theBOMisthebomb

This sounds like a plan made for Louis Varland.

I can't disagree. Although I really want to point out that Cleveland just seems so darn lucky. I suppose the "luck" probably comes because of the factors you mentioned. It's just so darn infuriating to witness all the one run wins against the Twins.

Thank you for the update. I actually didn't remember Maxwell, this was still interesting, though.

Let's check in at Memorial Day and see how things look. Right now, it's too soon.

That was a dark day with the Puckett news.

Joe Ryan wins 2025 Cy Young Award.

The movie is better than solid double. It deserves its all-time great reputation. Funny story, when my wife and I were newly married it was the 'get Netflix DVDs in the mail' era (2010). I came home from work one day and she's holding a DVD with a big smile on her face. "Have you ever heard of the movie The Natural? It's about baseball." I wanted to act surprised, just couldn't though. It's been a marriage joke ever since.

That Twins Pass is a sweet deal at $4 per game. I always wonder when I see the complaints about how expensive it is to attend Twins games if they know about the pass? I understand that you would need multiple passes to bring a family. If I were single with a less busy schedule, I'd be all over purchasing the Twins Pass. I have a Choice Membership and have to admit I'm a bit upset that they expanded the Twins Pass to include the home opener. I don't want to be a hater, it's just that the home opener option was one of the few benefits of the Choice plans over the Twins Pass.

Oh wow, I played for Rosetown in the late 1980s and didn't hear anything about Mickey Rocco. The dad of one of my teammates played for Rosetown and they told me once that the dad's team won the state Legion title. I wonder if my teammate's dad played for Mickey Rocco's team? The timeline matches. I have some research and digging to do.

"Do you vividly remember a player’s end like I did of Trombley when you just knew their time had come?" I know I've seen it many times before, I just can't think of any names right now.

You won't exclude steroid cheaters yet would exclude a guy who gets a DWI or if you don't agree with his political views? I have no respect for that viewpoint and couldn't get beyond the introduction.

I thought this was Randball Stu with the Rochester native Fritz Polka reference. However, the BB Ref link appears legitimate. Nice work, there was much deep dive interesting material here.

The 5th most strikeouts all-time and it took 14 ballots for Bert to get the HOF nod. That's a bit extreme and seems like a joke. The guy had 94.5 WAR, 287 wins, and a 3.31 career ERA. Did the voters really not like giving up HRs that much?

Great photos, thanks for sharing. Late December is a good time for a stroll down memory lane. I will always get emotional reminiscing on the 1987 and 1991 titles. The Kirby picture is still moving - I can't believe that was nearly 30 years ago. Just an observation - Killebrew was 35 years old in that picture. He looks 10 - 15 years older.

From those highlights, you an see the Metrodome was rocking in 2009. Target Field came into existence in 2010 and has been amazing. I'm not saying I want the Metrodome back, I do miss it though. This was a nice memory jog for some of the role players on the 2009 Twins. You really do forget names and details after 15 years.

Well, Gasper was 0 for 18 in 2024 to start his career.

Why not us?

He's fine in Minnesota, no regrets. Don't forget, he also played well in the 2023 playoffs for the Twins.

Perkins and Reardon.

It is right there on their website: https://www.mlb.com/twins/ballpark/information/guide#f-content Bring your own bottled water, bring your own food! The 2024 family friendly concession stands were more than reasonable if you were willing to simply walk to one of them: https://www.mlb.com/twins/ballpark/concessions Family-Friendly Pricing Item Sections/Portables Price Hot Dog Sections: 120, 133, 311 $3.99 Soft Pretzel Sections: 120, 133, 311 $3.99 Popcorn Sections: 120, 133, 311 $2.99 Peanuts Sections: 120, 133, 311 $2.99 Fountain Soda Sections: 120, 133, 311 $1.99 Bud/Bud Light Can Sections: 120, 133, 311 $4.99 Bottle Aquafina Sections: 120, 133, 311 $3.99 Ice Cream Novelty Sections 120, 133, 311 $3.49 This is just bellyaching and a lazy comment: "For a family of four, it’s not uncommon for the concessions bill alone to sit in the $150 range for a single game." If you are that concerned about the food budget for attending a Twins game, why not eat a hearty meal before leaving for the ballpark? Or grabbing some cheap affordable food on your drive to the ballpark and eat in the car so you aren't hungry at the ballpark? You are going to have to eat and have some expense whether you go to Target Field or stay home so there will be some cost regardless. In my opinion, I think it's reasonable to eat at home, go to the ballpark for a day game and (gasp) not eat there and come back home 5 hours later and have your next meal. For a 7 pm game, why can't you eat dinner at 5 pm before leaving for the ballpark and be done eating for the night. Why complain? Either go and enjoy and employ some of the affordable options mentioned here, stay home, or drop the complaints. One more affordable option is the family section where they load a hot dog, chips, and soda on each ticket. I did it when my children were very young and it was enough food for them and they got their own. No sharing with siblings. Anyway, whatever. You do realize that Major League was a movie and not reality? They still have $1 dog nights today and I have never seen the dogs sold out. Enjoy life and enjoy the games and ballpark experience. If it's too expensive for you, I'm sorry. Just know there are reasonable and affordable options with just a little bit of effort.

It seems Arraez moving around so much is mostly due to circumstances and budgets, not Luis being unwanted. WAR seems to undervalue Arraez for whatever reason. If the Padres move him, I'll enjoy watching him possibly win his 4th straight batting title in 2025 with a 4th different team.

Part of the charm of the baseball season is how unique it is in today's world. Baseball doesn't need to compete with the NFL or the NBA. The sport is popular in some ways more than it has been in recent years, look at youth participation and TV viewership for the 2024 World Series. I could get behind rolling back the regular season to the traditional 154 games so we can play full 7 game playoff series instead of 3 and 5 game series.

It sounds like beer league/bush league softball nonsense.

Brian Harper might be a candidate, for the fact he started with the Twins in 1988 as the backup to Tim Laudner. Harper did have a nice 5 year run as the main Twins catcher after 1988, so maybe that disqualifies him from this conversation.

"...the team will remain in Minnesota for Memorial Day Weekend, as they’ll be hosting the Kansas City Royals for a four-game series from May 23-26." This is wrong, the Twins play the Rays on May 26 and the Royals move on to play the Reds on May 26. I don't like the change as I already had Twins tickets to Target Field on Memorial Day holiday (May 26) and was looking forward to spending the holiday at Target Field. I'm out of town 4th of July. I know it's not all about me.