Brian Kimmes
As the Major League Baseball season winds down, I feel compelled to write about the Minnesota Twins. This past summer has been one of the most enjoyable Twins-viewing summers I can remember. It marks the sixth consecutive year the Twins will finish with a winning record. However, none of the previous five seasons can compare with the excitement of this season.
The Twins have been the best team in baseball since the first week of June. That is correct. The best team. Better than the New York Yankees, the New York Mets, the Detroit Tigers or the Chicago White Sox. The cash-strapped, injury-plagued Minnesota Twins have had the best record in the Major Leagues since June 8. With the 19th-highest payroll and a roster decimated throughout the season by injuries, they own a record of 60-26.
For a glorious three-week stretch, the Twins were virtually unbeatable. They won 19 of 20 games in late June and early July. It was spectacular. From June 11 to July 21, the team had three different winning streaks of eight or more games. The five-week run the Twins went on was one of the great streaks in baseball history. It was the best streak in Minnesota franchise history.
The Twins have been incredibly enjoyable to watch this summer, not only because they have been winning at a phenomenal clip, but because they play a brand of baseball that is especially fun to watch. They hustle, play good defense and take advantage of opponents’ mistakes.
The final game against the Tigers on Sunday provided a perfect example of how the Twins play baseball. The Twins scored 12 runs, none of them on a home run. The team recorded three triples, the rarest hits in baseball. The triple requires the most hustle to achieve. The Twins have 34 triples on the year, including five by the cleanup hitter, Michael Cuddyer. The Twins have the second-highest number of triples in the American League.
A further example of the Twins’ hustle happened in the third inning on Sunday. The Twins scored one run while recording only one hit in an inning. Torii Hunter singled, then stole second base. He took third base on a third-strike ball in the dirt. Hunter then tagged up and scored when Jason Tyner hit a foul ball down the left field line. Hunter was the only person to get a hit the entire inning, yet through hustle and heads-up play, he was able to score. He took advantage of the opportunities the Tigers gave him.
The Twins’ scrappy way of scoring runs is fun to watch, but so is a home run. The Twins have a legitimate power hitter in their lineup now. Justin Morneau is the first Twin to hit 30 home runs since 1987. Along with Morneau, Cuddyer and Hunter both have hit more than 20 home runs. The Twins’ four, five and six hitters are all legitimate threats to hit a home run.
Finally, the Twins have been fun to watch because of the playoff-like atmosphere of the games. With the recent struggles of the Detroit Tigers, the American League Central has turned into a three-team race. The Twins, Tigers and White Sox are within four games of each other. Only two of the three teams will make the postseason, one winning the division, the other winning the wild card. Every game is crucial. Each game for the rest of the season will be intense. It is as if the playoffs have already started.
Every game feels like a must-win. With three teams in the race, a loss for the Twins will almost certainly mean losing ground to at least one team. And, if the Twins win, they will still probably only gain on one team.
As a fan, you not only care about how your team does, but how the other teams do as well. On Saturday night, I found myself watching the White Sox game against the Cleveland Indians. I have never watched a White Sox game before, unless we’re are playing against the Twins. Now, because of how close the playoff race is, I will watch the White Sox.
Multi-team races are the most exciting in baseball for that reason. Every single game is incredibly important. The standings are always changing. It feels like your team can never afford to lose.
#1.883398:2207854054.jpg:ball_talk.jpg:Brian Kimmes, Ball Talk:
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