When I think about this year's Twins season that just concluded yesterday in Kansas City, disappointing and underperforming are two of the words that first come to mind. It was difficult to think that the two time defending American League Central champions would fall out of contention so quickly. I don't think anyone thought that this team would wind up last in the division.
It seems like this team's troubles began in April when several players were unavailable to play due to Covid-19. Injuries, errors, ineffectiveness and underwhelming pitching performances plagued this team all season long. Just when it seemed like there were a few rays of hope, the team would go into a funk or lose a key player.
Some of the highlights of this season were:
1. Jorge Polanco. The team's former starting shortstop made a successful transition to second base. He also had a career year at the plate, finishing with a .269 batting average, 33 home runs (breaking Chili Davis' 1991 record for home runs by a switch hitter) and 98 runs batted in.
2. Byron Buxton. Buxton hit a career high 19 home runs this year in only 61 games. However, he missed several months with injuries. Diehard Twins fans have wondered how Buxton would do if he played a complete season. He won the American League Player of the Month in April and finished strong. Hopefully this is just a taste of what's to come next year.
3. Luis Arraez. Arraez finished second on the team in hits with 126 and played multiple positions in the infield and outfield this season. He ended up with a .294 average and 43 RBI. He will undoubtedly find a place in the lineup for most games again next year.
Some disappointments were:
1. Andrelton Simmons. The Gold Glove winning shortstop was brought in to anchor the Twins' infield defense. He came into this season as a career .270 hitter. He ended the year with a paltry .223 average in 412 at bats and 12 errors at short. Simmons wound up losing playing time to rookie Nick Gordon at times in the last two months of the season. Andrelton has long been known for years as an excellent defensive player and has saved plenty of runs, but I can't foresee the Twins resigning him to another contract after a subpar season.
2. Miguel Sano. Even though Sano crushed 30 home runs in 135 games this year, he also struck out an astonishing 183 times in 470 at AB's (that's 38.9 percent of his at bats). He also got off to his typical slow start and his defense at first base was less than stellar (16 errors). With the Nelson Cruz trade in July, Sano may find himself in the DH role more often in 2022, with Alex Kiriloff, utilityman Willians Astudillo or even Arraez spending time at first.
3. Pitching. Most fans (myself included) were amazed by how poorly the Twins pitching staff performed this year. I'm not surprised that 35 different players (including Astudillo) took the mound for the team this year. Jose Berrios did well before being traded to Toronto (7-5 with a 3.48 ERA in 20 starts) and team wins leader Michael Pineda (9-8, 3.62 ERA in 22 games) finished strong. Former Cy Young Award candidate Kenta Maeda underwent Tommy John surgery (after a 6-5 record and 4.66 ERA in 21 starts) and may not be available to pitch at all next season. That leaves a lot of holes in the rotation to fill. Bailey Ober (3-3, 4.19), Joe Ryan (2-1, 4.05 ERA in 5 starts) and Griffin Jax (4-5, 6.37) showed what they could do, but the rotation will probably still need some help.
The bullpen was fairly solid for the most part. Alex Colome (4-4, 4.15 ERA and 17 saves in 24 opportunities) anchored the back end after the usually reliable Taylor Rogers went on the injured list. Tyler Duffey and Jorge Alcala were solid, but there were some regrettable outings from Randy Dobnak, Edward Garcia and others. The Twins may need to spend some more money on bullpen help or make a few trades to find the right components. The team has a history of taking a risk on low dollar veteran pitchers, but it may be time to pursue a few vets with proven track records who want to pitch in Minnesota.
Despite a bad year, there were still some signs of promise. Josh Donaldson played well when healthy and rookies Kiriloff and Trevor Larnach did well in limited duty before going down with injuries. Second year player Brent Rooker also played well at corner outfield spots and as a DH during his time with the Twins and at their AAA affiliate in nearby St. Paul. I wouldn't be surprised if veterans Jake Cave and/or Max Kepler were released or traded to allow these young players to have more time playing corner outfield spots alongside Buxton.
Manager Rocco Baldelli will have plenty of decisions to make for 2022. He's usually trying to figure out where to put Arraez in the lineup and on the field. Now he also has to come up with a capable pitching staff, and figure out where his rookies and reserves fit in the mix. It isn't going to be easy, but I'm optimistic that this team can rebound quickly. Hopefully it won't be long until the Minnesota Twins return to the playoffs. Now if we could just figure out how to beat the Yankees or win a playoff game....
That's all for now. Until next time, have a great week!
