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This is the 3rd story in "Those Damn Yankees" series, stories about Twins-Yankees rivalry by some of our favorite Twins Daily writers, leading up to the Bombers visit July 1st to the 4th.

Psst. You there. Yeah, you in the Twins hat and Joe Mauer shirsey. Put down that plush TC bear, I have a secret that I can't hold in any longer. This is very hard for me to say. I've been thinking about it for a long time and I've felt this way even longer. I can't hold it in; I need to confess to someone. I'm trusting you to keep my secret, but it won't be easy. Are you ready?

I don't hate the Yankees. ...

The middle of June has come and gone and there is no sign of Kyle Gibson in the Twin Cities.

Teams like the Rays and the Mets are calling up top prospects like Wil Myers and Zack Wheeler because the deadline has passed for players to qualify for Super Two status. This means the Rays and Mets can control these high level players for a big chunk of the next decade.

Gibson has a different story than other players. The former first round pick entered the Twins system with three years of college experience. In 2010, his allowed him to move through the organization at a fast pace. An elbow injury and Tommy John surgery were what slowed him on his way to the major leagues.
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It’s hard to ignore the numbers. They are pretty glaring. Overall this year, Minnesota Twins starter Mike Pelfrey is 3-6 with a 6.12 ERA in his first 13 starts. He’s allowing over 1.6 base runners per inning. It has been a tough go. In April, he posted a 7.66 ERA. In May, that number dropped to 5.90. Through two Quality Starts in June, he has posted a 4.05 ERA.

The numbers are bad, but it seemed to me from watching that things weren’t quite as bad as they seemed. For instance, in his final two starts in May, he was good through five innings. On May 26, he had given up just two runs through five innings before giving up three in the sixth, giving him a final line of five runs in 5+ innings. On May 31, he threw five shutout innings before giving up three runs in the sixth. ...

Looking to get back on track after a disappointing series against the Tigers, the Twins and White Sox square off in a three game battle royale for sole possession of the American League Central cellar.

The Twins will miss Jake Peavy (15 Day DL) but get the chance to face Chris Sale in game two of the series. Sale has had a stellar season for the South Siders, striking out a batter per inning while keeping opponents' Batting Average under the Mendoza line for the season. Countering for the Twins are Pelfrey, Correia, and Diamond.

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The Twins dropped two of three from the Tigers this weekend, falling to 7.5 games out of a division that they were never going to win. While the Twins have played better in 2013, they still do not have the talent to match the Tigers over a full season. Yet, there were some positives from the weekend and I have some apologies to make as well.

I apologize to Clete Thomas. Just one week ago, I accused a wild turkey of creating a lineup that featured Clete Thomas batting second.While I still feel that Thomas in the top half of an order is a move made out of desperation, it hasn't been a disaster because Thomas isn't as terrible as I made him out to be. He strikes out a lot and he doesn't walk, but he can hit the ball and he plays a solid center field. Clete, I don't despise you. Unless he takes at-bats from Aaron Hicks when Hicks is healthy. Then, I lose it.
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Love 'em or hate 'em, the Yankees are headed to town in the beginning of July. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the first of four Twins postseason defeats at the hands of the Bronx Bombers, so we thought we'd take the opportunity to look back at what has been a lopsided -- but always entertaining and memorable -- rivalry between the two franchises. Over the next couple weeks leading up to the Yankees series at Target Field, various writers here at Twins Daily will look back at some of the Yankee moments that stick out in our minds.
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