Sherry Cerny

This morning I was woken up to, “I know your alarm is set for 8:30, but you need to wake up and see who you just signed for three years, $105mm.” I sleepily sat up as the name Carlos Correa was uttered, and I rolled over to check my phone, which had 105 notifications from Twitter, texts, and various news outlets. I am not a morning person, so waking up and being slammed with big news was not the way to start my day. 
Since coming back from the lockout, the Minnesota Twins have made some wild trades. It hasn’t felt like the usual off-season Twins front office with the acquisitions made.  The front office is actually making moves, and shocking moves at that. The first shock was trading out Mitch Garver to the Texas Rangers for shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa and minor league righthander Ronny Henriquez. Not a blockbuster deal by any means, but for fans who are attached to players, seeing Garver traded was a slap in the face. 
Kiner-Falefa wasn’t with the Twins that long. The front office pulled a double-play and traded Kiner-Falefa, Ben Rortvedt, and fan-favorite Josh Donaldson to the Yankees for Gary Sanchez and third baseman Gio Urshela. To say the fan base was shocked is an understatement, more like gobsmacked. Sanchez has been a liability both at and behind the plate since 2018. So when the front office decided to keep Sanchez instead of using him in a trade, the fans were less than pleased. The Twins also signed a deal with Chi Chi Gonzales and picked up catcher Jose Godoy.
The tornado of trades and the deafening silence after made Twins fans nervous. The Twins, not having a full roster of starting pitching and no shortstop, left rumors about Frankie Montras, Trevor Story, and Sean Manea in talks eating at the fans. We shed tons of players and salary, so what were we waiting on the front office to do? Free agents continued to sign with other teams, and it was beginning to feel like just a typical year in the Twins front office, clear salary and doing nothing. 
That all changed in the early morning of Saturday, March 19th, when Mark Berman from Fox 26 in Houston, that the Twins had a deal with Houston Astros shortstop, Carlos Correa. 
Twitter had spent six hours in excitement and losing their minds before I even was ‘scheduled’ to be awake. The one part of the acquisition I liked was that Houston and Yankees fans were both highly agitated and that was almost enough to make the contract worth it!
Once, I could sound off a couple of foul-mouthed tweets trying to figure out where this came from, considering I went to sleep praying that we would get some information on Trevor Story; I was majorly confused. The Twins made a HUGE acquisition, but they also pulled some considerable rabbit out of their “I’ll show you” hat either to 1. prove they could pay that much for someone, or 2. wanted fans to be proud of them, which they did both. But not all fans. It’s me; I’m that fan. 
I take baseball very seriously. It’s personal to me for many reasons, so when we pulled a player from the 2017 Astros, I was not too fond of it. The 2017 Astros not only cheated to win the World Series but also received immunity and not a single punishment. That felt like an injustice to baseball, and I have written off the players and the team. Everything that I loathed about that time was staring directly at me, including my moral compass about being a baseball fan and happy for my team. 
I am not a fan of Correa. I am still upset that he would insult the game like that. I know teams cheat; I am not naïve or blind; I was frustrated with how Major League Baseball and the Commissioner handled everything. It took me a few moments and rambling conversations in the shower while I got dressed and with my group chat. My group chat consists of avid female Twins fans from everywhere. While I was supportive online, I was honest about my frustration in my group, and one friend chimed in and made a good point, “The cheating isn’t allowed in this Twins culture, and once players leave Houston, the stigma tends to be to leave as well. This [sic] (being with the Twins) is the Carlos Correa Redemption Tour.” I liked that; it means that I don’t have to like Correa or the trade, but it gives me a mindset to be good support for my followers and other fans. 
There is no doubt at all that Correa’s numbers are good. They are downright impressive. 2017 was also a long time ago. It may take me a while to get there, but I did say this morning, and I will say again, “if he has changed and he is good for the boys, and they are happy, then I am happy for everyone else.” Being a fan of a team means being objective and also wanting to win championships, and I believe that is what the Twins front office is trying to do. 
Carlos Correa agrees to 3-year/$105.3M contract with Twins | SportsCenter
I am happy and impressed that we have pulled a player like Correa, but we still need starting pitchers. We are going to have to concede some pieces for that to happen. I wish we would have gotten pitching and then a shortstop, but now that we have the big piece, we need to continue building around that, and thinking about what will come from that is unnerving, because it’s clear, the Twins front  office isn’t done. 
So while I am excited to see what we can do or choose to do with starting pitching, I also know that there will be a sacrifice in players who made the same fans this morning who were happy…extremely upset. You have to take the good with the bad, the attachments with the releases, and the business with the emotions. 
That’s baseball. 

This morning I was woken up to, “I know your alarm is set for 8:30, but you need to wake up and see who you just signed for three years, $105mm.” I sleepily sat up as the name Carlos Correa was uttered, and I rolled over to check my phone, which had 105 notifications from Twitter, texts, and various news outlets. I am not a morning person, so waking up and being slammed with big news was not the way to start my day. 
Since coming back from the lockout, the Minnesota Twins have made some wild trades. It hasn’t felt like the usual off-season Twins front office with the acquisitions made.  The front office is actually making moves, and shocking moves at that. The first shock was trading out Mitch Garver to the Texas Rangers for shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa and minor league righthander Ronny Henriquez. Not a blockbuster deal by any means, but for fans who are attached to players, seeing Garver traded was a slap in the face. 
Kiner-Falefa wasn’t with the Twins that long. The front office pulled a double-play and traded Kiner-Falefa, Ben Rortvedt, and fan-favorite Josh Donaldson to the Yankees for Gary Sanchez and third baseman Gio Urshela. To say the fan base was shocked is an understatement, more like gobsmacked. Sanchez has been a liability both at and behind the plate since 2018. So when the front office decided to keep Sanchez instead of using him in a trade, the fans were less than pleased. The Twins also signed a deal with Chi Chi Gonzales and picked up catcher Jose Godoy.
The tornado of trades and the deafening silence after made Twins fans nervous. The Twins, not having a full roster of starting pitching and no shortstop, left rumors about Frankie Montras, Trevor Story, and Sean Manea in talks eating at the fans. We shed tons of players and salary, so what were we waiting on the front office to do? Free agents continued to sign with other teams, and it was beginning to feel like just a typical year in the Twins front office, clear salary and doing nothing. 
That all changed in the early morning of Saturday, March 19th, when Mark Berman from Fox 26 in Houston, that the Twins had a deal with Houston Astros shortstop, Carlos Correa. 
Twitter had spent six hours in excitement and losing their minds before I even was ‘scheduled’ to be awake. The one part of the acquisition I liked was that Houston and Yankees fans were both highly agitated and that was almost enough to make the contract worth it!
Once, I could sound off a couple of foul-mouthed tweets trying to figure out where this came from, considering I went to sleep praying that we would get some information on Trevor Story; I was majorly confused. The Twins made a HUGE acquisition, but they also pulled some considerable rabbit out of their “I’ll show you” hat either to 1. prove they could pay that much for someone, or 2. wanted fans to be proud of them, which they did both. But not all fans. It’s me; I’m that fan. 
I take baseball very seriously. It’s personal to me for many reasons, so when we pulled a player from the 2017 Astros, I was not too fond of it. The 2017 Astros not only cheated to win the World Series but also received immunity and not a single punishment. That felt like an injustice to baseball, and I have written off the players and the team. Everything that I loathed about that time was staring directly at me, including my moral compass about being a baseball fan and happy for my team. 
I am not a fan of Correa. I am still upset that he would insult the game like that. I know teams cheat; I am not naïve or blind; I was frustrated with how Major League Baseball and the Commissioner handled everything. It took me a few moments and rambling conversations in the shower while I got dressed and with my group chat. My group chat consists of avid female Twins fans from everywhere. While I was supportive online, I was honest about my frustration in my group, and one friend chimed in and made a good point, “The cheating isn’t allowed in this Twins culture, and once players leave Houston, the stigma tends to be to leave as well. This [sic] (being with the Twins) is the Carlos Correa Redemption Tour.” I liked that; it means that I don’t have to like Correa or the trade, but it gives me a mindset to be good support for my followers and other fans. 
There is no doubt at all that Correa’s numbers are good. They are downright impressive. 2017 was also a long time ago. It may take me a while to get there, but I did say this morning, and I will say again, “if he has changed and he is good for the boys, and they are happy, then I am happy for everyone else.” Being a fan of a team means being objective and also wanting to win championships, and I believe that is what the Twins front office is trying to do. 
Carlos Correa agrees to 3-year/$105.3M contract with Twins | SportsCenter
I am happy and impressed that we have pulled a player like Correa, but we still need starting pitchers. We are going to have to concede some pieces for that to happen. I wish we would have gotten pitching and then a shortstop, but now that we have the big piece, we need to continue building around that, and thinking about what will come from that is unnerving, because it’s clear, the Twins front  office isn’t done. 
So while I am excited to see what we can do or choose to do with starting pitching, I also know that there will be a sacrifice in players who made the same fans this morning who were happy…extremely upset. You have to take the good with the bad, the attachments with the releases, and the business with the emotions. 
That’s baseball. 

This morning I was woken up to, “I know your alarm is set for 8:30, but you need to wake up and see who you just signed for three years, $105mm.” I sleepily sat up as the name Carlos Correa was uttered, and I rolled over to check my phone, which had 105 notifications from Twitter, texts, and various news outlets. I am not a morning person, so waking up and being slammed with big news was not the way to start my day. 
Since coming back from the lockout, the Minnesota Twins have made some wild trades. It hasn’t felt like the usual off-season Twins front office with the acquisitions made.  The front office is actually making moves, and shocking moves at that. The first shock was trading out Mitch Garver to the Texas Rangers for shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa and minor league righthander Ronny Henriquez. Not a blockbuster deal by any means, but for fans who are attached to players, seeing Garver traded was a slap in the face. 
Kiner-Falefa wasn’t with the Twins that long. The front office pulled a double-play and traded Kiner-Falefa, Ben Rortvedt, and fan-favorite Josh Donaldson to the Yankees for Gary Sanchez and third baseman Gio Urshela. To say the fan base was shocked is an understatement, more like gobsmacked. Sanchez has been a liability both at and behind the plate since 2018. So when the front office decided to keep Sanchez instead of using him in a trade, the fans were less than pleased. The Twins also signed a deal with Chi Chi Gonzales and picked up catcher Jose Godoy.
The tornado of trades and the deafening silence after made Twins fans nervous. The Twins, not having a full roster of starting pitching and no shortstop, left rumors about Frankie Montras, Trevor Story, and Sean Manea in talks eating at the fans. We shed tons of players and salary, so what were we waiting on the front office to do? Free agents continued to sign with other teams, and it was beginning to feel like just a typical year in the Twins front office, clear salary and doing nothing. 
That all changed in the early morning of Saturday, March 19th, when Mark Berman from Fox 26 in Houston, that the Twins had a deal with Houston Astros shortstop, Carlos Correa. 
Twitter had spent six hours in excitement and losing their minds before I even was ‘scheduled’ to be awake. The one part of the acquisition I liked was that Houston and Yankees fans were both highly agitated and that was almost enough to make the contract worth it!
Once, I could sound off a couple of foul-mouthed tweets trying to figure out where this came from, considering I went to sleep praying that we would get some information on Trevor Story; I was majorly confused. The Twins made a HUGE acquisition, but they also pulled some considerable rabbit out of their “I’ll show you” hat either to 1. prove they could pay that much for someone, or 2. wanted fans to be proud of them, which they did both. But not all fans. It’s me; I’m that fan. 
I take baseball very seriously. It’s personal to me for many reasons, so when we pulled a player from the 2017 Astros, I was not too fond of it. The 2017 Astros not only cheated to win the World Series but also received immunity and not a single punishment. That felt like an injustice to baseball, and I have written off the players and the team. Everything that I loathed about that time was staring directly at me, including my moral compass about being a baseball fan and happy for my team. 
I am not a fan of Correa. I am still upset that he would insult the game like that. I know teams cheat; I am not naïve or blind; I was frustrated with how Major League Baseball and the Commissioner handled everything. It took me a few moments and rambling conversations in the shower while I got dressed and with my group chat. My group chat consists of avid female Twins fans from everywhere. While I was supportive online, I was honest about my frustration in my group, and one friend chimed in and made a good point, “The cheating isn’t allowed in this Twins culture, and once players leave Houston, the stigma tends to be to leave as well. This [sic] (being with the Twins) is the Carlos Correa Redemption Tour.” I liked that; it means that I don’t have to like Correa or the trade, but it gives me a mindset to be good support for my followers and other fans. 
There is no doubt at all that Correa’s numbers are good. They are downright impressive. 2017 was also a long time ago. It may take me a while to get there, but I did say this morning, and I will say again, “if he has changed and he is good for the boys, and they are happy, then I am happy for everyone else.” Being a fan of a team means being objective and also wanting to win championships, and I believe that is what the Twins front office is trying to do. 
Carlos Correa agrees to 3-year/$105.3M contract with Twins | SportsCenter
I am happy and impressed that we have pulled a player like Correa, but we still need starting pitchers. We are going to have to concede some pieces for that to happen. I wish we would have gotten pitching and then a shortstop, but now that we have the big piece, we need to continue building around that, and thinking about what will come from that is unnerving, because it’s clear, the Twins front  office isn’t done. 
So while I am excited to see what we can do or choose to do with starting pitching, I also know that there will be a sacrifice in players who made the same fans this morning who were happy…extremely upset. You have to take the good with the bad, the attachments with the releases, and the business with the emotions. 
That’s baseball. 

This morning I was woken up to, “I know your alarm is set for 8:30, but you need to wake up and see who you just signed for three years, $105mm.” I sleepily sat up as the name Carlos Correa was uttered, and I rolled over to check my phone, which had 105 notifications from Twitter, texts, and various news outlets. I am not a morning person, so waking up and being slammed with big news was not the way to start my day. 
Since coming back from the lockout, the Minnesota Twins have made some wild trades. It hasn’t felt like the usual off-season Twins front office with the acquisitions made.  The front office is actually making moves, and shocking moves at that. The first shock was trading out Mitch Garver to the Texas Rangers for shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa and minor league righthander Ronny Henriquez. Not a blockbuster deal by any means, but for fans who are attached to players, seeing Garver traded was a slap in the face. 
Kiner-Falefa wasn’t with the Twins that long. The front office pulled a double-play and traded Kiner-Falefa, Ben Rortvedt, and fan-favorite Josh Donaldson to the Yankees for Gary Sanchez and third baseman Gio Urshela. To say the fan base was shocked is an understatement, more like gobsmacked. Sanchez has been a liability both at and behind the plate since 2018. So when the front office decided to keep Sanchez instead of using him in a trade, the fans were less than pleased. The Twins also signed a deal with Chi Chi Gonzales and picked up catcher Jose Godoy.
The tornado of trades and the deafening silence after made Twins fans nervous. The Twins, not having a full roster of starting pitching and no shortstop, left rumors about Frankie Montras, Trevor Story, and Sean Manea in talks eating at the fans. We shed tons of players and salary, so what were we waiting on the front office to do? Free agents continued to sign with other teams, and it was beginning to feel like just a typical year in the Twins front office, clear salary and doing nothing. 
That all changed in the early morning of Saturday, March 19th, when Mark Berman from Fox 26 in Houston, that the Twins had a deal with Houston Astros shortstop, Carlos Correa. 
Twitter had spent six hours in excitement and losing their minds before I even was ‘scheduled’ to be awake. The one part of the acquisition I liked was that Houston and Yankees fans were both highly agitated and that was almost enough to make the contract worth it!
Once, I could sound off a couple of foul-mouthed tweets trying to figure out where this came from, considering I went to sleep praying that we would get some information on Trevor Story; I was majorly confused. The Twins made a HUGE acquisition, but they also pulled some considerable rabbit out of their “I’ll show you” hat either to 1. prove they could pay that much for someone, or 2. wanted fans to be proud of them, which they did both. But not all fans. It’s me; I’m that fan. 
I take baseball very seriously. It’s personal to me for many reasons, so when we pulled a player from the 2017 Astros, I was not too fond of it. The 2017 Astros not only cheated to win the World Series but also received immunity and not a single punishment. That felt like an injustice to baseball, and I have written off the players and the team. Everything that I loathed about that time was staring directly at me, including my moral compass about being a baseball fan and happy for my team. 
I am not a fan of Correa. I am still upset that he would insult the game like that. I know teams cheat; I am not naïve or blind; I was frustrated with how Major League Baseball and the Commissioner handled everything. It took me a few moments and rambling conversations in the shower while I got dressed and with my group chat. My group chat consists of avid female Twins fans from everywhere. While I was supportive online, I was honest about my frustration in my group, and one friend chimed in and made a good point, “The cheating isn’t allowed in this Twins culture, and once players leave Houston, the stigma tends to be to leave as well. This [sic] (being with the Twins) is the Carlos Correa Redemption Tour.” I liked that; it means that I don’t have to like Correa or the trade, but it gives me a mindset to be good support for my followers and other fans. 
There is no doubt at all that Correa’s numbers are good. They are downright impressive. 2017 was also a long time ago. It may take me a while to get there, but I did say this morning, and I will say again, “if he has changed and he is good for the boys, and they are happy, then I am happy for everyone else.” Being a fan of a team means being objective and also wanting to win championships, and I believe that is what the Twins front office is trying to do. 
Carlos Correa agrees to 3-year/$105.3M contract with Twins | SportsCenter
I am happy and impressed that we have pulled a player like Correa, but we still need starting pitchers. We are going to have to concede some pieces for that to happen. I wish we would have gotten pitching and then a shortstop, but now that we have the big piece, we need to continue building around that, and thinking about what will come from that is unnerving, because it’s clear, the Twins front  office isn’t done. 
So while I am excited to see what we can do or choose to do with starting pitching, I also know that there will be a sacrifice in players who made the same fans this morning who were happy…extremely upset. You have to take the good with the bad, the attachments with the releases, and the business with the emotions. 
That’s baseball. 

When the Twins brought on Andrelton Simmons, I was not impressed by the Gold Glove awards or the 10 Million dollar contract. Since coming to the team, Gordon has been a utility player that is able to cover portions of the infield, as well as, the outfield. With the season basically over, the Twins have been playing with a lot of the guys from the minors and with the rotation of talent that we keep seeing, Gordon could easily be a permanent fixture in 2022. Gordon certainly is not the savior, but compared to Andrelton Simmons, he has more potential for growth and certainly would not be as huge of a dent in the Pohlad’s wallet. 
Nick Gordon spent seven years in the minors. Since 2014 he has continued to climb the ranks since being a 5th overall draft pick. He wasn’t expected to go as far as he did, but he continued to work hard, and by 2019 was pulling a .298 average in Rochester. According to Matthew Taylor of Twins Daily, the second baseman suffered from Covid-19 which derailed his entire 2020 season. Prior to his illness, even if he didn’t move through the minors like others expected, he continued to work hard, improve his plate and field performance and his only hope was to make it to the majors, and make it he did. 
Nick Gordon had a slow start to the beginning of the season, like any minor leaguer would coming up to the Show, but he continues to grow and acclimate along with a few of his comrades. When he is brought up from St. Paul, he is able to cover 2B, 3B, SS, CF and LF. He is not a rock star at all positions, but he can cover them if need be. His performances at CF, 2B and SS show that his speed, agility and focus are an asset to this team.  He has had 2 errors this season, one at 2B and one at 3B, but in comparison to Andrelton Simmons, his infield play is more accurate with Simmons garnering a 12-error season, where in a smaller sample, Gordon has had “0”. The more appearances Gordon makes, the more he improves. 
Gordon’s largest improvement, however, has been at the plate. He continues to impress and work hard and show why he deserves to be a part of the permanent roster. His discipline at the plate has created more confidence and is now hitting a solid .239. This week, on September 5th, the Twins were in a battle with Tampa Bay and the illustrious Nelson Cruz. Early in the game, Gordon doubled into helping himself score on a Jake Cave single in the 2nd inning. In the 7th, he singled in a line drive and stole second - pushing the Twins to tying  the Rays. He wasn’t done though! Gordon, who affectionately would be called “Clutch” after hitting a single in the 9th in a two out rally bringing the Twins to a “W” over the Rays. In every situation - Gordon - would come up clutch for the Twins, solidifying why his presence on the squad would be an advantageous move for the Twins front office. 
The journey from the minors to the Show can be arderougus. Players like Gordon show how hard work and dedication to improvement can make your dreams a reality. With his exit velocity as impressive as his career trajectory, it’s safe to say that Nick Gordon would be a great addition to the roster with the Twins in 2022. 
 

When the Twins brought on Andrelton Simmons, I was not impressed by the Gold Glove awards or the 10 Million dollar contract. Since coming to the team, Gordon has been a utility player that is able to cover portions of the infield, as well as, the outfield. With the season basically over, the Twins have been playing with a lot of the guys from the minors and with the rotation of talent that we keep seeing, Gordon could easily be a permanent fixture in 2022. Gordon certainly is not the savior, but compared to Andrelton Simmons, he has more potential for growth and certainly would not be as huge of a dent in the Pohlad’s wallet. 
Nick Gordon spent seven years in the minors. Since 2014 he has continued to climb the ranks since being a 5th overall draft pick. He wasn’t expected to go as far as he did, but he continued to work hard, and by 2019 was pulling a .298 average in Rochester. According to Matthew Taylor of Twins Daily, the second baseman suffered from Covid-19 which derailed his entire 2020 season. Prior to his illness, even if he didn’t move through the minors like others expected, he continued to work hard, improve his plate and field performance and his only hope was to make it to the majors, and make it he did. 
Nick Gordon had a slow start to the beginning of the season, like any minor leaguer would coming up to the Show, but he continues to grow and acclimate along with a few of his comrades. When he is brought up from St. Paul, he is able to cover 2B, 3B, SS, CF and LF. He is not a rock star at all positions, but he can cover them if need be. His performances at CF, 2B and SS show that his speed, agility and focus are an asset to this team.  He has had 2 errors this season, one at 2B and one at 3B, but in comparison to Andrelton Simmons, his infield play is more accurate with Simmons garnering a 12-error season, where in a smaller sample, Gordon has had “0”. The more appearances Gordon makes, the more he improves. 
Gordon’s largest improvement, however, has been at the plate. He continues to impress and work hard and show why he deserves to be a part of the permanent roster. His discipline at the plate has created more confidence and is now hitting a solid .239. This week, on September 5th, the Twins were in a battle with Tampa Bay and the illustrious Nelson Cruz. Early in the game, Gordon doubled into helping himself score on a Jake Cave single in the 2nd inning. In the 7th, he singled in a line drive and stole second - pushing the Twins to tying  the Rays. He wasn’t done though! Gordon, who affectionately would be called “Clutch” after hitting a single in the 9th in a two out rally bringing the Twins to a “W” over the Rays. In every situation - Gordon - would come up clutch for the Twins, solidifying why his presence on the squad would be an advantageous move for the Twins front office. 
The journey from the minors to the Show can be arderougus. Players like Gordon show how hard work and dedication to improvement can make your dreams a reality. With his exit velocity as impressive as his career trajectory, it’s safe to say that Nick Gordon would be a great addition to the roster with the Twins in 2022. 
 

When the Twins brought on Andrelton Simmons, I was not impressed by the Gold Glove awards or the 10 Million dollar contract. Since coming to the team, Gordon has been a utility player that is able to cover portions of the infield, as well as, the outfield. With the season basically over, the Twins have been playing with a lot of the guys from the minors and with the rotation of talent that we keep seeing, Gordon could easily be a permanent fixture in 2022. Gordon certainly is not the savior, but compared to Andrelton Simmons, he has more potential for growth and certainly would not be as huge of a dent in the Pohlad’s wallet. 
Nick Gordon spent seven years in the minors. Since 2014 he has continued to climb the ranks since being a 5th overall draft pick. He wasn’t expected to go as far as he did, but he continued to work hard, and by 2019 was pulling a .298 average in Rochester. According to Matthew Taylor of Twins Daily, the second baseman suffered from Covid-19 which derailed his entire 2020 season. Prior to his illness, even if he didn’t move through the minors like others expected, he continued to work hard, improve his plate and field performance and his only hope was to make it to the majors, and make it he did. 
Nick Gordon had a slow start to the beginning of the season, like any minor leaguer would coming up to the Show, but he continues to grow and acclimate along with a few of his comrades. When he is brought up from St. Paul, he is able to cover 2B, 3B, SS, CF and LF. He is not a rock star at all positions, but he can cover them if need be. His performances at CF, 2B and SS show that his speed, agility and focus are an asset to this team.  He has had 2 errors this season, one at 2B and one at 3B, but in comparison to Andrelton Simmons, his infield play is more accurate with Simmons garnering a 12-error season, where in a smaller sample, Gordon has had “0”. The more appearances Gordon makes, the more he improves. 
Gordon’s largest improvement, however, has been at the plate. He continues to impress and work hard and show why he deserves to be a part of the permanent roster. His discipline at the plate has created more confidence and is now hitting a solid .239. This week, on September 5th, the Twins were in a battle with Tampa Bay and the illustrious Nelson Cruz. Early in the game, Gordon doubled into helping himself score on a Jake Cave single in the 2nd inning. In the 7th, he singled in a line drive and stole second - pushing the Twins to tying  the Rays. He wasn’t done though! Gordon, who affectionately would be called “Clutch” after hitting a single in the 9th in a two out rally bringing the Twins to a “W” over the Rays. In every situation - Gordon - would come up clutch for the Twins, solidifying why his presence on the squad would be an advantageous move for the Twins front office. 
The journey from the minors to the Show can be arderougus. Players like Gordon show how hard work and dedication to improvement can make your dreams a reality. With his exit velocity as impressive as his career trajectory, it’s safe to say that Nick Gordon would be a great addition to the roster with the Twins in 2022. 
 

When the Twins brought on Andrelton Simmons, I was not impressed by the Gold Glove awards or the 10 Million dollar contract. Since coming to the team, Gordon has been a utility player that is able to cover portions of the infield, as well as, the outfield. With the season basically over, the Twins have been playing with a lot of the guys from the minors and with the rotation of talent that we keep seeing, Gordon could easily be a permanent fixture in 2022. Gordon certainly is not the savior, but compared to Andrelton Simmons, he has more potential for growth and certainly would not be as huge of a dent in the Pohlad’s wallet. 
Nick Gordon spent seven years in the minors. Since 2014 he has continued to climb the ranks since being a 5th overall draft pick. He wasn’t expected to go as far as he did, but he continued to work hard, and by 2019 was pulling a .298 average in Rochester. According to Matthew Taylor of Twins Daily, the second baseman suffered from Covid-19 which derailed his entire 2020 season. Prior to his illness, even if he didn’t move through the minors like others expected, he continued to work hard, improve his plate and field performance and his only hope was to make it to the majors, and make it he did. 
Nick Gordon had a slow start to the beginning of the season, like any minor leaguer would coming up to the Show, but he continues to grow and acclimate along with a few of his comrades. When he is brought up from St. Paul, he is able to cover 2B, 3B, SS, CF and LF. He is not a rock star at all positions, but he can cover them if need be. His performances at CF, 2B and SS show that his speed, agility and focus are an asset to this team.  He has had 2 errors this season, one at 2B and one at 3B, but in comparison to Andrelton Simmons, his infield play is more accurate with Simmons garnering a 12-error season, where in a smaller sample, Gordon has had “0”. The more appearances Gordon makes, the more he improves. 
Gordon’s largest improvement, however, has been at the plate. He continues to impress and work hard and show why he deserves to be a part of the permanent roster. His discipline at the plate has created more confidence and is now hitting a solid .239. This week, on September 5th, the Twins were in a battle with Tampa Bay and the illustrious Nelson Cruz. Early in the game, Gordon doubled into helping himself score on a Jake Cave single in the 2nd inning. In the 7th, he singled in a line drive and stole second - pushing the Twins to tying  the Rays. He wasn’t done though! Gordon, who affectionately would be called “Clutch” after hitting a single in the 9th in a two out rally bringing the Twins to a “W” over the Rays. In every situation - Gordon - would come up clutch for the Twins, solidifying why his presence on the squad would be an advantageous move for the Twins front office. 
The journey from the minors to the Show can be arderougus. Players like Gordon show how hard work and dedication to improvement can make your dreams a reality. With his exit velocity as impressive as his career trajectory, it’s safe to say that Nick Gordon would be a great addition to the roster with the Twins in 2022. 
 

The Wall-Street Journal called him the ‘Ace’...That’s not a bad way to start your olympic debut, even if it is followed up with “and then got traded”. Happens to the best of us. Joe Ryan arrived in Tokyo just in time to find out that he was part of a trade where Nelson Cruz would be going to Tampa Bay and Ryan would be joining the Twins, a week later his team-mate would be joining him. Joe Ryan wasn’t expecting to wake up in Tokyo and get traded, as much as Twins fans probably didn’t realize that they would be losing Nelson Cruz, a beloved member of the Bomba-Squad. Baseball is a business and as a business that may be getting rid of the DH this was a great trade.
When you go to look up Joe Ryan in Google, all you get is “Silver Medal Pitcher” or “Ace Pitcher of Team USA”, these are all good things if you just acquired said pitcher. I had the privilege of being able to see Ryan at a Durham/Tides game early in July and to say that Durham has some of the best pitching MAY be an understatement. That game was intense and the pitchers were on. Joe Ryan along with his long locks of hair carried the team to a win over the Tides with only one walk and one hit. He has a great command at the mound and control that I only wish some of our minor leaguers had. 
Ryan would more than likely be in the majors already had he not had to take 2020 off (luckily he was picked back up). He moved up quickly in 2019 going from single A to double A quickly. In the Olympic game against Japan, he kept them to one run and even though the ultimately lost the game, again Ryan’s command and confidence on the mound kept the game close and within reach.  Japan’s pitcher unfortunately was just as good and shut out the United States. 
With trades, getting players from the Minors is stressful, you never truly know what you are going to get at that time. Even though it took four years after being drafted in 2014, in 2018 when he finally got his chance to play for TB in a summer series, it was all up from there. He is going to be the pitcher we wanted and thought Berrios was going to be for our team. We have been waiting for an ACE and I think that we will be seeing Ryan in the majors sooner rather than later and what a great day that will be!

If you get the movie reference, good for you! If you don't, rewind your life to 1995 and find the movie Liar, Liar. You are welcome. Onto Baseball!
The Twins have made some really great moves in the trade season. While it brought some heart break for fans of players like Berrios and Cruz, it also brought in some pitching prospects that are going to be a great addition to the line up in terms of pitching, to include the pitcher from the Team USA Baseball Team that won silver in the 2021 Olympics, Joe Ryan. Our roster is continuing to improve, we can round out the team and safely secure our position in the 2022 season, hopefully as division leaders again. In order to do that, players that are dragging down the team like Simmons.
Andrelton Simmons has not been worth the money that the Twins initially paid him to bring him in for the 2021 season. January 31, 2021 the Twins signed Simmons from Anaheim for $10.5 million dollars, a signing that most (this fan not included) Twins fans thought was a “great move” and “he’s a golden glove player”...the excuses kept coming. The trade deadline came and went and there were some really fun transactions, but one thing stood out, I was right about Simmons. We couldn’t get even a bag of balls for him based on his performance this season. The best thing for the Twins to do at this point is release him and bring up or retain talent that will fit the big moves we have made already this year. 
Simmons started out the year with coming down with Covid-19 which shut down our entire Club for two days and removed Simmons for the two week duration of the ailment. We don’t have anything to compare his performance to prior to coming down with Covid-19 but upon his return and since then he has struggled at the plate with a lackluster .219 average and more walks than RBI’s. Defensively he is average comparatively with other shortstops in the league but still not the best when you look at players who are making around his same salary. There are other players that can not only hang with him defensively, but can bring more hits to keep our offense doing their job and give the pitching a break. 
One player that stands out is one that we have brought onto our field from right across the river  in St. Paul, Nick Gordon. Gordon not only has shown so much promise and improvement, he’s only actually played 12 games for STP while playing 37 games for the Twins and continues to be a permanent fixture. Gordon has a .250 batting average, continues to make great decisions at the plate, his fielding is where he is really showing that he can make a huge difference compared to Simmons. He has played 2B for most of his time here, but he has also taken on the shortstop positions, showing he is versatile when the team needs him to be. Bringing Gordon up from St. Paul in a market where there are shortstops that the Twins likely wouldn’t pay for would not only be the best decision for the club house but make the most sense financially. 
If the Twins were willing to spend a little more money for assets, two other great players they could work with are Carlos Correra from Houston and Javier Baez. Both would be fantastic acquisitions to the team. Carlos Correra is one of the best shortstops in MLB as far as I am concerned and he can rake at the plate. He has a discipline and swing at the plate that could be far more worth the money we are paying Simmons. Not only can he out hit Simmons, but his hustle at shortstop is one of the fastest. Fielding is bound to have errors and between Simmons and Correra the errors are within two, but the fielding percentage is better than Simmons over all.
Javier Baez would be a FANTASTIC free agent choice if the Twins were to make a purchase here. He has 24 homeruns this season in comparison to Simmons' meager three and his .241 batting average while still lower than Nick Gordon’s is far better than Simmons. There are options that are ready to go, the Twins just have to bring their wallet to dinner. If we could acquire one of these two players, it would help our team exponentially. 


 

Not every player that makes it to The Show is going to be flashy, hit dingers every game and go slamming into walls to make a save. There are players that are the perfect addition to the team and make the chemistry what it is. The line-up works and makes plays in the outfield that keep a team in the game. Jake Cave doesn’t break the Twins wallet, and he does his job. He is worth more than his contract shows and fans keep sleeping on him.
Jake Cave came swinging onto the Twins scene in 2018 and sealed his spot on the team in his first year with thirteen homeruns and 45 RBIs! He was on fire and 2019 was no slow down. Joining the team in hitting 307 homeruns that year to out hit any team in MLB. Cave has been an integral part of this team since suiting up and he hasn't slowed down in how hard he plays, swings, or dives for outfield balls. The Hampton native continues to defy the trade deadlines, and stays on with the Twins as a minimum salary player with a million dollar attitude. In 2020 Cave struggled a little at the plate, nothing that threw up red flags as the player continued to be a heavy contributor to the line up. When he is up at the plate he has a small lag in his timing, but you could tell early in 2021 that he was not able to rotate as far, move as fast or swing has hard and eventually it became a concern. Fans would say he is getting old, is average or washed out, but it was more than that and I refused to listen to the clamor of the haters. Cave finally disappeared from Minneapolis after feeling immense back pain for a consistent amount of time.
The 28 year old center-fielder doesn’t give up. He thought he had a sore back sending him down to the IL, which ended up being a fractured disc due to stress and spent sixty days rehabbing in St. Paul. Over that time, he worked extremely hard to not only take the care needed to improve his back, but also to improve his swing. He batted 11-for-30 with a home run, a double, six runs and five RBI across eight rehab games. He continued to improve and is something that the Twins need to consider keeping around as a depth option in the outfield. His time in St. Paul showed that not only can he hit, but he is an asset at the plate the more he sees it. He has more than shown his worth covering down for players like Buxton, the other centerfielder who can’t seem to stay healthy or in the game.
Jake Cave has shown up for the Twins every instance they have needed him without reserve, without complaint and with one-hundred percent effort. He has played every position in the outfield with ease and even been added to the line up as the DH to cover. In those three positions he has only had one error in 46 games that he has played this year in the Twins Club House. Since coming back in July, has continued to make progress at the plate with his August average at .186 even if he has gotten less at bat’s than any of the other players on the team. 
Jake Cave may not be a shiny-bomba-hitting-player, but he is clutch in the outfield and one of the more reliable players on the team. He continues to show up and do not only his job, but any job that is asked of him, even if he is not perfect. With the season coming to an end and while realizing baseball is a business, it would be bad business to get rid of Cave. The Twins are getting a player out playing his salary and you aren’t going to get dedication or hard work from another player like that and the beard doesn’t hurt either. 

Not every player that makes it to The Show is going to be flashy, hit dingers every game and go slamming into walls to make a save. There are players that are the perfect addition to the team and make the chemistry what it is. The line-up works and makes plays in the outfield that keep a team in the game. Jake Cave doesn’t break the Twins wallet, and he does his job. He is worth more than his contract shows and fans keep sleeping on him.
Jake Cave came swinging onto the Twins scene in 2018 and sealed his spot on the team in his first year with thirteen homeruns and 45 RBIs! He was on fire and 2019 was no slow down. Joining the team in hitting 307 homeruns that year to out hit any team in MLB. Cave has been an integral part of this team since suiting up and he hasn't slowed down in how hard he plays, swings, or dives for outfield balls. The Hampton native continues to defy the trade deadlines, and stays on with the Twins as a minimum salary player with a million dollar attitude. In 2020 Cave struggled a little at the plate, nothing that threw up red flags as the player continued to be a heavy contributor to the line up. When he is up at the plate he has a small lag in his timing, but you could tell early in 2021 that he was not able to rotate as far, move as fast or swing has hard and eventually it became a concern. Fans would say he is getting old, is average or washed out, but it was more than that and I refused to listen to the clamor of the haters. Cave finally disappeared from Minneapolis after feeling immense back pain for a consistent amount of time.
The 28 year old center-fielder doesn’t give up. He thought he had a sore back sending him down to the IL, which ended up being a fractured disc due to stress and spent sixty days rehabbing in St. Paul. Over that time, he worked extremely hard to not only take the care needed to improve his back, but also to improve his swing. He batted 11-for-30 with a home run, a double, six runs and five RBI across eight rehab games. He continued to improve and is something that the Twins need to consider keeping around as a depth option in the outfield. His time in St. Paul showed that not only can he hit, but he is an asset at the plate the more he sees it. He has more than shown his worth covering down for players like Buxton, the other centerfielder who can’t seem to stay healthy or in the game.
Jake Cave has shown up for the Twins every instance they have needed him without reserve, without complaint and with one-hundred percent effort. He has played every position in the outfield with ease and even been added to the line up as the DH to cover. In those three positions he has only had one error in 46 games that he has played this year in the Twins Club House. Since coming back in July, has continued to make progress at the plate with his August average at .186 even if he has gotten less at bat’s than any of the other players on the team. 
Jake Cave may not be a shiny-bomba-hitting-player, but he is clutch in the outfield and one of the more reliable players on the team. He continues to show up and do not only his job, but any job that is asked of him, even if he is not perfect. With the season coming to an end and while realizing baseball is a business, it would be bad business to get rid of Cave. The Twins are getting a player out playing his salary and you aren’t going to get dedication or hard work from another player like that and the beard doesn’t hurt either. 

The Wall-Street Journal called him the ‘Ace’...That’s not a bad way to start your olympic debut, even if it is followed up with “and then got traded”. Happens to the best of us. Joe Ryan arrived in Tokyo just in time to find out that he was part of a trade where Nelson Cruz would be going to Tampa Bay and Ryan would be joining the Twins, a week later his team-mate would be joining him. Joe Ryan wasn’t expecting to wake up in Tokyo and get traded, as much as Twins fans probably didn’t realize that they would be losing Nelson Cruz, a beloved member of the Bomba-Squad. Baseball is a business and as a business that may be getting rid of the DH this was a great trade.
When you go to look up Joe Ryan in Google, all you get is “Silver Medal Pitcher” or “Ace Pitcher of Team USA”, these are all good things if you just acquired said pitcher. I had the privilege of being able to see Ryan at a Durham/Tides game early in July and to say that Durham has some of the best pitching MAY be an understatement. That game was intense and the pitchers were on. Joe Ryan along with his long locks of hair carried the team to a win over the Tides with only one walk and one hit. He has a great command at the mound and control that I only wish some of our minor leaguers had. 
Ryan would more than likely be in the majors already had he not had to take 2020 off (luckily he was picked back up). He moved up quickly in 2019 going from single A to double A quickly. In the Olympic game against Japan, he kept them to one run and even though the ultimately lost the game, again Ryan’s command and confidence on the mound kept the game close and within reach.  Japan’s pitcher unfortunately was just as good and shut out the United States. 
With trades, getting players from the Minors is stressful, you never truly know what you are going to get at that time. Even though it took four years after being drafted in 2014, in 2018 when he finally got his chance to play for TB in a summer series, it was all up from there. He is going to be the pitcher we wanted and thought Berrios was going to be for our team. We have been waiting for an ACE and I think that we will be seeing Ryan in the majors sooner rather than later and what a great day that will be!

Two steps forward, one step back. The Twins have had a horrible season and they keep getting worse. I actually am speechless as to how bad they have become. There are lots of theories, ideas, frustrations, and trade talk, but there is a silver lining in the storm that is the Minnesota Twins baseball season: Josh Donaldson. 
 
Josh Donaldson certainly has given us headaches since the beginning of the season. He left us in game one with a reoccurring injury that kept him out for weeks, and upon his return, he struggled at the plate, and also on the field. Injury or not, JD’s fielding has been something that needs serious improvement and has cost the Twins some serious defensive woes resulting in other teams getting runs. That doesn’t mean that he lost us the games, our offense needs to get better at the plate, but of his 112 chances, he had 36 put-outs. Comparatively, that’s not a terrible number considering other third basemen like Manny Machado have 34 and Jose Ramirez only has 4 more at 40. Third base is one of the harder positions to play in the MLB, but both Machado and Ramirez have more assists (84 and 86) to their team pushing them to being second in their leagues. With the Twins riding fifth place, Donaldson’s errors and lack of what would seem to me to be - a lack of full effort - is affecting the overall defensive performance of the team. 
 
Offensively, he is showing signs of improvement. That’s not saying much given the status of the team, however, it is saying something for the 6’1, 210-pound third baseman who has been encountering more strikeouts and walks this season than actual runs. April may have been an off month to him given his injury agitation in the first game, making his follow through not as solid as it could have been. I am not giving him a pass for his performance, just a little empathy. As one of the power hitters coming from the Braves, his batting performance has been disappointing since making the transition to the Twins. Donaldson sure hasn’t been worth the money that the organization has been paying into him, making trading him (hypothetically) nearly impossible, but not totally. 
 
Over the past two weeks, Donaldson has almost done a 180 from where he was not only at the beginning of this season, but last season. Even if he is getting an out, his swing is more consistent and he is making contact with the ball more than he did in April. He has managed to get on base more last month and into the first few games of June and get the Twins a few more runs bringing his average up to .256. In a time when the Twins are unable to secure wins against some of the worst teams in baseball, Donaldson seems to at least care about his offensive performance to bring in some runs. He is hitting in almost every game and leaving with no less than a single, double, RBI and lately homeruns, two alone in the June 3rd game against KC. It appears that Donaldson is finally comfortable with - or learning how to use - his swing. I no longer cringe when he comes up to bat. I understand that he may strike out, but I also have been impressed with the progress he has made while a lot of the team continues to digress. If he continues on this path, I would definitely like to see a little more “Rain” during the games. 






 

Two steps forward, one step back. The Twins have had a horrible season and they keep getting worse. I actually am speechless as to how bad they have become. There are lots of theories, ideas, frustrations, and trade talk, but there is a silver lining in the storm that is the Minnesota Twins baseball season: Josh Donaldson. 
 
Josh Donaldson certainly has given us headaches since the beginning of the season. He left us in game one with a reoccurring injury that kept him out for weeks, and upon his return, he struggled at the plate, and also on the field. Injury or not, JD’s fielding has been something that needs serious improvement and has cost the Twins some serious defensive woes resulting in other teams getting runs. That doesn’t mean that he lost us the games, our offense needs to get better at the plate, but of his 112 chances, he had 36 put-outs. Comparatively, that’s not a terrible number considering other third basemen like Manny Machado have 34 and Jose Ramirez only has 4 more at 40. Third base is one of the harder positions to play in the MLB, but both Machado and Ramirez have more assists (84 and 86) to their team pushing them to being second in their leagues. With the Twins riding fifth place, Donaldson’s errors and lack of what would seem to me to be - a lack of full effort - is affecting the overall defensive performance of the team. 
 
Offensively, he is showing signs of improvement. That’s not saying much given the status of the team, however, it is saying something for the 6’1, 210-pound third baseman who has been encountering more strikeouts and walks this season than actual runs. April may have been an off month to him given his injury agitation in the first game, making his follow through not as solid as it could have been. I am not giving him a pass for his performance, just a little empathy. As one of the power hitters coming from the Braves, his batting performance has been disappointing since making the transition to the Twins. Donaldson sure hasn’t been worth the money that the organization has been paying into him, making trading him (hypothetically) nearly impossible, but not totally. 
 
Over the past two weeks, Donaldson has almost done a 180 from where he was not only at the beginning of this season, but last season. Even if he is getting an out, his swing is more consistent and he is making contact with the ball more than he did in April. He has managed to get on base more last month and into the first few games of June and get the Twins a few more runs bringing his average up to .256. In a time when the Twins are unable to secure wins against some of the worst teams in baseball, Donaldson seems to at least care about his offensive performance to bring in some runs. He is hitting in almost every game and leaving with no less than a single, double, RBI and lately homeruns, two alone in the June 3rd game against KC. It appears that Donaldson is finally comfortable with - or learning how to use - his swing. I no longer cringe when he comes up to bat. I understand that he may strike out, but I also have been impressed with the progress he has made while a lot of the team continues to digress. If he continues on this path, I would definitely like to see a little more “Rain” during the games. 






 

Two steps forward, one step back. The Twins have had a horrible season and they keep getting worse. I actually am speechless as to how bad they have become. There are lots of theories, ideas, frustrations, and trade talk, but there is a silver lining in the storm that is the Minnesota Twins baseball season: Josh Donaldson. 
 
Josh Donaldson certainly has given us headaches since the beginning of the season. He left us in game one with a reoccurring injury that kept him out for weeks, and upon his return, he struggled at the plate, and also on the field. Injury or not, JD’s fielding has been something that needs serious improvement and has cost the Twins some serious defensive woes resulting in other teams getting runs. That doesn’t mean that he lost us the games, our offense needs to get better at the plate, but of his 112 chances, he had 36 put-outs. Comparatively, that’s not a terrible number considering other third basemen like Manny Machado have 34 and Jose Ramirez only has 4 more at 40. Third base is one of the harder positions to play in the MLB, but both Machado and Ramirez have more assists (84 and 86) to their team pushing them to being second in their leagues. With the Twins riding fifth place, Donaldson’s errors and lack of what would seem to me to be - a lack of full effort - is affecting the overall defensive performance of the team. 
 
Offensively, he is showing signs of improvement. That’s not saying much given the status of the team, however, it is saying something for the 6’1, 210-pound third baseman who has been encountering more strikeouts and walks this season than actual runs. April may have been an off month to him given his injury agitation in the first game, making his follow through not as solid as it could have been. I am not giving him a pass for his performance, just a little empathy. As one of the power hitters coming from the Braves, his batting performance has been disappointing since making the transition to the Twins. Donaldson sure hasn’t been worth the money that the organization has been paying into him, making trading him (hypothetically) nearly impossible, but not totally. 
 
Over the past two weeks, Donaldson has almost done a 180 from where he was not only at the beginning of this season, but last season. Even if he is getting an out, his swing is more consistent and he is making contact with the ball more than he did in April. He has managed to get on base more last month and into the first few games of June and get the Twins a few more runs bringing his average up to .256. In a time when the Twins are unable to secure wins against some of the worst teams in baseball, Donaldson seems to at least care about his offensive performance to bring in some runs. He is hitting in almost every game and leaving with no less than a single, double, RBI and lately homeruns, two alone in the June 3rd game against KC. It appears that Donaldson is finally comfortable with - or learning how to use - his swing. I no longer cringe when he comes up to bat. I understand that he may strike out, but I also have been impressed with the progress he has made while a lot of the team continues to digress. If he continues on this path, I would definitely like to see a little more “Rain” during the games. 






 

Sano has had a love-hate relationship with the Minnesota fans since coming on the scene in 2015, but I don’t believe that it’s because he is a bad player. Home runs are what are keeping the 6’4, 276 pound slugger in the line up, but nothing more than that. He has never been a consistent player whether on the line up or on the field. 2019 was one of Sano’s best years and he swung on a full 34 home runs as a beloved member of the “Bomba Squad”. Sano, for whatever reason, has continually been looked over by either the management or the ownership and it shows everytime he comes up to the plate. 
 
With hot streaks at the plate and streaks of looking lost, last year in 2020, Sano had a season high strike out of 90. Now that can be attributed to the shortened season and no spring training, but last year we really saw Sano struggling. His OPS reached .757 over all in 2020 and .923 the year before. It seems like the management either wasn’t willing to put in the time with him, or they were just good for the minimal hits they were getting, the RBI’s that seemed to really pull the team together. 
 
So why is the management overlooking Sano and his abilities? This season out of our 52 games, we have gone 16-21 with Sano in the line up and only 5-10 with him out. Which means we are losing more without him than we are with him. He is not the problem, as much as the fans probably see him as one, or the management is portraying him to look like one. So what will it take for the management to give Sano a legit chance? 
 
Sano doesn’t get as many games to play as others. In a post game interview Badelli stated that Sano would love to get all the at bat(s) but Willians is giving the team a little more of what they want and that Sano just wants what is best for the team. He also said that Sano is indeed getting help before the games and on the side. That tells me that they are just doing enough to honor his contract and not truly give him the help he needs to be successful. Sano does suffer from occasional injuries, but so do other players that seem to make the line up consistently. 
 
To say that Sano is overlooked is an understatement. We don’t know why the Twins organization seems to hold a grudge for Sano, but it’s evident that if they were to put in the effort to help him or baby him like they do other players such as Donaldson, Kepler or Willians, maybe we would see him be successful. He has the capability to be more than what we see at the plate, and he is great at first base, and worth the money that we are paying him, if the management would just give him the chance to be more than a part time player. 
 
 

I know my writing is about as consistent as the Twins pitching, but that doesn’t mean that I am not watching. Watching and learning and understanding that baseball, as emotional as we get about it, is a business, and in a business you want to be the best that you can with the assets that you have. That’s why when you are hired at a job, if you are not doing the duties hired for, or continue to curtail off of them and get lazy, you will get fired, or in baseball’s instance, traded. 
 
The past few weeks we have seen a few changes, more hits, better defense, and a few more wins. Now, some of those wins are coming from other teams that are at our “level” (aka: a bad record), but as my husband says, “a win is a win”. He’s right, “A win is a win”, so let’s take a look at what has changed lately. If you don’t know, I will just tell you: injuries. Yes, you read that right, injuries are what are helping us.
The Twins, in typical fashion have had a load of injuries that continue to plague us as we go throughout the season. I know that this is nothing new for any team, it’s the point of the IL, right? But let’s look at what that means for our Twins. Buxton, Donaldson, Simmons, Kepler, and now Jake Cave’s injuries are allowing for minor leaguers to come up to the show and give it a shot and take that shot they have. 
New guys joining our team on a consistent basis the past three weeks have been making dives on line drives and fly balls and getting homeruns like they were born to be on the Bomba Squad. Larnach has been one of those bright spots in our line up and in the left field. In the past three games, he has hit two homeruns and had four runs. One of those being his major league first HR on May 20th, and the flood gates of awesome opened up. Larnach continues to show us why he continues to stay on the active 26. 
Refsnyder is the diamond in the rough. The 30 year old has come out swinging, literally. Since May 15th, the former Texas Ranger has seen 33 at bats, which has led to 8 runs, 7 RBI’s and 2 homeruns. Definitely a great acquisition and has given the line up new life.  I usually cringe when I see a player being traded and they are creeping into their 30’s, but there are a few, such as Refsnyder who continue to surprise teams and when they find their stride, watch out…
Kiriloff, who has been with the 26 man since the middle of April, is great at first base and is a solid hitter. Kiriloff is young and has some room to grow, but he continues to improve each time he comes up, a solid hitter in dire situations, the 23 year old has four homeruns (two coming in one game against the Kansas City Royals) and only two walks in his 63 at bats this season. His RBI’s are what make him a great addition to the line up, he has ushered in fifteen RBI’s since April! If the Twins pitching could quit taking us into extra innings, imagine how 15 RBI’s could make a difference in our overall record. 
Baseball is a business. Baseball for us fans, means winning records, longevity into the playoffs, and hopefully a World Series win...or at least a chance. Emotionally, we love certain players, we all have our reasons, but at the end of the day, the owners, the fans and the coaches have an investment in these players and deserve a return on their investment. These three men have proven to be a huge improvement in our line up and in our defense, so maybe it’s time to make some permanent changes, ones that all of us would hate to see, but, we may need if we truly want to have a winning team. 

After suffering a 4 day break in baseball for COVID 19 precautions, I had been looking forward to Tuesday night. It seems that the Twins while having a great cohesion had issues since day one. The Twins have played through Donaldson’s day 1 injury, missing Buck due to a stomach virus (jury is still out on that one) and Simmons stepping out for COVID protocol on April 14th, but the one thing the Twins still cannot seem to play through is their pitching. The double headers, late nights and early games gassed out our pitching to the point where Willians Astudillo would step into the pitching line up - in an already losing game - to the Angels showing his skills and fast pitch form to the MLB.
 
Matt Shoemaker, a pitcher the Twins acquired in February 2021, was an all-star in his own right when he played in 2014 as a rookie. As reported by Do-Hyoung Park, Shoemaker has been struggling with an onslaught of injuries since 2017 and has been continuing to fall further down after 2019 when he tore his ACL. The Twins, fully expecting him to be healthy and the No. 4 contributor to the rotation, spent 2 million dollars on the 34 year old right hander, who barely had played any games since 2017.
 
Shoemaker has only pitched in 2 games thus far for the Twins and neither were truly magical or anything that showed promise. His first game on the road in Detroit, where he pitched six innings and only one run got let in the 5th in the 22 batters he saw. He would take home the win in that game. In the next game against Seattle, he would pitch 5 innings and give up 4 runs and 7 hits leaving the game with an ERA of 4.09. The longer he stayed in the more damage that got done.
 
Tonight, after sitting out for 9 days, the RHP would once again take the mound against the A’s. The Oakland A’s are barely over .500 - a game that could have been our first W on the road since April 7th against the Tigers - and get us back on track for what started out as looking like a winning season. Shoemaker came out and pitched 3.1 innings and in that time allowed two runs and had 67 pitches before Alcala came in as the relief pitcher in the 4th. The Twins would fall 7-0 in game one of a double header after a grand slam served up by Alcala, accompanied by the runners left on base from when Shoemaker was on the mound. Not the start to the night the team and the fans were looking forward to.
 
In his first three games Shoemaker has continued to slide down hill. It may be just acclimating to the team, maybe it’s the 9 day rest...but the trend is showing that once again, the Twins took a chance on an arm that isn’t truly benefiting the roster and is leaving us with leaning on other utility players like Astudillo to come in and give us the outs we need. This “Shoe” just may not be the right fit.

The month of April for the Twins felt like the entire 2020 year as we watched the Twins battle injury, Covid-19 protocols, and sluggish bats. It felt like the remaining six months of baseball were going to be long and painful, but nevertheless, we showed up. Whether it’s to cling to that last bit of hope, or to complain and feel validated in our complaint, we show up. Eventually the Twins also showed up, giving us the feeling that things are starting to finally come together.
April 28th, the Twins or the management decided enough was enough and the team awoke. Since April 28th, we have been hitting .272 and have one four out of the five games. What’s been the change? Is it Simmon’s coming back to us? Donaldson finally hitting the ball and finding the zone, or Kepler getting back into his groove? A combination of all of it and finding chemistry behind the plate, young team members showing up, and defense makes a huge difference.
 
Kenta Maeda, who last night (May 3, 2020) showed us that he is stronger than the demons that kept him from having a winning April. Last night, Kenta laid his demons to rest and gave us the fire we have been waiting for, 7 scoreless innings and a little more variety in his pitches. Kenta has been struggling and most of his pitches have been right over the plate giving the batter’s the perfect chance to hit dingers off the all-star. Maeda was the perfect puzzle piece to fit into the offense's game last night to bolster back.
 
With Nelly, Buck, and Kepler in a slump, it left us to wonder if the Bomba Squad was dead, but like everything else this week, we have seen a complete 180 turn to the life of this team. The bats have been on fire, bombas are flying and the newest member of the team, Kiriloff is showing this team what he is capable of. Kiriloff seemed to have paved the way for the Bomba squad to find their mo-jo as he continued to rake in the homeruns and the others followed suit giving the Twins some of the best leads of the season.
 
It’s early, I get it, it’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon, but if you can’t even get off the starting block, what are you doing? With the central division being as messy as it is, the talent the Twins have, we should not be second to last. I truly believe with the chemistry we have seen the past five games, we are fully equipped and capable to handle the sixteen day stretch of games. They will need all the strength, rest and power to get through this month. May the Force be with them….and May the Fourth be with you.

The month of April for the Twins felt like the entire 2020 year as we watched the Twins battle injury, Covid-19 protocols, and sluggish bats. It felt like the remaining six months of baseball were going to be long and painful, but nevertheless, we showed up. Whether it’s to cling to that last bit of hope, or to complain and feel validated in our complaint, we show up. Eventually the Twins also showed up, giving us the feeling that things are starting to finally come together.
April 28th, the Twins or the management decided enough was enough and the team awoke. Since April 28th, we have been hitting .272 and have one four out of the five games. What’s been the change? Is it Simmon’s coming back to us? Donaldson finally hitting the ball and finding the zone, or Kepler getting back into his groove? A combination of all of it and finding chemistry behind the plate, young team members showing up, and defense makes a huge difference.
 
Kenta Maeda, who last night (May 3, 2020) showed us that he is stronger than the demons that kept him from having a winning April. Last night, Kenta laid his demons to rest and gave us the fire we have been waiting for, 7 scoreless innings and a little more variety in his pitches. Kenta has been struggling and most of his pitches have been right over the plate giving the batter’s the perfect chance to hit dingers off the all-star. Maeda was the perfect puzzle piece to fit into the offense's game last night to bolster back.
 
With Nelly, Buck, and Kepler in a slump, it left us to wonder if the Bomba Squad was dead, but like everything else this week, we have seen a complete 180 turn to the life of this team. The bats have been on fire, bombas are flying and the newest member of the team, Kiriloff is showing this team what he is capable of. Kiriloff seemed to have paved the way for the Bomba squad to find their mo-jo as he continued to rake in the homeruns and the others followed suit giving the Twins some of the best leads of the season.
 
It’s early, I get it, it’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon, but if you can’t even get off the starting block, what are you doing? With the central division being as messy as it is, the talent the Twins have, we should not be second to last. I truly believe with the chemistry we have seen the past five games, we are fully equipped and capable to handle the sixteen day stretch of games. They will need all the strength, rest and power to get through this month. May the Force be with them….and May the Fourth be with you.

The Twins have had a tough go since leaving Detroit. With only two wins in the past eleven games, going into tonight this is a MUST WIN GAME. Yes, it’s the National league, YES, they are not playing in our division, but we are needing a win right now. The central league play and teams are messy at best and we can put ourselves in a spot where we can begin to come back and fight for the number one spot. Tonight we need to pull things together to get that W and be prepared for the Indians early next week, but we have a few things we need to fix if we are going to do that.
 
JA Happ is going to be pitching tonight and over his past two games, he certainly hasn’t sucked, but he hasn’t been stupendous. He came out in the fourth against Detroit and against Boston, showing that once again the arms that are starting the games are built for longevity to get us through at least the 6th. The bullpen seems to be getting more of a workout again than necessary and the starters need to have a more solid performance or we will continue to exhaust our bullpen.
 
We need to be more pragmatic about our hitting. Not every single hit needs to be a Bomba...it’s fun, don’t get me wrong. I am not a Bomba hater, that being said, our defense is saving us at times and our offense is lagging. We need to be hitting into the shifts and the gaps to get on base. One of our biggest downfalls is getting guys on base, and the big hitters coming in and trying for homers and leaving us stranded. We aren’t going to win games by striking out because we want to be heroes, just put the ball in play. {oh, and BUNT IN EXTRA INNINGS!}
The defense is one of the better treasures of this team, even with the management making stupid decisions like pulling Donaldson who was doing just fine at third against the A’s. As much as I love having good utility players, it pains me to see such horrible decisions made by management in critical situations. That’s what spring training is for, not middle of the tenth, up by two with big hitters from the other team coming up. Buxton, while healthy, has made some incredible plays that would be great to be backed up with hits and runs. Simmons should be coming off the IL soon, but with Kep and Sano going onto the IL, we circle back to our training site and the need for calling up kids like Nick Gordon for the first time.
 
I am curious to see what tonight brings for the guys. It’s pivotal in this early part of the season that we dig in, find our swing and make better managerial decisions if we intend to pull out of this slump and start contending for our place in the Division and American League standings.

The Twins have had a tough go since leaving Detroit. With only two wins in the past eleven games, going into tonight this is a MUST WIN GAME. Yes, it’s the National league, YES, they are not playing in our division, but we are needing a win right now. The central league play and teams are messy at best and we can put ourselves in a spot where we can begin to come back and fight for the number one spot. Tonight we need to pull things together to get that W and be prepared for the Indians early next week, but we have a few things we need to fix if we are going to do that.
 
JA Happ is going to be pitching tonight and over his past two games, he certainly hasn’t sucked, but he hasn’t been stupendous. He came out in the fourth against Detroit and against Boston, showing that once again the arms that are starting the games are built for longevity to get us through at least the 6th. The bullpen seems to be getting more of a workout again than necessary and the starters need to have a more solid performance or we will continue to exhaust our bullpen.
 
We need to be more pragmatic about our hitting. Not every single hit needs to be a Bomba...it’s fun, don’t get me wrong. I am not a Bomba hater, that being said, our defense is saving us at times and our offense is lagging. We need to be hitting into the shifts and the gaps to get on base. One of our biggest downfalls is getting guys on base, and the big hitters coming in and trying for homers and leaving us stranded. We aren’t going to win games by striking out because we want to be heroes, just put the ball in play. {oh, and BUNT IN EXTRA INNINGS!}
The defense is one of the better treasures of this team, even with the management making stupid decisions like pulling Donaldson who was doing just fine at third against the A’s. As much as I love having good utility players, it pains me to see such horrible decisions made by management in critical situations. That’s what spring training is for, not middle of the tenth, up by two with big hitters from the other team coming up. Buxton, while healthy, has made some incredible plays that would be great to be backed up with hits and runs. Simmons should be coming off the IL soon, but with Kep and Sano going onto the IL, we circle back to our training site and the need for calling up kids like Nick Gordon for the first time.
 
I am curious to see what tonight brings for the guys. It’s pivotal in this early part of the season that we dig in, find our swing and make better managerial decisions if we intend to pull out of this slump and start contending for our place in the Division and American League standings.

The Twins have had a tough go since leaving Detroit. With only two wins in the past eleven games, going into tonight this is a MUST WIN GAME. Yes, it’s the National league, YES, they are not playing in our division, but we are needing a win right now. The central league play and teams are messy at best and we can put ourselves in a spot where we can begin to come back and fight for the number one spot. Tonight we need to pull things together to get that W and be prepared for the Indians early next week, but we have a few things we need to fix if we are going to do that.
 
JA Happ is going to be pitching tonight and over his past two games, he certainly hasn’t sucked, but he hasn’t been stupendous. He came out in the fourth against Detroit and against Boston, showing that once again the arms that are starting the games are built for longevity to get us through at least the 6th. The bullpen seems to be getting more of a workout again than necessary and the starters need to have a more solid performance or we will continue to exhaust our bullpen.
 
We need to be more pragmatic about our hitting. Not every single hit needs to be a Bomba...it’s fun, don’t get me wrong. I am not a Bomba hater, that being said, our defense is saving us at times and our offense is lagging. We need to be hitting into the shifts and the gaps to get on base. One of our biggest downfalls is getting guys on base, and the big hitters coming in and trying for homers and leaving us stranded. We aren’t going to win games by striking out because we want to be heroes, just put the ball in play. {oh, and BUNT IN EXTRA INNINGS!}
The defense is one of the better treasures of this team, even with the management making stupid decisions like pulling Donaldson who was doing just fine at third against the A’s. As much as I love having good utility players, it pains me to see such horrible decisions made by management in critical situations. That’s what spring training is for, not middle of the tenth, up by two with big hitters from the other team coming up. Buxton, while healthy, has made some incredible plays that would be great to be backed up with hits and runs. Simmons should be coming off the IL soon, but with Kep and Sano going onto the IL, we circle back to our training site and the need for calling up kids like Nick Gordon for the first time.
 
I am curious to see what tonight brings for the guys. It’s pivotal in this early part of the season that we dig in, find our swing and make better managerial decisions if we intend to pull out of this slump and start contending for our place in the Division and American League standings.

After suffering a 4 day break in baseball for COVID 19 precautions, I had been looking forward to Tuesday night. It seems that the Twins while having a great cohesion had issues since day one. The Twins have played through Donaldson’s day 1 injury, missing Buck due to a stomach virus (jury is still out on that one) and Simmons stepping out for COVID protocol on April 14th, but the one thing the Twins still cannot seem to play through is their pitching. The double headers, late nights and early games gassed out our pitching to the point where Willians Astudillo would step into the pitching line up - in an already losing game - to the Angels showing his skills and fast pitch form to the MLB.
 
Matt Shoemaker, a pitcher the Twins acquired in February 2021, was an all-star in his own right when he played in 2014 as a rookie. As reported by Do-Hyoung Park, Shoemaker has been struggling with an onslaught of injuries since 2017 and has been continuing to fall further down after 2019 when he tore his ACL. The Twins, fully expecting him to be healthy and the No. 4 contributor to the rotation, spent 2 million dollars on the 34 year old right hander, who barely had played any games since 2017.
 
Shoemaker has only pitched in 2 games thus far for the Twins and neither were truly magical or anything that showed promise. His first game on the road in Detroit, where he pitched six innings and only one run got let in the 5th in the 22 batters he saw. He would take home the win in that game. In the next game against Seattle, he would pitch 5 innings and give up 4 runs and 7 hits leaving the game with an ERA of 4.09. The longer he stayed in the more damage that got done.
 
Tonight, after sitting out for 9 days, the RHP would once again take the mound against the A’s. The Oakland A’s are barely over .500 - a game that could have been our first W on the road since April 7th against the Tigers - and get us back on track for what started out as looking like a winning season. Shoemaker came out and pitched 3.1 innings and in that time allowed two runs and had 67 pitches before Alcala came in as the relief pitcher in the 4th. The Twins would fall 7-0 in game one of a double header after a grand slam served up by Alcala, accompanied by the runners left on base from when Shoemaker was on the mound. Not the start to the night the team and the fans were looking forward to.
 
In his first three games Shoemaker has continued to slide down hill. It may be just acclimating to the team, maybe it’s the 9 day rest...but the trend is showing that once again, the Twins took a chance on an arm that isn’t truly benefiting the roster and is leaving us with leaning on other utility players like Astudillo to come in and give us the outs we need. This “Shoe” just may not be the right fit.