Minnesota Twins: The Good, Bad, and the Ugly of the first half

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The Minnesota Twins wrapped up the first half with an 11-7 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday. However, fans would like to put the past few months in the rearview mirror.

Expectations were high for the Minnesota Twins at the start of this season. Unfortunately, very little has gone according to plan for this team and they’re fading fast from playoff contention. Today we’ll take a look at the good, the bad, and the ugly for the Twins first half, but first…

A brief look back at this season

The season got off to a rocky start following the suspension of Jorge Polanco during Spring Training. However, Eduardo Escobar (more on him later) stepped up and helped fill the void that was created with the loss of Polanco.

Unfortunately, Miguel Sano (more on him later too) struggled enough to earn a demotion and Minnesota has struggled to fill that void. Although Polanco has returned to the lineup, it might be too little, too late at this point.

Brian Dozier (more on him soon) has struggled and it looks like he could be traded soon. On top of that, Logan Morrison (more on him later too) has been abysmal for the Twins and his acquisition is looking like a monumental failure.

However, it hasn’t all been bad for the Twins during the first half. The pitching staff has pitched well. Everybody knows about José Berríos (more later) by now and for good reason. Even more than Berríos, Kyle Gibson is the pitcher that has stepped up the most.

Berríos has always been expected to have this type of impact for the Twins. Gibson on the other hand has suddenly become a steady presence in the back-end of the Twins rotation. The 30-year-old has turned the corner and become a legit rotation piece for Minnesota.

He has a 3.42 ERA with 114 strikeouts in 115 2/3 innings pitched during this season. He also has a career best 8.9 strikeouts per nine innings while maintaining a solid 1.228 WHIP. Although the Minnesota Twins have struggled, Gibson has shown he belongs in this rotation.

Gibson wasn’t quite good enough to make the list that follows but he is having a very good season. He is not alone in that category either. However, plenty of players have underperformed during the first half of this season.

That being said, let’s start this off with the disappointing performances so far this season. Now, let’s jump into this list and start with the ugly side of the Twins first half.

Miguel Sano

Miguel Sano has been non-existent for the Minnesota Twins during the 2018 season. Durability has been a question for Sano and this season he has struggled to see the field in MLB.

Sano entered Spring Training rehabbing from offseason surgery and hasn’t been able to find solid footing in the Twin Cities. He has hit only .203 with seven home runs in 39 games played in the Majors during this season.

Those aren’t even the bad numbers when looking at his performance while with the Twins. He has amassed 66 strikeouts with only 163 plate appearances while walking only 14 times. If his .675 OPS isn’t reason enough for concern, his paltry. 270 OBP raises plenty of red flags.

That is the reason Sano currently finds himself playing in Advanced-A Fort Myers. His ugly performance during the first half has been a major contributor to the Minnesota Twins struggles. However, he’s not the only player who has experienced monumental struggles during this season.

Logan Morrison

The Twins made a splash when they signed Logan Morrison during the offseason. However, he has done next to nothing to earn his contract during the 2018 season.

Morrison hit only .249 while playing in 149 games for the Tampa Bay Rays during the 2017 season. However, he also hit 38 home runs with 85 runs batted in and was able to turn that into a guaranteed one-year $6.5 million contract.

Although that salary seems reasonable, Morrison has produced all of 31 runs during this season. He also has only 11 home runs and 24 extra-base hits while playing in 80 games. To make things even worse, Morrison is hitting only .193 and provides very little value in the lineup.

Minnesota made a mistake in signing Morrison. He has been a terrible hitter, with random power surges, throughout his entire career. He is at best a mediocre power-hitter and the Twins need more than that. That being said, we’ll now move onto a player who hasn’t been ugly, but he hasn’t been good either.

Brian Dozier

Brian Dozier has performed far worse than expected for the Minnesota Twins during this season. However, his power numbers are what keep him from being included on the ugly list.

Although Dozier is hitting just .227, he has 16 home runs through 94 games. Dozier has put up big power number during the second half over the last few seasons and should hit more than 30 home runs for the fourth straight year.

The second baseman started strong for the Twins hitting .304 with four home runs through the first 17 games. However, that’s where it all ended for Dozier. He has hit 12 home runs while hitting .204 over his last 77 games and is no longer Minnesota’s lead-off hitter.

Trade speculation has been swirling around Dozier during the last couple of weeks. His has a .279 batting average with five home runs since the start of July and his value is climbing.

Byron Buxton

Unlike Dozier, Byron Buxton never had the opportunity to get things going early for the Twins. Buxton went to the disabled list with migraines early during this season. However, that was just the beginning of Buxton’s bad luck.

Buxton fouled a ball off of his toe during a game in the Minors while on rehab assignment fracturing his toe. He tried playing through the injury but Buxton was a shell of his former self.

He has 14 hits through 94 plate appearances while appearing in 94 games for the Minnesota Twins. Buxton’s .156 batting average even makes Logan Morrison feel better about his paltry stats this season.

Buxton didn’t have his normal impact on the bases or in the outfield either and that’s What really hurt this team early. He lacked his elite explosiveness and was largely a non-factor for this team.

The center fielder is currently in Triple-A trying to find his swing again. The expectation is for Buxton to rejoin this team soon and he could be vital in any chance of a Twins turnaround. That being said, let’s take a look at the players who have kept the Twins afloat during this disappointing season.

José Berríos

We’ll start this out with the Minnesota Twins lone representative during this year’s Midsummer Classic. José Berríos has emerged as more than just an ace for this pitching staff, he has a legitimate chance to win the Cy Young Award this season.

The right-handed Berríos has a 3.68 ERA with 127 1/3 innings pitched through his first 20 starts. Berríos has been as dominant as any pitcher in MLB at times during this season. That’s especially true when he was able to pitch in his home country of Puerto Rico this season.

Berríos pitched seven innings of three-hit shutout baseball against the Indians in that April 18th start. He struck out five and needed only 85 pitches to keep a tough Indians lineup at bay. He has only continued to impress since that moment in Estadio Hiram Bithorn.

Without Berríos there is no telling where this team might be in the standings right now. However, he hasn’t kept hope alive for the Twins alone during this season. Now, let’s take a look at a player who deserved an All-Star nod during this season.

Eddie Rosario

Eddie Rosario has built upon his breakthrough performance during the 2017 season. Rosario hit .290 with 27 home runs and 78 runs batted in during last season and has only improved upon those numbers this year.

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The left fielder is on pace to easily surpass his career high of 27 home runs and has continued to show growth at the plate. Although he is a free swinger and will have his fair share of strikeouts, Rosario has become a more well-rounded hitter.

Rosario is currently hitting .310 with 19 home runs and 61 runs batted in through 94 games. He has also helped stabilize the defense in the outfield while Byron Buxton has been injured.

Rosario has had help along the way offensively. The next player on our list has been equally as important as Rosario in keeping the Minnesota Twins from plummeting in the standings.

Eduardo Escobar

Twins utility infielder Eduardo Escobar has been impressive during the first half. Escobar has mostly been a reserve infielder who gets playing time because of his versatility. However, he has become a vital piece to Minnesota’s lineup during this season.

He is hitting .272 with a .331 on-base percentage through 91 games. Escobar has also tapped into his power for the Twins this season. The infielder has 14 home runs, 52 extra-base hits in total, and 57 runs batted in.

However, his presence in the infield has been more important than his presence in the lineup. First, Jorge Polanco was suspended during Spring Training and Escobar stepped in nicely at shortstop. However, Miguel Sano has played poorly when healthy during this season and currently finds himself playing in the Minors.

Although Escobar doesn’t have gaudy numbers that jump off of the page at you, he has been consistently solid all season. Without Escobar, this team would have struggled to fill two different positions on the infield and remain on the fringes of contention.

With little more than two months left to play during this season, Minnesota needs more from the players who have underperformed. Players like Buxton, Sano, and Brian Dozier are prime candidates to bounce back during the second half.

Next: The Top-5 All-Star performances in Twins history

The Twins still have small playoff hopes for this season and need everybody to take their game to another level to succeed. Here’s hoping for more good than bad or ugly over the next two months.

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