It seems that no matter how many times we see it, baseball fans just never learn. Every spring baseball fans and experts alike say that this is the year that the Minnesota Twins are going to finish below .500 and at the bottom of the AL Central. Then summer comes along a few months later, and there they are. Sitting on top, or near the top of the division while the rest of us scratch their heads.Though it happens every season, it still catches us all by surprise, but this season has been the most baffling of all. There is just no way that the Twins should be sitting at 40-36, only a game and a half behind the first place White Sox. The obvious reasons for this are that the team said goodbye to both Johan Santana and Torii Hunter during the offseason, and that Francisco Liriano has spent his time on the disabled list.
Still, it's not exactly a new phenomenon that teams carry on and continue playing well after saying goodbye to their stars. The Athletics have been doing it for years along with the Twins, so we know it can be done. The difference between these Twins, though, and the Twins and Athletics teams of the past is how they're doing it.
The guys who were supposed to replace what was lost have been horrible so far, yet they're still winning.
Think about it, what exactly have any of the Twins new additions this season done for the team? Carlos Gomez came in the Santana trade to replace Hunter in center, and though he's been entertaining as all hell, he's also been frustratingly inconsistent at times as well. He's only hitting .269/.302/.379, which isn't ideal for a lead-off hitter, yet he's getting the job done.
Livan Hernandez was brought in to be the team's ace in the absence of Johan, and though he's 8-4 on the season, he also has an ERA of 5.23 and a WHIP of 1.61. That has to catch up to him sooner or later, no?
Hernandez and Gomez are just two of the replacements, though, as the team brought in quite a few others to fill holes (most of whom seem to come from Houston and Tampa). Look at the other additions the Twins made to the club this season and how they're doing.
- Adam Everett - .189/.235/.324, lost shortstop job to Brendan Harris
- Brendan Harris - .250/.312/.338, took Everett's job but is now in danger of losing it to Nick Punto
- Mike Lamb - .224/.263/.302, a huge bust over at third
- Craig Monroe - .211/.271/.415, not the kind of production the team wanted
- Delmon Young - .275/.326/.366, the average is fine but the one home run in 276 at bats is not
The Twins are still fourth in the AL in batting average (.272), and runs scored (365), but they're ninth in OBP (.327). The pitching staff is tenth in the league in ERA at 4.35 and opponents are hitting .288 against them, the highest average against in the Majors, let alone the AL.
Oh, and did I mention that usually sound Twins defense has committed the sixth most errors in baseball (53) and are ranked 24th in fielding percentage at .982?
How the hell is this team winning?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-25-2008 @ 1:09PM
bobz said...
i'll tell you how they are still winning games. they have a very good middle lineup. mauer, morneau, and cuddyer. and with the speed with the top 2 positions of Carlos Gomez aka the heart break kid HBK...= Homer,bunt, strikeout(k). and alexi cassilas, they are a dangerous small ball team.
and lets not forget that the metrodome is 1 of the hardest stadiums to play in, especially for visting teams, not used to the turf and the lights.
and 1 of the top 5 best closers in the game Joe Nathan finishing the game, doesnt hurt either. the central division may not look very good this yr, but it is by far the best division again in all of baseball. any team has a shot at being great. even dare i say this, kansas city looked good early in the yr. twins,tigers,white sox and indians, they are all pretty good teams, and no1 has hit a real hot streak and run away with division. thats why every1 is hoovering around .500. cuz the competition is soo even
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