Week one of the season is done and it has been quite the roller coaster ride so far.
Expectations for the Twins were quite low going into Opening Day, yet optimism abounded after beating Torii Hunter and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, a team considered to be a serious World Series contender.
After the next game, however, the negativity returned.
The offense proceeded to score only five runs in the next three games, and against average pitchers (Jon Garland, Jon Saunders, and Erwin Santana.) The Twins lost the last three games of the series.
The bats continued to sputter against Kansas City over the weekend, but the pitching was good enough to steal two of three from the Royals. The Twins finished the week with a dissapointing 3-4 record.
Personally, I don't understand the negativity surrounding this team. Sure, the offense is pretty pathetic. But the Angels are a good team, and the Royals are an up-and-coming team. The Twins are in a rebuilding year, and this is almost how I expected them to play. If fans are moaning and groaning now, just think of the reaction after this week when the team hits the road to play three in Chicago, three in KC, and two in Detroit.
Bright spot of the week: Carlos Gomez. .357 BA, 10 hits, 4 steals, 12 total bases, and 4 runs.
Was this guy really in a competition for the starting center field job in spring training? Honorable Mentions: Livan Hernandez, Nick Blackburn, Boof's weight.
Gloomy spot of the week: The bats.
The Twins only managed to score 19 runs in 6 games. That is only averaging about 3 runs a game, including no runs in Nick Blackburn's major league debut. Honorable Mentions: Justin Morneau, post-opening day attendance.
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4 months ago
Nice writeup. Another bright spot is the bullpen (except for tonight), Matt Tolbert, and the starters in general.
I think I will do an expanded version of this, focusing only on the bright spots. Thanks for the inspiration.
from 4 months ago
i forgot about tolbert, but he hadn't gotten a lot of playing time until the series against KC. he is doing very well though, i agree.
4 months ago
I think a lot of the negativity comes from this team's precarious position. Are they the best rebuilding team or are they just a decent young team? If they are officially rebuilding, then this year is a wash and whatever success the team has is secondary to the growth of the younger players. If we're playing to win, then losing 3/4 to the Angels is bad, regardless of the fact that they are good, since you've got to beat the good teams to get into the playoffs. The Twins are in a tough position, no doubt, but I think we'll have a better idea of what we should expect this year once we see how long it will take Liriano to come back. Once people have a realistic idea of what to expect, I think the vibes will improve.
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