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About this blog

All the effort of some sort of horrible amalgamation of Denny Hocking, Matt Tolbert and Nick Punto. But no frosted tips. Now with puns!

Entries in this blog

Joe Mauer Hates Pop-Ups

Originally posted at Kevin Slowey was Framed!   Sometimes inspiration strikes in odd ways. Today, Rhett Bollinger, the Twins' MLB.com beat writer, sent out this tweet: Joe Mauer just popped out. Something he did only once last year in 641 plate appearances. #MNTwins — Rhett Bollinger (@RhettBollinger) February 26, 2013   Wait, what? I saw that come through my feed and I was immediately interested. Was it true? @bridman77 Yep. It's actually only once in the last two years. Fangraphs has the
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

5

The Minnesota Twins and 2012 Topps - Righting a Baseball Card Injustice

Originally posted at Kevin Slowey was Framed!   I went to Target this afternoon. That alone is exciting enough for a new post, but there's more! I was going to get bread and milk for my family. I also needed to buy some pens, which happen to be on the opposite end of the store. There's still more. After procuring my pens, I went down an unmanned checkout aisle to get a soda pop. I wanted a Diet Dr. Pepper. Farther down that aisle were the baseball cards. I thought to myself "oh man, I us
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

9

How the worst MLB teams are rebuilding

Originally posted at Kevin Slowey was Framed!   Not all bad teams are created equal. Some teams are bad for just one injury-plagued season. Some teams are bad for a few seasons and then good for a few seasons. Some teams are just chronically bad. Bad teams need to be changed. Bad teams have the benefit of receiving good draft picks, but other than that, they don't really gain any sort of advantage from being bad. Teams do not want to be bad. Bad teams can struggle to attract fans and free
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

13

Who has the most to prove in 2013?

I have been given good feedback (read: 2-3 kind comments) about the wackier things I have been writing. Here is something I wrote about other Minnesota Athletes playing baseball. It's odd. Thank you to anyone who has given me nice feedback, it really does mean a lot.   Here is something more serious: Originally posted at Kevin Slowey was Framed!   The 2013 Minnesota Twins are in a unique position. Their present doesn't seem all that promising, but their future looks pretty bright. The fut
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

5

Deconstructing Diamond

Originally Posted at Kevin Slowey was Framed! Warning: Stats ahead! If you prefer to learn about Scott Diamond's unique place in baseball history, you can read it here.   2012 was a completely lost season for the Minnesota Twins. I don't need to rehash all the details, as we all lived it together. One of the few bright spots was a 26-year-old former Rule 5 draft pick in Scott Diamond. Diamond shined brightly for the Twins in 2012. He won 12 games, posted a 3.54 ERA and dazzled hitters a
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

1

A Championship the Twins can win.

All content was originally published at Kevin Slowey was Framed! I figured out how the Twins could win a baseball championship. However, I don't want to waste anyone's time, so this theory falls quite a bit short of reality. If you want realistic baseball analysis, I have been writing about some Twins-related players in the last couple weeks, and you can read about them here:   Joe Saunders signs with the Mariners Matt Capps signs with the Indians Kevin Slowey signs with the Marlins Delmon You
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

3

AL Central Team Off-Season Reviews/2013 Team Previews

Hey everyone! I took a look at what each of the 4 other teams in the AL Central were up to this off-season. Once completed, the 4 previews consisted of a lot of words. Really, too many words. Therefore, I split each one up and posted them individually at my blog, Kevin Slowey was Framed!. I thought I would just provide links to each of the 4 previews here, for any who are interested. I swear this was not a ploy to get more pageviews, it was a simple ploy to continue to be lazy even though
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

7

2012 Twins Report Card

I am a teacher by trade. I am a teacher period. One of the most important parts of teaching is giving quality feedback. Students need to understand what mistakes they are making and how they can fix them. It is equally important to provide good feedback to students when they do something well. Without feedback, students have a hard time understanding whether or not they met expectations.   Grades are given because they are fairly universal. Most people know what an A or an F is. Although
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

2

Twin Season of the Past - Shane Mack 1992

Shane Mack was my little brother's favorite player. It was perfect because Kirby Puckett was my favorite and Mack was almost like the little brother to Puckett. Well, maybe that isn't perfection, but it is poetic if nothing else. Regardless, in most cases, there comes a time when the little brother "catches up" to the big brother. They start to be more competitive in head to head sporting events, they get taller/bigger and they get more confidence. Often, you can tell who grew up with big
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

4

Awardin'!

End of year awards are fun. That is really all they are, but they are fun. Fun is fun, and everyone knows that. Therefore, I thought it might be fun to share my Award Winners. Regardless, I will have fun. My 5th grade Gym teacher always said, "if you had fun, you won." So, I win. Fun = Won.   We'll start with the most fun award and move down the list. NL Cy Young Award - R.A. Dickey   He lead the league in Batters Faced. Need I say more?   Yes? Ok. Well, this was super close for me.
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

3

Closer Mentality/Closer Role

Last night's Yankees-Orioles game got me thinking about the idea of the Closer Mentality and the Closer Role. I absolutely believe in the Closer Mentality. I consider myself a statistically inclined baseball fan. I understand that research shows that closer is just a word. A good reliever makes a good closer and whatnot. However, I don't believe the Closer Mentality is a myth. The idea that some people perform better or worse in specific situations makes perfect sense to me. Human Psychol
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

1

Twin of the Future - Joe Benson

This Twin of the Future is also a Twin of the past. Joe Benson was drafted in the 2nd round of the 2006 draft. He has tools. He has power, speed, an arm (yeah yeah, he has two, a good arm, smart guy), and he is a good fielder. The one tool he doesn't seem to have is the hit tool. Regardless, he showed enough in the Minors to earn a September call-up in 2011. He and 2006 first round pick Chris Parmelee were given some time that month. They were two completely different prospects. Parmelee
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

11

Playoff Predictions with My Wife (Borat Voice)

I decided that I could predict the playoffs just like everyone else in the World. Or, I could ask my wife Liz, what she thinks. Liz knows a lot about baseball, way more than most. She also has a lot of crazy ideas and a bit of attention-deficit disorder. She is self-proclaimed to be "eccentric." Anyway, I decided to get her opinion on the series and write her thoughts. She gets off topic in an extremely effective manner and some of her thoughts are often completely unrelated to anything th
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

2

What If? - Twins trade for Cliff Lee in 2010

In July of 2010, the Texas Rangers traded a prospect package highlighted by Justin Smoak for Seattle Mariners ace Cliff Lee. The trade helped propel an already talented Rangers team to the World Series in 2010. In the Winter of 2010, Lee surprised everyone by signing a multi-year contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, spurning a reportedly larger offer from the New York Yankees. Ok, so what? What does this have to do with our beloved Minnesota Twins?   Well, the Twins were reportedly in on
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

5

MLB Draft a Crapshoot - Part 1?

The Twins suck. Sorry, had to be said. I do consider myself a bit of a shock-jock, so this is fitting. However, the reward for sucky teams is a good draft pick. I was talking with a friend of mine and he said, "who cares about the draft, it's a total crapshoot." This got me wondering; is the draft a crapshoot?   Yeah, probably.   However, is the MLB draft more of a crapshoot than the other 3 major sports' drafts? I did some research to see if any one league has a more crapshooty (crapshooti
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

3

Significant Date in Twins' History - November 21, 2007

2007 was a rare poor season for the Twins in the first decade of the 21st Century. They finished under .500 and in 3rd place. A long-time Minnesota Twin was heading for free agency after the season as well. Torii Hunter was likely the fourth or fifth best player on the team at this point, behind Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Johan Santana and possibly Joe Nathan (I think Hunter was better). In addition, he was 31 years old and slipping defensively from a great centerfielder to an aging centerfi
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

7

MicroThoughts - Detroit Tigers

I have had the honor of watching the Detroit Tigers play 23 innings in about the last 24 hours. Wait, honor is the wrong word. What is the opposite of honor? The Tigers are brutal. I know their record is much, much, much better than the Twins' record, but they are brutal. They have 3 great starting pitchers: Verlander, Fister and Scherzer (who can be pretty hit or miss). They have three great hitters: Cabrera, Fielder, and Jackson. They have one player who is regularly in the lineup tha
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

3

MicroThoughts - Dedone?

I'm sitting here watching Samuel Deduno regress before my very eyes. In a way, it is sad because it would be fun for a 29 year old journeyman pitcher to suddenly harness the talent that he obviously has and become a dominant starter. The reality is that this rarely happens and while Deduno's results were good in his first couple months, the underlying stats did not support his success. He still walks way too many batters and doesn't strike enough batters out to mask it. He is starting to give
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

2

You Just Don't Sano Part 1

Miguel Sano steps into the box. He is just a huge man. The game is tied at 1 and the opposing pitcher is locked in, but Sano already has 3 hits, including a double that hit the top of the fence. The pitcher has been working him away, and Sano is taking what he is getting, driving all three hits to right-center. He really has become a good all-around hitter in this league. The pitcher deviates from the game plan for just one pitch, comes inside, and Sano absolutely launches it to the seats i
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

6

Point/Counterpoint - The Last Two Weeks of the Season

Point - The Twins should try to pass Cleveland for 4th place in the Division   The final two weeks of the season are extremely important for the Twins' momentum as they move into 2013. Currently, the Twins are in last place in the AL Central and the entire American League. This embarrassing situation is one that the Twins should work hard to remedy over the course of the next two weeks.   There are plenty of exciting players to watch on this team and the future seems very bright, even as earl
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

1

MicroQuestion - Buster Posey = Joe Mauer 2.0?

Yesterday, I posited that I believe that Joe Mauer is great. I stand by this, but I can see why some are frustrated with Mauer. Buster Posey, on the other hand, is seemingly working on wrapping up his first MVP award. Posey hits home runs, catches regularly and seems to be that emotional leader that many fans get behind. In his two healthy seasons, the Giants have won a World Series and are now serious contenders to win another one. So, my question is this - is Buster Posey everything fans
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

1

MicroThoughts - Joe Mauer

My Father-in-Law sent me a text yesterday afternoon. Here is what it said:   "I see iron man Mauer has missed five straight. Most overpaid player in the game. Have a great weekend."   The "have a great weekend" part was much appreciated, but the rest of the text just made me shake my head. I want to address each part of this text, as I think these are common sentiments expressed by Twins fans.   1. Iron Man quip.   Mauer plays a lot of games for a catcher. He has had years when he has mi
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

9

Knowing your Limitations - Lessons from Alfred Adler

It is common in human nature to be prideful and to want to demonstrate one's abilities. When a person learns a skill, they want to demonstrate that they have that skill. Just look inside any college dorm, and see which dudes learned how to play guitar. It is also very normal for humans to overestimate their abilities to perform certain skills. Often, we can only compare our level of ability to those around us. If those around us cannot play guitar, our skills look better by comparison.   O
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

1

Micro Post - Walk-Offs

So, Denard Span just hit a walk-off single to win a pretty exciting game. Walk-offs are always fun, but I am very over the "beat the crap out of the game-winning hitter celebration." First off, Span has had concussion issues and just had a shoulder problem. Seems like hitting him on the head and tugging at his body isn't the smart move. Second, it is played out. The water jug/pie-in-face thing is played out too. Is this the real reason Drew Butera is on the team? Does he have the water ju
Brad Swanson

Brad Swanson

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