ATLANTA – After the Twins were shut out 3-0 Wednesday by the Braves, and swept in a three-game series that highlighted the gap between them and the best team in the National League, Rocco Baldelli aired his frustration with the offense.
"We were flat, and we made no adjustments in the game almost whatsoever," the Twins manager said. "That's not good baseball. We got wiped this series by the team on the other side of the field. There's no way we can walk out of this with any positives, to be honest with you, and that's the truth."
The Twins, who struck out 14 times Wednesday, scored three runs over the three games and fell out of first place in the American Central for the first time since April 10.
Baldelli took the rare step of closing the clubhouse to reporters, making hitters and pitchers unavailable to comment as they conducted a players-only team meeting.
"We have to make some really, really legitimate adjustments to what we're doing right now if we're going to go out there, compete and win games against that team or any other team," Baldelli said. "I'm not really pleased right now with the effort this series. The second half is here, but we have some work to do in this second half, because we can't play like this."
Facing Atlanta lefthander Kolby Allard, who was activated from the 60-day injured list Wednesday for his season debut, the Twins were held to four hits. Byron Buxton had a leadoff double in the fourth inning and advanced on a flyout, but he was thrown out at the plate attempting to score on a ground ball to the third baseman.
The Twins had two runners on base with no outs in the fifth inning, but the next three batters — Michael A. Taylor, Joey Gallo and Donovan Solano — all struck out. It was the 31st time the Twins didn't score three runs in a game.
"What we're doing, just the reliance on good players will eventually be good if they stick to their plan, it hasn't come to fruition to this point," Baldelli said. "This is a legitimate challenge right now for us as a staff, but for our players too because every one of them can do better than what they're doing right now."
Twins starter Kenta Maeda, making his second start since returning from the injured list, pitched well against a potent Atlanta lineup. He yielded an RBI double to Matt Olson in the first inning, throwing four more pitches before that at-bat because Joey Gallo dropped a fly ball in foul territory. In the fourth inning, Ronald Acuña Jr. shot a ground ball past shortstop Kyle Farmer, allowing Michael Harris III to advance from first to third on a single. Harris scored on a sacrifice fly.
The Twins offense, meanwhile, went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position. The offense was hitless in 23 at-bats with a runner on second or third during the three-game series.
"We should be able to go out there, compete in this series and win some games," Baldelli said. "We really weren't even that close. Even though some of the scores were close, the lack of adjustments during the game — we just kept doing the same stuff over and over again. That's not good enough."
Baldelli reiterated players are working hard before games, but it's an issue with their approach. The Twins are 23-30 since May 1 and failed to create separation in the only division that doesn't have a team with a winning record.
"What we're doing right now is frustrating because that's madness going out there and doing the same stuff over and over again when we have guys who have shown either for periods of time or for their whole careers to be productive players," Baldelli said. "To be falling flat as a group right now, we demand more of ourselves."
There have been multiple team meetings through the first three months of the season about the need to cut down on strikeouts and find a better approach. "It hasn't worked," said Baldelli, who noted he's responsible for maximizing talent and bringing the team together.
"I'm hoping that me getting this out, them getting it out as a group and feeling this together as a team, is what is going to help lead us to where we need to be," Baldelli said. "Beating around the bush, that's not doing any of us any favors right now."
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Twins lose to Atlanta 3-0 as batting stupor continues in series sweep - Star Tribune
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