Which Loss Do You Want Back Right Now?

[spanman2]

If I had to pick (1) it would be a recent home stand against the Angels when the boys got 5 in the 1st and Milone and company gave it back in the 2nd. That is a game you win 95 out of 100 times. Big big loss not that it means anything more in the 'L' column than a loss in May but it was a really BIG loss.

[D. Hocking]

I still want a redo on Game 163, part 1, the Wrath of Thome.

 

Probably the Angels game, because it not only cost us gaining ground but helped the Angels on their way to passing us in the Wild Card hunt.

 

[The inverse of this thread - probably a few games that we won that was not completely due to stellar playing on our part.  I believe the Baltimore sweep that saved us from crashing and put us in this last play-off push could have gone differently.  We also might want to send a thank you note to the White Sox defense.]

[Platoon]

Always the contrarian: Next will be an article listing all the games we should not have won, but did. . But yes, the ones, especially the close ones, that got away hurt the most, and are the most likely to cause acid reflux! I think it was the A-Rod game! Because it was A-Rod, Nd because it was the Yankees. On top of that, we had started to get a little feeling that we could maybe, actually, possibly, eventually, or sooner or later beat them. Now most thoughts on winning the coveted the WC are tempered by the knowledge that we would have to go to NY, to a fate unknown, but widely expected. When the pitching rosters of other teams shrink for the playoffs, they improve as a unit. When ours does, it at best stays static, and likely this year due to you know who, declines.

[JaleelWhite FanClub]

The day A-Rod single-handedly destroyed the Twins in Minnesota. The guy can't retire soon enough for the Twins.

[D. Hocking]

 

The day A-Rod single-handedly destroyed the Twins in Minnesota. The guy can't retire soon enough for the Twins.

 

Perhaps I am too vindictive and small-minded, but there is a part of me that wonders if there is a chance his resurgence this year might not have been completely due to a natural work out and clean, healthy eating.

[TwinsCD]

 

How about July 26 at home against the Yankees?  Twins get out to a 5-0 lead after 3 innings, still lead 5-4 in the Ninth, only to have A-Rod hit his third homer of the day, and then lose on a 3 run homer to, of all people, John Ryan Murphy.

 

Before I read through the thread, this was my #1 by a long shot...mainly because I was in attendance for it and my brother who is a Yankees fan constantly reminds me of it, especially given the collision course we are on for next Tuesday.   Vividly remember it being 5-0 and Hicks at the plate with the bases loaded and 2 out.  A base hit and this thing is done.  Instead, he gets caught half-looking, half-swinging at strike 3 (clearly out of the zone low, home plate umpire called the swing without help).  Molitor gets tossed and then A-Fraud happens.  That was the apex of Perkins's 'closer disease' as you could see the frustration on his face (even up in section 305) after the hat trick dinger (which I called in a text to a friend before the inning started).  

 

My other nomination would be the extra-inning game 2 weeks ago against the Tigers where they got leadoff runners into scoring position twice in the extra frames and couldn't push them home.  That was beyond frustrating, mainly because they have a tendency to go in those ruts where RISP are poisonous.

 

But this is all in the past.  Winning the next 7 games will make up for it.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

The day A-Rod single-handedly destroyed the Twins in Minnesota. The guy can't retire soon enough for the Twins.

Was it over when A-Rod bombed Pearl Harbor?

[MileHighTwinsFan]

I felt like the loss to Oakland after the break was ominous, so that ranks high - but it is hard to top the gut punch from Arod's 3 homer game after such a triumphant win the night before.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Remember, the Oakland loss in July, we actually trailed 1-0 until the 9th when we scored took the lead, aided by a throwing error and HBP (before a Mauer double and a Sano sac fly).  And then Perkins only blew the lead on an infield single with 2 outs, a wild pitch, and a bloop single to bring him home.  (Fien actually lost the game quickly in the 10th.)

 

Hard to get too worked up about that loss, or that performance by Perkins.

[woolywoolhouse]

There was a loss in TB when Sano hit a long... double off the catwalk. Twins lost by one run. Maybe they would have won, maybe not... but that is almost one of those "Act of God" losses that makes me want to get on my knees and ask the Good Lord "Why?!? Art thou not a fan of the team (half) from St. Paul?!?"

[Dantes929]

 

Any one run loss blown late is great, but if I could have any loss back it would be the 11-0? loss the first week of the season.  That would put us at 2-5 going into our winning streak and change the entire additude of the season, not to mention it would effect run differential to the point where maybe Terry Ryan would have believed in us to the point he would have been willing to make a move to spend the Santana money pre all-star break.  That Santana money thing annoyes me because if we carry it into free agency this year even if we spend it 9 million on a multi year deal makes little difference, but to bring a rent a player with a 12+ million salary for no additional budget would have been huge.

Do you mean to pay someone 12 mil to replace Santana in the first half or to spend 12 mil that we saved on Santana on a rent a guy player in the 2nd half.  If it is the former I have no idea who that guy would be and if it is the latter  I also have no idea who that would be but I suspect that if there was such a guy and  we got him it is quite likely Duffey would not have gotten this chance.   Maybe we would have gotten a shortstop that everyone was clamoring for denying Escobar his opportunity.   

 

I would agree with the whole May spot start thing except for the fact I didn't object to it at the time which makes it hindsight.    I thought pitching 3 innings would stretch him out a bit and he would take a day or two off and be able to go at least 2 innings his next time out or that he was going to work his way back in as a starter which I also didn't mind.   Either way I did not foresee the sequence that happened as a result.   

 

If we are going by isolated games I would say the most recent Detroit loss hurt.     I thought Fien should have been pulled after his long battle with Davis since it was a lefty and Perkins was already warmed up.

 

If we are going by sequence of events I would say it would be the first lead that Perkins blew by pitching with a sore arm because of some misguided notion of being tough and playing through pain.   Same problem I had with Morneau back in 08(?).     I was never one of those complaining about Mauer when he wouldn't play through injuries because I wanted to see the .320 Mauer, not the .250 Mauer..   Kurt Gibson's one swing notwithstanding baseball is just too difficult when hurt.

 

[scottz]

For me, it's the game(s) that you know at the time that it will hurt you later. When you think of it in the moment. For me, that's the @NY Yankees series in August. We had leads in all three games. At that time, I said to myself that we needed to win at least one of those games. Not just for the game in the standings, but also because it was against a team that has owned us for no good reason at all. Losing all three was a psychological thump to me, the fan, even if the team rebounded nicely in Baltimore.

 

Gotta win one of those. 

[mikecgrimes]

I just wanted that money put back into the roster. Maybe the preseason budget assumed selling, and between keeping everyone and adding jepsen we came close to hitting that number. Maybe it was just hard to find a move that worked and was a clear upgrade.

[Winston Smith]

This exercise shows how stupid it is to wait for a couple months, at the start of the season, to make any changes. It was clear very early that the team had, at the least, bullpen issues but waited and then did very little to fix it.

It's easy to see that a better bullpen, from early on, could have won us 5-6 more games.

[Foghorn Leghorn]

All the games Perkins blew

[gil4]

 

Also, I'd like to throw in the seven, "Let's give Ricky another shot" starts early in the year, but the team went 6-1 in his games somehow.

There's that 1, then...

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

I would agree with the whole May spot start thing except for the fact I didn't object to it at the time which makes it hindsight.    I thought pitching 3 innings would stretch him out a bit and he would take a day or two off and be able to go at least 2 innings his next time out or that he was going to work his way back in as a starter which I also didn't mind.   Either way I did not foresee the sequence that happened as a result.   

I wasn't against the May spot start because I thought they were moving him back into the rotation.

 

When I found out they weren't, my opinion changed.

[spinowner]

Didn't look back at the schedule. Didn't read the comments. I'm just going to be happy with how the team did this year and not play this game.

[Hrbowski]

May's blown game against the Blue Jays, or some other Trevor May game. I have some sort of personal animosity against May.

[Linus]

All the losses in the first half when we had to start somebody other than Santana.

Also it would be interesting to add up how many bad losses vs victories they stole for all the contenders. That would give a truer indication of who really left one one the table.

[AlwaysinModeration]

The day A-Rod single-handedly destroyed the Twins in Minnesota. The guy can't retire soon enough for the Twins.

Which one?

[twinssouth]

Perkins blown save past Friday. You could see it coming. His attitude has been screwed up (had a fine from night before) and Molly keeping him in

[Craig Arko]

In all honesty, any one of them at this point.

[AlwaysinModeration]

The Baltimore game I went to in which they won in extras was a game they had no right to win. But I'm not willing to give that one back.

[Kirby_waved_at_me]

As of right now, the only loss I will want back is the next one (hopefully the Twins can win out and take a playoff spot).

[jimmer]

Which loss do I want back right now?  Any of the ones in September.  All the old school people tell us the most important games are in September. :-)

[Kirby_waved_at_me]

Yep! Last night's loss is now the one I want back.

[Mike Sixel]

All of them? Being undefeated right now would be cool.....

[Sarah]

The Thursday night game against the Angels - I was babysitting my niece and nephews and they were winning 5-0. When I got back to watching the game after I put the kids to bed it was 8-5. I wasn't even watching what happened (thankfully I suppose) but I was annoyed that they had blown such a huge lead so quickly. Or basically any game this year where our pitchers couldn't stand prosperity. I know you could say the opposite is true too (when the batters can't provide any prosperity) but for some reason the pitching aspect annoys me more! 

[DaveW]

Oct 2nd versus the Royals