Tice was better

That much is obvious. He went 9-7 last year.
Since that time, the Vikings added Chester Taylor, Matt Birk (he was hurt), Steve Hutchinson, Cedric Griffin, Dwight Smith, Ryan Longwell, Ben Leber and D.C. Mike Tomlin - and yet they will likely finish 6-10 in the first year of Brad Childress' tenure.

Is it fair to call for Childress to be fired after just one year?

Maybe.

After all, this has been far worse than anyone could've expected. Let's be real. Three of this teams' wins have come against Detroit and Arizona. Another came against a Seattle team that played without Matt Hasselbeck and Shaun Alexander (which is kind of like beating the Red Sox without David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez). The other two wins came against underachieving Carolina and Washington, who probably only lost because they were unprepared for how terrible the Vikings would actually be.
Bad teams like San Francisco, Green Bay, Miami and Buffalo beat the Vikes with relative ease.
With this schedule, and the off-season additions to the roster, 10 wins was not too much to expect. I believe Tice would've delivered that.

And now this.

Thursday night against Green Bay, the Vikings recorded one, two, three first downs.

3.

First, Childress made the mistake of giving in to public pressure and starting Tarvaris Jackson. I didn't disagree with the decision, except for the fact that Childress didn't make the move to give Jackson experience (which is why I would've). He did it ostensibly to win the game, which is laughable, considering the guy is one year removed from playing I-AA ball.
If Childress thought that game needed to be won (which it didn't), Brad Johnson should've started, and the Vikings probably would've won.
Second, Childress started Jackson but kept the boring Brad Johnson plays. The fact that Jackson has a stronger arm and more mobility became a moot point. I don't believe I've ever watched a worse NFL game.

What also bothers me is how Childress has not shied away from placing blame for his putrid offense on Johnson all year, which continues to hint towards a prickly insecurity that lies beneath Hamster Face's supposed tough-guy demeanor.
I don't believe he's as confident in himself and his coaching as he pretends to be. All you have to do is look at his face during games. He looks clueless, almost scared. He knows he's being outcoached as it's happening.

Maybe we should've seen this coming. I'd be lying if I said this is what I thought would happen, but deep down I did fear that it was a possibility. After all, what had Hamster Face ever done before?
OC in Philly? Please. Philly's offense has usually been the achilles heel of their team. And Childress didn't call the plays anyway.

Disciplinarian? The Vikings lead the NFL in penalties, and the off-field incidents that Zygi Wilf's handlers have convinced him are more important than winning games, have not lessened.

Speaking of Boner-Nose, he's part of the problem. When he hired Childress, he introduced him as a 'proven winner'. In what universe, Zygi? The guy had never been a HC before.
Wilf had no idea who to hire, and since Hamster Face's name kept popping up in Peter King's weekly column, that was apparently enough to convince him that he should be the guy.

Will Childress be back? Almost certainly.

Being that Zygi is as unstable and clueless as he is, I guess it's possible that he'll push the panic button and fire Childress. I would neither cheer nor oppose that move. Hamster Face has been the most disappointing coach in the NFL, and he has certainly raised plenty of doubt as to whether he's capable of leading an NFL team. He's been nothing short of a colossal, bombastic failure.

But firing a guy after one year, especially with the enourmous amount of staff that he brought in, could drive the team further into chaos and disarray.

Plus, I think Boner-Nose has too much ego to admit he struck out on his first hire after just one year. My guess is there will be a compromise of sorts.
Originally, the plan was surely for Childress to get at least three years, and if by the third year the team was at least starting to win, he'd get to stay longer.
But now, with this season having gone as badly as it has, my guess is he'll be on the hot seat in '07.
If they go finish below .500 again, or continue to be boring and pitiful on offense, he should be fired. If he can coax 8 or 9 wins out of them, or at least start showing some semblence of a clue offensively, give him another year.

Honestly, I pity Childress. I don't think he expected any of this. I honestly think he thought he was some kind of fucking genius, and now he's having trouble with the humbling realization that he may be pro football's worst coach. The media and fans have already turned against him, savagely in some cases, and that just exacerbates things. He doesn't have many allies at this point.
He isn't an idiot, however. If he admits to himself that he's got a lot more learning to do than he thought, he might have a chance to get this team on track next year.

I'm trying to be optimistic, but it's tough.

* The Wolves failure to land Allen Iverson is inexcusable if, as has been reported, they were unwilling to give them what they wanted. The Wolves are the most irrelevant team in pro sports - they have almost no fans - so they should've given the 76ers literally anyone on the entire roster besides Kevin Garnett.

This was the one chance for this team to get back on the map, both competitively and from a ticket-selling standpoint, and they blew it.

* The Twins officiallly signed Rondell White to an incentive laden 1-yr deal. He'll start in LF, with Jason Kubel penciled in at DH (with Jeff Cirillo and others at the ready). I doubt White will stay healthy playing the field, but I'm convinced that he's more likely to repeat his second half performance of last year than his first.

And considering the ridiculous contracts being given to mediocre players, the Twins didn't have much choice. It was either White or Josh Raabe.

Two new bats (and one old shitty one)

The Twins signed former Nebraska Cornhuskers and Kansas City Royals 1B/DH Ken Harvey (right) earlier this week, and are expected to finalize a deal for former Brewers, Mariners, Padres and Rockies 3b/1b Jeff Cirllo (left) later this week.
Harvey was actually an AL AllStar in 2003 when he got off to a hot start, but immediatley came plummeting back to Earth, with injuries limiting him to only a handful of games the last few years. He's no guarantee to make the team, and is completely useless in the field. However, he could be a decent option off the bench and as a DH vs. lefty pitching.
Cirillo, meanwhile, qualifies as a major addition, at least in Twins terms.
The 37-year old has a career .298 average and .368 OBP. He has 1,550 career hits.
Last year in 263 at-bats he hit .319 with 3 homers and 23 RBI.
From '96 to '01 he consistently contended for the NL batting title, posting seasons of .321, .325, .326 and .326 during that period. His OBP routinely hovered around .400, and while his 2000 numbers are surely skewed by playing at Coors Field, they're still impressive: .326, 11 homers, 115 RBI, 111 runs, 53 doubles, 195 hits.
He went to Seattle and tanked, apparently ending his career. From 2002 to 2004 he batted .249, .205 and .213. A return to Milwaukee apparently rejuvenated him however, as he hit .281 in '05, and .319 last year. In those two years, he batted .408 against lefties.
The Twins have always lacked for RH bats, so both of these additions make sense.
I'm not so high on Harvey, who I would say is a longshot to make the team (especially since the Twins intend on keeping Lew Ford - that's the shitty bat I was talking about in the headline).
But Cirillo makes sense on several levels. He's righthanded, kills lefty pitching, and can play third, first and second. The Twins didn't really have a backup for Morneau at first, and now they do, and they didn't have an insurance policy in case Nick Punto gets hurt sliding into first base or goes back to being Nick Punto. Now they do.
If nothing else, adding these two the expected re-signing of Rondell White gives the Twins some sudden depth, creating a nice competition for roster spots and at-bats in spring training.

Make It Happen

At different times in my life, the Minnesota Timberwolves and University of Minnesota Golden Gophers have been a very big deal. There were winters where those two teams took up way too much of my time.
This is not one of those winters.
The Gophers have become a Big 10 doormat. The Wolves are by no means terrible (impossible with Kevin Garnett on your roster), but they've become increasingly irrelevant as they find themselves stuck in neutral.
I'm exactly the fan both programs are trying to win back, and I have "the answer" (get it?) to how they can do so.
Kevin McHale, go get Alan Iverson. Now.
You may have heard that Iverson asked for a trade this week and the Sixers aim to accomodate him.
He reportedly is interested in playing with KG. Iverson's exactly the kind of player that can make KG better. He's averaging 30 a game. He's the only player in the NBA with a work ethic that rivals KG.
Do the Wolves have enough to land him? Maybe.
Randy Foye, Craig Smith, Ricky Davis, Mike James, Troy Hudson? They can have all of 'em.
With KG and AI on the same team, they'd win 55 games if the rest of the roster was CBA guys (oh, wait, it kind of is already).
There are few things can put the Wolves back on the map right now. This is one of them.
Joel Maturi, same deal.
Go get Bob Knight. Don't tell me he doesn't miss the Big 10. Or that he wouldn't fill Williams Arena. Or make the team winners without cheating. I don't think this is as unrealistic as some are making it out to be.
Do it.

Rippin' Rondell

Appears to now be a virtual lock to return to the Twins next year. Considering he'll come relatively cheap, had a good second half, and everyone else is way, way overpaying for everything, it's not such a bad thing.
It appears White (doing what I have dubbed 'the gay gallop' with Luis Castillo in the photo) will play LF, while Jason Kubel will be the DH. It's interesting that last year the Twins went into the season all excited about how Rondell would DH so he can stay healthy, and now theyre trying to say how excited they are to have him in LF, where he hit over .300 last year (compared to .194 as a DH).
Rondell isn't a terrible LF, but he does have a terrible arm. He's basically going to be a carbon copy of Shannon Stewart.
*The whole Jason Jennings thing has cooled off, though the Twins are still interested. It could be awhile before Jennings is moved.
The Twins have also expressed interest in Sidney Ponson and Bruce Chen.
*Infielder Jeff Cirillo could sign this week. As a RH bat who's hit over .300 much of his career, Cirillo would be a nice addition. He can play 1b/3b and of course could DH. He'd open the season as a bench player, but it seems pretty obvious that he would also be insurance in case Nick Punto is unable to repeat his 2006 performance next year.
*The Royals gave a 5 year, $55 million deal to Gil Meche. I don't see how that's a good move for a rebuilding team that loses 100 games every year.
*The Indians signed a couple decent relievers (Joe Borowski, Aaron Fultz). Smart moves, but nothing to get too worried about if youre the rest of the division.
*The White Sox traded Freddy Garcia to the Phils for Gavin Floyd, a former No. 1 draft pick yet to pan out. The larger accomplishment of the trade was clearing a rotation spot for Brandon McCarthy. Still, I'm glad to see Garcia go. He was real good, and pitched some gems against the Twins.

In the Market

The Winter meetings are often full of big happenings on the trade and free-agency front...unless you're the Minnesota Twins.
Usually Terry Ryan doesn't do much more than grant interviews in which he talks about all the moves he won't be making.
It does appear that the Twins are the leaders in the hunt for Jason Jennings, the 2004 NL ROY for Colorado. Jennings went just 9-12 last year, but with a 3.78 ERA.
To post a 3.78 ERA while making half your starts at Coors Field is very impressive. Look for the Twins to send Jesse Crain or Juan Rincon (hopefully Crain) and probably Scott Baker, to the Rockies.
Jennings would then likely be the Twins No. 2 starter, allowing Boof and Silva to compete for the No. 3 spot, with Matt Garza likely taking the 5th turn.
*The odds of Rondell White returning to the Twins are improving. White made it clear he wants to be back, and his popularity with teammates and coaches certainly works in his favor.
What really works in his favor, though, is the fact that he hit .321 with 7 homers after the All-Star break. With Jason Kubel's knees a major question mark, the Twins could use the added depth at LF/DH. Mike Piazza's name has surfaced again, but he may not want to DH, and the Twins don't need another catcher.
*The Twins left Terry Tiffee unprotected, and he signed with Baltimore.
If you think this is in any way a negative development for the Twins, you are a moron.
Tiffee sucked, and there were grumblings that he was an asshole as well (he got into an on-field fight with Mike Redmond, one of the team's most popular and likeable players, in spring training). All his departure really means is that if Justin Morneau ever needs a day off, Michael Cuddyer or Luis Rodriguez would have to play 1st base for a day. If Morneau had to go on the DL, Triple-A slugger Garrett Jones could fill in just as well as Tiffee did.
Of course, that would change if the Twins brought back Phil Nevin, a move I am highly in favor of if affordable, but it probably won't be.
*The Vikings still blow.

MVP - Justin Morneau

Even though I stated earlier this week that I would vote for Derek Jeter for MVP, I was pretty pumped to hear today that Justin Morneau took home the trophy.
This is a guy who last year batted .239 with a .304 OBP, 22 homers, 79 RBIs and was nearly sent to the minors.
Even this year, while his power numbers were steady all season long, he was still hitting in the .220's in late May, and while the Twins weren't seriously considering sending him to the minors, there was building concern that Morneau would perhaps never become the all-around five-star hitter they had hoped.
Then, from June 8 on, he batted .362 with 92 RBIs, and helped carry the Twins to the AL Central title.
Good as Joe Mauer was, if there was a big spot, there was nobody you wanted at the plate more than Morneau.
His final numbers, .321, 34 homers, 130 RBIs, are very Kirby-like.
Another reason I felt like Morneau was more deserving than Mauer was the big seasons had by Cuddyer, Hunter and even Mauer himself.
Morneau's presence in the lineup as a bona fide power threat changed the entire Twins lineup, and changed the way pitchers pitched to their hitters. If Morneau had batted .235 all year, there's no way those other guys put up the numbers they did.
A big bopper makes everything better, and for years that's all we wanted in Minnesota. Now we got one, and he's the MVP.
I think it's especially cool because the MVP award has always seemed to exist outside of the Twins as an organization. No matter how good Kirby Puckett was, he never won the award, and in past years, the Twins haven't ever really had anyone who warranted serious consideration. Even when the Twins started winning this decade, they were doing it largely with secondary stars. The MVP award was reserved for the Big Guys - the A-Rod's, Giambi's, Bonds' and Guerrero's.
Maybe Morneau didn't deserve the MVP - I don't care. For the first time in my life the AL MVP is on my team (along with the Cy Young winner and the batting champ), and that's pretty cool.

Ugly Athlete No. 7 - Charlie Villanueva

Have you ever been sitting at your desk at work, blankly staring into the computer screen, and wondered - "Whatever happened to the guy that played Sloth in the Goonies?"
Turns out dude is playing power forward for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Seriously this guy is fuckin weird looking.
Where are his eyebrows? Does he even have to shave his head? I'm guessing no, it looks like the guy has never had a hair on his entire body in his life.
He's actually a pretty good player, and supposedly he's a terrific guy. The NBA is full of thugs, and this dude dedicates signifcant time to the 'Charlie Villanueva Foundation'.
That's great, and it makes me feel a little bit bad about making fun of him for being so ugly, but hey, it's the offseason, and I need material.
I'm sure you're a great guy Charlie, but you're also really goddam ugly.
Charlie Villanueva
Pro Basketball Player
2005- present
Ugliness: 9
Creepiness: 9
Identifying Characteristic: Cassell-like skull structure and facial composition, appears to be completely lacking in hair (does he have cancer? if he does I'll take this down...maybe)
Looks like: Sloth from Goonies, also like Baraka from Mortal Kombat (the dude with swords for arms)

AL MVP...and the rest of the awards

I've often felt that Derek Jeter is one of baseball's most overrated players.
Not that he isn't, or hasn't been, a great player, I just never felt he was deserving of the G0d-like status he has been given from the media. He's an average defensive shortstop, and he isn't even really as 'clutch' as ESPN and FOX would have you believe.
After all, the guy has had damn near a thousand post-season at-bats, so of course he's gonna get a few big hits in the playoffs with that many chances.
Having said that, I must admit that, even in a year when my lifelong favorite team, the Twins, has at least three solid candidates for AL MVP, that the award must go to the Yankee shortstop.
The guy had a flat out tremendous year.
Here's how I would vote, if the Baseball Writers Associatoin would get off their asses and let me in on the thing.
1. Jeter
2. Justin Morneau
3. Johan Santana
4. Joe Mauer
5. Jermaine Dye
6. Carlos Guillen
7. Joe Nathan
8. Travis Hafner
9. David Ortiz
10. Frank Thomas
Why Jeter?
He batted .343 with a .417 OBP, totalling 214 hits, 69 walks and 14 homers. He stole 34 bases in 39 attemtps. He had 97 RBI, scored 118 runs. The Yankee lineup had a lot of injuries this year, and Jeter's career year helped them shrug it off and easily win the AL East.
I don't feel the least bit like a homer in putting Twins in four of the next six slots.
Morneau's total package hitting turned the Twins into a bona-fide elite team, while Mauer provided big-time offense from the most difficult defensive position on the field.
Santana gave the Twins a virtual automatic win every fifth day. He was far, far, far and away the best starting pitcher in baseball this year (once Liriano went down).
Dye had a huge year for the Sox, keeping them in the race almost by himself as the rest of his team turned to shit in the late summer months.
Carlos Guillen is the Tigers best player, and maybe the most underrated player ever. Every year he's awesome, and half of the baseball world still has never heard of him.
Nathan might seem like an odd choice, but don't be fooled by his low save totals. Saves are a meaningless stat, anyway. The guy was the most dominant reliever in baseball.
He blew only two saves, and the Twins won both of those games. He averaged about 13 k's per 9. He was automatic, unhittable.
Thomas, Hafner and Ortiz were all studs, but all DH's.
As for the rest of the awards.
AL CY
Santana. No brainer
NL CY
Brandon Webb. He had a Scott Erickson 1991 type year, throwing his sinker 100 times a game, with pretty good results.
AL ROY
Jonathan Papelbon. Verlander (who actually won it) was good, but Papelbon and Liriano were great. If Liriano had made maybe 4 or 5 more starts, he'd get my vote.
NL MVP
Albert Pujols
The Ted Williams of his generation, he edges out Carlos Beltran and Ryan Howard.
AL MGR
Jim Leyland
Gardy deserves a lot of credit for the Twins second half turnaround, but Jimmy's Tigers weren't even part of the discussion in April.
NL MGR
Willie Randolph
If his entire rotation hadn't got hurt right before playoffs, his team goes to the Series, maybe even wins it.

I'm back bitches

Where to start?
Torii Hunter winning a Gold Glove?
Carlos Silva coming back?
Liriano done for '07?
How about we start with the worst and most boring team in the NFL - the Minnesota Vikings.
Seriously, fuck these guys. I got better things to do than watch them on Sunday.
As much as Brad Childress seems like a decent guy I can't fucking stand him. This is not high school football jackass. Running extra wind sprints and going off-tackle 40 times a game doesn't win in this league.
It's kind of embarassing really.
I know there are people out there who think it was important for the Vikings to clean up their image and instill more discipline after last year, but count me among those who don't give a shit what the players do in their spare time.
Want to drive drunk? Bang hookers in stairways? Smoke weed, pay for hummers on a cruise-ship? Guess what, if you're good at playing football - GO RIGHT AHEAD. I DONT CARE.
Vikings tickets are ridiculously overpriced. If I'm gonna pay $75 to $100 to watch a football game, I'd prefer to watch talented athletes than a bunch of mediocre boy-scouts.
Of course, the Vikings actually do still have some talent on their roster, they just have a dumbass coach who either doesn't know how or doesn't want to win with it.
Childress didn't take over a 3-13 team. If he did, none of this would bother me.
He inherited a 9-7 team with plenty of talent. But it's apparent that he isn't interested in winning for another couple of years. Fuck him. I'm not watching this team anymore.
*The Gold Glove is officially the stupidest award in baseball. Torii Hunter was above average at best this year (those were even his own words in describing his play) and detrimental to the team's pitching and defense at worst. Yet he won another Gold Glove.
Hopefully Hunter will be closer to 100% next year, but even if he is, the guy's on the wrong side of 30. The Spider-Man days are probably over.
*It might seem ridiculous to pay Carlos Silva $4.25 million, but with Liriano gone, the Twins need a veteran arm in their rotation, and they decided to stick with what they know. Going out and getting a free-agent like Steve Trachsel or Jeff Suppan would've cost at least as much. Silva will probably never be as good as he was in 2005, but hopefully he won't be as bad as he was in 2006. If he can eat 200 innings with an ERA anywhere under 5, that'd be alright, I suppose.
*Liriano's surgery is good news. Because that means it's gonna get fixed.
I'm kind of pissed the Twins didn't decide on surgery right away, but I'd be even more upset if they went all the way to spring training thinking the ligament in his elbow was going to somehow magically regenerate all by itself. The Twins '07 chances obviously take a big hit without him, but he's the most precious arm in the bigs, and getting him fixed long term is more important.
*Anyone catch the Gopher mens basketball team getting beat by Winona State the other day? Nice. Might as well sign Monson to an extension, too.
It's been a long time since Gopher football and mens' bball have both been so bad at the same time.
* Not much better for the T-Wolves. After winning their first two, they've gone back to being a lifeless team with no direction, no identity. 2nd round draft pick Craig Smith has been a pleasant surprise, but new point guard Mike James hasn't done anything. Might want to go out and catch a game at Target Center this year, because it'll probably be your last chance to see Kevin Garnett in a Wolves uniform.
*Thank God for the Wild. They're 11-4, even with top scorer Marion Gaborik injured for much of the early going. The Wild look like a lock for the playoffs, and if they can get and stay healthy, could compete for a division title, which would guarantee them at least a 3-seed.
I never thought the Wild would become my second favorite team, but that's how bad the Vikings and Wolves have gotten.

Blow it out your Eckstein

Okay, I officially hate the baseball playoffs.
While it actually takes considerable skill, talent, consistency, intelligence, durability, and like a zillion other things to be one of the 8 best teams over a 162 game span, that all goes to shit in the playoffs, when any piece of shit team (Hello, St. Louis) or over, over, over, overrated lame-ass shortstop (Eckstein, David) can deliver a championship.
The St. Louis Cardinals went 83-79 this year. So they were something like the 14th best team in baseball.
And they are World Series champions.
I'm not saying it isn't fair - it's completely fair. The Yankees, Twins, Tigers, A's and Mets were all better teams, and they had every opportunity and blew it.
(And just for the record, the White Sox, Blue Jays, Red Sox and Angels are probably better than St. Louis, too. And maybe Seattle, Texas, Baltimore and Cleveland. Perhaps Tampa Bay, Kansas City and Montreal)
This is just hard to take. A .500 team won the World Series, and Doogie Howser won the MVP.
Brilliant.

Busy, Tired

I'd like to have written more in this space lately, but I am, well...see above.
One thing I know is that weeknights suck without a Twins game to watch.
I'm barely paying attention to the World Series.
A couple random thoughts:
*Kenny Rogers was cheating, but it was still not that big a deal. A little pine tar on the hand? BFD. There's a saying in baseball - if you aint' cheatin you ain't tryin.
*Vikings better, still unimpressive.
*The Wild are 8-1. They look like one of the best teams in the NHL. Too bad I am one of four people in South Dakota that care.
*Francisco Liriano - in case you hadn't heard, had another setback. Here's an early prediction for 2007. Liriano doesn't pitch an inning. He'll end up having Tommy John surgery, which I thought he should've had the minute he walked off the mound in his last start.

Looking back, looking ahead, Pt. 2

This week, the pitchers.
Johan Santana (19-6, 2.77, 245 K's)
If there weren't such a large percentage of Cy Young voters who are stupid enough to base their vote simply on wins (the one stat pitchers have the least control over) Santana would be about to win his 3rd straight Cy Young award. As it is, he'll settle for 2 out of 3.
He's a dependable workhorse, the very definition of an ace.
Brad Radke (12-9, 4.32)
After a horrible start, Radke was outstanding from June through August, then battled through semi-serious injuries to contribute in September. He has indicated that he will retire, though no announcement has been made. I still have a hunch that Radke hasn't pitched his last game, but with the injuries he had to pitch through this year, he'd probably have to take 2007 off even if he wants to come back.
Don't expect to see Radke in '07, but don't be surprised if he resurfaces in 2008, either with the Twins or perhaps the Devil Rays.
Carlos Silva (11-15, 5.94)
It's tough to lose 15 games on a team that only lost 66 all year, but Silva stunk. A few times he appeared to have things under control, then he'd go right back to stinking.
The Twins have until the end of the World Series to decide if they want to pick up his $4 million option. I don't think I'd do it. And if I did, I'd look to trade him.
He's still got some value, as he's young, has a strong arm, can eat up innings, and before 2006 he was coming off a couple of excellent seasons.
Boof Bonser (7-6, 4.22)
After a couple of call-ups with mixed results, Boof was an ace in his third (and permanent) stint with the Twins.
He also pitched six strong innings in Game 2 of the ALDS, further evidence that he's ready to be a key cog in the rotation.
He doesn't have particularly overwhelming stuff - a low 90's fastball and a decent curve, but he really seemed to learn how to pitch, attacking hitters and throwing strikes.
I don't think Boof will ever be a true No. 1, but a Kevin Tapani-type career looks like a possibility.
Still, don't be surprised if he has some sophomore struggles next year. Pitchers always do.
Francisco Liriano (12-3, 2.16)
The biggest question mark in the organization. The Twins seem determined to avoid surgery, but I have my doubts about whether he can make a 100% recovery without it.
If he's healthy, though, he's the most unhittable pitcher alive.
Scott Baker (5-8, 6.37)
As bad in '06 as he was excellent in '05.
But he has good stuff, and still showed some flashes of what he's capable of, especially in a couple starts against the Yankees.
I think he can be a solid No. 3, maybe even one day a No. 2. But he won't have a spot handed to him in '07.
Matt Garza (3-6, 5.76)
Touted as a future No. 1, but his stuff is nowhere near as good as Liriano or Santana's.
Still, the minor league numbers are hard to ignore, and Garza held his own pretty well for a guy who started the year in A-ball.
Will likely begin next year in the rotation.
Glen Perkins (0-0, 1.59)
Looked great in a brief call-up, earning a spot on the postseason roster. He has a great shot to make the club next year, either as a starter or reliever.
Mike Smith (0-0, 12.00)
Never should've been called up, even for one start. Decent minor league filler, I suppose.
Dave Gassner (DNP)
Also minor league filler, might be able to fill a bullpen spot one day. Removed from 40-man roster, so someone else could pick him up.
JD Durbin (DNP)
Had a fine season in Triple-A, vaulting himself back onto the team's radar. Will be given a look next spring.
Beau Kemp (DNP)
Also made a nice minor league comeback, also will get a look.
Errol Simonitsch (DNP)
A big lefty who had a decent year in the minors. Will compete in spring training, but likely begin season at Triple-A.
Kevin Slowey (DNP)
The next big prospect after Liriano and Garza. Had a huge year in the minors.
Will likely begin '07 in Triple-A.
Matt Guerrier (1-0, 3.36) An excellent long-relief/mop-up guy, who can also spot start. Guerrier is not an elite level reliever despite his excellent statistics. He thrives because he is used properly. As long as he's cheap, the Twins will keep him around.
Willie Eyre (1-0, 5.31) Had his moments, but ultimately was unimpressive in his rookie season. Ironically, he only pitched in one meaningful situation all year long - the extra inning game at Chicago - and he picked up the win with two shutout (and very gutty) innings. At best, he'll be back in the same role next year. At worst, they'll find someone else and he'll be back in Triple-A.
Juan Rincon (3-1, 2.91) Struggled late, but wasn't at 100% health. I still think he's the best set-up guy in baseball when healthy. Could start if he had to. However, I wouldn't be shocked to see him in trade talks.
Jesse Crain (4-5, 3.52) Crain isn't as bad as Twins fans paint him to be, he just seems bad in comparison to the rest of the outstanding bullpen. He's a good second-tier setup guy, and could probably be a decent second-tier closer somewhere, which is why he also could be part of trade talks.
Pat Neshek (4-2, 2.19) Sidearm guys are an enigma. Neshek was unhittable for a long stretch after his call-up, but was only average down the stretch. Still, he's locked into the pen for next year, and will most likely have another solid season.
Denny Reyes (5-0, 0.89) Where the hell did this come from? I would argue that Reyes' 2006 season was the most unlikely performance in the entire major leagues. A 0.89 ERA? Are you kidding me? Reyes gave up a homer in Seattle (I can't remember who hit it) way back on June 8, the day the Twins famously dropped to 25-33. The next day they began their 71-33 run that took them to the division title, and Reyes' emergence seemed to coincide.
Let's get one thing straight. There is absolutely no way Reyes will repeat this performance next year. It's almost impossible.
But he's still better than JC Romero.
Joe Nathan (7-0, 1.58) The best closer in baseball. Period.
He blew two saves, and the Twins won both of those games. Some have suggested trading Nathan, arguing that closers are essentially a dime a dozen. In some cases that's true, because a lot of slightly-above average pitchers (Huston Street, Todd Jones, Eddie Guardado, Bob Wickman) become pretty good closers. But Nathan is elite. He shouldn't be traded unless someone like Miguel Cabrera or Alex Rodriguez becomes part of the discussion.

Looking back, looking ahead

There was kind of a feeling all season that anything the Twins did in 2006 was a bonus.
They started so slowly, and didn't figure out who they were until June, which led most fans, including myself, to start drooling at the thought of what next year could be like with a fresh start.
With most of the Twins core set to return, here's a look at each player - what they did in '06 and their prospects for '07.
Position players first, pitchers later.
Catchers
Joe Mauer (.347-13-84)
The best catcher in the game. Won the batting title, posted a .429 on-base percentage and was excellent behind the plate. He slumped a little in the second half, and seemed to come up empty in key spots regularly down the stretch. He hit into 24 double plays, third most in the AL.
I still think he'll hit more homers, but in the meantime he might be better suited batting second.
Mike Redmond (.341-0-23)
The best backup catcher in the game. He hit .341 while usually (and ridiculously) batting 3rd in the order. Not as good as Mauer defensivley but still solidly above average. Has been a valuable clubhouse presence as well.
Chris Heintz (0-for 1 at-bat)
A pretty good minor league catcher, he's in the wrong organization if he wants to play in the big leagues.
Infield
Justin Morneau (.321-34-130)
Unless this year was a fluke, and I don't believe it was, Morneau appears to be the best all-around Twins hitter since Kirby Puckett. He has few weaknesses, can hit for power and average, uses the whole field, and never tries to do too much. How many times did he come up to bat in a situation where everyone was waiting for him to go deep, only to see him lace a single to left-field? That's the sign of a great hitter. Hopefully he gets locked up for a long time.
Nick Punto (.290-1-45)
The surprise of the team, Punto posted a .352 on-base percentage and was as good in the field as any Twins 3B since Gary Gaetti.
Having said that, I have doubts about whether he can do it again. He slumped considerably down the stretch and looked exposed in the playoffs. Gardy has already said he wants Punto to be the everday 3B next year, but I'd rather see him take on a utility role, where he can get plenty of starts at both 2B and SS to give Luis Castillo and Jason Bartlett a rest.
Jason Bartlett (.309-2-32)
Bartlett showed signs of being a future All-Star, finally earning Gardy's trust. He was excellent in the field and shows lots of good habits at the plate. He started 99 straight games after getting called up, and I think giving Punto 15 starts at short next year would help keep Bartlett fresh.
Fatigue may have been a factor in Bartlett's embarrassing performance in the ALDS.
Luis Castillo (.296-3-49)
Castillo gave the Twins perhaps a little less than what they hoped for, but he was still quite good. He has good at-bats and despite looking like a tin-man at times, actually has great range at 2B.
He has one year left on his contract, and his tenure as a Twin will be over after that. I wouldn't mind seeing the Twins trade him and move Punto to second, because I just don't trust Castillo's knees. I wouldn't be shocked if he missed 50 games due to injuries next year. Much like Shannon Stewart of the last couple years, he doesn't appear to have much left physically.
Luis Rodriguez (.235-2-6)
The guy spent the entire season on the active roster and had six RBI. He played in 59 games and had 115 at-bats. Granted the Twins were in must-win mode for pretty much the last 100 games of the season, but I still think he should've played a little more. He's a pretty decent utility IF, but he can't be the only utility guy, because he's not much of a SS.
Alexi Casilla (.250-0-0)
He got a brief taste of the bigs in a September call-up, and will likely open next season as the starting 2B at Rochester, with the idea of taking over for Castillo in 2008. He looks like he has some promise.
Terry Tiffee (.244-2-6)
A perfect example of first-impressions going a long way. In his ML debut in 2004 Tiffee had two hits, including a game-winning double, and two days later hit a walk-off game winning homer off (guess who) Dennys Reyes. Fans have vastly overrated him ever since. The reality is he sucks, and the Twins removed him from their 40-man roster this week. If someone claims him off waivers they'll get him, otherwise he'll probably spend all of next year in Rochester.
Phil Nevin (.190-1-4)
He didn't do much after the Twins acquired him, though he did hit a total of 23 homers on the year. I wouldn't mind having him as a veteran pinch-hitter and emergency 1B/C/3B, but he probably wants to move on, and the Twins will surely accomodate him.
Outfielders
Torii Hunter (.278-31-98)
Back for another year, and if he stays healthy expect another season hitting around .270 with 25-30 homers. The question is his defense, which ranged from poor to average most of last season. Torii's on the wrong side of 30, and when Kirby Puckett hit that age he moved to RF. Something to think about.
Michael Cuddyer (.284-24-109)
Exactly what you want in a corner outfielder. Good bat with power, strong arm, dependable glove. Hopefully the Twins lock him up.
Rondell White (.246-7-38)
Probably not worth the risk. He was great once he got healthy, but he'd be almost certain to get hurt again next year. Plus he's a poor defensive outfielder, and Gardy refuses to DH him.
Jason Kubel (.241-8-26)
He can flat out hit, evidenced by a white-hot streak in June where he appeared poised to really break out. But his knees started bothering him again and he tapered off badly.
There are questions about his commitment, due largely to the fact that he's in terrible shape. He'll never be an OF, but if he can get into better shape he'd be a great DH.
Shannon Stewart (.293-2-21)
The same smooth and efficient lead-off man he ever was, but it's clear that he'll never be healthy. The Twins won't even consider bringing him back, and it's possible he'll retire.
Lew Ford (.226-4-18)
No amount of Lewwwwww chants can hide the fact that Ford's career has, for the last two seasons, plummeted like an elevator with a broken suspension cord. He went from .299-15-72 to .264-7-52 to .226-4-18. Though he's still an excellent defensive OF, there is little reason to consider bringing him back.
Jason Tyner (.312-0-18)
A major part of the '06 team's success, but not a good candidate to play every day next year. The .312 average is deceptive - he rarely walks and almost all of his hits are singles - but he's still a better option off the bench than Ford.
Josh Rabe (.286-3-7)
If the Twins want to keep 5 outfielders, not counting Kubel, Rabe probably makes the team. Otherwise he's a career minor leaguer. Not good enough defensively to be a valuable bench player.

Another year of this guy

And that's a good thing.
The Twins picked up Hunter's 2007 option, which means they will pay him $12 million for one season.
I don't think bringing Hunter back for $12 million is exactly a great move, but I like it better than the alternatives. This team will have a great shot at a World Series next year, and Hunter could be a big part of it.
Hunter's glove declined considerably this year, and his ill-fated dive in Game 2 of the ALDS effectively ended the team's season.
But had the Twins let him walk (which still would've cost them $2.5 million) they'd be left with either a Lew Ford/Jason Tyner platoon in center, or they'd be sifting through a free-agent market of second-tier CF's.
Hunter earned this contract with his September hitting (.314, 9 HR), and with Mauer, Morneau and Cuddyer in front of him he's a better hitter.
He's also a great clubhouse guy, and one of my (and many Twins fans) personal favorites.
He wants a long-term deal, and whether or not the Twins offer him one will likely depend on how healthy he is next year. If he's a below average defensive CF again, it will likely be his last year with the team.

'06 - Just the Beginning

That's the hope at least. That the Twins postseason failures can be shrugged off for the fact that almost the entire core of the team is still young, and the prospects for improvement, particularly with an entire season without Tony Batista and Juan Castro, are good.
Still, let's forget about that for a minute and appreciate something.
2006 was an amazing season.
It's certainly disappointing to have seen it end so soon, but the journey from 25-33 to division champs was an amazing one.
I predicted the Twins would win the division before the season, though I didn't quite envision it playing out the way it did.
(And just to brag a little, I also predicted that the Tigers would be the surprise team of the AL, that Cleveland would be a disappointment, and that Justin Morneau would hit 34 homeruns - you can look it up in the archives if you either dont believe me or are a total loser)

Youth is served
When the season began, many were basing their predictions on the Twins on their opinions of the additions of Rondell White, Tony Batista and Luis Castillo.
I was excited about the additions of White and Castillo, and though I didn't like the Batista signing, I held out hope that he might at least hit some homers.
But what people were missing was that the Twins fortunes had less to do with those three and more to do with the potential of Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, and perhaps Michael Cuddyer, Jason Bartlett and Jason Kubel.
Mauer's season (.347, 13, 84) didn't surprise me. Neither did Morneau's 34 homers or Cuddyer's 24 homers.
What definitley surprised me was Morneau's .321 average, and Cuddyer's 109 RBIs. Not to mention Torii Hunter's 31 homers, Bartlett's emergence, and Nick Punto inexplicably turning himself into a useful player.
Failed experiments
For the first three months of the year, Rondell White wasn't good enough to play for the Canaries. And to be honest, Batista and Castro probably weren't either.
No one could've predicted Punto would become the player he did, but the whole Castro-Bartlett thing was shameful.
This team might've won 105 games if they hadn't wasted their time with these three. Though in the second half, White was pretty much the same guy he always has been in the past. His resurgence made the fade-off of Jason Kubel less harmful.
Bad pitching
For the first two months, the Twins strength, starting pitching, was bad.
Carlos Silva, Brad Radke, Kyle Lohse and Scott Baker were all terrible.
Radke got on track and pitched like a Cy Young candidate from June through August.
Lohse was traded for a prospect, Baker was mostly horrible with just a few good outings, and Silva was inconsistent but mostly bad.
This contributed to the team's rough start, though it should be pointed out that when Batista and Castro were replaced with Punto and Bartlett, the pitching got noticably better.
A magical run
In early June, they started winning every damn day. They made it look easy.
11 in a row, 20 out of 21. In the time it took them to lose their first 33 games, they won 25 times. In the time it took for their next 33 losses, they won 71 times. And amazingly caught the Tigers for their 4th division title in 5 years.
I pick on Ron Gardenhire a lot, and he deserves it a lot. But this season was a reminder that managers are not made by their strategizing; anyone can do that (except for maybe Gardy). What makes a manager is his ability to communicate, manage personalities, run a clubhouse, and instill a winning, confident, upbeat and positive attitude.
Gardy did that and then some. To will a team from 25-33 to 96-66 takes leadership of the highest level.
Still the best
As in Johan, Joe Nathan and Juan Rincon.
Johan will win his 2nd Cy Young award, as he won the pitching triple crown. I think my favorite stat in regards to the Twins is this: Johan led the team with 47 walks. I dont mean led the team as in that was the fewest walks - that was the most. 47 walks in 34 starts, and it was the most anyone on the team allowed. In 162 games, Twins pitchers walked 356 batters, while striking out 1,146. That's, umm....good.
Joe Nathan only had 36 saves because the Twins won so many games by more than three runs, but he had probably his best season.
In 68 innings he had 95 K's and went 7-0 with a 1.58 ERA. He blew only two saves, and the Twins came back to win both of those games anyway. When was the last time a closer went undefeated?
Surprise!
We already mentioned Punto. He had always, always sucked, and suddenly, he was good.
But he wasn't the only one.
Jason Tyner hitting .312?
Dennys Reyes - 0.89?
Boof Bonser becoming the No. 2 starter?
Pat Neshek? Without these guys playing seemingly over their heads, the Twins dont win the division.
And that kind of sums up the season. It didn't make sense. Didn't add up.
At times what was going on was literally unbelieveable.
But history will remember them as the 2006 American League Central Division Champions, and that's something that I didn't believe I'd see until the day I saw it become official with my own eyes.
Thanks Twins, for one hell of a year.

2006 Minnesota Twins Leaders
Batting
Games: Morneau 157
At-bats: Morneau 592
Avg: Mauer .347*
Runs: Cuddyer 102
Hits: Morneau 190
Doubles: Cuddyer 41
Triples: Punto 7
Homers: Morneau 34
RBI: Morneau 130
Steals: Castillo 25
Walks: Mauer 79
Strikeouts: Cuddyer 130
GIDP: Mauer 24
SLG: Morneau .559
OBP: Mauer .429
Hit Streak: Punto 19

Pitching:
Games: Rincon 75
Starts: Santana 34*
Innings: Santana 233.2*
Wins: Santana 19*
Losses: Silva 15
K's: Santana 245*
ERA: Reyes 0.89** (lowest in team history)
ERA (162 innings+): Santana 2.77*
Saves: Nathan 36
Hits/9 inn: Santana 7.16*
K's/9 inn: Santana 9.44*

*Led League
**Led all relievers with 50+ innings

Ain't That a Bitch

I suppose I should be happy that the Tigers beat the Yankees, but I'm not really.
I'm just jealous. And pissed. We could be playing Detroit for a World Series berth with home field advantage. But we played like ass for three straight games.
I thought Detroit would get run over in three straight after the way they finished the regular season.
As it turned out, that was probably the best thing that could've happened to them.
Judging by the way Verlander, Bonderman and the Gambler all pitched, the Tigers are my favorite to win the World Series.
I'll try to convince myself to pull for them, given that they came from the Twins division, a division we blabbed all year about being baseball's best.
But to see the World Series champ come out of our division two years in a row...that would hurt pretty bad, too.

Didn't See This Coming

Who would've thought it would end this way?
This is what we saw this season:
*Justin Morneau - .321-34-130.
*Joe Mauer - .347 -1st AL catcher to ever win the batting title.
*Torii Hunter - 31 homers.
*Cuddyer - .284-24-109.
*Johan - 19-6, 2.77, 245 K's, the pitching triple crown.
*Liriano - 12-3, 2.16
*Joe Nathan - 1.58, 36/38.
*Bradke - the comeback.
*Nick Punto - actually became a good player.
*Jason Tyner - ditto.
*Jason Bartlett - the next Michael Young.
*Rondell White - the resurrection.
*Boof.
*One day in first place - the last day.
And after all that, the Twins season lasted a whole five days longer than the Kansas City Royals' did. A sweep. An ass-whupping. An embarrassing performance.
Everything went wrong.
The Twins were outhit, outpitched, outfielded, outbaserunned, outmanaged, outclassed.
It was ugly.
I think we learned that the Piranhas aren't actually that dangerous, and that Joe Mauer has to start hitting some more gappers to be a true No. 3 hitter. We learned that Torii Hunter has lost a step, maybe two, in centerfield, and we learned that the bullpen is human.
The Twins can tip their hat to the A's and say they simply got beat, and that is true. The A's played very well, and there is no shame in losing to them.
But that discounts the fact that the Twins didn't only lose because they couldn't hit in the clutch. They lost because they couldn't make plays in the field, they took poor at-bats, they failed to get down bunts and advance runners, and they made poor decisions on the bases and in the field. They simply weren't themselves when it mattered most.
It was a remarkable season, and 20 years from now, I'll remember that Sunday regular season finale a lot more vividly than I will the ugly three-game sweep at the hands of the A's.
I loved this team, and I am extremely confident that it will be one of the best teams in baseball again next year.
Only six more months to go.

We Need a Hero

Okay, yeah, I hate the Yankees and everything, but watching Game 1 of the Yanks-Tigers series, it became clear.
Derek Jeter is the MVP.
Not Johan Santana.
Not Justin Morneau.
And definitely not Joe Mauer.
Jeter went 5-for-5 in Game 1 of that series, with two singles, two doubles and a homerun.
Yes, Jeter's skills as a shortstop are overrated, and if Jeter made the catch Punto made in Game 1, it'd be on SportsCenter every five seconds for the next 25 years.
But for fucks sake the guy went 5-for-5!
That is what MVP's do in the playoffs. They don't go 1-for-3 with a two-out, bases empty single.
If the Twins are going to snap out of this postseason funk, whether it be in this series against Oakland, or in the future (I'm fairly confident they'll return to the postseason a few more times in the next decade), they need their marquee players to step up the way Jeter does for the Yankees.
Kirby Puckett did it. Jack Morris did it, too.
I am in no way suggesting it's Johan Santana's fault the Twins lost Game 1, but hey, the guy could've pitched a shutout. Barry Zito was better than him that day.
The scary thing about this generation of Twins is that we're getting used to them going in the tank when it matters most.
Who among us was surprised that Zito shut them down?
Who was surprised to see Torii Hunter make the most bone-headed play in the Metrodome since Lonnie Smith?
Who is surprised that Nick Punto, Jason Tyner, Jason Bartlett and Luis Castillo don't scare anyone in the playoffs?
If there is any good news, its that there is maybe one guy on the Twins roster with a bona fide history of sacking up, and that is the man taking the mound Friday night - Brad Radke.
If he was 100% healthy, I'd be completely confident he will win, and even with his shoulder issues, I still have a good feeling about Game 3. As unclutch as the Twins have been in this series, they are still a team with a lot of fight in them, and a team that overcame a lot to get here. They won't just roll over in Game 3.
And if they win Game 3, Santana would likely take the mound for Game 4. Could the A's beat him twice in one series?
And if not, can Boof beat Zito back at the Dome in Game 5?
For all that to fall into place for the Twins, someone, check that several guys, are going to have to man up.
I don't mean working the count for a walk, or singling to the opposite field with two outs and nobody on.
I mean going 3-for-4 or 4-for-5, I mean a two-out bases loaded double, I mean pitching a shutout.
That's what MVPs do.
Let's see if we have any.

Unforgiveable

I don't have the time or energy to go into much depth about Game 2.
I just left the Twins clubhouse and I think I'm more bummed than they are.
Let's just say that I still love Torii Hunter, but that was an absolutely unforgivable, horrendous decision he made in diving for that ball.
In a tight-game, a must win game, the team that makes a mistake loses. We made the mistake.
A big one.
A huge one.
Can they come back?
I doubt it.
And yeah, we've doubted them before, and yeah, they've come back a million times already, but the odds have never been stacked against them quite like this.

Down Again

Suprised?
I'm not.
Barry Zito is pretty good. So is Johan, but he was rusty early, and it cost them.
Through the first couple innings, there wasn't a major difference in velocity between the fastball and the changeup, and the fastball was barely reaching 90. That may have been how Frank Thomas was able to muscle a changeup over the fence even after being fooled, and how light-hitting Marco Scutaro was able to get Johan for a huge two out RBI double.
But Johan got hot, and the game briefly became very tense and exciting.
Rondell White hit a homer, and the Twins put together a couple of threats. Bartlett leads off the 8th with a double, but Luis Castillo failed to bunt him over, which was huge, as the Twins ended up failing to score.
Justin Morneau was crushing the ball all day and had no hits to show for it.
Zito was good, but he was also lucky.
I'm guessing you're probably as baffled as me as to why Gardy chose to bring in Jesse Crain in the ninth, over, say, Rincon, Reyes, Neshek, Nathan, Guerrier or Perkins (in other words, anybody).
Gardy's answer was that Crain has been the best of that group lately, and he wanted to go with the hot hand.
But I would argue that just because Jesse Crain had a lower ERA than Neshek or Rincon in September doesn't make him a better option.
Rincon, and to a lesser extent, Neshek, have been the money guys all year, wheras Crain has been solid, but by no means money.
But the loss really isn't Crain's fault.
From a caught-stealing, a failed bunt, to just bad situational hitting and even a couple errors, the Twins just didn't play very well.
The good news is they've been counted out a million times already this season, so being down again isn't the end of the world.
They just have to win 3 out of 4 now, two of them in Oakland.

History...Real Time

I was there Sunday.
There for one of the greatest days in the history of the Minnesota Twins.
I bought $6 upper deck tickets for me and my fiancee about two weeks ago, assuming the game probably wouldn't mean much.
I just wanted to go to one more game as a fan.
Just before the game started, the Twins honored Brad Radke with an on-field ceremony in which his teammates presented him with a jetski as a retirement present.
At the time I thought to myself, 'Well if nothing else I'm glad I was here for that.'
But that was nothing.
Three batters into the game the Twins trailed 1-0 with Carlos Silva on the mound. The Tigers were opening up a lead on the Royals. A win for Detroit would give them the division and send the Twins to New York to face the Yankees.
The Tigers were at home, and had already lost twice to a Royals team that they had beaten 15 of 16 times before this weekend.
And they built their lead to 6-0 in the third inning.
Yankee stadium, here we come.
But then...
Joe Mauer laced a double down the line, clinching the AL batting title and starting a Twins rally that would give them the lead. I told my fiancee before the inning that Torii Hunter would homer and he did, hitting a towering fly to left-center, his 31st of the year, and the hit that sealed the win - thanks to a fine outing from Silva and more expert work from the bullpen.
By the time the Twins had pushed their lead to 5-1, the 45,182 fans in attendance were no longer watching the field. They were watching the tiny video boards in opposite corners of the dome that were updating the Royals-Tigers game.
6-0 Detroit becomes 6-2, and the crowd roars. 6-4, the crowd is becoming a distraction to the players.
Detroit scores, 7-4, fans boo.
And then...
7-6, and 'Let's go Ro-yals' echoes through the dome.
7-7!
8-7 KC! The 100 loss Royals have come back from down 6-0 in Detroit against ace Jeremy Bonderman.
Bottom 8, Matt Stairs homers, and the Tigers have tied it at 8. Fans boo.
And then...
Joe Nathan closes out the Twins win, and nobody leaves. The Tigers-Royals game is up on the jumbotron, and the Tigers have the bases loaded with one out in the bottom of the 11th. Brandon Inge launches a ball deep to LF, looking like a walk-off grand slam, but it hooks fould. The dome crowd lets out a huge sigh.
Two pitches later, Joe Nelson, the Royals no-name rookie closer, fans Inge on a changeup that would make Johan proud. Inge crumbles to his knees in disbelief. Curtis Granderson is the Tigers last chance. The Royals summon lefty Jimmy Gobble, and Gobble fans Granderson looking. The dome is euphoric. The Twins players are in the dugout, drinking beer, jumping and screaming and waving towels and acting as giddy as the fans.
It's an amazingly surreal scene. The Twins players and their fans, almost working in unsion, watching the game together, egging each other on. They play 'Sweet Caroline' over the PA between innings, and the entire Twins bench is arm in arm, singing along with the fans.
It's a scene that I can't imagine taking place at any other Pro stadium anywhere in the world.
Top 12, Detroit summons Kenny Rogers from the pen, and the Royals knock him around for two runs. Nick Punto, Luis Rodriguez and Torii Hunter are going absolutely bonkers (they keep showing them on the Tron). Hunter grabs a mike, waves to the fans and screams: "Let's go Ro-yals". The place goes nuts. Of the 45,000 that were here, probably 35,000 remain, and the game's been over for half an hour.
Bottom 12, and Gobble sets the Tigers down almost effortlessly.
Finally...
The Twins players storm onto the field for the second time in a week, mobbing each other at the mound. They then take a victory lap around the field, high fiving fans in the front row. Joe Nathan does the Lambeau Leap into the left field corner. The players are throwing whatever they can, balls, shirts, hats and towels into the crowd.
Over the PA comes the official declaration: "Ladies and Gentlemen, your 2006 American League Central Division Champion Minnesota Twins!"
Gardy and Hunter both grab the mike and say a few words, but it's completely inaudible. The place is just too damn loud.
I look at the banner in right-field that reads AL Central Champs: 2002, 2003, 2004 and think how great it will look to have 2006 on there, too.
I look just a few feet to the left of that and see a big smiling Kirby Puckett, and wonder if he had a hand in the miracle that took place today in Minneapolis and Detroit.
There are 162 games and approximately 180 days in the Major League season, and the Twins were never once in sole possession of first place until after they were done playing. They caught the uncatchable Tigers on the final day.
Even after the fans left the dome, nobody wanted to go home. The streets of Minneapolis were filled with horn-honking cars, and people racing along the sidewalks, high fiving everyone in sight, high fiving people in moving cars.
As of right now, there's no better baseball town in America than Minneapolis.
There have been several moments in recent Twins history that I watched on TV while thinking to myself, 'Man I should've been there for that.'
But this is a day that will live forever, and I'll never forget it.
I was there.
And it was beautiful.

What a night

All I cared about while watching the Twins Thursday night was Brad Radke making it through about four or five innings without his arm falling off.
I didn't care if they won, I didn't care if Brad gave up 8 runs.
I just wanted Brad to have a nice night.
1, so he and the fans could enjoy what could've been his last start ever, and
2, so he could give Gardy any reason to choose him for the postseason roster over Carlos Silva.
So I wasn't asking much of the Twins.
Then they go and win the game in dramatic fashion, moving into a tie for first place in the Central, while Radke looked great for five innings, allowing no earned runs and hitting 90 on the gun.
That was an amazing performance by my favorite Twin.
Made possible, of course, by an opposite-field homer by Joe Mauer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, and a terrific escape act in the top of the 9th by Juan Rincon, who loaded the bases with none out and got out of it.
But Radke was the story.
He was fighting tears afterward, maybe because he was touched by the crowd and the numerous tributes they showed him throughout the night, maybe because he was overcome by his own accomplishments in the face of tremendous physical adversity.
Either way, it was a monumental performance.
It did come against the KC Royals, who are not the NY Yankees, but even so, I think Twins Nation is unanimous in favoring Radke to take the mound at Yankee Stadium in the playoffs.
Maybe there's still some magic left.

Playoff Roster Possibilities

We'll find out tonight if Brad Radke has any chance to contribute to the Twins in the post-season.
The Twins are saying that if all goes well, he's in the post-season rotation, but my guess is that things don't even have to go 'well'.
I'm guessing that as long as his arm doesn't fall off he'll be pitching against the Yankees (I say Yankees because the Tigers all but clinched the Central with the Twins loss to KC last night).
Carlos Silva was in a nice little groove, but got roughed up in his last two starts. Last night KC was hitting him very hard. I don't know if Silva will even be on the playoff roster, let alone in the rotation.
To Silva's credit, he admitted after the game that he doesn't deserve a post-season start, saying he's let the team down all year.
If Radke pitches great tonight, my guess is that the post-season rotation will be Santana, Boof and Radke.
If Radke pitches decent, it'll probably be Santana, Boof, Garza and then maybe Radke.
As for the rest of the roster, there are some questions.
How many pitchers to bring? Typically 10 is the max for playoffs, but with the Twins lack of depth and experience in the rotation, they could bring as many as 11.
Santana, Boof, Garza, Nathan, Rincon, Reyes, Neshek and Crain are all locks.
After that you've got Guerrier, Eyre, Glen Perkins, Silva, Scott Baker and Radke. They might want to bring Perkins to give them an extra lefty. So a lot is still up in the air.
Assuming they take 11 pitchers, that leaves 14 position players.
Mauer, Redmond, Morneau, Castillo, Bartlett, Punto, Hunter, Cuddyer, White, Tyner and Nevin are locks.
That would leave three spots, with Kubel, Ford, Luis Rodriguez, Alexi Casilla, Josh Rabe, Terry Tiffee and Chris Heintz the candidates. Kubel has hardly played in the last month, as he's clearly not healthy. Tiffee is a switch hitter, which makes him a possibility, but my guess is they go with Rodriguez, Ford and Casilla. Casilla would fill a speed/pinch runner role much like Jarvis Brown did in the 1991 series. That was a significant move back then, as the Twins chose Brown, a useless hitter, over Pedro Munoz, a RH bat who killed lefties.
*As I said before, the Twins probably won't catch Detroit. They finish with three games against KC, and since they own the tiebreaker, the Twins have to finish ahead of them, meaning they're essentially two back with four to play.
So knowing they're likely to face the Yankees, consider this: Mark Redman has made two starts against the Twins in the last month. In those two starts he allowed two earned runs in 17 innings. In a start against the Yankees last week he allowed 9 runs in 2/3 of an inning.
As improved as the Twins offense is this year, they still have a scary and annoying tendency to randomly make journeyman look like Cy Young. The Yankees on the other hand, tend to expose such pitchers. The Twins will need Johan Santana and the bullpen to be at their absolute best if they are going to win that series.

Goin back to the dance

The most improbable of Twins seasons saw it's official reward Monday night with the Twins clinching a playoff berth with their win over Kansas City.
It marks the Twins fourth trip to the playoffs in the last five years, and their sixth in my lifetime.
I was 7 in 1987, 11 in 1991, and while I remember both of those seasons much more clearly than you might think, 2002 still stands out as my favorite Twins season ever.
It had been so long. So long since the Twins had been winners. So long since the Metrodome was full for a baseball game, so long since people were actually talking about the team, wearing jerseys of their favorite players.
I remember being at Game 3 of the ALDS against Oakland, part of a record crowd of over 64,000 fans, and almost being brought to tears by what I was experiencing.
Between 1992 and 2002 there had been talk of contraction, a move to North Carolina and eight losing seasons. That day in the Dome, with 64,000 fans about to watch a playoff game, was a day I had been reasonably sure I would never experience. Two days later I sat in a jam-packed sports bar in Burnsville and watched AJ Pierzynski wallop a game-winning homer off of A's closer and ass-clown Billy Koch. He flipped his bat in defiance and the Twins eliminated the A's in Oakland - and that flip of AJ's bat remains one of the single greatest all time sports moments of my life. I still remember my cousin Spence, drunk out of his head, standing on top of our table shouting to no one in particular - "Twins win! Twins win! Twins win!" over and over.
In that respect, 2002 will probably always be the Twins team I treasure most, even if they win several more World Series during my lifetime.
But 2006 will likely be pretty high on the list as well.
Part of me keeps thinking about Francisco Liriano, Brad Radke, and even Shannon Stewart, wondering if they can win without them.
For the record, if all three of those guys were healthy I believe the Twins would be overwhelming favorites to win the World Series.
But you know what? It's clear by now that you can throw logic out the window with this team.
Nick Punto and Jason Tyner should not be major contributors to a playoff team, but they are.
Dennys Reyes shouldn't be the best lefty specialist on the planet, but he is.
Boof Bonser shouldn't be a solid No. 2 starter as a rookie, but he is.
Matt Garza shouldn't even be here at all (he began the year in A-ball and was getting doused with champagne in a Major League clubhouse Monday), but he is.
Rondell White wasn't good enough to play for the Sioux Falls Canaries in the first half, and here he is batting .320 since the All-Star break.
We've written them off so many times.
Even when they started turning things around, most of us just said, 'Hey things are looking pretty good, we should be able to contend next year.'
The Tigers and White Sox were so far ahead they were merely a blip on the radar, but we were reminded, once again, what a long season it is, and how the deficit really doesn't matter in May, June or even July or August.
We were reminded that things like speed, defense and fundamentals (Tyner, Punto, Castillo, Bartlett) are still important, and that power (Thome, Dye, Konerko) is still overrated.
We learned that Brad Radke is perhaps the gutsiest player the Twins have ever had, and that Torii Hunter, for all his double-plays and ugly swings, is still one hell of a baseball player.
Way, way back in March, Kirby Puckett passed away. One of my first thoughts when he died was to wonder what effect it would have on this year's team.
Could the ghost of Kirby Puckett guide them to a title? I certainly hoped so. And yeah, I have a corny tendency to believe in those kinds of things.
It almost seems like the only explanation. With all the team has endured, all the setbacks, all the injuries, some sort of cosmic intervention seems like the only thing that could possibly have allowed a team that was once 25-33 and in a distant fourth place to surge to a playoff spot and the brink of 100 wins even with two of the top three pitchers sitting out.
With three games remaining against KC and three against a White Sox team that now has nothing to play for, the Twins still have a chance to catch Detroit, who they trail by one game.
Surely the Twins will enter the playoffs as underdogs no matter who they face, but they obviously have paid no attention to any of that kind of crap, so neither should we.
It's been a crazy, weird, inspirational, magical, amazing year.
Hopefully Monday's celebration wasn't the last one of the fall.

1/2 game out, 5 1/2 up

Briefly, while the Tigers-White Sox game was still going last night, the Twins were tied for first. They caught the Tigers.
Detroit ended up winning, though, to pull back up by a half-game.
The Sox, now 5 1/2 back, are all but finished. The Twins only need win a few more to clinch the wild-card, and they look like they're going to fight Detroit till the bitter end.
*One thing I realized during last night's satisfying 8-2 win over Boston is that Jason Bartlett (pictured) is becoming more than just a good shortstop. He's becoming one of the best. He turned two more terrific plays, and if he hadn't stupidly spent the first two months of the season in Triple-A, he'd be a contender for both the AL batting title and the Gold Glove. The first couple times Bartlett came up he looked raw and ragged, like everything he did was difficult for him.
Now, he looks very smooth and easy, just like Juan Castro did. Only Bartlett has more range, a better arm and a more reliable glove than Castro.
Calling Bartlett the next Greg Gagne may be selling him short.
*Torii Hunter is on the best streak of his career. His homer last night (#28) was an absolute bomb, and it came in a big, big spot. Even after spending two weeks on the DL, Hunter has a great chance to finally - finally - reach 30 homers for the first time in his career.
*How 'bout Boof? He now has a 3.74 ERA since being re-called, and is a more than respectable 6-5 with a 4.36 ERA overall. If Silva continues his re-emergence, the Twins might have three solid starters for the playoffs after all. Four if you count Matt Garza, who appears to be figuring things out, too.
*Rondell White is hitting .313 since the All-Star break. Just thought you'd like to know.
*Joe Mauer is hitting .280 since July 1. I've been getting a lot of shit from people for being too negative, especially when it comes to Mauer, but .280 out of the 3-hole is just plain inexcusable when the three guys behind you (four if you want to count Rondell White) are all mashing.
*These are the batting averages of the Twins starting lineup:
.296
.292
.344
.282
.325
.275
.236
.323
.315
All nine are more than solid except for White's .236, which, as mentioned above, has been steadily rising for two months. Six of the others are over .292, and the two who aren't - Cuddyer and Hunter, have combined for 50 homers and 191 RBIs. Not bad.
I'm not sure how much he's had to do with it, but Joe Vavra is hitting coach of the year.
*Wednesday's win was the Twins' 90th, the fourth time in five years they've reached 90 wins under Ron Gardenhire. At 90-61, their current winning percentage is .596, which would be their best in any of those years. When you consider they were 25-33 at one point, that is amazing.
*Johan goes today, looking for win #19. Getting it would mean a season sweep (6-0) over the BoSox, and put another nail in Ozzie Guillen's coffin.

Nightmare Come True

Francisco Liriano made his triumphant return to the Twins rotation Wednesday, and as he mowed the Oakland hitters down with ease through the first two innings I allowed myself to fantasize about a World Series title.
And then everyone's worst fears were realized, when Liriano hopped off the mound, wincing in pain.
Worst of all, the pain is in his elbow. His season is almost certainly over.
And as bad as that is, it's not even really the worst of it. What's worse is the gaining-steam fear that Liriano is a left-handed Kerry Wood.
Wood, like Liriano, is virtually unhittable when healthy, with a high-90's fastball and a breaking ball that breaks so sharply it doesn't seem real. But because of the violent snap of the elbow that Wood uses to deliver his back-breaking curveball, he is never, ever, ever healthy. I just laugh when Cubs fans brag about Wood, because I know he's never going to last more than 10 starts. Canaries manager Mike Pinto once told me Kerry Wood has 'the worst mechanics of any pitcher in pro baseball anywhere'.
I don't know that Liriano's mechanics are that bad, but he obviously snaps his slider with a tremendous amount of torque. Everyone laughed at the San Francisco Giants for including Liriano in the AJ trade, but this is why they did. He battled arm problems in San Fran, and it's apparent that he's going to continually do so in Minny.
If there's any good news, its that I believe Ron Gardenhire and pitching coach Rick Anderson are a hell of a lot smarter than the bumbling idiots in Chicago that have been working with Wood. I'm hopeful that Anderson will be able to work with Liriano and possibly find a way to alter his mechanics that would lessen the strain on his elbow without drastically reducing his effectiveness.
Either that, or the Twins may have to turn him into a reliever.
I still think the Twins have a good shot to make the playoffs, but without Liriano, I'm not optimistic about their chances of advancing to the World Series.

Return of the Chief?

If Carlos Silva has really rediscovered his sinker, (it'll take more than two starts to convince me) the Twins are a lock for the postseason.
A rotation that had appeared in shambles as little as a week or so ago, could suddenly be back to 4-strong with Santana, Liriano, Bonser and Silva. Tonight we'll see what Matt Guerrier is capable of doing. I'd look for something like 5 innings, 2 or 3 runs.
*Michael Cuddyer now has 22 homers, 37 doubles and 98 RBIs. He also has 9 OF assists. It once again bears repeating that the Twins success this year wasn't dependant on new arrivals like Tony Batista and Rondell White (though think how good the Twins would be if either of them had done what we'd hoped), but rather on the improvement of who was already here.
Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Michael Cuddyer, Nick Punto and Jason Bartlett have all been among the most improved players in the league. None of them were particularly threatening last year, and now all of them are guys who can do big damage with the bat in their own way.
*I didn't watch a whole lot of the Vikings game last night, because the Twins game was far more important. But I loved the first drive, and it sounds like the defense played pretty well. Brad Johnson was terrific, and if Troy Williamson could catch he would've been even better.
Giving the ball to Chester Taylor 31 times says a lot about what Hamster Face hopes to do this year. Control the clock, limit turnovers, keep defense fresh. That's great, I just wonder how long they're going to stick with a guy who averages 2.8 yards per carry!!

Simply the best

At times this year, Johan Santana was overshadowed by Francisco Liriano, but the Twins simply wouldn't be within sniffing distance of the playoffs without Santana, who's not only the best pitcher in baseball, but who might already be the best pitcher in Twins history at age 27.
The Cy Young has been pretty much locked up, but now talk of Johan winning AL MVP is gaining steam as well.
I've generally been against any guy who only plays in about 23% of his team's games winning the MVP award, but with Johan, its hard to argue. He's been at his best when it has mattered most - unbeatable at home. If Ron Gardenhire didn't insist on limiting him to 100 pitches a start (which actually doesn't bother me too much) Johan would probably be looking at 330 Ks this year, he might have 6 or 7 complete game shutouts, and he'd probably have a couple extra wins.
As it is, he's gonna win 20 at least, and finish with around 260 Ks.
The Twins took 3 out of 4 to pull within two games of Detroit, and as great as that is, I'd have rather gained three games on Chicago than the Tigers.
Still, with Liriano set to rejoin the rotation Wednesday, the Twins have a great shot of getting one of the two spots that the three teams are battling for.
*Matt Guerrier will replace Scott Baker the next time through the rotation. It's worth a shot, as Guerrier has been solid out of the pen. But while Guerrier has posted an excellent 3.04 ERA, he's also allowed an opponents batting average of .297. He'll give up some hits. Five decent innings would be a success.
In an interesting side note, Guerrier has now pitched in 85 career games without a win, the longest active streak in the majors.
The Twins other noteworthy such streak, Jason Tyner's homerless streak, nearly ended Sunday when Tyner tripled off the baggy. He was about 10 feet short, but had he pulled it a little further down the line he would've got it. Tyner has now gone 1,008 at-bats without a dinger. He's hit 2 homers in AAA, both over the fence. He's approaching Al Newman territory. Newman went almost 2,000 ABs without a homer from the middle of his rookie season to the end of his career.
*Torii Hunter manufactured a run all by himself Sunday, and for anyone who missed it, it's worth re-telling.
He singled up the middle to lead off the 2nd inning. Then he stole second. Then Jason Kubel struck out swinging at a pitch in the dirt, forcing Detroit catcher Vance Wilson to either tag Kubel or throw to first. With Hunter dancing about 15 feet off second, Wilson stared at Hunter for a second, and, thinking that was enough to keep him there, tossed the ball to first to retire the hobbled Kubel. He didn't exactly lob the ball to first but he certainly didnt fire it, and Hunter broke for third. First baseman Chris Shelton's throw back across the diamond wasn't near in time, and Hunter was on 3rd with one out. Jason Tyner then hit a short fly ball to left, that Tigers LF Craig Monroe had to come way in on. 'No way that's deep enough' I thought as Monroe settled under it, but Hunter took off the minute Monroe caught it. His throw was way up the line, and Torii scored standing up. The ball was probably hit about 160 feet to left-field, and Monroe was coming in on the ball.
The small-ball talk gets nauseating at times, but there is no question that that's how the Twins were able to win 3 out of 4 from Detroit this weekend.
Dick Bremer made an excellent point during Sunday's broadcast when he said that Detroit has a deadly lineup because of the homerun power they have, but that when the homers don't come, they can't score runs. He's totally right. That has even been the case somewhat for Chicago this year. They've relied more on the long ball this year than they did in their World Series season.
Teams that rely on the homerun usually don't make noise in the playoffs. The pitching is much better in the postseason, which means you have to find alternate ways to score runs.
Just another reason the Twins will be dangerous if they can qualify for the playoffs.
*Monday night prediction - Vikings 17, Redskins 13

Vikings '06

As I've said before, I am not exactly counting down the minutes to the Vikings season opener. In fact, I'll probably watch more of the Twins game on Monday night than I will the Vikings.
But I'm still a Vikings fan dammit, and as soon as the Twins season ends I'm sure I'll dive in head first.
Unless of course they're 1-6 by then.

It's funny, but the whole idea behind hiring Brad Childress as Vikings head coach was supposedly to bring stability to the organization, but I'm not so sure that that's happened.
Guys are still getting arrested left and right, and Childress seems more interested in surrounding himself with former Philadelphia Eagles and Wisconsin Badgers than he does building this team for the Super Bowl.
Having said that, I'm not going to bury a guy before the season starts. He's a detail-oriented guy, and I like that. That's the one good thing about football coaches. They're smart guys who study alot, whereas managers in baseball are usually dumb ex-players who use their 'gut' over statistics, research and data (see Gardenhire, Ron).
The team:
QB: Brad Johnson had an excellent preseason, and if he's healthy, will not only not lose games, he will win games. If he starts all 16 games, I envision him completing about 65 percent of his passes, for about 3,300 yards, 20-25 TDs, and less than 10 INT, which would put his QB rating over 90.
Brooks Bollinger is a solid backup - lightyears better than Mike McMahon. Tarvaris Jackson had a good preseason, but being able to move him back to the No. 3 spot is preferable.
RB: Chester Taylor was totally unimpressive in preseason. Some of the 'experts' have touted him as a big sleeper (SI's Peter King predicts over 1,500 yds), while others say the Vikings are making a mistake in committing to him. My guess is that with the O-line the Vikings have, he'll be able to make some plays, the question may be if he can carry the ball 300 times over the course of the season.
Mewelde Moore is the same as he ever was. Good player, hurt again. He's a backup.
To me, Ciatrick Fason is just a guy.
FB: Tony Richardson was an underrated pickup. He might be able to help Taylor become something back there. It would've been nice to have Joey Goodspeed (lost to an ACL in mincamp) for depth.
WR: The Vikings don't even have a No. 2, let alone a No. 1, at WR.
Troy Williamson has speed, and the pressure is on him to deliver.
Marcus Robinson is still useful in the red zone, but his days of 1,400 yard seasons are long, long gone.
Travis Taylor is an ideal No. 3. Nothing more, nothing less.
Todd Pinkston is terrible, and the only reason he's on this team is because Brad Childress knows him.
TE: Jermaine Wiggins and Jim Kleinsasser make an excellent receiver/blocker combo.
OL: The left side is the best in the league. The right side appears solid with Artis Hicks and Marcus Johnson. If these guys play to their potential, BJ should be healthy, the running game should be sound, and the Viking offense will be able to limit turnovers, control the clock, and pick up first downs. It's cliche, but lineplay decides football games.
DL: Has the potential to be strong, with Erasmus James and Keneche Udeze on the cusp of maybe being stars. Kevin Williams has to have a comeback season, and if he does, this could be a deadly front 4 with big Pat Williams in the middle as well. He was the best interior Dlineman in the NFL last year.
LB: Even though he was just a rookie, the Vikings will miss Chad Greenway. His injury seriously depletes the depth. EJ Henderson had a great camp, but he'll have to prove it in gams that count. Ben Leber has been barely better than average so far in his career, while Napolean Harris needs to have a big season in the middle. If he doesn't, he might be out of the league. With Greenway out, the backups are Donatarrius Thomas, Jason Glenn and Heath Farwell.
S: Tank Williams will also be missed. Dwight Smith steps in to a starters role, and while he's a big hitter, he can't cover. Darren Sharper is one of the best centerfielders in football, and just a flat-out great football player. But he's not getting any younger.
CB: Fred Smoot was a great cover corner at Washington, hopefully he can shake off all that happened last year and resume that role. Antoine Winfield is the best tackling corner in the NFL, but according to NFL stats, he gave up one of the highest competion percentages on passes thrown his way last year. His effectiveness in the passing game has been highly overrated thus far.
K: Ryan Longwell will be a very good kicker. Chris Kluwe should be a better than average punter.

It's almost impossible to tell whats gonna happen.
They were 9-7 last year, and it would be hard to argue that they haven't improved since then.
Then again, that 9-7 is misleading. The Bears didn't even try in the season finale (they had already clinched), and the Vikes clearly had no business winning a couple of those games (the Giants game leaps to mind).
Predicition: 9-7

2006 NFC North
Vikings 9-7
Bears 8-8
Lions 8-8
Packers 6-10

Wanted: Hitters

It's hard to blame the Twins pitching for their recent struggles.
Their gutty veteran (Brad Radke) and rookie phenom (Francisco Liriano) are both on the DL, forcing the team to rely on Boof Bonser, Scott Baker, Matt Garza and Carlos Silva (along with Cy Santana) to get them to the playoffs.
And yet, if the season ended today, they'd be in the playoffs, which is amazing.
The problem is the offense. They've gone cold.
It's been almost two weeks since they roughed up an opposing starter, even though Justin Verlander and Mark Buehrle are the only All-Star caliber pitchers they've faced in that time.
Darrel Rassner, Jae Seo, Tim Corcoran, Luke Hudson, and several other journeyman have had no trouble putting the Twins to bed lately.
Joe Mauer either walks or chops a three-hopper to second base every time, Justin Morneau isn't being given anything to hit, Nick Punto has apparently remembered that he's Nick Punto, and Torii Hunter appears to be cooling off.
With the pitching staff battling so many injuries, it's up to the offense to pick up the slack, and theyre not doing it.
*Carlos Silva apologized to his teammates for leaving Wednesday's start early.
*Francisco Liriano is scheduled to pitch in a minor league playoff game Saturday. If all goes well, he could rejoin the Twins rotation Sept. 14.

Here, you take it

If there's anything worse for a pitcher than sucking, it's not wanting the ball.
After mysteriously taking himself out of a start early for the third time this year, this time in the middle of a one-hitter, it looks like that may be the case with Carlos Silva.
He was cruising against Tampa Bay, needing just 59 pitches to get through six innings, when he refused to go out for the 7th because of a stomach ache.
Silva didnt seem to think it was a big deal, citing the Twins strong bullpen. But that just makes it sound like he wanted to pass the buck onto someone else in a 1-0 game. I doubt that he would've asked out if the score had been 9-0.
It was clear from the post-game comments of Gardy and Rick Anderson (Andy in particular) that the team felt betrayed by Silva's bail-out move.
Wednesday's strong start notwithstanding, it's been a miserable year for Silva, and the fact that he's becoming something of a head case makes it seem very possible, maybe even likely, that the Twins will look to trade him this off-season.
They've already traded Kyle Lohse, and Brad Radke is probably going to retire, so it might seem risky to trade yet 200-inning guy.
But the emergence of Boof Bonser, not to mention the raw talent that's evident in Matt Garza, Scott Baker and others, makes Silva more than expendable.
The Twins won 2 of 3 from Tampa, and considering they'd beat them 14 times in a row, they were probably due for a loss. But its still a tough loss. Detroit comes to town now, and we're not exactly throwing a bunch of aces at them.
*Good news, though. Liriano will be back. Perhaps as early as Sept. 14.
*Bert Blyleven has been suspended an additional 3 games by the Twins for saying fuck twice on Sunday. (I insist on writing out 'fuck' since every newspaper in America apparently thinks that we're all a bunch of kindergartners.) The additional suspension means that Bert will not be fired.
And I'm glad. As much as I hate his goddamn telestrator, I like Bert.