Tagged: Michael Cuddyer

All-Decade Team: Outfield

All-Decade.png
The infield side of the All-Decade Team was rather simple considering the results; each selection was unanimous. Now it’s time to see who the best outfielders and utility man of the past ten years were. 
Seth from SethSpeaks.net, John from TwinsGeek, Nick from Nick’s Twins Blog, and Michael from RandBall, were again the participants who helped choose the players on the All-Decade Team.
Left Field
Who played: Jacque Jones, Lew Ford, Shannon Stewart, Jason Kubel, Delmon Young
Seth
Stohs
John
Bonnes
Nick
Nelson
Michael
Rand
Alex
Left
Field
Jacque
Jones
Shannon
Stewart
Shannon
Stewart
Jacque
Jones
Jacque
Jones

Jacque Jones and Shannon Stewart occupied left field for the majority of the decade. Jones was in the outfield for seven seasons in Minnesota, while Stewart played in Minnesota for three and a half seasons. 
Stewart’s biggest credit was becoming an integral part of the lineup in 2003 when the Twins acquired him from Toronto in a mid-season trade. Jones began his career in Minnesota in 1999, and played six of his seven seasons during the decade. In seven seasons with the Twins, Jones hit .279 with 132 homeruns and 476 RBI.
CenterfieldWho played: Torii Hunter, Carlos Gomez, Denard Span

Seth
Stohs
John
Bonnes
Nick
Nelson
Michael
Rand
Alex
Centerfield
Torii
Hunter
Torii
Hunter
Torii
Hunter
Torii
Hunter
Torii
Hunter

Torii Hunter is the unanimous selection for the centerfield of the decade, and he’s the most sensible option. Hunter manned centerfield in Minneapolis for 11 seasons, and was in the outfield in eight of the ten years during the decade.
In 11 seasons with the Twins, Hunter hit .271 with 192 homeruns and 711 RBI. Hunter made the All-Star Game twice, won eight Gold Glove awards, and was the 2007 recipient of the Marvin Miller Man of the Year award.
Right FieldWho played: Matt Lawton, Dustan Mohr, Jacque Jones, Michael Cuddyer, Denard Span

Seth
Stohs
John
Bonnes
Nick
Nelson
Michael
Rand
Alex
Right
Field
Michael
Cuddyer
Michael
Cuddyer
Michael
Cuddyer
Denard
Span
Michael
Cuddyer

Michael Cuddyer was on the Minnesota Twins’ roster in nine of the ten years during the decade. While his position was changing each year and in some cases each day, the past four years have seen Cuddyer primarily in right field.
In nine seasons with the Twins, Cuddyer has hit .270 with 107 homeruns and 429 RBI. Last season, Cuddyer received an MVP vote after he helped lead the Twins to the playoffs with a late season run. Cuddyer hit .276 in 2009 with 32 homeruns and 94 RBI while switching to first base in September to once again show off his flexibility. 
UtilitySome options: Denny Hocking, Nick Punto, Michael Cuddyer, Denard Span, Jason Bartlett

Seth
Stohs
John
Bonnes
Nick
Nelson
Michael
Rand
Alex
Utility
Nick
Punto
Nick
Punto
Jason
Bartlett
Michael
Cuddyer
Nick
Punto

Michael Cuddyer is a sensible choice having played first base, second base, third base, left field, right field, centerfield and designated hitter over the past nine seasons. Already the right fielder on most ballots however, the titles falls to another player.
Nick Punto has been with the Twins for six seasons, and has played seven of the nine positions as well. During his time with the Twins, Punto has hit .239 with 11 homeruns, 174 RBI and 83 stolen bases. 
Bartlett doesn’t get the title, but he spent three seasons and a handful of games in Minnesota. During that time, he hit .272 with 10 homeruns, 92 RBI and 39 stolen bases.

On Pace: Hitters

With a 5-hour, 16-inning game, the Minnesota Twins have played 81 games in the 2009 season; signifying the completion of half of the season. Through the midway point, the Twins find themselves one game above .500 with a record of 41-40 (compared to 44-37 last season).

The Twins have some work to do in the second half if they hope to make the playoffs. Some players will need to step up, while others will need to continue their first half production. After three months, many players are on pace for career numbers.
** Denard Span is on pace to hit for a .292 average, hit 9 homeruns, and drive in 58 runners. More impressive is his projection to walk 74 times, collect 171 hits and score 97 runs from the leadoff spot.
** Joe Mauer is on pace to knock out a career high 34 homeruns and collect 110 runs batted in. In addition to those eye-popping numbers, Mauer is projected to collect 201 hits despite missing the first month of the season. Some other key projections include a .390 average and 78 walks compared to only 69 strikeouts.
** Justin Morneau is on pace to reach a career high in the homerun department with 38 and in the RBI category with 131 runs batted in. Some other key projections include 191 hits and 42 doubles; all while hitting .311
** Jason Kubel is on pace to hit a career high 28 homeruns and drive in a career high 90 runners. The career high projections also carry over into the hits and average categories where Kubel is on pace to collect 163 hits and hit for a .304 average.
** Michael Cuddyer is on pace to hit .280 with 25 homeruns and 92 runs batted in. The thus far healthy right fielder is also projected to collect 38 doubles and an astonishing 10 triples.
** Joe Crede is on pace to provide some of the best production from third base in quite some time. The powerful right-hander is projected to hit 28 homeruns, drive in 83 runners, and possibly most impressively, be the best defensive third basemen in all of baseball.
** Delmon Young has had a down year, but is starting to heat up which could alter his projections. The youngster is on pace to hit 8 homeruns, drive in 62 runners, and collect 124 hits in only 132 games.
** Brendan Harris is on pace for a solid year with projections of 9 homeruns and 48 runs batted in (compared to projections of 9 HR and 47 RBI midway last season) over the course of a projected 149 games. Harris is also on pace to tie a career high 149 hits and a .280 batting average
** Nick Punto is on pace for 37 runs batted in, Matt Tolbert is on pace for 32 runs batted in, Brian Buscher is on pace for 6 homeruns and 26 runs batted in, Carlos Gomez is on pace for 2 homeruns and 26 runs batted in, Jose Morales is one pace to hit .356, and Mike Redmond is on pace for 16 runs batted in.
Due to lack of games, both Alexi Casilla and Jason Pridie were excluded from the list.
The second half of the “On Pace” series, the pitchers, is due up next.

Stuck Around .500

Michael Cuddyer said it best when he described the baseball season recently: the first forty games you look to keep close, the next eighty or so you look to pull ahead, and the final forty you look to hold that lead.

The first phase of the season was successful for Minnesota. They stuck right in the race through the first forty games, sticking within four games or so of first place in the American League Central.
Now halfway through the second phase, the Twins are still playing like they’re in the first phase; simply sticking in the race. In 2006 when the Twins won the division, they pulled away, and they did the same when they barely missed out on October baseball last season.
As the Twins entered July and the final game of their nine-game road trip, they were looking to move two games above the .500 mark for the first time this season. Seven times the Twins had been a game above .500, and seven times they lost the next game to fall even in the standings.
The biggest struggle for the Twins as they near the midway point in the season has been getting over the .500 hump. They’ve had no trouble sticking around the mark through the first three months, but staying above it has been another story.
In their eighth attempt to move more than one game above .500, the Twins succeeded. A victory over the Royals not only gives the Twins a 6-3 record on the road trip, it also gets them over one of the initial humps needed to make a playoff run.
How long the Twins maintain it will be the next key. With first-place Detroit visiting the Metrodome this weekend, and the gap potentially only three games, Minnesota has a chance to draw even with a sweep, gain ground with two wins, or fall back with one or fewer victories.