly and tend to let the starter pitch as long as he feels comfortable. If it’s the eighth inning and a starter is near 100 pitches, he’ll probably be allowed to go over that limit as long as he doesn’t feel fatigued. If it’s the fifth inning and a starter is near 100 pitches, then he’s probably laboring and should be taken out anyway. So the furor over pitch counts is a little overblown.
- Speaking of injures
Denard Span was placed on the 15-day DL. He has vestibular neuritis, which if I understand correctly, is essentially inflammation of a nerve in the middle ear caused by some sort of infection. Apparently it isn’t serious and he is expected to make a full recovery, but he’ll need to be out at least the next few games. In the meantime, Jason Pridie has been recalled from AAA and there’s a pretty good scouting report on him here. Most Twins fans probably remember Pridie as the guy who blew the save for Joe Nathan against Toronto last year, when he misplayed a single into a triple. Pridie came over as part of the Delmon Young trade, and doesn’t project to be anything more than a fourth outfielder at best. It isn’t likely that he’ll see much playing time, and will probably just be used as a defensive substitute in later innings.
As I mentioned in my previous post, Jesse Crain has been optioned to AAA Rochester. He hasn’t pitched in the minor leagues in nearly five years, and was obviously stunned by the news. Crain hasn’t even been marginally effective since May and the Twins really couldn’t afford to wait and hope he would work through his issues any longer. It was either that or release him, and obviously the organization isn’t ready to give up on him just yet. The Twins will go with only eleven pitchers for now, since they need to carry extra bench players at least as long as Denard Span is on the DL. The starters have been averaging about six innings per start this season, so it might not be necessary to carry more than six relievers. The only real issue is that Matt Guerrier, who’s already overworked, might have to carry an even heavier workload with fewer relievers in the ‘pen. However, it isn’t as though Crain was taking a lot of work away from Matty G. in the first place and the Twins may decide to call up another pitcher once Span is activated.
Thanks for Giving Us Seven Shutout Innings Anthony, Now Go Back to AAA
- Anthony Swarzak shuts down Cubs, then gets optioned to AAA Rochester
Swarzak pitched the best game of his young career against the Baby Bears, scattering four hits and striking out six while walking only one. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to keep his spot in the rotation, and Swarzak was notified of his demotion right after the game. Glen Perkins will most likely be activated from the DL on Tuesday, and with Denard Span and Michael Cuddyer out an indefinite length of time, the Twins can’t really afford to carry an extra pitcher at the sake of a shorter bench. They have called up backup catcher Jose Morales in the meantime, and how long he’ll stay with the team depends on Michael Cuddyer and Denard Span (more on that in a minute).
While the timing of the news might have been unfortunate, it isn’t entirely unexpected. Swarzak hasn’t pitched that much better than the starters who have been struggling this season, namely Francisco Liriano and Scott Baker, and both of them have started to pick things up as of late. And while three of his five starts have been quality ones, his peripherals suggest that he isn’t quite ready to pitch in the major leagues. In his five starts, Swarzak has an ERA of 3.90 but with an xFIP of 5.63, a 1.34 WHIP and poor 18/10 K/BB ratio, that ERA should probably be closer to 6.00 (oops, I mean 5.00. proofreading is important). He had some very good outings against the Brewers and the Cubs, but he got smacked around by the Indians and wasn’t terribly impressive against either Boston or Oakland. Still, he does show some promise as a starter, after all, a three-pitch pitcher can make it in the bigs as long as those three pitches are pretty good. Swarzak will most certainly get another shot, whether it’s as a September call-up or because someone else is injured/continues to suck. At any rate, it’s nice to know that the organization does indeed have some pitching depth, and not just a surplus of arms.
- I guess you can’t have too many outfielders
Coming in to the season, the Twins’ outfield was awfully crowded and Ron Gardenhire was charged with the difficult task of finding playing time for all four outfielders (five, if you count Jason Kubel). Right field was the only position settled, with Denard Span, Carlos Gomez, and Delmon Young battling for the three remaining spots. This job has been made more difficult by the fact that two of them, namely Gomez and Young, have been very disappointing at the plate thus far. But now that Michael Cuddyer is out with a finger injury (go figure), and Denard Span is suffering from an inner-ear problem, suddenly the outfield doesn’t look quite so deep. It’s hard to say how long either one will be out of the lineup, both are still listed as day-to-day, but Cuddyer is scheduled to meet with a finger specialist on Monday so it’s a good bet he’ll end up on the DL. Span is recovering from what’s being called an “inner ear disorder”, but there’s no official word on when he’s expected to return to the lineup. Obviously, losing Span has hurt the most, since he’s batting .291/.380/.386 in the leadoff spot while showing a lot of versatility as an outfielder. Cuddyer might have more power, but he also strikes out a lot and can’t really play any other position than right field. In the meantime, Jason Kubel has been starting in right, and while his bat has been hot lately, he isn’t the greatest defensive outfielder and there’s always concern that playing in the outfield will aggravate his balky knees. Obviously, the Twins don’t seem to think either Cuddyer or Span will miss much time, or they probably would’ve called up another outfielder instead of a backup catcher.
Twinkie Offense
First of all, what a strange ending to the series against Boston yesterday. Four ejections in the same inning, with the catchers and managers on both sides getting the boot (Which forced the Twins to play without a DH for the rest of the afternoon. Fun). Seriously, the consensus on both sides is that the umpiring in that game was pretty bad. Which is a shame, since all of the controversy overshadowed what was actually a really good ballgame. Josh Beckett and Anthony Swarzak were locked in a tight pitcher’s duel through the first seven innings, with Beckett eventually outdueling his rookie opponent. Obviously, it’s a bit disappointing that the Twins only managed to split the series against the Sox at the Dome, but it just doesn’t seem like quite as much of a letdown as the previous 1-6 roadtrip. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that the Twins had won four games in a row coming into the series, but it doesn’t seem as hard to watch your team lose when they play some good baseball in the process. And the Twins played well for the most part, it just wasn’t enough to win the series against the Sox. It isn’t like the series at Fenway, where the Twins never really bothered to show up in the first place. Or against the Yankees, where they let three games slip away in the later innings (and were then pummeled in the finale). Losses of that sort are enough to prompt a fan suicide watch.
The Twins’ offense has gotten really hot during the month of May, and with 55 home runs coming into tonight’s game against the Rays, has been unusually potent as well (they hit 111 the entire 2008 season). Well, at least the first half of the order has been on fire anyway: Denard Span is batting .303/.412/.404 in the leadoff spot, Joe Mauer is apparently made of magic (seriously, .407/.496/.824 with 11 HR and an OPS of 1.320 in 113 plate appearances), Justin Morneau is leading the AL in OPS and slugging percentage and is in the top five in nearly every other offensive category, and Jason Kubel is having a career year (though he’s still struggling to hit lefties, with an OPS of .429). Joe Crede will probably be good for about 20 homers this year, besides reminding us what it’s like to have an actual third baseman playing third. And even Michael Cuddyer is finally showing the type of power the Twins expected when they signed him to a multiyear deal before the start of last season, batting .330/.417/.670 with 7 homers and an OPS of 1.087 through the end of this month. Whether or not he’ll continue to be so productive remains to be seen (his career numbers suggest otherwise), but if nothing else it could make him a valuable trade piece in the offseason should the Twins fail to make the playoffs for a third straight year.
Unfortunately, not everyone is hitting so well. The bottom of the order, particularly the middle
infield, stinks. Earlier this week, Aaron Gleeman compared the offensive production of Nick Punto, Alexi Casilla, Brendan Harris, and Matt Tolbert combined to that of national league pitchers, and the infielders just barely came out on top. Of course, it didn’t have to be this way. Before he was injured, Jason Bartlett was batting .373/.418/.596 and providing some good defense for the Rays, which just makes that trade seem so much worse. And Orlando Hudson, who the Twins could’ve signed for half the price of Nick Punto, is hitting .340/.413/.485 with an OPS of .898 for the Dodgers. The failure to upgrade the middle infield, like the failure to address the issues with the bullpen, is coming back to haunt the Twins.
And now Punto is on the 15-day DL because he sucks with an ouchie groin. Alexi Casilla has been called up from Rochester and Brendan Harris will be the starting SS for the time being. Hopefully the middle infield will now be a little more productive at the plate than NL pitchers.
The Boston media has apparently been fawning over Joe Mauer already, even though he won’t be a free agent until after the 2010 season. It doesn’t bother me if an organization wants to pursue high-profile free agents to address one of its most glaring needs, even if some of those free agents happen to be Twins. Obviously it makes a lot of sense to go after the best talent on the market, especially if you have the resources available to do so. The problem is that Mauer isn’t available yet, and it’s a bit presumptuous to simply assume he will be. While the Twins are notoriously frugal as an organization, they have expressed a desire to keep their native son in a Twins uniform through the prime of his career. SO KEEP YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF OUR CATCHER YOU F***ING VULTURES. But please help yourselves to one of our useless gritty, scrappy middle infielders who do the little things right and battle their tails off. No really, I insist.
Hmm, maybe I should add “This Week in F–k You” as a regular feature during the offseason. Of course, most of those posts would probably be directed at Bill Smith, anyway.
Nobody Likes a Winless Wonder, Frankie
- Francisco Liriano rolls in Twins’ 7-2 win over the Tigers
After suffering four losses and two no decisions through his first six starts, Francisco Liriano finally beat the Tigers to earn his first win of the season. It isn’t as though he hasn’t pitched well enough to earn a victory before, he’s really only had a couple of bad starts this season. He has, however, suffered from a lack of run support and just some terrible luck. But not this time. Frankie dominated the Tigers through seven innings, allowing only two earned runs on four hits and striking out a season-high nine batters. Of course, it helps that the Detroit lineup is full of free-swingers that like to chase balls in the dirt. His one real blemish was a solo homer to Miguel Cabrera, but since the pitch was a low and inside fastball (that probably wasn’t even a strike), it’s tough to really consider that a mistake pitch. Actually, the only time Frankie got into any real trouble was in the second inning, when he walked Ryan Raburn to load the bases with two outs. He then struck out Adam Everett (who was the big hero for Detroit on Saturday) to end the inning without any damage.
The offense managed to provide Frankie with some much-needed run support, and it was kind of nice to see someone else’s bullpen implode for a change. The Twins struggled to do much of anything against Edwin Jackson, who was pretty impressive himself through six innings. Jackson has struggled with his command in the past, but seems to have improved greatly under the tutelage of new pitching coach (and former Twins’ director of minor league pitching) Rick Knapp. Jackson cruised along, scattering a few hits and giving up only one earned run, until he ran into trouble in the seventh. After failing to retire the first four batters he faced, Jackson was lifted in favor of Brandon Lyon. And that’s when the fun began. The Twins batted around in the inning, scoring five runs on five hits and burning through three different Detroit pitchers before Clay Rapada finally managed to stop the bleeding. The Twins would tack on another run in the ninth, when Carlos Gomez doubled(!) and then scored on a Denard Span single (Span, by the way, was having a great night at the plate. More on that in a minute). For his part, Matt Guerrier managed to not screw things up for Frankie and retired all five batters he faced.
Apparently, Monday night was also the night of frightening injuries. Rick Ankiel crashed headfirst into the outfield wall and had to be carted off the field (he was released from the hospital this morning after tests revealed no serious injuries, though it’s unclear at this point when he’ll return to the lineup). The Twins had kind of a scary moment of their own when first base coach Jerry White was stung right above the ankle by a line drive off the bat of Joe Crede in the eighth. He laid on the ground for a long time and was in obvious pain, but managed to walk off the field with help. The good news is that he just suffered a contusion and should be back tonight.
- Twins activate Jesse Crain from DL, demote catcher Jose Morales
I’m a little disappointed that Morales got sent down to AAA Rochester, especially since he’s been swinging one of the more productive bats in the lineup. However, even though Mike Redmond has some lingering soreness in his shoulder, it isn’t serious enough to land him on the DL (although his quip about the injury evidently made the people at Anheuser-Busch very happy) and it’s tough to justify carrying three catchers at this point. Morales also needs to work on his defense, as he struggled to throw out base runners (all but one of the fourteen stolen base attempts against him were successful), and he won’t get enough playing time with the big club in order to do so. Morales should make at least a competent backup catcher in the major leagues and, since the Twins aren’t likely to extend the 38 year-old Redmond’s contract after this season, will probably have a more regular role with the team next year.
- There’s something wrong with this picture
To be honest, I don’t usually care that much about the All-Star Game. I mean, I think it’s a nice promotional event, and it probably helps MLB increase revenue and all that, but I find the actual game itself to be kind of boring. I know it’s a lot of fun for the players, so I’ll vote for the guys that I think deserve to go, but I don’t get all that worked up about who deserves a spot on the roster and who got snubbed. However, I do find it a bit puzzling that Denard Span isn’t on the ballot to represent the Twins. I mean, I’m not sure he deserves a spot over, say, Grady Sizemore or Curtis Granderson, but he certainly deserves it more than any of the other Twins’ outfielders. Span has been one of the most consistently productive hitters in the lineup, batting .323/.398/.404, and last night went 4-for-5 and drove in a run against some very tough Detroit pitching. Granted, Span doesn’t have the strongest outfield arm, but he’s been asked to play every single OF position this season, and aside from a couple of misplays, has played them all very well. I guess it isn’t really that big of a deal, since you can write in Span on your ballot (and please do), but it’s still kind of strange that the organization feels Michael Cuddyer (who hasn’t done much at the plate until recently), Delmon Young, and Carlos Gomez are all more worthy of consideration for the ASG.
Oh, and the Strib’s LaVelle E. Neal III has an interesting wager with Justin Morneau. I’m kind of rooting for LaVelle, and not just because of my seething hatred for the Vancouver Canucks, either (I also have a general disdain for all things Chicago-related, with a few exceptions). I also really like the idea of Morneau as a guest blogger, though I would like it better if he had to com
pare the fighting styles of Alex Burrows with Rachel McAdams in Mean Girls.
Is Pitching Effectively Really So Much to Ask?
Remember all that stuff I said about Kevin Slowey earlier? That he is the new Brad Radke and will be a dark horse candidate for the AL Cy Young this year? Well, never mind (And thanks for making me look like a complete idiot there, Kev. Lord knows I don’t need any help with that!). As Joe Christensen has helpfully pointed out, Kevin Slowey is looking a lot more like Livan Hernandez than Brad Radke. He gave up five runs on thirteen hits in five innings against Toronto last night, and has given up ten runs in twenty-two hits in his two starts thus far. At this rate, he’ll surpass Livo’s grand total of 257 hits surrendered last season sometime around August.
The bullpen wasn’t exactly spectacular last night, either. Even though Slowey struggled, he did exit the game with a very slim lead. Which the bullpen (specifically Luis Ayala) promptly coughed up. Ayala has been doing his best Juan Rincon impression this year, and by that I mean he sucks. He’s given up four runs on ten hits in five appearances so far, one of which was a two-run bomb to Lyle Overbay in the eighth that put the Jays on top for good. I have to wonder what he was doing pitching the eighth in the first place, though, especially since Jesse Crain is starting to look like the dominant reliever he was before having shoulder surgery in 2007. Ayala gave up a run in the seventh that was charged to Matt Guerrier (since he put the runner on in the first place) and was being hit pretty hard. And yet for some reason Ron Gardenhire thought it was a good idea to put him out there again, even though he had just threatened to cough up the lead one batter ago. Unfortunately, he made good on that threat in the eighth, and the Twins ended up losing a game they really should have won.
Last night’s game, as painful as it was to watch, did have a little bit of a silver lining. Jason Kubel hit his first home run of the season, a bomb off of Jesse Litsch in the second inning. Denard Span seems to be putting his awful ST campaign behind him, as he went 2-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base and is now hitting .310/.444/.448 in the lead off spot. And R.A. Dickey managed to retire all four Jays he faced, which is something the entire pitching staff had failed to do up to that point. So the Twins might actually have one reliable reliever in the bullpen after all.
And, in honor of outgoing Wild head coach Jacques Lemaire (and because I need cheering up), here is a collection of his best quotes:
My personal favorite? When asked if he was worried about his team getting lazy against non-playoff bound opponents down the stretch, Lemaire responded: “Worry is part of our life. We wake up, we worry. We go to bed, we worry. And when we dream, we dream about being worried.” And that is exactly how the pitching staff (and Gardy’s mismanagement of it) is making me feel right now.
Many Men Manage to Mash uh, Manageably
- Twins score 16 runs against Rays
Justin Morneau, Michael Cuddyer, and Jason Kubel all belted homers off of Rays’ starter Scott Shields en route to a 16-2 rout of Tampa Bay. Denard Span, who has been struggling all spring, went 2-for-4 with a pair of hits and a pair of walks. Even Nick Punto had a couple of hits and an RBI. Punto has been hitting .435/.500/.652 this spring, and though I doubt he’s going to continue to be so productive during the regular season, I am hoping that this is a sign that his worst years are behind him. I would be perfectly happy if he put up similar numbers to last year.
Scott Baker had his best outing of the spring, allowing two earned runs on five hits in five innings (one of which was a solo homer to Carl Crawford). He recorded two strikeouts but only one walk, so it appears as though he had better command of his pitches. Matt Guerrier bounced back from his awful appearance against the Red Sox in which he gave up two two-run homers, and pitched a scoreless frame. Brian Duensing and Craig Breslow were also effective in shutting down the Rays.
- No Surprises Here
There were five more players cut from the 25-man roster this morning, none of which were terribly surprising. Jason Pridie was optioned to AAA Rochester, as there is no room on the roster for yet another outfielder. Non-roster invitees Sean Henn, Bobby Keppel, Brock Peterson, and David Winfree were all reassigned to minor league camp. Jose Mijares has survived the cuts so far, but i suspect this is because the Twins want him to continue working with pitching coach Rick Anderson some more before optioning him to AAA. I would be extremely surprised if he actually made the team, considering the way he’s been pitching as of late.
Boof Bonser and Joe Mauer will be placed on the DL, which would make room for two additional roster spots. Whether or not the Twins will decide to carry extra pitchers or extra bench riders remains to be seen. Right now, though, it looks like catcher Drew Butera, infielders Brendan Harris and Brian Buscher, and relief pitchers Philip Humber and R. A. Dickey are the top candidates to win the final roster spots.
Speaking of Mauer, the change in his medication appears to be working and he is able to run without pain. It is now a matter of getting back into game shape, so it’s not likely that he’ll be on the DL for very long. By the way, that same article has a nice story about former Yankee catcher Johnny Blanchard, who sadly passed away from a heart attack on Wednesday.
- North Dakota is experiencing record flooding
About a third of the residents of the Fargo-Moorhead area have been asked to evacuate their homes today due to the record flooding. The President has already declared a State of Emergency for seven nearby counties, and the National Guard has already been deployed to help out with the relief efforts. The river is expected to crest sometime tomorrow (the National Weather service now expects the flood waters to crest on Sunday), at about 43 feet. This is higher than the record of 40 ft. set in 1897 and considerably higher than the 39.5 ft. in the recent 1997 flood, which caused some $3.5 billion in damages. Let us please act like civilized humans for once and not let this turn into another Hurricane Katrina.
If you would like to help out the victims of the Red River flood, go here.
(image courtesy BBC News)
Manny Ramirez Was Almost a Twin
It’s true. As Howard Sinker noted last Sunday (by the way, look who’s now on his blog roll), the Twins considered taking Manny in the third round of the 1991 amateur draft. Scout Herb Stein (who pushed the organization to draft the likes of Rod Carew and Frank Viola) was heavily urging them to draft him, but the organization ultimately decided to pass, taking first-base prospect David McCarty instead. Ramirez was drafted in the 13th round by the Indians and went on to be the greatest right-handed hitter of his generation (and arguably in baseball history), while McCarty went on to enjoy a career as a utility infielder, batting .242./.305/.351 in his eleven seasons with the Twins and Red Sox.
One has to wonder what the Twins’ lineup would have looked like with Manny Ramirez, though. Especially since that lineup would also have had David Ortiz. I doubt the Twins would have won any more World Series championships (Manny is not a starting pitcher, after all), but perhaps they could have been spared so many losing seasons. I’m not sure if that is such a good thing, however. The Twins would never have been able to keep either Ramirez or Ortiz if they became the offensive powerhouses we know and love. They would probably have been outbid by larger-market teams, and would have been forced to either trade each one for whatever prospects they could get (as they did Johan Santana) or simply lose them to free agency (like Torii Hunter). Worse yet, those losing seasons have helped shaped the current roster. Justin Morneau was a first-round pick in the 1999 draft (3rd overall) as was Joe Mauer (1st overall, 2001 draft). Imagine the current lineup without either one.
- Speaking of David Ortiz…
Big Papi was 2-for-3 with a two run homer against his former team in today’s 9-5 loss to the BoSox. The pitching
wasn’t great on either side, though the Twins were much worse. Scott Baker was once again burned by his tendency to give up the long ball, surrendering the two-run blast to Ortiz and a solo shot to Jason Varitek. Baker gave up four runs on seven hits overall, and walked one while striking out two in three innings. Matt Guerrier wasn’t very sharp either, surrendering two two-run homers in one inning of relief. This is not good news for someone who struggled mightily down the stretch last season, and is going to have to be a key part of the bullpen this year. Jose Mijares pitched better than he has in his past couple of appearances, but he still wasn’t terribly effective. He surrendered one run on two hits and walked one in his one inning of work, though he did strike out two. Brian Duensing and Bobby Keppel were probably the most effective pitchers for the Twins, as they were the only ones who didn’t give up any runs.
At least the offense has started showing some life, though. Other than Justin Morneau, that is. Johnny Canuck has been struggling a bit at the plate and he was hitless in today’s game, striking out twice. Denard Span seems to have found his swing, and went 2-for-3 with a solo homer off of Jonathan Papelbon. Alexi Casilla has been getting hot lately, too, and went 4-for-4 with two stolen bases. While I doubt the two of them will be able to maintain this torrid pace during the regular season, they should at least be good enough to keep their one-and-two slots in the lineup.
- At least Pudge can go play for the Astros now
Team USA rallied from a two-run deficit to defeat the Puerto Ricans and advance to the semifinals in the WBC. This was quite a game, with the Americans down two runs in the bottom of the ninth. David Wright drove in the winning runs on a single, capping off one of the most dramatic rallies in the WBC (second only to the Netherlands/Dominican Republic) thus far. Okay, to be honest I didn’t actually watch this game, as I was watching the Wild pull off an impressive rally of their own, but it sounds like it was good. And now I’m officially cheering for Team USA, which means they’ll probably get eliminated right away in the next round (I was previously cheering for the Canadians and the Dutch, after all).
Well, It Was a Good Ride While It Lasted
- Dutch eliminated in WBC, 9-3
Team Hollandaise was sent packing in spectacular fashion by the heavy-hitting American team last night. The USA pounded the Dutch pitchers for nine runs on twelve hits, including a two-run homer by Jimmy Rollins and a solo shot by Adam Dunn. The Dutch, on the other hand, eked out a mere three runs (though they also had twelve hits). Things got a little chippy in the eighth, when Bryan Englehardt spent a little too much time admiring his solo shot (the Dutch were down 8-1 at this point) off of reliever Matt Lindstrom. Lindstrom proceeded to throw behind Vince Rooi, and both benches were warned. That was about as close to any actual fighting as the two sides got, and the Dutch would score one more run on a sac fly before the US put the game away in the bottom of the inning.
As I’ve said before, the Americans had a lot more on the line in this game than the Dutch. The US was absolutely embarrassed in the 2006 WBC when they failed to make it past the first round. They had already been humiliated by the Puerto Ricans, and a loss by the underwhelming Netherlands team would have struck a blow to the already-flagging interest in the tournament on the part of American baseball fans. The Dutch, on the other hand, weren’t even expected to win a game in the WBC, let alone knock off a Dominican team that was loaded with major-league talent. Losing to the Americans will do nothing to diminish interest in baseball or the WBC in the Netherlands, considering that there wasn’t much to begin with.
There is some bad news for Team USA (and the Marlins): Matt Lindstrom has a strained rotator cuff and will be unable to pitch for at least 10 days. This isn’t the first time the Americans have suffered injuries in the WBC, Chipper Jones, Ryan Braun, and Dustin Pedroia have all suffered injuries of varying seriousness. While none of these guys are likely miss any of the season, fans and baseball executives alike are all nervous about their favorite players suffering devastating injury in a tournament that isn’t very important to them. This is one of the major criticisms of the WBC: that it is held during spring training, when guys aren’t quite in game-shape and are much more injury-prone. It has gotten so bad that Team USA manager Davy Johnson has threatened to forfeit the tournament if anyone else gets hurt.
- Twins fall to Yankees 5-1
I’m not going to harp on the lack of offensive production in Sunday’s game at Steinbrenner field, considering that the lineup was full of guys who have no chance to make the team this year (though the few regulars who were in did pretty well, except for Denard Span). I’m also not going to rake anyone over the coals for the piss-poor defense, either. While no Twins players were actually charged with any errors, those of us who actually saw the game know better. There were some defensive miscues by the infield, and a dropped pop fly by SS Trevor Plouffe that led to some not-so-earned Yankee runs. While Glen Perkins officially gave up three earned runs on five hits, in truth he probably gave up one earned run on three hits. Other than that, the pitching was really good (aside from Bobby Keppel, but he’s probably going to start the season in AAA). Nick Blackburn pitched two spotless innings in relief, and gave up only one hit while recording a strikeout. Blackburn is scheduled to make his next start on Tuesday, as the soreness in his knee is apparently gone now. Philip Humber will start in his place today against Baltimore.
By the way, Perk is apparently fine after getting hit in the calf by Hideki Matsui’s broken bat (he even got Matsui to sign it). He wanted to come back out and pitch the fourth, but the team decided not to take any chances on the projected fourth starter for a spring exhibition game and put in Nick Blackburn instead. He should make his next start against the Yankees on Friday.
Andy Pettite looked really sharp on the mound for the Yanks, shutting out the Twins for three innings. More importantly, though, Jorge Posada caught three innings without experiencing any pain in his shoulder. He also went 2-for-2 and plated a pair of runs. That is very good news for Yankee fans who already have enough to worry about as it is.
- Twins vs O’s
The Twins were hitting! And not stranding that many runners for once! Most importantly,
Denard Span went 2-for-3 with a triple, which is his first extra-base hit of the season I believe. Span has been struggling at the plate so far, and it appeared in yesterday’s game against the Yankees as though his timing was off. It was pretty clear that he was seeing the ball well, as he was taking a lot of pitches and was working some deep counts. However, he would end up either grounding out or popping out, and it appeared he was a little in front of the ball. Hopefully Span has finally found his swing. Joe Crede hit a two-run homer in the third with two outs, that put the Twins on top for good. Crede hasn’t been having a good spring, either, but considering that he only played in 91 games last year because of his back, and that he tends to be a bit of a slow starter, it’s a little too early to panic just yet.
And Philip Humber pitched well, giving up no hits and no runs while striking out two in his two innings of work. Actually, the only runs given up by Twins pitchers were by guys who will most likely spend the season in Rochester: Armando Gabino (leadoff homer to Aubrey Huff) and Sean Henn (another leadoff homer to catcher Guillermo Rodriguez). Oh, and Rule 5 draft pick Jason Jones gave up one run on four hits in two innings. I’m not sure if Jones is going to remain on the roster or not. Although the Twins will have to offer him back to the Yankees if they choose to send him down, it doesn’t sound like the Yanks are too interested in him so some sort of deal might be worked out.
- Still No Mauer News
the Star Tribune, he was in the clubhouse this morning and seemed to be in a good mood, so maybe there isn’t anything seriously wrong. While it would be nice to know what, if anything, is going on, I doubt it is serious otherwise there would have been some sort of announcement by now. At least that’s what I keep telling myself, anyway.
I Know it’s Still Early, But…
- Twins’ pitching has been pretty impressive so far
Once again, the pitching staff just missed a no-hitter in yesterday’s game against Baltimore, when Matt Wieters singled off of Bobby Keppel in the bottom of the ninth. This is actually the second time this spring that the Twins have taken a no-hitter into the late innings. Francisco Liriano was perfect in this outing and recorded five strikeouts. Joe Nathan pitched brilliantly too, recording no hits and no walks while striking out two in his lone inning of work. Better yet, his shoulder doesn’t seem to be bothering him at all anymore, which is great because the Twins don’t anything else to worry about right now.
Kevin Slowey pitched pretty well against the Rays today, giving up two runs on four hits, but striking out four batters in 3 1/3 innings of work. The bullpen looked pretty good once again, too, including Matt Guerrier. Matty G struck out one and walked one in 2/3 of an inning, but didn’t give up any hits or runs. Actutally, his worst performance so far this spring was probably against the Pirates, when he gave up two runs on two hits and walked one in one inning. I think that, as long as he can return to his previous role in the seventh and doesn’t have to pitch too many innings this year, Guerrier will likely bounce back from his awful 2008 campaign.
- The offense, however, is not
It’s a good thing the pitching staff has been so stingy about giving up runs; the offense has been reluctant to score any. I realize that most of the regulars are playing in the WBC, and so the offense might be a little anemic when it’s being carried by the likes of Carlos Gomez. Still, some key players are still in camp and haven’t been terribly productive yet. Michael Cuddyer has been a miserable .188/.235/.313 so far, and Joe Crede has recorded only one hit in his 14 plate appearances (though he has two walks). These guys are both coming off of injury-shortened seasons last year, and it will probably take awhile for them to get comfortable at the plate. In particular, Crede’s back doesn’t seem to be bothering him anymore, so it will probably just be a matter of time before he starts hitting.
I am more worried about Denard Span, however. As I’ve written elsewhere, he was a great leadoff hitter for the Twins last season, something the lineup has lacked since the departure of Doug Mientkiewicz in 2003. However, he never had that much success at the plate in the minor leagues, and so I have been concerned that last season might have been a fluke. So far, that concern has been real since Span has only hit .111/.111/.235, though he’s drawn four walks in 18 at-bats. Span has grounded out 9 times, and flown out 5 times, so it appears as though he’s simply hitting the ball to a fielder. This might be an issue with his mechanics, and I would much rather he go through these problems here in camp than during the regular season (or the middle of the playoff chase).
The news isn’t all bad, though. Delmon Young, another big question mark entering into spring training, seems to be taking Tony Oliva’s advice to heart:
Young apparently wasn’t very happy with his disappointing performance last year. While he hit a respectable .290/.336/.405 with 10 homers overall, most of his offensive production came in the second half. Before the All-Star break he was a mediocre .286/.330/.390 and had shown little power. Worse yet, he had struck out 62 times in that period and seemed to be struggling to find his swing. His name had been mentioned in several trade rumors during the offseason, and it looked as though he would be out of a job with the crowded outfield situation. But so far Young has responded by tearing the cover off the ball, hitting .529/.550/.789 and has driven in five runs in his 19 plate appearances so far. Three of his ten hits have been for extra bases, and his only homer of the season is the two-run bomb he hit today against the Rays. He still hasn’t shown a ton of patience at the plate, though, and has yet to draw a walk (though he has yet to record a strikeout, so I guess that’s progress).
Jason Kubel has been a menace at the plate too, hitting .400/.538/.800 in his ten plate appearances thus far. Kubel doesn’t have a lot of extra base hits yet, just a double and a solo homer, but I think those will come. At least he’s showing more confidence anyway.
- This is not good news at all
Joe Mauer is apparently still having a lot of back pain and is scheduled to have a magnetic resonance anthrogram on Wednesday. Obviously we don’t know yet what, if anything, is wrong, but it doesn’t look like Mauer will be ready for Opening Day. Mauer swings what is arguably the most valuable bat in the lineup, so losing him for any part of the season would be a huge blow. I will hold off any speculation as to what the Twins will do without Mauer in the lineup until we know if indeed he will be out of the lineup.
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