26 thoughts on “September 28, 2023: SNAFU”

  1. Perusing FanGraphs’ Twins team page reveals that Edouard Julien is now leading the team in fWAR. Royce Lewis is fourth in fWAR despite being 15th in PA.

    1. And the WRC+ leaderboard looks as follows:

      # Player PA WRC+
      1 Lewis 239 154
      2 Wallner 243 140
      3 Jeffers 321 135
      4 Julien 393 134
      5 Kepler 480 121
      6 Kirilloff 306 119
      7 Polanco 340 118
      8 Solano 430 117
      9 Castro 390 107
      10 Gallo 332 103

      Of that top ten, seven players are homegrown, and six are age 26 or younger.

      1. Lewis and Jeffers are capable fielders but Wallner and Kirilloff are not. Julien has been a tiny bit below average but close enough. Wallner has been -3 runs total in half the time of Julien at each outfield corner. But Kirilloff has put up the worst fielding performance on the team at -6 runs standing at first.

        1. I wonder if it’s possible Kirilloff is just a sample size victim. My understanding was that he’s a capable defender at first? I’ll be curious to see how his injury history affects his deployment and roster construction in the future.

          I’ve been impressed with Julien’s improvement in the field. The early reviews were not promising, but he’s made some pretty good plays of late. I hope he appreciates the progress he’s made, because he looks much better out there.

          Polanco feels like a crucial pivot for this lineup. He’s an unflappable switch-hitter who is quite productive when healthy, can hit anywhere in the order, and will play anywhere he’s asked. Kind of a manager’s dream.

  2. We had a very close friend (and neighbor) die suddenly two days ago.

    She was in Florida at Disney World with her two adult children (one disabled). Cold symptoms a few days ago. Two days ago… sweating, extreme weakness, ER, low blood pressure, positive COVID test, sepsis, plan for ICU, heart stopped, CPR, and it was finished. It went so incredibly fast. Did COVID give her sepsis or did it weaken her immune system so something else could? I suppose there will be an autopsy - what we’ve heard so far implies a possible underlying heart issue like myocarditis.

    My wife, a nurse, was on the phone and FaceTime with her eldest daughter on and off throughout. Her daughter did so well advocating for her. They made all the right choices. We were on FaceTime with her daughter and son after she died. We were at a cross country meet and some of her other friends were there as well. We melted into the ground, crying.

    This is devastating. We have gotten to work, helping as best we can, supporting them and their friend network. Then we collapse for 5 minutes before we get back to it.

    Hug your people. Always hug your people. (Our friend despised hugs, so this give me a bit of a smirk.)

    2. This is devastating. So sorry.

      Also, a good reminder to get your immunization shots (not implying she didn't).

  4. I've mentioned a few times but Reservation Dogs (on Hulu) is really must see. It ended its 3 season run last night. The link below is a pretty damn good summary of the show without "spoilers." I encourage all to read and then check out the show if you can. As I mentioned last week in the movie post, if you are looking for a show with characters to root for Reservation Dogs is the show for you.

    https://uproxx.com/tv/reservation-dogs-final-season-special/

    1. Seconded.

      It's one you have to stick with for a few episodes since it is so character driven. The storyline develops over time.

    2. For my money, the best show on television, and has been since it debuted. Alternately hilarious and heartfelt. Looking forward to rewatching it all soon, as I started in at the beginning so I only got one episode at a time. Will be a great binge.

  5. Seems like the Twins just can't get past 12 games over .500

    Twins have not won a playoff game since the Harris family started tearing around the Target clothing section, but since that ad campaign has FINALLY ended, I'm looking for lots of good things this post season.

  6. Going through old Immaculate Grids and i was able to use Seth Stohs' friend Chris Coste in an answer. 0.4% rarity

      1. I got curious last night and decided to watch how it unfolded live. The clip doesn't do it justice. You'd expect the Phillies' announcers to roast him, but the Pirates' booth also mocked Ángel.

    2. The thing is that, other than personal pride, Angel Hernandez has no incentive to improve. By general acclamation, he's been the worst umpire in the majors for years. But not only does he not have any consequences for that, he usually gets rewarded with playoff assignments.

        1. he's been the worst umpire in the majors for years
          I'm guessing what Bryce was "explaining" was something along these lines.

          One hilarious part about this clip is you'd expect the third base coach to be running down the line to intercept Harper. Guessing the coach had a good view of the swing as well, and he just kind of turned around, walked away, and said, yeah, go for it, Bryce. Only when it looked like something physical could happen did he jump in.

          2. And even then, barely. Harper has an epic temper and his helmet throwing has been legendary for over a decade, but I don't think he's ever done anything stupid?

    3. At least one person walked away from the situation happy.

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