Boof Bonser vs. Chris Capuano
Chris Capuano is a very good left-handed pitcher. His xFIP of 3.88 would make him the second-best pitcher in the Twins' rotation, behind just Santana. At a 48% GB%, he's not an extreme groundballer, but he's above average in that area. Which of course means that the Twins [...]
Strib:
It's up to Randy Foye to change two decades of bad NBA lottery luck.
Foye, who just finished his rookie season with the Timberwolves, will represent the team at the NBA draft lottery Tuesday night in Secaucus, N.J.
"Since I live so close I decided to go there and represent the team," said Foye, who went to [...]
In case you haven't seen it yet, Seth's got a fun Q&A with future Twins star Kevin Slowey posted at his site today. Go check it out!
After an extremely busy week, me and my better half are heading up to Milwaukee for the series finale with the Brewers. We have tickets in the upper deck, so no doubt we are entered into the Brewer's fancy new database. It will be my first trip to Miller Park, although I'm beginning [...]
I believe the third pro sports event I attended was Twins at Milwaukee in County Stadium. (The first two were Metrodome Twins games.) That was a pretty cool place. We sat in the upper deck, first base side. Roy Smalley hit a homerun. This might be the game. (Cripes, [...]
The answer, of course, is more bunting.
Homemade video of the village of Sarrià de Dalt in Catalonia.
And here's a fine performance of the song for Morning Becomes Eclectic on KCRW....
Something you want to see? Call the request line.
Johan Santana vs. Fausto Carmona
It turns out that Game 40 is a rematch of Game 20. Carmona now leads the league in GB% (just ahead of Bizarro Gil Meche), and is otherwise basically the same as I described last time around. He's decent, but the Twins have got to start winning games against [...]
It's somewhere between late at night and early in the morning and I'm awake. No, it's not the baby -- she's sleeping soundly like she does so much. I had a nightmare and I woke up thinking about a bunch of different things. I guess maybe this is part of fatherhood that [...]
It makes you wonder what life is like as a major league pitcher if Jesse Crain was out there throwing with a torn labrum and a torn rotator cuff.
Something you want to see? Call the request line.
Carlos Silva vs. Captain Cheeseburger Sabathia
Is it a bad time to mention that Carlos Silva's xFIP is 4.79, and that he's currently sporting an unsustainable 5.9% HR/F and an unsustainable 82.4% LOB%?
Meanwhile, Sabathia's been pitching like an ace. 10.1 K/G against 1.7 BB/G? Yikes. He's a bit of a flyball pitcher, but [...]
Below, SBG covers Crain's move to the DL. Julio DePaula takes Crain's place on the 25-man roster and in the bullpen.
First things first: DePaula is NOT Jesse Crain. Last year, and through the minors, when Crain stuck with his dominant fastball/slider combo, he got a lot of strikeouts, didn't walk many hitters, and [...]
Good morning and welcome to the ongoing feature "What are You Hearing," where members of SBG Nation set the agenda of discussion by submitting stories and commentary. If you have a story that you'd like to submit, e-mail me at the address listed on the right. Now, let's get to it.
Big Mak writes: [...]
Jesse Crain to go on the DL:
Crain, a key righthanded setup man, is headed to the disabled list because of a recurring sore shoulder. He's headed back to the Twin Cites, where he's expected to undergo an magnetic resonance imaging exam.
Who's coming up to replace him? Why, it's your old friend Julio DePaula.
DePaula will [...]
Somewhere out there, Sidney Ponson was laughing at the Twins on Tuesday night.
Ten Years After. 2 minutes of jamming on "Woke Up This Morning".
it's worth the price of admission just to watch bassist Leo Lyons.
Something you want to see? Call the request line.
Got a video that you want played? Send us an e-mail to sbgmusic at hotmail dot com.
Here's how you do it.
1. Send the embedded code for a You Tube or similar clip.
2. Send any reason that you have to have this clip played.
3. If you are a SBG Nation Citizen, please [...]
4.94 -- Ramon Ortiz xFIP before today's game
4.89 -- Ramon Ortiz ERA after today's game
That didn't take long.
Ramon Ortiz vs Paul Byrd
Paul Byrd gave up a metric ton of unearned runs last year. His ERA was 4.88, but his RA was 6.03. Surely some of that was bad defense, but Byrd deserves at least some responsibility for those runs. Byrd's ERA of 2.84 looks great so far, but he's [...]
Minnesota Twins (18-19) @ Cleveland Indians (21-14)
The Twins struggled through another week losing two of three to a couple of AL Central opponents at home. This series marks the beginning of a nine-game road trip for the Twins which will take them to Milwaukee and Texas. The Indians got off to a scorching [...]
Good morning and welcome to the ongoing feature "What are You Hearing," where members of SBG Nation set the agenda of discussion by submitting stories and commentary. If you have a story that you'd like to submit, e-mail me at the address listed on the right. Now, let's get to it.
Jeff A writes: [...]
Man, does the NBA need Steve Nash in the Finals.
One of my favorite songs (and albums) from when I was a kid. Manu Dibango rocks.
Much has been made about the Twins' rotation situation this year, and whether or not they've simply been repeating the mistakes of yesteryear. I'll get to that eventually, but first I want to compare and contrast what Ramon Ortiz and Sidney Ponson have done so far this season.
Three true outcomes:
4.9 K/G, 3.6 BB/G, 1.49 [...]
Good morning and welcome to the ongoing feature "What are You Hearing," where members of SBG Nation set the agenda of discussion by submitting stories and commentary. If you have a story that you'd like to submit, e-mail me at the address listed on the right. Now, let's get to it.
Carter Hayes writes: [...]
Hitting the ball over the fence. What a novel concept that is.
Dave Grohl goofs on Zeppelin, from The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn.
Thanks to bjhess.
More details as they come in, but I just saw on the ESPN ticker that Sidney Ponson has been designated for assignment.
Update:
Ponson designated for assignment, Garrett Jones recalled from AAA
So in the last couple of days, the Twins have gone from Ponson and Rabe to Lew Ford and Garrett Jones. Perkins is almost sure [...]
Virgil "Matt?" Vasquez vs. Boof Bonser
The Baseball Cube page says Vasquez's given name is Virgil, but lists him as "Matt Vasquez." So, apparently, Bonser changed his name from a common name to an uncommon name, and Vasquez did the opposite, opting to go by his middle name. Of course, everywhere else he is [...]
I was looking at some stats this morning, and I noticed this:
#
Dude
LD%
1.
Kubel, Jason
29.6%
2.
Bartlett, Jason
29.5%
3.
Youkilis, Kevin
25.5%
4.
Polanco, Placido
24.3%
5.
Monroe, Craig
24.1%
Jason Kubel is [...]
Broadcast on The Old Grey Whistle Test. London, 1974.
bjhess originally suggested a video of Stevie playing drums, but the embed code is disabled. You can watch it HERE.
Tell your Mom you love her today.
Chad "Real Deal?" Durbin vs. Sir Sidney Ponson
Game time 2:45 central? Smells like the work of a FOX. Good luck to all out-of-towners trying to get around blackout restrictions.
The team's been On The Grill for a day now, so they should start heating up sometime soon, which would be good since they've slipped [...]
Watching the Twins offense makes the ghost of Marvin weep.
From the 1973 film, Save the Children.
Maroth vs. Santana
It seems kind of pointless to say anything about Maroth's pitching when the Twins seem unable to hit any pitcher, regardless of his talent level.
So far this season, it's been Johan being Johan. I hope it stays that way, since he's an absolute joy to watch when he's on.
And not that it'll [...]
The Molten Core.
Twins (17-17) versus Tigers (21-12).
This really all you need to know about the Twins and the past six games of this nine game homestand. From the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:
“Twins manager Ron Gardenhire got a chuckle during spring training out of predictions that his team would finish in fourth place in the AL Central despite [...]
Well you've all been very patient, and, since you've been so well behaved, I'll make good on my promise to you from last time. Here's one of the many hilarious hijinks that ensue when a Twins fan and a Tigers fan share the same office. The baseball season had just started, and I [...]
The Twins faced the AL Champion Detroit Tigers last week, but I was to busy to write them up. This week, the Twins will face Mike "20L" Maroth, former Royal Chad "The Real Deal" Durbin, and Jeremy "Jae" Bonderman.
(Maroth '07, '06, '02; Durbin '07, '05, '02; Bonderman '07, '06, '05, '03)
Jeremy looked so young [...]
We've heard lately that the Twins GM Terry Ryan doesn't care about home runs and that the Twins need to pitch, play defense and get a single here and there.
I read LENIII's account of the game yesterday and I begin to wonder about whether anyone is actually looking at the scoreboard. I don't mean [...]
How long until the pirhana schtick fades into oblivion? Not soon enough for me.
When the Twins last hit Detroit, there was a suggestion that we should have been playing some Motown. So, with the Tigers in town, consider this weekend a sort of make-up date.
Here we have Diana Ross with the Temptations, performing "The Way You Do The Things You Do" and "Respect," from the 1968 NBC special, [...]
.270/.304/.338 -- Jason Tyner, 2007
.273/.309/.317 -- Jason Tyner, Career
.284/.333/.347 -- Average projection amongst PECOTA, Bill James, CHONE, Marcel, and ZiPS projections
.276/.315/.334 -- Tyner's 2007 PrOPS line
I have noticed one thing that changed, though:
27% LD% -- Tyner 2006
14% LD% -- Tyner 2007
Thankfully, he plays good defense and costs just $100K above the minimum.
Okay, I lied, I [...]
Jose Contreras vs. Carlos Silva
Contreras has had control problems so far this year, but has gotten a lot of groundballs (50% GB%). So basically, he'll walk a few guys, but it won't matter, because the Twins will erase those guys with double plays.
According to the mlb.com probables report:
Silva's hard work this offseason to find [...]
Good morning and welcome to the ongoing feature "What are You Hearing," where members of SBG Nation set the agenda of discussion by submitting stories and commentary. If you have a story that you'd like to submit, e-mail me at the address listed on the right. Now, let's get to it.
brianS writes: [...]
I'm still giddy about Roger!
As much as I like her more recent stuff with Jack White, it's nice to hear some of the old, classic Loretta on occasion. Some nice steel guitar on this one (allegedly Don Helms, although we don't see him).
and in case any of the gals out there were getting any ideas about Doo'
John Danks vs. Ramon Ortiz
An imperfect, but perhaps instructional comparison:
7.4 K/G, 2.5 BB/G, 1.85 HR/G, 37.0 GB% - John Danks, 2007
6.3 K/G, 1.6 BB/G, 1.74 HR/G, 33.8 GB% - Scott Baker, 2006
Danks has some stuff going for him so far, but he's been an awfully extreme fly ball pitcher so far this year. His [...]
Good morning and welcome to the ongoing feature "What are You Hearing," where members of SBG Nation set the agenda of discussion by submitting stories and commentary. If you have a story that you'd like to submit, e-mail me at the address listed on the right. Now, let's get to it.
ubelmann writes: Sometimes [...]
Call me crazy, but I derive more enjoyment from seeing a three run home run to win a game than a couple of bunts.
Execution is hitting a hanging curveball over the fence. Or something like that. I couldn't be happier for MVP's heroics this evening.
Still, I'm stuck on the strategery, as usual. After Castillo doubled to start off the 10th, Gardy asked Kubel to bunt. I would argue against that decision three different ways, [...]
Javier Vazquez vs Boof!
The knock on Vazquez recently has been that he struggles the third time through the order. I think that's about as big of a problem as Radke's first inning struggles. Vazquez is a good pitcher, but his peripherals are a little worse so far this year than they were last [...]
...hypothetically, by Mariners blogger Dave Cameron.
[Lots of content today: go read Big Mak's Series Preview in Blog and AMR's Mugshot Purgatory.]
Cameron proposes: Seattle trades OF Wladimir Balentien to Minnesota for RHP Scott Baker and reasons:
This is going to be a little bit quicker than some of the others, it has been a real busy week here, but as always, thanks for reading.
Minnesota Twins (16-15) v. Chicago White Sox (14-14)
The Twins in the last week have struggled, losing two consecutive series, first in Tampa, then at home to the Red [...]
Since the first time I've done the ChiSox MP, they've had some roster moves and I've figured out where to find minor leaguer's mugshots.
First off, the three starters will be Javier Vasquez, John Danks, and Jose Contreras
(Vazquez '07, '06, '01; Danks '07, '06, '05; Contreras '07, '06, '05)
Exact same starters the Twins were supposed to [...]
The bad thing about having the Twins on KSTP is that occasionally I'm inadvertently subjected to their other programming.
Chick Corea Akoustic Band performing in Germany, 1991.
Thanks to bjhess.
Curt Schilling, as he usually does after a start these days, detailed his start yesterday in rather gory detail. There were a couple things I noticed that I thought were interesting.
-- Curt can't spell Torii Hunter's first name.
-- In recapping the game, he got confused and referred to Luis Rodriguez as the Twins' #9 [...]
I was watching baseball the other day, and someone mentioned something called a "home run." I had to remind myself:
In baseball, a home run is a base hit in which the batter is able to circle all the bases, ending at home plate and scoring a run himself (along with a run scored by [...]
I'm eagerly waiting for the Twins to sign an aging, but still effective slugger to plug the hole in this lineup for about $28 million, prorated.
Atlanta Pop Festival, 4th of July, 1970.
Curt "38 Pitches" Schilling vs. "Sir" Sidney Ponson
From Schilling's blog:
The Twins lineup sans Mauer is very different. I know that’s not incredible insight, but it’s hard to explain just how much different they are with him hitting 3rd.
Any game Joe Mauer plays in can’t be labeled a “B” game on any planet.
...
I can tell [...]
Time for a guitar god. I'm pretty sure I once saw Segovia in concert in the mid-1970s in Minneapolis when I was a kid. (Ok, maybe it was Julian Bream; I was like 10. My parents' idea of "culture". Either way, a truly great experience.) We got all dressed up for the 2-hour drive [...]
I like our chances tonight.
Julian Tavarez, 1-2, 7.58, 1.58 WHIP v. Johan Santana, 3-2, 3.60, 1.08.
Then again, we kind of need to start winning a few games and this is one we kind of need to win.
[Update: The Nation gets two intros this evening, thanks to some miscommunication. - ubelmann]
Julian Tavarez vs. Johan Santana
...in the [...]
BabySBG isn't very old, but she's made a change. That's right, she's got a new favorite website.
Well, the girl thought her dad's site was the best for at least six or seven days. It was fun while it lasted. (And thanks to Seth for the little outfit!)
Let's see, how does this work again? I'm a little rusty. --SBG
WARNING: The lyrics may not be appropriate for all workplaces and audiences.
As Roseanne Cash once said, she's "here to put the c*** back in country." Nothing's too good for our boys in the service.
Tim Wakefield vs. Carlos "Identity Crisis" Silva
It sounds like back problems for Cuddyer. That pretty much sucks since the Twins have absolutely no adequate or even halfway decent replacements for Cuddyer.
Twins offense thus far:
.284/.339/.426 - None on
.277/.342/.376 - Runners on
.258/.321/.346 - RISP
.258/.305/.333 - RISP/2 outs
.281/.340/.402 - Overall
The offense overall hasn't been all that bad, [...]
[SBG: I was hungry, so I moved this up. Also, I realized that when I was thanking everyone the other day, I neglected to thank Banjo. That was not a malicious omission. Thanks, Banjo. I'm gonna have to fire up the grill. Or maybe by forgetting earlier I'm on the [...]
Nellie Ball gettin' me down
Minnesota Twins (15-13) v. Boston Red Sox (18-9)
The Twins return home after a .500 road trip in which they won 2 of 3 from Detroit and lost 2 of 3 to Tampa Bay. The Red Sox won 2 of 3 in New York last weekend, then split a two game set with Oakland before [...]