Category: BYRON BUXTON

Despite flirtations with winning the Central Division and a mathematical likelihood of being a Wild Card entry in the playoffs, these are frustrating days for the Twins and their fans.

The series sweep by the Royals last weekend in Kansas City prompted manager Rocco Baldelli to reportedly light into his players.  The boss questioned the effort of his guys after a series that saw the Twins score two runs in three games.

Baldelli was also lit up over the weekend by critical fans who didn’t like his handling of starting pitcher Bailey Ober Saturday night against the Royals, a club that has now taken over second place in the division standings behind the Guardians.  After seven innings and one-hit pitching, Ober was not sent out to the mound for the eighth inning even though his pitch count was at 83.

Baldelli, hired by the Twins after the 2018 season and a patron of analytics, has long been unpopular with many fans who find fault with his pitching and lineup decisions. The sniping at Baldelli by the fans has intensified with the club sliding in the standings after going 2-5  on its most recent road trip and losing to the lowly Angels at home last night.

The Twins, with a 77-68 record, are 6-15 in their last 21 games.  They would have a Wild Card entry in the American League playoffs if the season ended today, but other teams potentially could overtake them before the regular season ends in late September.

Certainly a spot in the postseason and emerging as the winner in their opening series would ease the frustrations of the 2024 season.  And who knows? Perhaps boost Baldelli’s job security?  He was, BTW, AL Manager of the Year in 2019 when Minnesota won the division title with a 101-61 record.

Fans started feeling angst last offseason when ownership decided to reduce payroll from a franchise record of reportedly $156 million or more in 2023.  The cut was made at least in part because of uncertainty regarding local TV revenues in 2024.  That was a downer for a fan base that became passionate after the Twins won the division title and took down the Blue Jays in the opening postseason series.

Part of the offseason story, too, was the free agent departure of starting ace Sonny Gray to the Cardinals.  The Twins and their fans have felt his absence, particularly with the shoulder injury that has sidelined key starter Joe Ryan for the remainder of the season.

When it comes to injuries, the Twins have reason to lament.  Shortstop Carlos Correa, the highest paid man on the team, hasn’t played since July 12. He’s become too familiar with the disabling pain of plantar fasciitis after having the condition with his left foot last year and right foot this season.  He is counted on to not only produce on the field but also with his leadership off it.

Center fielder Byron Buxton, the team’s second highest paid position player, has spent much of his career on the IL.  He’s been out a couple times in 2024, including most recently not having played for the Twins since August 12.

The team medical report, of course, goes deeper with the absence of starting right fielder Max Kepler and bullpen arms because of injuries.

Third baseman Royce Lewis, often sidelined the last three years, has been able to play of late but is in a massive slump.  A .300 hitter his first two major league seasons, he has hit .167 in his last 15 games. The season average is at .243 as the right-handed hitting Lewis struggles to hit breaking balls away from him.  Adding to the drama of this season is the recent reported reluctance of Lewis to fill in at second base, a new position for him.

The Twins September swoon might look at least a little different if they had successfully added pitching or hitting help before the July 30 trade deadline.  Minnesota’s only move was to add journeyman pitcher Trevor Richards from the Blue Jays who has since been outrighted to Triple A St. Paul.  Not adding mid-season help to a team fighting for a pennant had to be a disappointment to Twins players.

On the frustration list for fans, too, is that part of the season Twins games weren’t televised on local cable.  That’s changed now but Comcast/Xfinity customers are paying more to see the games and it’s uncertain what the franchise’s TV situation will be for 2025.

That uncertainty will likely impact payroll for next season.  Staff ace Pablo Lopez is due a big raise of about $13 million and a lengthy list of important personnel including Ryan, Ober, Lewis, Willi Castro, Ryan Jeffers, Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran are all arbitration eligible.  The educated guess is the Twins will plan to roll with a budget similar to this season, in the $125 to $130 million range.  To reach that total the Twins will need to part with higher paid personnel, probably including Kepler.

Know this: the Twins have enough talent to reduce a lot of frustration in this town.  Lopez and Ober could make the Twins starting pitching formidable in a short playoff series.  A lineup that welcomes back Correa and Buxton, along with a hot hitting Lewis, the power bats of multiple batters, and versatile position players like Castro and Brooks Lee, along with bullpen arms like Duran and Jax, could make a stir in the closing weeks of September and into the playoffs.

The Twins showed their potential earlier in the season after recovering from a 7-13 start to play some of the best baseball in the majors from late April to mid-August. Credit the work of front office leaders Derek Falvey and Thad Levine, and others in the organization, for the productive things they have done right including the acquisition of players like Lopez, Ryan, Castro and Santana from other clubs, and farm system development with the likes of Lee, Lewis, Ober, Jose Miranda and Matt Wallner.

It will be interesting to see if Baldelli still has command of the locker room as the club works its way through a schedule that ends at home September 29 against the AL East Division contending Orioles.  Will how the club finishes 2024 impact his return for next season?

Probably not because management and ownership try to foster an organization of stability. The Twins don’t operate with a quick trigger.  Baldelli’s teams have won three division titles.

Baldelli was hired by Falvey and Levine.  Best guess is they still consider Rocco their guy.

In their most important series of the season so far, the Twins are advised to at least split their four game upcoming series against the Guardians at Target Field.

The Guardians are 5-0 this season against the Twins and lead Minnesota by 3.5 games in the race to win the American League Central Division.  A Guardians sweep of the four-game series with the Twins that starts tomorrow afternoon (Friday) could make it quite unlikely Minnesota will win the division.

It’s extreme to think that on Sunday night Cleveland will be 9-0 on the season against Minnesota.  Also extreme is the thought of a Twins sweep that would put the Twins in first place and boost Minnesota’s chances of being in the division lead through the last day of the season on September 29.

Even losing three of four will not be cheery news for Minnesota, while winning three would be a confidence booster.  The way it looks right now the Twins are likely to and need to at least split the series.

The Guardians, 67-47, and the Twins, 63-50, will have one final series in September.  Minnesota will play four games in Cleveland, September 16-19.

The Guardians have the best home record in the American League at 35-20 and 15 games over .500.  In three home games in April against the Twins, the Guardians outscored Minnesota 19-8.

Twins president Dave St. Peter was asked earlier in the week about his view of the upcoming series: “It’s significant, obviously.  We have an opportunity to make a dent in their lead.  We clearly are playing at home, so these games are of the utmost importance.

“They’re really good (the Guardians).  They’ve had our number to this point and so we’re obviously going to have our hands full.

“We know what their team is about. A lot of quality players, great defense, great base running.  We know their bullpen is elite.  So, we’re probably going to have to get to their starters and try to get to them early on with the hopes that we can kind of control games. And I think that will be one of the keys to the Guardians series.”

Only four teams in MLB have given up fewer runs than the Guardians with 452. Their saves total of 38 is second only to the National League Cardinals.

Bailey Ober is scheduled to start either tomorrow afternoon’s game or the night game at Target Field.  He is one of three top of the staff pitchers for Minnesota that St. Peter was asked about.

“You know, I think our pitching has been great. We know there’s another gear. Pablo Lopez, we’ve already seen him pitch in the biggest moments (postseason 2023). We expect him to be great down the stretch.  Joe Ryan has had a really, really nice year. Another step forward.  And Bailey Ober over the last few months has been one of the better pitchers in baseball.

“So, I think we’re really confident about those three guys and believe they give us a great chance to win every chance they take the ball. So that’s going to be necessary if we’re going to hunt down the Guardians.”

Ryan had to exit yesterday’s game against the Cubs in the third inning because of triceps tightness in his right arm.  Preliminary status is concern, with hope the injury will not sideline the seven-game winner for long.

The other two starting pitching spots in the rotation have been in flux over the course of the season.  Most recently the four and five spots have gone to rookies Simeon Woods Richardson and David Festa.

St. Peter said who fills those spots the balance of the season is likely to come from a mix of Richardson, Festa, Chris Paddack and Louie Varland.  Paddack is on the IL list with a right forearm strain, while Varland has been pitching effectively for the Triple-A Saints.

A couple of those guys may figure into the bullpen plans, too.  St. Peter predicts that, and he likes the relief pitching on his club which has been effective and could improve with even better performance and depth in the last two months of the season.

The Twins like reliever Justin Topa who they acquired from the Mariners in the offseason only to see him sidelined with a left knee injury. Topa is getting back into form with the Saints and St. Peter is “very excited” about his return to the Twins.

“We haven’t seen him pitch since spring training so that’s going to be huge for us and we’re still very confident Brock Stewart (right shoulder strain) will find his way back here as well.

“And we mentioned Paddack and Varland, both of those guys could also end up in our bullpen, just as they were last year in the postseason. So, we think there’s a lot of depth to our bullpen right now. We like that part of our team a lot.”

The Twins are trying to make the postseason for a second consecutive season.  Fangraphs gives Minnesota a 33.4 percent chance to win the division and 51.1 percent likelihood to qualify for the playoffs as a wild card entry.

The Twins positional players can field, and score runs.  Shortstop Carlos Correa and center fielder Byron Buxton are among the elite defensively at their positions in MLB.  There are other fielding standouts, too, including the combo of Royce Lewis and Jose Miranda at third base, and Max Kepler’s capable work in right field.

The club ranks eight in runs scored in MLB with 552, fueled by a lineup of productive hitters including Lewis who has hit 14 home runs in 125 at bats.  Correa is hitting over .300 and so, too, is Miranda who is bouncing back from a miserable 2023 when he had a shoulder injury.

Outfielder Matt Wallner, who St. Peter said might hit the ball harder than anyone on the roster, has been a key contributor to the offense since being recalled from the Saints in early July.  He is hitting .311 in his last 15 games.

The bummer for the Twins is injuries have sidelined Lewis and Correa for extended periods.  While Lewis is playing now, Correa hasn’t been in a game since July 12. Buxton hasn’t played in the last three games after colliding into the fence while making a catch. And there are the injuries already mentioned that pitchers are dealing with.

“We like our club a lot,” St. Peter said. “We think it’s a pretty good team. So, we gotta try to get healthy and stay healthy.”

Whoever is available for the Twins this weekend is likely to feel the energy from large crowds at Target Field.   “…It’s certainly something we’re counting on during this upcoming homestand,” St. Peter said, while adding the club still has plenty of tickets to sell.