Last night, Skim and I were putting in the in-laws' backyard green. That was one of many things yesterday that was better than the game.
63 thoughts on “August 8, 2011: The Green”
I think most of us would agree that the Twins are not going to be in the playoffs this year. It's not impossible, but it's extremely unlikely. If the Twins play a role in the pennant races this year, it will be as a spoiler, not as a contender.
Still, there will be pennant races, and they're more fun if you have a side to root for. I'll never abandon the Twins, but does anyone have any thoughts on which contender I should adopt for the last couple of months of the season?
I was going to say Pittsburgh, and then...woah, ten games out? Weren't they just in first place two weeks ago?
They've lost nine games in the standings to the Brewers in the last 10 days.
Two weeks ago I would have said the Pirates, but they've lost 10 in a row and are now 10 back as well. The Diamondbacks are surprising and probably the best underdog story right now. They're just a half game back of the Giants. The Brewers are a small-market team and leading their division. They could do well in the playoffs with the addition of K-Rod. That gives them two power arms at the back end of the bullpen along with John Axford and Yovani Gallardo and Zack Greinke gives them a couple power arms in the rotation. The rest of the rotation is solid as well (Randy Wolf, Shaun Marcum and Narveson). They are bad on the road, but as long as they stay ahead of the NL West winner, they could conceivably have homefield advantage all the way through the playoffs thanks to the NL's win in the AS game.
yeah, sure the Brewers. They've never won it all and I like Greinke. I don't like K-Rod, but he's just a rental I'm guessing.
what this year's team really lacks is winners. Winners just know how to win. They have a will to win. They know how to get it done. All you have to do is look at winning teams to see what winners look like.
Souhan's written a lot of crap, but oof-da.
Another thinly veiled Mauer is a pussy column.
With bonus Cuddy love!
I always liked Greinke just fine and I love Fielder and Braun. With the Rockies not so great, I'll be favoring the Brewers and the Diamondbacks.
Thanks to a very close friend hailing from Colorado, my NL team is the Rockies, too. (And I used to follow the Padres while I was stationed out there.) Braun's a great player, but is just douchey enough that I can't root for him. Fielder's going to be a big offseason story line, and if the Brewers go deep into the playoffs it's just going to add another wrinkle to his situation.
Looking at the prospective field, I'm not really inclined to root for anybody.
The AL is looking like it is going to be pretty brutal for finding a team to cheer for. I guess I'll just hope for an NL WS Champion.
I'm going with the defending champions, on proximity and Not-A.L. grounds.
Is Braun douchey? This is news to me.
There's a local commercial with him sporting a faux-hawk and, I think, an Affliction-like shirt, so take that as you will.
Oh, jeez. Both those things are totally unacceptable.
Yeah, as a former Wisconsin resident (11 years in LaCrosse) and being married to a native Wisconsinite I'll have to go along with the brewers. Maybe they can finally win one for Ueck.
Strangely, as a current Wisconsin resident, as of this season I have vowed to root against the Brewers. Maybe I'll jump in on the Diamondback's cause.
I'm going to be very random and root against them because they have the dumbest parking lot design in all sports. It takes hours to get out of there after a game.
That is a perfectly legit reason to root against a team, if you ask me.
Bud Selig used to own the Brewers.
but Joe Schultz used to manage the Pilots.
Bob Uecker currently announces for the team, so they have that going for them.
And Bob Uecker does have a refridgerator in the shape of a beer can in his booth.
in case of nuclear attack?
I'm thinking about rooting for the Red Sox or the Yankees. How do I pick between the two?
just watch ESPN until a fav emerges.
I knew things were bad around here, but I didn't think they were that bad!
You can see one of those teams beat the Twins tonight on 4ltr!
Doris Kearns Goodwin on line 1, pally.
I have to be honest and say I really don't care. Which really sucks because this is the first baseball postseason I've had completely free of any actuarial exams. Every fall was a blessing in disguise when the Twins bombed out against the Yankees. This year, I was hoping for something different. A chance to finally see some Twins playoff victories without fear of losing study time. Now I guess I'll just be playing more PS3.
But for rooting interest (I don't really remember who's in front anymore), I'll go with the Indians. God Bless them for sticking in it this far.
I mentioned this yesterday in the CoC, but I know readership is a little lower on the weekend. I have 2 tix to Wednesday's Twins game against the Red Sox. Section 313, row 10. Right behind home plate. Face value is $28 each, but make me an offer.
freealonzo at comcast dot net
In what must have been an omen for the Sux series this weekend on the way home from work Friday night the front left wheel basically came off my car. Luckily it was right after I turned into the neighborhood and was only a couple of blocks from home. The car's sitting at the dealership now awaiting word on what the damages are.
Your car just has bad makeup. You gotta want to finish commutes. None of this prima dona "starter" cr@p. Trade it for a closer K Car.
Well, I did notice the car was glancing towards the bullpen all the way home.
What would be a car's bullpen? Used car joint? NAPA?
Public transportation depot?
A car that issues too many walks is not the kind of car you want to build a garage around.
At the very least, put it in the back end of the garage.
Nicely done, to all of you.
I may or may not be around much this week. I've decided I spend entirely too much time on line - not just here but in general. I'm going to try to cut back on my onlineness across the board.
I suppose that means the MMM is on haitus. In lieu of any wrapup, I give you this unveiling of the Impact de Montreal logo for their first MLS season next year.
httpv://youtu.be/qb0s2jpVvcM
That is a worthy goal.
From my neck of the woods for the MMM, the Sounders pulled off a 2-0 victory in extra time to win their CONCACAF Champions League play-in 2-1 on aggregate, and then on Saturday, they shocked Sporting KC in KC 2-1, scoring roughly in the 89th and 91st minutes. SKC looked great and was totally controlling the game until Omar Bravo decided he should attempt to maim Pat Noonan, got sent off, then attempted to get Noonan sent off by instigating some handbags and then simulating as though he got headbutted by Noonan. With the man advantage, the Sounders got some possession and eventually made KC pay. It's the third game in a row that they've beaten KC right at the end of the game.
You can find the craziest things on teh Google.
whether or not...what?
I suppose I should have trimmed that line as well. It looks to be just some text that was in the neighborhood of my search terms.
I think it lends an air of mystery to the whole affair.
[nonpartisan joke about Mich House forgetting to euphemize conference committee hearings]
Kind of neat. How long have humans tried to copy the motion of a bird's wing to create a flying machine?
Tolbert at SS today. How much leash does Nishi have left?
1. Denard Span, CF
2. Trevor Plouffe, 2B
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Michael Cuddyer, 1B
5. Jason Kubel, RF
6. Jim Thome, DH
7. Danny Valencia, 3B
8. Delmon Young, LF
9. Matt Tolbert, SS
Good question. On the one hand, having Tolbert start in your place might be considered a "message." On the other, it's f-ing Tolbert. Not even Gardy could see him as a viable alternative.
how about a Player A/Player B comparison?
Player A 48 games, 150 PA, 213/278/323, 15:12 K:BB, -0.2 dWAR
Player B 51 games, 184 PA, 215/262/238, 36:10 K:BB, -1.0 dWAR
Player C 41 games, 131 PA, .271/.378/.402, 15:19, 0.5 dWAR*
* Don't like that dWAR splits fielding and position.
for a second I thought that was Lexi as a SS this season. The numbers are very close, but not quite (according to b-r)
I think most of us would agree that the Twins are not going to be in the playoffs this year. It's not impossible, but it's extremely unlikely. If the Twins play a role in the pennant races this year, it will be as a spoiler, not as a contender.
Still, there will be pennant races, and they're more fun if you have a side to root for. I'll never abandon the Twins, but does anyone have any thoughts on which contender I should adopt for the last couple of months of the season?
I was going to say Pittsburgh, and then...woah, ten games out? Weren't they just in first place two weeks ago?
They've lost nine games in the standings to the Brewers in the last 10 days.
Two weeks ago I would have said the Pirates, but they've lost 10 in a row and are now 10 back as well. The Diamondbacks are surprising and probably the best underdog story right now. They're just a half game back of the Giants. The Brewers are a small-market team and leading their division. They could do well in the playoffs with the addition of K-Rod. That gives them two power arms at the back end of the bullpen along with John Axford and Yovani Gallardo and Zack Greinke gives them a couple power arms in the rotation. The rest of the rotation is solid as well (Randy Wolf, Shaun Marcum and Narveson). They are bad on the road, but as long as they stay ahead of the NL West winner, they could conceivably have homefield advantage all the way through the playoffs thanks to the NL's win in the AS game.
yeah, sure the Brewers. They've never won it all and I like Greinke. I don't like K-Rod, but he's just a rental I'm guessing.
But he's a first-division player.
what this year's team really lacks is winners. Winners just know how to win. They have a will to win. They know how to get it done. All you have to do is look at winning teams to see what winners look like.
Souhan's written a lot of crap, but oof-da.
Another thinly veiled Mauer is a pussy column.
With bonus Cuddy love!
I always liked Greinke just fine and I love Fielder and Braun. With the Rockies not so great, I'll be favoring the Brewers and the Diamondbacks.
Thanks to a very close friend hailing from Colorado, my NL team is the Rockies, too. (And I used to follow the Padres while I was stationed out there.) Braun's a great player, but is just douchey enough that I can't root for him. Fielder's going to be a big offseason story line, and if the Brewers go deep into the playoffs it's just going to add another wrinkle to his situation.
Looking at the prospective field, I'm not really inclined to root for anybody.
The AL is looking like it is going to be pretty brutal for finding a team to cheer for. I guess I'll just hope for an NL WS Champion.
I'm going with the defending champions, on proximity and Not-A.L. grounds.
Is Braun douchey? This is news to me.
There's a local commercial with him sporting a faux-hawk and, I think, an Affliction-like shirt, so take that as you will.
Oh, jeez. Both those things are totally unacceptable.
Yeah, as a former Wisconsin resident (11 years in LaCrosse) and being married to a native Wisconsinite I'll have to go along with the brewers. Maybe they can finally win one for Ueck.
Strangely, as a current Wisconsin resident, as of this season I have vowed to root against the Brewers. Maybe I'll jump in on the Diamondback's cause.
I'm going to be very random and root against them because they have the dumbest parking lot design in all sports. It takes hours to get out of there after a game.
That is a perfectly legit reason to root against a team, if you ask me.
Bud Selig used to own the Brewers.
but Joe Schultz used to manage the Pilots.
Bob Uecker currently announces for the team, so they have that going for them.
And Bob Uecker does have a refridgerator in the shape of a beer can in his booth.
in case of nuclear attack?
I'm thinking about rooting for the Red Sox or the Yankees. How do I pick between the two?
just watch ESPN until a fav emerges.
I knew things were bad around here, but I didn't think they were that bad!
You can see one of those teams beat the Twins tonight on 4ltr!
Doris Kearns Goodwin on line 1, pally.
I have to be honest and say I really don't care. Which really sucks because this is the first baseball postseason I've had completely free of any actuarial exams. Every fall was a blessing in disguise when the Twins bombed out against the Yankees. This year, I was hoping for something different. A chance to finally see some Twins playoff victories without fear of losing study time. Now I guess I'll just be playing more PS3.
But for rooting interest (I don't really remember who's in front anymore), I'll go with the Indians. God Bless them for sticking in it this far.
I mentioned this yesterday in the CoC, but I know readership is a little lower on the weekend. I have 2 tix to Wednesday's Twins game against the Red Sox. Section 313, row 10. Right behind home plate. Face value is $28 each, but make me an offer.
freealonzo at comcast dot net
In what must have been an omen for the Sux series this weekend on the way home from work Friday night the front left wheel basically came off my car. Luckily it was right after I turned into the neighborhood and was only a couple of blocks from home. The car's sitting at the dealership now awaiting word on what the damages are.
Your car just has bad makeup. You gotta want to finish commutes. None of this prima dona "starter" cr@p. Trade it for a
closerK Car.Well, I did notice the car was glancing towards the bullpen all the way home.
What would be a car's bullpen? Used car joint? NAPA?
Public transportation depot?
A car that issues too many walks is not the kind of car you want to build a garage around.
At the very least, put it in the back end of the garage.
Nicely done, to all of you.
I may or may not be around much this week. I've decided I spend entirely too much time on line - not just here but in general. I'm going to try to cut back on my onlineness across the board.
I suppose that means the MMM is on haitus. In lieu of any wrapup, I give you this unveiling of the Impact de Montreal logo for their first MLS season next year.
httpv://youtu.be/qb0s2jpVvcM
That is a worthy goal.
From my neck of the woods for the MMM, the Sounders pulled off a 2-0 victory in extra time to win their CONCACAF Champions League play-in 2-1 on aggregate, and then on Saturday, they shocked Sporting KC in KC 2-1, scoring roughly in the 89th and 91st minutes. SKC looked great and was totally controlling the game until Omar Bravo decided he should attempt to maim Pat Noonan, got sent off, then attempted to get Noonan sent off by instigating some handbags and then simulating as though he got headbutted by Noonan. With the man advantage, the Sounders got some possession and eventually made KC pay. It's the third game in a row that they've beaten KC right at the end of the game.
You can find the craziest things on teh Google.
whether or not...what?
I suppose I should have trimmed that line as well. It looks to be just some text that was in the neighborhood of my search terms.
I think it lends an air of mystery to the whole affair.
[nonpartisan joke about Mich House forgetting to euphemize conference committee hearings]
Kind of neat. How long have humans tried to copy the motion of a bird's wing to create a flying machine?
ornithopters!!!
Tolbert at SS today. How much leash does Nishi have left?
1. Denard Span, CF
2. Trevor Plouffe, 2B
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Michael Cuddyer, 1B
5. Jason Kubel, RF
6. Jim Thome, DH
7. Danny Valencia, 3B
8. Delmon Young, LF
9. Matt Tolbert, SS
Good question. On the one hand, having Tolbert start in your place might be considered a "message." On the other, it's f-ing Tolbert. Not even Gardy could see him as a viable alternative.
how about a Player A/Player B comparison?
Player A 48 games, 150 PA, 213/278/323, 15:12 K:BB, -0.2 dWAR
Player B 51 games, 184 PA, 215/262/238, 36:10 K:BB, -1.0 dWAR
Player C 41 games, 131 PA, .271/.378/.402, 15:19, 0.5 dWAR*
* Don't like that dWAR splits fielding and position.
for a second I thought that was Lexi as a SS this season. The numbers are very close, but not quite (according to b-r)
From @JoeCStrib
Is she an anchor baby, or was she born back in Japan?
More importantly, is she a First Division baby?
Oh, wonderful.
More from Joe C.