The Twins swept the Kansas City Royals over the weekend, which is good. A team on a 100-win pace, as the Twins are, should beat a team on a 100-loss pace, as the Royals are.
But Cleveland swept the Angels as well, so the Twins didn't widen their margin over the weekend. And the Twins have the tougher matchup next with the Atlanta Braves; Cleveland plays Cincinnati.
The bad news is that since my last post the Twins have put three players on the injured list.
Byron Buxton is the most troublesome of the injuries; he's likely to miss most if not all of August. In a very real way, Buxton is the most important player on this team, and he's simply got to stop running into walls. Nothing good comes of it.
I'm less concerned about the two pitchers, Michael Pineda and Sam Dyson. Pineda had a brief stint on the IL earlier in the season. Reading between the lines, the first stint was essentially precautionary, and it sounds like this one is also. "Big Mike" is on his first full season back after Tommy John surgery, and even though he's a free agent after the season the Twins are handling him with some care.
He's been pitching well, too, with an ERA of 2.23 over his last six starts.
Dyson ... well, the eyebrows rise when a player comes in a midseason trade, has two poor outings and goes on the IL. The Twins appear to believe that the IL stint will be essentially the mimimal 10-days. Dyson is said to believe he's able to pitch, but the Twins want to give him a break and get the soreness out of his arm.
So Dyson and Pineda miss these next two series on the homestand, Atlanta and Cleveland. It's early August, but this could be a critical week.
Showing posts with label Byron Buxton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Byron Buxton. Show all posts
Monday, August 5, 2019
Friday, April 26, 2019
Let's race
Perhaps you saw Rhys Hoskins' 34-second home run stroll the other night and already know the backstory: On Monday Philadelphia pitchers hit a pair of Mets batters. In the ninth inning Tuesday, Mets reliever Jacob Rhame threw two heaters in the vicinity of Hoskins' noggin. And on Wednesday, Hoskins faced Rhame again.
Hoskins homered, and then took what is believed to be the slowest home-run "trot" since 2010, when Larry Granillo started tracking such things. (David Ortiz had held the record.)
Some genius animated a "race" between Byron Buxton running out his inside-the-parker in August 2017. It is a thing of beauty:
Rhame was suspended Wednesday for two games, by the way.
Hoskins homered, and then took what is believed to be the slowest home-run "trot" since 2010, when Larry Granillo started tracking such things. (David Ortiz had held the record.)
Some genius animated a "race" between Byron Buxton running out his inside-the-parker in August 2017. It is a thing of beauty:
Thanks to the fantastic work of @ee11iott we can now enjoy a race of Rhys v Buxton pic.twitter.com/THiXWcVHB7— Tangotiger (@tangotiger) April 25, 2019
Rhame was suspended Wednesday for two games, by the way.
Wednesday, April 3, 2019
Notes, quotes and comment
The good news from Tuesday's Twins game: The Twins won in 10 innings.
The bad news: Byron Buxton -- hitting .308 -- bruised his back running into the centerfield wall on Aldaberto Mondesi's game-tying inside-the-park homer. He certainly won't be in the lineup this afternoon, and I won't be surprised if he misses at least part of the weekend series in Philadelphia.
Buck's gotta stop running into walls.
---
Michael Reed, who spent most of spring training in Twins camp, was traded to the Giants on March 23 and opened the season not only on the Giants roster but in their starting lineup.
Unfortunately for Reed, he opened the season 0-for-8. The Giants traded Tuesday for centerfielder Kevin Pillar from Toronto and designated Reed for assignment.
Maybe if Reed had opened 5-for-8 he'd still have a job. Maybe.
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The Twins' first save opportunity of 2019 went to Taylor Rogers. The second, I guess, went to Rogers as well -- he's charged with a blown save for Mondesi's inside-the-parker -- but I don't know that Rocco Baldelli brought Rogers in with the intent of getting a six-out save from the lefty.
Anyway, the next save opp, be it the second or third, went to Blake Parker, who walked one and struck out one and kept his splitter out of the dirt this time.
The roleless bullpen rolls on.
The bad news: Byron Buxton -- hitting .308 -- bruised his back running into the centerfield wall on Aldaberto Mondesi's game-tying inside-the-park homer. He certainly won't be in the lineup this afternoon, and I won't be surprised if he misses at least part of the weekend series in Philadelphia.
Buck's gotta stop running into walls.
---
Michael Reed, who spent most of spring training in Twins camp, was traded to the Giants on March 23 and opened the season not only on the Giants roster but in their starting lineup.
Unfortunately for Reed, he opened the season 0-for-8. The Giants traded Tuesday for centerfielder Kevin Pillar from Toronto and designated Reed for assignment.
Maybe if Reed had opened 5-for-8 he'd still have a job. Maybe.
---
The Twins' first save opportunity of 2019 went to Taylor Rogers. The second, I guess, went to Rogers as well -- he's charged with a blown save for Mondesi's inside-the-parker -- but I don't know that Rocco Baldelli brought Rogers in with the intent of getting a six-out save from the lefty.
Anyway, the next save opp, be it the second or third, went to Blake Parker, who walked one and struck out one and kept his splitter out of the dirt this time.
The roleless bullpen rolls on.
Thursday, January 17, 2019
Where they stand: Center field
Presumed regular: Bryon Buxton
Others on 40: Jake Cave, Michael Reed, Zack Granite
Notable nonroster: None who figure for 2019
As with Miguel Sano, the Twins are counting on Buxton to get them where they want to be. Unlike Sano, they have some reasonable alternatives on the 40-man roster if he fails again.
Cave, who got a little more than 300 plate appearances last season and hit 13 homers, may seem the obvious Plan B. He wouldn't be for me. Two primary reasons:
My ideal Plan B is probably impractical in the era of 13-man pitching staffs, and that's a platoon of Granite and Hall. That duo would be made up of two guys with leadoff-hitter skills -- which is not to say that their skill are necessarily pitched high enough. But the Twins don't have an obvious leadoff hitter, so that would fill a lineup need.
Obviously, the ideal Plan B is not to need Plan B. If Buxton is the player we saw in the second half of 2017, the Twins don't need a Plan B, and they will have, if not a prototype leadoff man, someone who works in that lineup slot.
Buxton is Plan A. And I expect the Twins to be patient with Plan A.
Others on 40: Jake Cave, Michael Reed, Zack Granite
Notable nonroster: None who figure for 2019
As with Miguel Sano, the Twins are counting on Buxton to get them where they want to be. Unlike Sano, they have some reasonable alternatives on the 40-man roster if he fails again.
Cave, who got a little more than 300 plate appearances last season and hit 13 homers, may seem the obvious Plan B. He wouldn't be for me. Two primary reasons:
- I believe that Max Kepler, Granite, (probably) Reed and (possibly) Eddie Rosario are superior defensive center fielders to Cave;
- Cave's walk-to-strikeout rate is horrendous, and I believe the Twins have already crossed the line on hitters with limited command of the strike zone.
My ideal Plan B is probably impractical in the era of 13-man pitching staffs, and that's a platoon of Granite and Hall. That duo would be made up of two guys with leadoff-hitter skills -- which is not to say that their skill are necessarily pitched high enough. But the Twins don't have an obvious leadoff hitter, so that would fill a lineup need.
Obviously, the ideal Plan B is not to need Plan B. If Buxton is the player we saw in the second half of 2017, the Twins don't need a Plan B, and they will have, if not a prototype leadoff man, someone who works in that lineup slot.
Buxton is Plan A. And I expect the Twins to be patient with Plan A.
Tuesday, June 26, 2018
Passing the Buck
Apparently it's not time for Byron Buxton's return to the active roster:
Per Berardino, the Twins expect to see four straight right-handed starters, so Cave figures to provide another lefty bat. Come the weekend, however, they'll see a string of left-handed starters. That might be the opening for Buxton's return. It can't the just-demoted Ryan LaMarre, unless somebody else goes on the disabled list.
Which, the way this season has gone for the Twins, is quite possible.
#mntwins set to recall OF Jake Cave for third time this season as Byron Buxton gets more time at Triple-A Rochester. https://t.co/mJgNwgXDb5— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) June 25, 2018
Per Berardino, the Twins expect to see four straight right-handed starters, so Cave figures to provide another lefty bat. Come the weekend, however, they'll see a string of left-handed starters. That might be the opening for Buxton's return. It can't the just-demoted Ryan LaMarre, unless somebody else goes on the disabled list.
Which, the way this season has gone for the Twins, is quite possible.
Friday, May 11, 2018
So much for that winning streak
Sometimes a baseball season feels like a whack-a-mole: Fix one problem and another shows up.
Fernando Romero steps into the rotation to replace the struggling Phil Hughes, and suddenly the fifth starter's spot appears more than functional -- and somebody else is pitching poorly.
Thursday's game made three straight poor starts for Jose Berrios since his spectacular outing in Puerto Rico. I'm sure Berrios isn't about to be dislodged from the rotation. I'm also sure the Twins need to figure out how to get him on the right track again.
---
I commented Thursday morning on how well Max Kepler was hitting lefties. He homered Thursday night, the second of back-to-back homers (the other from Brian Dozier) that briefly tied the game.
Kepler last year had five extra-base hits all season against lefties (137 plate appearances). He's passed that total already in 2018 in 31 plate appearances.
---
And my prediction that Ryan LaMarre would be demoted to make roster room for Byron Buxton's return was, for once, accurate. The blind pig found an acorn.
Fernando Romero steps into the rotation to replace the struggling Phil Hughes, and suddenly the fifth starter's spot appears more than functional -- and somebody else is pitching poorly.
Thursday's game made three straight poor starts for Jose Berrios since his spectacular outing in Puerto Rico. I'm sure Berrios isn't about to be dislodged from the rotation. I'm also sure the Twins need to figure out how to get him on the right track again.
---
I commented Thursday morning on how well Max Kepler was hitting lefties. He homered Thursday night, the second of back-to-back homers (the other from Brian Dozier) that briefly tied the game.
Kepler last year had five extra-base hits all season against lefties (137 plate appearances). He's passed that total already in 2018 in 31 plate appearances.
---
And my prediction that Ryan LaMarre would be demoted to make roster room for Byron Buxton's return was, for once, accurate. The blind pig found an acorn.
Friday, March 30, 2018
Random thoughts on the Twins opener
I understand and even agreed with Paul Molitor's decision to pinch-hit for Byron Buxton in the ninth inning, and the move obviously worked. But if the Twins are to get where they want to go, Buxton has to be the kind of hitter you don't even consider pinch-hitting for with the game on the line.
---
Welcome to the Fernando Rodney Experience. The veteran did a nice job getting out of an inherited jam in the 10th, only to serve up a first-pitch gopher ball to open the next inning.
The rebuilt back of the bullpen was a mixed bag. Addison Reed dominated in two innings of work; Zach Duke struck out four men in his one inning but also allowed two runs; and Trevor Hildenberger had trouble throwing strikes.
Duke, a lefty specialist throughout his bullpen career, faced a string of right-handed hitters, culminating with the two-run triple by the light-hitting Caleb Joseph. I suspect that by the time the season is over, Molitor will be more wary of that kind of useage of Duke.
---
The Baltimore Orioles had Chris Davis leading off. This is a far cry from tradition; Davis is a slow slugger. The closest thing in Buck Showalter's starting nine to an old-school flyboy, Craig Gentry, hit eighth. Which is pretty much where Gentry should hit.
The Birds just stack one power hitter after another. The Twins kept them in the park for 10 innings. They just didn't score enough themselves in that time frame.
---
Welcome to the Fernando Rodney Experience. The veteran did a nice job getting out of an inherited jam in the 10th, only to serve up a first-pitch gopher ball to open the next inning.
The rebuilt back of the bullpen was a mixed bag. Addison Reed dominated in two innings of work; Zach Duke struck out four men in his one inning but also allowed two runs; and Trevor Hildenberger had trouble throwing strikes.
Duke, a lefty specialist throughout his bullpen career, faced a string of right-handed hitters, culminating with the two-run triple by the light-hitting Caleb Joseph. I suspect that by the time the season is over, Molitor will be more wary of that kind of useage of Duke.
---
The Baltimore Orioles had Chris Davis leading off. This is a far cry from tradition; Davis is a slow slugger. The closest thing in Buck Showalter's starting nine to an old-school flyboy, Craig Gentry, hit eighth. Which is pretty much where Gentry should hit.
The Birds just stack one power hitter after another. The Twins kept them in the park for 10 innings. They just didn't score enough themselves in that time frame.
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
From the Handbook: Baserunning
We all know Byron Buxton is fast. We also know that speed alone does not equal outstanding baserunning.
But as Baseball Info Systems figures such things, Buxton was the best baserunner in baseball in 2017, at +55 bases.
The essay that preceeds the numbers notes that Buxton gained at least 27 bases from both basestealing and from "bases gained" -- for example, going first to third on a single or advancing on a wild pitch -- making him "the most balanced of the leaders."
Plus he grounded into just one double play. I'm not completely sold on BIS' inclusion of GIDP in the baserunning metrics, but I don't make the rules for them.
Joe Mauer has long been viewed -- accurately for the most part -- as an outstanding baserunner without outstanding speed. He has become visibly slower in the past few years (he is 34, after all) and in 2017 he scored a -7 in BIS's metric. For his career -- the Handbook contains career baserunning totals for players with 1,000 career games started in 2002) Mauer is +86, which isn't close to being the active leader but is certainly no embarrassment.
But as Baseball Info Systems figures such things, Buxton was the best baserunner in baseball in 2017, at +55 bases.
The essay that preceeds the numbers notes that Buxton gained at least 27 bases from both basestealing and from "bases gained" -- for example, going first to third on a single or advancing on a wild pitch -- making him "the most balanced of the leaders."
Plus he grounded into just one double play. I'm not completely sold on BIS' inclusion of GIDP in the baserunning metrics, but I don't make the rules for them.
Joe Mauer has long been viewed -- accurately for the most part -- as an outstanding baserunner without outstanding speed. He has become visibly slower in the past few years (he is 34, after all) and in 2017 he scored a -7 in BIS's metric. For his career -- the Handbook contains career baserunning totals for players with 1,000 career games started in 2002) Mauer is +86, which isn't close to being the active leader but is certainly no embarrassment.
Saturday, November 11, 2017
Notes. quotes and comment
Byron Buxton caught some more love for his glove Friday.
The Twins centerfielder was voted the "Platimum Glove" in online fan balloting as baseball's best defensive player; the award is an offshoot of the long-established Gold Gloves, which are voted on by managers and coaches, were named earlier in the week and are sponsored by Rawlings.
Another glove manufacturer sponsors another set of awards. The Wilson Fielding Awards, relatively new, aren't handed out by vote but on the basis of a melange of fielding metrics. Buxton won both the position award in center and the overall defensive player of the year award.
Buxton passes the eye test and the metrics test. Now if he can keep from running his career into the wall, literally.
---
Doug Mientkiewicz this week was named manager of the Detroit Tigers' Triple A affiliate, the Toledo Mud Hens, this week.
The reports said he was highly recommended by the Tigers' new big-league manager, Ron Gardenhire.
This amuses me, because when the Twins traded Mientkiewicz away as a player in July 2004 -- making room for Justin Morneau -- he departed, as I recall, with some verbal shots at Gardenhire, who he claimed mislead him about his playing time with Morneau's arrival.
Apparently there are no grudges held some 13 years later. (Thirteen years! The number of times I am reminded of how old I am ...)
The Twins centerfielder was voted the "Platimum Glove" in online fan balloting as baseball's best defensive player; the award is an offshoot of the long-established Gold Gloves, which are voted on by managers and coaches, were named earlier in the week and are sponsored by Rawlings.
Another glove manufacturer sponsors another set of awards. The Wilson Fielding Awards, relatively new, aren't handed out by vote but on the basis of a melange of fielding metrics. Buxton won both the position award in center and the overall defensive player of the year award.
Buxton passes the eye test and the metrics test. Now if he can keep from running his career into the wall, literally.
---
Doug Mientkiewicz this week was named manager of the Detroit Tigers' Triple A affiliate, the Toledo Mud Hens, this week.
The reports said he was highly recommended by the Tigers' new big-league manager, Ron Gardenhire.
This amuses me, because when the Twins traded Mientkiewicz away as a player in July 2004 -- making room for Justin Morneau -- he departed, as I recall, with some verbal shots at Gardenhire, who he claimed mislead him about his playing time with Morneau's arrival.
Apparently there are no grudges held some 13 years later. (Thirteen years! The number of times I am reminded of how old I am ...)
Wednesday, November 8, 2017
Gold Gloves, Tonk Out and RIP Doc
Both Byron Buxton and Brian Dozier were named winners of the Gold Glove Award on Tuesday.
Buxton, no question. Dozier, not so much. At risk of spoiling what I might comment on when my Handbook series gets to the Fielding Bible Awards section, Dozier wasn't in the top 10 of second basemen in that more-metric oriented approach. As the BIS-arranged voting has it, Ian Kinsler was by far the best fielding second baseman in the American League.
The Gold Gloves have a well-earned reputation for being swayed by a player's hitting, and Dozier has hit more than 100 homers over the past three seasons. Above-average defense and 30-plus homers a season makes him a very good player. But he's not really the best gloveman at his position, as Buxton is.
---
The Twins sold Michael Tonkin to the Nippon Ham Fighters of Japanese baseball.
This clears another slot off the 40-man roster -- down now to 33 -- and gives Tonkin a better payday than he was going to get if he remained in the States. He'll get more than $2 million from the Fighters, who are expected to use him as their closer. (The team is owned by Nippon Ham; the name is not intended to imply that they are fighting hams.)
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Roy Halladay never pitched for the Twins, but he was for a decade one of the best pitchers in the game, and his death in a self-piloted plane crash Tuesday was the biggest news in baseball.
"Doc" Halladay was widely seen during his playing days as a likely Hall of Famer, but he didn't have the usual career path. His decline was brief and sudden, and his career totals (205 wins, 2,749 innings) are resultingly small for Cooperstown.
But his peak was longer than that of Johan Santana, his main rival for the title of Best Pitcher of the 2000s, and there are consensus enshrinees who essentially match Halladay's career totals -- Ed Walsh, Sandy Koufax, Rube Waddell, Dazzy Vance. And a few more dubious honorees.
He becomes eligible for the voting next winter -- I doubt the Hall will waive the five-year rule for him as it did for Roberto Clemente -- and his surprising death may perversely increase his chances of first ballot selection.
I think Halladay will eventually get in, and that's fine. I'm not sure he's a more deserving enshrinee than Mike Mussina or even Curt Schilling, but he should get in, sooner or later. Unfortunately, he won't get to be there to enjoy the honor.
Buxton, no question. Dozier, not so much. At risk of spoiling what I might comment on when my Handbook series gets to the Fielding Bible Awards section, Dozier wasn't in the top 10 of second basemen in that more-metric oriented approach. As the BIS-arranged voting has it, Ian Kinsler was by far the best fielding second baseman in the American League.
The Gold Gloves have a well-earned reputation for being swayed by a player's hitting, and Dozier has hit more than 100 homers over the past three seasons. Above-average defense and 30-plus homers a season makes him a very good player. But he's not really the best gloveman at his position, as Buxton is.
---
The Twins sold Michael Tonkin to the Nippon Ham Fighters of Japanese baseball.
This clears another slot off the 40-man roster -- down now to 33 -- and gives Tonkin a better payday than he was going to get if he remained in the States. He'll get more than $2 million from the Fighters, who are expected to use him as their closer. (The team is owned by Nippon Ham; the name is not intended to imply that they are fighting hams.)
---
Roy Halladay never pitched for the Twins, but he was for a decade one of the best pitchers in the game, and his death in a self-piloted plane crash Tuesday was the biggest news in baseball.
"Doc" Halladay was widely seen during his playing days as a likely Hall of Famer, but he didn't have the usual career path. His decline was brief and sudden, and his career totals (205 wins, 2,749 innings) are resultingly small for Cooperstown.
But his peak was longer than that of Johan Santana, his main rival for the title of Best Pitcher of the 2000s, and there are consensus enshrinees who essentially match Halladay's career totals -- Ed Walsh, Sandy Koufax, Rube Waddell, Dazzy Vance. And a few more dubious honorees.
He becomes eligible for the voting next winter -- I doubt the Hall will waive the five-year rule for him as it did for Roberto Clemente -- and his surprising death may perversely increase his chances of first ballot selection.
I think Halladay will eventually get in, and that's fine. I'm not sure he's a more deserving enshrinee than Mike Mussina or even Curt Schilling, but he should get in, sooner or later. Unfortunately, he won't get to be there to enjoy the honor.
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
Off day Twins news
LaVelle Neal reported Monday that Joe Vavra is leaving the Twins to join Ron Gardenhire's coaching staff in Detroit.
Vavra has held a variety of coaching positions over the years with the Twins. He started as the hitting coach, then in various years was the third base coach, the first base coach and most recently bench coach.
Neal also reports that Rick Anderson will be on Gardy's staff as well -- as bullpen coach. Chris Bosio, who had been the Cubs pitching coach, will be the Tigers' PC. That figures to be an interesting dynamic.
So that's two of Gardy's gang rejoining him in Detroit. Will Scott Ullger be next?
The Twins now have a coaching post to fill.
---
The Fielding Bible Awards are a relatively recent alternative to the Gold Glove Awards. While lacking the tradition and reputation of the Gold Gloves, the Fielding Bible has some significant advantages -- a transparent voting system, one award per position for all of MLB, and a built-in role for defensive metrics.
This year's award winners were announced Monday by Baseball Info Systems, which runs the voting process. Byron Buxton was a near unanimous winner in centerfield (he drew one second place vote). He is the first Twin to win a FB award.
The announcement is here. Details of the voting will be published in the annual Bill James Handbook, due out later this week
Vavra has held a variety of coaching positions over the years with the Twins. He started as the hitting coach, then in various years was the third base coach, the first base coach and most recently bench coach.
Neal also reports that Rick Anderson will be on Gardy's staff as well -- as bullpen coach. Chris Bosio, who had been the Cubs pitching coach, will be the Tigers' PC. That figures to be an interesting dynamic.
So that's two of Gardy's gang rejoining him in Detroit. Will Scott Ullger be next?
The Twins now have a coaching post to fill.
---
The Fielding Bible Awards are a relatively recent alternative to the Gold Glove Awards. While lacking the tradition and reputation of the Gold Gloves, the Fielding Bible has some significant advantages -- a transparent voting system, one award per position for all of MLB, and a built-in role for defensive metrics.
This year's award winners were announced Monday by Baseball Info Systems, which runs the voting process. Byron Buxton was a near unanimous winner in centerfield (he drew one second place vote). He is the first Twin to win a FB award.
The announcement is here. Details of the voting will be published in the annual Bill James Handbook, due out later this week
Friday, September 15, 2017
Contemplating Byron Buxton
 |
| Bryon Buxton brings his home run home through a shower of bubble gum Thursday night. |
Eddie Rosario on Wednesday, Byron Buxton on Thursday.
(We should, therefore, expect big things from Max Kepler tonight.)
Jeff Passan of Yahoo posted this piece on Buxton's emergence earlier on Thursday. Two noteworthy items in it, one trivial and one substantial. The trivial: Buxton can't beat his 30-year-old brother in a footrace. The substantial: how hitting coach James Rowson worked with Buxton to overcome his hitting difficulties.
I said here when Tom Brunansky (and Butch Davis) were fired from the coaching staff last November that Buxton and Miguel Sano's difficult 2016 season did in Bruno as hitting coach.
There were players Brunansky helped, with Brian Dozier being a prime example. But as I said 10 months ago, the Twins have to have Buxton as a cornerstone. And now he appears to be just that.
Buxton's greatest contribution, of course, is his defense. And this week the geniuses (no sarcasm intended) at Statcast rolled out a new defensive metric: Outs Above Average. Buxton tops that standard, with Kepler 13th in the majors and Rosario well down the list, behind even Robbie Grossman.
OAA is a metric I intend to keep an eye on.
So .. Twins win, Angels lose. Twins have a three-game lead for the final wild card spot with 16 games to go.
Sunday, August 20, 2017
Pic of the Week
 |
| Byron Buxton celebrates Friday night's inside the park homer. |
A standup triple. A standup double. An inside-the-park homer, timed by Statcast at 13.85 seconds, the fastest such jaunt in the almost three seasons that the service has been timing players.
No, he's not a bust.
Thursday, August 3, 2017
Buxton and Gee
Twins activate Byron Buxton from the DL and recall Dillon Gee from AAA Rochester. They take roster spots from Kintzler and Garcia trades.— Rhett Bollinger (@RhettBollinger) August 1, 2017
OK, I'm a couple days late on these moves but ...
1) It's probably no coincidence that the Twins fell out of the race during the two weeks plus that Byron Buxton was out of action. As Baseball Reference figures WAR, Buxton is the second-most valuable Twin and best position player (as of this morning). (He's been moving up the list even without playing.)
That obviously gives a lot of weight to Buxton's defensive prowess, and defense is the part of such evaluations that is most difficult to pinpoint. But the eye test suggests that the Twins may have lost a couple of games during this stretch because Buxton wasn't in center field.
2) Gee presumably takes the rotation spot vacated by the Jaime Garcia trade. The former Mets mainstay was certainly patient; he could have opted out of his minor league deal with the Twins a couple weeks ago. He made five starts in Rochester, 27 innings with a 2.00 ERA, 20 strikeouts and just three walks.
I rather expected Kyle Gibson to return. This may be a piece of evidence that the front office is ready to turn the page on the former first-round pick. Or it may be simply be that they figured that Gee deserved a reward for hanging around. I'm fine with Gee over Gibson.
I will say this, however; having veteran retreads Gee and Bartolo Colon in the rotation while Aaron Slegers rolls along in Triple A is a bit irking.
Monday, July 24, 2017
Goodbye, Breslow (and injury updates)
Craig Breslow was designated for assignment after Sunday's game. The move was unsurprising, necessary and, for me at least, a bit depressing. I've always liked Breslow, or more accurately I liked what Breslow represented -- a top-of-the-charts intellect carving out a space for himself in baseball.
Breslow's been through this before. The veteran lefty is in his 12th major league season; he's pitched for seven teams in that time, but this is his second go-around with the Twins, and he had a pair with Boston as well. So he's been passed around like a dollar bill, and he's getting pretty worn -- he hasn't had a sub-4.00 ERA since 2013, when he helped the Red Sox win the World Series.
This might be it for Breslow as a pitcher, although Paul Molitor said he wants to continue his career and the Twins will try to place him with another major league team. He might even accept assignment to Rochester.
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No corresponding move was announced Sunday, but the expectation is that Justin Haley -- remember him? -- will come off the disabled list. The Rule 5 pick was last seen almost two months ago, and his 30-day rehab assignment is to expire Tuesday.
He's tabbed for long relief, but he is stretched out -- he's been starting for Rochester -- and if there's no trade for a starter and if Bartolo Colon washes out, he might get a chance to start. Those are two "ifs," and I doubt the Twins are eager to go that route.
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Speaking of 30-day rehab assignments, the clock started ticking during the weekend on Glen Perkins, who appeared in a Gulf Coast League game. He faced three hitters, striking out two and getting a comebacker to the mound.
The GCL being what it is -- the lowest rung on the organizational ladder -- the results are almost meaningless. More important:
The first is good, the second less so. I doubt he can pitch effectively in the majors with a 90 mph fastball; changing speeds has never been his forte, and the lack of a usable changeup is part of what drove him to the bullpen.
The timeline is intriguing. If all goes well (that word if again) the Twins would have to bring him off the disabled list in late August, before the expansion of the active roster. Even if Perkins' return is somehow delayed until September, it will require opening a spot on the 40-man roster. There's a lot of time between now and then, to be sure.
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No rehab assignment for Bryon Buxton, in part, it seems, because the Twins will be in Los Angeles today through Wednesday and the travel was deemed excessive. Buxton is eligible to come off the DL Tuesday.
Buxton, incidentally, ranks third on the team in WAR as calculated by Baseball Reference, behind Ervin Santana and Miguel Sano but ahead of Max Kepler and Brandon Kintzler.
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The Twins traded pitcher Nick Tepesch to Toronto on Sunday for "cash considerations." This ranks as an exceedingly minor transaction; he's been on a minor league DL for a while and didn't appear to be in the Twins plans for the rest of the seasons. The "cash considerations" may wind up being dinner at the Winter Meetings.
Breslow's been through this before. The veteran lefty is in his 12th major league season; he's pitched for seven teams in that time, but this is his second go-around with the Twins, and he had a pair with Boston as well. So he's been passed around like a dollar bill, and he's getting pretty worn -- he hasn't had a sub-4.00 ERA since 2013, when he helped the Red Sox win the World Series.
This might be it for Breslow as a pitcher, although Paul Molitor said he wants to continue his career and the Twins will try to place him with another major league team. He might even accept assignment to Rochester.
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No corresponding move was announced Sunday, but the expectation is that Justin Haley -- remember him? -- will come off the disabled list. The Rule 5 pick was last seen almost two months ago, and his 30-day rehab assignment is to expire Tuesday.
He's tabbed for long relief, but he is stretched out -- he's been starting for Rochester -- and if there's no trade for a starter and if Bartolo Colon washes out, he might get a chance to start. Those are two "ifs," and I doubt the Twins are eager to go that route.
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Speaking of 30-day rehab assignments, the clock started ticking during the weekend on Glen Perkins, who appeared in a Gulf Coast League game. He faced three hitters, striking out two and getting a comebacker to the mound.
The GCL being what it is -- the lowest rung on the organizational ladder -- the results are almost meaningless. More important:
- He was reportedly without pain,
- His velocity topped out at 90.
The first is good, the second less so. I doubt he can pitch effectively in the majors with a 90 mph fastball; changing speeds has never been his forte, and the lack of a usable changeup is part of what drove him to the bullpen.
The timeline is intriguing. If all goes well (that word if again) the Twins would have to bring him off the disabled list in late August, before the expansion of the active roster. Even if Perkins' return is somehow delayed until September, it will require opening a spot on the 40-man roster. There's a lot of time between now and then, to be sure.
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No rehab assignment for Bryon Buxton, in part, it seems, because the Twins will be in Los Angeles today through Wednesday and the travel was deemed excessive. Buxton is eligible to come off the DL Tuesday.
Buxton, incidentally, ranks third on the team in WAR as calculated by Baseball Reference, behind Ervin Santana and Miguel Sano but ahead of Max Kepler and Brandon Kintzler.
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The Twins traded pitcher Nick Tepesch to Toronto on Sunday for "cash considerations." This ranks as an exceedingly minor transaction; he's been on a minor league DL for a while and didn't appear to be in the Twins plans for the rest of the seasons. The "cash considerations" may wind up being dinner at the Winter Meetings.
Saturday, July 8, 2017
Notes, quotes and comment
Friday was quite the busy day in Twinsdom. Let's get chronologic:
* Joe Mauer went on the disabled list with Kennys Vargas recalled. The Twins demoted Vargas on Monday to reactivate Ehire Adrianza. Mauer injured his back on Tuesday, and the Twins dawdled a couple of days before pulling the trigger, presumably (as I noted Thursday) because Vargas hasn't given them a lot of reason to get excited about playing him.
So naturally Vargas went 3-for-4 with a double and a couple RBIs.
*Brandon Kintzler was one of a handful of replacement All-Stars named Friday, and good for him. That gives the Twins three members of the AL squad: Miguel Sano, Ervin Santana and Kintzler.
Kintzler currently leads the American League in saves, which
* The Twins signed Bartolo Colon to a minor league deal.
Colon became an unlikely cult hero in his three years with the Mets; he's old (44), fat (listed at 285 pounds) and amusingly inept at the plate. But the Braves released him after he put up an 8.18 ERA in 13 starts.
I'm not optimistic about Colon. But I'm not optimistic about the rotation "fixes" on hand either. Derek Falvey told the press corps during the game that Colon thinks he can correct himself and pitch beyond this season, and noted (accurately) that Colon has reinvented himself as a pitcher a few times. So we'll see; the Twins have a minimal investment in "Big Sexy," so all they have to lose are a couple of games.
* Felix Jorge started, got shelled, got demoted (that last, as least, as predicted here).
Roy Smalley drew a Johan Santana comp to Jorge early in the game on FSN, which is ridiculous. Santana is left-handed and threw harder than Jorge. A more realistic comp, at least in terms of what kind of pitcher Jorge might become, is Brad Radke -- a fastball that sits around 90, a good change-up, top-notch command of both pitches.
And, hey, if Jorge becomes Radke, that's marvelous. He's not there yet. He has no chance of becoming Santana. And the signing of Colon, plus the presence in Rochester of Dillon Gee (opt-out date July 15), plus Friday's failed outing -- that all adds up to he's not getting another shot at the majors anytime soon. Jorge is returning to Chattanooga, and I would expect to see him back in September but not before.
* Outfielder Zack Granite was recalled. He's hitting .360 in Rochester, which is good. He's drawn about as many walks in Rochester as Eddie Rosario has in Minnesota, which is less good, and has far less power.
The gaudy batting average not withstanding, Granite is a fringe prospect, a protoypical fourth outfielder -- left-handed contact hitter, fast enough to play center, not enough pop to be a regular. And as a lefty bat, he's not a particularly good fit as a backup in an outfield with Rosario and Max Kepler among the regulars.
Granite is, at best, Ben Revere with a better arm.
My prediction: He won't be up long.
*Byron Buxton scored from first base on a single to center. Wowzers.
Anybody who thinks Granite should get Buck's playing time is deluded. Baseball Reference, at this writing, has Buxton as the third-most valuable player on the 2017 Twins with 1.8 WAR, behind Ervin Santana and Kepler and fractionally ahead of Sano.
* Joe Mauer went on the disabled list with Kennys Vargas recalled. The Twins demoted Vargas on Monday to reactivate Ehire Adrianza. Mauer injured his back on Tuesday, and the Twins dawdled a couple of days before pulling the trigger, presumably (as I noted Thursday) because Vargas hasn't given them a lot of reason to get excited about playing him.
So naturally Vargas went 3-for-4 with a double and a couple RBIs.
*Brandon Kintzler was one of a handful of replacement All-Stars named Friday, and good for him. That gives the Twins three members of the AL squad: Miguel Sano, Ervin Santana and Kintzler.
Kintzler currently leads the American League in saves, which
- is meaningless as an evaluative stat and
- made his selection almost inevitable.
* The Twins signed Bartolo Colon to a minor league deal.
Colon became an unlikely cult hero in his three years with the Mets; he's old (44), fat (listed at 285 pounds) and amusingly inept at the plate. But the Braves released him after he put up an 8.18 ERA in 13 starts.
colon will start at triple-a rochester with twins. but plan is to get him up asap— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 8, 2017
I'm not optimistic about Colon. But I'm not optimistic about the rotation "fixes" on hand either. Derek Falvey told the press corps during the game that Colon thinks he can correct himself and pitch beyond this season, and noted (accurately) that Colon has reinvented himself as a pitcher a few times. So we'll see; the Twins have a minimal investment in "Big Sexy," so all they have to lose are a couple of games.
* Felix Jorge started, got shelled, got demoted (that last, as least, as predicted here).
Roy Smalley drew a Johan Santana comp to Jorge early in the game on FSN, which is ridiculous. Santana is left-handed and threw harder than Jorge. A more realistic comp, at least in terms of what kind of pitcher Jorge might become, is Brad Radke -- a fastball that sits around 90, a good change-up, top-notch command of both pitches.
And, hey, if Jorge becomes Radke, that's marvelous. He's not there yet. He has no chance of becoming Santana. And the signing of Colon, plus the presence in Rochester of Dillon Gee (opt-out date July 15), plus Friday's failed outing -- that all adds up to he's not getting another shot at the majors anytime soon. Jorge is returning to Chattanooga, and I would expect to see him back in September but not before.
* Outfielder Zack Granite was recalled. He's hitting .360 in Rochester, which is good. He's drawn about as many walks in Rochester as Eddie Rosario has in Minnesota, which is less good, and has far less power.
The gaudy batting average not withstanding, Granite is a fringe prospect, a protoypical fourth outfielder -- left-handed contact hitter, fast enough to play center, not enough pop to be a regular. And as a lefty bat, he's not a particularly good fit as a backup in an outfield with Rosario and Max Kepler among the regulars.
Granite is, at best, Ben Revere with a better arm.
My prediction: He won't be up long.
*Byron Buxton scored from first base on a single to center. Wowzers.
Anybody who thinks Granite should get Buck's playing time is deluded. Baseball Reference, at this writing, has Buxton as the third-most valuable player on the 2017 Twins with 1.8 WAR, behind Ervin Santana and Kepler and fractionally ahead of Sano.
Thursday, October 13, 2016
Byron Buxton, bad fielder? I don't think so.
I was poking around Baseball Reference looking for a quick-n-easy comment for today blog post and came up with this:
The defensive metrics on Byron Buxton as posted on that site have bizarrely different views of his defense.
Total Zone has Buxton sharply below average. Runs Saved has him a bit above.
He made, certainly, a few mistakes (generally near the wall). But I can't see that they were enough to rank him as a terrible defensive outfielder.
To be sure, the metrics are based on less than a half season of time, and even the most devoted advocates of these numbers say they need three years of date to be confident in the conclusions. This is one case where I will go with what my eyes tell me, and my eyes tell me that Buxton is a prime defensive outfielder.
The defensive metrics on Byron Buxton as posted on that site have bizarrely different views of his defense.
Total Zone has Buxton sharply below average. Runs Saved has him a bit above.
He made, certainly, a few mistakes (generally near the wall). But I can't see that they were enough to rank him as a terrible defensive outfielder.
To be sure, the metrics are based on less than a half season of time, and even the most devoted advocates of these numbers say they need three years of date to be confident in the conclusions. This is one case where I will go with what my eyes tell me, and my eyes tell me that Buxton is a prime defensive outfielder.
Friday, September 2, 2016
Notes, quotes and comment
The losing streak is over! Or, in homage to the opposing team's signature broadcaster (Hawk Harrelson), it's OVAH!
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A point I should have made explict in the Thursday post comparing Byron Buxton to Jackie Bradley Jr,: The Red Sox handled Bradley in the past much as the Twins have handled Buxton the last two years, with repeated demotions and callups. It finally clicked for Bradley this year, and if it doesn't click for Buxton this month, that neither means that it never will nor that the Twins have mishandled him.
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Eddie Rosario hasn't started in center field since the game in Toronto in which Max Kepler made an ill-advised dive for a looper that turned into a Little League home run.
The next day Danny Santana started in center; he gave way to Rosario after his injury. The next day Logan Schafer was up and in the lineup, and he played center all three games in Cleveland.
In one of those games, Kepler repeated the ill-advised dive, with the same result -- the ball bounced over him and rolled deep into right field. But this time Schafer was there and held the Cleveland batter to a double. Which prompted this Mike Berardino tweet:
It's quite possible that when Paul Molitor reviewed the Kepler play in Toronto, what stuck with him was that Kepler got to the ball at about the same time as Rosario did -- which suggests that Rosario was standing around admiring Kepler's effort and not anticipating that the ball might get past him.
---
A point I should have made explict in the Thursday post comparing Byron Buxton to Jackie Bradley Jr,: The Red Sox handled Bradley in the past much as the Twins have handled Buxton the last two years, with repeated demotions and callups. It finally clicked for Bradley this year, and if it doesn't click for Buxton this month, that neither means that it never will nor that the Twins have mishandled him.
---
Eddie Rosario hasn't started in center field since the game in Toronto in which Max Kepler made an ill-advised dive for a looper that turned into a Little League home run.
The next day Danny Santana started in center; he gave way to Rosario after his injury. The next day Logan Schafer was up and in the lineup, and he played center all three games in Cleveland.
In one of those games, Kepler repeated the ill-advised dive, with the same result -- the ball bounced over him and rolled deep into right field. But this time Schafer was there and held the Cleveland batter to a double. Which prompted this Mike Berardino tweet:
Davis doubles past a diving Kepler in right. Logan Schafer remembers to back up the play. What a concept.— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) August 30, 2016
It's quite possible that when Paul Molitor reviewed the Kepler play in Toronto, what stuck with him was that Kepler got to the ball at about the same time as Rosario did -- which suggests that Rosario was standing around admiring Kepler's effort and not anticipating that the ball might get past him.
Thursday, September 1, 2016
Buxton and Bradley
Buxton's back. The Twins recalled Byron Buxton from Triple A Rochester late Wednesday. Since today is Sept. 1, they don't have to open a spot on the 25-man roster for him.
On Wednesday afternoon I watched (on MLB Network) the Red Sox beat the Rays. Jackie Bradley Jr. homered and doubled for Boston, and it occurred to me that JBJ had similar growing pains to Buxton.
To be specific:
2013: Bradley (age 23 season) appears in 37 major league games for the Red Sox, hits .189.
2014: The Sox hand Bradley the center field job. He slashes a dismal .198/.265/.266.
2015: Bradley splits the season between Triple A and the majors. He produces in Triple A (.305/.382/.472) but struggles in the American League again, although with power (.249/.335/.498).
2016: Bradley emerges, making the All-Star team. (He had a poor August, however, hitting under .200 for the month).
The comp isn't perfect. Bradley's a left-handed hitter, Buxton right. Buxton's struggles have come in his age 21 and 22 seasons -- ages at which Bradley was not getting big league time. And Bradley plays his home games in Fenway Park, a very favorable environment for a left-handed hitter.
Still, I presume you can see my point. Buxton has struggled to hit major league pitching so far. So did Bradley, for three years. But the Sox stuck with Bradley, and now they have a very good center fielder. Patience may be a difficult virtue, but it's a vital one.
On Wednesday afternoon I watched (on MLB Network) the Red Sox beat the Rays. Jackie Bradley Jr. homered and doubled for Boston, and it occurred to me that JBJ had similar growing pains to Buxton.
To be specific:
2013: Bradley (age 23 season) appears in 37 major league games for the Red Sox, hits .189.
2014: The Sox hand Bradley the center field job. He slashes a dismal .198/.265/.266.
2015: Bradley splits the season between Triple A and the majors. He produces in Triple A (.305/.382/.472) but struggles in the American League again, although with power (.249/.335/.498).
2016: Bradley emerges, making the All-Star team. (He had a poor August, however, hitting under .200 for the month).
The comp isn't perfect. Bradley's a left-handed hitter, Buxton right. Buxton's struggles have come in his age 21 and 22 seasons -- ages at which Bradley was not getting big league time. And Bradley plays his home games in Fenway Park, a very favorable environment for a left-handed hitter.
Still, I presume you can see my point. Buxton has struggled to hit major league pitching so far. So did Bradley, for three years. But the Sox stuck with Bradley, and now they have a very good center fielder. Patience may be a difficult virtue, but it's a vital one.
Saturday, July 9, 2016
Contempating Byron Buxton
 |
| Byron Buxton gets checked out Friday night after losing his confrontation with the outfield wall in Arlington, Texas. He's to have an MRI exam today after he was carted off the field, |
I do wish he's stop running into walls. There are a few players who seem capable of that without damaging themselves, but the wall wins pretty consistently.
Buxton never came to the plate Friday, so his six-game hitting streak is intact. He's raised his batting average 23 points and his on-base percentage 26 points in those six games, not that .212 and .253 are anything to get excited about. He also has a two-game no-strikeout streak going, which doesn't sound like much but is the only such making-contact streak of his major league season,
He's had a longer and more difficult transition into the majors than I expected, but he's been showing signs of late that he's catching on. Now he's just got to stay in the lineup.
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