Pek! looks to be for real, guys. We were on the ground floor.
71 thoughts on “February 18, 2012: The Emerging Star”
It's officially the start of the Twins baseball season as pitchers and catchers report today!
I've probably said it before, but following Perk on the Twits is a joy.
@glen_perkins
Hey, nice to see you. You gained all your weight back. #ThingsPavanoSays
With his awesome 2011 and this, he's vaulted from doghoused pitcher that might benefit from a change in scenery (Lohse) or might have been overmatched in the majors (guys traded for Johan) to one of my favorite players.
@glen_perkins
“@BrianDuensing52: Its hard to believe that today is report day and another season is upon us” can you rewrite that in haiku?
Pekovic is 18th in the league in PER and 4th among centers.
don't look now, but Tim Duncan's PER is now higher than Garnett's (21.3 to 19.7). In the nine games in February, Duncan has averaged 15.8/11.3/2.3, 2 blocks and 1+ steals in 29 min/g, which line is very similar to KG's. Not dead yet.
I suspect that having Ginobili back will help Duncan look younger as well.
Last night was the first time in T-Wolves history that two players went for 30 points and 10 rebounds in the same game. Pekovic, OMG, 9 offensive boards. He is absolutely the guy you want playing with Kevin Love. He's so physical, such a great offensive rebounder, and he can score. Finishing at the rim has gotten a lot easy for K-Love with Pekovic right there to draw attention.
I noticed Pek's OReb proclivities throughout his career early this season, and wondered if it was a weird small sample size fluke or an actual skill set that was repeatable. It's sure looking like it's a real skill.
I feel like part of it is that he gets so low, he's often in great position to get his own (or somebody else's) miss.
Well, he loses a lot of def. rebound opps playing with Love, who plays away from the rim more on offense.
so if we gwt a real shooting guard are we a title contending team?
If only we had Steph Curry.
Only if he agrees to be called "Pooh."
I love that he can finish - he's not just chucking meatballs up there, he has some touch. He's like the anti-Olowokandi.
and i can tell how worked up you are by the used of capital letters.
CC to Cheaps (or the other homebrewers): one of the casualties of the great slaughterhouse purge is my keggle. I have the weldless stainless steel ball valve and assorted washers / gaskets, and I'm willing to part with the stuff on the cheap (ie, really cheap, like the cost of parts and a sixer of lonestar cheap...). Shipping will be a bit of an expense, but I have a feeling the price will be lower than if you tried to get one from sanke.
I'm interested. Shoot me an e-mail with details: bmjohnson327athotmaildotcom
you got mail.
A. Cook's wicket falls - muchly needed there by Pakistan.
if you didnt see it last night, Ricky Rubio put some English on the ball
httpv://youtu.be/7oTi1kNcikM
heh, that was sick.
Have I ever mentioned that Rubio is my man crush.
I was going to complain about his turnovers, but his assist:turnover ratio is right at league average.
His past few games, he's been trending worse, but SSS.
The blue line is his season A/T after every game and the black line is his 5 game rolling average trendline.
The B of F meme comes to Jeff A's territory:
While I applaud the diversity of this meme, I am absolutely sick to death of this meme already...
to that point, this is the second "pastoring" one i've seen.
That's funny - I hadn't seen this meme at all until last Tuesday and this is now the 7th variation I've seen. Some are a bit clever, one or two were wicked-funny and the rest have been meh. I guess what I'm saying is I that I second Twayn.
I'm not quite ready to consign it to the Eagles bin of history.
There's a pretty great one out there for acting, and as fortune would have it, it was the first I saw. I'm sick of them too now, though.
Like so?
oh, and also, facebook is where memes go to die. end of the line, if you know what i mean.
"Anonymous" in the comments section is more cynical that StatFreak (either of them).
spoonto doesn't like outside-the-box submissions
/I keed!
I love them when they're good! (DG has won two games like that, and CH won another)
Alright, I threw one up.
Yeah, and it's pretty awesome.
I hope Stribbies becomes part of the lexicon for Twins fans everywhere.
Points for "Matt Capps's neck" and also working in "fromage".
Brought a tear to my eye.
‘Anonymous’ hangs himself in his garage
My favorite line
Mine too...I sort of built the idea around that line, since his laid it on so thick with the cynicism.
Last night, I was having dinner with a friend and we randomly started discussing this person. I hadn't thought of him in 10 years, and yet now he's back in the news. Strange.
good news: "Somebody That I Used to Know" got airplay on the local Top 40 station this morning*. DJ even pimped the video on YouTube
bad news: She prounounced it GOAT-eeyay
* captive audience -- I was a passenger in the car with Mrs. Runner and daughter
I was mildly surprised that Linds hadn't heard that song, it's doing pretty well on Spotify's "Top Songs" list (#1 at the moment, even). I figured it's the type of song that be a left field hit, like a "Float On" or "Take Me Out" (though it obviously doesn't have the hyperactive buoyancy that either of those two songs have).
Besides, the 'left field hit' category seem to be taken up by that "We Are Young" song by fun..
Elliot Smith is getting top 40 radio airplay? Weird.
Yeah, I was confused, too.
VH1 plays videos most mornings. They play that song a lot.
I picked up tickets to his show in Mpls on Apr 4 - I'm hoping I don't hear that song too many times before then.
The end of the 4th quarter in Clipps/Spurs just got weird.
Adding Smith isn’t going to make it any easier for Mike D’Antoni, who didn’t want Anthony and was rejected by Dolan for an extension last summer, and even hoped that the Knicks would cut him loose to pursue other jobs, notably the opening in Minnesota.
Instead, D’Antoni returned with no security beyond this season and without a guard who could run his offense. So the Knicks went for Baron Davis, who last made a positive impact for a team around five years ago when he helped the eighth-seeded Warriors upset the No. 1 Mavs.
Emphasis mine.
The Washington Post picked up a story on our favorite player from Montenegro written by local AP guy Jon Krawczynski
Save yourself the aggravation and don't read Shecky. DON'T DO IT. I warned you.
Done.
Why, what could possibly be thatttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt.....................................................................
[implying it killed my brain cells]
I made it to the 25-year-old pop culture reference in the first graf. And that was a struggle.
Oof. Why do I never listen to you guys about this.
That said, he did manage to pretty much sum up his mindset in this particular refuse:
In sports journalism, access often blunts criticism.
I think he understated it a bit, though.
If Joe Mauer bats .400 and the Twins lose 90 games is he still the problem?
yes.
Well now that'll depend on which key Twins sources one talks to, such as the hot dog vendor, or the laundry room guy.
Nothing but a compiler.
If he bats .400 and the Twins lose, it'll show that he's selfishly trying to boost his batting average rather than doing the little things to help the team win.
That's been the complaint about Ichiro, in those exact words. Really. Some racist idiot on a call-in show after one of his five-hit games (where Schilling tipped his cap to Ichiro) said "All he wants to do is put on a hitting display."
If it's any consolation to him, they used to say the same thing about Ted Williams.
Phil Mackey actually, you know, talked with Mauer and got these quotes:
Mauer: "Probably most excited I’ve been coming to camp... just to get back (&) make sure something like 2011 doesn’t happen (again)."
More Mauer: "I think it’s probably good for everybody to check themselves in the mirror & make sure something like that doesn’t happen again"
Mauer: "If you don’t have a chip on your shoulder, something’s wrong. I think everybody, including myself, is embarrassed about last year."
Wow, just think of Cuddy or Nathan had said something like that, just think of the Shecky "cuddy is a standup guy" articles that would have been written all year long.
@PMac21: Mauer caught between 12-15 pitches from Brendan Wise, and also 48 from right-hander Jason Marquis -- 48 is a lot of pitches this early.
This is good. I think that every Mauer-related tweet coming out of spring training should clarify whether he is being a pussy or not.
Dur. I suppose that's actually saying that Marquis threw a lot. But I still want/need the Mauer pussification clearly stated for the Stribbies benefit.
I've probably said it before, but following Perk on the Twits is a joy.
With his awesome 2011 and this, he's vaulted from doghoused pitcher that might benefit from a change in scenery (Lohse) or might have been overmatched in the majors (guys traded for Johan) to one of my favorite players.
Pekovic is 18th in the league in PER and 4th among centers.
don't look now, but Tim Duncan's PER is now higher than Garnett's (21.3 to 19.7). In the nine games in February, Duncan has averaged 15.8/11.3/2.3, 2 blocks and 1+ steals in 29 min/g, which line is very similar to KG's. Not dead yet.
I suspect that having Ginobili back will help Duncan look younger as well.
Last night was the first time in T-Wolves history that two players went for 30 points and 10 rebounds in the same game. Pekovic, OMG, 9 offensive boards. He is absolutely the guy you want playing with Kevin Love. He's so physical, such a great offensive rebounder, and he can score. Finishing at the rim has gotten a lot easy for K-Love with Pekovic right there to draw attention.
I noted this last night, but seriously: 175 ORebs - 172 DReb. I'm loving it.
I noticed Pek's OReb proclivities throughout his career early this season, and wondered if it was a weird small sample size fluke or an actual skill set that was repeatable. It's sure looking like it's a real skill.
I feel like part of it is that he gets so low, he's often in great position to get his own (or somebody else's) miss.
Well, he loses a lot of def. rebound opps playing with Love, who plays away from the rim more on offense.
so if we gwt a real shooting guard are we a title contending team?
If only we had Steph Curry.
Only if he agrees to be called "Pooh."
I love that he can finish - he's not just chucking meatballs up there, he has some touch. He's like the anti-Olowokandi.
AHH! TORNADOES ON THE SUN!!!!!11
that was one awesome image.
and i can tell how worked up you are by the used of capital letters.
CC to Cheaps (or the other homebrewers): one of the casualties of the great slaughterhouse purge is my keggle. I have the weldless stainless steel ball valve and assorted washers / gaskets, and I'm willing to part with the stuff on the cheap (ie, really cheap, like the cost of parts and a sixer of lonestar cheap...). Shipping will be a bit of an expense, but I have a feeling the price will be lower than if you tried to get one from sanke.
I'm interested. Shoot me an e-mail with details: bmjohnson327athotmaildotcom
you got mail.
A. Cook's wicket falls - muchly needed there by Pakistan.
if you didnt see it last night, Ricky Rubio put some English on the ball
httpv://youtu.be/7oTi1kNcikM
heh, that was sick.
Have I ever mentioned that Rubio is my man crush.
I was going to complain about his turnovers, but his assist:turnover ratio is right at league average.
His past few games, he's been trending worse, but SSS.
The blue line is his season A/T after every game and the black line is his 5 game rolling average trendline.
The B of F meme comes to Jeff A's territory:
While I applaud the diversity of this meme, I am absolutely sick to death of this meme already...
to that point, this is the second "pastoring" one i've seen.
That's funny - I hadn't seen this meme at all until last Tuesday and this is now the 7th variation I've seen. Some are a bit clever, one or two were wicked-funny and the rest have been meh. I guess what I'm saying is I that I second Twayn.
I'm not quite ready to consign it to the Eagles bin of history.
There's a pretty great one out there for acting, and as fortune would have it, it was the first I saw. I'm sick of them too now, though.
Like so?
oh, and also, facebook is where memes go to die. end of the line, if you know what i mean.
A challenge for the creative types.
"Anonymous" in the comments section is more cynical that StatFreak (either of them).
spoonto doesn't like outside-the-box submissions
/I keed!
I love them when they're good! (DG has won two games like that, and CH won another)
Alright, I threw one up.
Yeah, and it's pretty awesome.
I hope Stribbies becomes part of the lexicon for Twins fans everywhere.
Points for "Matt Capps's neck" and also working in "fromage".
Brought a tear to my eye.
My favorite line
Mine too...I sort of built the idea around that line, since his laid it on so thick with the cynicism.
Last night, I was having dinner with a friend and we randomly started discussing this person. I hadn't thought of him in 10 years, and yet now he's back in the news. Strange.
good news: "Somebody That I Used to Know" got airplay on the local Top 40 station this morning*. DJ even pimped the video on YouTube
bad news: She prounounced it GOAT-eeyay
* captive audience -- I was a passenger in the car with Mrs. Runner and daughter
I was mildly surprised that Linds hadn't heard that song, it's doing pretty well on Spotify's "Top Songs" list (#1 at the moment, even). I figured it's the type of song that be a left field hit, like a "Float On" or "Take Me Out" (though it obviously doesn't have the hyperactive buoyancy that either of those two songs have).
Besides, the 'left field hit' category seem to be taken up by that "We Are Young" song by fun..
Elliot Smith is getting top 40 radio airplay? Weird.
Yeah, I was confused, too.
VH1 plays videos most mornings. They play that song a lot.
I picked up tickets to his show in Mpls on Apr 4 - I'm hoping I don't hear that song too many times before then.
The end of the 4th quarter in Clipps/Spurs just got weird.
Did Duncan throw one down over Griffin?
Daily News:
Emphasis mine.
The Washington Post picked up a story on our favorite player from Montenegro written by local AP guy Jon Krawczynski
Save yourself the aggravation and don't read Shecky. DON'T DO IT. I warned you.
Done.
Why, what could possibly be thatttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt.....................................................................
[implying it killed my brain cells]
I made it to the 25-year-old pop culture reference in the first graf. And that was a struggle.
Oof. Why do I never listen to you guys about this.
That said, he did manage to pretty much sum up his mindset in this particular refuse:
I think he understated it a bit, though.
If Joe Mauer bats .400 and the Twins lose 90 games is he still the problem?
yes.
Well now that'll depend on which key Twins sources one talks to, such as the hot dog vendor, or the laundry room guy.
Nothing but a compiler.
If he bats .400 and the Twins lose, it'll show that he's selfishly trying to boost his batting average rather than doing the little things to help the team win.
That's been the complaint about Ichiro, in those exact words. Really. Some racist idiot on a call-in show after one of his five-hit games (where Schilling tipped his cap to Ichiro) said "All he wants to do is put on a hitting display."
If it's any consolation to him, they used to say the same thing about Ted Williams.
Phil Mackey actually, you know, talked with Mauer and got these quotes:
Mauer: "Probably most excited I’ve been coming to camp... just to get back (&) make sure something like 2011 doesn’t happen (again)."
More Mauer: "I think it’s probably good for everybody to check themselves in the mirror & make sure something like that doesn’t happen again"
Mauer: "If you don’t have a chip on your shoulder, something’s wrong. I think everybody, including myself, is embarrassed about last year."
Wow, just think of Cuddy or Nathan had said something like that, just think of the Shecky "cuddy is a standup guy" articles that would have been written all year long.
This is good. I think that every Mauer-related tweet coming out of spring training should clarify whether he is being a pussy or not.
Dur. I suppose that's actually saying that Marquis threw a lot. But I still want/need the Mauer pussification clearly stated for the Stribbies benefit.