The Minnesota Twins have yo-yo’d between being competitive and ‘on-the-cusp’ the last few seasons. Everything lined up and their young players made advancements in their progression. They won 85 games and earned the second Wild Card spot in the American League.
Most teams sat on their wallets this offseason, but the Twins made an effort to add some veteran pitching to their team to surround all the youth. They were able to find some deals and signed Lance Lynn late in the offseason for a fraction of his going price.
Can Byron Buxton and Jose Berrios build on last season’s breakout performances?
Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Minnesota Twins.
2017 Win/Loss Record: 85-77
Key Additions: SP Jake Odorizzi, OF Logan Morrison, SP Lance Lynn, SP Michael Pineda, RP Fernando Rodney, RP Addison Reed, OF Jake Cave, SS Erick Aybar, RP Casey Crosby, 2B Taylor Featherson, OF Chris Heisey, OF Ryan LaMarre, RP Matt Magill, 1B/3B Jordan Pacheco, SS Gregorio Petit, 1B Brock Stassi & C Bobby Wilson
Key Losses: DH Kennys Vargas, C Chris Gimenez, RP Matt Belisle, RP Buddy Boshers, SP Bartolo Colon, SP Nik Turley & RP Glen Perkins
Interleague Schedule: NL Central
Projected Starters: Jason Castro, Joe Mauer, Brian Dozier, Miguel Sano, Eduardo Escobar, Eddie Rosario, Byron Buxton, Max Kepler & Logan Morrison
Projected Starting Rotation: Ervin Santana, Jose Berrios, Jake Odorizzi, Lance Lynn & Kyle Gibson
Closer: Fernando Rodney
Fantasy Sleeper: 3B Eduardo Escobar – I’m taking Escobar here due to him earning shortstop position eligibility since Jorge Polanco was hit with an 80-game drug suspension. He could also be the Swiss Army knife for the Twins as he can play multiple positions. If he can get at least 400+ at-bars, he can belt 15 to 20 homers. That power total is good for him to be a solid AL-only utility man.
Prospect To Keep Your Eye On: SS/2B Nick Gordon – Dee’s younger brother has been in the Twins farm system since taking him 5th overall in the 2014 draft. He hit .270 with 9 homers and 13 stolen bases in Double-A last season. He also tallied eight triples, which shows that he has more speed than the 13 stolen bases would suggest. I know he isn’t as fast as Dee, but he does possess more power and is solid across the board. Dee may have a higher batting average and steals, but Nick could help you in more categories. The Twins may dangle him as trade bait if they are in the hunt at the trade deadline. They took high school SS Royce Lewis #1 overall last season, but he’s still a few seasons away from debuting. They could see him as the future for the Twins, which makes Gordon expendable. I think they should actually use him this season instead of trading him for a rental.
Team Analysis: The Twins made a huge jump in 2015, but then fell back to Earth in 2016. Heading into last season you weren’t sure what you would be getting . They have plenty of young talent, but they needed to mature. Well, many of their prospects improved and the Twins made it to the Wild-Card.
Minnesota was great down the stretch as outfielder Byron Buxton finally figured out Major League pitching. He hit .300 after the All-Star Break and ended the season with 20 homers and 30 steals. He was so bad in the first-half, so if he can just be half as good as he was in the second-half, but for the entire season, he could be an All-Star.
Another young player finally ‘got it’ as starter Jose Berrios hit his peak mid-season. There was a large stretch of games in the Summer where had his WHIP under 1.00 and an ERA under 3.00. He hit a wall late in the year, but that is expected from a 23-year-old pitcher.
The Twins were one of the most active teams in the free agent market. They lost out on signing starter Yu Darvish, was still able to sign Lance Lynn and Michael Pineda, and acquired Jake Odorizzi via trade from the Rays. They kept their lineup in tact and added Logan Morrison. They come into the season with eight of their nine everyday players back from last year.
The Twins made the Wild-Card in the American League, but lost the game to the Yankees. They signed some solid players to their rotation and even if some of the guys don’t have career years again this season, the pitching should be stronger. They may not need to score as much to win games. I think they will once again battle for the Wild Card as the Indians appear to be the runaway favorites in the AL Central.
2018 Wins Over/Under Betting Line: 83.5 (Prediction: OVER)
2018 Projected Win/Loss Record: 86-76 (2nd in AL Central)
CLICK HERE to read the rest of our 2018 MLB Team Previews
Follow us on Twitter @Sweetbob & ‘LIKE’ us on Facebook!
About the Author…
Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘America’s White Boy’ and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks, Guyspeed, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at @Sweetbob.