Ortiz to the Pen

The Twins offense is starting to hit their stride (even with Joe Mauer still out of the lineup for a little while longer), so no complaints there. Likewise, Carlos Silva was very good, so nothing but praise for him on this Memorial Day Weekend.

But the best news, long-term, for the Twins was that Ramon Ortiz was moved to the bullpen. He was putting them in a hole everytime he started, and while his early season starts were very encouraging, something needed to happen, and that did when the Twins announced Ramon Ortiz would be moving to the pen.

Though I disagree with the statement on the Twins site that the Twins bullpen got stronger with the move, I think it's very good overall for the Twins. This will likely cause them to call up Kevin Slowey, one of the top prospects in the organization.

This will help them win now and later, as I think Slowey will be an immediate upgrade and gain valuable experience for the future. So all in all, a good weekend for the Twins, even with the heartbreaking loss on Saturday.

I like when good pitchers start

After another Sabean Special today, one thing has become clear to me... when we have good pitchers start, that usually goes better than having bad pitchers start.

Groundbreaking, I know. But then again, we are still starting Carlos Silva and Ramon Ortiz for 40% of the games, so this message isn't quite getting through to somebody.

Obviously it's a lot more complicated than this, but since May 12 the Twins are 5-1 when either Johan Santana, Boof Bonser, or Scott Baker starts. Over that same time span they're 0-6 when the games are started by Ramon Ortiz, Carlos Silva, and the recently departed Sidney Ponson.

Already 6.5 games back, we can't really afford to trot out Ortiz and Silva much anymore, can we? I know this is kinda like a broken record, but these guys are just not good starters. That's not even an opinion, that's a fact. Why not give Matt Garza and Kevin Slowey a chance?

I know the Twins are very reluctant to use more service time than necessary, but I really think the change to bring the young starters up has to be made soon. Last year these types of moves propelled the Twins from a .500 team to the division title. Replacing 3/5 of your rotation (already done with 1 part of that in Baker) can have that same type of effect.

The end for Ramon Ortiz? (PLEASE)

The Ramon Ortiz Story was great for a few starts... however, the time has come to pull the plug. Most of us knew this would happen sooner or later, and it's become increasingly apparent that the real Ramon Ortiz is back.

He was good for 5 starts or so, but that was probably more of an abberation than anything. He wasn't striking guys out, and basically they were just hitting it where the Twins were. Over the past 4 starts that has begun to even out, and his ERA is showing it.

Here's his last 4 starts:

5/03 - 4 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 3 K, 0 BB
5/09 - 6 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 K, 3 BB
5/15 - 1 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 0 K, 1 BB
5/20 - 4.1 IP, 10 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 K, 0 BB

Almost needless to say, the Twins have lost all 4 starts. It's time to end the Ramon Ortiz Experiment.

Twins deliver a shellacking

Ramon Ortiz is 3-0. Terry Ryan, you are a freaking genius. Seriously, is there anyone alive that would have thought Ramon Ortiz would be 3-0 with a 2.05 ERA after 3 starts? I'm just kind of shocked thinking about it. But in a good way.

Elsewhere, everything was working for the Twins. 10 XBH and 11 runs overall for the Twins, and I think they can live with that effort. The backbreaker was Torii Hunter's grand slam, the 7th of his career. In all honesty, I thought it looked like the pitch beforehand should possibly have been called strike 3, but it wasn't, and then Hunter made Weaver pay for the hanging breaking ball. He now leads the team with 12 RBI.

Right behind is Mike Cuddyer, who had 3 RBI himself. Joe Mauer hit 3 doubles, Jason Tyner had 3 hits, Jason Bartlett had 2 more hits... there were plenty of offensive stars. It was really a great all-around game. Great offense, great defense, solid pitching. Not much more you can ask for.

Wednesday night's game features Carlos Silva (with a 0.77 ERA) vs. Felix Hernandez (with a 0.00 ERA). If the Twins can put forth the same type of effort as they did on Tuesday, they could slow down Felix's short reign of terror through the AL.

Ramon Ortiz has been the Twins best starter

Through 2 games, Ramon Ortiz has been everything the Twins hoped he would be and more. If you had bet in an Online Sportsbook before the season that after 2 starts Ramon Ortiz would lead the Twins in IP, ERA, WHIP, and have 2 wins, well, you're braver than I am.

Ortiz pitched 8 innings, giving up only 3 hits and 1 run, against perhaps the best lineup in the MLB in the Yankees. That puts him at 2-0 on the year with a 1.80 ERA. The strikeout rate could definitely stand to be higher, but as long as he can keep throwing with the excellent control he has displayed so far and keep the ball in the ballpark, well, there's a chance this might not be an aberration.

But this all looked like it would result in a no-decision for Ortiz until the bats finally got going in the 8th. The 3-4-5-6 showed why they can be so dangerous, as they each drove in a run. With Luis Castillo on 2nd, Joe Mauer singled and took 2nd base. After a wild pitch, Michael Cuddyer singled him in. Then Justin Morneau doubled down the line, and Hunter ended with another double to push the lead to 5-1.

This was fortunately enough for the Twins to at least win 1 game in the series, putting them at 5-3. Now the Rays come to town for a 4-game set. Game 1 of the series features Casey Fossum against Carlos Silva. In his first start he gave up 1 run in 5 innings... I think the Twins wouldn't mind a repeat of that.

Ramon Ortiz got a Win

Honestly, I didn't think I'd be able to say that much this year. I realize I still probably won't, but it was a great to see a great effort from Ortiz in his first game for the Twins. If he can give the Twins 7 IP and 2 ER on any type of consistent basis, well, Terry Ryan is even more of a genius than I thought.

Hitting wise, it was a good team effort. Everyone got on base at least once, and multiple players had 2 RBI. After a 2/4 game, Mauer is hitting .455 (which means nothing at this point, but still fun to point out).

What a great series for the Twins to start the year. On the broadcast they said that the first time the Twins were 3 games over .500 last year was when they were 38-35. That's crazy.

On a final note, I wasn't able to mention The Sabean Special last occurred last night. Boof wasn't able to get the win, but he started the game, and Joe Nathan finished it with the save. Always good to get one of those early on!

The Sabean Special Count: 1

Twins Rotation Almost Set

With about a week left before the start of the season, things almost look to be set in the Twins rotation.

The top, of course, will be Johan Santana, the reigning Cy Young Award winner who is firmly established as the best pitcher in the world. After that, it gets a little fuzzy.

At this point, it looks like Boof Bonser will definitely be in the rotation, which is a good thing, because Boof was really solid at the end of last year. Joining him and Santana will likely be Ramon Ortiz and Sidney Ponson. Both were free-agent pickups, both have uninspiring track records. To be perfectly honest, if either of them develop into a reliable 5th starter, I'll be pleased.

After that, it gets even more fuzzy. It looks like the final spot will be either Carlos Silva's or Matt Garza. Silva is the "veteran" that has been getting hammered on the mound, Garza is the guy that has been pitching better, has much more talent and upside, but is young. If you can't tell, I think Garza should get the spot.

Last year Garza was one of the best Minor League pitchers around, and showed flashes of that at the end of the season. Silva, on the other hand, got consistently shellacked en route to an ERA above 6.

In Spring Training, it's been more of the same. Silva has an ERA above 11 in 16.1 IP, Garza has an ERA of 1.50 in 12 IP. When you put it all together, Garza seems like the no-brainer choice to make the rotation. Hopefully that happens.