twinssporto

You have nothing to apologize for here. We don't judge yutes on the Game Threads. Now if we were talking about Chief, that's a different story. That guy's got serious age issues...

My first car was a 1966 Buick Skylark 2 door hard top. The trunk could hold as much as a pickup truck. That Dynaflow transmission was smoooooth.

Double play time!

Let's go Santiago! Pitch angry!

I think the staff will be ok. We can go a long way with just an average starting rotation. The bull pen can hopefully pick up the remaining slack. Conversely, there are some good guys we can bring up if the car starts to go off the road. The improved defense can also act as a crutch for a mediocre pitching staff.

It's this type of snappy post that keeps me coming back to the Game Threads!

Santiago is going to throw a gem today. He has anger issues around his former team. Will be fun to watch! Firing up the grill today for some Easter lamb and a little ham.

You may have a valid point here. However, I'm not sure what long-term decisions need to be made for this team right now. The ones that jump out are Dozier and Mauer. After that it's who do you want to bring up from AA/AAA and draft choices.

Totally agree. Things can always change. The main point is we are going in the right direction. I'd rather be in the spot we are now versus 0-9 and having injuries too. We saw that last year. You also bring up a great point. The championship level teams/playoff teams have very few injuries and if they suffer a few they have capable people to back them up. I'd love to see if any Sabermetric types have done studies on injuries and winning percentages, etc. I'm sure there a some good stats on that scenario. As you said, Vikings are a good example.

I agree that there may not be a lot of changes this year with the new FO still figuring things out but from a defensive aspect I think we are on the right track. The outfield from a defensive stand point looks really solid. Behind the plate we are good, Mauer is doing well defensively at first base. Dozier is actually doing well so far this year too. Polanco and Sano are the bigger question marks. 7 out of 9 isn't bad.

The graph is just eye candy. Tried to find something that looked better for baseball trends but nothing really existed.

Santana pitched a great baseball game today! I believe it marks the start of a real trend of winning for this team. Let me explain: Our offense is ranked 5th in the American League with 46 runs scored; and I don't even think we're hitting all that great right now. We are ranked #2 pitching in the A.L. with a team ERA of 2.69. Defensively, the Twins are ranked #3 with only 3 errors. Our team also has a .636 win percentage on April 15th. Short sample size? Absolutely. A trend in the right direction? Absolutely. Worst to first this year? I've seen it happen before. I watch a lot of baseball, mostly the Minnesota Twins. I have followed this team closely for over 30 years. I'm not a bandwagon fan nor am I a hopeless optimistic. However, based on what I am seeing now the similarities to some of our other high caliber teams in the past is intriguing. Consider this: Buxton WILL start hitting again. Mauer will start hitting too. Berrios and Wimmers look like they have something to prove in AAA. The bullpen looks motivated too. Certainly the Manager has something to prove this year along with the new front office staff. Whether your a pessimist or not; there are a lot of positives to consider. Will the Twins make the playoffs this year? I don't know. I will say this though: I wouldn't bet against this team. We have a lot of young players and decent veterans that aren't intimidated by early season predictions. Sometimes ignorance of your limitations and a little confidence is all you need to be the next great champion. I love the youth on this team and the veterans around them. Great team chemistry can do some amazing things in business, baseball and bands. To all the folks out there that made their Las Vegas sports book bets on the Twins this year...hold on to those tickets!

It's not going to matter. We might actually be 15 games over .500.

This is the kind of stuff that really builds confidence in a team. Worst to first baby...Book it!

Epic intro! Wish I could have watched the game today. Great job!

Agreed! Maybe not as much as 87 Viola but close.

Amazing stat. The defense behind him this year is much better along with additional run support could help him put up some good numbers this year. Will be fun to watch!

Better Defense: CHECK! Better Offense: CHECK! Momentum: CHECK! Better starting rotation: CHECK! Better bullpen: CHECK! More confidence: CHECK! New FO: CHECK! More pitchers in minors to bring up: CHECK! Sano: CHECK! Polanco: CHECK! Castro, etc., etc.: CHECK! 85 wins. Read it and weep (or cheer too)

The defense has been a huge boost in helping this team win. It builds the confidence of the pitchers too. I'm not too concerned with Buxton's bat yet. The kid can hit and will hit (hopefully before June 1st). Whenever I hear quotes like Buxton's about only rain drops falling it makes me laugh. That's an attitude of confidence and something a championship caliber team would say. Love it! It's going to be a fun year of baseball after last years total system failure.

Great Win!! I'll take credit for it. I think the team read some of my more inspirational quotes... Wish I could have seen it.

Quick Virginia Tech fact: A Hoakie is actually nothing. Just a made up name by a student about 90 years ago. He won $5 for coming up with a new cheer for the team. He thought Hoakie was unique and funny. Now you know the rest of the story. Good day! (Channeling my inner Paul Harvey)

Thank you! Wish I could watch the game today. No coverage out here on the east coast. Will be too busy building a "Go Fund" me page anyway...College costs are amazing.

LINEUPS: TWINS 1. Brian Dozier ® 2B 2. Robbie Grossman (S) DH 3. Joe Mauer (L) 1B 4. Miguel Sano ® 3B 5. Jason Castro (L) C 6. Jorge Polanco (S) SS 7. Eddie Rosario (L) LF 8. Byron Buxton ® CF 9. Max Kepler (L) RF ERVIN SANTANA ® SP WHITE SOX 1. Melky Cabrera (S) LF 2. Tim Anderson ® SS 3. Jose Abreu ® 1B 4. Todd Frazier ® 3B 5. Cody Asche (L) DH 6. Avail Garcia ® RF 7. Yolmer Sanchez (S) 2B 8. Omar Narvaez (L) C 9. Jacob May (S) CF JOSE QUINTANA (L) SP

Welcome to another exciting Twins Daily Game Thread! I am writing this introduction today from the beautiful Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. I had an entirely different introduction planned for today until I found out at the last minute my high school senior decided he really wants to join the Corp of Cadets at Virginia Tech the NROTC program and go to college here...This weekend was our only chance to tour and visit before he commits so I thought it best we stop here one more time before he makes the big decision. What does any of this have to do with baseball you ask? Well, leave it to me to draw the connection. On the plane ride out here from Minneapolis I got to thinking about new starts. I pondered the conversation I wanted to tell my son about starting strong, maintain focus, keep your head down and work hard (all the things I didn't do so well as an 18 year old). Our beloved Twins are in the same spot. They have a .800 record through the first week. Exciting stuff! I know its a small sample size, I know we still have 157 games to play but they are off to a great start and heading in the right direction. The future could/should be bright for this team. Their confidence is building and they look driven to succeed! Some inspirational quotes for the Twins and for all of the high school seniors out there making decisions on what to do after graduation: "A journey of a thousand steps begins with a single step." - Chinese proverb "The best way to predict the future is to invent it." - Alan Kay "Do you know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you." - Thomas Jefferson "Choose a job you love and you will never work a day in your life." - Confucius "Many people can be responsible for your success, but only you are responsible for your failure." - Unknown "Being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional."- Unknown "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all." - Hellen Keller "Our true character is that person we become when no one else is watching."- Unknown GO TWINS!! Lineups: TBD Game time weather: Mostly cloudy. Wind 10mph. 67 degrees. 0% precipitation

I can't believe it! An opening day win has arrived! AWESOME!