Best record in mlb, and the #1 run differential belong to?
If you guessed any of the preseason favorites... Atl, Dodgers, yankmees, Orioles, Twins, adtos, rangers etc....
Nope.
Its the team that leads the league in contact rate & near the bottom in striking out at the plate.
The Cleveland Indians.
Like I said- its a small sample size. .727 w % & +58 run differential is 20 + over all but the braves, and a game lead in w% minimum over averybody except the braves.
Proving once again. Analytics is an idiots lazy way of building a team. The best in mlb right now would make Tom Kelly proud. Leaders in obp, but near the bottom in hr's. Great base running while committing few errors. Great & varied starting rotation and a solid bullpen with 2 of the leagues best at 8th inning setup & 9th inning closer. Even with their ace out, Clevelands starters have them in position to be ahead or tied after the 6th inning in most games. And even when theyre down after 6. Their high obp & contact rate make them a tough team to put away.
Cleveland is built like thise 91 Twins, or those back to back KC WS teams circa 2015.
Even the past couple WS winners. Texas, Atl.
Clutch contact hitting- up & down the lineup and pitching + defense that kept them in all but a few games was their seasons path to the tournament, and they only ramped up their timely late inning clutch bats/ pitching in the post season.
Contact hitting, solid defense & pitching.
Its been the way of MLB champs for over 100 years. Sure there are outliers.
However, I think its time to recognize- the stat cast revolution is a failure.
On March 1st, we al central fans thought the division to be a 2 horse race. Only, we had the wrong 2 teams pegged. Detroit & Minnesota.
That 2 horse is shaping up to be the Guards & the Royals.
Falvy & Levine have built these Twins on an analytics model. Rocco manages via analytics.
Yes, it was worth a shot. But the results are in.
Its an abject failure.
Fire the front office, go get Matthew Lecroy to be the next manager.
Hire a front office that prioritizes defense, pitching & contact hitters that can steal bases.
Get players that are into yoga & pilates instead of weight room junkies that spend much of the year nursing their never ending string of soft tissue injuries.
Meanwhile- congrats to kiriloff & Larnach. Both seem to gave re-prioritized the skill that got them drafted high. Gap line drives.
Byron? Recognize the slider out of the pitchers hand & committ to taking that pitch you can never square up. Swing only at FB/ change up & practice hitting the curve where its pitched. Some pitches cannot be pulled its just a fact of physics that a dead pull hitter must embrace if hes gone to remain in the league. If byron does manage to play 140-150 games in 2024. Hes going to have 300+ k's. Thats unacceptable. Unless he's dropped to 8th or 9 th in the order & pinch hit for in clutch situations.
Jose Miranda... Its not too late to focus on becoming a contact line drive bat. His hand strength & quick swing make him a perfect candidate. Austin Martin, Eddie Julien too.
Miguel Sano with angels. He's changed back to the swing that made him a top prospect. Less uppercut & spanking line drives.
Hmmn, Imagine that. Sano's natural swing has made him a threat again instead of the sure out the twins analytics dept created.
Idiots!
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