May 5, 2011 – As the Twins depart Chicago and head for Boston, they find themselves with a 11-18 record and have scored a grand total of 89 runs which comes out to an average of 3.07 runs per game and the team is on pace to score 497 runs, an all-time low. The pitching staff has given up 151 runs which equates to 5.21 runs per game. That is a huge spread and does not bode well for the Twins based on their run scoring history.
In 2010, the Twins finished 94-68 and scored 781 runs (4.82 per game) while the pitching staff gave up 4.14 runs per game.
In 1965 when the Twins played in the World Series and won 102 games, the most in their history, that team scored an average of 4.78 runs per game while giving up 3.79 runs per game. In 1982 when the team went 60-102, they scored 4.06 runs per game and gave up 5.06 runs per game.
In 1996 the Twins scored a team high 877 runs, that is 5.41 runs per game while the pitchers gave up 5.56 runs per game and the team finished with a 78-84 record. The Twins lowest scoring team scored just 562 times, a measly 3.47 runs per game while giving up 3.37 runs per game in 1968 and they finished with a 79-83 record. The current day Twins team is on a pace that will have them scoring 65 runs less then their previous lowest scoring team. Just as an FYI, MLB lowered the pitching mound from 15 inches to 10 inches after the low scoring 1968 season. Is someone secretly raising the pitching mounds across MLB this year?
So unless the 2011 Twins turn things around quick, they are in deep trouble with a team that scores only 3.07 runs per game and gives up runs at a pace of 5.21 runs per game. Let’s hope that things change quickly.