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?

Who knows what might happen. But the signs were good Monday night. It made you dream of what might happen in the fall.

I was really nervous watching the game on ESPN. I was afraid the team would revert to its old ways -- when Juan Rincon blew a game against the Yankees a couple of years ago. The Twins have always had trouble against the Yankees, my least favorite team.

But all those good things happened. Young had three RBI doubles, Mauer went yard and Joe Nathan got Hideki Matsui to hit into a double play in the ninth.

Cuddyer had a good game, too, with three hits. But it was his great play in the field in the 8th that might have been the turning point of the contest.

Continue reading "Not So Wild a Dream"

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.

But then, as they have done all year, they follow a good game with a bad one. They lost to a weak Baltimore team Tuesday. They lost to some guy named Radhames Liz, who was 1-5 at AAA. They had only six hits. Kevin Slowey had a poor outing and fell to 2-5.

Everyone knows the Twins rotation is green. Those young starters will have to pitch well for the Twins to win games consistently and challenge for the division title. The great bullpen, a bit thinner without Pat Neshek, won't help if the starters don't do well.

And after a game when both Michael Cuddyer and Delmon Young had strong games, both went hitless. The team doesn't seem to have much power, especially if Cuddyer and Young can't hit it out. And Jason Kubel needs to hit a lot better than .236. We loved that slam you hit a while back, but what have you done for us latel?

Continue reading "Here They Go Again"

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.

Some guys are just not hitting. The Twins need more from the DH posltion. Delmon Young needs to step it up. And Joe Mauer has to hit more homers. Michael Cuddyer needs to hit better than .253.

So the Twins lost a game vs. the Orioles when they couldn't hit and the bullpen wasn't quite up to snuff. The next night it was the pitching that was horrible, though it was a windy day when the balls were blowing out.

Nick Blackburn had a terrible outing against the White Sox, giving up seven earned runs in four innings. Ouch. 

Continue reading "Sliding"

Friday the Twins lost to the White Sox, 10-6.

Saturday it got worse: The Twinks were drubbed, 11-2.

You'd think it wouldn't get any worse than that. But at the moment, the Sox are socking it to the Twinkles, 12-2 in the seventh.

Where do you start to dissect performances like that? Crappy pitching, weak hitting.

But you have to start with the starter, Kevin Slowey. He allowed eight runs in three innings and his ERA rose to 5.15. You'd think at least that the bullpen would slow the bleeding. But not this year. Juan Rincon allowed four runs in two innings, and his ERA is now 6.11.

Against the Sox, the Twins can't pitch, but they can't hit either.  Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau are hitless today. And these Twins are a far cry from the 1960s bunch or the team that won a couple of World Series, 1987 and 1991. They can't hit the ball out of the stadium.

Continue reading "Help Wanted"

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.

They need more pitching, that's for sure. The Yankees probably need Joba Chamberlain in the rotation, but Kyle Farmsworth is not the answer as the setup guy.

The Orioles, Yankees and Jays are all at .500. You'd think the Yankeees are the one team that might contend, but who knows?

In the AL Central, you keep waiting for the Indians to make a move. They should be good, especially with Cliff Lee having such as great season. Look for them to go on a streak and challenge the White Sox.

Continue reading "Pretenders, Contenders"

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.

If the Twins keep losing, you have to wonder if they'll start shopping some of their players. I'd think Juan Rincon, suspended for using steroids a while back, would be a likely candidate for a team like the Yankees that needs help in the bullpen.

I never liked Rincon much. He's the one who blew a game against the Yankees a few years ago in the playoffs by giving up a home run.  And I don't like juicers. As far as I'm concerned, let him go to the official major-league steroids, the Yankees. (Hey, did you see Roger Clemens used Viagra as a performance enhancer -- on the field supposedly. Wow, his reputation has sure gone to hell in a short time.)

Continue reading "Time to trade?"

Yes, I've heard all the jokes about the Cubs. I know their history. I used to watch Harry Caray make broadcasts of a usually crummy team interesting.

Harry might be rolling over in his grave now. This Cubs team is really good. Better, I think, than the 1984, 1989 and 2003 teams that made some noise in the playoffs.

The Cubs, we know, have been great at home. The recent road trip was going to be a big test.  In fact, the Cubs had a winning record on that trip, finishing up with a split in Los Angeles.

Splitting with an inconsistent Dodgers team might not sound so great. But the way they did it should be a great cause for hope.

The Cubs won 5-4 on Thursday. The next day, in a game I attended, the Dodgers' Huroki Kuroda pitched a terrific game and shut out the Cubs.

Continue reading "These Cubs are no flubs"

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.

It's good to see Jason Kubel (three hits, homer, two RBIs) and Justin Morneau (two doubles, three RBIs) play a strong game. Kubel is one of the keys to any success the Twins might have this year. His average is up to .254.

But the continuing bullpen troubles are a cause for concern. That used to be the bedrock of contending Twins teams -- if you handed the lead off to the pen, it was pretty much all over. Now about all you can say is that if you hand the lead to Nathan, it's a sure win.

Continue reading "Losing streak finally over"

Cubs left fielder Alfonso Soriano is out about six weeks with a broken hand in the Cubs' 7-2 victory over Atlanta on Wednesday.

How big a blow will that be for the high-flying Cubs? Who knows. At 42-24, Chicago is only two and a half games up on the St. Louis Cardinals, who have won four in a row despite an injury to Albert Pujols.

Both teams are fairly deep. Reed Johnson is a capable left fielder, but the Cubs will miss Soriano's bat. I think the Cubs will find a way to score despite the loss of Soriano. An injury to a pitcher would hurt much more. If Kerry Wood's hurt, Carlos Marmol would be fine as a closer, but the bullpen would be thin. I have worries about the Cubs bullpen anyway.

Some commentators are saying the Cubs will go out into the market and get a pitcher -- such as the Indians' C.C. Sabathia, who's at the end of his contract and considered unlikely to sign with the team for next year. If the Indians fall out of the AL Central race, they might deal Sabathia.

Continue reading "Cubs win game, lose Soriano"

I can't help but wonder how Harry Caray would've liked this year's Cubs team. What a shame he had to broadcast when the Cubs were usually terrible.

The hits keep coming for the North Siders. On Thursday, the Cubs beat the Braves, 3-2, in the 11th, when Reed Johnson was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Whatever works.

Kerry Wood won the game, and also coming up big were Jim Edmonds, who hit a homer to tie the game late; Carlos Zambrano, who had a strong outing; and the bullpen, which pitched four innings of scoreless relief.

The performance of the bullpen, which before the season was a question mark, has to be a source of hope for Cubs fans. Wood's been great after a poor start. Carlos Marmol's been strong as well. The surprise has been the rest of the pen. The team ERA is 3.66, and the relievers have all been solid. Scott Eyre and Neal Cotts haven't allowed any earned runs.

Continue reading "Cubs win!"

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.

And it's not as if the Twins have been close to winning. The White Sox shelled them. Minnesota split the first two games in Cleveland, and then the Indians lit up Livan Hernandez.

The Indians scored 12 runs and had 18 hits in a 12-2 shellacking. The Twins had as many errors as runs.

It sure looks like the Indians are primed to make a move, while the Twins' moves might be trades with contenders.

The brain trust -- if you could use the word brain in connection with the uneven trade the Twins made with the Mets, and the much superior offers the Red Sox made -- will have to consider whether to hang on to all their players, or if they'll deal with someone offering prospects. All I can say is: Make a good deal this time! It's no time for a fire sale.

Continue reading "Twins sinking fast"

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.

It's about time. The Twins were 1-6 on a horrible road trip that must make them dream about playing in the Baggie Dome.

The Twins play two more games in Milwaukee, and then play series against Washington and Arizona at home.  They need to make a run sooner rather than later.

Why? Isn't it only June? Well, yes, but Cleveland and Detroit appear to be making moves. The Tigers swept the White Sox and have won four in a row, while the Indians have won six of 10.

Continue reading "Twins end losing streak"

It can't get much sweeter than it was Saturday for Reed Johnson in Toronto.

The Jays released him in March, the Cubs picked him up and his three-run homer beat the Jays and Roy Halladay. The Cubs  will need contributions from players such as Johnson, who's Alfonso Soriano's replacement in left field.

So far every move the Cubs have made has worked out. Jim Edmonds looked done, yet he's done a capable job in center field for the Cubs.

Jason Marquis, part of the bottom of the Cubs rotation, has won three in a row and lowered his ERA to 4.24. Other Cubs heroes included Derek Lee -- three for four with two runs -- and Edmonds, who went two for five with an RBI.

The bullpen is thin, and Bob Howry was less than stellar. He allowed a run in an inning's work and has an ERA of 5.08. Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood have been great, but Wood has always been injury-prone. If the Cubs falter down the stretch, the bullpen might be the reason. It wouldn't hurt the Cubs to get another pitcher, maybe more than one.

Continue reading "Johnson gets redemption in Toronto"

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.

But this was on the road. When did the Twins last win two in a row on the road? Well, actually, it's not that long ago -- it just seems like it. The Twins swept the Royals in KC May 27-29. That shouldn't even count because the Royals have turned into their usual woeful selves after starting the season with a sweep of the Tigers in Detroit.

Saturday night's win was a wild one. The Twins won in 12 innings when new call-up Brian Buscher singled with the bases loaded for his third straight hit and Michael Cuddyer hit a two-run triple and scored on an error.

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

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.

But the real story was that Scottt McClung baffled the Twins' hitters, allowing only four hits. No one had a multi-hit game for the Twins, but Jason Kubel hit a homer, his 10th. He's raised his average to .257.

Michael Cuddyer's still in a slump. He was hitless in two at-bats and his average slid to .245. Ouch. Also slumping is shortstop Brendan Harris, hitting .235, though he did get a hit Sunday.

Continue reading "Brewers tap Cameron for win"

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.

How well did the American League do against their NL opponents? The AL teams won 10 of 12 games against NL teams Tuesday. The League is better. Period.

So I don't think the win has much meaning. Still, let's savor it a moment.

Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer each had good games, with Morneau hitting a two-run homer and Mauer getting two hits.

Hernandez had his best outing in some time. That's not saying much -- he was horrible the past few starts.

Matt Guerrier and Joe Nathan were strong coming out of the pen.

Continue reading "Weak Twins eke out win"

If the Cubs played the Devil Rays in the World Series, would it mean the apocalypse is nigh?

Is it even possible?

Well, incredibly, yes. This Devils Rays team is a lot like the Marlins team that won a couple of Series titles. The Cubs are a powerhouse this year but still might lack pitching.

Tuesday's game was a good one. Scott Kazmir vs. Ryan Dempster -- both pitched well, and neither figured in the decision.

Evan Longoria was the star for the Rays, hitting a homer and making a great play fielding a bunt that prevented the tying run from reaching the plate. But the bullpen was great too. Grant Balfour, J.P. Howell and Dan Wheeler pitched scoreless relief.

Closer Troy Percival allowed a run -- and only Longoria's great play saved him from losing the save. Is he the guy you want as a closer during a stretch run. I don't much think so. His best years are behind him.

Continue reading "Cubs stung by Rays"

The Cubs lost Wednesday night when Kosuke Fukudome was called out on strikes with a man on in the top of the ninth.

The third strike from Troy Percival sure looked high to me. It didn't even look close.

There were two big stories in this game. First, Cubs starter Carlos  Zambrano was great except for one inning. He allowed four runs in the third after a first-inning unearned run, and it held up.

But the reason the lead stood was the second big story -- the Devil Rays' bullpen, which allowed only Giovany Soto's ninth-inning solo homer over four innings.

This is a good Rays club. It's not a fluke they're winning. But the Cubs can blame themselves for some missed opportunities.

Chicago loaded the bases in the fifth inning but got only one measly run. Derek Lee struck out and Aramis Ramirez flew out to end the inning. The Cubs need better production from the heart of their lineup than they've gotten against the Rays. Lee went hitless after doing the same Tuesday.

Continue reading "Cubs lose another close one"

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.

The win puts the Twins at .500, 36-36.

Slowey allowed only one run in six innings, and the performance of the Twins' young starters -- Slowey, Glen Perkins and Scott Baker -- gives Minnesota fans cause for hope, especially next year.

Gomez went three for five -- he had two bunt singles -- with two runs and an RBI; Mauer was two for four with a run, pushing his average up to .332; and Justin Morneau was two for four with a run and three RBIs, lifting his average up to .308 and his runs batted in to 56. He's not that far off his MVP pace from two years ago.

Continue reading "Twins swat Nats again"

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.

It all starts with the starters, and Glen Perkins had a decent outing, allowing three runs in eight innings to improve to 3-2 and an ERA of 4.39.

But the real story of this series is that the Twins offense finally woke up, including Michael Cuddyer, who had been in a slump. Cuddyer was two for two with a double, a triple, two runs and two RBIs to lift his average to .251. Jason Kubel was two for four with two runs and an RBI, and raised his average to .263.

Joe Mauer had two hits and is now hitting .335 and rookie Brian Buscher was two for three with a run and two RBIs. Good job. Let's see you do it against a good team.

Continue reading "Twins break out broom"

There are two ways to look at the Rays' sweep of the formerly high-flying Cubs. You could say that Tampa Bay is a very good team that has now swept the Red Sox, Angels and now the Cubs at home and have a solide shot at the wild card if not the AL East title.

Or you could say the Cubs don't have quite as much pitching as they need, a deficiency that became glaring when they faced a good American League team.

The third loss in the series, 8-3, was the toughest for the Cubs. They had a 3-1 lead after starter Sean Gallagher pitched well. Then the bullpen, which had appeared to be be shaky but had performed well, melted down.

Carlos Marmol was the primary offender, hitting two batters before Scott Eyre was brought in to face Carl Crawford with the bases loaded. Marmol gave up four runs and got no one out.

Continue reading "Cubs flub, Rays shine"

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.

The Cubs were down 3-1 until Derek Lee and Ramirez smacked back-to-back jacks in the seventh.

The White Sox can look at one glaring statistic -- 16 men left on base. Another number they won't like is that the Cubs have won six of the past seven games between the two teams.

White Sox starter John Danks pitched a great game, allowing just one earned run in six innings. But the Sox's bullpen let him down, allowing three runs in two innings. (Ramirez hit his walk-off homer with no out in the ninth.) Scott Linebrink gave up the game-winner.

Continue reading "Cubs come back to tear Sox"

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.

The Twins got runs on a two-run single from Matt Macri, a sacrifice fly from Joe Mauer and an RBI single from Justin Morneau. Monroe capped the outburst with a line drive homer to left-center against Randy Johnson. 

It's the Twins' first four-game winning streak since August of last year. It came at a great time, right before the all-star break, when you want to gain on your top rival, the White Sox.

Continue reading "Twins unrattled by Diamondbacks' visit"

The Cubs had nine runs in a wild record-setting fourth inning to rip the Sox, 11-7.

Jim Edmonds had two homers, Mike Fontenot one and Aramis Ramirez had a three-run dong in the fourth, the team's biggest inning of the year.

The Cubs have won 13 in a row at Wrigley Field and are 31-8 at the friendly confines.

Kosuke Fukudome had two hits and an RBI, Eric Patterson three hits and and RBI, Derek Lee two hits and an RBI, Ramirez two hits and four RBIs and even starter Jason Marquis had a couple of hits. The Cubs had 15 hits.

The Cubs' pitching was nothing special. Marquis allowed five runs in seven innings, and Carlos Marmol walked three and allowed a run before settling down to get the Sox out. Bob Howry allowed three hits and a run, and Kerry Wood came in to get the last out. He's been great, but I still say the jury's out on the rest of the bullpen. We'll find out more later. 

Continue reading "Cubs knock off Sox again"

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.

Nick Blackburn had a strong outing, allowing only three hits, and the Twins had a balanced attack to beat the Diamondbacks, who don't have nearly as much of a sting as they did early in the season.

Minnesota scored six runs in the seventh, and it all started with a surprise -- Joe Mauer bunting for a hit. Justin Morneau, Delmon Young, Brian Buscher, Brendan Harris and Alexi Casilla had hits in the inning.

If you watched the highlights of the game, you might be surprised that Mauer didn't run like a catcher. He scored from first on Morneau's double -- the guy can motor. (Remember he was rated a top quarterback prospect and had a scholarship offer from Florida State.

Continue reading "Twins win fifth in row"

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.

Sunday it was 5-3, Twins, who fell behind 3-0 but came back to defeat Brandon Webb, one of the best pitchers in the the league. Livan Hernandez, now 8-4, was the beneficiary of the Twins' comeback. Webb fell to 11-4.

Once again the big inning did it for the Twins, who scored all five of their runs in the fifth. It's the fifth straight game they've scored at least four runs in an inning.

Alexi Casilla and Brian Buscher were each two for four with two RBIs, and Jesse Crain and Joe Nathan pitched scoreless innings coming out of the bullpen.

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

On Tuesday night Brendan Harris and Brian Buscher hit solo homers on consecutive pitches, and Joe Nathan came in to pitch a perfect ninth as the Twins won their seventh in a row.

The Twins young pitchers continued to do well. Tonight it was Kevin Slowey, who outdueled Jake Peavy, though he didn't figure in the decision. Slowey allowed only four hits over six innings, and then the Twins bullpen did the rest.

Slowey retired 14 straight batters after a pair of singles in the first. Though San Diego has not been a good team this season, that's pretty good.

Buscher's on a roll, hitting .368 after going two for four with a run and an RBI. Justin Morneau went two for three with a walk and extended his hitting streak to 12 games. Michael Cuddyer -- one of the players who has to do well down the stretch for the Twins to contend -- went two for four with an RBI and is now hitting .260.

Continue reading "Twins top Padres on late homers"

The Cubs once again wielded the same big lumber they have all year in beating the Orioles 7-4 on Wednesday.

Geovany Soto was two for three with three RBIs, Jim Edmonds had a homer, two runs and two RBIs, and Aramis Ramirez, Ryan Theriot and starting pitcher Ted Lilly each had two hits in the game.

Lilly allowed four runs on two homers in seven innings but otherwise the pitching was impeccable. Carlos Marmol allowed a hit and no runs and Kerry Wood was perfect. I've been saying that a lot lately.

The Cubs hit Orioles starter early, getting four runs in the first and two in the second.

Cubs fans have to be cheered by how Edmonds has improved his batting average lately. He was about .200 when he joined the Cubs, his career in balance. Now he's up to .238 and he's shown some power.

Continue reading "Cubs back on winning track"

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.)

Two years ago the Twins were eight games under .500 and looked dead. Interleague play was what got the team going to a successful season.

The Twins won their eighth in a row Wednesday, 9-3 at San Diego. Greg Maddux failed to win in his ninth attempt at 351 victories, and Glen Perkins got the decision instead. All eight of the wins have come in interleague play.

For a change the team has showed power. The Twins hit two homers Tuesday and did the same in Wednesday's game, with Brendan Harris and Craig Monroe doing the honors.  For anyone who hasn't been to Petco Park, let me tell you it's spacious, especially in right field.

Continue reading "Twins top Padres for eighth straight"

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.

The heroes Thursday were Scott Baker (3.57 ERA), who held the Padres to three runs in six innings, got his first big-league hit and scored a run; Justin Morneau, who went three for four with a homer and three RBIs; and the bullpen, which held the Padres scoreless over the final three innings.

The Padres were up 3-0 when Morneau hit a two-run jack to get the Twins back into the game. Morneau has 12 homers, which isn't great, and 62 RBIs, which is pretty good.

Brian Buscher kept up his torrid hitting pace by going two for four with an RBI. He's hitting .386 and appears to be the third baseman of the future.

Continue reading "Twins extend win skein to nine"

The Cubs found out that U.S. Cellular is a long way from the friendly confines, even if it's only a few miles.

The White Sox ripped the Cubs, 10-3, on Friday, scoring seven runs in the third inning. The biggest blow was a grand slam by Nick Swisher.

Ryan Dempster was the loser for the Cubs, giving up eight runs and getting only seven guys out. Dempster fell to 9-3.

Jose Contreras was the winner for the White Sox. You may recall he allowed a nine-run inning against the Cubs last Saturday as the Cubs swept the Sox, outscoring them 22-11.

The Sox rapped out 14 hits, with Orlando Cabrera going two for four with two runs; A.J. Pierzynski, two for five, two runs and an RBI; Carlos Quentin, four for five, two runs and two RBIs; the red-hot Jermaine Dye, three for five, one run and three RBIs; and Swisher, two for three, a run and four RBIs.

Continue reading "Sox rock Cubs"

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.

Blackburn didn't pitch well, but the Twins' bullpen sure did. Brian Bass, Matt Guerrier and of course Joe Nathan pitched runless ball over four and two-thirds innings. This is the timeless Twins formula of all their great teams, including the 1987 and 1991 teams that won the World Series: Great bullpen, timely hitting, a couple of guys at the top of the rotation who could dominate. (And, yes, some great fielding, which so far hasn't appeared.)

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

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.

Parra, 8-2, has won seven of his last eight starts. Hot team, meet hot pitcher. The hot team was cooled off.

Livan Hernandez didn't pitch horribly, allowing four earned runs in seven innings. At least the heart of the bullpen got rested. Boof Bonser's OK when you have him pitch in a blowout. Manager Ron Gardenhire hasn't used him in any close games lately.

The Brewers scored one in the first, one in the second and three in the third, when Bill Hall and Corey Hart hit RBI doubles. Hernandez hung in there to eat up some innings.

Continue reading "Parra unhittable as Twins' streak ends"

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.

Slowey hurled a complete-game shutout and allowed only three hits. He retired the first 10 batters he faced and struck out eight.

In his last four appearances, Slowey has pitched 29 innings and allowed only three runs with two walks -- none on Sunday -- while winning three of those starts. 

Sheets, meanwhile, gave up five earned runs in seven innings. The biggest blow was Delmon Young's two-run homer in the sixth.

Some of the usual suspects had their hands in the win. Alexi Casilla, a keeper at second base, went two for four with an RBI; Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau each had a hit; Jason Kubel, whose average has gone up to .267, had a hit and an RBI; and leadoff man Carlos Gomez had a hit and an RBI.

Continue reading "Twins back on track"

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.

The division, long considered weak, has been anything but in recent weeks. The Twins had won 11 of 12, but the White Sox have won five in a row and Detroit six.

The Twins had plenty of hits, 13. The only starter who went hitless was Jason Kubel. Among those with two hits were Carlos Gomez, Alexi Casilla, Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau and rookie Denard Span. You have to say, though, that if you get 13 hits, you should score more than four runs.

Continue reading "Bullpen lets Twins down"

No Aramis Ramirez? No problem. Fill-in third baseman Mark DeRosa had a game for the ages, hitting two homers and driving in six RBIs as Chicago beat the Giants 9-2.

Ted Lilly pitched a strong game, allowing two runs in eight innings. He outdueled Barry Zito, who allowed four earned runs in five innings and fell to 3-12. His ERA is 5.99. Ouch.

The Cubs needed a strong bounceback game. They were swept by the White Sox -- and only one of the three games was even close.

Aside from DeRosa, Matt Murton had two hits and Geovany Soto had two hits and three runs.

The Cubs are now two and a half games ahead of the Cardinals and five and a half ahead of the Brewers. Everyone keeps thinking the Cards will fall like a house of cards, but it hasn't happened yet.

Continue reading "Cubs feast on Giants"