A lot of young teams that have fallen on tough times are going to bounce back this year, i.e. Miami Marlins, San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs, etc.
However, one team I think has one more year before they are there is the Minnesota Twins.
To be up front, I love the Twins. I love what they do as an organization with few resources and playing in a tough market, and have found ways to be successful.
Injuries have really set the young players back. Miguel Sano was poised to be a late season call up last year but an unusual case of Tommy John Surgery to a position player derailed that dream. Byron Buxton’s well documented path through minors has taken some minimal bumps, but one would think he may be an opening day roster candidate next year.
Make no mistake about it the Twins are on the rise, but 2015 isn’t going to be a great deal of fun.
I like the Twins offense this year. During the offseason, I wrote about Kennys Vargas and Oswaldo Arcia, and I think the Twins are poised to hit the jackpot with them this year.
And Joe Mauer is going to be solid. He may not be that MVP candidate who hits .330 anymore, but he is a true professional and loves being where he’s at. I don’t question what Mauer will do this year.
The Twins really cashed in on some talented young infielders in 2014.
I had always liked Eduardo Escobar, who was formerly with the White Sox, and he really showed what a solid hitter he can be last year. Hitting .275/.315/.406, I thought Escobar was a real staple in the lineup hitting 35 doubles, second on the team.
I personally would like to see Minnesota keep Danny Santana in centerfield and keep the combination of him and Esobar in the lineup because Aaron Hicks is just not a good hitter. His defense is tremendous, I get that, but they need all the offense they can get, given how bad the pitching was last year. (Which I will get to in a moment)
Trevor Plouffe and Brian Dozier had really good 14 campaigns. Can they repeat? To me this is a big key for the Twins this year.
Dozier is a pure power hitter. Having yet to hit better than .250 in the major leagues, it’s all or nothing with him. Which is just fine. He’s in the lineup almost every day, and you can count on him, at least that’s what he’s proven.
Same for Plouffe. Breaking out in 2012 with 24 home runs, he went for 14 in both 2013 and 2014 and hits right around .255. Again, while the average isn’t great, you can live with it because you know you’re going to get between 15 and 20 homers and he’s going to be in your lineup every day.
I like the addition of Torii Hunter. He’s a respectable bat in the lineup and he is going to be a great mentor the young hitters like Arcia, Vargas and Buxton and Sano when they arrive.
If the Twins are going to be better in 2015 though, it starts with the pitching. Last year it was dreadful.
You can’t be disappointed with the quality year Phil Hughes gave you. 16 wins a 3.5-something ERA, 210 innings. We all knew he had it in him, and it finally came out.
It was the other guys that were lacking. And while you can’t blame Kevin Corriea, Kyle Gibson or Yohan Pino for not providing quality outings, but one guy I was very disappointed in was Ricky Nolasco. The guy went for 27 starts with a plus-5 ERA in that ballpark. I cannot forgive that type of performance after he cashed in after a very nice late season stint in LA the prior year.
Looking closer, Nolasco’s Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) was around 4.3 which indicates his defense behind him wasn’t very good and also he could come back a little. How much? Does it matter? Anything lower than a 5 ERA you have to be at least satisfied with given his contract. I know a 4-point-whatever ERA isn’t what you want out of him, but it’s definitely better than 5.38.
I think a guy like Kyle Gibson could be due for a nice year. I think another 13 wins, if not better, is absolutely a possibility. Especially if they can provide him a few more runs. I also look at his FIP, which was 3.8 while his ERA was 4.47. Again, shows he should improve in 2015.
Just a quick thought; late last year the Twins received Tommy Milone as part of their deal for Sam Fuld to Oakland. I don't have a lot to base it on but I like Milone in Minnesota this year. I think he could be a guy that sneaks up on some people and has a decent year. Like I said, not a lot to base that on, it's just a hunch.
I think it will be interesting to see what big right hander Alex Meyer does this year. He had a great season at Triple-A last year and could be in line for an opening day roster spot, if not an early season call up. The question for him will be, can he be effective out of the gate?
I don’t think the projected minimal improvements are enough to move the Twins up much. Obviously the division has gotten better with the White Sox additions, Detroit will continue to be there, and just the league in general is going to be, once again, more balanced.
I absolutely think next spring we’ll be talking about the Twins moving up in the American League standings, and potentially challenging for a playoff spot.
Hang in there friends. What I like to say about the Cubs is very applicable to the Twins: “They’re coming. Sure as God’s vengeance, they’re coming”.
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