152 thoughts on “April 24, 2014: Flying By”

  1. Twelve years is pretty awesome, spooky. Congratulations and keep it going.

    A programming note: Minor Details will remain on hiatus for a few more days. I'm fine, Mrs. A is fine, my parents are fine--well, as fine as they get, anyway--but there's just a lot of stuff going on right at the moment.

    Also: I wish the Guardians of the Game would clarify when I'm supposed to be outraged by cheating in baseball and when it's just part of the game, because I'm getting really confused.

      1. But McCann is on the Yanks, same team that had last night's cheater Pineda. I assume that means that watching your homerun is worse than cheating.

    2. Pineda is a Yankee, so that makes it easy. He wasn't cheating to win, they already win without cheating. No, he was risking a suspension to avoid injuring the other team. He didn't want the ball to slip out of his hand and hit someone in the head. How noble and selfless he is!

      1. Buster Olney's response, paraphrased only slightly: every body is doing it, so MLB should make it legal.

        Chew on that for a while.

  2. Was shooting the bull at the LCS* yesterday afternoon, and we stumbled on this little tidbit:

    JAN. 20, 1942: As Kenesaw Mountain Landis, the commissioner of baseball, announced plans for a Feb. 3 owners meeting to consider expansion of night baseball, Wrigley revealed he had been working on the plans for lights for Wrigley Field but the attack on Pearl Harbor had ended those preparations. Wrigley said that the 165 tons of steel, 35,000 feet of copper wire and other items of equipment had been turned over to the government.

    *local card shop

    1. Bill Veeck wrote about that in his book. His take on it was that, having missed out on the chance to first, Wrigley decided he wasn't going to do it at all.

  3. Colabello:

    RBIs are a product of opportunity, and I’m thankful to this coaching staff for believing in me enough to put me in the middle of this order, and to the guys in front of me for getting on base. My job is to knock them in, and it just so happens this month there’s quite a few of them.”

    Love this guy

      1. Colabello had an offer for $1 million to play in Korea this year. He turned it down to have a shot at the bigs (and about half that money). He was not guaranteed a spot on the roster when he made that decision.

        Sometimes, a guy has to follow his dreams.

          1. Arguably, the Twins have already gotten more value than they've paid for. Colabello's at 0.7 fWAR right now, so if he played replacement-level ball for the rest of the season, his contribution would be worth about $2.8M-$3.5M.

    3. ``We walked around Tropicana Field for about 25 minutes after the game,'' Colabello said. ``My dad was so frazzled he forgot where he parked. We had a lovely walk around Tropicana.

      ``But it was awesome. I sent my Mom a text after I saw the SportsCenter thing. They said it was the coolest moment on the show. That was awesome. My parents have been there for me through everything. To have a moment like that is really special.

  4. Wild Watch (Playoffs):

    Tonight at 8:45 Central - Wild v. Avalanche.

    Last night Columbus, Dallas, and Chicago all won at home to even their respective series at 2-2. Minnesota and Detroit have the opportunity to do the same tonight.
    The Western Conference playoffs have been tipped overwhelmingly in favor of the home teams (13-1).

    Can't see the Wild winning the series if they don't win this game. I guess it's possible, but I'd much prefer a nice 4-0 or 5-1 win tonight for the Wild.

    1. I don't know why, but our cable stations cut off at 70, which is CNBC, so I can't watch games on TV (we also don't have NBCSports on our package). It's really annoying. The listings say we get that channel (and about 4 more), but they're just static.

      1. Perfect for those of us in the mountain time zone with an 8:00 bedtime for the little one.

        [EDIT - first Dater, now NBC catering to me specifically. I'm not complaining.]

        1. Doors open at 7:30, music at 8:30. Just so you've got that straight.
          Should be on the TV at the Depot.

      3. My 10-year-old has really only seen game 3. He's got a 9:00 bedtime, so he get's to watch the first period. Then, it's Kurtz and Reid for him, which isn't all bad I guess.

    3. On Matt Cooke

      Matt Cooke, suspended seven games for injuring Colorado Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie with a knee-on-knee hit Monday night, addressed the media this afternoon.
      Cooke didn’t field questions but made an unwritten statement.

      “First and foremost, I want to say that I’m disappointed and sorry that Tyson Barrie can’t play for the Colorado Avalanche tonight. I wish that he could. Unfortunately, it was not my intent to collide with him knee-on-knee. It was my intent to finish my check. Playoffs are a hard and physical time and it’s my job to be physical. I’ve led my team in hits in all three games and it’s an intense time. I’ve led my team this year in hits and in this series.

      “Since March 20, 2011 (the elbow to Ryan McDonagh that resulted in a 17-game suspension), I’ve been a changed player. I’ve approached the game differently, I think differently about the game. That stats that I’ve collected over those three seasons prove that I’m a changed player and the plays that I make and the plays that I don’t make prove to that point as well. At the end of the day, this situation was not my intent.”

      Looks like we'll get:
      Niederreiter-Haula-Fontaine
      Heatley-Brodziak-McCormick

      1. That's a young third line and a weird fourth line.

        Puck Daddy headline today "Why Matt Cooke only got seven games". I guess I'm more of a homer than I thought, because my first thought was "only? seven seemed on the harsh side." (not incredibly harsh, but if they had come back with 4 or 5 I wouldn't have thought much of it).

        1. That doesn't make you a homer. Pretty sure the DOPS determines the length of suspension using bingo balls. I thought 10.

  5. Softball is a rough game. The bag at first wasn't secured, and, when trying to beat out a throw, the bag went with me leading to a face plant. Several hours later I blew my nose which filled my eye lid and socket with air and enough pressure to burst a blood vessel. With total swelling of the eye, I mildly resemble sloth from goonies. The ladies love it.

      1. That's also a good place to get hit in the back of the head with an errant throw. Happened to a woman on the other team last night.

      2. being careful when racing home and stepping on home plate

        Cleats work so well in dirt, but so poorly on hard surfaces. I've biffed it more than once thinking that I could plant on home plate and turn to jog to the third-base dugout.

          1. I've definitely come screaming down the third base line like a bat out of hell and nearly lost it when I lunged for the plate. I've never tried to stop and turn on the plate though. If I'm going slow enough for that, it's just a gentle tap with the toe.

        1. I always tell myself I won't slide anymore in shorts. Telling and doing are apparently different things...

    2. And this has turned into a trip to the er. Doc says likely orbital fracture. Boo hiss. Getting old sucks.

        1. Was led to the CT scanner by an attractive young lady who was entertained by my self deprecation. Said, "c'mon boo, get in the scanner". When The ct was finished she told me to stand up, but I couldn't see that it was a different attractive young lady, and when she saw me face she gasped. Hilarious.

    3. The good news is no detectable fracture in my face. The bad news is that air got into my eye socket. The okay news is that they gave me prescription painkillers.

      2. Ugh.

        What are the effects of the air and what is the treatment? Do you just have to wait it out?

        1. Air plus probable snot injection = likely bacterial infection. So, high powered antibiotics. Air in the socket / lid creates pressure that is unbelievably uncomfortable. Hopefully this won't be around much more than a night or two. Bonus is tomorrow off work without a trip to the ER.

    1. I have no exposure to GoT, but my kids love watching the "goats who yell like humans" video that's used here.

    2. Some time you just need to slow clap in thanks to Al Gore for creating the internet.

      'Spoiler' SelectShow

      Seriously that was neat-o (neato?).

  9. Scorpion in my kitchen light update: It takes a very long time for scorpions to die of hunger, it turns out. The nice thing is that he's cleaned up all the little spots up there that were dead bugs. The bad thing is that he's going to leave one much bigger corpse.

    The Milkmaid saw him snatch what was probably a moth out of the air and eat it yesterday morning. She said it was kind of fascinating. We'd really dig this scorpion, if he wasn't such a scorpion and all.

    Shooting a couple hundred feet from my store update: Pictures have come out of the suspect that was shot down yesterday, as well as the man he most likely murdered last week in Buckeye. Both of them were semi-regular shoppers in my store. It's very strange.

          1. My son was watching a video that mentioned Megalograptus this morning, and my first thought was, "thank goodness Spooky doesn't have that stuck in his kitchen light!"

            2. According to Indiana Jones, the bigger the scorpion the less dangerous the sting. Then again, according to the movie "Contact," a sting from a big, black scorpion means instant death. Consider the sources.

              1. "Small = bad" is definitely the thinking around here. It also has to do with coloration. I don't know what color my friend above the kitchen is, so I can't be sure what I'm dealing with.

                1. How have you not tried the blowtorch & aerosol can of flammable stuff trick from Arachnophobia yet?

  10. Just over 10% of the season is completed. I gather you need about 150 AB's before the SSS caveats diminish: Dozier & Mauer are at 82. For some reason, despite some erratic starting pitching and #6pen, I'm feeling more optimistic about this team than is probably fair.
    As of today, the Twins are 10-10, tied for 3rd in the AL Central.

    On this Date Record Standing Finish Standing
    2014 10-10 T3rd ? ?
    2013 9-8 2nd 66-96 4th
    2012 5-13 4th 66-96 5th
    2011 9-12 4th 63-99 5th
    2010 13-5 1st 94-68 1st

    I just like to see things all lined up nicely. Not sure if there's anything here that surprises folks, but perhaps my optimism is that they can finish closer to 85 losses than 95?

    1. I'll be happier if they keep this up against the $$$ teams.

      It's nice to see a lot of individual numbers happening, and not just Joe. And I'd like to think the OB% is from some lessons learned and not just SSS. We'll see.

      1. Who are the $$$ teams? In my view, the key to having a good season in general, given the current scheduling, is to play lights out in your division and stay afloat in the out-of-division games. If you look at Detroit the last 3 years, they've had about 50% of their wins in the Central. Somehow the Dodgers managed to win their division last year with a losing record in the West, but that seems more the exception than the rule.

        1. I'm not talking success here, I'm talking (fan) respectability. I think having a "good" season is the stretch goal for 2014, but if we can play respectable against the Yankees/Sawks/Tigers/Angels of the league, fans are going to appreciate the season a lot more. I doubt there will be any aspect of this season that can be regarded as "lights out" with this starting rotation.

          1. I guess I don't really feel like that's the case. A losing season is going to be seen as a losing season. Is it really better to beat the Yankees and lose to the Astros than vice versa?

            As a case in point, last year the Twins went 18-21 against the Yankees/Sawks/Tigers/Angels. That looks plenty respectable to me. Did the fans appreciate 2013?

              1. Some facts are really stupid! Like the Twins were 10-28 against KC and Cleveland last year.

            3. My original statement is that I'd feel better if they can keep this up against the $$$ teams. I never said I don't want them to also keep it up against the Astros et. al.

              1. We're Twins fans ... asking that they play good ball against both quality opponents and the dregs of the League goes too far!

    2. Would be interesting to see component stats over similar time periods. Something like wOBA and FIP. Those will be easier to get in a week.

    1. I have a ticket but wife is having some issues so it's a game time decision. I'll be wearing an Elvis t-shirt. CoC and AMR are going too.

      1. Hope your wife is alright.
        Hope you can make it tonight. Will this be our third Lydia show together?

        1. I think I'm a go. LL doesn't start until 10:30. I'll probably be there close to 10:00. I swear I'm going to know about 10 people at the show. Also can't wait to see Gleeman. You know a picture of him will be on my timeline.

    1. If we can do it a bit earlier, like 5:30 or 6, and you folks don't mind a toddler, I can be wherever for a beer. Also, I have no concerns about bringing her into a bar.

    2. I can caucus, but not until 7ish or later that evening. I would love to meet some more Citizens, though!

  14. The question is, can the Vikings trade for him again?

    'Spoiler' SelectShow

      1. I think the remarkable thing here is that there's a former NFL player who has made it to 50 without TBI or other such... wait... Are these statements proof of impairment?

  16. My wife's sister and her boyfriend are taking us out to dinner tonight to celebrate our birthdays at Tria. Had never heard of it, so I checked the menu. Poutine!

    3. Kenny Wilson - 2nd round draft pick (2008, 63rd overall), with a career slash line of .228/ .326/ .312. Twins had a chance to draft him with pick 60 but took something called Tyler Ladendorf instead.

      Edit: gah - sean!

  19. My kids' school has their fundraiser tomorrow. The Twins donated a Louisville Slugger signed by Chris Parmalee. List price? Priceless!

  20. Parks and Recreation

    'Spoiler' SelectShow

  21. I just want to sit on the back patio with a drink and enjoy the weather whilst watching some playoff hockey, is that too much to ask? But no, the internet has to be shitty and the dog is, well, being herself. If I didn't feel bad for her, she'd be in her crate, but my roommate leaves her in there too much as is.

      1. I'm glad to be in the west coast time zone at the moment. And yeah, when the Wild are up by one I'm not looking for goals so much as looking for time to pass to avoid overtime (which gives me a heart attack in the playoffs).

      2. I'm up past my bedtime, but I think it's time for my 4-6 weekly lack of sleep spell (falling asleep last night was a task and a half), so I might as well be watching this.

  26. In the first 17 and a half minutes of a third period with a one goal lead, the Wild only allowed one shot on goal. That is almost unbelievable.

    Great win. Just great.

        1. In our chat after game 3, I worried that there was no way that they could keep that level of play up. Instead, they seemed to surpass to tonight.

      2. They've looked like the better team for most of the series. But for 13 seconds or a couple inches in game 1, it's 3-1 Wild right now. Having faith in a playoff team seems like a supremely stupid idea for a MN sports fan, but... I'm getting there.

    1. Gaborik just made it 5-2 Kings at 0:34 of the 3rd, so I might try to turn in and force myself to sleep.

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