136 thoughts on “June 6, 2011: Jasper Johns”

    1. You know, if these teams scored a combined 42 runs and the Twins end up losing the game, I actually would stay up for that.

  3. From the Strib:

    Rauch, 32, might have been a keeper if his personality hadn't grated on the Twins. He signed a one-year, $3.75 million deal with Toronto and is 2-2 with a 3.80 ERA.

    Neck Tat was tall and Gardy didn't like him.

    1. if his personality hadn't grated on the Twins.

      who's hasn't? i find it really annoying how thin-skinned the twins are. it's not like all these guys are randy moss.

      2. I'm right there with you. I'm surprised Torii got along as well as he did for as long as he did. His personality seems more poisonous than Neck Tat's or Slowey's or Garza's or whatever.

      3. It is getting pretty old to hear that trotted out as an excuse. I understand you're going to have a Lohse around every now and then, and you don't want to build your team around a bunch of Milton Bradleys, but at some point you're going to have to put up with some non-ideal personalities if you want to win. It's hard enough to beat the Yankees with half their payroll, but then to try to do it with an all-nice lineup?

        1. I think it's even worse than that, because from everything I hear, Kevin Slowey is a very nice individual. Apparently being "nice" isn't enough, you have to be "Minnesota Nice".

          ...or you could just be "scrappy", that'll cover a multitude of sins.

            1. Sure you can. But then they have to nickname you "Dock" (err, "Doc") because you read books w/o pictures.

      1. It could have been much, much worse.

        According to the Chicago Sun Times, ABC7 News and a variety of other sources, Ryan Royall, a star guard for the Hillcrest (Ill.) High Hawks basketball team, attended the party in south Lynwood with a group of friends, all of whom were told about it through word of mouth. When the group left the scene at approximately 12:30 a.m. Sunday morning, shots rang out, with Royall struck multiple times. Less than an hour later, the teen was pronounced dead at Franciscan St. Margaret Mercy Health Care in Dyer, Ind., the nearest emergency medical center.

  6. Here's one I'd love to see the Nation's legal experts discuss: Man cited for disorderly conduct for paying a $25 clinic bill with 2,500 pennies.

    VERNAL — A Vernal man has been charged with disorderly conduct after police say he caused alarm when he paid for a disputed medical bill in pennies.

    On May 27, Jason West went to Basin Clinic prepared to dispute an outstanding bill, according to Assistant Vernal Police Chief Keith Campbell. West, 38, apparently did not believe he owed the clinic the $25 it said he did.

    “After asking if they accepted cash, West dumped 2,500 pennies onto the counter and demanded that they count it,” Campbell said. “The pennies were strewn about the counter and the floor.”

    The incident upset clinic staff, said Campbell, adding that West's behavior served "no legitimate purpose."

    Clinic staff told West they were calling police and he left the office. Officers caught up with West later and issued him a citation for disorderly conduct, an infraction, which carries a potential fine of $140.

    The case will be heard in Vernal City Justice Court.

    I have what seems to be a relevant statute to get the ball rolling, taken from the Coinage Act of 1965:

    31 U.S.C. § 5103: United States coins and currency (including Federal reserve notes and circulating notes of Federal reserve banks and national banks) are legal tender for all debts, public charges, taxes and dues. Foreign gold or silver coins are not legal tender for debts.

    I imagine there are speech issues involved in this case as well. For instance, could the police have done anything if he wrote "Up yours" or "F--- off" in the memo space on a check? Can method of payment count as protected speech?

      1. This, pretty much. The lede should read:

        VERNAL — A Vernal man has been charged with disorderly conduct after police say he caused alarm when he acted irrationally and dumped 2500 pennies in a local medical clinic.

      2. that was my thought. He didn't place 2500 pennies on the counter and said, "You can count them if you like, but it's all there." He dumped them, forcing the staff to clean up after him.

        I still don't know if I'd involve the police, unless he literally threw the money at me or made a scene that threatened staff or visitors.

        1. How else was he going to retrieve the bags he carried them in? After all, those bags are his personal property. Unless he carried 2,500 pennies in his pockets...

        1. From what I remember of my recent run-in with the law, I was only a citable dick once I did not comply with a request to cease my activities and quit the premises.

          1. Didn't Warren Zevon write a song about something like that?

            Well, he went down to dinner in his Sunday best
            Citable dick, they all said
            And he rubbed the pot roast all over his chest
            Citable dick, they all said
            Well, he's just a Citable dick

    2. Yeah, I think the case will hinge on how he delivered the pennies, if he wants to fight it. The fact the pennies ended up "strewn about the counter and the floor," doesn't bode well for him. Plus, I think disorderly conduct can have a pretty wide interpretation. Somehow, I don't think a clinic would threaten to call police just because a guy shows up with pennies and the article doesn't say anything about the clinic refusing the pennies as payment.

    3. Even if the clinic refused the payment, the guy had no right to be disorderly. His only real defense would be to claim the workers at the clinic incited him.

    4. Isn't there a converse to this as well? For example, thousand dollar bills are also legal tender, but there are plenty of cash businesses that won't accept bills larger than $100s.

      1. they can do that by reserving the right to not serve customers (i.e, declining to sell anything to a customer trying to pay with a large bill). But if they were owed money for services already rendered...I don't think so. Refusing to accept payment for a bill makes the bill null and void, does it not?

    5. I'm no law expert, but if he dumped the pennies all over and made a mess, I'd give him the full fine. Besides, this sort of thing usually winds up inconveniencing people who have just as little power to enact a solution. I'm sure most administrative staff are fed up with the amount of paperwork (especially in health care) they have to file and don't take joy in sending out or collecting bills.

    6. which carries a potential fine of $140.

      i wonder how much 14,000 pennies weighs...

    1. i'm sure you had a small part in her success. good on ya, free. and congradulations to her.

  8. Tonight's line up, via Mackey:

    Revere 9, casilla 6, Span 8, cuddy 3, Morneau DH, young 7, Hughes 5, Tolbert 9, butera 2

    Span batting three?

    1. Nice to see Morneau back. Quite strange to see Tolbert in right field. Also, I'm glad to see Gardy sticking with Young in left field. He must think Young can barely handle one position, yet alone two.

      1. And he thinks so much of cuddles that he can handle the entire right side of the infield by himself - MVP!

      2. as will be mentioned in the forthcoming game log intro, this should be a good time to bring in some heavy, left-handed lumber. Indians' starter Josh Tomlin is a mediocre righty living on borrowed time.

      2. After a 1-for-14 start on the season, Revere has a .395 on-base average. When you're piecing a lineup together, you need to go with the hot hand (hence Casilla batting second).

        1. Where does "need[ing]" to go with the hot hand come from? Revere's nowhere close to a true .395 OBP guy.

          Other than the 42 shots I missed, I had a 100% shooting percentage in my high school soccer career. I ought to be lining up next to Jozy Altidore right now.

          1. His career OBA is .385 in the minors. His career batting average is .326. Nowhere near .395? Really? Seems a lot closer to .395 than .308, which is better than the Twins' team average of .303 this season, btw.

          2. Plus I never said he was a true .395 guy. The average AL leadoff hitter this season has a .321 OBA, which is far below Revere's career .385.

            1. The point is, I'm not a fan of arbitrarily excluding data in order to make your guy look better (or saying things like "going with the hot hand"). I was exaggerating in saying "nowhere close", but I am not convinced yet that Revere can maintain a .385 OBP in the long run in the majors, either.

              1. If he can stay near that .321 OBA for the AL leadoff hitters, I'd be happy.

                1. OBAs of leadoff hitters by team:

                  BAL .287
                  BOS .342
                  CHW .331
                  CLE .332
                  DET .287
                  KCR .307
                  LAA .328
                  MIN .364
                  NYY .321
                  OAK .305
                  SEA .318
                  TAM .282
                  TEX .344
                  TOR .333

                  Given that the Twins' leadoff hitters lead the league by a wide margin, I'm thinking that I don't want Revere converging on the league average for OBA.

                  1. I can't speak for bhiggum, but I'm guessing "happy" means a .321 OBA would meet or exceed his expectations for Revere, not necessarily mean he would be happy with the Twins' leadoff situation.

                    1. Yup, that's more my meaning, not that I really want .321 OBA leading off for the team.

              2. I am not convinced yet that Revere can maintain a .385 OBP in the long run in the majors, either.

                For the sake of your discussion with socal, that's a legit point. But as for Gardy's lineup today, managers should recognize SSS anomolies like hitting streaks and use them to the team's advantage whenever possible.

                1. I'm not sure I agree with that fully. I feel like (this is my own anecdotal observation, so it ought not carry much weight for anyone else; I wonder if I could study it more empirically) managers just as, or more, often leave guys in spots they don't really belong in once those streaks are over.

                  Obviously, I could just say half or more of this lineup still really sucks, so who cares who leads off, and maybe I should've said that from the beginning, but I can't avoid beating my snark into the ground.

                  1. I can't avoid beating my snark into the ground

                    That'll probably make you go blind eventually.

                  2. I'm fine with the lineup since Span has been the team's best hitter of the nine in the lineup today, so might as well bat him third. That leaves a spot open at leadoff. Who else do you bat there? Casilla? Tolbert? Anyways, the lineup does suck because of injuries. Ft. Myers has a better top three in the order with Nishi, Hicks and Mauer. Btw, you can listen to Ft. Myers here.

              3. If you can postulate probable reasons for slumps other than just randomness, then it can become more significant. For instance, Revere just got called up, so he was probably overly nervous or excited and was doing things out of the ordinary at the plate (swinging at bad pitches or not swinging at good pitches, overthinking, etc.). After a few games, he settled in and has hit well. The stats don't prove it, but it would certainly support that theory. His minor league numbers would suggest that he should be a good average/solid on base guy with little power. With his speed and stealing ability, he would only need to be about a .340-.350 on-base guy to be a very good leadoff hitter. Add a high average to that, and he's even more valuable.

                1. I'd be interested to see what happens once guys like Mauer (and even Nishioka) get back in the lineup, assuming Revere does do well enough to make the management want to keep him around/in the lineup (I'd hope so, because I'd rather he be in there than Delmon; even though I'm not sold on his major league ability yet, I'd like to see plenty more of him to form an opinion one way or the other). How about Revere-Span-Mauer with Nishioka and Casilla at the bottom? Or Span-Nishioka-Mauer with Revere and Casilla at the bottom? I could get almost excited about that.

                2. I'm less likely to ascribe a true hot hand (or cold hand) to nerves as much as injury and health. I'm sure that players go on legit streaks (especially bad streaks) due to health. If Revere and Span are healthier than other options at the moment, and you think they both belong in the top 5 of the order (not terribly unreasonable given Young, Hughes, Butera, and Tolbert), then Revere and Span at 1 and 3 isn't crazy. Even Casilla is arguably one of the five best hitters in today's lineup, especially since Delmon seems dinged up still.

    3. Why not? Span has the best OPS of anyone in the lineup. Cuddyer next best, then Casilla. That's the 2-3-4 hitters. Pretty ideal I would say.

    4. I don't know where he's getting it from, so I don't know how true it is, but Gleeman seems to think Delmon had/has "balked" at continuing to DH so Revere could play left. Either way, I won't be holding my breath waiting for weeks of media articles excoriating him for not being willing to play in the role/position he's told to.

      1. As a manager-type burrocrat, I've little love lost for employees who "balk" at work assignments outside of their narrowly (and self-) circumscribed comfort zones.

        1. Some of these moves are more than minor changes in work assignment, though. Moving to DH could mean a real hit to Delmon's pocketbook at arbitration time and when he hits the free agent market. Same with Slowey moving to the bullpen. If my boss tells me to take on some different tasks at work, it's not likely to impact my bottom line by a million dollars or more, especially my near-term bottom line.

  9. Since I don't have CC rights to the content I'm only going to link to it, but check out this time-lapse photo of Minneapolis. You get Cirque du Soleil in the foreground, a plane taking off in the middle ground, and the skyline as a speck on the horizon. My favorite part is how the interval between the red marker lights on the starboard wing increases noticeably even though the camera is firing at regular intervals.

  10. In Ft. Myers, second pitch is lined off Nishioka's glove for an error. Not a good start.

    1. Now Nishi called out after lining a pitch down the line. Ump calls him out on appeal play at first for not touching it on the way to second base.

    2. Mauer hits a soft line drive that is caught in center field on a 3-2 pitch to end the first inning. Yes, it was a "fister."

    3. "The defensive gaf-fays continue for the Miracle in the second inning."
      More "gaf-fays" in the radio booth as well.

    4. Nishi walks leading off the third and Mauer strikes out after taking a borderline 3-1 pitch for a called strike.

    5. After two long innings on defense, Mauer pulled after five innings. He went 0-for-2 with a lineout and a strikeout. Miracle trail 10-2.

    6. Nishi grounded out in the sixth and was replaced on defense in the top of the seventh.

    1. To repeat from the gamelog:

      Levi Michael, SS, North Carolina. From insider:

      Summary :
      Michael has established himself as the best college shortstop in this year's draft, although the competition for that title wasn't very strong. But as a switch-hitter who can run and has shown he can handle the position he's almost certain to go in the first round.

      Michael has good bat speed and an excellent eye at the plate, producing contact and working the count well. He tends to meet the ball out front rather than letting it travel; between that and his size he doesn't generate much power even with some torque from his hips.

      At shortstop, Michael is solid-average, making routine plays with enough arm but will probably never be plus there. He's a well-above average runner with good feel for the game all around.

      There are very few college shortstops this year who project to stay at the position and also project to hit. Michael does, which puts him at the top of the category.

        1. At 2? I think that might be a reach. If they trade down to the 8-12 range I could get behind it. I have high hopes of the Wolves trading #2 pick, Beasley, & Wes Johnson for Monta and the #11 pick (or a lottery protected future #1).

          Then again, I've got high hopes for Kahn and low expectations for anyone hiring Mark Jackson as a coach.

          1. I left which draft pick for your discretion. I could live with your suggested scenario, though I think BB will be long gone by 11.

            1. I really don't like the Wolves picking at 2. I have been playing with the ESPN trade machine a ton, dreaming up scenarios for different trades: Golden State for Monta, Memphis for Gay, Philly for Iggy, and OKC for Harden.

              Yeah, I've had some spare time.

              1. Trading for Harden worked for my NBA2K11 Wolves, although he couldn't quite get them past the Bobcats in 7 games in the 2014 finals.

    1. Peter Gammons says he's a Twins player partially because "he's intelligent." Uh, we run those guys out of town here in Minneapolis, Pete.

      1. "He's got intangibles, he's a baseball player, he's a winner." Seriously, just bring a recording in. You say that about everyone.

        1. Oh thank god he's a baseball player. It would be embarrassing to draft a lacrosse player or something.

      2. Whoever is on MLB.com says he has "tangibles", "a winner", and "a Twins-type player". I'm not sure what to think about that.

      3. He sounds like the opposite of a Twins type player to me.

  16. Selig seemed surprised the Rays had back-to-back picks. Better get used to it Bud.

  17. Levi Michael is an anagram of "Mail vehicle." Not the catchiest nickname for a player, but it will do. Kind of Karl Malone-esque.

  18. I dig the one minute limit for the compensation round. 27 picks, commercial free. Not quite as fast as when they did conference calls, but good enough for me.

  19. Alright, let's see if I can keep this up. With the 50th and 55th picks in the draft I like the following players for the Twins:

    James McCann

    McCann is a solid defensive catcher whose bat will determine whether he's an everyday guy or, more likely, a quality backup.

    Behind the plate McCann has average or slightly above-average tools across the board, with good hands and footwork and some arm strength, and he has a good build for the position. As a hitter, his hips tend to leak (meaning they move forward, toward the pitcher, too early, shifting his weight before he's really begun his swing) and he only has average bat speed. There's some rotation in his swing and he projects to have 15-20 home run power, but has struggled to even hit .300 this year against college pitching.

    It's a premium position, so look for McCann to go off the board fairly early even with the questions about his long-term role.

    and

    Adam Mcreery

    Summary :
    McCreery missed the beginning of the spring with a tender elbow but is fully healthy now and has scouts flocking in to see him, since 6-foot-8 lefties don't exactly grow on trees, even in lush California.

    At this writing, he's already built his fastball back up to 88-91, but there's more to come as he continues to regain strength. He can get caught between a curveball and a slider, but when there's separation you can see the makings of two good breaking balls, especially the slider which is very sharp when he snaps it off around 80-81 mph. He makes some use of his size, staying tall over the rubber and striding far towards the plate, although he doesn't get much downhill plane on the fastball yet, perhaps because he doesn't tilt his pitching shoulder back at all.

    A full healthy spring might have put him in the first round, and I don't think he'll get past the middle of the second if teams clear his medicals, given the potential here for a No. 2 or No. 3 left-handed starter.

    3. For the record, I am basing all of my picks by their last name starting with the letter M so they can fit in with Morneau and Mauer.

  20. I liked Michael Kelly. I didn't think he would make it to the Twins but would have gladly snagged him had he gotten there. Goes to SD at 48.

  21. Travis Harrison, 3B, High School:

    Harrison is one of the best pure bats in the high school class this year and is held back primarily by his defensive limitations.

    At the plate, Harrison squares up a ton of balls with good hand-eye coordination and plenty of torque from how he rotates his hips. He's got good balance, staying upright through contact, and shows raw power already with the potential for a little more.

    In the field, however, he's a project at best at third base and almost certainly has to move to left field or, most likely, first base, due to lack of speed and heavy feet.

    But the bat should play even at a position on the wrong end of the defensive spectrum, something he has backed up with a strong performance this spring after a cool showing at the February showcase at MLB's Urban Youth Academy, with a chance to be a middle-of-the-order bat when he's fully developed.

    He is committed to USC. Let's see what happens. Sounds like a future DH.

  22. So now when teams "reach", it's just yeah, whatever, it happens. Would have been nice for when Twins picked Revere.

  23. Hudson Boyd:

    Boyd comes from Bishop Verot, the same Fort Myers high school that produced first-rounder Bobby Borchering two years ago. Boyd should at least go in the sandwich round if not the late first.

    He'll pitch at 90-94 mph, showing the occasional 95, and he gets excellent downhill plane on the pitch. His curveball at 74-78 has tight rotation and good depth, while he doesn't have the same confidence in his 79-81 mph changeup. He can come slightly across his body because he doesn't always land straight. He comes from a high three-quarters slot with great extension, so the ball gets in on hitters quickly and he finishes his breaking ball. I'd like to see him stay over the rubber longer, as he starts drifting off the moment he begins his delivery, and he needs to land consistently with that front foot pointed at the plate. He's pretty well developed physically so any additional velo will have to come from mechanical tweaks.

    Boyd projects as a No. 2-3 starter with a chance for two above-average pitches -- maybe a third if the changeup comes along -- and plenty of durability from a strong build.

    Sounds Twins-y.

        1. We won't have to trade Levi Michael to get this guy in 8 years!

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