Mid Season Report

After whipping the Tigers yesterday, the Twins have played eighty five games this season, a couple games past the half way mark. It's time to look back at each player and see how they have done through the first half. Most have been good with a few clunkers in the bunch. We'll start with the starting pitchers and skip the bullpen. I don't really have much to say about Craig Breslow and I doubt many of you know who he is. On to the starters!

Livan Hernandez - Currently sporting a scary 5.22 ERA, Livan is what we thought he would be. He gives up loads of hits, gets rocked occasionally, and looks disinterested throughout most of the game. He also eats up innings, stays healthy, and keeps his team in the game most of the time. If he can keep his ERA around five, he should give us a few victories in the second half.

Nick Blackburn - I didn't know what to expect from Blackburn going into this season. For one, I had never heard of him before. But I trust the Twins organization and they wouldn't put a guy in the rotation if they weren't confident in his pitching. Currently sporting a 7-4 record with a 3.78 ERA, I know to always trust the Twins. He just pitched seven scoreless innings against the Tigers yesterday. His confidence continues to grow and he should be solid the rest of the year.

Glen Perkins - With Francisco Liriano struggling for his command and Boof Bonser distracted by cheeseburgers, Perkins was brought up in May as the fifth starter. He has been better than expected for a fifth starter, posting a 4.31 ERA and a 4-2 record. I have seen Perkins pitch in person more than any other pitcher this year. He always seems to pitch six innings, give up three runs, and strike out a few batters. I can live with that.

Kevin Slowey - Currently with a 3.47 ERA and a deceptive 5-6 record, Slowey is the perfect example of why the win/loss stat is a bad judgment for a pitcher. Since giving up eight runs in three innings against the Chi Sox on June 8th, Slowey has given up three runs over twenty-nine innings in his last four starts. Three runs in four starts! Ignore the win loss record. Slowey is on a roll and is quickly becoming the new Brad Radke. His accuracy is phenomenal. He should be one to enjoy in the years to come.

Scott Baker - I'm biased when assessing Baker. The greatest sporting event I ever attended was Baker's near perfect game last season against the Royals. He threw eight perfect innings. He threw 8 1/3 hitless innings. It was so close and a thrill to watch. With a 3.65 ERA, Baker completes the trifecta of Twins starters with an ERA under four. He consistently goes six innings or more, and gives up around three runs a game. His strikeouts are up and he recently struck out nine Brewers over six innings a couple weeks ago. Baker and Slowey have the look of a formidable one-two punch in the Twins rotation for years to come.

The rotation has been above and beyond what I had expected this season. After trading Santana and having Liriano coming off major arm surgery, I was very worried. Besides Baker, I wasn't sure if any of the pitchers would put together solid seasons. Boof and Livan proved me right. Blackburn, Slowey, and Perkins proved me very, very, very wrong. It has been a huge boost to the team that the young pitchers have succeeded with flying colors. Lets hope the pressures of a divisional race doesn't disrupt the superb season this rotation has put together so far.

Position player reviews coming later......