Outfielder Of Intrigue Down The Stretch

Coming into the 2016 Major League Baseball season, the Twins outfield was expected to have plenty of youth. Phenom Byron Buxton had taken over in center field, while slugger Miguel Sano was being asked to play in right. Expectations for Buxton to compete in the Rookie of the Year race were there, and the Twins had high hopes. Through the first half, it's been the guy who came up last, Max Kepler, that may have stolen the show.

Making his MLB debut on September 27, 2015, Max Kepler had seen the bright lights and big stadiums a year ago. This time though, it wasn't a September cup of coffee, and with the way that Minnesota's outfield had shifted, there was absolutely room for him to stay.

Kepler received a quick call from the Twins this season. After playing in just two games for Triple-A Rochester, he was summoned to the show. A brief seven game stint in which he was only giving 12 at bats quickly saw him back down on the farm. When he returned to Rochester, he did what he has done most of his minor league career, he hit. Slashing .288/.380/.471 across 28 games, Kepler had again earned the Twins attention and was given the call.

Fast forward to today, and Max Kepler has been up with the Twins during his second stint of the season for 36 games. His slash line of .244/.322/.496 leaves room for improvement, but that .818 OPS is indicative of a guy that's given Paul Molitor much more than he could have imagined. Through 150 plate appearances since his promotion, Kepler has nine doubles and eight home runs. His 33 runs batted rank fourth on the club, and behind only Brian Dozier, Eduardo Nunez, and Miguel Sano (all guys that have spent the entire season in the big leagues).

If you've been following me on Twitter for any amount of time (if you're not, you're missing out), you know that I've been high on Kepler for quite some time. While I have always suggested that Buxton has the higher ceiling and will likely see more accolades over his career, it's Kepler who's the consistent and projectable star. With All Star level talent, Kepler is far more than just a guy to fill out a spot on the 25 man roster.

When trying to figure out the formula for success that Kepler is currently operating under, it's hard to look much further than his smooth stroke. With hands that get to, and drive through the baseball, his swing plane produces gap power that plays all over the field. Thus far this season, he's making hard contact just under 40% of the time. His pull tendencies aren't heavy using the center of the field a solid 37% of the time. Generating line drives with just under 19% of his batted balls, the power generation from him driving through the ball has equated to an incredible 19% of his fly balls leaving the yard.

Not a traditional power hitter, there's no doubt the Twins and Kepler himself would like to see his 79.1% contact rate rise some. In doing so, he'll see a relatively significant boost in his batting average. The fact that he's swung at pitches outside of the zone just 30% of the time, and missed only 9.2% of the time suggests that he'll barrel the ball more often as he acclimates to the big league level.

As things stand currently, Kepler has put himself in a very good position. He's erupted onto the Twins scene and he's making a name for himself. There's plenty of room for improvement, and he's got just under 80 games left ahead of him to continue to accomplish that. Kepler is going to need to keep making tweaks and see the results follow if he's going to make a serious Rookie of the Year push. Regardless, he's been given the keys to right field for the Twins, and settling in for 2017 is a must.

As Byron Buxton starts to turn a corner in the final stretch of the 2016 season, he'll have a teammate that is just a bit ahead of him in that process. Kepler has been an exciting development for Minnesota this season, but if it was unexpected, you were looking in the wrong places all along.

The son of German ballet dancers, Max Kepler has arrived, and the show has only just begun.

Consistency Must Be Twins Focus In Second Half

A season ago, the Minnesota Twins finished 83-79, just missing a playoff berth for the first time since 2010. While the season was a significant turnaround from the four straight 90 loss campaigns that preceded it, the final result was one that seemed somewhat of a mirage. Fast forward to where we are now, and the lack of consistency that was an underlying message a year earlier, has once against been this club's biggest problem.

In 2015, Paul Molitor amassed 83 victories in his first year at the helm. A respectable total in and of itself, it was backed by just two winning months over the course of the season. A 20-7 May set the ton, and had it not been for a 15-13 September, the Twins very likely could've been staring at year another sub .500 mark.

Coming into 2016, the expectation was that, despite the luck that had been bolstering outcomes for Minnesota, the playoffs seemed like a realistic venture. Although a handful of things would need to break in their favor, the Twins competing for the Wild Card was not out of the question. Then, again, consistency failed Molitor, Terry Ryan, and the entirety of the organization throughout the season's first 88 games.

Prior to the All Star Break, Minnesota's lone winning month is the current one (July). At 7-3 through the first 10 games, the Twins have also raced out to a +41 run differential. On the season, outside of July, the club owns a -112 run differential and an ugly 25-53 record. As much as the nice play of late has been a position, Molitor's group absolutely needs to find the middle ground going forward.

Over the course of the season's first 78 games, the Twins scored 4.1 runs per game while giving up 5.5. During the recent ten game stretch, they've plated 7.8 runs per game while allowing just 3.7. The drastic swing between the two polar opposite ends of the spectrum is not an enviable position to be in. It took Minnesota 70 games to score double digits for the first time this season, and then they went on to do so four more times over their last eight games.

At 4.97, the Twins have the worst team ERA in the American League thus far. They've allowed opposing batters to hit .283 (also dead last) off of them, and they've also surrendered a league worst 119 homers. Being at the bottom of the barrel in pitching categories is a trend that the Twins need to abandon in the worst way.

On the offensive side of things, Minnesota has done better, but still has significant room for improvement. Their 395 runs ranks 10th in the AL, as does their .253 batting average. Minnesota fins themselves 9th with 105 homers while being tied for 5th in the league with 743 strikeouts. It's not the doom and gloom that the mound has produced, but for a team expected to be powered by offense, there's a lot to be desired.

As we've seen over the course of the past couple of weeks, the youth movement is starting to happen. Miguel Sano has returned from the DL with an affinity for the longball. Max Kepler is one of the best things Minnesota has going for it, and Byron Buxton is starting to figure things out at the plate. Offensively, it's the youth that has powered the resurgence, and that needs to continue.

On the mound however, the Twins have a few more questions to answer. While Ervin Santana has been incredible of late, it's probably in the club's best interest to deal him. In doing so, they'll be looking to Jose Berrios to help carry the load. Despite struggling in his debut, an emergence along the lines of Kepler's would be far from a shock. What's more important however, is that the pen continues to be bolstered by the young arms.

Taylor Rogers' effectiveness has been far from unexpected this season. he owns a 2.93 ERA and has struck out 9.4 per nine while walking just 1.3 per nine. Looking like a fixture of what should hopefully be an improved relief corps in the not so distant future, he needs some friends. Asking J.T. Chargois, Jake Reed, and Mason Melotakis to join him before the season is done is probably a big ask. It's one Minnesota should explore though, and hopefully find some solid results with.

We've seen Twins teams in back-to-back years that have been virtually polar opposites of each other. A year ago, luck carried Minnesota to a record that masked a ton of their deficiencies. Now in 2016, youth was relied upon too heavily too early, and things crashed and burned. As the club needs to find a middle ground roster wise, so too does the production need to follow.

In order to emerge as a playoff team once again, and maybe as early as 2017, Molitor's club doesn't need to be the best at everything. In fact, they really don't need to be great at anything. What the focus has to be is on being solid across the board. The Twins can't afford to be among the league's worst in any categories. Find the middle ground, exploit a niche, and stay there.

The future is in the hands of the developed prospects residing in the Twins organization. Making it a bright one relies upon a level of consistency that has been absent among the organization for quite some time. In a lost season, finish out the slate pushing for that middle ground is as good of a goal as any.

Ryan's Minor League Finds Highlight Biggest Asset

It's funny sometimes how others share a similar thought process to your own. That happened for me today as I prepared my coverage of the Twins for the week here at Off The Baggy. One topic I wanted to highlight and touch on was the ability Terry Ryan has shown to nab some very solid minor league signings heading into the season. MLB Trade Rumors released a piece with the best of the 2016 year, and of course, Minnesota had three entrants.

It's pretty easy to pick out that the Twins have gotten considerable run from Fernando Abad, Brandon Kintzler, and Robbie Grossman in 2016. Both Abad and Kintzler were non-roster guys that received spring training invites and minor league deals with the Twins. It was expected from the get go that Abad would make the team as the club's lefty reliever, and Minnesota thought his down 2015 was simply due to tipping his pitches.

After posting a 4.15 ERA with the Athletics a season ago, Abad has been incredible for the Twins. No longer tipping his pitches, he's made it through the first half with a 2.83 ERA and a 3.63 FIP. His 8.2 FIP is along the lines of his last three seasons, and he's danced around the a career worst 4.1 BB/9. Despite a recent rough stretch, Abad has been able to get both righties (.725 OPS) and lefties (.451 OPS) out. Obviously looking at those numbers, he's absolutely dominated left-handed batters, to the tune of a .163/.196/.256 slash line.

Despite being a long shot to make the 25 man roster, Kintzler obviously saw a pretty solid chance to make the Twins at some point after the club had such a poor pen a season ago. He owned a 3.52 ERA in 10 games with Triple-A Rochester prior to his promotion to the big league club. Since, he's owned a 2.42 ERA and walked next to no one (0.7 BB/9). His FIP leaves plenty to be desired, but he;s now working as the Twins (miscast) closer, having picked up his first five major league saves.

Rounding out the trio of guys touched on by MLB Trade Rumors was Robbie Grossman. Cast off by the Cleveland Indians, Ryan and the Twins saw an opportunity to solidify their revolving outfield. Grossman, just 26, had shown promise with the Astros but had never lived up to his billing. With the Twins, he's been an on base machine, and has slashed .289/.421/.465 through 48 games. He's already matched his career high in homer (6), and is just four doubles shy of tying his career high (14).

It's pretty safe to say that each of the three aforementioned guys have been among the Twins best players in 2016. This isn't something new though for a Terry Ryan club, and it's really not even isolated to this trio for the current year.

Buddy Boshers was another non roster guy that the Twins brought in out of Indy Ball for the 2016 season. He was a part of the roster squeeze a few days back, but he posted a 1.38 ERA across 13.0 IP and amassed a 9.7 K/9 with a 1.4 BB/9 in his first major league action since 2013.

A season ago, Minnesota could've used Mark Hamburger in their pen. He was lights out at Triple-A Rochester, posting a 3.44 ERA in 68.0 IP with an 8.3 K/9. Now pitching in Indy Ball with the St. Paul Saints and working as a starter, he's compiled a 2.59 ERA across 11 outings. In an uncertain outfield, Minnesota brought in Shane Robinson who turned out 3 defensive runs saved in just over 450 innings. Before that, it was signings like Blaine Boyer (2.49 ERA across 65.0 IP in 2015 for Twins), that showed Ryan's acumen.

At it's core, the highlighting of small splashes like those noted above are what Terry Ryan has done best. It follows the narrative of the Twins being a small market team, but is really indicative of a different story altogether. It's not that the Twins don't have the money to spend, but instead that when they do, Ryan generally misses the mark.

It's in deals like those handed out to Ricky Nolasco and Phil Hughes that Ryan looks to make the big wave and comes up short. Rather, when he uses his adept scouting knowledge and looks to squeeze what's left out of something lesser, the Twins GM generally finds his mark. Seeing the Twins turn out decent non-roster deals or small market contracts is far from a surprise, and once again should benefit them in 2016.

As the trade deadline approaches, Abad should be an easy piece to move. Kintzler is a usable option for a competing team, and Grossman's approach should be able to help another club unless the Twins see him as a fourth outfielder in the year ahead. What hitting on situations like these does is allow for a bad team, like the Twins have been, to try and stockpile assets moving forward. You won't get the cream of the crop, but your return on investment should be through the roof.

When push comes to shove at the end of the season, Minnesota would be best served to fire Terry Ryan. Don't let him walk away on his own terms, don't let him step down. Send the message that he has failed as General Manager, there's no soft way to put that. If the club has a problem cutting ties or wants to utilize his true talent though, Ryan serving in a scouting capacity of some sort would be far from a bad option. If there's something Ryan had proven over his tenure with the Twins, it's that he knows what he's looking for when scouting that diamond in the rough. He's just been miscast in executing it.

Twins Showing Assumed Colors

The 2016 Major League Baseball season wasn't supposed to go like this for the Minnesota Twins, but then again, maybe it was. Reliant upon an influx of youth, Paul Molitor's club was expected to score runs, and do so in bunches. Pitching should've been an improved aspect, but still could've been an assumed deficiency for this club. Through the first half however, nothing went right, right up until the end.

As the dust settled and the 2016 season enters the All Star Break, the Minnesota Twins find themselves owners of just 32 wins through 88 games. It's the second worst mark in all of baseball, and the worst record in the American League. 20 games back in the AL Central, the club's 2016 efforts are all but null and worthless at this point.

What happened over the final two weeks of the first half though tells a different narrative. Once the calendar turned to July, the assumed Twins showed up.

It took Paul Molitor's club 70 games to score double digit runs for the first time in 2016. From July 1 through the 10th, Minnesota accomplished that feat four times in 10 games. A club that came into July with a run differential of -112, has drastically changed that total with a +41 run differential through their first ten games.

During the span of solid play from the Twins, Minnesota has gotten it done against two different forms of competition as well. Winning a season best three straight series, the Twins have knocked off the Texas Rangers twice (owners of the American League's best record), while also trumping the Oakland Athletics. When looking at the three losses as well, the Twins dropped those contests by a combined four runs.

Entering the year, the narrative for the Twins is that they would hit enough to score plenty, but that they'd likely need to in order to combat some likely pitching woes. Standing 17th in the majors with 395 runs scored is not an ideal place, but its indicative of a club that has gotten too little early on from their relied upon youth. Through the recent surge however, it's been those players that have absolutely carried the load.

At the forefront has been German-born superstar Max Kepler. A grand slam in the final game of the first half put a nice stamp on a breakout campaign thus far. He's experienced some ups and downs, but his production for the Twins has absolutely been a welcomed reality. Despite batting just .216 in the first 10 games of July, Kepler owns a .940 OPS and has launched five homers.

Fellow young outfielder Byron Buxton has slowly but surely adjusted to the big league game. He was shelved over the past couple of contests after a new bruise following a wall collision, but his play at the plate has picked up. Riding a six game hitting streak into the break, Buxton has slashed .348/.400/.609 during that span. It's come with four doubles and a triple while striking out just five times and walking twice. He's dramatically decreased the strikeout totals, sitting down in just 32% of his plate appearances since his recall as opposed to striking out in 49% of his plate appearances to start the season.

Then there's the bopper that is Miguel Sano. Probably assumed to fly by 30 home runs, Sano was dealt a less than ideal situation to start the year by having to move to right field. Now fresh off the disabled list and back in the infield, he's slashed .282/.391/.538 in 10 games since his return. Settling back in to the middle of Paul Molitor's lineup, Sano has crushed three homers while driving in nine runs since the 1st of July.

A somewhat surprising form of production has come from the forgotten Kennys Vargas. Given playing time with the departure of Oswaldo Arcia and demotion of Byung Ho Park, Vargas has done the most with it. Playing in sixe games since his promotion, Vargas has slashed .471/.609/1.294 with five doubles and three homers. Each of his eight hits thus far have been of the extra base hit variety. Obviously an unsustainable level of production, Vargas is extending his opportunity by producing with it.

When Minnesota returns from the All Star break, the reality of 2016 being a lost season will remain. The other reality is that the youth expected to carry this team is beginning to show up. At some point soon, the pitching staff will welcome Jose Berrios and J.T. Chargois. Taylor Rogers has already showed he belongs, and there's hope that a few other young arms may join them yet this season. Despite the end already being seemingly clear, the path to get there the rest of the way is one that absolutely is worth watching.

If the trend of producing youth can continue for the Twins, a 2017 with a handful of young question marks shouldn't be something Minnesota has to assume they'll be looking at.

All Star Game Sends Mixed Signals

Recently, Jayson Stark wrote a great piece over at ESPN. The crux of it was that the rule mandating every team have an All Star representative should be removed. While that may hit home here in Twins Territory due to the inclusion of Eduardo Nunez in the game, it's part of a bigger problem. Major League Baseball has the best All Star game running, and it's being used to send mixed signals.

Since 2003, the Mid-Summer Classic has meant something. Bud Selig said his game would count, and the All Star Game has determined home field advantage for the American and National League come time for the World Series. The game itself was no longer simply an exhibition, but there were now implications for teams a few months later that hinged on this game.

That's really where the mixed messages begin, but it's far from where they branch out to. In and of itself, baseball is unlike football and basketball. It's not a game you can play halfway. Sure, the managerial aspect in the All Star Game is nothing like that of something you'd see during the season, but you can't fake 90+ mph heat. You can't take a play off with exit velocities rocketing over 100 mph. There's really no such thing as an alley oop dunk fest, or lineman standing up and playing patty cake in baseball, it just doesn't exist. From that reality alone, the product on the field during the Mid-Summer Classic was always going to be better.

When it comes to who plays in the game, the mixed messages are a bit more in depth however. Sure, fan voting has always produced some goofy outcomes (sorry Royals fans), but it provides a level of ownership to those that spend hours casting ballots. You're never going to remove fan balloting, and that may provide a disadvantage for one side or another during a game that counts. Instead though, it's baseball's outdated filling out of the rosters that suggests the game is losing touch with itself.

Has Eduardo Nunez had a great season for the struggling Twins? Absolutely he has, but he's nowhere near the caliber of a player you'd hope to be filling out an All Star team. It's not his fault though, he's a by-product of a rule that says Minnesota must have a player included. Throw Stephen Vogt and the Athletics in that group, as well as a couple of others. It isn't these players faults, but instead a rule that baseball is punishing itself with.

Now we get to the meat of where baseball is missing the point. In an ever competitive landscape of sporting events, baseball has lost traction to football, basketball, and probably a handful of other forms of entertainment. In reeling fans back in, would showcasing the best of your product not be of the utmost importance. Whether including stars of yesteryear, or the up and comers, shouldn't they be what this All Star Game that counts is about?

Given the performance this season, Ichiro Suzuki isn't an All Star. He is however a star that's performing incredibly, and he's nearing an elite baseball milestone. He draws in a contingent of fans that involves an entirely different country, and his appeal goes well beyond America's borders. Carlos Correa is arguably one of the games best young stars. His youth draws in a new generation, and his talent could provide the next wave of fans emulating their hero. How do you not include the likes of Brandon Crawford, Gregory Polanco, Aaron Sanchez, or Aledmys Diaz? It really doesn't matter the rationale, considering the only thing that matters is they won't be there, and this one counts.

The game counts in terms of a win and a loss, but it also counts in the scope of advancing the product that is Major League Baseball. The sport wants to draw a younger generation towards the game. Baseball needs a revitalization of passionate fans, but the messages being sent by an All Star Game selection process suggest a tone deaf practice.

In no realistic scenario does the inclusion of Nunez, Vogt, Odubel Herrera, or Adam Duvall types advance the game of baseball. If fans of those teams were going to watch the game, they would have done so anyways. Having brighter stars selected to not only increase the level of talent on the field, but heighten the draw to the game likely advances every goal set forth for the Mid-Summer Classic.

Baseball wants a larger draw but is turning away its youngest ambassadors. The game counts but talent, or lack thereof, is watering it down. At the end of the day, the sport needs to get on the same page with itself, and make it not only count, but matter too.

Changing The Tools Of The Trade

A few weeks ago, there was some significant buzz around Twins territory regarding catcher Kurt Suzuki. After a dismal start to what would likely be his final year in Minnesota, something had changed. His offensive production had risen, and he looked like a different hitter at the plate. That talk surrounded a change of his bat, and the maker wasn't the only difference.

What if I told you that using technology dating back hundreds of years no longer made sense? What if there was a better way to make a baseball bat? What if combining those two questions resulted in a monumental shift in the way in which baseball is played? Kurt Suzuki is currently in the midst of finding out.

Enter Axe Bat.

I had the privilege of speaking with Hugh Tompkins, Baden's Director of Research and Development. Matt Peterson, PR man for Baden sports helped to make the connection. In speaking with both of them, I was able to catch a glimpse into a technology, and a way of thinking, that has the potential to revolutionize the sport of baseball.

Baden Sports has been around for a significant amount of time, but they have remained a smaller player when it comes to certain niche avenues within sporting goods. Having never been synonymous with bat making, the Axe Bat was going to be a large undertaking for them. Through innovation and design, the axe handle was developed back in 2010, and has is rooted in principles based on Ted Williams' book describing a swing that mimics that of an axe.

Going back to the first question regarding dated technology is close to where Baden started with the Axe Bat. A round handle had become a generally accepted way in which a baseball bat was made. It had always been made that way, and no one had ever though to challenge the idea. Being an innovator however, and looking to carve out a new part of the market, Baden decided to reinvent the wheel. Wood bats no longer needed to be cut solely on lathes and now could utilize the technology of a CNC machine.

As Tompmkins put it, "We built a better mouse trap."

In reality, that's exactly what they did. In utilizing technology that had evolved to allow for a better product, Baden simply took advantage of it. Scientifically proven to be a more effective way to craft a bat, the Axe Bat design was the culmination of Baden Sports challenging what has been accepted as status quo.

What's great about the adoption and adaptation of the Axe Bat among the sport however is the organic growth that Baden Sports has fostered. They didn't reach out to big leaguers buying their hands at the plate. In fact, Dustin Pedroia actually reached out to them.

A season ago, Pedroia placed an order on his own through their website. Victus Sports handles the crafting of the wood bats as they're well ingrained withing Major League Baseball already. When Pedroia's order came in, the team over at Baden wondered if it was in fact the Dustin Pedroia. As his production rose to end the year, the organic growth followed suit.

Having made appearances around spring training this season, the Axe Bat gained traction. Despite not taking it north with him out of the gate, Suzuki hopped on board with the technology full time a month or so into the season. Since June 2nd, Suzuki has slashed .365/.386/.553 for the Twins. While the Axe Bat probably can't be given sole credit, it's foolish to ignore to altogether.

At the highest level, Baden and Victus are able to create a completely custom baseball weapon. At the dish, the axe handle is crafted for each individual player, with the hitting surface being specifically designed to incorporate the wood grain on the sweet spot nearly every single time. Through video study and swing analysis, the CNC machines are able to specifically craft each Axe Bat to their player, and Baden keeps files for all those utilizing their technology.

Baden Sports and the Axe Bat are changing the way in which a batter steps into the box, and if you aren't bringing it to the plate, you're already at a disadvantage.

Given time, the production will continue to be harder to ignore, and the growth of the Axe Bat will surely continue. When asking yourself why you use a round bat handle, you'll be hard pressed to answer with anything but, "because that's the way it's always been." If presented with an opportunity to attack the game with a better bat and better technology however, you'd be hard pressed to find a reason to turn it down.

Baden Sports and the Axe Bat are changing the way in which a batter steps into the box, and if you aren't bringing it to the plate, you're already at a disadvantage.

Salvaging The Worst Of The Twins

Through 82 games, the Twins are on pace to blitz by a franchise worst amount of losses, and finish the season as the worst team in history. Suggesting the first half of the season has been anything but a disaster would be putting it nicely. That all being said, there's plenty left to play for in 2016.

Considering that the bulk of Minnesota's schedule to close out the year comes against AL Central foes, Paul Molitor's club will see a lot of their divisional rivals and can begin to prepare for the year ahead. While it's going to be important to try and slow the pace of the losing, it's equally as important to set up for success in the year ahead.

Looking at how the Twins have positioned themselves, what will be available on the market, and where the roster stands, many of the answers for the future are going to need to come from within. Starting to figure those out sooner rather than later remains in the best interests of the club.

If you're going to place a heightened focus on certain places the rest of the way, here's exactly where I'd point you:

1. Jose Berrios

First and foremost, Jose Berrios needs to get back up to the big leagues and settle in. Across his last four Triple-A starts he's owned a 0.60 ERA and allowed opposing hitters to bat just .104/.171/.156 against him. He's allowed just one home run in his last 30 innings and he's walked batters at just a 2.1 BB/9 rate over that time.

There's no denying he scuffled in his big league debut. As Keith Law of ESPN warned, command and a flat fastball were his biggest deterrents. He'll need to keep the ball in the yard, and he can't issue so many free passes. What remains a constant though is that the Twins need Berrios more than he needs to be here. Minnesota doesn't have an ace, and hasn't for a while. The rotation is full of mediocre options performing below their typical high water marks. Berrios may not be among the best pitchers in the major leagues, but he needs to settle in the rest of the way and be viewed as the Twins go to starter to open 2017.

2. Who is your number two?

If Jose Berrios can finish the year in the big leagues, and do it while pitching well, you have to find out what you have behind him. Right now, the Twins need to be looking everywhere to see if they can move Ricky Nolasco or Ervin Santana. The latter seems like he'll have suitors, while the former's market remains up in the air.

Tommy Milone may not be offered arbitration again, and that leaves just Kyle Gibson and Phil Hughes. Gibson was expected to take a step forward this season, but despite not being healthy, has struggled to do so. He turned in a nice effort last time out, but owns a 4.82 ERA through 9 starts and has walked a career worst 3.4 per nine. Hughes is facing an uphill battle in coming back from Thoracic Outlet surgery, and there'll be plenty of question marks there. Someone needs to pitch behind Berrios, and it can't be a group of mediocrity. Minnesota will need a legitimate one-two-punch, but who makes it up is yet to be seen.

3. Is there an actual closer?

As of right now, the Twins should be operating under the belief that the days of Glen Perkins closing baseball games for them is done. His velocity has declined severely, and he'll now be entering 2017 after a shoulder surgery that required his labrum be reattached to his bone. He has a 3.51 ERA over the past two years and has saved 32 games. Without a stellar pre-All Star 2015 bolstering those numbers though, things are much worse.

Brandon Kintzler is currently operating as the Twins closer, but like Kevin Jepsen before him, that's a role he's not really cast for. Paul Molitor needs to see if Trevor May or Ryan Pressly could be a better option for the here and now. Nick Burdi hasn't pitched hardly at all in 2016 due to injury concerns of his own, and the Twins have given a whopping two outs of major league work to J.T. Chargois. Those are the names I'd start with for closers in 2017, you can't go into the year with a question mark at the back end of a mediocre pen.

4. Settle the log jams

Really, the only areas that the Twins need to be concerned in regards to players piling up are at second and third base. Both Brian Dozier and Jorge Polanco should be at the major league level, but there's currently only room for one. Trevor Plouffe and Miguel Sano play the same position, and when both are healthy, that's been an area of concern as well.

It's pretty obvious that the Twins should've traded Plouffe some time ago. His value has probably never been lower than it is now, and a move at this point would be beneficial if only for opening up the roster spot. In regards to Dozier and Polanco, the return for the Twins All Star second basemen should be hefty. Despite entering his 30's, Dozier is a late bloomer and has been one of the most offensively productive two-baggers in the big leagues. I'm really good with trading either, but the return has to be right for both. At the end of 2016 however, only two of these four should realistically be options going forward for Minnesota.

5. Allow Buxton to struggle

I was really happy to see the Twins make the right move in their latest roster shuffles by adding guys back without sending Byron Buxton out. Sure, he's scuffled at the plate, but his defense is already Gold Glove caliber. He's shown the club he can rake at Triple-A, and there's nothing new he's going to learn by heading back there.

Run Buxton out nearly every day and let him struggle through it. He's got a good head on his shoulders, and confidence doesn't appear to be an issue he struggles with. He's hit a better (but still not good) .222/.248/.374 since rejoining the Twins, and his 37% strikeout rate is a far cry from the 53% output he had prior to his demotion. There's going to be a lot more lumps for Buxton to take the rest of the way, but if he can figure things out and take them now, it sets him up to hit the ground running in 2017. Minnesota needs to let that process play out.

When you have played as bad as the Twins have, there's not many positives to draw from the first half of what has been an unfortunate year. That being said, the rest of the way invites an opportunity to position things for a better start in 2017, as opposed to packing it in and slogging through the rest of the schedule. If Minnesota can get a few things to click down the stretch, the team they have a year from now will be significantly better for it.