Riverbrian

I once played in a softball tourney game against some AAAAAAAAAA team from the cities. Our team won the toss so they started the game by hitting 12 straight no doubters. No home run limit in the tourney. We realized quickly that we may have bit off more than we could chew. Our Speed Oriented defensive squad couldn't do a thing with ball flying 50 feet over the fence. And we thought we were so good... Trying an elite level tourney. That was ugly.

GLORM!!! So Good to see you!!! Now You Type -- "You were obviously looking at some pretty terrible stuff prior to my arrival".

Ramirez sniffed it out... And popped into the infield fly to foil it. If Ramirez wouldn't have figured it out... It would have worked like a charm. BTW... Charms are the best example of things that work?

I see now that the double play plan wasn't well thought out.

Setting things for the double play.

The Mortician did nice work

i think you've presented this pair before.

Umm... You need to put a 6. In front of that. Of course with Canadian Metrics... A 5.97 would suffice.

Greatest to me... Means Best of all time... but I can see where the misunderstanding arose.

White Sox: SP Andre Reinzo LF De Aza 2B Beckham SS Ramirez DH Dunn 1B Konerko RF Garcia 3B Gillaspie C Phegley CF Danks Twins: SP Mike Pelfrey 2B Dozier C Mauer 1B Morneau DH Willingham LF Arcia 3B Plouffe RF Colabello CF Thomas SS Florimon Things to Think About: 1. Hatred... I said this when we played them in Chicago... I'll Say it again... I hate the White Sox and it's almost unhealthy. 2. Think about Starting Pitching... Deduno dead arm? Gibson Innings Limit? How do you make a shaky rotation shakier. The cloud of dead arm and innings limit ought to do it. 3. Think about Kirby Puckett... Haven't thought about Kirby in awhile. He was from Chicago. He's worth a thought or two... every once in awhile. 4. Think about Clete Thomas... He's still out there... playing every day in CF. 5. Think about wrong numbers... I called a wrong number today... The lady answered and told me I had called the wrong number... I was shocked and I fumbled for some words and basically said I'm sorry. Than I got hold of the right number called it and nobody answered. This led to a question... How come... Every time you call a wrong number... Somebody answers... why is that?

I won't argue any of that... Babe Ruth was a Giant in his generation. Comparing what he did against any one else in the 20's... There is nothing to compare it to. His stats will also dwarf anyone through history. If you look at what a player did against his peers from the same time. Yeah... Babe Ruth... Just may be the greatest. But my point wasn't a statistical comparison over time. My point was talent. My point is that Babe Ruth didn't have to face the level of talent that stacks the rosters of today. His 1920 output would look quite different if he had to face the pitching of today instead of what he got to face. The 1920 teams were not stacked with 90 MPH plus fastballs and exploding sliders like the staffs of today. The 12th guy on a roster throws harder and with more movement than the top guys of the 20's. Players get better... if they are not getting better... Something wrong is happening. Take Bryce Harper from today and bring him back to the 20's and suit him up. Let Harper face the pitching from the 20's and let's see what happens. My theory is that they will sing songs about him because he will be facing less talented pitching staffs. Babe Ruth may be the greatest player of all time stat wise. I believe the 2013 players have surpassed him in talent. If they haven't... All that coaching... Video Work... Genetic evolution has been wasted.

Yes... White Plains New York... Back Room of the Dannon Company.

1. Joe Mauer batting second 2. PED's... The Managers are not tested. He is a frequent visitor to Twins Daily... He's read the posts clamoring for a stronger manager. 3. Yoga Yogurt... He's eating Yogurt daily and doing so while his body is positioned in very strange ways. The Yogurt tastes the same but he spills a lot.

Carrasco... Seems to suit our hitters.

Indians: SP Carlos Carrasco CF Bourn 1B Swisher 2B Kipnis C Santana LF Brantley DH Giambi SS Aviles 3B Chisenhall RF Stubbs Twins: SP Kyle Gibson 2B Dozier C Mauer 1B Morneau DH Willingham LF Arcia 3B Plouffe RF Colabello CF Thomas SS Florimon Things to Think About: 1. Think about clean slates... It's kind of how I feel... I was all set to watch last night when I got a phone call shortly before first pitch and the phone call lasted the entire game. I could only pay attention to the game about 25% and therefore I have no baggage from last night to take into this one. The Series is tied 1-1. It's a clean slate. 2. Think about the Streak... It's over... The Twins produced a run last night that wasn't Home Run produced. 23 straight runs via the long ball. I think I heard somewhere that it was a record. 3. Think about Kyle Gibson... It's been quite some time since a Twins pitcher has so many hopes pinned to him. The expectations are probably unfair for Kyle but such is the state of our starting pitching. He is still a work in progress but those hopes remained pinned through good times and bad times. Is it safe to assume... That Kyle can't fail... He has to develop. 4. Think about Power... It's a powerful lineup once again. From Morneau to Colabello... That section of the lineup can all go deep and I think Gardy and all of us want them to. There isn't a lot of opportunity for small ball. 5. Think about Glasses... My Friend got pulled over for speeding... The Police Officer looked at his license and said... "It says on here that you require corrective lenses". My Friend replied... "Listen... I have Contacts" The Police Officer replied... "No you listen... I don't care who you know".

That's a good question... My suspicion with nothing to back it is... The Players are just getting better and I imagine that they will continue to get better into the future. At the plate... Willie Mays didn't have to face 90 MPH Sliders out of the bullpen. The Depth of pitching staff talent has increased. The Guy who had the 90 MPH Breaking pitch in the 60's was the Ace of the staff and the guy that people came to see and the guy who is in the hall of fame. Now they are all over the place and the ace is at a new level in my opinion. Subsequently... The Hitting has to improve to keep up with the improved pitching and if the Hitting and Pitching is improving... It stands to reason that the defense is getting better as well. The SS of today has range and a cannon for an arm. I remember thinking that Rey Ordonez was an amazing defensive SS who was a couple steps above everyone else. I think Rey Ordonez is just another guy today. Everyone is getting better. It's always a popular discussion amongst baseball fans. Who is the greatest player of all time? Babe Ruth... Mickey Mantle... Willie Mays... These guys get mentioned a lot. When comparing Era to Era... Maybe they are... I always say when this discussion happens... "Whoever the best baseball player of all time is? He is playing today". Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle simply didn't have to face the depth of pitching talent that is out there today. So in a nutshell... I think the defense is just getting better naturally and it's looking jaw dropping at times to me.

Amen!!!

I could Be... I hope I am... I can't wait to see him.

I really didn't like Valencia. It got to the point with Valencia where I had about given up. Danny would be content to reach instead of center on ground balls and when you see that you wonder about his engagement. I saw it way too often to decide for myself that he was a lazy 3B. (my opinion). Now Plouffe has been better than Valencia but I think he could be better than what he is. It bugs me that I can't recall Plouffe diving for a ball. He flipped into the camera well but that catch wasn't a high degree of difficulty. His momentum just carried him over after a routine catch. So after Valencia and Plouffe... Now I'm wondering if I'm just a jerk to third basemen in general. My expectations are too high for the position or something. All I know... After watching what Machado, Lawrie and Arenado are doing on defense. I want one... And if I can't have one... They better hit like Miggy or Sano.

You are right... Offensively... Dozier has been equal to Brandon Phillips and Ian Kinsler this year. Granted... Phillips and Kinsler have been producing a little less than normal. I also agree... Florimon isn't an offensive issue unless you start piling up offensive issues around him. Plouffe is heading for a super utility role. Sano is gonna steamroll him if he doesn't move. Sano could be here by June 2014. Oddly... When Sano comes to town... It will be Plouffe's ability to play multiple positions average to below average that could keep him around. His defense could save him... How odd is that?

His arm didnt even cock. It was a long wrist flip throw with no arc. Unbelievable Indeed.

Today is International Left Handers day... And... We have two right handers matching up. I have no idea what it's like to be left handed. I imagine that writing would be difficult because the paper would be at an odd angle. It also probably means that you would bump into walls and stuff from a lack of equilibrium. You would jam your toothbrush into your nostrils on occasion... Using a urinal would flood the bathroom. I don't know... Left handers are just built wrong and I am sure there are problems that go along with it.

Indians: SP Zach McAllister CF Bourn 1B Swisher 2B Kipnis SS Cabrera LF Brantley DH Santana RF Raburn 3B Chisenhall C Gomes Twins: SP Samuel Deduno 2B Dozier 1B Mauer DH Morneau LF Willingham RF Arcia 3B Plouffe C Herrmann CF Thomas SS Florimon Things to Think About: 1. Think about Andrew Albers... No Reason to think about Albers for tonight's game... But... How can you not still think about his performance. 2. Think about Sam Deduno... Sam has the talent to put a serious Monkey Wrench in the Indians post season plans. The Indians certainly don't want to drop two in a row to the Twins. If Deduno is on... The Indians won't be happy. 3. Think about Florimon/Dozier... I know Florimon doesn't OPS worth a darn. But the defense up the middle as been fantastic. There is value in that. 4. Think about Power... Is this the new way to produce runs. I can live with it. The Twins have not scored a run that wasn't produced by the long ball in 5 straight games. It's fun... I just don't know how long you can keep it up. 5. Think about your Pet... I bought some Cat Food and it said "New and Improved". The immediate thought I had after reading the claim of "New and improved". How would I know? Turns out the Cat ate it just like the previous "old regular" cat food. Thank God It said New and Improved because I would have had no way of knowing.

Watching the play made by Florimon last night was a treat. I watch a lot of baseball and I have the impression (right or wrong) that there have been more plays like this one than ever before. Florimon's play at SS wasn't even the play of the night because Jose Iglasias made an absolutely sick underhand bullet flip to 1st that I still don't know how he did it without gunpowder in his palm. I watch a lot of baseball and the plays being made by Pedro Florimon, Brett Lawrie, Nolan Arenado, Manny Machado, Dee Gordon, Didi Gregarious, Andrealton Simmons, Brandon Phillips, Jurickson Profar and Brian Dozier are jaw dropping. Leading me to believe (right or wrong) that infield defense is at a whole new level. The athleticism and talent level is increasing before our eyes. Decades ago... Brooks Robinson and Ozzie Smith were the unquestioned elite. Nobody else could do what they did defensively. In my opinion... There are a bunch of Brooks and Ozzie types in the majors right now. BTW... Personal note to Trevor Plouffe... Do you watch these 3B Highlights from Lawrie, Machado and Arenado. Do you see the plays that Florimon and Dozier are making on your team. I understand that you may not be capable of doing what they do but get your uniform dirty and try at least. When is the last time you've left your feet? I'm struggling to recall anything. Lawrie I'm watching highlights of him doing it every night. It can't be case of Lawrie getting more opportunity to make an amazing play.

This post will be deleted... Kind of pointless to delete this post after copying it in my response but the post will be deleted nonetheless as a matter of policy. Not everyone who reads Twins Daily understands the waiver process so "Duh" is completely unnecessary. Some of us understand that your understanding of the process is at an elite level. Try to understand the varying degrees of knowledge and be respectful.