Post by Commissioner Erick on Dec 1, 2018 16:22:08 GMT -5
Minnesota Twins (20-23) @ Baltimore Orioles (20-23)
MIN: Tyler Duffey (2-5, 4.68)
BAL: Andrew Cashner (1-2, 5.02)
The Baltimore Orioles and Minnesota Twins sit with equal 20-23 records, 5 games out of a playoff berth as the second American League Wild Card. Each comes in with a nice winning streak, Baltimore taking six straight and Minnesota taking five in a row.
Whoever keeps their streak going will keep getting back in to the wild card picture.
Playoff hopefuls collide when the Baltimore Orioles host the Minnesota Twins in the Game of the Week.
The Twins have had a chaotic season with Herman DeBarr pulling back from the team before resigning, Steve Bennett coming on take the team only to switch to the Cardinals before a single game, and Ron Williams taking over in name only before bowing out of the league. The chaos is a main reason why an up-and-coming team a season removed from a postseason berth is scuffling so much.
The team will spend one more year in the wilderness before Blake Meek comes on board to manage the club. Should the squad continue to hold upright, it will be a major boon for Minnesota as the club has the talent to make a second half run.
They'll take on an Orioles team that has recaptured its old formula in finding a modicum of success. The Orioles have never pitched well, and they sure aren't this year, but the team is fifth in home runs this year after finishing ninth last year and third in 2018. When the team is hitting for power, they can win slugfests. When they aren't, they have little to hang their hat on.
The team has given an outfield spot to Anthony Santander, plus they've gotten a strange high-BABIP season from Chris Davis. Those two events have been most responsible for the turnaround.
Davis, after two straight seasons hitting .218 and .210, is hitting .268 this year. That average is way up, despite a career high strikeout rate and a careening walk percentage. It's a strange profile. Davis is hitting an incredibly high proportion of home runs, and also getting a ton of singles despite never taking a walk and striking out in 37% of his plate appearances. He's seeing fewer pitches per plate appearances and attacking earlier in counts, which may be a reason why he's done so well. If he's attacking early fastballs, he can do damage against those pitches. However, if the .345 BABIP falls to his previous-high of .310, then he won't have the walk rate needed to keep his OBP from plummeting. It's a fascinating act to follow.
Santander had a disappointing 2018 and Jeff Jennings wanted to make sure Santander was ready before giving him an extended look last year. After Santander tore up Triple-A and had a good stint in the majors, he was named a starting outfielder for Baltimore. He's responded with a power-filled campaign where he's taken dead-aim of the left-center field gap. Santander's .244 average isn't very good, but he has 13 home runs, tied for second in the AL. His ascension has given Baltimore the pop needed to take their offense from respectable to powerful. He's also red hot. His grand slam and game-winning home run on Sunday accounted for the only offense in Baltimore's 5-4 win over Toronto.
Baltimore will send Andrew Cashner to the mound. After a brutal 2019 and a rough start to this year, Cashner has gone at least six innings and allowed exactly two runs in each of his four May starts. Cashner's gotten stronger, putting on five pounds of muscle since last season, and he's throwing up in the zone a bit more. He's giving up more line drives to limit his home runs, with his ground ball numbers plummeting. It's a weird tradeoff, but since he's no longer nibbling, he's walking fewer batters and striking out nearly 7% more hitters than last year. He still has an ERA of 5.02, but his 4.39 FIP is the best of his career.
Questions for the GMs:
For Jeff Jennings, Andrew Cashner has changed his approach this year and had decent results. What have you thought about his career for you since you signed him before 2018?
You brought in low-tier veterans in Starlin Castro and Martin Prado to man your infield this year. What have you thought about those guys thus far?
Last season Adam Jones had a good year with the bat but was a horrible defender, which really hurt his WAR. This year, he's fielding a bit better in right field than center field, but his bat has deserted him. In the final year of his contract, what are your plans for him this year and also in the future?
MIN: Tyler Duffey (2-5, 4.68)
BAL: Andrew Cashner (1-2, 5.02)
The Baltimore Orioles and Minnesota Twins sit with equal 20-23 records, 5 games out of a playoff berth as the second American League Wild Card. Each comes in with a nice winning streak, Baltimore taking six straight and Minnesota taking five in a row.
Whoever keeps their streak going will keep getting back in to the wild card picture.
Playoff hopefuls collide when the Baltimore Orioles host the Minnesota Twins in the Game of the Week.
The Twins have had a chaotic season with Herman DeBarr pulling back from the team before resigning, Steve Bennett coming on take the team only to switch to the Cardinals before a single game, and Ron Williams taking over in name only before bowing out of the league. The chaos is a main reason why an up-and-coming team a season removed from a postseason berth is scuffling so much.
The team will spend one more year in the wilderness before Blake Meek comes on board to manage the club. Should the squad continue to hold upright, it will be a major boon for Minnesota as the club has the talent to make a second half run.
They'll take on an Orioles team that has recaptured its old formula in finding a modicum of success. The Orioles have never pitched well, and they sure aren't this year, but the team is fifth in home runs this year after finishing ninth last year and third in 2018. When the team is hitting for power, they can win slugfests. When they aren't, they have little to hang their hat on.
The team has given an outfield spot to Anthony Santander, plus they've gotten a strange high-BABIP season from Chris Davis. Those two events have been most responsible for the turnaround.
Davis, after two straight seasons hitting .218 and .210, is hitting .268 this year. That average is way up, despite a career high strikeout rate and a careening walk percentage. It's a strange profile. Davis is hitting an incredibly high proportion of home runs, and also getting a ton of singles despite never taking a walk and striking out in 37% of his plate appearances. He's seeing fewer pitches per plate appearances and attacking earlier in counts, which may be a reason why he's done so well. If he's attacking early fastballs, he can do damage against those pitches. However, if the .345 BABIP falls to his previous-high of .310, then he won't have the walk rate needed to keep his OBP from plummeting. It's a fascinating act to follow.
Santander had a disappointing 2018 and Jeff Jennings wanted to make sure Santander was ready before giving him an extended look last year. After Santander tore up Triple-A and had a good stint in the majors, he was named a starting outfielder for Baltimore. He's responded with a power-filled campaign where he's taken dead-aim of the left-center field gap. Santander's .244 average isn't very good, but he has 13 home runs, tied for second in the AL. His ascension has given Baltimore the pop needed to take their offense from respectable to powerful. He's also red hot. His grand slam and game-winning home run on Sunday accounted for the only offense in Baltimore's 5-4 win over Toronto.
Baltimore will send Andrew Cashner to the mound. After a brutal 2019 and a rough start to this year, Cashner has gone at least six innings and allowed exactly two runs in each of his four May starts. Cashner's gotten stronger, putting on five pounds of muscle since last season, and he's throwing up in the zone a bit more. He's giving up more line drives to limit his home runs, with his ground ball numbers plummeting. It's a weird tradeoff, but since he's no longer nibbling, he's walking fewer batters and striking out nearly 7% more hitters than last year. He still has an ERA of 5.02, but his 4.39 FIP is the best of his career.
Questions for the GMs:
For Jeff Jennings, Andrew Cashner has changed his approach this year and had decent results. What have you thought about his career for you since you signed him before 2018?
You brought in low-tier veterans in Starlin Castro and Martin Prado to man your infield this year. What have you thought about those guys thus far?
Last season Adam Jones had a good year with the bat but was a horrible defender, which really hurt his WAR. This year, he's fielding a bit better in right field than center field, but his bat has deserted him. In the final year of his contract, what are your plans for him this year and also in the future?
