Interesting article on MLB.com today, ranking the fastest teams in baseball per sprint speed data collected by StatCast.

 

https://www.mlb.com/news/statcast-ranks-mlbs-fastest-teams/c-267809528

 

Your Minnesota Twins rank #1 !!!

 

Buxton is obviously the cream of the crop, but Polanco, Dozier, Rosario, and Kepler all rank pretty high as well.

 

Another reason this team can be sneaky!

I'm surprised Grossman was that fast. And Granite's pretty fast, too.

According to these statistics, Sano is less slow than Mauer.

Another weapon for this team!

 

According to these statistics, Sano is less slow than Mauer.

 

Pre-leg injury, why would that have been surprising? Catchers/1Bs are pretty much never fast. Even if a SS doesn't have the range to stick and has to be sent to 3B instead, you'd still expect some speed, and certainly more than a C/1B. And at ten years younger too. 

 

We don't have post-leg injury stats, but I'd be pretty shocked if Sano's sprint speed didn't take a tumble. Mauer just pretty much is what he is at this point, speed-wise.

Wasn't there talk around here recently about how Rosario is slow now?

Wasn't there talk around here recently about how Rosario is slow now?

I think the measures you are referring to showed that Rosario has lost speed over the last couple years.

One can lose speed and still not yet be considered slow.

 

According to these statistics, Sano is less slow than Mauer.

Among the few things Sano has in common with a glacier.

It's pretty funny to watch the video of Turner of gliding around the bases and then compare that to Buxton, whose limbs might disjoint and fly off any time he's running at full speed.

 

Among the few things Sano has in common with a glacier.

Actually, if I were to word cloud Sano and a glacier, there'd be more similarities than differences.

It sure would be nice if the fastest team in baseball led the Majors in stolen bases this year.

 

It sure would be nice if the fastest team in baseball led the Majors in stolen bases this year.

Agreed. But speed, while an asset to be sure, is just one element of base-running.  Very difficult, if not impossible, to be a good base-runner without great instincts.  

speed never goes into a slump.

I loved the Go-Go white sox of Aparicio and Nellie Fox.    I loved to watch Rickey Henderson upset the other team and Maury Wills lead a relatively light hitting Dodgers.  In 1959 - Wills and the Dodgers faced those White Sox in the world series. The Dodgers won the world series, but for the season the White Sox were #1 in stolen bases and #8 (in an eight team league) in HR and CS.   They were number 1 in triples and #1 with least strikeouts while they were #7 in slugging.  https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CHW/1959.shtml

 

Just think what a team like the Twins can do when they combine slugging with speed. 

 

Speed is disruptive to the pitcher and fielders, it makes the game exciting, and it is a real weapon.  I would love to see the Twins utilize that speed with more hit and run, stolen bases, double steals...

 

 

I loved the Go-Go white sox of Aparicio and Nellie Fox.    I loved to watch Rickey Henderson upset the other team and Maury Wills lead a relatively light hitting Dodgers.  In 1959 - Wills and the Dodgers faced those White Sox in the world series. The Dodgers won the world series, but for the season the White Sox were #1 in stolen bases and #8 (in an eight team league) in HR and CS.   They were number 1 in triples and #1 with least strikeouts while they were #7 in slugging.  https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CHW/1959.shtml

 

Just think what a team like the Twins can do when they combine slugging with speed. 

 

Speed is disruptive to the pitcher and fielders, it makes the game exciting, and it is a real weapon.  I would love to see the Twins utilize that speed with more hit and run, stolen bases, double steals...

This is why Buxton should be leading off this year.

 

Wasn't there talk around here recently about how Rosario is slow now?

My recollection is that most of the discussion around speed was with respect to defense. Amongst everyday left fielders he was 13th in sprint speed last season. In 2015 he was 3rd. 

 

He is still in the middle of the pack, so not slow, but the drop could have had an impact on defensive decline.

Piranhas with power!!

Yeah, they don't tend to call teams that can punch you in the teeth with power "piranhas". Let's hope that's how it plays out.