The Twins Are in First Place and It’s June

(The Twins Game has been rained out for Monday 6-1. It will be made up as a day night double header on Wednesday 6-3)

I honestly thought the Twins would be improved this season, which really isn't saying much. But in no way did I think they would be in first place in June and have the best record (winning percentagewise) in the American League.

Thanks to a very hot May for Minnesota in both hitting and pitching, that's exactly where they are. The Twins hit .269 in May (third best in the AL). Tops was Toronto with a .274 team batting average. Minnesota was fourth in runs scored in May with 139. Texas tallied 158 to lead the league that month.

The Twins could score runs a year ago, so the biggest improvement has been in their pitching. Particularly starting pitching. The Twins starters have the most wins in the AL with 20, and their ERA is fifth-best at 4.02. The overall team ERA is ninth at 3.92. There is room for improvement. Minnesota's starting pitchers rank 12th in innings logged (there are 15 teams in the American League).

Minnesota is tops in fewest walks allowed at 117; the next lowest is Houston with 121. That statistic may be more important than opponent's batting average. Minnesota ranks 15th in the AL in that category, with opponents hitting Minnesota pitching at a .273 clip. Tampa Bay's pitchers have an opponent batting average of .220. Minnesota pitchers also have the fewest strikeouts in the league with 281 (the only team in the league with under 300). Cleveland leads the league with 484.

Another important statistic for the Twins is their .312 team batting average with runners in scoring position. Only the Tigers and Royals are higher at .333 and .319 respectively.

We really need to get to the ballpark and support these boys of summer. Minnesota is 23rd in average attendance out of the 30 teams, with an average of 23,539 people attending each home game. Twelve teams average more than 30,000, and the top three are LA Dodgers, 46,614; St. Louis Cardinals, 43,003; and San Francisco Giants, 41,538.

Every statistic imaginable can be found at mlb.com. Hitting and pitching per inning, against right-handed or left-handed pitching. Pitching on a day's rest. Night and day splits. The only number the Twins care about is wins, and right now only Houston with 31 and St. Louis with 33 have more.