Despite a rough patch against Boston, Washington, the Twins remain a couple of games above .500. The problem, for once, hasn't been the pitching. There were a few rough bullpen outings, but the flaw they exposed was a fairly ineffective offense. Games were easily blown because the Twins are only scoring a couple of runs a game.
The finale of the Nationals series, and a series win against the Yankees may, and hopefully will render this column moot, but the sticking point for the Twins has been some notably foul offensive performances from players getting their second full run with the Twins. The worst offender has been Nick Gordon, who succeeded when leaned upon heavily last season. This season, he's been pushed out of the daily lineup because he has been so ineffective. This is technically Gordon's third season on the Major League roster, but I'll count this as a follow up to his breakout. It works!
Someone truly in their second year, and someone heavily relied upon to be an anchor at the middle of the lineup is Jose Miranda. Miranda concluded the series with the Yankees well, going 2-3 with 2 home runs in the loss. Unfortunately, those were Miranda's first home runs of the season. He had 4 hits to conclude the series with the Nationals, but before that series started, his OPS was .511. Event with a good stretch concluding with a 2 home run game, his OPS is finally above .600. Not great for a corner infielder.
The most prominent player in his second season with the Twins is Carlos Correa. His season is doubly problematic, because of the expectations tied to his team record contract. Correa started slowly last season as well, only to finish very strong, so this is an episode we have seen before. This year, Correa's OPS is lower than Miranda's, with an average right at the Mendoza line. Correa, at least, has the pedigree to lend some faith that he will bounce back.
Correia will continue to get chances. He has a 6 year deal that explains why. It seems like Miranda will continue to play his way through his funk as well, The Twins made a move that said that, for at least a year or two, third base is definitely his. Cincinnati Reds third baseman Spencer Steer was part of the package sent for Tyler Mahle at the deadline last year. He would be in Minnesota, were it not for Miranda. If Miranda can't iron things out, however, he has only until Brooks Lee or Royce Lewis push him off the roster.
The most tenuous spot on the roster belongs to Nick Gordon. He hasn't been able to crack the lineup in order to work his way through his current issues. He is presently not getting into the lineup to break out of his slump, and might only last as long as Kyle Farmer's IL stint. After his breakout last year, he likely has a future in the league, even if he has a short leash with the Twins.
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