Eight games and an early pile of offensive concerns
Posted on April 8th, 2008 – 11:47 AMBy Joe Christensen
CHICAGO — Eight games is far too small a sample size to draw serious long-term conclusions, but sitting here on the Twins’ first off day of the season, here are the early concerns:
1. The Twins might have the weakest offense in the American League. Their 2.88 runs per game ranks second-to-last in the league, ahead of Detroit (2.50), and everyone expects the Tigers to start scoring eventually. Next highest on that list are New York (3.29) and Boston (also 3.29). Again, those teams are going to score more. But how much more can be expected of the Twins, who ranked 12th in the AL last year with 4.43 runs per game?
2. The Twins rank last in the AL with three home runs in eight games. Torii Hunter has four all by himself. And if you didn’t catch the highlights of what he did last night for the Angels, read all about it here.
3. It’s not like the Twins have faced world beaters to this point, either. The starting pitchers they’ve faced are Jered Weaver, Jon Garland, Joe Saunders, Ervin Santana, John Bale, Gil Meche, Brett Tomko and Javier Vazquez.
Compare that to what the White Sox have faced so far en route to their 5-2 start: C.C. Sabathia, Fausto Carmona, Jake Westbrook, Nate Robertson, Dontrelle Willis, Justin Verlander and Nick Blackburn.
212 Responses to "Eight games and an early pile of offensive concerns"
1. I can’t believe how little Delmon Young is hitting. I expected a lot more out of him
2. That HR total isn’t going to rise much with Mauer hitting in the 3 spot.
3. You mean Tomko and Ervin Santana aren’t going to be battling it out for the Cy Young this year?
That HR total isn’t going to rise much with Mauer hitting in the 3 spot.
Yes, if Mauer were batting second, the rest of the Twins would all transform into Ryan Howard.
That’s exactly what I meant Billy. Obviously when you are batting a guy like Mauer in the 3 hole it shows how poor the power of the rest of the lineup is. I’m not sure this team has more than 1 guy that is going to hit over 20 HR’s. Wow that is really depressing to write.
Jama, you mean if Mauer is moved back to the 2-spot that that number will rise a lot more? This is a team built on potential not necessarily reality. I believe they will hit better as the season goes on but we all knew going in that the Twins were not going to be an offensive juggernaut. When have they been? They do not develop many hitters, seldom trade for any (Young being an exception) and are usually shopping in the discount aisle for bargains with free agency.
1.) Its early and Delmon is batting .290 granted his slugging % isnt much higher and his OBP is .290(NO WALKS) It doesn’t do him any good when MVP grounds into double plays in front of him, get him in the 3 slot where he belongs and you will see his numbers jump i mean he has Kubel and Monroe hitting behind him he is not going to get ANYTHING to hit.
2.) Regardless of where mauer hits the homerun total will be the same, but i agree no way does he belong in the 3 spot.
Give me another week or two before we write them off for the year joe!
1.) Its early and Delmon is batting .290 granted his slugging % isnt much higher and his OBP is .290(NO WALKS) It doesn’t do him any good when MVP grounds into double plays in front of him, get him in the 3 slot where he belongs and you will see his numbers jump i mean he has Kubel and Monroe hitting behind him he is not going to get ANYTHING to hit.
2.) Regardless of where mauer hits the homerun total will be the same, but i agree no way does he belong in the 3 spot.
Give me another week or two before we write them off for the year joe! In fact wait until AFTER i go to Colorado before you write them off, don’t ruin my vacation!
I think Jama meant:
Mauer batting third is an INDICATOR, not the CAUSE of power problem.
Memo to Star Tribune staff -
Please don’t turn this site/board into the Torii Hunter Update Desk where we have articles/updates about every AB. Who cares? He’s gone. If you want to see how he’s doing, go to an Angels website.
Sane,
I think Mauer batting third is more of an indicator of how clueless Ron Gardenhire can be.
i think the point is that if your #3 hitter is a 5-10 a yr hr guy that reflects on how weak a power hitting team you have. the issue is without anyone else to provide power in those spots 3-7 and a bunch of toothless piranha hitting 8-2 it takes a lot to score any # of runs more than the 1 at a time we are now.
I think the reason that the offense hasnt taken off yet is Gardenhire’s Constant need to change the lineup so everyone on his bench gets playing time. IMO if you stick to one lineup and let everybody get comfortable with one another the Offense will come around. Quit switching guys in and out.
More early observations?? Livan Hernandez on pace to go 30-0. 
Delmon Young really should be being groomed to be the #3 hitter, anyway. Cuddyer is NOT a long term solution there, and Delmon was being billed as a Manny Ramierez/Vlad Guerrero type…but has yet to demonstrate that power (it’s still very early). Cuddyer would be a #6 or #7 hitter in most lineups, and a decent one at that. But the Twins still lack a power right-hander that can give some protection to Morneau, and even if Kubel were up to the task, we’d still be left with consecutive lefties, and would get mowed down by LHP’ers all year long.
what about the hitting coach……..i think its time to replace him……this has been going on year after year with Joe V.
Delmon Young makes Torii Hunter look like a patient hitter at the plate. He swings at the first pitch far too often like yesterday in the first inning when he grounded out with two on after Morneau had walked on 5 pitches.
1. It is still early and some bats are about to come around (Young, Lamb)
2. Not being mentioned is that the starting pitching has been much better than generally expected
3. It is clear that this team needs another bat to turn the corner. Smith should be out trying to get this bat
4. Punto and Monroe (with the emergence of Tolbert for the first and with the lack of hitting for the second) are luxuries that the Twins cannot afford and better cut their losses early.
5. The roster management has been fairly bad so far (see Slowey not on DL, Korecky on the 40-man roster and Bass in the bigs etc.)
6. Actually the Twins have faced better pitching than the White Sox (and every team that played Detroit) this year.
My thoughts after 8 games…
1) Congrats to Gardy. Not only has Mauer played 7 of 8 games (including 3 day games in a row), but LNP didn’t get his obligatory 2-3 starts last week. It’s nice to see that Ron is taking his job seriously for once and not giving in to the “everyone plays equal time” T-ball theory.
2) With Tolbert emerging as a guy that can play anywhere in the INF, why is LNP still around. What about another bat off the bench like Knott, Ruiz, Jones, or even Pridie? LNP serves no purpose on the roster right now. Span?? Please…
3) Why is it that when the Twins lose a game 3-1 (like they did Sunday) it’s the hitters fault and we hear complaints about no run support, yet when the bullpen gives up a granny to lose a game - it’s pretty much swept under the rug. That’s a good gig for those pampered pitchers.
4) Memo to Joe Mauer - Don’t be afraid to turn on one and pull the ball with authority. It’s not against the rules.
5) Memo to Cuddyer - Slide feet first. Quit watching LNP.
Way too early, call me in a month.
I don’t agree with #6 thrylos. Verlander, Sabathia, and Carmona are all better than any pitcher the Twins have faced.
Lighten up, Bill. I think most Twins fans have an interest in the fate of Hunter, Santana, and even Bartlett and Garza for that matter. If you don’t want to read it, skim over it.
jama,
they are, in general, but haven’t been this year (other than Carmona maybe). Sabathia, esp is having a really bad year
The hitting philosophy of this team has got to change. Two many innnings letting the other pitcher out of it with lest than 10 pitches. What inning was it yesterday when Young and Kubel went out on TWO PITCHES to start the inning? Poor Harris had no choice but to take a couple of fastballs down the middle for strikes. That is no way to progress through an inning.
thrylos98, I agree with most of your comments. That said, your prediction on Cuddyer’s injury “it’s just a dislocation and a cut, they’ll pop it back in and he’ll play tomorrow” didn’t pan out, huh? My prediction of 21 days is probably a little closer.
thrylos–
There is a big bat out there. What was his name again?
There was this guy with legendary plate disclipline who could hit for decent power, too. I can’t remember his name.
Frank Thomas.
AM,
how about Hanley Ramirez?
Why should the offensive problems be any different than last year? Other than swapping Torii for Delmond, all the main guys are all the same. Their pop gun offense will plague the Twins all year long. The Twins pitchers eventually cave in from the stress of thinking they’ve got to hold the opposing team to less than 3 runs for us to win. The Twins simply need production from Mauer, Morneau, Young, and Cuddyer when he comes back (please move him to 5th in the order by the way). But, altogether fans probably need to realize this is going to be a developmental year, that we simply don’t have the stuffing to contend. Let Gomez hammer out his game and see if this Tolbert can land a full time infield spot somewhere. Let Mauer figure out how to not get hurt catching and become more than a spray hitter. And enjoy watching Liriano find his way back. Still fun to watch the team even if they’re not a big winner. Sorry folks, probably on the way to 72-74 wins.
Why is today an off day? Was there a scheduling conflict in Chicago?
You know the offense is having a tough time scoring when…
• The team is 10th in hits, but 26th in runs in the majors.
• New Angel Torii Hunter has out-homered the entire Twins roster 4-3 a week into the season.
• Scoring single runs in the first and second innings against the White Sox Monday seemed like a slugfest.
• Your best overall hitter is a rookie (Matt Tolbert) and your best regular hitter is nearly a rookie (Carlos Gomez).
• You can count the number of deep fly balls eight games into the season (Harris had one go off the wall for a double; Kubel hit one to the warning track; and Everett missed a grand slam on Opening Night that just went foul).
• The team has only one more home run through eight games than balks.
• The team has no triples.
• Starting pitchers feel like they have a big cushion with a 1-0 lead.
• The team is leading the majors in grounding into double plays.
• The Twins are batting a major league worst (by far) .077 with runners in scoring position and two out. (The Royals are hitting .400 in that scenario).
• With the bases loaded, the Twins are tied for last with a .000 average. Of course, they’ve only managed that once all year with all the double plays.
• You’re actually pulling for Nick Punto to get some at-bats.
• And especially when you wish you had Rondell White back in the lineup at DH.
not sure that Bonds is any solution right now, since that is probably what you are inferring… the circus of the media is just going to be a huge distraction for any team that might sign him (plus the Twins really need a big RH bat)
when cuddy comes back this should be the lineup for the season…….
gomez
mauer
young
morneau
cuddy
kubel
harris
lamb
tolbert
young is eventually going to get power.. just as soon as we get a new hitting coach.. tolbert is the ss for now… and in the future if we get our hands on beckham in the draft tolbert will be the 2nd baseman….. we need to trade pitching for a power 3rd baseman in the lineup.. also i hope we can find a right fielder that can do more then throw people out… honestly i think young should be the right fielder and we should go find a power hitting left fielder…
Dan, statistical analysis shows that the theory of “protection” hitting behind you is actually not all that true. Delmon isn’t hitting, because he’s not all that good yet. Other than the HRs, this is pretty much (actually a little worse) how he hit last year. He is on pace to see less pitches per AB than any AL hitter faced last year (I think that was in Gleeman’s blog). And, since the Twins don’t exactly coach up their hitters, I’m not sure how he gets better…..
It all falls back on the brutal job the Twins did in drafting and developing hitters the last decade or so.
baseballinsighter: I agree with that assessment, unfortunately the cubboard is pretty bare in the minors for hitters.
I’m thinking the Twins, Royals and White Sox are better than most people give them credit for, and Detroit and Cleveland are not quite as tough as projected but still probably tops in the division. I think every series within the division is going to be crucial for every team. The Twins starters might work out to be the best staff in the division if Liriano makes his way back. I’m not sold on Livan yet. After all, Ramon Ortiz started out 3-0 last year.
JP,
I agree with you that the problem is due to hitting philosophy, but I’m not as worried about the number of pithces. Delmon isn’t going to slow down. Kubel needs to be more aggressive. The problem throughout the Kelly and Gardenhire eras has been this insistance on adhering to “Twins Baseball.” We continue to see year after year a reluctance to allow anybody to swing for the fences every once in awhile. I’m tired of hearing about “productive outs” and “doing the little things”. It is tough to win games when you give away outs every game to play station to station and never allow yourself to put up anything more than a run at a time. When was the last time somebody in the 8th spot in the order hit a grand slam in a Twins uniform? We don’t grow them any different in Minnesota than in other baseball cities. We should be able to hit as many home runs as the next team. We need more big innings to legitimately have a shot.
StraightCashHomey,
Great name!
I just don’t get why all the negativity…..it’s 8 games into the season!! seriously! If you don’t want to cheer for a team that has its ups and downs, go cheer for the red sox or yankees…please
Hanley Ramirez would be fine, but he would cost a lot in terms of prospects.
I’m a broken record, but it gibes with everything folks have said about the lineup: we need someone to show the young guys that the way to become a great hitter is to command the strike zone, and force the pitcher to pitch to you. When he does, you make him pay. It works for Bonds, it works for Thome, for Frank Thomas, Giambi, etc. They refuse to swing at balls out of the strike zone.
Right now, the Twins are being taught to be aggressive the wrong way; Delmon Young and Carlos Gomez are striking out and making tons of outs swinging at bad pitches. I think this is on Vavra and Gardy both, but we all know they aren’t going anywhere.
The only player on the Twins with good plate discipline (Mauer) doesn’t take advantage of it by driving the ball and hitting HRs. The youngsters aren’t going to take their cues from him.
Bill Brasky: Because LNP makes 3 million a year.
Homey: Off day scheduled just in case bad weather postponed yesterday’s home opener for the Sox. It will be the same for the Twins in 2010 in the new park.
future lineup for 2010 (i dang hope..)
gomez
mauer (unless he gains power…)
hanley ramirez*
morneau
young
chase headley ^
cuddy (i wish we got rid of him but wont)
kubel dh(he will hit 25-30 homers soon 
tolbert(knows how to get the ball in play
pitching
liriano
blackburn
baker
guerra
robertson
^ traded boof, kevin mulvey, and ploffee for chase headley
* traded humber, slowey, span, swarzak, and revere for hanley ramirez
thoughts?
I’d rather be golfing too, if this winter ever ends..
I am not all against being aggressive and going after the first pitch. That’s okay for the first batter. But when the guy ahead of you goes out on one pitch for the first out, if you are going to go up there and swing at the first pitch you see you better be damned sure you get a hit or at least foul it off.
I’m doubting Florida would take that turd sandwich for one of the best hitters in baseball…
ds,
Which turd sandwich?
The Headley possibility is interesting. Here’s a Joe column from November. Notice the four players the Twins asked about or “targetted internally”: Chase Headley, Delmon Young, BJ Upton, and Carlos Gomez. And note that the Padres are interested in the Twins pitching prospects.
Let Livan bat for himself when he pitches, and DH on the other days.
Humber Slowey Span Swarzak and Revere…
They were able to get some of the best prospects in baseball for Cabrera and Willis (who sucks)…Ramirez is still cheap, they want a team’s best prospects…I’ll give ya Slowey and maybe Humber, but Span sucks, Swarzak isn’t top 10 in the Twins, and Revere is WAAAYYYY down in A ball. They’ll want a hell of a lot more than that
lion–If you were Florida, would you trade Hanley for that group? What about San Diego? (I’m sure they’d be happy with a Boof/Plouffe return, with a Mulva.
We have 6 new hitters in our linup… it takes a while to gel. I think we all need to relax a little.
If there is anything to worry about it is our bullpen (with the exception of Nathan). Rincon and Gurerer have been shaky, Crain might be ok… but if Neshek throws any more cheese like that, we may be in trouble..
ds - I wouldn’t doubt that trade offer could work in a year or 2.
and if you look at Florida’s track record with star players, they get rid of ‘em before they get their first big payday, and after this season he is arbitration eligible, which he would win if it got there. The marlins would either have to pay him the arbitration dollar amount, or sign him long term, and that is not something they do. Point is, he’s probably gone this year or next out of Florida, and I think the twins have plenty of P options and OF in the minors that would draw interest.
who else thinks that in retrospect, in ‘06 the twins shouldn’t have held out Matt Garza from any Alfonso Soriano trade? I think he’d be holding down second base and providing loads of right handed power for this team right now…
Ok, but I think there are a LOT more teams that could offer a LOT better prospects. Most people complain that the cupboard is bare in the minor leagues, but when they want to make trades, suddenly the cupboard is stacked with pieces other teams would want. I’m just not buying it
Probably a lot to ask, but how about Nathan to Seattle for Brandon Morrow and Triunfel?
what do you think the angels would want for Brandon Wood? he’s a 3b, SS with big power numbers in the minors. (43 HR in A+, 25 and 23 HR seasons in AAA)
Joe,
Your first sentence is all I need to read. Morneau started the year 0-12. Young has yet to hit an extra base hit. The first trend ended with a bang. The second one will end soon. Cuddyer will come back swinging. This team will score more runs than it did last year–significantly more. Talk to us at the end of April. If these trends continue through the month, I’ll get worried.
If we continue to pitch like we have, we’ll win a lot more game than the experts like BP predicted.
In regards to Average Joe’s following statement to Bill, “Lighten up, Bill. I think most Twins fans have an interest in the fate of Hunter, Santana, and even Bartlett and Garza for that matter. If you don’t want to read it, skim over it.”
I say, if you want to keep up with Hunter, Santana, Bartlett, and Garza, go to the Angels, Mets, and Tampa Bay web pages!!!!
Keep
I hope you are joking about Garza for Soriano. Did you see the contract that Soriano signed with the Cubs? So basically you wish the Twins would have traded Garza for 2 first round draft picks right? I think they made the right decision.
joe mauer won a batting championship batting in the 3 spot, the twins won the division that year, why 2 years down the road would a more mature joe mauer not be a good fit batting 3rd
I’m calling for Barry Bonds
Liondragon-Just how do you propose we get two of the best NL players on the Twins? Have Carl give both of them a boatload of money to sign here as a free agent and outbid the likes of Boston and NY (check Carl’s track record on that)? Or give up all of our top prospects in a trade when they are at the end of their contract’s in hopes that we will sign them to an extension (again check our track record on that)?
While we are adding ramirez and headley, why don’t we get Ellsbury, Lowrie, Buchholz, and Lester from Boston and Hughes, Kennedy, and Cabrera from the Yankess. Just for good measure let’s see if Santana will let by-gones be by-gones and come back with a pay cut.
The team you see now is basically going to be the team you see in 2010, with the exception of a few guys at Triple A that will be on the team. Why would you think anything different??
jama,
Agreed.
Delmon Young or
A Soriano two-month lease plus two draft picks.
Easy decision.
What’s with all the bashing of the manager and coaching staff. Have you forgotten that the Twins have won the division 4 of the last 6? And there were a couple of years where they may have had the worst (or at least the greenest) talent in baseball.
we might get that shortstop if he somehow falls to us 
that would probably be the only change i see.. new shortstop or 3rd baseman from the draft is all i could see… unless we trade a star talent like garza for star talent hitter…
(blackburn, guerra, robertson….)
tcmarathon,
Dreamin’, I’m always dreamin’,
Keep right on dreamin’
Till my dreamin’ comes true. uuuu..uuuu!
uuuu..uuuu, uuuu..uuuu
everyone here should start a fantasy baseball league together… we all know so much it would be a lot of fun….
StraightCash- If I’m not mistaken teams that have a high probablity of having eary season weather situations often schedule a day off after their opener to give them a chance to re schedule should the need arise.I could be wrong but it seems I’ve heard that explained before.
As far as the offense goes,it ’s early.As Morneau proved in the KC series it only takes a few productive AB’s to make the stats look better.That said, this team can’t afford injuries to key players.Cuddy isn’t a super star but he’s a much better threat than his current replacement.If Danard Span is your teams replacement for a potential 80-100 RBI guy,you are in trouble.
Everyone thought the Twins would have better offensive depth this year but I don’t see it,other than Monroe at least has a chance of hitting the ball out of the park.Bass as the 12th man on the pitching staff and Crain being limited to one outing a week cripple a bench that is short to begin with.
One other thing and I’m sure I’ll catch some flak for it.Even though it’s only been a week I don’t understand the Twins signing of Everett.As long as Punto was under contract this year why waste money on another light hitting middle infielder.Punto IMO could have handled shortstop as well as Everett.Everett,Punto and Tolbert(even though he is off to a nice start I’d be shocked if it lasts) are three guys who give you the same thing. More wasted space on a roster that can’t afford it.
jama - i forgot that soriano’s contract ended that year, but thats not what I was looking at, it was more of a comparison to what they actually got rid of Garza for.
I like Delmon, and think he’ll turn into a very good player.
If no contract items were in the discussion, would you have rather pilfered Soriano or Young? I guess thats what I was getting at.
Liondragon-With those trade offers for the players you mentioned, I see average at best position players and pitchers that may top out in the third spot. Not one potential “superstar” in the bunch, which is what teams will want for players the caliber of Headley and Ramirez.
You could take out Boof and add a bucket of used baseballs and that would make the deal better.
lion,
If we had a fantasy league, I would never trade with you.
I don’t think you would make any offers favoring the other team.
hey i was just trying to be nice cause if i said lets trade blackburn people would say… “well thats way too much” so i tryed doing quantity…
i was going to say this…
hanley ramirez for blackburn, slowey, revere, humber, span
Joe as of today AJ is leading the AL in Avg, Hunter is leading in HR’s and Crede is leading in Rbi’s. I’d say the whole league is in trouble. Also Lohse is tied for first in ERA. It might be a little to early to get worried.
bc,
i believe tolbert is leading in adverage he he he
at .500
liondragon,
Blackburn and Slowey are probably necessary for the team to win this year and I’d think that they are untouchable; 2 from Bonser/Swarzak/Guerra might be a better match.
So Torii has four dingers. Whoopee. He only had one vs the Twins. He’s gotten going.
Twins bats will be fine..one exception. I don’t think Everett will be very helpful. I didn’t expect him to be great, but now he’s just plain lousy.
MORE TOLBERT!!
The bigger thing to see is how some of these other pitchers are doing before/after facing the Twins. While not household names, if they’re doing the job, it’s not a shame to struggle some at the plate.
8 games…breathe everyone!
Trade Hanley Ramirez for the Rochester Red Wings and New Britain Rock Cats.
And, if I recall correctly, they beat Bale and Meche…and Meche shut down the Tigers…
Anyone quoting Chicken Little already, chill…
who is better AJ or Mauer
…and a team to be named later.
Careful what you wish for with Tolbert. I like what I see so far, but I also liked Punto when he was hitting a couple of years ago. I am not saying Tolbert is going to turn in to Punto, but just remember how everyone was high on Punto a couple of years ago. Gardy should pick and choose his spots for Tolbert so he is put in when he has a good chance to succeed. Go slow, but steady with Tolbert.
As far as bats go, a possible more realistic (read: cheap) acquisition that would help the Twins in many fronts and might cost only a Rincon or a Bass is Delmon’s brother. He could be the everyday DH and really help people like his bother and Gomez with taking balls.
Span shouldn’t be getting these at-bats.
Gardy needs to have a consistant line-up that includes both Monroe and Kubel until cuddy’s back.
Young definately needs to hit third although all you cuddyer haters cuddy is a run producer ove the last two years.
Pitching looks good except Rincoln needs to go so we can have a true set up man again. Phil Humber this might be your calling
NO TALKING OF TRADING BLACKBURN OR GUERRA PLEASE!!!
jimmy bee: nathan, liriano, bonser and mauer are light years better than AJ (because that’s the equation here)
I love the Dmitri idea!!!!
Mauer’s better than AJ
Yeah too early to get worried. But I have a little question and a big question.
The little one is what’s up with Everett’s arm?
The big one is what will M&M and Cuddy produce this year? These are the veterans to watch.
Even if Tolbert turns out to be the next Punto he still MIGHT serve us better at short than that noodle arm geek playing there now!!!
What is the deal with everett’s arm?
Has it always been weak?
here is a quote i saved from the other day
Everett has incredible range and makes spectacular plays from other SS into routine plays for him. Do a little research on defensive baseball
Thank’s AaronK
Sign Piazza!
Sign Sosa!
Everett been advertised as a defensive Wiz. He might have great range, but from what I’ve seen of Everett he has a hard time even getting the ball to Morneau without a hop.
Sign Gaetti!
The sky is falling! C’mon, it is really early. A lot of hitters are off to slow starts. It will balance out. My two biggest concerns about the Twins are 1) I think those that expected a 100% replacement for Hunter’s hitting are going to be a bit disappointed. 2) The infield doesn’t have a lot of range and so far that appears to include Everett. I worry that he might be over the hill at 31.
Good things: 1) Gomez can change the game with his speed. 2) Mauer has looked good and appears to be taking aggressive hacks when the situation calls for it.
http://www.billjamesonline.net/fieldingbible/jeter.asp
This link has a great article about Everett (comparison with Jeter, but lots of great information about Everett) and is a great read.
Here is a favorite quotation:
“watching Derek Jeter make 40 defensive plays and then watching Adam Everett make 40 defensive plays at the same position is sort of like watching video of Barbara Bush dancing at the White House, and then watching Demi Moore dancing in Striptease”
thrylos98
I DON’T GET IT
don’t get what?
jimmybee…Punto does those same things that you say make everett an asset!!
Except Punto can actually throw the ball harder than a ten year old girl!!!
Tolbert too!!
I just read that the DL is an unsigned FA (Ron DL White)
I think Joe’s third point is kind of interesting as well. I would like to see the average ERA,K’s and Wins for all those pitchers. I would gladly take E.Santana,Weaver,Garland,Meche and Vazquez over Robertson,Willis(please Joe) or Verlander.
shameless I have never hopped on the LNP bashing. I think he has a good glove. The 2 guys I go after are Kubel and Boof. I don’t hop on the trend blog. I have said from day one if you don’t like Punto you will hate Everett.
shameless,
Punto’s range factor at shortstop last year was 4.87, Bartlett’s was 4.67. This year, Tolbert’s has been 4.26 and Everett’s 6.06… Huge difference.
If you care, in the top of the 4th, Detroit is down 2-0 (Mastazuka is one-hitting them)
To an earlier poster:
Not everyone thought they’d be better on O this year, as a matter of fact, many of us thought just the opposite.
Young is no Hunter, at least not yet. Gomez is no Kubel in the second half of last year (sorry, he’s not). Everett is a big step down from Bartlett, though Lamb is a big step up from Punto. Cuddeyer, Mauer and Morneau are the same, and harris is insufficiently known (though likely better than Castillo). Kubel is a big step up from Tyner. That, to me, looks like about a wash one way or the other. I’m not sure how anyone thought they’d be significantly better on O.
CF = go from #1 run producer to a raw rookie that most said wasn’t ready for the majors.
LF = wash in the second half of the year, but not quite league average.
RF, 1B, C = same players
DH = big step up, but not necessarily league average
3B = step up, but about league average
SS = step down
2B = probably better than Castillo, definitely better than late last season, but still unproven
I don’t see how that means they’ll be better, especially if you believe that CLE and KC got better in the pitching dept (which most experts said they were)(with Detroit same/worse and ChiSox hard to predict, some thought better, some thought worse).
That said, Young, harris and Kubel are somewhat unknown at the MLB level, and could improve from last year (let us hope). Gomez will have great days, and terrible days, but will be fun to watch.
Why does everyone just love kubel
here are some names of past Twins he reminds me of:
Terry Tiffee
Dustan Mohr
Mathew Lecroy
Bobby Kielty
A huge difference is Tolbert’s OBP is .563 and has no errors and Everett’s OBP .176 and two errors.
Jimmy Bee, you ask “who is better, AJ or Mauer?” Kind of a fun question, especially with Joe hitting a flat plane in his ability right now. I guess you gotta say that in the clutch you’d want A.J. up there. Mauer hits too many three hoppers to the 2nd baseman when up 2-0 and 3-1 on the count. He fouled off about a half dozen consecutive 3-2 pitches over the heart of the plate on Sunday against Tomko. Rather shocking for a #3 hitter.
Joe should be learning to drive balls into the gaps and down the RF line, not settle for spray hits over the infield, lazy sac flies and sloppy bloop doubles to LF. Time to light a fire under Mr. Calm and say time to get going. Once you sign the big contract, it’s time to produce.
well atleast i got a hit today on beat the hit streak or whatever… i picked manny too bad after sunday when i picked gomez on monday bj upton didnt get a hit 
Errors don’t tell the whole story. Everett gets to more balls than Tolbert. They don’t count as errors on Tolbert, they count as hits against the pitcher, but it is the same result.
this is why i hate the rays
i hate these people who already have 10 hits in a row…
joe vavra and chili ….both, please leave town….im tired of losing here, no apologies, just leave
hey guys… atleast we dont have an ortiz… hes hitting .107… and you think red soxs fans arnt mad? its all around baseball.. wait 2 months.. then stuff will shake out better we have only finish one week… like 24 more weeks to go….
“baseball insighter” do you feel that Mauer is equal to an AJ and that we really did not at the time of the draft need a catcher because we had AJ. But we chose Mauer not bcause he was a better player then AJ but because of fan pressure to acquire Mauer because he is a local.
““baseball insighter” do you feel that Mauer is equal to an AJ and that we really did not at the time of the draft need a catcher because we had AJ. But we chose Mauer not bcause he was a better player then AJ but because of fan pressure to acquire Mauer because he is a local.”
i know aj wasnt worth nathan liriano and boof lol
liondragon it is really an AJ for Nathan trade when you look at it
“liondragon it is really an AJ for Nathan trade when you look at it”
you mean liriano nathan for aj…..
had Mauer been from Oklahoma instead of Minnesota and we still had AJ would we have traded away AJ in hopes of getting Oklahoma Mauer. Also without knowledge of what we were getting in the San Fran trade. Also Boof is a MR at best and with Liriano you can not base a career on 1/2 of a season. We still don’t know if he will return to form. Liriano could end up like Mark Prior and Kerry Wood. Tons of tallent but can’t stay healthy
I will agree Everett has a better glove than Tolbert, but it in no way justifies his worthless bat. He has become an automatic out at the plate, its like watching the pitcher bat in the NL.
Here are some players he reminds me of:
Corie Koskie
David Ortiz
Matt Lawton
Randy Bush
Ken Landreaux
Excuse me Delmon Young and Gomez have been our best hitters so far so as to that comment down below wake up and smell the coffee. The Guy does not have to hit homeruns.
Cuddyer should not have been resigned either he always gets hurt just like Mauer
cmathewson he is NOOOOOOOOOOO David Ortiz
Re Kubel:
have a look at the following groups of lefty Twins’ batters (same hitting philosophy) and their numbers when they were 25 years old:
Group 1:
batter 1: ba .234, OBP .324 SLG .475 303 AB 18 HR 48 RBI
batter 2: ba .278, OBP .351 SLG .444 593 AB 21 HR 93 RBI
batter 3: ba .285, OBP .319 SLG .463 523 AB 19 HR 76 RBI
Group 2:
batter 4: ba .248, OBP .366 SLG .415 460 AB 14 HR 60 RBI
batter 5: ba .266, OBP .341 SLG .373 263 AB 3 HR 23 RBI
Kubel’s last year
BA .273, OBP .335, SLG .450, 418 AB 13 HR 65 RBI
Mauer on the other hand is way ahead of both groups, his numbers when he was 25:
BA .321 OBP .375 SLG .559 592 AB 37 HR 130 RBI
Kubel is in-between the 2 groups as he clearly is ahead of the second group. Which way he will end up is still early to determine, but worthwhile to find out. That’s why people are upset when he doesn’t get enough playing time…
Any guesses who the players above are?
Yep cmathewson that is like saying Terry Tiffee is like Manny Ramirez
no being mean about mauer… hes the minnesota twins god (all the girls would do anything for him… and hes the only reason the girls come to baseball games)
lol
Read Morneau instead of Mauer above
if aj was still here and not mauer there would only be 15 thousand people a game not 25… you always get the hometown boy if you can cause your franchise would make more money from tickets and merchandise
Lets face it: when you have a robber baron like Pohlad, who bilks taxpayers out of 300 billion but will not spend for some good bad, the Twins will always be a weak offensive team
why do you people even follow the Twins with this poor excuse of a human being in ownership?
I see I had a couple of typos above
I meant 300 million, and good bats
Original Kevin
why do you people even follow the Twins with this poor excuse of a human being in ownership?
because the weather here stinks so bad it is either hang myself or watch the twins
“why do you people even follow the Twins with this poor excuse of a human being in ownership?”
cause i dont believe in big markets and lat time i checked… i dont live in a big market teams area.. unless the twins count
last not lat
jimmy bee, what do you mean “you people”?
You ain’t a people?
ROMER I copied a quote from Original Kevin
if the twins just forget all that bs that vavra and co are giving them and just go up to the plate with hitting in mind, things will be just fine…go up there like oliva used to say….see ball - hit ball……its that easy folks, we have talented players, we just need to let them do their thing and we will start seeing the ball jump off their bats….dont need to complicate things…hit the damn thing and run like hell….here endeth the reading….
The owner is only part of the problem. The biggest part in the pseudo-truism that the Twins “is a team of fundamentals” (tell my about the sliding head first fundamental, btw) and want to win with pitching and defense. They have been somewhat successful with that philosophy (like winning AL Central titles when the competition was inadequate, to just bow out the 1st round of the playoffs), but a.the times are a bit different now and b. there is no way to advance in the post season if 3-4 bats don’t click big, in addition to pitching. And hitting singles the opposite way is not “clicking big”.
When Pohlad finally kicks the bucket will the Pohlads kids be as cheap as him
Typical.
Twins batting problems are Pohlad’s fault.
That skinny old man has no bat speed or power.
Plus he has bad vision and dementia.
as much as we are all twins fans, i think, i dont see any need for death references to any member of the twins family…seems a bit over the top to say the least…
Pohlad has good discipline however.
He hasn’t swung at a bad pitch in 70 years.
jimmy bee …
I’m glad that the Twins drafted Mauer, even though we had an up and coming catcher in AJ at the time. There was all kinds of pressure on the Twins to draft Prior then, who was the only other logical choice, but as we all know has now ended up on the scrap heap. Another reason not to take a pitcher #1 overall. More risky than tech stocks.
So, the Twins take local boy Mauer & things looked great with him winning the batting title in ‘06. Everything thought he would continue to vault from there, but he has not. He got sore early last & all his numbers were down.
But this year being healthy, he still looks like the Joe of last year. Give him some more time, but soon people will be asking Joe, “Are you hurting again?” and he’ll sit down for a month or so. Perplexing for Twins fans.
baseball insighter,
Don’t forget that Prior indicated that the Twins’ would have a difficult time signing him.
So instead of taking the #1 rated player (Prior), they took the #2 rated player (Mauer) who just happened to be a local boy.
SweetOne what if Mauer was from oklahoma instead of Minnesota. We would have laughed at the notion of getting rid of AJ who also to mention doesn’t have injury issues. Well regardless Mauer and Prior can ‘t seem to play injury free. Go figure 1,2
Yeah, and in short order Mauer becomes Minor League Player of the Year, and Terry Ryan says the Twins are operating from a point of strength in dealing AJ to get a closer to replace Guarardo. A lot of people liked AJ, though, and after his brief fiasco in SanFran he’s put a nice string of years together. The Sox are lucky to have him. Most teams catchers stink. AJ is good and except for B.A. he may exceed Mauer’s other numbers at the plate this year & next.
How easily you guys forget that Mark Texiera was rated just as high as Mauer. He seems to have done alright for himself.
Prior and Teixiera were never considered. If Mauer wasn’t there, the Twins would have drafted a second round guy at #1 and offered him third round money like Ben Revere.
Be happy the Twins have Mauer, Liriano, Nathan and Bonser. Keeping AJ and bypassing Mauer would have been suicide.
Liriano could be the next injury plagued Prior or Kerry Wood. 1/2 a season does not mean he is going to have a wonderfull HOF career. Sometimes players never come back from those type of injuries or surgeries. Look at Eric Gagne
thrylos, what is your quiz answer? Guessing Ortiz is #3. Some clues?
#2, I mean for Ortiz.
“SweetOne what if Mauer was from oklahoma instead of Minnesota. We would have laughed at the notion of getting rid of AJ who also to mention doesn’t have injury issues. Well regardless Mauer and Prior can ‘t seem to play injury free. Go figure 1,2″
I would hope that the Twins would still take Mauer. Mauer is a MUCH better catcher than A.J. Pierzynski. Since A.J. was traded, he has put up an OPS+ of 86, 90, 94, and 83. Mauer has put up seasons of 137, 107, 144, and 117. Even with the injury issues of Mauer, AJ has only played an average of 8 games more per season over the last three years. When you add up the offensive contributions of the two players, and then take into account that teams run on AJ at will, Mauer is much more valuable.
Pete D if Mauer doesn’t stop growing taller he will be the first 6′8 catcher soon. I think that he is currently 6′6 and you know how hard that position with the added height is on a catchers knees. We’ll see how long his body holds up at catcher. I have a gut feeling you may not have to look for a DH soon. One will find the position soon enough
“Mauer and Prior can ‘t seem to play injury free.”
There is a hell of a difference between missing games and missing SEASONS (CAREERS?).
Mauer’s absences should not be mentioned in the same sentence with Prior’s problems.
What have AJ’s power numbers been the last 3 years? He’s gotta have double the home runs and about the same amount of doubles. His durability evens out Mauer’s assets, to this point. Hopefully Joe can put it all together & return to ‘06 form, otherwise these comparisons will keep on coming. Still glad we traded AJ, though, for Nathan & Lirano — still a no brainer.
I keep having to repeat myself that 1/2 a season does not constitute a career. Some people never come back to how they were before after some of these injuries or surgeries
Also Mauer is a great player deservedly so but offensively he is nooooooo Mike Piazza or Johnny Bench as far as hitting
Even if Liriano disappears, Mauer, Nathan and Bonser are better than AJ.
they never acquired mauer from San Francisco in the AJ trade he is not included. Basically you got injury prone Liriano who is now on his second major arm surgery. You got Boof who is a MR at best for any club that is not the Twins, and you got Nathan. Basically it is AJ for Nathan
jimmy bee i must say you are at the very least a bit outrageous…please reread your 4:16 and tell me you are not smokin something…..your mind is slipping badly…you may need help
Walleye tacos and ahi tuna, bratwurst and cheese curds - the menu at the Minnesota Twins new ballpark that opens in 2010
AM,
1. Ortiz, 2. Hrbek, 3. Jones, 4. Lawton, 5. Stahoviak
Arguably, Kubel @ 25 had a better year than Ortiz @ 25…
mj1 read what the new menu is for Penny pincher fields new snack stands
baseball insighter,
The only offensive stat that AJ beats Mauer on is HR (48 vs 29). Mauer outshines AJ in R (209 vs 180), 2B (89 vs 69), and RBI (199 vs 170).
how? It is AJ for Nathan at this point and half a season of Liriano. Boof may turn out, but so far he hasn’t been great by any stretch. Mauer was not part of the trade, but, w/o Mauer, the trade would not have been made.
SweetOne mauer also has more injuries and more time on the DL then AJ also.
mike wants wins who knows if Mauer was from Oklahoma or something we may have gotten Mark mark Teixeira
Whatever you want to call it.
Nathan, Liriano and Bonser are better than AJ. Find me a respected baseball man who disagrees that was a great trade for the Twins and I will CONSIDER changing my mind. - then I still won’t.
jimmy bee=troll
I had a bunch of facts to throw at him, which refute most of what he’s written in this thread. But then I remembered, don’t feed the trolls.
cmathewson we could have Mark Teixeira
and AJ still possibly
Also, AJ is only a 15-20 HR player at this stage of his career and it took him 8 years to get that level. Before that he was a 5-10 HR guy.
From 2000-2004 AJ hit a total of 37 HR.
From 2004-2007 Mauer has hit 35 HR.
At that stage of the careers, Mauer has shown more power than AJ.
Enough about this AJ vs Mauer thread.
Career stats:
AJP: BA: .286, OBP: .329, SLG: .433, OPS+: 97, RC/G 4.7, RF: 6.37
JM: BA: .313, OBP: .345, SLG: .458, OPS+: 125, RC/G: 6.7, RF: 6.95
The last 2 stats are runs created per game and range factor…
When is Mauer going to become the next Edgar Martinez of DH’s
We know the most important stat for #1 is Runs.
So, what is the number one stat for a #3? Runs? RBI’s? HR’S? OPS? OPS with RISP? Or maybe something line R + RBI - HR?
jimmy bee,
buzz off
SweetOne …
Thanks, I stand corrected on the Mauer/AJ comparison. Mauer has a much bigger upside, but outside of his stellar ‘06 season has struggled to really put it all together. This season it’s been all he can do to spray the ball thru/over the infield. That probably means he’s not feeling so good, but just hasn’t admitted it yet. Let’s give him another month to see whether he can get something going.
just remember Edgar Martinez and you are seeing what you will be getting with not as much power. If this makes you happy then you should be completely happy
“we could have Mark Teixeira
and AJ still possibly”
Yeah and you could have married Pamela Anderson, but she was already going steady.
1/2 as much power Mauer for his career will end up with 150-200 HR’s maybe.
1/2 power Mauer ha ha ha ha ha ha
Make Or Break Year— Joe Mauer, MIN– Will he ever realize his potential, or will he start to sneak into that “bust” category. For years we have heard that his power is coming, he will mature into it, but he has less than 30 HRs in the last three years. Don’t hold your breath waiting for a 25 HR season. On top of that, is there any part of Mauer’s body that hasn’t bothered him in recent memory. His supporters will tell you when he is healthy he is the number one catcher. My question is, when will he EVER be healthy all season. It isn’t like catching is easy on your body.
I don’t think they draft Texeria, but my choice for that draft was Prior. He was the perfect pitching prospect. Too bad about the injuries. Oh, before he was injured, he helped carry his team w/in one out of the WS (or so).
Mauer was considered either number 1 or 2 by most scouts. Texeria just behind Mauer and Pior, at least that is my recollection. I think there is a sound business case to be made for drafting Mauer, but I’d have drafted Prior if I was the GM.
I just see no way they draft Texeria in that situation. They love pitchers, so if it wasn’t Mauer it was going to be Prior.
Mauer isn’t even ranked in the top 3 in this poll
http://fightingchancefantasy.wordpress.com/2008/02/07/2008-mlb-preseason-rankings-catchers/
its a bad day if the most exciting thing to discuss is aj vs mauer…give it a break…mauer is our catcher and thats it…enuf said….nobody cares about the rest… woulda , coulda , shoulda…..jesus…give it up….
Seems to me I remember most people thinking Prior was #1 for most teams, and Mauer either two or three on most lists.
Joe Mauer—MIN—I have never been on board with this guy. He has been dubbed the next big thing for a number of years now, and I just haven’t seen it yet. Maybe if he could stay healthy we could get a glimpse of the greatness, but that has yet to happen. Lucky for Mauer he plays a position filled with mediocrity, so he is still a good option, just don’t stretch for him.
Bee, that’s a fantasy list dude. Offense only. And #4 aint too bad.
tigers lose again…5-0 now 0-7…this is why all preseason those people who automatically gave the title to the tigers, and shunned the rest, i was afraid were in for big disappointment…detroit has bigger problems than the twins at this point…wow….who woulda thunk…lmao
The Texeira comparison with Mauer:
(career stats)
TEX: BA: .285, OBP: .369, SLG: .537, OPS+: 130, RC/G 7.2,
JM: BA: .313, OBP: .345, SLG: .458, OPS+: 125, RC/G: 6.7,
so not much a drop off with Mauer, Mauer is 3 years younger, and the Twins have Morneau at 1B so Tex would have probably been a DH…
I’m just going off memory, but Texeira had some years with no more than 15 homers and a .300 BA. I think it is too early to tell who has had the better career.
great stats, thank. does that take into account that mauer missed a full year, and a lot of last year?
Also, averages are a little silly. Mauer had one statistically outstanding year, and 1 where he missed a year (while I think Texeria was playing) and 1 year where he was good and last year where he was very good when he played. There is something to be said for playing most every day.
Sorry, what is RC/G?
when mauers catching days are over, they will take his gun and turn him into the next great closer…all 6 ft 5 of him…what a thought…. hey at least he might be able to hit a bit for a pitcher….
RC/G is runs created per game
From the website Bee referenced:
“I have never been on board with this guy. He has been dubbed the next big thing for a number of years now, and I just haven’t seen it yet. Maybe if he could stay healthy we could get a glimpse of the greatness, but that has yet to happen. Lucky for Mauer he plays a position filled with mediocrity, so he is still a good option, just don’t stretch for him.”
“A glimpse of the greatness”
Like posting a .936 OPS as catcher? A 144 OPS+?
If that isn’t greatness, I don’t know what is.
Now that Torii and Johan are gone, seems like most fans like to talk about Mauer, Liriano and (why???) Jason Kubel. Sorry, guys …. this mis-mash ‘08 Twins team is headed for only 72-74 wins. Let the young guys develop (Span included) and see what they can forge towards 2010.
Mauer is two weeks from his 25th birthday. He’s been in the league a few years sure, but he’s still a pup. Peak years are typically between 25 and 29 so he should still be on the up swing.
He had such a bad year last year that we was 2nd to Posada in OBP for all Catchers and 4th in OSP among all catchers. Lead the Twins in OBP and trailed only Hunter and Monreau in OPS. Mauer is going to be fine. He’s the least of this clubs worries.
bisonaudit is wise.
I’d be more concerned with 2B, SS, and 3B.
Thanks for the Tigers report, mj1. Something relevant at last.
Tigers today…….5 hits, 2 errors, Rogers goes 4.2 innings.
And they have the best manager in MLB, right?
Wow…….
Pierzynski as a White Sox averages
135 Games .263 23 2B 57 RBI’s
Yeah, thats smokin hot right there./
What a bunch of Clowns. Pierzynski over Mauer, With what we got for him, would have been a franchise killing moment. Nathan and Liriano, plus Mauer and Morneau won us the division in ‘06. Without them, last place, book it
oh, I forgot the mighty 16 HR a year. What a slugger we traded away
When you look ot numbers with guys on base or RISP it becomes a whole lot clearer and a little surprising.
I think this team has a serious shot at making the playoffs. When you have a lot of new guys in the lineup, it takes time to click…just look at Detroit…they have a phenomenal lineup on paper, but just haven’t clicked yet. When Cuddyer comes back, Young should definitely hit third. If the young pitching continues to do well and Liriano comes back strong, we will contend for the division. Cleveland and Detroit are overrated and Minnesota and Chicago are underrated…it’s gonna be four team race. All four teams have weaknesses and all four have certain elements of their team that are the best in the division.
I’m starting to like Tolbert. Young will be a solid #3 someday but he’s not there yet. I realize I’m in the minority but I like Mauer #3 for now. His overall numbers are still the best there. We’d all like a guy hitting 300 with 30 dingers there but guess what?, we aint got one of those. Right now we need Mauer at 2 because no one else can handle the bat there. I think Tolbert can.
Yo Kurt dude. Tolbert probably won’t hit in the third spot, unless he goes roids crazy or just starts hitting like a maniac. I see no difference than last year, besides the fact that we don’t have a pitching ace anymore, and we can’t hit either. The Twins are young, I know that, but come on, we’ve been saying it will get better. My question is when? Next year? Two years? Will Mauer ever turn into a power hitter? The guy is 6′6″ and has got some muscles. I just can’t understand why these twins, and especially Mauer, can’t knock one out of the park more often then seven times a year!
Maybe we should bring back Rondell White, Shannon Stuart, and the piranhas back so we can start hitting again!
DeAmario, read it again, I’m wondering if Tolbert can hit in the #2 spot. the 2 spot killed us last year. With other candidates for #3 and nobody who can handle the bat except Mauer for #2 we have little choice. I’m thinking given we don’t have the proto #3 we might be better off with a lineup of like this:
Go-Go
Tolbert
Mauer
Morneau
Young
ect
A little fun with #’s. Here’s a list of current Twins. See who you’d pick to bat #4 based on the numbers I’ll provide.
Based on RISP 2007 only, looking at RBI/AB and OBP+SLG
#1 .430 RBI/AB .746 OPS
#2 .426 .877
#3 .394 .775
#4 .448 .847
#5 .496 .979
#6 .457 .870
#7 .446 .856
Who’s your cleanup hitter?
answers at 7P
It didn’t post well, here’s it again easier to read:
#1 .430 RBI/AB .746 OPS
#2 .426 RBI/AB .877
#3 .394 RBI/AB .775
#4 .448 RBI/AB .847
#5 .496 RBI/AB .979
#6 .457 RBI/AB .870
#7 .446 RBI/AB .856
162 games,
While it’s great that the Twins won the AL Central 4 years out of 6, but the fact is even during those years the hitting was always prone to be very cold and that prevent them from making it to the World Series. This was very evident in the 2002 ALCS against the Angels (Twins stopped hitting after game 1; when they did finally again in game 5, the pitching then coughed up 10 runs in the bottom half of the inning the Twins finally took a lead in), the 2002 and 2004 ALDS against the Yankees (those series hurt since both times the Twins won game 1 in New York. Then the bats went cold and the Twins went home), and finally the sweep at the hands of the A’s in 2006-the Twins had assbats a plenty there.
The Twins had the same lack of clutch and consistent hitting in 2007 and unfortunately it could be worse in 2008. Delmon Young won’t replace Hunter this year-but remember how long it took Torii to become a decent hitter. Mauer won’t hit for power and Morneau is prone to being either ice cold at the plate or hot. No inbetween with him it seems. Cuddy is kind of the same way. As for the rest, I just expect “Twins baseball” as usual.
Oops, I meant 2003 and 2004 ALDS against the Yankees.
gomez cf
tolbert ss
young lf
morneau 1b
monroe dh
mauer c
kubel rf
harris 2b
lamb 3b
bench…redmond, span, punto, everett
this lineup if you want a hitters lineup and if more defense is needed - install everett and remove harris-move tolbert to 2nd base
Answers:
#1 Monroe
#2 Lamb
#3 Cuddy
#4 Morneau
#5 Mauer
#6 Young
#7 Kubel
It appears that the most efficient at driving in runs when runners are in scoring position is Mauer, low HR #s and all.
