Monkeypaws

And so the Marcos Diplan era comes screeching to a halt. Wait, who?

Championship caliber teams don't worry about the opposition. Bring 'em on. At their best this season, I've seen some of that swagger from the Bomba Squad. This last month should tell us all we need to know.

Funny, at the end of last season, to an intermediate fan such as myself, Rosario and Berrios were the ones who I hoped to se extended. They extended Polanco and Kepler. Falvine must have a crystal ball.

Smart guy - seems to have a big smile on his face often.

I looked him up after I started seeing his name in Rochester lineups. Became a fan reading his hitory. Pretty cool for him. Sadly, looks like end of the Zander Weil era.

Somehow the Twins haven't been mopping up vs. the likes of Detroit and KC as well as Cleveland has. Gotta win these games.

I meant it as an asset - the Athletic had an article that also mentioned the amount of work he puts in during the off season.

Pretty cool for them both to make it as pitchers, on a lefty, one a righty. Only the 10th pair in MLB history. If you haven't seen the footage of Tyler, check it out: almost knuckle scraping submarine stuff.

I really am a Balazovic believer. Size, arm, work ethic, still just 20. Very interesting prospect indeed.

30 games over .500 anyone?

Boy I would sure like the Twins to find a way to keep Big Mike around. He just keeps getting better as TJ gets further in the rear view mirror.

I happened to catch that live on MLB TV. Great moment for a great bunch of former Twins. Esky? Boy did the White Sox lose that trade

To me it has been a very clever way to expand your bullpen from 12 or 13 to 20 or so.

Looks like Javier is finally working his way out of his funk - batting .275 over the last 10 games.

Yes - he has really help absorb the loss of Buxton lately. Too bad for him Buck will return soon.

Welcome to AAA Mr. Colina. Hope the next outing goes better. Can't imagine how cool it would be to see Buxton back in CR for the fans. He is prominently displayed there as an alum (alongside Mike Trout).

Watched him pitch at Target Field in the spectacular extra-inning loss. He is good. Held the Twins at bay and is sporting a pretty gaudy ERA

So Adrianza is under control for another year - pretty hard to ask more of a utility guy. Arraez is the phenom heir-apparent to 2b or longterm utility guy. Polanco has himself a shiny new 6 year deal. Marwin has another year as well, and there is also La Tortuga. I'd like Gordon to be more than a premium trading chip, but with Lewis now just a level behind, I just don't see much room for him.

In my memory Texas was a team that often had the Twins' number - to sweep them 4 games in Texas - speechless. I think the Twins pretty much destroyed any wild-card dreams they had, and the crowd in the videos I watched seemed to say the same. Onward!

The Twins are dead last in MLB in steals with 25 (caught 20 times). Not sure adding a speedster fits into the game plan.

He needs to figure it out at AAA. Maybe next year. He's still young. So glad the Twins didn't trade Graterol: he could be a solid add in a couple weeks.

As I was floating in my blimp above Miller Park, I saw a team in trouble, having a hard voyage, and isn't that what it's all about, the voyage? Lots of turbulence: it has been a bumpy ride. Yet, when I embarked on my voyage 5 months ago, I never expected that mid-August would reveal .600 baseball, and 1st place. Regardless of how this all unfolds, it certainly has been an interesting ride.

Sammons seems to be quality since the Twins drafted him. Good lefties are hard to find. I really appreciate the links to MiLB, and usually look those over, and click the links to players I want to know more about. This team pic of Matt Cantinero made my day: http://www.milb.com/images/683764/t492/180x270/683764.jpg Looks too happy to be a pro athlete.

The Astros look great on paper. So do the Yankees. Yet I've seen the Twins knock Severino out of a playoff game. I've seen them beat Verlander. Cleveland? Fuggetaboutit. They play the games for a reason, and the best team on paper only wins some of the time.Perhaps the Twins have a post-season beast waiting to be unleashed we don't know about yet.

Fixing bad control seems a Dedunoesque task. Good luck Wes & Co.