Game Time: 7:05 CDT EST and 6:05 CDT
Probable Pitchers:
Twins - Francisco Liriano (xFIP: 4.45 ; tRA+: 136 )
Tribe - Zach Jackson (xFIP: 4.44 ; tRA+: 147 )
Go Twins!
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Game 151 – Twins at TribeGame Time: 7:05 Probable Pitchers: Twins - Francisco Liriano (xFIP: 4.45 ; tRA+: 136 ) Tribe - Zach Jackson (xFIP: 4.44 ; tRA+: 147 ) Go Twins! This entry was posted by eschapp
on Tuesday, September 16th, 2008 at 6:01 pm and is filed under 2008 Twins Game Logs, Guest Writers, Yickit. It is one of 34 entries by the author.
We are no longer accepting Letters to the Editor on this post.
239 comments to Game 151 – Twins at Tribe |
Cup of CoffeeWolves lose again by 22, Kevin Love down to 17 minutes. This is the worst possible situation for the Wolves. They are driving what is left of their fan base with a tremendous stretch of terrible basketball. Their best, or second-best, player has checked out and is getting buried on the bench. I doubt that Love is in their long term plans. How's that O.J. Mayo deal looking now? Citizens Online17 Users Online WGOM Sign InLog InRetired WGOM Jokes
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Race to the Bottom: Highest Loss Totals in T-Wolves History67: 1991-92 Recent Letters to the EditorIn Response to Cup of Coffee: March 18, 2010, brianS wrote: Yea, Marquette did me no favors. davidwatts wrote: I was very disappointed that the Mankato CBS station went to the Marquette game instead of sticking to the UNI game and my bracket is done blown up! meat wrote: Cc to Andrew: I'm suddenly going to be in Dublin for a short weekend this summer (late June), any suggestions would be good as to where to stay / eat drink / be Irish. spookymilk wrote: Boy oh boy, would most of those references be lost on my...let's call them … twayn wrote: Danke! Bummer that there's no radio for Friday's game with the Mets. Slowey vs. Johan. Klawitter wrote: Working in Century City. Living for the moment in Westwood, at least until I sell my place in DC this spring and move everything. New Britain Bo wrote: How's this for script idea: At a planning session for an … a committee of twelve Indians (4 dot, 4 feather, 4 West) hires a crack director to run their event. He shows up at… DK wrote: I missed this earlier today since I was apparently too busy … in the Nightmare thread, but I'd be down with this too. In fact, I'd probably be willing to contribute to coverage. Milt on Tilt wrote: I'm picking up my puppy tomorrow. I couldn't be more excited. spookymilk wrote: Oh, and Rhu: one of my challenges in this week's Survivor game was to do a six-word evaluation of Lew Zealand. These were the … flinger never flounders for puns. Better than Belladonna with fish… In Response to Nightmares at WGOMville, hungry joe wrote: i wasn't planning on going out, but two heavies from my company were in town, and they took me out for a crazy night (got home at 2, and i've been hating life most of… spookymilk wrote: I instantly love the person who took that photo, hungry man. I'm sitting here drinking Bass; yesterday I went the nostalgia route with my St. Pat's choice, opting for a drink that reminded me of college… Milt on Tilt wrote: hehe. Beer. spookymilk wrote: To be fair, drama is kind of the world I live in. I'm prone to exaggeration. Plus, I'm drunk because this script is making me tense and I needed to take the edge… Milt on Tilt wrote: Yeah, man. I wouldn't "disregard" it either, because it was truly a horrifying move. Oh come now. That's just being completely over dramatic. Milt on Tilt wrote: O-Cab lead the majors in Outs as a batter in 2009. Call me … Jimmy Rollins actually did. But Cabrera was second, and first in the AL. Even so. I could use that same… nibbish wrote: I don't know what to make of it. On one hand, Cabrera was made of suck. On the other, any shortstop we put in there was going to. I'd have to side with DK and… spookymilk wrote: Yeah, man. I wouldn't "disregard" it either, because it was truly a horrifying move. 0-Cab cleared the bases for the team's best hitter over and over. I know it's nice to remember… DK wrote: O-Cab was a baseball band-aid over a severed limb. Acting like doing that was a "victory" is what seems foolish to me. In Response to Luna - 23 Minutes In Brussels (Tell Me Do You Miss Me), E-6 wrote: Love me some Luna. In Response to Cup of Coffee: March 17, 2010, brianS wrote: I dunno. But we're not really talking about a legal argument so much as an ethical one, I think. Moss wrote: The old "you can't have your coke and snort it too" … can't get a conviction on a … test...and is possession of any amount of coke a felony?? hungry joe wrote: tell me about it... brianS wrote: It is hard to consume if you do not possess. Popular Recent Posts
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Dazzle goes out on a limb on the pregame show, calling Liriano, "one of the Twins' better young pitchers."
Come on, Mountie. Get your man.
on the board!
A run? Is it the ninth inning already?
Good inning for Liriano.
Nicky P: doing the little things...poorly.
Gomez doing his best Nicky P impression.
WTF? Can't anyone here play this game??
Two in a row!
I finally found a negative for Gameday Mini: The funniest mugshots are a little harder to see, and therefore, slightly harder to chuckle at.
Don't really know why the Twins bothered to come up to bat that inning.
I'm taking exception to Yicket's preview game time.
Sorry. Forgot I live in DC not MN.
F.
Raspberries.
3 run homers are not good
Heavens to Murgatroyd.
Second place isn't so bad. The playoffs are overrated anyway.
Yeah, only those show-off teams go to the playoffs. We'd rather finish second. It fits our humility much better.
oh cr@p. This is not good.
Well, boys, you've got some wood to chop tonight.
I'm thinking the Twins pitchers this late in the season have been more heavily scouted, and we're seeing the consequences with these long balls. It looks like Liriano is overthrowing his fastball (94 mph vice 90-91 earlier), thus losing some movement. We're toast boys.
I think it's the lack of a veteran presence.
Not just toast.
Unfortunately, they've been hitting dingers, not just shingles, twayn.
The last 17 runs allowed by the Twins have come on 10 home runs over the last four games. The Twins have been out-homered 10-2 in that stretch.
As someone sometimes says, this is a big inning for Liriano. He needs to regroup and put some zeroes up if the Twins are going to have a chance to come back.
Leapin' lizards.
The Punto haters have been unleashed
Goodness gracious.
Dazzle talking about a tight strike zone hurting Liriano. He's probably right, but somehow, the Twins only have one run and the Indians have five. Something is going on besides the strike zone here.
melt
down
Well, there's just not a whole lot to say.
We're going to need some of these.
And the Sox well on their way to making this a 2 1/2 game deficit. Good night
Where's the bottom?
I don't think there is a bottom to a black hole, Jeff A.

It would be nice to see the Twins show a little fight here. I'm not saying score seven runs this inning, but even a couple, just to show they haven't given up, would be nice.
That wasn't what I had in mind.
I could go for some Mexican food right now
like a burrito or something
it will help sooth these road trip wounds
Oh man, dw, now *I* want a burrito.
Not a bad inning for Boof, for whatever that's worth.
this game is such a lost cause that Daz and Gordo are talking about two low minor leaguers who have been injured for a couple of years
Well, you have to start somewhere.
And so the comeback begins. Baby steps.
I'm going to say something that is very not me, and is possibly very StatFreakian, which is:
These are going to be some gut-check, season-defining ABs for Mauer and Morneau.
Well, on a Pitchfork scale, I would rate that about a 6.4.
Just when I surrender the living room TV to my daughter, the Twins start something. Figures.
The Twins are trying to climb out of the casket. Morneau's up to bat. Do I dare hope?
Juan Rincon is warming in the Tribe pen
Hope springs eternal.
Well, they're back in it. If they can hold Cleveland where they are, they at least have a chance.
Yankees blew a chance in the bottom of the 5th with bases loaded. Giambi's a chump.
Chump. Doofus. Boob. They all work.
Dazzle, I really don't think they're making bad pitches on purpose. Sometimes you just don't make as good a pitch as you want to make.
defensive double plays are helpful
Well, this is getting interesting.
Mountie up.
This is 2 weeks in a row I've forgotten my game log. I'm real sorry guys. Thanks to Yickit for having my back.
The authorities have been notified.
No prob. Before I edited it Zach Johnson was pitching for the Indians. Damn Drake grads always clouding my memory.
Ah, frack...
However this comes out, at least the Twins didn't just roll over when they got down. I know moral victories don't count in the standings, but at least it makes me feel better.
I think Morneau is something like 0 for his last 15 or something, right?
he was 0-11 after last night's game
Holy Cow! That was the best DP I've seen all year!
wow, I need to pay better attention to this game. i thought we were down by 3, here we are down by 1
This is a big inning for davidwatts.
+1 StatFreakian statement
Gordo, how did Delmon "hit it well" if it was a fly ball to short center field?
it wasn't a weak dribbler to the third baseman
thus, it was hit well, for Delmon's standards
catchers interference?
This is a critical at bat for
DelmonBuscherPunto.Wow what a break.
Addition: Come on Twins make em pay here!DamnTwo walks and a catcher's interference. Now, we just need a wild pitch to tie the game.
Bases loaded without a hit or an error. Twins baseball is back!
This is where a player of the week would drive in runs.
CRAP
The baseball gods giveth and the baseball gods taketh away.
good pull sir.
Neighbor pulled up the game on his iPhone at the band boosters meeting (8-1) and I thought, what the hey, I'll throw the game on when I get home. Nice comeback, guys!
huh. Matty "My Pitching Arm's Hanging Down to My Feet" Guerrier coming in.
well, at least Guerrier did not give up a run
Yet.
Atta boy, Egghead!
College boy to the rescue.
Shin-Soo Pain-in-the-Butt
Come on, Breslow
And the bullpen picks up D-SPAN. It's usually the other way around, but this works, too.
oh boy, its Rafel 'slowest pitcher in baseball' Bentencourt
Holy Cow!
M&M boys, this is your time. You've got to do it now.
I hate to be the guy to say this, but this is a critical at bat for Mauer....
Be nice if our batters played like this was the worst AL bullpen facing us tonight.
rally time, you crazy Canuck
Span was running 3-0? It didn't matter, as it turned out, but I really don't see what sense that makes.
Man, I would hate to play behind this Bentencourt clown. Same Day Service!
MLB needs to bring back amphetamines.
New York State needs to being back amphetamines.
Jesus
Saveswalks on water.one of my favorite Violent Femmes songs
JUSTIN!
MVP! MVP!
Good batting, eh?
That's what I'm talking about.
Woot!
MOUNTIE!
Bite me, Josh Hamilton!
Gordo: Span to score! Mauer right behind him. Mauer held at 3rd
Me: Wha?!!
I guess Ullger held Mauer up
It was the right call and not just because Mauer later scored... Sizemore played it well -- I don't think you take a chance on his arm with only one out and Betancourt looking terrible.
Delmon, we need some placement.
And Carl Willis visits the mound with a little of the slippery elm for Rafael.
He should've brought "greenies."
Baton-Court tosses a ball to lead off each batter; will _elmon take the first pitch?!?
hellllllllllllllll no.
Easy, champ. Blood from a stone and whatnot.
He got the run home.
I'm upset with myself. That was a prime New Guy prediction in the making there, and I dropped the ball.
That'll work.
Delmon delivers. Sweet comeback.
I'm back. That's the fairweather fan in me
I've got the Band-Wagon E-Z Pass.
Anybody want to sign my petition for a two inning save by Nathan?
- Andrew
I'll sign early or often
-dw
--Jeff A
DK
Sure, as long as Guerrier can be left in to allow the first 2 hitters to reach. - brink
-Rhubarb Runner
-Danny Thompson
-Zoilo Versalles
-Calvin Griffith
-Earl Battey
-Lyman Bostock
-Kirby Puckett
Did you move to Chicago?
walk walk walk walk
weeeee
I have to admit, I didn't like at all Gardenhire going to get Liriano in the 3rd to have Boof pitch to Cabrera. I thought Cisco was on the wrong end of some bad fielding and despite giving up some dingers I thought riding him for another couple innings was a better prospect than wearing out a pen, or at least bringing in an inferior pitcher.
Can't argue results though, Boof did a great job. It was the right move tonight.
The Twins have left the bases loaded in 2 consecutive innings -- will this be 3?
2 runs on 1 hit
awesome
Wow, who didn't see that coming?
Eddie for the 8th? Man oh man oh man....
Oh, Eddie
Please be steady
This has been fun. I like fun.
I'm with you, pally!
I only have two words. Joe. Nathan.
GACK!
FUUUUUUUUUUUUUDGE
I could use a belt.
I wasn't planning on drinking tonight, but I just may end up doing so.
That was the last pitch Eddie should've been throwing to Sizemore... breaking pitch high.
I know Gardenhire's hand has been forced here with the absence of Crain, but Eddie has been a huge sack of terrible for the Twins ever since he rejoined the team. This is hardly a surprise -- the shocker would've been 1-2-3.
Good God Almighty, it is so f***ing simple. Joe Nathan. Two innings. Ballgame. Think outside the f***ing box, Gardy!
Hate to break it to you, but Joe Nathan has been anything but automatic with 1 inning saves lately, let alone 2... I wouldn't call a W fait accompli by any stretch of the imagination just by throwing Joe out there.
Don't get me wrong, Guardado has been terrible thus far with the Twins and I would've preferred Mijares or Reyes out there. But I'm sure Gardy was/is afraid of a rookie meltdown and went with the guy who's been there a few hundred times before.
All that to say, I was disappointed in Gardy's move but I'm not judging him nearly as harshly as you. I think Guardado should've been option #3 to Nathan or Mijares/Reyes, but I don't think we're talking an enormous difference.
Well, I'm not here to argue, and if we hadn't seen this scenario play out so many times this year I'd have been less vehement. I just don't think you can sit on your best reliever and go with your third or fourth best option when you only need six outs without a run to record a win.
It's so wonderful that this manager continues to sit on Joe Nathan and refuse to pitch him in ANY inning except the 9th.
I swear a dog could manage this team better than Ron Gardenhire.
A golden retriever maybe. Or a greyhound. But I think a beagle would be pushing it.
I've got two yellow labs sitting beneath my feet right now.
I think they understand baseball better than Ron.
Those are some powerful pills you're popping. Where can I get some?
I don't know, I think it might be interesting to see a baseball manager lick his own genitals now and then.
I'm pretty sure Tommy Lasorda tried to.
That would have to be a pretty smart dog, mister.
What I meant was : I've had fun. I would like to have some more fun.
I predict a bunt.
I'm sorry; I missed the start. Did this game really start at six? I'm exhausted.
How must this team feel right now?
They work their asses off to take the lead only to watch the Indians get it right back.
And you know...for how often this team bunts, they're pretty damn shitty at it.
That was the Twins' sixth consecutive blown save. The Twins do have a save in that stretch but it was the three-inning save in a blowout by Breslow.
Well, at least we got to Mauer this inning. C'mon, Joe, time to pick up your manager here.
Gomez makes me want to rip my eyes out with a fork.
But he's sooo toolsy and exciting!
He does have 3 RBI tonight and hit a screaming liner with "2 more" written all over it... so he's been part of the solution, not the problem tonight...
OK, now here's where I'm prepared to really be pissed at Gardy -- Nathan should absolutely be pitching this inning. But I bet we don't get him here.
I can haz Nathan?
Honestly, I want this season to end ASAP.
I cannot take anymore of this shit.
Relax, man. Winter is long, dark and cold. There are only 11 games left. Enjoy what you can while you can.
meat, I hope we don't end up lookin' like Stooges.
E-6 en fuego tonight.
I still got some Pop in my bat.
I should add-
+ 2 clap claps
Reyes here... this has "repeat of the Mariners nightmare" written all over it... just like that 2nd game in the first M's series, the Twins had dropped the first and were down late but had a big 8th inning comeback to take the lead in that high-scoring game... and of course the Twins ended up losing that one on a blown save.
if Reyes is ok to come into the 9th, why didn't he just come in in the 8th?
Because like Gardy wanting these guys to get AB's, he has to get his pitchers innings too.
It's going to be awesome when the Twins lose without their best arm in the bullpen even sniffing the mound.
sheesh, dude, stop writing loss on this game. enough, already.
Sniffing the mound? That could get a guy arrested in Cleveland.
Wow, for a catcher, Shoppach really gets down the line well.
Also, for a "backup" catcher, he sure knocks the snot out of the ball...
I'd be very inclined to not even mess with Garko here and just deal with Carroll.
Mmmmm, crow. Reyes had some great stuff in that inning. He had Martinez and Garko swinging at unhittable pitches.
I'll eat my tasty crow as well, but that doesn't mean I have to like it, or that I'm happy with Gardy.
I'll have a wing and a prayer, please. Extra crispy. But the fat lady has not yet sung.
I just googled a phrase while looking for a particular image to post, and the fourth result was... a comment by me in game log #131 from this season.
Google scares me sometimes.
This gem?
Yes indeedy.
Nice f****** AB there MVP.
Nice flash of the leather there Nick.
Jeez, I think Gardy inverted the proper order of those left handed relievers.
Until further notice, I'd sure like to see more Mijares in critical spots. He's got great stuff. How could it possibly hurt with the way the pen is falling apart?
Laddie with the bat nailed to his shoulder there. Gotta swing the lumbah' laddie.
A baserunner. Baserunners are good.
Just got in. Heard on the radio that the game was tied after leaving a bar which said the game was tied!!!! Is anyone else hearing a terrible echo on mlb.com audio?
Never mind-- I was a little over excited and opened up two gameday audios.
Stereo!
Now that sounds more like an evening out in B-town.
I actually spent the night in Lockport. How about that?
Chalk Mastny up as another shitty reliever that this team refused to hit.
bedtime for Bonzo. looking forward to good things in the boxscore tomorrow morning. fight the good fight, guys
oh, btw, nice friendly new face here now...
Pound sand Hamilton.
Cle. Announcers: There are still a few people here.
me. That's just awesome.
and now they're telling us that the Twins need to win this game. It must blow to be an Indians fan this season.
If you listen to StatFreak, it really blows to be a Twins fan this season too.
They could be Viking fans. Heh heh.
Gardy finally decides to go all-in. Which kinda makes sense, given who's scheduled to bat in the top of the 12th.
Sometimes this Twins team seems to manufacture runs with ease....other times, they can't buy runs. Maddenly inconsistent. God, I'm tired and want to go to bed. Let's end this one way or another this inning.
The "inconsistency" tag is true of any team... I'll take this team's "inconsistent" run production over the previous six iterations of the team... I'm sure the standard deviation of their runs scored is greater than the previous teams', but that's mainly because they're scoring more runs more often. They're putting up a lot more 7-12 run games than those previous teams did.
Brink, is there any of that crow left? I may have to eat a little more, I guess.
What the aitch?!
I turned the game off about 4 1/2 hours ago when we were down 8-1 in the 4th...
piss
Good night, citizens.
Well, the good news is, the Twins face Cliff Lee tomorrow...
I shoulda never turned my computer on.
Arggggggggggggggg: Cle. Announcers :Twins have always found a way.
Joe Nathan: Ill just go ahead and serve this one up and prove them wrong.
I confess I'm really starting to worry about Nathan. All season long I was happily eating crow over being wrong about overpaying for his services... that was when he was freaking unstoppable.
But he's been looking really bad for weeks now. Is he hurt? Just getting old/tired? I don't know, but if there's one single "Who'd a thunk it?" element to the Twins' slide, it's Nathan's implosion.
No one is perfect... but if he converts just 3 of those 4 blown saves he's coughed up in the last 3 weeks, the Twins own first place -- everything else remaining the same, of couse. I'd say we'd be feeling a lot different about the team...
There ya go...Start thinking about '09.
No way... ain't over til the ChiSox series... I wouldn't bet on it any other way. But it looks really bad for Minny right now.
well, that is the crappiest crap that has ever crapped.
I think it's about time the Twins throw in the towel.
It's been in the hamper for a couple of weeks.
Not yet. We still have plenty of baseball yet.
Are you kidding me!?
A lot can happen in 11 games, including three against the team you're behind.
Excuse me for having little confidence in this baseball team right now.
I don't know what instills confidence in them for some of you guys, but man, I wish I had it.
It isn't confidence in the Twins, it's confidence in the unpredictability of baseball. I'm confident that there are very few things we can be confident about when it comes to the outcomes of 11 baseball games.
This lack of confidence allows a team like the 2006 Cardinals, at 82-79 -- including just staving off an epic collapse with a 3-9 finish that kept them exactly 1 loss ahead of Houston -- to stumble into the playoffs... and, well, I'm sure you get my point with that alone...
In short, the Twins' chances aren't good... but they aren't nothing. Shoot, they might have at best a 1-in-5 chance at pulling this out... mainly because of those 3 games at home vs. the ChiSox. But a 20 percent chance is not insignificant. I just wouldn't bet much of value on it...
Welp, I'm out. Last one here get the light.
*which one is StatFreak?
You know, stepping back from my Twins fandom, it's actually comical how the Twins are letting the end of this season slip away. I mean, the irony is just too much... losing games 12-9, 7-5, 8-7... Joe Nathan with 4 blown saves and 2 losses in the last three weeks... a full-on bullpen implosion beyond Nathan... and a total defensive meltdown.
And yet the offense just keeps humming right along...
The results really aren't all the surprising -- around the ASB wouldn't most of us predicted the team struggling these last few months with such a road-heavy schedule? But what we failed to predict was how the team would go down... I sure thought it was going to be a matter of the offense coming back to earth, especially RISP. Neither has... they're scoring even more runs after the break and they RISP avg has barely budged.
Obviously the pitching and defense is what totally went south. We haven't seen a Twins team lose like this since the mid 1990s... strange stuff.
I don't know if I'd call this a "collapse" -- I think you have to own a pretty good lead for that to be accurate and they've been no more than 1 game up since the ASB -- but it sure stinks. I'd reserve "collapse" for the likes of the Mets, Brewers, and D-Backs...
I don't even know if I'd call what the D-Backs did "collapsing", they never seemed to be..."vertical" or whatever to "collapse", if you follow. I agree on your other points though.
I dont even think its starting pitching thats the problem. its the entire bullpen that so smelly that you can see the stink waves permeate out of Metrodome 100 miles away
Good point... Cisco's meltdown notwithstanding, he'd been the best pitcher in the AL since his return. Slowey and Baker have been more than solid -- they've been great. Blackburn and Perkins have been exactly what you'd expect from 4 and 5 starters -- maddeningly inconsistent -- but I'm telling you, most teams would gladly take what Blackburn and Perkins have given the Twins in the 2nd half in place of their 4 and 5 starters... graded on the curve of #4 and #5, they both have done fine jobs for the Twins. In fact, I'd go so far as to give em both a B+ or A- for the jobs they've done in those roles.
Yeah, this season will likely come down to ruing the abject failures of the bullpen and defense.
You must have blotted out the end of 2001 and the LaTroy Hawkins as closer fiasco from your memory. Of course, we know what happened the following three years.
I have no concerns about Nathan. He was as dominant as ever before this recent stretch. His numbers for this season are fine. He has the best ERA and second-best WHIP of his career. His K-rate is right in line with last year, which is still better than 1/IP and only slightly down from his first three years as a Twin, and his BB rate is about the same as it has been with the Twins. Same with the HR rate. There's really nothing to indicate further problems. Also, most of the recent blown saves have been tainted by defense or bad luck or the situation. One of them, the run that scored was an inherited base runner who was at second when he came in. Another BS came when the tying run scored on a two-out error in RF by Pridie. Another BS was set up by a Punto error which forced the Twins to go for the double play (allowing the run to score) instead of playing the infield in. And then there was his own error on a bunt play at third that should have been the first out but allowed the tying and winning runs to score.
Is there any wonder the whole bullpen is wondering what will happen next when the have a narrow lead to protect?
Good thing Gardy brought in Nathan. That will be a tough one to come back from. The Twins are by no means "out of it" but I'll be surprised if they can bounce back from a loss like that. That could have been a season-changing victory. Now I wish they had just stayed behind the whole game. You can forget about those losses a lot quicker. And I really don't see how Gardy has any real options in the bullpen now that he can count on. They've all blown it lately. I guess he could go to the rookies since they haven't been allowed a chance to hold a late lead, but I find if funny that the same people that can't understand how a rookie pitcher can shut down the Twins' offense are the same ones begging Gardy to go to a rookie in the eighth inning of a one-run game.
Well, I'd say it's high time for a lot more Mijares and a whole lot less Guardado, for starters. SSS and all, the two could not look more different stuff-wise and of course Guardado's results have been horrible for Minny so far.
As to your point about the team, I honestly don't see them giving up -- they seem to be fighting really hard to me. The only "edge" I see lost for this team might be the relief pitching and defense -- I sense some degree of "oh no I'd better not screw up" rather than "ok time to make this pitch/play" going on. I dunno. It's hard to say and I'm no mind-reader. Pitching is especially difficult to parse because the difference between a reliable reliever throwing strikes and throwing balls (or even worse, gopher balls) can easily be fatigue, slight injury, or just him trimming his fingernails too close...
But I also believe the mental aspect of the game is underrated because of the rise of statistical analysis -- just because it's difficult to discern or measure doesn't mean it's not there.
Oh well, The Baseball Gawdz giveth and they also taketh away. This year, they blessed the Valleys of Minnesota with bountiful runs and an offense flowing with RISP. But verily I say unto you, they also cursed the gloves of the infield, causing them to wither like the wombs of old women while striking down the arms of the bullpen with great vengeance and furious anger.
Nice Job, brink.
I woke up this morning, checked the score, and was ready to totally rip Gardy for not using Joe Nathan. Then I found out that he had.
There are only two things that keep me from totally giving up on the Twins: 1) They still have three games to play with Chicago; 2) Baseball is a funny game. The Twins could suddenly turn things around, even though they're showing no signs of doing so.
It seems like a long shot, though.