Minneapolis: The collapse of the Minnesota Twins experienced after two straight division titles can be traced in some places to natural regression.
The real surprise was how quickly and rapidly they faded.
The Twins lost five straight games during their first homestand of the season and never saw the .500 mark again. From 18 April, they were stuck in the fourth or fifth place in the controlled AL Central in the previous two years. He finished 73–89, a first-to-last change that no franchise ever wants to experience.
In this game, we sign up for all kinds of seasons. We don’t just sign up for the good guys. We sign up for all of them, said manager Rocco Baldelli. There were many challenges for us this year. We didn’t perform as we should have. We have to adopt it by all means. I have to be the first to raise my hand and own it and take responsibility for what happened here in the 2021 season.
The biggest culprit was the pitching staff. The Twins were 26th (4.83) this year, after being ninth (4.18) in the Majors in Team ERA in 2019 and fourth in 2020 (3.58). His best starter, Jose Beros, was traded to Toronto. Kenta Maeda, the other right-hander at the top of the rotation, struggled in the spring and required Tommy John surgery in the summer. The short-lived additions of J.A. Happ and Matt Shoemaker hurt more than it helped.
We’ll have to come back and evaluate that, because we certainly didn’t hit them, said Derek Falvey, president of baseball operations, who ended his fifth season leading the front office. “Those guys didn’t pitch as we thought they could.
The challenge for Falvey & Co. in getting the twins back on track is that they will build a rotation almost entirely anew for 2022. Maeda can’t count, though he chose a version of the elbow procedure designed to accelerate recovery. Joe Ryan, acquired from Tampa Bay for designated hitter Nelson Cruz, and Bayley Ober were the only pitchers to start the game in September who appeared to be viable options the following year.
Don’t expect to see a completely rookie rotation, though.
rebuilding?
I’m not using that word, Falvey said, adding: We’re going to find a way to invest in next year’s team. It doesn’t look five years down the line.
Buxton back?
An offseason issue is even more important than pitching for the Twins, with center fielder Byron Buxton entering his final year of club control before he is eligible for free agency. His agent and team talked about the expansion this summer before reaching an impasse.
At the end of another disappointing season of injuries, first a strained hip and then a broken arm, Buxton expressed a remarkable jump at the plate in light of his career-best production while he was in the lineup and annoyed about himself. No signal given. An uncertain future in Minnesota.
Buxton, 27, showed off his usual elite defense in the 61 games he played, but he made his greatest progress as a one-hiter finishing with 1.005 OPS in 19 home runs and 235 at-bats.
Buxton said this year taught me a little bit more about myself and who I can be, not only on the field but off the field as well. Off the field is where you get better and smarter as a player.
Maybe more big mics?
Michael Pineda tied Maeda for the team lead at the start (21) but missed several turns due to injury and will be a free agent again this fall. Due to his 3.62 ERA and outside influence on the rest of the staff, Pineda will receive some consideration for returning if both sides are able to find common ground on a new contract. Baldelli called Pineda the pillar of the clubhouse.
I like to be a team man, so I enjoy working together, Pineda said. I know I’m a leader right now, especially for pitchers, you know?
ups and downs
The Twins finished 11th in the majors in Ops (.738), boosted by a limited sample from Buxton, a midsummer bounce by Cruz’s first-half fix and second baseman Jorge Polanco. First baseman Miguel San tied for second on the team with 135 games, but the Twins needed a far more consistent production from the strike-prone slugger. Right fielder Max Kepler also had a disappointing second consecutive season at the plate.
coming next
The Twins began the 2022 season in a six-game road trip to division champion Chicago on March 31 against Seattle in their home opener on April 7. Another highlight of the event is the August 26–28 weekend home series against San Francisco, which had the best record among the majors this year. This will be the first visit by the Giants to Target Field since it opened in 2010.
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