Article: West Coast Woes

[Seth Stohs]

Late on Wednesday night, the Minnesota Twins lost 5-2 in Anaheim. It was their fourth straight loss and they are now 50-44 on the season. It was their fifth straight loss in Anaheim over the last two seasons. In the last four years, they are just 2-9 against the Angels on the road.

 

We often hear about how poorly the Twins have played on the West Coast in recent years, but is there anything to it? Let’s take a look at the results.In the last five years, the Twins are 9-10 (.473) at Seattle, 6-13 (.316) in Oakland and 4-13 (.235) against the Angels. That means that they’ve won just 34.5% of their games on the West Coast. That’s certainly not good, but the Twins haven’t been good over the last four years. Were they worse on the West Coast? Since the beginning of the 2011 season, the Twins overall winning percentage has been .425.

 

Looking back 20 years, the trend is still in place. Playing in Seattle, the Twins are 36-51 (.413). They are 38-46 (.452) in Oakland. Against the Angels in Anaheim, the Twins are 33-46 (.418). When looking at the Twins overall performance over that extended period, we see that they have won .489 of their games (1,551-1,620).

So this poor West Coast performance is not just a recent trend. It’s something that the Twins have struggled with for two decades.

 

So, what could the reason possibly be? Is it just bad luck? Is it something deeper?

 

We hear and read all kinds of reasons. Let’s look into some of them. I’ve read some accuse the team of not being prepared, or the manager not having his team ready. We read those same comments almost any time the team loses though, don’t we?

 

I don’t think that’s fair.

 

However, the fact that the Twins (or other teams) travel at least two time zones could have some effect, whether consciously or not.

 

The Twins have a lot of players from California on their rosters. Is it possible that they are pulled in multiple directions while on those trips? That’s certainly possible. They probably deal with getting tickets for family and friends. This doesn’t seem like much, but it is extra responsibility.

 

It certainly seems like there is something to this. Maybe others have opinions on why. Is it possible that the Twins teams over the last couple of decades just haven’t been as good as some of the teams in California? The Angels and A’s have certainly been very good most seasons and good teams should win at home. That seems most likely to me.

 

What do you think, Twins fans? Why can the Twins not win on the West Coast? What are your philosophies for this unfortunate record?

 

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[hybridbear]

I think the time zone change is a factor.

[HitInAPinch]

Do West Coast teams have an equivalent to the stinky Mississippi River?  I don't think so :-) 

 

I agree with hybridbear, a good part can be due to travel.  Another part is, those teams have a larger revenue market to draw from.  I also don't discount the notion that those teams [at least now] have more aggressive management and ownership.

[Mike Sixel]

What is their record against those teams in MN? Is it that different? How do they play on the road in general compared to these teams?

[Craig Arko]

It's the Rally Monkey.

[Halsey Hall]

The Twins just aren't as good as those teams on the west coast.  Not knowing the records, the same could be true with the Dodgers, though we might be better against the Padres. 

[Vanimal46]

“He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.” - Benjamin Franklin

 

These are poor excuses for explaining the struggles playing against west coast teams. On a typical WC road trip they spend what, about a week at a time out there? Plenty of time to adjust. The "extra responsibility" of getting extra tickets for friends and family? Preposterous. They have Director of Ops guy handle any ticket requests.

 

 

[diehardtwinsfan]

yeah, percentages don't seem too out of whack.  A few years in there that division was pretty good too.  Jetlag I'm sure causes an issue.  Not so much in day games, but I'd imagine that the night games can be really difficult.

[TheLeviathan]

We're a bad road team playing tough ball clubs. /thread

[stringer bell]

The last two years the team has been better on the road than at home. This year, they have been one of the best home teams, but not improved on the road.  They are playing the Angels at the wrong time and it looks to me like at this point they (LAA) are just as good, if not better, than KC. That could change, for sure, but to me the two best teams are the Royals and the Angels. The Twins were a blooper away from going 2-1 in Oakland, but this series in Anaheim reminds me of the first series against the Tigers. No contest.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

We're a bad road team playing tough ball clubs. /thread

I would add the words "right now" to that phrase and back it 100%

[Loosey]

Well the Angels are a very good team playing great baseball.  The Twins are an OK team playing bad baseball the last week.  Put them together and it's a recipe for disaster.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

I actually was not as bothered with last night's loss as much as the 7-0 loss the night before.

 

Last night was close. (Though I didn't see the whole thing straight through). Guys had some good at bats at the wrong times last night. Angels made some plays. Pelfrey got knocked around a little but didn't implode like Gibson and Boyer the night before. May pitched fine (needs to be moved back into rotation now.) Pujols gets a double off May off the end of his bat that looked better than it was, and May came back next inning and dominated. Rosario threw a guy out tagging. They picked a guy off second. There were signs of life.

[twinsnorth49]

 

I actually was not as bothered with last night's loss as much as the 7-0 loss the night before.

Last night was close. (Though I didn't see the whole thing straight through). Guys had some good at bats at the wrong times last night. Angels made some plays. Pelfrey got knocked around a little but didn't implode like Gibson and Boyer the night before. May pitched fine (needs to be moved back into rotation now.) Pujols gets a double off May off the end of his bat that looked better than it was, and May came back next inning and dominated. Rosario threw a guy out tagging. They picked a guy off second. There were signs of life.

The only thing that bothered me last night, other than Santana's play,  was that Mike Pelfrey continues to start and Trevor May sits in the bullpen. I can't even adequately describe the frustration of that situation.

[Boom Boom]

If the 2 hour time zone difference was a factor, then couldn't we expect east coast teams to do 33% worse than the Twins while in California?

 

I do think there's something to the Twins clenching up when they see certain jerseys in the opposite dugout (see Yankees, New York). That factor is diluted over time with roster turnover on both sides, so going back decades for evidence isn't going to tell us much.

 

Did they get too much rest over the All-Star break? It certainly doesn't look like the Athletics or Angels did.

 

We're always looking for sneaky angles to explain losing (and winning) streaks. In this case, my opinion is that the Twins are playing woeful, smelly baseball right now and the big reason is that they're regressing towards the mean.

[mickeymental]

maybe there's a fork in the road.

[jimbo92107]

I don't know why, but when I was at the game on Monday night, the Twins seemed to lack an attitude of confidence against the Angels. This might have to do with the lack of power hitters in the lineup. Power hitters are like having bullies on your side. The Twins are a bunch of nice guys, where the Angels have some bully in them - big, muscly guys like Pujols and Trout and Calhoun, guys that can knock the snot out of the ball.

 

The Twins had Dozier, and not much else. Singles hitters with low averages. Nobody that terrifies the opposing pitcher. Throw curves and low outside stuff to Dozier, and this team is toast. It was as bad as the last four years. They had no chance.

 

Bring up Arcia, Vargas and AB Walker. Even if these guys mostly ride the bench, even if Walker whiffs at a record pace, at least they have the advantage of an intimidating look and a really hard swing. Arcia can help protect Sano from righties, Walker can help protect Sano from lefties, and Vargas can do both. Each of them provides a legitimate home run threat as a late inning pinch hitter.

 

A baseball team needs two or three bully boys, or they get pushed around by the studs on the west coast.

[Brock Beauchamp]

Arica, definitely. Vargas, eh. Walker, NO.

 

There's very little doubt in my mind that Walker would be crucified by MLB pitching.

[Seth Stohs]

Mainly I just wanted to know what the Twins record was over time. I mean, I knew in my mind that the Twins did traditionally poorly against west coast teams, but I wondered aloud if it was real or just perception. I think the data shows something. 

 

I threw out a few ideas, but I don't think there is one answer that's right or wrong. I suppose it would be good to know also how home teams fare in general. 

[Kirby_waved_at_me]

Last night's game was the best they've played since game one of the road trip - yeah they lost and made several poor choices at the plate, but it wasn't an embarrassment.

 

Beyond just trying to find a silver lining, the detail that the Angels are a very good team and the Twins are a very imperfect team that has played well for long stretches in the first half.

 

I agree with (I can't remember who said it) that the Twins seem to have come out of the break playing very tight. Of the many many reasons to bring up Arcia, another one is that he brings a distinct kind of energy to the clubhouse that the team has been a bit short on lately. He's a passionate player, which has a little to do with how he found himself in AAA in the first place, but a little bit of fire could be nice.