TwinsCD

Maybe it'll be Rogers's too.

Kitchen closed after the 5th inning. Didn't you get the memo for this road trip?

Seeing Healy at the plate makes me wonder why the A's have never retired McGwire's number.

*deep sigh of relief*

Colon is getting stronger. The Imodium is working!!

OK bullpen, the number is 5. Don't let the A's get to it.

Gotta get them all before the 5th inning.

Been watching the Hall of Fame coverage today. Seeing them introduce all the HOF'ers in attendance beforehand really made me miss Kirby again. =(

Dear Front Office, Please find bullpen help....ANYWHERE. Dear Paul Molitor, Stop deviating from the norm. Kintzler gets the 9th, no matter how interesting he always makes it. Rogers hasn't had a professional save, why the hell did you think tonite would be different? Dear Hitters, You're allowed to score after the 5th inning. Stop pressing the dumb, incompetent bullpen. Only consolation prize -- Jamie Hersch is on Quick Pitch on MLB tonite. Sigh. Try again tomorrow.

And now the Adventures of the 9th Inning has begun.

Are you talking 'Any Number' (the one with the secondary prize and the piggy bank) or 'One Away'? It seemed in the last few years of the Bob Barker ones (I haven't watched a single Drew Carey episode), the last number on the car was either a 0 or a 5.

Duffey looks rather adequate tonite.

I don't know if anything frustrates me more about this team than seeing a power hitter like Sano do that half-hearted wave at a breaking ball on strike 3. It happens at least once every other game. I hope he someday learns how to be more disciplined with that pitch.

Rajai Davis has a set of wheels on him. No chance that they get him at first if Mejia would have gotten a better start off the mound. And if they try to get Davis and Mejia's back is turned to the plate and/or bobbles the ball, maybe that run scores. So it might have been better that he hesitated and Mauer doesn't make the toss.

I would have lost a lot of bets on that one.

Since I've been a high school umpire for 13 years, I watch way too many games through those eyes than a fan's eyes. It has severely limited my heckling ability. Meanwhile, the Twins once again leave the bases loaded. I'm sure our friends at Stats, Inc. could tell us what the Twins average is with them loaded this year. I can't imagine it's all that great.

Ummmmm, Dick....Alonso's foot was off the bag. Watch the whole play, please.

Grossman comes to the plate, I ask, 'what are the chances he bunts?'. Amazing that he got it down. Now let's see how we can F up the bases loaded situation. EDIT: Nevermind....this Granite kid needs to hang around.

The golf game (naturally). Wasn't so sure about them giving a 2nd chance. What I always found entertaining was when Bob would go for the inspirational putt, there were some contestants who had no idea how to handle the skinny mic.

Phil Cuzzi's at 2nd tonite....we know his track record.

The first time he struck out looking, it was definitely outside. But apparently, this Triple-A ump has established that as his edge so the next time you see that pitch, ESPECIALLY with 2 strikes, you have to hack at it. And once again, the Twins leave the bases loaded.

Dozier taking window shopping lessons from Castro. SWING THE DAMN BAT!!

You people and your mornings. Unless it involves travel or a tee time, I don't want to know what anything before 8am looks like. Of course, it helps to have a job that I often don't have to be there until 10am at the earliest.

Thankfully, no one in the front office is on this board. Because if they were, the Twins would be in a constant and perpetual rebuild (see, Pirates 1993-2013). If you trade every high-priced veteran as some have proposed, who is the leadership to make these hopeful runs in 2019 or beyond? Do we expect the youngsters Buxton, Sano, Polanco, et al to carry this franchise without some sort of veteran support? I'd like to think they would too and be like the current Astros. But I don't buy it, at least not right now. You have to be strong up the middle and Dozier at $9M next year is a pretty good bargain given today's market and his production. Santana is still locked up thru next year with a club option for '19. Shouldn't he be the cornerstone of a young pitching staff? Or do we think Falvey and Co. can sign a better option thru FA? The Twins don't exactly have the greatest track record of attracting FAs the last few years. Granted, no one can forecast what kind of pitcher Santana will be a year from now but can you forecast how good the players they get in return will be in 2019 (because you know they will likely be AA level at best). That's not to say Falvey shouldn't listen to offers, which I'm sure are out there. If someone wants Gibson, I'd let him go. Despite that 7-inning performance in his last outing, I think he's better suited in a bullpen role. In fact, I think if he had been in the pen instead of Rochester, they win that game last nite. Despite what the stat geeks have been trumpeting about the Twins improved defense with Castro behind the plate, he has showed me nothing with the bat in his hand other than a propensity for window shopping at the worst times. A contender could use a veteran catcher down the stretch and we take a chance with Gimenez and Murphy (he's gone? wow, glad Ryan got rid of Hicks for that) whoever is at AAA. Otherwise, I don't think holding on to Santana and Dozier is a bad idea. This season could best be described as the Twins transition year...getting them from the crap that was last year to a contender next year with a good taste of some of that contention for over half the season this year. Bullpen will obviously have to be the big item on the offseason shopping list to make these guys serious contenders.

Doesn't matter where the throw went, that run was scoring anyway since Granite doesn't have much of an arm. But Mauer not thinking that maybe with the runner going they might have a chance at 1st and instead playing cutoff man may have cost them the game. Then again, if Kintzler would stop making it interesting all the time, perhaps we'd be batting still up 5-4.