Yeah, I know it's Wednesday. But it was Tuesday when I started writing this, and I'm way too lazy to change the title, so I'm just going with it.
Twins Things:
Drew Butera, Jose Mijares, and infielder Alejandro Machado have all been cut. Butera is a little bit of a surprise, since the pitching staff seemed to prefer him over Jose Morales, but the front office seemed to prefer Morales's bat (he is a switch-hitter). Mijares has been struggling all through camp, so it's not terribly surprising that he didn't make the team. If he gets himself back in shape, and starts pitching like he did late last year, I wouldn't be surprised to see him get called up again by late April.
Which is what makes last night's loss in overtime at the X particularly bitter. Not only has it put the final nail in the coffin to the Wild's playoff hopes, it was a game that, for all intents and purposes, they should have won. They played with a lot of energy, they managed to keep the Canucks off the puck (Vancouver didn't even get a single shot on goal during the third period), they didn't even turn over the puck very much! If it weren't for a couple of fluky goals that happened to deflect off of defenseman Kim Johnsson (who actually played a very solid game, so it's hard to consider him the goat), they would have beat Vancouver and might still be in the Western Conference playoff picture.
No, you know what? That's not even the worst part about this whole thing. The worst part is that the Canucks are now in first place in the Northwest Division. That is simply too awful to comprehend.
Why isn't the Shamwow! guy in this Pitchmen thing?
Billy Mays and Anthony Sullivan are supposedly starring in a new reality show where they judge which crappy product you'll never buy amateur inventor has a product worthy of an infomercial. Or something like that. Seriously, how does Vince not get this gig?! This guy is the Laurence Olivier of infomercial pitchmen:
Not to mention his Oscar-worthy performance in the Slapchop commercials:
Oops, this is probably why. Nobody likes a guy who smacks a b****!
Something very rare happened yesterday: every Minnesota team that played a game actually won. This pretty much never happens. There isn't a great deal of overlap between the schedules for all of our major sports franchises anyway, and the results are rarely so favorable when they do. Usually one team wins while the rest of them lose. Or, most likely, all of them end up losing.
Twins beat Cardinals, 5-3
Kevin Slowey continued his bid to be a dark horse candidate for the 2009 AL Cy Young, giving up two runs on eight hits in six innings. He also recorded five strikeouts, including a big one against Albert Pujols with the bases loaded. The only runs he gave up came off of a two-run homer by Rick Ankiel, and as I've mentioned before, he does have a tendency to give up the long ball. Jesse Crain also bounced back from his awful appearance against the Reds, in which he gave up four runs on six hits in one inning, by pitching a scoreless eighth. Jose Mijares was the only Minnesota pitcher who really struggled on the mound, nearly giving the game away in the ninth. He gave up one run on three hits, and had runners on second and third with one out before getting the next two batters to ground out.
The good news for Cardinals fans is that Chris Carpenter looked really good for the most part. He did give up four runs on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings, which isn't as bad as it sounds when you consider that he also struck out seven batters. Trever Miller and Chris Perez also pitched well, which is very good news for a team whose bullpen had its own share of struggles last year.
By the way, Twins' infield prospect Chris Cates made his Spring Training debut in the later innings, too. This is only kind of interesting because, at 5' 3", Cates is the shortest player at any level of major league baseball (he's actually just slightly taller than I am). He looks like a little kid:
I think even the bat boys are taller than he is!
The Twins also have the tallest prospect in their system too, the 7' 1" right-handed pitcher Loek van Mil. And yes, the two were teammates last year for the Beloit Snappers.
Wild beat Oilers, 3-2
Another game that is essentially meaningless, as the Wild are not going to make the playoffs. By beating Edmonton at Rexall Place last night though, they at least helped to ensure that the Oilers won't make it, either. It was also really good to see Mikko Koivu back on the ice after sustaining a serious knee injury the last time they beat the Oil.
Actually, Niklas Backstrom is the only reason the Wild even won this game. They still turn over the puck way too much, and if Backs hadn't been so sharp the Oil would've made them pay for all of their careless mistakes (much like the Flames did on Saturday). The Wild could still theoretically make the playoffs if they win every single one of their next six games. This is simply too much to ask for a team that hasn't won two in a row in over a month, and hasn't won three in a row since Thanksgiving. Considering that the Wild also have the Flames and the Stars on the schedule (two teams they have struggled to do much against the entire year) I think it's pretty safe to say that the season is almost over with now.
But hey, at least Bemidji State is having a pretty good run in the NCAA tournament. The Beavers upset heavily-favored Notre Dame on Saturday, and stunned Cornell last night on their way to their first Frozen Four appearance in school history. I've written before that I started following college hockey when the North Stars were shipped out of town. And while my beloved Golden Gophers failed to even make the tournament this year, it is good to see at least one of our hockey teams in the playoffs.
Timberwolves finally win a game!
Yeah, they beat the Nets. But a victory is a victory for a team that has only had twenty-one of them this year. I thought the Wolves were at least going to surpass last year's grand total of 22 wins, but with only eight games left on the schedule, I'm not so sure. Sadly, if the Wolves were in the Eastern Conference, they would probably have a decent chance at making the playoffs this year.
By the way, I have now updated my blogroll. I added threenewMLBlogs that I like a lot, as well as a couple of Twinsproblogs. If you haven't yet, please check out Plouffe!, written by Twins infield prospect (and guitar player) Trevor Plouffe. He's got some great stuff on there about his former roommate Delmon Young, and some cute pictures too!
In honor of my ranking on the Leaderboard, I will dedicate my number six to the most beloved Twin to ever wear it (at least most of his career anyway, he was number 37 for a little bit): Tony Oliva. Tony O was an outfielder/DH for the Twins for his entire career, from 1962 to 1976, and was one of the greatest left-handed hitters the team has ever had. He was an eight time All-Star, 1964 Rookie of the Year ('64 was technically his first full year in the major leagues), won a Gold Glove in 1966, and led the league many times in many different offensive categories. He is also the only major league player in history to win back-to-back batting titles in his first two full major league seasons. Oliva put up some very good career numbers, finishing .304/.353/.467 with 220 home runs, making him 243rd on the all-time home run leaders list. Unfortunately, his career was hampered by knee injuries that prevented him from putting up Hall-of-Fame worthy numbers.
The Twins teams of the late '60s and early '70s were absolutely loaded with talent. During his career, Oliva played alongside the likes of infielders Zoilo Versalles and Rod Carew, outfielders Harmon Killebrew and Bob Allison, and pitchers Jim Kaat and Mudcat Grant. Oliva himself though, almost didn't make the cut. A Twins scout noticed him while he played in his hometown of Pinar del Rio, and urged the Twins to sign him in 1961. Oliva appeared in three spring training games, but the organization had already finalized its roster and released him. He then went on to play for the Twins class A farm team in Charlotte, where manager Paul Howser was so impressed with his raw offensive prowess that he urged the Twins to re-sign him. They did, and Tony O appeared in a few regular season games in '62 and '63 before being sent down for further development. He made his official major-league debut in 1964, and the rest is (Twins) history.
Tony Oliva was actually born Pedro Oliva Lopez Hernandes Javique in Penar del Rio, Cuba. His father was a semi-professional ballplayer who helped his son develop into one of the best hitters in Cuba. When the Twins offered him a contract in 1961, Oliva was initially reluctant to sign. He didn't want to leave his family back in Cuba. However, his father pushed him to take the deal, telling him to go to America and become "rich and famous". So the then 18-year-old Pedro Oliva used his 21-year-old brother Tony's passport to enter the United States. Although it was later revealed that what was believed to be the 21-year-old Tony Oliva was actually his younger brother Pedro, the name stuck. Oliva legally changed his name to Tony Pedro Oliva in 1990.
In 1971, while chasing down a Joe Rudi fly ball in Oakland, Oliva suffered a catastrophic knee injury that he would never fully recover from. Oliva was moved to the DH slot since his knees could no longer handle playing everyday in the outfield, and though he played another six seasons, his offensive production was never the same. And while he finished with some very good career numbers, it ignited a fierce debate over whether or not he belonged in Cooperstown. Some, such as Bill James, would argue that he had a good case based on the numbers he would have put up if he had been healthy (this was the same criteria in which Kirby Puckett was inducted in 2001). Others would argue that players should only be inducted because of how good they were, not for what they could have done. The latter group would win out and Oliva was denied induction into the HOF by the BBWAA. For his part, though, Tony O has never made a huge push to get himself inducted. It was good enough for him that the franchise decided to honor him by retiring his number and inducting him into the Twins' Hall of Fame, alongside teammates Rod Carew and Harmon Killebrew, as part of the inaugural 2000 class.
Even though he retired from baseball a long, long time ago, Tony O. is still a valuable member of the Twins' organization. He helps out the young players with batting practice, and is always willing to give advice:
Here he is playing Wii baseball with his grandson, too:
I guess it's just like riding a bike.
Francisco Liriano rocked in loss to BoSox
Frankie was tagged for seven earned runs in one inning during the Twins' 9-4 loss to the Red Sox yesterday. He was cruising a long until the third, when he gave up mulit-run bombs to Rocco Baldelli, David Ortiz, and Jason Bay. It wasn't the homers that hurt him as much as all of the hitters he walked in that inning (three to be exact). These would all have been solo shots if he hadn't issued so many free passes, and the Twins might have won the game.
While I'm not worried about Frankie and how he's going to perform during the regular season (even though he gave up all those runs, he still struck out five batters in three innings), this awful start highlighted one of his biggest weaknesses: his inability to locate his fastball. After returning from Tommy-John surgery last year, the velocity on his fastball has dropped from 93-98 mph to about 89-93 mph. This drop in velocity isn't much of an issue as long as Frankie can locate his pitches. After all, I doubt that his soft-tossing teammate Kevin Slowey has ever touched more than 91 mph on the gun, but he strikes out a lot of hitters with his pinpoint control.
Flood Update:
The Red River crested yesterday at 40.82 feet, though the water hasn't started to recede yet. The levees are holding for now, but there is still some concern that they might give under prolonged stress if the river doesn't start to recede soon. Two people are reported dead, and there are about 50 injured so far. Once again, if you would like to help out with the relief effort, go here.
Justin Morneau, Michael Cuddyer, and Jason Kubel all belted homers off of Rays' starter Scott Shields en route to a 16-2 rout of Tampa Bay. Denard Span, who has been struggling all spring, went 2-for-4 with a pair of hits and a pair of walks. Even Nick Punto had a couple of hits and an RBI. Punto has been hitting .435/.500/.652 this spring, and though I doubt he's going to continue to be so productive during the regular season, I am hoping that this is a sign that his worst years are behind him. I would be perfectly happy if he put up similar numbers to last year.
Scott Baker had his best outing of the spring, allowing two earned runs on five hits in five innings (one of which was a solo homer to Carl Crawford). He recorded two strikeouts but only one walk, so it appears as though he had better command of his pitches. Matt Guerrier bounced back from his awful appearance against the Red Sox in which he gave up two two-run homers, and pitched a scoreless frame. Brian Duensing and Craig Breslow were also effective in shutting down the Rays.
No Surprises Here
There were five more players cut from the 25-man roster this morning, none of which were terribly surprising. Jason Pridie was optioned to AAA Rochester, as there is no room on the roster for yet another outfielder. Non-roster invitees Sean Henn, Bobby Keppel, Brock Peterson, and David Winfree were all reassigned to minor league camp. Jose Mijares has survived the cuts so far, but i suspect this is because the Twins want him to continue working with pitching coach Rick Anderson some more before optioning him to AAA. I would be extremely surprised if he actually made the team, considering the way he's been pitching as of late.
Boof Bonser and Joe Mauer will be placed on the DL, which would make room for two additional roster spots. Whether or not the Twins will decide to carry extra pitchers or extra bench riders remains to be seen. Right now, though, it looks like catcher Drew Butera, infielders Brendan Harris and Brian Buscher, and relief pitchers Philip Humber and R. A. Dickey are the top candidates to win the final roster spots.
Speaking of Mauer, the change in his medication appears to be working and he is able to run without pain. It is now a matter of getting back into game shape, so it's not likely that he'll be on the DL for very long. By the way, that same article has a nice story about former Yankee catcher Johnny Blanchard, who sadly passed away from a heart attack on Wednesday.
North Dakota is experiencing record flooding
About a third of the residents of the Fargo-Moorhead area have been asked to evacuate their homes today due to the record flooding. The President has already declared a State of Emergency for seven nearby counties, and the National Guard has already been deployed to help out with the relief efforts. The river is expected to crest sometime tomorrow (the National Weather service now expects the flood waters to crest on Sunday), at about 43 feet. This is higher than the record of 40 ft. set in 1897 and considerably higher than the 39.5 ft. in the recent 1997 flood, which caused some $3.5 billion in damages. Let us please act like civilized humans for once and not let this turn into another Hurricane Katrina.
If you would like to help out the victims of the Red River flood, go here.
Some of the Metsfans who read this blog have been wondering what happened to all of the prospects sent over in the Santana trade. Here's a quick update:
Carlos Gomez: Go-Go was the only player sent over in the trade who spent theentire season with the big club. While he showed tremendous range in the outfield, and has great speed on the basepaths, his offense left something to be desired. I have already covered Go-Go's offensive struggles in greater detail here. However, he spent the offseason developing a better eye at the plate and his work does seem to be paying off so far this spring. Go-Go is hitting .256/.341/.615 with 3 home runs in 39 ABs, though he still strikes out nearly three times as often as he walks. Gomez is currently competing with Denard Span (who has had his own struggles at the plate during camp) for the CF job. Whether or not he wins the starting job in the outfield depends on his continued success at the plate.
Actually, there is a really good article about Go-Go in today's Star Tribune.
Philip Humber: Humber didn't make the team out of camp last year, and spent most ofthe season in Rochester. He struggled during the first half of the season, but eventually settled down and finished with an ERA of 4.56 and a WHIP of 1.42 which was good enough to earn him a September call-up. Unfortunately, his audition didn't go particularly well, as he gave up six runs on eleven hits in 11.7 innings pitched. He's been having a very good spring so far, with his worst appearance coming against the Reds when he gave up four runs on four hits in a single inning. Since then, his ERA has plummeted to 1.13 in eight innings and is considered a top candidate for the long-relief job vacated by Boof Bonser.
Kevin Mulvey: Mulvey spent the entire season in Rochester last year, and posted adecent 3.77 ERA and 1.35 WHIP, though he didn't earn a September call-up. Although he was a having a pretty good spring, giving up three earned runs on eight hits in seven innings, there just isn't any room for him in the rotation at this point. Mulvey was just reassigned to minor league camp so he can get some more work in before reporting to Rochester. He might see some time in the big leagues if one of the starters goes down with an injury.
Deolis Guerra: Guerra shows the most promise of all of the pitchers who came from theMets' organization. He struggled a lot during the season with the Ft. Myers Miracle, posting a 5.47 ERA and an even 71 walks and strikeouts. Most of his problem stems from a drop in velocity, most likely from the Twins' attempts to tinker with his mechanics. Guerra's only 19, though, and still has tremendous upside. If he can regain his lost velocity, he might eventually live up all of the hype.
Update: here is video of Guerra and his delivery, which explains the drop in velocity:
In other news:
Matt Macri, Luke Hughes, and Luis Matos were all reassigned. Hughes and Macri were optioned to AAA Rochester, and Matos was sent to minor league camp. Macri is a decent utility infielder, and is mostly a victim of a lack of roster space as Brendan Harris, Brian Buscher, and Matt Tolbert are all competing for the final spot on the bench. Hughes is a very promising 3B prospect, and he hit very well during camp (and in the WBC for Team Australia), but he still needs to work on his defense. He'll probably see time at second and in the outfield while in Rochester this year to try to find the best fit. Matos is a former Orioles prospect who has never really panned out. At 30, it's pretty obvious that he never will. Matos batted .125 during camp and will probably have to fight for playing time in Rochester.
Frankie Says Relax:
Francisco Liriano says he's working on his command and is almost ready for the regular season. Liriano is coming off of his worst start of the spring, in which he gave up three runs on four hits in five innings, though he still struck out five and only walked two. Frankie has been struggling with his command a bit during camp, as he's walked eight batters in 21.1 innings. However, he still has a 2.95 ERA and 1.03 WHIP even with his control issues. This is his second full season after having Tommy-John surgery in 2006, and whatever lingering questions about Frankie and his place in the rotation will probably be answered.
By the way, Wild rookie Cal Clutterbuck now has the NHL record for hits in a single season, collecting his 317th against the Islanders last night. Hits are a subjective stat, so it's not like anyone collected his elbow pads to put in the Hall of Fame or anything. And the kinder, gentler NHL doesn't exactly approve of that kind of thing anyway. Also, after igniting a firestorm of (not undeserved) criticism for fighting with his visor on, Clutterbuck simply threw his helmet off before tangling with Sean Avery during Tuesday's loss to the Rangers:
The Twins teed off on Baltimore yesterday, bashing four home runs. Justin Morneau hit his second dinger in as many games, a two-run shot off of Jeremy Guthrie in the first. Brendan Harris, Matt Tolbert(!) and Delmon Young all homered off of Adam Eaton in the sixth, though the wind did help out a little bit (except for Brendan Harris' rocket off of the Walgreen's sign in left field, and Morny's laser to center). And while nobody homered in today's contest against the Marlins, the offense managed to produce eight runs on twelve hits. Starter Kevin Slowey had two hits and three RBI of his own, while shutting down the Fish for five innings (his lone run was a Dan Uggla solo shot).
The Twins have now scored 29 runs in their past four games. While some readers thought that I was just being negative when I complained about the lack of offense, it turns out that a little tough love is what the guys really needed. You're welcome.
Chicago pounds Oakland, 20-5
Kyle Orton threw two touchdown passes, and Chicago added a couple of field goals on their way to a rout of Oakland. The Raiders couldn't solve the Bears' stifling D, and only managed to score a field goal and a safety.
Seriously, though, this has to be the ugliest boxscore ever. Paul Bako had four hits and three RBI even though he didn't come in until the sixth inning. Oakland reliever Edgar Gonzalez barfed up seven earned runs in 2/3 of an inning, giving him a 94.50 ERA for the day. Andrew Bailey was the only Oakland pitcher who managed to toss a scoreless inning.
Japan defeats Korea, 5-3 to repeat as WBC champs
I'm not going to lie, I fell asleep on the couch in the bottom of the eighth and didn't get to see how the game ended. I can't help it, I was tired! And it looked like Japan pretty much had this one in the bag, anyway. Luckily the good people at Ghostrunner on Firstwere paying attention, so I didn't have to. While I think that the tournament has its flaws (the timing is wrong, the formatting should be better, etc.) these games have to be some of the most exciting I've seen in a long time. After being deprived of baseball for four long months, it just felt really good to have that had all of the excitement and intensity of playoff matches. In March! Four years just seems way too long to wait for more.
He's modeled after Count von Count of Sesame Street fame:
The "Re" Count doll will be distributed to the first 2,500 fans on May 23, prior to a game against the Sioux Falls Canaries. Hopefully this whole thing will be over with by then. But I wouldn't count on it.
Well, things got off to a good start for the Americans. Brian Roberts hit a leadoff home run against Daisuke Matsuzaka. And then things kind of went downhill from there. The Japanese would score nine runs, only five of which were actually earned. Team USA's defense was atrocious. Officially the Americans committed three errors, but unofficially it was probably closer to five or six. Obviously they didn't want the Venezuelan record of five errors in a WBC game to stand (those commie ********!) and were trying their hardest to set a new standard in horrible defense. Either that or they simply forgot that this was a single-elimination game.
Japan now gets to defend its WBC title against Korea tonight. It's kind of disappointing that the US didn't make it to the finals, but this should be a very good game. These two teams are powerhouses of Asian baseball, sort of like the Yankees and the Red Sox of the far east. I don't have a particular favorite to win it all, but I guess I'll root for the defending champs. Which of course means that Korea is going to win. I mean, look at my trackrecordso far.
Twins beat Toronto, 11-6
The offense finally decided to score some runs in yesterday's game against the Blue Jays. Justin Morneau had a three-run homer, his first big blast of the season. Morny had a very good day at the plate, going 2-for-2 with a walk (apparently Morny has been taking Harmon Killebrew's batting advice). Actually, pretty much everybody had a good day at the plate, since Jays' starter Matt Clement wasn't very effective. The Twins knocked the righty out after 4 1/3 innings, pounding him for nine runs on six hits.
Our own Scott Baker wasn't particularly sharp either, giving up four earned runs on nine hits in 4 2/3 innings. He didn't give up any homers though (for once), and recorded five strikeouts and no walks. Jose Mijares continued to struggle, giving up two earned runs in 2/3 of an inning, and also injured his ankle while trying to cover first. It's looking more likely that the lefty is going to spend the season in Rochester (although Gardy is stubbornly insisting they can turn him around before the team heads north in two weeks). This might give Brian Duensing an opportunity to make the team if the Twins decide they need another lefty in the 'pen. Duensing has been a starter his entire career, and did struggle a bit early in the season while in Rochester last year, but has looked really good in his relief appearances during spring training. At least he can get hitters out, anyway.
Wild shutout Oil at the X
Owen Nolan scored a couple of goals, the Oil scored on themselves, and Niklas Backstrom made himself worth every penny of his four year, $24 million contract extension in one of the closest games the Wild have played all season. They got off to kind of a slow start in the first, though they weren't helped by some awful officiating. Mikko Koivu got called for a phantom interference penalty on Ales Hemske (that was a beautiful piece of diving), and Dan Fritsche got called for boarding when he barely touched Ladislav Smid. I don't normally complain about officiating, but this was ridiculous. Luckily the penalty-killers (and Backs!) stepped up to prevent any sort of ill-gotten gains by the Oilers.
Marian Gaborik made his triumphant return to the ice after having surgery on his hip. Though he didn't score any goals, it was just really good to see him out there again. Unfortunately, captain Mikko Koivu suffered a knee injury when he was pulled down by Ales Kolatik and will be out the rest of the week. He might even miss the rest of the season, which means the Wild might as well forget about playing hockey past April. Come on, Mikko. Just rub some dirt on it and you'll be fine.
Schadenfreude
If you think Vancouver sucks, clap your hands If you think Vancouver sucks, clap your hands If you think Vancouver sucks and they'll never win the Cup If you think Vancouver sucks, clap your hands
I really shouldn't mock the Canucks for this hilarious piece of epic fail. They are a lock to make the playoffs after all, and my Mild Wild will be lucky if they manage to sneak in as the eighth seed (although beating the Oil certainly helps). But there is nothing quite as satisfying as watching a hated rival do something so ridiculously dumb. Especially when your own team has been doing so many ridiculously dumb things as of late.
Scott over at I'm Not a Headline Guy wrote a lovely entry explaining his devotion to the New York Yankees. And it got me to thinking about my beloved Twinkies, and, well, why they're my beloved Twinkies. Of course, a lot of it has to do with the 1987 World Series, which I am just barely old enough to remember. Nobody expected the '87 Twins to win it all, and with good reason I might add. They finished with a mediocre 85-77 record, which was good enough to win the weak AL West division, but was the worst winning percentage of any playoff-bound team in history (a record that would stand until the 83-78 Cardinals won it all in 2006). The 98-64 Detroit Tigers were heavily favored to win the AL pennant, with most analysts predicting a sweep of the supposedly hapless Twins. Instead it was the Twins who nearly pulled off a sweep of their own, beating the Tigers four games to one to clinch the ALCS and advance to the World Series for the first time since 1965. Once again, the Twinkies were up against a heavily-favored opponent in the St. Louis Cardinals, who were about to make their third World Series appearance in six years. And once again the Twins would pull off a stunning upset, beating the Cards in seven games and clinching their first World Series title since moving to Minnesota in 1961 (and second in team history). Frank Viola, Kirby Puckett, Dan Gladden, Gary Gaetti, all those guys on that team would become great heroes in Minnesota sports history.
And then there was the '91 World Series, the greatest World Series of all-time. This Series had everything: dramatic walk-off home runs, fantastic pitching performances from youngsters Tom Glavine and John Smoltz and veteran Jack Morris, wrestling (Braves fans still haven't quite gotten over that one), a new MLB record for extra-innings WS games, and two teams that had finished in last place in their respective divisions the previous season. This time around the Twins weren't exactly considered underdogs, having finished the regular season with a 95-67 record. They steamrolled over the Blue Jays in the ALCS, winning four games to one on the way to their second World Series title in four years.
The Braves would prove to be a much more challenging opponent, however, and the Twins would have to grind out five one-run games and three extra-innings games before clinching the title. The most dramatic game of the series, however, had to be game six. The Twins were facing elimination, having dropped three straight games to Atlanta, including a 14-5 blowout in game five. The Twins took a 3-2 lead into the seventh inning, when Atlanta 2B Mark Lemke scored on a fielder's choice with the bases loaded to tie the game. The score remained even until the bottom of the eleventh, when Kirby Puckett untied the game with a solo shot off of Charlie Leibrandt to left-center field. That shot, and Jack Buck's now-famous call, has to be the single greatest moment of my entire childhood. The Twins would go on to win game seven in ten innings, with a walk-off bloop single by Gene Larkin. Jack Morris pitched a ten-inning masterpiece (yes, you read that right, ten innings) in that game, which to this day is one of the best pitching performances I've ever seen. Good times.
There's been a lot of other good stuff since then, too. The 2002 team was amazingly talented, and looked like they were going to bring us another championship. Alas, it was not to be. The Angels made sure of that. The 2006 team made an incredible late-season run to win the division. Unfortunately that was as far as the Twinkies would go, as they would then get swept by Oakland in the ALDS. They really got under Ozzie Guillen's skin that year, too. That's always fun.
And of course, there's this guy:
Come on, admit it. You know you love him. Even if you aren't a Twins fan.
I love the Wild, too, even though I complain about them a lot
Hockey in Minnesota is like hockey in Canada. Or football in Texas. It's just what you do. It's what we're good at. If your hockey team has any Americans on it, chances are pretty good that they're from Minnesota. Or that they once played for the Golden Gophers. I started off as a North Stars fan when I was a little kid. They weren't very good for the most part, though they did make a run for the Cup in 1991. But then a very bad man decided to move the team to Dallas after the 1992 season. I was heartbroken. I cried like a little girl (of course, I was a little girl, but that's beside the point). And I was also torn. I wanted to cheer for my Stars, even though they weren't really my Stars anymore, because they took Mike Modano with them. And I loved him. But, like any other bitter divorce, the animosity I felt for my ex-team was too great and I just couldn't get over it. I couldn't bring myself to cheer for any other NHL team either. It just didn't seem right. I was a die-hard hockey fan without a team.
So I decided to fill the hockey void in my life with my hometown Gophers. I mean, they've done some good things:
It just wasn't the same as having a professional hockey team, though. So when the NHL granted Minnesota an expansion franchise to open for the 2000-2001 season, I was absolutely thrilled. Though I wasn't crazy about the team name (what the heck's a wild?), or the logo (or the home unis, blech), I was excited to have an NHL franchise back in Minnesota. And though the team itself hasn't exactly lived up to expectations, it's been better than most of the old North Stars teams. And we have new heroes now:
I root for the Vikings, and to a lesser extent, the Wolves, too
Why? Because somebody has to, that's why. Oh there was a time when the Vikings were good. The Vikings of the late '60s and early '70s were some of the best football teams to never win a championship, but that was before my time. I remember the 1998 Vikes, though I've spent the past ten years trying to forget the NFC Championship game. And the current team is actually pretty good, it's just missing a few key pieces. Like a starting QB. And special teams that can, um, not give up so many touchdowns (I mean really, when your punter is trying to make a tackle you know you're in trouble). And some decent play-calling (which, by the way, helps out the starting QB a lot).
I'm not a huge basketball fan, but I do have a soft spot for the Timberwolves. I kind of feel sorry for them because they suck so bad. It's not their fault, they've been mismanaged for years. And before Al Jefferson went down they had a pretty good shot at being a mediocre team this year. At least they aren't the worst team in the league, so there's that.
