Minnesota Twins Report - July 3, 2003

Record- 43-40
Games Back- 1.5 Games behind KC Royals

What Team is This?
For anyone who watches or follows the Twins on a regular basis, one has to wonder what team they are watching. For the better part of the 2003 season, one wonders if they are watching the Detriot Tigers instead of the Twins team that won 94 games in 2002. All aspects of the team have stunk. When the rare occasion that the team gets a quality start from a starting pitcher, the offense takes the day off. When the offense decides to score some runs, the pitchers decide to allow the flood gates to open.

Offense- The Twins currently rank 3rd in the AL in team batting average. However, they only rank 9th in Runs Scored, 8th in HR hit, and 7th in On Base Percentage. The postitional players need to start hitting in the clutch.

Pitching- For the season the Twins rank 7th in the AL in team ERA. This is due largely to the bullpen. But in the last 30 days, the Twins team ERA ranks 11th in the AL. This has lead the Twins to a 12-16 record during that span, and have taken the Twins from 5 games ahead to 1 ½ games behind in the Central Division. If the pitching doesn’t turn around soon, the Twins will not be able to repeat as Central Division Champions. The Twins 5 man rotation ERA’s:
Kyle Lohse- 6.62 (last 30 days), 4.19 (season)
Rick Reed- 6.48 (last 30 days), 4.83 (season)
Kenny Rogers- 4.35 (last 30 days), 4.93 (season) – Has actually decreased the last 30 days.
Brad Radke- 5.85 (last 30 days), 5.76 (season)
Joe Mays- 8.01 (last 30 days), 6.30 (season)

Fire and Ice (Last 7 Days)

Fire – Hitters
Bobby Kielty- .391 AVG, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 16 Total Bases
Torii Hunter- .385 AVG, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 17 Total Bases
Luis Rivas- .348 AVG, 1 Triple, 1 SB

Ice – Hitters
Denny Hocking- .154 AVG, O HR, 2 Total Bases
Dustan Mohr- .158 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI
Doug Mientkiewicz- .227 AVG, 0 HR, 3 Total Bases

Fire – Pitchers
LaTroy Hawkins- 0.00 ERA, 1 Win, 4 IP, 4 K’s
Kenny Rogers- 1.50 ERA, 1 Win, 6 IP, 6 K’s
Juan Rincon- 1.80 ERA, 5 IP, 2 Hits Allowed

Ice – Pitchers (could have listed 5 or 6)
Joe Mays- 27.00 ERA, 2.1 IP, 7 ER
Eddie Guardado- 10.12 ERA, 2.2 IP, 3 ER, 1 Blown Save
Kyle Lohse- 9.00 ERA, 10 IP, 10 ER

All-Star Candidates
The Mid-Summer Classic is almost here, so lets take a look and see who might be representing the Twins in Chicago.

3b) Corey Koskie - .305 AVG, 89 Hits, 12 HR, 50 RBI, 146 Total Bases, 6 SB – Koskie is currently ranked 2nd in Hits, Total Bases, and RBI for AL 3rd baseman. He is also 5th in HR.
C) AJ Pierzynksi - .288 AVG, 70 Hits, 9 HR, 47 RBI, 115 Total Bases – Pierzynski ranks 2nd in RBI for AL Catchers and is 4th in HR and Total Bases.
RP/SP) Johan Santana – 2.43 ERA, 4 Wins, 63 IP, 71 K’s, 1.16 WHIP. Santana is the best pitcher on the Twins. His numbers are even better when used only as a starter. Could be a surprise pick for the AL.
RP) Eddie Guardado – 3.41 ERA, 1 Win, 20 Saves, 34.1 IP, 1.06 WHIP. Guardado has struggled as of late, but still ranks 4th in the AL in Saves.
RP) LaTroy Hawkins – 1.70 ERA, 5 Wins, 42.1 IP, 49 K’s, 1.07 WHIP. Hawkins may get a selection as the past 2 years, more and more set-up men have been selected. If you look strickly at the numbers, Hawkins deserves to be an All-Star.