Minnesota Twins Rotation vs. Chicago White Sox Rotation
The Twins and White Sox rotations both have improved dramatically over the last two years. Only one Twins starter was on the roster two seasons, and only two of the White Sox’ starting pitchers are still around. With that being said, here are the rotations for each team (last years stats included):
Twins:
- Jose Berrios: 14-8, 3.68 ERA, 195 K, All-Star
- Jake Odorizzi: 15-7, 3.51 ERA, 178 K, All-Star
- Kenta Maeda: 10-8, 4.04 ERA, 169 K
- Randy Dobnak: 2-1, 1.59 ERA, 23 K
- Homer Bailey: 13-9, 4.57 ERA, 149 K
- Michael Pineda: 11-5, 4.01 ERA, 140 K (39 Games Remaining on his Suspension)
White Sox:
- Lucas Giolito: 14-9, 3.41 ERA, 228 K, All-Star
- Dallas Kuechel: 8-8, 3.75 ERA, 91 K
- Gio Gonzalez: 3-2, 3.50 ERA, 78 K
- Reynaldo Lopez: 10-15, 5.38 ERA, 169 K
- Dylan Cease: 4-7, 5.79 ERA, 81 K
Neither one of these rotations are fully settled, with Spring Training being cut short, so Dobnak, Bailey, and Cease are all projected for the fourth and fifth spots. These will likely change throughout the season with top prospects like Jordan Balazovic and Michael Kopech joining the rotation during the year.
With that being said, this a close competition. Berrios/Odorizzi and Giolito/Kuechel are even, but Kenta Maeda is a huge upgrade over Gonzalez, and unless Lopez and Cease can reach their potential, Dobnak and Bailey/Pineda are far more reliable options. Advantage: Twins.
Minnesota Twins Bullpen vs. Chicago White Sox Bullpen
A good bullpen is one of the keys to winning a World Series, and one of these teams has one, while the other could use some help. The Twins bullpen seemed to be lacking at the beginning of 2019, but turned into a strength by the end of the year. We’ll take a look at the two bullpens:
Twins:
- Trevor May: 64.1 IP, 2.94 ERA, 79 K, 3 SV
- Tyler Duffey: 57.1 IP, 2.50 ERA, 82 K
- Sergio Romo: 60.1 IP, 3.43 ERA, 60 K, 20 SV
- Tyler Clippard: 62 IP, 2.90 ERA, 64 K
- Cody Stashak: 25 IP, 3.24 ERA, 25 K
- Zack Littell: 37.0 IP, 2.68 ERA, 32 K
- Closer-Taylor Rogers: 69 IP, 2.61 ERA, 90 K, 30 SV
White Sox:
- Aaron Bummer: 67.2 IP, 2.13 ERA, 60 K, 1 SV
- Steve Cishek: 64 IP, 2.95 ERA, 57 K, 7 SV
- Kelvin Herrera: 51.1 IP, 6.14 ERA, 53 K, 1 SV
- Evan Marshall: 50.2 IP, 2.49 ERA, 48 K
- Jace Fry: 55 IP, 4.75 ERA, 68 K
- Carson Fulmer: 27.1 IP, 6.26 ERA, 25 K
- Closer-Alex Colome: 61 IP, 2.80 ERA, 55 K, 30 SV
For the Twins, they have the deepest bullpen in the league with seven pitchers with a sub-3.50 ERA. Taylor Rogers is an elite closer and May is the perfect man for the eighth inning. They have so many strong options, that it becomes hard to choose. The White Sox don’t have this problem.
Alex Colome is a solid closer, and Bummer, Marshall, and the newly-signed Cishek are good options, but Herrera has fallen apart and Fry and Fulmer struggle often. The team is putting together a decent bullpen, but it is nowhere close to the Twins. Advantage: Twins