Pain and Sadness Welcomed Like Old Friends in Twins Territory

[RandBalls Stu]

‘It reminds me of when my Grandpa Earl would sit in the garage and stare at nothing.’

Image courtesy of Unsplash/Richard Stachmann

The Minnesota Twins have lost eight of their last 10. They are without 40% of their starting rotation for the rest of the regular season, their bullpen is stretched perilously thin, and every position player your kid likes is hurt. Even Royce Lewis is slumping struggling. The team’s self-enforced payroll restrictions and the failure of almost all the marginal offseason acquisitions to land make this swoon even more painful.

Yet, for some Twins fans, this nauseating stretch of play provides a certain sense of…well, calm isn’t the right word. Or is it?

“There’s just something about watching the Twins go up against a good team and lose in the most disheartening fashion,” said Ryan Revier, 41, of Monticello. “They’re not getting clobbered, they’re blowing leads in the late innings. They’re not getting no-hit, they’re loading the bases and not scoring. That’s what me and my friends grew up watching.

“We don’t see each other that much anymore, but being able to text the group chat about how you want to throw up when (Twins third base coach) Tommy Watkins sends a runner home? And everyone chimes in about (former Twins third base coach) Scotty Ullger sending Jason Kubel to his doom? Those are memories you can’t replace, man.”

“My grandparents had season tickets and would take us to a bunch of games,” said Pam Longstreth, 54, of Woodbury. “That was back in the ‘80s, before the World Series, when we had Ron Davis. He’d blow a game, we’d drive home from the Metrodome, and Grandpa Earl would go sit in the garage and stare at nothing. No beer, no cigarette, no transistor radio, didn’t even have a light on. Just staring. I did that after the last Steven Okert game. Grandpa’s been gone 25 years this November, but it felt like he was right there.”

While all the fans we spoke with said they’d prefer it if the team turned things around in a hurry, there was a definite sense of connection with past generations.

“You know how the Timberwolves made that great playoff run this spring and no one around here really knew how to act,” said James Bates, 49, of Nevis. “We were all kind of floaty and out of sorts. When a Minnesota team is playing really well, then starts losing in the most agonizing, frustrating way possible, that grounds us. Our birthright is suffering. My stomach hurts all the time now, just like my dad’s did. Not a stabbing pain, just an ache that never goes away. There you are, old friend. There you are.”

The Twins return to action against the Toronto Blue Jays this weekend. It is expected that someone new will be hurt before Friday’s first pitch.

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[adjacent]

Sometimes Randball columns are funny. Sirs, this something different. Is literature...

[CRF]

Amen, brother. 

[BobAzar]

You can remove the "satire" disclaimer above the article. This is the truest, most real thing ever written on this website. 

[Danchat]

Hello darkness, my old friend…

[#3Killer]

Satire? This hits home- deeply. It is becoming agonizing to have hopes build - then see it slip away with extended injuries, slumps, and indifferent and cheap ownership,  and the “musical chairs” of who will blow it from the bullpen. Sixty two years of loving the Twins… 

[Jocko87]

There is something odd about the Minnesota sports fan that just makes being a fan hard.  Expecting the worst somehow always comes true, no matter how good things actually are.

Everybody loses, every year.  Your heart will go on.

[harmlessharmon]

I've been thinking the same thing lately.  I grew up laying on the floor head in hands watching the Griffith era Twins on B&W TV while my dad and grandpa watched from their easy chairs, mostly nodding off but opening an eye and negatively grunting or sighing every so often.  They never cheered or even talked positively when the Twins went on a winning streak every 5 years or so (also satire, see def above).  There's no pressure when the Twins lose, no obligation to get emotionally involved, just a peaceful feeling of oh well maybe next year, but never really believing (or hoping?) "next year" will pan out.  Before the WS wins, the Twins were very much like the Vikes are now.  They burned their fans out to the point of peaceful numbness.

[wornsmooth]

I grew up in Minnesota. Was a Twins fan and baseball fan throughout the sixties into the early 70's. 

The 60's Twins were one of the elite teams in baseball, but could never put a complete season package together. I didn't mind, because seeing the likes of Tony Oliva, Harmon Killebrew and Rod Carew made up for it. I think the American Leagues inability to win an all-star game bothered me more.

   Later I lost touch with following the teams, but worked with many a Cubs fan. I realized it was the same. Resignation to a talented team not winning the pennant once again, but" gee...did you see what Billy Williams did today? "

I recognized the same feeling, and the same affection for their hometown boys.

[Bad News TC Bears]

Truth hurts... Also seeing players leave Minnesota to have Hall of Fame careers elsewhere... And who can forget all the AL Central Tiles only to realize we could never beat the Yankees in the post season.... Sorrow is exhausting... Maybe it will help me sleep someday.

[Scott51104]

In the 1960s, my mom always knew the Twins had lost that afternoon if I was playing catch with the retired dentist who lived next door.