I find simulated baseball to be a lousy substitution for the real thing. And though I’ve tried to ignore it, I have peeked at what Baseball-Reference.com has done by using a program called Out of the Park Baseball 21 to simulate the 2020 season. It’s hard to miss because the data can be found almost... Continue Reading »

On a 75-degree Sunday, Twins starting pitcher Kenta Maeda turned in his best pitching performance of the spring, hurling four scoreless innings of two-hit baseball with no walks. He also struck out six of the 13 Boston batters he faced, in what would eventually be a 7-6, Red Sox win. Perhaps not lost on any... Continue Reading »

The Twins missed out on the top free agent pitchers this winter — and I’m still puzzled that the Toronto Blue Jays snagged Hyun-Jin Ryu — but the slugging, Twins-killing third baseman known as Josh Donaldson was still available, and after reports the club was “pessimistic” about landing the “bringer of rain,” the team finally... Continue Reading »

Jose Berrios, the talented but not quite elite pitcher for the Minnesota Twins, appears set to have his salary demands go before an arbitrator, according to various reports. La MaKina 🇵🇷 #2020 #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/kR6gkQtot1 — Jose O. Berrios (@JOLaMaKina) December 18, 2019 There’s still time for the Twins and Berrios to work out a deal... Continue Reading »

The 2019 Minnesota Twins booked a ticket to the postseason on Wednesday after they rallied (again) to beat the Detroit Tigers, then watched as the Cleveland Indians fell to the Chicago White Sox. The first-place Twins now lead the second-place Indians by five games with four games left in the season. And that means only... Continue Reading »

The worst team in baseball held the Twins scoreless for six innings on Tuesday before the club finally scored in the top of the seventh and beat the Detroit Tigers, 4-2. The Twins’ magic number is now two. If the Twins win Wednesday and the Cleveland Indians lose, the division is theirs. Jake Odorizzi, who... Continue Reading »

There was plenty to celebrate in the Twins’ 12-8 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Sunday. Slugger Nelson Cruz hit the 400th home run of his career, Tyler Duffey and Brusdar Graterol, pitched well in relief and the win reduced the Twins’ magic number to three.   #MNTwins magic number: 3 pic.twitter.com/WHqOKHezTZ — Aaron Gleeman... Continue Reading »

The Twins had no business winning Tuesday night. The Chicago White Sox, perhaps trying to make good on the last gasp of summer, scored eight runs on 20 hits, including a Twins-like four home runs. But the Twins scratched together a rally in the bottom of the 12th and won the game 9-8 in walk-off... Continue Reading »

The final two weeks of the 2019 season are upon us. The Twins lead their division by 4.5 games and, by most accounts, it’s easy street from here on out. To wrap up their campaign, they play the 83-loss Chicago White Sox, the 95-loss Kansas City Royals and the 104-loss Detroit Tigers. But seven of... Continue Reading »