Twins Need To Admit Mistake And Move On

At the start of the 2011 season, there was a great deal of hype around the Twins' new second baseman.  He was a former batting champion, a gold glove winner, and was thought to be an incredible partner in crime for Alexi Casilla up the middle of the Twins' infield.

There was only one problem:  He hadn't played a single game in Major League Baseball.

The Twins signed Tsuyoshi Nishioka to a three year, $9.25 million contract to solidify the middle of the infield and the top of the batting order.  "Nishi" won the batting title in the Nippon Professional league in 2010 with a .364 average.  His ability to hit for contact, coupled with his speed, were great attributes the Twins were very excited about.

Unfortunately, although his first season with the Twins is only two-thirds of the way completed, it appears that the experiment thus far has been a complete failure.  Granted, Nishioka landed on the disabled list after only seven games after breaking his leg trying to turn a double play against the New York Yankees, but his overall performance thus far, both at the plate and in the field, has been sub-par at best.

There's no question that there is a huge difference in the game between the Nippon Professional League and that of Major League Baseball.  There has to be some type of learning curve, you'd think.

Looking at both past and present Japanese players who've made the transition to Major League Baseball, it's clear that Nishioka has fallen way behind that curve.  Projecting the rest of his 2011 season out, he will finish with the following line:

96 G, .209 Avg, 0 HRs, 28 RBI's, 4 SB's, 70 SO's, and 16 E's.

Excluding the likes of Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui, both of which had sensational debuts in their first full seasons, Nishioka has fallen far behind the numbers put forth by other comparable Japanese imports.  Take a look at the debuts of the Japanese position players who've made the transition to Major League Baseball.

Player                       Team       First Yr   Games   Avg   HR   RBI   SB
Tsuyoshi Shinjo       Mets           2001      123    .268     10      56      4
So Taguchi              Cardinals    2004      109    .291      3      25      6
Kaz Matsui              Mets           2004      114    .272      7      44      14
Tadahito Iguchi       White Sox  2005       135    .278     15     71      15
Norihiro Nakamura  Dodgers     2005       17     .128      0       3        0
Akinori Iwamura      Rays          2007      123    .285      7      34      12
Ichiro Suzuki            Mariners    2001      157    .350      8      69      56
Hideki Matsui          Yankees     2003       163    .287     16    106     2
Kosuke Fukudome    Cubs         2008       150    .257     10     58     12



When you look at these numbers, it's obvious that Nishioka appears very overmatched at the Major League level.  Aside from Norihiro Najamura in 2005, who was optioned to Triple-A by the Dodgers after only 17 games, and never played again in MLB, all other Japanese players have had what could be considered successful Major League debuts.  In the case of So Taguchi, it took three seasons for the Cardinals to give him a full-time shot at the big league level.

Many people have stated that we ought to give Nishioka a little break, that he needs time to adapt to the American-style.  There have been suggestions that he's struggling with the American strike zone, and with American umpires.  After breaking his leg, there was some thought that this gave the Twins the best opportunity possible to give him some extended time in Triple-A to hone his skills to the American game.

Sadly, these things not only haven't happened, but don't appear to be happening any time soon.  With every game, Nishioka appears to be more uncomfortable at the plate.  Twins broadcasters at one point even mentioned that in Japan, they "don't call many third strikes," which would explain why he's striking out looking as often as he is.  Regardless, he's apparent inability to adapt to the American game has only helped to negatively impact an already anemic-at-times offense.  Based on his numbers in Japan, the Twins had hoped to utilize his impressive speed on the base paths.  The only problem is that, they can't seem to find a way for him to get on base to put that speed to use.

Right now, with the Twins still hanging on to their playoff hopes by a very thin thread, it seems almost detrimental to the club to have Nishioka working through his apparent discomfort at the major league level.  Obviously, the recent hamstring injury to Alexi Casilla which has landed him on the DL has forced the Twins' hand yet again, but it may still be better for both Nishioka and the club if they perhaps option him to Triple-A to gain some confidence with the American game.  Looking at the alternatives, given Nishioka's current numbers, allowing someone like Trevor Plouffe another shot might be more beneficial.  With the Twins standing pat at the non-waiver trade deadline, it may also me something for the team to consider in possibly trying to offload the salary of someone like Kevin Slowey ($2.7 million) or Delmon Young ($5.375 million) in exchange for a veteran middle infielder, even if that player would only be with the team through the 2011 season.

If the Twins don't admit to themselves that their experiment with Nishioka is on the verge of being a complete failure, then it actually will be.  If they choose to swallow their collective pride and give the young man a chance to improve his confidence at the plate by giving him some reps in Rochester, then 2012 could be the Year of the Nishi!