Front Page: Twins Game Recap (9/18): Twins’ Offense Absent Against Chicago Bullpen Game

[AJ Condon]

After a 12 inning game and the White Sox using a bullpen game, it looked like the Twins’ offense would have some fun at the plate tonight. It was the complete opposite as the offense was no-hit through 5 1/3 innings, and got just three hits total. Despite giving up a lot of leadoff hits, Odorizzi managed to keep the Twins in the game as the Twins dropped the series finale.Box Score

Odorizzi: 5.2 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K, 64.5% strikes (61 of 94 pitches)

Bullpen: 3.1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

 

Home Runs: None

Multi-Hit Games: Rosario (2-4, 2B)

 

Bottom 3 WPA: Arraez -.111, Wade -.127, Sano -.207

 

Twins’ offense can’t figure out Chicago bullpen

 

The Twins’ offense found themselves struggling against one of the worst bullpens in the league. For 5 1/3 innings, four White Sox pitchers threw a no-hitter while allowing three walks. They had a threat in the first after back-to-back walks with one out, but, a Rosario pop out followed by a Sano strikeout ended the inning.

 

After a leadoff walk in the second, the White Sox bullpen sent down 13 straight batters going into the sixth inning. That’s when the no-hitter came to a close as Polanco ripped a single into center field. After a Cruz walk, Rosario squeaked a ball through the infield to score Polanco.

 

 

Cave drew a walk to fill the bases with two outs for pinch-hitter LaMonte Wade Jr. but he grounded out to end the inning.

 

After picking up their first hits, the Twins’ couldn’t use the momentum and went down 1-2-3 in the seventh. In the eighth, Rosario drilled a ball off the wall in right, but got thrown out trying extend it to a triple. In the ninth, the Twins again went down 1-2-3 to close out the game.

 

Odorizzi able to minimize damage

 

Jake Odorizzi was one out away from picking up a quality start, but ran into trouble in the sixth to end his night. Though Odorizzi picked up nine strikeouts tonight, his stuff wasn’t the best. Odorizzi gave up a leadoff hit in four of the six innings he pitched in.

 

After giving up a leadoff single in the first, he picked up two strikeouts with Castro throwing out Garcia to end the inning. In the second he gave up a leadoff double followed by a Jimenez single to score a run, but Odorizzi picked up another double play and strikeout to get out of the inning.

 

Odorizzi flew through the next two innings picking up four more strikeouts in back-to-back 1-2-3 innings. Through those four innings, Odorizzi already had seven strikeouts.

 

Odorizzi found himself in a jam in the fifth inning with runners on first and second with just one out after a pair of singles. Odorizzi took advantage of facing the number eight and nine batters next, picked up another strikeout and was out of the inning with no harm.

 

After giving up another leadoff hit, Odorizzi got two quick outs and it looked as if he would be able to at least complete six innings. With an 0-2 count to Moncada, he doubled to left-center to drive in the second run. After Jimenez drew a walk, Odorizzi’s night was ended.

 

Bullpen

 

Cody Stashak came into the game with two runners on and two outs and threw just three pitches to pick up a huge strikeout on Collins to end the inning. Stashak was also given the seventh inning, and he too gave up a leadoff single. He picked up back-to-back strikeouts to the eight and nine batters and then got Garcia to fly out to end the inning.

 

Fernando Romero came in for the eighth, and believe it or not, gave up another leadoff hit. He got Abreu to ground out and struck out Moncada before being pulled for Brusdar Graterol. Graterol did his job, and got Jimenez to ground out to keep it a one-run game.

 

A new inning, another leadoff hit, this time it was a home run to Collins to straight -away center. Graterol followed that up with nine pitches to pick up the last three outs, including a strikeout.

 

Postgame With Baldelli

 

Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet

Click here for a review of the number of pitches thrown by each member of the bullpen over the past five days.

 

Click here to view the article

[USAFChief]

Idorizzi's stuff wasnt the greatest tonight? I thought he had fantastic stuff.

 

Some nitpics on the game:

 

the first run is on Arraez at least as much as Odorizzi, that "double" should have been caught.

 

Pretty bad baserunning by Rosario getting thrown out at third.

 

Get em tomorrow.

[rghrbek]

 

Idorizzi's stuff wasnt the greatest tonight? I thought he had fantastic stuff.

Some nitpics on the game:

the first run is on Arraez at least as much as Odorizzi, that "double" should have been caught.

Pretty bad baserunning by Rosario getting thrown out at third.

Get em tomorrow.

 

Agreed Chief, I have another.  I Don't want Cruz to get hurt, but he seemed to not go hard to 2nd on Rosie's soft base hit, that took a while for the RFer to get there.  I think he has 3rd standing up if he's running hard.

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

Idorizzi's stuff wasnt the greatest tonight? I thought he had fantastic stuff.

Some nitpics on the game:

the first run is on Arraez at least as much as Odorizzi, that "double" should have been caught.

Pretty bad baserunning by Rosario getting thrown out at third.

Get em tomorrow.

Yeah, Odorizzi was pretty good, albeit against a not good offense. As you said, that double was not a double if an actual outfielder is there to field it. I'm not even blaming Arraez but he ain't an outfielder and that ball is a classic "turn you around and jump" type of ball if you don't read it correctly. Rosario catches that without leaving his feet.

[h2oface]

Kinda feels like watching spring training games since the Cleveland series. Nothing is clinched, but the team fielded, the pitching selected, is like it doesn't matter. I think that is pretty arrogant. Nothing is a given. To treat it as such can have disasterous consequences. I just have to not think about these hitters facing Houston's starters, or both Houston or New York hitting against our pitchers after watching these last 5 games. It would be much better if they clinch before they seemingly pretend they have. The Twins are awfully lucky to have won as many as they have.

 

I hope Baldelli knows how to chew somebody out. You cannot make the 3rd out at 3rd. Not ever. And especially not in the bottom of the 8th and down 2 runs. No excuse. No excuses. 

[insagt1]

its chinese water torture trying to put Cleveland away. I know even a 4 game lead with 10 to play 'should' be safe...but it sure doesn't feel safe to me. We knew Cleveland would pound Detroit. We just better do the same thing to them. Take nothing for granted. Twins haven't won anything yet. I felt like tonites game was a throwaway.

 

How are Kepler and Adrianza doing?

[blindeke]

 

Kinda feels like watching spring training games since the Cleveland series. Nothing is clinched, but the team fielded, the pitching selected, is like it doesn't matter. I think that is pretty arrogant. Nothing is a given. To treat it as such can have disasterous consequences. I just have to not think about these hitters facing Houston's starters, or both Houston or New York hitting against our pitchers after watching these last 5 games. It would be much better if they clinch before they seemingly pretend they have. The Twins are awfully lucky to have won as many as they have.

 

I hope Baldelli knows how to chew somebody out. You cannot make the 3rd out at 3rd. Not ever. And especially not in the bottom of the 8th and down 2 runs. No excuse. No excuses. 

 

Did Rosario admire his double a bit too long out of the box? I get the sense that he did, watching it, but I don't want to let my assumptions get the better of me. If he runs hard right away, he gets to third just fine.

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

Did Rosario admire his double a bit too long out of the box? I get the sense that he did, watching it, but I don't want to let my assumptions get the better of me. If he runs hard right away, he gets to third just fine.

Or he just stops at second either way because you don't make an out at third with two outs.

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

its chinese water torture trying to put Cleveland away. I know even a 4 game lead with 10 to play 'should' be safe...but it sure doesn't feel safe to me. We knew Cleveland would pound Detroit. We just better do the same thing to them. Take nothing for granted. Twins haven't won anything yet. I felt like tonites game was a throwaway.

 

How are Kepler and Adrianza doing?

The Twins took two out of three against Chicago. There's no need to panic.

 

Never mind that Chicago is literally the best team the Twins will play the rest of the regular season. That's how easy the schedule gets from here on out.

[mikelink45]

The challenge to Rocco is to keep the intensity.   Yes we probably will win the Central division, but now I want more.  Damn the Yankees.  And that means that the players have to be sharp and hungry.  A little let down now is okay, if it does not develop bad habits and if the team can get the edge that they will need in the playoffs. 

[howeda7]

 

Kinda feels like watching spring training games since the Cleveland series. Nothing is clinched, but the team fielded, the pitching selected, is like it doesn't matter. I think that is pretty arrogant. Nothing is a given. To treat it as such can have disasterous consequences. I just have to not think about these hitters facing Houston's starters, or both Houston or New York hitting against our pitchers after watching these last 5 games. It would be much better if they clinch before they seemingly pretend they have. The Twins are awfully lucky to have won as many as they have.

 

I hope Baldelli knows how to chew somebody out. You cannot make the 3rd out at 3rd. Not ever. And especially not in the bottom of the 8th and down 2 runs. No excuse. No excuses. 

I don't think it was the case tonight, but we should have gone for the boot on the throat on Sunday and we didn't. Now it will probably take us until the final week-end to clinch. I see Cleveland losing 2 more games at most. 

[howeda7]

 

Did Rosario admire his double a bit too long out of the box? I get the sense that he did, watching it, but I don't want to let my assumptions get the better of me. If he runs hard right away, he gets to third just fine.

Yes he did. He did the same thing last night but still made it 2nd. 

[ScrapTheNickname]

 

Kinda feels like watching spring training games since the Cleveland series. Nothing is clinched, but the team fielded, the pitching selected, is like it doesn't matter. I think that is pretty arrogant. Nothing is a given. To treat it as such can have disasterous consequences. I just have to not think about these hitters facing Houston's starters, or both Houston or New York hitting against our pitchers after watching these last 5 games. It would be much better if they clinch before they seemingly pretend they have. The Twins are awfully lucky to have won as many as they have.

 

I hope Baldelli knows how to chew somebody out. You cannot make the 3rd out at 3rd. Not ever. And especially not in the bottom of the 8th and down 2 runs. No excuse. No excuses. 

I also hope Baldelli chewed out Rosario sternly in his office after the cameras and reporters left the locker room. I'm getting tired of the innocuous and useless comments to the media. Case in point. “I don’t mind that play. Would I call it probably the right play? Maybe not. But he was making something happen ... It was a great play by their center fielder to get over there and to make a pretty good throw to third base ..."

 

No, Rosario was not making something happen, he was making something NOT happen.

Edited September 19, 2019 by ScrapTheNickname

[h2oface]

Graterol sure seems easy to hit. Doesn't seem the heat has enough movement. Plus, were is the 100mph stuff we heard about? Has he just dropped some velocity since the minor league innings?

[terrydactyls]

Yesterday was Wednesday, September 18.  It was the 152nd game of the year putting the Twins 94% of the way through the season.  The Twins hit 0 home runs for a season total of 289 home runs.  The Twins are now 1 home run ahead of the Yankees for the new MLB single-season home run record.

[Tom Froemming]

Jake Odorizzi has gone at least five innings and surrendered no more than three earned runs in nine consecutive starts now.
Here's Twins Pitch from last night's 3-1 loss:

[wabene]

Two out of three ain't bad. Keep taking these series and letting our guys heal up a little.

[stringer bell]

Yes, it is a loss and keeps the magic number at 7. The Twins struck out only 5 times in the game and drew 5 walks. Chicago struck out 14 times and drew one walk. From those stats, who do you think wins the game? Chicago's BABIP was 9-20, while the Twins were 3-24. One of those games. 

[Cody Pirkl]

 

the first run is on Arraez at least as much as Odorizzi, that "double" should have been caught.

It definitely should have, but he played little to no outfield in the minors and it's hard to blame the kid. I'm sure it's something they work with him on in the offseason, but I doubt we see him out there too often.

[Cody Pirkl]

 

Did Rosario admire his double a bit too long out of the box?

Yes he did. He stood at home plate no less than 2-3 seconds watching a fly ball that was nowhere near a no doubter. I feel pretty confident that if he runs out of the box immediately, he's into third easily despite the great throw. It's easy to say that it didn't matter because we gave up another run the next inning, but it gave the momentum away when we really only had it for a few seconds.

[twinsnorth49]

Graterol sure seems easy to hit. Doesn't seem the heat has enough movement. Plus, were is the 100mph stuff we heard about? Has he just dropped some velocity since the minor league innings?

He was regularly hitting triple digits in the most recent Cleveland series, with some sink. Might not have had the best feel for his pitches last night or he’s still working through being a big leaguer. He is 21 after all.

[Cody Pirkl]

 

Graterol sure seems easy to hit. Doesn't seem the heat has enough movement. Plus, were is the 100mph stuff we heard about? Has he just dropped some velocity since the minor league innings?

He literally hit 102 a few days ago. He's had a couple games where he didn't get a lot of swinging strikes, but he's 21 years old. We saw him when he was on against Cleveland and he was unhittable. 

[stringer bell]

In today's game, 100 mph doesn't make anyone unhittable. There are far too many guys that hit 98+ on a regular basis. I'm still not sure that Gratoral should be on the prospective postseason roster. 

[IndianaTwin]

Yes he did. He stood at home plate no less than 2-3 seconds watching a fly ball that was nowhere near a no doubter. I feel pretty confident that if he runs out of the box immediately, he's into third easily despite the great throw. It's easy to say that it didn't matter because we gave up another run the next inning, but it gave the momentum away when we really only had it for a few seconds.

Their CF made a great play, both in tracking down the bounce and with the throw. But I also concur — if he’s running from the box, it’s a standup triple.

 

The Sox announcers have generally gushed about the Twins the last two nights, but Rosario has been the exception. Steve Stone has called him out a couple times and let him have it pretty good on this particular play.

[Puckett34]

 

I know even a 4 game lead with 10 to play 'should' be safe...but it sure doesn't feel safe to me. 

I'm feeling the same way. The whole 2009 Twins that were 3 games back with 3 to play is creeping in to my head.

[Only Here in Negative]

 

 

 

Kinda feels like watching spring training games since the Cleveland series. Nothing is clinched, but the team fielded, the pitching selected, is like it doesn't matter. I think that is pretty arrogant. Nothing is a given. To treat it as such can have disasterous consequences. I just have to not think about these hitters facing Houston's starters, or both Houston or New York hitting against our pitchers after watching these last 5 games. It would be much better if they clinch before they seemingly pretend they have. The Twins are awfully lucky to have won as many as they have.

 

I hope Baldelli knows how to chew somebody out. You cannot make the 3rd out at 3rd. Not ever. And especially not in the bottom of the 8th and down 2 runs. No excuse. No excuses. 

 

1.) Even if the Clevelanders go 10-0 the rest of the way, the Twins win going 7-3 against the Royals and Tigers. If Cleveland goes 8-2 (still hard given the Nationals will care and the Phillies are a decent team), the Twins need to go 5-5. Its not arrogant, its smart to sit guys who are banged up.

 

2.) The pitching has been bad? No way, they've been pretty solid. Odo and Berrios looked really good. The pen looks to be solid too. They dominated in Cleveland and the guys who have been hit this series have been regression to the mean (May) or not likely to be on the playoff team but pitching because its the 12th (Harper). Perez hasn't even been that bad. Will we be confident in the playoffs with him? No. Is he capable of shutting down a team on a given day? Yeah. Buy some antacids Twins fans.

 

3.) That's harsh on Rosario. After the game, Rosie said he didn't see the CF coming over. That's a split second decision made by a runner coming around second on a play that he can't fully see because he already turned second. Not all CFers come over to right at such a shallow angle on that, its more typical that they would be back at the fence too. The ball came off the wall right back to a guy running the opposite way as the throw. And it still took a perfect throw. Its not ideal to get the third out at third but I think in this situation, it's not that bad of a call. Rosario is an aggressive player and that has helped and hurt the Twins. This one isn't particularly boneheaded - equal parts unlucky and overly aggressive. I don't mind the latter in a game where the Twins needed a bit of a spark after being shut down the first five innings.

[Only Here in Negative]

 

It definitely should have, but he played little to no outfield in the minors and it's hard to blame the kid. I'm sure it's something they work with him on in the offseason, but I doubt we see him out there too often.

 

They should work on him in the offseason though. If he doesn't hit .350 going forward, he may get pushed out of the infield and into a utility role. His metrics at 2B are below average and pretty awful at SS and 3B. Being able to play a decent LF would help his career longevity. 

 

Of course he could make that a moot point by continuing to hit .350 or developing pop.

 

But agreed that he's not an OF and its because Buxton/Kepler are injured that he's even out there. Jake Cave is not a competent CFer either.

[SomeGuy]

The Cleveland/Philly series starting Friday should be fun to watch.  As of now Cleveland Wild Card elimination number is 10 and Phillies is 9. Two teams desperately needing every win.

 

Washington has lost ground in their bid to secure the 1st wildcard spot.  Potentially setting up another important series when Cleveland travels there.

[Only Here in Negative]

 

 

 

Did Rosario admire his double a bit too long out of the box? I get the sense that he did, watching it, but I don't want to let my assumptions get the better of me. If he runs hard right away, he gets to third just fine.

 

Yes he did. He stood at home plate no less than 2-3 seconds watching a fly ball that was nowhere near a no doubter. I feel pretty confident that if he runs out of the box immediately, he's into third easily despite the great throw. It's easy to say that it didn't matter because we gave up another run the next inning, but it gave the momentum away when we really only had it for a few seconds.

 

You need to watch the replay. He didn't stand at home for 2-3 seconds admiring his shot. He certainly didn't sprint out of the box (and he should) but he was moving up the line almost immediately.

 

It is true that if he sprints, he ends up on 3rd. But I don't think you need to rip him for it. Rosario seems like the kind of guy where being caught at 3rd is enough to reinforce that lesson anyways. 

[twinssouth]

Graterol sure seems easy to hit. Doesn't seem the heat has enough movement. Plus, were is the 100mph stuff we heard about? Has he just dropped some velocity since the minor league innings?

 

 

 

MLB Gamecast last night was calling Graterol’s FB a sinker because of the movement. When he gave up the homer, his pitch sequence was

 

98.2 sinker, fouled off

98.9 sinker, fouled off

91.9 Changeup, Homerun Now, if the Foul offs were late, the batter (I believe Collins) caught up to the Changeup and clobbered it. 2 things: I blame Castro for calling that pitch. Graterol had the hitter on the ropes. Should have finished him off with that nasty slider of his of which he was hitting 89 to 90. Second, Graterol this off season will need to work on his Changeup

 

 

The next batter, Gamecast clocked one of his Sinker/FB at 100