Despite a promising
outing from Kevin Slowey (7 innings,
6 hits, 2 earned runs with 2 walks and 3 strikeouts), the Twins starter managed
to induce only two swing-and-misses the entire evening. Admittedly, his mechanics
look much better than they did thorough 2010 but I will always wonder if
his wrist surgery will influence his ability to throw a decent slider – perhaps
an explanation for why his swinging strike rate has dropped from a pre-surgery
rate of 8.7% to 6.5% ever since including a low 3.3% this year. At this point, with
the starting rotation in shambles, Slowey should get an ample opportunity to
audition for a spot next season.
It had been
105 plate appearances since the last time Tsuyoshi
Nishioka drew a walk before coaxing one off the otherwise precision-geared
Mark Buerhle in the top of the third inning on Monday. It’s just another tidbit
that illuminates how overmatched Nishioka has been at the plate.
In the eighth
inning of last night’s game, Dayan Viciedo knocked a soft chopper between the
mound and Danny Valencia. Because of
the pace of the ball, Valencia needed to make a play on the run while charging
across the diamond. Instead of fielding the ball, Valencia muffed it, allowing
Alexei Ramirez to score when the ball trickled away. While the Twins pitchers
absorb the brunt of it, the infield
defense is one of the more substantial reasons the staff has seen a significant
spike in ERA over last year. Going around the horn, the infield has seen a
big jump in the amount of plays made – including going from saving 10 runs in
2010 to giving away 21 runs in 2011, the second-lowest total in baseball, at
third base.
Luke Hughes who has had a sudden power surge, going
5-for-10 with a double and three home runs in the past three games, has made a
slight mechanical adjustment (how much do I like pointing those out?) in which
he has raised
his hands above his head during his pre-swing position. This is a very
similar adjustment to what Delmon
Young did back in June (only to drop it for several series and then pick it
up again). Reviewing MiLB.com’s
video archives, this appears to be a change that Hughes made after he was
sent back down to Rochester at the end of July. It has certainly worked well
for him as prior to his recall he had 13-for-39 with four doubles and a pair of
home runs in his previous 10 games before being summoned to the Twins.
After giving
up 5 or more runs in 16 of the past 24 games prior to Sunday’s game against
Detroit, the Twins pitching staff now has two consecutive games of holding opponents
to three runs. Is it a coincidence that Rene
Rivera was behind the
plate the past two games?
