The Twins' front office made up for the lack of activity in July, by bringing up Fransisco Liriano and Randy Ruiz as the first order of business in August.
The Liriano call up was expected. What was not expected was that Randy Ruiz is finally given a chance to show what he can do in the majors, after he crushed the competition at every year in the minors.
Randy Ruiz is free!
Update: Ruiz is slated to start against Cleveland tonight at DH
8/1/08
7/19/08
Proposed Solutions: 1. hitting against LHP
Yesterday I described 5 problems that might derail the Twins' season. Here I am trying to tackle a solution for the first of them: Inadequate batting against LHP.
This problem was obvious and identified before the winning streak and even with the winning streak, the numbers have not changed much. The solution is fairly straight forward: add a bat or two, but where? If you look at the current starters, there are 3 potential places that a strong bat against lefties can be added, which will make a difference:
a. Third base:
Here are how the players used at third base this season are batting against LHP (BA/OBP/SLG):
Lamb: .074/.107/.185
Buscher: .118/.118/.118
Harris: .242/.289/.352
Macri: .409/.409/.591
b. Short stop:
Here are how the players used at SS this season are batting against LHP (BA/OBP/SLG):
Harris: .242/.289/.352
Punto: .333/.348/.444 (not sure how sustainable that is)
b. Designated hitter:
Here are how the players used at DH this season are batting against LHP (BA/OBP/SLG):
Monroe: .122/.217/.216
Kubel: .157/.279/.235
Based on the above, the priorities would be: DH, 3B, SS. The proposed solution to this problem would also solve part of problem 4 (the 25- and 40-man rosters and the minor league rosters are a mess.) Who is available at these positions that can make a difference for the Twins?
DH
This weakness was identified here in early April. Clearly, the Twins front office passed on a couple of opportunities to replace Monroe with another RHB to platoon with Kubel as DH against LHP. The first of these opportunities was Frank Thomas, early in the season, and it was not clear whether Monroe would rebound or whether Thomas was willing to be a platoon player (and he was not.) Opportunity number 2 flew away a couple of days ago: Richie Sexson who just signed with the Yankees yesterday as a part time player, is hitting .344/.427/.609 against LHP and would have been an ideal Monroe replacement. The past is the past, but there are a couple of things that can be done to improve performance against lefties from the DH position:
a. Internal:
For all options, Monroe, needs to be cut (the Twins will lose $1.6 mil).
I. When Cuddyer is healthy, he assumes the DH spots against LH and is the RF against RHP and Span rotates to RF/CF/bench. One potential issue is that Cuddyer is batting .250/.354/.321 against LHP this season.
II. Ruiz is called up to take Monroe's spot as a DH against lefties and part time 1B when Morneau needs rest. Ruiz is hitting .327/.400/.525 against lefties in Rochester, and while this is in AAA, the numbers that Buscher, Span, Macri and Casilla put in the majors this year, compared to their AAA numbers, indicate that Ruiz has a legitimate chance to repeat that performance for the Twins.
b. External:
A potential trade target would have to fit the following requirements:
a. being fairly inexpensive (in terms of prospects) to acquire
b. have a contract that ends either the end of 2008 or 2009
c. be available
d. hit exceptionally well against LHP
e. be a RHB
here is a list of potential such players (alphabetically) and a lot of them might be surptising:
Rich Aurelia Giants .278/.367/.506 (against LHP), free agent after 2008, due the remaining of $4.5M for 2008. Inexpensive and available, can fill in at 1B and 3B.
Ron Beliard Nationals .260/.351/.700 (against LHP), free agent after 2009, due the remaining of $1.8M for 2008 and $1.9M in 2009. Very inexpensive and available, can fill in at 2B and 3B.
Jerry Hairston Reds .391/.461/.563 (against LHP), free agent after 2008, due the remaining of league minimum for 2008. Inexpensive and available, can fill in at SS (he is the Reds' starting SS).
Mark Loretta , Astros .347/.458/.571 (against LHP), free agent at the end of the season, contract: $2.75M. Probably inexpensive, not much a HR thread but a solid gap hitter. Can also fill in at 2B/SS/3B. Very available.
Kevin Millar Orioles .259/.373/.435 (against LHP), free agent after this season, due the remaining of $2.8M for 2008. Probably inexpensive and available, can fill in at 1B.
Melvin Mota Orioles .273/.337/.580 (against LHP), free agent after 2009, due the remaining of $7.8M for 2008 and $9M in 2009. A slugger past his prime, extremely inexpensive and extremely available, can fill in at 3B/1B; Baltimore would need to probably pay half of his salary for a trade to happen
Dmitri Young Nationals .318/.412/.591 (against LHP), free agent after 2009, due the remaining of $5M for 2008 and $5M in 2009. A bit past his prime, maybe inexpensive and extremely available, can fill in at 1B; An interesting brother reunion possibility and a player the Twins have coveted for a long time.
This is about it, given that the Twins will not try to pull a blockbuster and get Manny Ramirez from the Red Sox... I think that the Hairston and Loretta possibilities are most intriguing, would not cost the Twins much, both in $ and players and would give them a good bench piece.
3B, SS
I am treating both of these positions as similar, since there are a lot of similarities:
a. They were the 2 positions where the Twins had holes during the pre-season
b. The signings of Mike Lamb and Adam Everett did not produce
c. current players (Harris and Punto) are rotating in both positions.
It has been clear that even though Buscher exceeded expectations with the bat against RHP and has been a better alternative to Lamb, he cannot hit LHP and his defense is inadequate. A platoon with Harris and Runto as the every day SS (when healthy) has been the answer so far, albeit not sustainable.
The Twins need to find a home for Mike Lamb. They could potentially promote Macri to platoon with Buscher and have a Harris/Punto platoon on SS. For several reasons, the only external possibility is Adrian Beltre who is hitting .355/.473/.553 against LHP. He is owed the remainder of $12M this year and $12 in 2009. He will probably be expensive but attainable. A few days ago, I looked at previous trades and suggested what it might take for the Twins to obtain him. I think that he will provide a legitimate #5 hitter for this team and an excellent 3B, until Young is ready to take the #5 spot and Valencia to start at 3B.
What would I do if I were Bill Smith?
I would replace Lamb, Monroe and Punto with Hairston, Loretta and Beltre. Beltre would be the starting 3B, Loretta the DH against LHP (platooning with Kubel) and a infield replacement on the bench and Hairston the starting SS against LHP (platooning with Harris). Punto does have trade value and the Reds would potentially trade 1 for 1 with Hairston. Lamb might have a value as a LH PH for a NL contender, but I am not sure that Monroe would have any value at this point...
Here is an intriguing thought that I think that it is way too good, so I did not include it above, but left it as a parting shot: The Dodgers need a SS for the rest of the season. Nomar Garciaparrais hitting .471/.571/.824 against lefties this season and is a free agent after the season due the remainder of $8.5M. Would the Dodgers be willing to trade him for Punto? What else might be necessary to make that trade work (other than handcuffing Gardenhire ;) ) He then could be the platoon DH instead of Loretta in the scenario above, and a potential win-win situation for 2 contenders. Mr Smith get on the phone
This problem was obvious and identified before the winning streak and even with the winning streak, the numbers have not changed much. The solution is fairly straight forward: add a bat or two, but where? If you look at the current starters, there are 3 potential places that a strong bat against lefties can be added, which will make a difference:
a. Third base:
Here are how the players used at third base this season are batting against LHP (BA/OBP/SLG):
Lamb: .074/.107/.185
Buscher: .118/.118/.118
Harris: .242/.289/.352
Macri: .409/.409/.591
b. Short stop:
Here are how the players used at SS this season are batting against LHP (BA/OBP/SLG):
Harris: .242/.289/.352
Punto: .333/.348/.444 (not sure how sustainable that is)
b. Designated hitter:
Here are how the players used at DH this season are batting against LHP (BA/OBP/SLG):
Monroe: .122/.217/.216
Kubel: .157/.279/.235
Based on the above, the priorities would be: DH, 3B, SS. The proposed solution to this problem would also solve part of problem 4 (the 25- and 40-man rosters and the minor league rosters are a mess.) Who is available at these positions that can make a difference for the Twins?
DH
This weakness was identified here in early April. Clearly, the Twins front office passed on a couple of opportunities to replace Monroe with another RHB to platoon with Kubel as DH against LHP. The first of these opportunities was Frank Thomas, early in the season, and it was not clear whether Monroe would rebound or whether Thomas was willing to be a platoon player (and he was not.) Opportunity number 2 flew away a couple of days ago: Richie Sexson who just signed with the Yankees yesterday as a part time player, is hitting .344/.427/.609 against LHP and would have been an ideal Monroe replacement. The past is the past, but there are a couple of things that can be done to improve performance against lefties from the DH position:
a. Internal:
For all options, Monroe, needs to be cut (the Twins will lose $1.6 mil).
I. When Cuddyer is healthy, he assumes the DH spots against LH and is the RF against RHP and Span rotates to RF/CF/bench. One potential issue is that Cuddyer is batting .250/.354/.321 against LHP this season.
II. Ruiz is called up to take Monroe's spot as a DH against lefties and part time 1B when Morneau needs rest. Ruiz is hitting .327/.400/.525 against lefties in Rochester, and while this is in AAA, the numbers that Buscher, Span, Macri and Casilla put in the majors this year, compared to their AAA numbers, indicate that Ruiz has a legitimate chance to repeat that performance for the Twins.
b. External:
A potential trade target would have to fit the following requirements:
a. being fairly inexpensive (in terms of prospects) to acquire
b. have a contract that ends either the end of 2008 or 2009
c. be available
d. hit exceptionally well against LHP
e. be a RHB
here is a list of potential such players (alphabetically) and a lot of them might be surptising:
Rich Aurelia Giants .278/.367/.506 (against LHP), free agent after 2008, due the remaining of $4.5M for 2008. Inexpensive and available, can fill in at 1B and 3B.
Ron Beliard Nationals .260/.351/.700 (against LHP), free agent after 2009, due the remaining of $1.8M for 2008 and $1.9M in 2009. Very inexpensive and available, can fill in at 2B and 3B.
Jerry Hairston Reds .391/.461/.563 (against LHP), free agent after 2008, due the remaining of league minimum for 2008. Inexpensive and available, can fill in at SS (he is the Reds' starting SS).
Mark Loretta , Astros .347/.458/.571 (against LHP), free agent at the end of the season, contract: $2.75M. Probably inexpensive, not much a HR thread but a solid gap hitter. Can also fill in at 2B/SS/3B. Very available.
Kevin Millar Orioles .259/.373/.435 (against LHP), free agent after this season, due the remaining of $2.8M for 2008. Probably inexpensive and available, can fill in at 1B.
Melvin Mota Orioles .273/.337/.580 (against LHP), free agent after 2009, due the remaining of $7.8M for 2008 and $9M in 2009. A slugger past his prime, extremely inexpensive and extremely available, can fill in at 3B/1B; Baltimore would need to probably pay half of his salary for a trade to happen
Dmitri Young Nationals .318/.412/.591 (against LHP), free agent after 2009, due the remaining of $5M for 2008 and $5M in 2009. A bit past his prime, maybe inexpensive and extremely available, can fill in at 1B; An interesting brother reunion possibility and a player the Twins have coveted for a long time.
This is about it, given that the Twins will not try to pull a blockbuster and get Manny Ramirez from the Red Sox... I think that the Hairston and Loretta possibilities are most intriguing, would not cost the Twins much, both in $ and players and would give them a good bench piece.
3B, SS
I am treating both of these positions as similar, since there are a lot of similarities:
a. They were the 2 positions where the Twins had holes during the pre-season
b. The signings of Mike Lamb and Adam Everett did not produce
c. current players (Harris and Punto) are rotating in both positions.
It has been clear that even though Buscher exceeded expectations with the bat against RHP and has been a better alternative to Lamb, he cannot hit LHP and his defense is inadequate. A platoon with Harris and Runto as the every day SS (when healthy) has been the answer so far, albeit not sustainable.
The Twins need to find a home for Mike Lamb. They could potentially promote Macri to platoon with Buscher and have a Harris/Punto platoon on SS. For several reasons, the only external possibility is Adrian Beltre who is hitting .355/.473/.553 against LHP. He is owed the remainder of $12M this year and $12 in 2009. He will probably be expensive but attainable. A few days ago, I looked at previous trades and suggested what it might take for the Twins to obtain him. I think that he will provide a legitimate #5 hitter for this team and an excellent 3B, until Young is ready to take the #5 spot and Valencia to start at 3B.
What would I do if I were Bill Smith?
I would replace Lamb, Monroe and Punto with Hairston, Loretta and Beltre. Beltre would be the starting 3B, Loretta the DH against LHP (platooning with Kubel) and a infield replacement on the bench and Hairston the starting SS against LHP (platooning with Harris). Punto does have trade value and the Reds would potentially trade 1 for 1 with Hairston. Lamb might have a value as a LH PH for a NL contender, but I am not sure that Monroe would have any value at this point...
Here is an intriguing thought that I think that it is way too good, so I did not include it above, but left it as a parting shot: The Dodgers need a SS for the rest of the season. Nomar Garciaparrais hitting .471/.571/.824 against lefties this season and is a free agent after the season due the remainder of $8.5M. Would the Dodgers be willing to trade him for Punto? What else might be necessary to make that trade work (other than handcuffing Gardenhire ;) ) He then could be the platoon DH instead of Loretta in the scenario above, and a potential win-win situation for 2 contenders. Mr Smith get on the phone
7/18/08
5 problems that need to be fixed...
It is the unofficial midpoint of the season and this is my "how well has this team done and what does it need to do to do better post".
So far this team is meeting my expectations (remember, I picked them to win the Central with 89 wins this season, last March). However, there are still 5 problems that this team has to solve to be enshrined as a contender. I will list the problems here and in separate posts I will analyze each of them and propose solutions:
1. The hitting against left hand pitchers is lacking, despite the acquisitions of Young and Monroe during the off-season
2. The starting pitching is not as optimal as it could be
3. The relief pitching is barely adequate and digressing as time goes on
4. The bench, 25-man and 40-man rosters and the minor league system is all over the place
5. The road/home pitching discrepancy is alarming. I discussed this problem ad noseum previously (check the 4 linked posts), so I will not reiterate...
So far this team is meeting my expectations (remember, I picked them to win the Central with 89 wins this season, last March). However, there are still 5 problems that this team has to solve to be enshrined as a contender. I will list the problems here and in separate posts I will analyze each of them and propose solutions:
1. The hitting against left hand pitchers is lacking, despite the acquisitions of Young and Monroe during the off-season
2. The starting pitching is not as optimal as it could be
3. The relief pitching is barely adequate and digressing as time goes on
4. The bench, 25-man and 40-man rosters and the minor league system is all over the place
5. The road/home pitching discrepancy is alarming. I discussed this problem ad noseum previously (check the 4 linked posts), so I will not reiterate...
7/17/08
The current contractual state of the Twins
Here are the years the Twins have control over the players who made their appearance in the majors this year. C=contract, O=option year, A = arbitration eligible after 2008.
2013
Macri
Morneau (C)
2012
Gomez
Slowey
Bass
Blackburn
Buscher
Nathan (C,O)
2011
Young (A)
Neshek
Bonser
Baker
Liriano
Harris
Casilla
Perkins
Cuddyer (C,O)
2010
Kubel (A)
Guerrier (A)
Breslow
Mauer (C)
2009
Lamb (C)
Crain (C)
Redmond (C,O)
2008
Hernandez (C)
Punto (C)
Everett (C)
Monroe (C)
Reyes (C,O)
2013
Macri
Morneau (C)
2012
Gomez
Slowey
Bass
Blackburn
Buscher
Nathan (C,O)
2011
Young (A)
Neshek
Bonser
Baker
Liriano
Harris
Casilla
Perkins
Cuddyer (C,O)
2010
Kubel (A)
Guerrier (A)
Breslow
Mauer (C)
2009
Lamb (C)
Crain (C)
Redmond (C,O)
2008
Hernandez (C)
Punto (C)
Everett (C)
Monroe (C)
Reyes (C,O)
7/14/08
Is Beltre attainable?
What would it take for the Twins to get Beltre? Let's examine some similar trades the past ten years. What I am doing here is listing people similar to Beltre who got traded and trying to assess equivalent trade value based on today's Twins' major and minor league players and the stage the traded players where in their careers when traded:
Trade #1: Roberto Alomar traded by the Cleveland Indians with Danny Peoples and Mike Bacsik to the New York Mets for Matt Lawton, Alex Escobar,Jerrod Riggan, Earl Snyder (2001 offseason, $7-8mil/year contract with 2 years remaining)
Alomar = Beltre
Peoples = Erik Lis
Bacsik < Perkins
Lawton < Cuddyer
Escobar = Erik Lis
Riggan = Casey Daigle
Snyder = Brock Peterson < Buscher
equivalent value trade: Beltre for Buscher and Cuddyer or Bass and Cuddyer or Buscher and Bass and Lis or Buscher and Bonser
Trade #2: Scott Brosius was traded from the Athletics to the Yankees for Kenny Rogers (32) and cash.(1997)
Equivalent value trade: Beltre for Hernandez + Buscher
Trade #3: Carlos Guillen Traded by the Seattle Mariners to the Detroit Tigers for Ramon Santiago and Juan Gonzalez (2004, $2.5mil contract)
Ramon Santiago = Trevor Plouffe
Juan Gonzalez (not Juan Gone) = Ramon Santana
Equivalent trade: Beltran + cash for Plouffe and Ramon Santana (a steal)
Trade #4: Bobby Abreau traded by the Philadelphia Phillies with Cory Lidle to the New York Yankees for Matt Smith, C.J. Henry, Carlos Monasterios, and Jesus Sanchez (2006 $13-16mil/year contract).
Lidle > Hernandez
Matt Smith = Carmen Cali
CJ Henry = Eric Santiago
Monastrios = Alex Curry
Sanchez = Daniel Rohlfing
Equivalent trade: Beltran for Carmen Cali and Eric Santiago (another steal)
Trade #5: Scott Rolen traded by the Philadelphia Phillies with Doug Nickle and cash to the St. Louis Cardinals for Placido Polanco, Mike Timlin, and Bud Smith. (2003 $8.6-12.5 mil contract)
Doug Nickle < Bass
Polanco > Punto
Timlin = Guerrier
Smith = Matthew Williams
Hard to figure this one out but the closer I get for an equivalent trade is Beltre for Punto, Bonser and Humber
I think that a combination of one or 2 from Bass/Buscher/Bonser plus one or 2 minor leaguers from Lis/Plouffe/Peterson/De Paula, might actually do it...
Trade #1: Roberto Alomar traded by the Cleveland Indians with Danny Peoples and Mike Bacsik to the New York Mets for Matt Lawton, Alex Escobar,Jerrod Riggan, Earl Snyder (2001 offseason, $7-8mil/year contract with 2 years remaining)
Alomar = Beltre
Peoples = Erik Lis
Bacsik < Perkins
Lawton < Cuddyer
Escobar = Erik Lis
Riggan = Casey Daigle
Snyder = Brock Peterson < Buscher
equivalent value trade: Beltre for Buscher and Cuddyer or Bass and Cuddyer or Buscher and Bass and Lis or Buscher and Bonser
Trade #2: Scott Brosius was traded from the Athletics to the Yankees for Kenny Rogers (32) and cash.(1997)
Equivalent value trade: Beltre for Hernandez + Buscher
Trade #3: Carlos Guillen Traded by the Seattle Mariners to the Detroit Tigers for Ramon Santiago and Juan Gonzalez (2004, $2.5mil contract)
Ramon Santiago = Trevor Plouffe
Juan Gonzalez (not Juan Gone) = Ramon Santana
Equivalent trade: Beltran + cash for Plouffe and Ramon Santana (a steal)
Trade #4: Bobby Abreau traded by the Philadelphia Phillies with Cory Lidle to the New York Yankees for Matt Smith, C.J. Henry, Carlos Monasterios, and Jesus Sanchez (2006 $13-16mil/year contract).
Lidle > Hernandez
Matt Smith = Carmen Cali
CJ Henry = Eric Santiago
Monastrios = Alex Curry
Sanchez = Daniel Rohlfing
Equivalent trade: Beltran for Carmen Cali and Eric Santiago (another steal)
Trade #5: Scott Rolen traded by the Philadelphia Phillies with Doug Nickle and cash to the St. Louis Cardinals for Placido Polanco, Mike Timlin, and Bud Smith. (2003 $8.6-12.5 mil contract)
Doug Nickle < Bass
Polanco > Punto
Timlin = Guerrier
Smith = Matthew Williams
Hard to figure this one out but the closer I get for an equivalent trade is Beltre for Punto, Bonser and Humber
I think that a combination of one or 2 from Bass/Buscher/Bonser plus one or 2 minor leaguers from Lis/Plouffe/Peterson/De Paula, might actually do it...
7/1/08
And Anderson is a "great pitching coach"...
A good pitching coach can do the following things:
I think that the data shows that "Andy" is producing far less than his reputation...
- help his pitchers be healthy
(Neshek, Liriano, Crain, Balfour, Perkins, Reyes all had major injuries) - work with pitchers who are having problems to turn their staff around
(Bonser, Ponson, Lohse, Romero, Rincon, Silva, Mays, Fultz all failures vs only 2
successes: Reyes and Hawkins)
I think that the data shows that "Andy" is producing far less than his reputation...
Do you see a patern?
A list of the hitting coaches in the Twins' organization along with their major league stats as players:
DSL Twins: Claudio Almonte no MLB experience .284/.345/.391 9 HR in low minors
GCL Twins: Milt Cuyler .237/.305/.326/ 10 HR
Elizabethton Twins: Jeff Reed .250/.334/.361 61 HR (17 years ML career)
Beloit Snappers: Rudy Hernandez no pro ball experience
Fort Myers Miracle: Jim Dwyer .260/.353/.398 77 HR (17 years ML career)
New Britain Rock Cats: Floyd Rayford .244/.283/.397 38 HR
Rochester Red Wings: Riccardo Ingram .194/.257/.194 0 HR
Minnesota Twins: Joe Vavra no MLB experience .288/.351/.347 3 HR in the minors
DSL Twins: Claudio Almonte no MLB experience .284/.345/.391 9 HR in low minors
GCL Twins: Milt Cuyler .237/.305/.326/ 10 HR
Elizabethton Twins: Jeff Reed .250/.334/.361 61 HR (17 years ML career)
Beloit Snappers: Rudy Hernandez no pro ball experience
Fort Myers Miracle: Jim Dwyer .260/.353/.398 77 HR (17 years ML career)
New Britain Rock Cats: Floyd Rayford .244/.283/.397 38 HR
Rochester Red Wings: Riccardo Ingram .194/.257/.194 0 HR
Minnesota Twins: Joe Vavra no MLB experience .288/.351/.347 3 HR in the minors
All star game selections
There is a lot of talk every year about who are the most worthy selections and whether the fan vote is biased and whether the manager picks are biased and who else should have been there etc.
Here is a list of the 3 best hitters per position along with the 10 best starters and 10 best relievers ranked by VORP:
C
Mauer 24.3
Navarro 11.5
Pierzunski 11.4
1B
Youkilis 27.6
Giambi 25.8
Morneau 23.3
2B
Kinsler 39.5
Roberts 27.2
Perdoia 20.4
3B
Rodriguez 34.8
Lowell 19.7
Longoria 18.5
SS
Young 18.1
Peralta 14.6
Jeter 14.2
CF
Hamilton 33.9
Sizemore 33.7
Upton 23
LF
Quentin 28.4
Ramirez 24.9
Damon 24.1
RF
Drew 29.3
Dye 24.8
Markakis 21.4
DH
Bradney 37.2
Matsui 23.2
Huff 21.2
SP
Lee 32.7
Halladay 30.3
Danks 28.8
Marcum 28.4
Lackey 27.9
Duchscherer 27.6
F. Hernandez 24.5
Harden 24
Saunders 22.6
Santana 22.6
RP
James Johnson 20.9
Rivera 18.1
Downs 17
Soria 15.9
Chamberlain 15.6
Nathan 14.6
Wheeler 14.3
Linebrink 13.2
Mahay 12.7
F Rodriguez 12.4
Usually the roster consists from 12-14 pitchers and about 20 position players. Using a 32 man roster and 12 pitchers (like AL did yesterday), breaking down the position players to 2-3 catchers, 8-10 infielders and 8-10 OF the most deserving players would be:
C
Mauer 24.3 MIN
Navarro 11.5 TBR
IF
Kinsler 39.5 TEX
Rodriguez 34.8 NYY
Youkilis 27.6 BOS
Roberts 27.2 BAL
Giambi 25.8 NYY
Morneau 23.3 MIN
Perdoia 20.4 BOS
Young 18.1 TEX
OF
Hamilton 33.9 TEX
Sizemore 33.7 CLE
Upton 23 TBR
Bradney 37.2 TEX
Drew 29.3 BOS
Dye 24.8 CHW
Markakis 21.4 BAL
Quentin 28.4 CHW
Ramirez 24.9 BOS
Damon 24.1 NYY
P (7 starters 5 relivers)
Lee 32.7 CLE
Halladay 30.3 TOR
Danks 28.8 CHW
Marcum 28.4 TOR
Lackey 27.9 LAA
Duchscherer 27.6 OAK
F. Hernandez 24.5 SEA
James Johnson 20.9 BAL
Rivera 18.1 NYY
Downs 17 TOR
Soria 15.9 KCR
Chamberlain 15.6 NYY
The only team not represented is DET. The highest ranked Detroit players are Ordonez OF 21.3 and Polanco 18.3. The fairest would be to select Ordonez over Markakis, however Polanco over Pedroia might be an interesting selection also...
Here you have my version :)
Here is a list of the 3 best hitters per position along with the 10 best starters and 10 best relievers ranked by VORP:
C
Mauer 24.3
Navarro 11.5
Pierzunski 11.4
1B
Youkilis 27.6
Giambi 25.8
Morneau 23.3
2B
Kinsler 39.5
Roberts 27.2
Perdoia 20.4
3B
Rodriguez 34.8
Lowell 19.7
Longoria 18.5
SS
Young 18.1
Peralta 14.6
Jeter 14.2
CF
Hamilton 33.9
Sizemore 33.7
Upton 23
LF
Quentin 28.4
Ramirez 24.9
Damon 24.1
RF
Drew 29.3
Dye 24.8
Markakis 21.4
DH
Bradney 37.2
Matsui 23.2
Huff 21.2
SP
Lee 32.7
Halladay 30.3
Danks 28.8
Marcum 28.4
Lackey 27.9
Duchscherer 27.6
F. Hernandez 24.5
Harden 24
Saunders 22.6
Santana 22.6
RP
James Johnson 20.9
Rivera 18.1
Downs 17
Soria 15.9
Chamberlain 15.6
Nathan 14.6
Wheeler 14.3
Linebrink 13.2
Mahay 12.7
F Rodriguez 12.4
Usually the roster consists from 12-14 pitchers and about 20 position players. Using a 32 man roster and 12 pitchers (like AL did yesterday), breaking down the position players to 2-3 catchers, 8-10 infielders and 8-10 OF the most deserving players would be:
C
Mauer 24.3 MIN
Navarro 11.5 TBR
IF
Kinsler 39.5 TEX
Rodriguez 34.8 NYY
Youkilis 27.6 BOS
Roberts 27.2 BAL
Giambi 25.8 NYY
Morneau 23.3 MIN
Perdoia 20.4 BOS
Young 18.1 TEX
OF
Hamilton 33.9 TEX
Sizemore 33.7 CLE
Upton 23 TBR
Bradney 37.2 TEX
Drew 29.3 BOS
Dye 24.8 CHW
Markakis 21.4 BAL
Quentin 28.4 CHW
Ramirez 24.9 BOS
Damon 24.1 NYY
P (7 starters 5 relivers)
Lee 32.7 CLE
Halladay 30.3 TOR
Danks 28.8 CHW
Marcum 28.4 TOR
Lackey 27.9 LAA
Duchscherer 27.6 OAK
F. Hernandez 24.5 SEA
James Johnson 20.9 BAL
Rivera 18.1 NYY
Downs 17 TOR
Soria 15.9 KCR
Chamberlain 15.6 NYY
The only team not represented is DET. The highest ranked Detroit players are Ordonez OF 21.3 and Polanco 18.3. The fairest would be to select Ordonez over Markakis, however Polanco over Pedroia might be an interesting selection also...
Here you have my version :)
6/25/08
Musings on another late game day
Baseball is a lot like surfing. You catch your wave and ride it, till it breaks at the shore. Successful teams have been able to catch and ride hot streaks from people who would not necessary be in their plans in the beginning of the season. Point in case Buscher and Casilla (and Tolbert earlier) this year with the Twins. Glad to see that Gardenhire has not been making major changes in the lineup this week with Punto up, letting Harris and Buscher who are both swinging hot bats to play. I wouldn't even question benching Young (.343/.395/.429 the last 2 weeks) for Kubel (.342/.395/.658 the last 2 weeks). Wave riding is fine and fun and Gardy seems to be a decent surfer, but sometimes you got to take care of your surfboard too. The situation with Lamb and Monroe has to be resolved. You cannot simply let them rot on the bench. Either use them or trade them. They do have value as pinch hitters, but Gardy has never utilized pinch hitters appropriately in AL games (like e.g. pinch hitting for a light hitting infielder Tolbert/Punto/Harris/Casilla and substituting with another on the field at the next inning.) and he still insists on having an extra light hitting infielder on the bench instead of someone like McDonald or Ruiz who can actually hit the ball out of the park. The team is doing fine and is riding a 7 game wave. Still there are 2 pitchers (Bass and Bonser) who are practically dead weight. That situation has to be resolved also. You can keep one for the blow out games, as the baseball wisdom might suggest, but wouldn't it be better to get a prospect up instead, who can test his stuff at the major league level and actually develop without hurting the outcome of the game more than Boof or Bass? The Rincon booting was a good thing. The previous management team would not have done that. I am glad that Bill Smith did it and I hope that he does a few more small things to keep the team going.
On another note, a current Twin minor leaguer (Ben Revere) and a former Twin (Terry Tiffee) are the only players who are hitting above .400 in professional ball (the young rookie seasons aside.) The Ted Williams watch has started.
On another note, a current Twin minor leaguer (Ben Revere) and a former Twin (Terry Tiffee) are the only players who are hitting above .400 in professional ball (the young rookie seasons aside.) The Ted Williams watch has started.
6/24/08
back to hitting
Great article about Young and Gomez. If you can't read it, the gist is that Gomez and Young have a batting average of .324 and .320 respectively when they are hitting pitches in the zone and .181 and .206 respectively when they are trying to hit pitches outside the zone. The writer is pleading for patience from Gomez and Young, but I believe that the true cause of the problem is bad coaching, as I argued in the last several posts here. Effective managers and hitting coaches would have seen the problem and tried to make changes. Apparently Gardy and Varva don't...
And yet, there is more
For the sake of completeness, here are the road splits for every MLB team, ranked by decreased home to road era (the differential in parenthesis) along with their home stadium factor (the second parenthesis):
Pittsburgh 2008: Home ERA 3.75, Road ERA 6.59 (+2.84) (98)
Twins 2008: Home ERA 3.32, Road ERA 5.69 (+2.37) (96)
Tampa 2008: Home ERA 2.87, Road ERA 5.05 (+2.18) (100)
San Diego 2008: Home ERA 3.38, Road ERA 5.10 (+1.72) (91)
Milwaukee 2008: Home ERA 3.36, Road ERA 4.95 (+1.59) (101)
Dodgers 2008: Home ERA 3.35, Road ERA 4.51 (+1.19) (105)
Cleveland 2008: Home ERA 3.57, Road ERA 4.75 (+1.18) (102)
Oakland 2008: Home ERA 3.01, Road ERA 4.02 (+1.01) (93)
Mets 2008: Home ERA 3.57, Road ERA 4.58 (+1.01) (96)
Boston 2008: Home ERA 3.45, Road ERA 4.27 (+.82) (105)
Reds 2008: Home ERA 4.05, Road ERA 4.85 (+.80) (105)
Toronto 2008: Home ERA 3.24, Road ERA 3.95 (+.71) (99)
Colorado 2008: Home ERA 4.35, Road ERA 4.97 (+.62) (108)
MLB 2008: Home ERA 3.89, Road ERA 4.48 (+.59) (100)
Kansas City 2008: Home ERA 4.20, Road ERA 4.75 (+.55) (104)
Seattle 2008: Home ERA 4.41, Road ERA 4.95 (+.54) (96)
Cubs 2008: Home ERA 3.44, Road ERA 3.92 (+.48) (105)
Atlanta 2008: Home ERA 3.52, Road ERA 3.98 (+.46) (96)
White Sox 2008: Home ERA 3.31, Road ERA 3.70 (+.39) (105)
Philadelphia 2008: Home ERA 3.71, Road ERA 4.04 (+.33) (104)
Baltimore 2008: Home ERA 4.20, Road ERA 4.47 (+.27) (102)
Marlins 2008: Home ERA 4.37, Road ERA 4.55 (+.18) (97)
Detroit 2008: Home ERA 4.53, Road ERA 4.59 (+.06) (101)
Texas 2008: Home ERA 4.96, Road ERA 4.92 (+.04) (100)
Yankees 2008: Home ERA 4.13, Road ERA 4.10 (-.03) (99)
Giants 2008: Home ERA 4.45, Road ERA 4.36 (-.11) (100)
St Louis 2008: Home ERA 4.16, Road ERA 3.89 (-.27) (99)
Nationals 2008: Home ERA 4.80, Road ERA 4.41 (-.39) (100)
Houston 2008: Home ERA 4.95, Road ERA 4.20 (-.75) (99)
Arizona 2008: Home ERA 4.32, Road ERA 3.45 (-1.13) (106)
Angels 2008: Home ERA 4.44, Road ERA 3.21 (-1.23) (100)
What is clear from this is that, surprisingly, there is no correlation between home/road ERA differential and park factor of the home park. There are 3 teams, Pittsburgh, the Twins and Tampa Bay, which have really bad home/road ERA differentials this year. It's all about planning, managing and coaching. The current Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay managers and coaches have been regarded as 'not that great'; however, the Twins manager, has been regarded as 'one of the best in the game'. Who lies? numbers or opinions?
Pittsburgh 2008: Home ERA 3.75, Road ERA 6.59 (+2.84) (98)
Twins 2008: Home ERA 3.32, Road ERA 5.69 (+2.37) (96)
Tampa 2008: Home ERA 2.87, Road ERA 5.05 (+2.18) (100)
San Diego 2008: Home ERA 3.38, Road ERA 5.10 (+1.72) (91)
Milwaukee 2008: Home ERA 3.36, Road ERA 4.95 (+1.59) (101)
Dodgers 2008: Home ERA 3.35, Road ERA 4.51 (+1.19) (105)
Cleveland 2008: Home ERA 3.57, Road ERA 4.75 (+1.18) (102)
Oakland 2008: Home ERA 3.01, Road ERA 4.02 (+1.01) (93)
Mets 2008: Home ERA 3.57, Road ERA 4.58 (+1.01) (96)
Boston 2008: Home ERA 3.45, Road ERA 4.27 (+.82) (105)
Reds 2008: Home ERA 4.05, Road ERA 4.85 (+.80) (105)
Toronto 2008: Home ERA 3.24, Road ERA 3.95 (+.71) (99)
Colorado 2008: Home ERA 4.35, Road ERA 4.97 (+.62) (108)
MLB 2008: Home ERA 3.89, Road ERA 4.48 (+.59) (100)
Kansas City 2008: Home ERA 4.20, Road ERA 4.75 (+.55) (104)
Seattle 2008: Home ERA 4.41, Road ERA 4.95 (+.54) (96)
Cubs 2008: Home ERA 3.44, Road ERA 3.92 (+.48) (105)
Atlanta 2008: Home ERA 3.52, Road ERA 3.98 (+.46) (96)
White Sox 2008: Home ERA 3.31, Road ERA 3.70 (+.39) (105)
Philadelphia 2008: Home ERA 3.71, Road ERA 4.04 (+.33) (104)
Baltimore 2008: Home ERA 4.20, Road ERA 4.47 (+.27) (102)
Marlins 2008: Home ERA 4.37, Road ERA 4.55 (+.18) (97)
Detroit 2008: Home ERA 4.53, Road ERA 4.59 (+.06) (101)
Texas 2008: Home ERA 4.96, Road ERA 4.92 (+.04) (100)
Yankees 2008: Home ERA 4.13, Road ERA 4.10 (-.03) (99)
Giants 2008: Home ERA 4.45, Road ERA 4.36 (-.11) (100)
St Louis 2008: Home ERA 4.16, Road ERA 3.89 (-.27) (99)
Nationals 2008: Home ERA 4.80, Road ERA 4.41 (-.39) (100)
Houston 2008: Home ERA 4.95, Road ERA 4.20 (-.75) (99)
Arizona 2008: Home ERA 4.32, Road ERA 3.45 (-1.13) (106)
Angels 2008: Home ERA 4.44, Road ERA 3.21 (-1.23) (100)
What is clear from this is that, surprisingly, there is no correlation between home/road ERA differential and park factor of the home park. There are 3 teams, Pittsburgh, the Twins and Tampa Bay, which have really bad home/road ERA differentials this year. It's all about planning, managing and coaching. The current Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay managers and coaches have been regarded as 'not that great'; however, the Twins manager, has been regarded as 'one of the best in the game'. Who lies? numbers or opinions?
Even more about pitching
The 4 game differential in the previous post is somewhat high level and I wanted to get a bit more granular to increase the accuracy of the statistical argument.
Here are the home road splits posted previously:
Joe Nathan: Home ERA 0.86,Road ERA 2.79
Dennys Reyes: Home ERA 1.32,Road ERA 4.00
Matt Guerrier: Home ERA 1.46, Road ERA 5.74
Jesse Crain: Home ERA 1.47, Road ERA 4.72
Nick Blackburn: Home ERA 2.20, Road ERA 5.06
Scott Baker: Home ERA 2.28,Road ERA 4.60
Brian Bass: Home ERA 3.20, Road ERA 6.95
Livan Hernandez: Home ERA 3.86, Road ERA 7.0
Boof Bonser: Home ERA 5.73,Road ERA 8.55
additionally pitchers not currently with the team are:
Juan Rincon: Home ERA 3.68,Road ERA 8.78
Pat Neshek: Home ERA 1.29,Road ERA 8.53
Bobby Korecky: Home ERA 6.00,Road ERA 2.45
Francisco Liriano: Home ERA 5.40,Road ERA 16.88
by subtracting road from home era, subtracting the differential between the league average Home ERA 3.89, Road ERA 4.48 (.59) and dividing by 9 to get runs per inning pitched that the team would have gained if the Twins' pitchers were pitching on the road with the same effectiveness that the league average pitcher does, based on home ERA:
Joe Nathan: 0.15 R/IP
Dennys Reyes: 0.23 R/IP
Matt Guerrier: 0.41 R/IP
Jesse Crain: 0.30 R/IP
Nick Blackburn: 0.25 R/IP
Scott Baker: 0.19 R/IP
Brian Bass: 0.35 R/IP
Livan Hernandez: 0.28 R/IP
Boof Bonser: 0.25 R/IP
Juan Rincon: 0.50 R/IP
Pat Neshek: 0.74 R/IP
Francisco Liriano: 1.21 R/IP
Looking at the Twins road losses and adjusting the score based on the above numbers (i.e. if Livan Hernandez pitched 5 innings and Brian Bass 4, in a hypothetical 5-0 loss, the adjusted score would be 5-(0.28*5 )-(0.35*4)= 2-0. To make it fair to the particular game, if a pitcher did not allow any runs, his differential will not be counted. Here is a list of those road losses, the original score and the adjusted score, along with win loss differential for the Twins and other AL Central teams:
Apr 7 @CHW act: L 4-7 adj: L 4-5
Apr 13 @KCR act: L 1-5 adj: W 1-0 diff +1 Twins -1 KC
Apr 14 @DET act: L 9-11 adj: W 9-8 diff +2 Twins -1 KC -1 Det
Apr 15 @DET act: L 5-6 adj: W 5-4 diff +3 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Apr 23 @OAK act: L 0-3 adj: L 0-1 diff +3 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Apr 24 @OAK act: L 2-11 adj: L 2-9 diff +3 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Apr 25 @TEX act: L 5-6 adj: W 5-4 diff +4 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Apr 27 @TEX act: L 0-10 adj: L 0-8 diff +4 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 6 @CHW act: L 1-7 adj: L 1-5 diff +4 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 8 @CHW act: L 2-6 adj: L 1-4 diff +4 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 17 @COL act: L 2-3 adj: W 2-1 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 18 @COL act: L 2-6 adj: L 2-6 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 24 @DET act: L 3-19 adj: L 3-16 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 6 @CHW act: L 6-10 adj: L 6-8 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 7 @CHW act: L 2-11 adj: L 2-9 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 8 @CHW act: L 2-12 adj: L 2-11 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 9 @CHW act: L 5-7 adj: L 5-7 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 10 @CLE act: L 0-1 adj: L 0-0 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det (assume loss)
Jun 12 @CLE act: L 2-12 adj: L 2-10 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 15 @MIL act: L 2-4 adj: L 2-4 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
According to this, the Twins record should have been 45-31 (a .592 winning percentage that projects to 96 wins for the season). If the pitching preparation problems were fixed, they type of discussions that are happening today wouldn't be happening... It is still early. There are 86 games left in the season. If the team identifies the problems, adjusts and plays the remaining 86 games at the potential .592 rate, it will finish the season with 91 wins, easily on top of the AL Central. The team management should really focus on this vs. adding bats...
Here are the home road splits posted previously:
Joe Nathan: Home ERA 0.86,Road ERA 2.79
Dennys Reyes: Home ERA 1.32,Road ERA 4.00
Matt Guerrier: Home ERA 1.46, Road ERA 5.74
Jesse Crain: Home ERA 1.47, Road ERA 4.72
Nick Blackburn: Home ERA 2.20, Road ERA 5.06
Scott Baker: Home ERA 2.28,Road ERA 4.60
Brian Bass: Home ERA 3.20, Road ERA 6.95
Livan Hernandez: Home ERA 3.86, Road ERA 7.0
Boof Bonser: Home ERA 5.73,Road ERA 8.55
additionally pitchers not currently with the team are:
Juan Rincon: Home ERA 3.68,Road ERA 8.78
Pat Neshek: Home ERA 1.29,Road ERA 8.53
Bobby Korecky: Home ERA 6.00,Road ERA 2.45
Francisco Liriano: Home ERA 5.40,Road ERA 16.88
by subtracting road from home era, subtracting the differential between the league average Home ERA 3.89, Road ERA 4.48 (.59) and dividing by 9 to get runs per inning pitched that the team would have gained if the Twins' pitchers were pitching on the road with the same effectiveness that the league average pitcher does, based on home ERA:
Joe Nathan: 0.15 R/IP
Dennys Reyes: 0.23 R/IP
Matt Guerrier: 0.41 R/IP
Jesse Crain: 0.30 R/IP
Nick Blackburn: 0.25 R/IP
Scott Baker: 0.19 R/IP
Brian Bass: 0.35 R/IP
Livan Hernandez: 0.28 R/IP
Boof Bonser: 0.25 R/IP
Juan Rincon: 0.50 R/IP
Pat Neshek: 0.74 R/IP
Francisco Liriano: 1.21 R/IP
Looking at the Twins road losses and adjusting the score based on the above numbers (i.e. if Livan Hernandez pitched 5 innings and Brian Bass 4, in a hypothetical 5-0 loss, the adjusted score would be 5-(0.28*5 )-(0.35*4)= 2-0. To make it fair to the particular game, if a pitcher did not allow any runs, his differential will not be counted. Here is a list of those road losses, the original score and the adjusted score, along with win loss differential for the Twins and other AL Central teams:
Apr 7 @CHW act: L 4-7 adj: L 4-5
Apr 13 @KCR act: L 1-5 adj: W 1-0 diff +1 Twins -1 KC
Apr 14 @DET act: L 9-11 adj: W 9-8 diff +2 Twins -1 KC -1 Det
Apr 15 @DET act: L 5-6 adj: W 5-4 diff +3 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Apr 23 @OAK act: L 0-3 adj: L 0-1 diff +3 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Apr 24 @OAK act: L 2-11 adj: L 2-9 diff +3 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Apr 25 @TEX act: L 5-6 adj: W 5-4 diff +4 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Apr 27 @TEX act: L 0-10 adj: L 0-8 diff +4 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 6 @CHW act: L 1-7 adj: L 1-5 diff +4 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 8 @CHW act: L 2-6 adj: L 1-4 diff +4 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 17 @COL act: L 2-3 adj: W 2-1 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 18 @COL act: L 2-6 adj: L 2-6 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
May 24 @DET act: L 3-19 adj: L 3-16 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 6 @CHW act: L 6-10 adj: L 6-8 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 7 @CHW act: L 2-11 adj: L 2-9 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 8 @CHW act: L 2-12 adj: L 2-11 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 9 @CHW act: L 5-7 adj: L 5-7 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 10 @CLE act: L 0-1 adj: L 0-0 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det (assume loss)
Jun 12 @CLE act: L 2-12 adj: L 2-10 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
Jun 15 @MIL act: L 2-4 adj: L 2-4 diff +5 Twins -1 KC -2 Det
According to this, the Twins record should have been 45-31 (a .592 winning percentage that projects to 96 wins for the season). If the pitching preparation problems were fixed, they type of discussions that are happening today wouldn't be happening... It is still early. There are 86 games left in the season. If the team identifies the problems, adjusts and plays the remaining 86 games at the potential .592 rate, it will finish the season with 91 wins, easily on top of the AL Central. The team management should really focus on this vs. adding bats...
Digging more into pitching this year...
The huge discrepancy in home and road ERAs, posted earlier, really took me by surprise and made me dig a bit deeper. I have been suggesting (screaming actually) that the numbers indicate that problem with this team this year is pitching, esp starting pitching and not batting. All the trade talk about adding 'better' bats and the talk about players like Lamb, Monroe and Everett underachieving, and who should the utility player be, in order for the Twins to win, are really moot points. I even wrote the following in Joe C's blog:
This team can and should contend. Starting pitching has been a problem and the most serious problem in this team. Having discussions about whether one of Punto/Tolbert/Macri/Harris should play, is somewhat atopic, because either way the way the team has been performing this year, it would not make a difference. Looking at the bench vs. starting pitching is like looking at someone with a heart failure, and trying to give him/her a pedicure before resuscitating him/her… (extreme hyperbole, but I’m trying to make a point… That’s why I think that Gardy messing around with the line up is like an old lady at the checkout counter arguing whether she was shorted 3 cents, while someone is pickpocketing her purse…)
I think that the previous analysis showed that the root cause of the pitching problems is bad road pitching. What is the root cause of bad road pitching?
The players are the same, their stuff is the same at home and on the road. Just the preparation is different and this, as I said before, falls on the manager, the pitching coach and the travel staff. The team should look more serious into this big problem that is costing 2 runs for every away game.
I'll come back to the last point later, but here are the numbers for the major leagues this year, making sure that there is not a league-wide aberration
MLB 2008: Home ERA 3.89, Road ERA 4.48
AL 2008: Home ERA 3.81, Road ERA 4.45
NL 2008: Home ERA 3.96, Road ERA 4.52
and here are the historic numbers for the Twins
Twins:
2008: Home ERA 3.32, Road ERA 5.69
2007: Home ERA 3.84, Road ERA 4.54
2006: Home ERA 3.40, Road ERA 4.54
----
2005: Home ERA 3.62, Road ERA 3.83
2004: Home ERA 3.89, Road ERA 4.20
2003: Home ERA 4.50, Road ERA 4.31
2002: Home ERA 3.76, Road ERA 4.52
2001: Home ERA 4.47, Road ERA 4.56
2000: Home ERA 5.18, Road ERA 5.13
1999: Home ERA 5.08, Road ERA 4.97
1998: Home ERA 4.52, Road ERA 5.00
1997: Home ERA 4.94, Road ERA 5.10
1996: Home ERA 5.38, Road ERA 5.22
1995: Home ERA 5.74, Road ERA 5.81
1994: Home ERA 5.26, Road ERA 6.17
1993: Home ERA 4.73, Road ERA 4.73
1992: Home ERA 3.68, Road ERA 3.76
1991: Home ERA 3.90, Road ERA 3.48
1990: Home ERA 4.24, Road ERA 4.03
Up until and including 2005, the Twins' splits were comparable with the league. Ron Gardenhire and Rick Anderson came to the team in 2002. Rick Stelmaszyk has been the bullpen coach all those years, so his presence probably has nothing to do with this. Did something change between 2005 and 2006? Where any changes made in the travel routine this year? The one thing that changed in 2006 was that this was the first year the majority of the Twins pitching staff had the Gardenhire/Anderson combination as their only Twins MLB coaching/manager combination. Arguable, a veteran pitcher that learned travel habits and preparation that work for him from other coaches, a change in coaching stuff and road preparation philosophy will be less affected than a younger pitcher who has seen nothing else in the Twins' organization. Could it really be just Gardy's and Ronnie's fault?
If the Twins followed the ML trend, their road ERA should have been 3.91. Instead it is 5.69. This is the equivalent of starting every road game down 2-0. Looking closely to the road games this year, if the manager and coaching stuff had the team prepared like every other ballclub in the majors this year, the following games would statistically have been wins:
Apr 15 @DET L 5-6
Apr 25 @TEX L 5-6
May 17 @COL L 2-3
Jun 10 @CLE L 0-1
And the club record would have been 44-32, 2.5 games ahead in Central and 0.5 game off the WC race.
The numbers clearly show that the issue with pitching is not personnel but preparation, managing and coaching. Is the management of the team aware of this issue? I would think that they have someone who analyzes the team performance and reports such obvious discrepancies. If the team straightens things out with the above problems, it would be the equivalent of adding 2 great pitchers in the rotation... If not, Gardenhire and his coaches should be held accountable, unless the management of this team would like to continue its pickpocketing at the rate of 2 runs a game.
This team can and should contend. Starting pitching has been a problem and the most serious problem in this team. Having discussions about whether one of Punto/Tolbert/Macri/Harris should play, is somewhat atopic, because either way the way the team has been performing this year, it would not make a difference. Looking at the bench vs. starting pitching is like looking at someone with a heart failure, and trying to give him/her a pedicure before resuscitating him/her… (extreme hyperbole, but I’m trying to make a point… That’s why I think that Gardy messing around with the line up is like an old lady at the checkout counter arguing whether she was shorted 3 cents, while someone is pickpocketing her purse…)
I think that the previous analysis showed that the root cause of the pitching problems is bad road pitching. What is the root cause of bad road pitching?
The players are the same, their stuff is the same at home and on the road. Just the preparation is different and this, as I said before, falls on the manager, the pitching coach and the travel staff. The team should look more serious into this big problem that is costing 2 runs for every away game.
I'll come back to the last point later, but here are the numbers for the major leagues this year, making sure that there is not a league-wide aberration
MLB 2008: Home ERA 3.89, Road ERA 4.48
AL 2008: Home ERA 3.81, Road ERA 4.45
NL 2008: Home ERA 3.96, Road ERA 4.52
and here are the historic numbers for the Twins
Twins:
2008: Home ERA 3.32, Road ERA 5.69
2007: Home ERA 3.84, Road ERA 4.54
2006: Home ERA 3.40, Road ERA 4.54
----
2005: Home ERA 3.62, Road ERA 3.83
2004: Home ERA 3.89, Road ERA 4.20
2003: Home ERA 4.50, Road ERA 4.31
2002: Home ERA 3.76, Road ERA 4.52
2001: Home ERA 4.47, Road ERA 4.56
2000: Home ERA 5.18, Road ERA 5.13
1999: Home ERA 5.08, Road ERA 4.97
1998: Home ERA 4.52, Road ERA 5.00
1997: Home ERA 4.94, Road ERA 5.10
1996: Home ERA 5.38, Road ERA 5.22
1995: Home ERA 5.74, Road ERA 5.81
1994: Home ERA 5.26, Road ERA 6.17
1993: Home ERA 4.73, Road ERA 4.73
1992: Home ERA 3.68, Road ERA 3.76
1991: Home ERA 3.90, Road ERA 3.48
1990: Home ERA 4.24, Road ERA 4.03
Up until and including 2005, the Twins' splits were comparable with the league. Ron Gardenhire and Rick Anderson came to the team in 2002. Rick Stelmaszyk has been the bullpen coach all those years, so his presence probably has nothing to do with this. Did something change between 2005 and 2006? Where any changes made in the travel routine this year? The one thing that changed in 2006 was that this was the first year the majority of the Twins pitching staff had the Gardenhire/Anderson combination as their only Twins MLB coaching/manager combination. Arguable, a veteran pitcher that learned travel habits and preparation that work for him from other coaches, a change in coaching stuff and road preparation philosophy will be less affected than a younger pitcher who has seen nothing else in the Twins' organization. Could it really be just Gardy's and Ronnie's fault?
If the Twins followed the ML trend, their road ERA should have been 3.91. Instead it is 5.69. This is the equivalent of starting every road game down 2-0. Looking closely to the road games this year, if the manager and coaching stuff had the team prepared like every other ballclub in the majors this year, the following games would statistically have been wins:
Apr 15 @DET L 5-6
Apr 25 @TEX L 5-6
May 17 @COL L 2-3
Jun 10 @CLE L 0-1
And the club record would have been 44-32, 2.5 games ahead in Central and 0.5 game off the WC race.
The numbers clearly show that the issue with pitching is not personnel but preparation, managing and coaching. Is the management of the team aware of this issue? I would think that they have someone who analyzes the team performance and reports such obvious discrepancies. If the team straightens things out with the above problems, it would be the equivalent of adding 2 great pitchers in the rotation... If not, Gardenhire and his coaches should be held accountable, unless the management of this team would like to continue its pickpocketing at the rate of 2 runs a game.
It's a late night's day, so here are some tidbits
It looks like Juanie singed a minor league deal with the Indians. Effectively, this is trading Rincon for Breslow, while eating Rincon's salary. A bunch of teams are willing to give a major league contract with a multi million dollar signing bonus to a 16 year old. The Twins are on the road at San Diego. Here are some interesting splits:
Pitching:
Team: Home ERA 3.32, Road ERA 5.69
home buddies:
Joe Nathan: Home ERA 0.86,Road ERA 2.79
Dennys Reyes: Home ERA 1.32,Road ERA 4.00
Matt Guerrier: Home ERA 1.46, Road ERA 5.74
Jesse Crain: Home ERA 1.47, Road ERA 4.72
Nick Blackburn: Home ERA 2.20, Road ERA 5.06
Scott Baker: Home ERA 2.28,Road ERA 4.60
Brian Bass: Home ERA 3.20, Road ERA 6.95
Livan Hernandez: Home ERA 3.86, Road ERA 7.00
Frequent Fliers:
Glen Perkins: Home ERA 4.98,Road ERA 3.32
Kevin Slowey: Home ERA 4.71,Road ERA 4.17
Consistently bad:
Boof Bonser: Home ERA 5.73,Road ERA 8.55
Batting:
Team: Home OPS .734, Road OPS .707
home buddies:
Joe Mauer: Home OPS .952, Road OPS .742
Brian Buscher: Home OPS .802, Road OPS .690
Craig Monroe: Home OPS .788, Road OPS .595
Michael Cuddyer: Home OPS .772, Road OPS .626
Nick Punto: Home OPS .770, Road OPS .655
Brendan Harris : Home OPS .719, Road OPS .590
Mike Redmond: Home OPS .717, Road OPS .632
Frequent Fliers:
Delmon Young: Home OPS .626, Road OPS .774
Mike Lamb: Home OPS .416, Road OPS .752
Even Stevens:
Justin Morneau: Home OPS .858, Road OPS .834
Jason Kubel: Home OPS .797, Road OPS .759
Alexi Casilla: Home OPS .758, Road OPS .783
Carlos Gomez: Home OPS .672, Road OPS .690
This is pretty interesting data, looking at the whole pitching squad grossly underachieving on the road. Is it a routine/preparation issue? The coaches should do something to reverse this trait, or at least attempt to do something. It is a glaring difference and squad-wise. When your team ERA is 2.some points higher on the road it is a serious problem of preparation and the blame falls of the manager, pitching coach and travel staff.
As far as the batters go, I would not be surprised to see Mike Lamb play in San Diego. A home/road platoon at 3rd might not be out of the question. Craig Monroe should play more at home, occasionally spelling Gomez and Young.
Pitching:
Team: Home ERA 3.32, Road ERA 5.69
home buddies:
Joe Nathan: Home ERA 0.86,Road ERA 2.79
Dennys Reyes: Home ERA 1.32,Road ERA 4.00
Matt Guerrier: Home ERA 1.46, Road ERA 5.74
Jesse Crain: Home ERA 1.47, Road ERA 4.72
Nick Blackburn: Home ERA 2.20, Road ERA 5.06
Scott Baker: Home ERA 2.28,Road ERA 4.60
Brian Bass: Home ERA 3.20, Road ERA 6.95
Livan Hernandez: Home ERA 3.86, Road ERA 7.00
Frequent Fliers:
Glen Perkins: Home ERA 4.98,Road ERA 3.32
Kevin Slowey: Home ERA 4.71,Road ERA 4.17
Consistently bad:
Boof Bonser: Home ERA 5.73,Road ERA 8.55
Batting:
Team: Home OPS .734, Road OPS .707
home buddies:
Joe Mauer: Home OPS .952, Road OPS .742
Brian Buscher: Home OPS .802, Road OPS .690
Craig Monroe: Home OPS .788, Road OPS .595
Michael Cuddyer: Home OPS .772, Road OPS .626
Nick Punto: Home OPS .770, Road OPS .655
Brendan Harris : Home OPS .719, Road OPS .590
Mike Redmond: Home OPS .717, Road OPS .632
Frequent Fliers:
Delmon Young: Home OPS .626, Road OPS .774
Mike Lamb: Home OPS .416, Road OPS .752
Even Stevens:
Justin Morneau: Home OPS .858, Road OPS .834
Jason Kubel: Home OPS .797, Road OPS .759
Alexi Casilla: Home OPS .758, Road OPS .783
Carlos Gomez: Home OPS .672, Road OPS .690
This is pretty interesting data, looking at the whole pitching squad grossly underachieving on the road. Is it a routine/preparation issue? The coaches should do something to reverse this trait, or at least attempt to do something. It is a glaring difference and squad-wise. When your team ERA is 2.some points higher on the road it is a serious problem of preparation and the blame falls of the manager, pitching coach and travel staff.
As far as the batters go, I would not be surprised to see Mike Lamb play in San Diego. A home/road platoon at 3rd might not be out of the question. Craig Monroe should play more at home, occasionally spelling Gomez and Young.
6/23/08
Minor league tour: Rock Cats at Defenders 6/21
Gorgeous weather last Saturday, I was in Connecticut and lucky enough, the Rock Cats were playing the Connecticut Defenders (SF affiliated Eastern League club) at Dodd stadium, the host of Norwich Navigators until this year. The stadium is very difficult to find, one needs to go up through a long an winding road through a business park like setting. Once there, the facility is really nice, with plenty of parking ($2).
We got there 2.5 hours before the game and went to the box office to purchase tickets. I was happy to find 4 tickets at the first row, right behind the catcher ($10 each). I was hopping to go in and catch a bit of batting practice, but the doors open only one hour before the game. One one hand, getting there early enough got me the best seats in the stadium, on the other, nothing much to do around there, save an ice cream shop/batting cage venue half a mile away where we spent the waiting time. Once inside the stadium looks really nice for a AA park, albeit the usual billboard kitchness at the outfield.
concession-wise, other than the usual park stuff, the gem of the stadium is the San Fransisco fries stand at the left field where one can get fries with a variety of toppings ($3.75; Garlic fries were a killer) and several micro-brews were offered throughout the stadium ($4.50 for a pint).
This was a spare of the moment decision and did not know any of the starting lineups and the defenders were not very good with providing them ahead of the time. There were a couple of xeroxed papers with the rosters of the 2 teams, which one had to use to make the lineups out. Scorecards are not provided.
Our seats were great. Here is the view from my eye level:
and looking up:
Yes this is a rope and not metal net (patched several times at several places) and not too tight, so I had to warn my kids to stand back while there is a batter in the box and use the floor instead of the wall as a caddy, otherwise drinks could be worn.
It was an integration commemorative weekend and the home team wore the beige Brooklyn tops, the Rock Cats were in red.
pre game stretch
getting ready for the national anthem
Moses (13), Dinkelman (28) and Valencia getting ready to bat at the first warm up pitches.
Dinkelman on deck
Moses taking a ball
Valencia moving in with Moses on second.
Look at the size of the home plate umpire (Valencia is 6'2", for comparison). The ump could not crunch all the way (the best he could do was shown in the previous picture). This really unsettled Swarzak because the low strike was not called and after the Defenders realized that after the first inning, they stopped swinging at it. Swarzak try to compensate by throwing middle of the plate strikes, instead of nipping at the corners, resulting in the 2 home runs. Here are a couple of warm up shots:
He has a nice fluid motion and plus stuff (look at the spin of the curve in the second picture), but he does need coaching to learn how to adjust in situations like that day when he does not get strikes called. He has tons of potential, but needs coaching to try to understand and apply the intricacies of the game. On another note, he is not spotting his legendary crew cut this season, but a John Candelaria look.
The Rock Cats lost, but it was a very enjoyable experience to say the least. AA and A+ are probably the best places to see games live, because you can be so close to the action. One has to realize that this is not the majors and that there are only 3 umpires and 2 coaches plus the manager for each side (the hitting and pitching coaches serve as 1st and 3rd base coach as well) which makes things a little more difficult, some of us will say a little more pure...
Rock Cat player evaluations (take them with a grain of salt the size of Greenland, because this is the first time I saw many of these guys):
Dinkelman can be the real thing. Nice fluid swing, good feel of the game, probably better than Tolbert. Valencia physically reminds me of Gomez. However, he has a nice compact swing that looks a lot like Morneau's. Lis, Peterson and Winfree look like the same player out there. There are really stiff, extremely minimal range on the field (Peterson booted a double play ball that was almost impossible to boot) but they can hit. I do not see any of them beeing more that DHs in the majors. Moses is a disappointment. He seems really lost on the batter's box. I still do not understand what is Gardenhire doing in pro ball. Felix Molina is good in the field and showed a live bat, but I cannot see him be anything more than a career minor leaguer; same with Palacios
That's all, folks
We got there 2.5 hours before the game and went to the box office to purchase tickets. I was happy to find 4 tickets at the first row, right behind the catcher ($10 each). I was hopping to go in and catch a bit of batting practice, but the doors open only one hour before the game. One one hand, getting there early enough got me the best seats in the stadium, on the other, nothing much to do around there, save an ice cream shop/batting cage venue half a mile away where we spent the waiting time. Once inside the stadium looks really nice for a AA park, albeit the usual billboard kitchness at the outfield.
concession-wise, other than the usual park stuff, the gem of the stadium is the San Fransisco fries stand at the left field where one can get fries with a variety of toppings ($3.75; Garlic fries were a killer) and several micro-brews were offered throughout the stadium ($4.50 for a pint).
This was a spare of the moment decision and did not know any of the starting lineups and the defenders were not very good with providing them ahead of the time. There were a couple of xeroxed papers with the rosters of the 2 teams, which one had to use to make the lineups out. Scorecards are not provided.
Our seats were great. Here is the view from my eye level:
and looking up:
Yes this is a rope and not metal net (patched several times at several places) and not too tight, so I had to warn my kids to stand back while there is a batter in the box and use the floor instead of the wall as a caddy, otherwise drinks could be worn.
It was an integration commemorative weekend and the home team wore the beige Brooklyn tops, the Rock Cats were in red.
pre game stretch
getting ready for the national anthem
Moses (13), Dinkelman (28) and Valencia getting ready to bat at the first warm up pitches.
Dinkelman on deck
Moses taking a ball
Valencia moving in with Moses on second.
Look at the size of the home plate umpire (Valencia is 6'2", for comparison). The ump could not crunch all the way (the best he could do was shown in the previous picture). This really unsettled Swarzak because the low strike was not called and after the Defenders realized that after the first inning, they stopped swinging at it. Swarzak try to compensate by throwing middle of the plate strikes, instead of nipping at the corners, resulting in the 2 home runs. Here are a couple of warm up shots:
He has a nice fluid motion and plus stuff (look at the spin of the curve in the second picture), but he does need coaching to learn how to adjust in situations like that day when he does not get strikes called. He has tons of potential, but needs coaching to try to understand and apply the intricacies of the game. On another note, he is not spotting his legendary crew cut this season, but a John Candelaria look.
The Rock Cats lost, but it was a very enjoyable experience to say the least. AA and A+ are probably the best places to see games live, because you can be so close to the action. One has to realize that this is not the majors and that there are only 3 umpires and 2 coaches plus the manager for each side (the hitting and pitching coaches serve as 1st and 3rd base coach as well) which makes things a little more difficult, some of us will say a little more pure...
Rock Cat player evaluations (take them with a grain of salt the size of Greenland, because this is the first time I saw many of these guys):
Dinkelman can be the real thing. Nice fluid swing, good feel of the game, probably better than Tolbert. Valencia physically reminds me of Gomez. However, he has a nice compact swing that looks a lot like Morneau's. Lis, Peterson and Winfree look like the same player out there. There are really stiff, extremely minimal range on the field (Peterson booted a double play ball that was almost impossible to boot) but they can hit. I do not see any of them beeing more that DHs in the majors. Moses is a disappointment. He seems really lost on the batter's box. I still do not understand what is Gardenhire doing in pro ball. Felix Molina is good in the field and showed a live bat, but I cannot see him be anything more than a career minor leaguer; same with Palacios
That's all, folks
6/12/08
The pitching situation
Here are the rankings of the starters in the following categories:
K/9
Baker
Slowey
Bonser
Blackburn
Perkins
Hernandez
pitches/games started
Hernandez
Perkins
Slowey
Bonser
Blackburn
Baker
BB/9
Baker
Slowey
Hernandez
Blackburn
Perkins
Bonser
ERA
Baker
Blackburn
Perkins
Slowey
Hernandez
Bonser
WHIP
Baker
Slowey
Blackburn
Bonser
Perkins
Hernandez
Wins
Hernandez
Blackburn
Bonser
Baker/Slowey/Perkins
Loses
Baker
Perkins
Hernandez
Blackburn
Slowey/Bonser
If you give 6 points for the pitcher who leads in a category, 5 points for the second in a category etc down to 1 point for the last in the category, you have:
Total:
Baker 34
Slowey 27
Blackburn 25
Hernandez 24
Perkins 23
Bonser 18
I'd say that Bonser was the odd man out and he deserved the demotion.
Looking at the reliever rankings, similar as above, but scoring 9-1 for the following
categories:
K/9
Nathan 9
Breslow 8
Rincon 7
Crain 6
Guerrier/Bonser 5
Korecky 3
Reyes 2
Bass 1
BB/9
Nathan 9
Breslow 8
Reyes 7
Bonser 6
Bass 5
Korecky 4
Crain 3
Guerrier 2
Rincon 1
ERA
Breslow 9
Nathan 8
Reyes 7
Crain 6
Guerrier 5
Korecky 4
Bass 3
Rincon 2
Bonser 1
WHIP
Breslow 9
Nathan 8
Korecky 7
Reyes 6
Crain 5
Bonser 4
Guerrier 3
Bass 2
Rincon 1
Saves+Holds
Nathan 9
Guerrier 8
Crain/Reyes 7
Bass/Rinco 5
Korecky/Breslow/Bonser 3
Total
Nathan 43
Breslow 37
Reyes 29
Crain 27
Guerrier 23
Korecky 21
Bonser 19
Rincon/Bass 16
It is clear that Rincon and Bass do not belong. Bonser's numbers' inclusion is somewhat of an apples to oranges comparison, but necessary. Additionally, Guerrier leads the team with 5 IBBs, which penalizes his ranking
K/9
Baker
Slowey
Bonser
Blackburn
Perkins
Hernandez
pitches/games started
Hernandez
Perkins
Slowey
Bonser
Blackburn
Baker
BB/9
Baker
Slowey
Hernandez
Blackburn
Perkins
Bonser
ERA
Baker
Blackburn
Perkins
Slowey
Hernandez
Bonser
WHIP
Baker
Slowey
Blackburn
Bonser
Perkins
Hernandez
Wins
Hernandez
Blackburn
Bonser
Baker/Slowey/Perkins
Loses
Baker
Perkins
Hernandez
Blackburn
Slowey/Bonser
If you give 6 points for the pitcher who leads in a category, 5 points for the second in a category etc down to 1 point for the last in the category, you have:
Total:
Baker 34
Slowey 27
Blackburn 25
Hernandez 24
Perkins 23
Bonser 18
I'd say that Bonser was the odd man out and he deserved the demotion.
Looking at the reliever rankings, similar as above, but scoring 9-1 for the following
categories:
K/9
Nathan 9
Breslow 8
Rincon 7
Crain 6
Guerrier/Bonser 5
Korecky 3
Reyes 2
Bass 1
BB/9
Nathan 9
Breslow 8
Reyes 7
Bonser 6
Bass 5
Korecky 4
Crain 3
Guerrier 2
Rincon 1
ERA
Breslow 9
Nathan 8
Reyes 7
Crain 6
Guerrier 5
Korecky 4
Bass 3
Rincon 2
Bonser 1
WHIP
Breslow 9
Nathan 8
Korecky 7
Reyes 6
Crain 5
Bonser 4
Guerrier 3
Bass 2
Rincon 1
Saves+Holds
Nathan 9
Guerrier 8
Crain/Reyes 7
Bass/Rinco 5
Korecky/Breslow/Bonser 3
Total
Nathan 43
Breslow 37
Reyes 29
Crain 27
Guerrier 23
Korecky 21
Bonser 19
Rincon/Bass 16
It is clear that Rincon and Bass do not belong. Bonser's numbers' inclusion is somewhat of an apples to oranges comparison, but necessary. Additionally, Guerrier leads the team with 5 IBBs, which penalizes his ranking
6/4/08
Why I don't give up on Bonser?
Because he reminds me of this guy:
MLB stats:
Player X:
Age 23: 10-7 21 games 19 s, 122.3 IP, 37 BB, 74 K, 3.24 ERA, 108 ERA +, 1.267 WHIP
Age 24: 10-7 28 games 20 s, 141.7 IP 36 BB 104 K 3.88 ERA, 92 ERA + 1.278 WHIP
Age 25: 11-3 18 games 17 s 115.0 IP 33 BB 77 K 3.60 ERA 106 ERA+ 1.365 WHIP
Age 26: 0-4 11 games 3 S 24.7 IP 10 BB 16 K 6.93 ERA 47 ERA+ 1.581 WHIP
Boof:
Age 24: 7-6 18 games 18S 100.3 IP 24BB 84 K 4.22 ERA 106 ERA+ 1.276 WHIP
Age 25: 8-12 31 games 30S 173.0 IP 65BB 136K 5.10 ERA 85 ERA+ 1.526 WHIP
Age 26: 2-6 12 games 12S 66.3 IP 20BB 42K 5.97 ERA 66 ERA+ 1.402 WHIP
fast forward player X:
Age 29: 4-5 63 games 40 saves, 69.0 IP 30BB 61K 2.35 ERA 182 ERA+ 1.072WHIP
Age 33: 3-3 52 games 32 saves 55.3 IP 13BB 52 K 2.60 ERA 186 ERA+ 1.066WHIP
career totals:
Age 38: 86-80, 732 games 318 saves 351BB 1030K 3.57 ERA, 117 ERA+ 1.227 WHIP
MLB stats:
Player X:
Age 23: 10-7 21 games 19 s, 122.3 IP, 37 BB, 74 K, 3.24 ERA, 108 ERA +, 1.267 WHIP
Age 24: 10-7 28 games 20 s, 141.7 IP 36 BB 104 K 3.88 ERA, 92 ERA + 1.278 WHIP
Age 25: 11-3 18 games 17 s 115.0 IP 33 BB 77 K 3.60 ERA 106 ERA+ 1.365 WHIP
Age 26: 0-4 11 games 3 S 24.7 IP 10 BB 16 K 6.93 ERA 47 ERA+ 1.581 WHIP
Boof:
Age 24: 7-6 18 games 18S 100.3 IP 24BB 84 K 4.22 ERA 106 ERA+ 1.276 WHIP
Age 25: 8-12 31 games 30S 173.0 IP 65BB 136K 5.10 ERA 85 ERA+ 1.526 WHIP
Age 26: 2-6 12 games 12S 66.3 IP 20BB 42K 5.97 ERA 66 ERA+ 1.402 WHIP
fast forward player X:
Age 29: 4-5 63 games 40 saves, 69.0 IP 30BB 61K 2.35 ERA 182 ERA+ 1.072WHIP
Age 33: 3-3 52 games 32 saves 55.3 IP 13BB 52 K 2.60 ERA 186 ERA+ 1.066WHIP
career totals:
Age 38: 86-80, 732 games 318 saves 351BB 1030K 3.57 ERA, 117 ERA+ 1.227 WHIP
6/3/08
Draft?
Alright, with the amateur draft coming up, here is an obscure factoid to file under the “once bitten, twice shy” category:
The Twins drafted Nick Punto in the 33rd round of the 1997 draft out of Saddleback College in CA, but he elected not to sign and drafted next year (in the 21st round by Philly). BTW, Gardy was the Twins’ 1st base coach in 1997. The next is history
The Twins drafted Nick Punto in the 33rd round of the 1997 draft out of Saddleback College in CA, but he elected not to sign and drafted next year (in the 21st round by Philly). BTW, Gardy was the Twins’ 1st base coach in 1997. The next is history
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