Tag: Minnesota Twins

The Twins’ old, smelly ‘Rally Sausage’ continues to win them games

Yes, you read right. A Rally Sausage!

The Minnesota Twins recently had a 12-game winning streak, and they gave all the credit to … the Rally Sausage (this is better than Rally Rat, imo)

You see, per MLB.com, catcher Kyle Farmer received a Cloverdale Tangy Summer Sausage in the mail, didn’t want to eat it and the Twins’ hitting coach happened to bring it out of the clubhouse. But then, when the Twins needed a hit, the sausage would come out into the dugout. Hits, home runs and wins would ensue.

But when the Twins finally lost a few days ago, manager Rocco Baldelli suggested it was thrown away, which would make sense because a sausage is a perishable food product.

Turns out … no. The original sausage is still around in the fridge.

On Monday, the sausage got brought out by their hitting coach David Popkins, and wouldn’t you know it? The team rallied to beat the Mariners.

“It’s alive,” Twins bench coach Jayce Tingler said, via The Athletic. “You could smell the rank when we brought it out in the bottom of the fifth inning. As soon as we brought it out, we were on the board.”

GAH!

The Minnesota Twins have a celebratory home run sausage and we have so many questions

According to the Twins, nothing says home runs like celebrating with a packaged sausage.

The Minnesota Twins have a home run sausage, and we have so many questions about why this is even a thing.

Look, I get it. Baseball players are going to do or wear whatever it takes to win games. The Phillies had a very NSFW gesture after big hits during last year’s playoffs. Joc Pederson wore pearls on his way to a World Series with the Braves several years ago. If it works, it works.

But the Twins’ new home run sausage celebration doesn’t have any rhyme or reason why it’s happening, and I’m so very confused. Who decided this? Why a sausage? Are they keeping it cool between hits? Are there multiple sausages used? SOMEBODY NEEDS TO ANSWER FOR THIS.

Twins’ Byron Buxton smoothly avoided getting decked by the Bratwurst during the Brewers’ Sausage Race

This was a very close call.

Minnesota Twins center fielder Byron Buxton had a very close call during the Milwaukee Brewers’ annual Sausage Race.

As Buxton was exiting the dugout to head onto the field on Tuesday in his team’s game against the Brewers, he nearly collided with the Bratwurst in the Sausage Race as it was rounding the lap.

Buxton made a smooth move to get back into the dugout before the Bratwurst ran into him, which would’ve been deeply unfortunate for everyone involved.

The poor person in the Bratwurst costume can’t see very well while they’re running, so we’re guessing that the Brewers might try to help the visibility for those running in the Sausage Race from here on out.

For Buxton and the Bratwurst, it was a very lucky miss that could’ve gone horribly wrong.

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Best bets: 2024 Minnesota Twins World Series odds, win total and more

Analyzing the 2024Minnesota Twins World Series odds, futures and projected win total with expert MLB picks and predictions.

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The Minnesota Twins were an under-.500 club early last season, but came on strong in the 2nd half and are the betting favorites to win the AL Central in 2024. Last year’s Twins (87-75) went just 19-27 in 1-run games. They averaged 4.80 runs per game while allowing just 4.07, so its reasonable to project better outcomes in 2024.

Not much was added over the winter, and AL Cy Young runner-up Sonny Gray (2.79 ERA in 184 IP) has moved on, signing as a free agent with the St. Louis Cardinals. But the daily lineup has a talented, youthful core. A lot of unheralded-but-productive bats are back, and the rotation still has RHP Pablo López, RHP Joe Ryan, and RHP Bailey Ober, who all figure as above-average MLB starters.

Let’s analyze the Minnesota Twins’ World Series odds, along with their projected win total, playoff, division and AL/NL odds as we make our expert MLB picks and predictions.

Minnesota Twins World Series odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Monday, March 25, at 10:20 p.m. ET.

Odds: +2500 (bet $100 to win $2,500)

The Twins are a top-tier club with this tag. They have the 9th-shortest odds to win the 2024 World Series. The Los Angeles Dodgers (+350), Atlanta Braves (+450), and Houston Astros (+800) have the shortest odds. The Chicago White Sox, Colorado Rockies and Oakland Athletics have the longest odds; all 3 are pegged at +50000.

At +2500, Minnesota’s implied probability is 3.85% or 25/1 in fractional odds.

With the club winning a Wild Card series over the Toronto Blue Jays last season, it ended a 21-year drought of not advancing in the MLB postseason. With the make-up of this year’s club, winning a division flag is certainly possible, Making a deep run is plausible enough to make the Twins more of a 5% proposition, so peg the MINNESOTA (+2500) play as one with solid leverage.

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Minnesota Twins playoff odds

Will they make the playoffs: Yes -175 | No +145

The YES (-175) call is worth putting into your futures mix. The break-even point on that wager is a 63.64% chance to qualify for October bracket play. With the main contenders in the AL Central being the Detroit Tigers and the  Cleveland Guardians who have their share of question marks, Minnesota has a leg up worthy of a higher percentage expectation.

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Minnesota Twins win total

Over/Under: 86.5 (O: -115 | U: -105)

The Twins clobbered opposing pitchers to the tune of an .809 OPS after the All-Star break last season. Some of that was due to getting some banged-up players back in the batting order. But Minnesota does have some players to be regarded as a bit fragile. So, that attrition may well be something the 2024 club deals with as well.

The team can win 90-plus games, but a lot of reputable models peg them in the 85-to-87 range. With top-of-the-rotation upside, the Twins profile as a club that can win 86 games and be built to win October series.

PASS on the total.

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To win AL Central Division

  • Minnesota Twins -125 (bet $125 to win $100)
  • Detroit Tigers +135 (bet $100 to win $135)
  • Cleveland Guardians +320 (bet $100 to win $320)
  • Kansas City Royals +900 (bet $100 to win $900)
  • Chicago White Sox +5000 (bet $100 to win $5,000)

Minnesota’s implied probability of winning the AL Central is 55.56% or 4/5 fractional odds. Combining the Guardians and Tigers into something in the 35% range is reasonable, so Minnesota is a solid value here.

BACK THE TWINS (-125) to take the flag in the AL Central.

To win American League

Odds: +1000 (bet $100 to win $1,000)

The landscape of the AL certainly includes the Astros and Yankees and likely another club from the AL East. Figure Minnesota as a dangerous 85-to-88-win club that has value with this return,

BACK MINNESOTA (+1000).

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Every Major League Baseball team’s best promotional giveaway in 2024

What is the best giveaway your favorite MLB team is doing in 2024?

Twins fans collectively counted down the pitch clock in hopes of throwing off Astros pitchers

Actually a great idea.

By nearly every metric, the pitch clock has been a phenomenal addition to Major League Baseball. Games are shorter. There’s a rhythm and pace to the action. And now, there’s a new opportunity for some gamesmanship from the crowd.

Twins fans figured that out on Tuesday.

After hosting the Twins’ wild-card sweep of the Blue Jays, Target Field was once again rocking for Minnesota’s Game 3 ALDS matchup with the Astros. And though Houston quickly silenced the crowd with a four-run top of the first inning, the bottom half brought us a hilarious countdown from the Twins crowd.

With Cristian Javier on the mound, the entire stadium counted down the pitch clock in an effort to throw off Javier’s cadence.

While the fans appeared to be counting down the actual clock (which Fox’s broadcast was not displaying), the Twins crowd really should have counted down the wrong time instead like what we see in college basketball. If a pitcher fell for that, the batters would be able to time up the rhythm.

Either way, it was still a funny chant that had MLB fans wishing they thought of it first.

Alex Rodriguez was certain he spotted Sonny Gray’s pre-pickoff signal and ended up being completely wrong

A-Rod made it up on the spot.

The Twins made easy work of the Blue Jays in their AL wild-card sweep, and the series honestly felt like it was over after one play in the top of the fifth inning.

As the Blue Jays were threatening with two outs and Bo Bichette up with runners on second and third, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. made a massive base-running mistake and got picked off at second to end the inning. It was a play that pitcher Sonny Gray and shortstop Carlos Correa dialed up perfectly. And between innings, ESPN analyst Alex Rodriguez thought he saw how the play was going to develop in real time.

There was just one problem: A-Rod was making things up.

When the broadcast returned to the bottom of the fifth inning, Rodriguez had the crew revisit the play and claimed that the pickoff was called by Gray as he touched his cap to let Correa know that a pickoff was coming. It would have been a cool broadcasting moment from a former big-league shortstop if what Rodriguez was saying was actually true.

Now, Gray — and many MLB pitchers — frequently touch their cap. It would be a terrible signal (and an easy one for opponents to spot). But the main problem with A-Rod’s analysis here was that he framed a guess as some kind of certainty. That in itself was dishonest to the viewers and blew up in his face when Gray was asked about the play postgame.

The call never came from Gray. Instead, it was signaled by Correa to the dugout and called to Gray in his PitchCom system.

@mlbnetworkSonny Gray and Carlos Correa were in sync for this clutch pickoff! 💥

♬ original sound – MLB Network

Correa had told Gray earlier in the game that the runners weren’t able to hear the “BACK!” shouts from the Blue Jays bench and base coaches. So, they had the pickoff opportunity in their mind up until the fifth inning when it was called from the dugout.

A-Rod, who didn’t play during the PitchCom era, was probably basing his observation off his own experience. But plays are called differently in today’s game, and A-Rod honestly should have known that instead of pretending to read the Twins’ signs.

Once Gray made his postgame comments, fans were quick to call out Rodriguez — who had just called his last game with ESPN — for his false commentary.

Sonny Gray revealed how Twins fans helped him execute a stunning Vladimir Guerrero Jr. pickoff

What a play, with an assist by the fans.

It was, perhaps, the play that changed it all in Game 2 of the American League Wild Card series for the Minnesota Twins.

In the fifth inning, with runners on second and third and the Twins clinging to a two-run lead, Sonny Gray and Carlos Correa pulled off an amazing pickoff play to get Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to end the inning.

How did Minnesota do that in the middle of a playoff game with the pressure on? Gray revealed that they had practiced the play in spring training and had worked on it before the postseason … and that Correa told Gray that the Blue Jays couldn’t hear the third base coach yell “BACK!” because the crowd at Target Field was so loud:

@mlbnetwork

Sonny Gray and Carlos Correa were in sync for this clutch pickoff! 💥

♬ original sound – MLB Network – MLB Network

That is seriously great work by the Twins AND their fans. Bravo.

Kirk Cousins makes headlines in very wholesome moment

Kirk Cousins made social media headlines on Wednesday:

The MLB postseason is upon us with baseball fans all over taking in playoff baseball. Former Spartan, and current Minnesota Vikings QB, Kirk Cousins fell into that category, wanting to take in some playoff baseball.

The Minnesota Twins made the postseason, and Cousins wanted to take his family to game two of their Wild Card series.

Instead of calling in favors, or asking for tickets, Cousins was just like any other fan and bought tickets online so his family could watch the game. The news made headlines across social media.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on Twitter @Cory_Linsner.

Five former LSU players set for MLB postseason

These five former Tigers are hoping to make a World Series run this October.

The MLB playoffs begin on Tuesday night and a handful of former LSU players are set to appear.

Last year, we saw [autotag]Aaron Nola[/autotag] and [autotag]Alex Bregman[/autotag] both make World Series runs with the Astros eventually winning it all.

According to BetMGM, the Braves are the current title favorites at +250.

The top five is rounded out by the Dodgers, Astros, Orioles and Phillies.

Several players from this group contributed to postseason runs at LSU, including Nola, who helped lead LSU to a CWS title in 2009.

Here’s a closer look at the five former Tigers competing in October.