Young players providing Twins with a lot of production

By foxsports
Published

It is a bit of young vs. old when the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers meet.

The Twins have had the most games in the American League played those qualifying as rookies this season with 465. The Tigers are dead last in the AL at 101.

Here's how those 465 games break down:

Player Games
Max Kepler 103
Byron Buxton 80
Byung Ho Park 62
Jorge Polanco 57
Taylor Rogers 52
Buddy Boshers 32
J.T. Chargois 20
Pat Dean 17
Jose Berrios 12
Pat Light 12
Alex Wimmers 11
James Beresford 4
Alex Meyer 2
Adalberto Mejia 1

Minnesota has gotten a lot of production from its young players. Kepler is tied for second in the team in RBI (60) and third in homers (16). The 22-year-old Polanco has filled in well at shortstop, batting 289/344/423.

On the mound, a pair of lefties have provided some valuable innings. Rogers boasts a 3.65 ERA, 1.271 WHIP and 9.2 K/9 while Boshers has a 1.113 WHIP and 9.2 K/9 with just a 1.4 BB/9. While his ERA might be 4.45, that's due to a lower-inning count; Boshers' FIP (fielding independent pitching) is a stellar 2.86.

Then there's Buxton, whose career got off to a slow start but is really picking up steam. In 17 September games, the former first-round pick (who is still only 22) is batting .311 with a .705 slugging percentage and 15 RBI. He is 6 for 17 (.353) with runners in scoring position.

Other notes:

-- Since the All-Star break, Brian Dozier is batting .322 with a .720 slugging percentage.

-- Minnesota starting pitcher Hector Santiago has a 2.95 career ERA against Detroit, his second-lowest ERA against any team (min. 5 starts). He has made 16 appearances vs. the Tigers with nine starts.

Statistics courtesy STATS LLC and baseball-reference.com