Article: Cardinals 5, Twins 3: Super Tuesday

[John Bonnes]

The Minnesota Twins version of Super Tuesday came to Hammond Stadium yesterday. The candidates were the glut of left-handed relievers in the Twins bullpen. The results were inconclusive. But while the final choice for the sole left-handed setup spot wasn’t going to be made yesterday, it’s apparent the Twins will need to pare down the nominees. That may be what Super Tuesday did.Every time the Twins make their way through the starting rotation this spring, the starters add an inning. And since the Twins have eight players still competing for a starting pitching spot, three days out of every five the starting pitchers are doubling up: pitching one right after another.

 

So, for instance, on Monday, Phil Hughes pitched three innings followed by Trevor May who pitched 2.1 innings. That only left 3.2 innings to dedicate to relievers. By Saturday, if both Hughes and May are stretched four innings, it could mean one inning left for a reliever. And that will be true for Tyler Duffey and Ricky Nolasco on Sunday, too. Plus, Ervin Santana and JO Berrios are doubling up this Thursday and presumably next Tuesday, too, so the innings available for relievers are becoming scarce.

 

That's especially true because the Twins have a LOT of left-handed relievers through which to sort. Not counting Glen Perkins, there are eleven left-handed relievers in camp fighting for a single spot. As is, some were having trouble getting into games this week. Yesterday provided a rare opportunity: the Twins had two games – a “split squad game” - and two rosters to fill. Given the innings crunch, some of these guys may not get a better – or indeed another - chance to show what they can do.

 

Thus, Super Tuesday. The Twins trotted out five left-handed relievers consecutively for an inning apiece in their home 5-3 loss to the Cardinals. Only one, Ryan O’Rourke, didn’t give up a hit. Only two – O’Rourke and Michael Strong, didn’t give up a run. Only one, Logan Darnell struck out any of the batters he faced. We could go into more detail, but we confirmed what we already knew: we're not thrilled with any of these candidates. I especially wonder about Buddy Boshers and Aaron Thompson sticking around camp much longer. Neither has shown much so far this spring and their struggles continued in this game.

 

That Starting Arms Race

This inning scarcity raises a couple of other topics worth exploring. First, I won’t be surprised if JO Berrios is sent down fairly early in camp. It wouldn’t be a reflection on him. It would just mean the Twins need his innings to sort through their bullpen. Also, I would think that as soon as the Twins feel that the other six candidates for the rotation are healthy (and that appears to be the case), May will be moved back to the bullpen, maybe as early as early next week.

 

The Road Game

That Twins lost the other split squad game too, 9-3, to the Blue Jays up in Dunedin. The organization’s attitude towards split squad games is interesting. Terry Ryan always goes to the road game. Under Tom Kelly & Ron Gardenhire and now under Paul Molitor, so does the manager. The attitude is that if the players need to go, the GM and the coach should go. This is no small sacrifice, by the way. It’s a five-hour round trip drive to Dunedin where the Blue Jays play.

 

With that kind of trip, even if you like to go to road games, the easy choice is to watch the home game. But pretty regularly, the more intriguing group of players is the one sent on the road and that was certainly the case yesterday. Tyler Duffey pitched on the road; Ricky Nolasco pitched at home. The regulars that played at home included Joe Mauer, Brian Dozier, Trevor Plouffe, Kurt Suzuki and Eduardo Escobar. On the road, they were Eddie Rosario, Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano, Byung-Ho Park and John Ryan Murphy.

 

That’s not unusual because generally, the manager lets the more veteran players stay home, while the younger players sit on the bus. As a result, it’s often the players fighting for playing time or players that have the New Car Smell™ that end up on the road trips.

 

Watching Nolasco

Ricky Nolasco made his second start of spring training and looked pretty good. More precisely, he looked very good in his first two innings, but struggled in his third inning, He threw strikes early in the count, throwing first pitch strikes to 7 of the 10 batters he faced. He mixed up all four of his pitches throughout the outing. He froze a lot of batters on called strikes, getting ten such calls and making hitters look like they were off balance. He struck out four batters, all on swinging strikes.

 

His overall control was more of a concern. Of the 43 pitches he threw, 17 were out of the zone, which is 3-5 more than one would see on a good day. In particular, he seemed to get ahead in the count (often with those called strikes) and then try to hit the outside edge of the plate, but miss outside or low. “I made it a little hard on myself, trying to put guys away, maybe trying to do a little too much,” said Nolasco after the game.

 

Finding A Way

After struggling to get on base for most of spring training, Danny Santana bunted his way onto first base in the third inning. It was his second hit of the spring. “I played a couple days not too good, so I was thinking ‘Do I bunt today?’”, Santana said afterwards in the locker room. He made it look easy - it was towards the third baseman, who fielded it cleanly but was still late by a step. “I’m a bunting guy, you know?”, continued Santana. “I know how to bunt.”

 

That versatility he showed at the plate has been more pronounced in the field. In this first week, Santana has appeared in six games, and has started the last three days. He has played second base, shortstop, third base, center field and right field. With no more options left, the Twins will need to choose to put him on the Opening Day roster or put him on waivers, where he will almost surely be claimed. Even if he struggles this spring, I don’t think the Twins will risk that.

 

Look for him to continue to get opportunities and to make the team as a super-utility player this spring who can play everyplace but catcher and pitcher. He also brings speed to the bench. And apparently the ability to bunt when one needs it. He’s a bunting guy.

 

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[Brock Beauchamp]

I was hoping they'd move Santana around the diamond and it appears they're doing precisely that.

 

Even if he doesn't hit a bunch, that kind of flexibility is useful as a 24/25th man, particularly given Santana's speed.

[dgwills]

Am I the only one who doesn't want to see Nolasco do well?  I'd hate for him to win the 5th starter job and then have to watch him pitch 100 innings before the Twins give up on him again. 

[Thrylos]

 

Am I the only one who doesn't want to see Nolasco do well? 

 

Yes, as far as Twins' fans are concerned.   I would expect that a Twins' fan would like all of the players to do well and keep the momentum over the season.

[Thrylos]

Scary, but only Runzler and O'Rourke have pitched decently as far as LHPs go.  I was so hoping that Melotakis or Taylor will just go out and win a job, but it is not happening. 

 

Seriously, this is the curse of Brian Duensing here...  If the team can sign Aaron Thompson, his beard and his suspension paraphernalia to a MiLB contract, they should had signed Duensing who is a first class citizen to begin with... 

[dgwills]

 

Yes, as far as Twins' fans are concerned.   I would expect that a Twins' fan would like all of the players to do well and keep the momentum over the season.

That's the kind of thinking that caused the Russians all their problems  Nolasco has never done anything worth rooting for. He signed a big contract and has pitched badly since day 1. I seem to remember him complaining a little along the way as well. 

Really I mean play well in spring training. If by some kind of miracle he were to actually have a good season I would not be mad about it 

[Brock Beauchamp]

Yes, as far as Twins' fans are concerned. I would expect that a Twins' fan would like all of the players to do well and keep the momentum over the season.

Yeah, I won't cry a river if Berrios is in Rochester in August because Nolasco has a 3.00 ERA.

[Thrylos]

 

That's the kind of thinking that caused the Russians all their problems  Nolasco has never done anything worth rooting for.

 

 

Not sure about the Russians, but have you checked Nolasco's career numbers?   Have you seen his curveball in person?  Just sayin'

Edited March 9, 2016 by Thrylos

[Seth Stohs]

Back through the division-winning years last decade, the Twins typically would have just one, maybe two, rookies come up each year. Over the last two years, the Twins have called up a lot of young players. As much as I want to see the young players keep coming up, I want the Twins winning. So, if Nolasco is pitching well, and Berrios spends a little longer in AAA, it doesn't hurt. 

 

And, as much as I would like to see Duffey in the big leagues, he only has nine starts in MLB, so it's not like he's a grizzled veteran. If he goes to AAA, it isn't necessarily a bad thing if there are lots of pitchers doing well in front of him. 

 

That all said... pitchers are just making their 2nd starts, so it's too early to make much out of anything yet...

 

including performances from LH RP.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

Yeah, I won't cry a river if Berrios is in Rochester in August because Nolasco has a 3.00 ERA.

That wasn't really the suggestion, though.  It was about Nolasco's performance this spring.  A 3.00 ERA this spring doesn't give much benefit to the Twins.

 

And it's not really about rooting for someone to fail, or not wanting him to do well.  It's really just a wish for some finality around a player who probably doesn't have much of a future here.  And that finality could come in two different ways, a dominant performance (unlikely) or a poor performance that closes the book (more likely).  The worst and most likely outcome is a middling performance.

 

Plenty of guys have been in this zone for the Twins over the years, although Nolasco is owed more money than most of those guys which probably lowers his acceptable "middling" performance threshold in the eyes of the club (although at the same time, at least he's not in any danger of an undeserved extension!).

[Old Twins Cap]

Hey, wake up.  If Nolasco pitches well, it's YUGE for the Twins. 

 

They got a contract with this guy.  We bought stock in Nolasco.  If that stock is valued, then its great for the Twins.  End of story.

 

What they do with that Nolasco stock is a different question.  But for now, let us all kneel at night and ask God for one basic favor:  please make Ricky Nolasco a highly effective and desirable pitcher so that we can off-load him for some decent AA reliever.

 

Amen.

[nicksaviking]

I'm not worried about Nolasco pitching well. I'm not really worried about him bombing in fact, I'm worried he will be somewhere between OK and Not Awful and the team will be indecisive about replacing him with a young guy. That goes for Hughes as well.

[Brock Beauchamp]

I'm not worried about Nolasco pitching well. I'm not really worried about him bombing in fact, I'm worried he will be somewhere between OK and Not Awful and the team will be indecisive about replacing him with a young guy. That goes for Hughes as well.

This is how I feel as well. I'm worried tired vets will block upside with mediocrity.

[The Wise One]

 

This is how I feel as well. I'm worried tired vets will block upside with mediocrity.

If your upside is mediocrity, what difference does it make.

[Platoon]

I don't see a way out of the Nolasco mess. If he pitches well even just two more outings, he ends up in the rotation. Then if he is even mediocre he stays. They can't trade that contract, at least for months, they won't eat the salary, and they are not putting him in the pen. I do hope Duffey is looking for a place to live in Rochester.

[Brock Beauchamp]

I don't see a way out of the Nolasco mess. If he pitches well even just two more outings, he ends up in the rotation. Then if he is even mediocre he stays. They can't trade that contract, at least for months, they won't eat the salary, and they are not putting him in the pen. I do hope Duffey is looking for a place to live in Rochester.

I wouldn't be so sure of that, as Molitor has stated Duffey is a virtual lock for the rotation.

[Thrylos]

 

I wouldn't be so sure of that, as Molitor has stated Duffey is a virtual lock for the rotation.

 

Yeah, but locks can be picked...

[Blackjack]

Thanks for the informative write-up John!!!

[woolywoolhouse]

 

Am I the only one who doesn't want to see Nolasco do well?  I'd hate for him to win the 5th starter job and then have to watch him pitch 100 innings before the Twins give up on him again. 

Maybe Nolasco pitches well this spring. Maybe another team loses a pitcher to injury. Maybe that other team is desperate for a veteran arm. Maybe the Twins can work out a deal for a minor league prospect or two...?

[ThejacKmp]

 

Am I the only one who doesn't want to see Nolasco do well?  I'd hate for him to win the 5th starter job and then have to watch him pitch 100 innings before the Twins give up on him again. 

 

I'd like to see him do well because I'd like to see him establish some trade value - injuries before the season or as an added bonus out of the pen. I just don't see how he can make the starting rotation. May and Berrios may be out of the running but Hughes, Santana, Duffey and Gibson are all locks or near locks and I can't see the Twins giving up having left-handed Tommy Milone in that 5th spot. Nolasco seems like a long-reliever/spot-starter, which is not a bad spot for him.

 

So I want to see him do well because I think it would take an injury to get him into the rotation and if that happens, I'd like to see him pitch well for a few months before giving way to Berrios.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Maybe Nolasco pitches well this spring. Maybe another team loses a pitcher to injury. Maybe that other team is desperate for a veteran arm. Maybe the Twins can work out a deal for a minor league prospect or two...?

Nolasco will not have trade value this spring. I can't emphasize that enough. His last two years have been so bad, and teams are generally loath to make bigger trade additions in March and the early season months. They have their own in-house alternatives they would want to try before giving up an interesting prospect or taking on salary in a suspect like Nolasco.

[Brock Beauchamp]

Nolasco will not have trade value this spring. I can't emphasize that enough. His last two years have been so bad, and teams are generally loath to make bigger trade additions in March and the early season months. They have their own in-house alternatives they would want to try before giving up an interesting prospect or taking on salary in a suspect like Nolasco.

Yeah, the earliest he is traded is mid-July and even that's unlikely.

 

If Nolasco builds value, it's likely it won't come until the offseason.

[woolywoolhouse]

 

Nolasco will not have trade value this spring. I can't emphasize that enough. His last two years have been so bad, and teams are generally loath to make bigger trade additions in March and the early season months. They have their own in-house alternatives they would want to try before giving up an interesting prospect or taking on salary in a suspect like Nolasco.

 

That's why I said "maybe." It's a big, unlikely, maybe.

 

[d-mac]

 

If your upside is mediocrity, what difference does it make.

 

 

Less expensive mediocrity. 

[sane16]

From MLBTR: "Twins righty Ricky Nolasco believes he should remain in the club’s rotation, agent Matt Sosnick tells Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (Twitter link). Referencing last year’s disappointing, injury-filled campaign, Sosnick suggests that his client “deserves to show the Twins what he looks like without trying to pitch through pain.” If Nolasco is pushed to the pen, says Sosnick, he’d approach the front office to “directly address his feelings of disappointment” and “ask the team about his other options.”"

Another option could be Nolasco buys out his own contract, lets the Twins off the hook and becomes a free agent.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Interesting.  Sounds like Mike Pelfrey from last spring all over again.

[howieramone2]

 

Am I the only one who doesn't want to see Nolasco do well?  I'd hate for him to win the 5th starter job and then have to watch him pitch 100 innings before the Twins give up on him again. 

They didn't give up on him last season, he broke his ankle.