| 09 June 2011
On the surface, it seems the Twins' season has taken a turn for the better.
But we all know better.
Minnesota may have jumped ahead a few games in the standings, but they're still the same dismal team they've always been. This same team that won just five of their last 23 games to close out the month of May has now won seven of their last eight. If that's not the definition of an aberration, I don't know what is.
While the Twins suffer through their worst season in franchise history (at least since the team moved to Minnesota), blame is dished out to everyone and fingers point in each direction. Finding a single lightning rod to direct all of our frustration is impossible; too many people have made too many mistakes.
After being swept by the Detroit Tigers on June 1, the Twins were 17-37 and 16.5 games behind the division leader. That's just a tad better than the pace set by the 1899 Cleveland Spiders. Even the most steadfast of fans had given up all hope of contention, and watching a complete Twins game became a feat of Herculean magnitude.
It was then the Twins decided to turn things around. Only, they really haven't.
While they were in the pits of despair in the middle of May, I slowly drifted away from the Twins. But it wasn't through any fault of my own; life has bee pleasantly hectic these past few weeks, and it was tough to find time to settle in and watch a baseball game. Things look to be settling down now, and I look forward to resuming this hilariously awful 2011 campaign.
I've missed a surprising string of victories, but the league-worst team I've grown accustomed to this year should return shortly. A winning streak is always fun to watch, and will doubtless pour some hope back into the fanbase, but the Twins remain an inherently flawed team. The middle infield is a revolving door of minor-league has-beens and never-weres, Joe Mauer has played just nine games this year, and the bullpen remains as ineffective and overpaid as ever.
One of the selling points of this season was how the middle infield was going to be consistent and reliable, at last. Alexi Casilla had apparently turned a corner, and new-comer Tsuyoshi Nishioka was supposed to be a good defender at second base with some line-drive power. Two months later, Nishioka has yet to fully recover from his broken leg, and Casilla's on-base percentage is still awful.
This being the first year of Mauer's massive extension, he was expected to finally piece his power and on-base skills together in a single season. Two months later, he's taken the field exactly nine times.
The catcher situation has been one of the biggest reasons for the Twins struggles this year, and deserves a closer look. In wake of Mauer's trip to the disabled list, the Twins have been forced to replace the production of a perennial MVP candidate with the production of the league's worst hitter. Watching Drew Butera and Rene Rivera suit up behind the plate has been frightful for everyone this season, and displays the costly negligence of the front office.
Not having a suitable back-up plan at a pivotal position is bad enough; not having a back-up plan for an injury-prone catcher who should be steadily transitioning to the outfield is even worse. With the trade deadline approaching, the Twins should look to shop their several trade chips for a solid, young catcher who can take slowly take over for Mauer. Nobody wants to see him moved from behind the plate, but it was unrealistic to expect Mauer's 6-foot-5-inch, 235-lb frame to squat for the rest of his career. Some scouts envisioned him as an adequate centerfielder when he was a high-school prospect, and I'm sure he can hold his own in right field.
Of the three biggest reasons for the Twins' collapse this year, the most costly has been the bullpen's ineptitude. Glen Perkins has been outstanding, and Anthony Swarzak has done fine in his small-sample size, but the money-makers have come painfully short. Joe Nathan is slowly becoming irrelevent, Matt Capps has been judicious with the walk but remains below-average, Alex Burnett has been hit like a piñata, and Jose Mijares can't strike anybody out. Kevin Slowey and Dusty Hughes haven't been any better, and the rest of the innings have been divided among no-name Triple-A lifers who have no business at the MLB level.
Minnesota is an awful baseball team, and something very close to a complete overhaul is needed before the team can lift itself from the fetal position in the AL Central. Even so, it's been fun to watch them string together a few victories this past week.
In a lost season like this, an unexpected burst of success is never a bad thing.
Once you're done here, be sure to check out Anthony Castrovince's piece at MLB.com: "There are no quick fixes for Twins' problems."
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