The Twins and Royals split a four-game series over the long weekend. It was an EPIC series! Well, it wasn't all that epic, but PHANTOM CAM made it a bit more epic. I'll be honest, I'd like to watch an entire game in PHANTOM CAM. Although, that would take a few years. Think of all we would see though! Here are some thoughts I have from the PHANTOM CAM series.
I believe Kyle Gibson made his debut this weekend. Either that or Fox Sports North randomly decided to interview every single important person in Kyle Gibson's life for some other reason. I thought he looked great on Saturday. He kept the ball down, showed good fastball command and missed some bats. Even in the inning when he was touched for runs, he didn't really give up a lot of solid contact. In the end, he went six innings, only gave up two earned runs, struck out five and didn't walk a soul. He probably could have went out for the seventh, but it was nice to get him out of there with a successful quality start.
I'm a fan. I think he's here to stay.
On the flip side, I think P.J. Walters might be on his way out. He had a few good starts after his call-up, but he simply isn't a quality MLB starter. His ERA is now over 6 and his peripherals are brutal. He's averaging fewer than five innings per start and that just wrecks the bullpen. Once Pelfrey's healthy, I see no reason to give him another start and no reason to keep him on the 40-man roster. I'd probably DFA him right now and bask in the roster flexibility.
This may seem premature, but Walters also sports a 4.45 ERA in just about 600 AAA innings. He's not worth worrying about.
Joe Mauer is done?
Mauer was 0-15 in the Royals series, which means he needs to be released right now. There is a zero percent chance he ever breaks out of this slump. In fact, I hope he just decides to retire and save us all a lot of grief. If he could disappear from the public eye as well, I know I would appreciate it.
Miguel Sano's #rig
Lost in the recent hoopla regarding Byron Buxton's freaking dominance as a baseball player and human being is Miguel Sano's dominance as a baseball player and human being. Sano is slugging over .600 since his recent promotion, which is soul bossa nova. Jason Parks of Baseball Prospectus was in New Britain, getting an eyeful of Sano. Here is a particularly encouraging tweet from his visit:
Sano is a much better athlete than people realize; run is 5+; glove will be at least 5; arm is 7; raw 8; hit 5; legit instincts as well
— Jason Parks (@ProfessorParks) June 29, 2013
If Sano is an average runner, hitter and fielder, he will be a superstar. His power plays no matter what, but if he can hit, then it plays huge. In case you need more about his glove, read this:
He will stick at 3B. He can play. RT @goonerwinitall: @ProfessorParks does he stick at third or move to 1b/dh?
— Jason Parks (@ProfessorParks) June 29, 2013
Wowzers. The Twins have two budding superstars. What a time to be a Twins' fan. Here is some madness, just to balance out your excitement:
Former Twin Update - Jason Marquis
Since being released by the Twins last season, Jason Marquis is somehow 15 and 10, with an ERA just over 4. Not great, but certainly better than Mike Pelfrey, Vance Worley, P.J. Walters, and Pedro Hernandez this season. However, I wouldn't buy a San Diego Marquis jersey any time soon. This season, he has posted ratios of 5.9 K/9 and 5.0 BB/9. Those numbers suck. I wouldn't be surprised to see a line like this in the very near future:
1.2 IP, 9 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, L.
He'll regress and it will be hard.
Random Photoshop - Matt Harvey Dent
I'm not sure I can add much in the way of words.
Fun Stat - Kyle Gibson's First Stat Line
Kyle Gibson's final stat line from his first MLB start:
6 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, W.
Why is that significant? It's the only time a Twin has posted that line. Sounds crazy, but it's true. I used Baseball Reference's game index so it has to be true. Don't believe me? Here's your proof. Gibson's first start was both highly anticipated and somehow extremely historic/rare. Fun, but stupid.
KWL Chart - Clete Thomas
Poll Results
Clete Thomas wins! The poll question: If you absolutely had to fight one of these players, who would you choose?
Results:
- Josh Willingham - 2 votes (scaredy cats)
- Tyler Robertson - 10 votes
- Clete Thomas - 33 votes
- Mike Pelfrey - 11 votes
The correct answer is Mike Pelfrey because he seems jovial and nice and might take it easy on you. The obvious answer seems to be Clete, but man does he have crazy eyes. I'm not sure what he would do in a fight. I added a new poll, please vote on the side of my blog, Kevin Slowey was Framed!
Link to Something Good I said
I appeared on a Yankees radio show with Ricky Keeler of Yanks Go Yard. We discussed a variety of topics and it was a load of fun. Click here to hear my nasal, shrill, crackly voice. You can listen to me slowly get more comfortable talking then try to make bad jokes at times.
Parting Ways
I wanted to write a short parody of Pearl Jam's Parting Ways to lead in to the Yankee series, but I am not creative and that song is mostly instrumental. Instead, here is a short poem:
The Twins play the Yanks
People love Tom Hanks
November is for Thanks
Some dudes pull pranks
People love Tom Hanks
November is for Thanks
Some dudes pull pranks
I suck at poems. Have a nice week, everyone!
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