mysonlikes7

There aren't enough people that care about the Twins right now for them to lose any substantial money by setting this line. If they lose any money on this wager they will get it all back from the Twins Kool-Aid drinkers who will bet on them winning the World Series.

I am in a wager at work on Twins wins. I guessed 68 (lowest pick out of six guys). My logic was the Twins will be playing under. 500 by the time the trading deadline rolls around and will have a fire sale. That is when the losses will really start adding up. I like my chances.

I initally thought of Tommy Herr, but he basically had an average year for the Twins while he was here. I think it has more to do with the circumstances on how he got here by the Brunansky trade and that he was a whiner.

Great topic to discuss. Keep it going. Bret Boone was the first to come to mind, but I agree he wasn't here long enough. Two others that popped into my head was Tony Bastista and Willie Banks. Banks based on what we were told his potential was and how mediocre to poor his he was once he got to the majors. Batista on how fast he fell off the table once he got here with the Twins. If he doesn't improve his hitting, we may be watching history in the making with Drew Butera.

Forgot to add two of those three to the last post.

Combination of Hicks/Gibson/Benson

you hit that out of the park , perfectly said Except Punto's had 500 AB's in a season exactly ZERO times. He's hit 500 PA's only twice. In one of those years he put up a 290/352/373. Were you sad about not getting more time for Tony Batista that year? Or was it someone else you just had to have on the field to feel good? The following year he got to 500 PA's again and was pretty bad at the plate....and I'm still not sure who on that roster you were wanting to play instead. I promise you it's possible to be snarky and negative without telling lies. Although you might have to think a tad more, that's not the worst thing in the world. When I initally ready sorney's comment, I didn't immediately run to the Twins official stat book to see if Punto indeed had 500 ABs like CDog did. And obviously Sorney didn't consult the stat book before writing his comment. Sorney made his point effectively through a bit of exaggeration. You don't need to take every stat written in the comments section as the gospel truth. Relax and take the comments, especially the ones that are dripping with sarcasm and exaggeration, for what they are.

Sounds like you have an issue with ESPN's coverage and you are taking it out on Jeter because you can't change the channel. Jeter is classy through and through. I know kids shouldn't look to athletes as role models, but Jeter would be near the top of my list for the way he conducts himself on and off the field. The majority of Twins fans boo Jeter for all of the reasons stated. He is a great player and a great team and the Twins fans wish he was on the Twins and they were as good as they Yankees. In my opinion, if you boo Jeter you are a Twins fan. If you don't boo him you are a baseball fan.

"The Angels won the game 9-0, but Weaver kept Twins fans interested in the game with his efforts." Not quite. I watched reruns of Man vs. Food last night instead of the Twins game. It is official. The Twins, especially the pitching, is unwatchable.

I didn't read anywhere in these posts anyone complaining about Capps continuously going out to pitch when he knew he was injured. Why is that fact being ignored? To me that is the most irritating thing about the whole situation. I understand not using it as an excuse, but if you are injured you are injured. Go and the DL and get better. My opinion on the Capps signing is that the Twins knew they weren't going to be needing a closer that much this year. No need to go crazy and pay big money to a closer that probably is not much better than Capps. Sign Capps and hope if by some miracle the Twins contend this year, Capps will be able to do the job. If they are out of it by July, try to trade him and have Perkins and Guttierez audition in the second half of the season for the closer spot. When the Twins turn this around, the majority of these players aren't going to be on the team. The next two years are basically buying time until the younger players improve. By the way, you got to love Rick Anderson's response to the fact Capps is working on a new pitch. He said pitchers come up with a new pitch when they are starting to lose it. He didn't say that exactly, but I am paraphrasing.

I must be the only one out there who doesn't think that highly of the Big Hrbowski. Love the Big Lewbowski by the way. Certainly not one of the better commercials of late. It is a clever idea, but it doesn't do much for me. Would have preferred Hrbek play the role of Walter. Looks more like him.

I can't stand that come back, "who else are you going to get that is better?" That response is constantly used in this town and it bugs me to no end. After every hiring the U of M has done for a football coach, fans have said, "at least this guy is better than the last coach." Yeah. I don't think so. Were the Rays fans, saying who else are they going to get that is better than Lou Pinella when he retired? They hired a coach, Joe Maddon, that the average fan had never heard of, which turned out to be a two time Manager of the Year. Did Red Sox fans think there was a better manager out there than Grady Little after taking the Red Sox to the ALCS? Francona turned out to be a pretty good coach, don't you think? My point is there is generally almost always a manager out there that is just as good or better than the one that is currently managing. The tough part is finding him and giving him the time to get the players he wants. Now getting back to the question...the 100 pitch limit, coddling players, and having "favorites" on the team that generally are sure outs (see Hocking, Punto, Butera) are my biggest issues with Gardy.

ChuckkJay and luckylager - I couldn't agree more with your opinions of Souhan, Mackey, and Pelissero (Vikings). Those three on ESPN 1500 are unlistenable. Souhan has never had an original thought in his life and does rewrite the same articles over and over again. Mackey and Pelissero are immature and have a sense of entitlement in their attitudes. They feel that their opinions are never wrong because they are paid to cover the local sports teams. They haven't been around long enough to be arrogant and as opinionated as they are. Once they have been around as long as Reusse they can get away with acting they way they do now. Joe C. is the only "beat writer" I read consistently. LENIII is ok at times, but he is too close to the players and won't say anything negative about them to avoid being ignored by them. I could care less what Gardy's thought process was why he pinch hit Revere for Plouffe. I would rather read what bloggers have to say.

Precisely. Look at the 1-3 starters for teams that will likely be in the playoffs and then look at who the Twins throw out there. The only shot the Twins have at winning a playoff game, which won't be a concern for at least 3 years, is the third one, which is too late.

Jason Kipnis Alexi Casilla Johnny Giavotella Gordon Beckham Brandon Inge