Twins Closers

Last Spring the news that Joe Nathan would need Tommy John surgery brought up big questions for who would fill the perennial all star’s void. Jon Rauch was not the answer, so the Twins made a move in a mid-season trade for Matt Capps. He filled the role nicely, and brought stability to the back half of the bullpen.

But with Nathan recovering and throwing very well in Fort Myers this Spring. So who should close games for the Twins this season? You can make a good argument for either. The Twins spent more than $7 Million to keep him around for this year, and so they must not be certain Nathan will quickly return to his all star form just 12 months after ligament replacement surgery. Nathan is scheuled to make just over $11 Million this season and the Twins have a $12.5 Million option for next season with a $2 Million buy out. Both are making a lot of money this year and neither is locked in in the long term.

When Fransico Liriano had the same surgery, it took him 2 full seasons to recover the confidence and arm strength to pitch with any consistency. Will Nathan be any different? The difference is as a closer, you don’t need to throw 100 pitches in an outing. Nathan will get by throwing far fewer pitches. Most often, he only needs 3 outs which requires different mentality and different mechanics. He’ll probably return to form easier than a starting pitcher with the same surgery. My concern is Nathan’s ability to finish the season. In 2009, the Twins lost all 3 games in the ALDS to the Yankees, and Nathan was certainly not pitching at full strength. Would it be worth it to make him the closer in April to sacrifice having him in October?

So where does this leave us? The Twins are paying closer money to both Capps and Nathan. Capps is younger, but Nathan’s experience is an asset. I think the Twins need to think beyond this year, since they likely don’t have the starting pitching to make a serious run at a world championship. If either Nathan or Capps starts the season well, find a team in need of a closer and make a trade to fill the real problem, starting pitching. Both Capps and Nathan will get the job done this year, but having two great closers on a team that has an average starting pitching isn’t going to help you. It’s likely the Twins will move one of them during this season rather than letting Capps go to free agency or buying out Nathan’s option in 2012.

Retiring whose number?

If you would’ve told me that this summer we would see a new number retired at Target Field, I would’ve assumed you would tell me that Tom Kelly was going to be honored. It makes sense. No Twin has dared to wear number 10 since Kelly, he managed the Twins to two world titles, and is still revered in the organization and amongst fans. But number 10 will not be retired (at least not this year) - 28 will. Bert Blyleven was a great pitcher, a great Twin, and has remained active in the life of the game as the color analyst. But I can’t help but ask myself if Blyleven is deserving of this Minnesota Twins honor.

His numbers certainly make him worthy of the Hall of Fame, but likely, one reason that kept him out of the Hall is the reason to question the retirement of his number in Minnesota. Bert never put down deep roots for an organization - only a Twin for 9 of his 22 seasons. What should the criteria be for a team to retire a number? Not many teams have a policy on this (the Twins don’t). The Red Sox do. Their policy is a player must have played with the team for at least 10 years and be a member of the Hall of Fame. Clearly Blyleven wouldn’t meet this. As with any other elite group of people, it’s the people who aren’t in it that define more about the group than it’s members. I’m worried that the Twins are opening a door to retiring fringe level players rather than being more exclusive.

I believe the Twins should adopt a policy they can lean on for this tricky issue of who is deserving of this honor. I don’t believe the Hall of Fame must be a requirement (that would eliminate great Twins like Kent Hrbek and Tony Oliva from eligibility), but I do think a player must certainly have played at least 50% of their career for the team. Perhaps another requirement ought to be voted in by the players whose numbers are retired. Or maybe the test of a World Series appearance. This honor is too important not to have some sort of standard.

It would be easier to explain to the next generation of Twins fans why Tom Kelly’s number would be retired more than Bert Blyleven. So, I hope that someday we will see Tom Kelly’s number 10 retired, but until then I hope we see the Twins adopt some policy to keep this honor reserved for the most deserving and Twins.