On Target: Home/road splits, take four

Target Field in twilight

There was a distinct taste of autumn in the air Tuesday night at Target Field. With the heat of summer probably largely behind us, it's time to update the running project of measuring the effect of the new park on the games.

Hitters, home: 71 games played, 361 runs scored (5.08 per game); 42 home runs (.59 per game). Slash stats: .280/.360/.426

Hitters, road: 69 games played, 324 runs (4.70); 80 HRs (1.16 per game). Slash stats: .269/.332/.432

Pitchers, home: 71 games, 269 runs allowed (3.90 per game); 51 HR (.71 per game). Slash stats: .265/.311/.394

Pitchers, road: 69 games, 295 runs allowed (4.27); 72 HR (1.04 per game). Slash stats: .267/.318/.428

The consensus is that the new park depresses home runs (unless you're Jim Thome), and certainly the numbers so far support that. The Twins hitters are going long about twice as often on the road as at home.

But it's not really having any effect on runs scored. There are 8.98 runs scored per game at Target Field, and 8.97 runs scored per game in the Twins road games.

One season by itself doesn't necessarily provide an accurate depiction of how a park plays, and the 2010 season isn't complete anyway. But so far, Target Field appears favor batting average more than power.