Minnesota Twins: Four Keys for How the Twins Build a Bullpen

Minnesota Twins Bullpen Key No. 1: Evolving with the Game

It’s no secret that the game of baseball has changed dramatically over the last 10-15 years, this includes pitching. Analytical approaches of maximizing velocity and spin rates to create more swings and misses have combined with short and tactical outings for pitchers to change the game of baseball forever.

The Twins pitching philosophy seems to follow two key principles: throw hard and/or throw pitches with a ton of movement (usually sliders). Those two approaches have worked masterfully for Twins relievers over the last few seasons, enshrining their new system of generating more swings and misses.

We’ve talked a lot about Wes Johnson and his impact on the Twins and their pitching, but it’s really hard to understate. Johnson has helped pitchers maximize their mechanics and throw harder while also encouraging more off-speed usage, resulting in better numbers.

The old Twins way of pitching to contact is long gone, and their consistent evolution with the game has helped them win 61% of their games over the last two years. Using these techniques to squeeze productive innings out of no-names or has-beens has worked out incredibly.