A Fond Farewell

I was amazed yesterday when the Twins actually pulled through for a win. It wasn't easy (which it should have been. Again, I stress...it was Seattle that we were playing Oy!) "Everyday Eddie" looked like he caught the Rincon bug, until Denard Span made a Cuddy play and got the runner out at home. Denard, I am very proud of you. I know you are trying to make me, and everyone else, forget about Michael Cuddyer, but I'm sorry I won't! I do miss Cuddy, but I do also like Denard. It can't hurt to have another amazing arm in the outfield.

I have pictures as promised...I figured we needed a tribute to the addition, and the two losses.

We'll start with the positive first...the addition:

Everyday Eddie...well maybe not "everyday" yesterday.

Now...we count our losses.

Mark Hamburger. I will honestly miss you. I've never personally known anyone who got traded, until now. Tell Josh Hamilton hello! Ooh..and CJ! Hmm...maybe my pull with a baseball player can land me CJ now. Pondering that.

Mike Lamb. Most of the time I did like you. Sorry things didn't work out.

I'm happy that Glen has become a great starting pitcher this year. Especially with having to start the year in Rochester (AAA) and having to cling on to your roster spot when other pitchers got healty to play again. Thank you for not sucking and for the win yesterday. We needed the ego boost. I can't stress enough that it was only Seattle that you boys were playing. I'm glad we could at least take ONE game. But please, Brian Buscher, don't look SO excited. When you beat the White Sox again, this kind of excitement is required. But for now...simmer down a little, please. You're just annoying me.

Boy Losing is Depressing!

Okay so I've been on a major blogging low. Partly because of the Twins losing 4 in a row (before today) and also because of Everday Eddie coming back. I like that we got him back, don't get me wrong...but I'm actually sad about who they gave up to get him. I know Mark Hamburger so it's very bittersweet return of Eddie for me!

I'm hoping Perks can pull through for us today and not make us look like the young team that we are, but rather the team that doesn't lose to the lowest teams and doesn't want to be in a penant race. Boys, I'd like to see you win the division this year...especially after everyone thought you'd be where the Royals are right now. Wins!! That is all I am going to accept from now on!

I'll try to get on again tomorrow and write about todays game. I'm hopeful to report a win, but who knows! Pictures will come soon too! I promise. For now I will bid you all farewell and a fond farewell to Mr. Mike Lamb! I will miss you (occasionally).

It Had to Be Bass

I am a little disappointed that the Twins outrighted Brian Bass to make room for Casilla. I want Casilla back, but I don't really want to lose Brian Bass. WE NEED BULLPEN HELP, and they get rid of a bullpen guy. It's not like he's faired like Matty has lately (don't get me wrong, I love Matty G.) So now, we have to go for 12 days with only 11 guys in the bullpen. I know that they have options on the 40-man roster to call guys up when the rosters expand on September 1st. Here are their options: Julio DePaula, Philip Humber, BOBBY KORECKY, Jose Mijares, and Oswald Sosa. Other than Korecky, who is any good? Who have we had a chance to see in the major league? NO ONE! Wow, great plan Bill Smith. Great plan. (Oh and even if Brian Bass accepts the outrighted assignment to Triple-A, he's not on the 40-man roster.)

So we won again yesterday, which at some points in time in the game, was a bit surprising! Liriano wasn't up to snuff, and seemed a bit shaky. A lot of balls (no pun intended) were thrown, and he couldn't make it past the 5th inning because he had already thrown 100 pitches. Sure, we had the defense (minus the 2 errors), but shouldn't this "star" be able to get people out faster than he was? I know, I know, everyone has their bad days...but everyone kept wanting Liriano back because he's such a superstar. I'm still waiting to see that. He still needs to win me over.

Share the Love!

Okay, so I'm all for winning! I love the win we got last night. What a way to look absolutely amazing! I was very proud of Kevin for getting a career high 12-strikeouts. He was on fire! They were talking on the radio that if Gardy kept Slowey in for the 8th and 9th, that he could possibly blow Santana's high record out of the water. Too bad Gardy wasn't listening to Dazzle and John. I would have liked to have seen Kevin demolish the 17 strikeout record.

But as I sat listening to the game, I couldn't help but think to myself: How is it that we can pummel the A's for 13 runs tonight, but yet last night (Monday) we couldn't manage to do any more damage than 2 runs? Was it because Adam Everett played in that game (most anyway)? Was it because Delmon Young played in that game (pretty sure he did anyway)? I'm not sure, but whatever it was, they need to not repeat that mistake for today's final of the series against Oakland (here).

I was reading today how Casilla is likely to come off the DL either in time for today's game or for the 14-game road trip that starts tomorrow in Anaheim. Who will the Twins demote in order to make room?? Do you get rid of Randy Ruiz, who has been on fire? WHY WOULD YOU WANT TO DO THAT?
My vote: Adam Everett. Place him on waivers again, and set him for an assignment with Triple-A, or just flat out release him. It will benefit you in the long run. Punto and Brendan can share the love at shortstop. They both are exceptional at that position, plus (as sad as this is to say, but it is the truth), Nicky Punto is hitting better than Adam Everett anyway.

Adam Everett: .211
Mike Lamb: .236
Brendan Harris: .267
Nicky Punto: .275
Brian Buscher: .314
Randy Ruiz: .379

Seems clear to me who should go, and who should stay. Hell, Go-Gomez, who had (prior to the 2-run home run last night) had been on a 0-14 streak, is still even hitting .250.) Makes you wonder just how bad Adam Everett really is. (I do know that he had been out hurt for a while, and sucked big time before coming back. His average prior to coming back from the DL was .177.) I still vote for Everett.

I do know why the Twins lost on Monday night. To be completely honest, I forgot there was even a game on, until we turned on the TV and I go, oh yeah, I forgot the Twins were playing tonight. For that I am sorry boys. I vow to not forget about you guys again! (I'll try not to anyway). I turned it on though in the 8th inning, just before Denard Span got a hit, and they scored the two runs after I tuned in. Anyone else think that they may have won if I would have only tuned in sooner? I think so!

Okay now for some ridiculous fun... (captions below pictures)

Kubel and Buscher share an intimate moment...moments before their first kiss...
Honestly, I think this is the first time I've really seen Brian Bass smile. He has potential to be kinda cute. I feel dirty saying that.

Hail the Conquering Kubel

Oh Jason Kubel. I've never been his biggest fan, I don't really understand his appeal in my cousins eye. (She for some reason think he's cute.) But I will give HUGE props to Kubes for the needed 2-run shot yesterday and then the RBI double that allowed the Twins to tie the game (that I might add, the Twins were killing the Mariners in earlier in the game and I about cried when Seattle got the go-ahead run). I was so happy the boys could finally give Timmy some run support and kick Seattle's ass! :)

I can't wait for tomorrow's sweep of Seattle and the Navy jerseys being on non-cable channels for people like me to enjoy! Glen? You never seem to let me down and I know how much you like winning in the navy too! Go Glen!

Not much else to talk about...would have liked to have seen the double play Nicky Punto turned because it sounded like it was pretty spectacular...but if it was, it'll probably be on the highlight reels too!

All for now.

Chief...we're (not) sorry...

Okay, so I do feel a little bad for Carlos "Chief" Silva...he's got a record of like 4-13. Ouch...it's gotta hurt. He recently ripped up his teammates for sucking, but really no one made any bad plays on Seattle tonight...and the costly 2 runs that we scored were off a homerun by Kubel that Silva gave up. Sorry, Chief, but you can't blame anyone but yourself for that one.

I think we beat Seattle like we should be beating Seattle 9-3. It's only right to kill one of the worst teams in baseball. Everyone but Go-gomez got a hit tonight. Good job boys! I am very proud of you all! Boof and Brian Bass...good job! I am definitely proud of you too! You didn't screw us when we had such an awesome lead! :)

Okay no pictures because this is from my sidekick. I'll try to get on tomorrow with updates when "Timmy" Scott Baker faces against Seattle tomorrow afternoon! Please boys, give Timmy a lot of run support! I know you can do it! I have faith in you. So does Timmy.

Bonus Video...in honor of Baseball Unplugged tonight...

Yes, It's only a small snippet of them singing, but still well worth it.

Get The SUCK Out, Matty G!

Yes, Matty, we are as disappointed in the loss as you are. What happened to you? Did you feel like you needed to step into the shoes of Juan Rincon when he left us? I'm here to tell you, no, you do not need to fill the crap shoes. Let Boof or Brian Bass do that. They are capable of screwing things up.

The positive of last night: Giving Mariano Rivera, the closer with the best record this year, his first blown save, when Delmon Young hit an amazing (nearly foul) 3-run homerun to tie the game at 6. I about peed my pants when I was driving in my car. I think if anyone was watching me in the car(s) next to me on I-94, they would have thought I was "special" or worse. I was screaming and super excited. Had to even call to tell my mother she shouldn't have turned the game off because of what happened. I was all positive and thinking we would get a win out of this crap game after all. I was so hopeful, and then A-Rod came up in the 12th against Matty Guerrier. Poor Matty, he never saw that one coming.
Seriously, Gardy, after Matty gave up the go-ahead homerun blast by A-Rod, why didn't we see someone else come into the game? We may have felt we still had a fighting chance if we would have only had to make up 1 run...but 3?!? That's asking a awful lot of the boys. They already pulled that string in the game earlier.

I was a little depressed today when I looked at the Twins' site. The headline of an article read "Everett emerging as Twins shortstop". I'm sorry, I'm not a huge fan of Adam Everett. I liked the idea of Brendan Harris at shortstop. He was finally gaining confidence, and he was playing really well. Just because Adam Everett comes back and realizes that he sucks and no one likes him, so he needs to get hits and make good defensive plays, doesn't mean I want to keep him. I still vote for him to be shipped off somewhere other than MN. Even if Casilla isn't back...maybe the Twins need to recall Bobby Korecky, and give their bullpen a little extra cushion while Casilla is still on the DL. It seems like a smarter option. We still have options of players to use...Lamb, Harris, and Ruiz. Why do we need Everett?!
I will admit that he has been getting some timely RBI's in the past few games, but I don't know if it's enough to win me over. (Well I know it's not enough.) How does Gardy know that Brendan Harris couldn't have pulled off those RBI's? Did he give him a shot? NOPE.

So in other Twins news (non-game related): Brendan Harris, Brian Buscher are guests at Baseball Unplugged with Cuddy tonight. As much as I would love to go see Cuddy (cause I'm missing him so), I don't think I would want the embarrassment that would go along with running into Brendan Harris again...(me nearly spilling beer on him last Baseball Unplugged). I could live with the teasing, honestly I could, but I don't think my face would show so...I have a feeling I would turn bright red, and then have the possibility of repeating my klutz moments all over again. I am going to have to pass on this one. I'll miss the entertainment, plus it would have been nice to met Brian Buscher, but he will just have to wait. Next time, Brian Buscher! Next time.

TODAY: Kevin Slowey faces off against the Bronx bombers at 12:10. I'll try to get some updates on here as the game progresses. Kevin, I WANT A WIN. I WANT YOU BOYS TO WIN THE SERIES AND HAVE A SHOT AT GETTING BACK INTO FIRST!! YOU KNOW YOU LIKE FIRST PLACE!

FYI to everyone: I'm sick of the teeter-tottering that the Twins are doing with first place (in our division). I'm beginning to wonder if they really like winning...

Thank You Boston!

Dear Boston Red Sox,

Thanks...

for beating Chicago White Sox last night, and with our win, allowing us to come back into first place in our division. I know we screwed it up last time we had first, but this time we promise to be more careful with the division lead than we were on Sunday. It would have been nice if you could have won on Sunday so that we could have kept our lead, but we understand that you didn't want to get any further ahead on the Wild Card standings just in case we have to beat you out for that.

Thanks,

MN Twins

(specifically Adam Everett)

I was so happy on Friday night when Kevin Slowey got the win...although he got a little shaky in the 6th inning, Breslow was able to come in a save that inning (granted he only needed 1 out). I was happy when my not-so-favorite Twins pitcher Francisco Liriano came in to knock out KC and get a win...and the division lead. Only to have Adam Everett be Adam Everett on Sunday and suck, making a bad play that ended up being really costly, and also Mike Lamb who fielded a ball instead of covering his base like he should have. That was the moment I found myself saying "yep, you're definitely a third baseman, not Justin Morneau."

And even though I didn't get to watch a good portion of the game last night thanks to Monday Night Football (I know, it's preseason...tell the boys who have the cable this), I still got to see the great highlights and the fact that we won, while wearing the Navy jerseys I might add, and Glen Perkins can definitely be a proud papa! Thanks also to Alicia for giving birth just when we needed to pull through for a win...it gave Glen the extra oompf to take out the Yankees and blank them throughout the game. We appreciate you're help.

I have also figured out why Craig Breslow took the loss on Sunday...take a close look yourself...you'll see that there is some crap growing on his face that he should get rid of. And quickly. Craig, you are not Joe Mauer. You do not look hot with facial hair. Get rid of it!

Survival of the Fittest

A big congratulations goes out to Mr. Nick Blackburn for being the Burn to survive in yesterdays game. I knew he had it in him. To be quite honest, I listened to the part of the game that was on during my time at work (so until 5pm) and then in my 5 minute drive home I forgot about the game, and didn't remember again about it until they were in the bottom of the 8th inning (almost the end of the inning). I guess I couldn't put a whole lot of excitment in the win since it was against Seattle, and we still had to put up quite a fight to get that win. Kind of sad boys.
Boys, maybe you should rent a couple chick flicks and have a good cry. Chick flicks are good mood shifters. They make you sad when you're happy, and lonely when you're sad...and ultra happy when your happy. It's great! Get a good cry in, and then be ready to take on KC tomorrow.
You don't need to play MN nice with KC. Remember they got 2 games out of three against Chicago (thankfully!) and they also won 1 against Boston. We can't do anything about them being 11.5 games behind. They are not going to bring that up enough to matter to anything, so we might as well beat them. It's the MN nice thing to do. Be hungry for those wins and for crying out loud...give Kevin Slowey some run support so that he can get another win! You all know that he has a problem with those long balls. SUPPORT boys!

Okay, my rant is done for the day. I'm still crabby even after the win, but I won't vent any more.

OFF DAY today...maybe pictures or something fun tomorrow...who knows!

Meet the Burns

Blackburn vs. Washburn today. I don't know how much hope I have in the Twins to pull through with a win. I love my boys, don't get my wrong, but lately (at least the bullpen) is making me want to stick large pins under my fingernails. I think that would be more enjoyable than the losses we've suffered lately. The stats for the two starts are almost opposites...Blackburn 8-6, while Washburn is 5-10. It would appear to be an easy win, but nothing is easy in this series. Just when you think you have the upper hand, Gardy brings in the bullpen to blow us out of the water and destroy our chance.

Yes, Gardy, I am as upset as you are with our losses. STOP THE BLEEDING ALREADY! I read somewhere else (another blog) that they felt the Twins should get rid of Brian Bass, and bring up Korecky. I am all for bringing back Bobby Korecky. I like him; we're friends. I don't know if I am entirely in agreement about getting rid of Bass. I don't mind him all the time. Sometimes he makes me want to puke, but not nearly as much as a few others gone before him, and another who is still here. I'm sorry, Katie, I know Boof is your boyfriend...but some times, we just gotta let them go. I petition for Boof to be the one to go to make room for Korecky. Korecky is WAY more entertaining to watch in the bullpen than Boof. He at least does a potty dance.You may want to prepare yourself in case our wonderful Joe Mauer look-a-like, Nick Blackburn can not pull through for us and get the run support needed to not be swept by the Mariners. I think that would be more painful than Twins fans cheering for Boston or the Yankees when we play them.
I am in a crabby mood now just thinking of the craptastic losses we've encountered, wondering if I should even pull out my radio, dust it off, and listen to today's game (at 3:40pm). It will help pass the workday, but there is a slight chance it could put me in a worse mood than I already am in. I will debate this subject before 3:40 comes around. But for now, pug puppies for your enjoyment. They have the adorableness factor that the Twins are missing right now. Start winning again boys, and your adorableness may just increase exponentially!
How could you not love these little guys?!?! They are SO cute! The one is even sad about the Twins losing too. It'll be okay.

WTF and then some...

So I should start by telling all about Thursday night debacle, and the hat trick that got Gardy suspended for a game. It was complete and utter ridiculous fun! It's always entertaining to watch Gardy getting pissed off and fly his arms around while he over exaggerates all of his motions, but after seeing him kick his hat, inspiring others (in the stands) around him to throw their hats in their anger too. Funny. Hats were flying everywhere, and people were extremely loud with their boos (on the horrible call). Everyone was getting really into it. And then Ozzie Guillen had to act like a two-year old and storm on to the field telling his team to quickly come into the dugout. It was dangerous. I mean, gosh, I'd hate getting hit with a HAT too. (I know there were baseballs and a nerf football that got thrown onto the field too, but only hats by the time Ozzie took the players off.) It was such a buzz kill when the PA announcer started to let everyone know that if we didn't stop (I never actually participated, just kept shouting hate cheers and booing the White Sox), the Twins were going to be forced to forfeit the game. THANK GOD people stopped because we made another magnificent come from behind win to kick the White Sox when they were down. It's fun beating the White Sox. I enjoy it.
We had the crazy ladies next to us, and a couple crazies in front of us, but I LOVE sitting by them. Secretly I don't think their water bottles (Twins water bottles nonetheless) have water in them...and I'd like to ask them for a taste some day. They enjoyed the chants that we came up with..."Who hates AJ?" responding with "We hate AJ!" every time AJ was up to bat. Booing Nick Swisher until we were blue in the face...and then once we started our come back doing a cheer that went something like this..."Give me an A" "A" "Give me a N" "N" "Give me a "A" "A" "Give me an L" "L"..."What's that spell?" "Coming from behind!" Let me tell you...a lot of people busted out laughing when we busted out those cheers...a "teamwork" cheer was used, also a "score". They are fun cheers. If ever the game is lacking, they sure do make for good entertainment. (If anyone wants to know how the other two go, just ask!)

I was so optimistic when it came to Kevin Slowey's day for pitching...I thought nothing was going to take us off of the great high we had obtained...and then the long ball happened...not once, but twice. Poor Kevin. It's not his fault. It's Nick Swisher's. (I have no one else really to blame, and he seemed like a great candidate). It was completely unfortunate that none of our bats could answer back to give Kevin the win.

I about hurled when I saw that Francisco Liriano was wearing the crap cut-off jerseys on Sunday. I screamed at the TV and said "NO!" I thought for sure I would be rid of those blasted things when they out-righted Livan Hernandez...but no such luck. The garbage jersey remains a "staple" in our rotation. Be careful, Francisco...I don't want to fight with you. Look at what happened to Livan when I fought with him. Obviously I won that fight! Next time, please just wear the regular jerseys. I have no problems with them.

Last night is where my WTF was shouted out this morning about...I was watching the game before going to bed (I had to work this morning, so sleep was necessary...I figured it was Seattle...we could beat the worst team in baseball). Oh my...when I turned on Sports Center this morning to learn that the Twins lost...and not by like a run or two, but 11-6 I was floored. I was also shocked to see that Matty Guerrier was the one who gave up a lot of the runs (probably not all were earned runs for him however). It was appalling to lose to Seattle. Apparently Matty's "Minnesota nice" was way too big of a factor last night during the game. He felt bad for Seattle and how much they lose...and just said, "Okay, here, take the win. We really don't need it anyway. We'll just beat you tomorrow and we'll still be ahead of the Sox." Matty...WE NEED EVERY WIN!! ESPECIALLY THE ONES AGAINST CRAP TEAMS!!!!

I have decided that my friend Jules is bad luck. They are only 1-4 in the games she has went to. Not good odds. I don't think I can take my chances anymore...