Riverbrian

The Twins open up a 4 game series with the Red Sox tonight. For those of you keeping track, and I know that most of you are, of all the stadiums that I’ve personally been to… Fenway is my 2nd favorite after AT&T in San Francisco. There is a great baseball atmosphere outside the ball park and inside the ball park. The Green Monster is such a focal point inside the park, you really don’t know how it completely dominates the landscape until you go there. Not only do the Twins have to deal with a Red Sox team that is performing well… the Twins will have to deal with that big green thing… eat up a few flies… hop around and make some plays… you know… the usual stuff you need to do to win games. Here are some things to think about: 1. Kermit the Frog – In comparison to other frogs… Kermit would have to be classified as a big, green one. The only thing Kermit wears is a pointy collar. Apparently frogs can get away with this look without judgement. The last time I was naked… wearing only a pointy collar, I was asked to leave church immediately and the entire congregation assumed that I was into some weird stuff. 2. The Incredible Hulk – Bruce Banner is normally a mild mannered physicist who happened to absorb massive amounts of gamma radiation. As a result… in moments of stress… he transforms into a large, green thing with super human powers. His physical size expands to such proportion that he will bust right out of his shirt but yet… not his pants. After the episode is over, he returns back to his normal size wearing the very same pants without a belt. Some scientists have been doing research to discover what causes this transformation from Bruce to the Hulk. However… the majority of scientists are spending their time researching the incredible pants that he wears. 3.John Deere Stuff – Nothing runs like a Deere… that is the slogan of this company that has built big green machinery out of Moline, Illinois since 1837. I don’t have much need for farm machinery but I stopped to look at a John Deere lawn mower because I figured that it could cut grass. The salesman told me it was “top of the line” and that “he would stand behind it." I then walked over to the manure spreader and said, “Would you stand behind this?" 4. Envy – When I consider the 7 deadly sins… envy is by far my least favorite. I enjoy a good gluttony from time to time… I can take pride in my pride… lust is alright if properly managed... and I enjoy a slothful Saturday watching the Twins. But Envy… I find it pointless and it just doesn’t interest me at all. A somewhat famous quote says, “Envy is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die." There are very few things uglier than Envy. Monkfish and Gary, Indiana are the only things that leap to mind. 5. The Jolly Green Giant – Born and raised in the community of Le Sueur, Minnesota, the Jolly Green Giant is one of our own. Minnesota can sure grow them big… not only the Green Giant but also Paul Bunyan and Kent Hrbek. ____________________ Lineups: TWINS Eduardo Nunez [R) SS Joe Mauer (L) 1B Miguel Sano [R) 3B Brian Dozier [R) 2B Max Kepler (L) RF Kennys Vargas (S) DH Robbie Grossman (S) LF Kurt Suzuki [R) C Eddie Rosario (L) CF Tyler Duffey [R) P RED SOX Mookie Betts [R) RF Dustin Pedroia [R) 2B Xander Bogaerts [R) SS David Ortiz (L) DH Hanley Ramirez [R) 1B Jackie Bradley (L) CF Travis Shaw (L) 3B Ryan Hanigan [R) C Brock Holt (L) LF Steven Wright [R) P Game-time forecast: 83 deg F, clear and sunny, no chance of rain, winds at 12mph from the SSW. Go Twins! Play ball! Click here to view the article

Awesome...This should place me into possible consideration.

You know the theory is goofy if I agree with you. Other than Ryan decided to retire at season end... It looks like he was told he would be replaced at seasons end. In that scenario... I could easily suspect that Ryan asked for the firing timeline to be immediate so Antony would get a shot. If you and I are right. It speaks to the level of respect between Pohlad, Ryan and Antony. Pohlad thought enough of Ryan to speak honestly and Ryan thought enough of Antony to step aside. I have no idea what happens behind those walls but I'm guessing it's a bunch of pain and sadness.

Yes Terry Ryan has done a good job finding talent out of the castoff pile but that's all about opportunity. The Twins have simply had more opportunity to give opportunity and I believe that is a major factor in what seems like success. I love that Grossman is getting a chance for Grossmans sake but at the same time... I'm kinda upset that we needed him. Grossman isn't a TR success story no matter how well he plays going forward... Grossman is a symptom of the failure because he is here. On Antony... No idea what kind of GM he would make and Seth is right when he says it isn't fair to judge him because of his relationship to Ryan. However... Ryan is either ignoring good advice or taking bad advice from those under him and that's why it can't be Antony. Way to risky to reach into that barrel of Apples when something is clearly spoiled. Hire from the outside just to be safe.

Yeah If they don't... they know I'll keep trying... So Yeah... They learned to laugh so everyone can move on.

I think those thoughts would be normal and not sexist. There are plenty of things to worry about from viruses to maniacs with a Truck in Nice and as time goes by... new things will be added to the worry list. It's right to be worried and it's normal but maintain balance because it's important... make sure they get their dose of happy, silly and loving life. There is nothing better than a kid that smiles.

In all seriousness... I'll give you the best advice that I know 1. Love them and try to remember what it was like when you were young. 2. Keep a close eye on their friends. If they got friends that you trust... It's going to be alight. If not... it's the only thing that can blow #1 out of the water. 3. Earn Money and get used to not having it after you earn it.

It depends on how high you raise them and the support structure that keeps them from falling back to the ground.

Head made of rubber and bottom made of springs?

This was the right move and it's something that I have advocated for the past few months. I do want to say that it was very painful to advocate that and now that it has happened... it's still somewhat painful even if I got what I wanted. Here's the deal... The Twins are mine. I've invested myself in this club and I plan to continue investing myself into this club. I don't know another way and I don't want to know another way. We all got to put our passions into something. Anybody else who invests themselves in my club is my teammate and that is how I viewed Terry Ryan all these years... Regardless of how I felt he performed in his very important role. I wish Terry nothing but the best and I honestly thank him for his efforts on my behalf as the biggest Twins fan in the world. I realize that this is how it must begin... but it can't stop here. Yes... Terry Ryan was where the final decision buck stopped. However... I assume that he was operating on the advice of his many employees and that is what needs to be assessed next. I certainly hope that someone will be reading all reports to find out who advocated what and that each member of the front office is properly assessed on the merits of each suggestion that led to getting us to where we are.

From Tigger to Vanimal. Darwin may have underestimated you.

The Twins are in Detroit to open up 3 game series against the A.L. Central 2nd place Tigers. The Twins didn’t do the Tigers any favors losing 2 games out of 3 against the 1st place Indians over the weekend. The Tigers could use a few favors. Every sub species of Tiger is listed as endangered and that’s because the other 29 teams are encroaching on their habitat. The Bay of Bengal, Siberia, Indochina, Sumatra, Southern Ohio, a handful of college campuses and Michigan are the only locations on earth where you can still find them in the wild. Here are some things to think about: 1. Tony the Tiger – They’re Grrreat!!! Maybe so… but if you knew the history… that line will send a chill down your spine. Tony the Tiger is actually quite frightening. The Kellogg Company headquarters is located about 120 miles to the west of Detroit in Battle Creek, Michigan. Battle Creek was the ideal location for production of all the cereal brands they produce because of the rich springs of high fructose corn syrup that flows through the town creek. The fructose was so valuable that people would come from many miles to wash their pants in it. It was a muscular, deep voiced, English speaking, scarf wearing Tiger named Tony and his violent gang of Toucan Sam, Snap, Crackle and Pop, under the employ of Kellogg’s, that secured the creek’s resources for cereal production exclusively; and they did so through a series of bloody battles at the creek. 2. Tigger – North of Detroit lies the Hundred Acre Wood and an extreme subspecies of Tiger called a Tigger. Tiggers are slightly different from tigers… for example… the double G proves that they can’t spell… they have redickerous speech impediments… they tend to bounce around instead of stalking low to the ground... they go a very long time between meals... and they are clever enough to lull prey into a false sense of security by pretending friendship until they can catch them easily off guard. Tigger’s favorite foods are Rabbits, Piglets, Owls, Donkeys, Kangas, Roos and Pooh Bears. 3. Maneater – Oh-Oh Here she comes… Watch out Boy… She’ll chew you up. Brett Hull and Adam Oates wrote this song at Joe Louis Arena between periods of a hockey game between the Blues and Red Wings. They were inspired to write it after witnessing a female tiger burst into the visiting locker room and eat Boy O' Conner (Blues equipment manager). The Tiger was smuggled into the arena by a fan intending to replace the goofy octopus thing they do. 4. Siegfried and Roy – In October of 2003 during a show at the Mirage, Roy Horn was bitten in the neck by a 7 year old Tiger named Montecore in front of a live audience. Both Siegfried and Roy defended the Tiger’s behavior by saying that the cat was trying to protect him. After an extensive investigation… it was determined that the Tiger actually attacked Roy because it didn’t like the name Montecore and it was sick and tired of being painted White before every show. 5. Tiger Woods – His fame began in 1978 at the age of two when he putted on the Mike Douglas Show. At Age 3 he shot a 48 over nine holes. At age 8, he broke 80 over 18 holes for the first time. He won the Masters at age 20 and by the time he was 33… he had won 14 Majors. In 2009… Forbes Magazine declared that Tiger was the first athlete to earn over one billion dollars. Tiger was on top of the world but his much publicized fall from grace proved to be very costly. Not only did he lose his wife because of numerous affairs, a 2009 study estimated the shareholder loss from the affairs to be between 5 and 12 billion. Scrutiny was reaching a fever pitch so Tiger retreated from public life and attended a 45 day therapy program in the Virgin Islands. Afterwards they were renamed… “The Islands.” ____________________ Lineups: TWINS Eduardo Nunez (R] SS Joe Mauer (L) 1B Miguel Sano (R] 3B Brian Dozier (R] 2B Max Kepler (L) RF Robbie Grossman (S) DH Eddie Rosario (L) LF Kurt Suzuki (R] C Byron Buxton (R] CF Ricky Nolasco (R] P TIGERS Ian Kinsler (R] 2B Cameron Maybin (R] CF Miguel Cabrera (R] 1B Victor Martinez (S) DH Nick Castellanos (R] 3B Justin Upton (R] LF Mike Aviles (R] RF Jarrod Saltalamacchia (S) C Jose Iglesias (R] SS Matt Boyd (L) P Game-time forecast: 87 deg F, mostly clear, no chance of rain, winds at 10mph from the WNW. Play ball! Go Twins! Click here to view the article

OK That's That

No That's Joe Mauer

A couple more photo thoughts: 1. Grossman looks like he was placed there by Bark 2. It's pretty clear that not every Minnesotan knows exactly where to look.

A couple of things: Based on that photo: 1. I'm under the impression that you love Arms? 2. I pressed ESC and it didn't do anything

I've been thinking that for quite some time. His stuff moves pretty nice. He's looked sharp almost every time.

He looks like he needs one of those cones.

No All those years living in the desert Chief has evolved away from fur. He looks more like this: http://animals.sandiegozoo.org/sites/default/files/juicebox_slides/gila_01.jpg

No... but...

Before the game is done... I meant... I should have typed that.

I'm calling it now SANO will homer You may ask how I know that and I'll tell you. It's because I benched him tonight on my fantasy team to play Billy Hamilton cuz I'm facing someone with a bunch of rabbits. So Sano... will homer.