IdahoPilgrim

I got to the stadium around 6:30pm, waited in line to get my ticket (box seat - $9.00), and entered the gates. Almost immediately I had to adjust my stride as I almost walked into one of the Kane County players. The dressing rooms are away from the field, so the players have to walk through the main concourse to get to the dugouts. It immediately drove home to me just how different minor league baseball is at this level from the majors (imagine walking into Target Field on game day and bumping into Joe Mauer or Justin Morneau!) The stadium itself is small, one main covered stand, a couple of bleachers on either end for general admission ($7.00). Another example of how baseball is different at this level from The Show. My seat is in the front row, almost dead center behind homeplate; you feel like you can reach out and touch the players. I was surprised to learn it was dollar day (one of their promotions) so my hot dog and small soda only cost $1.00 each. That being said, it wasn’t much of a hot dog – the dollar dogs at Target Field look like banquets in comparison. Setting up my scorecard requires listening to the pregame anouncement and writing quickly, as there is no place on the scoreboard for the lineups. The anthem is sung by a young gentleman who has a nice voice but just barely avoids a Robert Goulet moment, at one point stopping completely until the words come back to him. Nobody seems to mind, though. The Snappers take the field, the opposing batter steps up, and the game is on. The game starts well for Beloit. David Hurlbut is sharp and basically holds the Cougars in check for seven full innings, with only a small scare in the sixth. The Snappers take advantage. After leaving the bases loaded in the first inning (on three walks from the Royals top draft pick), the bottom of the second blows it open. Wickens opens with a single (which is originally ruled as an error on the third baseman but subsequently changed), Rodriguez follows with another, Pettersen moves the runners up with a nice sacrifice, and then three straight hits from Roberts, Lin & Rosario begin to put the game out of reach early. It is especially nice to see Rosario (the DH in his return to the Beloit lineup) hit a solid single to center, which the fielder misplays, allowing it to go to the wall and resulting in two runs across and Rosario on third. Sano (who was 0-for-1 on the day but was walked three times and who looked mostly solid on defense) brings him in with a sacrifice to right, and Kennys Vargas hits a shot straight over the center field wall, the deepest part of the field (380ft), that the fielder can only turn to watch. After that inning the game cruised by quickly. The reliever the Cougars brought in after the debacle of the second was effective for three innings. Then, in the bottom of the sixth, AJ Pettersen starts a string of four consecutive hits that ends up in two more coming across and an 8-0 lead. Hurlbut starts to noticeably tire in the eighth inning, giving up two solid doubles for the Cougars first run, but with an eight-run cushion I am not surprised to see him come out for the ninth, and I applaud the Beloit manager (Nelson Prada) for giving him the chance. I couldn’t help but think of a Blylevenism, of finishing his own game and not needing a bullpen. Still, it is clear he has lost his stuff. He continues to get hit hard in the ninth, until finally with another run in and two more in scoring position, Prada makes the move. Baxendale comes in and promptly gives up two hits before getting the final out. It was an anti-climactic way to finish the game, but rest assured the Snappers fans still went home happy. With a home victory and seven or more runs scored, everyone is given a coupon for a free dish of custard from the local Culver’s, good for one week. Like most minor league games, this one had it’s share of gimmicks, promotions, and contests. The two most unusual were the hog-calling contest (Soooooo-eeeeeyy!), and the barrel-rolling contest, where two kids have to roll a (presumably) empty beer keg from start to finish, to see who finishes first. I was a bit surprised to see kids rolling kegs, but then I remembered that this is, after all, Wisconsin, the state that leads the nation in beer consumption per capita. And so day one ends. A nice easy drive down from the Twin Cities to a motel in Janesville, a fun game in a congenial atmosphere on a pleasant summer evening. I don’t know how the rest of this trip is going to turn out, as I visit all of the Twins affiliates in their home parks, but at least it has started well. Can’t wait for tonight’s game.

Not everyone has overlooked it. I've advocated keeping him for some time. If the point is to create a roster that can compete 3 years down the line, I think Span can be a part of that roster (although perhaps in left or right instead of center).

The Vargas homer in Beloit was fun to watch - to dead center, deepest part of the park (which is only 380ft in Beloit, but impressive anyway).

Nice blooper today in the 6th, A.J. Was at the game and enjoyed it (especially the 2nd inning).

I concur. I think the only real disappointment I have with this year's deadline activity is that both Pavano and Capps are injured so we couldn't move them as well.

I can share your sentiment. There is a difference between "pitching to contact" and just plain bad pitching. Unfortunately, the Twins are all too often guilty of the later. Good "pitch to contact" pitchers may not have high K rates, but they also don't have high opp. batting averages. They locate their pitches well and pitch intelligently so that when contact is made it is much more likely to be an out than a base hit. That means not throwing cookies belt high over the center of the plate. Personally I prefer that type of pitcher - they are the ones that are going to have career longevity, whereas the power pitcher who can't do this will start getting hit hard once they get older and a few mph comes off the fastball (Nolan Ryan being the notable exception, of course).

You just made my day, Seth. I'm in Beloit right now and will be at the next two games (tonight and tomorrow). Was hoping he might get back in time.

Does anybody else out there have the sick feeling that a one-run lead is not going to hold up? We need more runs, guys!

Do you work in aviation?

Perhaps, but this is exactly why I say that for him you have to get a true high-ceiling prospect in return or you don't do the deal.

I doubt it. I'm sure at some point in his career coaches tried to get him to use a more traditional stance/swing, only to give up and let him hit in the way that feels natural to him. Some people are just like that - they only succeed when they are allowed to be unconventional.

I know, that was said tongue in cheek, but it is human nature to not want your temporary replacement to outshine you in any way. Management might start getting ideas...

Way to go, Danny! Wonder if Trevor's thumb is starting to recover at a quicker rate?

Yeah, but who can keep them down after something like that?

I concur. Let's show them what happens when they come into our yard.

I would add that, while they have been inconsistent, there have been spells when they have played quite well and have been fun to watch - that victory over Cincinnati and Aroldis Chapman, with Mauer's classic at-bat followed by Willingham's homer, keeps me going through many down spots, as has a couple of nicely pitched complete games by Diamond and Walters.

One could argue that both trades served to do the exact opposite. We'll know better after Tuesday.

I disagree. They won't need TJ surgery at this point. When they're in AAA and knocking on the door for the Twins and starting to figure into our immediate future plans, THEN they'll wind up needing TJ surgery.

So, how does this work? Do we now judge TR on the basis of what other clubs are willing to pay? We need young, high-ceiling power arms. We'll just trade Liriano for one. What? Nobody offered us that for Liriano? Dang! Twins's front office screwed up again! Same thing with Span, Morneau, & Willingham. If we get some high-ceiling prospects, then of course they're going to make a move. But what if we aren't offered any? What if the choice is between a) doing nothing, or giving up one of these three for no more than we got for Liriano? No matter what choice TR makes, he's going to get criticized.

I don't know if the analogy holds. Last year was an anomaly payroll-wise - they had a higher target ($110M) and even went beyond that in the (as it turns out) false belief they would contend (which in itself should show that the Pohlad's will spend money when they think it might make sense). When it became clear we were in a genuine, grade-A rebuilding project, it was decided to lower payroll from the target, to about $95M-$100M, so the salary drawdown this year was intentional based on an assessment of their chances of competing. My guess is this is about as low as they'll go - they'll probably aim to keep total salary at a similar level next year, and will be willing to increase it a couple of years down the road when the rebuilding process begins to yield a team with a true chance to compete at the highest level.

Duly noted - I should have said "almost nobody" or even better, "very few".

The find I find amazing is the short attention span of most fans, even knowledgeable fans. Last May, this is exactly what fans were clamoring for - a run of good starts so the Twins could get something, ANYTHING, for him before he imploded again. Nobody was talking about offering him an extension or calling him the best arm in the system (which he is on his good days). There were even some who said we should just DFA him and be done with it. I'm OK with this trade - I would have liked more, but it wasn't to be. I do think, given their contracts, that more needs to be expected for Span, Willingham or Morneau - they won't go for this level of return. If that's all that Ryan is offered for one of them, just say no and keep them.

And let's not forget his numerous rants about what the definition of a quality start should be!

I think it would be a good bet, and if somebody does claim him you just cancel the deal and pull him back off the waiver wire. You're allowed to do that once a year for each player.

My guess is he didn't have that option. Who in their right mind was going to offer impact talent for a 2-month roll-of-the-dice acquisition? I suspect it was these two or nothing.