Twins Season Has Been A Flop

The Minnesota Twins talked a good game in the off-season about how they are a sleeper in the division and how they would do well with no pressure on them. Twins fans and the national and local media did not have any expectations on them this season. As a result, the team had the mentality of them versus the experts and their own fans. It has not worked out for them as they are 27-33 heading to Saturday night’s game against the Baltimore Orioles. The way they have played at this West Coast trip in which they went 3-6, it seems this team is far away from contending for a wild-card spot or the division let alone being a .500 team. The starting pitching was supposed to be the Twins strength with Johan Santana, Brad Radke, Carlos Silva, Scott Baker, and Kyle Lohse. It has turned out to be a disaster with the three of the starters losing their roles as starters and one starter looks like he is washed up. Silva, Baker, and Lohse lost their roles because they were very ineffective as they have had hard time throwing strikes and working fast.

Silva was supposed to build up a very good year last year, but it did not happen. His sinker was not working and he was giving up home runs that anyone could hit. His performance against the Chicago White Sox on Sunday Night Baseball in the second week of May was the last straw as he blew a 7-4 lead and proceeded to lose the game. He was sent to the bullpen to get his pitches straightened out. Apparently, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire felt Silva got his act together after two strong outings in the bullpen so he inserted him back in the starting rotation. It remains to be seen if Silva can get his act together.

Scott Baker was supposed to have his breakout season based on what he did last season when he got called up from the minors. He pitched flawlessly last year as he made it look easy by throwing strikes and not getting in jams. There was no reason to think that he would struggle this season especially when he had his way against a very good hitting team in the New York Yankees in April at the Metrodome. Unfortunately for him, it went downhill after that as he was getting hit hard to the point in which he would implode in one bad inning that would put the Twins out of the game like he did against the Angels at Anaheim in the third game of the Twins West Coast trip last week. Twins should have looked at this as a bad omen that he would struggle this season based on his lousy outing in his final tune-up of exhibition against Rochester, Twins AAA minor league affiliate. He got lit up pretty good against them as he gave up 11 runs and 10 hits in three innings in the final day of spring training. He has been relegated to Rochester as a punishment for his struggles.

Lohse lost his job in the starting rotation simply because he has no idea what it takes to be a good starter. His mental makeup leaves a lot to be desired as he gives up easily when he is in jams. He gets very tight and he gets away with what he does well which is throwing the ball down. A great example was his final outing as the Twins starter in Detroit on May 16th. He had a bases loaded jam with two outs in the bottom of the third. He was nervous out in the mound and it was pretty evident when he called up his catcher, Joe Mauer, out in the mound three times to find out how to get out of it. The way he pranced back and fourth and the way he struggled to throw that pitch was a sign that he did not have what it takes to be a successful pitcher. He imploded in a predictable manner as the Tigers scored 5 runs to take the lead in the third and eventually win that game. His performance in the third was the last straw as he lost his spot in the rotation. He got banished to the minors the next day because he got Twins pitching coach Rick Anderson and Ron Gardenhire angry for walking out of the dugout and bolting to the locker room as soon as he got pulled out.

Normally, pitchers are supposed to be in the dugout till the inning is over so he can support his teammates or talk to Anderson. Kyle crossed the line that night and now, he has worn out his welcome with the team for good with his behavior. This is not the first time that he acted out of line. He used his bat to destroy his manager’s door last year after being taken out early in a game against the Rangers in September because he was ineffective. He also tends to make excuses when he stinks like blaming his infielders or outfielders for not catching the ball. His pitching is not only horrible, but his attitude leaves a lot to be desired. His last act has worn out his welcome with the Twins for good. Now, he will be biding time until a team acquires him in a trade. He got called up in the majors yesterday with Matt Guerrier being out 2-4 weeks. Radke is simply washed up after years of great service. He is not effective anymore as he gave up home runs that anyone can hit very early in the game and the Twins would be in a 6-0 hole. He has done well in the last two outings so there may be some hope, but Twins fans can not be optimistic whenever he is on the mound.

They have inserted Boof Bonser and Francisco Liriano, two guys who were acquired along with Joe Nathan for A.J. Pierzynski in an off-season blockbuster trade couple of years ago, in the rotation with the hope that they stabilize the struggling starting rotation. They have done well so far since being inserted in the rotation.

Now that their starting rotation has settled down, Twins now have another problem to deal with which is their hitting. Their hitting has been horrible in this West Coast trip. Twins hitting was an issue last year and it has not gotten better this year. Outside of Joe Mauer, Luis Castillo, Shannon Stewart, and Michael Cuddyer, no one has been consistent in hitting all season.

The Twins signed Tony Batista and Rondell White as a cheap alternative to guys like Frank Thomas, Mike Piazza, and Joe Randa. Those two have not done great. Batista has done okay, but not enough to make an impact in the Twins offense. White has been horrible to say the least. He hasn’t hit a home run this season and his batting average has been below .200 this season. He was a questionable signing because his hitting was not that great in recent seasons not to mention that he has been playing for different teams in recent years. His run as the everyday designated hitter may have come to end as he was benched in several games last week not to mention he was pinch hit by weak-hitting Terry Tiffee on Tuesday night with runners on the corners. Gardenhire thought Tiffee could not be any worse than what White has done since he has been brutal with runners in scoring position. It’s pretty clear the manager has lost his patience with White.

As soon as Shannon Stewart comes back from his injury, the manager will likely platoon White and Jason Kubel for DH or start playing Kubel more at DH. The Twins should have signed Frank Thomas when the opportunity presented itself. Either they should have signed Thomas or they should have found a way to acquire Lyle Overbay as the designated hitter.

Justin Morneau has been very inconsistent all season long. He still needs to come through with runners in scoring position and he has to be consistent with his hitting especially on the road. Torii has been brutal with runners in scoring position and strikes out too often.

Joe Mauer is finally starting to live up to his billing as the top player in the draft. There has been second-guessing by some Twins fans about whether the Twins screwed up in Joe Mauer and how they picked him because he was cheap and he was a hometown kid. The doubts began when Mauer struggled to hit with runners in scoring position last year and in April. He has finally come through with clutch hits in recent weeks and his batting average has soared up to the point where he now leads the majors in batting average. He has played his way to the All-Star Game if he continues to play like he has in recent weeks.

Francisco Liriano has been flawless since joining the rotation. He is so good that KFAN’s Paul Allen thinks Santana and Liriano could be the best 1-2 punch in baseball history and he has debate on who is better between Liriano and Santana by Twins fans. Michael Cuddyer has finally become a reliable hitter after going through the highs and lows over the years. He has put lot of time with improving on his hitting.

It’s pretty clear now that the Twins are not going to be a playoff team. Chicago is the team to beat and they have played well despite struggling the last two weeks. Detroit has overachieved so far, but the Twins are not in the same class of the Tigers. The Indians have had their way with the Twins all season and they are still a team to be reckoned with. The only good news that the Twins fans can take is that the Twins can finish no worse than fourth place. Twins have only two goals for this season which is finish over .500 and get better every month from now till the rest of the season.