The fact that the Twins were awful for a second straight season admittedly diminished the amount of baseball that I watched this year, and I found it somewhat difficult to write about the Twins as the season dragged on, which is probably one of the reasons why I enjoyed covering the Rock Cats -- a winning baseball team. Still, though, it's always disappointing when the season comes to an end. Here is a little list of things that I will miss, or already do miss, about Twins-related baseball.

1. Checking for the lineups to come out each afternoon.

2. Getaway day games that make life at the office just a little bit better.

3. Checking Joe Mauer's batting average against the leaderboard.

4. Going to Rock Cats games and sitting 1 row above the home dugout for $12 or so.

5. Following Twins prospects coming up with the Red Wings, Rock Cats, Miracle, Snappers, E-Town, and other teams.

6. Watching Ben Revere highlights and arguing with people that still think that he can't be a serviceable major league center fielder.

7. Checking the overall baseball standings to find out where the Twins will draft in 2013 (4th overall).

8. Getting to know a few of the Rock Cats players through events at the ballpark and in the community.

9. The feeling that, regardless of what else is going on in life, and regardless of whether the Twins are in first place or last, they are a great distraction.

10. Listening to the radio broadcast and being taken back to a time when I was 10 years old, laying in my childhood bed, quietly listening to John Gordon or Herb Carneal on 830 before I fell asleep.