2019 Minnesota Twins In-Season Thread



Someone tell Kepler you don't need to crash into the wall up 13 in the 9th. Hope he's OK
 

Well, we might have our first controversy of the season. apparently there is some video of Kepler and Sano exchanging words in the dugout. there is speculation the two have some kind of beef with each other.

Could be nothing - could be Twitter nonsense.
 

Well, we might have our first controversy of the season. apparently there is some video of Kepler and Sano exchanging words in the dugout. there is speculation the two have some kind of beef with each other.

Could be nothing - could be Twitter nonsense.

Whatever. The 87 Twins won it all and I'm pretty sure the left fielder beat the living snot out of the second baseman at the former's home.
 



Interesting. Never heard that. Lombo was my favorite player on that team.

It happened, but it was the following year:

A personality conflict turned into a fistfight between Minnesota Twins left-fielder Dan Gladden and second baseman Steve Lombardozzi, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune. The altercation apparently took place Thursday night at Gladden`s home. Lombardozzi arrived for Friday`s game with a black eye and scratches down the swollen left side of his face. Gladden suffered a cracked bone in his right ring finger. Neither of the combatants would comment Sunday. Manager Tom Kelly said he was aware of the incident. The problems between the players came to a head during Wednesday`s 9-7 loss to the Boston Red Sox when Kelly used a pinch-hitter for Lombardozzi. Sources said Lombardozzi became upset and went to the clubhouse, a move that didn`t sit well with a couple of players, including Gladden. Lombardozzi is said to have gone to Gladden`s home to settle the differences when the fight started.
''They settled it like men,'' Kelly said. ''My understanding is that everything`s hunky dory.''


There's always been kind of an "urban legend" vibe floating around the fight as well. No idea if it's true or not, but the story was that Gladden was playing some sort of princess or tea party with his daughter when Lombo came to the door. I've heard that Gladden was in a tiara and a tutu on the front lawn throwing haymakers. Makes for a funny story at least.
 
Last edited:

Well, we might have our first controversy of the season. apparently there is some video of Kepler and Sano exchanging words in the dugout. there is speculation the two have some kind of beef with each other.

Could be nothing - could be Twitter nonsense.

Here is the video:

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Win Twins!!
 

Souhan: Joe Mauer money goes back into the coffers and out comes deeper and more talented Twins team

He will soon be in the Twins Hall of Fame. Perhaps, in a few years, he will be in baseball’s.

He is one of the greatest athletes in Minnesota history, and only injuries kept him from becoming one of the best-hitting catchers in baseball history.

He is the embodiment of the supposed Minnesota sporting ethic: diligent, humble and team-oriented. When he donned his gear one last time, he provided the emotional highlight of the 2018 season.

In a few weeks, the Twins will retire Joe Mauer’s number. If such ceremonies allowed for bluntness, the team would on the same day hang a banner reading “$184 million.” Retiring Mauer’s contract helped the Twins become a first-place team.

Mauer is the Twins’ 2019 MVP — their most valuable pensioner. His retirement is not the only key development in the Twins’ emergence as one of baseball’s best teams, but it might be the most important.

http://www.startribune.com/joe-maue...eeper-and-more-talented-twins-team/510360372/

Win Twins!!
 



Sid: Jonathan Schoop is proving to be a smart acquisition for Twins

The 16-7 victory over the Angels on Thursday continued the Twins’ incredible start to the season in a big way.

They hit eight home runs, the second time they have done that this season. It has only been accomplished 25 other times in Major League Baseball since 1908. The Twins joined the 2005 Rangers as the only teams to do it twice in one year.

After completing their West Coast road trip 6-1, the Twins are now 17 games above .500 and come home to face the White Sox and Brewers over Memorial Day weekend in what should be a great turnout for a club that has struggled to draw so far this season.

On Thursday, the offense got jump-started from one of their key offseason acquisitions, as second baseman Jonathan Schoop hit a three-run homer in the second inning.

Schoop added a solo homer in the seventh inning, giving him four multihomer games this season.

When Rocco Baldelli was hired as manager, he said one of the players he was most excited about was Schoop, who signed a one-year contract after he struggled in 2018 with Baltimore and Milwaukee.

Schoop hit only .233 with 21 homers and 61 RBI last year, and the Twins were able to sign him to a one-year, $7.5 million contract. The Twins were confident that Schoop could rebound.

http://www.startribune.com/jonathan-schoop-is-proving-to-be-a-smart-acquisition-for-twins/510355882/

Win Twins!!
 

Souhan: Joe Mauer money goes back into the coffers and out comes deeper and more talented Twins team

He will soon be in the Twins Hall of Fame. Perhaps, in a few years, he will be in baseball’s.

He is one of the greatest athletes in Minnesota history, and only injuries kept him from becoming one of the best-hitting catchers in baseball history.

He is the embodiment of the supposed Minnesota sporting ethic: diligent, humble and team-oriented. When he donned his gear one last time, he provided the emotional highlight of the 2018 season.

In a few weeks, the Twins will retire Joe Mauer’s number. If such ceremonies allowed for bluntness, the team would on the same day hang a banner reading “$184 million.” Retiring Mauer’s contract helped the Twins become a first-place team.

Mauer is the Twins’ 2019 MVP — their most valuable pensioner. His retirement is not the only key development in the Twins’ emergence as one of baseball’s best teams, but it might be the most important.

http://www.startribune.com/joe-maue...eeper-and-more-talented-twins-team/510360372/

Win Twins!!

Another stupid article from Souhan. The Twins aren't even using all of the $23M that came off the books when Mauer retired.
 

Another stupid article from Souhan. The Twins aren't even using all of the $23M that came off the books when Mauer retired.

Exactly. And how is last year any different? When we had Mauer, we signed Morrison, Reed, and Lynn etc. The difference is the players this year are working out and last year they were busts. If you can honestly say CJ Cron was a different acquisition than Logan Morrison you are lying.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 




Exactly. And how is last year any different? When we had Mauer, we signed Morrison, Reed, and Lynn etc. The difference is the players this year are working out and last year they were busts. If you can honestly say CJ Cron was a different acquisition than Logan Morrison you are lying.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I also see Souhan continues to be a big baby. He’s blocking everyone on Twitter that disagrees with him.
 

Strong outing from Gibson today.

If he can go most of the season with a great outing, an average outing, and maybe something near a clunker every 3 starts, that will probably be good enough for this Twins team to win 2 out of 3 of his starts.

It'll be interesting to see how they use Littell moving forward. He sure looked good yesterday in relief, for being a starter. Might not be the end of the world for him to work the bullpen all year if it means staying in the big leagues and move back to starting next year if need be.
 

per Sid:

Twins roster in great shape

Twins Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey and General Manager Thad Levine should be commended for their work in signing right fielder Max Kepler and shortstop Jorge Polanco to smart long-term contracts.

The front office also has done a great job preparing the roster going forward. While the Twins have had incredible success this year, they have put themselves in good position for 2020, even though they will have some key players they have to try and re-sign.

As it stands right now, only five Twins are set for free agency at the end of this season in second baseman Jonathan Schoop, catcher Jason Castro and starting pitchers Jake Odorizzi, Kyle Gibson and Michael Pineda. The team has options on designated hitter Nelson Cruz and starter Martin Perez.

They will once again have to navigate arbitration with a number of key players, including C.J. Cron, Miguel Sano, Eddie Rosario, Byron Buxton, Jose Berrios, Blake Parker, Taylor Rogers and Trevor May.

This year’s team has a $122.1 million payroll. They sit at $35.6 million in commitments for 2020, before arbitration.

http://www.startribune.com/anthony-barr-will-remain-at-linebacker-for-vikings-this-season/510432352/

Win Twins!!
 

Twins history has some teams that started like a horse on fire and then faded (1970, 2001), but I like what I'm hearing out of the players' and manager's mouths. They want to stay hungry and disciplined. If this team does end up fading, it won't be because they got too full of themselves.
 

Interesting. Never heard that. Lombo was my favorite player on that team.

That's why they moved him. Gladden was banging Lombo's wife. Lombo drove to Gladden's house. Gladden beat him up in his front yard. Team traded Lombo.
 

Charley Walters: Twins owner Jim Pohlad excited — with a grain of salt

The baseball team he owns, the Minnesota Twins, who won 78 games last season, already has won nearly half that many. And entering Saturday’s game against the White Sox, the Twins had a stunning eight-game lead over perennial American League Central Division champion Cleveland.

“Obviously, I understand we’re probably less than a third of the way through the season, and how this kind of stuff can be precarious,” Jim Pohlad said. “But I really think we’ve got a good team.”

We don’t need another source on that.

“We’re excited about where the team is right now,” the Twins’ owner said.

From 2011 through 2014, the Twins lost at least 92 games a season. In 2016, they lost 103 games.

“That’s all in the past,” Pohlad said.

The Twins’ blossoming this season isn’t expected to be just a one-year deal.

“We’re just beginning right now to see the benefits of all the changes we’ve made, the way the team’s playing,” Pohlad said. “Everything we’ve done has intended to be foundational and not just a short-term fix.

“But in the short term, it’s certainly going really well.”

https://www.twincities.com/2019/05/...wner-jim-pohlad-excited-with-a-grain-of-salt/

Win Twins!!
 

After today's win, the Twins are 20 games over .500. If we merely play .500 from here on out, we'll finish with a 91-71 record.

Win Twins!!
 

per Shooter:

The Twins’ trade of Brian Dozier to the Los Angeles Dodgers last July looks like a good one. The two minor league prospects the Twins got in the deal — pitcher Devin Smeltzer and right fielder Luke Raley — have impressed at Class AAA Rochester. Smeltzer, 23, has allowed five earned runs in 24 2/3 innings; Raley, 24, is hitting .302 with seven home runs.

Meanwhile, second baseman Dozier, 32, who ended up with a $9 million, one-year free-agent deal with Washington, is batting .206 with seven homers. Second baseman Logan Forsythe, who the Twins also acquired for Dozier but now is with the Texas Rangers, is hitting .300 with three homers.

Outfielder Alex Kirillloff, 21, the Twins’ first-round draft pick in 2016, is back playing after missing a month because of a wrist injury and hitting .241 in 21 games for Class AA Pensacola. The Twins love the way he swings the bat, and if he gets going, he could be a September major league call-up, also to play some first base.

https://www.twincities.com/2019/05/...wner-jim-pohlad-excited-with-a-grain-of-salt/

Win Twins!!
 

Souhan: Hitting coach James Rowson is man behind Twins' offensive breakout

If James Rowson were an NFL coordinator, he’d be famous.

His name would populate the news crawls at the bottom of the screen on every sports channel. Opposing teams would be talking to his agent. Opposing coaches would be trying to steal his secrets.

Rowson is an offensive coordinator, of sorts, as the Twins hitting coach. Because baseball coaching in general and the coaching of hitting in particular is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma, Rowson is as anonymous as an accountant’s assistant.

He shouldn’t be. Rowson and assistant hitting coach Rudy Hernandez are at the heart, or at least the calluses, of the Twins’ transformation. Last year, the Twins finished 23rd in the majors with 166 home runs. This year, they rank first in the majors in home runs with 104 — averaging two per game, putting them on pace to hit 324, which would break the MLB record by 57.

The baseball is harder. More players strive for optimal launch angle. The deep Twins lineup wears down opposing pitchers. Those elements would explain improvement. They don’t explain the most stunning development in baseball — the Twins putting themselves on pace to break home run marks while building the game’s best record.

Before the Twins beat the White Sox 7-0 on Sunday, Rowson tried to explain the inexplicable.

“The fact that the ball is leaving the ballpark is a pretty cool thing right now,” Rowson said. “But the approach is not to hit home runs. The approach is to get good pitches and hit them hard, and more than anything to be yourself in each at-bat.”

http://www.startribune.com/hitting-...an-behind-twins-offensive-breakout/510458072/

Win Twins!!
 

per Shooter:

The Twins’ trade of Brian Dozier to the Los Angeles Dodgers last July looks like a good one. The two minor league prospects the Twins got in the deal — pitcher Devin Smeltzer and right fielder Luke Raley — have impressed at Class AAA Rochester. Smeltzer, 23, has allowed five earned runs in 24 2/3 innings; Raley, 24, is hitting .302 with seven home runs.

Meanwhile, second baseman Dozier, 32, who ended up with a $9 million, one-year free-agent deal with Washington, is batting .206 with seven homers. Second baseman Logan Forsythe, who the Twins also acquired for Dozier but now is with the Texas Rangers, is hitting .300 with three homers.

Outfielder Alex Kirillloff, 21, the Twins’ first-round draft pick in 2016, is back playing after missing a month because of a wrist injury and hitting .241 in 21 games for Class AA Pensacola. The Twins love the way he swings the bat, and if he gets going, he could be a September major league call-up, also to play some first base.

https://www.twincities.com/2019/05/...wner-jim-pohlad-excited-with-a-grain-of-salt/

Win Twins!!

Also, this is one of the prospects the Twins got from Arizona for Escobar. He’s playing for Ft Myers.

 

Pretty cool start by first time call-up Devin Smeltzer last night. Great story, great work on the mound. Hopefully a sign of good things to come!

I know there can be a lot of solid reasonable explanations for why Rocco orchestrated the starting pitching this week going into this weekend's series against the Rays, but could a TINY bit of it be that he wanted to set up his best starting lineup against his old team in Tampa? The last two games against the Brewers almost felt like throw-away games the way the lineup was set up and the roster was managed, but I"m happy to have gotten the split anyway.
 

Berrios posted a pic on Twitter of the squad on the team flight and Sano is sitting next to Kepler, who has his arm around Sano's shoulders. Guessing any bad blood between the two no longer exists.
 

Berrios posted a pic on Twitter of the squad on the team flight and Sano is sitting next to Kepler, who has his arm around Sano's shoulders. Guessing any bad blood between the two no longer exists.

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Win Twins!!
 

Berrios posted a pic on Twitter of the squad on the team flight and Sano is sitting next to Kepler, who has his arm around Sano's shoulders. Guessing any bad blood between the two no longer exists.
Good to see. If you've ever been on a competitive team, you know stuff like this happens all the time and it doesn't mean Dan Gladden is going to kick your ass. It's a long season. $hit happens.
 

As my wife and I were watching the late innings last night, I remarked how much this felt like a playoff series. I cited how tense the 1991 ALCS against Toronto was and how this felt like that.

The Brewers are an awesome team; I'd put them in the same fearsome category as Houston. They have a savvy and confidence that are a big part of how good they are. I wouldn't be surprised if that was a message from Rocco to the team: look at them; they were a hair away from the World Series last year; that's what a championship caliber team looks like; you're as good as they are, but you have to play big in big situations, get big hits, and make big pitches like they do.
 

Pretty cool start by first time call-up Devin Smeltzer last night. Great story, great work on the mound. Hopefully a sign of good things to come!

I know there can be a lot of solid reasonable explanations for why Rocco orchestrated the starting pitching this week going into this weekend's series against the Rays, but could a TINY bit of it be that he wanted to set up his best starting lineup against his old team in Tampa? The last two games against the Brewers almost felt like throw-away games the way the lineup was set up and the roster was managed, but I"m happy to have gotten the split anyway.

Absolutely. Probably also wanted to keep Smeltzer on his regular pitching schedule (he was set to start last night for Rochester) and wanting his first start to be at home instead of on the road.
 

As my wife and I were watching the late innings last night, I remarked how much this felt like a playoff series. I cited how tense the 1991 ALCS against Toronto was and how this felt like that.

The Brewers are an awesome team; I'd put them in the same fearsome category as Houston. They have a savvy and confidence that are a big part of how good they are. I wouldn't be surprised if that was a message from Rocco to the team: look at them; they were a hair away from the World Series last year; that's what a championship caliber team looks like; you're as good as they are, but you have to play big in big situations, get big hits, and make big pitches like they do.

I agree. The last two games had the feel of playoff baseball.

Win Twins!!
 




Top Bottom