Max Kepler was playing his way out of town three months into the season. He was a sinkhole in the Twins lineup no matter where manager Rocco Baldelli put him. And, despite Kepler's above-average defense in the outfield, Matt Wallner or Trevor Larnach should have replaced him.
Emilio Pagán, however, deserved more chances after his poor start. The velocity of his fastball was at an all-time high. Although the exit velocity of some of the batted balls off him looked and sounded awful, there had to be a contributing role for him somewhere in the Twins bullpen.
Both have turned their seasons around and are playing important roles on a team that is grinding its way to an American League Central Division title.
I am here to offer an official apology to Kepler while thanking Pagan for proving me right.
What was tough about watching Kepler was his proclivity to hit weak ground balls, the result of his pull-happiness. When he hit the ball in the air, he could drive it. But I had given up hope that Kepler would figure things out. There also was a June 7 game against the Rays when he failed to advance to second in the ninth inning when Michael A. Taylor stole third. Royce Lewis followed with a single, which Kepler would have scored on. The Twins lost 2-1, with many scratching their heads about Kepler.
I advocated for Kepler and his .189 average (through his first 46 games) to be jettisoned. In 50 games since then, he's batted .285 with 13 home runs and a .904 on-base-plus-slugging percentage. There was a meeting with the coaching staff that might have played a role in this change. Kepler has become more aggressive at the plate. He's been the anti-Joe Mauer, attacking first pitches and hitting .357 off them.
Kepler has transformed from liability to asset. His exit velocity, hard-hit percentage and barrel percentage are all at career-high levels.
Max, I was wrong.
