Souhan: Twins’ problems are mounting, and the players are squarely to blame

The Twins have largely failed to hit since Pablo López went on the injured list, and the pitching staff has also failed to step up as well.

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The Minnesota Star Tribune
June 23, 2025 at 3:01AM
Twins second baseman Brooks Lee put a late tag on Milwaukee's Caleb Durbin during a ninth-inning steal attempt Sunday. Lee had an adventuresome day in the field, making several misplays at third base before eventually moving over to second. (Jerry Holt/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

There were a few positive developments for the slumping Twins on Sunday.

Infielder Brooks Lee fell short of fielding for the cycle. In fact, he didn’t make a mistake that cost his team more than two bases at a time.

Third baseman Jonah Bride played in a big-league ballgame without throwing a pitch, preserving his stellar 15.00 ERA.

Twins hitters broke out of a hitting slump that has lasted 10 months before losing 9-8 to the Brewers at Target Field.

After the game, manager Rocco Baldelli spoke of making “adjustments,” and shortstop and team leader Carlos Correa spoke of fixing problems “internally.”

These are not sentences you want to hear in late June from a team that should be better than this, and was far better than this just a month ago.

What’s wrong with this team?

The Twins’ primary problem is that there are so many problems.

• For the second year in a row, they stopped hitting right after an injury to a key … pitcher?

Last Aug. 9, the Twins placed starting pitcher Joe Ryan on the injured list. The Twins were 65-50, and were all but guaranteed to make the playoffs.

They didn’t. They went 17-30 down the stretch, while initiating a hitting slump that has continued to this day.

On June 4, the Twins placed Pablo López on the IL. Fellow starting pitcher Zebby Matthews joined him on June 5. The Twins were 34-27 when June 5 began. They are 3-13 since. Again, their hitters responded to an injury that would require them to score more runs by pressing, slumping and imploding — Sunday’s hit fest notwithstanding.

• The organization has built excellent organizational depth, but injuries have destroyed that depth, and even the Twins’ best young players have yet to prove that they are winning big-league players.

Lee has been on a hitting tear, yet his OPS remains below league average. The Twins have only three healthy everyday players who rank near the top of the league at their position in OPS: Byron Buxton is first among centerfielders, Ryan Jeffers is third among catchers and Willi Castro is an outlier as a utility player who is a highly productive hitter with speed.

Trevor Larnach is a productive hitter, but not when compared to most left fielders. Matt Wallner should be able to hit 30 homers a season, but his slumps coincide with, or exacerbate, team slumps.

Correa, in spite of his four hits Sunday, has had a terrible season at the plate, Royce Lewis remains injured and was in another horrid slump before he got hurt. Bride and DaShawn Keirsey Jr. are not big-league hitters. And the Twins’ best young hitting prospects — Luke Keaschall, Walker Jenkins and Emmanuel Rodriguez — all have been waylaid by injuries this season.

Keaschall might be the best pure hitter in the entire organization. A team that expects to contend shouldn’t be dependent on a rookie who was called up only because of injuries.

• The Twins’ pitching was dominant in May. Their 13-game winning streak was a result of that dominance. Without López and Matthews, who hadn’t even pitched particularly well, the staff has cratered.

Bailey Ober should be the Twins’ replacement ace, and he has fallen apart, with an 8.31 ERA this month. Joe Ryan’s June ERA is 4.43. Chris Paddack’s is 5.87. David Festa’s is 10.00. Simeon Woods Richardson’s is 5.17.

What’s the solution to the Twins’ problems?

There isn’t one, other than the current players performing better.

The Twins aren’t going to trade off assets while they are in contention for a wild-card spot, and, despite their horrid play lately, they still are.

They aren’t going to spend big money or trade top assets for help while they are going through a sale and aren’t sure their team is good enough to justify such a risk.

The Pohlads aren’t going to fire their key people while they’re going through a sale.

This slump is the handiwork and responsibility of the players.

This isn’t a great team, but it should be good enough to earn a wild card playoff spot, just as last year’s team proved it was good enough before it choked down the stretch.

The Twins’ young hitters aren’t good enough, and their pitchers aren’t performing to their standards.

Put this mess on the players.

about the writer

about the writer

Jim Souhan

Columnist

Jim Souhan is a sports columnist for the Minnesota Star Tribune. He has worked at the paper since 1990, previously covering the Twins and Vikings.

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The Twins have largely failed to hit since Pablo López went on the injured list, and the pitching staff has also failed to step up as well.

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