With their pitching at the core of a damaging slump, the Minnesota Twins held a special meeting to address the failures, frustrations and path forward.
Joe Ryan followed it up with a stellar start they badly needed. With Pablo López shelved because of a shoulder injury until perhaps September, Ryan has unquestionably become the staff ace.
“You feel like you’re going to win every time he pitches,” manager Rocco Baldelli said after Ryan threw a three-hitter over six scoreless innings to beat Seattle 2-0 on Wednesday and stop Minnesota's five-game losing streak. “You definitely look forward to the days where he’s on the bump and you get a chance to watch him throw, because you feel like anything’s possible.”
Simeon Woods Richardson followed Ryan's lead and gave the Twins five scoreless innings to start their 10-1 win on Thursday.
The 29-year-old Ryan is well on track for his first All-Star selection, with a career-best 2.86 ERA and 104 strikeouts in 91 innings. Ryan, who struck out major league home run and RBI leader Cal Raleigh three times on Wednesday, has an 0.887 WHIP that's the third best in baseball among pitchers with a qualified amount of innings.
After the game, he delivered a sermon of sorts on the value of the art of pitching over the data-driven revolution that has defined the approach for about every team in the sport.
“At the end of the day, it’s a competition and you can’t really put numbers to everything that goes into that,” Ryan said.
That competitive edge is an ace-like attribute the right-hander clearly has.
“I think he likes being the man, and I think he likes having the ball in his hands,” Baldelli said.
Over the three-week stretch entering their game on Wednesday, the Twins had a 7.67 ERA that was by far the worst in MLB, according to Sportradar. Their 1.62 WHIP was the worst during that span from June 5-24 while they lost 15 of 18 games and tumbled into fourth place in the AL Central.
“We’re the ones to blame, including myself,” said starting pitcher Chris Paddack, who took the lead along with pitching coach Pete Maki during the pregame meeting on Wednesday. “It’s just tough, a lot of crooked numbers the last couple of weeks, but it’s going to change.”
Before López and fellow starter Zebby Matthews were sidelined by shoulder injuries earlier this month, the Twins were in a groove on the mound. Their 13-game winning streak in May was fueled by the starting pitching, which ranked fifth in MLB with a 3.40 ERA and third with a 1.16 WHIP through June 4.
“The meeting was something that really stemmed from the following idea: There are things you can control and that you should attack and there are things that you have less control over,” Baldelli said. “Not that those things aren’t going to be on your mind, but focus on the things that you can clearly control and do those things exceptionally well and start there. That was a good reminder, I think, for everyone in the room.”
Minnesota Twins (39-42, third in the AL Central) vs. Detroit Tigers (51-31, first in the AL Central)
Detroit; Friday, 6:10 p.m. Pregame 5:30 p.m. on 830 WCCO and the Audacy app (in-market restrictions apply)
PITCHING PROBABLES: Twins: TBD; Tigers: Sawyer Gipson-Long (0-0, 4.58 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 13 strikeouts)
BOTTOM LINE: The Detroit Tigers host the Minnesota Twins on Friday to open a three-game series.
Detroit is 51-31 overall and 28-13 at home. The Tigers have the sixth-best team ERA in MLB play at 3.46.
Minnesota has a 17-25 record on the road and a 39-42 record overall. The Twins have hit 93 total home runs to rank seventh in the AL.
Friday's game is the fourth meeting between these teams this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Gleyber Torres has eight home runs, 41 walks and 40 RBIs while hitting .281 for the Tigers. Riley Greene is 17 for 40 with five doubles, three home runs and 13 RBIs over the last 10 games.
Ty France has 15 doubles and six home runs for the Twins. Byron Buxton is 12 for 39 with two doubles and six home runs over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Tigers: 5-5, .272 batting average, 4.15 ERA, outscored opponents by 10 runs
Twins: 3-7, .251 batting average, 6.55 ERA, outscored by 16 runs
INJURIES: Tigers: Jackson Jobe: 60-Day IL (flexor), Jason Foley: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Alex Cobb: 60-Day IL (hip), Matt Vierling: 10-Day IL (shoulder), Reese Olson: 15-Day IL (finger), Ty Madden: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Jose Urquidy: 60-Day IL (elbow), Alex Lange: 60-Day IL (lat)
Twins: Royce Lewis: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Pablo Lopez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Zebby Matthews: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Luke Keaschall: 60-Day IL (forearm)