Western SD Fan

And now the game begins......

I have a list.

The hitting hasn't made it yet, but the defense and glove work will at least keep him serviceable at 3rd. Hopefully the bat comes back soon.

in Weimar Germany

Cory just finished telling us how well Varsho is hitting fastballs. Apparently, Ober didn't get the same scouting report.

As much as I want Wallner out of the lineup, I also want to make sure that the players in St. Paul are ready for the show before calling them up. Temporarily, it would better just to bench Wallner for Martin prior to calling up and Erod. I do think calling up Erod, Jenkins, or whoever is ready is best for the long term. If you reach a position where you think you can give Erod full playing time, then swapping him for Wallner makes sense.

Just had a feeling that as soon as they put Orze in that the game was over for us.

Only Buxton beats out that double play.

Great confidence in Bradley. I thought he would be out when the first of 3 lefties came up.

In live time, it looked like a strike. On ABS replay, it did look a lot closer. When you're fighting it, you have to try anything to stay in the box. I don't blame Wallner for that ABS challenge there. Two outs and a RISP, you have to try anything to stay in the box.

I can see Shelton taking a match up approach to the 7th and seeing if he can get 1 or 2 more outs out of Bradley.

The entire offseason was about why Larnach was offered arbitration, why he was still on the team and can we get anything for him. In the early going, he looks like he has responded to the criticism and is looking like he is turning a corner. Even his fielding appears to have improved. He will never be a gold glover, but it does look like he won't embarrass himself in the outfield.

Whew. My unorthodox plan came through. Wallner struck out and did not ground into a double play and Lee came through!

Is it bad that I wouldn't mind Wallner striking out just so he doesn't put the ball in play and GIDP?

Of course it's Wallner with the bases loaded......

Lewis got lucky that Clemens picked the ball. He should have ate it as he had no chance of getting an out there.

This has been a consistent problem in Twins development and roster construction. We gave up on Rooker because Larnach was going to be the next power hitter. We gave up on Larnach because Wallner was the next great power hitter. We let Kepler walk because Wallner was going to take over his position and his production. Now there are calls to see the next shiny toy in the box (Rodriguez, Jenkins, Gonzalez, Fedko, take your pick). I think Wallner needs to get sent down. I don't want it to be so reactionary that we are desperate to see the next shiny toy in the box.

Good job by Kody to stay out of the double play. The sound bite with Derek about Wallner really screams that he needs a tune up in St. Paul to work on his swing and get him some confidence again.

Taj looking good so far. Pitch count a little high, but still looking effective.

This instantly reminded me of the Twins commercial when they first moved to Target Field. TC Bear had to be led to his new 'habitat'. Has anyone tried baiting Joe Pohlad with $100 bills? I would think a Pohlad could smell money faster than Scrooge McDuck.

Highlights of the game: 1. Prielipp did well for his second start on a cold Minnesota day. I wasn't sure he would finish 5 and get the win since he was likely on a pitch count. He buckled down and got the last out in the 5th, which is a credit to him and his manager for believing in him. 2. The bats came out today. All started with the aggressive send of Bell to the plate. At that time, we didn't know how the game would turn out. The lack of offense in previous games definitely creates desperate times. The bats worked Castillo, both in walks and hits, which is something that we haven't seen in a week. Gray continues to flash the bat, and we may see him in a Wili Castro role as someone will always be taking a bench seat for him, at least for now. 3. Andrew Morris saves the bullpen again. Three innings of work. I know he gave up 2 runs in his 3rd inning of work, but that extra inning likely only needed one more reliever instead of 2. I'll also say that it was an 8-2 lead so trading 2 runs for a bullpen arm will hopefully make dividends later this season. Lowlights: There are still a couple of lowlights. First has to be Wallner. He continues to look lost at the plate and providing a dark hole in the lineup. Austin Martin should be playing every day. I'm not sure if they are afraid that they would expose something about his swing. At this point, I don't care as it couldn't get much worse. The defense was still putrid and bailed out by Prielipp's ability to miss bats and create pop ups. There were definitely plays that could have been made. I suppose some grace needs to be given considering the playing conditions. Hopefully this is the game they need to everyone to reset and get back on track. Joe Ryan is going tomorrow so we can root for another game to win and take the series against a quality opponent.

I'm impressed they got the full game in. From the TV, it looked like there has been a steady rain the entire game.

Nice job for Prielipp in getting his first career win!

Now a question pops up. Do you run Morris back out there for the save and help the bullpen out one more day?

I If anyone listens to the Skor North Twins Show on YT, they have Trevor Plouffe on Tuesdays. Plouffe has been in contact with both Wallner and Lewis and expressed to them that right now is the most important time in their career. That time where they have shown brilliance but haven't adjusted back to the league and now there are viable replacements for them either on the team or in AAA. Plouffe also expressed to them that this is the year which will define their next contract, if there is one.