Jerm Talk

Baseball Weather

2009-02-17T21:55:00.003-06:00

Well, at least it looks like it in the pictures. It's nice to see that Spring Training is getting underway.

Still no word on how the Twins are going to fit Luis Ayala on their roster. I'm assuming that Bobby Korecky will be DFA'd, pass through waivers and end up in Rochester. If, by chance, he is lost... oh well.

Rumors still swirl that the Twins are in-play for Joe Crede. I'm not sure what to think at this point. At the right price (what's the right price?), I would be okay with it. It would turn Brendan Harris into the utility guy that Nick Punto will no longer be and will allow Brian Buscher to be a left-handed bat off the bench. Both of those scenarios are desireable. But throwing a lot of money at a guy that may or (more likely) may not hold up is not something that fits the way the Twins roll. Regardless, Crede will sign a 1-yr contract somewhere for a contract that is loaded with incentives. If that happens to be with the Twins, I hope he earns the incentives.

That's all for tonight.

Oh, for the American Idol record, I'm taking Danny Gokey, Anoop and Alexis to move on to the finals. I also think Ricky Braddy will move on as Wildcard.

Twins Update

2009-02-05T17:15:00.007-06:00

The Twins agreed to terms today with RP Matt Guerrier. They split the difference on their arbitration figures and he'll be playing this year for $1.475
Last week I made a comparison - on a pretty well-known blog -between the first couple of seasons of Delmon Young and the first couple of seasons of everybody's favorite Twin Kirby Puckett. Not everyone thought it was deserved - and it very well might not be - but at least it shows that there still is potential for Young to suceed.

http://www.haloscan.com/comments/aarongleeman/325991758735726083/#338126

Check out this website (after looking at my comparision). Looks like somebody likes the way I think...
PS - I was a little off on my Super Bowl Prediction, huh? Oh well.

Super Sunday

2009-02-01T14:13:00.004-06:00

Just a few random thoughts on Super Sunday.

I fully expect the Steelers to capture their second Super Bowl win in the last four years. I'm hoping for an enjoyable game, but I'm not convinced the Cardinals will be able to keep it close for all four quarters. (My prediction: Steelers 31, Cardinals 13. Steelers score 17 unanswered 2nd half points. No one individual shines, so Ben Roethlisberger takes home game MVP.) With all of that being said, I'm rooting for Larry Fitzgerald and the Cardinals.
I had a blast watching Georges St. Pierre kick the living crap out of BJ Penn last night. After a close Round 1, GSP had Penn on his back for the next 3 rounds. To Penn's credit, he did whatever he could to not have to tap out. Luckily for him, his manager/trainer/brother wouldn't let him go back out for Round 5. Personally, I think GSP is the best fighter in the UFC right now... of course, I may be bias since he's on my Fantasy UFC team.
Still consider me "not in favor" of trading Delmon Young. With the bullpen issues and the appearance that the Twins are going to make a trade, all signs point to Young being a likely casualty. I really think his career will take a sucessful turn. As I commented on a different blog, Young's stats through two full seasons almost mirror Kirby Puckett's identically. I don't expect Young to become Kirby (not possible), but it is evidence that players can turn it around in a hurry - and in a big way.

Off for some more pre-game preparations.

Your "Daily Dose"...

2009-01-28T18:45:00.006-06:00

***Joe C. of the Star Tribune just reported that the Twins have broke off talks with RP Eric Gagne. It appears that Gagne had just met the Twins asking price (1 yr, $3m+incentives) but the Twins are moving in a different direction - apparently a trade. No word yet what that means, or who is being targeted. Personally, I would have been fine with Gagne for $3m. He would have, in effect, just been keeping the seat warm until Pat Neshek returns in 2010.

So it's hardly been daily. Sometimes it's closer to monthly... like mostly all the time. When it's soooo cold outside its hard to get fired up to write about the Twins. However, TwinsFest seems to get this blood moving again. I was in attendance both Friday night and Saturday and had a pretty good time.

My main objective on Friday night was to hit up the Minor League area for autographs. Last year I went with a few balls to have signed. My plan was to go to the top prospects and have them sign a ball. But they were in a small group, so I had all three guys sign the same ball. I was immediately disappointed, because not all three were considered top prospects (or prospects at all) and I knew that I would have to either display all three or none at all. (Needless to say, two still remain Twins, and only one remains on the Prospect Radar.)

This year I went more prepared. I had no intention of trying to locate an actual baseball card of the prospects because it was either going to be too hard to find, or too expensive to purchase (rarity, not quality). So I went hard to work on locating and downloading pictures from the internet. Anyway, I went armed with a dozen or so decent-looking 4x6 pictures.

I also brought my Seth Stohs Prospect Handbook to have the prospects sign their profile. I was pretty happy when the first person I saw in line was Seth Stohs himself. Those who are wondering, this is Seth from sethspeaks.net. I introduced myself and shot the shit with him for awhile. I had to let him go to chase his daughter who wasn't interested in standing still.

I was excited for all the top prospects, but was especially looking forward to OF Ben Revere, INF Trevor Plouffe and 3B Danny Valencia. It was interesting to see how they interacted with fans. Revere appeared to be nervous; he didn't say much. I congratulated him on a good year and all he mustered was something that sounded like, "hu". Valencia and Plouffe were talking football, so I joined in there conversation. They were discussing where Tim Tebow would be drafted (even though he didn't enter the draft this year) and what position he would play (I expressed that I didn't think he'd play fullback like they were predicting.) Plouffe was especially enjoyable. He showed the picture to the guy next to him (P Anthony Swarzak) and said, "Look, long hair, don't care." Before he signed we talked a little about where the picture was from. He probably would have talked to every one in line for ten minutes, but there wasn't time for that.

Pictured below is Ben Revere.

Saturday we went back to take in the sights. We were able to catch the tail-end of a photo-op and got one taken with former Twin Tony Oliva. He seemed to be having a good time.

We also took the clubhouse tour. It was interesting; we got to sit in the press box, tour the clubhouse and sit in the dugout, but wasn't as cool as I expected it to be. Throughout the whole weekend there is also a sportscard/memorabilia show that is very impressive. I was able to survive the weekend with only purchasing a Joe Mauer Plaque. Although I bought a Beloit Snappers hat and a Snappers shirt for LeAnne. They threw in a Brian Duensing Bobblehead Doll for spending $35 too, so that was alright.

That's all for tonight. I hope to start doing this weekly (at the least) until the players report. So come back next week...

Twins Roster Projection

2008-12-19T12:43:00.002-06:00

A few others have posted their projection (and I'm assuming mine isn't all that different), but last week after the Winter Meetings had concluded I went through their roster and made my assumptions. I've concluded - to myself anyway - that the Twins will start the year with a 12-man pitching staff. Players that I think will be on the 25-man roster are highlighted in red. Players who I think would be the next call-up, if mentioned, are in navy.

First, the fielders:
It's a given that Joe Mauer takes a lion's share of the innings behind the plate, with Mike Redmond being the primary back up. I expect to see Redmond catch more innings and get more AB's. His 129 AB's last year was the least since his rookie season. Mauer proved he could stay healthy, and hopefully will do the same this year. I'm hoping that Mauer will be able to do some DH to preserve his knees. If the Twins to decide to carry a 3rd catcher, which is possible, they will be choosing between Drew Butera and Jose Morales. My assumption is that Butera would be the guy that serves as the emergency catcher because he's a better defensive catcher.

Justin Morneau will play 162 games this year if he can stay healthy and the vast majority will come at 1B. It appears that Alexi Casilla is the starting 2B, although I wouldn't be surprised if he also sees time at SS. Little Nicky Punto was re-signed to be the team's starting SS. Although I think he will see a lot of time there, it appears the Twins are still pursuing others at this position. Punto's versatility allows him to play 2B, SS and 3B, which the Twins value. I anticipate that if the Twins add another SS to the roster that Punto becomes the primary 3B.
Right now it looks as though the Twins will platoon Brendan Harris and Brian Buscher at 3B. I don't think anyone out there views this option as perfect, but with the roster that is assembled, it makes sense. Buscher will see more time there because he is left-handed (he could also spell Morneau at 1B), but I anticipated Harris seeing a lot of time as well. The bench will be held down by UTL guy Matt Tolbert. Tolbert started last season hot before cooling down and getting hurt. He will be on the field when a defensive replacement is needed. There are a few guys on the farm that could see time in 2009: Matt Macri (3B/2B) played well for the little time he was up last year, Luke Hughes (?) has a great stick, but had a bad hammy last year and doesn't have a position, Trevor Plouffe (SS) is younger, but appears to have a decent glove, and Alejandro Machado (SS), although not on the 40-man, could fill a hole ala Howie Clark.

Denard Span showed last season that he is the team's leadoff hitter. I imagine he will split time among all three OF spots. Carlos Gomez might be the best defensive CF in baseball. Hopefully he has accepted the fact that he's going to be a #9 hitter. It appears that Michael Cuddyer is going to be the "everyday" RF. Although I'm not giving up on Delmon Young. Jason Kubel is the team's primary DH, although he can lumber around the OF when necessary. I don't see any one of those five spending long stretches on time on the bench and expect them all to play pretty well when given the chance. Jason Pridie will play CF in Rochester and be an injury away. (I also assume that Punto could play OF in a pinch.)

Now, the pitchers:
The rotation appears set (and young): Scott Baker, Francisco Liriano, Kevin Slowey, Glen Perkins and Nick Blackburn. I like them in that order because it will prevent hitters from seeing a similar pitcher on consecutive days. The bullpen is when things get hairy. I've allowed for seven guys. It's obvious that Joe Nathan, Matt Guerrier and Jesse Crain will be 3 of those guys. The other four spots are - in my estimation - up in the air.
Let's look at the candidates:
Boof Bonser - Boof brings some power to the table that not every guy possesses. As he has no options left, I hope he can get it under control, because I think he could be very valuable as a long-reliever/spot starter.
Craig Breslow - Breslow pitched well after coming over from the Indians during the season. Another guy who is out of options, he has value as a LHP.
Philip Humber - Humber came over in the Johan trade as a big name. He ran out of options and is making more money because he signed a Major League Contract out of college. He struggled badly early last season - and was moved to the bullpen - before re-emerging as a starter in Rochester and pitching pretty well.
Jose Mijares - Mijares came onto the scene in a big way last year. After missing the first half of the year with an elbow injury, he made the big leap from AA and became the primary setup guy during the playoff run. I'm hoping for a similar output, but expecting a little less. He is also a LHP.
Jason Jones - Came over from the Yankees in the Rule V draft. Big right hander.
Sleepers: Brian Duensing, Anthony Swarzak and Bobby Korecky.

My best guess: Breslow is safe because he's LH and out of options. Bonser is safe (for now) because he doesn't have the trade value that Humber does.

That leaves two spots: I think that Mijares and Duensing will battle for a left-handed spot. I think Mijares will hold off Duensing, who has primarily been a starter. In the other race, it will come down to Humber and Jones (and maybe Bonser). I think the Twins will try to move Bonser (and fail) before trying to pass Jones through waivers. If he makes it through and the Twins and Yankees can wourk out a trade, Jones will be sent to Rochester. Leaving Humber in the last spot. It wouldn't shock me if the Twins moved Humber, who is under team control for 6 more years (as opposed to Boof entering arbitration after this year and having 3 years plus 09 of control left). I think would like to see both Humber and Boof stick around, even if that means risking losing Jason Jones.

Regardless, the Twins will probably have 11 guys arbitration eligble next year (as opposed to 3 this year). Which will make for more off-season action. Look for the Twins to make some long-term deals in the middle of January with some core guys to avoid arbitration next year. My early guesses: An extention for Joe Mauer (at least 4 more years), a 5-yr deal for Scott Baker and a 3-yr deal for Franciso Liriano. Of course, these deals could be agreed upon already, but keeping with Twins tradition nothing will be announced until TwinsFest, all to drum up a little excitement.

A few roster moves...

2008-12-12T23:17:00.002-06:00

Last time I posted I said that I thought Randy Ruiz's roster spot was in jeopardy. He was released the next day. I also said that I thought Bobby Korecky's roster spot was in jeopardy...

The Twins big "splash" this offseason is the re-signing of SS Nick Punto. I put SS because Gardie said he will start there. As much as I dislike Little Nicky Punto, I was going to be ok with them taking him back. And then I heard what Gardie said... and then I saw the figures (2 years, $8.5 m, option for the 3rd year). It bothers me a little, but I'm sure it will bother me more when the first time he slides head-first into 1st base. Bat 8th and hit over .260 and I'll lay off.

The Twins also acquired RHP Jason Jones from the Yankess in the Rule V Draft. They need to keep him on their active roster or offer him back to the Yankees. He will have a chance to compete for a role in the bullpen. Hey, if the Twins can keep Brian Bass on the active roster for almost an entire season, I see no reason why this guy won't stick. I think this also makes Bonser, Humber and the aforementioned Korecky more expendable.

The Twins lost 3 guys in the Rule V draft. In my opinion, none are worth mentioning.

I fully expect the Twins to make another roster move, possibly tomorrow. I anticipate the Twins clearly a spot on their 40-man (my guess: Korecky) and signing former Astros 3B Ty Wigginton. I can see him signing for 2 years, $16 m. (09: 7m, 10: 8m, 11: option for 9m with a 1m buyout.)

Just remember, you read it hear first...

Not much new...

2008-12-03T21:20:00.004-06:00

As you know - or may not - the Hawks weren't able to get it done in the State Semis; but it sure was a fun year.

There isn't much new to report. Apparently the Twins have offered Casey Blake a contract. Details aren't certain, but a 2 year deal with an option for a third, at a little over $6m per year. I go back and forth about what I think about signing him. At this moment, I'm against signing him. I think some combination of Buscher/Harris/Macri/Tolbert/Punto (yeah, Punto) can get it done. It lacks punch offensively, but the whole team did last year and that turned out ok.

Things I would like the team to accomplish this offseason (in order):

I would like to see a reliever brought in. I don't have a preference who it should be... but the bullpen needs to be upgraded. If Reyes accepts arbitration - though I doubt he will - that will fill the roster.
Get a left-side infielder - preferably a SS. If JJ Hardy can be had, go get him. The Brewers need a starting pitcher and the Twins have a few (extra). It would probably cost Perkins or Blackburn plus a prospect. That is a reasonable price.
Unclutter the OF. Some believe that having 5 OFs is a good thing. I don't. Span needs to stay. Gomez needs to stay. Young - yes, Young - needs to stay. That leaves Kubel and Cuddyer. Personally, I think either one is expendable (although I like Kubel's power). If the team could get anything with any value for Cuddyer, I wouldn't mind seeing that trade be made.

I have a feeling that Randy Ruiz won't be on the 40-man by the 1st of January. I also think Bobby Korecky's roster spot is in jeopardy. I think the Twins made a mistake adding Drew Butera (even though he probably would be lost in the Rule 5 draft).

The last thing I've noticed is that the Twins currently have a lot of LHP on their 40-man roster: Francisco Liriano, Glen Perkins, Craig Breslow, Jose Morales and Brian Duensing. Dennys Reyes could potentially be added to that list. Last year coming in, I believe it was only Perkins and Reyes (with Liriano injured).

I'm curious to see how it's all going to play out.

Been a little while...

2008-11-12T22:22:00.003-06:00

Ok, so it's been a long while. Obviously, the Twins lost to the White Sox. More recently, they lost Pat Neshek for all of 2009. That's a bummer.

I just emailed Seth (of SethSpeaks.net) to pre-order his Twins Prospect Handbook. I'm excited about that. Profiles on 175 prospects.

The B-W Blackhawks are currently sitting at 11-1 and have a date with Wautoma on Friday night. Winner of that game heads to Madison to play for a Gold Ball. It should be a good game. We're a little dinged up, but I can't imagine any of 28 teams still playing not having some injuries. Like any playoff football game, it's going to come down to taking care of the ball and being the better team on special teams. (It won't hurt if our well-oiled-machine-of-an-offense keeps it rolling.)

My fantasy football year is not going as well as I hoped. For one, I have watched less NFL football in 10 weeks than I watched in any 2 weeks last year. I guess having the coaching thing still rolling - not to mention another child - will do that though. Besides the bad showing in Fantasy, not being able to watch a lot of football doesn't bother me too much. I believe my records are 5-4, 4-6, 4-6 and 3-7. I can confidently say that is my worst showing in the history of my fantasy football playing... and that's a lot of years. I didn't see the Browns being as bad as they are, nor did I expect the Cowboys offense to fall off the face of the earth. Expect me to come back and tell you my 5-4 team went on a roll. Or at least I finished at .500.

Marin and Cade are continuing to grow. Cade is over 18 lbs. He'll soon catch Marin. Marin is still a runt, and, somewhere, learned the word "butthead". She hasn't said it again since she got in trouble, but I wasn't ready for that. Plus, I never say "butthead". If she would have called me a "stupid f*ck" at least I would have known where she heard that. (Just kidding.)

I would talk about movies and books, but I don't have time for them. I do, however, have some time for TV and I really like Fringe. I also can't wait for LOST to come back on. Pushing Daisies, House, Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice are other shows that get the DVR and rewatch treatment. DVR is a great thing; I never watch any commercials.

I will update you whenever my life has something significant happen... which is apparenly every couple of months!

Later on...

We'll See You Tomorrow Night

2008-09-29T21:22:00.002-05:00

As you probably know, the Twins will face the White Sox tomorrow night to determine the 2008 AL Central Division Champions.

I'm not going to say too much about it, because there really isn't much to say.
It's a must-win playoff ballgame.

The part that appeals to me is the fact that the Twins club is so young. The only players that have any playoff experience (that will play tomorrow) are Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Nick Punto and (hopefully) Joe Nathan. The White Sox, on the other hand, are full of players that played on their World Series team.

That puts all the pressure on the White Sox.

I'll be cheering hard, but I never expected the team to be in this situation before the season started. Regardless of how tomorrow night turns out, the year will be considered a sucess.

And yes, until they play the Twins again, I will be cheering for the Brewers. How good is CC Sabathia anyway? It's just too bad that he'll end up in New York, L.A or Boston next year.

It's time

2008-09-27T23:59:00.004-05:00

How long has it been anyway? A few weeks for sure. If only I had time to talk about everything that has happened since I last posted.

How about them Twins? The White Sox series was unlike anything I'd experienced before. I have been to a handful of playoff games; the game on Wednesday night was crazier. I've never seen fan emotion at that level. What's even more shocking, Thursday night was worse! Between triples, the bullpen and the comeback, I could barely stand to watch. And when it was all said and done, the Twins were in first... not entirely in control of their own destiny, but in first, nonetheless. And then the Royals came to town.

It's frustrating. I almost bought a "33 for MVP" shirt or two, but I'm glad I didn't. My gut feeling says that even up a half game, with only one day left, the Twins aren't going to see the Divisional Series. I'm hoping Baker can get a win and make it full game lead and see what the White Sox can do.

Neither team has been very good this weekend, but let's hope for better results tomorrow... with or without the Indians putting Cliff Lee on the hill.

In other news...
The local football squad is 5-0. We're a good team. If the time comes, I'll call us great. At this point, we're just good. Our conference isn't very good, so it's tough to gauge. I think we'll go into the final game of the regular season with a chance to win our conference and have to play a tough game. I want to play a good, tough, close game. That will teach our guys a lot heading into the playoffs. At this point, games where we win by 20+ points don't help too much.

Little Marin news: She woke up the other night at 3 AM and was whispering, "Daddy, Daddy" into the monitor. LeAnne was away for the night, so I went up to see what was wrong. She was standing in her crib and told me she had a bad dream. I picked her up and asked her if she wanted to lay in bed with me. Her response was great, "Watch baseball?" Unfortunately, there was no baseball on, so I had to lay her back down... but if she's able to use that line at the right time... it just might work.

Little Cade news: The little guy isn't real little anymore. During his last check-up, he was in the 95th percentile for both height and weight for his age. I'm not going to put any undue pressure on him, but if he's not 6-3, 215 by the time he's a junior in high school, how the heck is he going to be a good quarterback? I'm just playing. He can do whatever he wants... as long as it's not marching band. If the boy wants supper, he won't be in the marching band.

A Jerm Talk First: Tonight I went down to a local establishment to watch a band in which a friend of mine performs. At one point a cop happened to enter the facility. Apparently, the establishment had not been carding people and was getting a warning. Out of money, I offered to sit by the door and check ID's. A few hours and many free drinks later, everything had seemed to work itself out. All I really wanted was a shirt. Seriously though, at 5-10, 180 what am I going to do?

Have a good night. Check back for something about the Twins - good or bad!

A new post!

2008-09-11T20:25:00.003-05:00

It's been almost two weeks since my last post. I've thought a lot about getting on here, I just haven't had the chance. You see, most websites are blocked at school, so that really limits my blogging from there. When I get home from football, it's usually after six... and by the time the kids go to bed, I'm too tired to think, let alone write anything productive.

The local football squad improved to 2-0. We start conference tomorrow night. We've played pretty well... better than in the past, but not well enough to fulfill our (and others) expectations. We have a strong group of 18 seniors, so if there is going to be a year to win some games, it better be this one.

The Twins have been hot and cold, and currently sit at 1.5 games behind the White Sox. The White Sox couldn't do much more to help the Twins: Carlos Quentin broke his wrist, Paul Konerko got hurt... it's just the bullpen isn't pulling its weight and because of that, the team is spinning their tires. My gut feeling says the Twins will be on the outside looking in, but then again, what does my gut really know?

The kids are doing good. Cade is getting big. The doctor said he's in the 95th percentile for both height and weight. He's at something like 14.5 lbs and 25 inches. He's making gains on Marin in a hurry. Marin continues to be a goofball... but she says the most adorable things. In response to "I love you", she'll often say "Love you too much". I get a kick out of it everytime I hear it. It's little things like that that make me wish she'd stay this age forever. That and things like her not being able to make the "f" sound. So she hurt her "soot", or she ate her "sood", or daddy is coaching "sootball".

Oh, in my fantasy world I was 2-2 opening week. I can handle that, but I expect better. I also didn't fair great on my picks of the games. Of course, I expect to pick every game right, so a couple wrong irritates me.

Anyhow, I'm going to leave it at that. Thanks for stopping by. If you're looking to listen to some new, local music, check out www.myspace.com/davidjamesstewart. It's a friend of mine who is pretty good.

Until I write again, have a good one!

A little update...

2008-08-31T22:59:00.003-05:00

It's been a while since I've had a chance to say much...

The football team that I help coach started off with a win. We didn't play as well as we're capable of, but the team we beat is picked to win their conference.

The Twins are hanging in there. They are getting to the end of their crazy road trip and have held their own. They are still a half game behind the White Sox, but ESPN's "playoff probability" lists them as 54 to 45 per cent favorites to win their division.

Fantasy Football (as well as the NFL season) is about to get into full swing. I just finished my 4th and final draft. I will keep both of you readers updated as my year progresses.

Cade is 8 weeks today. He's getting so big already and has slept til 6 AM two nights in a row. Marin is still goofy Marin... I'm going to miss them both when I have to go back to school on Tuesday.

I will try to post more frequently.

Quick update

2008-08-21T15:58:00.002-05:00

So two-a-days are over, which means I'm actually home. Practice isn't all that bad... but the days sure can be long. Anyway, both kids are sleeping right now, so I thought I'd post a little about the last week.

Since my last post, the Twins have continued to play well. The problem is, so do the White Sox. Through it all, the runner-up in the Central has become a legit contender in the Wild Card Race.

The Twins mysteriously tried to acquire P Jarrod Washburn from the Mariners. (In a local twist, his old high-school baseball coach at Webster is now my boss.) To me, that says that the Twins are concerned about the innings their starters - namely Glen Perkins - need to pitch. I talked about that awile ago, so it should be somewhere in my achieves. Regardless, the acquisition fell through and the team plugs on with five young starters.

Second Baseman Alexi Casilla should be returning to the lineup tonight. To open a roster spot, the Twins outrighted P Brian Bass. It was a little surprising in that the bullpen has been carrying a heavy workload, but my money is on the Twins bringing up Philip Humber in the near future to help alleviate the problem. Humber has been a stud lately; I'm looking forward to him being in the 'pen and possibly the rotation next year.

Carlos Gomez has transitioned to part-time CF/defensive replacement/pinch-runner. I can't say I'm disappointed in that. I am, and will continue to be, a big fan of his... but Denard Span is clearly the better baseball player. Speaking of Span, I'm a pretty big fan of his too.

Casilla's return means Nick Punto doesn't get to bat 2nd anymore.... YES!!! I don't hate Punto as much as I used to... but I'm still hoping that he's not on the team past this season. If he does return, it needs to be on a 1-year contract, because it's obvious to me that he only plays well in contract years.

Well, Cade is awake and I'm sure Marin isn't far behind. It was nice while it lasted :)

Big road trip starts tonight. Let's see how they match up with Baseball's Best.

Twins Update

2008-08-14T19:45:00.002-05:00

It was great to see the Twins take 2 of 3 from the Yankees. I thought Delmon Young played especially well, it would just be nice to see the guy crack a smile once in a while. Adam Everett seems to coming around. While I don't think he'll be back next year, it's nice to see him contribute positively. The starting pitching continues to perform. By my accounts, no Twins team has ever had 5 starting pitchers with 10+ wins. (In 1970, 4 starters and 1 reliever accomplished the feat.) It's possible that 5 -including the now-departed Livan Hernandez - could get it done this year.

In minor-league news: It appears the Twins have agreed to terms with 6th round pick BJ Hermsen. I didn't see that coming. If it is true, I would expect Hermsen to debut next year. The deadline to sign picks is tomorrow.

Francisco Liriano will be facing former-Twin Carlos Silva tomorrow.

Twins Beat Yanks

2008-08-12T06:39:00.002-05:00

The Twins beat the Yankees last night behind a shutout performance by Glen Perkins. He pitched 8 innings, scattered a few hits, walked 3 and struck out 4. The offense was led by a 2-run HR by Adam Everett.

The White Sox apparently lost, because the Twins are back in the lead in the AL Central. It also appears that Alexi Casilla will be returning in the next week or so.

Posts may become few and far between for these next couple of weeks. Football practice starts this morning and we'll be rolling twice-a-day.

Have a good Tuesday.

Blog Update

2008-08-09T23:26:00.004-05:00

UPDATE SUNDAY NIGHT 10:25 - I was going to post today, but after watching what happened, I just don't feel up to it. I am growing more tired of Nick Punto every day. At one point I said "Adam Everett is everything that Nick Punto is supposed to be." And then Everett went and "pulled a Punto" by messing up a throw. By "pulling a Punto" I mean: You're there for defensive reasons and your defense sucks! (At least for one play.) I'm convinced that when Alexi Casilla is ready to return it's going to be Randy Ruiz who is sent down. There is no way that Mike Lamb or Everett get DFA'd. Big series starts tomorrow.

On another note: I just watched the 4x100 swimming relay. Great comeback by the USA. Awesome!

-----

I wasn't able to watch the Twins game last night and I watched the DVR'd version of tonight's game. Either way, it's late and I'm going to bed. I should be able to post tomorrow.

It's too bad about Michael Cuddyer hurting his foot. It doesn't sound like he'll be back this year.

Twins Avoid Sweep

2008-08-06T19:56:00.003-05:00

The Twins avoided a sweep by beating the Mariners 7-3 this afternoon.

They get a needed day off tomorrow. The bullpen needs some time to recover.

Three Stars:
Denard Span - 3 for 5, 4 RBI, 3B, SB, game-saving HR-robbery. Without doing any research, I can confidently put this into the "Twins Top 5 Individual Performance of the Year". Offensively, his bases-loaded triple was a game-changer. Defensively, his catch of an Adrian Beltre homerun was a series-changer. It's impossible to put into words what he's done for this team lately.
Brendan Harris - 2 for 4, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 2B, BB. Maybe it's fitting to start calling him Brendan "Doubles Machine" Harris. He's got 23 2B this year, but over a quarter of them have come in the last week. I don't know where he'll play in the future, but I'm confident that he'll be on the roster next year. (Two weeks ago I wasn't.)
Randy Ruiz - 2 for 5, 2 R. Although he hasn't shown much (or any) power, he's been effective.

Watching the last three games has been a bit of a downer. It shouldn't happen that a team is in first place, winning a ball game, yet you're watching it and feeling a sense of doom. That happened every game this week. Luckily, Denard Span saved today's game. The reason is mostly the bullpen. Mix that in with some other issues that are coming up and here is what I think will happen:

The first and biggest issue is with the bullpen. Earlier this year, the team went with 13 pitchers. Maybe it wouldn't be a crazy idea to revisit. It also seems like Michael Cuddyer's return will come in the next week and Alexi Casilla's injury isn't as serious as it was first believed.

My steps to fix the problem:

DFA Brian Bass. He would probably clear waivers and remain property of the organization. If he clears he could stay on the 40-man (I think) and pitch at his level in Rochester.
Promote LHRP Ricky Barrett. We've seen what happens when Craig Breslow is the only left-handed option in the bullpen and it isn't pretty. Even though Dennys Reyes is back, I still don't think it would be terrible to have another left-handed arm. Plus, Barrett has been very good this year, except for a week in July.
I like Randy Ruiz. I don't think he's been in the lineup enough to justify him being here. Unfortunately, when Cuddyer comes back, there won't be room for Ruiz. So Ruiz should be sent down to make room for...
The return of Michael Cuddyer. The Twins front office is looking a little silly over the long-term deal they gave Cuddyer in the offseason. I believed at the time it was a very good deal because of the uncertainty of the Twins outfield. But now with Delmon Young, Carlos Gomez and Denard Span - not to mention Jason Kubel - the outfield will be fine. At this point, though, 5 guys for four spots - and you know that Span and Kubel have to play against all right-handers - it leaves one, and possibly two, of the guys on the bench.
You can't let young guys rot on the bench. Young has become a guy that needs to be in the lineup and Span has become everything that Gomez was supposed to be. It won't be popular, but in the best interest of the team, and himself, Carlos Gomez should head to Rochester.
That opens up a spot on the active roster. I mentioned earlier that the Twins wouldn't be crazy to carry 13 pitchers. One of the big names involved in the Santana trade was Philip Humber. He struggled early and was sent to the bullpen. Since his return to the rotation - more out of necessity than earning it - he has been great. 3 starts, 20 2/3 IP, 4 ER, 16 H, 6 BB, 24 Ks. Now, I'm not calling to add him to the rotation. I do think, however, that he could be a great guy for long-relief, and, since he is out of options after this year, this could be a great audition for a job next year. (Even though I'm pretty sure he'll be on the active roster all year.) So let's give Humber a shot in the bullpen.
Alexi Casilla is supposed to get healthy again. I know the popular opinion would be to DFA Adam Everett. But I like the way that Mike Lamb has looked lately and maybe he deserves another shot at 3B. So maybe Brian Buscher could head down to Rochester to make room for Casilla? I'm not 100% on board with that, but at least it's a possibility.

The nice thing with all of these choices is if they don't pan out, they can easily be reversed. (Unless Bass is lost.) I do think that doing these things would add some energy to the team and, besides sending Gomez down, not be too damaging to the egos. When rosters expand on September 1st, I expect guys like Barrett (who'd have to be added to the 40-man), Humber and Matt Macri to all be on the roster. I would just really like to see Gomez gain a little confidence for the stretch run.

In other news - I just stumbled onto the fact that the Twins signed 30th round pick Michael Tonkin. Normally, I don't say much about draft pick signings, but I feel this one can be significant. Tonkin was a highly-regarded high-school senior. (I've seen him ranked 47th in his high-school class). And he was expected to enroll at USC this fall. Generally, highly-ranked high-schoolers that don't seem signable will drop considerably. Teams will take a fliar on them, and they will go unsigned and nothing is lost.

In this case, though, I didn't see it coming. Right after the draft I went through the list of players and marked them as "will sign", "might sign" or "won't sign". So far, only 3 of my 20 "will signs" haven't signed. Of my 19 "might signs", 5 have signed. But of my 13 "won't signs", only Tonkin has signed. (That brings the total to 23 signed draft picks... to my knowledge.) Of course, it probably helped the Twins' case that Michael Tonkin's sister, Blake, is married to DH Jason Kubel. I guess maybe it shouldn't be so shocking...

In other draft-related news, Twins prospect P Shooter Hunt, who entered tonight's game for Beloit with a 0.62 combined ERA, gave up 6 runs (5 earned), 4 hits, 6 walks and only 3 Ks in only 3 1/3 of an inning. Ouch!

Enjoy the day off tomorrow!

Yikes!

2008-08-05T14:20:00.004-05:00

I'd prefer to just no talk about last night's game. I was about to go to bed... and I wish I would have. Instead, I remained hopeful of a 5-run 9th. Nope.

Tonight's game pits Scott Baker against semi-former-Twin R.A. Dickey. Dickey signed with the Twins, but was lost in the Rule V draft. Dickey is a knuckleballer, so it should be interesting.

In other news...

Cade turned 4 weeks old on Sunday. He had some pictures done at Target. Enjoy...

First-Place Twins

2008-08-03T17:09:00.002-05:00

The Twins completed their series with the Indians by beating them 6-2. Couple that with a White Sox loss to the Royals and the Twins are now in sole possession of first place. Not bad.

Three Stars:
Francisco Liriano - 6 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 5 K. He wasn't the Liriano of old. He also wasn't the Liriano of April. Today's performance, though, was better than I expected. (If I have time, I'm going to re-watch today's game and comment more thoroughly on Liriano's performance... if I have time.)
Mike Lamb - 1 for 3, 3B, RBI, R. Lamb's defense wasn't great, but he did make a good play on a bad throw. He made up for it with a triple that scored Kubel. He's expensive for a left-handed situational player, but he's been alright lately.
Nick Punto - 1 for 4, 3B, RBI, R. First of all, the head-slide into first base was unnecessary. For that, I would sit him a game. I would call him into my office and say something like this, "Are you an idiot? How many players on our team are hurt because they've slid head-first into bases? I'm not saying don't slide head-first ever, but don't do it just to do it. Take some time - tomorrow's game - to think about what it would be like to hurt yourself unnecessarily as you watch the game from the bench." With that being said, Punto did make some nice defensive plays (and one bad one which cost Harris an error). He also added a nice triple. Of course, the pattern of him batting second is becoming somewhat annoying. BUT, as long as he continues to get on base, I'll zip my lip.

The Twins head to Seattle in first place. The White Sox have tomorrow off and then welcome the Tigers for three and then the Red Sox for four.

I'm hoping for a solid week, at least solid enough that when the Yankees come to town, the Twins have a 2 or 3 game lead.

Let's hope anyway!

Twins beat Indians

2008-08-01T22:30:00.004-05:00

The Twins continued their quest for the playoffs with a 4-1 win over the Indians on Friday night. At this moment the Twins trail the White Sox (Central) and Red Sox (Wild Card) each by a half game. ESPN also puts their chances at making the playoffs at 49.8%

Three Stars:
Joe Mauer - 1 for 4, 2-run HR. Mauer's 7th HR of the year - his 6th against LHP - was the "hit of the game". It looks like Mauer is developing more power... at least we're hoping he is.
Nick Blackburn - 7 IP, 6 H, BB, ER, 2 K. Blackburn continues to get it done. The rotation is definitely going to be a strength for years to come.
Brendan Harris - 2 for 3, RBI, R, 2 2B. Harris continues to be a doubles machine, and he's been on a tear for the last six weeks.

*NOTABLE:
Randy Ruiz picked up his first major-league hit tonight. After calling for his release from Rochester earlier this year, I've come full-circle and have been calling for his promotion the last couple of weeks. It finally came; and you could tell he was nervous. I expect him to continue to be the regular DH against LHP.

I mentioned earlier that the Twins would have five spots open on their 40-man roster when the season concludes. I expect a few others - that will remain nameless - will be taken off of the 40-man. At this point there are handful of guys that I can almost guarantee will be added, therefore safe from the Rule V draft: AAA P's Brian Duensing and Anthony Swarzak, AAA INF Trevor Plouffe and AA INF Luke Hughes. There are many other players who have a case to be added. This is the closest I've followed the Twins minor leagues, so I'm not going to try to guess any more... but it will continue to be interesting watching what roster moves the Twins make.

Slowey tomorrow and the Franchise on Sunday... should be a great weekend!

Franchise

2008-08-01T12:54:00.004-05:00

Many of us are wondering whether or not Francisco Liriano will be making his scheduled start tonight for Rochester. LaVelle doesn't think he will be. Remind yourself that you read it here first: Liriano will start of the Red Wings tonight. So no promotion yet...

UPDATE 5:00 - So I was a little off with Liriano. He will be joining the team and the rotation. Livan Hernandez and Craig Monroe are out. Replacing Monroe will be right-handed 1B/DH Randy Ruiz.

If you read my thoughts yesterday, here is what I said:

Craig Monroe will be traded or cut. To fill Monroe's spot, the Twins will call up 1B/DH Randy Ruiz from Rochester. Spot on! The thing with this move is that I had never even heard it before I posted it.

The Twins will fail in their attempt to land a second baseman. Right again!

Francisco Liriano will be promoted and in the rotation. Boof Bonser will be traded. The "8th inning" job that needs to be filled will go to current Twins starter Glen Perkins. Somehow, someway, Livan Hernandez, Mike Lamb and Adam Everett will all remain with the Twins. I was off a little bit. I totally didn't think Hernandez would be let go. It almost made too much sense.

It also appears that Ruiz will be in the starting lineup tonight. He will have to added to the 40-man roster. That is no big deal since they started the day at 38 and gained two more spots. After Ruiz is added, they will be at 37. (I also believe they have 3 other FA's at the end of the year - Punto, Reyes and Everett.) They will have to re-add Neshek to the 40-man, so that gives them 5 extra spots for next year.

More to come...

Twins take series

2008-07-31T23:07:00.004-05:00

The Twins closed their series with the Sox by beating them 10-6. It was a game full of excitement and it pulled the Twins (again) within a half game of the division lead.

I'm not going to pick three stars tonight. I could, but the whole offense contributed to the win. The pitching was just good enough to hold on. Here's a look at some of the guys' nights:
Justin Morneau - 1 for 4, 2 R, 3-run HR. Have I mentioned I think he's the MVP?
Joe Mauer - 3 for 4, R, 2 RBI. For as long as I've wanted him in the 2-hole, I'm starting to come around to him batting third.
Jason Kubel - 1 for 5, 3-run HR. I was getting that "strikeout feeling", so I quick told LeAnne, "I'm starting to like Kubel less every game." It worked! Next pitch: 3-run blast. Face it Kubel: You need my support.
Brendan Harris - 2 for 3, 2 2B. I like Harris as a utility-guy.
Delmon Young - 2 for 4, 2B, RBI, R. Still has some brutal at-bats, but I think the page is turning...
Nick Punto - 2 for 5, 2B, RBI, R. Batting him second tonight turned out ok, but seriously...
Carlos Gomez - 1 for 4, R. For as bad offensively as he looks sometimes, at least he's not as bad as...
Adam Everett - 0 for 5. At least he didn't have any errors.
But the line of the night goes too:
Denard Span - 0 for 3 with 3 runs. I guess that must have helped his OBP.

The other news coming out of the Cities is that the Twins are expected to DFA Livan Hernandez. This would make room on the roster and in the rotation for Francisco Liriano. I am actually a little surprised by this report. I expected Brian Bass to be the one moved. If Livan is replaced in the rotation, I figured he's still experienced enough to keep around just in case. Although, I wouldn't jog him in from the bullpen in a close game.

Minor League Update: Shooter Hunt pitched for Beloit tonight. 5 IP, 2 H, 1 unearned run, 5 BB, 9 K. The walk numbers are a little high, but that's been his story. At this rate, if he can gain control he may be competing for a rotation spot by 2010.

We'll see what happens, I guess.

Trade Deadline Today

2008-07-31T08:57:00.005-05:00

The trade deadline is this afternoon and I expect the Twins to be active. By active I mean I think they will make some sort of transaction.

These are either rumors I've read or thoughts in my head:

Francisco Liriano will be promoted and in the rotation.
Boof Bonser will be traded. The Giants and Rangers are in the running.
Craig Monroe will be traded or cut. The Rays may be interested.
The "8th inning" job that needs to be filled will go to current Twins starter Glen Perkins.
The Twins will fail in their attempt to land a second baseman.
To fill Monroe's spot, the Twins will call up 1B/DH Randy Ruiz from Rochester.
Somehow, someway, Livan Hernandez, Mike Lamb and Adam Everett will all remain with the Twins.

2:30 UPDATE: Still no action from the Twins. It appears that Liriano will be promoted sometime - although he is scheduled to start tomorrow for Rochester - so it is unclear whether his promotion will come before or after his start.

Twins prospect INF Luke Hughes was promoted to Rochester to replace injured OF Darnell McDonald. (I posted my thoughts earlier on Seth's work-in-progress blog. LEN3 just reported the promotion at 2 this afternoon. Apparently, I have decent sources.) I think this move suggests an additional move or moves because right now the Rochester roster only has one natural OF (Jason Pridie), one guy that can play OF (Garrett Jones) and an INF that has been playing a lot of OF lately (Howie Clark). Hughes has dabbled in center for New Britain, but is considered more of a 2B/3B player.

I believe that Rochester will have a spot after Liriano's promotion. It would make sense for either OF Dustin Martin and/or 1B/OF Erik Lis to be moved up. As I mentioned earlier, there may also be a spot when and if Randy Ruiz is brought up.

The deadline is less than a half hour away.

4:30 UPDATE: The deadline has come and gone; The Twins didn't make a deal. But hey, this sure beats being a seller like last year...

All signs point to Franciso Liriano being called up. Not sure if that means that Boof Bonser or Brian Bass will be DFA'd.

The big move that went down was centered around the Red Sox and Manny Ramirez, who went to the Dodgers. In return the Red Sox acquired Jason Bay. A deeper look reveals the Red Sox parted ways with Manny, kicked in $7m and gave up two decent prospects... and got Jason Bay in return. Doesn't that seem like a lot? The Pirates made out like thieves, getting four really good prospects, including top 3B Andy LaRoche, who many Twins fan were interested in. Even the Dodgers get Ramirez's salary paid and two draft picks after Manny leaves as a FA. I guess in Boston's mind, getting rid of a headache is worth doing whatever it takes.

Lost in the hoopla of today is the fact that the Twins close their series with the Sox tonight. I expect Scott Baker to get it done.

Twins Win (Game), Lose (Casilla)

2008-07-29T23:03:00.004-05:00

The Twins came from behind to beat the Sox 6-5. It was a great win and it pulled the Twins within a half of a game of the White Sox.

Instead of naming Three Stars, I'm going to briefly talk about the other news surrounding the Twins. If you haven't heard, 2B Alexi Casilla was placed on the Disabled List this evening. He injured his thumb sliding into second base last night and apparently has a torn tendon. It's not known whether he'll be able to play again this year or not. In my mind, it's a big loss; but not a loss that can't be overcome. I anticipate Nick Punto will become the everyday second baseman. Punto clearly is not the hitter that Casilla is (so he shouldn't be in the 2-hole), but makes up for it with his defense. Personally, I would like to see Punto batting 9th and Gomez batting 2nd.

The second half of the news is about SS Adam Everett. Everett's rehab assignment expired today, so something had to be done. Initially, the Twins were going to designate him for assignment. He was apparently given his walking papers; he just had 3 days to decide whether he wanted to take a minor-league assignment. (He wouldn't have.) Shortly after he left - thinking his Twins career was over - the Twins called him back and probably had a conversation that went something like this:

"Hey Adam... you know how we cut you today... GOTCHA BITCH!"

Ok, it probably wasn't entirely like that. But I'm assuming that Everett had to agree to come back. With that being said, he should probably just find a piece of bench next to Mike Lamb, because that's where he will be. The only difference is that where Lamb offers limited offense and less defense, Everett can be a solid late-inning defensive replacement.

So where does that leave the roster? In my estimation, when Michael Cuddyer is ready to come back - which might not be for a while yet - Craig Monroe will be heading elsewhere. And then when Casilla, or Matt Tolbert is healthy again, Adam Everett will be re-issued his walking papers.

The other thing that I've been asked about is the trade today between the Angels and Braves that netted the Angels 1B Mark Teixeira. Personally, I think the Angels are getting better, but this trade allowed them to get a jump on free agency. The Angels don't make this trade if they don't think they'll be able to resign Teixeira. They'll throw a boatload of money at him; and the trade price was steep as well.

Why didn't the Twins throw their hat in the ring? Because they didn't have the ammo to pull it off. Casey Kotchman is a pretty good ballplayer and is under the team's control for a couple more years. It would have taken a piece the Twins are probably trying to build around... and with a small market club, there is no way that Teixeira would resign.

Anyway, tomorrow night's game is actually a battle for first-place. The game pits Livan Hernandez against Gavin Floyd. If you remember, Floyd almost no-hit the Twins earlier this year. It should be a good one!

Twins beat Sox

2008-07-29T15:06:00.004-05:00

I (think I) have a little bit of time to write about last night's game...

I wasn't able to watch the game live. However, I did DVR it and watch it later last night without knowing the outcome. I like to do this because 1) I usually don't have a lot of time to sit and watch TV and 2) I can fast-forward in between pitches and minimize the amount of time I have to hear Dick 'n Bert.

On an aside, I've determined that ADD was created by the advancement in technology. Growing up, the Twins might have been on TV once a week; now, every game is broadcast and I don't even have to wait for commercials, let alone waiting seven days until the next game is on TV. I'm a pretty patient person - I work with 8 and 9 year olds for nine months out of the year - but even I love being able to fast forward everything. It's not that we have attention-deficit, it's that we usually aren't required to have any sort of attention-span... and when we are, well, we don't know what that's like...

Back to baseball...

Twins beat Sox 7-0. WOO HOO!

Three Stars:
Kevin Slowey - CG, Shutout, 6 H, BB, 5 K. Francisco Who? Slowey was amazing. Loved it.
Denard Span - 1 for 5, 2-run HR to start the scoring. Again, he's here because he's a catalyst and a stud on defense. You can't send him down when Cuddy comes back, can you? (No, you can't. Craig Monroe WILL be sent packing.)
Justin Morneau - 2 for 3, HR, 3 RBI, R. All-Star. Home-Run Derby Champ. Gold-Glove First Baseman. Team MVP. AL MVP. Yup, I really think so.

That's all for today.

Twins win series; gain game on Sox

2008-07-27T21:50:00.003-05:00

The Twins completed their series victory today with a win over the Indians. It wasn't exactly pretty, but a win is a win. Couple that with a Tigers victory over the White Sox and the Twins now sit 2.5 games back in the Central Division heading into a 4-game showdown with the ChiSox. Personally, I wouldn't be disappointed with a split, although that wouldn't be progress. However, I expect by the time the Twins leave Kansas City (August 10), they will be on top of the AL Central. You can put that on the board! (The Twins are also 2.5 game back in the Wild Card Race. They trail both the Red Sox and Yankees, and they are currently playing.)

Three Stars - I think today's game is tough to pick!
Nick Blackburn - 7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, BB, 3 K. This is a great line! His performance, on the other hand, wasn't this pretty. Blackburn had to deal with leadoff runners every inning... ok, not every inning, but pretty close. He was able to wiggle his way out of trouble and left the game with only one run allowed and a win staring him in the face. And then Reyes came in... No matter, Blackburn pitched very well. If it weren't for bad luck (or a bad bullpen?) - and thus, a few extra wins - I really think he would be in the running for AL Rookie of the Year. At 7-6, though, it's not gonna happen.
Craig Monroe - 2 for 4, 2B, R. I gonna give Monroe the benefit of the doubt today. On a day where the offense wasn't too visible, Monroe was able to get the ball rolling on a bloop double. This started the 2-run 6th inning and put them back in a position to win the ballgame. For today, Craig, we'll forget that your "specialty" - hitting against left-handed pitchers - you came into the game batting .125 (10 for 80), but just for today!
Denard Span, sorry Justin Morneau - I know, Morneau had a pretty big-deal double in the 9th, but let's talk about Denard Span and his defense! I forget the inning, but Span made a great catch running towards center and leaping/turning to snag a sure double. And then in the bottom of the 8th, a shot to the gap, a sure go-ahead double... wait, here comes SuperSpan. Dare I say it... does Gomez make that catch? He probably does, but holy smokes, what a catch!

Tomorrow, White Sox, 7:05, Slowey, Buehrle, GIDDYUP!

By the way, Francisco Liriano - you may have heard of him - pitched for Rochester. He improved his record to 10-2. 6 IP, 8H/1BB, 4 ER, 9 K. Not the greatest line, but surely skewed by a 3-run HR. With over 100 pitches, and roughly 60% strikes, it's definitely better than it was in April, but still not how it was in 2006. I go back and forth (oscillate, if you will) on whether or not I think it's F-Bomb time. Right now, I'm content with the rotation... but for real, can't Liriano be the 8th inning guy? I don't want to hear how it would screw him up... two months of relief... isn't there a reason for "spring training"?

On another, unrelated note - am I the only person that thinks that Barry Bonds could help somebody?!? Honestly, he seems to be messed up, sure, but he was injured last year and still managed to hit 28 homers. How about a .480 OBP? How about averaging over a walk a game? Mauer leads the team in walks - less than half a game. I'm not saying Kubel is junk - because Kubel would be the most directly affected when it comes to playing time. But let's compare:

Jason Kubel - $1.3 million in '08, .263/.327/.451, 13 HR, 20% K-rate
Barry Bonds - $200,000 (prorated minimum), 07 stats - .276/.480/.565, 28 HR, 16% K-rate

To me, that's more production for less money. And I'm not even going to say anything about how it would positively affect the on-field production of Mauer, Morneau, Young, etc. Off-the-field, locker-room type-stuff, yeah, maybe that wouldn't be great... but Bonds wouldn't need to be a leader... he would just need to take walks and hit HRs, which, I remind you, he's still pretty good at.

I'm not calling for the Twins to sign Bonds... but I really think he's unfairly taken the blame for what was wrong with baseball the last bunch of years. He deserves another shot.

Back to Winning

2008-07-26T21:43:00.006-05:00

The Twins won tonight 11-4 behind a 6-run 1st inning. Even though the game lacked the suspense of last night's loss, I definately will take the outcome.

Three Stars:
Brian Buscher - 3 for 5, HR, R, 5 RBI. Buscher's first inning 3-run HR really blew this game open. Maybe this game makes the front office reconsider their quest for a different 3rd baseman...?
Delmon Young - 3 for 5, 2 R, 2 RBI. I wish he would hit for something other than singles. But singles are better than outs, so I'll take them. I really hope Young can get and keep his average over .300. Then we'll look for his power numbers to go up.
Denard Span - 1 for 5, R, BB. This has more to do with his patience at the plate than it does with his performance. Span's leadoff walk began a huge inning; would Gomez have taken a walk? Everything is different with Denard leading off.

On a side note, Carlos Gomez left last night's game on a stretcher. He seems to be doing better, but is still very sore. I don't know what's going to happen when all four outfielders are healthy. I do know that with Gomez being dinged up, it's an excuse to shelve him for a while. Maybe a stint on the DL wouldn't be too bad. Gomez to the DL, call up Liriano. When Cuddyer is healthy, DFA Bass. There, it's solved.

I posted previously about the sucess that Shooter Hunt was having in Elizabethton. That sucess earned him a promotion to Beloit. (Sidenote: Hunt and Ben Revere are two of the Twins top prospects and they are both at Beloit. If you could make it there, it would be worth it.) He made his premier at low-A today. He didn't disappoint.

5 innings, 3 hits, 1 earned run, 2 walks, (1 wild pitch), 9 strikeouts

The knock on Hunt was that he's a little out-of-control. He didn't do anything to show me that's gone, but the 9 Ks is a great start. Is it crazy to think that Fort Myers might not be too far away?

Twins Get Swept

2008-07-23T15:23:00.004-05:00

I'm not too discouraged by the sweep that just occured. Yeah, it's disappointing; but only because the Twins couldn't get one win. No one expected more than that. The pitching wasn't great, but the offense was clearly disappointed.

The big news continues to be Francisco Liriano. When is he going to be promoted? Personally, I don't think arbitration has anything to do with him being held down there. I think other things - like his behavior from November 06 to April of 08 - are the things weighing heavier on the Twins mind. With that being said, if Liriano doesn't reach Super-2 status, his contract will be renewed and he will probably make about $420,000 next year. If he were to reach arbitration he would make significantly more. Of the pitchers who were arbitration-eligible last year, Scott Kazmir and Chien Ming-Wang are most comparable to Liriano.

Scott Kazmir avoided arbitration by agreeing to a 1 yr, $3.875m contract with the Rays. He has since signed a long-term deal.

Chien Ming-Wang went to arbitration with the Yankees. He requested $4.6m, while the Yanks offered $4m. The Yankees won and Ming-Wang is making $4m this year.

Liriano's case differs in that he missed a whole year, but while he played he was better than either Kazmir or Ming-Wang. I would say $3.5m would be a fair guess - which is $3m more than he would make without arbitration. Regardless, this should be a moot point.

The part that needs to be addressed is getting Liriano up to the big club. It needs to happen. Having just pitched yesterday, he will need his rest, but should be ready by Sunday. In my opinion, it is Nick Blackburn and not Kevin Slowey who needs to be moved to the bullpen.

Nick Blackburn sits at 120 innings this year and is on pace to pitch 192. In my mind, I want him at a number that's more around 150 to 160. Kevin Slowey has only pitched 87.2 innings. He has a lower WHIP and BAA (although his ERA is higher) and is on pace to only pitch 140 innings.

My other concern is with Glen Perkins. He needs to stay in the rotation, but is now at almost 130 innings (combined MLB and AAA). If he stays in the rotation he will finish with around 180 innings. I think that number is too high.

So what's my solution? Slowey gets bumped up to pitch Sunday. Because of the off-day he will stay on 5-days rest. Liriano gets called up and pitches at home on Monday. Blackburn moves to the bullpen. To make room for Liriano, Brian Bass needs to be designated for assignment. For one, his spot on the 40-man roster will be needed in November and for another, Brian Bass will clear waivers and end up in Rochester, where he belongs. As for the the questions with Liriano's contract... well, they can play themselves out, because I doubt Bill Smith has let him affect his decision. (If anything, having to pay Liriano an extra $3m will limit Smith's ability to sign another Mike Lamb.)

I guess we'll see what happens...

Twins Win Big

2008-07-19T22:44:00.002-05:00

Tonight's 14-2 victory was very exciting. Being in the Metrodome with 35,000 other people was also quite the time.

Three Stars:
Justin Morneau - 2 for 4, 2B, HR, 2 R, 5 RBI, BB. All I can say is, "MVP!"
Livan Hernandez - 7 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, BB, 2 K. I think he has earned another start. Oh, and this was his 10th victory.
Delmon Young - 3 for 5, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI. I was especially excited after Young's 3rd hit, which put him at .300 for the year. His line-out in the 8th dropped him back to .299. (Side note: Delmon absolutely destroyed the ball during BP. In my opinion, more impressive than Josh Hamilton even. And yes, my friend Tim did catch two of his BP Home Runs... in the air.)

According to LaVelle E. Neal III, the Twins will not be trading for Adrian Beltre. Apparently the price is too high. If the price, in fact, would be one of the four youngsters in the rotation, then yes - that is too high.

Neal suggested this afternoon that the Twins "are also on the lookout for bullpen help, an area some people in the organization feel is a greater need. There are a few out there. Jon Rauch of the Nationals is one."

If the name "Jon Rauch" rings a bell, it's probably because I suggested yesterday that the Twins may have interest in him. (I'm not suggesting that the Star Tribune hire me, but I would have broke that news for an earlier edition.)

Also of note (and new to me), Neal believes that four of the Twins top prospects are out for the year: Tyler Robertson, Chris Parmelee, Joe Benson and Deibinson Romero. I will be the first to say that none performed to expecations and all will probably dropped on prospect lists. Ok, I'm probably not the first to say that.

Going for the sweep tomorrow!

Twins open 2nd half with win

2008-07-18T21:40:00.005-05:00

The Twins cruised to a 6-0 victory tonight over the Texas Rangers.

Three Stars:
Glen Perkins - 6 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 1 K, 98 pitches. With this performance, Perkins's ERA drops to 3.84. That is a pretty encouraging number for a guy that started the year in the AAA rotation and was viewed as a possible reliever. Although the 3 walks, with only 1 strikeout, isn't great; the fact that Perkins was able to hold a big-time offense to 3 hits - and 6 innings of shutout baseball - is a feat in itself. (This is the first game of the year that the Rangers haven't scored, I believe.) I think it should be pointed out that Perkins has never pitched more than 134 innings in a year as a professional. He is at 117.2 right now. So basically, when the calendar turns to August, Perkins will be in unchartered waters when it comes to innings pitched. I don't think it would be crazy for the Twins to limit his innings, especially coming off a shoulder injury, but at 7-2 and cruising, it would be tough to shut him down for any amount of time. Although, I do think the Twins might have a guy that could step in for a start or two...
Delmon Young - 4 for 4, RBI, SB. Don't look now, but D-Young is batting .294. I know the power numbers aren't there, but he's batting 30 points higher than Jason Kubel. And with tonight's game, he will be somewhere are the Top 20 in batting average in the AL. His slugging percentage on the other hand... four singles don't really help that.
Justin Morneau - 1 for 3, 2 R, BB, 2B. No let-down after the All-Star game. Tonight's scoring started after Morneau was able to reach with a double in the 4th. I think Morneau is officially on the radar when it comes to AL MVP.

Livan Hernandez will be on the hill tomorrow night. It is also Delmon Young bobblehead night. Hopefully, I will be able to snag a nodder or two from the "haters" that will be in the stands. I'm still a big fan of the guy; even though he hasn't performed as many of us had hoped. And his defense remains shaky. We'll see what happens with him.

On a side note, I wouldn't mind the Twins looking into making a deal with the Nationals to get Delmon's brother, Dmitri Young. He's relatively cheap ($5m this year and next) and would be a great mentor to little brother. He also still has some ability and could provide the team with a player much like Craig Monroe, only as a guy who could play a little 1B. The Nationals have the worst record in baseball, so they probably wouldn't hesitate to sell. Other guys on their roster that may generate some interest with the Twins:
-SS Cristian Guzman - .312/.341/.423. He's been (by far) the Nationals' best player. But his contract ($4.2m) expires at the end of the year and by trading him, the Nationals guarantee a return.
-RP John Rauch - 2.85 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 17 SV. If the Twins are actually looking for an 8th inning guy, this could be an answer. Rauch's contract is also affordable: $1.2m in '08; $2m in '09; $2.9m option in '10.

Of course, those names are all just curiousity/specualtion, but interesting as well. There is also that other rumor involving a Gold-Glove 3B. But at this point, with the team playing so well, why make a move?

Shooter Hunt

2008-07-16T22:26:00.002-05:00

As much fun as it has been to follow Ben Revere's year -- and his assault on .400 -- I think it's now time to tune into the new career of Shooter Hunt.

For those of you who don't know, Hunt was a top prospect but fell to the Twins in the Sandwich Round after a disappointing last half of his collegiate year. Since signing, Hunt has played 3 games in the Rookie Level Appy League with the Elizabethton Twins. Here are his lines:

July 4 - 3 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 6 K
July 11 - 5 IP, 0 H, 2 BB, 10 K
July 16 - 6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 12 K

His stats: 0.64 ERA, 0.29 WHIP, 16.7 K/9

People don't just luck out and have numbers like that.

My only question is does he make his next start with low-A Beloit or high-A Fort Myers?

Morneau wins Derby

2008-07-14T21:55:00.001-05:00

Congrats to Justin Morneau, who just won the Home Run Derby. I'm fairly certain he will go down as "the guy that won the Derby the year Josh Hamilton hit 28 HR's in the first round".

If you didn't watch it, I'm sure it will be on ESPN Classic.

Twins head into break

2008-07-13T21:53:00.002-05:00

The Twins finished their series with the Tigers today, ending their "first-half" with a loss. I think all Twins fans should be happy with where the team sits -- it's definitely exceeded expectations.

Instead of saying much about the last three games, I'm going to focus on a rumor that is starting to pick up some steam: Making a trade to acquire Adrian Beltre from the Seattle Mariners.

The obvious is this: The Twins lack power from the right side. They also lack a great glove. Enter Beltre - 16 homers, Gold Glove 3B. He is under contract for $12 million for both this year and next year.

If the price was only in dollars, that would be steep. He'd be the Twins highest paid player both this year and next. But the steeper price would be what the team would need to give up. I'm just going to throw out some possibility and finally, make a hypothetical trade.

Whenever there is a discussion about the Mariners, we first need to focus on what they've done - and that is trade away the farm for Erik Bedard. They gave up their 2007 #1 prospect CF Adam Jones and their 2008 #3 prospect RHP Chris Tillman, not to mention two left-handed pitchers and another right-handed pitcher. So those would be natural "need" starting points. Add into that the fact the Mariners would be giving up their starting 3B and we have a lot of potential trade possibilities.

First of all, pitchers are usually always included in trades like this. Some names I'd expect the Mariners to be tossing around:
LHP Glen Perkins
RHP Boof Bonser
RHP Philip Humber
RHP Kevin Mulvey
LHP Brian Duensing
RHP Anthony Slama
I also believe that guys like Swarzak (even though he's struggled), Robertson and Guerra would be mentioned, but I doubt the Twins would part with them; Swarzak because his value is not real high right now.

The other intriguing position would be outfielders. I would consider the Twins CF depth very good right now. Some possible names:
CF Denard Span
RF Michael Cuddyer
CF Joe Benson
CF Ben Revere
CF Angel Morales

I would also assume the Mariners would want to get an INF back, probably someone that could play 3B.
3B Mike Lamb
3B Matt Macri
3B/SS Trevor Plouffe
3B/SS Luke Hughes
3B Garrett Olson
3B Danny Valencia
3B Deibinson Romero

Presumably, for the Twins to take back $12m, they would require the Mariners to take some money back. In my mind, Mike Lamb or Michael Cuddyer would have to be included. With Cuddyer's big contract, I would have to assume that the package of prospects would have to increase. So the first part of the puzzle is easy: Mike Lamb. What's his value to the Mariners? Not too much.

Another piece of the puzzle would have to be a "top position prospect". The names that I would categorize there would be: Denard Span, Ben Revere, Joe Benson, Trevor Plouffe, Luke Hughes, Danny Valencia. Obviously, they are not all equal. I would have a really hard time giving up Span, Revere or Hughes. The other three - lesser prospects - could go. Of those three, the Mariners would probably find Joe Benson - an Adam Jones-like player - the most appealing.

Now the part that would make this trade actually happen - the pitchers. I think Perkins and a low prospect could make it work. I don't think the Twins would trade the guy from Stillwater. I don't think Bonser or Humber really excite anyone right now - their value is low. That leaves LHP Brian Duensing and RP Anthony Slama as guys the Mariners would probably focus on. (That's not to say some guys like Manship, Mullins, Rainville, Steadley, Devries, Waldrop, McCardell, Van Mil, etc. wouldn't/couldn't be traded.)

Would the price of CF Joe Benson, LHP Brian Duensing, RP Anthony Slama and throw-in 3B Mike Lamb be enough to get it done? Would the Twins need to include more major-league ready players? Is that too much? Who on the big-league club would the Twins be willing to part with?

If I was Bill Smith and the Mariners offered Beltre for these four, I would have to think hard about it. I would need to work out something money-wise, because $12m is a load to take on.

I would take a step back though and say this:
Joe Benson has fallen below Ben Revere, who will still be blocked by Gomez, Span and probably Young. Brian Duensing is a good prospect, but for a team that has all their "prospects" in the rotation already - and they're doing a good job at a higher level. Anthony Slama has been lights out, but he's old for his class. Mike Lamb... does anyone actually want Mike Lamb?

When I think about it that way, now I don't think that would be enough. Who else would have to be added? Who really knows? It's just something fun to think about.

Twins get back to winning

2008-07-10T16:20:00.002-05:00

After a good couple of games at Boston, the Twins were destroyed yesterday to complete the sweep. Although the series did put some distance between the Twins and Boston in the Wild Card Race, and the Twins and White Sox in the AL Central Race, the are still within striking distance.

Today's game against Detroit was not televised. I saw the score in the 6th - 6-2 Tigers - and thought we were headed for a 4th straight loss. Later, while watching ESPN News, I saw the Twins pulled out a 7-6 win in 11 innings. I read through the play-by-play and think we missed a pretty good game.

Three stars:
Justin Morneau: 5 for 5, 2 2B, HR, 2 R, RBI, BB. Morneau reached base all six times and hit a solo HR in the top of 11 to complete the comeback win. Let the official race for MVP begin.
Denard Span: 4 for 4, 3B, 2 R, RBI, BB. Span reached base all five times. (Leadoff anyone? HELLO!) It is becoming increasingly difficult to envision Span being returned to Rochester when Cuddyer is ready to return. (The two guys in jeopardy - Craig Monroe and Mike Lamb - combined to go 0 for 5 today.) If I was in charge: Span replaces Monroe on the roster. In a 6-game week in the outfield, Cuddyer gets a game off, Span gets a game off, Gomez gets two games off, Young gets two games off. Kubel would be the only DH; however, against a LHP, Young (or Gomez) would play DH. Another option would be to play Cuddyer at 1B and DH Morneau. I also wouldn't mind seeing Cuddyer get a game or two at 3B. In fact, Cuddyer could become that super-utility player he came into the league as.
Bullpen: 7.1 IP, 4 H, 5 BB, 7 K. It's about time! Kevin Slowey had another brutal performance, but the bullpen was able to give the Twins a shot. In fact, it appears that Joe Nathan and Craig Breslow - the two most dependable guys in the bullpen - pitched the worse.

I haven't able to keep up much with the minor leagues lately, so I don't have any good information.

Tomorrow the Twins play at 6:05. Glen Perkins will be making the start.

Baby News

2008-07-06T21:26:00.004-05:00

So shortly after I signed off last night, we headed to the hospital. We spent a long time waiting for things to progress... and they did at 2:49 pm. Cade Rodney Nygaard (8 lbs 7 oz, 20.5 in long) came into the world shortly before Nadal defeated Federer (in a 5-set epic match) and shortly after the Twins hung 3 runs on Cliff Lee in the 7th inning today. Needless to say, the big news - and pics - is below.

Marin was pretty excited to hold her little brother. Things will now be a little more interesting around the house.

Have a good night. I'll be sleeping like a baby!

Twins beat Indians twice

2008-07-05T21:34:00.002-05:00

The Twins have beaten the Indians twice since I last posted.

On Friday night, the Twins put together a 12-3 win. For as lopsided as the score was, the game was actually quite close until the 7th inning. The Twins were able to pour on a few extra runs late.
Three Stars:
Delmon Young - 3 for 5, HR, 3 R, 4 RBI. Delmon's finally starting to come around offensively. (Defensively, he will always be below-average.) His 3rd HR of the year, which came in the 3rd inning, is a sign that the power is starting to come. I don't think he'll get 20, but 15 isn't out of the question. (I still think that Gomez will be more a power-guy throughout the course of their careers.)
Nick Punto - 2 for 4, 2B, HR, 4 RBI, 3 R, BB. LNP's coming out party? I don't know if I'd go that far *coughTimcough* but it was nice to see a performance like this. Punto's glove is what gets him into the game, so whenever he's able to put forth this kind of offensive effort, it's nothing to icing on the cake. (I also promised to only say nice things about LNP for a week.)
Justin Morneau - 2 for 3, 2 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB. Regardless of how his teammates perform, Morneau continues to get it done. But would we expect anything less?

Saturday night's game started off with a quick lead and then Slowey gives up 5 second-inning runs. It didn't look good. But as always - at least lately - the offense is able to put together a rally. The Twins end up with a 9-6 victory. It is interesting to note that no Twins player had more than one hit. (Morneau was the only player without a hit; but managed to score twice.)
Three Stars:
Kevin Slowey - 6 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 6 K. This may be debatable. But without the big 2nd inning, Slowey's line is 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K. That is an amazing line. However, he had a really bad inning and bounced back to pitch a solid game. After Sizemore's HR, Slowey retired 13 straight; and 14 of 15 before leaving the game. I'm still not on board that Slowey is the BEST STARTER on the staff, but he definitely deserves to be mentioned along with Baker and Blackburn. (All three have ERAs under 4.00. I went back and looked - from 2002 to 2007, the Twins never finished a year with 3 starters under 4.00. There still is half a year to go, but that gives a good idea of how well these young guys are pitching.)
Joe Mauer - 1 for 2, RBI, 3 R, 3 BB. Not a lot of guys can improve their batting average by getting one hit in a game. Mauer can - he's up to .325 (2nd in the AL), he also improved his OBP to .415 (also 2nd). This goes without mentioning that he's playing the most physically demanding postition and statistically is light-years ahead of the other AL catchers.
Look (stats through yesterday's games):
Runs: 51 (1st by 12)
Hits: 90 (1st by 3)
Doubles: 22 (1st by 2)
Triples: 1 (2nd trails by 2)
Home Runs: 3 (low)
RBI: 36 (1st by 3)
Walks: 43 (1st by 17)
Average: .324 (1st by 25 points - among qualifiers)
OBP: .409 (1st by 68 points)
Slugging: .442 (2nd trails by 5 points)
OPS: .859 (1st by 64 points)
Denard Span - 1 for 2, 2 BB, R, RBI. I'm officially on board. Switch Span to lead-off and Gomez to 9th. When Cuddyer comes back, make a roster spot (either Lamb or Monroe), start Span at LF and let Young get his ABs at DH and rotating through the corner OF positions.

MY ALL-STAR PREDICTIONS:
I'm not sure if the whole line-up is announced tomorrow, or just the starters. But I'm going to make my prediction without doing too much research. Here are the guys that should represent the Twins in New York next Tuesday:
C Joe Mauer (starter) - I don't need to give you stats. I did that already.
1B Justin Morneau - He won't catch Youkilis, but Morneau should start. Oh, and he should be talked about in the MVP race too.
CLR Joe Nather - Because he's 5th in the AL in saves, he probably won't make it. His ERA, however, is 1.30 and that is pretty solid.

Anyway, I guess we'll see what happens tomorrow. I hope you all enjoyed the holdiay. Still no baby news.

Another series win

2008-07-02T15:39:00.003-05:00

The Twins completed their series against the Tigers with a 7-0 victory. Had the bullpen been able to hold the lead Friday night, they would have been able to sweep the Tigers - arguably a team just as hot as the Twins. Although taking two out of three is still acceptable. (That makes 15 of 18 since Friday the 13th of June.) They are 9 games over .500.

The highlight of today's game was the ability of Nick Blackburn to rebound from his 4 HR performance of last Friday night. Which leads me to...

THREE STARS:
Nick Blackburn - 7 IP, 3 H, 4 K, 1 BB. It would have been nice if he could have kept his pitch count (104) lower and been able to finish the game himself, but that's just being picky. Yesterday, Baker threw 70 of 100 pitches for strikes; today, Blackburn goes 69 for 104. And I thought Slowey was the control guy?
Delmon Young - 3 for 4, 2 2B, RBI, R. Admittedly a slow starter, Young has began to turn it around. His average is now up to .284. (He was 37th in the AL before today, where his average went up 6 points.) I know his OBP and SLG isn't great, but I think those will continue to climb as well. By the end of the year, I feel/hope that the "horrible trade" talk will subside.
Carlos Gomez - 3 for 5, R. As Go-Go goes, so goes the Twins. It really seems like that doesn't it? It also helps to have the other "Rabbits" around. (I don't think that's going to stick.)

The Twins have tomorrow off before opening a series against the disappointing Indians. The games might not be "must-win", but with the White Sox playing so well lately, the Twins need wins to keep the gap manageable.

Since the Family Update was so well liked, here's a little comical information from today:
LeAnne had made some toast for herself for breakfast and one piece remained on the plate on our fireplace. After dinner, the plate still hadn't made it's way into the garbage can. Marin brought me the plate and I told her it was "yucky". To which she replied, "No daddy. Dat not yucky, dat yummy in me tummy!" How can you not love that?! Needless to say, we threw it away anyway.

Have a good Wednesday!

Twins tame Tigers

2008-07-01T22:06:00.004-05:00

After last night's disappointing loss, the Twins were able to get back on track with a 6-4 offensive outburst.

Three Stars:
Craig Monroe - 2 for 3, HR, R, 3 RBI, BB. Monroe's 8th HR of the year was a big one. It got the offense back on track and helped lead the club to a victory.
Scott Baker - 6 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 5 K. I thought Baker had a pretty good outing. He is keeping his ERA under 4 and remains healthy. Is it too early to already be excited about next year's pitching rotation (all a year more experienced, and Liriano replacing Hernandez)?
"The Rabbits" - (Bremer clearly referred to Denard Span, Carlos Gomez and Alexi Casilla as "The Rabbits".) 6 for 9, 2 2B, 2 R, RBI, 3 BB, 0 K. How impressive was this group tonight? There are two legitimate lead-off hitters in this group... and Carlos Gomez bats in between them. I'm not going to back off my prediction that eventually Gomez develops into a #3 hitter and Mauer bumps up to #2. It just won't happen this year.

That's all for the game tonight. Tomorrow afternoon's game doesn't appear to be televised.

Family Update: We are 12 days to the due date for baby #2. LeAnne continues to work her normal hours... and as soon as baby comes, she'll be taking 12 weeks off. Marin is excited for her baby brother to come out and play. She's a little confused about the whole thing though, but she sure is funny. We finished the baby's room, so we're ready too. Even though I'm not sure I remember how the whole "newborn" thing works. I'm ready to give it a shot...

Cuddy to DL

2008-06-29T14:33:00.002-05:00

It's been reported during the game that RF Michael Cuddyer is heading to the Disabled List. He has a strained tendon in his left index finger. Cuddy spent some time on the DL earlier this year, but that was with a dislocated right index finger. So these injuries aren't at all related.

To take Cuddyer's place, OF Denard Span will be called up from Rochester. Many fans were excited with Span's performed during Cuddyer's last trip to the DL. If he can manage to play well while he's up, it will give the Front Office a tough choice to make: Send Span back down or release Craig Monroe? The decision to release Monroe will only get easier as he continues to struggle and the year continues to wind down. Unfortunately for the Red Wings, while Span recovered from a hand injury, the team really struggled. And unfortunately for Span, he was selected to participate in the All-Star Futures Game. It appears that with the promotion, he will probably still be with the Twins at the time of the game, and unable to participate. I believe that if Span can't play, the Twins will be able to send a different prospect. (Ben Revere?)

Twins prospects INF Luke Hughes was also selected to play in the game. He has played very well while healthy, but has been injured for a majority of the last few months. If he can stay healthy for a couple of months and continue to rake, he will be in line for a September call-up (or possibly earlier).

The Twins are currently leading behind a great start from Kevin Slowey. Let's hope they can keep it up.

It appears all good things must come to an end...

2008-06-28T20:26:00.003-05:00

At this moment, the Twins are in serious danger of having their winning streak snapped. No one has done much. (At least not well.) So I'm not going to say much about tonight's game.

Last night's game, however, was very exciting. I had the opportunity to be in attendance. I would definitely consider it one of the best three games I've seen in person. The other two are the games that 1) Koskie got hit in the chest running to first as the winning run scored from third and 2) the game that Jacque Jones scored the winning run on a wild pitch, he was on second base and I called that it would happen. Last night's game absolutely had the most action. (26 hits, 7 home runs.) It really felt like a game in October. It would be be cool if the Twins could play the Brewers in October, although it would really nullify home field advantage for both teams.

Oh, and I was on the JumboTron during "Living on a Prayer". Cool stuff.

Anway, a quick summary of the three stars of last night's 7-6 win.
Joe Mauer - 2 for 4, BB, 2 R, HR, RBI. Mauer's game winning HR in the 8th puts him atop this list.
Brian Bass - 2.1 IP, H, 2 K. As much as I don't really like Bass, he really came in and pitched well. It gave the offense a chance to get back in the game.
Delmon Young - 3 for 4, RBI. Although he didn't have a huge night offensively, it was important for him to play well after his 3-day break.

Other notes:
Michael Cuddyer and Alexi Casilla are both missing tonight's game with finger injuries. Neither appear to serious, but we'll stay tuned.

Let's hope the Twins can get back to their winning ways tomorrow night...

Twins Streak Continues

2008-06-26T21:35:00.005-05:00

The Twins completed their third straight sweep and ninth straight victory today.

Instead of naming stars, I'm just going to give you some information that I find important:
*Justin Morneau went 3 for 4 today with a HR and 3 RBI. He is now batting .310 on the year.
*Mike Redmond played today so Mauer could have a day off. He went 2 for 5 and is up to .286. That's not bad considering it took Redmond until the end of May to get to, and stay above .200.
*Carlos Gomez went 0 for 5 and is not batting .268. Does anyone else think that Gomez could use a day off?
*Delmon Young didn't play at all this series. Maybe he could have played a game for Cuddyer (2 for 13 this series) or Kubel (2 for 12). I think Delmon will get better. I would say that being benched for 3 games was unjustified.
*Brian Buscher is still getting it done (.386).
*In the winning streak, the starters have been 8-0. Only Slowey had a no decision, and he pitched very well.

The Brewers are coming to town tomorrow. They are playing well (8-2 in last 10), so expect some good games. I will be there tomorrow, so look for me.

The Timberwolves - as expected - drafted OJ Mayo. In a somewhat surprising move, they haven't traded him (yet). Not much has been made of the pick, so I'm going to assume they are keeping him. In my opinion, they 100% did the right thing.

In the 2nd round the Wolves had two picks. They took foreign C Nikola Pekovic from Montenegro and Kansas G Mario Chalmers. The analysts liked both picks. Apparently, Pekovic is under contract for a few years oversees, but was described as having "lottery talent." He likely won't make it to Minnesota for 3-4 years. I was a little surprised to see the Wolves take Chalmers. I don't doubt that he's going to be a decent player, but teams don't have a lot of room for 6-3 shooting guards... and the Wolves took two of them tonight. It wouldn't shock me if the Wolves night isn't over.

UPDATE 10:20 pm - The Wolves have traded Mario Chalmers to the Heat for a couple of 2nd round picks and cash. No word yet if Miami's pick this year is part of this deal. I would assume it would be, but who knows?

UPDATE 8:28 am - I actually went to bed last night thinking that OJ Mayo was going to stay a Timberwolf. Why wouldn't I? Hoiberg was telling us all that. Well, it turns out we were wrong. Mayo is heading to Memphis. I know a lot of Wolves fans are disappointed. This trade isn't going to help with fan-base. But I do think the Wolves will come out ok.

The deal: Mayo, Marko Jaric ($6.6m + 2 more years), Antoine Walker ($9.3m) and Greg Buckner ($3.8m +2 more years) for Kevin Love, Mike Miller ($9m + 1 more year), Brian Cardinal ($6.3m + 1 more year) and Jason Collins ($6.2m)

Contract-wise: The Wolves actually took more money back this year. Let's compare totals on a yearly basis - 08-09 gained approx. $1.8m. 09-10 gained approx. $5.4m. The deal will look good in 10-11 when this trade helps reduce the payroll by almost $12m. So over the life of these deals the Wolves salary will be reduced by close to $5 million. That doesn't include the fact that Love will sign for less money than Mayo.

Skill-wise: Mike Miller is going to lead the Wolves in scoring. He will fill a role that hasn't been properly filled since Sprewell left. He will start at a wing. Kevin Love will probably start at the 4, but will not be nearly as good as Mayo over their respective careers. The rest of the players are just bad contracts that won't play much. (Although I do wonder if the Wolves have room for both Mark Madsen and Brian Cardinal on their bench...?)

Fan-wise: I think a lot of Wolves fans were excited about Mayo. He probably would have helped sell tickets. As far as winning games, probably not likely in the beginning. Because of that, fans would stop coming. The Wolves, and Mike Miller, will be better in the long run. If they can start winning a few games, that will put fans in the seats.

Realistically: The Wolves win 25ish games and end up in the lottery with another high pick. They also will have Miami's pick if the Heat don't end up in the Top 10. If the Wolves finish with a decent record - and a pick outside of the Top 10 - they send their pick to the Clippers. Early money says that Wolves struggle all year and end up choosing between 7-0 C BJ Mullens of Ohio State or 7-3 Haseem Thabeet of UConn. Although there will be better players on the board. Why? Because that's how Kevin McHale rolls!

An early look at the roster:
PG - Sebastian Telfair (RFA) - If he leaves, Foye moves to point.
SG - Randy Foye - Let's hope he can stay healthy.
SF - Mike Miller - Will also play SG.
PF - Kevin Love - Athletic big man who should be perfect compliment to Big Al.
C - Al Jefferson - Should still get 20 and 10.
Res - Rashad McCants - Could start, but I envision him as a 6th man.
Res - Ryan Gomes (RFA) - Would probably start at SF if Telfair leaves.
Res - Corey Brewer - Will be asked to be defensive stopper.
Res - Craig Smith (RFA) - Will be part of big-man rotation.
Res - Jason Collins - Will probably start - ala Mark Blount, Michael Doleac - until Love is ready.
11th and 12th men - Brian Cardinal and Mark Madsen
Have a good night.

NBA Draft Preview

2008-06-25T21:15:00.003-05:00

The NBA Draft is tomorrow night. The Timberwolves hold the #3 pick. Unfortunately, if used, #3 will only net one player. If the Wolves are able to trade down, they may be able to fill additional holes. The Timberwolves have multiple holes to fill (in no particular order):

- A big man to compliment Al Jefferson. I believe that Jefferson is a true Power Forward (or a 4). An ideal big man would be a true center. I don't know that they exist anymore - and if they do they are extremely rare. The closest thing to a true center is Brook Lopez, Kosta Koufos and Roy Hibbert. Lopez would be a stretch at #3, but would be a possibility later in the lottery. I would view the other two as mid- to late 1st rounders.

-A guard to compliment Randy Foye (and to a lesser extent Rashad McCants). Personally, I think the Wolves need to view Foye as a PG and they need to draft a SG. OJ Mayo fits this mold perfectly, or if the Wolves trade down - Eric Gordon. The toughest part is determining how these guards can match up with the Tracy McGradys of the world.

Because the Timberwolves were so bad last year, the solution isn't nearly as simple as I may have made it sound. They need a lot of help. Here's how I hope it shakes down tomorrow:

At #1 the Bulls take PG Derrick Rose.

At #2 the Heat take F Michael Beasley. They are going to trade him. I think they would like the Wolves to offer #3 and Corey Brewer and/or the pick the Heat owe them. I don't think it will happen. For now, Beasley stays...

At #3 the Wolves take OJ Mayo. Immediately, the will begin working the phones. They will talk to the Heat. They will talk to the Grizzlies and Knicks... and other teams down lower. I don't think there will be any announced trades at this point.

At #4 the Sonics will take the guy they want the most. I just can't determine who they think it is. At this time, I'm leaning towards Arizona PG Jerryd Bayless. Regardless, this pick is the first domino.

At #5 the Grizzlies are going to be trying to move up. They are offering SF Mike Miller and PG Kyle Lowry as incentive. I really think the Heat will take the bait and move down to #5. I don't know who they'll take. If Bayless is available, they go that direction. If not, it's anyone's guess.

At #6 the Knicks will be trying to make a move to get OJ Mayo. The key for the Wolves is that Kevin Love is still on the board. I don't think they like anyone else enough to get rid of Mayo. If Love is on the board, I would be ok if the Wolves made this trade:

OJ Mayo, Marko Jaric ($6.5m) and Greg Buckner ($3.8m) for Kevin Love, F David Lee ($1.8m), 6-6 PG Mardy Collins ($1m), the expiring contract of F Malik Rose ($7.6m) and a draft pick (either a protected 1st next year or something like that).

If the Knicks blink, keep Mayo. I really don't think Mayo is the next Jordan, but I think he'll be a very good player. He will be an all-star and he will sell tickets. I don't feel the same about Kevin Love, but I do think he'll be pretty good.

Other trade partner possibilities:
Clippers at #7: Corey Maggette and Al Thornton would be ok to obtain in a trade.
Bucks at #8: Rumor has it that Charlie Villanueva and Yi are possibly on the move. Michael Redd may also be on his way out - not to Minnesota - so a 3-way is possible.
Bobcats at #9: Adam Morrison has been rumored. That's not going to happen. The Bobcats just did acquire another 1st rounder, so #9, #20 and a player like Jared Dudley and/or Sean May makes sense.
Nets at #10. Mayo seems like a Jay-Z type of guy. The Nets have lots of picks in the bank and guys like Sean Williams, Marcus Williams and Adam Boone are all decent young players.
I could go on like this forever... but I won't.

Either way, we will see what happens tomorrow night.

I'm going to take the night off of making a Twins post. They did win again last night, and they are winning again tonight, so we'll hope it continues...

Have a good night!

Twins add another win

2008-06-22T22:13:00.002-05:00

Today has been a very busy day, so I'm not going to post much at all.

The Twins won 5-3 today to complete their sweep over Arizona. Luckily, LeAnne and I were able to attend. We sat 12 rows up from Arizona's on-deck circle. They were pretty sweet seats.

After the game, we picked Marin up and brought her to her first movie - Kung Fu Panda. She liked it, but doesn't really understand what the theater is all about. She doesn't sit still and comments on everything. Good thing there were only two other people there.

So that brings us to back to the game...

Funny, but it's more of the same - seven with hits, five with runs, (only) three with RBIs.

Brian Buscher continues to get it done - 2 for 4, 2 RBI, R. He did come up with the bases loaded and fail to knock anyone in... that was different.
Livan Hernandez continues to do what he does - give up lots of hits (9) in lots - but less - innings (7), yet only allows 1 earned run (2 unearned) and collect his team-leading 8th win.
Jesse Crain is filthy. He only pitched one inning and didn't strike anyone out, but it was easy to see. (Maybe because we were sitting so close.) It was funny to see a guy come in and start throwing some pitches 3o mph faster than the guy he replaced. LeAnne also noticed that after one fastball, Mauer took off his glove and flexed his hand, like "man, that hurt."
Joe Nathan is the best closer in baseball... even with the twitch.

The Twins announced after the game that they'll be activating Nick Punto and option Matt Macri back to Rochester. Rochester fans should be happy. I would expect Macri, Sergio Santos and Trevor Plouffe to man 2B, 3B and SS in some combination. Macri has been playing well, so I'm sure it wasn't easy to send him down. Wait, "easy" could mean different things. It was easy in that it it had to be Macri or Buscher. It wasn't easy in that Macri has been performing better than other (higher-paid) veterans.

I'm not going to suggest any moves at this point. I will just list a few guys that I think need to step it up or risk being let go (sooner or later):
SOONER:
Brian Bass - this was probably "sooner" a month ago, but Bass has faired well lately. If there ever is a need for another pitcher and no one with options becomes likely to go down, Bass will be released.

Mike Lamb and Boof Bonser - I'm lumping these two together because I think the Twins should be actively shopping them. If the Twins decide to become sellers, Lamb could be moved to a contender looking for a left-handed bat. He could be had for a low-class low-to-mid-prospect. Bonser could be moved either way. If there is a NL team looking for a decent pitcher, I'm sure the Twins would be willing to part with Boof. I could see Bonser netting a high-class mid-prospect who maybe has a little pop. I don't have any possible partners... just thinking.

LATER:
Adam Everett - right now he's safe, but only because he's not taking up an active roster spot. For all I care, he could stay there for the rest of the year
Craig Monroe - he probably has a little time, but if Denard Span continues to play so well at AAA, there is no reason to keep Monroe around. Ok, there is 1: he has a little power.

Anyway, the Twins have a day off tomorrow before starting a series with the Padres. That should be fun. Don't get a case of the "Mondays"!

Five in a row!

2008-06-21T21:08:00.002-05:00

The Twins rode a big inning for the second night in a row to pull out a 6-1 win over the Diamondbacks. It was a game very similar to last night's game. Six different players scored, eight players got hits and five players knocked in runs. Sound similar to something you read about last night?

The Stars:
Nick Blackburn - 7 IP, 3 H, ER, 3 K, 89 pitches. For a majority of the night, it looked like a great start by Blackburn would be wasted. Regardless of what that offense (finally) did (or didn't do), it doesn't take anything away from this performance. The knock on Blackburn was always about his low strikeout rate. Forget about it. He's not going to strike many guys out, sure. But he's also got great control and doesn't allow a lot of hits. This isn't Livan we're talking about. Blackburn will continue to figure into the rotation-equation for a long time.
The hitters of the 7th inning - 7 for 10, BB, 3 2B, 6 R/RBI. The inning was started with Mauer's bunt single. Of course, all the hitters batted, not all contributed with runs, but this was a great inning to watch.

The Twins have now pulled within 2.5 games of the first-place White Sox. This is a half-game better than when they started their series in Chicago. But before we get too excited, let's remember that the Twins will be facing Brandon Webb on Sunday and Jake Peavy on Tuesday; they are two of the best pitchers in the National League.

Let's hope for another good game tomorrow!

Twins beat Big Unit

2008-06-20T23:26:00.003-05:00

The Twins beat Arizona 7-2 tonight on Dan Gladden Bobblehead Day.

Let me tell you about the Bobblehead first. Tim, a college buddy of mine, and I had discussed when we should arrive at the Dome. We used our previous five ventures as a guide and we decided that last year's Friday night bobblehead game - Joe Mauer - was going to be a little more popular than Gladden. I think we got to Mauer's at 10:00 (or before) and we were about 30 feet back leaning on the yellow posts. This year, we figured if we got there at 1:00, we should be in good shape. I guess you could say we were right. We got there a little bit before one, and there were about a dozen people at the gate we wait at. I think by about 3:30 our line had made it to the yellow posts. Needless to say, we didn't need to get there as early as we did. I'm also fairly certain that people that arrived at the Dome at 6:30 got the bobblehead. Oh well, I guess.

After watching the game and looking at the box score, I really think that tonight was a total team effort. Eight players got hits, six players scored runs and five players knocked in runs. Without giving you stats, I'd say Craig Monroe, Matt Macri and Scott Baker all had performances that stood out. And that's not even fair because Macri only played three innings.

Anyway, on my way home I ended up on a road that was unfamilar to me. It took me much longer to get home than it should have. So I'm tired and going to bed.

Have a good night!

Twins Sweep Nats!

2008-06-19T23:01:00.003-05:00

First of all, in some minor Twins news, AAA IF Chris Basak wasn't on the Rochester roster when I looked at it today. He hasn't been very good this year -- or really ever -- and isn't considered a prospect. I couldn't find out what happened to him; all I knew is that he appears on the Yankees AAA roster.

I invite you to read this blog: http://www.democratandchronicle.com/blogs/extrabases/

It explains Basak's "sale" and goes on to complain about how the Twins have handled things this with their Triple-A affiliate this year. You should also read the comments. I, not afraid of confrontation, chimed in with some thoughts. I have to say that turned my early night into a semi-late one; but it was well worth it.

Onto the team that really matters:

THE TWINS!

Yeah, the Twins pulled off a sweep off the Nationals today. It was an afternoon game, and I haven't seen any highlights, so I'm going to name my three stars based on the play-by-play update that I followed on the internet:
Michael Cuddyer - 2 for 2, 2 BB, 2B, 3B, 2 R, 2 RBI. Fill 'er up, Cuddy! Enough with the trade Cuddyer talks, he's starting to swing a hot bat again. And I like his rocket-arm. My mom has always been a huge Cuddy fan -- even back when all he did was strike out and ground out to the second baseman. Me, I took a while... but for now, Cuddy, you're ok with me!
Glen Perkins - 8 IP, 10 H, 3 ER, BB, 2 K, 106 pitches. How can I not talk about the former Pony? This is the second good start in a row; and the longest of his career. Too many hits, but a win is a win... most of the time anyway.
Brian Buscher - 2 for 3, R, 2 RBI. That "ticking" you hear is the clock on Mike Lamb's career as a Twin winding down. I still think it's a ways off, but it's easier to justify releasing $6.6 million than it is to never play $6.6 million... in my opinion anyways.

The Twins open their series with the D-backs tomorrow night. I will be heading their early to add to my bobblehead collection. I'm also pretty excited to see Scott Baker face off with future-Hall-of-Famer Randy "Big Unit" Johnson. I saw Johnson pitch once before (with the M's -- who had Griffey and A-Rod at the time) and he's only a sliver of what he used to be. But it will still be fun.

Anyway, let's all keep our fingers crossed that my wife doesn't go into labor in the next 24 hours.

In other big blog news -- I've now officially seen a link to my blog show up on a blog roll. And a pretty popular blog at that. If you head over to Taylor's Twins Talk, you will see a link to my blog... and I'm not even at the very bottom! Good times.

Have a good night!

Twins win again...

2008-06-18T21:26:00.003-05:00

The Twins blew this one open late and coasted to 11-2 victory. They will go for the sweep tomorrow afternoon.

An additional note - I will be heading to the Dome for Dan Gladden Bobblehead Day on Friday and get to see Randy Johnson pitch... good times.

Three Stars:
Carlos Gomez - 3 for 5, 2 R, RBI, 2 K. The game takes on a whole new life when Gomez gets on. It was actually quite comical when Gomez said during spring training that when Mauer and Morneau are batting, and Gomez is on base, the pitcher will be thinking "Gomez, Gomez", but now I see what he means. He's a thorn in the opposing teams' sides. He's obviously still overmatched in some (2 Ks tonight) at-bats. But when he gets on, good things are going to happen.
Kevin Slowey - 6 IP, 7 H, ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 90 pitches. Slowey had good stuff tonight; not great. A WHIP of 1.5 isn't especially good (unless we're comparing him to Livan). However, he was given 3 runs in support and that was enough for him.
Jesse Crain - IP, BB, 2 K. Crain came in with 2 inherited runners on, nobody out and a 3-1 lead. He was able to protect this lead; something that the bullpen has really struggled to do. Because it was so long ago, I can only vaugely remember the pre-injury Crain, but from my understanding, he is slowly getting back to that form.

Honorable Mentions: Justin Morneau (3 RBI), Brendan Harris (2B and 3B), Delmon Young and Brian Buscher (2 RBI each)

Notable: How about the near-triple-play in the 8th inning? If you didn't see it, I'll give you a recap: Brian Bass allows two hits to start the inning. The next batter bounces it to Buscher at third, who touches the bag and throws to Casilla at second. The throw is a little wide, so Casilla stretches to catch it and throws it to first, beating the runner. It turns out the 2nd base umpire believed that Casilla, while stretching to catch the throw, pulled his foot from the bag. So, instead of a 5-4-3 triple play, it will end up a 5-4-3 double play, narrowly missing becoming the first Twins triple play since May 27, 2006 when Luis Castillo, Morneau and Tony Batista combined for one against the Mariners. (The Twins still remain the only team to ever record two triple-plays in the same game. The accomplished the feat July 17, 1990 against the Red Sox. I believe they lost the game 1-0. Forgive me if my memory is off. I remember watching the game, but I was only 7 at the time.)

I also am becoming more and more in favor of a 3B platoon of Brian Buscher and Matt Macri. That leaves Mike Lamb in the cold. Personally, I was neither for or against the signing, because I knew very little of him. (Unlike Adam Everett; I was totally against that signing.) And also unlike Everett, Lamb's is a multi-year deal. So there would be a price to releasing him. There really are 3 options: keep him and pay him, release him and pay him, and trade him and get him off the books. Personally, I don't think they could unload him in a trade (at least not without taking on a similar bad contract). So what's it going to be? If it were my call, I am going to pay him either way, so why not just get it over with and let him go? I don't know. I think Lamb seems like a decent guy, and he probably is good in the locker room. I know he never was a full-time guy before, so being on the bench a bunch probably isn't a huge adjustment for him. Either way, I don't think there is a definite right answer (like with Rincon), but if there is ever a roster crunch and a spot is needed, I wouldn't question releasing him. (Of course, it's not my $6.6 million we're talking about either.)

Twins Win Quickly

2008-06-17T21:15:00.002-05:00

The Twins pull out a 2-1 victory over the Nationals tonight in a game that only took 1 hour and 59 minutes. There really wasn't much action, so I'm not going to say much.

Three Stars:
Livan Hernandez - 7 IP, 5 H, ER, K, 77 pitches. Livan's performance was the big news tonight. Obviously, the coaching staff doesn't have a ton of confidence in him, because he was pulled after only 77 pitches. Luckily, the bullpen was able to keep this one under control, so Livan takes the win.
Justin Morneau - 1 for 4, HR, 2 RBI, R. Morneau accounted for all the runs batted in tonight for the Twins... and the home run was a blast.
Joe Mauer - 2 for 3, BB, R. Mauer assumed his table-setter role once again. In a night full of not much, this was the only other player that stood out.

In minor league news:
There have been a lot of transactions in the past week. You can go to either Taylor's Twins Talk or LaVelle's blog on my sidebar and view the transactions. The other news is one of the Twins roookie-league teams, the Elizabethton Twins, started off their short-season tonight with a convincing 12-6 victory. (Last year's 2nd round pick, Danny Rams, started his season with 6 RBI.)

Twins Win Thriller

2008-06-14T22:14:00.004-05:00

I would like to post a lot on tonight's 9-4 12-inning win, but the TV is talking about some big storms that are coming, so I should probably find something better to do than ignore that.

Three Stars:
Brian Buscher - 3 for 5, 2 R, 3 RBI. He got it done. Offensively and defensively. Buscher far and away deserves the game ball for this one. As a left-handed 3B, he is stuck behind Mike Lamb, which is unfortunate. More games like this and it will be hard to not play him.
Glen Perkins - 6 IP, 8 H, 3 ER, 6 K, BB, HR, 93 pitches. Coming into this season, I wasn't a big fan of Perkins. The more I watch him, the more my fan-dom grows. He's never going to dominate, but he will be a solid middle-of-the-rotation type of guy for a long time. He just needs to keep doing what he's doing, even though tonight wasn't great... he did enough to give the Twins a chance to win.
Michael Cuddyer - 1 for 1, 3B, 2 RBI. I'm taking Cuddyer, even though his hit wasn't a game-winner, because after the play, every one was jacked.

Storms here... gotta go.

Twins whack Brew Crew

2008-06-13T22:24:00.003-05:00

I'm not going to get too optimistic after Friday night's 10-2 win in Milwaukee. But I'll tell you what, watching the offense score some runs and having the pitching staff hold a lead makes you feel good about the team, if only for a night.

Three Stars:
Kevin Slowey - 8 IP, 5 H, 5 K, 2 ER, 2 for 4, 2B, R, 2 RBI. For as bad as his last game was, this one was amazing. He was under control and hitting his corners. He avoided dangerous innings. He even helped himself out with a couple of big hits. Obviously, I think it benefitted Slowey that he hadn't faced many of the Brewers before, and if he had it was only a couple of at-bats. If these guys saw him regularly, it would become a different story. But they don't, so it's not. Great way to start the weekend - the bullpen is still fresh!

Now it gets a little tougher...
Six guys with multi-hit games, 2 guys with 3 RBI...

Alexi Casilla - 2 for 5, 2B, R, 3 RBI. I'm taking Casilla because he was part of the big 5th inning. In fact, if it weren't for a single play he made, that inning wouldn't have happened. Gomez led off the inning with a bunt single. Casilla followed with a bunt single. Mauer followed that up with a tailor-made double play ball. However, Casilla's hard slide into 2nd broke up that opportunity. The next batter, Morneau, was able to hit a 2-run 3B. Had it not been for Casilla's slide, the inning - and probably game - would have taken on a whole new look. Adding to that, Casilla also had a 3-run double in the 5-run 7th inning.
Delmon Young - 3 for 4, R, RBI. The big thing here is that Young was on the bench to start the game. When Cuddyer took a ball to the hand in the 1st inning and left the game later, Young had to step in; and step in he did. Mentally, a player usually has all day to prepare for a game (or a day off) and usually, on off days, a player is not likely to be called upon until later. However, Young was able to step in early and produce. Granted, it wasn't extra base hits and lots of runs batted in, but a 3-hit game when you're supposed to be on the bench is a good thing.

Pre-game big news: Twins first-round pick OF Aaron Hicks signed a contract. I believe the signing bonus was $1.78 million. Not bad for a guy who graduated earlier in the day. Here's your diploma... here's almost two million dollars. He is expected to play in the GCL, just as Ben Revere did last year. (Speaking of Ben Revere, he went 3 for 5 today and is batting .411. I know there is no reason to hurry the kid - and his defense is brutal - but how about a shot at high-A ball?)

Now onto the other stuff:
A lot has been made about AAA-affiliate Rochester only having eight healthy position players last night. How the Twins stiffed them and all that. Yeah, the Twins lacked the necessary foresight. The Red Wings won anyway, and the next day relief came from New Britain. I'm not going to make anything more of it; it's over and I doubt it will happen again.

Getting their first promotions to AAA were C Jeff Christy and SS/3B Trevor Plouffe.

Christy was a 6th round pick in 2006 out of Nebraska. Although, he's not a high-rated prospect, he would appear the next-ready to play besides the 4 above him. Personally, I don't think he'll ever wear a big-league Twins jersey, but what do I know?

Plouffe is a former 1st round draft pick. The Twins top choice in 2004, I rated him as the #5 prospect in the organization. That is higher than most other places have rated him, but he is still very young. In fact, he is over 5 years younger (22 tomorrow) than the Red Wings average age (27 and a month). With that being said, he wasn't performing so great that he needed to get the call. Honestly, there were other infielders in New Britain who were probably more deserving. (Plouffe was 0-3 in his debut.)

With 2 players leaving New Britain, there is going to be some ripple-effect felt between there and Ft. Myers. The report is that 4 players will be promoted after their all-star game tomorrow night. (There has been one already.)

Most likely, we will be seeing 3B Danny Valencia, 2B Brian Dinkelman, SP Jeff Manship and CLR Robert Delaney make the move to play every day in AA. (C Rodolfo Palacios was already promoted, but he doesn't figure as a top prospect.)

Valencia will be replacing Luke Hughes, who, when healthy, should head to Rochester. Valencia has been tearing it up and has wiggled his way from "3B of the Future" to "3B of 2010" to "3B of 2009...?" to "Can he be ready by September?" As good as he's been (.336/.402/.518), there is no way he heads North until September of 2009 (at the earliest).

Dinkelman hasn't been quite as good as Valencia (.293/.399/.414), but he's still putting up pretty good numbers. The issue is that New Britain already has a pretty good 2B, Steve Tolleson. Should he be getting the call to move up soon too?

Manship will step right into the rotation and continue as a top-level prospect; Delaney will probably assume a position as a set-up guy. While Manship may one day crack the big-league rotation, Delaney will be nothing more than a middle-reliever if he can continue his climb upward.

With that, I'm going to close up shop. I look forward to seeing what other move are made and let's all hope for Perkins to come up big tomorrow night, so we can go for the sweep on Sunday!

Thursday Update

2008-06-12T21:12:00.002-05:00

In case you haven't noticed, my posts are becoming fewer and farther between. This is partially by design and partially forced. By design, I have a hard time posting after the Twins lose. It's easy to get frustrated and fly off the handle. On the other hand, even though I don't work during the summer, my days only seem to get busier. In conclusion, I do plan to post my "three stars" after the Twins win. There will be no "stars" after a loss, but I may post.

I will post on transactions.

Speaking of transactions, the Twins FINALLY ended their tenure with Juan Rincon. If you check my archive, you will see I first suggested the Twins should release Juan Rincon on April 13. It's been a long time comin'. To take Rincon's spot, Brian Buscher was recalled. That has left Rochester especially short - they only had 8 healthy position players, so their pitchers had to bat today.

Although the Twins are in the midst of a losing skid, they did manage to win yesterday's game. Here are the three stars:
Jason Kubel - 3 for 4, HR, 2 RBI. Kubel doesn't seem to show up every night. He did last night and helped the Twins to a win. Nights like this can keep Kubel in the lineup, but those nights may become fewer.
Nick Blackburn - 6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 5 K, BB, HR. First quality start in a loooong time. And no line drives off the face.
Jesse Crain - 1.1 IP, 3 K, BB. We like contributions from the bullpen.

I won't be posting anything about tonights game - besides Livan was junk and Macri hit his first career HR - but let's hope I can post for the next three nights!

Go Twins!

Twins Skid Continues...

2008-06-08T16:37:00.002-05:00

Does anyone else think that Ron Gardenhire continues to pitch Juan Rincon - knowing that he'll get rocked - in hopes that Bill Smith will eventually notice how bad he is and release him?

Did anyone else see the monkey actually come off Delmon Young's back last night after he crossed home plate?

I'm not even going to go into detail about what happened last night and this afternoon.

I should have more to say tomorrow afternoon.

Friday Update

2008-06-06T20:20:00.004-05:00

The Twins didn't have a great series against the Orioles, but they still go into Chicago only 2.5 games back.

Some (kind of) big news is that UTIL Nick Punto had to go back on the DL with a hamstring injury. So 3B Matt Macri was called back up before actually getting back down to Rochester. This leaves the Twins thin on the bench, with only 3 bench players - Monroe, Redmond and Macri. With Punto, at least, the bench was had a little flexibility; now, it's limited. As an example, P Kevin Slowey had to pinch-run.

The other Twins news of yesterday and today is the draft. Over the course of it, the Twins selected 52 players. If last year is any indication, they will probably sign 20-25 of them. A few will sign too late to play at all this year. The deadline to sign these players - or lose their rights - is August 15.

The Twins had 3 of the first 31 picks. Their first pick was 14. The three guys that I narrowed it down to were all still on the board. The ended up selecting Prep OF Aaron Hicks. They should be able to sign him and I would expect him to play for the GCL Twins, which is the same path that last year's first pick, Ben Revere, took.

With their second pick, 27 overall, the Twins selected RHP Carlos Gutierrez from Miami. It came as a shock to the experts; I hadn't heard the name before. He is currently a closer, but the Twins are expected to make him a starter. As of now, he only has one pitch - a fastball with sink, but projects as a "fast-track" guy. Could he end up in Beloit or Ft. Myers this year? We'll have to stay tuned to see how this turns out...

At 31, the Twins took RHP Shooter Hunt from Tulane. I had seen Hunt as high as 12 in some mocks recently, so he was a surprise to fall so far. He projects as a back-of-the-rotation type of guy. He has two pitches right now - a fastball and a curve - that grade high. His changeup isn't used often, but is a projectable pitch. The knock on Hunt is his command. I would assume that when Hunt signs, he'll be shipped out to Elizabethton.

The Twins 2nd round pick, and last pick I'm going to talk about, is SS Tyler Ladendorf. This is the 3rd time that Ladendorf has been drafted. Right now he is a shortstop, but most project a move in his future. I expect he'll start as a SS, probably with the Gulf Coast team, unless Estarlin De Los Santos gets moved up from Elizabethton to Beloit.

Of course, it all depends on who signs when. Last year's rookie teams went 87-37, so hopefully this year's guys can play just as well.

Baseball Draft

2008-06-04T21:35:00.005-05:00

I'm not exactly sure why, but I love sports drafts.
I consider the NFL the greatest sport, and follow college football closely, so I always have interest in the NFL draft. It doesn't matter what team is drafting where, I follow it. For some reason, I would say that I followed the NFL draft less this year than any other of the previous 10-15 drafts.
I'm not a big fan of the NBA. In the last 5 years, I've probably watched less than a dozen NBA games start to finish. This year, I watched the T'wolves opener, that was it. I usually catch a few playoff games, this year I haven't. I do, however, have interest in the this year's finals. I could see myself watching a few of those. My interest in the NBA peaks near the end of June during the NBA draft. I will watch that closely... too closely. But it seems like my interest in the league will simmer within a week of the draft.

I think the great thing about these drafts is that every team believes they will take "the guy" that will make them instant contenders. They'll be making huge amounts of money, and the pressure, from Day 1, is on.

Tomorrow marks the first day of the MLB first-player draft. Last year was the first year it was televised. The fact that it is not a huge television event is just one of many differences between this and the other drafts.
The eligibility rules are different. Foreign players are free-agents. Can you imagine the NBA if all the foreign players were free agents?
Another big difference with this draft is whether or not certain players are "signable". If a player in the NBA (Steve Francis) or NFL (Eli Manning) is drafted by a team that isn't desirable, there aren't a lot of options for the player; the team is still going to take them. Eventually, the player will get traded, but the drafting team will make a haul. Not the case in baseball. Unless a player is a college senior, they have options - like going back to school. Only seniors are lame-ducks, but in their cases, they've probably been drafted twice (or more) before. When you can re-enter the draft a number of times, you have a little power.
Finally - and what I consider the biggest difference - comes the fact that players who are taken in tomorrow's draft won't become household names until 2010 0r 2011 at the soonest. There is no immediate help. There are very few players whose names you'll recognize from watching SportsCenter.

Thinking about these things left me wondering what I should post about the draft. Should I create a mock draft? Pointless. I decided I'm just going to take some names that I hear the Twins have interest in and post some things I've heard/read about them. That way, if any of these guys become Twins, you'll have some idea about them.

(Players are listed in the order that I prefer)
Zach Collier, OF, Chino Hills HS (CA) - Only 17, considered a "toolsy" outfielder. As much uncertainty as there is with players at the lower levels, I would have a hard time adding another OF to the stable that already includes a lot of young guys, including Joe Benson and Ben Revere at low-A. With that being said, the system lacks a lot of power and Collier projects as a power-hitting corner OF. There is definitely a lack of players with that "power" quality.

Brett Lawrie, C/3B, Brookswood SS (B.C.) - Doesn't have a true position, but is a power hitter. The Twins have been good with Canadien players (Koskie, Morneau). Lawrie has moved up and around on draft boards - mentioned as high as #7. If both him and Collier are there at 14, I hope they take one of them. Either would be okay with me, I'm keeping Collier above because he has a projectable position.

Aaron Hicks, OF/RHP, Woodrow Wilson HS (CA) - Many teams have reportedly shied off because Hicks refuses to sign as a pitcher. The Twins, alledgedly, want him as an OF. I hope he's gone by 14, so it's not considered. However, if Lawrie and Collier continue to rise and are gone, Hicks wouldn't be a reach.

Ethan Martin, 3B/RHP, Stevens County (CA) - Another 2-way player. I could really see the Twins making Martin their guy as either a 3B or a P. At this point, he's not super high on my list because I don't know if I should view him as a P or 3B (although indications are that he, too, only wants to be a position player).

Brett DeVall, LHP, Niceville HS (FL) - Big, strong lefty. The Twins really like players described in those three words. Not overly powerful, but has command and the ability to develop a few more pitches. I would assume that Twins will take DeVall at 27 or 31.
Isaac Galloway, OF, Los Osos HS (CA) - Similar to Collier, only a lower ceiling. If the Twins are dead-set on adding an OF and Collier is gone at 14, Galloway would make sense at 27 or 31.
Christian Friedrich, LHP, Eastern Kentucky - Considered the 2nd-best college LHP available. Although he's probably the most talented guy on this list, I'm not a big fan. He would fall right into the age range that is stacked with pitching prospects in the system. Unless the Twins consider him a #1, I hope they pass at 14. He should be gone by 27.
Anthony Hewitt, SS, The Salisbury School (CT) - I've heard a lot of teams between 14 and 27 are hot on Hewitt. I'm not. He's a SS now, but will need to be moved to CF. As a MIF, I'm listening, but a move to OF? Has a lot of "raw" talent. For me, only if he's available at 31.

Jemile Weeks, 2B, Miami - I cringe when I read a guy is a "table-setter" because that's what Weeks is, and that's what the Twins like. I'm hoping the combination of Casilla having a good year and Rickie Weeks having a bad year will be enough to scare the Twins off Weeks. Plus, you can only "set the table" so much before someone else needs to take care of it.
Brad Hand, LHP, Chaska HS (MN) - A local prep lefty. The Twins have always felt the need to protect their backyard. Could be considered at 27 or 31, more likely to be taken in the 2nd round.

My Twins projections: Ethan Martin at 14; Brett DeVall at 27; Brad Hand at 31.

My ideal Twins draft: Zack Collier at 14; Brett Lawrie (somehow) falls to 27; Brett DeVall or Brad Hand at 31.

That's all I have, tune into ESPN2 tomorrow at 1pm to see what happens. I'm thinking the Twins should be drafting around 2:15, 3:30 and 4:00, but that all depends on how long teams take. They can't trade picks, so it could move much faster... so don't schedule your draft-watching around my times.

Twins Notes

2008-06-03T21:07:00.002-05:00

The Twins pulled off quite a victory last night over the Yankees. Some notable things happened:
-Livan Hernandez was not very good.
-Joe Mauer hit his first home-run.
-Delmon Young had 3 doubles and 3 RBI.
-Michael Cuddyer continued his hot streak.

With the win, the Twins improve to 30-27. They currently sit half of a game behind the White Sox.

Some other tidbits of information:
-The First-Year player draft is Thursday afternoon. I don't have anything specific in mind for what I plan to post here, but I will be posting some sort of preview tomorrow night. The Twins have 3 of the first 31 picks.
-Boof Bonser has been moved to the bullpen. That means that Matt Macri will head back to Rochester (and the Twins will have only 3 batters on the bench - Redmond, Punto, Monroe).
-Apparently (and unfortunately) Juan Rincon will be remain on the roster... for now anyway.
-The Giants designated Erick Threets for assignmanet. Threets is a big, young lefty. From what I've heard about him, he used to throw in the high-90s, had some shoulder problems, and lost some velocity. He also comes with a "wicked" slider. Obviously, the Twins just signed Craig Breslow, who's pitched well, as another lefty option out of the bullpen. I think the Twins should put in a claim for Threets; chances are they wouldn't get him. If they happened to acquire him, they could DFA Rincon; and if Threets pans out, they'd also effectively replace Dennys Reyes, who is a free agent at the end of the season. Of course, odds are that Threets will be claimed by a team with a worse record and this is all moot... just something to keep your eye on.

As I write this the Twins trail the Orioles 5-3 in the 8th. What a let down after two good wins against the Yankees.

Twins win one, drop two to Yankees

2008-06-01T16:18:00.003-05:00

The Twins were able to escape the weekend with a win on Sunday afternoon. This came after dropping the first two games of the weekend. They will finish their Yankee series tomorrow night.

The Twins made two transactions over the weekend. The claimed LHRP Craig Breslow from Cleveland and activated UTIL Nick Punto from the DL. To make room for these two they optioned RHRP Bobby Korecky to Rochester and designated UTIL Howie Clark for assignment. More than likely, Clark will clear waivers and accept an assignment to Rochester. The Red Wings will, in turn, have to free up a roster spot. Chances are they will send MIF Felix Molina back to New Britain. Also, it should be noted that with the 40-man roster full, the Twins transferred Pat Neshek to the 60-man DL. This freed up a roster spot for Breslow. Additionally, by DFAing Clark, the Twins freed up another spot; their 40-man roster now sits at 39.

Now, onto the real stuff...

Friday night: The Twins jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the 1st inning, but then the bats went silent. The Yankees chipped away at the lead, finally going ahead 5-4 in the 5th before adding an insurance run in the 7th. The Twins were able to get one run back in the 8th, but couldn't get any more. The game finished in a 6-5 loss.

Justin Morneau hit his 10th HR of the season and Alexi Casilla continues to swing a hot stick (2-4, 2B. BA up to .340). Glen Perkins only went 4 innings and gave up 10 hits, 2 BB and 5 runs. He didn't strike out any. I would have said the Perkins was a bullpen candidate based on the sole fact that Reyes was the lone LHRP. However, with the addition of Breslow, it appears that Perkins should stay in the rotation.

Saturday night: The game went 12-innings and eventually Juan Rincon got the loss. This overshadowed an otherwise good performance by the bullpen (especially Craig Breslow, who struck out 3 and retired 5 straight). I do wonder why Joe Nathan is only capable of pitching one inning (and I'm not alone). Boof Bonser started and wasn't very good - 5 IP, 5 H, 5 R (2 ER), 3 BB, 2 K. Nick Punto made his return and committed a costly fielding error that resulted in 3 unearned runs in the 3rd inning. Isn't he around because of his defense? I see Brendan Harris make the same routine play all the time. Offensively, Michael Cuddyer, Mike Lamb and Delmon Young all contributed multi-hit games. Cuddyer hit his 2nd HR of the season. Lamb also narrowly missed hitting a walk-off HR at one point in the extra innings. Also of note, Alexi Casilla hit only 1 for 3, but walked 3 times. There is no way this guy loses his job anytime in the near future.

Sunday afternoon: Nick Blackburn was cruising until he took a Bobby Abreu line-drive off the kisser. I guess he's ok, but it really must have hurt. He finished with 4.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB and 3 K. The bullpen (Bass/Crain/Nathan) came in and did a great job closing out a 5-1 win. On the offensively side, Michael Cuddyer has really started to get his stuff together. He was 3 for 4 with 3 RBI. His average is up to .245, .20 points higher than a week ago. But still a ways to go before it's respectable. Justin Morneau pounded the ball twice for 2 hits, a double and a triple. Due to an error on the triple, he was able to score.
It really seems like most of the hitters are finding their grooves. Their numbers don't show it yet, but they all seem to be hitting the ball more consistantly than before.

One more against the Yankees and then the Orioles come to town for a 3-game series.

Twins complete sweep

2008-05-29T22:10:00.004-05:00

The Twins closed out the series with a convincing 5-1 victory over the Royals. It was a quick game (2:27) that I didn't get to see a whole lot of.

Three Stars:
Kevin Slowey - CG, 6 H, 1 ER, 6 K. With every game the pitching staff looks better. Tonight was no exception. Slowey was 1 out away from pitching his first major-league shutout. With Slowey's performance tonight and Blackburn's performance on Friday, along with Perkins's recent play, Hernandez making big money, and Baker's impending return, where and when does that leave room for the return of Francisco Liriano?
Carlos Gomez - 4 for 5, 2B, R, 2 RBI. Gomez has brought his average up to .293. Not bad for a guy that is supposed to be pretty raw.
Alexi Casilla - 3 for 4, BB, 2B. In Casilla's small sample, he's up to .326. Not bad for a guy that had no stick in AAA. I'm also pulling for Casilla to continue this strong run, because that should (hopefully) keep Punto's return light in playing time and at-bats.

Big series opens tomorrow against the Yanks.

Twins Come Back

2008-05-28T21:52:00.006-05:00

Somehow the Twins were able to come back tonight. I'm really at a loss for words. From last season, I don't think the offense really improved that much. Plus, there is very little power. Statistically, they are almost identical (2007: 4.4 rpg, .264 BA; 2008: 4.5 rpg, .266 BA). It just seems like this year, the team is capable of scoring runs and coming-from-behind. Either way, I'll take it.

Three Stars:
Craig Monroe - Pinch Hit 3-run HR in the top of the 9th with 2 outs. Tim texts me, "WOW!" Sheryl texts me and says, "Oh my gosh!" I say, "Hell yeah!" One swing of the bat is enough to get noticed here. (PS: I never said the Twins shouldn't give Craig Monroe $3.82 million this year... ok, fine, I did... but I'm beginning to be ok with it.)
Justin Morneau - 1 for 5, go-ahead HR. Yeah, so 1-5 isn't great, but the "1" was the game-winner, so the hockey player from Canada gets a little recognition. (And with Mauer's 0-fer, Morneau is only 10 BA pts behind him.)
The Bullpen - 4 IP, 3 H. The collection of Rincon, Korecky, Reyes, Crain and Nathan deserves some credit. Livan hung the team out to dry, and all too often in those types of situations the bullpen doesn't stop the bleeding. Tonight it did. It just so happened that the offense got the team back into the game.

Kevin Slowey tomorrow night goes for the sweep.

Twins Win - Barely!

2008-05-28T17:10:00.004-05:00

The Twins were cruising to a 3-0 lead before they hit a Delmon Young-sized speed bump in the 9th. They held on to win in 12 innings, but it was a hardly a feel-good win. I'm not going to be too critical of Delmon Young because he was trying to make a good play. Obviously, it wasn't necessary, but he's been ridden hard by lots of people and had he made the catch, it would have preserved the shutout. He learned a valuable lesson at 22, and the next time it won't just be excused.

Three Stars:
Nick Blackburn - 8.1 IP, 8 H, 2 ER (by Nathan), 4 K, 92 pitches and (most impressively) only 17 balls. The ending was unfortunate; but the performance was amazing. Based on his first 11 starts, don't we have to view him as a top-of-the-line starter?
Justin Morneau - 3 for 5, BB, R. The home-run numbers haven't been there, but slowly Morneau's batting average is becoming Mauer-like.
Alexi Casilla - 3 for 6, RBI, SB. Casilla has settled into the 2-hole nicely. He has become a table-setter from the lineup. When Gomez happens to get on, Casilla does a great job of getting him over. Does anyone else think that the lineup will eventually see Casilla leading off and Gomez batting 2nd?

Livan vs the Royals tonight.

Twins Prospect Ranking: 1-5

2008-05-26T14:36:00.002-05:00

1. Deolis Guerra, RHP, 4/17/89, Ft. Myers (A+), The final piece of the Santana-trade puzzle. Considered one of the best young pitching prospects in baseball. Has a huge frame and big-time ability, but the stats don’t match. Youngest player (by almost a year) in Twins full-season leagues. Now with the Twins organization, will slowly climb through the organization. Will probably arrive in Minnesota as a mid-season call-up in 2011.

2. Ben Revere, OF, 5/3/88, Beloit (A-), Twins first-round pick in ’07. Many believed he was drafted way too high. Started season in EST, but was moved up to Beloit where he has been unreal. Batting over .400 and been a huge spark for the team. Projects as lead-off CF with little pop, but is a long ways away. An estimation of 2012 – with Gomez moving to LF (and 3rd in the order) and Young to RF – is as good of guess as any.

3. Tyler Robertson, LHP, 12/23/87, Ft. Myers (A+), Widely considered the top Twins prospect going into last offseason. Has statistically been similar to Guerra, with much better K numbers; ranked lower based on age/stat comparison. As left-handed arms are short in supply, Robertson may be able to scratch the major-league surface as soon as 2010.

4. Kevin Mulvey, RHP, 5/26/85, Rochester (AAA), Forgotten amongst Santana trade chips. His stats for ’08 are not very good (2-6, 1.63 WHIP, 24-23 K/BB), but let’s not forget about his age – he’s only a couple months older than Anthony Swarzak, who is considered a top prospect and pitching a level lower. Not on the 40-man roster, Mulvey, realistically, probably won’t contend for a spot on the big club until 2010.

5. Trevor Plouffe, SS, 6/15/86, New Britain (AA), It seems like Plouffe has been around forever, so languishing at AA must mean he’s been a bust. After doing some research I believe the opposite. Steadily climbing the organizational ladder, Plouffe is repeating AA. Offensively, Plouffe has always been just ok, even showing a little bit of power, and has been a little better this year. He needs to lower his Ks and Es, but the fact is, Plouffe is young for AA and would even be considered young if playing in Ft. Myers. Compares favorably to former-Twin Jason Bartlett. Could become utility backup by 2010.

Twins Take Series

2008-05-25T14:55:00.005-05:00

The Twins rebounded from last night's disaster to put together a nice 6-1 win.

Three Stars:
Glen Perkins - 7.2 IP, 7 H, ER, 2 BB, 4 K, HR. These are the types of games the Twins need from their starters. Of the 3 most often mentioned - Perkins, Bonser and Slowey - to be losing their spot when Baker returns, only Bonser had a (very) bad start. Perkins also has an advantage in that he is the only LHP in the rotation.
Jason Kubel - 2 for 3, HR (Grand Slam), BB, R, 4 RBI. Kubel came up with the bases loaded in a 1-1 game and blew it open with a grand slam. He hasn't had a great year to this point, but hopefully this can be the beginning of a turn-around.
Mike Lamb - 3 for 4, 2B. Lamb has quietly seen his average grow to .246. That is 64 points better than a month ago and Lamb was also 5 for 7 over the weekend. I believe that when the infield is competely healthy, Lamb will only be getting starts vs. RHP.

So coming into an off day on Memorial Day, the Twins are 25-25.

An interesting bit about Francisco Liriano, who has been pitching well for the Rochester Red Wings. When a player hits 6 years of major league service time, he can become a free agent. When a player hits 3 -- actually a little less than 3, but I won't get into that -- he enters his arbitration years. For those who enter arbitration before their 3 years (Super Two's), they go through 4 years of arbitration.
Coming into this season, Liriano had 2 years and 31 days of service. If he serves 141 days on the Major League Roster, he would have 3 years of service at the end of the year, enter arbitration, and be 3 years away from free agency. Most of us believed that he would easily reach that.
Well, after Liriano's unsucessful stint with the Twins, he was sent back down. He put in 13 days of service. That leaves him 128 days short of 3 years. (Note: The numbers aren't official, so I may be off a couple.) Starting at the end of the season, which I believe is considered September 30, and counting back 128 days we end on Monday, May 26. If my math is on, it appears that Liriano's free agency has been delayed by a season. He will still hit arbitration at the end of the season, but still stands to lose millions. Tough break, 'Cisco.

Yikes! Twins get destroyed

2008-05-24T22:24:00.004-05:00

I wasn't going to be home for the game tonight, so I decided to DVR it and watch it when I got home. The Twins got down early, but were playing a decent game. At some point in the 4th inning, I decided I would check my email. I didn't expect to open my internet browser (my home page is ESPN) and see "Tigers score 19" as a headline. Let's just say I didn't need to pay much attention to the rest of the game.

To reiterate what I said earlier today, Juan Rincon needs to be designated for assignment. He wasn't any worse than usual tonight, and compared to Bonser and Bass, he was good. But it's gotten to the point where you know the guy isn't going to get people out without giving up walks, hits and runs. And that's not good for a guy in the bullpen (making a couple million dollars).

I'm going to change my guess. When Scott Baker comes back, it will be Boof Bonser, and not Kevin Slowey, that loses his spot in the rotation. At this point, I'm ready to move on without Boof. I'm not 100% sure how the "waiver-wire" works, but I think the Twins could put him on waivers and if he gets claimed, pull him back or trade him. If he doesn't get claimed, he could be sent down to AAA. Regardless, I don't like Boof in the bullpen. If they could get ANYTHING for him, they should trade him. If they can send him down, I'd be ok with that. But having him in the bullpen just wouldn't benefit anyone... especially the fans.

Finally, I think Brian Bass's roster spot might be in jeopardy. I think the Twins are content with Danny Graves and might just have found an opportunity to make the change.

In short, after a 19-3 loss, something has to be done.

I guess I won't name "three stars" tonight, because I just named "three un-stars".

Looking at the offensive side of the game, they were far from great. Some highlights:

Alexi Casilla hit his 2nd HR of the year. I have a hard time believing that he will get sent back down this year. I think he has settled in as the everyday 2B (or whatever middle infield position Punto doesn't start at).
Matt Macri had a memorable debut. He finished the game 2 for 3 with an RBI, R, BB and K. When Punto comes back, I think it makes sense for Macri to head back to Rochester, but with games like this, it will make the decision anything but easy.
Joe Mauer kept his average at an AL-leading .338.
Justin Morneau moved his average up to .311, which is top 10 in the AL.
Delmon Young, although hitless, took 2 more walks. He's taken 14 this year, he only took 26 all of last year. Now, if we could just figure out the HRs...
The problem was the other 4 batters who combined to go 1 for 17.

Tomorrow afternoon the Twins will try to take the series. Let's hope it's not a repeat performance of tonight.

Transactions -- I wish...

2008-05-24T15:54:00.003-05:00

If you follow the Twins Minor League teams at all, I'm sure there are some moves you're hoping are made soon. I'm going to start at the top and move down the ranks with all the moves I'd like to see.

First of all, Nick Punto and Scott Baker will be coming off the DL soon. The team will then need to free up two roster spots. Obviously, I think INF Matt Macri's stay with the team will be short, so there is one spot. The other move I would like to see is designating Juan Rincon for assignment. The bullpen needs to be shaken up. The Twins would then have 10 days to trade Rincon or release him. Either way, that is a transaction I wish I would read in the paper.

Moving down in the organization, you would notice that AAA Rochester is not getting much help from the Twins. The Twins have left the cupboard pretty empty down there and haven't given the Red Wings much help from within the organizaion. (They signed light-hitting SS Sergio Santos and called up light-hitting 2B Felix Molina from AA.) They have left their best AA players in New Britain.

First of all, I would release guys that aren't going to ever help the Twins.

1B/DH Randy Ruiz (.253, 53/7 SO/K ratio, 3 HR, 30 years old) is supposed to be their power guy, he's been junk.
UTIL Chris Basak (.237) is 29-years-old. When is he going to help?
SS Sergio Santos is younger (24) but is batting .202. Not exactly deserving of a major-league job.
P Heath Totten has been ok and has made some decent spot-starts, but at 29, he's not going to be a difference-maker either.
You might be familar with 1B/OF Garrett Jones. He's batting .184. 'Nuff said!

This would open 5 spots in Rochester. And they have an open spot already. Macri would take one spot and Denard Span would take a spot when he returns. That leaves 4 spots. I'll give you 3 names that need to be moved up from New Britain.

1B Brock Peterson would take Ruiz's spot. Peterson is 24 and has some power (15 HR in AA last year, 4 this year). This move would only seem logical.
3B/UTIL Luke Hughes has been the best hitter in the Twins organization this year. With 10 HR and a .348 average, what else is left to prove? He has been mentioned as a major-league call-up, but I think it would serve him best to get some time in AAA.
SS Trevor Plouffe has re-emerged on major prospect lists. The youngest player on the AA roster (by almost a year) has been hitting .283 and (from what I've read) playing pretty good defense.

Obviously making these moves would leave New Britain very light in the infield. Erik Lis would make the switch from the OF to 1B. And, luckily, there are two infielders (and a pitcher) ready to make the move to AA.

3B Danny Valencia is batting .346 with 23 extra base hits.
2B Brian Dinkleman is batting .316 with 18 extra base hits.
P Jeff Manship is 5-2 with a WHIP of 1.25.

With 3 spots open in Ft. Myers, some guys will be heading south from Beloit. OF Ben Revere (.408) is most deserving of a promotion, but he won't be getting the call. The following three guys make sense, based not only on their stats, but also their age and experience.

2B Steven Singleton is batting .333.
3B Garrett Olson is batting .267 in his second year at Beloit.
RP Loek Van Mil has a 2.01 ERA in 22 innings with a WHIP slightly over 1.

These opens the door for 3 more guys to come up from EST.

SS Esartlin De Los Santos - Chris Cates could slide to second for the Snappers.
1B Rene Leveret - Chris Parmelee can move back to the OF.
P Danny Rondon - Was a closer last year, could help in the bullpen.

I think as we approach the middle of June, some of these things will happen. I'm just hoping Smith and Rantz make these calls sooner rather than later.

Twins Drill Tigers

2008-05-23T21:41:00.002-05:00

The Twins took the opener in Detroit tonight with a 9-4 victory. Detroit had been on a roll lately, so this was nice - and to most, unexpected. Let's hope the Twins keep it going on the road.

Tonight's Three Stars (Welcome back!):
Mike Lamb - 2 for 3, HR, 3B, 2 BB, RBI, 4 R (one away from tying franchise record). It was nice to see Lamb have a good game, both with the bat and glove. He's batting only .232 for the year, so he has a ways to go before the "disappointment" tag is dropped. It looks more and more like his everyday job is going to become a platoon.
Kevin Slowey - 6 IP, 4 H, 3 BB, 2 K, 105 pitches. Coming into the game with something like a 19-3 K/BB Ratio, it's a little surprising that Slowely walked 3 guys. To me, it looked like he was hitting his spots. It would make sense that because of this Tigers lineup, Slowey threw more pitches out of the strike zone though. Regardless, whenever you get your first win of the year (after multiple losses) it's a relief. Basic math shows that when Scott Baker is healthy, there are going to be 6 guys for 5 spots. Slowey is one of those guys on the bubble. (My guess: Slowey heads back to Rochester.)
M&M Boys (Mauer and Morneau) - 4 for 9, 2 BB, 2 2B, 2 R, 3 RBI. When the future is 25 and 27-years old, it's bright. Personally, I don't like Mauer batting 3rd. But it works, and who am I to argue.

Boof Bonser gets a start tomorrow. If he gets off to a slow start, he might punch his own ticket to the bullpen.

Look for Matt Macri to make his Twins debut tomorrow. He was called up to replace Adam Everett and will probably get a start at third base.

Have a good Friday night!

Twins Split

2008-05-22T23:03:00.003-05:00

I wish I had more time to do this, but it's getting late and I'm getting tired.

The Twins lost in 10-innings to the Rangers today. After winning the first two, they drop the last two. They now find themselves 23-24 on the season.

Some thoughts:

The offense appears to be better this than in the past. Without doing any statistical research, I'm throwing this out there based on the simple fact that this year's Twins sometimes score 7 or 8 runs in a single game. The Twins of last year sometimes got lucky if they scored 8 runs over a 3-day period.

With that being said, I'm not sure how. Obviously, Mauer is still Mauer. He's hitting around .330, but he's still without a HR. Morneau has been pretty good as well, hitting for power - though we'd like more - and a decent average. After that, the production fades.

Carlos Gomez is sneaking up on the .300 mark, and has 4 HR and a bunch of SBs. He also has nights where he is completely overmatched. If he were consistant, it'd be great... but he's not. He sure is fun to watch though!

Delmon Young has not lived up to expectations. I had high hopes for him and thought he would more than fill Hunter's shoes offensively. Wrong. He's batting about .275, which isn't horrible, but he lacks power. I think eventually he'll be ok - this year even - I'm just hoping for more.

Michael Cuddyer has not been very good. He can't hit .225 and justify the contract he just signed. It's gotta get better though right?

Brendan Harris has shown flashes offensively... but where is he going to end up? Shortstop, Second Base? My guess is as a utility infielder.

The rest of the offensive has been sub-par, so I really don't feel like talking about them.

Another issue is with the defense. The team just isn't doing the little things right. Simple things - hitting the cut-off man, throwing the ball accurately to the base, catching the ball at the base. It's getting frustrating; there are just too many errors.

The last issue is with the bullpen. It's simply been junk.

I'm hoping that when the injuries subside, the team will be able to get rolling. I'm just not sure if that's the possible.

PS - How about my call on David Cook? And my preliminary call on the Wolves: They take the European guy that is ranked highly. Danilo somethingrather. If not him, Brook Lopez.

Twins lose big

2008-05-21T22:46:00.003-05:00

The Twins got beat by Sidney Ponson tonight. Is there much else to say?

Monday's game was fun to watch and interesting, to boot. Last night was also a good win. However, tonight was a mess.

Tomorrow's game is at noon and not on TV. I hope we miss a good one.

Idol

2008-05-21T19:01:00.002-05:00

I've sort of gotten away from posting my American Idol thoughts, but I thought I'd make one final prediction. For those of us that watched the show last night, I think we'd agree that David Archuleta out-performed David Cook. It's clear the judges favored him (and I think we all are aware of the fact that the show producers favor Lil' David as well). So, in theory, it should be a pretty anti-climatic finale. HOWEVER, I think we're in for a surprise. I have a feeling that Rocker David is going to take the crown. At this point, I really don't think it matters who wins, they're both going to make lots of money. Unfortunately, if Rocker David wins, it's really going to limit his ability to make his own music. But that's what I think is going to happen.

We'll find out in a couple of hours.

Issues

2008-05-19T22:26:00.002-05:00

As the Twins are about to blow this one to the Rangers, I'm going to discuss some of the issues I'm having with the team. Mostly, my problems are with managerial and front office decisions.

Here are some steps to right the ship:
Designate Adam Everett for assignment. He isn't hitting, and from what I can tell, he's not much in the field either. What's the point of keeping him around?
Trade Juan Rincon. And if there are no takers, cut him.
Bench Mike Lamb. He's never been anything better than a good bench player. I'd rather have a "good bench player" than a "bad starter".

Eventually Nick Punto will be healthy. Although I'm not a huge Punto guy, I think he deserves to get a few more opportunities. I'm not calling for him to the be "everyday 3B", but he is a decent third baseman. Alexi Casilla becoms the starting SS and leadoff hitter. Gomez moves down a spot.

When Scott Baker is healthy, he needs to be in the rotation. Although I'd like to see Glen Perkins remain in the rotation, I think he would be good in the bullpen. When push comes to shove, either Perkins or Boof Bonser should take Juan Rincon's place in the bullpen.

Other business to tend to:
Have you checked out the Rochester squad lately? Remember Garrett Jones? Well, he should be cut tomorrow or tonight or sometime soon. He's batting .185 and only has 3 HRs. Sergio Santos, recently claimed from Toronto, and taking up a spot on the 40-man roster, should be let go too. He's batting .177. Those two guys fit squarely in the category of "non-prospect". Kevin Mulvey, after starting strong, has fizzled.

On the bright side, both Denard Span and Brian Buscher deserve a shot if a spot becomes available. Danny Graves may also find himself in the Twins' bullpen in the near-future.

In AA, Luke Hughes, who's played 2B/3B/OF, has been amazing. He missed some time with a hamstring injury, but is currently batting .356. If the roster starts to shake, he just may find himself in the big leagues.

In low-A ball, 2007 1st round pick, Ben Revere, is batting .432. From what I've read, it's been rare for the Twins to move a 19-year-old up to high-A ball, but, seriously, what else does Revere have to prove?

Anyway, it's getting late and the Twins are threatening in the 11th. (Thanks to Bobby Korecky?!?) Let's hope for a win!

Twins Lose Another

2008-05-17T22:54:00.003-05:00

The last time I posted anything in length, the Twins were fresh off of taking 3 of 4 from the defending World Series Champion. Five days later, they'd dropped 4 of 5 to two teams that sit near the bottom of the standings. Welcome to reality.

The Twins are a team that can compete with any other team in the league. Although, they lack top-of-the-line pitching and seem to be light with the stick (still), they have a very good defensive outfield and have been batting well with runners in scoring position. The term "able to compete" isn't really a phrase used to describe world series teams though, so winning the division might not be a reasonable goal, even though they sit only half a game back after a quarter of the season.

I will take a look at some of the key things that have happened in the last five games tomorrow. I'm too tired to do it tonight.

Site Update

2008-05-16T22:13:00.002-05:00

I have been really busy lately and when the Twins are getting beat - swept - by the Blue Jays, it's even harder to find time. I hope that I can find some time tomorrow to post.

Either way, enjoy your weekend!

Twins Take Another

2008-05-12T21:07:00.002-05:00

I really enjoyed watching another Twins game on ESPN. It's definately got something to do with the HD, but also having competant announcers makes it better too. Either way, compound those with a 7-3 come-from-behind win, and it's all very sweet.

The game started rough, with Hernandez giving up three first-inning runs. I thought it was going to be a long night. However, the Twins followed that up with 2 in the first, 2 in the third and 3 in the fifth, knocking Clay Buchholz out of the game. That ended the scoring as the Twins held on for the win. I would have been happy with a split, I'm jacked about taking 3 of 4 from the BoSox.

Three Stars:
Joe Mauer - 1 for 2, 2 BB, 3 R. Steve Phillips suggested the Twins would be smart to bat Mauer leadoff. It'll never happen, but it makes sense. In fact, if he were to bat leadoff, his average and OBP would both increase -- and they're already pretty high (.333/.419). Regardless, it was clear that the announcers were all Mauer fans - both offensively and defensively.
Delmon Young - 2 for 4, 2 RBI. Although Young still hasn't come around with the extra base hits, he still hit the ball well tonight. Unfortunately, he tripped running the bases and left the game with an apparent ankle injury. If it were my call, this would be a good opportunity to give him tomorrow off. I hope it's nothing serious, the club can't afford any more injuries.
Craig Monroe - 1 for 2, 2 BB, 2 RBI, R. Monroe is doing everything the club needs, but for a little less than $4 million, he should be. To be clear though, it never hurts to have a bat in the lineup that can get it done... even if it is only for a few days.

The Twins open a 3-game series tomorrow against Toronto. It just so happens that Toronto is in the middle of a dry spell. If they can keep the bats going, this could be a very good series.

Have a good night!

Twins Win a Close One

2008-05-11T22:16:00.004-05:00

It got a little tense, but we were all able to let out a sigh of relief when Manny Ramirez grounded out to Adam Everett to end the game.

Just a quick report, it's getting late.

Three Stars: (You gotta love when your 6-9 batter knock in 8 runs!)
Craig Monroe - 2 for 4, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 2 R. The DH job appears open after Kubel has been a let down. Games like this help Monroe's chances.
Adam Everett - 1 for 4, HR, 2 RBI, R. He showed some unexpected power, but also played great defensively. I will lay off my "Cut Adam Everett" campaign for the time-being.
Justin Morneau - 3 for 3, 2 R, BB. The guys in front of him weren't getting on, so instead of Morneau going up trying to knock runners in, he was trying to get on base. And that's what he did - OBP of 100%.

The Twins will end their Red Sox series tomorrow. Three of four would be great.

Saturday's Game and Notes

2008-05-11T20:56:00.003-05:00

The Twins lost 5-2 to the Red Sox Saturday night. It marked Glen Perkins's first start in the big leagues. Although his performance started well, it declined, but, overall, was still a good start. (Details below.)

I'm not going to name three stars, but instead focus on Perkins's start:
6 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 98 pitches.

In my opinion, Perkins performed better than expected. Many would say it could have been much better, but it also could have been much worse. I think many of us would have been pleased if we were told he was going to go 6 innings and give up 3 runs. And that was his line. We don't need to focus on the 3 HRs. Although that could have been much more troublesome. I think we need to remember that Perkins is coming off of a shoulder injury and is really just getting stretched out to last that long. Had he been taken out with his pitch count in the 80s, we would be talking about 5 innings pitched and 1 earned run. To summarize, I think Perkins still faces an uphill battle to stick in the rotation when all the regulars are healthy, but I don't think he's the first on the list to get sent down when a roster spot is needed.

In other news, Francisco Liriano pitched for Rochester and made positive progress. He ended up going 6 innings, giving up 5 hits, 2 runs (both earned), striking out 5 and only walking 2. He threw 58 strikes in 91 pitches.

Rochester also called up Danny Graves to replace Glen Perkins on the AAA roster. His name may sound familiar because he was a NL All-Star for the Reds as a closer in 2000 and 2004. He started 2005 poorly and was released after making an obscene gesture to a fan who was yelling racial slurs at him. It turns out that Graves is the first and only Vietnamese-born player in major league history. What isn't clear to me is what was said that was so offensive...? Regardless, after his release from Cincinnati, he bounced around before signing with the Twins this spring. I think the big news is that he's scheduled to make a start for the Red Wings on Monday. If he can put together a few good games in AAA, it wouldn't shock me if the Twins tried to use him out of the bullpen at some point this year. Just a thought...

The Twins sent INF Little Nicky Punto to the DL and recalled 2B/SS Alexi Casilla from Rochester. Casilla started off the year very poorly, but has been playing better recently. He's hitting .219 on the year, but over his last 7 games he batted 7 for 18 (.389). I don't think his promotion is a huge surprise, because he provides an additional player who can play the middle infield.

Twins take opener

2008-05-09T22:50:00.002-05:00

The big news for most of the today was yesterday's injury to set-up specialist Pat Neshek. Initially, the diagnosis was an elbow strain; I think most of us were expecting worse. News came tonight that Neshek has a partial tear to the ulnar collateral ligament. If that ligament sounds familiar, it's because the UCL is what Tommy John needed replaced during his playing days. A surgery now reffered to as "Tommy John Surgery." And those are probably the 3 ugliest words a pitcher could ever hear. At this point, it's not known whether or not Neshek is going to need that surgery, but it's clear that he won't return until at the least the all-star break, if at all this season. It's a tough blow to the bullpen, but not one that the team can't overcome.

Onto some better news...

The Twins blew two leads tonight, but were able to come back in the bottom of the ninth against Jonathan Papelbon to win the series opener 7-6. It was nice to see the team come up with some offense, because the pitchers sure didn't get it done tonight.

Three Stars:
Mike Lamb - 1 for 2, game-winning 2 RBI. Getting this big hit is hopefully the way Lamb is going to break out for the season. He hasn't been seeing regular playing time lately, and that's understandable seeing that he's batting .213.
Delmon Young - 2 for 4, game-tying R, SB. Got thrown out at home on to tie the game, but redeemed himself by singling and later scoring in the ninth. Hopefully the singles will turn into doubles and Young will stop being such a disappointment.
Carlos Gomez - 1 for 4, RBI, R, 2 SB, BB, game-winning run. Go-Go drew a huge walk in the ninth. (Did anyone see that coming?) And he eventually scored the winning run.

That's all for tonight.

Gomez makes history; Twins lose series

2008-05-08T22:11:00.003-05:00

As I mentioned last night, Carlos Gomez had a chance to make history with a single in the ninth. And he was able to complete it. There have been a few times recently that I wish I had a DVD burner, and this was one of them. At some point in the next couple of years, I want to have the capability to be able to record a game and immediately burn it to DVD, and have a collection of games. I think "Carlos Gomez hits for first cylce in 22 years" would have been a good place to start.

Quick summaries of each of the last two games:
Thursday afternoon the Twins jumped out to an early lead, but Slowey couldn't hold it. The bullpen didn't help much as the Twins lose the rubber match 6-2.
Three Stars:
Joe Mauer - 2 for 3, RBI, BB. It seems like I mention Mauer after every game he plays. He's got his average up to .346, so he probably deserves it.
Matt Tolbert -1 for 4, RBI. Tolbert has seemed to do enough to take time away from Mike Lamb. At the very least, it appears that Tolbert will replace Nick Punto as the team's utility reserve at season's end.
Kevin Slowey - 5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 K, 83 pitches. Although he was given a lead and failed to hold onto it, I really think this start shows some promise. He demonstrated great control with no walks and only allowed 4 baserunners in 5 IP. Granted, two of those baserunners hit home runs. I really think this is a step in the right direction.

As for the Wednesday night game, I'm only going to name two stars, the guys who stole the show:
Carlos Gomez - 4 for 6, 2B, 3B, HR (CYCLE!), 3 RBI, 2 R. What else needs to be said? Gomez hits for the cycle in a 13-1 rout. That's enough for me.
Livan Hernandez - 9 IP (CG), 9 H, BB, 1 ER, 3 K. The Twins got their first complete game of the year, and it was almost a shut-out.

I'd like to honorably mention Little Nicky Putno who added 5 RBI on 2 hits from the 9-hole. His 3-run double in the sixth really blew this one open.

More tomorrow...

Twins Escape No-Hitter

2008-05-07T21:22:00.005-05:00

*As I type this, Carlos Gomez is a single away from hitting for the cycle. The last Twins cycle was in 1986 by a guy named Kirby. More importantly, the Twins currently lead 7-0 and Livan Hernandez has been pitching really well. I won't have time to write about this game tonight, but here's to hoping they can hold on.*

There really isn't much to say from a Twins Fan perspective. Thanks to Joe Mauer's 1-out double in the ninth, they were able to escape MLB history. They instead snap their winning streak with 1 hit against Gavin Floyd. Although Floyd hasn't done much in the Bigs, he was a highly-touted Phillie prospect who never lived up to the hype. As the 4th overall pick in the 2001 draft (the Mauer draft), he may finally be turning the corner... which is great for the White Sox; not the Twins.

Because it would be tough for me to pick Three Stars - one hit, pitching not great - I'm not going to. I'm instead going to turn my focus to an event that is slowly getting bigger - The MLB First Year Player Draft.

The rules regarding the draft seem to often change, and since college (and high-school) baseball lacks the popularity of football and basketball, we seem to know less about the baseball prospects. However, thanks to the internet, there is a wealth of information out there.

Here's how the baseball draft works: The order is determined by reversed order based on last year's record. Teams can't trade picks, but clubs may lose a pick to another team if they sign a stud free agent. (For example, the Twins acquired the Angels first round pick when the Angels signed Hunter.) There also is a sandwich round after the first round for these singings. (So even though the Twins got "nothing" when Hunter left, they actually got two first-round picks.)

Eligibility for the draft is cloudier than other leagues, but still managable. All players are eligible when they graduate from high school (as long as they are from a US territory or Canada). If a HS player is drafted and enrolls in a 4 year college, he is no longer property of his drafting team, and is not eligible to be drafted again until after his third year in college (or turns 21 - whatever comes first). It is not uncommon for top prep players to enroll in Junior Colleges. They do this because they are eligible to be drafted after their first JC season. Players from the Dominican Republic, Japan, etc are never eligible to be drafted... that is why they often sign as free agents at a young age.

Last year the Twins drafted towards the end of the first round. They used their pick on a 5-9 HS prospect out of Lexington, Kentucky: Ben Revere. Revere was considered a reach. In fact, a few scouting servies said the Twins would have had "multiple other" chances to select Revere. The MLB draft has just as much to do with money as it does with talent. That is why last year's 27th pick (Rick Porcello, DET) was considered by many to be one of top prospects. He said he would go to college if he didn't get a huge signing bonus - and many teams believed him.

Anyway, Ben Revere made his debut with the short-season rookie-level GCL Twins and performed very well. He recently was called up to low-A affiliate Beloit and has been tearing it up with the Snappers. In my opinion, he has leap-froged Top 5 prospect Joe Benson. (The current CF in Beloit.)

So looking at this year's draft, the Twins have 3 of the top 31 picks. They should be able to acquire some good prospects.
The Twins' Mideast scouting director is located in Lexington, and two of this year's top prep pitchers are from that area. I anticipate both of these guys getting a long look:
Nick Maronde: 6-3, 195, LHP. He can hit the low-90s with his fastball and should be able to develop two other pitches. High School teammate of Ben Revere. He may be gone when the Twins draft at 14.
Robbie Ross: 6-0, 170, LHP. Has a smaller frame than Maronde, but is just as powerful. His scouting report reminds me of a poor man's Tim Lincecum. Although he may not last long enough, I could see the Twins giving him a long look at 27 or 31.
*Regardless, I'm sure both of these guys have been scouted very heavily by the Twins staff.

Here are some other guys I hope get a look:
Chris Dominguez: 6-5, 235, 3B, Louisville. I know the Twins have 3B prospects, but this guy is worth a look. Has a huge body and projects as power guy. He also has a good enough glove to make it in the field. Is described as an "enigma", so it's hard to say how far he'll fall or how high he'll get the call.
Kyle Long: 6-8, 285, LHP/1B, HS. Another son of Howie going in the first round of a professional draft. He's throwing a mid-80s fastball and is raw at the plate. In my opinion, he'd be an interesting prospect. I think he'd be perfect at pick 31.
Jamile Weeks: 5-9, 180, 2B, U of Miami. Not the prospect his brother, Rickie, was. He doesn't project to have much power, but is a line-drive hitter who runs well. (Do the Twins like that?) Although I don't think he'd be as highly regarded if it weren't for his brother, I can see the Twins calling Weeks with pick 27.
Brett Lawrie: 6-0, 190, HS. May project as a top-flight catcher. As of now, doesn't have a true position. Guys like this can be of great value to a team with lots of holes throughout the organization.

I think that's enough to chew on for tonight.

Twins Sweep Tigers

2008-05-04T21:17:00.003-05:00

It was quite the come-from-behind victory today at the Dome. After the 6-run Tiger first, I considered going home. I had two Gardenhire bobbleheads in hand (one thanks to the people in front of me), but thought I'd give it a chance. I'm glad I stayed.

My first observation today was seeing Matt Tolbert taking grounders at third. I thought that was a little surprising because Little Nicky Punto was also in the lineup today. Tolbert has played a lot of short and Punto has played a lot of third. What might that switch mean? It's purely speculation, but maybe we'll see the Adam Everett Experiment soon come to an end and see LNP become the everyday shortstop. Both Punto's bat and glove have been better than Everett so far this year. I don't know...

Sunday's Three Stars:
Joe Mauer - 2 for 4, 2 RBI, R. He's hit his stride and as he stepped up to bat with two on and down a run, I knew he was going to get the job done. His average continues to climb (.333); and I have to admit that my Mauer "Fan-dom" may be reaching an all-time high.
LNP - 1 for 3, 2B, 2 RBI, R. Punto's become a servicable major leaguer. I don't know how long it will last, but it's nice to see him perform. He got a huge hit that turned the tides today. I'll take it... as long he continues to hit.
Boof Bonser - 6 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 5 K, 0 BB, 99 pitches, no decision. I didn't think Boof was going to make it out of the first, let alone pitch 6 innings. Boy I was wrong. After the first inning debacle, I believe Boof was able to get through the next five innings with 2 hits and about 50 pitches. He was also able t0 stay composed, which is great in itself. There were (and still are) many questions about the rotation, but Bonser has solidified his spot.

Saturday's Three Stars:
Brian Bass - 4 IP, 3 H, W. Bass was able to pick up his first win by pitching four shutout innings after Baker left early with a groin strain. Games like this will keep him on the roster and get him a job (elsewhere in the league) next year.
Craig Monroe - 2 for 3, R, 2-run HR. With Gomez getting a day off (headaches), Monroe got a spot start in center. He contributed offensively by getting his 2nd HR, and with Kubel struggling, Monroe might find himself DH'ing more. (He did Sunday.) I guess we'll see...
Joe Mauer - 3 for 4, 2B. He's got his bat going.

It's appears that Kevin Slowey will come up from Rochester and make Scott Baker's start on Thursday. That will give the Twins two extra days to decide if Baker can start on Saturday, or if a trip to the DL is necessary. In any case where you injure, and immediately re-injure, the same muscle, a 15-day break is in line. I'm all for that, we need Baker to be a healthy contributor.

Twins in First

2008-05-03T22:14:00.001-05:00

Twins won their 4th in a row tonight. Unfortunately, I don't have time to say much about it. I will post on both games tomorrow when I return.

Twins Tame Tigers

2008-05-02T23:13:00.004-05:00

The Twins got back to .500 tonight with their third straight victory. They really poured it on the Tigers, beating them 11-1. Luckily, I got to witness the offensive barrage in person. (In fact, a BP home run ball went about two feet over my head. I may have had a chance to catch it, but I was struggling to get my glove on. I guess that teaches me not to read the Twins Record Book while watching BP.)

Three Stars:
Livan Hernandez - 7 IP, 8 H, ER, 2 BB, 4 Ks, 102 pitches. It was nice to see Livan have a good game after three not-so-good outings. His lone run was a solo HR by Ordonez, and it was a shot. Cabrera followed that with a double and Guillen with a single, but Hernandez was able to avoid further damage by getting a double play ball to end the inning. I don't think we've come to expect performances like this, but hey, we'll take them!
(Before naming any hitters, I want to point out that all 9 starters got at least one hit.)
Joe Mauer - 2 for 3, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB. Mauer has settled into the 3rd spot and become a cadalyst for the offense. I can be a little hard on #7 from time to time, but when he's swinging well, the whole offense goes. I'm hopeful that eventually it will work out to bat Mauer after Gomez, but as long as this is working out, I'm on board.
Michael Cuddyer - 2 for 5, 2 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI. He also played well in the field and was smart on the basepaths. So much has been going right, did it all start when Cuddyer came back? It's hard to say, but it's nice having our right-fielder back.

Other news:
Carlos Gomez took a shot to the head while stealing second base. I wasn't able to see exactly what happen, but it didn't look good. Go-Go spent a few minutes lying face down and not moving. Eventually, he got up and sat on the cart which took him away. I don't believe any additional tests were done. My guess is that he'll play tomorrow if he doesn't have a splitting headache... but who knows?
Carlos Gomes led off the game with a walk! A pleasant sight!
Delmon Young has quietly got his batting average up to .271. This is 35 points higher than 2 weeks ago. He also has 6 SBs. Now, if we could only get a HR.
Brendan Harris knocked out his second HR of the year.

Twins going for #4 tomorrow night! Bobblehead game on Sunday.

2 in a row!!!

2008-04-30T21:03:00.002-05:00

I know it's only a 2-game series, but it's still a sweep. It may be the needed confidence booster before the "Showdown with Mo'town" this weekend. (I will be attending both the Friday and the Sunday game. For those who don't know, I'm a bobblehead collector and Sunday is the season premier in terms of bobbleheads with Ron Gardenhire.)

As for today's game, it wasn't televised. I watched the GameCast on ESPN which doesn't do it for me. Seeing Morneau hit a double to score the run that would amount as a winner is a whole lot different than reading "Morneau double to deep left. Gomez scores." But either way, I'll take the win.

Three Stars:
Carlos Gomez - 3 for 4, 2 R, RBI, SB, 2B, OF AST (threw Thome out at 3rd). Right when you think he's in over his head, he goes out and TOTALLY REDEEMS HIMSELF! Even if Gomez is in the lineup and isn't hitting well, the offense is still better. When he is hitting, even if nobody else is, the Twins have the potential to win. His batting average isn't terrible (.265), but his OBP is only .279. He's gotta learn to take some walks if the Twins offense is going to turn the page. (Heck, Delmon Young has taken 3 walks in the last 4 games... and he only took 26 all of last year.) So, in conclusion, that's my ONLY complaint with Go-Go: TAKE A BASE... you can still steal second. Oh, does anyone else want to see him try to steal home? Cause I do!

Check out this S-Trib article: http://www.startribune.com/sports/twins/18422239.html?page=1&c=y

Nick Blackburn - 7 IP, 8 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 88 pitches. I was skeptical about Blackburn being in the rotation before the season started. Yeah, he was BA's #1 organizational prospect, but he is 26. In comparison, both Bonser and Baker are 26, and Slowey is 24. So Blackburn isn't exactly "young" by rotation standards. Regardless of all of that, Blackburn is (usually) getting it done. In 6 games, he's really only had 1 bad start. Not all of the other 5 were good. But at least 3 were. That's at least reason for optimism.
Justin Morneau - 2 for 4, RBI, 2B. I didn't name Morneau a "star" after his last game-winner, so I'm going to pay him his dues right now. Nice work. Even though he's only hitting .268, he does have 22 RBI (which is tied for 3rd in the AL). How much of that has to do with the pitchers on the mound throwing to Morneau but thinking, "Gomez, Gomez"? Did anyone happen to read that quote earlier this spring? Well, Crazy Carlos might have been onto something... or not. Either way, the bats need to roll.

In other Twins news today:
Francisco Liriano pitched for Rochester today. To put it simply, he was BRUTAL. 4 1/3 IP, 5 H, 5 BB, 94 pitches, 51 strikes. At this point, I'm jumping off the Liriano-ship, cause it's not going anywhere. Part of me hopes he figures it out next week and can return to the big club. The other part of me hopes he stays down for the rest of the year regardless of when/if he figures it out. Right now, I'm in a "screw me/screw you" position with him. He screwed the Twins with his lack of rehab, so he can stay in the minors, miss arbitration and play for $410K again next year (instead of $1 million plus). That would be perfectly fine with me because at some point - whether '08, '09 or '10 - he'll figure it out.

The Twins announced that Adam Everett will be activated in time for Friday's game and that Brian Buscher will be optioned to Rochester. Although I hoped otherwise, I figured it was inevitable that Everett would get another shot. I just really thought it might be appealing to give Tolbert regular at-bats in Rochester and let Buscher pinch-hit. Speaking of Rochster, if you didn't know Alexi Casilla isn't hitting his weight, so don't expect him to be coming up anytime soon.

The Twins also made some other moves: They sold OF Jon Knott (Phillies) and release C Eli Whiteside. They will be replaced by Brian Buscher and C Ryan Jorgensen (activated from suspended list).

In American Idol news: Brooke White is going home. That leaves Syesha with the three guys. For some reason, I have to believe that this is neither the first nor last time that Syesha has been with three guys... JUST KIDDING! In all seriousness though, this is a two-horse race. And those horses are both named David. Smart money is on David Cook.

Later on!

Twins Win!!!

2008-04-29T21:50:00.004-05:00

I didn't watch much of the game tonight. I visited my brand-new baby nephew, Colton Thomas, and now I'm watching Juno. I did listen to some of the game and kept up by watching the box score.

Anyway, it was nice to get another tally in the win column by defeating the ChiSox 3-1.

Three Stars:

Boof Bonser - 7 IP, 6 H, ER (HR), BB, 8 Ks. I can be a little hard on Boof, especially last year. But this year he's pitched very well, just hasn't gotten much help from the offense. Tonight he took matters into his own hands. As far as I can tell, his 8 Ks are the most he's had since last May.

The Bullpen - 2 IP, H, K, 18 pitches. You gotta love it when these guys come in and do exactly what they're supposed to do. I'm really on board with getting Neshek signed to a long-term deal.
Batters 5-9 - 6 for 14, 3 R, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 2B, HR. How many times last year did the bottom of the order produce, let alone win a game? I'm gonna go out on a limb and say "not very often".

I know I kind of broke the rules - my 3 stars are actually 9 guys - but, hey, they are my rules and I like wins. Looking forward to more of the same tomorrow. Hopefully, Blackburn will get back on track.

Twins get blasted

2008-04-28T21:12:00.001-05:00

I'm having trouble getting my posts to work.

Let's just forget about yesterday and hope for a better game tomorrow.

Twins back on track

2008-04-27T12:37:00.004-05:00

The Twins were able to get back to their winning ways on Saturday night with a 12-6 win over the Sidney Ponson-led Texas Rangers. It came at a price, as Scott Baker left in the 5th inning with what was described as a "mild groin strain." It is unknown if he will be able to make his next scheduled start.

It was tough for me to decide on my three stars. Eight of the nine in the lineup got at least one hit. Six got two or more. Six players knocked in runs and seven scored. And that's not to mention the job the bullpen did after Baker left early.

Three Stars, after much debate:
Brendan Harris - 3 for 5, 2 R, 2B. Harris has been playing very well since being inserted in the #2 spot in the lineup. In my mind, I view Harris as the leadoff hitter. Yeah, Gomez bats first, but the lineup starts when Harris bats because he brings all the qualities of a leadoff hitter to the plate.
Mike Lamb - 3 for 4. 2 RBI, R, 2B. Lamb finally is starting to come around (his average is finally over .200) and that is good news for the Twins. Remember, Lamb was brought in for his bat - not his glove - but is arguably having his best fielding season at 3B. (His fielding percentage is .956. Only his 2005 season at .980 was better - but he only started 12 games at 3rd base that year.)
Twins Bullpen - 4 2/3 IP, 4 H, 6 BB (ouch!), ER, K. After Baker's early exit, the bullpen came in down 4-2 and did an excellent job giving the Twins a chance to win. The 10 baserunners in 4+ innings (WHIP over 2.00) is kind of alarming, but the 1 run is more important. Jesse Crain was especially dominant in his 2/3 of an inning. Hopefully, Livan "Innings-Eater" Hernandez can give the bullpen a break today.

In other news, the NFL Draft started yesterday. My mock ranked slightly below Mel Kiper's, but I still matched 7 players with their correct teams - and that's not easy to do. (My final draft was Friday - so I didn't change any of my picks even though a lot were known before draft time.)

I'm a Jaguars Fan - and I was happy with their first day. Obviously they gave up quite a bit to move up to get their guys, and only have 2 5th rounders today, but the one obvious weakness - a pass rush - was addressed yesterday with the selection of Derrick Harvey and Quentin Groves.

As far as the local teams go, I don't really have much to say, but I will anyway...
The Packers had a pretty good day I thought. Jordy Nelson will be able to contribute this year on special teams and eventually will be a pretty good receiver. He should see the field in 5-receiver sets. Brian Brohm was a very good selection. I wouldn't be surprised if he makes a start by the end of this season.
The Vikings surprised a lot people by trading up to draft S Tyrell Johnson. There were still good QBs and WRs on the board, which are both viewed as bigger needs than DB. (The Vikings were somewhat able to redeem themselves by trading up to draft John David Booty in the 5th round.)

The Twins game has begun, so I will be back to post later.

My Mock Draft

2008-04-26T09:40:00.002-05:00

Here's my shot at the 1st round:

1 MIA
Jake Long

2 STL
Glenn Dorsey

3 ATL
Chris Long

4 OAK
Darren McFadden

5 KC
Branden Albert

6 NYJ
Vernon Ghoulston

7 NE
Keith Rivers

8 BAL
Matt Ryan

9 CIN
Sedrick Ellis

10 NO
Leodis McKelvin

11 BUF
Devin Thomas

12 DEN
Ryan Clady

13 CAR
Chris Williams

14 CHI
DeSean Jackson

15 DET
Rashard Mendenhall

16 ARI
Derrick Harvey

17 KC
Phillip Merling

18 HOU
Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie

19 PHI
Jonathan Stewart

20 TB
Mike Jenkins

21 WAS
Malcolm Kelly

22 DAL
Felix Jones

23 PIT
Quentin Groves

24 TEN
James Hardy

25 SEA
Jeff Otah

26 JAC
Lawrence Jackson

27 SD
Aqib Talib

28 DAL
Limas Sweed

29 SF
Gosder Cherilus

30 GB
Jerod Mayo

31 NYG
Kenny Phillips

Twins blow lead, lose in extras

2008-04-25T22:07:00.004-05:00

The Twins lost a big lead and their starting center fielder tonight before falling to the Rangers in 10 innings tonight.

Not going to be a long post tonight on the game because I want to get some NFL Draft stuff done and on here too.

Three Stars:
Justin Morneau - 3 for 4, HR, R, 5 RBI, BB. It's a good thing that Morneau had a huge game. If he hadn't, it looks like tonight would have been a repeat of last night. And that would have sucked even more than it sucks already.
Joe Mauer - 2 for 3, 2B, 2 BB, R. As much as I don't like him in the 3-hole, I do like when he delivers. And he's been doing that lately, as he has his average up to .301.
Carlos Gomez - 2 for 3, 2 R, 2 bunt-singles, SB. When Gomez is on his game - and by that I mean bunting well - the Twins are a tough team. Do you think it's a coincidence that the Twins didn't score after he went out today and didn't score at all the only game he didn't start? If Gomez's injury proves to be something that can keep him out of the lineup for the next couple of days, the Twins may be in for a long weekend.

I almost forgot to mention: The Twins sent Denard Span and Francisco Liriano to Rochester. Activated Michael Cuddyer from the DL and called up Bobby Korecky from AAA.

Korecky has been closing for Rochester since last season and has done a pretty good job of it. He is not a conventional closer however, as he normally pitches multiple innings during his appearences. From what I've heard, he usually makes his save opportunities interesting, but has been better this year. Don't expect him to stick around too long, as the Twins will need another starter soon and Kevin Slowey is expected to be ready to play before long.

Did anyone else see the Twins All-You-Can-Eat-Promotion? $33 gets you a seat in the upper deck and all the food you can eat. That, my friends, sounds like a steal.

I'll be back with something on the NFL Draft. Either tonight or in the morning.

Dear Brewers Fans

2008-04-25T21:12:00.003-05:00

I've had a lot of request for something Brewers... well, here it is. This is also in response to the Brewers Fan that said this to me (Thanks Dan):

"You know... you should blog about the team thats actually going to win its division and make its first World Series appearance since 1982...Kapler. Braun. Fielder. Hart. JJ. Sheets. Milwaukee Brewers. World Series 2008 Champs! YES WE CAN!"

***Before I start, let me preface this by saying that I'm not anti-Brewers. Being in opposite leagues, I don't consider it a rivalry. In fact, if the Twins aren't on, I will watch the Brewers and maybe even hope they win... maybe.***

I like Brewers fans and I'll tell you why. They're always optimistic.

Every year is going to be "The Year".

You know what I'm talking about.

Let me give you a quick overview:
2004: 45-41 at the All-Star break. Everyone thinks it's going to be "the year" the post-season-less strek ends. The Brewers close with a 22-53 record (which just happens to be the worst 2nd half for any .500+ team at the break IN BASEBALL HISTORY). Don't worry, next year for sure.

2005: The Brewers start 3-0! This might be "the year" the Brewers win it all! They lose 10 of their next 12. But wait, they go on a tear in September to close the season at 81-81. You know what that means? That means next year is definately "the year"!

2006: You remember this year. The year when Sheets would win the Cy Young and Carlos Lee would be the NL MVP. And then Sheets got the blisters and then Lee got traded. Brewers Fans stayed optimistic.

2007: It's been 25 years, so this year is going to be "the year" for sure. A crazy good 25-11 start suggested it would be. And then the wheels fell off. Thank God the Mets collapsed, so no one noticed the Brewers fall off the face of the earth. But Ryan Braun was the NL ROY and Prince Fielder hit 50 home runs. So next year has gotta be "the year", right?

Let's not get ahead of ourselves Brewers Fans. Enjoy it while it lasts. I'll tell you, us Twins Fans are getting kinda antsy, we're closing on the 20th Anniversary of our last World Series Victory. I can only imagine how much it sucks to not even be able to celebrate an anniversary.

Visions of the Future?

2008-04-25T20:49:00.003-05:00

Weird thing happened earlier tonight.

I didn't get home until after the game had started, so I started watching the game on our little tv upstairs. During that time, Carlos Gomez got a bunt single and they showed him running to first in slow motion. For whatever reason, I was reminded of Jose Reyes. I don't know how many of you remember Reyes when he broke into the league, but he was very fast -- and had hamstring problems for parts of multiple seasons. As I sat watching I thought to myself, "When I get a chance to post tonight, I need to say something about my prediction that Carlos Gomez will pull a hamstring sometime soon."

Well, lo and behold, Gomez came up lame later during tonight's game. He was replaced in the lineup by Craig Monore, who immediately couldn't make a (routine-GoGo) play in center. At this point, we're not sure if it was a hamstring or what. Hopefully it will be nothing and Gomez will be back in center tomorrow. (If he's unable to, does that mean Span gets called back up?)

I will have another update after the game.

Twins Lose -- need to send Liriano down

2008-04-24T16:09:00.002-05:00

The Twins lost last night to the A's 3-0. It really didn't matter how the Twins played because Chad Gaudin was very good. I watched most of it and they really didn't play very well. Because of that and the fact that they are already playing today, I'm going to pass on the Three Stars.

As for today's game. I was presently surprised when Carlos Gomez (after a day off) led off today's game with a home run. It was also nice to give Liriano an opportunity to come into the game with a one-run cushion.

And then the wheels fell off...

Liriano made it only 2 outs into today's game and had already given up 5 H, 3 BB and 6 (all earned runs). Yikes!

Personally, I've had it with Francisco Liriano. I like him as a player. (Well, at least I did in 2006.) But it's become obvious that he's not doing the things he's supposed to be doing to get himself back into that form... and until he is, there is not room for him on this ball club. I also don't think it's worth sending him back to Rochester. I think it would make more sense to send him to Fort Myers -- either High-A ball or Extended Spring Training. And then, when all is said and done, don't bring him back until he's shown that he's ready. Even if that means 2009.

So what roster move should the Twins make? It really depends on Kevin Slowey. (Michael Cuddyer should take Denard Span's spot, not Liriano's.) If Slowey can come back as a starter, he should take Liriano's place. Even though a 5th starter isn't absolutely necessary until around May 10th, it would still benefit Slowey to be pitching to big-league hitting.

If Slowey isn't ready soon, that makes this move a little more interesting. Has Kevin Mulvey done enough to deserve a promotion? I think he's done enough to deserve a look. But is that the best idea in terms of the Twins' long-term plans? I don't really think so. With that being said, no other pitcher in Rochester has performed well enough to merit a look in the bigs, nor has any batter batted like he could help the Twins.

So my guess for Twins transactions in the next couple of weeks:
-Remove Michael Cuddyer from DL and send Denard Span to AAA.
-Send Francisco Liriano to High-A Ft. Myers and promote Kevin Mulvey.

That leaves Kevin Slowey and Adam Everett on the DL. Which could make for a few more interesting decisions in the near-future.

(On a side note, I was happy - but a little surprised - that Carly got sent home last night. My Idol Power Poll: 1. David C.; 2. David A.; 3. Syesha M.; 4. Brooke W.; 5. Jason C.)

Twins and Idol

2008-04-23T16:51:00.002-05:00

The Twins won their third straight last night with a 5-4 victory over Oakland. I was able to stay up for most of the game, but couldn't make it to the end.

Three Stars:
Craig Monroe - 3 for 4, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 2 R. Apparently, Monroe has always had Blanton's number. All it took was one night of Blanton to get Monroe's average back up to .300.
Delmon Young - 2 for 4, 2B, R. Young was this close to getting his first HR. But instead settled for his first extra base hit of the year. He's been giving decent at-bats, but has still (predictably) only taken 3 walks -- and that's disturbing.
The Bullpen - 3 IP, H, BB, 5 K, W, H, SV. The design is to hand the ball over to the bullpen with an opportunity to win the game. As long as they can keep it up, this year could be quite promising!

They play another late one tonight, so chances are there won't be an update until tomorrow. Speaking of tomorrow night, LOST returns with a new episode. In my opinion, the best hour of TV all week comes when LOST is on.

Less importantly, American Idol will be down to 5 after this week. I'm starting to wonder about this show and how much pressure the network puts on the judges. Clearly, David Archuleta has singing ability, but when you screw up the lines, the judges need to point that out. But apparently, the judges are under pressure to deliver the "All-David Final" with Carly coming in a close third.

How it should be tonight: David C, Syesha and Carly should be safe. David A and Brooke sweat it out. Jason goes home.

How it's going to be tonight: Davids and Carly are safe. Syesha and David survive the Bottom 3. Brooke goes home.

I guess we'll see later tonight.

If I Were... Kevin McHale

2008-04-21T19:37:00.003-05:00

First off, I would step back and look at what I've done in my almost 13 years of being Vice President of Basketball Operations of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

DRAFT HISTORY:

My first draft produced Kevin Garnett, who grew into something that was almost bigger than the franchise itself. After a disappointing run, there was no choice but to let him go.
The 1996 draft produced Stephon Marbury, but only through a trade with the Bucks. In hindsight, I would have been better off keeping Ray Allen. At the time though, it looked like the right deal.
The 1997 draft - the first draft after our initial playoff appearance - netted Paul Grant. He lasted a total of 16 career games scoring 29 points before being out of the league. We were able to rid ourselves of him in the Marbury trade.
The 1998 draft was more of the same - a low-skill big man. Of course Rasho Nesterovic is still in the league and contributing to a playoff team in Toronto. If my memory serves me correctly, he priced himself out of our range and we replaced him with Michael Olowokandi.
The 1999 draft was another first. For the first time in my tenure, we had two first round picks. We definitely hit on the first one - Wally Szczerbiak - who made an all-star game appearance, but missed big time on William Avery.
Another screw-up I made (Joe Smith), caused us to be stripped of a handful of 1st round picks over the course of the next five years. No first round picks in 2000, 2001, 2002 or 2004.
Our 2003 draft wasn't the splash we had hoped for... Ndudi Ebi just didn't get it done. We thought he had the ability to be a contributor, it turns out that I was just taken by a guy who's name was apparently announced "Doo-dee".
The next first round pick we had was 2005 and we took Rashad McCants in the middle of the first round. He fit in well with KG, but now we're still trying to find his place. His time is running out.
I made my second best pick in 2006 with the selection of Brandon Roy. Unfortunately, I traded him for Randy Foye. Roy has already proved he's an all-star, but if it wasn't for an injury, Foye might be at that level too. This draft also included our best 2nd round pick since Doug West in 1989- Craig Smith.
Our last draft produced two winners - Corey Brewer and Chris Richard. They didn't bring the wins with and both struggled as rookies. The jury is still out on both of them.

I think the next order of business is to look at my roster now and see what I have. The ultimate goal is to have a collection of guys that can play well together and win some games. Looking at a team like the Pistons as an example: Their players individually aren't the greatest, but put them together, and they are all all-stars. Would Tayshaun Prince be an all-star with the Wolves? No. Was Chauncey Billups? No. Together, though, that team is pretty good.

THE CURRENT ROSTER:

Al Jefferson - Averaged 21 pts and 11 boards. Signed a big contract extention that will have him in a Wolves uniform for the next five years. Has limited offensive game, but the ability to score 21 ppg with limited teammates says something. In the perfect world, we use Big Al at the 4 and build around him.
Randy Foye - Averaged 13 pts and 4 asts, but missed half the year with a knee injury. We will more than likely pick up the option for 2009-10, but he will surely be out to prove something next year. Ideally, Foye shows he can play both the 1 or the 2. Realistically though, at 6-3, Foye would have to play point guard. That would not be the ideal situation. I would love to surround him with talent and make him a combo guard off the bench, but he definately has the ability to be a starter.
Corey Brewer - Averaged 6 pts and 4 boards. Brewer came into the league with a reputation as a defensive stopper and he didn't completely disappoint. Make no mistake though, he can't play at this league at 6-9, 185. At some point, if he can improve his shot (37% FG, 19% 3s), he could be more than a defensive option off the bench, but he won't be there for a while.
Rashad McCants - Averaged 15 pts. Rashad doesn't contribute much besides his scoring. Is there a place for that in this league? Absolutely. But how much does that help a 22-60 team? Not a whole lot. He needs to be content with being a 6th man, one who can come in and fill it up a little... and not pout about it.

Those are 4 guys we know will be back next year. Assuming a 10-man rotation, with 5 role-playing backups, let's see where they fit:

PG - Randy Foye (but could move to the 2)
SG -
SF -
PF - Al Jefferson
C -
Scorer (6th man) - Rashad McCants
Back-up PG -
Defensive specialist - Corey Brewer
Back-up big-man -
Back-up big-man -

That doesn't seem to look very good, but it is realistic. Let's look at the rest of the possibilities:

Ryan Gomes - Averaged 12 points and 6 boards. Going into the offseason, he's the #1 in-house priority. If we can get him back at a reasonable price, he can be our 3-guy for the forseeable future.
Marko Jaric - Averaged 8 pts and 4 asts; Sebastian Telfair - Averaged 9 pts and 6 asts. We're going to have to move one of these guys. They both don't fit in long-term. If we could, we would trade Jaric. He's got a big contract, so he won't be easy to move. Telfair is the type of player that just needs to calm his game down. He would be a valuable back-up to any team, and he'll probably go where the money is. If would could get him reasonably and trade Jaric, Telfair would be a better choice. Either way, we'll keep one and move the other.
Craig Smith - Averaged 9 pts and 5 boards. Smith (along with Gomes) is the type of player that can really hamstring a franchise. If we overpay for either of these two, we're dead. Both would be nice to have back, but only at back-up money. If Smith is back, it's as a rotation player off the bench. If he's too spendy, see ya later.
Kirk Snyder - Averaged 7 pts and 2 boards. Snyder was a guy that flew nicely under the radar. He played well at times after being traded for Gerald Green. He should get a qualfying offer. If he's back, it will probably be as a rotation-guy. But, ideally, he's an emergency-only guy.
Greg Buckner - Averaged 4 pts and 1 ast. Buckner is a good, experienced guy to have around. He won't contribute much on the floor, but he's a guy we'd keep active just in case.
Mark Madsen - Averaged 2 boards. Mad-dog could contribute to a good team as a high-energy guy. Too bad there just isn't a spot for one of them on this squad. He'll stick around as the 12th man (again).
Chris Richard - Averaged 2 pts and 2 boards. Richard showed enough to get back to camp. Probably won't make the rotation, but could go to the D-League.
Antoine Walker - Averaged 8 pts and 4 boards. Walker can still play. It just won't be in Minnesota.
Michael Doleac - Averaged 2 pts and 2 boards. Won't be back.

Now look at the 15 man roster:

PG - Randy Foye (but could move to the 2)
SG -
SF - Ryan Gomes (but only at a REASONABLE price)
PF - Al Jefferson
C -
Scorer (6th man) - Rashad McCants
Back-up PG - Maric Jaric/Sebastian Telfair
Defensive specialist - Corey Brewer
Back-up big-man - Craig Smith (but only at a REASONABLE price)
Back-up big-man -
Player 11 - Greg Buckner, G
Player 12 - Mark Madsen, PF
Player 13 (Inactive) - Chris Richard, C
Player 14 (Inactive) - Kirk Snyder, SG
Player 15 (Inactive) -

That leaves some big holes - a true shooting guard, a big guy (either a 4 or 5) who can step out and shoot a little, and another big guy to fill out the rotation. But with a high first round pick, two high picks in the second round, and free agency, there is some reason for optimism. I'm not talking 20-win difference, but 30-32 wins could be reachable.

It's tough to determine before the draft order is set, but this would be my draft board (and let's not hope they drop to 6):

Michael Beasley - would probably start at 3 and bump Gomes to the bench/rotation or to free agency.
Derrick Rose - would start at PG and move Foye to SG.
Brook Lopez - would fit in well with Jefferson, but needs to bulk up.
Jerryd Bayless - would two combo guards work well together in the backcourt?
OJ May0 - would probably start at SG, but is he any better than McCants? Has marketability.

The 2nd round picks should yield at least one player that is capable of contributing.

Some Free Agents who could fit in (in no particular order):

Chris Duhon, PG, Bulls (Unrestricted)
Mickael Pietrus, G/F, Warriors (Unrestricted)
DeSagana Diop, C, Nets (Unrestricted)
Gilbert Arenas, SG, Wizards (Early Termination Option -- what?!)

It's really early in the off-season to be piecing together a "what-if" roster, but it's worth looking at. There are a lot of holes, but it also looks to be a fairly strong draft and a possibly-loaded free agent class. The playoffs is a stretch, but being competitive again, well, maybe that's less of a stretch.

That was much longer than I intended. We'll get back to the Twins when they start playing again. They open at Oakland tomorrow night, so there probably won't be a Twins post until Wednesday night. Looks like only American Idol tomorrow. Have a good night!

Twins Win Series

2008-04-20T17:57:00.004-05:00

The Twins took the series against the Indians today with a 2-1 victory this afternoon. And for the first time this season (that I can remember) I'm struggling to only name three stars... but here it goes.

Three Stars:
Scott Baker - 7 IP, 5 H, ER, BB, 8 K, 100 Pitches. It's really too bad that Baker got a "no-decision" for his gem today. More on Baker later...
Brendan Harris - 3 for 5, HR, RBI, 2 (both) runs. Harris got the first right-handed HR for the Twins this afternoon. He still has apparent defensive short-comings, but he's been a very good hitter (.322); unfortunately, Harris's sucess may keep him in the 2-hole... and Mauer in the 3rd spot. (NOOOOO!!!) More on this later...

Now for my dilemma: Carlos Gomez or Justin Morneau? Morneau may be the obvious choice because of his game-winning hit. But in my mind, had Gomez not made a brilliant catch in the 9th, the Indians win. Game over. Lights out. And for that reason...

Carlos Gomez - 0 for 5 (yikes!), 1 spectacular diving catch. Dick Bremer might have gotten one thing right: No one in the major leagues makes that catch... except for Carlos Gomez. Go Go Gomez Dive. (That's for you Tim.)

Now for a little more on Scott Baker. After today's game, his PBR is 14. What that means is if he can throw 100 pitches per ballgame, he'll only have 7.14 baserunners per start. That would lend itself (hopefully) to 1- and 2-run starts. And that, my friends, should help the ballclub get wins. I've read discussions about "#1 or ACE". In my opinion, an Ace is a #1 on any staff. A #1 is the best pitcher on a given staff. Scott Baker has solidified his status as a #1 on the Twins staff.

As for my take on the lineup, I would like to see this lineup get a try when Cuddyer comes back:
1. Gomez, R, CF
2. Harris, R, 2B
3. Morneau, L, 1B
4. Cuddyer, R, RF
5. Mauer, L, C
6. Young, R, LF
7. Kubel, L, DH
8. Lamb, L, 3B
9. Tolbert, S, SS

Although, I understand (with Everett or Tolbert) having a right/left/right order all the way through. By no means is this a slight on Joe Mauer. Yeah, he hits into the occasional (or more) double play (and it always pisses me off), but he always gives good at-bats and moving him down would provide the Twins with good at-bats while having guys on base. Just my opinion.

The Twins are off tomorrow; they will start a west-coast swing at Oakland on Tuesday night. With no game tomorrow, I am going to try to start something new... a little something called, "If I were..." and I'm going to start this random series with Kevin McHale and looking at the Timberwolves.

Later on!

Looking at Statistics

2008-04-19T19:34:00.003-05:00

I'm going to look at some stats.. but first I want to mention something I neglected earlier. The Twins placed Adam Everett on the DL and called up Brian Buscher. This was a move I alluded to earlier. Not a big surprise.

I decided to look at some pitching statistics, but not ones you'd see in a normal boxscore. I want to look at "pitches" and how they can relate to other statistics. The three things I'm going to look at are pitches per earned run (PER), pitches per inning pitched (PIP), and pitches per base runner (PBR).

My orignial assumption is that pitches per earned run would be the most important. My theory is that you want this number to be very high. If it is high, you are pitching the longest without giving up a lot of runs.

My second thought was that pitches per inning pitched would be least important. If you are a strikeout pitcher, you're going to throw more pitches to get less people out. If you have a low PIP, it would seem that you have a great defense behind you and/or you're getting lucky.

Before I get into my findings, I'll go through my process. I took the four starters (Hernandez, Bonser, Baker and Blackburn) that have been pitching all year. I also took Liriano's two games. Lastly, I compared these numbers to Santana's Cy Young years of 2004 and 2006, and Liriano's All-Star year of 2006.

Pitches per earned run:
Liriano in 2006 – 62.1
Santana in 2004 – 51.9
1) Nick Blackburn – 52.4
Santana in 2006 – 48
2) Livan Hernandez – 40
3) Scott Baker – 29.3
4) Boof Bonser – 28.4
5) Francisco Lirano – 25.4

Looking at this, I would say it's somewhat telling. Although I wouldn't agree that Blackburn is having a better year than Santana's 2006. I would agree that Liriano and Bonser's years so far aren't the greatest. This stat shows that.

Pitches per inning pitched
1) Livan Hernandez – 13.3
2) Scott Baker – 14. 1
3) Nick Blackburn – 14.5
4) Boof Bonser – 14.8
Santana in 2006 – 14.8
Liriano in 2006 – 14.9
Santana in 2004 – 15
5) Franciso Liriano – 18.4

Because the 2008 samples are so small, I have a hard time regarding this stat. I would assume, though, that the target should be between 13-16 pitches per inning on average. When you get higher than that, you're asking for trouble.

Pitchers per base runner
Santana in 2004 – 16.31
Liriano in 2006 – 14.89
Santana in 2006 – 14.82
1) Scott Baker – 13.2
2) Nick Blackburn – 11.8
3) Boof Bonser – 11.4
4) Livan Hernandez – 10.9
5) Francisco Liriano – 8.9

Now we're onto something! In Santana's great year of 2004, he only allowed a runner every 16.31 pitches. In 2006, Liriano and Santana both were around 14.8. (Sabathia, 2007 was 12.99; Colon, 2005 was 13.28; Halladay, 2003 was 12.74.) It's hard to tell with this year's guys because the sample is small, but if Scott Baker can stay on track, it makes me think that he'll have a very good year. He's on the hill tomorrow, so I guess we'll see!

Twins Back on Track

2008-04-19T17:31:00.003-05:00

The Twins won 3-0 this afternoon while making an appearance on FOX's Game of the Week. I'm going to give my Three Stars quickly, and if I have time tonight, make another post.

Three Stars:
Nick Blackburn - 7.2 IP, 8 H, 0 BB, K, 102 Pitches. As good as Cliff Lee was last night, Blackburn may have been just as good tonight. From what I was able to see, he pitched very well... but he also got help behind him. More on that later.
Justin Morneau - 2 for 4, 2 RBI, HR, R. After being shut out last night, it was huge for the Twins to get on the board quickly today. They did thanks to Morneau's bat.
Twins Defense - A staple of the Twins is great team defense. It hasn't been as great as in the past, but getting 4 double plays and having Delmon Young get a runner out at the plate today is what the Twins need to get - and stay - on track.

Hopefully this continues! Series closes tomorrow afternoon.

Bats Go Ice Cold

2008-04-18T21:26:00.003-05:00

The Twins couldn't get it going offensively and lost to the Indians 4-0. In fact, two of the three Twins hits were followed by groundball double-plays. Indians P Cliff Lee has pitched well this year, so this game wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Normally, I would choose three stars from the game, but when the team bats a collective 3 for 27 with 9 Ks and the pitchers aren't anything special, I'd be digging for one star, let alone three.

Of note tonight:

Francisco Liriano made only his second big-league start since returing from Tommy John surgery. It wasn't great, but I wouldn't classify it as "horrible" either. A final line of 5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 5 BB and 3 K is not what we came to expect from the F-Bomb, but we need to remember the circumstance. Bottom line: His control needs to get much better... and that will (or at least, should) come in time.
Casey Blake is a Twins Killer. Doesn't it seem like he always has big games against the Twins?
Kevin Slowey appears headed on a rehab assignment. It sounds like he'll get some starts at both Ft. Myers and Rochester before heading back to the Cities. Hopefully that by time, it's more clear who should and shouldn't be in the rotation.
Joe Mauer deviated from the norm with a 6-3 double play tonight. Why bother gettting the 2nd baseman involved?
Tomorrow night's game won't be broadcast. Hopefully we miss an offensive outburst.

I hope you enjoy the first night of your weekend!

Rays are the Devil

2008-04-17T21:47:00.003-05:00

The Twins were able to manage a split with the Rays after dropping tonight's game 7-3. There was nothing too spectacular. I'll quickly go through my 3 stars:
Matt Tolbert - 2 for 4, 2B, R, RBI. Like I've said before, the SS job might be Tolbert's now. I've posted that I think Everett's roster spot could be in jeopardy... although other more well-known bloggers don't think we've gotten to that point yet. Obviously, no one really knows. I'll go more in-depth on this situation later.
Justin Morneau - 2 for 3, 2B, R, BB. There isn't much too say besides the fact that these are the type of games I expect from the former MVP.
Carlos Gomez - 2 for 4, K. I've read that some bloggers think that when Cuddyer comes back off the DL it should be Gomez - and not Denard Span - that heads to Rochester. Yeah, I know a few days ago I said Gomez should be sent done... but that was only out of frustration. Carlos Gomez needs to play every day, and that needs to come in the major leagues.

(The three guys with multi-hit games. The Twins need offense. The pitching wasn't great tonight, but it wasn't bad enough that they didn't have a chance.)

As for my thoughts on the roster jam:
The Twins are in a situation where they'll soon need to make decisions on both the hitters and the pitchers.

Hitters: When Cuddyer went on the DL, Span was called up. Because Cuddyer was the everyday RF, Span was able to play every day (or close). This is an important step in his development. If Monroe or Kubel had gotten hurt, I don't know that Span would be the guy. The problem that will soon arise is what to do when Cuddyer is ready to come off the DL. Well, my opinion is that the Twins should wait until Cuddyer is more than ready to take over his duties in RF. Originally, I read the Twins would play him as soon as he could hit. And that he'd need to DH until he was ready to play in the field. That would be a mistake. I think the simple, and logical, thing to do would be to send Span back down. I've grown to really like Denard Span. He's patient at the plate, can make good contact, and isn't horrible in the field. Definitely a guy that can play at this level. So what's the problem? To develop, Gomez needs to play every day. Delmon Young is coming off playing 162 games last year, so he won't be needing too many days off. Cuddyer, while healthy, will play a very high percentage of games. And between Cuddy and Monroe, the DH position is covered. (Plus, let's not pull a Tyner and DH a light-hitting OF.) Span needs to develop and he would benefit from playing everyday at Rochester.

The other problem is Adam Everett. He's clearly not healthy. And even if he was, he's not very good. Yes, I realize he's making close to $3 million. Personally, and I know there would be a financial consequence, I would rid myself of him, even if that meant releasing him. I doubt he has much trade value. Tolbert can and should start. I think it's time to re-evaluate what Brian Buscher is capable of doing. If that means he's 2008's version of Randy Bush, fine.

The other door that remains a mystery is Craig Monroe. What does he bring to the table? Would the Twins be better off with Garrett Jones as an option? The problem is that the Twins don't really have a lot of capable right-handed batters. Not that Monroe always seems capable.

Pitchers: This problem may not arise until later, but what do the Twins do when Kevin Slowey comes back? Does he get back into the rotation? And at who's expense? I wouldn't totally mind Liriano coming out of the 'pen until he gets his control back, but the inevitable is that there are 6 pitchers for 5 rotation spots. My best guess is that Slowey rehabs, and then stays at Rochester. Chances are something will happen and he will end back up with the Twins by the first of June. I don't envision the Twins trading away any of these players.

Anyway, I'm going to bed. Enjoy your night.

Carl Crawford is a Bonehead

2008-04-16T22:02:00.004-05:00

I don't know how many of you kept on Carl Crawford/Delmon Young feud this winter. Basically, Crawford was pleased that Young was traded. He claimed Young was a distraction, too loud and, basically, disrespectful. Young's response was along the lines of "that team sucked before I was there." To which Crawford said something like "shut up and play."

Well tonight was their first meeting against each other. I was at at workshop this evening, so I watched most of the game on DVR fast-forward. (I was able to catch up to real-time.) Regardless, the "goat" tonight was none other than Carl Crawford. Crawford made a sliding catch in the 8th inning. Great catch. The problem was, the ball was foul, there were less than 2 outs, and there was a runner on third. When Crawford made the catch, the runner on third - Young - was able to tag up and score the winning. Boneheaded move, Carl. (What's better is that Crawford also made a ridiculous base running error against the Twins last year.)

Looking at tonight's stars:
Joe Mauer - 3 for 4, 2 R, RBI. Mauer was able to end a hitting slump last night and played even better tonight. He was also able to throw a couple of runners on attempted steals.
Jason Kubel - 2 for 4, 2B, R, RBI. Kubel was able to get the offense going today. He even made a heady baserunning play that allowed him to score later. I think that his recent play has all but ended Denard Span's run as a Twin. As soon as Cuddyer can stand in the box, Span will be sent down and Kubel will play RF while Cuddyer DH's.
Bullpen - 3 IP, 2 H, 2 K, W, SV. IT'S ABOUT TIME! Maybe the fact that the Twins weren't winning was good for the 'pen. But the trio of Reyes, Rincon and Nathan performed admirably. Let's keep it going!

Other noteworthy news:
Livan Hernandez gave up 8 H and 3 BB in 6 IP. His ERA also has climbed to 3.00. I still don't think he's done... but I'm also resigned to the fact that Livan probably won't win the Cy Young this year.
GoGo Gomez stole 2 more bases. (He's at 9 for the season.) I'm not able to find the link anymore, but some idiot at Baseball America predicted that Gomez would maybe steal 20 bases this year. Maybe. I wish I could find it... oh well.

As for American Idol, Kristy Lee finally went home.
My Idol Power 6: 1. David C.; 2. David A.; 3. Jason C.; 4. Syesha M.; 5. Brooke W.; 6. Carly S.

It's been a long day, so I'm going to bed.

Twins Get Swept

2008-04-15T21:00:00.002-05:00

Another day, another game for the Twins to blow in the 8th inning. The bullpen just hasn't been reliable and the starters just haven't left on good notes.

2 stars:
Joe Mauer - 2 for 4, 2 RBI, R, 2B. Mauer still isn't hitting like he should be. But this may be a positive change. I think the lineup - and Mauer especially - would really benefit from having Cuddyer back.
Craig Monroe - 2 for 4, RBI. I think there was a huge monkey on Monroe's back and maybe it came off tonight. At the very least, now we know he is capable of getting a hit (or two).

There is no one else worthy.
Scott Baker could have been considered, but he gave up 3 home runs. Only 5 hits and 2 walks over 7 innings (1.oo WHIP) is a pretty good start. But you can't give up 3 home runs. Lots of home runs (Santana) and early ones at that (Radke), it looks like we have our future #1.

On a separate note, the Top 7 performed tonight on American Idol.
I'll take the Davids (Archuleta and Cook) and call them safe.
I'm on the fence about Syesha, Brooke and Jason.
I think Carly and Kristy Lee are both in trouble.

That's all for tonight.

Twins Blow (It)

2008-04-14T21:53:00.003-05:00

What a disappointment! It made me sick to watch, so I'm not going to put myself through it again writing too much.

3 Stars:
Delmon Young - 3 for 5, 2 RBI, 3 R, 2B, SB. Watching the guy, I expect more. He doesn't show an ability to hit for any power and he takes some whacks at some horrible pitches. But at the same time, he's becoming one of the lineup's most reliable regulars. Defensively, he's been better than what I expected. He shows reasonable speed and can make the tough catch. That being said, his overall game still needs to inprove significantly.
Denard Span - 2 for 4, R, BB. I'm slowly beginning to come around to this "non-prospect". He's shown an ability to make good contact, take bad pitches and show speed on the basepaths. He's also done an admirable job playing RF after having not done it in the last handful of years. Yeah, he did let a double slip out of his glove and go over the fence. Yeah, he took the wrong angles on some balls and let them get to the fence. But overall, he's shown that he can get the job done at this level. Maybe he's made Craig Monroe expendable? More than likely not at this point... but if Monroe could ever gain some sort of trade value, Span could become a decent 4th OF. But, at the same time, how much time would he get with Young/Gomez/Cuddyer/Kubel playing the 3 OF spots and DH'ing? Not very much. At any rate, Span has shown that he has value. (Maybe Gomez can go to Rochester and learn to bunt...? Fat chance.)
Nick Blackburn - 5.2 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 0 K. To be completely honest, I went to give Marin a bath with 2 outs in the 6th... and Blackburn was rolling. 5-0 Twins. I come out a few minutes later and Blackburn is out of the game. 5-4 Twins. I don't really know what happened during that time, but up until then, Blackburn had been pitching really well. And was still in line for the win. Maybe the fact that he hadn't struck out a single batter shows that he wasn't tricking anyone. And against that lineup, you better have your best stuff. I like Blackburn and would like if he could stay in the rotation.

Tonight's junk:
Carlos Gomez - 0 for 5, including a strike out while trying to bunt with 2 strikes. I'll chip in for a plane ticket to Rochester, so he can learn how to bunt.
Joe Mauer - Great job getting 3 walks, but seriously, another GIDP? Enough already! I thought the Common Man was funny nicknaming him Joe "4-6-3" Mauer. But there is a difference between "funny" and "right." Well, there was a difference.
Justin Morneau - I know he didn't have a terrible game, but he's a former MVP... and I don't think he should be batting cleanup.
Mike Lamb - Not that it mattered, but can you say, "world's longest single"?
Adam Everett - Congrats on the two hits, but he's here for another reason. Error (3, throw) shouldn't show up in the boxscore in his 9th game as a Twin. If it was his 139th game, ok, but it's not. I'm officially on the "Cut Adam Everett Wagon". Who's with me? (Having Everett on the roster prevents Punto from playing, so there is one plus... but it's not even a big plus... and that's not good.)
Pat Neshek - I was all about getting a long-term deal done with Neshek. And I still am. Do it now... seriously, I bet we can get him for 6 years/$6.50 an hour. Joke of a performance Pat. Let me be the first to nickname Neshek "Nails". I figure batters might fear a guy named Nails Neshek. Pat? That ain't scaring anybody.
But nobody was a bigger turd tonight than...
Matt Guerrier - 4 outs, 5 hits, 5 runs, 4 earned, 1 HR (not all his fault), hold. I like that he was credited with a hold... because to me, he couldn't hold a Tiger jock tonight. Maybe he got a raw end to Blackburn's night. Or maybe he just was the unlucky recipient of the Tigers' studs finally figuring it out. I heard the equipment guy joke that he was changing the G in Guerrier to a T. Like Matt Tuerrier, as in Matt Tuerrierable. But look at the bright side, at least you're not Juan Rincon.

I feel better now. I guess I just needed to vent a little.

Twins Lose Sunday

2008-04-13T21:21:00.003-05:00

It's just going to be a quick post on this afternoon's game.

The Twins couldn't finish off the sweep today in Kansas City, but I'm sure many fans tuned in to see the big news of today: Francisco Liriano's return to the hill. And when you tune in to watch one guy, I'm going to make him a star, regardless of how he did.

Three Stars (slim picking):
Justin Morneau - 1 for 4, RBI. The best of the Twins offense today. Is this what we should expect with Mauer and Tolbert on the bench? Yikes.
Brian Bass - 2.1 IP, BB, 17 pitches, 7 groundouts. Bass efficiently retires 7 batters and Rincon gives up a HR and 3 long flyball outs. Bass is becoming comfortable and somewhat reliable. I'm hoping he can sucessfully step into the position that Guerrier has held the last few years, so Guerrier can take Rincon's spot... and Rincon can be released (or at least rarely pitch).
Francisco Liriano - Although we would have loved to see the old 'Cisco, it just wasn't realistic. A look at what he did:
4.2 IP, 90 pitches (My prediction: 6-7 IP, 75-90 pitches. Had he been more effective, his 90 pitches would have gotten him further.)
6 H, 4 ER (My prediction: 4 ER. I can handle this in his first start back... in the cold.)
5 BB, 4 K (My predicion: 3 BB, 7 K. This is where his start could have been better. He was all over the place. I don't know exactly, but it seemed like almost every hitter had a 3-0 or 3-1 count. That led to almost every leadoff guy getting on. It will get better though.)
NO ELBOW PAIN. (Sigh of relief)

Twins finish their road trip at Detroit. Hopefully Detroit can continue with their struggles.

Hope you all enjoyed your weekend!

Twins On A Roll

2008-04-12T20:49:00.002-05:00

The Twins just wrapped up their third victory in a row with a 2-0 win over the Royals. (That's 18 straight scoreless innings for Twins opponents.)

Just quick notes tonight, 3 stars:

Boof Bonser - 6 IP, 3 H, 4 K, 2 BB. It was nice that Boof got a win, and the fact that he was the starting pitcher in a shutout makes him a star. Now, how much did the weather have to do with Bonser's sucess? I don't know. But I'll take his performance tonight.

Jason Kubel - 2 for 4, HR, RBI, 2 R. The only player to cross the plate tonight. If he can continue to bat well while DH'ing, I think he can become an All-Star caliber-type player. That's some high hope, yes, but let's see how this year plays out. Too often players that have played a lot in the field have a hard time adjusting to only batting. I can only imagine how tough it would be on a cold night like tonight and not even getting to run to and from the dugout. (But I bet the clubhouse is warm.)

Nick Punto - 2 for 3, BB. I've never been a Punto guy. And I won't be. Ever. But you know, Punto has never been in a role like this, well at least not lately. For a guy who's great with the glove and terrible with a bat, it makes little sense to make him your everyday 3B. It does make sense, however, to make a guy like that a defensive replacement/spot starter. It looks like Gardy finally figured it out... and Punto is thriving. Good for him. At least if he can have a reasonably decent year, he'll get a "minor-league contract" from someone next year... probably the Pirates.

In Minor League news: It seems the Twins will be getting back Rule V P Tim Lahey. When the Phillies activated Brad Lidge, they designated Lahey for assignment. To put it simply, what that means is that the Twins can take him back and put him the minors. (The other option would be to trade him, a path the Twins have taken a few times recently.) In my opinion, the Twins would be smart to take him back and place him in Rochester. His long-term potential is as a right-hand bullpen guy.

Well, I've come to the end of my post... but I posted, so that means I didn't die today playing basketball. I made my first shot of the day and missed the rest. (I only took a couple more.) We won one and lost one. Right now I'm feeling ok, but not great. Headache, backache, left knee pain, right hand and elbow pain... but no broken bones!

(And before you consider that first line a jinx, I firmly believe that Liriano will get roughed up early tomorrow. My prediction/hopes: 75-90 pitches - 6 to 7 innings, hopefully - 4 or less ER, 3 or less BB, 7 K, and, most importantly, NO ELBOW PAIN.)

Happy Saturday night!