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  • Twins Game Recap (8/5): May Throws Fire, Sano Launches a Walk-Off Bomb in Twins Win


    Nate Palmer

    With both the Minnesota Twins and the Atlanta Braves owning first place in their respective divisions, Monday night’s opening game of a three-game series brought back plenty of memories of the 1991 World Series. So much so that Dick Bremer brought to the booth his cufflinks from that World Series-winning season. At least for tonight we saw the same result as in ‘91 as the Twins won in walk-off fashion, 5-3.

    Image courtesy of FanGraphs

    Twins Video

    Box Score

    Jake Odorizzi: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 60.6% strikes (66 of 109 pitches)

    Bullpen: 3.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 K

    Home Runs: Max Kepler (31), Miguel Sano (19)

    Multi-Hit Games: Luis Arraez (2-for-4)

    Top 3 WPA: Sano (.433), May (.255), Odorizzi (.247)

    Bottom 3 WPA: Duffey (-.131), Cave (-.093), Harper (-.089)

    Odorizzi started the game with two straight strikeouts giving the impression early on that being pushed back a day in favor of Devin Smeltzer on Sunday might pay off in big ways for the Twins. Although quickly the walks started to pile up and so did the pitch count causing everyone to wonder how long the starter would last.

    While Odrizzi’s pitch count piled up, for the other side Mike Soroka was dealing to start the game, flying perfectly through the Twins lineup the first time through. Soroka came into the game with the lowest home run rate by a starter. And it took the most anti-Bomba way for the Bomba squad to get a hit and eventually score.

    In the fourth inning recent Bomba leader Nelson Cruz reached on an infield hit with two outs, followed by an outfield hit by Eddie Rosario, and another infield hit by Marwin Gonzalez. It was then none other than rookie Luis Arraez who slapped a hit to left field to score Cruz and Rosario to put the Twins up 2-0.

    Freddie Freeman and Max Kepler traded home runs bringing the game to 3-1 score. Then a defensively sloppy seventh inning resulted in Acuna reaching, advancing to second on a passed ball, and scoring on a ball that got past Jake Cave in the outfield. Then an RBI single by Josh Donaldson tied the game at 3-3 midway through the seventh.

    Then in the eighth and ninth innings Trevor May slammed the door shut on the Braves with straight heat as he hit 99.8 mph on the gun. All of which set the stage for Miguel Sano. With two outs and Arraez standing on first Sano hit his 19th home run to center field that was such a no doubter Acuna was running to the visitors dugout before it even landed.

    https://twitter.com/TFTwins/status/1158577345474830342

    Postgame With Baldelli

    https://twitter.com/fsnorth/status/1158588029721878528

    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.

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    People have tried to label me and found no success in their attempts.

    We keep trying to put players in boxes.

    Is Schoop the back up now or is he part of the roster and simply utilized?

    Is Arraez the starting 2B next year or is he part of the roster playing 2B, 3B and LF?

    If Rooker goes nuts does he have to go nuts once a week or can the manager make it work.

    Labels are counter to how Baldelli is doing things and I couldn’t be happier.

    *Checks RB for labels*

     

    Says right there: "President of the "Baseball Player Positional Flexibility" Club

    Founded 4-23-16"

     

    Looks like a label to me. But, what do I know? :)

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    Still a lot of back/handed complements regarding Sano (“better than watching him strike out”....etc.)

    I’m not sure when people are going to realize his changes are for real. His emergence is arguably the key reason the Twins are still ahead of Indians right now.

    That’s his second monster clutch home run that I recall this year (the should be winner against the Yankees the other). I feel great when he comes up in situations like that. It’s a shame that more fans aren’t appreciating he good of a player he actually is. That win last night was massive.

     

     

    Zero facts to back this up, but it seems when somebody else gets in the home run groove, he tends to slide back into the, I am going to pull ever pitch over the left field fence, then get he starts to get going again when he starts going with pitch.

    Zero facts to back what up? His hasn't made important contributions with his latest changes? Where are the facts backing up your claim? If you're going to call someone out to provide facts, don't also make an assertion without providing any of your own. 

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    Zero facts to back this up, but it seems when somebody else gets in the home run groove, he tends to slide back into the, I am going to pull ever pitch over the left field fence, then get he starts to get going again when he starts going with pitch.

     

    It's possible that you are describing the very nature of hot and cold streaks, which almost every player goes through during the course of a season.  :)

     

     

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    Zero facts to back what up? His hasn't made important contributions with his latest changes? Where are the facts backing up your claim? If you're going to call someone out to provide facts, don't also make an assertion without providing any of your own. 

    OK, settle down.

    I wasn't calling out anybody to provide facts, I was saying I had zero facts to back up my observation, which was Sano seems to get pull happy when other players get hot and hit a bunch of homers, then that person cools off a bit and Sano "remembers" he doesn't have to pull everything and gets hot again.

     

    Which Riverbrian pointed out is the very nature of hot and cold streaks.

     

    and IMO his cold streaks seem to happen when somebody else has a hot homer streak, which may not be factual, it just seems that way.

     

     

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    Side Note: I enjoyed listening to Jim Kaat and Bert in the booth last night. 

    I just signed up for Twins on MLB for rest of year. First game I watched was the blown save against the Marlins. Second game was last night which more than made up for it and Jim Kaat and Bert Blyleven were a huge part of that on top of the game itrself.

    2 memorable quotes both by Kaat, I think; First was when Jake bounced a pitch behind Freddie Freeman. Kaat, " That is the way I always pitched Ted Williams".

    Second was when Brewer was talking about pitch sequencing as the modern way to confuse hitters. Kaat," We had sequencing, we just weren't smart enough to use those words. We just called it mxing 'em up"

    Thoroughly entertaining, can't wait for tonight.

    Edited by Number3
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    I'm hoping May just took a big step forward last night. If he did, the Twins bullpen just got a lot better.

    I’ll second that emotion. Twins don’t need him to be “the guy”. Just one of the pretty good guys.

    Edited by yarnivek1972
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    When Trevor May came in to the game he looked like a completely different pitcher from the start. I was watching with my son and told him as much after the 2nd pitch. 

    First, he was hucking the ball at a new velo for himself. On top of that, he was hitting his spots. He had one terrible call go against him in the first AB, but that didn't derail him from his plan. He looked like a new man.

    Then he pulled the string with a dirty change up on the corner. 
     

    I was beside myself with excitement watching this pitcher on the mound whose face and jersey I know well, but whose demeanor, stuff and command I didn't recognize.

    Then he set the beat on repeat in the 9th. 

    I'm not going to make too much of one outing for a reliever, but if this is the new version of Trevor May after he went MIA for nearly two weeks to get some time in the lab, then the Twins just created a monster of a weapon.

    Here's hoping

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    He looked like a new man.

    With most players, this sort of thing seems like Results Merchanting. With Trevor, I tend to think we are reacting to something actually different in him from one day to the next.

     

    If he can bottle the Lurch persona, and bring that to the mound every time, he could be pretty good, I think.

     

    Trust your stuff and go after them, is a less pop-psych way of expressing it, I suppose.

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    When Trevor May came in to the game he looked like a completely different pitcher from the start. I was watching with my son and told him as much after the 2nd pitch. 

    First, he was hucking the ball at a new velo for himself. On top of that, he was hitting his spots. He had one terrible call go against him in the first AB, but that didn't derail him from his plan. He looked like a new man.

    Then he pulled the string with a dirty change up on the corner. 
     

    I was beside myself with excitement watching this pitcher on the mound whose face and jersey I know well, but whose demeanor, stuff and command I didn't recognize.

    Then he set the beat on repeat in the 9th. 

    I'm not going to make too much of one outing for a reliever, but if this is the new version of Trevor May after he went MIA for nearly two weeks to get some time in the lab, then the Twins just created a monster of a weapon.

    Here's hoping

     

    May has been struggling to hit his spots all year, and it's been immensely frustrating, because you know he's got the stuff to dominate. Frankly, I was expecting him to be the RHP partner to Taylor Rogers if he could stay healthy. Healthy hasn't been the issue, command has.

     

    nice to see him have a strong outing last night. He's got the stuff to be a weapon. Maybe Romo can help him out a little?

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    Low outside corner at 98 a couple of times last night, combined with how well he went up in the zone and his changeup, that's borderline unhittable.

     

    Hes always been such a tantalizing player, if he can maintain what he did last night, I'd be drooling....more than normal that is.

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    Every win without Buxton feels like house money. Somebody needs to tell Jake Cave to quit trying be a hero out in the field. Don't need to replace Byron, just play clean baseball. 

    That is sooooo true. Jake Cave is about 50/50 on those flat out dives for sinking liners. Half are great catches, but the other half go right through him, rolling slowly to the fence as their guy rounds first with a big grin on his face. I hate those big grins.

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