Sonny Afternoon

 

Man, dropping two games to the Nationals is not a way to cement yourselves as the prevailing voice in the AL Central. At the very least they put up Patrick Corbin yesterday so it wouldn't be a full sweep, but...really not the statement the Twins wanted to make going into a series against the New York Yankees. Yeah, fear us, we're so intimidating that C.J. Abrams can have 3 RBIs against us WAIT COME BACK I SWEAR WE'RE SCARY.

The single best thing the Twins have going for them right now is their rotation, and while it's a little upsetting that the guys who are succeeding aren't the homegrown guys, it's at least something. Sonny Gray's off to a truly excellent start, only allowing 2 runs in 22 innings. Pablo Lopez is looking like a worthy trade return, striking out 39 in 30 innings. Joe Ryan is still a well-loved young come-up, and has won all 4 of his starts. Tyler Mahle, at the very least, has a 3.32 ERA and a mustache. And Kenta Maeda, even if he does go on the IL, has been strong his first 3 starts, and has only a 1 WHIP. I'm intrigued how Bailey Ober factors into things, especially against the Yankees. 

Having a solid enough, durable rotation is a step in the right direction, and makes up for the fact that, ultimately, a lot of the main pieces of this lineup aren't where they should be. Joey Gallo has the best WAR of anyone in the lineup, and that's really not a compliment. Buxton's only doing alright, Correa's only doing alright, Polanco's had a slow start from being activated, Kepler's not hitting and Larnach and Taylor are striking out more than they're getting on-base. Christian Vazquez is, at the very least, a worthy pickup so far, but when people like Donovan Solano, Willi Castro and, yes, Joey Gallo are your bright sides, you can't really feel wholly good about it.

Does it mean that the April Twins come-up was overbaked? Maybe a tad. Maybe they do end up being a 1st place team by September, but in a division where both contenders are just doing alright so far, much like last year, it's gonna take more than just being passable. It can't just be the pitching that gets this team over the line, and when facing the Yankees, who've been accused of the same thing, the hitters are gonna need to show up or else they'll leave embarrassed yet again.

I had high hopes for this Twins team, and they're doing a lot well, but they really need to commit to it unless they want a repeat of 2022.

Coming Tonight: Speaking of central division teams trying not to get too embarrassed, a shortstop for a team that may have just been walloped by Masataka Yoshida.