Lets break it down.
Starting Pitching
- Scott Baker struggled early with control and never really found a good groove. Gave up 4 runs and couldn't get through 5 innings giving up 4 runs. I'm sure the nerves were partly to blame early on. 92 pitches in 4 2/3 innings is high, something to keep an eye on as had problems finishing off hitters in '09 causing pitch count to get high early.
- Nick Blackburn took the mound to start the game with a 3 run lead (thanks to Mauer & Young) and surprisingly had command issues early walking first 2 batters, but got out of that jam by getting double play off of Torii's bat. But that was the last time he got Torii out as he had RBI single and 2-run homer off Blackburn in the 3rd and 5th respectively. Luckily no other Angel hitter was able to break through against Blacky and he handed the ball over to the bullpen with a 5-3 lead after 6 2/3 innings ... officially a Quality Start. Overall he spread out 8 hits and 4 walks over 7 innings so it wasn't a great performance but he battled and kept the damage on the scoreboard to a minimum.
- Carl Pavano pitched 7 solid innings, not dominant but only gave up 1 run, no walks (1 HBP), and 6 hits. He did battle out of a bases-loaded 1 out jam in the 2nd, and eventually gave up a 2 out RBI infield single to Rivera but both Matsui's double and Riveras single could have been outs, they weren't routine plays but I expect the Twins to usually make one of the two. That being his only blemish he pitched very solid and earned a nice win.
- Kevin Slowey's line reads 5 1/3 innings, 1 run (earned), 2 walks, 3 Ks and 92 pitches. Similar to Blackburn, Slowey muddled through, not pitching great but battling to keep damage to a minimum. He had 2 on and less than 2 outs in the 1st, 2nd, and 5th. To Slowey's credit only 1 run allowed, on the downside 5.1 innings isn't ideal.
Bullpen
- Jon Rauch - 2 saves in 2 appearance both times he had a 3 run lead and only had 1 inning save required. So the conditions were optimal to start him off with some confidence. He allowed 1 run in the 2nd save but was very serviceable in his new role.
- Matt Guerrier - allowed only 1 hit in 2 innings of work in the middle games of the series. Very solid doing his job as 7th/8th inning setup guy.
- Jesse Crain - 2 appearances 2 very solid holds. Getting 5 big outs game 1 of series bridging the gap from Baker to Mijares nicely. In game 4 he struck out the side in his 1 inning of relief while allowing his first hit of the season.
- Jose Mijares - struggled in Game 1 giving up 3 hits including back to back home runs, the first of which was to Matsui a lefty which is odd for the left-handed Mijares who has history of dominance against left handed hitters. But he rebounded nicely in game 4 of the series getting 2 strikeouts and recording a 1-2-3 inning.
- Pat Neshek - His first regular season action in 1 1/2 seasons was mop up duty in the game 1 loss pitching the 8th. He allows 1 hit but got through the inning and got that much needed confidence that carried through to his appearance in Game 4 where he got 2 big outs with 2 men on and only 1 out in the 6th when the game was still just a 2-run lead.
- Brian Duensing - In game 2 came in as a lefty specialist after Mijares struggled the night before and got Matsui to ground out weakly to 2nd base with Hunter on 2nd in a 2 run ball game. Nice to see Gardy using Duensing in this role some, as I know he will also be used as a long man in the pen.
- Alex Burnett -- He came into the game in a perfect situation to make an MLB debut, no pressure, just mop up duty in the 9th with a 9 run lead. He got Izturi, Napoli, and Quinlan 1-2-3, so while he didn't have too tough of batters to face he did get the job done with 2 fly outs and a strikeout.
Lineup
Strong Opening series
- JJ Hardy -- great start as a Twin -- 1.040 OPS including 2 home runs and 5 hits.
- Justin Morneau -- after struggling this spring -- 1.240 OPS including 2 HR, 4 BB, and 6 runs scored.
- Delmon Young -- hopefully a sign of things to come - 1.141 OPS , 2 HR, 6 RBI, only 1 K
- Jim Thome -- only 9 AB but making his presence felt -- .967 OPS, HR, 2B, and 3 RBI
- Brendan Harris -- making a case for more starts -- only 5 PA but a huge 2-run HR and a walk
- Joe Mauer -- this is Joe being Joe -- 1.012 OPS, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 3 runs, 2 BB
- Michael Cuddyer -- solid if not spectacular -- 6 for 16 but only 1 extra base hit (2B) , 1 run, and no RBI
- Nick Punto -- acceptable for #9 spot in order -- 2 for 8, triple, RBI, Run, & 1 steal
- Denard Span -- out of sync with bat -- 1 for 16 with 1 walk and .111 OBP and no runs scored.
- Orlando Hudson -- slow start as Twin -- 3 for 17 with no walks and .222 OBP
- Jason Kubel -- yet to find his groove -- 1 for 9 with 3 Ks, but drew 3 walks
Alexi Casilla played very little and Drew Butera not at all in this series.
Its a great sign for the Twins to be able to score 25 runs in 4 games without getting much at all from top of the order table setter. The home run was our weapon this week hitting 9 homeruns in 4 games is awesome, but don't expect that pace to continue. We will need more from Hudson and Span to continue to produce offensively.
Series Summary
My impressions of this series are that we won this series because of the home run and a strong performance by the bullpen as well as Pavano, while the other starters were serviceable. The homerun's won't always be in this big of number, however the top of the lineup shouldn't struggle this badly over the long haul either allowing us to manufacture more runs in other ways. It was a great start to the season, and I hope we can carry it over to Chicago this weekend.
Go Twins!
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