knothole61

Finn, you scooped me on that one!

Yeah, they were edging closer and closer to setting up a heartbreaking Soto Slam...but not this time! Also, nice Buddy Holly reference

Dick was like a favorite pair of slippers and I appreciated his true love of baseball, while Bert was several shades more caustic--but they both left the booth rather unceremoniously. As I recall, there was very little warning when Circle-Me-Bert left...I mean, he seemed to have developed a bit of an attitude at times during his last couple of seasons and it's possible he just quit in a fit of pique. Dick, on the other hand, would have died at the mic if they'd let him, but they didn't. The best thing about Bert was his curveball, and the worst was the way that he'd read laconically from the press guide when giving us background on a new pitcher or hitter. The best thing about Dick was his almost childlike optimism and devotion, while the worst were the odd things he'd say between pitches at times, such as: "Hey Bert, who was your favorite grade school teacher...did you have a favorite?" "Yester-me yester-you yesterday..."

Got the point they needed with 40 seconds left!

Pardon this glimmer of optimism (it's not my nature vis-a-vis the Twins), but I'm pretty happy with the starting pitching at this point. Even SW-R is a bit of a gamer and Ryan, despite the high pitch count, looked solid tonight. When Lopez comes back, (and I really don't think he will be gone a long time), and we get extended "prime time" looks at Festa and Matthews, we may find that we have a very formidable rotation going forward. That's just one piece of the puzzle, but a major piece for any team.

T.O., yes, it's like he's coming at us from some alternate reality one might have seen on the original tv Star Trek.

Upstate, thanks for the link, I love the rankings and am happy to see that the Twins gained a point due to the Prince Night planned for sometime in June, I think the Brewers are ranked too high for what should end up to be a mediocre team and season, but time will tell. There's no doubt about the support of their long suffering fans whose unflagging loyalty, almost childlike in its innocence, led to a 40th anniversary celebration of the Brewers' 1982 World Series loss! They invited players back and showered them with praise and, I can't be sure, but I think there might even have been a parade with elderly guys sitting in convertibles and waving to admiring fans. It occurs to me that, in order to brighten up what seems to be a dismal 2025 season Twins' fans might organize a gala celebration of our World Series loss to the Dodgers. The 60th anniversary of our game #7 loss to Koufax (who pitched a complete game, 3-hitter!) is coming up this October 14th. Just a thought...

JD, of the three Mendoza Line players you've mentioned, I'm most concerned about Larnach. Buxton doesn't have to hit for average to give the Twins a boost; his occasional blasts, genuine speed on the bases, and fielding ability make him worthy of his keep. As for Correa: he will catch fire with the bat for a couple of stretches this year. He is, by all accounts, an inspirational team leader, and, of course, much is always forgiven a good-fielding shortstop. But Larnach...I'm not sure how valuable he's going to be for the rest of his career. Although 2024 was his best year thus far, (and it wasn't anything spectacular) I can't forget his rather pedestrian 2023 campaign when he struck out at nearly a 35% rate, or about 10% over league average. He's 28, has neither a great glove, strong arm, nor speed on the base paths, and Rocco and others when interviewed often claim that he's about ready to break out and realize his full potential. I hope that they are correct, although I fear that we have seen his full potential already. He kind of looks lost at the plate right now-yes? Oh, by the way, nice win today!

Wow...well then, are any of us highly-paid athletes? Is it all just the same Seth?

And...if your 2 NFL losses were to the tune of 35-6 and 31-0 you might be a bit more concerned.

Okay, Morneau is not a spellbinder, but he's so damn sincere it's hard for me to hate him. He was such an incredible player until he took one too many shots to his head, and that's really so sad. I think that he had Hall of Fame potential. Provus is actually quite good, I think, a real professional. The cloying deference to the team kind of comes with the territory as a big time broadcaster--yes? It's akin to the coverage of the Masters golf tournament where the hidebound traditionalists who run Augusta insist upon decorum in the broadcast team (Jim Nance is the prototype here) and heaven forbid that anyone call members of the gallery either fans, or the crowd, or even the gallery, it's always patrons...always patrons! Slip up on that one and you'll never be back there again behind the mic. I love the tourney but always get the feeling that those in charge would like to turn the clock back to 1928, or so.

Great stat...interestingly enough, 1904 was the first season I can remember in my long Senators/Twins fandom. Casey Patten, a strong lefty, was my favorite player during a dismal 38-113 season (.252) when the boys finished a cool 55.5 games out of first. How close will the 2025 Twins come to equalling that ignominy?

Absolutely amazing!

twinsfan - an absolutely brilliant find, complete with the "M" and a bat!

Gaspar...strangest darn thing. It's as if someone owes him a favor or something. He reminds me of the coach's son in Little League who made the team even though he couldn't touch a ball against the pitching machine in tryouts, and got to play short and bat leadoff all year even though he stunk. He may be a good story (drafted in the 27th round!) but he's not a good player. His only hit so far didn't even leave the infield--yes?

fire...yeah, I think that Baldelli has a good deal of support among the local media (Barrerio today said talk of firing him is absolutely crazy) and, most importantly, the Pohlads. But Rocco is on a very hot seat in that the Twins are going to be sold, (possibly soon?) and the new owners will not keep him around...no way. Rocco must certainly be aware of this.

I'll spare you all (especially just after another bullpen melt down and a big Castro error) another old guy rant about AppleTV and its invasive coverage, "interesting" announcers, and stat madness. I did find it funny, however, that in the last of the first with Larnach at bat, and a couple of guys on, the ceaseless, AI generated (?) stat dance gave Larnach a 0% possibility of grounding into a double play!

Finn, that's not much to ask really--is it? Run as hard (not as fast of course!) as Bobby Witt and you might win more games, but you will surely be doing your job--a job you are paid highly, in wages and public adulation, to do. I can hear some (likely Rocco) say: "Do you want your stars running hard on plays that are routine outs and risk injury?" I would answer..."Yes, damn right I do!" If you can't run 90 feet a couple of times a game at a reasonable pace, it might be time to seek other employment. And it just looks bad to trot toward first as if you are too precious to make a real effort--how inspirational for the fans and your teammates to see. It's kind of a question of pride and of a workman being worthy of his hire, in my humble opinion. When the Twins begin to retool this organization, as surely they must at this point, in addition to focusing on WAR, OBP, SLG, and the like when putting a roster together, I'd like them to consider a new metric that I'd place near the top of the list, namely the PDH factor: Pride, Determination, and Hustle. That's impossible to quantify you say? Hmmm, actually I think identifying baseball PDH is akin to Justice Potter Stewart's response when asked how he would define pornography: "I know it when I see it."

I have to agree. Wallner is a big, strong kid--and a lefty, a plus defender with a rifle arm, and he's actually pretty fast for a giant. He's a cut above the occasionally hot but often not triumvirate of Miranda, Julien, and yes, even Larnach. He has a high K rate but still, to my eye, he takes more professional at bats than the others I've mentioned.

thelanges, Thanks for doing the research. That is absolutely amazing! "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark..."

There's plenty of blame to go around-yes? No earned runs for the Royals tonight...looks like the Hitless Wonders 2025 might have won 1-0 without the errors.

Fair

Love the name Doc! Did Lenz invent that freeze spray he used all of the time?

Hmm, trashing Gasper when all but France and Bader are doing SO Well, good grief. Are you serious?

Wow...realy? Putrid and painful it was! It's just one loss, of course, but this latest pratfall exposes deeper problems, dare I say systemic decay? The pitching was foul, and to that you can add the six goose egg innings, five through ten, that lamely followed a dramatic offensive eruption. The redoubtable Aggies has declared that the pitching breakdown today is "not on the manager," and I think that is correct. But what is on the manager, in my humble opinion, is the creation of an atmosphere where such collapses are allowed to roll off the shoulder as just a part of the long saga that is a baseball season. I can't know how Baldelli really feels inside, or what he says to his team in private...but, if I had to guess, I'd say hes a pretty mellow cat; kind of a "what me worry"sort of a guy. And I think that such an attitude, while it may work well in certain professions, is not the key to success in MLB. After today's game I'd like to see some genuine anger, not necessarily bats tossed in the shower, but close. And that, I fear, will never happen with Rocco, and the orgaization is the worse for that. Didn't Shakespeare say it best? "In peace there's nothing so becomes a man as modest stillness and humility; but when the blast of war blows in our ears, then imitate the action of the tiger; stiffen the sines, summon up the blood, disguise fair nature with hard-favor'd rage."