Blake

I know it's patriotic and all but yeah, the socks are a bit much. Maybe blue with some stars or something but the barber shop effect needs to go. Great, the Twins are winning and I'm worried about fashion? Now that's something not right with the universe.

Why is Rosario wearing a barbershop pole on his left leg? Or did someone raid "The Cat in the Hat" wardrobe?

Thank you Chief.

Drat, I cannot believe I screwed that up. Both Mr. Kepler? Really? Any chance Chitown can use her awesome mod powers and insert "and Mr. Sano?" And also correct the start time? 1:10 am? Really? I made as many blunders in the thread start as the Twins did on the base paths last night. Yeesh. Thanks

Mods: once again, I will be out and about and unable to post lineups before the game starts. Thanks again for all your help!

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" -The Declaration of Independence May we all pursue happiness on this glorious 4th of July. And may the happiness of living in a nation that has a sport such as baseball be compounded by our favorite team winning again against that other team from the West Coast. May everyone survive the Fourth with all fingers attached. May all dwellings remain standing and not be turned into a large bonfire suitable for toasting marshmallows. May we all remain sober and thoughtful during our comments in the game thread. (ha! had you going, didn't I?)* *Hey, I think I inadvertently covered the "five things to think about" section. Think about that for a moment. Oh wait, that's 6 things. I hope there's not a penalty involved for exceeding the thoughts quota. The Twins win yesterday was a classic, classic in that Miguel Sano committed a base running blunder after Kepler committed a base running blunder. After the multiple blunders, both Mr. Kepler and Mr Sano decided they'd had enough of hitting the ball a long way and decided they needed to challenge the Angels infielders. Score: infielders 0, Sano and Kepler 2. Then, after getting a 4 run lead, My Kintzler was brought in to put the game away. But, Mr. Kintzler, in usual fashion, decided to trick the Angels into thinking they had a chance by allowing a runner to reach. Which, when you think about it is kind of cruel. Letting the other team think they have a chance then shutting the door. Which brings us to today. Another day for baseball and it should be a good one. Okay, pretty much any day is a good day for baseball. Sort of goes without saying. Now for some large explosions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSQtXMX2J8k And now for something completely different: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_oKLC_DY5c Play ball: Pitching for the Twins: Kyle Gibson And for the other guys: JC Ramirez

This was back during the Seventies, right? The era of platform shoes? :>

Okay, Sano beats out an infield roller and Kepler, well.. I was laughing so hard my wife wanted to know what happened and all I could tell her is that "it's baseball." Excellent hustle by Sano.

Rosario's needs to be benched for a few games. That catch was uncalled for.

Funny incident: Met Scott Studwell once at an autograph thingy. I'm 6' 3" same height as Mr. Studwell. I remember initially thinking okay, and...then I realized he wasn't wearing his pads. Duh, autograph signing. Anyway, Studwell, without pads was about the same size I would have been if I'd have been wearing pads. Another time, I ran into Randy Bush at the Metrodome. He wasn't nearly as built as Mr. Studwell, but he wasnot a small man either. Again, same height as me, but with a lot more muscle.

Maybe 3' 6"?

Lucky for the fans a fence got in the way of that blast by Mr. Kepler.

Nice shot, Mr. Mauer!

Personally, I like to combine bits from the pantry and the refrigerator.

Brothers? Fight? You mean having brothers isn't all rainbows and unicorns? Knock me over with a feather...

I see RB has been married long enough to where the herd of locusts, AKA "Teenagers," are no longer residing at home. Otherwise, the contents of the refrigerator would be a constantly moving target.

TWINS: Brian Dozier 2B Robbie Grossman RF Joe Mauer 1B Miguel Sano DH Eduardo Escobar 3B Jorge Polanco SS Eddie Rosario LF Byron Buxton CF Jason Castro C Hector Santiago, P ROYALS: Whit Merrifield 2B Jorge Bonifacio RF Eric Hosmer DH Salvador Perez C Jorge Soler LF Ramon Torres 3B Brandon Moss 1B Alcides Escobar SS Alex Gordon CF Travis Wood P

Ideas, ideas, my kingdom for an idea. Or even a clue, for that matter. I was going to mail it in with this game thread, sort of like the Twins do when they play at home, but, since the Twins, when on the road, tend to go “Mad Max” I decided I best try to put up something coherent. (yeah, yeah, I know, first time for everything) I mean, seriously, what team gets clobbered at home then turns around and clobbers the team that just clobbered them? Okay, yes, the Twins do just that, but still, really? I've gotten to the point this year I look forward to the Twins going on the road. I cannot emphasize just how much fun this year has been. Baseball tends to be weird but the Twins have hit 11 on the weird scale. Which suits me just fine, because opportunities abound for humor, angst, anger, wonder and jubilation. (Disagree? Check out the game threads some time. Okay, actually, check out the game threads all the time.) And the Twins hit KC just as KC appears to be getting on a roll. And, with the way the first two games went, it appearsedthat has been born out. However, Mr. Sano's bat seems to have awoken from it's slumber, along with other Twins bats while Fexlix Jorge made an excellent debut with the MLB club. I sit here putting this up, sitting in an Anaheim hotel (which, by the, was a great location this weekend because there were a couple of outstanding fireworks display visible from our hotel window) realizing hey, time to go eat! I hope everyone has had a great weekend and enjoys the Fourth of July! Until Next time: Play ball! Pitching for the Twins: Hector Santiago Pitching for KC: Travis Wood

Sitting in hotel, I see the first game went badly, this game started well and Gardy Molitor is trying to manage his way to a loss. And who the heck is Felix Jorge?

Pitching: Twins: Jose Berrios KC: Luke Farrell Lineups: Brian Dozier® 2B Robbie Grossman(S) LF Joe Mauer(L) 1B Miguel Sano® 3B Max Kepler(L) RF Kennys Vargas(S) DH Chris Gimenez® C Jorge Polanco(S) SS Byron Buxton® CF Whit Merrifield® RF Ramon Torres(S) 2B Lorenzo Cain® CF Eric Hosmer(L) 1B Salvador Perez® C Mike Moustakas(L) 3B Brandon Moss(L) DH Alcides Escobar® SS Alex Gordon(L) LF

Ode to TD Baseball Threads: I sat reading through TD game threads, When a thought went rumbling through my head, (although at my age, it might have been something better left unsaid) My muse had returned to the marvelous Twins, And, even though the team is doing quite well with their wins, It seemed the team and front office must eventually pay for their pitching sins. Yet here the Twins are, in the hunt, playing KC as part of a road trip stay, A team with which the Twins had their way, Back when the season started early during the light of day. I wrestled with and discounted my thoughts of gloom, For Twins Wins have continued to bloom! But alas, I couldn't turn away from thoughts of doom. As my mind meandered down that dark road, With no light just a sound, the voice of a sepulchral toad, Egad, I thought, I don't believe this, my very own thoughts, they goad! I banished those ideas with a grumble, Because down that path I couldn't allow myself to stumble. So here I am again, putting together a game thread, Wondering, exactly, just where this will head. Ah well, I suppose it doesn't much matter, As long as TD posters do their game thread natter, Because in the end I've managed to fulfill my quota of game thread chatter! Play ball! Some things to think about: 1. Dr. Seuss 2. Iambic Pentameter 3. Limericks 4. “The Gods of the Copybook Headings” 5. The Vorpal Blade

One of the more interesting things about Kansas is the fact that you can drive for a long time without appearing to get anywhere. Sort of a metaphor for the Twins season. And, evidently, I cannot tell the difference between Kansas and Iowa.

Excellent intro, RB!

Okay, I like the Kyle Gibson who gives up the run, shrugs it off then proceeds to get the next three batters.