Riverbrian

I think you can balk at the balk.

That was text book "How to not play 1B" from Ishikawa.

I think the Twins can decline the balk. I hope so... Cuz I got Joe on my Fantasy team and I could use the steal.

Me 2... I'm also in the Plouffe corner.

I donated my hair once. A panhandler on the street asked me for some money and I gave him some locks of my hair. It felt good to help out a fellow human like that.

C'mon Twins... I need a win. Forgot about the team needing a win... I need a win... Do it for me.

I like outside the box thinking but SS is too important a spot defensively in my opinion. I'll settle for less bat if the guy can pick it. That's been the biggest problem with Santana... He has all the skills but he hasn't been picking it. Too many boots and those boots have cost us games in my opinion. Besides... Molly doesn't seem to totally trust Sano at 3B because he hasn't been playing there much.

It's hard to think about the Pirates with the trade deadline looming. We all expect something and we are all watching and waiting for news. We've seen players moving around on other teams and still nothing for our Twins. It's fun to snoop around and dream about superstars showing up in Minnesota but you still got to play the games on the field while you wait. Go ahead and tell Abner all that you are seeing and hearing but let's not lose sight of the Pirates... It's a real good club coming to town and the Twins need to start stringing together some wins. Here are some Things to Think About: 1. The Pirates -- The Twins just got done facing the Angels and Yankees who happen to be... two of the hottest teams in baseball right now. The Pirates feel like a team that fits that mold. They feel like they should be hot because they are a good team. However... they ain't that hot right now. Just 4-6 since the All Star Break. The Twins are 3-6 since the All Star break consistently winning one and losing two against everybody. The Pirates just took 3 out of 4 from the Nationals at home before that they were 1 and 5 on the road against the Royals and Brewers. The Twins and Pirates met earlier this year. The Twins won both games at PNC and now will try to do the same at Target Field. 2. The Trade Deadline -- It's early morning and game time is 7:10PM... I think the odds are good that a deal somewhere will take place by that time. It may not be with the Twins but a deal just might happen somewhere in baseball. The Blue Jays stunned everyone by acquiring Tulowitski from the Rockies yesterday and this makes perfect sense because the Blue Jays really really need pitching. 3. The Twins at the trade Deadline -- I read Twins Daily... I read MLB Trade Rumors... I look for Twins Rumors like everyone else does but the Twins don't give up the info. Terry Ryan has always been tight lipped. Ken Rosenthal and Jon Morosi must hate Terry Ryan because he gives them nothing. Those guys probably don't even call him anymore. You know how it is... If you want information you talk with Gladys Kravitz. Terry Ryan is apparently like Samantha or Darrin Stephens keeping everything quiet inside his office. That's smart because if your nose twitches and your mother can appear out of thin air. You should probably keep that to yourself. If Terry weighs the same as a duck... you'll know he's made out of wood. 4. Someone is Coming -- Terry Ryan has told someone that someone is coming. If someone is coming that probably also means that someone is going. We can speculate all day long but until that someone shows up and is issued a uniform... we just won't know. We'd hate to lose one of our nice young prospects but the Twins are in playoff contention and that doesn't happen every year. Terry has to address holes and the Twins have a few. I want bullpen primarily. Others want a catcher; others want a SS; others want a starter; and others want more prospects. You can't please everyone so lets just hope that the Twins make a good deal that helps us this year and doesn't kill us three years from now. 5. Grocery Shopping -- I've been busy so it's been awhile since I've been to the supermarket. The supplies were getting kinda low so I'm glad that nuclear war didn't happen during this time. If I had to crawl into something and survive with a couple of cans of soup... eventually I would have had to eat my neighbors. Sunday... I found some time to reload. I bought so many groceries that I needed to make multiple trips from the car to bring it all in and now I'm ready for Nuclear War. Bringing all the groceries in was a workout... I had to replenish my fluids afterwards. Shopping at this scale can be a little shocking on the pocketbook. They say money talks but all my money ever says is "goodbye". -------------------- Game-time forecast: 81 deg F, overcast with a 10% chance of rain, winds from the WSW at 10mph. Lineups: PIRATES Polanco RF Marte LF McCutchen CF Ramirez 3B Kang SS Walker 2B Alvarez DH Cervelli C Ishikawa 1B Morton P TWINS Dozier 2B Hunter RF Mauer 1B Sano DH Plouffe 3B Rosario LF Hicks CF Suzuki C Escobar SS Pelfrey P Go Twins! Play ball! Click here to view the article

Wieters has been disapointing for too long. No thanks But... I'd love O'Day... Matusz or Brach for our bullpen.

Yep... Me... I've never liked he guy.

So you know when you are having eggs for breakfast.

The Bullpen should be OK now.

Dude... When you are watching the Twins game... You are going to have a look around every once in awhile and see what your wife is up to.

Halsey is going to like Plouffe eventually

Already thought of that... I got one of those beer holding helmets and the tube.

When I watch the bullpen... I do that to. And when you take your fingers away its harder to see because I've smudged my glasses.

I had Jamaican food tonight. Interesting menu... I went with the goat since I've never had it before. It was OK... but I don't need to have it again. I kinda felt like Andrew Zimmern singing No Woman No Cry.

New Career path... An exciting time in any ones life.

I'v been pleased with all of our starters this year. Our worst this year would have been our best in past years. Neil Allen for President

Good Game thread... Enjoyed catching up. Alright... Lets get a third out before a first run

I like this... Let's get Pelfrey on the mound as the Twins Face the Mets... May vs the Philies and Gibson on the Mound as the Twins face the Red Wings.

The Angels were hot when we played them and about the only team that is as hot as the Angels are the Yankees and Ta Da!!! It's all about playing teams at the right time and the Twins are getting a bunch of 'wrong times' of late. Come to think of it... We also got the Tigers in April when they were the hottest team on the planet. How are we in contention for a playoff spot with that kind of luck??? I don't know but WE ARE!!! Here are some things to think about: 1. CRASHES -- So... I got up early this morning and made me a cup of coffee and started working on this Game Thread opener. It was fairly decent; I started off with thought #1... talking about how the Yankees are constantly on ESPN and MLB Network. Whatever happens it seems to be all Yankees all the time and to support this theme... all my following thoughts (2 3 and 4) were also about the Yankees... I didn't mention the Twins once. It was a dry joke that lasted all opener long. And then my screen blanked and everything went away and I couldn't get it back. I don't know what crashed... Google Chrome, TD or my computer? But something did and now I don't have time to do it again, so I'm cobbling something together quickly. 2. The Yankees -- I hate them... I always have... right after the White Sox. They are my 2nd most hated team. They spend too much money and they get too much press. It's the only place where Jim Leyritz could have become a legend. A couple of singles in a big game and he gets a monument in CF. 3. The Twins -- I love them... I always have... no other team comes close. It was good to see Ervin Santana look absolutely amazing yesterday. Those Angels were swinging well so Ervin gets bonus points for that. We needed that win... 5 losses in a row in late July with the team in a playoff spot would have sucked. 4. Not Played on Paper -- As proof positive that baseball is not played on paper, I present to you the Minnesota Twins and the New York Yankees. Not many thought the Yankees were the team to beat in the AL East this year. Teixeira, A-Rod, Sabathia and Beltran all have dentures. Tanaka was and is a huge injury concern. All they did was pick up people off the scrap heap to fill out the lineup. Guys like Headley, Drew, Garrett Jones and Chris Young. And of course... next to nobody thought the Twins could be where they are. It just goes to show... baseball isn't played on paper. It's a good thing because we are inching closer to a paperless society. 5. Passwords -- I have too many passwords... At least I think I do because I've tried to return to sites after years of not being there to find out that my password is incorrect. Life has become a game of trying to remember passwords and after failing at that... trying to remember who you typed as your best friend in high school. -------------------- Game-time forecast: 84 deg F, clear to partly cloudy, 0% chance of rain, winds from the NW at 11mph. Lineups: YANKEES Ellsbury CF Gardner LF Rodriguez DH Texeira 1B McCann C Beltran RF Headley 3B Gregorius SS Drew 2B Pineda P TWINS Dozier 2B Hunter RF Mauer 1B Sano DH Plouffe 3B Rosario LF Hicks CF Suzuki C Santana SS Hughes P Go Twins! Play ball! Click here to view the article

Alright... I gotta hit the hay. Bring a win home for me... You night owls.