Twins playing games that matter: Regular season

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Such an unexpected start to the season. I'm a partial season ticket holder (first game coming this Friday!) and huge fan, but I haven't seen one inning yet because I've been in Tucson for a week...really looking forward to watching tomorrow night's game!

How are they doing it, according to box scores and game write ups only?

Pitching! a 2.03 ERA led by Santana's 2-0 start and a stellar bullpen. Even Phil Hughes contributed some nice stats, although my son tells me he gave up a lot of shots that were hit right at the defense. Can they keep it up?

Defense- only Sano has made an error, and friends who have watched games tell me the defense has also made some great plays in addition to being (other than Sano) error-free. I don't think anyone is surprised by the OF and right side of the infield being strong, but did anyone expect Polanco to have no errors in his first 23 chances. Can he keep it up?

Hispanic hitting: Sano, Polanco, Castro and Escobar are doing all the work...21 of our 29 RBIs. It's not sustainable to have 4 players carry the offensive load, so several things have to happen:
-Buxton needs to get out of the funk he is in and return to his form at the end of last year, or some semblance of his potential.
-Mauer needs to start hitting like he did in the spring, or something close to his history.
-the OF needs to start contributing at the plate...they need to almost double their current collective .145 average
-Grossman needs to be replaced at DH and returned to the bench role he is destined for. The Twins brass needs to notice that Park led the team in hitting this spring, hit 53 HRs in Korea two years ago, and is hitting .417 in Rochester right now.
-Berrios needs to pitch in the majors like his does in the minors...he was lights out Saturday in his firststart in Rochester.

I'm not complaining about 5-1...not at all. But they seem to be winning in a non-sustainable way. My optimism stems more from what I think this team can do more than what they have done. Let's hope the 4 things I list above come true.

[Monster]

Such an unexpected start to the season. I'm a partial season ticket holder (first game coming this Friday!) and huge fan, but I haven't seen one inning yet because I've been in Tucson for a week...really looking forward to watching tomorrow night's game!

How are they doing it, according to box scores and game write ups only?

Pitching! a 2.03 ERA led by Santana's 2-0 start and a stellar bullpen. Even Phil Hughes contributed some nice stats, although my son tells me he gave up a lot of shots that were hit right at the defense. Can they keep it up?

Defense- only Sano has made an error, and friends who have watched games tell me the defense has also made some great plays in addition to being (other than Sano) error-free. I don't think anyone is surprised by the OF and right side of the infield being strong, but did anyone expect Polanco to have no errors in his first 23 chances. Can he keep it up?

Hispanic hitting: Sano, Polanco, Castro and Escobar are doing all the work...21 of our 29 RBIs. It's not sustainable to have 4 players carry the offensive load, so several things have to happen:
-Buxton needs to get out of the funk he is in and return to his form at the end of last year, or some semblance of his potential.
-Mauer needs to start hitting like he did in the spring, or something close to his history.
-the OF needs to start contributing at the plate...they need to almost double their current collective .145 average
-Grossman needs to be replaced at DH and returned to the bench role he is destined for. The Twins brass needs to notice that Park led the team in hitting this spring, hit 53 HRs in Korea two years ago, and is hitting .417 in Rochester right now.
-Berrios needs to pitch in the majors like his does in the minors...he was lights out Saturday in his firststart in Rochester.

I'm not complaining about 5-1...not at all. But they seem to be winning in a non-sustainable way. My optimism stems more from what I think this team can do more than what they have done. Let's hope the 4 things I list above come true.

Grossman what a bum only has .389 OBP and 2 doubles in 15 ABs. Lol Park isn't on the roster because the Twins have an extra pitcher and Mejia's start the other day showed why having that extra pitcher makes some sense. Hopefully Park keeps swinging the bat well in the minors and the pitching staff gets figured out.

[Monster]

We need to trade Santata while he is hot. :

I'm glad they didn't move him at this point. :) He may not be an ace but he is a pretty solid vet and he can lead the rotation and hopefully mentor guys some as well.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Such an unexpected start to the season. I'm a partial season ticket holder (first game coming this Friday!) and huge fan, but I haven't seen one inning yet because I've been in Tucson for a week...really looking forward to watching tomorrow night's game!

How are they doing it, according to box scores and game write ups only?

Pitching! a 2.03 ERA led by Santana's 2-0 start and a stellar bullpen. Even Phil Hughes contributed some nice stats, although my son tells me he gave up a lot of shots that were hit right at the defense. Can they keep it up?

Defense- only Sano has made an error, and friends who have watched games tell me the defense has also made some great plays in addition to being (other than Sano) error-free. I don't think anyone is surprised by the OF and right side of the infield being strong, but did anyone expect Polanco to have no errors in his first 23 chances. Can he keep it up?

Hispanic hitting: Sano, Polanco, Castro and Escobar are doing all the work...21 of our 29 RBIs. It's not sustainable to have 4 players carry the offensive load, so several things have to happen:
-Buxton needs to get out of the funk he is in and return to his form at the end of last year, or some semblance of his potential.
-Mauer needs to start hitting like he did in the spring, or something close to his history.
-the OF needs to start contributing at the plate...they need to almost double their current collective .145 average
-Grossman needs to be replaced at DH and returned to the bench role he is destined for. The Twins brass needs to notice that Park led the team in hitting this spring, hit 53 HRs in Korea two years ago, and is hitting .417 in Rochester right now.
-Berrios needs to pitch in the majors like his does in the minors...he was lights out Saturday in his firststart in Rochester.

I'm not complaining about 5-1...not at all. But they seem to be winning in a non-sustainable way. My optimism stems more from what I think this team can do more than what they have done. Let's hope the 4 things I list above come true.

Grossman what a bum only has .389 OBP and 2 doubles in 15 ABs. Lol Park isn't on the roster because the Twins have an extra pitcher and Mejia's start the other day showed why having that extra pitcher makes some sense. Hopefully Park keeps swinging the bat well in the minors and the pitching staff gets figured out.

But only 1 RBI and 5 K's in 15 at bats for Grossman...not a good DH performance. I see him as a journeyman who isn't close to being a viable DH. I don't get the need for an extra pitcher with early season day offs and still find it weird they sent Park down. Hard to complain about a 5-1 start, but I'm just not on board with the Park decision and Mollie's lineups.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

We need to trade Santata while he is hot. :

I'm glad they didn't move him at this point. :) He may not be an ace but he is a pretty solid vet and he can lead the rotation and hopefully mentor guys some as well.

Agreed. And let's not forget that he was a top 5 pitcher the last half of 2016, and he's starting out just like he ended. I didn't see him as an ace either when he signed him, but he sure is pitching like one now.

[Monster]

Such an unexpected start to the season. I'm a partial season ticket holder (first game coming this Friday!) and huge fan, but I haven't seen one inning yet because I've been in Tucson for a week...really looking forward to watching tomorrow night's game!

How are they doing it, according to box scores and game write ups only?

Pitching! a 2.03 ERA led by Santana's 2-0 start and a stellar bullpen. Even Phil Hughes contributed some nice stats, although my son tells me he gave up a lot of shots that were hit right at the defense. Can they keep it up?

Defense- only Sano has made an error, and friends who have watched games tell me the defense has also made some great plays in addition to being (other than Sano) error-free. I don't think anyone is surprised by the OF and right side of the infield being strong, but did anyone expect Polanco to have no errors in his first 23 chances. Can he keep it up?

Hispanic hitting: Sano, Polanco, Castro and Escobar are doing all the work...21 of our 29 RBIs. It's not sustainable to have 4 players carry the offensive load, so several things have to happen:
-Buxton needs to get out of the funk he is in and return to his form at the end of last year, or some semblance of his potential.
-Mauer needs to start hitting like he did in the spring, or something close to his history.
-the OF needs to start contributing at the plate...they need to almost double their current collective .145 average
-Grossman needs to be replaced at DH and returned to the bench role he is destined for. The Twins brass needs to notice that Park led the team in hitting this spring, hit 53 HRs in Korea two years ago, and is hitting .417 in Rochester right now.
-Berrios needs to pitch in the majors like his does in the minors...he was lights out Saturday in his firststart in Rochester.

I'm not complaining about 5-1...not at all. But they seem to be winning in a non-sustainable way. My optimism stems more from what I think this team can do more than what they have done. Let's hope the 4 things I list above come true.

Grossman what a bum only has .389 OBP and 2 doubles in 15 ABs. Lol Park isn't on the roster because the Twins have an extra pitcher and Mejia's start the other day showed why having that extra pitcher makes some sense. Hopefully Park keeps swinging the bat well in the minors and the pitching staff gets figured out.

But only 1 RBI and 5 K's in 15 at bats for Grossman...not a good DH performance. I see him as a journeyman who isn't close to being a viable DH. I don't get the need for an extra pitcher with early season day offs and still find it weird they sent Park down. Hard to complain about a 5-1 start, but I'm just not on board with the Park decision and Mollie's lineups.

What has Park proven that you are so willing to pee in Grossman's Cereal? Where is Grossman hitting in the lineup? He is near the top of the order (or at the bottom) not exactly where you pile up RBI's. He is on pace to score a bunch of runs. Your boy Park has 4 strikeouts in 12 ABs in the minors this year. We could throw out stats all day but it's dumb with such a few amount of games to go off of. I just find it bizarre how committed you are to Park and down on Grossman who has actually done something in his career including a pretty worthwhile season just last year.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Such an unexpected start to the season. I'm a partial season ticket holder (first game coming this Friday!) and huge fan, but I haven't seen one inning yet because I've been in Tucson for a week...really looking forward to watching tomorrow night's game!

How are they doing it, according to box scores and game write ups only?

Pitching! a 2.03 ERA led by Santana's 2-0 start and a stellar bullpen. Even Phil Hughes contributed some nice stats, although my son tells me he gave up a lot of shots that were hit right at the defense. Can they keep it up?

Defense- only Sano has made an error, and friends who have watched games tell me the defense has also made some great plays in addition to being (other than Sano) error-free. I don't think anyone is surprised by the OF and right side of the infield being strong, but did anyone expect Polanco to have no errors in his first 23 chances. Can he keep it up?

Hispanic hitting: Sano, Polanco, Castro and Escobar are doing all the work...21 of our 29 RBIs. It's not sustainable to have 4 players carry the offensive load, so several things have to happen:
-Buxton needs to get out of the funk he is in and return to his form at the end of last year, or some semblance of his potential.
-Mauer needs to start hitting like he did in the spring, or something close to his history.
-the OF needs to start contributing at the plate...they need to almost double their current collective .145 average
-Grossman needs to be replaced at DH and returned to the bench role he is destined for. The Twins brass needs to notice that Park led the team in hitting this spring, hit 53 HRs in Korea two years ago, and is hitting .417 in Rochester right now.
-Berrios needs to pitch in the majors like his does in the minors...he was lights out Saturday in his firststart in Rochester.

I'm not complaining about 5-1...not at all. But they seem to be winning in a non-sustainable way. My optimism stems more from what I think this team can do more than what they have done. Let's hope the 4 things I list above come true.

Grossman what a bum only has .389 OBP and 2 doubles in 15 ABs. Lol Park isn't on the roster because the Twins have an extra pitcher and Mejia's start the other day showed why having that extra pitcher makes some sense. Hopefully Park keeps swinging the bat well in the minors and the pitching staff gets figured out.

But only 1 RBI and 5 K's in 15 at bats for Grossman...not a good DH performance. I see him as a journeyman who isn't close to being a viable DH. I don't get the need for an extra pitcher with early season day offs and still find it weird they sent Park down. Hard to complain about a 5-1 start, but I'm just not on board with the Park decision and Mollie's lineups.

What has Park proven that you are so willing to pee in Grossman's Cereal? Where is Grossman hitting in the lineup? He is near the top of the order (or at the bottom) not exactly where you pile up RBI's. He is on pace to score a bunch of runs. Your boy Park has 4 strikeouts in 12 ABs in the minors this year. We could throw out stats all day but it's dumb with such a few amount of games to go off of. I just find it bizarre how committed you are to Park and down on Grossman who has actually done something in his career including a pretty worthwhile season just last year.

I don't think we are going to find common ground on the Park vs. Grossman debate, monster...I think there is a world of difference between both their past professional results and their potential.

Grossman has had four seasons in the majors, and with over 1000 ABs, we know what he is...a career .254 hitter with little power or speed and a strikeout rate of about 30%. Not to mention a liability in the outfield. You're correct that there is very little sample size this year, but through 6 games he is close to his career averages...hitting at a slightly higher average with little power, and striking out a little more than his already high career average. He does have one above average skill...the ability to draw a walk and maintain a good OBP...but his non-aggressive approach at the plate also leads to a maddening habit of taking far too many third strikes...not what you want out of a DH, which on most teams is reserved for a power hitter.

History tells us that Park will also strike out at a high rate...probably even higher than Robbie's 30% career rate. He struck out 29% of the time in Korea, and an alarming 37% with the Twins last year when he was nursing the bad hand (his 28% K rate in the minors is more acceptable, considering he was playing hurt). But a high K rate is at least palatable with a guy who is a threat to hit the ball 420 feet every time he steps in the box...not so much for a singles hitter. He is older than Robbie, but has only had one poor year in his professional career...last year, when he tried to play through the broken hand that hampered him the entire year. His stats in Korea were prodigious, and typically Korean players don't exhibit an extreme drop off in production when they come over to the US. Take Jung Ho Kang for example, whose first year stats with the Pirates of .287 with 15 HRs weren't much different than his last year in Korea...and Kang was nowhere near the hitter that Park was in Korea (and yes, I know Kang is currently suspended for DUI issues, but that doesn't change my conclusions). A healthy Park completely turned around his performance this spring (and primarily against front line pitchers too) and flashed the potential that led the Twins to outbid every other team to earn the right to bring him over, and started the season in Rochester continuing to sting the ball. Finally, he has always been described as a plus fielder...able to play 1B very well and even fill in in the outfield.

Sending Park down to start the season is one of the most baffling moves I can ever remember the Twins making...how much more potent this lineup could be with Park batting cleanup rather than Mauer! I get the fact that Park was not on the 40-man roster, but there were several moves they could have made. My favorite would have been to send Haley back to the Red Sox (I haven't seen him pitch yet, but I see he was hit hard yesterday and my son tells me he looks eminently hittable). Since Mollie wanted the extra pitcher, I would have promoted Wimmers to replace Haley (Wimmers had a much better spring) and would have let Grossman start the year in Rochester while his sore groin healed. Maybe there's something I'm missing here, but I'm certainly not alone in my confusion here...the local sports writers are as baffled as I am. Hopefully Park doesn't get discouraged and keeps hitting, and comes up soon to add some much-needed power to the middle of the lineup.

Dozier
Mauer
Polanco
Sano
Park
Castro
Kepler
Rosario
Buxton

Mollie seems to prefer Buxton, Mauer, Sano in the 3-5 holes (although reports are he was pissed about the decision to send Park down)...I like my three a lot more.

[Monster]

So if a DH doesn't have power then they are worthless?

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

So if a DH doesn't have power then they are worthless?

I would say a DH with no power that hits about .260, strikes out 30% of the time, isnt a good baserunner, and can't play defense should only be on a major league roster if there are absolutely no other options available...typiclally the DH is a specialty player with power and is a big RBI guy. If you just look at last year when Park was injured, you might conclude the Twins have no other options. But even with a bad hand he homered once every 18 at bats in his first year in the majors...a very good rate for an injured player getting used to big league pitching. And his rate in the minors was once every 13 ABs. And his final two years in Korea when he hit 52 and 53 HRS, he homered once every 9.7 ABs! Robbie's very good OPB one season in his career just doesnt seem to be a compelling enough stat to keep this guy in the minors.

[Monster]

So if a DH doesn't have power then they are worthless?

I would say a DH with no power that hits about .260, strikes out 30% of the time, isnt a good baserunner, and can't play defense should only be on a major league roster if there are absolutely no other options available...typiclally the DH is a specialty player with power and is a big RBI guy. If you just look at last year when Park was injured, you might conclude the Twins have no other options. But even with a bad hand he homered once every 18 at bats in his first year in the majors...a very good rate for an injured player getting used to big league pitching. And his rate in the minors was once every 13 ABs. And his final two years in Korea when he hit 52 and 53 HRS, he homered once every 9.7 ABs! Robbie's very good OPB one season in his career just doesnt seem to be a compelling enough stat to keep this guy in the minors.

Maybe you should look up some of Grossman's other offensive stats from last year. You might be surprised. Let's be clear you don't have to make a case for Park to some extent I have had faith in him this whole time. The guy has power that's clear. My issue is the reasons you are saying Grossman isn't worthwhile to me seems too simplistic and not giving him credit for what he has done while basically giving Park the benefit of the doubt. If a few weeks from now Grossman is meh overall as a hitter then...he will be gone. I think there are a few guys that could be gone too if they don't show enough like Danny Santana and a few relief pitchers you know the names of those guys. :)