Twins Blog: Nobody Panic
By Dan Cook, WCCO NewsRadio 830, @dancookwcco
Six games are less than four percent of a Major League Baseball season.
But if you go by some fan reaction, the Twins have already been eliminated from post-season consideration, they're locked into setting a single-season record for strikeouts and a major upheaval in team management is clearly necessary.
The mood's a bit different in the Twins clubhouse.
While nobody's happy with the team's start, they realize that there's a lot of baseball left to be played.
That's a point that second baseman Brian Dozier tried to drive home before the Twins opened their 2016 home schedule on Monday.
"It's pretty evident that we're not very happy with the 0-6 start," Dozier said, "but at the same time, let me remind you that it's six games. And there's no panic in here. Call it like you want it, but there's no panic from anybody in here. I can tell you that."
Last year's 1-6 start, and subsequent red-hot month of May has the club looking at the big picture and realizing that the start to 2016 is a chance to once again test the character of the team as they figure out who they're going to be this season.
Twins skipper Paul Molitor highlighted the different approach he's had to take this season as opposed to 2015.
"Last year... I had to try and find ways to individually convince people that we were going to be all right in the long run," Molitor said, "This year I think they know that. There's always doubt, a little bit, when things don't go your way. I mean your mind can play a lot of tricks with you. But I still think we have a lot of confidence in that clubhouse."
There's no question that the 2016 Twins haven't performed to the level that fans expected coming into the season. And there are serious flaws that will need to be corrected if the team is going to get back into contention.
But as Trevor Plouffe pointed out, one good winning streak is all it takes to erase a tough season-opening road trip.
"We know we haven't started off exactly how we wanted to, or lived up to expectations so far," Plouffe said, "I think that's, you know, at the end of this month we're going to be like, 'Oh, well we were 0-6, but now here we are.'"
Concern is certainly appropriate when you're the only team in the American League without a win yet. But the "panic button"? There's no reason to be pressing that just yet.
