Your Minnesota Twins have compiled a record of 22-31 as we sit here on June 1st.
10.5 games back of the division leading Chicago White Sox and 7 games back of the last wild card spot.
If you would have asked me at the beginning of the year I would’ve told you I’d expect that record to be flop-flopped and they’d be somewhere in the vicinity of 31-22 at this point.
But the team has been held up substantially by injuries, a Covid-19 outbreak, supreme bullpen inefficiencies, sketchy starting pitching from anyone not named Berrios, and the bad luck and overall stigma of being the Minnesota Twins.
Since their low point of being fourteen games under .500 at 14-28, the team has managed to win 8 of it’s past 11 games and claw its way back to nine games under at 22-31.
On the surface that may seem pretty good.
But are those type of recent results sustainable?
Kansas City taking two out of three from them over the weekend killed me. I wanted the Twins to win that series so bad. They had just come off their first series sweep of the season against the Orioles and I felt taking 2 outta 3 from the Royals would reaffirm their upward pace within the organization.
To that point…This is going to be a very important June. Make or break. Do or Die. All that stuff.
If they end this month further away from the .500 mark than they started, and the rest of the division doesn’t falter, I’d look for the Twins front office to decide they need to be sellers at the deadline.
Season Over.
I have been positive, and repeatedly announcing to anyone who will listen, all year that the Twins have the ability and will turn this thing around to at least make a run at a playoff spot by season’s end.
But I finally find myself wavering. But not for the reasons you might think.
I still believe they have the ability. But the longer Buxton, Maeda, and Kepler stay on the injured list the more pessimistic I become. Buxton and Maeda have both had setbacks in their rehab. And Kepler has a hamstring issue that won’t quit lingering…not good for a team already lacking in left handed bats.
The Twins did manage to catch a marginal break recently though.
The scheduling Gods are currently looking down favorably upon the Twins. The timing of being smack dab in the middle of a BAL, BAL, BAL, KC, KC, KC, BAL, BAL, BAL, KC, KC, KC, KC, schedule is certainly beneficial. They are currently 4-0 against Baltimore and 1-2 against Kansas City in that stretch.
I was hoping they could win 9 or 10 during this 13 game period, while also using it to get healthy.
And although that goal is still attainable, they struggled to beat the worst team in baseball yesterday in 10 innings, while almost squandering 8 scoreless innings from Berrios.
If somehow the Twins can get 2 of those 3 guys back before the schedule gets tougher (the Yankees and Astros are waiting on the other end of the 4 game series against the Royals) and go a minimum of 4-2 in the final six games of their current road trip, I still believe this team can get it done.
But if they don’t perform well against Baltimore and Kansas City this week, and it’s coupled with the teams best player (Buxton) and last year’s best pitcher (Maeda) staying on the shelf…It could be curtains on the Twins season…in June.
So, in conclusion…
C’mon Twins, set the tone for the march to the .500 mark against the Orioles tonight. Let’s stay afloat a little longer and see what happens.
