EXTC

Originally Posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Nick Punto is the anti-Youkilis. At least that’s the way it seems. When Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine made comments about Kevin Youkilis’ lack of emotion and physical gamesmanship, he replaced Youk with, well, a guy who certainly has never been accused of that. Say what you will about little Nicky, but effort has never been a problem. Wilson Ramos hit his first Homerun of the season on Sunday against Houston. Mauer got his first this week too. Tied at 1 a piece. David Ortiz also got his first homer this week. Morneau got 2. Advantage Justin. Michael Cuddyer continues to impress. He has hit safely in 9 of 11 games, 5 of which were multi-hit games. Luckily for Twins fans, Willingham has done even better as his hitting streak stays perfect and peppered with homers. Orlando Hudson has been benched for Andy Parrino aftera 4-for-35 start. We can expect Hudson to return to Bud Black’s lineup soon but he has not been producing much thus far. J.J.Hardy had a couple of Homers and a handful of hits this week, including a 2-for-3 night last night with a dinger. Delmon Young was the unfortunate recipient of a reversed call last Friday, rightfully turning a triple into an error. We’re no stranger to Young’s hilarity in left field, and it’s exactly what we were hoping to see out of the Tigers defense this year. http://i.imgur.com/noRJf.gif Jim Thome is struggling to find any rhythm in his limited role. Back in the National League, Thome has only started 2 games at first base and the rest of his appearances have been in pinch-hit situations, mustering 1 hit in 11 at-bats. A.J. Pierzynski is on fire. He’s batting .387 and he’s 5-for-7 in the Baltimore series so far. A.J. has already hit 3 homeruns, after only hitting 8 all year in 2011. Johan Santana did not have a good night last night, lasting 1-1/3 innings against the Braves. The Braves got 6 runs while he was on the hill and Johan never got a strikeout. Although he looked good last week, his W/L total is now 0-2. Kyle Lohse is the star of the Cardinals staff. He shined again last night with 7 innings of scoreless pitching. So far for Kyle: 20.1 innings, 11:2 K:BB ratio, 0.89 ERA, 0.590 WHIP. Impressive, indeed. Joe Nathan blew a save early in the week to Seattle, then turned around and got one against the Twins. All indications from (Ex-Twin) Ron Washington is that Nathan has been a great clubhouse leader.

Originally Posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Nick Punto is the anti-Youkilis. At least that’s the way it seems. When Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine made comments about Kevin Youkilis’ lack of emotion and physical gamesmanship, he replaced Youk with, well, a guy who certainly has never been accused of that. Say what you will about little Nicky, but effort has never been a problem. Wilson Ramos hit his first Homerun of the season on Sunday against Houston. Mauer got his first this week too. Tied at 1 a piece. David Ortiz also got his first homer this week. Morneau got 2. Advantage Justin. Michael Cuddyer continues to impress. He has hit safely in 9 of 11 games, 5 of which were multi-hit games. Luckily for Twins fans, Willingham has done even better as his hitting streak stays perfect and peppered with homers. Orlando Hudson has been benched for Andy Parrino aftera 4-for-35 start. We can expect Hudson to return to Bud Black’s lineup soon but he has not been producing much thus far. J.J.Hardy had a couple of Homers and a handful of hits this week, including a 2-for-3 night last night with a dinger. Delmon Young was the unfortunate recipient of a reversed call last Friday, rightfully turning a triple into an error. We’re no stranger to Young’s hilarity in left field, and it’s exactly what we were hoping to see out of the Tigers defense this year. http://i.imgur.com/noRJf.gif Jim Thome is struggling to find any rhythm in his limited role. Back in the National League, Thome has only started 2 games at first base and the rest of his appearances have been in pinch-hit situations, mustering 1 hit in 11 at-bats. A.J. Pierzynski is on fire. He’s batting .387 and he’s 5-for-7 in the Baltimore series so far. A.J. has already hit 3 homeruns, after only hitting 8 all year in 2011. Johan Santana did not have a good night last night, lasting 1-1/3 innings against the Braves. The Braves got 6 runs while he was on the hill and Johan never got a strikeout. Although he looked good last week, his W/L total is now 0-2. Kyle Lohse is the star of the Cardinals staff. He shined again last night with 7 innings of scoreless pitching. So far for Kyle: 20.1 innings, 11:2 K:BB ratio, 0.89 ERA, 0.590 WHIP. Impressive, indeed. Joe Nathan blew a save early in the week to Seattle, then turned around and got one against the Twins. All indications from (Ex-Twin) Ron Washington is that Nathan has been a great clubhouse leader.

Originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Well, the first week of the season didn’t go the way Twins fans were hoping, but many ex-Twins enjoyed success with their current clubs. Time for some quick tidbits from week 1. Kyle Lohse dominates in opener. If my post on Lohse starting openers last week hinted that the honor was undeserved, Kyle did a great job to prove me wrong. He had great stuff in the opener, shutting down a Marlins team that was excited to show off their new digs. Kyle is 2-0 with only 1 earned run in each of his starts so far this season and a current WHIP of 0.53. Johan Santana is back and he looks good. The Mets are going to watch his pitch count for a while and Johan has gone 5 innings in each of his two starts. Although he got a no-decision and a loss, he has posted a 0.90 ERA with 13 strikeouts in his 10 innings. Matt Garza was robbed of a win, because he plays for the Cubs. Garza went 6 innings, giving up 2 earned runs and he had the lead against the Nats when he left the game on Saturday but the Cubs’ relievers could not hold. R.A. Dickey has a new memoir out . Dickey writes about his personal struggles including childhood abuse. This will be on my read list for the spring and we will review it here in a few weeks. Michael Cuddyer is shining in the Rockies. Hitting .400 with one homer, Cuddy is doing what Colorado paid him to do. On Wednesday night he went 3-5 with three doubles. Torii Hunter is hitting .350 so far and showing no signs of slowing down. Twins fans saw him leg out a double against them last night in a crucial ninth inning situation. This was after a slight scare in right field when Hunter slammed awkwardly into the wall attempting to smother a game-tying triple off the bat of Chris Parmelee. By the way... the Twins won! http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jjvJpJenkKY/T4brF7CU2II/AAAAAAAAAec/Eg2eBCUFQ_E/s320/M20095159.JPG

Originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Well, the first week of the season didn’t go the way Twins fans were hoping, but many ex-Twins enjoyed success with their current clubs. Time for some quick tidbits from week 1. Kyle Lohse dominates in opener. If my post on Lohse starting openers last week hinted that the honor was undeserved, Kyle did a great job to prove me wrong. He had great stuff in the opener, shutting down a Marlins team that was excited to show off their new digs. Kyle is 2-0 with only 1 earned run in each of his starts so far this season and a current WHIP of 0.53. Johan Santana is back and he looks good. The Mets are going to watch his pitch count for a while and Johan has gone 5 innings in each of his two starts. Although he got a no-decision and a loss, he has posted a 0.90 ERA with 13 strikeouts in his 10 innings. Matt Garza was robbed of a win, because he plays for the Cubs. Garza went 6 innings, giving up 2 earned runs and he had the lead against the Nats when he left the game on Saturday but the Cubs’ relievers could not hold. R.A. Dickey has a new memoir out . Dickey writes about his personal struggles including childhood abuse. This will be on my read list for the spring and we will review it here in a few weeks. Michael Cuddyer is shining in the Rockies. Hitting .400 with one homer, Cuddy is doing what Colorado paid him to do. On Wednesday night he went 3-5 with three doubles. Torii Hunter is hitting .350 so far and showing no signs of slowing down. Twins fans saw him leg out a double against them last night in a crucial ninth inning situation. This was after a slight scare in right field when Hunter slammed awkwardly into the wall attempting to smother a game-tying triple off the bat of Chris Parmelee. By the way... the Twins won! http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jjvJpJenkKY/T4brF7CU2II/AAAAAAAAAec/Eg2eBCUFQ_E/s320/M20095159.JPG

Originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Former Twin Torii Hunter had quite a scare yesterday when two police officers entered his Newport Beach home yesterday with guns drawn. Apparently, Hunter set off his silent home alarm system but did not know it. As he was lounging on his couch, he noticed police officers approaching with guns drawn ordering him to show his hands. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WjA77agPwtw/T32fFQ6ym5I/AAAAAAAAAeU/Q3uNEoVKqxs/s1600/torii.jpg Although it is obvious that the officers did not immediately recognize the 4-time all-star, once identified, one of the officers reportedly told Hunter “I'm a big Angels fan. I watch you all the time”. Hunter’s reaction: “I’m like, ‘Come on, man.” In typical Torii fashion, Hunter handled the situation with class. His tweets read, "I'm not upset that the cops did their job today. I'm actually glad they were protecting home" and "The cops that were here today had there guns drawn but pointed downward in for safety. Those guys handled the situation like trained cops."

Originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Former Twin Torii Hunter had quite a scare yesterday when two police officers entered his Newport Beach home yesterday with guns drawn. Apparently, Hunter set off his silent home alarm system but did not know it. As he was lounging on his couch, he noticed police officers approaching with guns drawn ordering him to show his hands. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WjA77agPwtw/T32fFQ6ym5I/AAAAAAAAAeU/Q3uNEoVKqxs/s1600/torii.jpg Although it is obvious that the officers did not immediately recognize the 4-time all-star, once identified, one of the officers reportedly told Hunter “I'm a big Angels fan. I watch you all the time”. Hunter’s reaction: “I’m like, ‘Come on, man.” In typical Torii fashion, Hunter handled the situation with class. His tweets read, "I'm not upset that the cops did their job today. I'm actually glad they were protecting home" and "The cops that were here today had there guns drawn but pointed downward in for safety. Those guys handled the situation like trained cops."

Originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Only the elite get a chance to take the mound on Opening Day. So you may scratch your head when you find out that Kyle Lohse is doing it for the second time today. And he’s doing it for the defending World Series Champions, no less. OK, a few pieces needed to fall into place for Lohse in order to achieve this accomplishment, but facts are facts. And when we look back at the record books, history will show Kyle as a 2-time Opening Day starter. St. Louis would have thrown Chris Carpenter up there today, but he will start the year on the DL with a nerve injury. Loshe also started the season for the Cards in 2008, but that only happened due to rain. The original Opener was scheduled on March 31, 2008, but was called after 2 ½ innings. The rain not only made Lohse the official Opening Day starter on April 1st, but it also erased an Albert Pujols home run. Lohse will also go down as an opening day starter for Marlins Park, the new 37,000 seat ballpark just west of Miami. The first pitch is set for 7:05 ET and can be seen on ESPN. http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bv3sbYLo8Q8/T3xwb2A5WJI/AAAAAAAAAeM/pEjz44M_NeQ/s1600/4d811ee7a98fd.image.jpg

Originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Only the elite get a chance to take the mound on Opening Day. So you may scratch your head when you find out that Kyle Lohse is doing it for the second time today. And he’s doing it for the defending World Series Champions, no less. OK, a few pieces needed to fall into place for Lohse in order to achieve this accomplishment, but facts are facts. And when we look back at the record books, history will show Kyle as a 2-time Opening Day starter. St. Louis would have thrown Chris Carpenter up there today, but he will start the year on the DL with a nerve injury. Loshe also started the season for the Cards in 2008, but that only happened due to rain. The original Opener was scheduled on March 31, 2008, but was called after 2 ½ innings. The rain not only made Lohse the official Opening Day starter on April 1st, but it also erased an Albert Pujols home run. Lohse will also go down as an opening day starter for Marlins Park, the new 37,000 seat ballpark just west of Miami. The first pitch is set for 7:05 ET and can be seen on ESPN. http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bv3sbYLo8Q8/T3xwb2A5WJI/AAAAAAAAAeM/pEjz44M_NeQ/s1600/4d811ee7a98fd.image.jpg

Originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Former Twin Pat Neshek was nearly perfect this spring. In nine innings, he did not allow a run. He had 8 strikeouts. He never walked a batter. So naturally, he was sent to AAA today. The right handed pitcher will be taking his unusual delivery to the minor league system instead of facing our beloved Twins this weekend. The timing is unfortunate because he was sure to have plenty of family and friends back home in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota watching the opening series on TV, hoping for a glimpse of the former Park Center High School standout. Neshek signed a minor league contract with the Orioles in January. http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2s59Ca7XjQ8/T3tbFIOdjdI/AAAAAAAAAeE/krL3xbh92rw/s1600/NeshekOrioles.png

Originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- Former Twin Pat Neshek was nearly perfect this spring. In nine innings, he did not allow a run. He had 8 strikeouts. He never walked a batter. So naturally, he was sent to AAA today. The right handed pitcher will be taking his unusual delivery to the minor league system instead of facing our beloved Twins this weekend. The timing is unfortunate because he was sure to have plenty of family and friends back home in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota watching the opening series on TV, hoping for a glimpse of the former Park Center High School standout. Neshek signed a minor league contract with the Orioles in January. http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2s59Ca7XjQ8/T3tbFIOdjdI/AAAAAAAAAeE/krL3xbh92rw/s1600/NeshekOrioles.png

In the mid 80's, my kid brother started picking the Twins every year. By the early 90's, the kid had incredibly picked 2 long-shot winners. Unfortunately, he grew up to have unrealistic expectations. But dang he's optimistic.

I am really loving this site. I'm checking it more and more often every day.

originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- The Cleveland Indians released former Twin Cristian Guzman today after a recent hammy strain. The Dominican born middle infielder recently turned 34 years old and was attempting a comeback after not playing baseball last season. It was unclear if the Indians would have room for Guzman and it was known that the Phillies were taking a hard look at him up until the injury. Guzman was a key part of the Chuck Knoblauch trade and quickly became a fan favorite with his great speed on the base paths. Guzman led the league in triples three times while with the Twins and was 16th in AL MVP voting in 2001. The 2-time All Star isn’t hanging it up just yet. "I'm going home to the Dominican Republic and finish my rehab," said Guzman. "Everyone knows I can still play." http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6w-xvwhSMoA/T3NbAe8y-0I/AAAAAAAAAdY/Sb3yevDx79Q/s400/christian_guzman_studio_portrait_photofile.jpg

originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- The Cleveland Indians released former Twin Cristian Guzman today after a recent hammy strain. The Dominican born middle infielder recently turned 34 years old and was attempting a comeback after not playing baseball last season. It was unclear if the Indians would have room for Guzman and it was known that the Phillies were taking a hard look at him up until the injury. Guzman was a key part of the Chuck Knoblauch trade and quickly became a fan favorite with his great speed on the base paths. Guzman led the league in triples three times while with the Twins and was 16th in AL MVP voting in 2001. The 2-time All Star isn’t hanging it up just yet. "I'm going home to the Dominican Republic and finish my rehab," said Guzman. "Everyone knows I can still play." http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6w-xvwhSMoA/T3NbAe8y-0I/AAAAAAAAAdY/Sb3yevDx79Q/s400/christian_guzman_studio_portrait_photofile.jpg

Glad you pointed out the swing on that second HR. It does look like vintage Justin. Good stuff.

originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- The Arms: 2012 will see the return of Johan Santana and could, in fact, be a defining year in evaluating who got the best of the 2008 Trade. With Deolis Guerra as the only remaining piece of that trade still with the Twins organization, it seems every good outing for Johan will push the Mets further into the win column. If this spring is any indication, we should also see a lot from pitchers from our not too distant past in 2012. Last night, R.A. Dickey tossed 6 really good innings for the Mets, giving up only one hit in the 6th. Meanwhile, Joe Nathan did what he was hired to do and pitched a scoreless ninth to close out the game for the Rangers. If we were to pick 5 starting pitchers of former Twins, the rotation might go something like this: 1. Johan Santana 2. Matt Garza 3. R.A. Dickey 4. Kyle Lohse 5. Phil Humber As for the Bullpen: 1. Joe Nathan 2. Grant Balfour 3. Jon Rauch 4. Jesse Crain 5. Matt Guerrier http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZthjbJNj54E/T2ymU24klkI/AAAAAAAAAdQ/DzKpSP2hZyI/s640/arms.jpg With Andrew Bailey leaving Oakland, the closer position is up for grabs and Grant Balfour might just be the guy. This could result is some good numbers for Balfour this year, especially if he can continue to manage a low ERA. Guerrier should see plenty of middle inning work in Los Angeles, much as he did in Minneapolis. Rauch, on the other hand, seems to be struggling this spring and may not play as big of a role as he once did. Plus, the Mets pitching staff is already fully stocked on Ex-Twins with Santana and Dickey.

originally posted at http://twins-extcs.blogspot.com/ --- The Arms: 2012 will see the return of Johan Santana and could, in fact, be a defining year in evaluating who got the best of the 2008 Trade. With Deolis Guerra as the only remaining piece of that trade still with the Twins organization, it seems every good outing for Johan will push the Mets further into the win column. If this spring is any indication, we should also see a lot from pitchers from our not too distant past in 2012. Last night, R.A. Dickey tossed 6 really good innings for the Mets, giving up only one hit in the 6th. Meanwhile, Joe Nathan did what he was hired to do and pitched a scoreless ninth to close out the game for the Rangers. If we were to pick 5 starting pitchers of former Twins, the rotation might go something like this: 1. Johan Santana 2. Matt Garza 3. R.A. Dickey 4. Kyle Lohse 5. Phil Humber As for the Bullpen: 1. Joe Nathan 2. Grant Balfour 3. Jon Rauch 4. Jesse Crain 5. Matt Guerrier http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZthjbJNj54E/T2ymU24klkI/AAAAAAAAAdQ/DzKpSP2hZyI/s640/arms.jpg With Andrew Bailey leaving Oakland, the closer position is up for grabs and Grant Balfour might just be the guy. This could result is some good numbers for Balfour this year, especially if he can continue to manage a low ERA. Guerrier should see plenty of middle inning work in Los Angeles, much as he did in Minneapolis. Rauch, on the other hand, seems to be struggling this spring and may not play as big of a role as he once did. Plus, the Mets pitching staff is already fully stocked on Ex-Twins with Santana and Dickey.

Great Idea. Will do.

Originally posted at twins-extcs.blogspot.com Say what you will about Fantasy Baseball, but it sure is accessible. We all know that a measure of one's stats in fantasy does not directly relate to on-field success. But all you need is an email address and a password and you can manually create a roster full of ex-Twins with very little effort. For the purpose of this blog, I did just that. As I type this, I realize there is nothing worse than listening to someone talk about their fantasy team so I’ll spare you the details. We will use this as a weekly comparison to the current Twins, but mostly we will use it as a tool to easily compare stats and identify storylines. The Sticks: With that said, it's still fun to look at fictional rosters. In creating the best options at each position for ex-Twins, I encountered the same problem areas that the Twins have had for years: Middle infield and the hot corner. Go figure. Casey Blake seems like the only option at third. JJ Hardy is a solid shortstop, but Orlando Hudson and Punto are a toss up for second base. A.J. Pierzynski is the bigger name behind the plate but Wilson Ramos seems to have a bigger upside going in to 2012. The rest of the lineup just filled itself, with the exception of DH. The ExTC team would split DH duties between fan favorites, Big Papi and Jim Thome. The ExTCs C Wilson Ramos 1B Michael Cuddyer 2B Orlando Hudson 3B Casey Blake SS J.J. Hardy OF Delmon Young OF Torii Hunter OF Jason Kubel DH David Ortiz http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tnDXGKW3Y-I/T2pByyOazEI/AAAAAAAAAdI/iJy1mQbEhWs/s640/sticks.jpg That seems like a nice lineup. Especially when you consider that you could have guys like Thome, Punto, Bartlett, and Pierzynski coming off the bench. Compare that to the current roster: C Joe Mauer 1B Justin Morneau 2B Alixi Casilla 3B Danny Valencia SS Jamey Carroll OF Denard Span OF Ben Revere OF Josh Willingham DH Ryan Doumit This squad has a lot to prove still and it is particularly evident when looking at fantasy outlooks. The average % ownership of these starting 9 players across all ESPN fantasy rosters is 76.3% for the ExTCs and only 30.8% for the current Twins...which means very little at this point. But it's true. Next Post: Pitching Staff

Originally posted at twins-extcs.blogspot.com Say what you will about Fantasy Baseball, but it sure is accessible. We all know that a measure of one's stats in fantasy does not directly relate to on-field success. But all you need is an email address and a password and you can manually create a roster full of ex-Twins with very little effort. For the purpose of this blog, I did just that. As I type this, I realize there is nothing worse than listening to someone talk about their fantasy team so I’ll spare you the details. We will use this as a weekly comparison to the current Twins, but mostly we will use it as a tool to easily compare stats and identify storylines. The Sticks: With that said, it's still fun to look at fictional rosters. In creating the best options at each position for ex-Twins, I encountered the same problem areas that the Twins have had for years: Middle infield and the hot corner. Go figure. Casey Blake seems like the only option at third. JJ Hardy is a solid shortstop, but Orlando Hudson and Punto are a toss up for second base. A.J. Pierzynski is the bigger name behind the plate but Wilson Ramos seems to have a bigger upside going in to 2012. The rest of the lineup just filled itself, with the exception of DH. The ExTC team would split DH duties between fan favorites, Big Papi and Jim Thome. The ExTCs C Wilson Ramos 1B Michael Cuddyer 2B Orlando Hudson 3B Casey Blake SS J.J. Hardy OF Delmon Young OF Torii Hunter OF Jason Kubel DH David Ortiz http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tnDXGKW3Y-I/T2pByyOazEI/AAAAAAAAAdI/iJy1mQbEhWs/s640/sticks.jpg That seems like a nice lineup. Especially when you consider that you could have guys like Thome, Punto, Bartlett, and Pierzynski coming off the bench. Compare that to the current roster: C Joe Mauer 1B Justin Morneau 2B Alixi Casilla 3B Danny Valencia SS Jamey Carroll OF Denard Span OF Ben Revere OF Josh Willingham DH Ryan Doumit This squad has a lot to prove still and it is particularly evident when looking at fantasy outlooks. The average % ownership of these starting 9 players across all ESPN fantasy rosters is 76.3% for the ExTCs and only 30.8% for the current Twins...which means very little at this point. But it's true. Next Post: Pitching Staff