After a promising 2015 campaign, the Minnesota Twins have begun the 2016 MLB season with an 0-8 record, and it's looking as bad as one can imagine. It's the first time in franchise history that they've begun a season losing their first eight games.
On top of that, closer Glen Perkins is out indefinitely with a shoulder strain after being placed on the 15-day disabled list yesterday. Minnesota got off to a fast start and still finished with a losing record in 2015, so what's in store for them after one of the worst starts ever in 2016?
The Twins and the Atlanta Braves remain the only two MLB teams without a win thus far into the season.
Here are some notable statistics from Elias Sports Bureau:
"The Twins are the first major league team to have more strikeouts than hits in each of their first eight games of a season since the pitching distance was set at 60 feet, 6 inches in 1893."
"This is just the second time in baseball's modern era (since 1900) in which multiple teams lost their first eight games of a season. The other instance was in 1988, when the Braves started 0-10 and the Orioles dropped their first 21 games, the most losses to start a season in MLB history."
Minnesota has scored just 13 runs (last in MLB) in their first eight games, and the lineup is hitting just .210 with a .600 OPS, both of which are ranked at the bottom of the league. The bullpen ranks 21st in ERA (4.21), which is bound to get worse without Perkins. As for their fielding, the Twins rank 28th with -7 defensive runs saved (DRS).
The lone bright spot for the team has been its starting rotation, which is 10th in the league with a 3.38 ERA.
What's alarming is that the Twins haven't even faced that many good pitchers. The Orioles, who came into the season with arguably the worst starting rotation in the league, allowed just six runs over three games against Minnesota (Chris Tillman, Yovani Gallardo and Ubaldo Jimenez made those starts). The best starter that they've faced was probably Edison Volquez, and he struck out 10 batters in just 5-2/3 innings against them. Over the past two games against White Sox starters Jose Quintana and Carlos Rodon, they've scored just one run.
They haven't even faced a true ace yet.
If Minnesota can't capitalize in their next 10 games, it'll be time to panic because Garrett Richards will be the best pitcher it'll face over that span. The next best starter the Twins will go up against is Stephen Strasburg, and that's not until April 24.
The club has some recovering to do, and it's certainly realistic to get out of this hole, but Molitor and Co. better hope it doesn't get worse, or else there could be a changeover in management.
