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2009 Game 18: Minnesota Twins at Cleveland Indians

twayn April 25, 2009, at 5:00 pm 126 LTEs - (Sorry, but the time to add LTEs has expired) , , ,

Game Time: 6:05 p.m. CT

Media: TRN, FS-N, MLB.tv

Probable Starters:

Kevin Slowey, RHP (2-0, 5.89)

Slowey has managed to notch two wins with just one good performance on the mound in his first three starts this season. That good performance came in his last start against the Angels, when he gave up just two runs on a Torii Hunter homer in the 2nd inning. Slowey then cruised through his final five innings, retiring 14 of 16 batters faced. Slowey apparently spotted a flaw in his mechanics after his first two starts and made some corrections. He also says that he was throwing too many strikes in his first outing, and that he's learning the value of throwing pitches outside of the strike zone from time to time.

Carl Pavano, RHP (0-2, 9.69)

Pavano's last start was a six inning, 1-run, 4-hit dandy against his former Yankees teammates at the new Yankee Stadium. Unfortunately, the Cleveland bullpen blew the Indians' lead and saddles Pavano with a no-decision. After the game, Pavano said he didn't feel he had his best fastball, but he was able to throw his slider and changeup for strikes. It was Pavano's best start in the short season to date, much better than his first outing against Texas, when he was tagged for 9 runs one-plus innings of work in his Tribe debut.

Notes:

  • The Twins and Indians have matched up pretty evenly in their contests since Gardenhire took the reins. Since the beginning of the 2002 season, the Twins have a 68-64 record vs. the Indians. The Twins have outscored the Tribe 596-594, and the Twins have hit .265 while the Indians have hit .263. The Twins lead in the doubles category (257-224), while the Indians lead in triples (21-16), home runs (165-114) and RBI (574-570).
  • In 11 games since April 12, Justin Morneau is batting .378 with three walks, four doubles, two home runs and six rbi. Morneau has hit safely in 10 of those 11 games and has an OBP of .417. He leads the club in at-bats (68), runs (13), hits (22), total bases (39) and home runs (4), and is tied for the club lead with Jason Kubel in doubles (5) and RBI (13).
  • Outfielder Denard Span went 2-for-5 last night, extending his hitting-streak to five games. He has hit safely in eight of his last nine games, including five multi-hit games, going 13-for-37 with three doubles, three RBI, and three runs scored. Span has started 16 games this season (six in left field, six in center and four in right).
  • The Twins pitching staff has allowed 10 or more hits in eight
    of the first 17 games. For the season, they have given up 167 hits, which is the third highest total in Major League Baseball, trailing only the Baltimore Orioles and the Los Angeles Angels.
  • The Twins have scored four or more runs in seven of their first 17 games. In those games, they have a record of 6-1. When they score three runs or less, the Twins have a record of 2-8.
  • Twins relievers have tossed 6 consecutive scoreless innings and have not allowed a run in four of the last five games. During that span, they are 0-0 with one save, eight hits, five walks and 10 strikeouts, while holding opponents to a .216 average.

Notes from the Nest

twayn September 17, 2008, at 11:35 am 14 LTEs - (Sorry, but the time to add LTEs has expired) ,

Game 151: Twins 9, Indians 12

Hello, everyone. Last night sure was a rough one, wasn’t it? The game, I mean, of course. And then that little 'incident' afterward. A real rollercoaster ride – the big first plunge, then the exhilarating climb, then another plunge that gives you that funny feeling in your stomach like you’re going to throw up. Then the flashing lights and the siren and the jacket with all the buckles in the back and the really long arms that wrap around behind you. But I'm feeling much better today. And if I start to get too anxious again, why, the little orange pills that say SKF T76 on them calm me right back down. The music on the PA system is also very soothing. Bach. Beethoven. Mozart. The room is decorated in soft pastels, and the bed is comfortable enough, I suppose. I especially like that I can raise and lower it with the touch of a button.

Of course, the heavy-duty screening with the padlocks over the windows is a bit disconcerting, and I wish they didn't keep the door locked all of the time. But it's for my own good. That’s what they keep telling me, at least. It would be nice to have a mirror, though, and a razor so I could shave. And a belt for my pants, and shoelaces. And I wish the dreams would go away, the ones like bad mescaline trips where Eddie Guardado is the devil and the rest of the bullpen are demons and Joe Nathan’s pitching arm shrivels up and everybody keeps hitting everything he throws and Grady Sizemore is chasing me around trying to impale me with a foul pole through my heart. Ah, well.

The good news is that they're going to let me keep using the computer to read and comment on the WGOM, as long as I don't get too agitated. They don't like it when I get agitated. And I'm starting to not like it, either, because that's when the big men come in and make me lay down on the bed and buckle the straps and there I am, writhing and moaning and waiting for the little orange pills to kick in again.

I asked if I could watch the game today, Scott Baker vs. Cliff Lee on the mound, but the man with the beard and glasses said he didn’t think that would be a good idea. He said the same thing when I asked about the Tampa Bay series and the White Sox series. The man with the beard and glasses says I should probably just forget about baseball for the rest of the season, it would be much better for me to concentrate on my “issues,” but he never really comes right out and says what those issues are. It’s like he expects me to figure it out for myself.

Maybe by the time the playoffs come around they’ll let us watch. I mean, they have to let us watch the World Series, right? Even if the Twins aren’t in it, it’s still the World Series. I know the guy down the hall, guy name of McMurphy I believe, is a baseball fan. He’ll want to watch the World Series, too, I’m pretty sure. We’ll just have to wait and see.

Anyway, I have to log off now because it’s time for my therapy session. I don’t really like the therapy; it’s a little scary when they put the electrodes on your head. But after that first big jolt you just kind of black out and when you wake up you feel much calmer. A little confused, to be sure, and it is harder to remember things after you wake up. Like that west coast road trip, the one where we played Los Angeles (or was it Anaheim? or both?), Seattle and… Oakland? I know we played all those games, but I really can’t remember how many games we won or lost, or how we won or lost them. The man with the beard and glasses says that’s a good thing, and I guess he’s right. Hope you guys enjoy the ball game tonight. If I get a chance I’ll sneak onto the computer and check in now and then. I mean, what’s the worst thing they could do to me, right? It’s not like they give people lobotomies anymore. Do they?

Why We Fail

brianS August 25, 2008, at 7:42 pm 8 LTEs - (Sorry, but the time to add LTEs has expired) , ,

The Freddy Adu of baseball has arrived but they won't let him play anymore.

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP)—Nine-year-old Jericho Scott is a good baseball player— too good, it turns out.

The right-hander has a fastball that tops out at about 40 mph. He throws so hard that the Youth Baseball League of New Haven told his coach that the boy could not pitch any more. When Jericho took the mound anyway last week, the opposing team forfeited the game, packed its gear and left, his coach said.

Officials for the three-year-old league, which has eight teams and about 100 players, said they will disband Jericho’s team, redistributing its players among other squads, and offered to refund $50 sign-up fees to anyone who asks for it. They say Jericho’s coach, Wilfred Vidro, has resigned.

But Vidro says he didn’t quit and the team refuses to disband. Players and parents held a protest at the league’s field on Saturday urging the league to let Jericho pitch.
“He’s never hurt any one,” Vidro said. “He’s on target all the time. How can you punish a kid for being too good?”

What Ubelmann is really doing instead of the WGOM

brianS August 25, 2008, at 2:52 pm Sorry, but the time to add LTEs has expired , , ,

Now the true story can be told.

The Hall of Fail

brianS August 24, 2008, at 11:46 am 3 LTEs - (Sorry, but the time to add LTEs has expired) , , , , , ,

Nicky Punto (2007), David McCarty (1993) and Jim Deshaies (1994) are first-ballot electees to the inaugural class of Page 2's list of the worst seasons ever by franchise.

Punto's and McCarty's seasons were true Hacking Mass legends, but Deshaies's year was nothing to sneeze at: a 7.39 ERA and 30 HRs allowed in 130 innings. He led the AL in starts that season with 25.

1994 was a magical year for Twins' pitching, as the franchise had three of the top ten in hits allowed (Tapani 4th, Erickson 8th and Deshaies 9th) and the team was last in the AL in ERA, hits allowed, and ERA+; next to last in HR allowed and Ks.