2011 Twins Game Logs, Minnesota Twins, MLB

Game 70: Padres at Twins

183 Comments

Dustin Moseley vs. Francisco Liriano

The Twins already have won four 1-0 games. The Padres struck out 10 times in eight innings against Scott Baker yesterday and now face Francisco Liriano. The Twins scored just one run yesterday and Mauer won't be catching today, although he could be a DH. Danny Valencia has homered in consecutive games, but he strained a muscle his arm in the eighth inning last night and most likely won't be playing today. Based on this and my many years of watching baseball, I'll predict a 9-7 game.

At least we won't have to sweat through a Matt Capps save since he's pitched in each of the last three games and probably won't be pitching today. Glen Perkins will probably pitch the ninth. I'm fine with that as long as Liriano goes eight. Actually, a blowout will be much better.

FWIW, Capps has allowed 1 run in his last seven innings with 5 hits and 1 BB and five strikeouts.

183 thoughts on “Game 70: Padres at Twins”

  3. Funny how quickly we go from leadoff walk and six straight balls to two K's and a pickoff for a clean inning.

  4. that may have been a gift. Hughes double-pumped but not sure he would have got it there in time anyway

    1. The Padre feed isn't so bad today. They're actually a decent duo when they're on point, but the color guy (it's a former player, but they never seem to say their names) gets sidetracked really easily.

    2. They made some interesting logical leaps regarding why we should carry two all glove no hit catchers and joe mauer.

  19. we got our run already, so this one is in the bag, right?

    pulled pork burrito, scrambled egg (the Boy is housesitting for friends who have two chickens, so these are mmmmmm good eggs), mint iced tea.

    1. I'm prepping a sesame pork roast for dinner, having left over fish taco, lots of water to replace all that I've sweat out on the roof, and a banana popsicle for desert.

    2. Runner daughter and I went to a little family-owned italian place. I had their special salad and lemonade, and then a strawberry-rhubarb pie. mmmmm

  22. I was just about to say that the Friars must be a hack-tastic team, and the PBP guy comes on to tell me that the Pads have struck out 600 times as a team this year.

    1. Gets a few runners on, has to crack down and strike out the next two- seems like it's Frankie's way. Either that or the runners start scoring.

    1. Who you gonna believe, a stinkin' computer or the guy who says Ichiro is selfish?

  30. The key to shutting down the running game is keeping Padres off the bases, Dazz.

    1. Though it's better for Cuddy to think there are less outs than more outs. /MiltonBradley'd

        1. I really thought it looked good (in fairness, the Padre feed didn't give me a lot of visibility as to where Cuddyer was, and when) but realistically, the way Ullger lost his job, any successor isn't going to be taking the chance on a regular basis.

    1. Good enough especially with the ump calling strikes half a foot off the plate.

    1. Going to take a lot more than that to make me like Tolbert, but I am starting to warm up to the Iceman.

      1. I mean it more as I am really starting to believe in this team. How about that?

    2. You mean every time Tolbot comes up, your first thought isn't "double to the gap"?

  66. Ump didn't want to decide that one, so Headley swings three feet on top of ball four.

      1. USMNT isn't so much concerned with things like finishing. They just want you to know they could have. Mental victories, you know.

          1. Psychologically it really damages the other teams. They have, like, no self-esteem after the US purposely misses their third chance to finish.

        2. I had no problems with their finishing today. Ricketts is a beast and was playing well today.

          1. I didn't catch any of the game today. I was more just airing some frustration from the Guadeloupe game.

    3. I wore my Chairmen Mauer tee-shirt last night. The one that I found on the street after it fell out of a truck. Anyway, this dude in a Phillies hat told me that Mauer was a pu$$y and I am a loser.

      Joe, hit a homerun so I can have the last word in my head.

      1. I don't know where you spend your time, Hitman, but you sure seem to be surrounded by asswads a non-random percentage of the time.

        I can't remember the last time someone got on my back about my Twins gear (or even my Vikings shirt, which I doubt I could defend). It's just so danged polite here.

            1. Amusingly enough, I was in the exact part of town you would expect this to happen-- Walking from the Mohawk to Chippewa, looking for a cab. Some dude bro on Chips let me know what a loser my favorite baseball player was.

      2. In fairness, the guy would've said that no matter what non-Phillies player was on your shirt.

          1. I have a friend that is an exception to that rule, although he may have lived out in SoCal long enough to mellow him out (Dodgers fans excepted).

      3. Funny, I got shit the last time I wore a similar t-shirt, only it was a White Sox fan in West Texas. I feel pretty good about allowing the Team to do my talking regarding the White Sox.

    1. The commentary I'm reading is suggesting Lichaj is answering the USMNT's left back question.

    2. Prior to today, Burnett in his last 15 outings (10 2/3 innings) has eight strikeouts and just one walk. He's allowed just 11 base runners. His ERA is high because of the three-run homer the other day, but he's been much improved after starting out with bad control problems.

  85. If Butters gets the walkoff here, I'm counting my prediction from last inning as "close enough".

        1. The Twins have not lost a game all season when Joe Mauer was, presumably, healthy.

  87. 2-0 US with ten minutes left.

    I'm looking for the walk-off/run-off in that time too.

  94. God I hate the shaving cream thing. One of these days a player's going to hit the DL with a damaged eye

    1. One of our managers had to miss a week at work because another aggressively went up his face during a celebration and he ingested enough to get pretty sick.

    2. Someone got hurt last year because of one of those. I think it was a Marlin. I forget the details. It was like the third or fourth player placed on the DL last year due to celebration, including the Angels' first baseman who broke his leg jumping on home plate after a walk-off homer.

  97. I left the house at 3-1, and return to see that Butters hit a walk-off. Not sure if the win or the manner in which it was achieved is the bigger surprise.

    1. the dark side of this victory is that it will fuel/justify Gardy's "need" for three catchers for several weeks.

      1. I think Gardy already said that he is going with 2 catchers by the time they get to San Fran

        1. It depends on how soon Thome is ready. I wondered after the hit when was the last time a player got a walkoff hit and then was sent down prior to the next game. I don't know if it will be Butera to go down, but Rivera was the first one to start on Mauer's off day. It may be just because it was Liriano was starting and he may communicate better with Rivera, but Rivera sure seems to work well with Liriano and it would seem to me to be more important to have a personal catcher for Liriano than one for Pavano.

  98. No idea is this was mentioned on radio/TV, but there was one hilarious moment during the game today. After Cuddyer's seventh inning double, he and the O'Dog had a ridiculously long conversation at second base. They were chatting before Cuddyer even reached the base and they were pretty much looking at each other and in full conversation until the exact moment each pitcher was thrown until Cuddyer advanced on the error.

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