Minnesota Twins

The Minnesota Twins and Milwaukee Brewers are locked in a border battle of non-epic proportions.  Compared to the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox rivalry, we are the two douche-bags on the play ground yelling about an ill-advised Magic the Gathering card throw.  

Continue reading "Jason Kubel's White Rocket"

Deciding to sit among baseball fans, I wanted to be in the competitive environment of a major league stadium.  My fraternity brothers are eclectic and both sides of the boarder.  Wisconsinites mingle freely on Minnesota soil.  I sat down just in time to see nervous eyed Carlos Gomez bat lead off. 

Continue reading "Twin’s Verse Brewers 1st Inning ..."

The Twinkies seem solid.  The 10 year life shelf of real Twinkies in the grocery store doesn’t work with our ball club.  They flash good and bad at anytime.  They might make on the shelf for about 2 days then implode.  Yet with 10 runs they are undefeated.  

Continue reading "Minnesota Twin's Joe Nathan & Jason ..."

Turning on Sportscenter and seeing a Twins story mentioned brightens my day.  It reminds Minnesotans that we are not forgotten in the quiet AL Central.  It’s good when they talk about our winning and not just the new stadium.  That stadium will make us famous next year regardless of our record.  

Continue reading "Sportscenter Covers Minnesota Twins ..."

Minnesota Twins Shortstop Nick Punto provides relief to his team injured.  Thank Manager Gardenhire for deciding to stop the bleeding.  There hasn’t been progress this season for Nick Punto.  He is batting his worst AVG ever and holds one of the worst On Base Percentages in MLB.  

Continue reading "Drop Nick Punto & Keep Alexi Casilla"

There was a previous blog about Joe Crede and given the Twins effort to bring him in, maybe they are looking to compete now, versus 2-3 years from now?   Am in total agreement there.  Although from the box score and an error or two in the field, this Twins fan will reserve his opinion until later in the season about whether it was worth it.  So far, so good....I will say that the Twins starting rotation has been very impressive and Liriano has shown up once again.  It would seem he is arriving at the form he was at before getting hurt a couple years back  Keep it up Liriano, great work....Also, Joe Nathan needs to maintain if not raise the bar maybe a bit....he is looked at as one of the premier closers, but isn't closing like it just yet...I know it's early, so I will back off on that negativity.....GO Joe!!!

Continue reading "Twinkies outlook and Manny"

Continue reading "Twins rally to top Mariners in the ..."

Continue reading "A'Rods effect..."

This off-season has ultimately been a poor one for the Twins. From the terrible Pat Neshek news, to failed trade attempts and failed free agent signings, the Twins have missed out on a great opporunity to improve their team in what is a very watered down market in terms of dollars. The weak corner outfield market really hurt the Twins, since they were undoubtedly looking to trade either Michael Cuddyer or Delmon Young. Personally, I don't think the Twins did anything wrong by passing on both Casey Blake and Ty Wigginton. Neither player strikes me as a very good hitter, and while Wigginton's numbers look good on the surface, they are very misleading. I'll get into the exact stats and explanations of those stats sometime this week, but for now just trust me that his Home/Road splits are terrible, and leaving hitter friendly Minute-Maid Park should cause Wigginton's numbers to come crashing back to earth regardless of where he goes. (Unless the Rockies sign him, which won't be happening.) The team also failed in not signing at least one solid reliever when their bullpen is clearly the team's biggest weakness. With relievers like Jeremy Affeldt, Brandon Lyon and others signing for very reasonable deals, it's frustrating to see that the Twins haven't made a move yet.

Continue reading "A Failed Off-Season And Kubel's Extension"

When spring training is barely 2 months out for pitchers and catchers, I think we need to take a look at what type of damage the NYY have done to the game.  From a competitive standpoint and p

Continue reading "MLB parity & greed versus allowing competition"

It was a close game throughout. Nick Blackburn pitched well for the Twins, John Denks was a little bit better for the White Sox.

Blackburn made one mistake, and Jim Thome made him pay with a homer. The Sox had only five hits, the Twins  two.

Continue reading "Twins done"

With the MLB playoffs set to begin, there is a subtle difference in the air compared to start of any other postseason. In the NHL, fans can potentially look forward to a great Canadians/Bruins series that is not only exciting, but has a historical kick to it. Likewise basketball fans always have the chance to see if the Suns can finally get past the Spurs and football fans love seeing the rivalry of the Eagles Vs the City of Philadelphia when the Eagles so much as get tackled for a loss.

Continue reading "The Ups and Downs of the MLB Playoffs"

It didn't look good early. The White Sox scored all six of their runs in the fourth, and were up 6-1. I thought we were going to lose.

But as Jayson Stark said on ESPN tonight, whatever the odds are, never count out the Twins.

Continue reading "Twins win, in first place"

The Twins had to win this first game in the series against the White Sox, and they did, 9-3.

You have to spotlight three players. First Scott Baker, who allowed five hits and a run in seven innings to improve his record to 10-4. He's our No. 2 pitcher behind Francisco Liriano, and he pitched as well Tuesday as Liriano did Sunday against the Rays.

Continue reading "Baker cooks up fine start, win for Twins"

You wouldn't want to head to Vegas and put down a bet on the Twins. But at least they're alive.

Francisco Liriano, 6-0 since being called up, pitched seven strong innings against the playoff-bound Rays. This was a must-win-situation against a good team. The Twins couldn't count on any help from the Royals, who managed to win only one game against the White Sox.

Continue reading "Liriano keeps Twins' hopes alive"

Black Sunday followed a terrific Saturday.

The Twins lost to Baltimore, 7-3, and the White Sox swept the Tigers to go a game and a half ahead of the Twins.

Alarmingly, the starting pitching wasn't good during the series with the Orioles. Glen Perkins allowed six runs in three innings in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader. Nick Blackburn gave up six runs in four innings against the Orioles on Sunday.

Continue reading "Twins hang on by their fingernails"

You have to win crucial games down the stretch on the road to reach the postseason.

The Twins did that, winning 12-2 and 12-6 over the Baltimore Orioles, who have been a welcome change from the Toronto Blue Jays, who have been beating everybody.

Continue reading "Twin-bill win for Twins"

You can't put lipstick on this pig: The Twins' bullpen blew a fine effort by Francisco Liriano to lose at home to the woeful Kansas City Royals.

This one really hurts. Now the team is a game and a half behind the White Sox, with the Sox playing the Jays later tonight.

Continue reading "Horrible loss for Twins"

What a difference a day makes.

On Monday the Twins were 2 1/2 games behind the White Sox. The Twins cruised over the Royals and the red-hot Blue Jays swept the Sox in Chicago. Now the gap is only a game.

Continue reading "Twins back in the race"

It started so well, with back-to-back wins against the mighty Angels in Anaheim. It ended calamitously, with the Jays sweeping the Twins in Toronto, with the final game a 9-0 blowout.

The Twins finished the road trip 5-8 -- 2-2 against the Angels, 1-2 against the Mariners, 2-2 against the Athletics and 0-3 against the Jays, who won all six games against the Twins.

Continue reading "Twins out of gas as Road Trip from Hell ends"

Whew! That was nerve-racking.

Did the Twins win because they needed this one more? The team, a half-game behind the White Sox, faced an Angels club that is 15 games ahead.

Did it all hinge on one play -- Torii Hunter's misplay in center field, ruled a triple, that put Nick Punto on third?

Continue reading "Span, Punto spark Twins' win"

The Twins, facing the toughest part of their schedule, had to win Wednesday. Facing the Athletics while the White Sox were beating up on the Mariners, the team did its part, beating the A's 3-1.

Francisco Liriano wasn't great, allowing five hits and three walks, but he was good enough against a weak-hitting Oakland lineup.

Continue reading "Twins beat A's, win series"

I remember how flabbergasted I was when Seattle offered a four-year, $48 million deal to Carlos Silva, who had some decent, if not great, years in Minnesota.

Somehow the Mariners became a popular pick to win the AL West, and I kept thinking, "Not if they're depending on Silva to be great."

Continue reading "Twins sink Mariners, 9-3"

To add to yesterday's post, neither Ibanez nor Washburn was dealt after they were claimed on waivers. According to the Post-Intelligencer, the Twins put in claims on both, and their waiver number was higher for Jarrod, while the Tigers claim was highest for Ibanez.

Continue reading "Waiver Update"

After the way the Twins lost Tuesday, you had to wonder if they would end up demoralized against the Yankees, who have always manhandled them.

Nope. The Twins got a great start from Kevin Slowey, and Delmon Young's three-run jack was the difference in the team's 4-2 win.

Continue reading "Twins take rubber game vs. Yanks"

A great followed just a day after a terrible loss.

On Sunday the Twins kicked away a game it appeared to have in hand, and loss in extra innings, 5-4 to the inept Royals.

On Monday, new father Glen Perkins pitched one of the best games of his life and the Twins shut out the Yankees, 4-0. It was the first time the team had shut out the Yankees at the Metrodome since June 24, 1996.

Continue reading "Huge win for Twins propels them into first"

The Mariners announced today that Jarrod Washburn has cleared waivers, meaning he can now be freely traded to whatever team wants to take on his massive salary. There's no real surprise here, as it's doubtful any other team would want to take on his bloated $9.85M salary. So the failure of Seattle to deal him before the deadline isn't so awful, except that his value seemed to have peaked at that point for a couple of reasons: (1) he'd pitched really well to that point (4 ER in 19.2 IP in the three starts before the deadline, (2) his value diminishes with each day that passes, since that means less time he can spend with a contending team (e.g., the Yanks) starved for starters, which leads to (3) the team in question being more likely to go in another direction.

Continue reading "Washburn is ready to move"

Finally the Twins grabbed a lead in Seattle they could keep, thanks to rookie Denard Span.

This game was pretty much all about Span. He was three for five with four RBIs and caught a ball that would have gone yard and given the Mariners the lead.

Continue reading "Twins salvage final game in Seattle"

Continue reading "Raul and the Blowout"

It's hard to imagine how Sunday could've gone better than it did for the Twins.

With a win over the Indians, 6-2, and a White Sox loss, the Twins are in first place for the first time in what seems like forever.

Continue reading "Twins in first place after beating Indians"

For the first time since May 13, the Minnesota Twins--the team that stood pat during the recent Trade Deadline Sweepstakes--assume first place in the NL Central today.

Chicago had been waiting for its bats to heat up all season, and both Swisher and Konerko have had a few streaks of hot hitting, but they couldn't get the whole team hitting at the same time. So they grabbed Ken Griffey, Jr., a move that was part consummation of a long-time love affair with Junior by GM Kenny Williams and part best-choice trade.

Continue reading "Twins in First"

You're chasing the top team in your division. They come to town for a four-game series. You must win three of four at least.

That's just what the Twins did by winning 10-6 on Thursday. But it was the way they did it that's so hopeful for the Twinkies.

Continue reading "Twins come back, take three of four from Sox"

Most people would say the surprise team of the year in baseball is the Rays. The Twins are a close second.

This series against the White Sox is crucial. After this, they play only one more series. This is the team the second-place team must catch up.

Continue reading "Twins come back to knock off Sox"

The Twins have had some disastrous series this season, and none was worse than the one in Yankee Stadium a few days after the all-star break. Fans might be forgiven for thinking the Twins were playing themselves out of contention.

Continue reading "Twins gather momentum before key ..."

So the Rangers finally beat the Twins. How many hits did they muster?

Uh, three. One of them was a homer by Taylor Teagarden (who?), and that was all Texas needed to win 1-0 at the Metrodome on Sunday.

Continue reading "Rangers arrest Twins' streak"

I figured maybe the Twins were due for a bad game after such a great game Friday shutting out the Rangers. Boy, was I wrong -- but then just about everyone's been wrong about the team this wrong.

Continue reading "Twins torment Texas"

Shut out the Rangers? Are you kidding?

Yes, the Twins tamed the Rangers' great hitters -- four of whom were in the All-Star Game, including Josh Hamilton -- and shut the team out for the first team this year. The Rangers were the last team to be shut out in the 2008 season.

Continue reading "Twins gun down Rangers, 6-0"

One of the All-Star Break traditions: Reassessing our predictions from the first half of the season. Some of mine have changed, some have stayed the same—and some were just damn wrong. Living in the West, I will take the contrarian position and roll from west to east in my choices.

Continue reading "Second Half Predictions"

Brendan Harris, moved from third to short to replace the injured Nick Punto, continued to swing a hot bat to lead the Twins over the Tigers on Saturday, 6-5.

Harris went three for three, homered and drove in four runs to lead the Twins, who have won three straight over Detroit after being swept at Fenway Park in Boston.

Continue reading "Twins top Tigers again"

Many Twins fans were probably thinking "Here we go again" when the Twins fell behind Thursday.

The Twins were down 6-2 to a tough Tigers team playing at home. I heard the scored on the radio and thought, "Oh, no, they're going to be out of the race before long."

Continue reading "Gut check for Twins"

The series against the Tigers began badly for the Twins, losing a close one. But they took the final two games in the series, taking the finale in a laugher.

Nick Blackburn pitched seven innings of three-hit ball, and Jesse Crain and Boof Bonser completed the shutout against a team that had been hitting above .300 lately.

Continue reading "Twins cage Tigers, win 7-0"

Twins fans should breathe a sign of relief. They proved Tuesday that they can beat the Tigers.

How often? We'll find out.

Craig Monroe's three-run homer in the fourth inning was the biggest blow in the game. Monroe played several years for the Tigers and had plenty of motivation for this series against the team that gave up on him.

Continue reading "Twins tame Tigers"

You can't ask starter Glen Perkins to do more than he did. Against the potent Tigers, he allowed just two runs in six and one third innings.

But the bullpen let the team down, giving up three runs as Detroit came back to win, 5-4. It was a tough loss that put the Twins two and a half behind the White Sox, who beat Cleveland, and only two and and a half over the Tigers.

Continue reading "Bullpen lets Twins down"

Most people would've said Kevin Slowey vs. Ben Sheets would be a pitching mismatch. They were right.

But few would've predicted that Slowey would be the dominant starter and Sheets would prove vulnerable.

Continue reading "Twins back on track"

Sometimes you just run into a pitcher who's in such a zone that you don't have a chance.

That was the case Saturday for the Twins as Manny Para and the Milwaukee Brewers ended a 10-game winning streak. The Twins had only three hits, and their only run came when Jason Kubel hit a homer with two outs in the ninth. That was against Mitch Stetter -- Parra pitched seven scoreless innings and gave up only two hits.

Continue reading "Parra unhittable as Twins' streak ends"

You might have been forgiven if you gave up on the Twins on Friday night. They were down 6-3 to a strong Milwaukee team. Twins starter Nick Blackburn wasn't great -- he was chased early.

The Twins had to win in a way they're not used to -- hitting homers. Joe Mauer's power in the eighth inning, only his third of the year, was the decisive blow in the 7-6 Twins win. It was the third Twins' homer of the game -- Alexi Casilla and Jason Kubel went deep as well.

Continue reading "Another day, another comeback win for Twins"

The Twins, after beating the Padres 4-3 on Thursday, have won more game in a row than they have since they went on a huge roll two years ago.

During the streak, the Twins have outscored opponents 56-19, and their starters have gone 8-0 with an ERA of 2.17. Wow.

Continue reading "Twins extend win skein to nine"

Twins fans might be getting a case of deja vu now. And they're probably feeling pretty good about it.

The team's recent resurgence is starting to look a lot like the one in 2006, when it went on a tear and won the AL Central crown on the last day of the season. (Let's just forget the horrible playoff series against Oakland.)

Continue reading "Twins top Padres for eighth straight"

Trevor Hoffman is the career saves leader with 539. But the more important statistic this year is home runs -- he's given up five in 26 innings. Last year he gave up only two jacks in 57 and one-third innings.

Continue reading "Twins top Padres on late homers"

This is getting serious.

The Twins have swept two consecutive interleague series at home, finishing off the Diamondbacks after squishing the Nats. The team is third behind the Yankees and Athletics in interleague wins with 115 to those two teams' 119.

Continue reading "Twins, on a roll, beat Arizona for sixth straight"

Interleague play has been good to many American League teams over the years, but perhaps none more so than the Twins.

Two years ago, the Twins' rise started with interleague play, and perhaps history is repeating itself.

Continue reading "Twins win fifth in row"

The Twins extended their winning streak to four today with a 7-2 win over Arizona and drew closer to the White Sox, who were beaten by the Cubs.

Minnesota scored six runs in the third inning and rode a good performance by Scott Baker, whose ERA improved to 3.47. The young Twins pitchers have done well at home -- now they need to show they can do the same on the road.

Continue reading "Twins unrattled by Diamondbacks' visit"

Tough to top the Cubs' huge win against their intercity rival Friday.

Late homers by Aramis Ramirez, one in the seventh and the winner in the ninth, proved decisive in the 4-3 win. Kerry Wood pitched the ninth to get the win.

Continue reading "Cubs come back to tear Sox"

Home sweet dome.

The Twins returned to the Baggie Dome and had little trouble with Washington, winning the final game Thursday, 9-3 over one of the worst teams in the major leagues. Minnesota's now 37-36, finally getting over the .500 hump.

Continue reading "Twins break out broom"

The Twins must wish the Nationals were in the AL Central so they could play them more often. The Twins win Wednesday night, 11-2, with good games from starter Kevin Slowey, center fielder Carlos Gomez, and the MM boys, Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau.

Continue reading "Twins swat Nats again"

It's tough to be real enthusiastic about Tuesday's 2-1 win over the hapless Washington Nationals of the National League.

Sure, the Twins won, 2-1, and Livan Hernandez had a decent outing after being horrible recently. But they should win all their interleague games. The Nats are terrible.

Continue reading "Weak Twins eke out win"

The Twins' two-game road winning streak is history as Mike Cameron's two-run jack lifted Milwaukee to a 4-2 victory.

Scott Baker was the loser, but he pitched pretty well, allowing just three runs -- including the Cameron homer -- in six innings. The bullpen was a problem, with Boof Bonser allowing a run (and getting just one guy out). Way to go, Boof. Bonser's ERA is 6.45 and Brian Bass's is 5.28. Keep a watch on those two guys -- they might be headed for the minors. Especially Bonser.

Continue reading "Brewers tap Cameron for win"

Write this down on your calendar, boys and girls. The Twins won their second game in a row, 9-4 over the Brewers in extras.

When, you ask, did they last achieve this stupendous feat? June 1-2, when the they took the final two games in the home series with the Yankees.

Continue reading "Twins hoist a few after beating Brew Crew"

The Twins have often gotten well during interleague play. That was the case two years ago when the Twins were eight games under before an incredible turnaround.

Tonight they ended their losing streak against Milwaukee, stomping the Brewers 10-2. Kevin Slowey had a strong outing, striking out eight and getting two hits, Justin Morneau and Alexi Casilla had three RBIs each and Joe Mauer and Jason Kubel had two hits each. Delmon Young had three hits.

Continue reading "Twins end losing streak"

It's hard to be optimistic about this year's Twins. Last week, after beating the Yankees on ESPN, they were three games over .500 and within striking distance of the White Sox. Now the team's three games under .500 and are about to be passed by Cleveland.

Continue reading "Twins sinking fast"

The Twins beat a banged-up Indians team Wednesday, hitting starter Paul Byrd hard in an 8-5 victory.

Nick Blackburn had a strong outing, but once again the Twins bullpen showed cracks in the armor. Boof Bonser and Dennys Reyes nearly gave away the game, but Jesse Crain and Joe Nathan preserved the lead and the win.

Continue reading "Losing streak finally over"

A week ago the Twins were nipping at Chicago's heels.

Now they're only a game up on the Indians, who appear headed upward as the Twins descend. C.C. Sabathia, who's pitched reasonably well but gotten little support, shut out Minnesota 1-0 on Tuesday. Scott Baker pitched a terrific game but wasn't quite as good as Sabathia.

Continue reading "Time to trade?"

We're starting to see the shape of this year's baseball season a bit more clearly.

Some teams are really good. The Red Sox, White Sox and Angels, perhaps the Rays.

The jury's still out on the A's, who might be able to contend. (Or not.) It's hard to know what to think about the Yankees. They were even worse last year but came back. You can't write them off too quickly -- they have such a huge payroll that they could go out and buy a pitcher.

Continue reading "Pretenders, Contenders"

Continue reading "Help Wanted"

The Twins have lost two of three and are showing signs they might not be able to stay in the race in a weak division.

The bullpen lost a home game against the Orioles, with Brian Bass losing the game after Scott Baker had pitched so well. Bass had a 5.30 ERA and it's worrisome that the bullpen has shown cracks. Losing Pat Neshek was a big blow.

Continue reading "Sliding"

The Twins are Jekyll and Hyde.

They end up strongly against the Yankees, coming from behind to split a series. Monday's 6-5 win was of their most dramatic of the season. It seemed to portend great things.

Continue reading "Here They Go Again"

What if Delmon Young started to drive in a few runs?

What if Joe Mauer started to hit with power?

What if Michael Cuddyer got hot?

What if the Twins overcome the hex the Yankees have had over them?

Continue reading "Not So Wild a Dream"

For much of my life as a Minnesota Twins fan, the team's biggest rivalry was with the Oakland Athletics. Oakland had established themselves with a series of World series wins in the seventies, then when Tom Kelly became manager of the twins and Tony LaRussa took over the A's things really heated up. kelly and LaRussa were the best managers of their time, each could out maneuver pretty much anyone in the league except for each other.

Continue reading "The Old Rivalry"

Yesterday the Minnesota Twins beat the Cleveland indians 3 -0, snapping an eight game losing stral against the Indians that dated back to last season. Nick Blackburn pitched 7 and 2/3's shutout innings for his first win of the season. It was a stellar performance that should cement his place in the starting rotation.

Continue reading "Twins End Cleveland's Streak"

It's the eighth inning and the Minnesota Twins and Tampa bay rays are locked in a five all tie. The Twins have a runner on third with one out. Mike Lamb hits a fly ball that's tailing into the left field foul area when in a flash speedy Tampa Bay outfielder Carl Crawford comes running from his position and makes a great sliding catch. The only problem is he's in no position to make a throw, and delmon Young easilt tags up and scores the eventual winning run from third base.

Continue reading "Carl Crawford Catches One For The Twins"

The Minnesota Twins completed their first road trip of the season last night, and the results were fairly disappointing. Disappointing because after splitting two games with the White Sox and taking two out of three against the Royals, the Twins twice blew late-inning leads and lost two games at Detroit, finishing the road trip with a 3 - 4 record that coulda should been 5 - 2. We'll get to the Detroit series later, first let's take a look at what went right.

Continue reading "Twins First Road Trip"

There was a point in last night's game between the Minnesota Twins and the Kansas City Royals where you suspected that the game might be about to turn around in favor of the home team. In the top of the seventh, the bottom of the Twins lineup had started the inning off with four straight singles, scoring a run and leaving the bases loaded with nobody out. With the top of the order coming up, it looked like the situation was right for the Twins to break the game open.

Continue reading "No Momentum In Baseball"

When we left off at the end of last week's episode, the Minnesota Twins had come from behind to beat the Kansas City Royals, and the Cylons had mysteriously broken off their attack on a vulnerable Fleet. But Kara Thrace was holding a gun on laura Roslin, and the Royals were holding on to first place in the Central Division of the American League.

Continue reading "Battlestar Twins, Part Two"

Continue reading "Kubel Heats Up A Cold Night"

Yesterday's loss probably left most Minnesota Twins fans with a sour taste in their mouth, if not an upset stomach after their team gave up five runs in the seventh and blew a 3 - 2 lead, losing to the Chicago White Sox. Perhaps it will help get everyone's mind off the loss if we switch to another stomach-related topic; food.

Continue reading "Food For The Twins Fan's Soul"

Things looked bleak for the Twins and the Fleet. Going in, the Twins had lost three straight games at home, and The Fleet had been ambushed by the Cylons. Galactica was heavily outnumbered, Scott Baker was making his first start of the year, coming off an illness and an injury.

Continue reading "Battlestar Twins"

Slow, slower, and slowest. Those were the speeds on Livan Hernandez pitches, and it was good enough to keep the Angels hitters off-balence and give up only two runs in seven innings pitched. Meanwhile, the offense, played small ball. Led by Carlos Gomez' two hits, two steals, and two runs scored, they produced just enough to pull off a 3 - 2 victory on Opening Night in Minneapolis.

Continue reading "Slow And Small Equals A Win"

Over the last few years a new Opening Day tradition has established itself here in Twins land.  Breakfast on the Plaza has become a favorite way for Twins fans to start their day, and as you can see in the above photos Twins fans arrive in cars and on foot to pick up a free breakfast courtesy of the Twins. This year's menu included a hot dog, coffee, milk, potato chips and cereal bars. Breakfast of champions, indeed.

Continue reading "Breakfast And Lunch with The Twins"

1. Cleveland Indians

2. Detroit Tigers

3. Minnesota Twins

4. Kansas City Royals

5. Chicago White Sox

Continue reading "Twins And The A.L. Central"

Minnesota Twins

Can Francisco Liriano step up and replace Johan Santana as the ace of the staff?

Continue reading "MLB 2008 Season Preview: AL Central"

So far, The Twins are having a fairly routine, uneventful spring training. They've won about half their games, some players are off to better starts than others. For those looking for reasons for optimism amongst the usual spring training stuff, the best stories emerging so far are probably the progress of Francisco Liriano, and the hiting of Delmon Young.

Continue reading "Ain't That Good News"

Through Sunday, the Twins have played three spring training games, winning one and losing two. Let's take a look at the early returns, and see if there are bany trends emerging in the big questions in training camp, namely who's going to start in center and second base, how the starting pitching looks, can the Twins find a lead-off hitter, and how is Liriano doing in his recovery from elbow surgery?

Continue reading "Twins Weekend Update"

There you have it, the first taste of baseball for Minnesota Twins fans. Not a lot of action, but it was good to see Scott Baker continually get the first pitch over for a strike. That's something the Twins coaching staff emphasizes,  and it sure would be nice to see that be a trend for baker and the entire pitching staff. First pitch strikes keep the game moving along, help keep pitching counts down, and keep the fielders on their toes.

Continue reading "Play Ball!"

As most Twins fans know, the new ballpark is slowly but surely rising in downtown Minneapolis. Most descriptions and comments on the new stadium have focused on its design, location, and amenities. What hasn't been talked about as much is what it will be like to sit and watch a game in the new stadium. We all know it's an outdoor ballpark, that alone will make it a much different experience than the Metrodome.

Continue reading "Sitting In The New Ballpark"

The number one goal the Twins gave Boof Bonser for the off-season was to lose some weight. Anyone who watched him pitch last year could understand why. He looked chunky on the mound, and his performance reflected it. There weren't too many times when Boof made it past the seventh inning, he was usually out in the fifth or sixth at the latest.

Continue reading "The Incredible Shrinking Boof"

When I got up this morning, it was ten below zero in Minneapolis. At about the same time, pitchers and catchers at the Twins spring training camp in Florida were getting ready for their second day of workouts.

Continue reading "In Baseball, Spring Is Already Here"

When Minnesota Twins spring training opens, most of the talk will be aropund the big questions on the major league side: Who will play center field? Will Francisco Liriano be able to come back from "Tommy John" surgery on his elbow?

Continue reading "A Minor Leaguer To Keep An Eye On"

 Update: As of this afternoon, Tuesday February 12, Chuck Knoblauch and Andy Pettitte have been excused from testifying at tomorrow's Congressional  hearings.

 We're in kind of a down period for Twins news right now, the Santana trade is over and Spring Training not yet begun. That makes for not a lot of new things to talk about, but here's a few topics to keep you going while waiting for Winter to end and baseball to begin.

Continue reading "Catching Up On The Twins"

The announcement was just made, the Twins have traded Johan Santana to the Mets for four prospects including outfielder Carlos Gomez, and right-handed pitchers Phillip Humber, Kevin Mulvey, and Doolis Guerra.

Continue reading "Santana Traded To The Mets"

The Twins gave their fans some good news Friday afternoon when they announced the signings of Justin Morneau and Michael Cuddyer to long-term deals. Mornea gets $80 million for a six year deal, Cuddyer is getting $23 million for three.

Continue reading "Morneau And Cuddyer Signed Long-Term"

Yeah, I know, here we go again. This time, an article in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune raises the possibility that Johan Santana could be traded to the New York Mets. For the Twins, such a trade would have the advantage of sending Santana to the national Laeague, where he's a lot less likely to show up in the metrodome wearing the uniform of a competing team.

Continue reading "Santana To The Mets?"

According to the Minneapolis/St Paul Business Journal, the Minnesota Twins and the Ballpark Authority are committing an extra 2.5 million dollars to construction of the new ballpark in order to gain certification as a "green" building from the U.S. Green Building Council.

Continue reading "Twins Stadium Going Green"

The news just came in. Carlos Silva has signed a 4 year, 48 million contract with the Seattle Mariners. It's not unexpected, if the Twins weren't going to pay Torii Hunter 12 million a year they sure as heck weren't going to spend that much on Carlos Silva.

Continue reading "Silva Signs With Seattle"

Perhaps more so than any other major league baseball team, the Minnesota Twins draw their fans from an entire region, and not just from a single metropolitan area. Walk by the bus parking lot at the Metrodome before a game and you'll see buses full of fans from all over Minnesota, Iowa, and North and South Dakota. It doesn't hurt that the games are played in Minneapolis with it's nightlife, cultural attractions and shopping, but the people on those buses are mainly baseball fans, and for a lot of people in small towns all over the Upper Midwest, the Twins are their team.

Continue reading "Twins Winter Caravan Set To Roll"

Major League Baseball as a whole may be pre-occupied with the Mitchell report and the problem of steroid abuse, but the main topic of conversation among Twins fans remains the possible trade of Johan Santana. No current Twins' players were mentioned in the report, so here in Minnesota we're free to keep talking about the possibilities of a trade.

Continue reading "Minnesota Twins: Trade Talks, Signings, ..."