Tag Archives: Minnesota Twins

2017 Twins Game Logs

2017 Game 14: Cleveland at Twins

43 Comments

One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
Two can be as bad as one, it's the loneliest number since the number one... (Playing the Twins excepted)

One run, another loss.  The Twins, inspired by their hockey cousins across the river, have scored just one run in four of their last seven games, including the last two, resulting in all losses.  Clearly the mantra from the other side is “just score two boys, and we’ll be alright.”  Given Cleveland’s early pitching woes, yesterday was especially frustrating.

Phil Hughes up against Josh Tomlin today at 7:10p.  Even though it’s pretty rainy all day, things look to clear up this evening.  Hopefully Twins bats emerge from the cloud as well.

2017 Twins Game Logs, Game Logs

Game 10. Twins host Chicago. 7:10pm

53 Comments

Could there be a weather delay? The radar as of this writing looks like its possible.

The Twins are  6-3 and tied for first place! Adalberto Mejia starts for the locals. I saw him in spring training a few times (on FSN, not in Florida) he looked impressive, throwing strikes and working quick. His first regular season start was not as impressive only getting 5 outs. Maybe it was first start of the regular season jitters.

The Sox are 4-4 and in 3rd place. Dylan Covey start and it his major league debut.

I have been rewatching Star Trek Deep Space Nine and found my favorite Worf joke ever (Of course Worf was a character in Next Generation too) It happened in an episode where the crew plays a baseball game against the Vulcans in the Holosuite and its one of my favorite non serious episode of any Star Trek series. (Most Star Trek series are available to binge on Netflix)

 

2017 Twins Game Logs

2017 Game 7: Twins at Tigers

35 Comments

You know what's cooler than zero wins?  Five wins. -- Kirby Puckett (unconfirmed).

Twins are 5-1 and everyone is relieved we may not have to go through the crap-fest that was the 2016 season.  Of course the rain-on-the-paraders like to point out "it's only 3.7 percent of the season, that's like being in the third quarter of the first NFL game."  Huh?  Who cares? enjoy the fact we have some fun baseball being played.  And stop talking about the NFL!

Hector Santiago and his cool 1.80 ERA takes on Matt Boyd and his not-so-cool 19.29 ERA.  The Tigers are probably a .500 team this year but they did take down the Beantowners 3 out of 4 games of the weekend. Twins haven't done well in Detroit lately, so by late Thursday afternoon we should have some more answers about what kind of team we will have this year (or not, 9 games is like 6.5 minutes left to play in the first... oh for Christ sake)

2017 Twins Game Logs, Game Logs

Twins at Comiskey Park. 7pm

90 Comments

After a sweep of the Royals at home, the Twins head east to play the White Sox. The Sox  got a new sponsor name for their stadium but I don't recall what it is so I will call it Comiskey Park.

The Sox had a rain out and sit at 1-1 on the season. Twins are tied for first with a 3-0 record.Phil Hughes toes the rubber for the visitors while newcomer Derek Holland starts for the Pale Hose.

Weather should not be a problem, with cloudy and cool tonight and a warmup in Chicago for the weekend.

 

2017 Twins Game Recaps

Game 2 Recap: Twins 9, Royals 1

4 Comments

When Derek Falvey and Thad Levine were hired to run the Twins, much was made about their emphasis on "analytics".  These two men, we were told, were the men who were going to bring the Twins into the twenty-first century.  We would see new strategies that Twins teams had not previously employed.  I think, two games into the season, we are already starting to see that.

The main strategy the Twins have employed so far is to score several runs per game while limiting the other team to just one.  This strategy is foreign to Twins fans, and may take some getting used to.  So far, however, it seems to be effective.  Yes, it's a small sample size, but many experts believe that this strategy will continue to work if the Twins will just stick with it.

It's a strategy that has at least three components.  One of them is to score six runs in the seventh inning of every game.  A second one is to have you starting pitcher give up exactly one run:  no more, no less.  A third is to have your relief pitchers give up zero runs.  Again, these concepts may seem radical to Twins fans,  They are certainly different from what we've seen in recent years.  And, of course, two games are not enough to know whether these things will continue to bear fruit over the long-term.  Still, I think the Twins should continue using them as long as they're working.

Looking at the game a bit more seriously, Hector Santiago managed to pitch five innings and just give up one run despite throwing just seven first-pitch strikes in twenty attempts.  He apparently did better on second, third, and fourth pitches, as he threw 52 strikes out of 88 pitches.  That means that, other than the first pitch, he threw strikes about two-thirds of the time, which isn't bad at all.  Obviously, starting with ball one is not the recommended procedure, but if you can throw enough other strikes, and are helped out by facing a team that doesn't walk much, you can get away with it.  Watching on TV, I wondered if perhaps his back was bothering him--I saw him appear to try to be stretching it out a few times between pitches.  If so, that would account for him having trouble getting the ball down.  If it was bothering him, it is hoped that he was simply having trouble getting loose on a chilly day, rather than something that will be a chronic problem.

When Santiago came out after five innings, Tyler Duffey came in.  Duffey is supposedly the "long man", but he pitched only one inning.  Now, Molitor has expressed a preference--shared by many managers--of getting as many players into a game as early in the season as possible.  That may be all he was doing here, and if so I have no problem with it.  On the other hand, Molitor has seemed to believe that relief pitchers can work no more than one inning per game, which is one of the reasons the Twins always think they need eight relief pitchers.  I'm not upset about this, but it is something to keep an eye on as the season rolls along.

Byron Buxton got an infield single, which I assume sent Dick Bremer into all kinds of ecstasies.  Bremer was talking earlier in the game about how Buxton needs to hit more "line drives and ground balls".  I'm all for having Buxton hit line drives--it's a good idea for almost every batter to hit line drives.  But ground balls?  No.  It amazes me that someone will talk about how pitchers need to keep the ball down and force the opposing batters to hit ground balls, and then turn around and recommend that your own batters hit ground balls.  Yes, Buxton is a fast man, but he's not going to beat out very many two-hoppers to the shortstop.  If he hits ground balls consistently, the number of infield singles he gets will be dwarfed by the number of ground outs he makes.

Buxton is 1-for-10 on the young season, to which I say, so what?  There won't be five batters in the majors who don't go 1-for-10 at some point in the season.  If he does it in June, no one will even notice.  I don't think I'd have started the season with Buxton batting third, but having decided to do it, the Twins need to leave him there for a substantial period of time and give it a chance to work.  In other words, if they thought they had good reasons to bat him third at the start of the season, nothing that happens in the first couple of weeks should convince them that they were wrong.  Leave him alone and see what happens.

I find it interesting the Robbie Grossman has started the season 0-for-6, and yet I don't hear any of the complaints about his slow start that I hear about Buxton.  Yes, Grossman has drawn a few walks, and yes, there are different expectations.  Still, I think if Buxton had started 0-for-6 with three walks, the reaction would be quite different than it is for Grossman.

The Twins are 2-0 and in first place, and it feels good to be able to say that.  They go for the series sweep this afternoon, and it feels good to be able to say that, too.  It'll be Jason Hammel going for Kansas City and Kyle Gibson pitching for Our Heroes.  If the Twins use the same strategy they've used in the first two games, I predict another victory.  Go Twins!

2017 Twins Game Logs, Minnesota Twins, MLB

Game 2: Kansas City at Minnesota

97 Comments

Starting the season with a win, as opposed to the recent standard "L" is so much fun, I was disappointed the Twins didn't play yesterday. Instead, I watched the Wild clinch home ice for the playoffs and the Timberwolves hang with the  Warriors for about 2 quarters before the Splash Brothers blew the thing up.

So, with limited optimism for this season, and with the understanding that Spring Training results mean next-to-nothing, basically all I have to point to today will be historic results.*

The last time the Twins opened the season with a win, 2008, they proceeded to lose the next three games in a row. After 10 games, they were 5-5 and ended the season at 89-74, good for 2nd in the Central (losing Game 163 to Chicago ... booo!)

The last time they won multiple games out of the gate was a decade ago - 2007 - when they won 3, had a couple days off, lost a game and then basically traded wins & losses on their way to a 6-4 start. They went 79-83 and finished 3rd in the Central.

In 2010, the Twins lost their opener, and then pulled off 5 wins in a row, and 7 wins out of the first 10 games. They finished the season with 8 losses in the last 10 games. They still won the Central, but were swept by the Yankees in the LDS and have not returned the playoffs since.

Whatever - I certainly like the idea of a 2-0 start to an 0-2 start. Though I'd argue the Twins are pitching-poor if Hector Santiago is your #2 starter, I certainly wouldn't mind if he can get back to the 2015 version of himself (32 games started, 180.2 IP, 8.1 SO/9, 3.59 ERA, 105 ERA+, 1.256 WHIP).

The Royals counter with Ian Kennedy on the mound.

*Historic results also mean nothing ... but what else am I going to talk about?

Keeping Track

1987 Rewind: Team Leaders

1 Comment

BATTING LEADERS

GAMES

Kirby Puckett, 157
Tom Brunansky, 155
Gary Gaettie, 154

PLATE APPEARANCES

Puckett, 668
Gaetti, 628
Brunansky, 614

AT-BATS

Puckett, 624
Gaetti, 584
Brunansky, 532

RUNS

Puckett, 96
Gaetti, 95
Kent Hrbek, 85

HITS

Puckett, 207
Gaetti, 150
Brunansky, 138

DOUBLES

Gaetti, 36
Puckett, 32
Greg Gagne, 28

TRIPLES

Gagne, 7
Al Newman, 5
Puckett, 5

HOME RUNS

Hrbek, 34
Brunansky, 32
Gaetti, 31

RBI

Gaetti, 109
Puckett, 99
Hrbek, 90

STOLEN BASES

Dan Gladden, 25
Newman, 15
Puckett 12

WALKS

Hrbek, 84
Brunansky, 74
Randy Bush, 43

BATTING AVERAGE

Puckett, .332
Hrbek, ,285
Roy Smalley, .275

ON-BASE PERCENTAGE

Hrbek, ,389
Puckett, .367
Smalley, .352
Brunansky, 352

SLUGGING PERCENTAGE

Hrbek, .545
Puckett, .534
Brunansky, .489

OPS

Hrbek, .934
Puckett, .900
Brunansky, .841

TOTAL BASES

Puckett, 333
Gaetti, 283
Hrbek, 260
Brunansky, 260

HIT BY PITCH

Puckett, 6
4 tied at 4

SACRIFICE HITS

Gagne, 10
Lombardozzi, 9
Newman, 7

SACRIFICE FLIES

Puckett, 6
Bush, 5
Hrbek, 5

INTENTIONAL WALKS

Hrbek, 12
Gaetti, 7
Puckett, 7

PITCHING LEADERS

WINS

Frank Viola, 17
Bert Blyleven, 15
3 tied at 8

WINNING PERCENTAGE

Juan Berenguer, .889
Viola, .630
Keith Atherton, .583

ERA

Viola, 2.90
Berenguer, 3.94
Blyleven, 4.01

GAMES

Reardon, 63
Atherton, 59
George Frazier, 54

STARTS

Blyleven, 37
Viola, 36
Les Straker, 26

GAMES FINISHED

Reardon, 63
Atherton, 29
Frazier, 26

COMPLETE GAMES

Blyleven, 8
Viola, 7
Straker, 1

SHUTOUTS

Blyleven, 1
Viola, 1

SAVES

Reardon, 34
Berenguer, 4
Atherton, 2
Frazier, 2

INNINGS

Blyleven, 267
Viola, 251.2
Straker, 154.1

STRIKEOUTS

Viola, 197
Blyleven, 196
Berenguer, 110

BATTERS FACED

Blyleven, 1122
Viola, 1037
Straker, 656

FIP

Berenguer, 3.33
Viola, 3.66
Reardon, 4.23

WHIP

Viola, 1.176
Reardon, 1.220
Blyleven, 1.311

Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–March 27

Miller Huggins (1878)
Effa Manley (1897)
Wes Covington (1932)
Bill Sudakis (1946)
Lynn McGlothen (1950)
Dick Ruthven (1951)
Dave Hostetler (1956)
Jaime Navarro (1967)
Tom Quinlan (1968)
Dee Brown (1978)
Michael Cuddyer (1979)
Brian Slocum (1981)
Buster Posey (1987)
Matt Harvey (1989)

Effa Manley was the owner of the Brooklyn Eagles and the Newark Eagles in the Negro Leagues.

Dick Ruthven was drafted by Minnesota in the first round in 1972, but did not sign.

Brian Slocum was drafted by Minnesota in the fourteenth round in 1999, but did not sign.

We would like to wish a very happy birthday to Can of Corn.

We would also like to wish a happy birthday to Milt on Tilt.  Gone but not forgotten.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–March 27 →

Keeping Track

1987 Rewind: World Series Game Seven

17 Comments

MINNESOTA 4, ST. LOUIS 2 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Sunday, October 25.

Batting stars:  Tim Laudner was 2-for-3 with a walk and a run.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI.  Greg Gagne was 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI.

Pitching stars:  Frank Viola pitched eight innings, giving up two runs on six hits and no walks with seven strikeouts.  Jeff Reardon pitched a perfect inning.

Opposition stars:  Tony Pena was 2-for-3 with a double, a stolen base, and an RBI.  Todd Worrell pitched three innings of relief, giving up one run on three hits and a walk with two strikeouts.  Steve Lake was 1-for-3 with an RBI.

The game:  St. Louis took the lead in the second inning.  They opened the inning with consecutive singles by Jim Lindeman, Willie McGee, and Pena to take a 1-0 lead.  The next two batters were retired, but Lake came through with an RBI single to make it 2-0 Cardinals.  That was all St. Louis would get, as Viola retired the next eleven batters and would give up only two more hits over the next six innings.

The Twins got one of the runs back in the bottom of the second.  Don Baylor was hit by a pitch and Tom Brunansky singled.  With one out, Laudner singled, but Baylor was thrown out at the plate.  Steve Lombardozzi followed with another single to make it 2-1.

It stayed 2-1 until the fifth.  With one out, Greg Gagne got an infield single.  It was the first hit the Twins had gotten since the second inning, but Whitey Herzog pulled starter Joe Magrane in favor of Danny Cox, who had started Game Five.  It didn't work, as Puckett drove his first pitch into deep left-center for a double, scoring Gagne and tying the game.  The Twins ran themselves out of a bigger inning.  Gary Gaetti walked, but Puckett was thrown out at third on the front end of a double steal and Gaetti was thrown out at home trying to score on a Baylor single.  Still, the score was tied after five innings.

The Twins took the lead in the sixth.  Cox opened the inning with walks to Brunansky and Kent Hrbek and was removed for Todd Worrell.  With one out, Worrell walked Roy Smalley to load the bases.  Dan Gladden struck out, but Gagne got another infield single, scoring Brunansky with the go-ahead run.  The Twins got an insurance run in the eighth, as Laudner got a one-out single and scored from first on Gladden's two-out double.  Reardon came in to pitch the ninth and retired Tom Herr on a fly to center, Curt Ford on a popup to third, and Willie McGee on a grounder to third to win the game and give the Twins their first World Championship.

Notes:  The quick hook for Magrane appears to have been based solely on the fact that he was a rookie.  He was pitching well at the time, and appears to have been the Cardinals best starting pitcher in 1987 (best ERA, best WHIP, best FIP, most strikeouts per nine innings).  Bringing in Cox, who was pitching on two days' rest, had not pitched in relief all year, and had a WHIP of 1.48 in 1987, does not appear to have been a smart decision...This was the only start of the postseason for Steve Lake.  Tony Pena, the regular St. Louis catcher, was used as the DH...I remember thinking at the time that I would have left Viola in to pitch the ninth.  He had thrown 105 pitches, which was not considered as high a total then as it is now, and was pitching well.  I couldn't argue with the results, however...Reardon had an excellent World Series, pitching 4.2 innings over four games and giving up no runs on five hits and no walks with three strikeouts...Puckett batted .357/.419/.464 for the World Series...Baylor batted .385/.467/.615 in fifteen plate appearances...Tim Laudner batted .318/.444/.500...Lombardozzi batted .412/.474/.647 in nineteen plate appearances.

Record:  The Twins won the best-of- seven series 4-3.

THE MINNESOTA TWINS ARE WORLD CHAMPIONS!!!!!