A thrilla

You may be familiar with "The Thrilla in Manilla," the third and final -- and greatest and ugliest -- Ali-Frazier bout. It was back in 1975, but ESPN Classic apparently airs it in regular rotation.

I have no idea how either boxer survived that fight, and maybe neither would have had Frazier's corner not conceeded before the 15th round.

And that's what I harkened back to in the late innings of Tuesday night's Yankees-Twins game. There can't be much left to either bullpen after that 10-inning, five-hour brawl of a baseball game.

The @Yankees outlasted the @Twins 14-12 in a wild back-and-forth game.

This was just the 2nd MLB game in the last 40 years in which there was a blown lead in the top of the 8th, bottom of the 8th, top of the 9th and bottom of the 9th; it also happened on 7/17/2000 (Col def Oak).

— Stats By STATS (@StatsBySTATS) July 24, 2019

The postgame comments out of the Twins clubhouse were circumspect but clear: They believe they got jobbed in the eighth inning by the home plate umpire. And he probably did blow some calls. But the Twins relievers didn't exactly pound the strike zone either.

Let's note here in particular Blake Parker. He entered the game having allowed two runs in his previous 12 games, 13.1 innings -- an ERA of 1.35. He also had only two outings without at least one baserunner in that span, with 13 hits, five walks and a hit batter. The ERA was deceptive; he hasn't been pitching nearly as well as the ERA suggests.

It caught up to him Tuesday.

At least Cleveland lost too.

Understood but still unfair

The Twins announced a roster move shortly before their win Thursday afternoon:

Roster Moves: #MNTwins recall Romero from Triple-A, option Eades to Triple-A. pic.twitter.com/84ZC7NVvhp

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) June 13, 2019

Ryan Eades had pitched twice for the big league club, a total of 3.2 innings with no runs allowed. He wasn't nearly as effective as a 0.00 ERA would suggest, but he had done nothing to get booted off the roster.

He got the ax because:

• Blake Parker is struggling;
• Taylor Rogers has been hampered by a sore back; and
• the Twins wanted a fresh arm in the bullpen, and Eades, who faced seven hitters on Wednesday in large part because Parker couldn't record an out, was the obvious choice to go.

Eades never figured to be on the roster long term anyway. Still, he did his job, Parker didn't do his, and it's Eades who pays for Parker's struggles. Understandable, but unfair.

Fernando Romero, who replaced Eades on the roster, faced four hitters in the eighth inning Thursday with a big lead and retired none of them. Matt Magill wound up pitching two innings to mop it up. So expect another bullpen shuffle today, with Romero returning to Triple A.

If that happens, at least Romero's demotion will be justified by his recent performance.

Notes, quotes and comment

Reports Thursday night had Dallas Keuchel agreeing to a one-year contract with Atlanta.

I have an easier time understanding the league-wide reluctance to sign Craig Kimbrel than the reluctance to sign Keuchel, but Kimbrel got the richer multi-year deal, Neither, I'm sure, is exactly happy with the outcome.

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A beat writer opines:

Sidenote: Taylor Rogers will not be nasty if he is required to record 34-pitch saves several times a week. #MNTwins need more high-leverage arms.

— Dan Hayes (@DanHayesMLB) June 7, 2019

The conclusion is correct: The Twins do need more high-leverage arms. 

But if Rogers gets a couple days off after each of those 34-pitch outings, so that he's doing it twice a week -- and doing nothing else -- it's doable. The problem will be if the Twins decide they just have to use him again tonight for a couple batters. And one issue with Rogers is that he is the sole lefty in the bullpen.

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A former bullpen ace opines:

Blake Parker has been struggling a bit since before tonite but i’m just gonna throw it out there that maybe, just maybe, throwing guys out there for random innings is easier on paper than it is in actual game situations.

— Glen Perkins (@glenperkins) June 6, 2019

That came after Parker's Wednesday outing, when he entered in the seventh with a two-run lead and gave up three runs on two homers.

Parker is not exactly being used in random innings, of course. He's being used in high-leverage innings in the final third of games, rather than being held back for the ninth only, a la Joe Nathan. The same is true of Rogers.

The underlying problem, as the Hayes tweet notes, is that the Twins lack sufficient high-leverage arms -- guys Rocco Baldelli and Wes Johnson can trust in game situations. Parker was pitching in the seventh on Wednesday because it was a high-leverage situation. It was a high leverage situation becaue Martin Perez didn't pitch effectively enough long enough, and Trevor May had to get him out of a sixth-inning jam. And Baldelli was using Parker then in hopes that he'd hold the fort in the seventh and the hitters would widen the lead and allow the less-trusted arms to finish.

The Twins had four leverage arms at the start of the season. Trevor Hildenberger is back in the minors trying to figure it out. May has fought his command all year. Baldelli is down to Parker and Rogers, and that's not enough.

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Side note: It has been more than a week since Mike Morin last pitched (May 30). Something's odd about that.

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One more tweet. this one from a different beat writer:

After going 5-4 against the Brewers, Rays and Indians, and with their AL Central lead back in double digits, the Twins now embark on nine straight games against sub-.400 opposition: Tigers, Mariners, Royals.

— Phil Miller (@MillerStrib) June 7, 2019

And the Twins still have not lost more than two in a row this year. It's not like this team is broken, folks.

Delving into the bullpen depth

I intended to make today's post about something other than bullpen usage, which has been a pretty steady topic here.

But then Monday's game happened, and guess what? Bullpen usage played a pretty significant role.

And it starts with the starting pitcher. Jake Odorizzi couldn't get through the sixth. This is who he is as a pitcher. This is his sixth role in a major league rotation, and he not only has zero complete games, he's only completed seven innings 10 times. When he starts, the bullpen is going to pitch a substantial portion of the game. So the Twins had to piece together 10 outs, and ideally do so without using Trevor Hildenberger or Taylor Rogers, who were used hard during the weekend.

* Trevor May got the last out of the sixth. He was wild -- eight pitches, just three strikes. And since he threw 27 pitches on Sunday, he was just in to get the one out. Rocco Baldelli would probably have preferred skipping him too.

* Ryne Harper got the seventh inning with a five-run lead and the meat of the Astros lineup coming up. Carlos Correa hit a three-run homer. Harper's ERA rose from zero to 2.89. Harper, who got ten outs in his previous outing and had therefore been idle in the Baltimore series, threw 24 pitches to get through the seventh, so he didn't come out for the eighth.

*Adalberto Mejia got the eighth after the Twins kicked the lead back up to four. He didn't pitch in the Baltimore series either, but not because of heavy useage. I don't think Baldelli is eager to give Mejia high leverage innings, but the alternatives weren't attractive, and it was the bottom of the Houston lineup. Mejia got though the eighth unscathed, but it took him 20 pitches.

* With just three outs to go, Blake Parker, after a weekend off with a virus, got the call for the ninth. He gave up a hit but needed just 14 pitches to close it out. Not an official save, but he probably would have pitched with a 10-run lead.

I don't know that Monday really changed anything I believe about this team, or at least this bullpen.

The Twins still need more from May than he's provided. The three relievers not in Baldelli's "big four" of Hildenberger, May, Parker and Rogers are still prioritized Harper, Mejia and Tyler Duffey. I didn't expect Harper to put up zeros all season, and at least this crooked number didn't cost him the game, but it didn't encourage Baldelli to increase his role, either.

The bottom line on Monday: The hitters got enough runs for the weaker half of the bullpen to get late outs.

Hello, Parker; goodbye (presumably) Curtiss

Official: #MNTwins sign Blake Parker to a one-year contract. pic.twitter.com/V006e6ExEG

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) January 14, 2019

Left out of that tweet was that to make room on the 40-man roster the Twins designated John Curtiss for assignment.

Both are right-handed relievers. Parker has a pretty good major league resume, mostly composed over the past two seasons. Curtiss does not. On the other hand, Parker turns 34 in June, and Curtiss turns 26 about a week after opening day.

This may be my fascination with bright shiny objects at play again, but I see enough red flags in Parker's record, and enough promise in Curtiss' stuff, that I'm not convinced this is an upgrade for the Twins. Just as with the DFA earlier of Aaron Slegers -- he was claimed by the Pirates -- I see other arms on the 40 that I would prefer to part with. I expect Curtiss to be claimed.

And as with Slegers, many of those arms are attached to bodies acquired by the current front office. Curtiss was part of the wave of college relievers drafted by the second Ryan administration. Few of those have panned out, and those relievers are being purged from the system in what has become a fairly steady flow.

Notes, quotes and comment

Free agent reliever Blake Parker and the Minnesota Twins are finalizing an agreement on a one-year deal worth slightly more than $3 million, sources tell ESPN. Parker, coming off strong back-to-back seasons, was nontendered by the Angels. @Ken_Rosenthal had it close earlier.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 7, 2019

The Twins don't have, as of now, a "proven closer" on their roster. They have candidates, however, beginning with Trevor May and Trevor Hildenberger, who each took a turn with the ninth inning role last year after the Twins traded Fernando Rodney. They have Addison Reed, who has closing experience but didn't have a good year last season. And apparently, they will soon add Parker, who saved 14 games for the Angels last season, which doesn't sound like much but led their staff. (Mike Scoscia really spread the saves out last year; nine different pitchers were credited with at least one for the Halos.) 

Parker turns 34 in June. He hadn't done much in the majors until 2017, and his basic numbers the past two years are quite good. But the Angels nontendered him anyway, which can be taken as a red flag, as they would know him better than anybody. 

If you're looking for the danger signs in his stat line, check out the home runs allowed (12 in 66.1 innings last year) and the FIP, Fielding Independent Pitching, which attempts to determine the pitcher's ERA given average fielding behind him (4.40 in 2018). The Twins bullpen overall was prone to surrendering homers last year, and Parker may not help that specific issue much.

The walk and strikeout rates are good, however, and he apparently is quite adept at getting swings-and-missed with his splitter.

As of now, I would expect May to be first in line for the glory job. Parker might be the first guy to get a shot at it should May stumble..

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Another Target Field renovation for 2019 — the batter’s Eye. #MNTwins will add 5,700 sea green juniper plants, individually installed and secured in a tiered, multiple-tray system attached. pic.twitter.com/MMlC1O1IDw

— Dan Hayes (@DanHayesMLB) January 7, 2019

The image is not, obviously, real; according to the Twins website the plants will be installed in March and removed for storage in a nursery after season's end.

I've not understood why the pine trees in 2010 were panned by the hitters and removed after the season but a similar backdrop in Colorado's Coors Field has never been questioned. I hope this one works.

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Lenny Green, the first regular center fielder in Minnesota Twins history, died Sunday, which was also his birthday. He was 86. 

As old as I am, I have no actual memory of Green as a player. The first Twins center fielders I remember are Ted Uhlaender and Cesar Tovar, who split the position in 1969 (Tovar played all over the field). Green played his last major league game in 1968.

Looking at Green's Baseball Reference page, the guy who comes to mind as a comperable player is Denard Span. Not stars, but decent leadoff men who played good defense.