From bad to mediocre

Two games does not a turnaround make, but any winning streak at this point should be celebrated. The sad thing about the Twins' recent fall from Earth is that the offense has been really, really good. Since that oh so sweet and oh so fleeting sweep of the White Sox at the end July, the Twins have averaged 5.94 runs per game. A "quality start" is defined by six innings pitched with three earned runs or less, so by extrapolation you could say a "quality offense" would have to score at least four runs to win with a "quality" performance by the starting pitcher. Lucky for the Twins they've averaged almost two more runs than that, which brings us to the major problem the Twins are facing in their starting pitching.

The game recaps I've read spoke of Baker's outing last night as tough but admirable. Four runs in 5.1 innings. That makes for a 6.75 ERA for the game. That's not good or admirable, it's atrocious. It only speaks to how bad the other starters have been (Pavano's 5 in 4 , Liriano's 8 in 2, and every Swarzak outing in August). With the starting pitching struggling, the bullpen has started to put it back together despite the extended innings (or maybe because of them). So there are good things to take from this bad month, aside from Joe Mauer's Ted Williams impression.

One can always hope that this series in Texas will be the start of something good, but let's face it: starting pitching is what wins you ball games on a consistent basis, and these past two games were not won with starting pitching. It's an interesting contrast, seeing these two teams play each other. The Twins, always known for solid pitching and defense, have traded strategies with the normally slugging Rangers. The Twins, even with their hot offense, have had their worst month of the season as their pitching is just not good enough to compete. The Rangers, with an improved pitching staff and infield, have overcome a regression in offense to stay in contention.