stringer bell

Stashak pitching for a spot on the squad?

Sánchez gets hurt, Jeffers steps up. Coincidence?

Official ballgame!

Well, the baseball gods seem to be shining on the Twins.

Not to be preach, but three at-bats from Jeffers have about tripled his OPS. This early in the season, the numbers can change so quickly.

Uh, there was an out (Gordon) in between.

Jeffers!

Don’t know if we’ll get five out of Bundy despite the ok pitch count.

Tigers won the first game of their doubleheader 13-0.

Three straight games with <10 Ks. Doesn’t look like four in a row.

White Sox stalling for rain?

Bundy needs to hit his spots, but has been very effective so far. I think he’ll always be walking a tightrope, but I have more faith than I did to start the season.

Romero’s injury would run to April 30, so he’ll be eligible for a rehab stint and avoid an option for a bit. And besides we don’t need him as an emergency catcher!

While there is currently an oversupply of starting pitchers, it is not likely to last. Archer and Biundy have significant injury histories. Three of the starters are over 30, and most recent performance for Bundy and Archer (going into this year) hasn’t been good enough to warrant a place in a major league rotation. Riding the current starters as long as they last is good strategy. Having a six-man bullpen is okay for awhile. I do hope they get some structure to who closes games.

If Martin keeps hitting (I think he will), I'd like to see him in St. Paul sooner rather than later. The St. Paul outfield doesn't have any real prospects and Martin could get work in OF where his path to the majors draws less resistance. Having Martin as an athletic left fielder who can cover center if Buxton is absent and who can fill in at the infield spots would work out quite well. Adding his speed and (apparent) base stealing ability at the top of a lineup would also provide another weapon that the Twins really don't have. I don't think one can say that a player "has all the physical tools" to play shortstop and in the same paragraph mention lack of arm strength. I think the same can be said for two current Twins (Polanco and Gordon). If you don't have the arm to play short, everything else has to be adjusted. Very few can do it.

Duffey came in with the score 1-0 Chicago. It was still a fairly high leverage situation, but the Twins were down one, not up one.

I guess, in my mind, Sisco has the better resume. Both catchers hit left and are about the same age. Sisco has far more big league experience (over 3 years) and once was regarded as a top prospect. He's hit better in (SSS) St. Paul, as well.

Well, it's April and there is already a catcher conundrum. Sanchez was scratched with abdominal discomfort and will have an MRI. I'm guessing one of the AAA catchers is on his way from Toledo. That is speculation folks.

I just read that the Twins have shut Alcala down altogether. It would not surprise me if he was placed on the 60-day IL at this point. He seems to have made no progress in the time he was on the IL so far. Also, Sanchez is reporting an abdominal issue, so we might be entering the Chance Sisco era with the Twins, which would also require a 40-man move.

WAR in particular gives no real credit for being a versatile defender, unless one is a really good defender. Tovar played a lot of third base, outfield and some in the middle infield, and while he wasn't great, he wasn't an embarrassment. I think managers really appreciate that more than the stats can show. Tovar also never walked much and didn't have great power, so his OBP and slugging weren't very impressive. Like Tovar, Arraez is valuable for his offense and adds value in a manager's mind by being able to take the field and not embarrass himself at multiple positions.

During the Arraez at-bat.

Wild pitch, in which Jeffers, amusingly, almost did a face plant before making it to third base.

Only 1.5 behind Cleveland and .5 behind Chi with a week of home games. The Twins could be in first place by Sunday and certainly not getting buried, despite really cold hitting. Pitching has been very good, particularly the starters. Chicago has an Achilles Heel--defense. They have also had more than their fair share of injuries. It's tough to repeat.

Umm, 4/17? Also, a nerdy nit-pick, going 2-5 lowers a batting average over .400. Get Austin Martin to AAA and in the outfield please.

Besides being a rookie, he’s new to relief pitching and coming off a season where he didn’t throw 20 innings. He definitely has the best stuff in the BP, perhaps the best stuff a Twins pitcher ever displayed, but we don’t know his arm will bounce back. We don’t know if he can maintain the sharpness and finally, we don’t know how he’ll handle the pressure. I think they will work him toward closing, perhaps he might get a chance with Pagán likely not available tomorrow.