John Bonnes

Aaron and John talk about the Twins' ongoing front office search and break down the reported candidates, wonder about the value of Jim Pohlad's vote of confidence for Paul Molitor, dig into Jose Berrios tipping his pitches, reminisce about running into each other at the Iron Door Pub, look ahead to a top-two pick in the draft, wonder about a possible Joe Mauer-Kennys Vargas platoon, and try (and mostly fail) not to get overly excited about Byron Buxton's hot streak. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click the Play button below. http://traffic.libsyn.com/gleemangeek/Episode_277_Front_Office_Bosses.mp3 View full article

I actually feel a little stupid about how militant I am about this at these events. Everyone must wear nametags and the include your real name and your TD handle/Twitter name. I'm not kidding. I demand it of people.

Aaron is at Wesslemania, so John is joined by Nick Nelson and Parker Hageman of TwinsDaily.com at the Summit Backyard Bash. They ask each other questions to frame the Twins offseason, including: 5:00 – What should the priority be for finding a catcher? 16 – How can the Twins improve the starting rotation this offseason? 36 – Why do the Twins Daily guys need to use Harry’s Razors? 39 – Should the new GM concentrate on patching the roster or starting over? 47 – Who are the best possible trade partners for Brian Dozier? 73 – What plans does John have for a local music podcast? 76 – Should Miguel Sano be at third base next year? 79 – Who closes games next year? 82 – What is the Twins rotation next year? And a whole lot more.... You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click the Play button below the picture. http://traffic.libsyn.com/gleemangeek/Ep_276_Offseason_Questions_v2.mp3 View full article

I hope you’ve gathered your friends and such because we’ll post the link tomorrow morning at 8AM for the Pub Crawl and we have one last legendary announcement to make. This is over $50 worth of stuff – game ticket, parking, t-shirt, beer, brewery tour plus prizes – for only $30. Oh, and we’re running the mascot race at the game.That’s right, you’ll be able to cheer on your favorite member of the Twins Daily crew as they race in the mascot race at Target Field. We do not know which mascots each of us will be, which brings us to the contest portion of the event… During the crawl, each person will get to pick who (the mascot, not the Twins Daily member) will win. During the race, you’ll have something real to cheer for, because from we'll give this 1987 World Series Championship replica ring to someone who picks the winner! Download attachment: RING_1987_WS_900.jpg Again, get you tickets fast. They go on sale at 8AM, we routinely sell out, and in any case the offer ends Monday. It is Saturday, 9/24, a beautiful September Minneapolis Saturday afternoon, from noon to late. And you get: 1. A high-quality men’s/women’s triblend Twins Daily Pub Crawl t-shirt (value $15) with our official tongue-in-cheek “Crawl to 100 Losses” logo (below). 2. A free brewery tour (value $6) at Modist Brewery (1st stop, noon-2:00 PM) at 12:30, 1:00, or 1:30. 3. Free parking (value ($10) at The Freehouse (2nd stop, 2:00-4:00) for the duration of the event and game. 4. A free craft 612 Brew (value $6) at Darby's (3rd stop, 4:00-6:00) 5. Entrance into our raffle of Twins sports memorabilia (value ~$200) from AME Sports, including player plaques and a replica 1987 World Series ring! 6. A ticket to the 6:00 Twins game (value $14), where you’ll watch the Twins Daily gang race in the mascot race. We are also offering a package where you get everything except the Twins ticket (if you have your own) for $15 and a package where you get just the t-shirt ($20, includes shipping). The link will be posted in this story first thing tomorrow morning. We’ll see you then AND on the 24th. Click here to view the article

Here's your link! Best of luck on getting your tickets before they sell out! This is over $50 worth of stuff – game ticket, parking, t-shirt, beer, brewery tour plus prizes – for only $30, plus we just got several sweet 612 Brew sweatshirts to give away! Oh, PLUS we’re running the mascot race at the game. That’s right, you’ll be able to cheer on your favorite member of the Twins Daily crew as they race in the mascot race at Target Field. We do not know which mascots each of us will be, which brings us to the contest portion of the event… Image courtesy of Betsy Bissen Here's your link! Best of luck on getting your tickets before they sell out! This is over $50 worth of stuff – game ticket, parking, t-shirt, beer, brewery tour plus prizes – for only $30, plus we just got several sweet 612 Brew sweatshirts to give away!Oh, PLUS we’re running the mascot race at the game. That’s right, you’ll be able to cheer on your favorite member of the Twins Daily crew as they race in the mascot race at Target Field. We do not know which mascots each of us will be, which brings us to the contest portion of the event… During the crawl, each person will get to pick who (the mascot, not the Twins Daily member) will win. During the race, you’ll have something real to cheer for, because from we'll give this 1987 World Series Championship replica ring to someone who picks the winner! Again, get you tickets fast. They went on sale at 8AM, we routinely sell out, and in any case the offer ends Monday. It is Saturday, 9/24, a beautiful September Minneapolis Saturday afternoon, from noon to late. And you get: 1. A high-quality men’s/women’s triblend Twins Daily Pub Crawl t-shirt (value $15) with our official tongue-in-cheek “Crawl to 100 Losses” logo (below). 2. A free brewery tour (value $6) at Modist Brewery (1st stop, noon-2:00 PM) at 12:30, 1:00, or 1:30. 3. Free parking (value ($10) at The Freehouse (2nd stop, 2:00-4:00) for the duration of the event and game. 4. A free craft 612 Brew (value $6) at Darby's (3rd stop, 4:00-6:00) 5. Entrance into our raffle of Twins sports memorabilia (value ~$200) from AME Sports, including player plaques and a replica 1987 World Series ring! 6. A ticket to the 6:00 Twins game (value $14), where you’ll watch the Twins Daily gang race in the mascot race. We are also offering a package where you get everything except the Twins ticket (if you have your own) for $15 and a package where you get just the t-shirt ($20, includes shipping). The link will be posted in this story first thing tomorrow morning. We’ll see you then AND on the 24th. View full article

Friday is the day! At 8:00 AM, limited tickets will be released for the Twins Daily Touch Em All Pub Crawl, and today we get to announce the final stop and giveaway, plus the great prizes you can win and the crazy price. Our final stop will be Darby’s Pub, just one block from the stadium, who will be providing each attendee with a free craft 612 Brew (a $6 value). We’re also very happy to announce that AME Sports is providing great raffle prizes at each stop, including plaques gorgeous plaques of some of your favorite Twins players AND a replica 1987 World Series Champion ring! Friday is the day! At 8:00 AM, limited tickets will be released for the Twins Daily Touch Em All Pub Crawl, and today we get to announce the final stop and giveaway, plus the great prizes you can win and the crazy price. Our final stop will be Darby’s Pub, just one block from the stadium, who will be providing each attendee with a free craft 612 Brew (a $6 value). We’re also very happy to announce that AME Sports is providing great raffle prizes at each stop, including plaques gorgeous plaques of some of your favorite Twins players AND a replica 1987 World Series Champion ring! So just to recap, here are all the things included: 1. A high-quality men’s/women’s triblend Twins Daily Pub Crawl t-shirt (value $15) with our official tongue-in-cheek “Crawl to 100 Losses” logo (below). 2. A free brewery tour (value $6) at Modist Brewery (1st stop, noon-2:00 PM) at 12:30, 1:00, or 1:30. 3. Free parking (value ($10) at The Freehouse (2nd stop, 2:00-4:00) for the duration of the event and game. 4. A free craft 612 Brew (value $6) at Darby's (3rd stop, 4:00-6:00) 5. Entrance into our raffle of Twins sports memorabilia (value ~$200) from AME Sports, including player plaques and a replica 1987 World Series ring! 6. A ticket to the 6:00 Twins game (value $14), where you’ll see a special event that we’ll announce tomorrow. We care about getting everyone together, so we've negotiated all this for $30 (or $15 if you don’t need the Twins ticket). But tickets are only available through Monday night, and may not last that long given you’re getting about $50 worth of stuff for $30. Plus, of course, you’ll get to meet a ton of great Twins fans and writers and drown our sorrows in our beers together. Darby’s is an especially great place to gather before the game when the weather is nice, as they have an enormous hidden deck just a block from the ballpark. They’re going to be providing a keg of 612 Brew, which has supported several of the Twins Daily events, for our group. And AME sports is providing plaques like the one below featuring Harmon Killebrew, Miguel Sano and Brian Dozier. We’ll raffle one off at each stop. Finally, we have a 1987 World Series Champion replica ring that will be awarded to the attendee that … well, you’ll need to check early tomorrow to get in on that action. We’ll see you tomorrow and hopefully on September 24th. View full article

Geez, have a little faith, wontchya?

Sometimes, things get so bad that you either have to laugh or cry. We’re choosing the former for our logo and T-shirts for our 2016 Twins Daily Touch Em All Pub Crawl. The complimentary T-shirts will be high-quality triblend Bella + Canvas, in both men’s and women’s styles, perfect for wearing ironically during the Twins 2017 postseason run. You can only get them at the Pub Crawl, which we announced yesterday will by 9/24. Remember, tickets go on sale this Friday, 9/9 at 8:00 AM. Order immediately, since they’ll no longer be on sale after Monday the 12th, and may sell out before that. Image courtesy of Brock Beauchamp Sometimes, things get so bad that you either have to laugh or cry. We’re choosing the former for our logo and T-shirts for our 2016 Twins Daily Touch Em All Pub Crawl. The complimentary T-shirts will be high-quality triblend Bella + Canvas, in both men’s and women’s styles, perfect for wearing ironically during the Twins 2017 postseason run. You can only get them at the Pub Crawl, which we announced yesterday will by 9/24. Remember, tickets go on sale this Friday, 9/9 at 8:00 AM. Order immediately, since they’ll no longer be on sale after Monday the 12th, and may sell out before that. Our first stop, announced yesterday, will be Modist Brewing, who will provide free brewery tours (a $6 value) to our attendees at 12:30, 1:00 and 1:30. Today we’re happy to announce our second stop will be The Freehouse, who will provide us FREE parking (~$15 value) throughout the day, during the game and even overnight. Plus, they have an excellent mix of craft beer and food, including The Voice of Reason's favorite: Roto-bird. Tomorrow we’ll announce our third participating sponsor, along with some fantastic raffle prizes and an unbelievable price. And let’s not forget the game itself. Friday morning, we’ll have a very special announcement about Twins Daily and the Twins game that you are not going to want to miss. Hint: our T-shirt’s Herbie isn’t going to be the only one hiding their face. So that’s free parking, free brewery tours, another freebie from the third bar, a high-quality, timeless T-shirt, awesome raffle prizes and a ticket to the game all for…. stop by tomorrow to find out. (You might want to start contacting friends and set your alarm for 8 AM Friday.) View full article

I just saw Brock's final design for the t-shirt. I'm so excited about this. We're going to have people begging us to mail them to them even if they can't attend the pub crawl.

Lots more coming this week by the way.... Wednesday - the 2nd stop and t-shirt details. You're going to love them both. Thursday - 3rd stop, price and raffle prizes Friday - A last very special addition and tickets are on sale.

What will be the first stop on our Crawl To … 100 Losses? The Twins Daily Fourth Annual Touch-Em-All Pub Crawl will be September 24th, with tickets available Friday, 9/9. I don’t need to tell you that this has traditionally sold out, or the legendary stories of having a round bought by Twins closer Glen Perkins and … well, you’ll need to check-in on Friday to see this year’s momentous announcement. But for now, let’s reveal the first stop… What will be the first stop on our Crawl To … 100 Losses? The Twins Daily Fourth Annual Touch-Em-All Pub Crawl will be September 24th, with tickets available Friday, 9/9. I don’t need to tell you that this has traditionally sold out, or the legendary stories of having a round bought by Twins closer Glen Perkins and … well, you’ll need to check-in on Friday to see this year’s momentous announcement. But for now, let’s reveal the first stop… We’ll be starting this year’s pub crawl at the brand new Modist Brewery taproom. For anyone wearing the Crawl’s designer t-shift (the design of which will be displayed later this week) there will be a free brewery tour (usually $6) at 12:30, 1:00 or 1:30. Modist has an array of beers, including some special infusions that you can only get at their taproom. The Voice of Reason’s™ favorite is the blond coffee lager, First Call. Check back tomorrow for the second stop, including more details. And set an alarm right now for Friday morning so you don’t miss out on tickets for The Crawl…. View full article

Aaron and John talk about Byron Buxton's spectacular return weekend, Brian Dozier's spectacular three months, Paul Molitor changing his mind on Jorge Polanco, why the pitching staff remains the biggest problem, the upside and downside of finishing a book, Trevor Plouffe's future hanging on the balance, saying goodbye to KFAN for the season, and re-watching the 1987 and 1991 World Series. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click the Play button below. http://traffic.libsyn.com/gleemangeek/gatg_9_4_16_final.mp3 Image courtesy of USA TODAY Sports Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports View full article

Aaron and John talk about the Twins' losing skid, six-year run of awful pitching, the planned front office regime change beyond just a new GM, similarities with Tom Kelly, Andy MacPhail, and Carl Pohlad, Tyler Duffey and Jose Berrios demotions, filling the roster with replacement-level talent, and Oswaldo Arcia's ongoing journey across baseball. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Stitcher or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click the Play button below. http://traffic.libsyn.com/gleemangeek/gatg_8_28_16_final.mp3 View full article

First, I'm really happy for Wimmers. His road here has been brutal. But ... are we really recalling a relief pitcher with control problems after sending down two guys who have control problems? It's not like Wimmers control has improved lately - he's walked five guys in his last four (all one-inning) appearances. I'm baffled as to what this organization is doing right now. I'm really not sure this move has Wimmers best interests in mind.

Owner Calvin Griffith responded to the Metrodome's dismal atmosphere by trading away all his veterans and rebuilding from scratch with a new wave of prospects. He responded to the Metrodome's dismal attendance with a different scorched earth policy. Owner Calvin Griffith responded to the Metrodome's dismal atmosphere by trading away all his veterans and rebuilding from scratch with a new wave of prospects. He responded to the Metrodome's dismal attendance with a different scorched earth policy. It was becoming clear that the 1.4 million attendance threshold included in the Metrodome lease was not going to be met, giving Griffith the option of breaking the lease and perhaps moving to another market. Local business leaders responded by mounting a ticket-buying campaign of the cheapest unused tickets available to artificially inflate the attendance. For instance, on May16, 1984, the paid attendance was 51,683, but the number of fans present was closer to 8,700. Flirtations with other markets, particularly Tampa Bay, were made, but instead local banker and business executive Carl Pohlad purchased the team in the summer of 1984. On the field, the team was growing – and experiencing growing pains. The promise of brighter days was apparent in 1984 when the Twins suddenly competed for the division, even though they had finished just 70-92 the year before. They led the AL West for all of August and found themselves tied for first place as late as September 23rd. But six straight losses, including blowing a 10-run lead versus Cleveland in the last series of the year, left them in second place. Those brighter days were also personified by a rookie call-up. Center fielder Kirby Puckett made his debut just 21 games into the season, hit .296 and finished third in the Rookie of the Year balloting. The next year he would collect his first MVP vote. These were previews. The feature presentation started in 1986 when Puckett hit .328 and added power to his resume, slugging 31 home runs. Over the next 10 years, he would finish in the top 10 of American League MVP voting seven times, make 10 straight All-Star teams, and win six Gold Gloves. His success endeared him to the fans, but not as much as his zeal for the game. The Twins would retire his number in 1997 and he was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2001, his first year of eligibility. While Puckett signified an apparently brighter future, the Twins struggled in 1985 and 1986, in part due to an explosive bullpen. Closer Ron Davis became the symbol for the team’s failings, both supported and reviled by Twins fans. In 1985, after several blown games, a sympathetic newspaper story led to "I believe in R.D." t-shirts becoming fashionable in the Metrodome. But equally as popular was the trade that sent him and his 9.08 ERA to the Cubs in August of 1986. There were big changes off the field, too. View full article