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John Bonnes

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Everything posted by John Bonnes

  1. John Bonnes
    I think it's fair to say that Hunter and Santana both got WAY too much money from other teams. But it's also fair to say the Twins gave WAY too much money to Mauer and Nathan to re-sign them.
  2. John Bonnes
    I'm an absolute fool for giving up what I'm about to give up.... A block and 2 blocks north of Washington, I think it's 1st and 2nd street, and west of 2nd(?) avenue, there are meters that are only enforced until 6 PM. (Or at least there were the last two years.) Basically, if you start at JD Hoyts, go directly away from the ballpark and turn left, as soon as you get over the railroad tracks, all the meters were like that. So you can park at them before 6, plug the meter until 6:00 and you're good to go until the next morning. It costs like 75 cents. And its about a four block walk.
  3. John Bonnes
    I did a little shazaming at Wednesday night's game. Here's what it came up with. If anyone has any others that they can get (or corrections), I'd love to hear them: Denard Span – Round of Applause by Drake featuring Waka Flocka Flame Jamey Carroll – Dirt Road Anthem by Jason Aldean Joe Mauer – What You Know by TI Justin Morneau – AC/DC – Rock & Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution Josh Willingham alternates: Your Love by The Outfield and Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd Updated: Ryan Doumit – Mother by Danzig Updated: Danny Valencia – alternates: Ready or Not by the Fugees and MMG Untouchable by Rick Ross Alex Casilla - Si No Le Caontesto – Plan B featuring Tony Dize and Zion & Lennox Trevor Plouffe - ???? by Led Zeppelin Matt Capps – Sad But True by Metalica
  4. John Bonnes
    First, I'll say to our community, this is a sensitive topic, so please be sure to follow the forum guidelines: 1. Keep it civil and stay on topic. 2. No profanity, vulgarity, racial slurs or personal attacks. 3. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. ~~~~ Over on the local sports blog The Sport Hole, there was a story a couple of weeks ago that I stumbled upon: Why Don't the Twins Re-sign Minority Players? The author, Jesse Mandell-McClinon, concludes that it isn't a classic "white vs. others" racism. Rather, it is an organization catering to the players with which the majority of their fans identify. And that the Twins aren't the only organization that does this: ----- I'll start by reporting some of the things that I thought were somewhat factually inaccurate. First, "re-sign" was carefully used instead of "contract extension." That's because the Twins have done a lot of contract extensions with players Mandell-McClinton lists as minority players. Torii Hunter and Johan Santana had very long deals, and he doesn't mention Denard Span, who has one now. Furthermore, he lists Morneau as a white player who "re-signed," but Morneau didn't re-sign an extension. He basically is in the same place Hunter and Santana were. So really, it comes down to Mauer/Nathan and Hunter/Santana. Why did the Twins get a deal done with the first two but not the other two. Mandell-McClinton thinks the philosophy was different: I would say he's right on Mauer who was a hometown kid who really did HAVE to be signed. (God knows it wasn't because he took a discount.) But that leaves open the question on why Nathan got paid so well. ON the other side, there was a LOT of talk about how Santana wanted to be in a much bigger market, so I don't know if that should count against the Twins. But Hunter has always been about the money. He certainly would've stayed if he would've been paid. So my conclusion is that there aren't a lot of data points, certainly fewer than the author suggests there are, and probably too few to draw any big conclusions. But I can see his point and it's probably worth keeping an eye on.
  5. John Bonnes
    It could be him doing the "walking man" with his fingers and fans left early from a game. Actually, I love that idea. Have it facing the gates as people walk out, mocking them for leaving a game early. Lord, but that would be a Hrbek thing to do.
  6. John Bonnes
    It's a fair point, and I don't think it's unique to MN fans. I'll tell you what the Angels announcers were talking about before the game - how their bullpen needs to start throwing up some zeroes. I can only imagine how big of a topic that is today. Did the Twins "never say die" attitude win the game, or did the Angles bullpen implode? Or (perish the thought) was Mauer's even keel approach the real difference. It is what started the comeback, right? On a different tact and just to defend Borzi a little, this is an exceedingly difficult point to make. It can't be quantified. It can't hold up to any objective analysis. But a lot of knowledge is like that - hell, most knowledge is like that - and it can be exceedingly important. I can't quantify the "eyes" that girl just made at me, and if I do, I'm sure to find no evidence she wants me to talk to her. But because of that look, I know she does, and because of that I do, and because of that we become life partners. That's important knowledge. Borzi sees something in this team (and has probably seen it in last year's team, too). He wants to express it. He finds a comparison point (the 2002 team). I might not agree with it, I might not see the same thing, but I find it insincere to tear it apart because it lacks objective evidence. There can't be any objective evidence on that kind of story. Better to cite counter examples, I think.
  7. John Bonnes
    I did a story on this for Maple Street Press a few years back. There are a ton of options. One new one is the Fulton Brewery Tap House. It's one block WEST of ballpark (west of the light rail line) at 414 6th ave. S. It's literally the Fulton Brewery, but the open the tap house two hours before home Twins games to two hours after Twins games. It's just beer - $5 for their microbrews. I've always been particular to the old Champps, now Alley Sports Bar. I just love drinking in that alley. Finally, Glueks has somehow become overlooked. Big beers and the best food in the area, if you like comfort food. Their mac n cheese is crazy good.
  8. John Bonnes
    Pearson's Salted Nut Rolls are available at Target Field, and to celebrate, Pearson's is offering a case of their iconic candy to one of Twins Daily's members! It's easy. You CLICK ON THIS CONTEST PAGE and fill out answers to the six Twins trivia questions. It's only available to Twins Daily members. On Monday the 16th, we'll find all members with ALL the answers right and select one at random. We'll contact the winner and Pearson's will send them a case of Salted Nut Rolls. (It's absolutely killing The Voice of Reason that I won't let her enter.) [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Pearson's is offering this because they're so excited that their King Size Salted Nut Roll is the first non-licorice candy to be sold by hawkers at Target Field. During the month of April, in-seat vendors (aka hawkers) will sell Salted Nut Rolls at home games. If successful during the April test, hawkers stadium-wide will sell the Pearson's King Size Salted Nut Roll for the entire 2012 season. The Pearson's Salted Nut Roll can be found at concessions areas throughout the concourse all year long as well. Enjoy, everyone! (And let me know if you want to share!)
  9. John Bonnes
    Pearson's Salted Nut Rolls are available at Target Field, and to celebrate, Pearson's is offering a case of their iconic candy to one of Twins Daily's members! It's easy. You CLICK ON THIS CONTEST PAGE and fill out answers to the six Twins trivia questions. It's only available to Twins Daily members. On Monday the 16th, we'll find all members with ALL the answers right and select one at random. We'll contact the winner and Pearson's will send them a case of Salted Nut Rolls. (It's absolutely killing The Voice of Reason that I won't let her enter.) Pearson's is offering this because they're so excited that their King Size Salted Nut Roll is the first non-licorice candy to be sold by hawkers at Target Field. During the month of April, in-seat vendors (aka hawkers) will sell Salted Nut Rolls at home games. If successful during the April test, hawkers stadium-wide will sell the Pearson's King Size Salted Nut Roll for the entire 2012 season. The Pearson's Salted Nut Roll can be found at concessions areas throughout the concourse all year long as well. Enjoy, everyone! (And let me know if you want to share!)
  10. John Bonnes
    I really think we'll see a lot more games like that win this season. Hopefully they'll have the same result.
  11. John Bonnes
    Follow Joe Christensen, La Velle E Neal, Phil Mackey, Rhett Bolinger, John Shipley and Ben Goessling. Whichever of them is covering the game will have it nearly as soon as it is available.
  12. John Bonnes
    You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?427-Twins-Bats-Defeat-Twins-Gloves-6-5
  13. John Bonnes
    The Twins won their first game of the season last night as their bats defeated Jared Weaver, the Los Angeles Angels, and the Twins own defense by a score of 6-5. It was a victory not just for the players on the field, but for the front office and coaching staff, as it finally validated decisions they had made throughout the offseason and spring training. Those decisions, contrary to the popular view of the Twins as a fundamentally sound team, have emphasized scoring runs over solid baseball. Tonight, they were proved right. For instance, the Twins signed 38-year-old career utility infielder Jamey Carroll to handle the premier defensive position of shortstop. To be sure, he was an upgrade defensively over last year's primary shortstop, Tsuyoshi Nishioka, but so were most bipeds with opposable thumbs. (With the possible exception of Trevor Plouffe.) But Carroll was signed for s significantly bigger financial commitment than several other significantly better fielders because of his ability to get on base. Tonight, after starting the season hitless, that worked out. On the one hand, he let a throw from Denard Span get past him that led to the fifth Angels run of the ball game, because the ball had the gaul to bounce before it got to him. But he more than made up for that gaffe with two huge hits. The first, a double, led to the Twins first run of the game, tied up the game and started a 3-run inning. The second, with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, plated the winning run. The biggest decision the Twins made during spring training involved realigning the outfield defensively. It benched defensive ... oh, let's go with "specialist" over "messiah" because it'e more conventional ... Ben Revere. But it added breakthrough rookie Chris Parmelee to the roster and moved slugger Josh Willingham to left field, where he felt more comfortable. He didn't look very comfortable there in the fifth inning. With two outs, a hard-hit but catchable ball was hit to the wall in left field. Willingham missed it painfully, crashing into the wall. That resulted in a three-run inside-the-park home run that blew the Twins only lead of the season and gave the Angels a 4-3 edge. But Willingham looked downright cozy a half inning earlier. That's when he turned on a Jared Weaver pitch to break the 1-1 tie with a 2-run blast that gave the Twins their first lead OF THE SEASON. He also just missed another extra base blast in his next at-bat when it drifted foul be a couple of feet. Note to Twins management and batting instructors: it might just be that pull hitting is desirable at Target Field. That sequence - giving up three, adding two - would still leave Willinghame and the Twins spring decision in the red if not for the other beneficiary of the outfield realignment, Chris Parmelee. Down by two runs and facing a southpaw that was specifically brought in to pitch to him, Parmelee drilled a ground ball down the first base line where Albert Pujols was fortunately not holding a runner, because there were two men on base. The hit plated the two tying runs and Parmelee took third base when Torii Hunter awkwardly fell into the right field base line fence. Parmelee later scored the winning run on Carroll's hit. Hot bats from three newcomers, none of which necessarily exemplify the Twins defensive ideal, won this game. While some Twins defensive issues basically cost them five preventable runs, perhaps defense is something upon which this team can improve. They'll likely need to, but they didn't need to tonight.
  14. John Bonnes
    The Twins won their first game of the season last night as their bats defeated Jared Weaver, the Los Angeles Angels, and the Twins own defense by a score of 6-5. It was a victory not just for the players on the field, but for the front office and coaching staff, as it finally validated decisions they had made throughout the offseason and spring training. Those decisions, contrary to the popular view of the Twins as a fundamentally sound team, have emphasized scoring runs over solid baseball. Tonight, they were proved right. For instance, the Twins signed 38-year-old career utility infielder Jamey Carroll to handle the premier defensive position of shortstop. To be sure, he was an upgrade defensively over last year's primary shortstop, Tsuyoshi Nishioka, but so were most bipeds with opposable thumbs. (With the possible exception of Trevor Plouffe.) But Carroll was signed for s significantly bigger financial commitment than several other significantly better fielders because of his ability to get on base. Tonight, after starting the season hitless, that worked out. On the one hand, he let a throw from Denard Span get past him that led to the fifth Angels run of the ball game, because the ball had the gaul to bounce before it got to him. But he more than made up for that gaffe with two huge hits. The first, a double, led to the Twins first run of the game, tied up the game and started a 3-run inning. The second, with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, plated the winning run. The biggest decision the Twins made during spring training involved realigning the outfield defensively. It benched defensive ... oh, let's go with "specialist" over "messiah" because it'e more conventional ... Ben Revere. But it added breakthrough rookie Chris Parmelee to the roster and moved slugger Josh Willingham to left field, where he felt more comfortable. He didn't look very comfortable there in the fifth inning. With two outs, a hard-hit but catchable ball was hit to the wall in left field. Willingham missed it painfully, crashing into the wall. That resulted in a three-run inside-the-park home run that blew the Twins only lead of the season and gave the Angels a 4-3 edge. But Willingham looked downright cozy a half inning earlier. That's when he turned on a Jared Weaver pitch to break the 1-1 tie with a 2-run blast that gave the Twins their first lead OF THE SEASON. He also just missed another extra base blast in his next at-bat when it drifted foul be a couple of feet. Note to Twins management and batting instructors: it might just be that pull hitting is desirable at Target Field. That sequence - giving up three, adding two - would still leave Willinghame and the Twins spring decision in the red if not for the other beneficiary of the outfield realignment, Chris Parmelee. Down by two runs and facing a southpaw that was specifically brought in to pitch to him, Parmelee drilled a ground ball down the first base line where Albert Pujols was fortunately not holding a runner, because there were two men on base. The hit plated the two tying runs and Parmelee took third base when Torii Hunter awkwardly fell into the right field base line fence. Parmelee later scored the winning run on Carroll's hit. Hot bats from three newcomers, none of which necessarily exemplify the Twins defensive ideal, won this game. While some Twins defensive issues basically cost them five preventable runs, perhaps defense is something upon which this team can improve. They'll likely need to, but they didn't need to tonight.
  15. John Bonnes
    The Twins won their first game of the season last night as their bats defeated Jared Weaver, the Los Angeles Angels, and the Twins own defense by a score of 6-5. It was a victory not just for the players on the field, but for the front office and coaching staff, as it finally validated decisions they had made throughout the offseason and spring training. Those decisions, contrary to the popular view of the Twins as a fundamentally sound team, have emphasized scoring runs over solid baseball. Tonight, they were proved right. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]For instance, the Twins signed 38-year-old career utility infielder Jamey Carroll to handle the premier defensive position of shortstop. To be sure, he was an upgrade defensively over last year's primary shortstop, Tsuyoshi Nishioka, but so were most bipeds with opposable thumbs. (With the possible exception of Trevor Plouffe.) But Carroll was signed for a much bigger financial commitment than several other significantly better fielders because of his ability to get on base. Tonight, after a frustrating start of the season in which Carroll was hitless, that decision bore fruit. On the one hand, he let a throw from Denard Span get past him that led to the fifth Angels run of the ball game, because the ball had the gaul to bounce before it got to him. But he more than made up for that gaffe with two huge hits. The first, a double, led to the Twins first run of the game and started a 3-run inning. The second, with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, plated the winning run. The biggest decision the Twins made during spring training involved realigning the outfield defensively. It benched defensive ... oh, let's go with "specialist" over "messiah" because it'e more conventional ... Ben Revere. But it added breakthrough rookie Chris Parmelee to the roster and moved slugger Josh Willingham to left field, where he felt more comfortable. He didn't look very comfortable there in the fifth inning. With two outs, a hard-hit but catchable ball was hit to the wall in left field. Willingham missed it painfully, crashing into the wall. That resulted in a three-run inside-the-park home run that blew the Twins first and only lead of the season and gave the Angels a 4-3 edge. But Willingham had looked downright cozy a half inning earlier. That's when he turned on a Jared Weaver pitch to break the 1-1 tie with a 2-run blast that gave the Twins their first and only lead of the season. He also just missed another extra base blast in his next at-bat when it drifted foul by a couple of feet. Note to Twins management and batting instructors: it might just be that pull hitting is desirable at Target Field. That sequence - giving up three, adding two - would still leave Willingham and the Twins' sprinf realignment in the red if not for the other beneficiary of the outfield shifting, Chris Parmelee. Down by two runs and facing a southpaw that was specifically brought in to pitch to him, Parmelee drilled a ground ball down the first base line where Albert Pujols was fortunately not holding a runner, because there were two men on base. The hit plated the two tying runs and Parmelee took third base when Torii Hunter awkwardly fell into the right field base line wall. Parmelee later scored the winning run on Carroll's hit. Hot bats from three newcomers, none of which necessarily exemplify the Twins defensive ideal, won this game. While some Twins defensive issues basically cost them five preventable runs, perhaps defense is something upon which this team can improve. They'll likely need to, but they didn't need to tonight.
  16. John Bonnes
    Yes. Poor Slowey. He's just misunderstood. I want to like Swarzak, I really do. But the numbers just aren't there. Not in the majors as a starter (5.22 ERA) or even in the minors (5.5 K/9 in AAA). I'm not crazy about Hendriks, just because I really think they're rushing him. But he's my choice, outside of going and getting another starter. Any other free agents out there besides Oswalt? - Justin Duchsererer? His name would fit right in, spelling wise. - Jon Garland? - Scott Kazmir? - Carlos Silva?
  17. John Bonnes
    I was hoping we would see the Opening Day lineup again tonight. It'll be interesting to see if, aftr 3 days of not playing catcher, Gardy has Mauer catch tomorrow, too.
  18. John Bonnes
    I know Diamond in starting in AAA, but who else is in the rotation down there? I'm just wondering about additional depth.
  19. John Bonnes
    I was locked and loaded to go ballistic (again) on the Twins med staff for this, but I can understand this one. First, here's some info on this injury: http://www.drdavidgeier.com/injuries/flexor-pronator-strain/ The usual diagnosis for this is rest - ONCE it is confirmed that it isn't the ulnar ligament, usually from an MRI. That's why the Twins, a week ago, said the MRI was good news. But this tendon has apparently been through enough that it appears the problems is chronic, or can't be pitched through. Thus, the "clean up" surgery, which I assume means smoothing out (or snipping) some frayed pieces of tendon. I could argue the Twins should have done an MRI a month ago, but I don't know if it would have changed much.
  20. John Bonnes
    You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?424-Gleeman-the-Geek-Ep-36-Bad-Starts-and-New-Beginnings
  21. John Bonnes
    Aaron and John share some exciting news about the podcast and the unexciting news surrounding the Twins 0-4 start. Here are: the podcasts the rss feed if you want to subscribe and the podcast on iTunes (where you can also subscribe and leave reviews) our new sponsors: KFAN & Pickpointz.
  22. John Bonnes
    Aaron and John share some exciting news about the podcast and the unexciting news surrounding the Twins 0-4 start. Here are: the podcasts the rss feed if you want to subscribe and the podcast on iTunes (where you can also subscribe and leave reviews) our new sponsors: KFAN & Pickpointz.
  23. John Bonnes
    Aaron and John share some exciting news about the podcast and the unexciting news surrounding the Twins 0-4 start. Here are: the podcasts the rss feed if you want to subscribe and the podcast on iTunes (where you can also subscribe and leave reviews) our new sponsors: KFAN & Pickpointz.
  24. John Bonnes
    I'm a little shocked that Billy Bullock seems to be thought of as the "smoking gun" in this investigation. First, I'll point out that Bullock has done almost nothing. He's a relief pitcher with 6K/9 last year in AA. One could reasonably make a point that the Twins came out ahead in that trade, regardless of philosophy. He might end up with a better career than Diamond, but right now there is no reason to believe that. Second, I'll point out that was under Bill Smith's watch, and he seems to have made several questionable evaluations regarding talent.
  25. John Bonnes
    Let me count the ways in which the Twins focused on adding offense this year: Of the ~$18M the Twins spent this offseason, $14M were spent on adding hitters. The only exceptions were bargain-shopping acquisitions of Jason Marquis and Joe Zumaya. Jamey Carroll was one of the first free agents signed this offseason, and he was given a 2-year deal, despite being limited defensively and being 38 years old? Why? Because he could get on base. He doesn’t have a hit this year. Ryan Doumit has a long history of injuries and is known as a poor defensive catcher. He was added because his career OPS is 774. Chris Parmelee was added to the roster despite never playing at AAA. Ben Revere was moved to fourth outfielder and most of the outfield realliged to add offense, just a couple of weeks before the season began. Morneau was moved to designated hitter to allow him to remain healthy, so the Twins could have more offense. Mauer, even when he’s not catching, has been in the starting lineup every game playing another position, because he should be able to provide more offense. Danny Valencia is starting at the hot corner despite his managers concerns about his defense because at least he can provide some offense against southpaws. The last spot on the roster didn’t go to a utility infielder or a third catcher – it went to Sean Burroughs to act as a left-handed pinch hitter. There have been any number of moves that I have been critical of the Twins this offseason: re-signing Matt Capps, gambling on Joel Zumaya, signing Ryan Doumit given his injury history, cutting payroll, etc. But the one thing I could not say is that the Twins undervalued the impact of offense. Indeed, the exact opposite has been true. Almost every decision they have made this offseason was made to maximize their ability to score runs. And yet, four games (and six runs) into the season, that’s exactly what is killing them.
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