In the postgame, Tim Laudner said that Diamond reminds him of Brad Radke - only average velocity but with good control.

re Mastrionni not Doumit hitting in the 9th: the only thing I can think of is that Gardy wanted to use Span as a pinch runner if Mauer (which happened) or Willingham got on. And its not like Doumit has been tearing it up against LHP's this year (13 hits in 63 plate appearances)

 

in the end, it all worked out, so horray.

seven page game thread...nice!

seven page game thread...nice!

Yep. It was a great game so that's not entirely surprising. I'd like to see every game hit 100 posts, good games to get over 200. There's still much to be done to get the forums where we think they should be.

Do you guys think that Dozier will be the starting SS for the remainder of the year?

Nice to see Diamond bounce back with a very solid outing...I still think he's a keeper and the Hammer saves the day.

Do you guys think that Dozier will be the starting SS for the remainder of the year?

 

 

YES!...they have nobody else...he'll be fine. He made a great defensive paly again today and although he has too many errors he shows potential to be a solid SS. He's also had his moments offensively, needs more consistency but that's nothing new for a young player in his 1st yr.

Do you guys think that Dozier will be the starting SS for the remainder of the year?

Yes, if only because they have no other viable options. The Twins are a bad team and now is the time to let young guys take their lumps and hopefully progress.

Do you guys think that Dozier will be the starting SS for the remainder of the year?

Dozier has made rookie mistakes and has taken his lumps lately. I think his defense is better than the high number of errors and he has the ability to hit. But, like Morneau right now, he's in an awful funk at the plate. Hopefully, sooner rather than later, he comes out of it.

 

I certainly don't want to see Carroll starting lots of games at SS. If they want to send Dozier down, they should recall Florimon, who has done a decent job in the minors.

If they want to send Dozier down, they should recall Florimon, who has done a decent job in the minors.

At the very least, I would like to see Florimon as a September callup.

 

Great win for the Twins today and an excellent game thread.

Wow. This game is why I love baseball.

Agreed. This was a baseball lovers game. Some interesting strategy, some in-game heroics, lots of early count swing and contact that kept the game moving at a brisk pace, the last two innings chock-full with the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat

 

I would have been disappointed if the bottom of the 8th had made the final difference, but it still would have been a tremendous regular season game.

I so want to like Casilla. He's a talented player when his head isn't planted in his ass.

I'm there. It looks like now that he finally has legit competition for PT he is playing much better in the field. He's usually good for 2-3 mini runs/season when he looks like he has finally put it all together on offense and defense, I'm thinking he might be due for a little hitting outbreak, especially if Gardy decides to give Dozier a day off now and again and move Caroll over to short. Dozier looks like he's going to possibly be a Gagne-level type of SS, he made some terrific plays today, it still wouldn't hurt to give him a break, he's definitely pressing at the plate right now.

At the very least, I would like to see Florimon as a September callup.

 

Great win for the Twins today and an excellent game thread.

Florimon is staging a mini-break out at ROC, Michael showing the fleetingest glimpses of a heartbeat at FtM, who woulda thunk it? MN Twins w/ organizational SS depth?

Nice hit by Mauer -- now it's Hammer Time.

IMO, you are vastly understating what Mauer accomplished there. Down 0-2 in the count, fighting off 101 and 102 MPH fastballs and making good decisions on when to swing against 88-91 MPH sliders, that was one of the few times I could agree with the general blanket characterization of a "great at bat" . He literally broke Chapman's spirit, especially after he took yet another ridiculously powerful 3-2 pitch opposite field off the wall. Without that hit for a double, Chapman probably had another 100+MPH pitch or two to feed the Hammer with 2 outs and bases empty. Kudos to Hammer for getting all of that 97 MPH pitch, but Mauer gets a huge share of the credit for that hit and getting Diamond through 8 from behind the plate.

IMO, you are vastly understating what Mauer accomplished there. Down 0-2 in the count, fighting off 101 and 102 MPH fastballs and making good decisions on when to swing against 88-91 MPH sliders, that was one of the few times I could agree with the general blanket characterization of a "great at bat" . He literally broke Chapman's spirit, especially after he took yet another ridiculously powerful 3-2 pitch opposite field off the wall. Without that hit for a double, Chapman probably had another 100+MPH pitch or two to feed the Hammer with 2 outs and bases empty. Kudos to Hammer for getting all of that 97 MPH pitch, but Mauer gets a huge share of the credit for that hit and getting Diamond through 8 from behind the plate.

Yep, Mauer was the player of the game. Willingham may have had the game-winning RBI but Joe was the one who stood in there and had that 10 or 11 pitch AB and knocked Chapman off his game. It was the very definition of a "professional at-bat".

Awesome game thread, I appreciate the descriptions and insights. I couldn't tune in today, sounds like I missed a beauty of the game with a lot of interesting stuff that you don't really get from recaps, highlights and box scores.

 

Maybe I should skip more often, I seem to have a habit of missing the good ones.

 

And I've got tickets for tomorrow night's game, which doesn't bode well either - the Twins have lost the last 8 games that I've attended - heartbreakers, blowouts and everything in between. No better way to see that streak broken than against the Whities, but I have this horrible feeling that it's going to be Good Peavy vs. Bad Frankie.

Awesome game thread, I appreciate the descriptions and insights. I couldn't tune in today, sounds like I missed a beauty of the game with a lot of interesting stuff that you don't really get from recaps, highlights and box scores.

 

Maybe I should skip more often, I seem to have a habit of missing the good ones.

 

And I've got tickets for tomorrow night's game, which doesn't bode well either - the Twins have lost the last 8 games that I've attended - heartbreakers, blowouts and everything in between. No better way to see that streak broken than against the Whities, but I have this horrible feeling that it's going to be Good Peavy vs. Bad Frankie.

1)It rarely is worth an investment of time in re-watching a game or knowing the outcome in advance, this is one of those great exceptions. I highly recommend to watch the rebroadcast tonight.

 

2) Plouffe broke out his own slump today, Mauer out of his leadership slump, Diamond out of his of-late pitching woes, no reason you can't break out of your own slump tomorrow night.

Here's a hopeful prediction: Morneau is batting 333/385/1167/1551 against the Sox this season. How about a break out from his own slump tomorrow night against Peavy?

 

 

I'm actually looking forward to this series if the Twins can start playing like today more often and nothing gets the juices flowing like going up against AJ.

1)It rarely is worth an investment of time in re-watching a game or knowing the outcome in advance, this is one of those great exceptions. I highly recommend to watch the rebroadcast tonight.

 

2) Plouffe broke out his own slump today, Mauer out of his leadership slump, Diamond out of his of-late pitching woes, no reason you can't break out of your own slump tomorrow night.

Here's a hopeful prediction: Morneau is batting 333/385/1167/1551 against the Sox this season. How about a break out from his own slump tomorrow night against Peavy?

 

 

I'm actually looking forward to this series if the Twins can start playing like today more often and nothing gets the juices flowing like going up against AJ.

I also missed the game, but I'll definitely consider watching it tonight. I'll be at tomorrows game as we look to cut into that white sox lead a little bit

1)It rarely is worth an investment of time in re-watching a game or knowing the outcome in advance, this is one of those great exceptions. I highly recommend to watch the rebroadcast tonight.

 

2) Plouffe broke out his own slump today, Mauer out of his leadership slump, Diamond out of his of-late pitching woes, no reason you can't break out of your own slump tomorrow night.

Here's a hopeful prediction: Morneau is batting 333/385/1167/1551 against the Sox this season. How about a break out from his own slump tomorrow night against Peavy?

 

 

I'm actually looking forward to this series if the Twins can start playing like today more often and nothing gets the juices flowing like going up against AJ.

1) Ha! I often DVR games I can't catch live but rarely go back to them and settle for highlights instead. But I was actually thinking to myself as I read through the thread "Man, it might actually be worth going back and watching this one."

 

2) I'd love for that prediction to come through. I keep thinking, or at least hoping, that Morneau will bust out and go on a tear. Tomorrow is about as good a time to start that as we're going to get. I'm interested to see how they come out in the series as well. There are a number of troubling aspects to the season thus far, the 13-22 home record is a big one. Gotta find a way to start winning on our own turf, especially against division foes.

1) Ha! I often DVR games I can't catch live but rarely go back to them and settle for highlights instead. But I was actually thinking to myself as I read through the thread "Man, it might actually be worth going back and watching this one."

I do the same. If I'm not going to be able to watch any or even chunks, I'll just dvr. Sometimes I'll be insulated from finding out and I'll watch the game (often hurrying between pitches or the like with the ffwd). But even if I have kept tabs on the game, I like having it recorded for "just in case" moments that I want to go back and watch. Today's game is definitely one to at least watch parts of. I'd say every Votto at-bat (for various reasons) and the 9th inning for absolute sure.

I do the same. If I'm not going to be able to watch any or even chunks, I'll just dvr. Sometimes I'll be insulated from finding out and I'll watch the game (often hurrying between pitches or the like with the ffwd). But even if I have kept tabs on the game, I like having it recorded for "just in case" moments that I want to go back and watch. Today's game is definitely one to at least watch parts of. I'd say every Votto at-bat (for various reasons) and the 9th inning for absolute sure.

Add reasons to watch:

1) Dozier made a series of good-to-great plays. In the field, he is maturing right before our eyes.

2) Mauer's heightened interest level, in the dugout, behind the plate, in the batters box.

3) Diamond. And not just his all-day battle with Votto, ie, he hit Votto early on, and then hit Phillips to load the bases and pitched out of it. He has now actually found a strikeout pitch with his mixing and matching skills. Gives high hopes for the future.

4) Brandon Phillips. You have to see him play to appreciate just how good he really is. Stole a bunch of hits from the Twins all weekend. He's the best fielding 2B in baseball IMO.

5) Aroldis Chapman. Did I mention the Chapman-Mauer battle? All right, I did already. Epic regular season game battle that can't be reiterated enough. Chapman has previously hit 106 on the gun and averages 15.7 K/9 with a .76 WHIP. Scary good while still with upside at only 24 years of age.

I just noticed that this was the most active game thread since the home opener. Thanks for contributing, everyone!

I think that tonight's White Sox thread may yet beat this one. Nothing better to rally the troops than a home opener against the evil ones.