YourHouseIsMyHouse

The Orioles squeezed out a split in what could be considered a disappointing finish to a four game series that held so much promise. Looking to rebound after a brutal sweep at the hands of the fast rising Athletics, Minnesota stumbled in the final two games. It may be fair to start pointing fingers at this point because of how low the team has fallen in the season. Game 3: Offense scored 1 run off of a pitcher with a 6.11 ERA (who is also right handed). Game 4: Bullpen bounds, slips, and crashes in a 3 inning span. I hate to bash my favorite team when there are quite a few bright spots and promise present, but it's because of those bright spots, that this team SHOULD be winning more games. The Twins need to play well at the "House Joe Mauer built" to keep fans happy. They play more games here than anyone else which should be an advantage, but 19-30 says otherwise. Here will be a little analysis on the three groups that comprise a team: Bullpen, Starting Rotation, and Batting Order. Defense will get a brief mention as well, but it will be more of a team deal. The studs and duds will all be active players only. [ATTACH=CONFIG]1600[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]1601[/ATTACH]Pictured: Denard Span (left) and Adam Jones (right) because apparently close friends don't take pictures together. (Credit to Wikipedia for Denard and ESPN for AJ) THE PEN Recently, the bullpen seems to have become a bigger problem than what we have once thought it was. This group simply lacks stability when Matt Capps isn't healthy. I don't expect perfection, but it is getting progressively worse. The "biggest victim" of these failures has definitely been Cole Devries. Last afternoon was the 2nd time in 3 starts that he received a no decision because of awful relief. Cole only conceded 1ER in 13IP with those starts combined. He also left with at least somewhat comfortable leads of 2 runs or more. Alex Burnett has lost his credibility and has stunk it up in his last 5 of 7 appearances. How much has changed since I was once having musings about him getting 'promoted' to closer in Capps' absence. This was well prior to those muffled missions when he was posting an ERA as low as 1.83, a BAA of .207, being right handed, and having quite a bit of youth. His K/9 rate was really the only reason I had second guesses about a plan like that. Admittedly, it was a little naive on my behalf. Overall, more positive than poor on the season despite recent mop-ups. Much of this write-up was negative, but the active group is decent. STUDS: Glen Perkins, Casey Fien, Alex Burnett Part One, Jared "Cy" Burton, Tyler Robertson, Anthony Swarzak DUDS: Alex Burnett The Sequel, Jeff Gray [ATTACH=CONFIG]1596[/ATTACH] Pictured: "Ice Cold" Casey Fien, who happens to be a Tigers defector that says "no" to scoring, "no" to base hits, and curiously enjoys slamming doors shut. (Credit Zimbio.com) THE ROTO I really think the starting pitching has improved vastly. Liriano, Diamond, and Devries (mind July 14th), have all been more than exceptional in contrast to the previous performances of the opening week crew (or should I say weak?). This 1/3 of the team deserves a little less spite than it's getting from fans. I know the average starter's ERA is still fairly high, but the outings the Twins are now getting aren't enough to warrant complaint. I'd really only throw Duensing and Deduno under the bus as far as the current rotation goes. Walters was pretty solid overall (take out last injured start for fairness please...he was throwing 82mph fastballs) when he pitched and hopefully he can provide a stable 4th starter soon. A fresh Carl Pavano, Hendriks, or a confident Deduno may be able to pitch reasonably in the last spot. These aren't sexy names we are dealing with, but a lot have had some success this year. I am actually pretty optimistic regarding the five possibilities here up until the conclusion of the season. If we're lucky, we may have all the question marks answered. It's unlikely, but this season is all about wishing thinking, right? The long-term is still in question; although, it's worth watching those questions answered as these players fight for a future with the club. STUDS: New Liriano, Scott Diamond, Cole Devries DUDS: Samuel Deduno, Brian Duensing [ATTACH=CONFIG]1597[/ATTACH] Pictured: Cole Devries, a true Minnesotan proving Nick Nelson wrong one disgruntled face at a time (Credit to StarTribune) BATS The offense is extremely inconsistent. Duh. They never provide run support when the Twins starters pitch well and they come out in full force when the other team is scoring runs too. A good example of this oddity is that Nick Blackburn is 4-5 and Liriano is 3-8. Base hits and walks also seem to be divvied up between innings and it's difficult to string them together on some nights. The series the Twins were swept by the A's featured 10 runs on 33 hits. The majority of hitters are at least raising their batting averages collectively, yet we need to see some RBI (not RBIs..think about it). Trevor Plouffe has quietly gone on a 17 game hitting streak, Mauer has emerged into the chase for a batting title, and Ryan Doumit has been flirting with the .290s. The fault can truly be pinned down to the long ball and extra base hits. Minnesota ranks 20th in slugging at .401 and 9th in BA with a .264 clip (WOW!). That's a .137 ISO Power, in which, The Twins are 25th. They are only ahead of Houston, Seattle, San Diego, San Francisco, and the Los Angeles Dodgers. After doing a little math, the team slugging % is .382 without Josh Willingham and the batting average is .262. That yields an ISO of .120 which would put Minnesota at 28th without it's best slugger. I guess it just goes to show why we can't afford to trade this guy!STUDS: Span, Revere, Mauer, Willingham, Doumit, Butera (on his own terms), Mastroianni, Plouffe DUDS: Carroll, NeauMor, Casilla, Dozier [ATTACH=CONFIG]1598[/ATTACH] Pictured: This guy ^^^ (Credit to mnginteractive.com) DEFENSE I love the way the Twins are playing defense and it's reminiscent of what they stood for before the 2011 season. There are a lot of players that can be moved around and it's nice to see things mixed up from time to time for Mauer's sake. Everyone fits in nicely, but I can't help but think the Twins would be better if Span and Revere swapped spots in the outfield. The extra range could do wonders in centerfield. That's nitpicking a little bit though. The Twins have a .984 Fielding % that is out-right #7 among MLB teams. The errors are becoming less frequent and it's all coming together. Twins nation has marveled at Ben Revere's spectacular shades of Willie Mays and Plouffe's day-to-day barehanded gun downs from the hot corner. Denard Span has been an issue since Minnesota dipped it's toes into the second half of the season, but it's clearly temporary. Brian Dozier looks comfortable now and it might have been the right call to let him work things out. This is generally the least of the Twins problems and fittingly it is. In conclusion, the offense, bullpen, and rotation are just never on the same page and it is FRUSTRATING. The bullpen is just below par for league average (fault Maloney's dirty work) and while the starting core is no longer vomit-inducing, it still remains a problem much less. All thirds of this team need to play together to get wins and we just aren't seeing it. I am hopeful for the future and have a feeling that it will all work out and the pieces will fit. Patience is absolutely necessary. Sources: http://www.teamrankings.com/mlb/stat/isolated-power http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/team/_/stat/batting/year/2012/seasontype/2/league/al Baseball Reference.com <------- These guys do a HELL of a job Notes *fingers crossed* that all pictures stay. I'm no photographer obviously. I tried to find popular sites pictures and I'm hoping the don't bother with this tiny hunky dunky blog post.

Here's how I'd edit the bottom 11. 40. Jason Wheeler, SP 41. Tim Shibuya, SP 42. Lance Ray, OF 43. Josh Burris, RP 44. Tom Stuifbergen, SP 45. James Beresford, SS 46. Cole Nelson, SP 47. Tyler Duffey, RP 48. Carlos Guitierrez, RP 49. Josmil Pinto, C 50. Christian Powell, RP

Friday the 13th was living up to it's unlucky superstition yesterday. Upon arrival to the Twin Cities, and following a 2 1/2 hour drive, I was greeted by pouring rain and hail. It wasn't long before the poor weather conditions were making a good reflection of my temperament by effect. It had been weeks since I had seen rain and of all days...now?! Fortunately enough, the storm clouds passed and the end result was nothing more than a 15 minute delay. My seat was in the bleachers just to right of the foul pole in right field. The overall view of the game was great, but there were occasionally fly balls that escaped view when hit towards right center. I think many can attest that there really aren't any bad seats in Twins Territory. Prior to game time, I made a trek around Target Field and it looked as good as ever. I made sure to go to the batter's eye where Jim Thome legendarily hit a HR over. The only thing I couldn't find was an Oakland fan. As much as I tried to spot just one Athletics fan, I could not! Liriano was a real treat to watch. Francisco was on a strikeout tirade and eventually ended up netting 15 total. With every swing and miss, cheers mounted in fruitful hopes of another K being hung. However Liriano briefly got off pace when he gave up a grand slam to Jonny Gomes in the fourth. My stomach didn't settle very well after that and the crowd grew silent as well for an inning. The game must go on though. The thing I have always admired most about Liriano is his poise. He always appears confident in the way he walks and he really had it last night despite the 4 run homer. Frankie shrugged it off and moved on in his conquest for more hacks. Even catcher Drew Butera seemed to be fooled by Liriano. I recall him dropping roughly half of the 3rd strike swings. Offensively, the Twins got on base, but didn't get runs. Willingham provided all the offense with a solo HR and another HR that brought in Mauer as well. As much as I would have liked a win, the game was really entertaining and I can't wait to go back to Target Field again. I'd really like to know if this is the first game where a pitcher struck out 15 or more and yielded a grand slam? That's not something you see everyday!

Friday the 13th was living up to it's unlucky superstition yesterday. Upon arrival to the Twin Cities, and following a 2 1/2 hour drive, I was greeted by pouring rain and hail. It wasn't long before the poor weather conditions were making a good reflection of my temperament by effect. It had been weeks since I had seen rain and of all days...now?! Fortunately enough, the storm clouds passed and the end result was nothing more than a 15 minute delay. My seat was in the bleachers just to right of the foul pole in right field. The overall view of the game was great, but there were occasionally fly balls that escaped view when hit towards right center. I think many can attest that there really aren't any bad seats in Twins Territory. Prior to game time, I made a trek around Target Field and it looked as good as ever. I made sure to go to the batter's eye where Jim Thome legendarily hit a HR over. The only thing I couldn't find was an Oakland fan. As much as I tried to spot just one Athletics fan, I could not! Liriano was a real treat to watch. Francisco was on a strikeout tirade and eventually ended up netting 15 total. With every swing and miss, cheers mounted in fruitful hopes of another K being hung. However Liriano briefly got off pace when he gave up a grand slam to Jonny Gomes in the fourth. My stomach didn't settle very well after that and the crowd grew silent as well for an inning. The game must go on though. The thing I have always admired most about Liriano is his poise. He always appears confident in the way he walks and he really had it last night despite the 4 run homer. Frankie shrugged it off and moved on in his conquest for more hacks. Even catcher Drew Butera seemed to be fooled by Liriano. I recall him dropping roughly half of the 3rd strike swings. Offensively, the Twins got on base, but didn't get runs. Willingham provided all the offense with a solo HR and another HR that brought in Mauer as well. As much as I would have liked a win, the game was really entertaining and I can't wait to go back to Target Field again. I'd really like to know if this is the first game where a pitcher struck out 15 or more and yielded a grand slam? That's not something you see everyday!

That's a good quick fix. I'll go on thinking that I did so the whole time. Ahhh yes. The Torrance Tornado...How could I forget? I'd probably slot him 40 above Shibuya. Like the criticism so far and wouldn't mind some more. I do love feedback.

All good points. I think we need to hold Joe Mauer to his "standards" not to his contract. If he can eclipse 10HRs with a .330 BA, I'll be more than content.

SNUBBED: Cole Nelson If only I could edit blogs like I can comments.

This is my assessment of the Twins current minor league system. You'll notice that Liam Hendriks, Brian Dozier, and Chris Parmelee are not included because I no longer consider them prospects. Much of this has been done from a statistical viewpoint and age is another big factor. I listed positions to give a clear cut view of how depth is at each spot. I'd like to give a little credit to shanewahl and TwinkieTown for providing reasonable comparisons to my own. Please enjoy! 1. Miguel Sano, 3B 2. Byron Buxton, OF 3. Oswaldo Arcia, OF 4. Eddie Rosario, 2B 5. Aaron Hicks, OF 6. Kyle Gibson, SP 7. Travis Harrison, 3B 8. Jose Orlando Berrios, SP/RP 9. Joe Benson, OF 10. Alex Wimmers, SP 11. Chris Herrmann, C 12. Hudson Boyd, SP 13. Max Kepler-Rozycki (Rahzee), OF 14. Niko Goodrum, SS 15. Levi Michael, SS 16. Luke Bard, SP 17. Adrian Salcedo, SP 18. Lester Oliveros, RP 19. Matt Hauser, SP 20. B.J. Hermsen, SP 21. Daniel Santana, SS 22. David Bromberg, SP 23. Manuel Soliman, SP 24. Madison Boer, SP 25. Mason Melotakis, RP 26. Deolis Guerra, RP 27. Matt Summers, SP 28. Daniel Ortiz, OF 29. J.T Chargois, SP 30. Adam Walker, OF 31. Logan Darnell, SP 32. J.D. Williams, OF 33. Angel Morales, OF 34. Pat Dean, SP 35. Tyler Robertson, RP 36. Nate Roberts, OF 37. Bruce Pugh, RP 38. Corey Williams, RP 39. Angel Mata, SP 40. Tim Shibuya, SP 41. Lance Ray, OF 42. Tom Stuifbergen, SP 43. Josh Burris, RP 44. James Beresford, SS 45. Tyler Duffey, RP 46. Lee Mazilli Jr., 2B 47. Steven Gruver, SP 48. Carlos Guitierrez, RP 49. Josmil Pinto, C 50. Christian Powell, RP

This is my assessment of the Twins current minor league system. You'll notice that Liam Hendriks, Brian Dozier, and Chris Parmelee are not included because I no longer consider them prospects. Much of this has been done from a statistical viewpoint and age is another big factor. I listed positions to give a clear cut view of how depth is at each spot. I'd like to give a little credit to shanewahl and TwinkieTown for providing reasonable comparisons to my own. Please enjoy! 1. Miguel Sano, 3B 2. Byron Buxton, OF 3. Oswaldo Arcia, OF 4. Eddie Rosario, 2B 5. Aaron Hicks, OF 6. Kyle Gibson, SP 7. Travis Harrison, 3B 8. Jose Orlando Berrios, SP/RP 9. Joe Benson, OF 10. Alex Wimmers, SP 11. Chris Herrmann, C 12. Hudson Boyd, SP 13. Max Kepler-Rozycki (Rahzee), OF 14. Niko Goodrum, SS 15. Levi Michael, SS 16. Luke Bard, SP 17. Adrian Salcedo, SP 18. Lester Oliveros, RP 19. Matt Hauser, SP 20. B.J. Hermsen, SP 21. Daniel Santana, SS 22. David Bromberg, SP 23. Manuel Soliman, SP 24. Madison Boer, SP 25. Mason Melotakis, RP 26. Deolis Guerra, RP 27. Matt Summers, SP 28. Daniel Ortiz, OF 29. J.T Chargois, SP 30. Adam Walker, OF 31. Logan Darnell, SP 32. J.D. Williams, OF 33. Angel Morales, OF 34. Pat Dean, SP 35. Tyler Robertson, RP 36. Nate Roberts, OF 37. Bruce Pugh, RP 38. Corey Williams, RP 39. Angel Mata, SP 40. Tim Shibuya, SP 41. Lance Ray, OF 42. Tom Stuifbergen, SP 43. Josh Burris, RP 44. James Beresford, SS 45. Tyler Duffey, RP 46. Lee Mazilli Jr., 2B 47. Steven Gruver, SP 48. Carlos Guitierrez, RP 49. Josmil Pinto, C 50. Christian Powell, RP

Door #3 and all three with Doumit.

Make that 5th in OPS with .765 after today. He passed Denard Span and Ryan Doumit.

Trevor Plouffe has been an offensive juggernaut for the Twins recently and has been an instrumental key to the Twins success. The 25 year old (turns 26 on the 15th) third baseman is hitting .348/.400/.760 and has clubbed 3HRs for the month of June. While it's inevitable that Plouffe will come down from that unsustainable line, it's calming to see him performing so well after a horrid start to the inaugural season. In effect, Plouffe has become a regular pencil-in on the Twins daily lineups. He may not be a long term solution, but getting production offensively from the hot corner has been somewhat of a rarity over the past few years. In order to look at Plouffe's efficiency, it's my belief that you have to look past his ugly .198BA and more so at his OPS. His excellent slugging percentage contributes the majority of a .725OPS. It may be below average among third basemen, but it is above replacement level. As proof, Trevor Plouffe's bat has given the Twins .5 WAR in 2012. Plouffe's OPS ranks 7th when compared with the rest of his teammates and has been rising quickly. Currently, he only trails the heavily praised Denard Span for 6th by .002 in OPS. The point being made is that Trevor Plouffe is not a huge worry for the Twins right now. There are others who are struggling with the bat, like Jamey Carroll and Brian Dozier, who should be on thinner ice. Defensively, the Twins haven't been able to get as good results from #24. He sits at a .927% Fielding, but it can be argued that Plouffe's versatility makes up for it. The added flexibility he adds cannot be taken for granted. Gardenhire hasn't had as much of struggle as he did last year in putting together an order and most lineups have been released ahead of schedule. Injuries were a large part of that, but it is these kinds of utility men that make it work. I also want to add that Plouffe's defensive WAR is slightly better than replacement level at .1. That is a little better than how Valencia was defensively this year. Trevor Plouffe's all-or-nothing approach at the plate reminds me greatly of the pre-2012 Mark Reynolds. Make no mistake, he definitely doesn't have the 30-40HR potential. Although, Plouffe may be able to hit for a better average, strikeout less, and provide a positive presence in the field. As long as he keeps producing, he'll keep playing. Trevor Plouffe has won me over and I really would like for him to continue improving so that he may win over the Twins management as well.

Trevor Plouffe has been an offensive juggernaut for the Twins recently and has been an instrumental key to the Twins success. The 25 year old (turns 26 on the 15th) third baseman is hitting .348/.400/.760 and has clubbed 3HRs for the month of June. While it's inevitable that Plouffe will come down from that unsustainable line, it's calming to see him performing so well after a horrid start to the inaugural season. In effect, Plouffe has become a regular pencil-in on the Twins daily lineups. He may not be a long term solution, but getting production offensively from the hot corner has been somewhat of a rarity over the past few years. In order to look at Plouffe's efficiency, it's my belief that you have to look past his ugly .198BA and more so at his OPS. His excellent slugging percentage contributes the majority of a .725OPS. It may be below average among third basemen, but it is above replacement level. As proof, Trevor Plouffe's bat has given the Twins .5 WAR in 2012. Plouffe's OPS ranks 7th when compared with the rest of his teammates and has been rising quickly. Currently, he only trails the heavily praised Denard Span for 6th by .002 in OPS. The point being made is that Trevor Plouffe is not a huge worry for the Twins right now. There are others who are struggling with the bat, like Jamey Carroll and Brian Dozier, who should be on thinner ice. Defensively, the Twins haven't been able to get as good results from #24. He sits at a .927% Fielding, but it can be argued that Plouffe's versatility makes up for it. The added flexibility he adds cannot be taken for granted. Gardenhire hasn't had as much of struggle as he did last year in putting together an order and most lineups have been released ahead of schedule. Injuries were a large part of that, but it is these kinds of utility men that make it work. I also want to add that Plouffe's defensive WAR is slightly better than replacement level at .1. That is a little better than how Valencia was defensively this year. Trevor Plouffe's all-or-nothing approach at the plate reminds me greatly of the pre-2012 Mark Reynolds. Make no mistake, he definitely doesn't have the 30-40HR potential. Although, Plouffe may be able to hit for a better average, strikeout less, and provide a positive presence in the field. As long as he keeps producing, he'll keep playing. Trevor Plouffe has won me over and I really would like for him to continue improving so that he may win over the Twins management as well.

I think Hicks needs two full seasons in the minors and that's if he can handle it. Willingham has great value, but he is signed for three years. While that does make him more valuable to other teams, I doubt the Twins would trade him this season. Perhaps next season or the following in 2014 if selling at the deadline becomes a consistency for the upcoming years ahead.

It's been a little over a quarter into the season and the Twins seemed destined to be sellers come July 31st. Unsurprisingly, many contenders are more than certain to inquire about the availability of Denard Span. Bidding for the center fielder could very well be competive as it is a position of need for quite a few division leaders. One of the biggest decisions the organization will have to make is whether or not they want to accept a deal for him. The biggest factor in the choice could possibly hinge on Ben Revere's capability to replace Span. So far this season, Revere has been good. Really good. Denard Span: .295/.360/.365 Ben Revere: .270/.341/.432 Revere's line has only been accumulated in 172 Plate appearances, but considering the amount of time he has spent between Rochester and Minnesota. it could be evidence that he has "bloomed" and is ready to handle the chores as a full time leadoff man and outfielder. We have all watched Ben Revere play and know full well that the energy and elite speed he possesses are luxuries at his position. The 24 year old has a very high ceiling because of these amenities. Who's to say that he doesn't swipe 50 bases in a season? Or that he doesn't become a recipient of multiple golden gloves? [ATTACH=CONFIG]1034[/ATTACH] Denard Span has been a key player and a leader for the Twins in his career. But, it may now be time to realize that he is expendable, doesn't carry the amount of potential that Revere has, and would benefit the Twins more if he was traded. Playing one of two natural Centerfielders in right or left field just isn't a great idea for the future. Span is an asset that so many teams covet as their own. The Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Washington Nationals, Cincinnati Reds, and New York Mets are a few possible landing spots. With the exception of the Nationals (and maybe even the Reds after the Latos deal), the farm systems for all these clubhouses have some great talent in them. It may not be long until the Twins go window shopping through all their minor league affiliates. [ATTACH=CONFIG]1035[/ATTACH] I originally disagreed and scoffed at the idea of Minnesota pawning off one of it's most prized, cheap, and young talents. But in retrospect, those three qualities are what make him so attractive to other teams. If Twins refuse jump onto the chance to acquired new up-and-coming players for 2014 and beyond, they need to get their priorities straight. Maybe it's about time the torch was passed.

Hermsen has been a big surprise and I hope he can keep it going. I can't wait for Bromberg to work his way back into AAA!

I laughed pretty hard when I saw Butera's debut. Can't say I'm surprised!

Sano and Rosario need a challenge Seth. They are killing opposing pitchers in Beloit and would also benefit from the better coaching. I love promotions too!