So what if C.C. Sabathia has dominated the Twins for much of his career? So what if he's having an excellent 2006 season? So what if Carlos Silva's ERA entering the game was north of 6? On this night, it didn't matter, because the Twins were determined to a pick up a victory in the aftermath of an extremely disappointing loss on Friday night.
The 4-1 victory was a convincing one. The Twins scored four runs on 14 hits, getting a very solid performance (7 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K) from Silva, his third in a row. The bullpen delivered two scoreless innings, with Joe Nathan tossing a hitless ninth on his way to his 33rd save of the season. The Twins went just 1/11 in scoring opportunities, but got a key home run from Torii Hunter and received some clutch RBI hits despite an 0-for-5 day from their offensive MVP Justin Morneau.
Silva's last three starts (20 IP, 11 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K combined) have been extremely encouraging. He has looked like Silva Version 2005, which is the best thing we could hope for. Over those three outings, he has induced 36 ground-ball outs (60% of the outs he's recorded), which leads me to believe he might be feeling that sinker again. Carlos is not a dominant pitcher by any means, but if he can continually force opposing batters to hit the ball on the ground he will be in good shape, because Nick Punto has shown some great range at third base while Jason Bartlett and Luis Castillo have formed a formidable duo up the middle.
Today the Twins will be looking for a series victory, but Scott Baker is going so it's tough to predict what kind of outing we'll get. Baker certainly has the stuff and the poise to have success in the majors, but for whatever reason he has had a tough time putting it together this year. Let's see if he can take a step in the right direction this afternoon against Paul Byrd.
Sunday, September 17, 2006
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5 comments:
Don't worry, William and I have solved the Baker Question. We're kindly asking the Underperforming Team With A Racially Insensitive Mascot Playing Near Or Around Lake Erie to wear New York Yankee uniforms tomorrow. This will make Scott Baker pitch his pants off, because that's the only team against which he has any success.
-RK
I know it's been said before, but I just can't help myself: It's simply amazing that the Twins have been able to open up a 3 game lead on the White Sox with Silva and the rooks behind Santana in the rotation. This begs the question, 'Do the White Sox suck more than the Twins totally rule?'
Anyone notice Rondell White's very good second half. He's hitting .306/.339/.562 since the All-Star break. Obviously the plate discipline is still non-existent, as he has walked five times in the second half and ten times all year. But not too shabby for guy who hit .182 before the break.
And your almost right about the Yankee thing. Truth is Baker has had a total of three quality starts all year. One was against the Yankees, against whom he is 2-0 with a 1.50 and .128 BAA but if you remember, last time he only lasted five innings. The others were against Kansas City and Tampa Bay, not particularly great teams.
Remove those starts and he's allowed 48 runs (45 earned) in 51 2/3 innings. That adds up to an incredibly bad 7.84 ERA against all other teams he's faced: LA, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Milwaulkee, Seattle, and Texas. That doesn't bid well for today.
Do the White Sox suck more than the Twins totally rule?
Look at the Twins' record. They rule.
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