LaBombo

Maybe I'm missing something. I'm saying that while you may feel it's rare for a manager with Gardy's overall record to be fired, it's not the case. No other organization would bring him back after three seasons like this. Thirty years of evidence makes that pretty clear.

There's not much use in defining when rebuilding starts or ends if you don't define what rebuilding is. If you believe the Twins have been rebuilding the past couple of seasons, then by default you're defining it as a process composed almost entirely of churning out nearly-100-loss seasons while waiting for prospects to gradually work their way up from the low minors. The only significant rebuilding move that Ryan has made was to trade Span and Revere for pitching prospects. While commendable, it appears to have been as much about clearing the way for a prospect the organization wildly overestimated as it was about rebuilding, given that the team ended up with Clete Thomas in center for a good chunk of the season.

Great word. It's not just moribund, it's http://www.proggnosis.com/covers/G/G33810.jpg moribund.

You can probably find plenty of examples of a team as bad as the Twins not improving with a new manager. You can probably find examples of teams that did improve, too. What you can't find is a single example of another team as bad as the Twins have been the past 3 seasons getting either better or worse after it retains its manager for another season in the past 30 years. Because nobody else has. Which should tell you pretty much everything you need to know about the wisdom of bringing Gardenhire back.

The really amazing part of this thing is that the on-field product managed to crater in perfect sync with a dramatic increase in payroll. Well, available payroll, at least.

If the prospects acquired on his watch turn out like we hope, most people including me will probably call it square and move on. Or at least confine our bitterness to our individual most hated trade...

Since the Twins have stated that unspent salary budget doesn't carry over, it would seem that it's simply a choice between even just 75 wins or a team that frequently had fans looking for the nearest eye wash station for a third straight year. Gotta go with the latter...

It's not just this year, it's three consecutive years of 90+ losses. Virtually every other non-expansion franchise in the past 30 years has started with a clean slate by hiring a new manager after a streak of futility like that. Since everyone agrees managers affect the regular season to some extent, wouldn't the burden of proof be on those who believe they don't affect the playoffs? At any rate, it isn't that his teams didn't win, it's that it appeared as though they failed to compete, just like they've failed to compete against the Yankees for over a decade. As for specific impact on playoff games, BProp archives has a whole list of Gardy head-scratchers just from a single loss to the Yankees in 2004. Nobody is suggesting it was all or even mostly on Gardy, but it's hard to see how playoff performance isn't a black mark on Gardy's record. It's actually really easy to overlook the MoY votes if you know the trick to it. All you have to do is imagine Derek Jeter playing shortstop in 2010 with just slightly more range than a fire hydrant, and then remember that somebody gave that guy a Gold Glove for it. Poof, MoY votes vanish in a puff of irrelevance. Then you're left with a .513 win percentage, playoff embarrassments with two entirely different groups of players, an open disdain for "cybermetrics", and unconditional loyalty to a pitching coach whose value to the organization is highly questionable at best. Yes, Gardy knows the fundamentals of the game, is popular with players and seems to do well at making the grind of 162 games easier for them. But based on 30 years of history, in any other franchise he'd be gone. So by bringing him back, the Twins are either boasting that Gardenhire is a historically valuable manager, or admitting that they've fielded historically bad rosters three seasons running. He's good and the players have been bad, but neither of those historical polar opposites of merit are right, and neither was the decision to bring Gardenhire back. The two year contract that concedes 2014 will be another exhibition season was just icing on the uranium yellowcake.

Not too surprising that he'll be back, given the team's strong finish and the way they rallied around Gardy to get him his 1000th win...

You'll know you're on it if you see this guy... http://por-img.cimcontent.net/api/assets/bin-201001/9bc0347be27f4c02f621415233c15dba.jpg

Yup. I'm trying to think of what point I would have completely checked out on this season without the board in general and GT's in particular. Going to go with '10 minutes after nonwaiver trade deadline passed'. Anyway, thanks, g.t. regulars, for letting me tag along occasionally...

Against a team in need of a win to clinch a wildcard berth on the last day of the season, the Twins fielded a lineup with one guy who slugged over .400 this year (hat tip to Dozier) and started a pitcher with a 5.43 ERA. And yet it's hard to see what they could have done differently. Fitting end to the season that the Twins inadvertently help a division rival reach the postseason, while putting the kind of lineup and pitching out there that would normally cause the Rangers to be outraged and the league office to be dismayed...

Fortunately I didn't watch the game, but they looked brutal in the box score. It looks like Diamond pitched better, at least.

Look at the bright side, it could have been worse. Pythag liked the Twins for 99 losses with their second-worst run differential in baseball. But they're only going to lose 96, so that's... still depressing. Three errors to punctuate the stink of the season, too.

Deal. Will contribute some bad vinyl and long-stem lighters. http://www.krock1057.ca/files/disco-sucks.jpg

Thanks, but too late. Already expanded one horizon based on previous assumption: "Don't judge me!!!!!" http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3109/3772440489_65e9bbc680_z.jpg?zz=1

You're at least one ahead of me; I didn't even know we had a mopup reliever named Cleveland...

Chief preceded procreation, therefore Chief is the creator. Supreme being is former Air Force. Now that I know without a doubt that I'm not getting into heaven, my horizons for both pleasure and 'business' are vastly expanded.

Don't worry. They'll grow out of it...

Perfect, and seasonal too. Made me think of the Simpsons Movie. Just substitute the word 'season' for the word 'life'. http://img.pandawhale.com/post-20459-Homer-simpson-This-is-the-wors-PuWK.jpeg

Twins 2013 season, summed up by Rooster: "Well, that didn't pan out..." http://www.imfdb.org/images/thumb/b/b2/TG_02.jpg/600px-TG_02.jpg

Winston Smith for whatever job St. Peter does when he's not tweeting critical Twins fans to wax his Gulfstream. http://www.jetoptionsjetcharter.com/jetcharterblog/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Gulfstream-G-650.jpg

"I can do nothing for you, son..." http://www.successclick.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/true-grit-e1309447401577.jpg

And a bit like Plant too, right around the cleft chin. Smells like a ChiTown sister reunion tour. Is ChiTown sister Jonesy still alive too? Who's the drummer until animatronic Bonzo is up and running? http://imstars.aufeminin.com/stars/fan/robert-plant/robert-plant-20080108-360552.jpg

Scherzer has given up six walks? I thought walks were bad. And six walks should be terrible. We should be driving in the walked batters and, like, ahead or something, shouldn't we? Oh, that's right, the Tigers pitchers possess the magical ability to make pitched balls miss bats. Twins having been paying to see that magic show all season.