Minnesota Twins: May Day! May Day! 10 Things the Twins Must Do To Turn It Around
While Ron Gardenhire has had a problem winning in the postseason, he has dominated the regular season in the American League Central division. Since 2002, the Twins have won more games than any other AL Central team.
During his tenure as the Twins skipper, Gardenhire has an 812-674 record, a .546 winning percentage. He's won six American League Central division titles in nine seasons and has had only one losing season and has only finished lower than second place in the AL Central twice.
Gardenhire has done all this with typically a payroll closer to the bottom of the league than to the top.
As the season turns from April to May, the Twins find themselves in an unfamiliar territory—last place in the AL Central.
In four of the six seasons, Ron Gardenhire and the Twins have won the AL Central division. They ended April at .500 or lower. In 2006 and 2009, they were still under .500 by the end of May.
April was the worst month in Gardenhire's career as manager as the Twins went 9-17, nine games behind the Cleveland Indians.
The previous worst came in April of 2006 when the Twins opened the season with a 9-15 record, sitting in fourth place, eight games behind the Chicago White Sox.
They would start to turn things around in May with a 15-13 record and would not have another losing month that season on their way to a 96-66 record and the division title.
If the Twins are to have a similar comeback in 2011, they need to take action—now.
Here are 10 things the Twins need to do to turn things around.
Send Alexi Casilla Packing
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I'm not sure what manager Ron Gardenhire sees in Alexi Casilla and why he keeps giving him a job on the Twins roster.
Currently only batting, .190 Casilla has committed four errors at shortstop with a 0.955 fielding percentage—offensively and defensively the worst for any regular in the Twins lineup.
The Twins should send him packing. Currently out of options, the odds of another team picking Casilla up are slim. There should be no problem with him clearing waivers and ending up in Rochester.
Move Danny Valencia Up to the Third Spot in the Order
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Sure Danny Valencia is only batting .211—but he leads the Twins in home runs with two and RBI with 13.
Gardenhire has tried just about everyone else in the third spot in the order, might as well let Valencia take a turn.
His strike outs to walk ratio has improved over last season. In 2010, he was striking out more than twice as often as walking. So far in 2011, it's almost even at 13 strike outs and 11 walks.
Leave Jason Kubel in the Clean-Up Spot in the Order
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Right now, Jason Kubel is the Twins best hitter. He leads the team with a .354 batting average, nine doubles and a .510 slugging percentage.
Put him in the clean up spot and leave him there until someone, anyone, can dislodge him with better numbers. He should be followed in the order by Michael Cuddyer, Delmon Young and Justin Morneau behind him—in that order.
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Trade Francisco Liriano—Before It's Too Late
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Last April Francisco Liriano went 3-0 with a 0.93 ERA in four starts.
This season, it has been the exact opposite for Liriano as he is 1-4 with a 9.13 ERA.
Liriano has been inconsistent since returning from Tommy John surgery in 2008.
The problem is can they afford to wait and see if he can turn it around and be the dominate ace the Twins are hoping for?
With each blowout loss, his value will take a tumble, the Twins should look to move him now while they can get something in return.
Place Joe Nathan on the DL
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The Twins need to recognize they made a mistake and rushed All-Star closer Joe Nathan back to the major league roster before he was ready.
So far in 2011, he has two blown saves, in all of 2009, he only had five for the entire season.
With a 10.00 ERA Nathan needs to take a step back and make sure he is fully recovered and strong enough to resume the closer role. By placing him on the disabled list, Nathan works on rehabbing his shoulder and then works out any kinks in the minors.
Replace Joe Vavra as Hitting Coach
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There's the old adage you can't fire the team so you fire the manager.
In the six years that Joe Vavra has been the hitting coach for the Minnesota Twins, they have had the third-best batting average in Major League Baseball.
Looking at the six seasons before Vavra was coaching with the Twins, their average was .270—only three points lower. It shows what little effect Vavra has really had with the Twins.
Currently, the team is batting .230—the lowest in the American league.
Does Vavra get the blame for taking Rene Tosoni who was hitting .286 for the Rochester Red Wings and turned him into a .176 hitter for the Twins?
Nothing is working for the Twins right now at the plate, so the time is right to shake things up a little.
Send Luke Hughes to Rochester
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I admit it, I was all in favor of Luke Hughes joining the Twins. I thought he should have made the team instead of Matt Tolbert.
During spring training, he led the Twins with six home runs and 15 RBI in 65 at bats. So far in 47 at bats, he only has one home run and 4 RBI.
Hughes needs to find his stroke and improve his batting average, something that would be better done in Rochester.
Call Up Trevor Plouffe
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The Minnesota Twins should replace Alexi Casilla with Trevor Plouffe.
Plouffe is currently leading the Rochester Red Wings with 22 hits, six home runs, 46 total bases and a .297 batting average.
Plouffe has as many stolen bases in Rochester as Casilla has for the Twins.
Give Kyle Gibson His Shot Already
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Everyone knows it's just a matter of time. At some point this season, the Twins will be calling up Kyle Gibson, their first-round draft choice from 2009.
Currently, the Twins starters are 5-14 with a 7.14 ERA.
In five starts for the Rochester Red Wings, Gibson is 1-1 with 3.46 ERA—a better ERA than Carl Pavano, Francisco Liriano or Nick Blackburn.
Hang on Until the Walking Wounded Can Return
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First, it was the broken left fibula for Tsuyoshi Nishioka, then it was the bilateral leg weakness followed by the mysterious viral infection suffered by Joe Mauer, then Delmon Young suffered a strained oblique.
Along with this, Jim Thome has been in and out of the lineup with various aches and pains.
If manager Ron Gardenhire can just keep things patched together and stay within striking distance of the division leaders, the Twins have a chance. This is the AL Central after all, often considered one of the two weakest divisions in baseball.
Last season, Gardenhire was able to pull the Twins out of a 4.5 game hole following the All-Star break and win the division after losing his best hitter at the time.
Perhaps, normalcy will return to the AL Central, and Gardenhire can duplicate his success of 2006, the last time the Twins started this poorly.
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