Twins Notes: Small Ball Tactics Defeat Royals by One

-Scott Baker, Twins Starting Pitcher, struggled early in this game. He gave up two runs early but settled down and went six and two-thirds with just the three runs. In what is going to become a very repetitive report, the Twins pitching staff gave the Twins an excellent chance to win. After Baker was pulled Pat Neshek came in and got four outs and Nathan picked up a three out save in the ninth.

-Justin Morneau finally picked up his first hit of the season and picked up an RBI doing it but the event was bittersweet; Michael Cuddyer dislocated a finger sliding into third base and was taken out of the game.

-Another big story about this year’s Twins team is their new centerfielder Carlos Gomez. So far he has a hit in every game this season and is 9 for 20 with four stolen bases. Many of his hits are bunt singles and a few are infield hits. He has two doubles on the season as well.

This guy is one of the fastest players I have seen and his ability to steal bases at will make him an incredible fit for a team like the Twins.

-In the Bottom of the fourth inning, when the score was tied at three runs apiece, the Twins got a double out of Mike Lamb. Matt Tolbert sacrificed Lamb over to third base in the next at bat. With one out, the number nine hitter, Adam Everett, layed down a bunt which allowed Lamb to score from third. A suicide squeeze, the first I remember see from Gardenhire in three years.

Sabermetricians are often wary of classic “small ball” game tactics. Bunting often results in lowering the probability of scoring a run. Stealing bases can result in killed rallies and wasted outs. Hit and run plays put the runner and the hitter in a bad spot. As traditionally practiced “small ball” is nothing but myth.

However, this is not to say small ball can’t be incorporated successfully into baseball. In this game Ron Gardenhire played everything out perfectly. His slugger picked up a double. With his utility infielder and slap hitting shortstop due up with no outs and a chance to win the game, he used up precious outs getting an even more precious run. By doing so he probably killed any opportunity for turning the inning into a multiple run rally but increased the chances he’d get at least one run. Since he knows the Twins have three elite relief pitchers (Guerrier, Neshek and Nathan) he figured his team could hold a one run lead.

It’s a perfect example of how to play ball well by merging traditional and sabermetric knowledge. If only Gardenhire was always so.

Twins win 4-3