Recently, my parents dropped a large box of old stuff they had been saving. This ranged from congratulations cards from when I was born, to athletic accomplishments to nearly every report card I've ever gotten (I've sorted the report cards, but I'm a little scared to go through them in detail). Two of my favorite items are ticket stubs from some of my favorite Twins games that I've had the privilege to attend.

Game 6, 1987 World Series

The 1987 World Series was the first time the Twins had made the playoffs in my lifetime. To say it was a big deal would an injustice to understatements. The entire state was all-in. Led by a 27 year-old Kirby Puckett, this was one of the most likable teams I've ever cheered for (another is the 2005 OSU football team). I remember watching Gary Gaetti hit two HR's in his first two at bats in the Division Series. I remember going to what seemed like a lot of games that year and always being amazed at Tim Laudner's throws to second. I'm convinced you could put a can of pepsi on the first bag side of second and Laudner would have knocked it over 100% of the time. That's the beauty of memories.

Other memories are watching Kent Hrbek hit a double during the year and my dad joking that they should put him in a wheelbarrow to run because it couldn't be any slower. As a 8 year old, that was the funniest thing I'd ever heard out of my old man's mouth. I also remember how Greg Gagne would crouch down like a frog before every pitch as his way to prepare for the ball. I remember mimicking this in the yard with my brother. I remember Juan Berenguer and how hard he threw. I still love playing RBI baseball from the original Nintendo and putting him in just to watch him throw 100 mph.
Anyway, I found the ticket stub. I still can't get over how amazing my parents were that they could score World Series tickets... and then to bring their 8 year old who was crazy about baseball. Just incredible.

What I remember about the game was that I was sitting next to some St. Louis Cardinals fans, which annoyed me and I remember the game being in doubt until Don Baylor hit a HR and then Kent Hrbek hit a grand slam (note: no wheelbarrow required when you park it). I remember how amazing it was to have 55,000+ people waiving their Homer Hanky. Could you imagine a World Series ticket for $30 today. Crazy.



1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - -
Cardinals 1 1 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 5 11 2
Twins 2 0 0 0 4 4 0 1 X 11 15 0

Saturday, October 24, 1987 1:00
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
Attendance: 55,293, Time of Game: 3:04



Random Game in Baltimore, 1988

Every year my mom went to Washington D.C. for some meeting or convention. I remember a few years prior to 1988 my brother got to go with her. 1988 was my turn. I'm sure she took me to some of the sights and monuments, but the only thing I remember about that trip was a trip to Baltimore to watch the Orioles, who were ironically playing the Twins. Now my mom is an absolute saint. She is absolutely brilliant in everything she does with the notable exceptions of sports and technology. For instance, last Christmas we bought her a Garmin GPS unit because she was always having to print directions and whatnot. A full year later, the Garmin is still unused in the packaging. My brother got her a smart phone and somehow she set the language to Italian so she can't text. I wish I was making this up.

Regardless, her other shortcoming is with sports. She has always been amazing and attended countless baseball and hockey games. Most of the time, she would bring a book and then pay attention when I was up to bat, but it was always awesome having her there. So this takes us to Baltimore. I remember getting to the stadium and my mom was going to buy tickets, but she had no idea what tickets were good so she walked up to one of the ushers outside the stadium and said "What would be good tickets to buy for today's game?" And I remember this next part clear as day, he looked at my mom and I, reached in his shirt pocket, pulled out two tickets and said "These tickets are excellent" and gave them to my mom. Sometimes People are amazing. I know I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for Baltimore because of that one individual.

The tickets were right behind home. I remember Kent Hrbek (he's everywhere in this blog post) hitting what I thought were two hr's (after looking up the box score, it was only one). We left before the game was decided, but I still remember it like it was yesterday.



Ironically, Les Straker was the starting pitcher at both games.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Twins 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 3 11 1
Orioles 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 4 6 0

Wednesday, May 4, 1988, 7:35
Memorial Stadium
Attendance: 12,325, Time of Game: 3:28

This blog originally posted at http://takesallkinds.wordpress.com

My dad wrote a fiction book centered around the Twins - Check it out on Amazon, only .99 cents -http://www.amazon.com/Mr-Base-Man-eb...7960681&sr=8-1

Living in Ohio, the only time I got to see the Twins play (in person or live) was when they played the Indians. This year everything changed when I purchased the MLB.tv package. Now I can watch every game. I get to watch and listen to all of Mauer's professional at bats... Pavano's stache in high definition.... the cheerful ramblings of Bert.... and of course our wonderful pitching staff.

One thing that bothers me whenever I watch, is how sad Anthony Swarzak looks whenever he's pitching or on camera... Because of this, I have put together a list of things that could make Anthony Swarzak happy (other than being traded to a contending team):


1. A Unicorn Jumping Over a Rainbow





2. ALF - Hey, it was very popular in the 80's. For the Sabermetric folks, ALF topped out as the #10 watched show in 1987/1988





3. Pie - It's far superior to cake... you'll never find a birthday party that served pie with leftovers (you will with cake).





4. Puppies





5. The fact that he's making $487,000 this year....





Smile Anthony, you're making watching the Twins harder than it already is.



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My Dad wrote a fiction book centered around the Twins titled "Mr. Base Man" - Check it out on Amazon, only .99 cents - http://www.amazon.com/Mr-Base-Man-eb...7960681&sr=8-1

I have always been a huge Twins fan. When I moved away from Minnesota in the 5th grade, the Twins were my way of maintaining my connection to home. My earliest memories are getting the chocolate ice cream at the Metrodome that was served with a wooden spoon. It was a privilege to watch Kirby Puckett, one of the greatest players of the generation, roam center field. I couldn't imagine going to a game to boo the best player on the field, which is exactly what is happening in Minnesota with Joe Mauer.




Let's Talk About That Contract


Mauer isn't the first Twin to have a major contract. Going into the 1990 season, Kirby Puckett signed the richest baseball contract ever (3 years, $9 million, $2,816,667 in 1990). The total Twins payroll that year was $14,602,000. This means Kirby accounted for 19.29% of the Twins payroll. Obviously, this is a lot to dedicate to one player, but when you have a player with the talent and charisma like Kirby, it's worth the risk. I lived in Minnesota at the time and I never heard a fraction of the outrage at Kirby that Mauer gets.


Now let's compare Mauer. In the first year of Joe Mauer's contract (2011), his salary was $23,000,000 on a team with a total payroll of $113,237,000. This represents 20.31% of the teams total salary. Given historical context, the Mauer contract is statistically no different than the Puckett contract (19.29% vs. 20.31%). Booing Mauer because of this is a fan's right, but given the history of the Twins and superstars, it seems extremely misguided.


Mauer is on pace to be one of the greatest catchers ever.


People like to complain about Mauer's HR totals, but that's only a small part of the equation. Did you know that according to mlb.com, if Mauer retired today, he would have the highest batting average of all time for a catcher and second all-time for on-base percentage? That's amazing. Furthermore, Mauer is only the third catcher ever to win a batting title and the only catcher in the American League to accomplish that. On top of the hitting, he is also a 3-time gold glove winner at the most demanding position on the field.


It's not out of the realm of possibilities for Mauer to retire as the greatest catcher of all-time. Imagine if the Reds fans boo'd Johnny Bench or the Yankees boo'd Yogi Berra. It would be an embarrassment. I understand the frustration with Mauer being injured the last few years, however, Mauer has played in 29 out of 30 games this year so that shouldn't be a factor. It's time fans start appreciating the outstanding aspects of his game.

He's From Minnesota. He's one of our Own.


I currently live in Columbus, OH, home to The Ohio State University. Each time a native Ohioian suits up for the Buckeyes, there is an added amount of pride for that player knowing that he could have gone anywhere, but he choose to play for his home state. The same is true for Mauer. Mauer could have easily taken the money and played for Boston or New York. Instead, he chose to stay close to family and play for his hometown team.

Let's look at this from a purely financial aspect, think of the added tax money Mauer is contributing to the state. At the current rate (7.85% for a high earning single filer), Mauer contributes around $1.8 million dollars a year directly to Minnesota. I don't know about you, but I know that I didn't contribute that much last year.


Additionally, Mauer is the present and future of the Twins. The Twins (for better or worse) have gone all-in on Mauer. His contract runs until 2018. If the Twins are going to succeed, Mauer will be a big part of the reason why. Booing a player this will be on your favorite team for the next 6-7 years doesn't seem like the greatest idea.


If You're Adamant to Boo, Here are Some Better Options


Scott Ullger - I'm still bitter from an Indians game I was at a few years back when he held the go-ahead run on third when he could have scored easily (http://www.baseball-reference.com/bo...00809160.shtml)


Justin Morneau - Aside from the concussion, here are some of the injuries since 2009: Stress Fracture in his Back, Sore Wrist, Pinched Nerve, Bruised Foot, Left Shoulder and whatever he's currently on the DL for.


The Twins Medical Staff - See Morneau, Justin for a small example of their work.


Alexi Casilla - I'll give you three sets of stats, you pick which player you would rather have.....


Avg/OBP/OPS
Player 1 - .252/.308/.643
Player 2 - .248/.325/.650
Player 3 - .257/.303/.681


Player 1 is Alexi, Player 2 is Nick Punto and Player 3 is Luis Rivas.... so when you compare those numbers, Alexi Casilla is inferior to Luis Rivas... if anyone deserves booing....


I understand there is a lot of frustration with the Twins this year, and rightfully so, but my hope is that the great people of Minnesota come to realize what an amazing player they have on their team and start to fully appreciate all the things that he brings to the table, instead of focusing on the few things that he doesn't.


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1990 - Kirby Puckett and Twins Salary Information - http://www.nytimes.com/1991/10/14/sp...-rich-man.html
Historical Twins Salary Information - http://twinstrivia.com/salaries-2/
The Ohio State University is one of two universities to have 'The' as part of the official title. The other is 'The Citadel'
Minnesota Tax Rate - http://www.bankrate.com/finance/taxe...minnesota.aspx

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My father wrote a fiction book centered around the Twins - Check it out on Amazon, only .99 cents - http://www.amazon.com/Mr-Base-Man-eb...7960681&sr=8-1

So if Jamie Moyer played for the Twins this year, at this point he would:

Have the lowest ERA of any starter
Be 3rd on the team in K's
Be 2nd in innings pitched
Be 3rd in wins among starting pitchers (with 1)

Sigh