3 Minnesota Twins who can still be named to MLB All-Star Game
- All-Star starters were announced on Thursday
- Zero Twins players were voted in
- MLB will announce All-Star pitchers and reserves on Sunday
While we're techincally already in the second half of the season, the halway point won't officially be celebrated until the MLB All-Star Game later this month in Seattle.
We already know who the All-Star starters will be, and unsurprisingly not a single member of the Minnesota Twins got voted in. Perhaps the most disappointing part about his is how Carlos Correa is in the infancy of his $200 million contract -- the richest ever handed out by the Twins -- and is playing so poorly that he's not even considered an omission from the All-Star team.
Let's not focus on the negative, though. Not because it's not worth mentioning as a major theme for Minnesota's first half but we simply don't have enough time to go over the so many things that have been going wrong.
A lot has gone wrong this season, but not everything is terrible for the Twins. While no position players have played well enough to be considered for the All-Star team, there are a few guys who might still represent Minnesota in Seattle on July 11th and have their fantastic first three months honored properly.
3 Twins who still have a chance to be named to MLB All-Star Game
Sonny Gray, SP
If there's one player who seems like a relative lock, it's Sonny Gray. It wasn't that long ago he was being mentioned as a fringe Cy Young candidate based on how he was pitching, and he hasn't slowed down much since.
There have been bumps in the road, like his last start against the Braves, but much of the smudges on his record this season can be attributed to things outside of his control. He's allowed at least three runs in five of his last ten games, but he still owns an 2.67 ERA and is by far Minnesota's best pitcher this season.
If Gray is on the mound, the Twins have to beat themselves to lose the game, and while they typically do exactly that it's not usually because of anything Gray did. He's had an All-Star season so far, and deserves to be honored with a spot among American League pitchers.
Jhoan Duran, RP
As a sign of protest -- and disgust -- the All-Star selection committee should boycott the Twins bullpen. There's hardly anything to like about the unit on the surface, as things seem to be just as rocky as they were last season. Things aren't quite as bad as they seem, as a few rotten apples are spoiling the batch, but the Twins should spend more time thinking about ways to improve the bullpen ahead of the trade deadline than celebrating it in Seattle.
That being said, the lone standout this season continues to be Jhoan Duran. The Twins flamethrowing reliever hasn't been perfect this year, but he offers a few things that should put him in consideration for an All-Star spot.
He's just a ton of fun. A guy who consistently throws over 100 mph deserves the national spotlight, and fans across baseball need to know what Twins fans experience when he steps onto the mound. It's sort of like the argument that Hall of Fame decisions should be made based on the narrative of the game rather than being purely statistical.
If we're talking stats, though, Duran delivers on the goods.
He has a 1.45 ERA in 31 innings and a 1.7 WPA, plus a 2.04 aIL which goes to show how well he's been able to handle high-leverage situations. That is exactly what you're looking for out of a reliever and has helped make an otherwise suspect unit in Minnesota a little better. There are many things that can be adjusted in the Twins bullpen, but the one thing that doesn't need to be touched it Duran.
Joe Ryan, SP
Ryan is firmly on the All-Star bubble, but there's a case to be made for him.
His 3.44 ERA is barely outside of the Top 10 among American League pitchers, and his 7.00 K/BB is the second-best in the entire league. He's comfortably the Twins best pitcher behind Gray and has been one the brightest spots for the team this season.
What could hold him back is his 8-5 record, which isn't really his fault. Ryan has consistently pitched great for the Twins, he can't help it if the bats have been mostly quiet during his starts. If we're looking at win totals with Ryan, it's worth mentioning he has the most among Twins pitchers -- better than even Sonny Gray, who seems to be a lock for an All-Star roster spot.
The real question becomes if he's viewed as better than the handful of pitchers between him and Gray? That's more political than analytical, but it could be what ends up working against him the most even if he seems like a borderline All-Star based on what he's done so far this season.
feed