Mid-Season TCW Twins Awards

First off, my legion of fans are probably wondering where the heck I've been the last couple months. For good reason I've not been able to write much with my free time nearly zilch recently because of a new job and grad school. As priorities go, the TCW slid down behind the paycheck and the grades, understandably. But let's get back to the post and hand out some hardware. I believe the last post was more negative, how could it be positive after those first two months. So without further ado, here's the TCW Twins Mid-Season Awards.

MVP - MICHAEL CUDDYER
Easy pick. The Twins lone all-star and longest tenured Twin basically carried the Twins in the first half either by the bat or the glove.

Although his first 6 weeks were less than stellar and his RBI total at first moved as fast as molasses, Cuddyer has been hot since mid-May. Most importantly he's been healthy AND willing to play wherever the team needed him on a daily basis. Cuddyer has played 50 games in Right Field, 24 at First Base, 13 at Second Base, and 2 at DH. You'll be hard pressed to find any regular, let alone All-Star that has been that versatile this year. This is also a contract year for Cuddyer, meaning with the all-star bid, his value will only go up. The Twins would be best to sign him before he hits free agency this off-season, this is one Twin you don't want to lose.
HONORABLE MENTION - Jason Kubel (before he got hurt) .310 5 HR, 30 RBI

CY Young - GLEN PERKINS
Yeah, I know. If I would have said Glen Perkins would be the best pitcher the Twins have this year, everyone (including myself), would have questioned my sanity. But here we stand on July 13th and the most consistantly solid pitcher throughout the ENTIRE year has been Glen Perkins.

This hometown kid, who played high school ball with a few of my friends at Stillwater, was almost hung out to dry last year. The Twins didn't even seem to want him. But life has been pumped back into Glen and the hottest arm in the bullpen and he's proven to have major league stuff. In 35 games, while he's only 0-1, Perkins sports a ridiculous 0.87 ERA in 33.2 IP with 2 saves and 36 strikeouts.
HONORABLE MENTION - Scott Baker 7-5 3.01 ERA, 104 K's

Rookie - BEN REVERE
Does everyone remember when Denard Span filled in for an injured Michael Cuddyer in 2008? That's what Ben Revere reminds me of this year.

With Denard (and several others) injured, Revere has stepped in and cemented his status as a major leaguer, much like Span, who was also a 1st rounder. Revere has 49 hits in 50 games with 11 stolen bases; which is just 2 shy of the Alexi Casilla for the team lead in stolen bases. The only difference is Casilla has played in 81 games to Revere's 50. So yes, Revere gives the Twins that lead-off player they missed in Span, but with even more speed. With Delmon Young coming off the DL to start the 2nd half and Span right behind him, it'll pose an interesting scenario for Gardy to decide where Rivere plays. Like Span in 2008, Revere has established himself as a major leaguer and it would be VERY difficult to send him back to Triple A now.
HONORABLE MENTION - Tsuyoshi Nishioka. Don't fault the guy for breaking his leg. He's got 22 hits in 29 games and is a pretty slick fielding shortstop.

HANDY MAN (aka Utility Guy) - LUKE HUGHES
Cuddyer would get this slot if he wasn't the MVP, but you can't overlook what Luke Hughes has brought to the Twins in 2011. Hughes has played in 54 games total, the breakdown: 30 games at First Base, 18 games at 2nd Base, and 3 games at Third Base.

Hughes is the Australian infielder the major league have desperately needed (ok I know that was a stretch). Hughes is a Cuddyer look-a-alike. Not so much in appearance, but in ability to stretch his abilities to anywhere on the field, specifically infield (while I'm sure he could play outfield too). Hughes has tremendous value being able to play multiple positions, but that's not all that's keeping him up at in the bigs. While not super impressive, his .244 batting average 6 doubles, 3 home runs, and 15 RBI are productive for a utility player at this level.
HONORABLE MENTION - Matt Tolbert. Tolbert has played 25 games at Shortstop, 18 games at Second Base, and 5 games at Third Base.

COACH - JOE VAVRA
Yeah, you thought I was going to say Gardenhire, and he deserves a lot of credit too. But can you imagine the stress Joe Vavra has had to go through trying to work with 20 position players, not to mention the pitchers in interleague play. Of those 20 position players, 7 started the year at Triple A, and Vavra has done a good job with Revere, Hughes, Tosoni, and Plouffe to get accustomed to major league ball. While the offense probably shouldn't be praised at this point, with all the injuries, the damage control that Vavra (and Gardy and Andy) have done is comemorable.
HONORABLE MENTION - Ron Gardenhire.

DOWN WITH THE SICKNESS - JOE MAUER
What happened to baby Jesus? The guy who could do no wrong, who was idolized by all from old to young, suddenly was not so golden. The Twins have had 89 games this season and Mauer has played in 31. That's 35% of the Twins games this year. If he plays at that same pace, Mauer will play in only 57 games, which at $23 Million a year would net him $403,509 a game. Hmmm, it would be hard to say that was worth it at that rate. But let's give Joe the benefit of the doubt and say the Twins have been protecting him with the mysterious bilateral leg weakness problem and the random off days, maybe it was necessary for the long run. On the contrary, Mauer seemed to not push the issue to get out on the field, and when Cuddyer and guys like Hughes, Tolbert, and Tosoni did everything the team asked from them, it was tough to sit back and watch Mauer rake in millions from afar in Florida. I'm a Mauer guy and I want to give him the benefit of the doubt, but its tough when he's in his prime and the Twins still can't play him everyday.
HONORABLE MENTION - Tsuyoshi Nishiokia, Jim Thome, Jason Repko, Jason Kubel, Delmon Young, Justin Morneau, Denard Span, Target Field (3 rainouts)

GOPHER BALL PITCHER - NICK BLACKBURN
Not only has Blacky given up the most home runs on the season at 15, he's also given up the most per innings at about 1 per 7 innings, meaning if Blackburn is starting and your in the home run porch, bring your glove. Blacky actually has a decent 7-6 record with a moderate 4.26 ERA, but has struggled his last two starts. And if Blackburn's career stats are any indicator, he's likely to give up and down results the rest of the way. Other than his brief 6 games as a rookie in 2007, Blackburn's record, including this half of 2011, has been exactly 1 win or loss off of .500. At 39-42, how much can we expect Blackburn to flourish, at this point we'll likely see a 6-7 finish to the season.
HONORABLE MENTION - Francisco Liriano, 1 every 9 innings

REAL WINNERS - The FANS (especially those who come to Target Field)
As a Twins fan and season ticket holder, it's been a tough go this year, even with the recent surge. The first 2 months were downright brutal. Not only was the team bad, but the weather was just as bad. I personally, went to 2 of the 3 rainouts. But with all the bad weather, the true Twins fans know that even with the bad weather and poor play, Target Field is truly a treasure and one of the best venues in all of sports. Those who realize this are the ones who benefit.

Alright, that's good for tonight. So glad to write again, I REALLY missed it. Thanks for listening, I hope you liked it.

Until next time, remember to renew your licenses before a government shutdown.

TCW
Brock

Twins Milestone Tracker

With Spring Training just a couple weeks away, there are a lot of previews and predictions on how the season will go from the team's standpoint. However, Baseball is fueled by individual statistics, more so than any other sport. The Courtesy Wave has broken down what you should watch for with Twins players approaching milestones.
*Note* All Twins Records are Minnesota only. The Washington Senators are included in franchise records, but the Twins are strictly Minnesota from 1961 on. Apologies to Sam Rice and Walter Johnson.



CAREER MILESTONES
The Big One
JIM THOME - 600 HOME RUNS
Thome is sitting on 589 dingers, just 11 shy of 600, a feat many thought he wouldn't reach, but after last season's resurgance and 25 home runs, that number seems more of a foregone conclusion. It isn't though, and Thome will need to stay healthy and get the at-bats he got last year. If all goes well, Thome should enter the club that holds just 7 players (Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez, and Sammy Sosa) sometime around mid-season.

More Thome #'s

2,395 Strikeouts - 2nd all-time
This is obviously a dubious distinction for Thome. A big set-back to a career long-ball champ, he's bound to strikeout and only one guy has whiffed more, and that guy is Reggie Jackson with 2,597, who also happens to be a HOF'er. Thome only had 39 strikeouts last year and will never reach the top spot (thankfully for Jim), unless he plays into his mid-40's.

589 Home Runs - 8th all-time
Thome only needs to hit 9 more homers after 600, 20 on the season, to tie Sammy Sosa for 7th all time. Rodriguez would be next at 613, but since he's active and expected to belt many more, its not likely Thome will catch A-Rod. Thome would have to hit 41 homers this year to catch Griffey for 6th (provided Rodriguez already has passed him).

1,679 Walks - 9th all-time
The active leader in Bases on Balls, needs 29 walks to tie Mel Ott for 8th place. The top 7 are so notorious they don't even need first names: Bonds, Henderson, Ruth, Williams, Morgan, Yastrzemski, & Mantle. Then Ott and Thome. Hall of Fame much?

1,624 RBI's - 30th all-time
If Thome can get to 1,700 this year, he'll pass these guys along the way: Harold Baines, Ernie Banks, Tony Perez, Sammy Sosa, Gary Sheffield, and Cal Ripken Jr. Not too shabby.

4,462 Total Bases - 45th all-time
From 2001 to 2003, Thome finished in the top 10 in total bases. Even in a diminished role last year he still tacked on 173 total bases. A similar output could rise Thome another 10 spots to 35th all-time.

1,534 Runs - 57th all-time
66 runs will get Thome to 1,600, which might be a stretch, but he can get into the top 50 with just 37 runs (although Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon are likely to enter first).

428 Doubles - 123rd all-time
Thome won't reach 500 this year, but with just 15 more he can reach the top 100 all-time. Thome hit 16 last year.

2,216 Hits - 168th all-time
Thome needs 84 hits to reach 2,300 where just 137 players have reached. Who's 137th right now...a one Mr. Kirby Puckett with 2,304.


TWINS TOP 10 LISTS
BATTING



GAMES
Current Leader: Michael Cuddyer, 1,000
Place: 15th
Record: Harmon Killebrew 1,939
Special congratulations to Cuddyer who hit the 1K mark on the last regular season game last year! If Cuddy were to play all 162 games this season, he'd finish the year in 11th place on the all-time Twins list.

AT-BATS
Current Leader: Michael Cuddyer, 3,543
Place: 13th
Record: Kirby Puckett 6,294
When healthy, Cuddyer can get 550 at-bats in a season, he had 607 last year. With 457 at-bats he'll become just the 11th Twin to do so. He'll need exactly 600 for sole possession of 10th place.

RUNS SCORED
Current Leader: Michael Cuddyer, 536
Place: 13th
Record: Kirby Puckett 1,071
Cuddyer has posted exactly 93 runs the past 2 seasons each. He needs 110 for 10th place. Doable, but more likely to settle into 11th on the all-time Twins list, an emerging theme here.

HITS
Current Leader: Joe Mauer, 1,011
Place: 12th
Record: Kirby Puckett, 2,304
Mauer has averaged 163 hits per season (excluding his shortened rookie year). That total would easily get Mauer into the top 10 and he could come in as high as 7th place with 207 hits this year, which would tie Torii Hunter.
*Special Note to Justin Morneau (995) and Michael Cuddyer (956) who should both cash in on the 1,000 career hit mark this year.

DOUBLES
Current Leader: Justin Morneau, 215
Place: 8th
Record: Kirby Puckett, 414
Morneau is 37 doubles shy of Gary Gaetti for 7th all-time, he hit 47 in 2008, so he's quite capable of climbing this ladder if healthy.

TRIPLES
Current Leader: Michael Cuddyer, 33
Place: 11th
Record: Rod Carew, 90
Cuddyer needs just 1 more triple to enter the Twins top 10 and tie John Castino. Although, he'll be challenged by Span who already is an AL Triples champion and has 27 on his career.

HOME RUNS
Current Leader: Justin Morneau, 181
Place: 8th
Record: Harmon Killebrew, 475
Morneau was heading up this sacred top 10 and would have finished higher than 8th if it weren't for that head of his. Morneau needs 11 to tie Torii Hunter for 7th, 20 to tie Gary Gaetti for 6th, 26 to tie Puckett for 5th, 30 to tie Bob Allison for 4th and 39 to tie Tony Oliva for 3rd. If #33 stays healthy, he could pass all of them and find himself behind only Twins great Kent Hrbek (293) and HOF'er Harmon Killebrew (475).
*Michael Cuddyer (121) needs 11 home runs to tie Jacque Jones for 10th all time)

RBI
Current Leader: Justin Morneau 679
Place: 8th
Record: Harmon Killebrew, 1,325
Morneau is just over half of Killebrew's totals, if that gives you an idea of how great #3 was. Fitting that the guy chasing him wears #33. When Morneau is healthy he can post 100 plus RBI as he did for 4 consecutive years from 2006-2009. If he does that in 2011, he'll pass Torii Hunter, Rod Carew, and Gary Gaetti to settle into 5th all time.

WALKS
Current Leader: Joe Mauer, 433
Place: 9th
Record: Harmon Killebrew, 1,371
Mauer averages 70 walks a season. If he gets to 80, he'll pass Oliva, Puckett, & Knoblauch for 6th all-time.

STOLEN BASES
Current Leader: Denard Span, 67
Place: 18th
Record: Chuck Knoblauch, 276
Span only has 3 major league seasons to his credit, but every one has increased his SB level (18,23,26). If Span steals 30 bases this year, he'll climb all the way up to 8th all-time.

HIT-BY-PITCH
Current Leader: Michael Cuddyer, 39
Place: 10th
Record: Chuck Knoblauch, 74
Cuddyer gets hit about 5 times a year, not bad really. The most he's ever been hit in one season was 2003 when he was nicked 10 times. Ten more and he'll cut his place in half to 5th.

PITCHING



WINS
Current Leader: Scott Baker, 55
Place: 13th
Record: Jim Kaat 189
If Baker can earn a rotation spot, and he likely will be the 3rd or 4th starter this year, he has a chance to crack the top 10 with 12 wins this year.

GAMES
Current Leader: Joe Nathan, 412
Place: 4th
Record: Eddie Guardado, 648
Nathan is coming off Tommy John surgery, so his expectations are less than normal. Regardless, he's already become one of the Twins best relief pitchers ever. During his Twins tenure he's appeared in 64 to 73 games each year, which would eclipse Jim "Kitty" Kaat for 3rd all-time.

SAVES
Current Leader: Joe Nathan, 246
Place: 2nd
Record: Rick Aguilera, 254
A Twins record would have been broken last year if not for Nathan's arm being shut down for surgery. Nathan is just 8 saves away from tying Twins great Rick Aguilera for the Franchise record.

INNINGS PITCHED
Current Leader: Scott Baker 824
Place: 16th
Record: Jim Kaat 2,951.1
Baker has averaged 172 innings in his last 4 seasons. If we add 5 more innings to that average, Baker gets to 1,000 innings for his career, which would place Baker at 10th all-time.

STRIKEOUTS
Current Leader: Scott Baker, 647
Place: 12th
Record: Bert Blyleven 2,035
Baker has been good for 138 strikeouts/year for the past 4 years. That average, just like IP, would get Baker the 10th spot in the Twins all-time leaders.


OTHER APPROACHING MILESTONES

100 Home Runs - Jason Kubel (92), Joe Mauer (81)
200 Home Runs - Justin Morneau (181)
300th in HR - Justin Morneau (needs 17)
1,000 Hits - Justin Morneau (995), Michael Cuddyer (956)
100 Stolen Bases - Denard Span (67)
100 Wins - Carl Pavano (97)
1,000 Strikeouts - Carl Pavano (956)
300 Saves - Joe Nathan (247)
25th in Saves - Joe Nathan (247, needs 39 saves)
100th in Saves - Matt Capps (109, needs 10 saves)

That should about cover it, besides percentages. If you're wondering, Joe Mauer's .327 batting average is 2nd all-time in Twins history, only Rod Carew's .334 stands in front of him. But unlike the statistics above, percentages can actually go down, therefore I left them off, but I'll keep a close eye on it for you!

until next time, remember not to use too much pine tar,

brock
the courtesy wave