Coming off a week in which the Minnesota Twins faced a
schedule akin to death itself, we can’t describe a 4-3 record as anything short
of exceptional. The Houston Astros look the part of a World Series champion,
and while the New York Yankees aren’t close to full strength, they’re holding
serve in the AL East. For Rocco Baldelli’s club, there’s plenty of positive
momentum, and rather than focus on one specific area, now seemed like a good
time to highlight some standouts.
Byron Buxton is currently cruising. He has 14 doubles which
is the amount of hits he tallied in total during 2018. Offensively he’s posted
an .805 OPS which is well north of the average among big league centerfielders,
and he’s pacing the defensive leaderboards. Buxton is first in outs above
average, is the only player with two completed five star catches and has
accumulated 3 DRS across just 247 innings. Without a significant dip taking
place over the course of a full season, this is production that will have him
earning MVP votes.
For some reason there was some concern about Nelson Cruz in
the early going. With the layout of Minnesota’s schedule, and early interleague
play, he missed plenty of at bats to get going. Now 28 games into his season,
he owns a .972 OPS (best mark since 2008) and is on pace for 35 homers. Also sitting
fourth in average exit velocity among big league hitters, the boomstick is just
fine.
The roster continues to be paced by two players at some of
the most important positions. Jorge Polanco leads the club in fWAR, while Jose
Berrios is tops for pitchers. Polanco’s bat has played exceptionally well,
which has always been expected. The .393 wOBA is just outside the top 20 in
baseball, but the best part is the peripheral numbers suggest a level of
sustainability. Add in that Polanco is now providing plus value at short, and you’ve
got a strong asset. Berrios has turned from staff ace into a bonafide big deal.
Command has been ramped up a notch halving his walk rate, and the WHIP is
beyond fantastic. If Jose wants to push even higher, limiting the longball is
maybe the last piece of the puzzle.
You may not find a bigger believer in the Twins blogosphere
when it comes to Mitch Garver. His offensive profile has long looked the part
of a big leaguer. As a receiver and defender behind the plate, there’s been
concerns as to whether the position would be a long-term fit. Although not yet
above average, he’s upped his strike rate over 4% this season. Mitch has also
developed a much stronger presence at the bottom and edges of the zone, while
addressing his blocking ability in a big way. Right now, it seems fair to
wonder about his fit as the long-term solution.
I recently wrote about Martin Perez and the development of
his cutter. He introduced a new offering into his repertoire and now looks like
an entirely new pitcher. Minnesota targeted him based on the feeling that his
stuff could be tweaked to unleash ability yet to be harnessed and there’s no
denying that the front office looks spot on in that thinking.
There are still some question marks in the bullpen, but the
trio of Taylor Rogers, Trevor Hildenberger, and Blake Parker looks to be a good
one. Trevor May continues to settle into a higher leverage role and Ryne Harper
appears to be a diamond in the rough. If acquisitions are yet to be made, it’s
here that the most obvious avenue for an upgrade is. Give some credit to
Baldelli in the way he’s managed this group as well. Despite more length from
his starters, initial burnout could be attributed in some degree to his
deployment of the arms. In backing off and being more strategic, there’s been
no instances of taxed throwers during a consistent stretch of action.
Looking at the schedule, the Twins have played a lot of good
teams early. With so much action within the division still ahead of them, and
some less than ideal road destinations out of the way, the remaining action
tilts in their favor. Leading the AL Central at the end of April won’t vault
Minnesota to the Postseason, but it keeps that possibility centrally focused
ahead of them. This team is good, and I felt like I was out on a limb suggesting92 wins. At this point, coming up shy of that would probably be a
disappointment.
