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Monday Mailbox: Are the Twins Pretenders or Contenders?

By Brennen Rupp

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I’m not one of those people that say “It’s only May” when talking about a teams record. It’s true that you don’t win anything for having a good record in the month of May. But, it’s also true that you can play yourself out of any hopes of winning the division with how you play during the first two months of the season.

After the Twins started 1-6, it appeared the Twins were in store for another long season. As stated in the question, they’ve gone 24-12 since. Seven of their 18 losses have come at the hands of the Detroit Tigers. Aside from the Tigers, the Twins are 14-8 against the AL Central. They are also 14-6 at Target Field. As long as the Twins continue to take care of business against the rest of the division and at home, they’ll be playing meaningful baseball in August and September.

They are an AL best 15-6 in the month of May. While their schedule this month hasn’t been grueling, they did take two out of three agains the AL East leading, Tampa Bay Rays. They also swept the Pirates at PNC Park.

They are currently seven games over .500. For a team that was supposed to finish last in the Central and that started 1-6, it’s okay to start believing.

Miguel Sano. Sano will likely be batting cleanup for the Twins in 2016 and his power presence will be a welcome site for a team that lacks a true power hitter. Adam Brett Walker II is an exciting prospect and he has power potential. But, I think he’s still two years away from being a big league caliber player.

Torii Hunter might be one of the best defensive outfielders of his generation. However, he’s a career .279 hitter with less than 400 home runs. Hunter is one of my favorite players to watch. But, I don’t think he’s Hall of Fame worthy.

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