Article: Game Thread: Twins v Diamondbacks, 8/18 @ 7:10pm CT

[Riverbrian]

And… we move onto the Diamondbacks, starting a 3-game series at Target Field tonight. This is some tough pitching back to back. The Indians are 3rd overall in team ERA at 3.63, The D-Backs are currently 2nd at 3.61… it’s called out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Things can sure change from year to year in this crazy game. Last year… Twins pitching was pretty bad yet only 29th overall in Team ERA with a 5.08 because the D-Backs came in dead last with a 5.09. That Arizona team looks like a distant memory now.

Also consider this… of the 10 teams with the worst records in 2016… 5 of them (Twins, D-Backs, Rays, Brewers and Angels) are either holding a playoff spot or within 3 games of a playoff spot at this moment.

Baseball teams are like eggs… they can suddenly produce a chicken on you. And… and… down the road… those chickens will lay an egg.

Or baseball teams are like chicken depending on your own personal philosophy.

Here are some things to think about:

 

1. Burnsville – With a population of 61,000 plus, Burnsville is a rather large bedroom community by Minnesota standards. To qualify as an official bedroom community, you must have nothing else to do but sleep and that fits Burnsville. Another way to qualify as an official bedroom community is to place the entire town inside a huge Ashley’s Furniture or Ikea store. To give you an example of how bedroom community-esque Burnsville is, in a town of 61,000, the largest employer is the school district. This means the residents produce a bunch of kids, send them off to school to be educated by a bunch of folks forced to stay behind while they get the hell out of town during daylight.

2. Our Twins – It’s fun looking at the AL Central leader and think about chasing them, but right now… I will admit to everyone that I’m more comfortable looking at the wild card group and thinking about remaining in that chase. There comes a point in every long distance race, when the runner in 7th place can see that 1, 2, 3 and 4 are so far ahead, that catching them will be real hard. So, finishing 5th becomes the new goal or the new 1st.

3. The D-Backs – The D-Backs were a horrible disappointment in 2016. I listened to MLB Radio religiously in the off-season and I read the pre-season articles from the experts… nobody was talking about the D-Backs in 2017 as a contender and here they are anyway. Maybe it’s that new manager, Torey Lovello, the same guy who finished runner-up for the Twins job in 2015. I look at it this way… Lovello finished runner up to Paul Molitor, that means that Paul has beaten him before and he can beat him again this weekend.

4. Today’s Joe M Conversation:

Mauer: This guy is arguing with me on TwinsDaily.

Maddon: Are you arguing with him?

Mauer: I wouldn’t do that… you can’t win an argument on the internet. I’m just explaining why I’m right.

Montana: It’s pretty easy to start an argument on the internet.

Morgan: Yeah… just type something.

McCarthy: I didn’t need the internet to get into arguments back when I was alive. I got into arguments with people face to face every day. There were times when I realized that I was in the wrong argument and just kept arguing anyway.

Mauer: I just asked this Riverbrian guy if he was capable of making a logical argument and he replied that he doesn’t know what logical means.

Montana: That’s clever.

Mauer: Now he’s saying that 3 out of 2 people don’t understand logic.

Maddon: He’s using math now. It’s over, Joe… you just lost.

5. Shopping - My job is to get the groceries out of the car and bring them into the house. My wife went shopping yesterday and the entire back end of the Pacifica was filled with grocery bags. I looked at all those bags and wondered, "If I dislocated my shoulders, could I bring them all in with one trip?"
____________________

Lineups:

DIAMONDBACKS
David Peralta LF
A.J. Pollock DH
Jake Lamb 3B
Paul Goldschmidt 1B
J.D. Martinez RF
Daniel Descalso 2B
Chris Iannetta C
Ketel Marte SS
Gregor Blanco CF

Zack Godley P

TWINS
Brian Dozier 2B
Max Kepler RF
Joe Mauer 1B
Miguel Sano 3B
Eddie Rosario LF
Eduardo Escobar DH
Byron Buxton CF
Jorge Polanco SS
Jason Castro C
(no Garver sighting today )

Ervin Santana P

Weather: Mostly cloudy, but I think there won't be rain tonight, 73 deg F, winds at 5mph from the WNW. Please, weather, hold out ... no more double headers ...

Click here to view the article

[Squirrel]

 

Baseball teams are like eggs… they can suddenly produce a chicken on you. And… and… down the road… those chickens will lay an egg.

Or baseball teams are like chicken depending on your own personal philosophy.

 

 

Is this why we eat chicken dinners when they win? And are you then suggesting we should be eating eggs if they lose?

[ScooterDance]

Garver called up

[gocgo]

I have chickens...I also have lots and lots of eggs.  Omelette anyone?  You say you're more of a burger and fries kind of guy?...make it an egg burger!  Last night, we had BELT's for supper!

[Vanimal46]

 

I have chickens...I also have lots and lots of eggs.  Omelette anyone?  You say you're more of a burger and fries kind of guy?...make it an egg burger!  Last night, we had BELT's for supper!

 

You may have just changed my life! BELT's sound delicious!!

[gocgo]

 

You may have just changed my life! BELT's sound delicious!!

You can get them at a number of restaurants.  I think Potbelly has them.

[wsnydes]

 

You may have just changed my life! BELT's sound delicious!!

Throw some good BBQ sauce on it and it'll taste just like one of my father-in-laws grilled meats!

[wsnydes]

"Now he’s saying that 3 out of 2 people don’t understand logic."

 

I had a college professor that stated on a couple of occasions that 2 does not equal 3 even for large values of 2.  So by those standards, this may be more logical than we give RB cred it for.

[Blake]

 

Is this why we eat chicken dinners when they win? And are you then suggesting we should be eating eggs if they lose?

 

[diehardtwinsfan]

 

Mauer: I just asked this Riverbrian guy if he was capable of making a logical argument and he replied that he doesn’t know what logical means.

Montana: That’s clever.

Mauer: Now he’s saying that 3 out of 2 people don’t understand logic.

Maddon: He’s using math now. It’s over, Joe… you just lost.
 

 

The real nugget that has been lost in this conversation is which of you is Joe Mauer?  Will the real Joe Mauer please stand up?

[Dave The Dastardly]

 

I have chickens...I also have lots and lots of eggs.  Omelette anyone?  You say you're more of a burger and fries kind of guy?...make it an egg burger!  Last night, we had BELT's for supper!

I have a few chickens myself. Real ones. They run on pasture, don't get any hormones or antibiotics in their diet and are like Miller Lite; taste great!

 

Also have about 6 acres of woods. I was working on a fallen tree trunk the other day with an adze. Damn pullet kept getting in my way. Stuck its head in where it didn't belong and I had to pullet out of my adze.

 

Sort of like this comment...

[sampleSizeOfOne]

...

 

5. Shopping - My job is to get the groceries out of the car and bring them into the house. My wife went shopping yesterday and the entire back end of the Pacifica was filled with grocery bags. I looked at all those bags and wondered, "If I dislocated my shoulders, could I bring them all in with one trip?"

Might i suggest a new strategy? Move into the Pacifica. It would be like a new migratory bedroom community.

 

But if that proves to have unforeseen drawbacks, my usual technique for a single trip loading is to put a large blanket on the ground, put everything on the blanket, then grab the corners and lug.

 

This becomes a bit more precarious the fewer corners you can grab, but depending on the blanket and load, may not invalidate the technique. But if you can grab all the corners, and haul over your shoulder, it is strangely satisfying, and feels vaguely like a reindeer driven sleigh should somehow be involved...

[sampleSizeOfOne]

I have a few chickens myself. Real ones. They run on pasture, don't get any hormones or antibiotics in their diet and are like Miller Lite; taste great!

 

Also have about 6 acres of woods. I was working on a fallen tree trunk the other day with an adze. Damn pullet kept getting in my way. Stuck its head in where it didn't belong and I had to pullet out of my adze.

 

Sort of like this comment...

No sort of about it.

 

Has all the earmarks of carefully constructed Chiefish joke. Now all i gotta do is look up pullet and adze to get it...

[Dantes929]

 

I have chickens...I also have lots and lots of eggs.  Omelette anyone?  You say you're more of a burger and fries kind of guy?...make it an egg burger!  Last night, we had BELT's for supper!

Usually the B in BLT stands for Bacon.   Does it stand for Burger in this case?   I have been putting sunny side up eggs on by hamburgers for a while now and it is awesome.   I am guessing would be really good on the BaconLT's as well.    

[Riverbrian]

 

Is this why we eat chicken dinners when they win? And are you then suggesting we should be eating eggs if they lose?

 

I'm ok with eating Eggs after losses. Might be a new tradition started on the TD Game thread. We could post pictures of eggs after a loss. 

 

As for the Chicken tradition. I think that was Chief forcing his dietary recommendations upon us all and we thought about and the collective went... "Um... OK". 

[Riverbrian]

 

You may have just changed my life! BELT's sound delicious!!

 

We all learn to eat BELT's when we are young

[Riverbrian]

 

"Now he’s saying that 3 out of 2 people don’t understand logic."

 

I had a college professor that stated on a couple of occasions that 2 does not equal 3 even for large values of 2.  So by those standards, this may be more logical than we give RB cred it for.

 

Well Yeah 

[Riverbrian]

 

The real nugget that has been lost in this conversation is which of you is Joe Mauer?  Will the real Joe Mauer please stand up?

 

Ambiguity... The Rodeo Clown's Alarm Clock

[Riverbrian]

 

Might i suggest a new strategy? Move into the Pacifica. It would be like a new migratory bedroom community.

 

 

My wife has made that suggestion a few times. She usually changes her mind once she calms down and realizes that the Pacifica is her car. 

[Mike Sixel]

Actually, at least on Fangraphs writer thought the Dbacks had a good shot to surprise people. Looking at Grienke and their health issues, one can understand how that might be......people have been underestimating Grienke forever.

[sampleSizeOfOne]

I googled adze, and it showed me adze ads...

 

It's kind of a cross between a hoe and an axe.

 

And a pullet is a young hen apparently.

 

Apparently there is an i in ignoramus...

[wsnydes]

 

I googled adze, and it showed me adze ads...

It's kind of a cross between a hoe and an axe.

And a pullet is a young hen apparently.

Apparently there is an i in ignoramus...

So, if you combined a hoe and an ax, why would it not then be called a hoax?

[spinowner]

When I was in high school I was at a picnic that had an egg toss as one of the activities. The each team consisted of a married couple. The concept, for those who are unaware, is to stand a short distance apart and toss a raw egg to your teammate. Then the person who caught the egg takes a step back and tosses the egg back. This repeats until only one team with an unbroken egg remains. Well, the moderator of this acticity didn't have good control of the process so the couples were proceeding at different rates, so he had everyone stop and said, "OK, all ladies should be holding their eggs!" This got some laughs, of course. When I told a friend of mine what the moderator said he asked, "Did he get a standing ovulation?"

[sampleSizeOfOne]

So, if you combined a hoe and an ax, why would it not then be called a hoax?

Makes perfect sence to me, but who would believe it?

[gocgo]

 

Usually the B in BLT stands for Bacon.   Does it stand for Burger in this case?   I have been putting sunny side up eggs on by hamburgers for a while now and it is awesome.   I am guessing would be really good on the BaconLT's as well.    

No, Bacon, Egg, Lettuce, Tomato.

[gocgo]

 

No, Bacon, Egg, Lettuce, Tomato.

But I like Eggburgers as well...heart attack on a bun.

[MN_ExPat]

But I like Eggburgers as well...heart attack on a bun.

 

Did you just quote yourself? Nice, I like it.

[Blake]

 

I have a few chickens myself. Real ones. They run on pasture, don't get any hormones or antibiotics in their diet and are like Miller Lite; taste great!

 

Also have about 6 acres of woods. I was working on a fallen tree trunk the other day with an adze. Damn pullet kept getting in my way. Stuck its head in where it didn't belong and I had to pullet out of my adze.

 

Sort of like this comment...

Fowl!

 

Miller Light compared to tasty chicken? Heathen!

[USAFChief]

I'm ok with eating Eggs after losses. Might be a new tradition started on the TD Game thread. We could post pictures of eggs after a loss. 

 

As for the Chicken tradition. I think that was Chief forcing his dietary recommendations upon us all and we thought about and the collective went... "Um... OK".

 

As I recall it, Chief traditionally posts "winnah" after, uh, a win.

 

Somehow, someone naturally took that a step further to "chicken dinner."

 

And the rest is history.

[Blake]

 

When I was in high school I was at a picnic that had an egg toss as one of the activities. The each team consisted of a married couple. The concept, for those who are unaware, is to stand a short distance apart and toss a raw egg to your teammate. Then the person who caught the egg takes a step back and tosses the egg back. This repeats until only one team with an unbroken egg remains. Well, the moderator of this acticity didn't have good control of the process so the couples were proceeding at different rates, so he had everyone stop and said, "OK, all ladies should be holding their eggs!" This got some laughs, of course. When I told a friend of mine what the moderator said he asked, "Did he get a standing ovulation?"

My Dad ran one of these contests way back when. Then he and his co-worker showed everyone how it was done. They were darn near playing football with the egg they were tossing about.

 

Everyone finally realized they'd been had when Dad cracked the egg and ate it. Turned out, Dad had hard boiled the egg.

Edited August 18, 2017 by Blake