Jump to content
Twins Daily
  • Create Account

Game Thread: Twins vs. Royals, 5/29/22 @ 1:10PM CT

IndianaTwin

By IndianaTwin
in Archived Game Threads

 Share

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 204
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Popular Posts

IndianaTwin
IndianaTwin

“Riding on the City of New Orleans…” Well, actually, I’m on Amtrak’s Texas Eagle, which goes through Joliet and St. Louis on the way to Dallas and beyond, rather than through Kankakee and Memphis

terrydactyls
terrydactyls

For anyone who thought that Lewis might not able to play like Buxton, running into the wall should remove all doubts.

twinssporto
twinssporto

The Twins should dole out Lisinopril or Losartan to fans as they enter the stadium.

glunn Wichita Wind Surge

glunn

Community Moderator
Posted
Posted
1 minute ago, sdtwins37 said:

Everyone get a break, and everyone gets a turn, this is the only way all these injuries make any sense. Right?

Depth can be a good thing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
twinssporto St Paul Saints

twinssporto

Verified Member
Posted
Posted
6 hours ago, IndianaTwin said:

“Riding on the City of New Orleans…”

Well, actually, I’m on Amtrak’s Texas Eagle, which goes through Joliet and St. Louis on the way to Dallas and beyond, rather than through Kankakee and Memphis on the way to the Big Easy. But we still rolled along past houses, farms and fields.

I love traveling by train, so I took the two-hour ride to Chicago’s Union Station yesterday morning and then got on board for the 24-hour therapeutic jaunt. Mrs. IT flies in tonight, and we embark on the “Take a Tums Tour,” searching for barbecue and chili (no beans). Next Sunday, we’ll take in a game in Arlington, allowing me to recheck the Rangers’ stadium off the list and return to being able to say I’ve seen a game in all 29 Major League Stadiums, plus the Monument to Cement in Chicago where The Team That Shall Not Be Named plays.

  • Aside: Vanimal gave me a few good recommendations early this week, but I’m also up for more. Where’s the best places you know for barbecue or chili in Dallas, Austin, San Antonio and places in between? Oh, and milkshakes? Mrs. IT and I have a hankerin’ for those as well.

So why lead with a reference to the City of New Orleans, the classic song by Steve Goodman (foreshadow alert)? Perhaps it’s because of the Big Train. When we talk about the best player in franchise history, we’re usually arguing about Harmon, Rodney, Joe, Kirby, Tony O, etc. Here’s a tidbit for you. Remember that the franchise started as the Senators, and I came across this amazing fact the other day. At least I think it’s amazing, and this is my GT intro. The Big Train, Walter Johnson, racked up more bWar (164.9) for the franchise than Carew (63.8) and Killebrew (60.4) combined. Add in the third Twin HOF hitter, Oliva (43.0) and the Twins’ Big 3 only tops the Big Train by 2.3 WAR. In the discussions of what constitutes an Ace, I think we can generally agree that the pride of Humboldt, Kans., was a capital A-C-E ACE.

But Johnson isn’t it. Rather, let’s talk about Goodman. As Annie Kinsella almost said, “Fine. But what does Steve Goodman have to do with baseball?” Turns out the great folksinger from Chicago not only wrote the classic railroad ballad, recorded by Arlo Guthrie, John Denver, the Highwaymen and Judy Collins, before Willie Nelson won a Grammy with it in 1985, he also had a couple songs about our Pastime.

Just before the 1981 season, Goodman wrote “A Dying Cub Fan’s Last Request,” the story of a Cubs fan looking back at years of frustration following his hometown team. For those not familiar, in the song, the dying old man tells his friends to carry his coffin around Wrigley Field before having his ashes thrown into a bonfire on the field. Two players are mentioned – “Hey, Ernie, let’s play two” and “Have Keith Moreland drop a routine fly.”

As it turns out, cynicism in the form of asking, “Do they still play the blues in Chicago when baseball rolls around?” and “When the snow melts away, do the Cubbies still play in their ivy-covered burial ground?” will get you on the outs with the team. That’s especially the case when you answer by saying, “When I was a boy, they were my pride and joy, but now they only bring fatigue to the home of the brave, the land of the free and the doormat of the National League.”

He goes on, noting that the last time the Cubs had won the National League pennant was “the year we dropped the bomb on Japan.” The Cubs made him a criminal, leading him to flagrant truancy as he sat in the bleachers, followed by taking part in alcohol, gambling, dope, football, hockey, lacrosse...

Our fair fan has season tickets to watch the Angels now. “But you, the living, you’re stuck here with the Cubs.”

Yeah, that honked off management, and they banned him from playing it at Wrigley Field.

But he redeemed himself in the eyes of management, coming up with “Go, Cubs, Go,” which went on to become the official Cubs victory song. WGN, the team’s radio broadcast partner, requested the song, which he wrote in 1984. Several 1984 Cubs appeared on the recording, but regretfully, Goodman lost his 16-year battle with leukemia and died on Sept. 20, just days before the Cubs clinched their first postseason appearance in nearly 40 years.

And now, in the words of another Chicago legend, you know “the rest of the story.”

But that’s Chicago and Dallas – today’s Twins tilt is against another barbecue-based team, the Royals of Arthur Bryant’s and Gates & Sons. The Walleyes need a win to salvage a series split. They’ll go after it with Sonny Gray on the hill, opposed by Zack Greinke, in a challenge between grizzled veterans. Let’s hope Gray is a little more grizzled.

For the Ribs

1. Whit Merrifield, CF (R)
2. Andrew Benintendi, LF (L)
3. Bobby Witt Jr., SS (R)
4. Salvador Perez, C (R)
5. M.J. Melendez, RF (L)
6. Hunter Dozier, 1B, (R)
7. Carlos Santana, DH (L or R, depending on opposing pitcher's handedness)
8. Emmanuel Rivera, 3B (R)
9. Nicky Lopez, 2B (L)

For the Walleyes

1. Byron Buxton, DH (R)
2. Carlos Correa, SS (R)
3. Luis Arraez, 1B (L)
4. Jorge Polanco, 2B (L or R, depending on opposing pitcher's handedness)
5. Gio Urshela, 3B (R)
6. Kyle Garlick, RF (R)
7. Royce Lewis, CF (R)
8. Trevor Larnach, LF (L)
9. Ryan Jeffers, C (R)

Great intro! Enjoy the train ride too. Make sure you stop at Perry's in Dallas and order their monster pork chop. It's huge but oh so tasty. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
 Share
Go to topic listing
The Twins Daily Caretaker Fund
The Twins Daily Caretaker Fund

You all care about this site. The next step is caring for it. We’re asking you to caretake this site so it can remain the premier Twins community on the internet.

Become a Caretaker
×
×
  • Create New...