Game Thread Yankees@Twins 7/3 7:10PM

[Riverbrian]

Today's Game Thread is posted early so I can get in the car and go for a drive with the Family. I'll be at the game tonight to watch the Tanaka/Hughes tilt and then it's off to Milwaukee for the 4th. I don't know what ChiTown has planned for the 4th but she will post the lineups later.

 

Game-time forecast: Partly cloudy. Winds blowing out to left field at 5-10 m.p.h. Temperature around 70.

 

YANKEES:

SP, Tanaka

 

Brett Gardner LF

Derek Jeter SS

Jacoby Ellsbury CF

Mark Teixeira 1B

Brian McCann C

Carlos Beltran DH

Ichiro Suzuki RF

Zelous Wheeler 3B

Brendan Ryan 2B

 

TWINS:

SP, Hughes

 

Brian Dozier 2B

Kurt Suzuki C

Chris Parmelee 1B

Kendrys Morales DH

Josh Willingham LF

Oswaldo Arcia RF

Trevor Plouffe 3B

Eduardo Escobar SS

Sam Fuld CF

 

------------------------------------------------

 

Things to Think About:

 

1. The Damn Yankees -- After the White Sox... The Yankees are my most hated team. I just hate the money and the Yankees have had money for a long time so I've had a long time to build up my hatred for them. I'd should hate all divisional foes more than the Yankees but only my blistering White Sox hate trumps the Yankees... The Tigers are up there... I've learned to hate them. The Indians and Royals... I just can't hate them... It would be like hating a goldfish. You just let them swim around and eventually you flush them down the toilet when the time comes. In case you are wondering... Here's my official list of most hated baseball teams. 1. White Sox. 2. Yankees 3. White Sox 4 Yankees and 5 Tigers. For all sports... It Would be 1. White Sox 2. Yankees 3. Packers 4. NDSU Bison and 5. White Sox.

 

2. Masahiro Tanaka -- I remember when Twins Daily was speculating about Twins interest in Tanaka. I had never seen him pitch but I saw the numbers he posted in Japan and I was able to compare and contrast with Yu Darvish and allowed myself to believe that Tanaka would be a pretty good get. The Baseball Gods spoke to me when the Yankees did not sign Robinson Cano. I just knew at that moment that the Yankees were going to spend the money to get Tanaka. I was right and here he is in pinstripes... Better than advertised thus far. 11-3 Record and 2.10 ERA as he walks into Target Field. He's 25 years old and was born in Itami Japan. If you like your Sake you can tip your cap to Itami Japan. Itami is the Milwaukee of Sake. I like the way that flows... Itami is the Milwaukee of Sake... Itami is the Milwaukee of Sake... Itami is the Milwaukee of Sake. I've been able to watch Tanaka at least 4 times this year because the Yankees are always on somewhere. Tanaka seems to locate everything he throws. All of his offerings are brilliant but his splitter is as nasty as I've seen. Better than Bruce Sutter or Mike Scott. Sutter may have been the first and the best but Sutter didn't have the other pitches that Tanaka has.

 

3. Chris Parmelee -- Parker has a nice write up posted on Chris Parmelee that is worth checking out. It pretty much confirms what I've been seeing with my own eyeballs. Chris Parmelee likes em low... and pitchers have had it drilled into their heads to keep it low. This combination should work out well for Chris Parmelee. It really hasn't until recently but it should work out for Chris. Because... and this may shock you... I think the baseball players are just like human beings. They ain't robots. They don't always put their homework in... They forget things and fall back into old habits... Just like the majority of your co-workers in the real world. Sometimes during games in July... They just get on the mound and throw the ball. Sometimes the batter just goes up to the plate without a good plan and take some routine hacks. If the Yankees or any team doesn't know that Parm likes em low... Parm can make them pay for it. If anyone is going to hit Tanaka today... My money would be on Parm. Unless the Yankees have done their homework.

 

4. Offense -- I don't know how many people agree with me and it really doesn't matter because I believe in my heart... deep down. The best baseball teams are constructed with a balance of speed and power. Power can go away for stretches and when that happens you need a little speed to create some runs. The best teams can beat you in multiple ways. The Twins in my opinion are built as a power team and the power isn't there and when it isn't there... You're stuck and the Twins are currently stuck. I've watched the White Sox and Tigers load up with the big sticks and not get the job done. I'd really like to see the Twins add some speed to this lineup for better balance. OPS be damned... Just add a couple of guys who can run and take the extra base for 2015. For the rest of the 2014... I'm afraid we will have to wait for 3 run homers to come back or well timed errors from our opponents.

 

5. Road Trips -- I absolutely love Road Trips... When I (If I ever) retire... There is no doubt that I'm a potential RV owner. A vacation to me isn't spent flying to Epcot. That doesn't interest me at all. I like the open road and I would rather spend a day in Terre Haute Indiana for no reason at all and then drive to Huntsville Alabama and spend a day there for no reason at all. To me that is a vacation. Flying to Cancun to look at the same beach for a week doesn't excite me much. Unfortunately... my family doesn't share this same passion. I drive somewhere for fun... They drive somewhere out of necessity because that's how you get there. With that said... I'm on my way to Milwaukee for the 4th... My two sons will be renamed Rusty and Audrey for the duration of the trip. My Youngest son Aaron probably won't like be called Audrey but that's just tough.

[Halsey Hall]

Have a nice trip. This should be a fun series, and I think it ends in a split. Tonights game is should well be worth the price of admission.

[diehardtwinsfan]

If you make your way down through Indy, send me a PM...

[stringer bell]

Thanks Bri. I really agree with you about speed. All season, I've said the Twins offense will depend on how many guys are on when they hit big flies. Lately, they haven't been hitting them, so they are really crippled to score.

 

Further, while speed doesn't exactly equal range, more swift guys in the field are more likely to cover more ground. The Twins outfield defense is poor mostly because they are slow and that bites them all the time.

[Squirrel]

 

 

1. The Damn Yankees -- After the White Sox... The Yankees are my most hated team.

 

Really? You don't think the Yankees are hated more? I certainly do. Do others dislike the Yankees or White Sox more?

[ericchri]

I may not represent everyone here, but I think most Bison fans have reached a point of indifference to the UND We-Don't-Have-A-Mascot-Anymore. Maybe if we actually play again in some sport someday, but at this point I'd doubt the hatred really engenders much passion anymore outside of nostalgia.

 

Personally, White Sox, then Yankees, definitely. I even have a hard time utterly hating the Tigers anymore, and I mostly feel sorry for KC and Cleveland. The Lakers and Cowboys would rate much higher on any overall hatred list than anyone but the White Sox and Yankees, and I'd have thrown the Miami Heat on the list except I have no idea if I'll still have reason to hate them in the near future.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Really? You don't think the Yankees are hated more? I certainly do. Do others dislike the Yankees or White Sox more?

 

Yankees, no question. White Sox is a "fun" hate, like an annoying cousin you like to compete with at a family picnic. (Same for our Central Division rival du jour.)

 

Yankees are like an invading army. Even when we win, it feels like we lost something, just by fighting the war.

[Longdistancetwins]

Really? You don't think the Yankees are hated more? I certainly do. Do others dislike the Yankees or White Sox more?

 

Nah, I don't hate the White Sox. First of all, when Ozzie managed them, he gave us all sorts of compliments, "piranhas," and all that. One of my good friends and weekly tennis partner is a devout ChiSox fan; like me, it goes back to childhood and has always been a long distance affair. We have more in common than separates us. I was happy for him when they finally won in '05. No, we don't watch crucial games together, but I still remember the time he called me rather late to tell me that Liriano was working on a no-hitter for the Twins in the 9th, and he put the phone to his computer so I could listen.

[kdrupp09]

I have to agree with Brian, I hate the White Sox, see what I did there, more than anything, except possibly those Cheeseheads in Green Bay. My top 5 for all sports would be 1. White Sox 2. Packers 3. Yankees 4. Red Sox 5. Tigers

 

I agree with the hating the money thought clearly....Yankees money, Red Sox money, Tigers money. Sensing a pattern yet?

[Craig Arko]

It's a good rivalry with the White Sox, but I reserve actual scorn for the Yankees and the Cowboys.

[Winston Smith]

I'm a flower child of the 60's, peace and love no hate allowed!

 

http://www.theminimalists.com/files/2011/11/Hippie.jpg

[ashbury]

With that said... I'm on my way to Milwaukee for the 4th...

 

I'm with you completely on driving versus flying. Delay the arrival as long as possible, force the departure early... given that it's Milwaukee.

[JB_Iowa]

5. Road Trips -- I absolutely love Road Trips... When I (If I ever) retire... There is no doubt that I'm a potential RV owner. A vacation to me isn't spent flying to Epcot. That doesn't interest me at all. I like the open road and I would rather spend a day in Terre Haute Indiana for no reason at all and then drive to Huntsville Alabama and spend a day there for no reason at all. To me that is a vacation.

 

If, while camping in that RV, you get up at 5:30 a.m. to make breakfast for everyone else so you can be on the road by 7, you are my dad re-incarnated.

[GCTF]

Hopefully one run is all Hughes will need.

[stringer bell]

Nice hitting Parm. Not so good base running.

[Pitz]

Vance Worley no-hitting the D-backs thru 5 innings

[Pitz]

Vance Worley no-hitting the D-backs thru 5 innings

 

jinxed him

[stringer bell]

Checked the Bucs game and jinxed Vanimal. No-hitter and shutout gone.

[Circus Boy]

When the bats were blazing a couple nights ago, Mitch Hedberg was in on a bunch of posts. So I credit Mitch with helping us hit. Let's see if the magic lamp works a second time. Following is my favorite Mitch Hedberg routine:

 

[TABLE=width: 100%]

[TD=class: sqtdq, bgcolor: #EDF1F7, colspan: 2] [h=1]“I bought a doughnut and they gave me a receipt for the doughtnut... I don't need a receipt for the doughnut. I give you money and you give me the doughnut, end of transaction. We don't need to bring ink and paper into this. I can't imagine a scenario that I would have to prove that I bought a doughnut. To some skeptical friend, 'Don't even act like I didn't get that doughnut, I've got the documentation right here... It's in my file at home. ...Under "D".'”[/h][/TD]

[/TABLE]

[stringer bell]

Gotta score at least one here.

[stringer bell]

Gotta score at least one here.

Got that, now get one more.

[stringer bell]

More, not so good base running.

[JB_Iowa]

Hey, Circus Boy, what firework, shot in the daytime and undoubtedly purchased in SD, just makes one fairly big boom?

 

Somebody has been shooting them around here periodically this afternoon. (Like about 1 an hour or so). Just don't know what this one is.

[Circus Boy]

Gotta run. But before I do, I looked up the box score at ESPN and the first name my eye catches is Suzuki playing for the Yankees. Momentary discombobilation. End of day. Tired. My till is $50 off. And now our great little catcher has been traded to the East Coast. Relief to see K Suzuki is still on the Twins side. And now I see we're raking a future Cy Young winner.

 

All I gotta say is, "Go Mitch!"

[Circus Boy]

Hey, Circus Boy, what firework, shot in the daytime and undoubtedly purchased in SD, just makes one fairly big boom?

 

Somebody has been shooting them around here periodically this afternoon. (Like about 1 an hour or so). Just don't know what this one is.

 

No idea. Maybe it's that rocket the boys shot at the dude ranch that blinded them in an episode from "Malcolm in the Middle." Now I really gotta go. Nuts. Go Twins.

[JB_Iowa]

No idea. Maybe it's that rocket the boys shot at the dude ranch that blinded them in an episode from "Malcolm in the Middle." Now I really gotta go. Nuts. Go Twins.

 

Thanks.

 

I've bought enough over the years that I usually know but this one has me stumped.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

When the bats were blazing a couple nights ago, Mitch Hedberg was in on a bunch of posts. So I credit Mitch with helping us hit. Let's see if the magic lamp works a second time. Following is my favorite Mitch Hedberg routine:

 

[TABLE=width: 100%]

[TD=class: sqtdq, bgcolor: #EDF1F7, colspan: 2] “I bought a doughnut and they gave me a receipt for the doughtnut... I don't need a receipt for the doughnut. I give you money and you give me the doughnut, end of transaction. We don't need to bring ink and paper into this. I can't imagine a scenario that I would have to prove that I bought a doughnut. To some skeptical friend, 'Don't even act like I didn't get that doughnut, I've got the documentation right here... It's in my file at home. ...Under "D".'”

[/TD]

[/TABLE]

...

 

 

 

 

 

Advils have a candy coating which makes them delicious.

 

on the bottle it says do not take more than two.

 

Well then do not put a candy coating on them which makes them delicious.

[ScrapTheNickname]

Is anyone else watching/listening to the Yankees TV broadcast? They just said that they continue to be shocked that the Twins don't shift for McCann, and they talked to scout about it, and the scout said "They [The Twins] don't know what they're doing."

 

I won't editorialize.

[Guest USAFChief]

They should've shifted the RFer into row 17 for Beltran.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

I guess the Mitch Hedberg quotes don't work when I do them...