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On Wednesday night, World Series Game 7 was played in Cleveland. And what a game it was. I’m biased as a Twins fans into saying that the 1991 World Series was the greatest of all-time. The 2016 Game 7 was right up there. There were big plays, big hits, big defensive plays. There was good pitching. There were questionable calls by umpires, and by the managers. The game had everything. Congratulations to the Chicago Cubs on their World Series championship.As with any baseball game, there are usually a series of plays, calls or decisions that can affect the final outcome. In the playoffs in general, and especially in a World Series Game 7 atmosphere, the second-guessing is done by millions and millions of people across the country, around the globe. Let’s be honest, social media makes it very easy. Frankly, second-guessing (or first-guessing, if you prefer) is part of the allure of baseball. It’s a game that so many played when they were young. It’s a game that doesn’t appear to be anywhere near as hard as it is. It’s a game in which everyone can be questioned. It’s part of what makes Twins Daily successful. Every decision a GM makes can be argued and discussed. A manager’s lineup construction or in-game tendencies can be questioned. Pitcher-catcher pitch-selection is always up for debate. Generally speaking, I try not to take any real hard stands on those types of things. I may not understand, but I’d say with certainty that the person making the decision (GM, manager, player) did so with a lot more information at his fingertips than I would have had. The World Series provided plenty of opportunity for second guessing. Here are just some examples. It has been well over a decade since a starting pitcher has thrown games 1, 4 and 7 of the World Series. The game has changed and teams seem to prefer to use their pitchers on more rest rather than pitch their starters on short rest. Terry Francona chose to go with a three-man starting staff in the World Series (Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer, Josh Tomlin) rather than go with a fourth starter. Meanwhile, Maddon’s Cubs rotation included Jon Lester, Jake Arrieta, Kyle Hendricks and John Lackey. To be fair to Francona, he’s had to piece things together from a starting pitcher standpoint throughout the playoffs. He hasn’t been able to use two of his best starters, Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar, in that role. He used Ryan Merritt for one game in the ALCS. What will some fans may think? The game has changed. Starters don’t do this, and the numbers generally back up the fact that when a pitcher works on short-rest, the numbers aren’t as good. (What I was thinking? When Cleveland had a 3-1 series lead - after Kluber pitched well on short-rest in Game 4 - I may have gone back to Merritt to start Game 5. Bauer hasn’t been on - even when he wasn’t bleeding out - this postseason, and Tomlin wasn’t very good most of the year. I would have started Bauer in Game 6 with Tomlin in relief, if necessary. But I have no problem with going back to Kluber for Game 7.) What was Francona is thinking? He’s thinking that his starter only needs to give him five innings before he’ll start going to his dominant bullpen of Brian Shaw, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen. In doing so, he is able to limit the number of pitches that his starter throws in each game and cumulatively. In Game 7, Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks - who is the favorite to win the NL Cy Young Award this year - gave up one run over 4 ⅔ innings. He issued a walk - that should have been a strikeout if not for a missed strike call - and Joe Maddon removed him from the game. Hendricks isn’t dominant. He’s a pitcher in the Brad Radke mold. But Hendricks was pitching well. Jon Lester, who started Game 5, warmed up in the bullpen. For a long time. With Jason Kipnis coming up, Maddon went to Lester. How it panned out isn’t as important as the process (for this discussion, at least, obviously the results are all that matter in a Game 7 situation) for our discussion. Kipnis nubbed a ball down the third base line. David Ross, who came into the game when Lester did (replacing Willson Contreras), threw to first and it got away, allowing runners to go to 2nd and 3rd. Lester then bounced a slider that hit off of Ross’s helmet and toward the 1B dugout, far enough that two runs scored on it. In the moment, it didn’t look like the decision would pay off. (To make it more interesting, Ross hit a solo home run to dead center off of Andrew Miller to bump the Cubs lead back up to 6-3. Lester settled down and got out of the 5th inning. He worked scoreless 6th and 7th frames and got two outs in the 8th as well.) What are fans are thinking? Hendricks is pitching well, and he’s had a good year. We don’t care about pitcher wins, the stat, but it’s hard not to feel bad for Hendricks who deserved better. What’s Maddon’s thinking? This is Hendrick’s third time through the lineup. I’ve got Lester, who has been warming up a long time. If I don’t go to him now, he’ll have thrown too many pitches in the bullpen and won’t be available. In the end, Maddon’s job is to use information he has to make the best decision with the goal of winning that one game. And then the big one… In Game 6, the Cubs had a big lead in the 7th inning. Joe Maddon decided to bring Aroldis Chapman into the game. He got out of a situation, but then despite the Cubs adding on more runs, Chapman remained in the game. What do many fans think? Chapman isn’t really a multiple inning guy and what if he’s needed in an actually close game in Game 7? Will he be available to pitch? What was Maddon thinking? First and foremost, he’s thinking win Game 6. If they don’t do that, there is no Game 7. Win Game 6 and worry about Game 7 when it comes. The Result - Clearly Chapman was not himself in Game 7. Sure, he hit 101 and 102 a couple of times, but it wasn’t the same. He wasn’t as sharp. He looked tired. He gave up a two-run, game-tying home run to Rajai Davis. Then again, he got the final out of the eighth and worked a perfect ninth inning. Was it completely because of his excessive usage the night before? It’s impossible to say. It is something that Joe Maddon will likely ask himself over and over again in the offseason. Game 7s are always great. Do you ever wonder how the 1987 or 1991 World Series might have been different if Twitter and blogs would have been around then? Let’s be honest, Twitter was still in its infancy when the Twins were last in a playoff series. Remember when Grady Little decided to stick with his ace, Pedro Martinez. The decision backfired. The Red Sox lost. Little was fired. Joe Maddon made several very questionable decisions in Games 6 and 7. Using Chapman for so long in a blowout. Taking Hendricks out of the game in the 5th inning for no reason. Having Javier Baez attempt a safety squeeze bunt on a full-count with a runner on third and one out? The decision to fire Little, in my opinion, was silly. I’m certainly not advocating for Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer to fire Maddon. I do think that the playoffs magnify everything, and Maddon made some questionable choices. And you know what… he also helped bring the Chicago Cubs their first World Series title in 108 years! At the end of the day (or even into the morning of the next day), we were able to witness two great baseball teams who both had long World Series droughts play an epic Game 7. We are all winners for it, even the second-guessers. ---------------------------------------------------- Why did I write an article that really has little or nothing to do with the Minnesota Twins? Honestly, while watching Game 7, my thought was… this type of second-guessing of a manager is so much more fun than questioning whether Paul Molitor should bring in Pat Light or Pat Dean to replace Andrew Albers with the Twins down 8-2 in the 5th inning of a mid-September game. I long for the days of questioning Ron Gardenhire decisions in the playoffs! Click here to view the article

Spring Training 2016 has been an interesting one thus far. While there is baseball being played on the field, it is after all, spring training baseball. Minor leaguers and non-roster invitees desperately try to cut out roster spots by showing their worth, veterans look to get themselves right for the upcoming season; and the media jumps all over the flavor of the week, and runs their coverage into the ground. Early in Spring Training the story was Yoenis Cespedes and his newly acquired fleet of automobiles, which ranged from several hundred horsepower to quite literally one horsepower... well, two horsepower and a Norse god if you count his riding partner Noah Syndergaard. After that we had last years MVP Bryce Harper come out with his opinion that baseball is “tired” and that bat flips aren’t a big deal (they’re not) which spurred Goose Gossage to colorfully spew his opinions about how he thinks the game of baseball should be played to anyone that would listen or put a microphone in front of his face. Then there was, and to some degree still is, “LaRoche Gate,” which saw veteran Adam LaRoche hang up his cleats in regards to a disagreement with the White Sox front office over the presence of his son Drake in the clubhouse more than some of the heads of the organization were comfortable with. The Hot Take Flavor of the Week this week is brought to you by one of my favorite people in all of baseball, Joe Maddon. Sidenote: I would have loved to see the Twins sign Maddon as the new skipper when the Gardy Era finally succumbed to it's slow-motion, dumpster-fire-off-a-tall-cliff ending. He was actually the only person I wanted more than Molitor. Don’t get me wrong, I love Molly and watching him turn the club around last season, despite not having any previous managerial experience, was a sight to behold, but it's an intriguing "what if" to consider. According to FTW! MLB writer Ted Berg, Maddon held a meeting last Sunday with what he calls his “lead bulls,” a group of eleven established veterans, to go over the team’s policies for the upcoming season. Afterwards, Maddon had a few quotes for the media that I absolutely loved, specifically regarding the Cubs dress code. “If you think you look hot, wear it” Maddon said. “The previous generation really frowns on upon non-collared shirts, which I’ve never understood. They’ve always been in favor of the collared shirt, and that's been more acceptable than the non-collared shirt.” He went on to say, “The $5,000 suit on the airplane makes no sense to me what so ever. I don’t know who you’re trying to impress.” In a game that seems to be gun-shy when it comes to “new school” ideas like Sabermetrics, bat flips, or even off the diamond attire, it’s nice to see that some managers don’t take themselves too seriously. Earlier this spring, Maddon showed up in a 70's van blasting Earth, Wind and Fire for crying out loud. http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/ectofoto/Screenshot_2016-03-22-00-06-21-1_zpsjwunobng.jpg This is the face of a man who just doesn't care. Baseball has always been a sport of unwritten rules, but it's also still a game meant to be played for fun and we shouldn’t hold player back from being who they really are. If Jose Bautista wants to bat flip after crushing the most important home run in Toronto since Joe Carter in ’93, I’m OK with that. If Jose Fernandez wants to pump his fist after a big strikeout and stare Bryce Harper back to the dugout, that’s fine by me. If Carlos Gomez wants to leave a pile of bubblegum in the outfield every once in a while, I'll laugh just like the next guy out there who sees it. I have no problem with players celebrating their accomplishments as long as they’re not being insufferable. With the influx of foreign players into the MLB, culture clashes are bound to happen. Bat flips are huge in Korea. Wearing your emotions on your sleeve is common in Dominican leagues. This isn’t the baseball of old, this is a new era of baseball where star players want to give us a show. Let's grab a hot dog, some helmet nachos, a beer and just see what happens.

A compelling new twist was added to the Twins' managerial search on Friday, when it was announced that Rays skipper Joe Maddon has opted out of his contract in Tampa Bay, becoming a free agent. Minnesota is the only club with a current opening. Will they take advantage of this unexpected opportunity and aggressively pursue the heralded longtime manager?Let's be clear from the get-go: a match in this case is unlikely. For one thing, Maddon would be exorbitantly expensive; Mike Scioscia and Joe Girardi are the highest-paid managers in the game presently, earning $5 million and $4 million in 2014 respectively, and Maddon -- being viewed by many (including myself) as the best in the biz -- could command a higher salary than either. There's also the matter of Maddon's preference. Even if the Twins are willing to pony up, will the 60-year-old want to join a club that is amidst such a brutal drought? There was some initial speculation that Maddon could follow former Rays GM Andrew Friedman to the Los Angeles Dodgers, although Ken Rosenthal tweeted definitively that this will not be happening. And really, firing Don Mattingly -- who's under contract -- after a 94-win season would be pretty ludicrous. Still, there are more likely destinations than Minnesota, even though this is the only present vacancy. Plenty of teams would undoubtedly be willing to set aside their current skipper to make room for Maddon. The Cubs, coming off an 89-loss campaign under Rick Renteria, seem like an early favorite. All that being said, even though they're in deep with their present group of candidates, the Twins would be foolish not to at least reach out to Maddon and explore a potential match. He has a reputation as being forward-thinking, analytical, and beloved by players and coaches alike. He has experienced immense success with a small-market franchise in Tampa that the Twins should be modeling themselves after. And he really knows how to run a pitching staff. What do you think? Is there any chance Maddon ends up in Minnesota? Click here to view the article