PDX Twin

That makes things a little better.

I don't disagree, but that's what happens when baseball is played in places not created for that purpose. The Pre-Twins played in Griffith Stadium in DC, which also had bizarre dimensions.

Good afternoon, Twins fans! After playing three games in 27 hours, the Central Division Leadership has taken a brief recess (21 hours or so) before two more games in 21 hours starting tonight. Then the Twins travel back across Guardiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin (or maybe cut across Ontario and Michigan if the pilot is not afraid of water) to play the Orioles of Maryland at the weekend. Pre-Game Diversion: Favorite Baseball Books This is a topic that has appeared here from time to time: favorite baseball movies or books. Since I don’t do a lot of movies, I’d like to hear about your favorite baseball books tonight. (I’m thinking about histories or novels, not analytical treatises.) I have loved most of the classics---W. P. Kinsella’s Shoeless Joe, Lawrence Ritter’s The Glory of their Times, Roger Kahn’s The Boys of Summer, and Eliot Asinof’s Eight Men Out come to mind. But for my choices, I’d throw out three lesser-known books (in no particular order because I cannot rank them) that you might enjoy if you can find them. Morry Frank, Every Young Man’s Dream. First paragraph hooked me: “I ruined my own life. I had the best arm in the Southern League. A whip, a slingshot. Goliath would have fallen from my stone. Confidence? You’d have wanted to slap my face. I could cut one off in the hole, plant my right foot, and throw so hard that the first baseman’s eyes would pop open…” Gritty and gripping. Arnold Hano, A Day in the Bleachers. I found this book through the author's obituary in the New York Times last winter. Hano was a young Giants’ fan in 1954 when he sat in a bleacher seat at Game 1 of the World Series against the heavily favored Cleveland Pre-Guardians. The entire (short) book consists of his day, from waking up and deciding to go to the Polo Grounds, to standing in line hoping to get in, to interacting with the fans around him (including some Cleveland fans he found obnoxious), to “The Catch” by Willie Mays to save the game in the 8th inning. His compelling, journalistic narrative makes it seem as though you are sitting in the seat next to him! The action takes place in one day; my reading of it did, too. Robert Coover, The Universal Baseball Association, Inc., J. Henry Waugh, Prop. Wonderful, quirky novel about an introverted adult whose life increasingly revolves around a Strat-O-Matic-like game of his own invention. Dark, but fascinating for those who have been hooked on sports games. Have you read these three? Please add your reaction. Other off-the-beaten-path books to recommend? Please tell us about them. The Main Event OK, I’m supposed to talk about this upcoming baseball game, so let’s get to it. On the mound for the Twins is Dylan Bundy, who is 4-4 with a 4.80 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. In his last two starts, though, he has given up only 2 ER and 10 baserunners in 14 IP, a remarkable comeback after being unanimously DFAed by Twins Daily a couple of weeks ago. We will all hope that this pattern continues tonight. For the Guardians, it’s Cal Quantrill, a right-hander who is also 4-4, but with a 3.76 ERA and 1.27 WHIP. Cal is a 27-year-old Canadian out of Stanford, whose father Paul pitched for 7 teams over a 14-year career from 1992 to 2005. Today’s starting lineups are below, with Win Probability Added because it’s my favorite “advanced statistic.” I confidently predict grumbling on TD about (1) Buxton and Correa out for the same game, (2) Polanco playing ss, (3) Sánchez and Jeffers both in the lineup, and (4) the Twins having only 3 (out of 10) players in the lineup with positive WPA. Twins (43-34) 1. Arraez, 2b, +1.57 WPA 2. Miranda, 1b, -0.70 WPA 3. Polanco, ss, +0.81 WPA 4. Kepler, rf, +0.31 WPA 5. Sánchez, dh, -0.25 WPA 6. Kirilloff, lf, -0.16 WPA 7. Urshela, 3b, -0.11 WPA 8. Jeffers, c, -0.12 WPA 9. Celestino, cf, -0.44 WPA SP: Bundy (R), ­-0.54 WPA Guardians (37-34) 1. Kwan, lf, +0.35 WPA 2. Rosario, ss, -1.18 WPA 3. Ramírez, 3b, +1.73 WPA 4. Naylor, 1b, +2.12 WPA 5. Reyes, dh, -0.67 WPA 6. Giménez, 2b, +1.44 WPA 7. Gonzalez, rf, +0.80 WPA 8. Maile, c, -0.48 WPA 9. Straw, cf, -2.00 WPA SP: Quantrill (R), +0.02 WPA Commence grumbling!

I second the idea of signing him up long term. He can be an important cog on a championship team and, I expect, would not break the bank.

So glad you asked! I love to talk about wine! I drank a blend of Rhone varietals from our favorite Columbia Gorge winery (synclinewine.com). 2019, but this was their low-cost blend that doesn't take/need that much aging. Mrs. PDX prefers chilled whites or roses, so she had a lovely 2019 rose from Southern Oregon (cowhornwine.com).

Tonight was tomato-basil fettucine with a creamy sauce with crimini and fresh Morel mushrooms, with roasted asparagus on the side. We vegetarians DO NOT SUFFER!

Busy morning: 1/6 Committee hearing on one screen, Twins (muted) on the other. No screen left for game thread so I'll be pretty quiet...

Why is it that I'm not seeing a dozen posts saying "Free Jake Cave"? ? If ANYONE else had reached base in 41 (41!) straight games at AAA, this site would be indignant with rage at him not being promoted.

He probably pitched against St. Cloud earlier in his career...

Please! NO! It's not like we miss Sano and he's the same guy.

There have been a lot of Ryan-to-Ryan matchups this season, but this is the first Joe-to-Joe I recall.

Teams seem to have adjusted to Kepler not pulling every ball. The last couple of series they have not placed 2B in short center. (And he continues to hit the ball right to them anyway.)

A walk and a triple! That's the Buxton I love to watch!

I might not have sent him even if he tagged, depending on the arm of the CF.

Smalley just pointed out that with one out getting the runner to third is not that important.

We must be borrowing KC scorer tonight. Correa was out by a step and a half if 3B can just throw to 1B.

Someone who STILL has not learned to lay off the low, outside breaking ball.

From one Tyler to another...

Have they increased sacrifice bunts as well? I wish that the Twins would develop that skill better as players come through the system.

Here's the corresponding table for Arraez: He has added 1.57 estimated wins for the Twins. What the statistic says is that Correa's hits this season have not come at times that significantly increased the chances of a Twins' win, but Arraez's have. I generally agree with you on a lot of the sabrmetric stuff, but I long thought that a measure like WPA would be an appropriate one for looking at clutch hitting even before anyone published it.

I wondered about Correa coming up big because it seems to me that he has gotten a lot of hits where they didn't matter much and made a lot of outs when hits would have been crucial. He's hit some homeruns and has an average over .300, but how much has he helped the team win? It may be out of favor with others, but I've always like the "Win Probability Added" at FanGraphs. Here's what the numbers say: This season his plate appearances have given the Twins 0.24 LESS expected wins, despite his nice statistics. He has not been a WPA machine since his first two years. That seems like a pretty expensive proposition for a mid-market team. I wonder if that is one reason why he didn't get the kind of long-term contract offers that he wanted/expected?

As always, it depends on the return (for me). There are many things that I want, but only a few that I want given what they would cost.

And Wallner is yet another left-handed hitter at positions where we already have Kepler, Larnach, Kirilloff, etc.

Whose fault is that? Players learn to bunt, or not, as they develop through the minor league system. The majority of the Twins' players are home-grown, so if they can't bunt it is TOTALLY the Twins' fault. Apologies for the double post. The box didn't go away so I thought the first time I hit the button it didn't take.

Whose fault is that? Players learn to bunt, or not, as they develop through the minor league system. The majority of the Twins' players are home-grown, so if they can't bunt it is TOTALLY the Twins' fault.