Game Thread: Twins vs Indians 9/14/19 12:10 CDT & 6:10 CDT

[Dave The Dastardly]

The Cleveland Falcon

 

 

 

 

I was holding down a barstool in a cheap dive just down the street from what used to be Jacobs Stadium, trying to nurse three fingers of the worst tasting whiskey I’d ever had the misfortune to order when she walked in. She had legs halfway up to her neck, auburn hair pulled back in one of those French braids that made her look… French and a figure you won’t find in any accountant’s office.

 

“What’s a dame like you doing in a gin joint like this?” I asked her in my best Bogie impression.

 

She coolly looked me over before claiming a seat three stools away.

 

“I’m looking for a Tom Collins,” she replied, distantly.

 

“Haven’t seen him,” I informed her.

 

“I’m looking for “a” Tom Collins,” she corrected me. “Not “thee” Tom Collins. This is a gin joint, right?”

 

I gestured at the bartender. “Fix the lady up,” I told him, pulling a double sawbuck out of my billfold and laying it on the bar. The three of us waited until the newly released moths flew away.

 

She said her name was Adventure… Miss Adventure.

 

“So what brings you here?” she asked me while the bartender went to work.

 

“I’m looking for a dingus,” I told her.

 

She batted her eyelashes like a slot machine and gave me a hard… stare, with eyes the color of smoked salmon. “Is this a gay bar?” she fished.

 

“Not that kind of dingus,” I corrected her. “A World Series dingus. The Twins haven’t gotten their hands on one since ’91.”

 

“Twins? You mean like a threesome?” she asked in a shocked whisper.

 

I shook my head and took a snort of the redeye. “The Twins are a baseball team…”

 

“I thought you needed nine guys for a baseball team,” she interrupted.

 

I took another snort, a longer one, and grimaced, wondering if she was really a natural blonde underneath that French-braided auburn hair. “The Minnesota Twins. That’s the name of the team. Only one of them is a twin, actually,” I added hastily, cutting her next dumb question off at the pass. “But his twin brother plays for a different team.”

 

“Oh. That’s odd. So whose dingus are you, uh, trying to get your hands on?” she wanted to know.

 

“Yours will do just fine for a starter.”

 

“Mine? Well, let me assure you, buster,” she claimed indignantly. “I don’t have a dingus.”

 

“Not you personally, sweetheart. The last couple of division titles went to the Cleveland Indians. We need to take the division dingus before we can grab the World Series dingus.”

 

“There’s Indians in Cleveland?” she asked worriedly.

 

“Bartender, what water do they use for distilling this whiskey, Lake Erie?” I yelled. It was going to be a long afternoon and the rot gut he’d been serving me wasn’t going to cut it.

 

“Could be,” he grunted. “But if you want something better it’ll cost ya.”

 

“You mean this sewer water was supposed to be free?”

 

“Is Jameson good enough for you?” he snarled.

 

“Hit me!”

 

Okay, you know what happens next; the bartender decks me, I tumble into the pseudo-blonde’s lap, she falls for me (Fats Domino Theory), I take her to the Twins game, kiss her on the strikes and she kisses me on the… sorry, Halsey… the Twins beat Cleveland, win the Division Dingus, go on to the World Series, sweep it in four and bring the Big Dingus back to Minnesota to rest alongside our other two World Series Dingi.

 

Oh, and me and Miss Adventure get married, have triplets and three sets of twins, all blondes, start our own baseball franchise and have our lawyers at Hookim, Crookem and Snookem sue the Twins for false advertising in an attempt to wrest the “Twins” team name away from the Pohlads.

 

And then I wake up.

 

Let’s hope there’s a lot of that going around in the Twins’ dugout. The waking up part… because we're playing a double-header today and if we don’t wake up and start playing ball we won't be getting our hands on anybody’s dingus. We need a twin (yeah, that's a small "t" on purpose) win!

 

On The Hump Game One

 

For the Non-Identical Twins:

 

The notorious TBD (Truculent But Diaphanous)

 

For the Indians:

 

Mike Clevinger    11-2    ERA   2.72    Ks  139

 

 

Game Two

 

Two Unknowns

 

Never have so many fans owed so much to so few. (Sorry Winston)

 

 

 

 

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

dingus >>> bomba!

[AlwaysinModeration]

I started to read the intro without seeing who posted it. I got to “nurse three fingers” before concluding it was Dave. Well done, sir.

 

I feel as though the Twins should have noted that there was a chance the game wouldn’t get completed last night, and held Odorizzi for today. That way you guarantee to get his start.

 

Anyway, adversity! Let’s see what the boys have got in terms of resilience.

[yarnivek1972]

I started to read the intro without seeing who posted it. I got to “nurse three fingers” before concluding it was Dave. Well done, sir.

 

I feel as though the Twins should have noted that there was a chance the game wouldn’t get completed last night, and held Odorizzi for today. That way you guarantee to get his start.

 

Anyway, adversity! Let’s see what the boys have got in terms of resilience.

I think it came considerably earlier than expected. Otherwise Cleveland would have held back Civale as well.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Lineups!

 

MIN Lineup

1. M Kepler (L) RF
2. J Polanco (S) SS
3. N Cruz (R) DH
4. E Rosario (L) LF
5. M Garver (R) C
6. L Arraez (L) 2B
7. M Sanó (R) 3B
8. L Wade (L) CF
9. W Astudillo (R) 1B

Devin Smeltzer, LHP


CLE Lineup

1. F Lindor (S) SS
2. O Mercado (R) CF
3. C Santana (S) 1B
4. Y Puig (R) RF
5. J Luplow (R) LF
6. F Reyes (R) DH
7. J Kipnis (L) 2B
8. R Pérez (R) C
9. Y Chang (R) 3B

Mike Clevinger, RHP

[scottz]

I hope our baseball team wins today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I hope our baseball team wins tonight.

[SpicyGarvSauce]

 

I hope our baseball team wins today.






I hope our baseball team wins tonight.

 

Me too!

[FlauerPauer]

 

I hope our baseball team wins today.






I hope our baseball team wins tonight.

 

Me too!

 

Me three! Go Twins!

[Otto von Ballpark]

I think it came considerably earlier than expected. Otherwise Cleveland would have held back Civale as well.

Yeah, there was a lot of griping from Twins fans/players/reporters that Cleveland did this intentionally to miss Odorizzi -- but I think Cleveland would have rather taken their chances with Odo vs Civale last night, rather than try to sweep a doubleheader today including a bullpen game (even if the Twins have to do a bullpen game too).

 

At worst, Cleveland was probably hoping to be ahead after 5 innings by the time the rains came -- then they get the win and spare their pen. Of course, the Twins were probably hoping for the same thing!

[mrtwinsfan]

Hope  Sano gets pitches to hit,   cave  must not be game ready with Wade in c.f., And same with Gonsales or we would of seen him instead of Tortuga

[Squirrel]

 

Hope  Sano gets pitches to hit,   cave  must not be game ready with Wade in c.f., And same with Gonsales or we would of seen him instead of Tortuga

Someone else said that it was reported that both Cave and Gonazalez are close ... but I have no idea what that means.

[FlauerPauer]

 

Someone else said that it was reported that both Cave and Gonazalez are close ... but I have no idea what that means.

 

That's just ambiguity. Close could mean tomorrow or next week. Reporters should have pressed harder for an actual answer.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Someone else said that it was reported that both Cave and Gonazalez are close ... but I have no idea what that means.

"Cave and Gonzalez are close" means they've revealed their innermost secrets to each other, no doubt.

[Squirrel]

 

"Cave and Gonzalez are close" means they've revealed their innermost secrets to each other, no doubt.

Hahahaha ... okay ... then I don't want to know.

[blindeke]

 

"Cave and Gonzalez are close" means they've revealed their innermost secrets to each other, no doubt.

 

"Cave and Gonzalez are close" means that they're within a half mile of the beat reporter.

[denarded]

I'm sure this is dumb, but why couldn't Odorizzi be an opener in the nightcap?

[Otto von Ballpark]

"Cave and Gonzalez are close" means that they're within a half mile of the beat reporter.

"Cave and Gonzalez are Close" means that together they are re-enacting some of Glenn Close's most famous roles, including that of Cruella de Vil.

[Otto von Ballpark]

I'm sure this is dumb, but why couldn't Odorizzi be an opener in the nightcap?

SP aren't really conditioned to pitch on consecutive days, even if they didn't throw many innings. Not about the innings as much as the schedule.

 

It would actually be more plausible to see a different SP make a brief appearance if it was their "throw day" between starts, although with an 18 man staff and the brevity of such an outing, plus an off day on Monday, the benefits are probably minimal. Maybe if game two goes into extra innings...

[Bomba2026]

Is game 1 on Fox Sports North TV???I think Smeltzer will do ok today.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Is game 1 on Fox Sports North TV???I think Smeltzer will do ok today.

Answered in the other thread, but yes, it is on FSN.

[FlauerPauer]

Phil Miller tweeted that Dyson had a setback. Probably not pitching again this season. What a poo trade that was...

[AlwaysinModeration]

Would like to see Devin Smeltzer pitch six innings, give up two runs, and leave the game with the lead, which is held by the pen.

 

Then a chance to bury Cleveland with a bullpen win in the nightcap.

[Bomba2026]

Thank you for the game info! The fans here are the best!

[Otto von Ballpark]

Phil Miller tweeted that Dyson had a setback. Probably not pitching again this season. What a poo trade that was...

At least Jaylin Davis is only 3-for-21 with zero XBH for the Giants so far...

 

Silver lining: we could petition to replace Dyson on the postseason eligibility list! Let's go, Alcala!

[sampleSizeOfOne]

A Bactrian game thread.

 

We aught to be able to go far!

[yarnivek1972]

Phil Miller tweeted that Dyson had a setback. Probably not pitching again this season. What a poo trade that was...

Which leads to the next question: Is he worth a roster tender knowing he probably gets $6 mil or more in arb?

 

I vote no.

[FlauerPauer]

 

At least Jaylin Davis is only 3-for-21 with zero XBH for the Giants so far...

Silver lining: we could petition to replace Dyson on the postseason eligibility list! Let's go, Alcala!

 

Not upset about letting Davis go. Probably had little chance to crack the roster with Kirilloff and Lanarch in the system. Just ticked about not getting a reliever that could actually help the team. Hopefully Alcala is the real deal and makes an impact on the team.

[FlauerPauer]

 

Which leads to the next question: Is he worth a roster tender knowing he probably gets $6 mil or more in arb?

I vote no.

 

I agree. If he's actually healthy, sure. Gonna be an interesting decision.

[SwainZag]

 

Which leads to the next question: Is he worth a roster tender knowing he probably gets $6 mil or more in arb?

I vote no.

 

An experienced reliever with good historical numbers even at $6M for one season is better than anything you are going to find on the open market.  IMO it would be a bad decision to turn that down.

[yarnivek1972]

An experienced reliever with good historical numbers even at $6M for one season is better than anything you are going to find on the open market. IMO it would be a bad decision to turn that down.

His career FIP in the American League is a very unimpressive 4.27. Why it is so much worse in the AL than NL is uncertain, but it is. He also has very unimpressive career peripherals: 8.5 hits, 3 walks and 7.2 K per 9. That’s a lot of baserunners for a guy with a considerably below average K rate.

 

For $6 mil, I suspect there will be better options available. Pass.