March 30, 20215 yr Opening Day is on Thursday and the Twins Daily writers have already been making predictions about the 2021 campaign. Here are three bold predictions for the Minnesota Twins.Byron Buxton Finishes in the Top-3 for AL MVPBuxton only has two years remaining until free agency, so there is an incentive for him to stay on the field and produce at a high level. There have been glimpses of his potential at the big-league level, but he hasn’t been able to put it all together over the course of 162-games. Even if he plays 140-150 games, he should accumulate enough WAR to be in the MVP discussion. Last season, he finished eighth highest WAR among AL position players, and he played fewer than 40 games. His defense is always going to provide value, so he will need to put up offensive numbers that match. Can he hit 30+ home runs? Score 120+ runs? Steal 30 bases? It’s fun to consider the possibilities. Twins Players Win Four Gold GlovesThe Twins might have the best defense in team history and this can result in a record amount of Gold Gloves. No team has ever won five Gold Gloves in one season and that might not be out of the realm of possibility. Looking around field and there are potential Gold Glove winners at nearly every position. Byron Buxon and Andrelton Simmons are two of the best defenders over the last decade. If healthy, they are both front-runners for the award at their position. Max Kepler has been one of the best defensive right fielders for years and just hasn’t been awarded the top defensive honor. On the mound, Kenta Maeda and Jose Berrios are two of the best pitchers at fielding their position. Add in Jorge Polanco and his switch to a less demanding defensive position and the Twins have six-seven candidates around the diamond. Minnesota Wins the AL Central by 10 Games or MoreThe White Sox are getting a lot of love as the season starts and they look like a team that will be a thorn in the side of the Twins for years to come. It just isn’t going to be this season. Eloy Jimenez and his recent injury showcases their lack of depth around the diamond. Chicago is also relying on some of their young players putting it all together and there is no guarantee that happens. Minnesota will take care of business against the bottom teams in the AL Central and fare better than expected against Chicago and Cleveland. This can give the Twins an opportunity to be the number one seed heading into the AL playoffs and the road to the World Series will come through Target Field. It will be up to the club make sure some winning baseball happens in October. What are your bold predictions for the Twins? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY— Latest Twins coverage from our writers— Recent Twins discussion in our forums— Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article
March 30, 20215 yr Hopefully the FO adds some top end talent (of any kind, not necessarily a pitcher) in July. That could set us up for getting over the hump and winning a SERIES (I won’t settle for just a single game). It won’t matter though if we straight up forget how to play baseball when it counts, like we have postseason after postseason.
March 30, 20215 yr Polanco surprise mvpGarver home run kingTwins finally beat the Yankees in the playoffs
March 30, 20215 yr The Whitesox are going to be very good. I would be real happy with winning the central by a tie breaker.
March 30, 20215 yr At the end of the 2021 season, Miguel Sano will be #2 in Slugging Percentage, #2 in Strikeouts and #10 in Home Runs on the Twins All-Time Leaderboards.
March 31, 20215 yr The Twins will beat the Dodgers in 7 games in the 2021 World Series.Dream a little Dream - Momas and Papas But why not go big? It's springtime!
March 31, 20215 yr Dream a little Dream - Momas and Papas But why not go big? It's springtime! Amen and amen. If I can't dream like that in March then just stick a fork in me. World Series or bust!
March 31, 20215 yr Minnesota Wins the AL Central by 10 Games or MoreThis is bold, but only because of the typeface. The Tighty Whities are overrated and the Twins are under-respected. If it's less than 10 games it will be due only to the Twins clinching fairly early and setting up the roster for the postseason. In the last week or so of the season there will be some meaningless losses for the Twins and some meaningless wins for the team favored by these fans: https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/coronavirus/white-sox-fans-drink-the-most-of-any-mlb-fan-base-study-shows/2453770/#:~:text=Approximately%2067%25%20of%20White%20Sox,1%20spot%20once%20again.
April 1, 20215 yr Arrias wins a batting title. Donaldson stays healthy and belts 40 home runs while winning a platinum glove. Buxton stays healthy and emerges to MVP conversation and wins another platinum glove. It's ok to dream, right? Go Twins!
April 1, 20215 yr The Twins will beat the Dodgers in 7 games in the 2021 World Series.We turn the tables on Koufax and rough him up a bit?
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