The Twins could have won Sunday's game in the ninth, but Ehire Adrianza isn't Byron Buxton afoot, and Cleveland executed its relay well, and Adrianza -- who was pinch-running for C.J. Cron -- was out by about 10 feet at the plate.
Even after Adrianza was nailed, the Twins still had the tying run at second with two outs. But Jonathan Schoop has had a terrible season in close games -- almost all his production has come in blowouts -- and he once again didn't come through.
But I want to discuss the Adrianza play. A few points:
1. Adrianza was pinch-running for Cron specifically to try to score from first on an extra-base hit. There was a runner (Luis Arraez) on second, so a stolen base wasn't in order, and Cleveland wouldn't be holding the runner on first, so the man on first could get a longer lead.
So it wasn't surprising that Tony Diaz sent Adrianza. This was exactly what Adrianza was in the game for. If the Twins were willing to settle for a double scoring Arraez and having the other runner stop at third, they didn't have to run for Cron.
2. Adrianza isn't truly fast. He is a middle infielder, and middle infielders are frequently fast, but Adrianza is an exception. He has nimble feet -- he's good at fielding a ball and being in position to make a throw, but that's not the same as running 270 feet in three directions.
3. I thought at the time that Adrianza took a poor route between third and home, but on the replay I saw that he indeed cut third base well and took a more direct route home. We've seen players run a wide loop around the bases, sometimes running closer to the third-base dugout than to the chalk line. That wasn't the case with Adrianza.
4. Was there a better pinch-running option than Adrianza? Rule out Jason Castro. Maybe Jake Cave is faster than Adrianza. And Cave could have played right in the 10th inning with Marwin Gonzalez shifting to first in Cron's place. But I assume the Twins know who's faster between Adrianza and Cave, and it's quite possible that even if there is a difference that it wasn't enough to make the difference betweens safe and out on that play.
Showing posts with label Ehire Adrianza. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ehire Adrianza. Show all posts
Monday, August 12, 2019
Monday, June 10, 2019
Thoughts from the weekend
The Twins went 6-4 on their just-completed road trip. That record matched my expectation in total, although in a different shape. I figured a split with the Rays and taking two-of-three in both Cleveland and Detroit.
A 6-4 road trip is quite acceptable, even if it feels like they gave away one of the games in Cleveland and even if it feels as if a quality team should never lose to the Tigers.
Now the schedule gets a bit easier, with home series against the Mariners and Royals before an intriguing series with the Red Sox. Boston isn't playing up to last year's level -- which was a very high level indeed -- but we're a week away from that matchup.
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Roster moves since I last posted: Devin Smeltzer was returned to Triple A Friday, with Michael Pineda coming off the injured list and allowing his customary three runs (albeit in just five innings rather than his usual six).
And the slumping Willians Astudillo was optioned out Saturday, with Ryan Eades giving the Twins an eighth bullpen arm and making his major league debut later that day. Here's what I wrote about him in 2014 after seeing him in Cedar Rapids.
What I actually remember of him on that trip came the next day, when he and other Kernels pitchers were supposed to be charting pitches behind home plate. There was a pop-up corn-on-the-cob stand on the concourse, and Eades spent a good part of the game chowing down on the roasted corn. (So did I; it was good stuff.)
I'm not thrilled with Astudillo's demotion, but I have to admit that
he hasn't hit since returning from his injured list and
Ehire Adrianza has.
Add in the reality that Adrianza is out of options, and it was a pretty easy call; if you have to go to 13 pitchers -- and I still hate conceding that -- Astudillo had to be the one cut.
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Best wishes to David Ortiz, shot in the back Sunday in his native Dominican Republic. As I write this, he is reportedly out of surgery and his life not in jeopardy.
I don't want to call that good news, though. Nothing good about this event at all.
A 6-4 road trip is quite acceptable, even if it feels like they gave away one of the games in Cleveland and even if it feels as if a quality team should never lose to the Tigers.
Now the schedule gets a bit easier, with home series against the Mariners and Royals before an intriguing series with the Red Sox. Boston isn't playing up to last year's level -- which was a very high level indeed -- but we're a week away from that matchup.
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Roster moves since I last posted: Devin Smeltzer was returned to Triple A Friday, with Michael Pineda coming off the injured list and allowing his customary three runs (albeit in just five innings rather than his usual six).
And the slumping Willians Astudillo was optioned out Saturday, with Ryan Eades giving the Twins an eighth bullpen arm and making his major league debut later that day. Here's what I wrote about him in 2014 after seeing him in Cedar Rapids.
What I actually remember of him on that trip came the next day, when he and other Kernels pitchers were supposed to be charting pitches behind home plate. There was a pop-up corn-on-the-cob stand on the concourse, and Eades spent a good part of the game chowing down on the roasted corn. (So did I; it was good stuff.)
I'm not thrilled with Astudillo's demotion, but I have to admit that
he hasn't hit since returning from his injured list and
Ehire Adrianza has.
Add in the reality that Adrianza is out of options, and it was a pretty easy call; if you have to go to 13 pitchers -- and I still hate conceding that -- Astudillo had to be the one cut.
---
Best wishes to David Ortiz, shot in the back Sunday in his native Dominican Republic. As I write this, he is reportedly out of surgery and his life not in jeopardy.
I don't want to call that good news, though. Nothing good about this event at all.
Monday, May 27, 2019
An overthought from the weekend
The Twins have a 10-game lead on Memorial Day.
I was optimistic about this team when the season opened, but I didn't expect this.
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This is probably overthinking the weekend, but I keep trying to find significance in an insignificant end-of-game move Saturday.
Rocco Baldelli started Jorge Polanco at designated hitter that game, with Miguel Sano at third and Ehire Adrianza at short. Late in the game, Baldelli pulled Sano for Luis Arraez, but inserted the rookie at shortstop and shifted Adrianza to third.
Adrianza's base position is shortstop. Arraez's is second base, but he had split this season in the minors almost evenly between second and third. He has very little time at shortstop. It seems to me more likely that if those two are on the left side of the infield that Arraez would be at third and Adrianza at short.
So why flip them? My overthought: If and when this team gets back to full health, Baldelli will have an overcrowded roster. At some point Nelson Cruz (wrist) and Mitch Garver (ankle) will come off the injured list, and two players on the active roster will have to come off. And unless somebody else goes on the injured list, those moves are difficult to identify.
Arraez, who has now played more in the majors than he has in Triple A, is a likely first demotion, not because he's struggled in the majors but because he's optionable and wasn't really expected to be knocking on the door at this point anyway. A second ...
Willians Astudillo is optionable, but I think the Twins want his unique skill set in the majors. Dropping to 12 pitchers is certainly a possibility -- the back end of the 'pen has been underused for more than a week -- but every time they do that they rapidly decide they need the 13th.
Which takes me to Adrianza. He's out of options, so the Twins would have to put him on waivers. If he clears, they presumably can outright him to Triple A and still have him available if they need another infielder in the majors. But what if somebody claims him? What do the Twins have as org depth at shortstop?
They have not played Marwin Gonzalez in the middle infield yet, in large part because Adrianza has been on the roster all season. DFA Adrianza, and Gonzalez would presumably become the No. 2 shortstop and second baseman behind Polanco and Jonathan Schoop. That works unless and until somebody goes on the injured list.
Behind them: Nick Gordon is on the 40-man roster and at Rochester, but he's only played a dozen games because of injury. Ronald Torreyes, who had a few good seasons on the Yankees bench and was signed as a minor-league free agent, is hitting under .150 at Rochester.
So they take a look at Arraez at short. They're not going to see that he can definitely handle the position in one or two innings, but it plants the seed in his mind that this team might need him to play shortstop down the road.
Arraez at short isn't ideal, and it may never be necessary. But that possibility, however thin, might be behind that slightly odd Saturday move.
I was optimistic about this team when the season opened, but I didn't expect this.
---
This is probably overthinking the weekend, but I keep trying to find significance in an insignificant end-of-game move Saturday.
Rocco Baldelli started Jorge Polanco at designated hitter that game, with Miguel Sano at third and Ehire Adrianza at short. Late in the game, Baldelli pulled Sano for Luis Arraez, but inserted the rookie at shortstop and shifted Adrianza to third.
Adrianza's base position is shortstop. Arraez's is second base, but he had split this season in the minors almost evenly between second and third. He has very little time at shortstop. It seems to me more likely that if those two are on the left side of the infield that Arraez would be at third and Adrianza at short.
So why flip them? My overthought: If and when this team gets back to full health, Baldelli will have an overcrowded roster. At some point Nelson Cruz (wrist) and Mitch Garver (ankle) will come off the injured list, and two players on the active roster will have to come off. And unless somebody else goes on the injured list, those moves are difficult to identify.
Arraez, who has now played more in the majors than he has in Triple A, is a likely first demotion, not because he's struggled in the majors but because he's optionable and wasn't really expected to be knocking on the door at this point anyway. A second ...
Willians Astudillo is optionable, but I think the Twins want his unique skill set in the majors. Dropping to 12 pitchers is certainly a possibility -- the back end of the 'pen has been underused for more than a week -- but every time they do that they rapidly decide they need the 13th.
Which takes me to Adrianza. He's out of options, so the Twins would have to put him on waivers. If he clears, they presumably can outright him to Triple A and still have him available if they need another infielder in the majors. But what if somebody claims him? What do the Twins have as org depth at shortstop?
They have not played Marwin Gonzalez in the middle infield yet, in large part because Adrianza has been on the roster all season. DFA Adrianza, and Gonzalez would presumably become the No. 2 shortstop and second baseman behind Polanco and Jonathan Schoop. That works unless and until somebody goes on the injured list.
Behind them: Nick Gordon is on the 40-man roster and at Rochester, but he's only played a dozen games because of injury. Ronald Torreyes, who had a few good seasons on the Yankees bench and was signed as a minor-league free agent, is hitting under .150 at Rochester.
So they take a look at Arraez at short. They're not going to see that he can definitely handle the position in one or two innings, but it plants the seed in his mind that this team might need him to play shortstop down the road.
Arraez at short isn't ideal, and it may never be necessary. But that possibility, however thin, might be behind that slightly odd Saturday move.
Tuesday, May 21, 2019
'A' is for Adrianza
The 2019 default infield for the Twins has been C.J. Cron at first base, Jonathan Schoop at second, Marwin Gonzalez at third and Jorge Polanco at short.
None of them were at those positions Monday night in Anaheim. The first three were on the bench and Polanco was the designated hitter. Monday's infield was Willians Astudillo at first, Luis Arraez at second, Miguel Sano at third and Ehrie Adrianza at short.
The initials of three of those four notwithstanding, that is not the Twins' A-team infield. And yet ... Sano hit a two-run homer, Adrianza drove in the Twins' other run, Arraez had three hits and Astudillo had another.
Sano, of course, was always supposed to be a foundation piece of this team. Arraez is only up because Mitch Garver and Nelson Cruz are on the injured list. And it very well may be that, if and when everybody is healthy, either Astudillo or Adrianza loses his roster berth.
My assumption has been that Adrianza, despite being out of options, is the more likely to be bounced. But he has certainly been playing a lot lately, and all over the field.
Which is nothing new; he has, in his time with the Twins, played everywhere but center and catcher. I don't call him a superutility player because I reserve that term for somebody who is a regular without a constant position, a la Gonzalez or Ben Zobrist. He doesn't hit well enough for that kind of role. But his versatility gives him value. especially on a roster with 13 pitchers.
None of them were at those positions Monday night in Anaheim. The first three were on the bench and Polanco was the designated hitter. Monday's infield was Willians Astudillo at first, Luis Arraez at second, Miguel Sano at third and Ehrie Adrianza at short.
The initials of three of those four notwithstanding, that is not the Twins' A-team infield. And yet ... Sano hit a two-run homer, Adrianza drove in the Twins' other run, Arraez had three hits and Astudillo had another.
Sano, of course, was always supposed to be a foundation piece of this team. Arraez is only up because Mitch Garver and Nelson Cruz are on the injured list. And it very well may be that, if and when everybody is healthy, either Astudillo or Adrianza loses his roster berth.
My assumption has been that Adrianza, despite being out of options, is the more likely to be bounced. But he has certainly been playing a lot lately, and all over the field.
Which is nothing new; he has, in his time with the Twins, played everywhere but center and catcher. I don't call him a superutility player because I reserve that term for somebody who is a regular without a constant position, a la Gonzalez or Ben Zobrist. He doesn't hit well enough for that kind of role. But his versatility gives him value. especially on a roster with 13 pitchers.
Tuesday, June 12, 2018
The fast facts and stereotypes
Filed under fast facts:
#mntwins sprint speed (feet/second):— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) June 12, 2018
Buxton 30.5
LaMarre 28.0
Rosario 27.9
Kepler, Escobar 27.7
Grossman 27.6
Adrianza 26.9
Dozier 26.7
Garver 26.1
Morrison, Sano 26.0
Castro 25.9
Mauer 25.8
Petit 25.1
Wilson 23.5
Kinda makes you wonder why the fixation with having Ehrie Adrianza pinch run for Robbie Grossman, doesn't it?
It's understandable. Adrianza is a glove-first middle infielder; Grossman is a poor defensive corner outfielder. Most good middle infield gloves come attached to fast feet. Most poor defensive outfielders aren't very mobile.
And it's even possible that if you had the two run a 40-yard dash that Adrianza would win.
But there are few situations on a baseball field in which a player is asked to run 120 feet in a straight line. It's 90 feet from home to first, after which there's a 90-degree turn to navigate. And what these numbers tell us in that Grossman does the running baseball requires faster than Adrianza.
And after watching Adrianza stumble twice rounding third base before getting thrown out at home, I believe it.
Thursday, March 29, 2018
A bench of role guys
There are, broadly speaking, two kinds of bench players. There are players -- typically veterans -- who have specific in-game roles. And there are players -- typically younger -- who are waiting for a regular to get hurt or slump his way to the bench.
Leo Durocher, Hall of Fame manager, was notorious for dividing his teams into the guys who play and the guys who sit. Casey Stengel and Earl Weaver, also Hall of Fame managers, platooned everybody but their superstars; it was hard to tell who was their bench guys some years.
Rosters are shaped differently these days; benches are thinner when about half the roster is pitching. But the Twins bench under Ron Gardenhire tended strongly toward the Durocher model. Gardy didn't platoon much, and he liked a set lineup.
Paul Molitor has edged away from that, and it really shows in the bench the Twins expect to open with today. There are four players, and it's not difficult to identify their in-game roles:
Leo Durocher, Hall of Fame manager, was notorious for dividing his teams into the guys who play and the guys who sit. Casey Stengel and Earl Weaver, also Hall of Fame managers, platooned everybody but their superstars; it was hard to tell who was their bench guys some years.
Rosters are shaped differently these days; benches are thinner when about half the roster is pitching. But the Twins bench under Ron Gardenhire tended strongly toward the Durocher model. Gardy didn't platoon much, and he liked a set lineup.
Paul Molitor has edged away from that, and it really shows in the bench the Twins expect to open with today. There are four players, and it's not difficult to identify their in-game roles:
- Mitch Garver is the backup catcher. He's a right handed hitter, which gives Molitor a platoon option with starter Jason Castro.
- Ehire Adrianza, utility infielder, is a superior gloveman who started games last season at five different positions. He's a switch hitter.
- Robbie Grossman, switch-hitter, is an on-base percentage specialist. The more he plays in the outfield, the less his bat helps.
- Ryan LaMarre, right handed hitter, is something of a mirror image to Grossman. Despite his gaudy spring training numbers, he's never been much of a hitter, but he's fast and a good defensive outfielder.
Friday, November 24, 2017
From the Handbook: Defensive Statistics
This section of the Bill James Handbook has changed considerably over the years as defensive metrics have been devised, tested and improved.
The Twins player I was most interested in checking out here is Jorge Polanco, the regular shortstop who I believe is stretched at the position.
What these stats say is: He's not great, but he gets the job done.
He's at zero in "bases saved" and -1 in "runs saved," which adds up, essentially, to: He's an average shortstop. Which, if he's capable of being a productive middle-of-the-order bat -- and he hit third regularly down the stretch -- is quite acceptable.
It's worth noting, however, that 14 of the 24 shortstops listed as "regulars" at the position were better in the metrics. He's average compared to the entire set of shortstop innings, but less adept than most the guys who play most of the innings. As one might imagine for a key defensive position, the scrubs bring the average down -- and Polanco is good enough to be better than them.
Eduardo Escobar, in about an eighth of Polancos innings at short, is -2 in runs saved, and Ehrie Adrianza is +1 in about a quarter of Polanco's innings at short. That Adrianza is the best of the trio with the glove sounds right. I'm not convinced that Polanco's better than Escobar, but I'm not sure the difference matters much in either direction.
The Twins player I was most interested in checking out here is Jorge Polanco, the regular shortstop who I believe is stretched at the position.
What these stats say is: He's not great, but he gets the job done.
He's at zero in "bases saved" and -1 in "runs saved," which adds up, essentially, to: He's an average shortstop. Which, if he's capable of being a productive middle-of-the-order bat -- and he hit third regularly down the stretch -- is quite acceptable.
It's worth noting, however, that 14 of the 24 shortstops listed as "regulars" at the position were better in the metrics. He's average compared to the entire set of shortstop innings, but less adept than most the guys who play most of the innings. As one might imagine for a key defensive position, the scrubs bring the average down -- and Polanco is good enough to be better than them.
Eduardo Escobar, in about an eighth of Polancos innings at short, is -2 in runs saved, and Ehrie Adrianza is +1 in about a quarter of Polanco's innings at short. That Adrianza is the best of the trio with the glove sounds right. I'm not convinced that Polanco's better than Escobar, but I'm not sure the difference matters much in either direction.
Monday, September 18, 2017
Notes, quotes and comment
During my truncated biweekly appearance on KMSU Thursday, I volunteered the notion that Kyle Gibson was the key figure in the Twins push for the wild card.
He gave us reason to beleive that Sunday, both pro and con.
His first two innings were SOG -- Same Old Gibson. Four walks and four runs in the first inning, five runs -- including two homers -- in the first two innings. And then, four innings practically without blemish, the good Gibson of his previous five starts.
Gibson has had remarkable run support all year, and particularly of late. Five runs allowed in six innings is not a great start, but with 13 runs of support, it was good enough.
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Last week the Twins designated Engelb Vielma for assignment. The San Francisco Giants claimed him on waivers.
Last winter, the Giants waived Ehire Adrianza, who was initially claimed by the Milwaukee Brewers, to tried to get him through waivers themselves only to see the Twins claim him. Adrianza has stuck all year, starting games at five different positions. He's been the gloveman I expected (easily the best defensive shortstop on the roster) and a more productive hitter than anticipated.
In a very real sense, the Twins traded Vielma for Adrianza, just about seven months apart. They;re rather similar players -- switch-hitters, shortstops, some speed, glove-first. Vielma has options left, and Adrianza does not, and Adrianza has more pop in his bat, but in the main, they're the same guy.
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Adrianza has picked up a good bit of playing time in left field since Robbie Grossman's thumb injury in a platoon with Max Kepler, who has struggled at the plate against lefties. (Eddie Rosario shifts to right when Adrianza is in left.)
It's only 53 plate appearances, but Adrianza has slashed .298/.340/447 against southpaws. And he hasn't embarrassed himself in the outfield despite little previous experience out there. (There have been too few innings for the metrics to be definitive, but they show him as a very good defensive outfielder.)
Grossman, whose splits last year showed more power right handed, has been the opposite this year. He's slugging just .355 as a right-handed hitter, .412 from the left side -- but his on-base percentage as a right handed hitter is a stellar .406, markedly better than his still-useful .355 as a lefty.
I know there are those who want to see more Kennys Vargas as DH and less Grossman, but one long ball a week really doesn't make up for the all the extra outs Vargas would make.
Paul Molitor has this month largely limited his lineup juggling to the outfield corners and DH. I certainly didn't expect Adrianza to emerge as a viable outfielder, and I do believe that platooning Kepler now is detrimental to his future, but Molitor has gotten immediate benefits from this approach.
He gave us reason to beleive that Sunday, both pro and con.
His first two innings were SOG -- Same Old Gibson. Four walks and four runs in the first inning, five runs -- including two homers -- in the first two innings. And then, four innings practically without blemish, the good Gibson of his previous five starts.
Gibson has had remarkable run support all year, and particularly of late. Five runs allowed in six innings is not a great start, but with 13 runs of support, it was good enough.
---
Last week the Twins designated Engelb Vielma for assignment. The San Francisco Giants claimed him on waivers.
Last winter, the Giants waived Ehire Adrianza, who was initially claimed by the Milwaukee Brewers, to tried to get him through waivers themselves only to see the Twins claim him. Adrianza has stuck all year, starting games at five different positions. He's been the gloveman I expected (easily the best defensive shortstop on the roster) and a more productive hitter than anticipated.
In a very real sense, the Twins traded Vielma for Adrianza, just about seven months apart. They;re rather similar players -- switch-hitters, shortstops, some speed, glove-first. Vielma has options left, and Adrianza does not, and Adrianza has more pop in his bat, but in the main, they're the same guy.
---
Adrianza has picked up a good bit of playing time in left field since Robbie Grossman's thumb injury in a platoon with Max Kepler, who has struggled at the plate against lefties. (Eddie Rosario shifts to right when Adrianza is in left.)
It's only 53 plate appearances, but Adrianza has slashed .298/.340/447 against southpaws. And he hasn't embarrassed himself in the outfield despite little previous experience out there. (There have been too few innings for the metrics to be definitive, but they show him as a very good defensive outfielder.)
Grossman, whose splits last year showed more power right handed, has been the opposite this year. He's slugging just .355 as a right-handed hitter, .412 from the left side -- but his on-base percentage as a right handed hitter is a stellar .406, markedly better than his still-useful .355 as a lefty.
I know there are those who want to see more Kennys Vargas as DH and less Grossman, but one long ball a week really doesn't make up for the all the extra outs Vargas would make.
Paul Molitor has this month largely limited his lineup juggling to the outfield corners and DH. I certainly didn't expect Adrianza to emerge as a viable outfielder, and I do believe that platooning Kepler now is detrimental to his future, but Molitor has gotten immediate benefits from this approach.
Tuesday, July 4, 2017
Notes, quotes and comment
 |
| Sir Rodney, back in Minnesota with his new heart |
So presumably he'll make it to Cooperstown for the Hall of Fame induction weekend later this month, and presumably the beloved bat magician will have a few more trips to Minnesota in the future.
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The Twins optioned out Kennys Vargas after the game and reactivated infielder Ehire Adrianza. They didn't want to send out a pitcher, considering all the short starts of late (Adalberto Mejia's seven-inning start Monday not withstanding), and Brian Dozier's back is apparently acting up, so another infielder might be needed.
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Baseball America's current issue names its high school player of the year (No. 3 overall pick Mackenzie Gore) and its All-American high school team. A notable omission in my eyes: Royce Lewis, the California prep infielder the Twins took first overall. He's not only absent from the first team, but the second and third as well, meaning BA found at least six high school middle infielders it deemed to have had better seasons.
This hardly means the Twins laid an egg last month by tabbing Lewis 1/1. (For what it's worth, the kid is putting on a laser show with the bat in a few dozen Gulf Coast League at-bats.) I just expected to see the first overall pick to be on the team.
Saturday, May 6, 2017
Roster moves and Mauer in the ninth
You probably have heard that Joe Mauer hit a walk-off homer Friday night, his first such four-bagger in his illustrious career.
I checked his career splits on Baseball Reference. It was his 14th ninth-inning homer. He sported coming into the game a .290/.377/.447 slash line in the ninth (a total of 520 plate appearances) with an OPS in the innings slightly below his career figure.
It hasn't been a particuarly productive season so far for Mauer, although, as Mike Bernardino noted earlier in the week in an exhaustive examination, luck ran against him in April. He's hit a pair of homers this week; maybe things are turning around for him.
---
The Twins made some roster moves earlier Friday.
Replacing Kyle Gibson on the pitching staff is Drew Rucinski, a right-hander who has 14.1 major league innings on his resume, all with the Angels The Twins signed him as a minor-league free agent after he spent 2016 getting pounded with the Cubs' Triple A affiliate (5.92 ERA). He's been pitching most relief in Rochester. I don't expect much.
They also activated Ehire Adrianza off the disabled list. And they DFA'd Danny Santana, a move that both opened a 40-man roster spot for Rucinski and an active roster spot for Adrianza.
Santana's departure comes immediately after one of his better games; he homered and had a bunt single on Thursday. "What have you done for me lately?" apparently wasn't prominent in the front office's decision making.
Adrianza played a handful of games in the outfield in Rochester, which was a sign the Twins were eyeing Santana's roster spot and limited role for him. Adrianza is by reputation a superior gloveman in the infield but a light hitter -- not that Santana, despite Thursday's long ball, is a particularly good batsman.
Meanwhile, Bryon Buxton sat Friday with headaches after three collisions with the outfield fence drove him from the game on Thursday. The Twins report that he has otherwise cleared the concussion protocol, but we should remember that Buxton had a signficant concussion a few years ago in the minors. I suspect a trip to the concussion DL is in his future.
And Brian Dozier twisted an ankle Friday. He stayed in the game but was pinch-hit for just before Mauer's homer. Upshot: there may be more roster moves ahead.
I checked his career splits on Baseball Reference. It was his 14th ninth-inning homer. He sported coming into the game a .290/.377/.447 slash line in the ninth (a total of 520 plate appearances) with an OPS in the innings slightly below his career figure.
It hasn't been a particuarly productive season so far for Mauer, although, as Mike Bernardino noted earlier in the week in an exhaustive examination, luck ran against him in April. He's hit a pair of homers this week; maybe things are turning around for him.
---
The Twins made some roster moves earlier Friday.
 |
| Drew Rucinski had an impressive K/9 rate for Rochester before his callup. |
They also activated Ehire Adrianza off the disabled list. And they DFA'd Danny Santana, a move that both opened a 40-man roster spot for Rucinski and an active roster spot for Adrianza.
Santana's departure comes immediately after one of his better games; he homered and had a bunt single on Thursday. "What have you done for me lately?" apparently wasn't prominent in the front office's decision making.
Adrianza played a handful of games in the outfield in Rochester, which was a sign the Twins were eyeing Santana's roster spot and limited role for him. Adrianza is by reputation a superior gloveman in the infield but a light hitter -- not that Santana, despite Thursday's long ball, is a particularly good batsman.
Meanwhile, Bryon Buxton sat Friday with headaches after three collisions with the outfield fence drove him from the game on Thursday. The Twins report that he has otherwise cleared the concussion protocol, but we should remember that Buxton had a signficant concussion a few years ago in the minors. I suspect a trip to the concussion DL is in his future.
And Brian Dozier twisted an ankle Friday. He stayed in the game but was pinch-hit for just before Mauer's homer. Upshot: there may be more roster moves ahead.
Saturday, March 4, 2017
Guess Who, part six
We'll wrap up this silly little series with a two-fer -- a pair of good-field, no-hit shortstops, Ehire Adrianza and Engelb Vielma.
No more than one of these guys will be on the Opening Day roster, and probably neither. A bit more than a week into the Grapefruit League season, it appears that Jorge Polanco is likely to open the season as the shortstop. Polanco is, as a shortstop, good-hit, no-field -- the opposite of these two glovemen. And veteran Eduardo Escobar is the shortstop in the middle -- a better hitter than Adrianza and Vielma, a better fielder than Polanco, and apparently not good enough at either to get and keep the starting job.
Adrianza is presumably out of options; Vielma, while on the 40 man roster, is assuredly not. So Adrianza has the advantage this spring. But he's been waived twice since the 2016 season ended -- first by the Giants, then by the Brewers -- and it's certainly possible that the Twins will try to sneak him through waivers themselves before the season begins. He probably didn't help his cause earlier this week with a mental error.
If the Twins do get Adrianza through waiver, they will have a pair of very similar players vying for the shortstop time in Triple A. Certainly Nick Gordon should be the Double A shortstop this spring, so Chattanooga is not a genuine possibility.
No more than one of these guys will be on the Opening Day roster, and probably neither. A bit more than a week into the Grapefruit League season, it appears that Jorge Polanco is likely to open the season as the shortstop. Polanco is, as a shortstop, good-hit, no-field -- the opposite of these two glovemen. And veteran Eduardo Escobar is the shortstop in the middle -- a better hitter than Adrianza and Vielma, a better fielder than Polanco, and apparently not good enough at either to get and keep the starting job.
Adrianza is presumably out of options; Vielma, while on the 40 man roster, is assuredly not. So Adrianza has the advantage this spring. But he's been waived twice since the 2016 season ended -- first by the Giants, then by the Brewers -- and it's certainly possible that the Twins will try to sneak him through waivers themselves before the season begins. He probably didn't help his cause earlier this week with a mental error.
If the Twins do get Adrianza through waiver, they will have a pair of very similar players vying for the shortstop time in Triple A. Certainly Nick Gordon should be the Double A shortstop this spring, so Chattanooga is not a genuine possibility.
Tuesday, February 7, 2017
Shaking the glove tree
The Twins shook the proverbial glove tree Monday, claiming infielder Ehire Adrianza on waivers.
Adrianza has been up and down with the Giants the past four seasons, amassing 331 plate appearances and not doing much with them (slash line .220/.282/313). He is said to be a very adept gloveman, however, and apparently at least some of the advanced metrics agree:
As a solution to the Twins shortstop question, he has the same problem as Engelb Vielma: Teams in the 1970s would play a slick fielding shortstop who can't hit. They don't in the 2010s.
This is the second time Adrianza has been claimed on waivers this year; the Brewers claimed him on Jan. 31, then tried to get him through waivers themselves. I wouldn't be surprised if the Twins tried waiving him. He's got to be out of options, which means that if he's not on the major league roster he has to go through waivers to be outrighted.
Adrianza has been up and down with the Giants the past four seasons, amassing 331 plate appearances and not doing much with them (slash line .220/.282/313). He is said to be a very adept gloveman, however, and apparently at least some of the advanced metrics agree:
Wow. Of the 88 players to amass 300 innings at SS since 2013, Ehire Adrianza ranks 3rd in UZR/150. He trails only Simmons and Lindor.— Tom Froemming (@BaseballByTom) February 6, 2017
As a solution to the Twins shortstop question, he has the same problem as Engelb Vielma: Teams in the 1970s would play a slick fielding shortstop who can't hit. They don't in the 2010s.
This is the second time Adrianza has been claimed on waivers this year; the Brewers claimed him on Jan. 31, then tried to get him through waivers themselves. I wouldn't be surprised if the Twins tried waiving him. He's got to be out of options, which means that if he's not on the major league roster he has to go through waivers to be outrighted.
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