The 30 Team/30 Day Report Cards: Day 27- Minnesota Twins

Ah, those pesky Twins. Let's get this one over with.

Minnesota Twins
Record: 94-68 (AL Central Champions, six games ahead of Chicago)

Batting Leaders
Batting Average: Joe Mauer (.327)
Home Runs: Jim Thome (25)
RBIs: Delmon Young (112)
On-base Percentage: Joe Mauer (.402)

Pitching Leaders
Wins: Carl Pavano (17)
Strikeouts: Francisco Liriano (201)
Innings Pitched: Carl Pavano (221)
ERA: Francisco Liriano (3.62). Bullpen- Brian Duensing (1.80).
WHIP: Carl Pavano (1.19). Bullpen- Matt Guerrier (1.10).
Saves: Jon Rauch (21)

Highlight of the Year: On September 21, the Minnesota Twins clinched their sixth division title in nine years with a 6-4 victory over the Indians at home. The White Sox held up their end of the bargain, losing their game in Oakland 7-2 for the Twins to win the division outright instead of playing another one-game playoff.

Lowlight of the Year: Another year, another sweep at the hands of the Yankees, as Minnesota could not hold off the Bronx Bombers in the division series. They lost the third and final game of the series 6-1 in New York to wrap up their ninth straight postseason loss to the Yankees, and their 12th straight loss in the postseason overall dating back to 2004.

The Lowdown:
Playing their unique brand of baseball, the Minnesota Twins were able to outlast Detroit and Chicago once again for their sixth division championship since 2002. They really are a model of efficiency for small-to-mid-market teams to follow, as the Twins, even when faced with the prospect of crippling injuries, are able to plug in their holes time and again. It happened once again this year, as the Twins were missing two of their key pieces for the majority of the season. All-star closer Joe Nathan missed the entire season last year following Tommy John Surgery, and first-baseman Justin Morneau missed a significant amount of time during the second half of the season following a concussion. However, Minnesota persevered with a deep bullpen and a very consistent lineup. They were also able to maintain steady play throughout the season, as the team did not get into a really bad slump for an extended period of time. Plus, they were able to weather a furious charge by Chicago during the season, and their phenomenal head-to-head record against the Sox was one of the many reasons why the Twinkies ended up on top again.

Offense:
Minny's offense ran like a well-oiled machine once again, finishing sixth in MLB in runs (781), third in batting average (.273), second in on-base percentage (.341) and seventh in slugging (.422). Their consistency with driving runners in easily made up for their lack of home runs, as the team finished 19th in MLB with just 142.

The one player who personifies the consistency and relentlessness of their lineup has to be Joe Mauer, who put together another great season at the plate. While Mauer's power dwindled significantly (he fell to just nine home runs last year from 28 in 2009), he was still raking average-wise, finishing with a team-high clip of .327.

While the Twins weren't phenomenal in the home run department, they still had some players capable of busting the ball out of the park in a hurry. Delmon Young appears to finally be emerging as a force in the lineup, hitting a solid .298 with 21 home runs and a team-high 112 RBIs. Also, Jason Kubel still provided a touch of power, hitting 21 home runs as well.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of them all in the Twins lineup had to be the intimidating Jim Thome. The thing that was surprising about his season last year was the fact that he continued to be a threat at the plate power-wise, as he received more playing time once Justin Morneau went down with a concussion. Thome practically put the team on his back during August and September, as he went on a tear power-wise that saw him finish the season with a team-high 25 home runs. Thome stepping up to fill the void left by Morneau was huge, considering Morneau had a .345 average with 18 home runs and 56 RBIs in just 81 games. What could have been a potentially dire situation for the Twins turned into just a minor setback once Thome came through.

Overall, this is one of the best lineups in baseball, and it's quite surprising that they don't receive more credit than they do.
Final Grade: A+

Pitching:
Once again, the Twins didn't feature a lights-out number one starter, but they did feature a stable of capable starters to keep them in ballgames more often than not. The best performance out of their rotation actually came from another unlikely source, as Carl Pavano had a renaissance year on the mound last year. Pavano finished with a 17-11 record with a 3.75 ERA in 221 innings, by far his best totals since 2004.

Backing Pavano up was another pitcher who had a renaissance year in 2010, as Francisco Liriano finally settled back down to be the pitcher many thought he would be when he burst onto the scene in 2006. Liriano finished 14-10 with a 3.62 ERA and a team-high of 201 strikeouts in 191 innings, great numbers from someone who people wondered if he would ever regain the form he featured during his rookie season.

While the rest of the starting rotation was merely average, their bullpen was anything but average, finishing eighth in MLB in ERA at 3.49. Even though they were missing Joe Nathan during the season, they received great performances from just about everybody else, as a whopping seven relievers finished with ERAs below 3.50. The team largely used two closers during the season, as Jon Rauch and Matt Capps each alternated duties, finishing with 21 and 16 saves respectively. Minnesota also received great performances in the set-up role from Matt Guerrier and Jesse Crain, as each appeared in over 70 games and finished with ERAs of 3.17 and 3.04 respectively. The trio of lefties in Jose Mijares, Ron Mahay and Brian Duensing were also reliable, as Mijares and Mahay would finish with ERAs of 3.31 and 3.44 respectively, while Duensing was great as both a reliever and spot starter, finishing with a 1.80 ERA out of the bullpen.

The Twins would end up finishing 11th in MLB in ERA (3.95), eighth in WHIP (1.29), 16th in quality starts (86), 24th in "batting average against" (.266) and 12th in home runs allowed (155). While those stats aren't exactly outstanding, they aren't that bad, either.
Final Grade: B-

Wild Card: Delmon Young
At age 25, it finally seems as if Delmon Young is beginning to emerge as the player many thought he would be when he first came up with Tampa Bay in 2006. His .298 average with 21 home runs and 112 RBIs would all be career-highs, along with recording a career-low 81 strikeouts. After a great season like that at such a young age, I think Young is here to stay.
Final Grade: A-

Overall:
Minnesota had another great season, but they are really going to have to find a way to get out of the first round of the playoffs. Their poor showing in the first round is what will keep me from giving them an A+. Now that I'm finished praising the Twins, I can finally go wash my mouth out with soap.
Final Grade: A

Check back soon for the report card on the New York Yankees!

The 30 Day/30 Team Report Cards: Day 20- Minnesota Twins

Welcome back, everybody! I hope you all enjoyed your Christmas, and I hope you all received fantastic gifts as well! Today's team to receive a report card will be the AL Central Champions, the Minnesota Twins. Let's get started, shall we?

Minnesota Twins:
Record: 87-76 (American League Central Division Champions).

Batting Leaders:
Batting Average: Joe Mauer (.365)
Home Runs: Michael Cuddyer (32)
RBIs: Jason Kubel (103)
On-base Percentage: Joe Mauer (.444)

Pitching Leaders:
Wins: Scott Baker (15)
ERA: Nick Blackburn (4.03). Bullpen- Joe Nathan (2.10).
Strikeouts: Scott Baker (162)
Innings Pitched: Nick Blackburn (205.2)
WHIP: Joe Nathan (0.93). Starters- Scott Baker (1.19).
Saves: Joe Nathan (47)

Highlight of the Year: After trailing in the division by seven games as late as September 6, the Twins stormed back to win the division, taking out the Tigers at home in a one-game playoff on October 6, 6-5 in 12 innings.

Lowlight of the Year: Getting blasted by the Yankees in a three-game sweep in the playoffs from October 7-11. The Twins now have nine consecutive losses in the postseason, dating back to 2004.

The Lowdown:
After coming so close in 2008, the Twins were determined to finish the job in 2009, and that job was to win the AL Central. They were bringing back everyone from the 2008 team, with a few key additions added to the mix. They strengthened their left side of their infield by adding shortstop Orlando Cabrera and third baseman Joe Crede, and they also had outfielder Michael Cuddyer healthy and producing for a full season again. Even though their pitching regressed a bit from '08, they were still solid, and they were kept afloat by an outstanding offense that knew how to drive in runners when it mattered the most. Minnesota also played fundamentally sound baseball during the season, which meant that they rarely lost a game in which they beat themselves. Despite this, the AL Central was still a tough three team race between them, Detroit and Chicago. In the end though, it was Minnesota that prevailed once again, as they caught fire in September to take their fifth division crown of the decade.

Offense:
The Twins featured another very efficient offense in 2009, as they finished fifth in the majors in runs scored with 817. Their offensive efficiency was further exemplified by their high team average of .274, which was third in MLB behind only the Yankees and Angels. They also proved that you do not need to hit a lot of home runs to have a successful offense, as their modest total of 172 home runs was good enough for 13th in MLB. They featured a lot of key parts in their lineup, the biggest of which was catcher Joe Mauer.

Despite missing the first month of the season, Mauer did not miss a beat once he returned, as he hit a home run in his first at-bat of the season on May 1 against Kansas City. The beat did not stop for Mauer, as he continued on a torrid pace throughout the summer, finishing with a major-league best .365 average, 28 home runs and 96 RBIs, all of which were also career-highs. This spectacular season was good enough for the St. Paul native to earn his first career AL MVP, likely the first of many to come.

Mauer's right-hand man in the lineup was of course, first baseman Justin Morneau. The big lefty from British Columbia put together another fine season at the plate, hitting 30 home runs and driving in 100 to go along with a .274 average. However, his numbers would have certainly been considerably better if he did not go down with a stress fracture in his lower back on September 15, an injury which obviously ended his season.

It would seem that if the Twins lost Morneau during the time they needed him the most, their season would be doomed to another near-miss. However, Jason Kubel and Michael Cuddyer stepped up in his void and carried the team (along with Mauer) to the postseason. Kubel had the best year of his career by far, as he hit .300, with 28 home runs and 100 RBIs. He was complimented by Cuddyer, who also put up an outstanding year, hitting a career-high 32 home runs while driving in 94. With the performances of Mauer, Morneau, Kubel and Cuddyer, the Twins barely missed becoming the first AL team to feature four 30-home run hitters since the White Sox turned the trick in 2006.

Altogether, this is a very outstanding and very underrated lineup that should get a lot more credit for what they do. They managed to score a lot of runs, but, despite the performances of their "big four," they did not hit a ton of home runs. They are like a well-run machine; they get the man in from third with a sac-fly, they go the other way with a pitch instead of trying to jack it out of the park, and they also have smart baserunning that keeps them from running themselves out of an inning. Fundamentals never take a day off, and that's what keeps this lineup churning.
Final Grade: A+

Pitching:
As mentioned earlier, their pitching staff collectively regressed a bit from their 2008 performance. Their team ERA rose from 4.16 in '08 (13th in MLB) to 4.50 this year (23rd in MLB). Kevin Slowey going down with a season-ending injury in July was certainly a reason for this, as he was one of their best starters in '08. He was also off to a nice 10-3 start this year as well, before going down. Also, the continuing struggles of Francisco Liriano did not help matters, either. Despite this, the staff did receive some solid performances this year, as they were led by Scott Baker. He put together a decent campaign, going 15-9, with a 4.37 ERA, which was just a tad below the AL average of 4.45. He also did a fair job in not allowing runners to get on, as his WHIP was a respectable 1.19. Nick Blackburn also put together a decent season, going 11-11 with a 4.03 ERA.

Their 'pen was led by closer Joe Nathan, as always. He continues to quietly put up some of the best numbers in baseball in the closer's role, as he went 47 for 52 in saves, with a 2.10 ERA. His WHIP this year was microscopic, as it was an absolutely sick 0.93. Lefty Jose Mijares and righty Matt Guerrier also put together great seasons out of the 'pen, as they each recorded ERAs under three (Mijares- 2.34 ERA in 71 appearances, Guerrier- 2.36 ERA in 79 appearances). Guerrier's WHIP was almost on the level of Nathan's, as he finished at 0.97 on the season.

Overall, the Twins' staff was okay, as they finished 12th in runs allowed with 765. The thing that they are able to do so well is throw strikes, as they allowed the second-least amount of walks in the bigs, issuing just 466 free passes. However, this can come at a cost, as teams are usually able to put the ball into play at a higher rate. Opponents were able to .272 clip, which tied for the sixth-worst in the majors. They were still a pretty decent staff in spite of this, but they really benefited from an outstanding offense and a slightly weaker AL Central this year.
Final Grade: C+

Wild Card: Defense
Want proof of how the Twins are fundamentally sound? They only committed 76 errors on the season, which tied for the second-least in the bigs. If you are going to have a pitching staff that lets the offense put the ball in play more often than not, you better have a good defense behind you.
Final Grade: A

Overall:
This team is a classic example of "being good enough to get there, but not good enough to win it all." The Twins usually put a competitive team out on the field more often than not, but once they get to the playoffs, they usually fold. Now I know that they don't exactly have enough money to go after a big name free agent. However, I think that the time has come for the Twins to make a splash at the trading deadline. They are basically one piece away from being capable of winning it all. Their penny-pinching ownership and front office needs to just say "the hell with it" and make a splash. So what if you're unable to sign the player in the offseason after making the trade? Nobody will fault you for trying too hard. Just look at the Brewers. Nobody is exactly casting stones at them for trading for Sabathia in '08, and failing to sign him in the offseason. The Twins have come to an organizational crossroads with the possibility of Joe Mauer becoming a free agent, and it will certainly be interesting to see what they do. Will they finally break the bank to sign their hometown hero, so they can continue to be competitive, or will they play it cheap and not sign him, thus keeping the status quo of the organization?

Ugh, heaping this much praise on a franchise that I truly abhor really makes me want to vomit, but they really do a lot of things the right way.
Final Grade: A-

Check back tomorrow for the report card on the Florida Marlins!