John Bonnes

Yep!

Tickets are now on sale for our next Tuesday Taproom Tour at Utepils. Join us at one of our favorite watering holes, drink free craft beer, eat great food, listen to a podcast, commune with 100+ fellow Twins fans all while a Twins road game is on TV. So grab a friend (or don't) and Grab Some Tickets The EventsIt's going to be awesome. You’ll join a hundred fellow Twins fans listening to a special podcast while watching a Twins road game at one of John and Aaron’s favorite local craft beer taprooms with Gleeman and the Geek! At each taproom: You’ll get a free craft beer.You’ll get another free (or Bogo) craft beer for a future visit.There will be giveaways at first pitch and last out.We’ll play Last Fan Standing, where you compete against Aaron and the crowd to win a great prize.Yet MORE prizes for tweeting about the event or just being social with your fellow Twins fans.Aaron and John will talk Twins and answer questions to the assembled crowd and it will all be on a special release podcast. Your question could be featured on the podcast.If you buy a season ticket package, you can get a free 2019 Gleeman and the Geek pint glass absolutely free.The TourEach month, we’ll be attending six of our favorite taprooms that you’ve heard on the show. They’re all on Tuesday nights: 4/2 – 7:00 at Able Seedhouse & Brewing (ALREADY COMPLETE) 5/7 – 6:00 at First Draft 6/4 – 6:00 at Lynlake Brewing 7/30 – 6:00 at Tin Whiskers 8/27 – 7:00 at Utepils Brewing 9/24 – 5:30 at 612 Brew Tickets Unfortunately, you can’t just arrive at the door, as we expect to sell out and these taprooms have a limited capacity. You can either buy individual tickets, or you can buy a five-event season ticket which includes the free pint glass and offers major savings. If we have room at each taproom, individual event tickets will be sold for $20. Click here for tickets to the next event at Utepils on 8/27. Don’t get shut out! Get your tickets right now. A whole bunch of Twins fans are excited to hang out with you, including us. See you there! Click here to view the article

Aaron and John talk about Byron Buxton's hot spring, Max Kepler and Jorge Polanco atop the lineup, Tyler Austin vs. C.J. Cron, and previewing the AL East and AL West using Vegas' over/under numbers.You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link.http://traffic.libsy...3?dest-id=74590 Click here to view the article

Aaron and John talk about Miguel Sano's latest setback and Marwin Gonzalez having his first problem to fix, Willians Astudillo's rising odds to make the Opening Day roster, Martin Perez throwing 105 mph (give or take), drinking beer and eating burgers at Invictus Brewing, and selling 22,000 words for five bucks. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link. Click here to view the article

This story actually made me google "Odenth The Ligament Flayer." The good news is that Twins Daily is at the top of that google search. The bad news is that Twins Daily is at the top of that google search.

You already support the Minnesota Twins. Why not literally support the Minnesota Twins – and get paid. Delaware North, who provides concession, retail and other services at Twins games, will be hosting upcoming job fairs at Target Field. If you’re interested in being inside the gameday experience – and getting paid, including a $200 sign-on bonus –check this out:The events are Monday March 11th, Tuesday March 19th and Wednesday March 20th from 4:00 – 7:00 PM. You can enter the ballpark at Delta Club Entrance on the skyway level. They’re hiring a number of positions, and you can find the whole list right here. There are all kinds of perks, including free meals, paid training and team retail store discounts. Also, for a limited time, there is a $200 sign-on bonus valid for new hires from 3/11 through 4/. You can also get $200 more if you refer a friend! Plus, you get to be part of the behind-the-scenes group that is responsible for the Twins game day experience. The job can be especially appealing because of its flexibility. It’s part time. It’s a great second income working in a great place. It is a limited commitment, perfect for students and retirees and the scheduling is flexible. What have you got to lose, other than a few hours of your time? Instead of paying to get into Target Field, see it in a way that few people do. For more information: Check out TFHire.comOr review all the jobs available here.For more information on the events, check out the attached flyer below.You can also email TFHire@DelawareNorth.comOr call Annie Parrish at 612-659-3968You’re a baseball nut. You love the ballpark. We get it. So why not be part of the actual industry and get paid while you do it? Check out the information above and the job fair and decide for yourself. Download attachment: Hiring Event Flyer 3.5.2019.pdf Click here to view the article

Aaron and John talk about first impressions of Rocco Baldelli, how Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton can't win for losing, Michael Pineda's expectations, 'losing' Zack Granite, signing Craig Kimbrel versus signing Jim Pohlad, drinking beer at Chapel Brewing, and finding a reason to keep Willians Astudillo. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link.http://traffic.libsy...3?dest-id=74590 Click here to view the article

Thank you to whoever fixed the date. Also, yes, it's all in English.

Leave it to the White Sox to almost screw up our favorite game. Baseball is coming to the Minnesota Opera, and we're supporting a special event this Wednesday (3/6) night at Target Field! It's a behind-the-scenes look at the 1919 Black Sox scandal and Minnesota Opera's commissioned presentation of The Fix, which will be playing March 16th through the 24th. Join us for just $10! Our own John "Twins Geek" Bonnes will be in a suit, moderating a panel. There will also be two excerpts from the show along with a cash bar in Target Field's Carew Atrium. This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime event.Operas are often larger-than-life stories of mystery, scandal, greed, and triumph over adversity, so there’s no question the Black Sox Scandal of 1919 is a tale of major-league, operatic proportions. So Minnesota opera is unveiling a world premiere of The Fix, recounting the tragedy of baseball’s greatest scandal ever. Bonnes will moderate a panel discussion, featuring composer Joel Puckett, stage director Eric Simonson, baseball historian Stew Thornley, and Star Tribune’s digital sports editor Howard Sinker. We’ll look back at this unique moment in history and consider the intersection of sports and opera. You'll not only learn all about the scandal, but its various interpretations, and even how operas are made. Doors open at 6:30 PM, with the program starting about 7:00 and lasting approximately 90 minutes. Tickets are just $10! To purchase tickets, click below or call MN Opera Patron Services at 612-333-6669, M-F, 10am-5pm. More details are here. Get Tickets To This Special Event or Get Tickets To The Fix Download attachment: The Fix Opera.png Click here to view the article

FORT MYERS - The Twins played baseball this weekend - quite a lot of baseball. They play more today. You can listen to it on the radio, or if you’re in Fort Myers, go to the game. I recommend these things. But instead of dissecting practice games, let’s go through some notes from last week.The Fifth Starter I think it’s fairly safe to say that the Twins will carry 13 position players and 12 pitchers on their Opening Day roster. That’s because they shouldn’t need a fifth starter until April 16th versus the Blue Jays. Even that might be in doubt, since that is a game at Target Field, and the four games before it are also at Target Field. If you’re watching the weather in Minnesota lately, they’re having a late-hitting and extreme winter, so if any of those games are canceled, it could move even later. As a result, the fifth starter probably becomes an eighth bullpen arm for the first three weeks, and since that fifth starter is probably Martin Perez, who is left-handed, we probably don’t need to worry too much about which left-handed pitcher is going to make the bullpen. Barring injuries, it’ll be Taylor Rogers (because he's very good), Adalberto Mejia (who is out of options and the de facto backup starter) and Perez. The Intersection Of Analysis And Emotion Zack Littell made it to the big leagues last year and is determined to do so again this year. The 23-year-old right-handed starting pitcher was not treated especially kindly by opposing hitters in his eight appearances, but he sounds undaunted, because he learned just how hard it is. “There’s no level of baseball that's even relatively the same,” he admits. “I don’t think there’s anything you can prepare to be in the major leagues.” Not that he isn’t trying. He uses the word “consistency” a lot, but what he’s really talking about is confidence. “It’s about getting in that mindset where you can tell yourself ‘I belong here,’” says Littell. A lot of ballplayers talk like that, but it might be especially important for Littell because of how he pitches. Despite what you’ve heard on Twins broadcasts, the key to Littell’s success is not to keep the ball down in the zone. That’s where confidence becomes necessary. “The stigma in baseball in pitching is working down in the zone,” claims Littell. “A lot of my success has been up in the zone, top of the zone, even above the zone.” It’s not to induce fly balls. It’s to make batters swing and miss, or induce soft contact. It’s something the Twins have coached. They also have data to show that it’s effective, but the Twins aren’t alone in that regard. “It’s something that every team I’ve been with talked about,” Littell says. “It’s something I’ve been told and seen my whole career. Just, like I said, it’s just been intimidating to say ‘I’m going to pitch in the top of the zone.’ Especially up here.” It it tempting for analysts to shrug off the emotional side of pitching, because it can be such a lazy analytical or cliched talking point. But in Littell’s case, we see the intersection of the emotional with the analytical. Analytically, it’s clear he’s best off when he pitches at the top of the zone. But that’s also the riskiest place personally for him to pitch, and to overcome that takes emotional effort. Long Pause Speaking of emotion, my favorite quote this week was from Jonathan Schoop. It was one word long. That’s what made it so fantastic. Interviewing Schoop is like interviewing a gatling gun. He answers the question, his responses are well thought out, but he fills in all the empty spaces with you-know-what-I-means and like-I-saids. Rat-a-tat-tat-tat. Rat-a-tat. Rat-a-tat-tat. It was also clear from the interview last week that he really cares about teammates, and as such, being traded midseason last year from the only organization he had ever known, hurt. So when asked if he was looking forward to playing his old team, the Baltimore Orioles, Schoop’s simple answer was an emphatic “Yes” followed by an unusual pause. It got a good laugh from the assembled beat writers. The man knows how to deliver a punchline. Click here to view the article

Aaron and John talk about the Twins signing super-utility man Marwin Gonzalez for $21 million, how to view an offseason that's half full and half empty, what Gonzalez's arrival means for Jake Cave, Willians Astudillo, and Ehire Adrianza, the bullpen breakdown and trusting Matt Magill, Ervin Santana's return to the AL Central, and what options are left for the Twins to actually add some pitching help. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link. Click here to view the article

I agree on this. I've seen some folks speculate that this makes it harder for Astudillo to make the roster, and it probably hurts him slightly. I still think Tyler Austin being out of options is the bigger issue there. But Adtrianza is screwed if everyone remains healthy. (That's always a big if.) Gonzalez takes all of his skills and adds a bat. The only way it doesn't affect Adrianza is if the Twins feel like Gonzalez defense at shortstop is not adequate.

FORT MYERS - The Twins reported signing of Marwin Gonzalez is not a traditional free agent signing. But that’s why it works. Gonazalez had a monster year in 2017 when the Astros won the World Series, putting up a .900+ OPS while playing a utility infield. The 29-year-old slid back to his previous form last year, but that was still good for a .733 OPS while playing literally every position but catcher.So he’s a really interesting player - a plus bat with extreme versatility - and going into the offseason, everyone kind of assumed that a team would sign him as a starting player in one of the many positions at which he has played. That’s the traditional way to sign a player. If you think of this signing through that lens, the signing doesn’t make a lot of sense. The Twins already have a lineup full of mid .700 OPS players. Gonzalez bumping one of them is just redundant. And if you take a second look at Gonzalez’ skill set, it doesn’t match any of this team’s perceived needs. The team could use more on-base percentage, and Gonzalez helps with that a little, but he’s not Joe Mauer or even Robbie Grossman. One could argue that he could be penciled in as a leadoff or top-of-the-order hitter, but he doesn’t complement Jorge Polanco’s skills as much as he matches them. And the Twins just signed Polanco to a five-year guaranteed contract last week. Why spend almost as much on a two-year deal with Gonzalez? In short, he doesn’t fill an obvious need. So the traditional reason for signing Gonzalez doesn’t make a lot of sense. But on second thought, it also doesn’t make sense for him to sign as a regular position player. Why would he want to strip away that trait which makes him truly valuable, his versatility? His value is that he can be a competent fill-in at any position. That is unique. Most backups with that versatility can’t really hit. If they can hit, they can only back up one or two positions, which is great up until a different position is the one that gets hurt or struggles. Gonzalez provides an insurance policy for seven of the Twins regulars, including players who are trying to bounce back from tough seasons (Miguel Sano, Byron Buxton, Jonathan Schoop), trying to break through (Jorge Polanco, Max Kepler) or repeat career years (Eddie Rosario, CJ Cron). His unique ability is to fill in for whichever spot becomes a problem as the season progresses. The Twins are not going to have seven success stories for those players. We’re Minnesota sports fans - we know there is going to be a problem. Gonzalez is the team’s “Get Out Of Trouble Free” card. So don’t worry where he’s going to play. That problem will solve itself - as soon as there is another problem. He’ll play where he’s needed, when he’s needed, providing passable (or even good) defense and solid (sometimes spectacular) offense. The Gonzalez signing isn’t a good signing just because the Twins spent some leftover money, or because they added some depth, or because it seems like a reasonable contract. It’s a great signing because it leverages what Gonzalez does best, while giving the Twins a head start on reacting to a long baseball season’s challenges. Click here to view the article

FORT MYERS - It’s a weekend, we just had a big signing and baseball returns tonight, but digital ink is still free, so how about a notes column? Get Here Early This is the first time Twins Daily has covered spring training before games begin, and I have to say, we screwed that up. This is a great week to cover the team. Players have more time, more patience, and it’s fun to see what is being emphasized in the training drills.All of those factors work in fans’ favor, too. Plus, the first day of full squad workouts (which was Monday) is an open house at Hammond Stadium. The team opens the stadium, serves half-price concessions, and fans can watch live batting practice (which is where we saw Willians Astudillo go deep on Jose Berrios) and then go play in the outfield. Rocco’s Big (Long) Day Usually on the first game of spring training, we see a packed house and something pretty close to the anticipated Twins starting lineup to start the game. It’s an electric atmosphere. But that is complicated a little bit by a planned split squad today for the first day. In the afternoon, the Twins will send a group to Sarasota (about 1.5 hours away) to play the Orioles at 1:05 PM before their home opener tonight versus the Rays. MLB dictates that the visiting team needs to send several regulars to play at away games, so the home starting lineup may not be quite as robust. But a topic of interest is how it also complicates new manager Rocco Baldelli’s day. The Twins have a tradition that on split-squad days, the Twins manager goes with the traveling team in solidarity. Baldelli will be honoring that, but then leaving midgame to race back to Fort Myers to also manage the home game at 6:05. He said he would feel really good at the end of the day when it was all over. I didn’t have the heart to remind him that he has another game Sunday afternoon at 1:05 across town. It’ll be his third game in 24 hours. Vegas Food The winter meetings this offseason were in Las Vegas, and 23-year-old Nick Gordon, who is still the string bean the Twins drafted, attended them. I can relate to his favorite part of Las Vegas. “Buffets,” Gordon exclaimed. “I loved the buffets. I’ve got a lot of room to grow. A lotta room to grow. I crushed them.” (It is not apparent he crushed them. In fact, it’s not apparent he ate anything over the offseason.) Your Daily Moment Of Zen (Adorable Category) The Twins press corps’ collective hearts melted watching Justin Morneau play catch with his daughter Tuesday morning. She can’t be more than five years old, and he was tossing up short fly balls in Hammond Stadium’s foul territory. She would prance towards them in her little sun dress, miss several, catch some, and regardless gleefully throw the ball back back to him. The icing on the cake was about every five minutes she would run up to him with her hand out and he’d pour her a handful of sunflower seeds to chew on while she played. Simple acts of pure joy, both for a father and daughter. Damn, but I love baseball. We’re back at it tonight. I can’t wait. Click here to view the article

New Twins manager Rocco Baldelli has been as vague as he can be about his plans for the bullpen, so we can only make the most general statements about the makeup of the relief corps this year. But one general statement we can make is this: eight is greater than seven. That simple truth suggests that, barring injuries, the Twins are going cut someone we won’t want to see cut.The Twins will almost surely break camp with just seven relievers, or eight if you count Martin Perez, since a fifth pitcher isn’t needed until April 16th. With Perez starting in the bullpen, and with very little buzz around camp regarding “Openers” there is no good reason to carry eight other bullpen arms. Which means someone is going to get stuck because there are eight names that seem like they belong in the bullpen. Here they are, more or less in order of my evaluation of their likelihood to make the team: Addison Reed - Unless he’s hurt, he’s in there. He’s making $8M and the Twins and he are both hoping that a lower workload will rejuvenate his arm.Taylor Rogers - Was the Twins most effective remaining reliever, and left-handed, too. Another lock.Blake Parker - I suppose that whatever the concerns were which held up his official signing could convince the Twins that he’s damaged goods, but it seems unlikely their lone free agent bullpen addition wouldn’t make the team.Next we get to a triumvirate of arms that don’t have options. If the Twins give up on any of these guys, they have to place them on waivers, and if a team claims them, they lose them. As such, that all have the inside track on a roster spot.Trevor May - He should probably be above Parker on this list, but I like lumping the guys with no remaining options together. He was one of the Twins most prominent relievers late last year after returning from Tommy John surgery.Adalberto Mejia - He’s being trained as a starter, but appears to be the de facto #6 guy, on the outside looking in. The Twins will want to keep him in case other starting pitchers are hurt, and that means keeping him on the roster. Plus, he’s left-handed, and there aren’t any other southpaws in the bullpen beyond Rogers.Matt Magill - This is the name a lot of people are overlooking. When we get to the names that might not make the opening roster, I suspect a lot of fans will want to come back to this name. But Magill relieved in 40 games last year, averaged 95 mph with his fastball and good enough command. He also gave up way too many home runs, which is a kiss of death to a reliever, but I still don’t think they Twins will risk exposing him to every other team.The rest of the candidates in the bullpen have options remaining, so none of them will be lost to other teams; they’ll just be sent to Rochester. If you agree to the list above, six of the seven spots are taken, and only one spot is left. But two prominent names are left standing: Trevor Hildenberger and Fernando Romero. Last year Hildenberger was supposed to be one the more promising young arms in the bullpen, but stumbled badly in the second half of last year. This year, Fernando Romero is being prepared as a reliever because Baldelli has already described him as a “weapon.”. They both were seen as potential setup men for high leverage innings. Even with math against them, it is still a good chance that both make the roster. After all, injuries happen in spring training. It wouldn’t even have to be an injury to a reliever to open a spot: an injury to a starting pitcher would likely mean Mejia moves to the rotation and then another spot is open in the bullpen. But it looks like the two young homegrown relievers about whom the fan base was most excited about the last two years will be battling it out for the last spot, Click here to view the article

New Twins manager Rocco Baldelli has been as vague as he can be about his plans for the bullpen, so we can only make the most general statements about the makeup of the relief corps this year. But one general statement we can make is this: eight is greater than seven. That simple truth suggests that, barring injuries, the Twins are going cut someone we won’t want to see cut.The Twins will almost surely break camp with just seven relievers, or eight if you count Martin Perez, since a fifth pitcher isn’t needed until April 16th. With Perez starting in the bullpen, and with very little buzz around camp regarding “Openers” there is no good reason to carry eight other bullpen arms. Which means someone is going to get stuck because there are eight names that seem like they belong in the bullpen. Here they are, more or less in order of my evaluation of their likelihood to make the team: Addison Reed - Unless he’s hurt, he’s in there. He’s making $8M and the Twins and he are both hoping that a lower workload will rejuvenate his arm.Taylor Rogers - Was the Twins most effective remaining reliever, and left-handed, too. Another lock.Blake Parker - I suppose that whatever the concerns were which held up his official signing could convince the Twins that he’s damaged goods, but it seems unlikely their lone free agent bullpen addition wouldn’t make the team.Next we get to a triumvirate of arms that don’t have options. If the Twins give up on any of these guys, they have to place them on waivers, and if a team claims them, they lose them. As such, that all have the inside track on a roster spot.Trevor May - He should probably be above Parker on this list, but I like lumping the guys with no remaining options together. He was one of the Twins most prominent relievers late last year after returning from Tommy John surgery.Adalberto Mejia - He’s being trained as a starter, but appears to be the de facto #6 guy, on the outside looking in. The Twins will want to keep him in case other starting pitchers are hurt, and that means keeping him on the roster. Plus, he’s left-handed, and there aren’t any other southpaws in the bullpen beyond Rogers.Matt Magill - This is the name a lot of people are overlooking. When we get to the names that might not make the opening roster, I suspect a lot of fans will want to come back to this name. But Magill relieved in 40 games last year, averaged 95 mph with his fastball and good enough command. He also gave up way too many home runs, which is a kiss of death to a reliever, but I still don’t think they Twins will risk exposing him to every other team.The rest of the candidates in the bullpen have options remaining, so none of them will be lost to other teams; they’ll just be sent to Rochester. If you agree to the list above, six of the seven spots are taken, and only one spot is left. But two prominent names are left standing: Trevor Hildenberger and Fernando Romero. Last year Hildenberger was supposed to be one the more promising young arms in the bullpen, but stumbled badly in the second half of last year. This year, Fernando Romero is being prepared as a reliever because Baldelli has already described him as a “weapon.”. They both were seen as potential setup men for high leverage innings. Even with math against them, it is still a good chance that both make the roster. After all, injuries happen in spring training. It wouldn’t even have to be an injury to a reliever to open a spot: an injury to a starting pitcher would likely mean Mejia moves to the rotation and then another spot is open in the bullpen. But it looks like the two young homegrown relievers about whom the fan base was most excited about the last two years will be battling it out for the last spot, Click here to view the article