5 horrifying Twins stats that help paint their ugly picture

Minnesota's offense has been virtually non-existent since Aug. 18.

Sep 3, 2024; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Minnesota Twins third base Royce Lewis (23) looks on during the fifth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images / Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Do you remember the good ol' days when the Minnesota Twins were 70-53 and 11 cruising to a spot in the playoffs? Ah, the memories. That was way back on Aug. 17, 2024. Fast forward to Sept. 20, 2024 and the Twins are tied with the Detroit Tigers are tied with the Twins for the final wild-card spot with nine games left in the regular season.

While Minnesota's three rookie starting pitchers have struggled and the bullpen has been disastrous, the offense has produced at a level that would only make Scott Stahoviak proud. Who? Look him up. Fans of the 1990s Twins might remember him. In the meantime, let's dive into some of the most horrifying numbers from Twins hitters of late.

Manny Margot's 0-for-29

Is it true that Margot has gone 29 straight pinch-hit appearances without a hit? Yes. Still, manager Rocco Baldelli continues to trot him out of the dugout in matchups against left-handed relievers.

2. 0.7 WAR

Matt Waller and Kyle Farmer lead the Twins in WAR since Aug. 18. Both have generated 0.7 WAR (wins above replacement). That's terrible for a team leader in the span. It's even more embarrassing when you realize that Shohei Ohtani generated 0.7 WAR when he went 6-for-6 with three homers, 10 RBIs and two stolen bases on Thursday. Yes, he did in one game what Wallner and Farmer have done in 30 and 25 games, respectively.

3. Brooks Lee's .151

The rookie infielder got off to a promising start with the Twins but over his last 16 games he owns an ugly batting line of .151/.151/.283.

4. Willi Castro's disappearing act

Castro was a deserving All-Star but he's fallen off the face of the earth outside of his clutch two-run homer against the Guardians earlier this week. Since Aug. 18, Castro is slashing .207/.327/.310 and he's struck out in 27 of 87 at-bats.

5. Royce Lewis and his evaporating OPS

Lewis was Aaron Judge-like for 17 games to start the season, which included a two-month period on the injured list with a quad strain. He missed all of April and May before returning in June, and he was great from June 4-21 but since June 22 he's been flat out bad at the plate. Since then, Lewis is slashing

Since Aug. 18, he's slashing .208/.240/.292 with one homer and 11 RBIs. His .532 OPS in that stretch is fifth-worst on the team, only besting Max Kepler, DaShawn Keirsey Jr., Lee and Christian Vazquez. Kepler only has 33 plate appearances because he's injured and Keirsey only has 11 so they really don't even count.