Mariners trying an interesting strategy here and handing the game to their bullpen straight from the get-go. The Twins take the field behind their young right-hander Pino and look to go 75% in Seattle before they head to Colorado (because I guess the official game scheduler has a sense of humor).
It's a late one tonight, so make sure to brew an extra cup.
Continue reading 2014 Game 91: Minnesota Twins vs. Seattle Mariners
Who wants to stay up and watch this one with me, assuming I actually do so myself? If you'd said before the season that the Twins would be 40-49 going into game ninety I probably would have been pretty happy about it, but considering how long we played .500 ball, I remain somewhat apathetic, particularly as one of my other teams - the Mariners - continue to play well enough to keep me engaged.
Two 7-7 rookies, Kyle Gibson and Roenis Elias, go today. Elias strikes out his share of guys - not quite one an inning, but fairly close - and doesn't walk many. He skipped AAA and opened the season with the Mariners and seems to be the exact same pitcher he was in AA.
I suppose I'll probably catch this while wishing we could just fast-forward to Dozier in the Derby. But what the hell: go Twins!
I don't have a slew of things to say about Seattle, and the less I say about the Twins right now the better my chances of avoiding profanity. I don't know if the Twins are a mediocre team in a bad slump or a bad team in a mediocre slump. Either way, at this point in the season and with my frustration turning quickly to ennui, it's probably just as well that the Twins kick off a seven-game road trip in Seattle tonight before breaking for the All-Star game next week. The games will be on late enough that I can safely ignore them without feeling too much fan guilt.
Tonight the Twins send Kevin Correia (4-10, 4.95 ERA) to the mound. His performance of late is better than his record might indicate, losing five of his last nine starts, but with a 3.50 ERA over that span. Seattle trots out Hisashi Iwakuma (6-4, 3.33 ERA), an All-Star last year who is having just a decent season this year after missing the first month with a torn finger tendon. Play ball!
In case you haven't heard about it, Derek Jeter is retiring and today is his last (regular season) game in Minnesota. For some reason, the Twins figured the most appropriate home for the last Second Base bag used at the Metrodome was Jeter's closet. I know there haven't been a ton of quality players manning the middle for the home team in the past 15+ years, but c'mon, Derek F*cking Jeter?! It's a nice gesture for a retiring player, but I'd prefer they hang on to that piece of memorabilia for someone who actually played more than 30 games in that building.
Since moving to Target Field, the Twins have not won back-to-back home games against New York. They last beat the Yankees in consecutive games at home six years ago. Let's hope that changes today.
LINEUPS:
| NO. | New York | Minnesota |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | B. Gardner, LF | B. Dozier, 2B |
| 2. | D. Jeter, SS | E. Nunez, SS |
| 3. | J. Ellsbury, CF | C. Parmelee, 1B |
| 4. | M. Teixeira, 1B | J. Willingham, LF |
| 5. | B. McCann, C | O. Arcia, RF |
| 6. | C. Beltran, DH | K. Suzuki, C |
| 7. | B. Roberts, 2B | T. Plouffe, 3B |
| 8. | I. Suzuki, RF | C. Colabello, DH |
| 9. | K. Johnson, 3B | S. Fuld, CF |
Why Star Wars? Hell if I know.
Yohan Pino tries to keep the imperial troops from entering the base as the evil empire counters with David Phelps.
Here's hoping that this one deviates from the script. After this one and tomorrow's tilt, we don't get any more chances at these guys, and a season series win would sure be awesome.
Chase Whitley
v
Kyle Gibson
The Twins accomplished something no other team had this season: scored more than three (earned) runs against Tanaka. Now the Yankees send out someone named Chase Whitley. He faced them once already on June 1 in New York, giving up just one run in six innings. This time, the Twins are bringing the fireworks and I predict they will score eight runs, maybe in one inning.
We take you to the game already in progress. And the Yankees suck.
The Twins didn't score.
The Twins hope to keep their home winning ways intact (relatively to their recent sojourns) in this rubber match against the Royals. A series win would certainly be a nice boost as they prepared to host the Yankees for a 4 game affair. Oh yeah, and:
DAY GAME ALERT
Continue reading 2014 Game 83: Kansas City Royals vs. Minnesota Twins
