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By the way, reading this article this morning and then watching Byung-ho Park say during the press conference that he's planning on making some adjustments to his swing made me worry. Of course it's normal, but what kind of adjustments will those be?

Heh...let's just assume that Terry Ryan is open to trading Plouffe, but nothing's set in stone which is why plan A is to move Sano to the outfield. Plan B may be more or less preferable, but lower on the totem pole because Ryan doesn't know if he'll be able to get what he thinks Plouffe is worth in return. And remember, it's every person's prerogative to change their mind. (I paraphrased that a bit on purpose since I generally dislike forcing the gender binary on neutral phrases).

I vote that tomorrow be National Banana Awareness Day. I wouldn't want to live in a world without bananas. I'm very fond of them...you can't imagine how delicious they are cut up in pieces with almond butter drizzled on top unless you've actually tried it.

We all heard a fair amount about Byung-ho Park leading up to his posting by the Nexen Heroes on November 3rd; he was a player who had excited the interest of multiple Major League teams and fans across the country. Yet for all that, nothing was enough to prepare me for the news that the Minnesota Twins, a small market team, had won the negotiating rights to the Korean first baseman after bidding $12.85 million. http://theblogdaysofsummer.weebly.com/uploads/5/3/9/7/53971721/7794399_orig.jpg This afternoon, Park and the Twins agreed to a 4 year, $12 million deal with Park earning $2.75 million in 2016-17 and $3 million in 2018-19; the contract includes a $6.5 million team option for 2020. The Korean first baseman/designated hitter has just come off his second consecutive season of 50+ homeruns, hitting 52 in 2014 and 53 in 2015. Besides that, he hit .343/.436/.714 (1.150) with 35 doubles this past season. Obviously, this was all done in a decidedly hitter-friendly league, yet it was enough to attract the attention of various Major League clubs, most importantly the Twins. Taking all of that into consideration, it must be noted that in 2015 Park also struck out 161 times while taking only 78 free trips to 1st (this excludes the 12 instances in which he was hit by a pitch, but whether that truly comes without a price is questionable). This and the fact that he will be playing in a decidedly pitcher friendly park is where his future as a Major League hitter becomes doubtful. Former teammate Jung-ho Kang was signed by the Pirates last offseason, and interestingly enough, he struck out less in more at bats in Pittsburgh this season than he did in Nexen in 2014. It was a miniscule difference (106k/418ab in 2014 and 99k/421ab in 2015), yet the fact remains that he wasn’t really affected in that area. Of course this doesn’t mean that Park won’t strike out more in the Majors than he did in the KBO, but what it does imply is that one cannot simply write him off because he comes from a hitter friendly league. One area Kang did noticeably regress in was the power department. But can I strictly say that he regressed? PNC Park is one of the most difficult parks for right-handed hitters to hit for power. Kang got off to a slow start this season, hitting only 4 homeruns in his first 74 games, but one would assume that while he made the transition he focused more on getting on base and not striking out than hitting homeruns. And, of more or less importance, in his last 52 games he hit 11 homers, a ratio which comes close to matching Miguel Sano’s 18 homeruns in just 80 games. Could this have been a fluky streak, or was it a sign of lasting improvement? I couldn’t answer that question without shamelessly plagiarizing, but I do know that having such a streak at the end rather than the beginning of the season does point slightly in favor of the player’s talent. It certainly played a card in him finishing 3rd in the NL Rookie of the Year voting, topped only by Kris Bryant and Matt Duffy. If Park starts out next year putting up stats similar to those Kang did in rookie year, concentrating on not sacrificing average for power and figuring out a whole new level of pitching, he should end up striking out less than 200 times a season, which is no less than is expected of Miguel Sano. Grant it, he’ll never have a season with 536 at bats and only 50 strikeouts like Joe Mauer, but nobody expects (or should expect) him to be Joe Mauer. Certainly, Park can provide the power that some have wanted to see coming from Mauer’s bat, but one can’t expect to have their cake and eat it too. You eat the cake, and the piece is gone. Get the power, and average tends to drop…and strikeouts go up. There’s a place for both types of hitter in the lineup. While it may still be difficult to romanticize this move as of yet, Park definitely has the potential to provide eye-popping power to the Twins’ lineup. It’s doubtful that he’ll ever put up the video game numbers he did in Korea, but he should be able to consistently hit pretty well once he gets over some foreseeable glitches transitioning from the KBO to MLB. I’m looking forward to another season of Twins baseball and seeing a new face in the organization; whether that face will fulfill the expectations that led to his signing is dubious, but I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: that’s what makes baseball so interesting. We all follow to find out. --- Read full entry here: Twins Sign KBO Slugger Byung-ho Park

Much clearer. You made use of punctuation.

Okay...then...did you already have two this morning, or are you leaving two for me? Duh...<facepalm>...I can't believe I couldn't figure that one out before. But anyway, thanks in advance.

Do they now manufacture muffin tins with 11 cups? Are we estimating on the assumption that ChiTown had a second pie today (or will have by the time we make arrangements to raid her kitchen)? Or are you leaving a piece for me? Furthermore, as you seem to prefer my more sardonic stance on the issue of giving, I'm fine with giving as long as it isn't me. Especially if it's you. Maybe you can give me nine pies...that works for my family. Too late to throw in a few more for the dogs, especially since ChiTown's tins are the amateur kind that only hold 12.

Ahaha, yes...same here.

Sure, Sano runs pretty good for a guy his size. That's all. I think this is an instance where you have to decide what has more value in center field, Revere's speed or Sano's arm. I think most people would go with Revere.

Don't try to convince me that you're capable of taking anything to heart until you can prove that you have one. And I'll tell you what you're going to do. You're going to get off Twins Daily and text Miss Vanimal right now and tell her you love her. Unless indeed you're both home from work already, in which case you'll tell her to her face. Then you can come back and tell me whether you have a heart.

Haha...you seem to be missing the point. I'll stop joking around and make myself clear. No, I don't give to receive. I just wonder how many people would really keep on giving if they didn't receive in return for their efforts, despite the fact that everyone insists it's a holiday centered around giving. Also, I love my family and friends and like to give them presents. But I think too many people wait until Christmas to give out of selfishness, however subconscious. And if you give a present for no reason other than that you love someone, the recipient isn't going to feel like they need to return the favor. And to be honest, taking the recipient's point of view, while I enjoy getting presents at Christmas and will give a big smile and hug to the person who gives it to me, I never feel so happy and grateful as I do when someone surprises me with something on August 13th just because they love me. So yeah, I'd say it's the commercialism that bothers me...though I prefer the word materialism in this instance. You know what I mean? No New Year's Day to celebrate...No chocolate covered candy hearts to give away...

But the point is, we only give because we'll also receive. And if it really is about giving, not getting, why don't we all donate this $xy to someone who really needs it rather than spending it on...well, I'll just say it...junk?

I have a question for you guys. Thus far no one has been overly helpful and have only resorted to informing me that they're having a conversation with someone named Ebenezer Scrooge when to be honest I couldn't care less who else they're texting and never bothered to say that I'm only distractedly listening to them while reading a Twins Daily thread on the merits (or lack thereof) of Terry Ryan. But to get directly (or indirectly) to the point, why on earth does everyone spend $x on y different family members when they could just spend $xy on themselves? Then you wouldn't have the trouble of returning unwanted gifts that you pretended to be enthralled over, etc. etc. You'd get something you really wanted. And instead of getting y $x presents, you could get anything within the price range of $xy without losing anything other than one massive headache.

What everyone else said...thanks for taking the time to write this! I love your blog, and this is probably the best thing I've ever read on the site yet. And that's saying a lot.

That or let this be a warning to GMs concerning Maeda.

Well, I know that this piece of **** I woke up to this morning is racist. All I can say is this young man must flush gold down his toilet. And yes, even still, black lives are definitely worth that and more.

We do not celebrate Thanksgiving because we're a thankful lot but rather because we prefer to complain 364 (and sometimes 365) days out of the year. As a holiday whose historical roots are buried deep in religious traditions, perhaps it would have been better to take a truly puritanical stance on the subject and dedicate only one day out of every year to complaining and the rest to giving thanks, but, considering the human nature, one has to admit that our forefathers made the more logical decision since if we had only one complaining day, we wouldn't have much to give thanks for on the other days. This post will probably be chaotic and not very well thought out since it takes either weeks of cogitation or else inspiration to write a good blog post, and today I have neither, but allow me to relate to you the true meaning behind this national holiday. Commence September 2014: the setting is a metropolitan area in the Midwest commonly referred to as the Twin Cities, the subject of interest a baseball team christened in honor of the surrounding area - the Minnesota Twins. At the time of our story, they were nearing the dreary close of yet another fatal year. Times were changing rapidly, and the team was bound through management to archaic traditions which were becoming more and more out of keeping with the present era. Although not actively persecuted, the team was regularly subjected to the mockery, criticism, and disfavor of rivaling teams. After thirteen years under what had become known as The Gardenhire Regime, many felt it was time to move on and separate themselves from this outdated, repugnant state. The past four years had been likened to a living nightmare, but finally the decision was made to abandon established leadership and distribute walking orders to nearly every person who held a prominent position within the organization. After this selfsame commission had been carried out, it appeared to many that the team was lost at sea and worse off than before, but others adamantly argued that these moves were the birth of a new, bright and beautiful beginning. However, the only thing either party could do was wait, and meanwhile the hiring process began. Among other moves, Hall of Famer Paul Molitor was hired as manager to replace the preceding Ron Gardenhire. Also largely covered in the news, former Twin Torii Hunter was signed for one year, not so much as a separationist but more to fill a role in a clubhouse which had lacked quality leadership in recent years. And an assortment of fans of the more ebullient breed found themselves giddy with excitement when righty pitcher Ervin Santana was signed not long after the acquisition of number 48. This latest move proved to ungratefully hurl the Twins into a rather unexpected and definitely unappreciated dilemma. In early April it was announced that Santana had been suspended for 80 games after testing positive for Stanozolol, just one of many substances which reside malevolently under the branches of a few simple syllables that baseball fans have learned to cringe (or, in the case of ill-meaning interest, smile in vindictive delight) upon hearing: performance enhancing drugs. Worst of all, this consequently meant that Mike Pelfrey would fall heir to the fifth spot in the pitching rotation. Of more or less national importance, spring rolled around and another season of baseball unfolded before the unoptimistic eyes of the ever faithful. The first handful of games had a devastating effect on the Twins. I need not relate for the umpteenth time the horrifying minutiae of this bitter tale as my readers will undoubtedly be of an unvarying species that has already heard every plausible version of it twice over, but I will venture to articulate that many of us lost all sight of hope by the conclusion of the first week and a half. Finally, on a day when not even Royals fans had much incentive to celebrate upon opening their eyes to another beautiful day with Royal blue skies overhead because, to slightly paraphrase the friendly Sheriff of Nottingham, taxes hurt, we hosted Kansas City to a depressed, nonchalant audience of dispirited Minnesotans. The two teams' winning (or losing, as the separate instances seem to imply) records before the game were, respectively, 7-0 and 1-6. By the end of the day, however, those records had balanced out a bit. As far as wins go, this one was hardly aesthetically pleasing, but a win is a win, even (or especially) for a losing team, and it definitely put a loss on the Kansas City board. What's more is the next day we not only won again but in addition to that won our first series of the year (causing the Royals to lose their first), and, of added interest, we also became the first team of the season to avoid having at least one altercation per series with the boys in blue. The rest of the month the Twins continued to win a little more often than they lost, and by the time we entered the merry month of May, our record was close to even. Did I mention May? It was merry indeed. That month we had no more than seven losses, and that left plenty of room for twenty (TWENTY!) wins. A huge surprise to fans around the world was the performance of Mike Pelfrey, who previously threw these same fans into literal fits of despair on inheriting a spot in the rotation after the aforementioned suspension of a certain Mr. Santana whose name does not start with a D. A memorable moment in May which cannot be overlooked in this little account was the debut of Twins prospect Eddie Rosario on May 6th. He stepped up to the plate to lead off the bottom of the third with his whole family watching in eager anticipation from the stands, each with a phone or camera in hand to record this most special of all special moments. A's' Scott Kazmir threw the ball towards home, and the rookie batter took a big swing and connected. The ball took a long, uninterrupted flight to left center field and landed in the expectant hands of a jubilant fan. He was the 29th player to homer on the first pitch of their first at bat in their first game in the majors, and probably the very first to do this while being so well documented by such a loving and supportive family. On June 14th, another prospect (need I say his name? really, he's more than just a top prospect - he's the future) debuted. His first at bat was slightly less memorable than Rosario's. In fact, his first several games were less memorable despite his not infrequent, uncanny displays of speed. He was a reckless albeit talented player and ended up smashing his thumb less than two weeks after debuting in an attempt to steal second base, an injury which put him out until August. And then there was Miguel Sano. I could sing his praises for all eternity and never tire of speaking of him, but I'll try to keep it brief; he missed the previous season in entirety, and although everyone knew he would be an amazing ballplayer in his time, who could predict that he'd do as well as he did in his rookie year, especially given the circumstances? One would hardly be satisfied by going back into the dusty archives of time to read or listen to all the exuberant predictions made by Twins fans around the world because, while they would probably be fairly accurate, these were the same people who expected Lord Byron to hit a bases empty grand slam in his first at bat while going 6-5 with 4 home runs (all 6 of them inside the park) and 3 triples, meanwhile stealing 5 bases; defensively he was to make an unassisted triple play and rob Mitch Moreland of a home run, afterwards turning to sprint across the field to beat Prince Fielder (who, by the way, was tagging up from 3rd) to the plate to tag him out; furthermore, he would charitably save a small child falling from upper deck after (offensively) stealing 3rd and a family floating down the Blanco River after their house had been washed away by a sudden and unexpected flash flood during the 7th inning stretch. In the post game ceremony he was to be unanimously elected for induction into the Hall of Fame for having put up the greatest single game of baseball ever played. But it was Miguel Sano who impressed, Miguel Sano who was arguably the best Twins player this season, Miguel Sano who inarguably came in 3rd in the Rookie of the Year voting, Miguel Sano who did all this while playing in only 80 games. That's all I'll say on that subject for now, yet somehow I managed to talk more about Buxton than Sano while doing so. It's just life. No matter what Sano does, there'll always be Buxton. And vice versa. And that's not a bad thing at all! Tyler Duffey was called up in early August, and while his debut wasn't exactly one from a refreshing daydream, he had great stuff the rest of the season. I'm trying to avoid stats because this holiday isn't one exactly centered around facts and all, but I'll say it again: he was great. Just take me at my word; I'm not going to provide the figures to prove it. Forgive me for petering out when I've barely just touched on the Oceanus Hopkinses when I meant to not only cover the Peregrine Whites but the veterans as well, but I am completely stuffed by now and don't think I can take another bite. Alex Meyer, Ervin Santana, Trevor May, Glen Perkins, Kevin Jepsen, Trevor Plouffe, Torii Hunter (the Squanto of our season)...the list goes on. And, as I mentioned the little Peregrines, added to the list of blessings are Jose Berrios, Max Kepler, Stephen Gonsalves, Adam Brett Walker II...and of course my prospects: Luke Westphal, Trey Vavra, D.J. Baxendale, Todd Van Steensel, Tyler Jay....Again, the list goes on and on. But you know who I absolutely love is Eduardo Escobar. He's not everyone's favorite; in fact, he tends to be overshadowed by all the young talent surrounding him, but he is the mashed potatoes of our roster: utterly and undeniably indispensable. And don't worry, I haven't forgotten Brian Dozier either. In fact, I most deliberately saved him for last, like that delicious, delicious piece (or two...or three) of pie following a huge meal on Thanksgiving. Brian Dozier was Brian Dozier. He had all sorts of Brian Dozier moments which led him to the All Star Game. I'm running out of stamina or I'd go into details about how he got there from walk off homers left and...left to hours of dedicated fan voting only to be beaten by Mike Moustakas, but in the end, talent prevailed and he went anyway, hitting a characteristic home run in the process. But like I said, I'm stuffed...and so is the word count. I'm neither inspired nor rewarded with an abundance of time to dedicate to the preparation of this little composition, so you'll have to relive the rest of the details on your own. It's funny, but here I am willing to put out a terrible blog post after having neglected my tiny fan base for nearly four months. It's an excellent way to attract first time visitors, I know. But somehow I'm taking all this into consideration with apathetic listlessness. So in closing, fast forward to the end of the season. The Twins were still in the playoff race with only one series left. Yes, the Royals swept those hopes and aspirations right out of us, but the case remains that we were far, far better than most could have hoped at the beginning of the season. We pulled ourselves together, made a winning team of ourselves again. We've had our ups and downs, but we're coming through on the strong side and have years ahead of us with talent already in the majors and more talent waiting in the minors. And today we will gather together to say a prayer of thanksgiving for the season behind us and the many seasons yet to come. --- Read full entry here: A Twins Fan's Thanksgiving

You had me until "We're thankful for every last blog contribution that is submitted to the site." I've seen hundreds of blog posts that have been deleted (spam). But that translates into a thank you to the mods! And thank YOU, Nick!...and everyone else. Best site ever.

And just because there's less lynching these days, it's not because of a widespread change in feeling but rather a widespread change in justice.

The point was that we were going noticeably faster by the time she was pulled over.

Regardless of whether racism is at a record low in this country, there's enough of it (which translates to too much of it). Just read comments on articles about black crime. "This is why there's still racism in the United States" is a classic (and might I add mild?) example of these. Sure, it's just the typical multitude of *******s taking advantage of the present day's resources which enable them to show the world their idiocy, but...was any bigot at any point in time anything more than that? Brock once shared a story about how he is frequently followed by police while out motorcycling. I was skeptical at first and found his conclusion that this behavior is rooted in racism to be a bit far fetched, but now I'll concede that he has a point. A very good point. Two months ago when I was in the car with some other family members on the way home from Duluth, my brother made a comment about how we were drag racing with the car in the left lane. It's not that we really were, but we were side by side for quite a while, probably going about 65-70 mph in a 60 zone. We ended up pulling ahead, and just as we were doing so, a horn honked aggressively behind us and then we momentarily heard sirens as a state patrol pulled over the other driver. It could have been for anything...who knows? Obviously not speeding as we were right there and going faster (and the cop changed lanes from behind us), but...there's a lot of things it could have been. Like I said, anything. And the driver was black. Just sayin'.

It's correctable. That's all I'll say on the subject.

I've never had pizza topped with anchovies (surprise, surprise!), but I have had sauce with anchovies on pizza. It was a controversial subject in my family. I will say that the sauce in question was much better on pizza than pasta, though. And the time I made thin crust pizza with anchovy-ey sauce, it was considered an improvement over the same served on deep dish. And by the way, since we're talking about very old/expired anchovies, does it really matter? The consumer won't know the difference either....

Hating on sardines, eh? Try them with peanut butter.

Nah, Chicago has a Twins drought during the times it'll work, so unfortunately not. It so happens that the Sox are in Minny around when we'll be down there, so...bummer. Oh well...I can always see the Twins at home. Maybe I'll content myself with a lousy Cubs game instead.