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  • AL Wild Card Game Thread: Twins @ Yankees, 10/3@7:09pm CT

    Riverbrian

    By Riverbrian

    This won’t be my normal game thread opener because this isn’t a normal game. I’ll be scrapping the '5 Things to Think About' format for the playoffs.

    The normal game thread format developed out of necessity. There was a time when I was writing every single game thread opener and in desperate need of daily, relevant, game set up content. That content was not there without extreme repetition of the same points because things don’t change that much between game 47 and game 48. It was also a time when the team wasn’t playing very well… so those repetitive points were also depressing. It didn’t take long to realize that it just wasn’t sustainable. So, with the purpose of opening up more doors for content, I opened up more doors for content by mentioning anything that came to mind and crossing clear over the baseball lines.

    Further, when Sam Deduno is your top pitcher, it’s very easy to start things negative and if you start negative… it will stay there. So… the easiest way to keep things light-hearted is by not mentioning that Sam Deduno is your top pitcher.

    That’s how the game thread opener became what it became.

    This is the first playoff game thread opener in the history of Twins Daily. Sam Deduno is long gone, and we've got ourselves a winning team, so it needs a different approach.

    I’ve got my Eye Black on.

    ----

    Twins Video

    If I had a nickel for every time I heard someone say the Twins will be one and done at Yankee Stadium… I’d have at least 35 cents, and that is mainly because I don’t talk to a lot of people. If I made the effort to talk to as many Twins fans as I possibly could, I’d have enough nickels to start a profitable small business that employed between 10 or 20 with decent benefits.

    Here’s a couple of points that I would like to share with all you negative non-believers who think that it’s a foregone conclusion that the Twins will leave New York disappointed:

    1. You may be right… only one team will advance to Cleveland… it is quite possible that the Twins will lose but the odds are closer to 50-50 than you non-believers are expressing.

    2. You are feeling this way because you are OLD. You are no longer getting carded at those drinking establishments that you drown your sorrows in. You remember those disappointing trips to Yankee Stadium, then you are taking those memories, holding them long term, letting them pile up and then you are dumping the whole pile over a bunch of kids on the current roster that were miles from your pile of memories.

    Byron Buxton was 15 years old and in Georgia when Phil Cuzzi was unfair to Joe Mauer. Jose Berrios was a 15 year old in Puerto Rico and Max Kepler was 16 and living in Germany. Only Joe Mauer is old enough to remember it and Joe has played enough baseball to know that it just doesn’t matter anymore. There are no scars on these players… those scars are yours.

    You may come back and say… "What about recent history? After all, the Twins are 13-27 against the Yankees in the past 5 years." To that I say… “See… it can be done.” The Twins have beaten the Yankees 13 times, including 7 times at Yankee Stadium in the past 5 years. Tonight… they've just gotta do it once and they’ve done it before.

    Thank God it isn’t a 40-game series.

    Today’s Joe M Conversation:

    Maddon: What are you doing, Joe?

    Mauer: Writing a letter

    Montana: Handwritten… you don’t see many people doing that these days.

    Mauer: I have to write it by hand… somebody broke into my house and stole my computer and that’s who I’m writing this letter to. I’m going to publish it on Twins Daily so they are sure to read it.

    Morgan: Was the computer all they got?

    Mauer: No… my computer and a bunch of books that were kept nearby.

    McCarthy: What kind of books?

    Mauer: Nothing much… my Thesaurus was stolen.

    Maddon: Let me see what you have so far

    Mauer:

    Dear Crook, who broke into my house and stole my computer and thesaurus,

    What you did was bad. You are a bad person and I hope bad things happen to you in a bad way.

    Morgan: You may want to get another Thesaurus.

    Mauer: How do you spell Armageddon? Damn it… I can’t spell Armageddon!!!

    Montana: It’s okay, Joe… it’s not the end of the world.

    ____________________

    Lineups:

    Our very own MINNESOTA TWINS:

    Brian Dozier 2B

    Joe Mauer 1B

    Jorge Polanco SS

    Eddie Rosario LF

    Eduardo Escobar 3B

    Max Kepler RF

    Byron Buxton CF

    Jason Castro C

    Robbie Grossman DH

    Ervin Santana P

    Yankees:

    Brett Gardner LF

    Aaron Judge RF

    Gary Sanchez C

    Didi Gregorius SS

    Starlin Castro 2B

    Greg Bird 1B

    Aaron Hicks CF

    Jacoby Ellsbury DH

    Luis Severino P

    Game-time forecast: Partly cloudy, no rain, 63 deg F, winds at 6mph from the SSE.

    Play ball! GO TWINS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Todd Frazier 3B

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    Featured Comments

    brvama

    brvama 698

  • Provisional Member

    • Posted

    "If I had a nickel for every time I heard someone say the Twins will be one and done at Yankee Stadium… I’d have at least 35 cents, and that is mainly because I don’t talk to a lot of people."

     

    Best line of the year, IMO. Great article to introduce a new era of playoff appearances.

     

    Being one of the old guys around here, this young team gives me confidence that past history doesn't matter to them. Win or lose, they are "family" (cue Sly). I expect a well played game. That's really all I can ask.

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    Vanimal46

    Vanimal46 28,724

  • Old-Timey Member

    • Posted

     

    "If I had a nickel for every time I heard someone say the Twins will be one and done at Yankee Stadium… I’d have at least 35 cents, and that is mainly because I don’t talk to a lot of people." Best line of the year, IMO. Great article to introduce a new era of playoff appearances. Being one of the old guys around here, this young team gives me confidence that past history doesn't matter to them. Win or lose, they are "family" (cue Sly). I expect a well played game. That's really all I can ask.

     

    Past history shouldn't matter to them... Hell, most everyone in the lineup were teenagers the last time the Twins played New York in a postseason series. New era, no bad vibes! 

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    Vanimal46

    Vanimal46 28,724

  • Old-Timey Member

    • Posted

     

    TD now has it's own "This Day in History." (best read with a bit of reverb and deep voice)

     

    First ever playoff thread and Brian is now firmly ensconced in the TD HOF through being the person who wrote the opener.

     

    Congratulations, Brian! Hopefully, you get a plaque of some sort. Or a ribbon? TD SWAG? Cup of coffee at the local diner?

     

    Go Twins!

     

    Brock is waiting for Brian at the Twins Daily WORLD HEADQUARTERS to celebrate such a notable achievement! He will have a cake, then ask for Brian to cover his uber ride to a bar and watch the game. 

     

    http://www.blogcdn.com/www.mandatory.com/media/2013/10/grownup-birthday.jpg

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    TWINSFANINATL

    TWINSFANINATL 5

  • Provisional Member

    • Posted

     

    The Twins will beat the Yankees in the wild card game tonight. Then, give Cleveland a run in the ALDS. That's all I have. This generation of Twins feels different. Winners. No Yankees baggage.

    No Yankees baggage except for Mauer and Molitor.  Remember, Gardy infected everyone in the organization with his fear of Yankee Stadium and pinstripes, and Molitor was in the organization at the time.  Hopefully Molitor stays out of the way and the players can overcome it.

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    Vanimal46

    Vanimal46 28,724

  • Old-Timey Member

    • Posted

     

    No Yankees baggage except for Mauer and Molitor.  Remember, Gardy infected everyone in the organization with his fear of Yankee Stadium and pinstripes, and Molitor was in the organization at the time.  Hopefully Molitor stays out of the way and the players can overcome it.

     

    For the love of God Molitor, NO bunts before the 6th inning. 

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    Dantes929

    Dantes929 4,529

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

     

    I had a dream that the Twins had a six run seventh inning punctuated by a Rosario grand slam. If that happens, I'm changing my Twins Daily name to The Prophet. And hoping I don't meet a similar fate to Joseph Smith.

    6 run 7th sounds great.   Do we win though?    Similar fate to Joe Smith?    Multiple wives?   Sounds great in some ways but it means multiple mothers-in-law.    Also reminds me of Oscar Wilde's quote.   "Bigamy is having one wife too many.   Monogamy is the same"

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    sampleSizeOfOne

    sampleSizeOfOne 13,517

  • Old-Timey Member

    • Posted

    Please let Joe know his computer is safe and sound. His guests just didn't want him to be distracted for tonight.

     

    My understanding is that it will come back next month, so he should find something else with which to keep himself occupied.

     

    Oh, and the thesaurus wasn't them.

     

    Personally i would be intrigued to read a ransom note written by people who would booknap a thesaurus...

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    Dave The Dastardly

    Dave The Dastardly 3,384

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    Relax guys, I removed the Yankee curse last night. I burned an old Yankee pennant that my son bought at a Twins-Yankee game back in 2003 when he was too young to know any better and a dead goat (you know how hard it is to find a dead goat?) in a backyard bonfire. With the smell of barbecued hairy goat meat in my nostrils, I poured what was left of a bottle of bourbon over the flames. I no longer have any eyebrows, a picnic table or a back wall on my house.

     

    I may no longer have a wife either.

     

    Damn Yankees!

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    Craig Arko

    Craig Arko 13,264

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

     

    Relax guys, I removed the Yankee curse last night. I burned an old Yankee pennant that my son bought at a Twins-Yankee game back in 2003 when he was too young to know any better and a dead goat (you know how hard it is to find a dead goat?) in a backyard bonfire. With the smell of barbecued hairy goat meat in my nostrils, I poured what was left of a bottle of bourbon over the flames. I no longer have any eyebrows, a picnic table or a back wall on my house.

     

    I may no longer have a wife either.

     

    Damn Yankees!

    I hope it wasn't good bourbon.

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    bighat

    bighat 7,885

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    Guys, I had a dream last night that I forgot about the game. I turned it on and it was the 7th inning...and the Twins were losing 8-0.  I was so mad that I'd missed the game, and that the Twins were getting blown out. I felt very negative even after waking up....but guess what? It was only a dream! 

     

    C'mon Twins, get out there and prove my nightmare wrong! Blow the doors of the NYY tonight!

     

    Crap I'm so nervous....

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