rogrulz30

First off, I finally got a chance to watch T.K.'s speech after retiring his number. I have to say I haven't seen a more nervous person give a speech. I thought when Hrbek said that a lot of his number being up there has a lot do with the number standing next to me was pretty cool. I thought T.K. had a decent speech, I would have liked to hear a few more stories. I thought Morneaus enthusiasm about the entire thing made me really want to keep him around, he is one guy who I think appreciates baseball more than a lot of players. I only know T.K. and Gardy, I am expecting a baby in November, boy or girl, I hope they play sports and I hope I can teach my kids about all the little things that you do right to play well. There is obviously going to be a lot of talk about Morneau in the offseason. I really would like him to stay as a fan. Terry Ryan is going to have a lot to think about this winter. Parmalee had a year in AAA that should give him a spot to play in 2013 regularly, which I am hoping is right field. I would still like to see Morneau stick around. He has been my favorite Twins since he came up. For the first time in a few years I think we can be pretty close to looking at this for a lineup with defensive positions. 1. Revere (CF) 2. Mastroanni, (wish it were Mauer) (LF) 3. Mauer © 4. Willingham (DH) 5. Morneau (1B) 6. Doumit/Parmalee 7. Plouffe (3B) 8. Escobar (2B) ??? 9. Dozier (SS) ??? Yes the bottom 2 guys are going to be a few question marks, but I don't see it changing to significantly unless they go out and get a SS. My biggest hopes for the Twins next year are keeping Morneau, trading Span, keeping Doumit, and giving Parmalee a chance to play most days, rotating between RF, 1B, DH. It would be really nice having that extra bench option rotating guys in there. The Baltimore Orioles!!!!!!!!!!!!! The last game I officially watched that didn't include the Minnesota Twins in the game was in 1995 when Ripken broke the record, and I still remember Berman doing the game and calling it when he made it. So that was 17 years ago! As I write this the Orioles are 1 game behind the almighty Yankees who had a 10 game lead in August. How can you not root for Showalter and the Baltimore Orioles. They get a new/(old) look this year, with 40% of the payroll the Yankees do, and they have a chance to win the East. It looks like the East is going to get 2 into the playoffs, and it is going to be very interesting. If I could hope for anything it would be Orioles #1, Rays #2, Yankees go packing. I root for 2 things in MLB, the Minnesota Twins first and for most, and the Yankees losing as often as possible, the Minnesota Twins play the New York Yankees from 24th of September to the 26th and September and all I can hope is the Twins taking at least 2 of 3. The team I am rooting for going forward this MLB season is from the AL East, which will always be a rarity, but go Baltimore Orioles!

First off, I finally got a chance to watch T.K.'s speech after retiring his number. I have to say I haven't seen a more nervous person give a speech. I thought when Hrbek said that a lot of his number being up there has a lot do with the number standing next to me was pretty cool. I thought T.K. had a decent speech, I would have liked to hear a few more stories. I thought Morneaus enthusiasm about the entire thing made me really want to keep him around, he is one guy who I think appreciates baseball more than a lot of players. I only know T.K. and Gardy, I am expecting a baby in November, boy or girl, I hope they play sports and I hope I can teach my kids about all the little things that you do right to play well. There is obviously going to be a lot of talk about Morneau in the offseason. I really would like him to stay as a fan. Terry Ryan is going to have a lot to think about this winter. Parmalee had a year in AAA that should give him a spot to play in 2013 regularly, which I am hoping is right field. I would still like to see Morneau stick around. He has been my favorite Twins since he came up. For the first time in a few years I think we can be pretty close to looking at this for a lineup with defensive positions. 1. Revere (CF) 2. Mastroanni, (wish it were Mauer) (LF) 3. Mauer © 4. Willingham (DH) 5. Morneau (1B) 6. Doumit/Parmalee 7. Plouffe (3B) 8. Escobar (2B) ??? 9. Dozier (SS) ??? Yes the bottom 2 guys are going to be a few question marks, but I don't see it changing to significantly unless they go out and get a SS. My biggest hopes for the Twins next year are keeping Morneau, trading Span, keeping Doumit, and giving Parmalee a chance to play most days, rotating between RF, 1B, DH. It would be really nice having that extra bench option rotating guys in there. The Baltimore Orioles!!!!!!!!!!!!! The last game I officially watched that didn't include the Minnesota Twins in the game was in 1995 when Ripken broke the record, and I still remember Berman doing the game and calling it when he made it. So that was 17 years ago! As I write this the Orioles are 1 game behind the almighty Yankees who had a 10 game lead in August. How can you not root for Showalter and the Baltimore Orioles. They get a new/(old) look this year, with 40% of the payroll the Yankees do, and they have a chance to win the East. It looks like the East is going to get 2 into the playoffs, and it is going to be very interesting. If I could hope for anything it would be Orioles #1, Rays #2, Yankees go packing. I root for 2 things in MLB, the Minnesota Twins first and for most, and the Yankees losing as often as possible, the Minnesota Twins play the New York Yankees from 24th of September to the 26th and September and all I can hope is the Twins taking at least 2 of 3. The team I am rooting for going forward this MLB season is from the AL East, which will always be a rarity, but go Baltimore Orioles!

I don't really know why I like watching this team so much even now when games don't matter? I love the lineup, I love watching mastro and revere, morneau has been a treat, you have the hammer having a slight chance at a hr title, along with mauer and revere batting titles. If u were to tell me those things in April, I am really jacked at having a good baseball team!!! Now I still find myself watching deduno and diamond. I will admit everyone else who pitches, we have to rely on the lineup. I do love baseball, and I do love the twins and I want the twins to play hard and be the spoilers in playoff style ball. I will still b watching all the games, and as long as the yankees don't win the world series I will b all right!!!!

Early on Sunday morning in the midst of the Minnesota Twins trying to sweep the high and mighty Boston Red Sox, the Sox were trying to get the starting 3B for the Twins. When Terry Ryan heard about this he was trying to assess his worth. Ryan had him pegged for about a 6 pack of long sox for his players. The Sox called Terry Ryan and Sox offered the Twins a tub of eye paint. Terry Ryan knew that Valencia would be a perfect fit for the arrogant Red Sox, and it totally made sense that the Red Sox would be calling. Being as crafty as Ryan is in getting talent for marginal players he hung up and started looking for all options since he was already ahead of what he thought Valencia was worth, he was going to try and make an impact move since he was unable to do anything at the deadline. 2 things were going through Ryan's head 1. No matter what we are taking offer one, 2. This is the ideal time to get rid of him as Boston is the best place possible for his arrogant pompous ass attitude, and the Red Sox would pay extra for him, lets see what we can do. Ryan calls back with a couple names from Bostons farm system, they quickly say no, which was fine, but upped the price for Valencia, Boston came back with a year supply of Big League Chew, this is a really good deal at this point, but Ryan said no deal and threw out one last name in a last ditch effort to actually get a player for Valencia, Pineda, 21, hit .421 with 22 RBIs in 36 games for the Gulf Coast League Red Sox this season. He's a switch-hitter and is capable of playing all three outfield positions. HE DID IT, he pulled threw a deal for someone who is worth a 6 pack of socks to getting a real player. If you have read my posts before I am the biggest Valencia hater, he is my least favorite Twins player ever. This is obviously a mockery of what happened, but in my mind that is what would have went through it. Danny Valencia, the uncoachable, horrible team player, pompous ass went to the absolute perfect team, the debacle of the Boston Red Sox since losing Epstein is in perfect motion. I have had soo much fun watching the Twins the last week and a half. Blowing out Clevelend, playing good baseball against there biggest rival, which they could have won all 3 games, and beating 3/4 against the Red Sox. Common denominator----------- Good Starting pitching. The Twins lineup is very good right now. Who isn't having fun watching Revere batting over .300, Morneau really heating up against everybody, especially getting over his struggles against LHP. Mastroanni teaching everyone how to steal bases, he is a fun player to watch out there. The Twins have obviously been so bad in SP, but they win ball games just getting quality starts. When the Twins are in the playoff run I absolutely love watching the team, this year they are completely out, yet I love watching every game almost just as much as they are a competitive team. All we can hope is that the Twins rookie pitchers continue to throw good ball games the rest of the year so the Twins have some options. Not saying the DeVries, Deduno, Walters will be starters next year, but damn wouldn't it be great to have options. It is going to be a very important off season for the Twins to get pitching. I am sure Terry Ryan is going to try to make moves for an impact Ace no matter what happens the rest of the year, he is unlikely going to succeed, so we are going to just add a 3, or 4 guy or guys, but at least we have major league ready options next year. DeVries, Deduno, Walters, Diamond are going to have key starts through September, I hope they are quality starts so the Twins can have options and confidence going into the 2013 season.

Early on Sunday morning in the midst of the Minnesota Twins trying to sweep the high and mighty Boston Red Sox, the Sox were trying to get the starting 3B for the Twins. When Terry Ryan heard about this he was trying to assess his worth. Ryan had him pegged for about a 6 pack of long sox for his players. The Sox called Terry Ryan and Sox offered the Twins a tub of eye paint. Terry Ryan knew that Valencia would be a perfect fit for the arrogant Red Sox, and it totally made sense that the Red Sox would be calling. Being as crafty as Ryan is in getting talent for marginal players he hung up and started looking for all options since he was already ahead of what he thought Valencia was worth, he was going to try and make an impact move since he was unable to do anything at the deadline. 2 things were going through Ryan's head 1. No matter what we are taking offer one, 2. This is the ideal time to get rid of him as Boston is the best place possible for his arrogant pompous ass attitude, and the Red Sox would pay extra for him, lets see what we can do. Ryan calls back with a couple names from Bostons farm system, they quickly say no, which was fine, but upped the price for Valencia, Boston came back with a year supply of Big League Chew, this is a really good deal at this point, but Ryan said no deal and threw out one last name in a last ditch effort to actually get a player for Valencia, Pineda, 21, hit .421 with 22 RBIs in 36 games for the Gulf Coast League Red Sox this season. He's a switch-hitter and is capable of playing all three outfield positions. HE DID IT, he pulled threw a deal for someone who is worth a 6 pack of socks to getting a real player. If you have read my posts before I am the biggest Valencia hater, he is my least favorite Twins player ever. This is obviously a mockery of what happened, but in my mind that is what would have went through it. Danny Valencia, the uncoachable, horrible team player, pompous ass went to the absolute perfect team, the debacle of the Boston Red Sox since losing Epstein is in perfect motion. I have had soo much fun watching the Twins the last week and a half. Blowing out Clevelend, playing good baseball against there biggest rival, which they could have won all 3 games, and beating 3/4 against the Red Sox. Common denominator----------- Good Starting pitching. The Twins lineup is very good right now. Who isn't having fun watching Revere batting over .300, Morneau really heating up against everybody, especially getting over his struggles against LHP. Mastroanni teaching everyone how to steal bases, he is a fun player to watch out there. The Twins have obviously been so bad in SP, but they win ball games just getting quality starts. When the Twins are in the playoff run I absolutely love watching the team, this year they are completely out, yet I love watching every game almost just as much as they are a competitive team. All we can hope is that the Twins rookie pitchers continue to throw good ball games the rest of the year so the Twins have some options. Not saying the DeVries, Deduno, Walters will be starters next year, but damn wouldn't it be great to have options. It is going to be a very important off season for the Twins to get pitching. I am sure Terry Ryan is going to try to make moves for an impact Ace no matter what happens the rest of the year, he is unlikely going to succeed, so we are going to just add a 3, or 4 guy or guys, but at least we have major league ready options next year. DeVries, Deduno, Walters, Diamond are going to have key starts through September, I hope they are quality starts so the Twins can have options and confidence going into the 2013 season.

The Liriano deal is done. When I heard this deal, and the timing of the deal I was quite surprised. First, why are we trading top tier potential pitching to the AL Central? Why are we trading before his next scheduled start? Are you sure there isn't going to be a better deal out there? I can't answer these questions but I can speculate. My speculation is that Liriano is hiding an injury, didn't want to take the chance at him putting a stinker out there vs the Indians and lose all value. I am quite sure there was interest from a lot of teams for Liriano. Every team knew we weren't pursuing a longer term contract and are looking to get something for him. The White Sox came a calling and now we have a utility guy and a 23 year old pitcher. I don't know much about them, and we can all look that stuff up. John Bonnes came up with about 20 reasons why he hated the trade, and labeled it one of the worst. I am not sold on that yet, as we don't know all of the details on Liriano's health. If he is healthy, then I really don't get it at all, we could have waited til Tuesday. The Indians are horrible vs LHP, Liriano is at home, this was a perfect time for Liriano to make up for his last start. Something doesn't smell right!!!!! The Gardy rumblings are calling once again, as it happened in April/May. I specifically wrote it was time for a change, even though I really like Gardy. Gardy wants to manage this team, and I think he will. You can't compete as a ballclub without starting pitching. We have had horrible starting pitching this year. We have had injuries that have obviously not helped out the situation. I still think the Twins are bought into Gardy, and I personally changed my stance on him earlier this year, thinking we shuld keep him around. I am a Danny Valencia hater I guess you could say. I have always said he is a plague to this team. That being said, this is his last time to shine. If he can't get things going given this opportunity it is all she wrote and we should try and trade him for anything. Now on the flip side of this, lets say I am wrong and Valencia come back with and plays like he did in 2010. To have a good 3B, and Plouffe playing SS or 2nd that would be a very big upgrade in the lineup. Or better yet, IMO, he plays really well and we have the ability to trade him in the offseason. I found out on Friday that we got some good seats for the Twins game on Tuesday, find out Saturday that Liriano got traded, and looking at the projected starters for Tuesday I get to see Liriano for the first time in a dreaded White Sox uniform. That part will be fun, bad part is I was at the last game Blackburn faced the White Sox and gave up like 13 hits. I am hoping by Tuesday we don't trade Willingham, Morneau, or Span.

The Liriano deal is done. When I heard this deal, and the timing of the deal I was quite surprised. First, why are we trading top tier potential pitching to the AL Central? Why are we trading before his next scheduled start? Are you sure there isn't going to be a better deal out there? I can't answer these questions but I can speculate. My speculation is that Liriano is hiding an injury, didn't want to take the chance at him putting a stinker out there vs the Indians and lose all value. I am quite sure there was interest from a lot of teams for Liriano. Every team knew we weren't pursuing a longer term contract and are looking to get something for him. The White Sox came a calling and now we have a utility guy and a 23 year old pitcher. I don't know much about them, and we can all look that stuff up. John Bonnes came up with about 20 reasons why he hated the trade, and labeled it one of the worst. I am not sold on that yet, as we don't know all of the details on Liriano's health. If he is healthy, then I really don't get it at all, we could have waited til Tuesday. The Indians are horrible vs LHP, Liriano is at home, this was a perfect time for Liriano to make up for his last start. Something doesn't smell right!!!!! The Gardy rumblings are calling once again, as it happened in April/May. I specifically wrote it was time for a change, even though I really like Gardy. Gardy wants to manage this team, and I think he will. You can't compete as a ballclub without starting pitching. We have had horrible starting pitching this year. We have had injuries that have obviously not helped out the situation. I still think the Twins are bought into Gardy, and I personally changed my stance on him earlier this year, thinking we shuld keep him around. I am a Danny Valencia hater I guess you could say. I have always said he is a plague to this team. That being said, this is his last time to shine. If he can't get things going given this opportunity it is all she wrote and we should try and trade him for anything. Now on the flip side of this, lets say I am wrong and Valencia come back with and plays like he did in 2010. To have a good 3B, and Plouffe playing SS or 2nd that would be a very big upgrade in the lineup. Or better yet, IMO, he plays really well and we have the ability to trade him in the offseason. I found out on Friday that we got some good seats for the Twins game on Tuesday, find out Saturday that Liriano got traded, and looking at the projected starters for Tuesday I get to see Liriano for the first time in a dreaded White Sox uniform. That part will be fun, bad part is I was at the last game Blackburn faced the White Sox and gave up like 13 hits. I am hoping by Tuesday we don't trade Willingham, Morneau, or Span.

Gardy specifically said in the paper yesterday he wants to continue managing this team next year, it is up to management to make that decision. In no way can I see Gardy retiring.

The only way I would trade Span is to the Reds. As we know the Reds are horrible at leadoff, putting Span leadoff for the next few years in Cinci is a huge upgrade. Which then puts a higher trade value for him. Span's deal to the Twins is really good, I don't understand trading Span unless we get an impact pitcher and that is hard to do. Span isn't an All Star caliber CFer, but putting in perspective what he does for the team vs. the price we pay is really big. In order to get rid of Span it really has to be a good deal, or easily just keep him.

The Legion of Doom was awsome!!!!!!!!!!!

So baseball is the main sport going on right now. Unfortunately our Minnesota Twins conversations are pretty much surrounding the trade deadline which is unfortunate. As I watched the Twins at Sox game I was also recording the 1000th episode of Monday Night Raw. I quit watching the Twins game when the Twins got another first guy on base being down 7-2 and failing to do anything with it. I switched it to the recording of the 1000th episode of Monday Night Raw that started in 1993 when I was 13 years old. I am 32 years old now and I have probably watched 3 Monday Night Raw episodes in 8 years. I will have to admit that I did have to download Wrestle Mania when I heard the Rock was going to be there. The Rock was probably my favorite wrestler ever, and brought back memories of watching Raw with the family. Both my parents sucked it up and watched Saturday Night Main Event, which then got bigger to Sunday Mornings, which then was prime time on Monday Night. Both my parents to this day say they still enjoyed it once they got into it. I sat here watched Raw tonight, my wife came home and was utterly embarrassed that I watched this show tonight. I told her about my favorite wrestlers and how cool it was watching wrestling back in the day. I think I was 15, my friends and I would go to each others houses pay $5 to the parents that ordered it and had a good time, probably watched wrestling til I was 20. It was entertaining. This is a Minnesota Twins blog, but I have all the right in the world to post whatever I want in my mind and I think people enjoyed wrestling, and I wasn't really disappointed watching the 1,000th episode of RAW. I wanted to throw out some of my favorite moments in my era of watching wrestling. I am going to try and make this a top 10. 10. All I can say is Road Warriors. I used to love the tag team of Hawk and Animal. I loved the outfits coming down to the ring. My favorite tag team ever. 9. The Ultimate Warrior vs Hulk Hogan WrestleMania 6. When I looked up the year of 1990 I couldn't believe I remember this match and I was 10. The ultimate warrior got me hooked to wrestling I think. He was one of the first to really have more movement in the ring, add more agility to wrestling. 8. Shawn Michaels vs Triple H I remember this match, looked it up it was a Summer Slam match in 2002. All I remember was Triple H really breaking into the seen, Shawn Michaels stole the show all of the time, rightly so, but Triple H was becoming bigger and bigger. This match made Triple H what he is still today. 7. Stone Cold Steve Austin vs The Rock in Wrestlemania 17 (2001) Both were the most polarizing figures in wrestling at the time. This is about the end of my era watching wrestling. 6. Hulk Hogan slamming Andre the Giant. I can't say that I watched this live, but I did watch the behind the scenes and the match, which is what propelled the WWE to what it is today. This would normally be higher, but I was too young. 5. When Hulk Hogan came back to the WWE as the good guy, first time back to the WWE playing the "Real American" Song. 4. [h=1]THE MILLION DOLLAR MAN AND JAKE "THE SNAKE" ROBERTS BATTLE FOR THE VACATED MILLION DOLLAR CHAMPIONSHIP[/h] Don't know why I remember this, I guess I loved Jake the Snake Roberts, hated the million dollar man w/ Virgil, which I hated. All I wanted was the snake to go over Ted Dibiase and it never happened and I was pissed. 3. I will never forget the Hell in the Cell match between Undertaker and Mankind. Mankind went through the top of the cage. He landed on tacks, he went through the table. This match was unbelievable knowing what these guys had to go through physically. 2. Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Vince McMahon throughout the years of Monday Night Raw which kept me watching as he was thoroughly entertaining. 1. The Rock overall kept me watching wrestling and the stupid sayings he had. "Do you smell what the Rock is cooking", Really, that is what is main saying was and it was great every time. Favorite wrestlers of all time I guess in no particular order. Junkyard Dog Macho Man Randy Savage Jake the Snake Roberts The Rockers, Marty Janetti/Shawn Michaels The Road Warriors Hulk Hogan Stone Cold Steve Austin ManKind Undertaker George "the Animal" Steel The Rock

So baseball is the main sport going on right now. Unfortunately our Minnesota Twins conversations are pretty much surrounding the trade deadline which is unfortunate. As I watched the Twins at Sox game I was also recording the 1000th episode of Monday Night Raw. I quit watching the Twins game when the Twins got another first guy on base being down 7-2 and failing to do anything with it. I switched it to the recording of the 1000th episode of Monday Night Raw that started in 1993 when I was 13 years old. I am 32 years old now and I have probably watched 3 Monday Night Raw episodes in 8 years. I will have to admit that I did have to download Wrestle Mania when I heard the Rock was going to be there. The Rock was probably my favorite wrestler ever, and brought back memories of watching Raw with the family. Both my parents sucked it up and watched Saturday Night Main Event, which then got bigger to Sunday Mornings, which then was prime time on Monday Night. Both my parents to this day say they still enjoyed it once they got into it. I sat here watched Raw tonight, my wife came home and was utterly embarrassed that I watched this show tonight. I told her about my favorite wrestlers and how cool it was watching wrestling back in the day. I think I was 15, my friends and I would go to each others houses pay $5 to the parents that ordered it and had a good time, probably watched wrestling til I was 20. It was entertaining. This is a Minnesota Twins blog, but I have all the right in the world to post whatever I want in my mind and I think people enjoyed wrestling, and I wasn't really disappointed watching the 1,000th episode of RAW. I wanted to throw out some of my favorite moments in my era of watching wrestling. I am going to try and make this a top 10. 10. All I can say is Road Warriors. I used to love the tag team of Hawk and Animal. I loved the outfits coming down to the ring. My favorite tag team ever. 9. The Ultimate Warrior vs Hulk Hogan WrestleMania 6. When I looked up the year of 1990 I couldn't believe I remember this match and I was 10. The ultimate warrior got me hooked to wrestling I think. He was one of the first to really have more movement in the ring, add more agility to wrestling. 8. Shawn Michaels vs Triple H I remember this match, looked it up it was a Summer Slam match in 2002. All I remember was Triple H really breaking into the seen, Shawn Michaels stole the show all of the time, rightly so, but Triple H was becoming bigger and bigger. This match made Triple H what he is still today. 7. Stone Cold Steve Austin vs The Rock in Wrestlemania 17 (2001) Both were the most polarizing figures in wrestling at the time. This is about the end of my era watching wrestling. 6. Hulk Hogan slamming Andre the Giant. I can't say that I watched this live, but I did watch the behind the scenes and the match, which is what propelled the WWE to what it is today. This would normally be higher, but I was too young. 5. When Hulk Hogan came back to the WWE as the good guy, first time back to the WWE playing the "Real American" Song. 4. [h=1]THE MILLION DOLLAR MAN AND JAKE "THE SNAKE" ROBERTS BATTLE FOR THE VACATED MILLION DOLLAR CHAMPIONSHIP[/h] Don't know why I remember this, I guess I loved Jake the Snake Roberts, hated the million dollar man w/ Virgil, which I hated. All I wanted was the snake to go over Ted Dibiase and it never happened and I was pissed. 3. I will never forget the Hell in the Cell match between Undertaker and Mankind. Mankind went through the top of the cage. He landed on tacks, he went through the table. This match was unbelievable knowing what these guys had to go through physically. 2. Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Vince McMahon throughout the years of Monday Night Raw which kept me watching as he was thoroughly entertaining. 1. The Rock overall kept me watching wrestling and the stupid sayings he had. "Do you smell what the Rock is cooking", Really, that is what is main saying was and it was great every time. Favorite wrestlers of all time I guess in no particular order. Junkyard Dog Macho Man Randy Savage Jake the Snake Roberts The Rockers, Marty Janetti/Shawn Michaels The Road Warriors Hulk Hogan Stone Cold Steve Austin ManKind Undertaker George "the Animal" Steel The Rock

I dislike the Chicago White Sox, they are my least favorite team in the MLB (behind the Yankees). I have always liked watching the series between the two, I really liked the Ozzie Guillen era where we wiped up on them consistently. The White Sox are arrogant. They have a sense of entitlement, and realistically they are the only Chicago team that stays semi competitive. I absolutely dislike the TV announcers Hawk and Stone. I can't stand these guys, "Hawk" says the most ridiculous things, he is worse than Haray Carey, who I absolutely loved. So I was checking out some things on the side of the White Sox and ran into this, which confirmed my belief on how bad they are. http://chicagoist.com/2012/02/27/fans_vote_white_sox_tv_announce_cre.php, yes FanGraphs even have them rated the worst. As my last blog had me rating some of the Twins guys, I forgot to add what I don't like about these guys. When I lived in Las Vegas and had MLB, I had to unfortunately listen to these guys, it was great when the Twins were beating them up, but once they got a lead and had to listen to "Hawk" have all the excuses in the world that they lose to the Twins I had to shut it off. Adam Dunn is leading the Majors in home runs. He is also leading the league in K's. If I were ever to think that a player would have more K's than a pitcher in a year, I would never think that was possible. This year we have someone who can do that. Justin Verlander has 142 K's, Adam Dunn has 144 K's. What????? I couldn't believe that, I am so happy I was glancing at some of the things the White Sox bloggers have to say about there team that is going down the drain, which was expected at the beginning of the season. This is really funny by the old batting stance guy. http://www.southsidesox.com/2012/6/26/3118673/batting-stance-guy-is-at-it-again-dunn-so-to-bb-ratio-hilarious. Worth watching. The trade deadline is coming, I am not going to pounding the subject, all I can say is we need pitching next year, I think I am one of the only ones that am on board with keeping Liriano, (or at least offer him the 13 mill option) as the FA market may be out of reach for the Twins. If we have Liriano, Baker, Gibson, Hendriks, Diamond next year, we have a shot at improving that during the offseason, but it isn't the worst we could ask for, w/o Liriano, or a higher potential 1 guy, we are in a very similar place we are today. I wish we could unload Pavano and Capps. I am for keeping the rest. As Nelson wrote this could be the last time we see Liriano in the Twins uniform. GL Liriano

I dislike the Chicago White Sox, they are my least favorite team in the MLB (behind the Yankees). I have always liked watching the series between the two, I really liked the Ozzie Guillen era where we wiped up on them consistently. The White Sox are arrogant. They have a sense of entitlement, and realistically they are the only Chicago team that stays semi competitive. I absolutely dislike the TV announcers Hawk and Stone. I can't stand these guys, "Hawk" says the most ridiculous things, he is worse than Haray Carey, who I absolutely loved. So I was checking out some things on the side of the White Sox and ran into this, which confirmed my belief on how bad they are. http://chicagoist.com/2012/02/27/fans_vote_white_sox_tv_announce_cre.php, yes FanGraphs even have them rated the worst. As my last blog had me rating some of the Twins guys, I forgot to add what I don't like about these guys. When I lived in Las Vegas and had MLB, I had to unfortunately listen to these guys, it was great when the Twins were beating them up, but once they got a lead and had to listen to "Hawk" have all the excuses in the world that they lose to the Twins I had to shut it off. Adam Dunn is leading the Majors in home runs. He is also leading the league in K's. If I were ever to think that a player would have more K's than a pitcher in a year, I would never think that was possible. This year we have someone who can do that. Justin Verlander has 142 K's, Adam Dunn has 144 K's. What????? I couldn't believe that, I am so happy I was glancing at some of the things the White Sox bloggers have to say about there team that is going down the drain, which was expected at the beginning of the season. This is really funny by the old batting stance guy. http://www.southsidesox.com/2012/6/26/3118673/batting-stance-guy-is-at-it-again-dunn-so-to-bb-ratio-hilarious. Worth watching. The trade deadline is coming, I am not going to pounding the subject, all I can say is we need pitching next year, I think I am one of the only ones that am on board with keeping Liriano, (or at least offer him the 13 mill option) as the FA market may be out of reach for the Twins. If we have Liriano, Baker, Gibson, Hendriks, Diamond next year, we have a shot at improving that during the offseason, but it isn't the worst we could ask for, w/o Liriano, or a higher potential 1 guy, we are in a very similar place we are today. I wish we could unload Pavano and Capps. I am for keeping the rest. As Nelson wrote this could be the last time we see Liriano in the Twins uniform. GL Liriano

Overall I am not a big fan of Dan Gladden, the biggest reasons Bonnes suggested as I don't know what is going on after the ball is hit. All of a sudden it could be over the fence with no excitement either way. Gladden knows baseball, but doesn't have all the words to go with it during plays. Overall I give Gladden about a C-, I think he can get a lot better by adding more words. Bremer I have always liked, he is likeable, funny, has good chemistry with the person he is in the booth with. He is just very consistent!! I think that makes him good, I think the biggest thing he may lack compared to other TV guys is a little more excitement and opinion. I give Bremer a B

I have consistently said good things about Scott Diamond. He has been the pitching MVP for the Twins this year by far. I have enjoyed watching the games he has pitched as he hasn't lost his "control of the game" at all this year in my opinion. He is very consistent in the strike zone, doesn't give up walks, and lets the defense get outs for him. He reminds me of a young Steve Avery from the Braves. I have continued to tell a buddy of mine that he has impressed me. Of course as a Brewer fan, "and a Minnesota hater" he has to tell me all of the things he doesn't do, and that it has been luck that he has as many wins as he has, and his ERA is so low because of where the balls have been hit, and the amount of players left on base is going to start going the other way. I am a big fan of sabremetrics, but when you watch somebody in control like Diamond vs Liriano I don't think the stats tell the entire story. That being said, the Twins are 15 games under .500 I took a wager that I have the Twins win in Diamonds starts against the losses of Diamonds starts. I think I have the good end of the stick. I could be wrong on this one, watching tonights game in the bottom of the 7th I would be 1-1 since we took the wager. This is the first year in my lifetime that John Gordon hasn't been in the radio booth. Cory Provus from the Brewers took over and I have been able to listen to games when he is on, on my way from work and away from a TV. I have also been very used to listening to Dick Bremer and Bert Blyleven. With Blyleven taking a lot more games off this year we have had a mix of Tom Kelly, Roy Smalley, and Ron Coomer. I have really liked listening to different people, along with the different takes on each one. If I had a choice of someone to pick if Blyleven left this is how I would go. First I want to rate Cory Provus as I have listened to enough games now to get him, and adjust to listening to someone else. 1. Excitement C+, I don't always get the excitement of what is going on with Provus yet, even though it will come. This is the first year of doing the Twins broadcast and it has to be tough gaining the excitement level. 2. Color (what is going on) B I think he does a great job of letting us know what is going on that I can visualize it. From what a pitcher is doing, or a hitter at that, even when the play isn't happening and there is a lull. Every time I listen I can get a feeling of what is going on. 3. Teaming with Gladden C I think it is very tough trying to work with Gladden as Gladden does not have good color or excitement, Gladden gives us a little understanding of the technical side of what they are trying to do, but it is hard transitioning and I don't think that is Provus' fault. 4. Knowledge B I think he understands the minor league system as much as he can, as being a first year announcer. He asks good questions to other managers/coaches. He understands the system and starts to learn the players in the system. I am impressed with the baseball knowledge, and doesn't seem to give us blanket statement which we all hate. Overall B I have to say minus the excitement and the buy in so far he has done a good job, and I really like the choice the organization made. 1. Roy Smalley- If I had a choice to choose a person to take over for Bert it would be Roy Smalley. I know he overstates a lot of players abilities, especially Mauers. But I really like his insight of the game overall. I like the experience he brings, and the stories he can tell. He compliments Bremer very well and I can hear that in the broadcast. I give him an A- 2. TK- I really like TK in the booth in small increments (e.g. 3 game series 4 times a year) He was obviously a smart manager. He prides himself and others on hard work. I really think he has fun in the booth. He knows he isn't there for long, and makes sure to have fun. I think if he would be there for an entire year he would run out of things to say. I have always had the upmost respect for TK, and I really do like listening to him. B- 3. Ron Coomer- Way tooooooo much of a homer. Yes I am a homer, and most of us are. He has too many good things to say about players and not enough of things they have opportunities on. I find it frustrating sometimes that he doesn't say the truth when the player is struggling. I like Coomer when he is in the stands/ takes over for Incmikoski. Bremer really does a great job exploiting the stregths of all of them. I think if Coomer learned more about the other team, or the minor league players the Twins have, he could be better. I really think Coomer lacks work ethic in the booths. C-

I have consistently said good things about Scott Diamond. He has been the pitching MVP for the Twins this year by far. I have enjoyed watching the games he has pitched as he hasn't lost his "control of the game" at all this year in my opinion. He is very consistent in the strike zone, doesn't give up walks, and lets the defense get outs for him. He reminds me of a young Steve Avery from the Braves. I have continued to tell a buddy of mine that he has impressed me. Of course as a Brewer fan, "and a Minnesota hater" he has to tell me all of the things he doesn't do, and that it has been luck that he has as many wins as he has, and his ERA is so low because of where the balls have been hit, and the amount of players left on base is going to start going the other way. I am a big fan of sabremetrics, but when you watch somebody in control like Diamond vs Liriano I don't think the stats tell the entire story. That being said, the Twins are 15 games under .500 I took a wager that I have the Twins win in Diamonds starts against the losses of Diamonds starts. I think I have the good end of the stick. I could be wrong on this one, watching tonights game in the bottom of the 7th I would be 1-1 since we took the wager. This is the first year in my lifetime that John Gordon hasn't been in the radio booth. Cory Provus from the Brewers took over and I have been able to listen to games when he is on, on my way from work and away from a TV. I have also been very used to listening to Dick Bremer and Bert Blyleven. With Blyleven taking a lot more games off this year we have had a mix of Tom Kelly, Roy Smalley, and Ron Coomer. I have really liked listening to different people, along with the different takes on each one. If I had a choice of someone to pick if Blyleven left this is how I would go. First I want to rate Cory Provus as I have listened to enough games now to get him, and adjust to listening to someone else. 1. Excitement C+, I don't always get the excitement of what is going on with Provus yet, even though it will come. This is the first year of doing the Twins broadcast and it has to be tough gaining the excitement level. 2. Color (what is going on) B I think he does a great job of letting us know what is going on that I can visualize it. From what a pitcher is doing, or a hitter at that, even when the play isn't happening and there is a lull. Every time I listen I can get a feeling of what is going on. 3. Teaming with Gladden C I think it is very tough trying to work with Gladden as Gladden does not have good color or excitement, Gladden gives us a little understanding of the technical side of what they are trying to do, but it is hard transitioning and I don't think that is Provus' fault. 4. Knowledge B I think he understands the minor league system as much as he can, as being a first year announcer. He asks good questions to other managers/coaches. He understands the system and starts to learn the players in the system. I am impressed with the baseball knowledge, and doesn't seem to give us blanket statement which we all hate. Overall B I have to say minus the excitement and the buy in so far he has done a good job, and I really like the choice the organization made. 1. Roy Smalley- If I had a choice to choose a person to take over for Bert it would be Roy Smalley. I know he overstates a lot of players abilities, especially Mauers. But I really like his insight of the game overall. I like the experience he brings, and the stories he can tell. He compliments Bremer very well and I can hear that in the broadcast. I give him an A- 2. TK- I really like TK in the booth in small increments (e.g. 3 game series 4 times a year) He was obviously a smart manager. He prides himself and others on hard work. I really think he has fun in the booth. He knows he isn't there for long, and makes sure to have fun. I think if he would be there for an entire year he would run out of things to say. I have always had the upmost respect for TK, and I really do like listening to him. B- 3. Ron Coomer- Way tooooooo much of a homer. Yes I am a homer, and most of us are. He has too many good things to say about players and not enough of things they have opportunities on. I find it frustrating sometimes that he doesn't say the truth when the player is struggling. I like Coomer when he is in the stands/ takes over for Incmikoski. Bremer really does a great job exploiting the stregths of all of them. I think if Coomer learned more about the other team, or the minor league players the Twins have, he could be better. I really think Coomer lacks work ethic in the booths. C-

Very fun post. I also miss the excitement of opening up a pack of baseball cards. After reading this I did want to go and buy a pack, and I think I may look on ebay so I don't have to go anywhere.

Your comment about the players that have contracts that sit is alarming when you look at Casilla, Valencia, Toshi, Thomas, Blackburn, that is a lot of money tied up in absolutely nothing and it really adds up when those guys hold a big chunk of money. We will never give up Butera, I just have to thank god they re upped Doumit. As far as the Liriano thing, if he pitches well the second half I don't see why we wouldn't offer the 12 mill contract for him next year.

So the All Star game has come and gone, which also means the first half of baseball has come and gone, and most of us reading here get to see the Minnesota Twins 13 games under .500 11 games out of first in the AL Central. Since there aren't many sports going on right now, there are two things to talk about, the All Star Game, (what Twins should have got in), and of course the Wild signing Parise and Suter. I have to say I went back on a statement I made about Mauer not being our All Star. We talked about this after our softball game, saying Mauer shouldn't be the guy. My last blog I put 3 guys up there before Mauer. I have to take it back as I thought about it more, he is our "Baseball Fans All Star", not our MVP, even though that could be debatable as well. We also talked quite a bit about how the All Star Game is run, and should the winner get home field advantage in the World Series. First off I like the idea of making into a contest that is up for grabs for something that really means something. I think that puts a little bit more pressure on the managers to win, rather than the players getting playing time. In the Star Tribune they had a column that Mike Schmidt wrote about Bud Selig's tenure, and that the ASG is the "black sheep" of his tenure. http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/nationals/hall-of-famer-mike-schmidt-flawed-all-star-game-is-black-sheep-event-of-seligs-tenure/2012/07/10/gJQAkPtHbW_story.html Yes I agree that the tie game ending of the All Star game was quite ridiculous, but I understand he was in a tough spot, but for all those people who watched the game, here is the reality, baseball doesn't end in ties! I like Schmidts take on the ASG about how excited the players were to be on national TV, and face the unknown quite often. Inter league play does have some hurt to it, but on the flip side we all have access to MLB Extra Innings + Nationally televised games + our own outlet to watch all the games that they didn't have before. And lets face it there is a lot more money involved for these players. The one main point that I would like to see though is that big time matchup between Verlander and Matt Kemp, or Matt Cain vs Bautista. Those would be really cool matchups if they have never seen each other before. I also think that the best players should play more. I want to see the best players out there, like Schmidt said Willie Mays often played 7 innings in games. I tell you what if Verlander was throwing no hits after 3 innings I would like to see him pitch until at least he gives up a hit. The All Star Game should mean something, I like the fact that they play for home field, the one big thing that was transparent, which I really think will get changed is having your home team that is holding the ASG be in the home run derby. A couple weeks ago I went to the Twins/White Sox game, Nick Blackburn got smoked, giving up like 13 hits, during that time I was able to dabble into Surly's Cynic Ale, and if you haven't tried that it is really good. We were down 6-0 when Brian Dozier hits a solo home run to left field 4 rows up, right where I was sitting. http://minnesota.twins.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=22630569&topic_id=players&query=type%3Djson%26player_id%3D572821%26start%3D0%26src%3Dvpp%26sort%3Ddesc%26sort_type%3Dcustom%26hitsPerPage%3D60&c_id=min&playerName=Brian%20Dozier My best friend ended up catching the ball, which was pretty cool, as I never thought that catching a home run ball would be that fun, but I have to say other than sending Danny Valencia back to the minors, was my highlight of the first half of the Twins 2012 season. The other reason I come to this is we stayed in the cities and met a friend who is really into soccer. In my life I have probably watched maybe a game and half, he wanted to watch I think was Germany vs Italy, not exactly sure, but the talk came up of how boring soccer is to watch, and yes it is boring. I did ask a lot of questions that I am sure he got sick of, but understanding a little bit more of why so many games end with a 1 goal win, it just seems lucky at some point when you play 90 plus minutes and a lot of games are decided by one goal. I tried to compare it to baseball, which a lot of people think is really boring to watch on T.V. But then it kind of clicked listening to Pete talk about the strategy, and the work that goes into it, and it really isn't that much different than "watching" baseball. Baseball is boring if you "watch" it, but if you understand the game, and learn all the nuances in the game it is soo much better to watch. Sometimes I have to take step back and listen and try to understand what I am "watching" and not make an opinion about how stupid/boring it really is. I have to admit I love Survivor, I absolutely love the show and I get heckled for it all the time. The thing is, people don't understand that it isn't people surviving on an island, it has soooo much strategy in every decision it is really intense to watch, and if people don't get that, they will never get the intrigue of watching a television show that I really love. Everybody love projections, whether they mean **** or not, it is always fun to go back and look to see what you thought may happen, and what really happens and I want to take a stab at the rest of the baseball season, and unfortunately for the Twins we are probably looking more forward to the beginning of the Minnesota Wild season to start. But here we go for fun. 1. Who gets traded? Matt Capps and Carl Pavano. Even though we don't have starting pitching, we do have players that only help us out unloading contracts/getting a player or two. I would be very surprised if Glen Perkins wasn't our "closer" by the end of the year. The names of Span, Morneau, Willingham just don't make much sense to unload in my mind, the only other player that is really a 50/50 but I think will end up staying is Liriano. 2. Record at the end of the year. I say they play 6 games above .500 the rest of the year which would put them at 74-88. I have to pick that still because at the beginning of the year I had them over 73.5, and they have played much better baseball. I really think Blackburn is done, I think the rotation is going to be Liriano, Diamond, Hendriks, Walters, ? by the end of the year. And one more to add on beat the Royals by 1 game to not finish in last place. 3. Willingham and Plouffe will get to 30 HR's, which will really be fun to watch. 4. Mauer will flirt with the batting title and end up 2nd, but will keep everyone watching to see if he gets it. Will end up at .331 5. Morneau has a break out second half which helps lead the Twins to playing 6 games above .500. Morneau ends with 25 HR's and is our 2nd half MVP. 6. Dozier gets a reality check and continues to struggle the 2nd half on defense and offensively, Casilla takes his spot some time in August. 7. With the ultimate turnaround to Adam Dunn, along with aggressive trade deadline acts the White Sox win the Central. This goes against everything I thought at the beginning of the year. 8. The Rangers are the most talented team in the AL, and will continue with that and win the AL Pennant. 9 The Rangers win the World Series beating the Cincinatti Reds. 10. There are too many positives for the Twins again, and making me look like a huge Homer, but hey aren't we all.

So the All Star game has come and gone, which also means the first half of baseball has come and gone, and most of us reading here get to see the Minnesota Twins 13 games under .500 11 games out of first in the AL Central. Since there aren't many sports going on right now, there are two things to talk about, the All Star Game, (what Twins should have got in), and of course the Wild signing Parise and Suter. I have to say I went back on a statement I made about Mauer not being our All Star. We talked about this after our softball game, saying Mauer shouldn't be the guy. My last blog I put 3 guys up there before Mauer. I have to take it back as I thought about it more, he is our "Baseball Fans All Star", not our MVP, even though that could be debatable as well. We also talked quite a bit about how the All Star Game is run, and should the winner get home field advantage in the World Series. First off I like the idea of making into a contest that is up for grabs for something that really means something. I think that puts a little bit more pressure on the managers to win, rather than the players getting playing time. In the Star Tribune they had a column that Mike Schmidt wrote about Bud Selig's tenure, and that the ASG is the "black sheep" of his tenure. http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/nationals/hall-of-famer-mike-schmidt-flawed-all-star-game-is-black-sheep-event-of-seligs-tenure/2012/07/10/gJQAkPtHbW_story.html Yes I agree that the tie game ending of the All Star game was quite ridiculous, but I understand he was in a tough spot, but for all those people who watched the game, here is the reality, baseball doesn't end in ties! I like Schmidts take on the ASG about how excited the players were to be on national TV, and face the unknown quite often. Inter league play does have some hurt to it, but on the flip side we all have access to MLB Extra Innings + Nationally televised games + our own outlet to watch all the games that they didn't have before. And lets face it there is a lot more money involved for these players. The one main point that I would like to see though is that big time matchup between Verlander and Matt Kemp, or Matt Cain vs Bautista. Those would be really cool matchups if they have never seen each other before. I also think that the best players should play more. I want to see the best players out there, like Schmidt said Willie Mays often played 7 innings in games. I tell you what if Verlander was throwing no hits after 3 innings I would like to see him pitch until at least he gives up a hit. The All Star Game should mean something, I like the fact that they play for home field, the one big thing that was transparent, which I really think will get changed is having your home team that is holding the ASG be in the home run derby. A couple weeks ago I went to the Twins/White Sox game, Nick Blackburn got smoked, giving up like 13 hits, during that time I was able to dabble into Surly's Cynic Ale, and if you haven't tried that it is really good. We were down 6-0 when Brian Dozier hits a solo home run to left field 4 rows up, right where I was sitting. http://minnesota.twins.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=22630569&topic_id=players&query=type%3Djson%26player_id%3D572821%26start%3D0%26src%3Dvpp%26sort%3Ddesc%26sort_type%3Dcustom%26hitsPerPage%3D60&c_id=min&playerName=Brian%20Dozier My best friend ended up catching the ball, which was pretty cool, as I never thought that catching a home run ball would be that fun, but I have to say other than sending Danny Valencia back to the minors, was my highlight of the first half of the Twins 2012 season. The other reason I come to this is we stayed in the cities and met a friend who is really into soccer. In my life I have probably watched maybe a game and half, he wanted to watch I think was Germany vs Italy, not exactly sure, but the talk came up of how boring soccer is to watch, and yes it is boring. I did ask a lot of questions that I am sure he got sick of, but understanding a little bit more of why so many games end with a 1 goal win, it just seems lucky at some point when you play 90 plus minutes and a lot of games are decided by one goal. I tried to compare it to baseball, which a lot of people think is really boring to watch on T.V. But then it kind of clicked listening to Pete talk about the strategy, and the work that goes into it, and it really isn't that much different than "watching" baseball. Baseball is boring if you "watch" it, but if you understand the game, and learn all the nuances in the game it is soo much better to watch. Sometimes I have to take step back and listen and try to understand what I am "watching" and not make an opinion about how stupid/boring it really is. I have to admit I love Survivor, I absolutely love the show and I get heckled for it all the time. The thing is, people don't understand that it isn't people surviving on an island, it has soooo much strategy in every decision it is really intense to watch, and if people don't get that, they will never get the intrigue of watching a television show that I really love. Everybody love projections, whether they mean **** or not, it is always fun to go back and look to see what you thought may happen, and what really happens and I want to take a stab at the rest of the baseball season, and unfortunately for the Twins we are probably looking more forward to the beginning of the Minnesota Wild season to start. But here we go for fun. 1. Who gets traded? Matt Capps and Carl Pavano. Even though we don't have starting pitching, we do have players that only help us out unloading contracts/getting a player or two. I would be very surprised if Glen Perkins wasn't our "closer" by the end of the year. The names of Span, Morneau, Willingham just don't make much sense to unload in my mind, the only other player that is really a 50/50 but I think will end up staying is Liriano. 2. Record at the end of the year. I say they play 6 games above .500 the rest of the year which would put them at 74-88. I have to pick that still because at the beginning of the year I had them over 73.5, and they have played much better baseball. I really think Blackburn is done, I think the rotation is going to be Liriano, Diamond, Hendriks, Walters, ? by the end of the year. And one more to add on beat the Royals by 1 game to not finish in last place. 3. Willingham and Plouffe will get to 30 HR's, which will really be fun to watch. 4. Mauer will flirt with the batting title and end up 2nd, but will keep everyone watching to see if he gets it. Will end up at .331 5. Morneau has a break out second half which helps lead the Twins to playing 6 games above .500. Morneau ends with 25 HR's and is our 2nd half MVP. 6. Dozier gets a reality check and continues to struggle the 2nd half on defense and offensively, Casilla takes his spot some time in August. 7. With the ultimate turnaround to Adam Dunn, along with aggressive trade deadline acts the White Sox win the Central. This goes against everything I thought at the beginning of the year. 8. The Rangers are the most talented team in the AL, and will continue with that and win the AL Pennant. 9 The Rangers win the World Series beating the Cincinatti Reds. 10. There are too many positives for the Twins again, and making me look like a huge Homer, but hey aren't we all.

Um NO! He is batting .240 in Rochester and is a team plague

Summer in Duluth, MN is very short, as a retail worker I don't get many weekends off, and I don't get to spend enough time outside, I try to get as much sun as I possibly can, or clean up my house after horrible flooding in the city and my house. It really sucks trying to get ankle deep water out of your basement, on top of that at 1 a.m. trying to get someone to hire when every house is in the same boat. Thanks to a buddy that answered his phone at 1 am we saved as much as we could without getting too much damage. As I look outside right now on a day off, I get frustrated at it is supposed to rain and thunderstorm all day. I am back and want to make sure that I keep up with the rest of the year for the Twins, as I have continued watching them night in and night out. I first want to comment on the Tiger game yesterday where Scott Diamond continues to impress me. The Twins put up 12 hits in 4 innings and were lucky to score 3 runs. The Detroit Tigers are not going to win the central because of there horrible defense. You were watching one of those games where Roy Smalley put it best that they will need at least 5 runs to win this game. When you have Cabrera/Fielder back to back they are going to do some damage against the Twins, we can't get Cabrera out, so when we can't hit the long ball, or xbh's you just aren't going to outscore Cabrera alone. Again I am impressed with Diamond, I do somewhat understand why he was pulled, what I don't understand is this, I want to share a text I sent to a buddy who was watching the Brewer game, and knows Fielder obviously pretty well. "Tie game 1st and 3rd, Fielder up, don't u just walk him." 1 minute later Fielder hits a 3 run bomb. " Or u put in a guy who has 7 IP in career, and give up a 3 run bomb, fu@#$ng stupid" WHY WOULD YOU PITCH TO THAT GUY THERE, OR NOT AT LEAST PUT PERKINS IN TO FACE HIM RATHER THAN A ROOKIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I DON'T GET THAT AT ALL. I missed the post game, I hope they asked that question. I am sure he was waiting for the stupid f'n save situation, I HATE that stat more than any other stat in the world, SERIOUSLY!!! I know this has been talked about to its legth, but I wanted to add my opinion on Mauer being our All Star. First of all I get it! I get it is a exhibition game for the fans, I get Mauer has the best OBP in the league. The one thing I don't get is he gets a pass by not playing a position really. If I wasn't from MN I would want to vote him in, because I don't know another player on the team. As a Twins fan I would have loved to vote 3 different players in though. 1. Josh Willingham, he is our all star, he has been very fun to watch and the best overall value FA in the league. He has 9 Game Winning hits, he has 19 HR's, and has really helped the lineup stay in games. 2. Scott Diamond, Without him I don't know what Gardy would be doing with a rotation that after Sunday will have thrown out there 11 different starting pitchers. "11!!!" How do you have 11 different starting pitchers 84 games into the season, that is very difficult. He should have had another win on Thursday, he would be a very close 2nd to Willingham. 3. Trevor Plouffe- Mid may he was batting .132, he is now around .240 with 18 HR's, he has played very good defense, tied with the most HR's in June, this guy was one bad game away from being in Rochester for a long time and bringing back the worst Twins player in a long time Danny Valencia. I hope Plouffe keeps going because he is the best 3B potential we have had in a really long time. If he can continue doing well for a couple years, learn to play 2B or SS when Sano comes up, we could have a solidified infield. I would vote as a Twins fan those guys in that order, then Mauer. I am not dogging on Mauer, I think we have been able to get him in the lineup and use him as well as we can, but I am not sold on the All Star for our team without having the solidified C position. We have a lot to consider with Liriano!! I am as confused as anybody what is going to happen with this guy. Next year he has an option of 12 million, I am ok paying him that for one more year as of today. If he gets traded that team is getting 15 starts from a guy that could be very good or a horrible investment for probably 2 minor league players. I like the option for us on that on if they are going to be impact starters, which could happen for someone desperate, as starting pitching is rather weak right now. Otherwise let him go in free agency and get 2 compensatory picks, which isn't all that bad either. I have no idea what the best option is at this point. I want to see him do very well in his next 2 starts, which starts today, and maybe you get that bidder that needs someone and gives up too much, I think the Twins need that more than anything at this point. I think if anybody is really on the block it is going to be Liriano and Capps. We can only root for them to get us the most back Next year the Twins unload $30 million from the payroll. Greinke? Really, that doesn't happen for the Minnesota Twins, who opened up a great ballpark, have had the money to do something great, but probably won't get anybody better than a Willingham signing once again this off season. The Minnesota Wild just spent almost 200 million dollars on two players that may make the Wild relevant, which they should be in the state of hockey. I am a Twins fan first and foremost, but I do like watching the other 3 major sports. I was at work, checking Twitter Tuesday and Wednesday just waiting to see if a Minnesota team could land the unimaginable. It happened, and I am excited and so is all of Minnesota from Rochester to Ely. I live in a Hockey Town, and there was more talk about the possibility, than I have heard about anything since "are we going to sign Favre". I thought it was pretty sweet, I would love to see if the Twins can make some kind of splash this off season. Who would we really trade before the trade deadline, and why? Mauer, no. Doumit, no. Butera, no. C position is solidified. Plouffe, no. 3B solidified. Brian Dozier, no. SS good. Jamey Carrol, maybe? But what would we gain, nothing, and we have nobody that can take his position, so I am saying no. 2B good. Morneau, maybe? We have nobody that can take his spot yet, but if he can't hit lefties at all, we could really take a look again at Parmalee. 1B up in the air. LF Willingham, maybe? I can't see them letting the FA go here, and one of the Twins fans favorite players at this point. His salary doesn't hurt us that bad next year, I think he stays. LF good. Denard Span, maybe? His contract is so team friendly, we would really have to get impact players that could help us next year or the year after to make this deal, but if anybody goes it would be him. I just can't see that happening. Ben Revere, no. RF good. That doesn't leave us with much leaving, or worth trading. Our rotation we have 2 players that I can easily see leaving. Matt Capps #1, the fans don't like him, I think he has been someone I thought would pitch better this year, I can't see him as a true closer. I would love to see him go. Liriano, HUGE ?? I only want him to go if he pitches well his next 2 or 3 starts, because we would get max value for him. Otherwise I would like to see him stay, and the 2 options we have aren't bad at all at the end of the year as I stated before. I really don't think of the Twins as buyers or sellers at this point because I don't think a lot of trades make sense. We will see very soon, I hope if they do anything they set up the Twins to make off season moves in free agency.

Summer in Duluth, MN is very short, as a retail worker I don't get many weekends off, and I don't get to spend enough time outside, I try to get as much sun as I possibly can, or clean up my house after horrible flooding in the city and my house. It really sucks trying to get ankle deep water out of your basement, on top of that at 1 a.m. trying to get someone to hire when every house is in the same boat. Thanks to a buddy that answered his phone at 1 am we saved as much as we could without getting too much damage. As I look outside right now on a day off, I get frustrated at it is supposed to rain and thunderstorm all day. I am back and want to make sure that I keep up with the rest of the year for the Twins, as I have continued watching them night in and night out. I first want to comment on the Tiger game yesterday where Scott Diamond continues to impress me. The Twins put up 12 hits in 4 innings and were lucky to score 3 runs. The Detroit Tigers are not going to win the central because of there horrible defense. You were watching one of those games where Roy Smalley put it best that they will need at least 5 runs to win this game. When you have Cabrera/Fielder back to back they are going to do some damage against the Twins, we can't get Cabrera out, so when we can't hit the long ball, or xbh's you just aren't going to outscore Cabrera alone. Again I am impressed with Diamond, I do somewhat understand why he was pulled, what I don't understand is this, I want to share a text I sent to a buddy who was watching the Brewer game, and knows Fielder obviously pretty well. "Tie game 1st and 3rd, Fielder up, don't u just walk him." 1 minute later Fielder hits a 3 run bomb. " Or u put in a guy who has 7 IP in career, and give up a 3 run bomb, fu@#$ng stupid" WHY WOULD YOU PITCH TO THAT GUY THERE, OR NOT AT LEAST PUT PERKINS IN TO FACE HIM RATHER THAN A ROOKIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I DON'T GET THAT AT ALL. I missed the post game, I hope they asked that question. I am sure he was waiting for the stupid f'n save situation, I HATE that stat more than any other stat in the world, SERIOUSLY!!! I know this has been talked about to its legth, but I wanted to add my opinion on Mauer being our All Star. First of all I get it! I get it is a exhibition game for the fans, I get Mauer has the best OBP in the league. The one thing I don't get is he gets a pass by not playing a position really. If I wasn't from MN I would want to vote him in, because I don't know another player on the team. As a Twins fan I would have loved to vote 3 different players in though. 1. Josh Willingham, he is our all star, he has been very fun to watch and the best overall value FA in the league. He has 9 Game Winning hits, he has 19 HR's, and has really helped the lineup stay in games. 2. Scott Diamond, Without him I don't know what Gardy would be doing with a rotation that after Sunday will have thrown out there 11 different starting pitchers. "11!!!" How do you have 11 different starting pitchers 84 games into the season, that is very difficult. He should have had another win on Thursday, he would be a very close 2nd to Willingham. 3. Trevor Plouffe- Mid may he was batting .132, he is now around .240 with 18 HR's, he has played very good defense, tied with the most HR's in June, this guy was one bad game away from being in Rochester for a long time and bringing back the worst Twins player in a long time Danny Valencia. I hope Plouffe keeps going because he is the best 3B potential we have had in a really long time. If he can continue doing well for a couple years, learn to play 2B or SS when Sano comes up, we could have a solidified infield. I would vote as a Twins fan those guys in that order, then Mauer. I am not dogging on Mauer, I think we have been able to get him in the lineup and use him as well as we can, but I am not sold on the All Star for our team without having the solidified C position. We have a lot to consider with Liriano!! I am as confused as anybody what is going to happen with this guy. Next year he has an option of 12 million, I am ok paying him that for one more year as of today. If he gets traded that team is getting 15 starts from a guy that could be very good or a horrible investment for probably 2 minor league players. I like the option for us on that on if they are going to be impact starters, which could happen for someone desperate, as starting pitching is rather weak right now. Otherwise let him go in free agency and get 2 compensatory picks, which isn't all that bad either. I have no idea what the best option is at this point. I want to see him do very well in his next 2 starts, which starts today, and maybe you get that bidder that needs someone and gives up too much, I think the Twins need that more than anything at this point. I think if anybody is really on the block it is going to be Liriano and Capps. We can only root for them to get us the most back Next year the Twins unload $30 million from the payroll. Greinke? Really, that doesn't happen for the Minnesota Twins, who opened up a great ballpark, have had the money to do something great, but probably won't get anybody better than a Willingham signing once again this off season. The Minnesota Wild just spent almost 200 million dollars on two players that may make the Wild relevant, which they should be in the state of hockey. I am a Twins fan first and foremost, but I do like watching the other 3 major sports. I was at work, checking Twitter Tuesday and Wednesday just waiting to see if a Minnesota team could land the unimaginable. It happened, and I am excited and so is all of Minnesota from Rochester to Ely. I live in a Hockey Town, and there was more talk about the possibility, than I have heard about anything since "are we going to sign Favre". I thought it was pretty sweet, I would love to see if the Twins can make some kind of splash this off season. Who would we really trade before the trade deadline, and why? Mauer, no. Doumit, no. Butera, no. C position is solidified. Plouffe, no. 3B solidified. Brian Dozier, no. SS good. Jamey Carrol, maybe? But what would we gain, nothing, and we have nobody that can take his position, so I am saying no. 2B good. Morneau, maybe? We have nobody that can take his spot yet, but if he can't hit lefties at all, we could really take a look again at Parmalee. 1B up in the air. LF Willingham, maybe? I can't see them letting the FA go here, and one of the Twins fans favorite players at this point. His salary doesn't hurt us that bad next year, I think he stays. LF good. Denard Span, maybe? His contract is so team friendly, we would really have to get impact players that could help us next year or the year after to make this deal, but if anybody goes it would be him. I just can't see that happening. Ben Revere, no. RF good. That doesn't leave us with much leaving, or worth trading. Our rotation we have 2 players that I can easily see leaving. Matt Capps #1, the fans don't like him, I think he has been someone I thought would pitch better this year, I can't see him as a true closer. I would love to see him go. Liriano, HUGE ?? I only want him to go if he pitches well his next 2 or 3 starts, because we would get max value for him. Otherwise I would like to see him stay, and the 2 options we have aren't bad at all at the end of the year as I stated before. I really don't think of the Twins as buyers or sellers at this point because I don't think a lot of trades make sense. We will see very soon, I hope if they do anything they set up the Twins to make off season moves in free agency.

http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:8048114 http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/page/caple-120615/a-plan-save-save-make-relief-pitchers-meaningful-again Jim Caple, Thank you. OK, I just want to say I wrote about this in a previous blog, John Bonnes had me post about this in the forum, http://www.twinsdaily.com/entry.php?789-Lots-of-Thoughts!! Now on ESPN front page we have some experts talking about the most annoying stat in baseball. The "Save" These guys make the same points I have been making, and I absolutely agree w/ what these guys are saying. It took Chapman to blow a 2 inning save to get this attention, and I don't blame Baker one bit in putting a guy like that in the game to win. The name of the game is to win baseball games not get your "closer" in there in a "save situation", It is soooo stupid and I just wanted to get this off my chest as I saw it on ESPN. I want to thank Jim Caple, (who I always have liked) to write a great article about the save.