Here are the Twins' FAQs of life, following another loss to Detroit on Sunday:
FAQ (frequently asked question): Are they nothing more than an average team in a terrible division?
FOA (frequently offered answer): To date, they can be factually described no other way. Losing three of four at home to the woeful Tigers should embarrass them.
FAQ: Is there hope they will get better?
FOA: They are 36-36 despite having the third-best ERA in baseball. Although Louie Varland took a beating Sunday, in general this team has spent this season squandering quality pitching performances. If the pitching remains this good and their hitting improves, they could become a good team. But neither is a given this far into the season.
FAQ: What's wrong with this team?
FOA: The easy answer is "injuries," and that was the correct explanation for the team's disappointing finish last season. This season, injuries are a problem, but the players who have dealt with injuries have also disappointed when healthy. Carlos Correa, Byron Buxton and Jorge Polanco have to be more durable and productive. Correa and Buxton are this team's highly paid stars. They need to live up to their paychecks. Their highest-paid pitcher, Pablo López, has also underperformed. The big-money players need to lead.
FAQ: How can this lineup be improved?
FOA: Trade Max Kepler and replace him with Trevor Larnach or Matt Wallner. Larnach has shown flashes of promise. Wallner may have a higher ceiling. I'd go with Wallner, but both are better than Kepler.
Play Ryan Jeffers more than Christian Vázquez and make Vázquez earn back his starting role. Play Royce Lewis every day at third and don't pinch hit for him.
With the mild exception of Alex Kirilloff, every key Twins hitter is underperforming. That has to reflect on the hitting coach. Former Twins hitting coach James Rowson is an assistant hitting coach with Detroit. Could the Twins trade Kepler for him?
FAQ: What's up with Jorge López?
FOA: The Twins placed him on the 15-day mental health injured list, a sad development that provides a reminder of how many athletes have admitted to struggles with mental health in recent years.
FAQ: What's Edouard Julien's future?
FOA: At DH if he doesn't improve his fielding. He's going to be an excellent big league hitter, but he should spend all winter improving his glove and agility if he wants to be a regular second baseman.
FAQ: Do the Twins strike out too much?
FOA: Yes, but not all strikeouts are created equal. Fanning with the bases empty isn't costly.
Fanning when your team needs a sacrifice fly or another form of productive out, or fanning while looking confused, or fanning by taking a called third strike on a pitch over the middle of the plate, is devastating to a team desperate for runs.
The Twins do all of the above far too often. Too often they look like they're guessing, and guessing wrong, instead of digging in and competing.
FAQ: Will Byron Buxton ever play center field?
FOA: He should. He was signed for a lot of money to be a great defender who can hit. Leaving him at DH means that on the days he doesn't hit, he's contributing nothing. Sunday, two balls got past Michael A. Taylor that Buxton would have caught. Keeping Buxton at DH hasn't kept him healthy, anyway.
FAQ: What's up with all of the injuries?
FOA: They changed head trainers and are still among the most injured teams in baseball. Serious injuries can be nothing more than bad luck.
FAQ: How much should we blame the manager and general manager?
FOA: I thought they had built a strong team entering the season. I also know, from experience, that every manager in every market gets second-guessed every day, and in this case manager Rocco Baldelli and GM Derek Falvey work as a team.
Their philosophy calls for them to think differently from the average team, but I'd like to see them implement a simpler plan:
Play your best players as much as possible. I'd rather lose because my best players were tired than because they were on the bench.
