According to stat gurus, Baseball Info Systems, only Arizona was worse than the Twins last season at stealing bases. In a league where catchers can no longer throw out anybody, the Twins managed to find themselves thrown out quite regularly. Alex Presley, our lead off man, the guy expected to be BEST at it, rarely tried. And when he did, he was 1-4.
The Twins remind me of an old quote by a long ago sports writer who was referring to a certain Brooklyn Dodger who had difficulty with the art of the steal. "There was larceny in his heart, but his feet were honest."
Speaking of stats. Where I always loved Nick Punto for his abilities (while most Twins fans hated him) I find it fascinating that teams like St. Louis, Boston, Los Angeles, and now Oakland, probably the MOST saber metrically-inclined teams in baseball, have always been more than willing to give him a home.
At 36, Punto is in his declining years as a player, but Oakland, the most willing saber-metric team of them all, is looking forward to his contributions this year. People who KNOW baseball will always see his worth.
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