As if the Twins' 13-1 loss to complete a sweep at the hands of the Blue Jays wasn't enough, they followed that up with a 10-4 stinker to open a crucial series in Cleveland.
At the conclusion of that game, even the Twins players sounded less than optimistic about the chances of a turnaround, and the task for the next two games became less about actually winning and more about simply ending a run of "embarrassing" play, as Ron Gardenhire accurately described things.
They accomplished that thanks to a pair of dominant pitching performances by Johan Santana and Matt Garza, and won both games to boot (though the continued offensive struggles meant that neither Santana, who flirted with a no-hitter and fanned 12 in 7 innings, or Garza, who K'd 11 in 6, earned a W).
It's a credit to Gardy that the Twins were able to do that, even if a lot of luck was involved.
I rip on Gardy a lot, and don't apologize for it, because he flat out does dumb stuff...alot.
But managing in the big leagues is a lot different than coaching in the NFL or NBA. The most important part of the job is keeping the players "loose" or whatever other kind of cliche you want to use to describe it. Finding a way to get the team playing well in the worst of circumstances.
Gardy, somehow, is really good at that. In my mind he deserves the credit for these last two wins.
Him and Jason Tyner, of course.
There was absolutely no reason for anyone in the Twins clubhouse to smile on Saturday, until Tyner ended his homerless streak of 1,220 at-bats. It was like the one thing that could've happened in which the players could let loose a little without feeling guilty about it.
Congrats to Tyner on the homer, by the way.
He's a likable, scrappy player, but hitting .270 with no power, little speed and average-at-best defense, this might be his last stint in the big leagues, so his time was running out.
The tough thing is, winning the series probably just complicates things for the Twins. I still think it's too late for them to make a run, if for no other reason than that if even if they do, the teams ahead of them don't look ready to give up ground. Remember last year when the Twins won like 17 of 18 in June and gained 1 game?
For the Twins to get in the race, they need to play .700 ball or thereabouts, and get help in the form of losing from Cleveland, Seattle and the Yankees (Tigers, too, if you still think the AL Central is a possibility, which I don't).
So now the Twins might be inclined to hold on to Luis Castillo, Carlos Silva, Jeff Cirillo and Juan Rincon, player's I think they should be shopping.
The Mets are supposed to be hard after Castillo, while Silva could actually be one of the best starters available at the deadline.
It would be silly to hold onto those guys only to finish 10 games out of the race, and then let them walk for nothing after the season.
Speaking of trades, Ty Wigginton, hitting .275 with 16 homers after hitting .275 with 24 homers last year, was sent to Houston for Dan Wheeler.
Dan Wheeler. 1-4, 5.07 ERA.
Wigginton, a 3B/2B who makes all of $2.7 million, would of course be a tremendous upgrade over Nick Punto, and all it took to get him was a mediocre reliever.
There were reports that the Twins weren't likely to land him because Tampa was asking too much. Garza's name was mentioned as a possible asking price.
It's now clear that that was bullshit, and the Twins are left with their dick in their hand (Punto, that is).
To make room for Wigginton, the Astros designated Morgan Ensberg for assignment. Ensberg was one the best 3B in the game two years ago - hitting 36 homers, but hurt himself diving for a ball last year and he hasn't been the same since.
That pretty much means he's right up the Twins alley. He'd be an upgrade over Punto I suppose, but that isn't saying much.
10 comments:
Zim, you seriously have a hater on the Argus forums! This is perhaps the most priceless thing ever on argusleader.com!
"I think Zimmer needs to lay off whatever Michael Mann was on and start writing real stories. What do you think Rock? I swear i saw Zimmer coming outside of Anabelles with Storm colored dildos so hes already took my advice to go f himself"
Tyner's homerun measured in at just a shade over 530' (projected). The pitch jammed him a bit, but he was still able to muscle it out. Imagine how far that ball travels if Tyner hits it on the screws.
Poor Morneau. He cost Santana the win and maybe the no hitter. His error extended the inning, resulting in the first Indians hit. I've said it 100 times. Morneau just isn't a very good ball player.
RonDL is hitting .154 on the year now. He's definately the bat the Twins were waiting to get back into the line-up. Scrappy Nick Punto raised his avg. to .213 now. Poor Terry Ryan just didn't want to offer Juan Rincon up for Ty Wiggington. Good job Mr. Ryan. Maybe by the end of the year, Punto can get the average up to .220 to make you happy.
Mauer takes more c**k shots down the middle than anyone in the league. Why not swing at them, and maybe hit them?
Seriously, who hasn't probed himself with a Storm colored dildo?
Strib is reporting the Twins have a deal in place to send Castillo to the Mets for two minor-leaguers.
By the way, SI.com is also reporting the Wolves are trading KG to the Celtics for Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Theo Ratliff, Sebastian Telfair and possibly a couple first round picks.
Sounds like a good deal for the Wolves, but it's still sad.
Sad.
What am I supposed to do with my Garnett bobble head?
Great. Just what the Twins need. So is Terry Ryan giving up, or is he hoping that Punto will slide in at 2nd base and carry the team on his back?
Dare we say, "Tyner's the man"? His production blows RonDL out of the water, and he's much cheaper.
Next call: Silva and Rincon to the Rockies for their 3rd Baseman. (don't remember his name)
Zimm - I too wish we could pick up a stick so Gardy didn't have to look down the bench at the Bad News Bears when he is looking for one good hit in the 7th, but I think we aren't out of it yet. We get Cuddy back on Friday, and Tyner is batting about .400 this week and hit for a pirhana cycle tonight (those little fish can't reach the wall). Plan to be there screaming them to victory on Sunday, at which point we will be baout 3 games out of the wild card - get you a brewski.
PS Gardy looked and sounded depressed during the post-game interview, in spite of the win, over the loss of Louie-lou-I
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