VivaBomboRivera!

See? I told you it was odd.

Even in the first two losses, the Twins did not give up in the late innings and brought runners around. The player who showed real unwillingness not to stay down today was, strangely enough, JA Happ. Already down 0-3 in the top of the first with Gio Urshela on third, Happ lost control of a 92mph fastball that bounced off Rortvedt's glove (oddly neither a WP or a PB) and sailed to the backstop. Rortvedt leapt after the ball which had bounced back towards home. Rather than assuming the runner would score and making a half-hearted attempt to cover, Happ put his body on the line. While taking a bouncing underhand throw from the catcher with his pitching hand, Happ slid across the plate to block Urshela's (dumb) head-first slide and rolled onto him to apply the tag. The block was legal since Happ was receiving an on-target throw for the out, and could have been perilous for him if Urshela had come in feet-first (as the Yankee runner was likewise entitled to do). Happ gave up another run later and did not get the win. He certainly has not thrown as well as he or the rest of us would have hoped this season, but in doing what it took to prevent another run and get the third out he set an example for his teammates and contributed to the comeback. I'm glad he's on our team.

That's an anniversary pearl necklace right there, Dude.

It's called the bang-bang, bang-bang play.

Hey Nineteen, that's Scott Erickson!

Who's that guy Sano, amigo? Why is he standing in the on-deck circle Wearing Radke's 22? Bodacious sluggers Such as your friend would never have made the team Back in the Metrodome...

After today, you... Go back, Jack Do it again

Besides Rod Carew interview, Celestino's first hit and two jacks from Polanco, most memorable thing about this game is a quote from Dick Bremer:

Even if the math is against us we can still stick it to teams that deserve it. bring on the damn Yankees and the cheatin' Astros!

"Might need to reign it in [against the Royals] a bit..." I see what you did there.

Attrition due to injuries is already bringing this about.

The stink on the field in the late '70s and early '80s did not prevent me from going to the Met and the Hump.

This statement appears to miss the point of the article.

Consistent hitting remains an issue - just 7 for 33 and a walk today. To score the same number of runs in yesterday's disaster took 11 H and 3BB in 37 ABs. Stronger pitching, two for three RISP (2 LOB) and the fact that the Royals hit just as poorly made the difference. The broken-and-then-almost double play, followed by the bang-bang-game over double play together made this one well worth the price of admission.

Two words: Goofy. Next.

We watched a replay from the Royals game last week - a 2-out walk, a clutch RBI hit and the dam breaks. 6 for 31 hitting is pathetic. Adding three walks only gets OBP up to .265. When you have this many call-ups, the veterans (Polanco, Donaldson, Cruz and Sano) should be leading by example. But just barely - they hit a collective .200. ? If the team cannot sweep Kansas City this weekend and get its act together, then the season is truly baked. A dried-up, overdone turkey, to be precise.

CURTAIN!

Back to some bad habits. Call in the hypnotists, exorcists and and therapists so they can bounce back and take the next two.

Does this mean I’m ghost writing for you? ?

"... Berríos is a middle of the rotation arm (low-2/high-3) who likely wants to be paid like a frontline guy" Aye, there's the rub! There are three possible outcomes here: Berríos improves to the point where the Twins can accommodate him (possible, but not likely) Berríos falls apart (less likely) Berríos' performance gradually falls off as he ages out of the League (most likely) Assuming scenario 3, considering a trade makes sense. The next problem is not what the team could get, but what the team needs. Surveying the positions, the question is, who is/could be on the market who represents an improvement? A 1 - 1 trade for Berríos would probably not deliver bigger talent at catcher, corner or middle infield than what the team has now Outfield? The need for a bigger bat and better range is obvious, but which team will be selling a proven veteran that the Twins can swap into their assemblage of journeymen and walking wounded? Any names come to mind? Pitching? Clearly the need is greatest here; but this is also the tightest market. A true closer who instills fear and doubt in the opposing lineup cannot be had for Berríos alone A journeyman long relief horse is more likely Or, if management decides the team can no longer contend this season, do they bargain for a busload of prospects and sort through them for the next 3 - 5 years before we know if the deal was worth it? If Berríos alone were not enough in exchange for the talent the team wants, could Sano be made part of the package? Management has assuredly already asked all these questions. Assuming the Twins are pulling out of their tailspin, if Berríos is traded for a reliever before mid-June we'll know that management is sticking to it's guns. If he's still part of the club in July, then they either believe he's a piece of of a post-season drive or they still think they have negotiating leverage.

Matters less what you get for him if there is a viable replacement ready to fill his role and perform at/above his level. That day may now be on the horizon.

Look out! He's a replacement, eating into Buxton's WAR! Oh, and fire this editor on principle: "...easing the strain on a lineup hamstrung in recent days" ?

Miguel Sano is the best option the Twins have for a slugging corner infielder until a better one comes along. Even after his horrible start and four more strikeouts in today's game, he has contributed 8 HR (team 3rd behind Cruz and Buxton), 19 walks (2nd between Donaldson and Arraez), 19 RBI (4th), an OBP of .303 (now 9th thanks to those 4 Ks) and 47 TBs (tied for 7th with Arraez). His defensive performance at first is fine, and he is an acceptable substitution at third. The difference this year is that Sano now has an understudy, one who partly due to youth has a greater potential up side than he does. This means that Sano will have to solve that consistency issue and keep demonstrating that he's improving his game. If not, then sooner or later it will be the the trading block. Sano himself still has potential upside. He could have a revelation, or could make a resolution to be better that yields dividends. At age 28, however, time now works against him rather than for him. Up or out. In this game, and on this team, there's nowhere else for him to go.

Folks - we have solved Miguel Sano. He starts Spring Training a month earlier than the rest of the team.

Manfred ordered squirrel repellent applied at all ball parks?