Archive for game logs from previous seasons.
It's sort of sad that the Twins will never win another baseball game. I was a fan of the occasional win, but if I can't have that, I guess watching errors and strikeouts will have to get me by.
I'll be listening to this one, driving to Brainerd on a road trip with the wife. Since this one is obviously impossible, let's at least make it close.
Gomez vs Swizzlestick, who seems to be our best starter lately. Who knows, maybe we'll only lose by three?
Jimenez vs Slowey
Jimenez's rWAR since being traded to Cleveland: -0.1.
Slowey's rWAR since being acquired from Rochester: -0.1.
I think that means Slowey has a chance to slow the Race to the Bottom. He is 0-5 though, so maybe not.
Twins win, right?! Right? Oh, Letters to the Editor don't count towards the final score of the actual game. I'm sorry. Yes, indeed, the Twins lost.
Twins 3, Royals 7
LP: Hendriks (0-2) WP: Hoe-shaver (11-11)
Save? no. I'm not counting the Greg Holland effort as a save even if the box score on MLB.com says he earned one. No way. Not going to count. I'm not even going to look at the King of the Savers leader board because I'm enraged that the official scored actually believed the Twins could possibly rally to threaten the Royals lead in the ninth. Puh-lease. How dare the powers that be issue a sacred save in such a decidedly un-save like situation. boo.
Okay, yeah, now that I'm over my save-rage induced fit I'll commence with the recapage. Liam Hendriks started his second ball game today and lost. He went five innings giving up eight hits, five earned runs while striking out only 2 batters. The good news? He walked zero, zilch, nada batters today. Bert must be pleased with his performance, that is, of course, unless he left the ball up in the zone. Truth be told, I don't know if there were many balls left up in the zone, I was busy finishing a print that's due on Friday, but I'll assume that because the Royals didn't hit any home runs off of him that Hendriks didn't leave any balls up. Waldrop pitched two thirds of an inning and gave up two runs. The rest of the bullpen gave up 3 hits and no runs, Hoey included. Wierd, right? The Twins offense offered up eight hits and three runs. Mauer went oh-fer with three walks. I'd ask for my money back, but I live out of state. The "defense" offered up three errors, and Plouffe (!) records of them. Some puss threw the ball away on some play that I didn't see to give the Twins another error on the field today. Frankly, I don't know how to read what happened in during the bottom half of the fourth inning, and being that the Twins couldn't scrape together enough hits / runs to win this garbage I don't care to decipher what actually happened.
Culture Club: Kansas City is chalk full of fine art. No joak. There is so much happening in KC that I don't know where to start, but the Nelson-Atkins is definitely worth the price of admission. They have world class exhibitions (most of which are FREE (hint, hint, DG...), a fantastic facility, and a beautiful sculpture grounds. Through the 15th of November they have an exhibition of night sky and cosmos photography, and coming in October they'll be showing Romare Beardon's prints. I highly recommend a stop by the Nelson-Atkins Museum if you're going to be in KC to see the Twins lose.
Hovachart v. Hendriks
Twins Lineup:
Sometimes with late season baseball you struggle for reasons to watch. That will not be the case tonight as there is a pitching matchup for the ages in Bruce Chen against Carl Pavano. It doesn't get any better than this, you guys.
Twins record: 59-87
Fangraphs
MLB Game Wrap
Hey, the Rays won again and swept the Red Sox today. That puts them...three and a half games back with seventeen to play. Wild card race fever: catch it!!!!1
Hitter of the Week: Mrs. Dinkelman
Pitcher of the Week: Mrs. Parmelee
Ten years ago last week, we moved into our current home. I know this because 10 years ago today I was waiting for my DirecTV to be installed when my wife called to tell me to turn on the radio. I may have been the last person in the country to know about the Twin Towers. Let's honor those who lost their lives and celebrate those who survived and helped others survive and maybe share a few of our own memories of that day. As for the game ...
Scott Diamond vs. Doug Fister
Maybe the Twins can fist it off Fister, but I won't be holding my breath.
Diamond had the benefit of unfamiliarity against the Tigers in his last start against them. I don't expect it to go so well the second time. Then again, he did better against the White Sox the second time around, so you never know.
Normally, this would be a great doubleheader day with the Twins scheduled to start about three hours before a certain other Minnesota team kicks off its season (literally). It's really sad that for decades the Twins have tried to surpass the Vikings in popularity and even with two world championships, they still haven't done it. However, they had a golden opportunity to get a leg up on the Vikes, who bumbled through a controversial and disappointing season while the Twins were coming off a wonderful 94-win debut season for spectacular Target Field. All the Twins did was puke all over that field and their fans while the Vikings traded for Donovan McNabb and signed their most popular player to a 7-year, $100 million contract, with only just over a third of it guaranteed.
Hey, Ziggy. You wouldn't want to buy a baseball team as well?
Such is the way of things for the Twins. They finally get some good pitching and they can't score enough to win. I would make a joke about the Gophers' abomination today, but it doesn't seem right after Coach Kill's seizure on the sidelines. I guess his honeymoon period will last at least another week.
At least Joe Benson finally got his first hit, but then promptly threw it away by getting picked off on the old fake-to-third and throw-to-first play to help turn a first-and-third and no outs into no runs. If the Twins get a run there, they probably have Joe Nathan on the ninth to protect a one-run lead. Of course, if they got the four runs they scored yesterday in today's game instead, they probably win and would be looking for a series win tomorrow.
Oh well. That is what the Twins have to deal with with so many injured or traded away. At least they're getting an idea of what the young players can do and what holes they need to fill in the future.
Great job by Swarzak, who gave up just two runs in six innings with six Ks and two walks. He could end up being pretty useful as a minimum-wage pitcher. The rookie callups, Benson and Parmelee, reached based four times in 8 PAs. The rest of the team reached base four times in 24 PAs and that includes Mauer reaching 3 times in 4 PAs, which means the other six guys were 1-for-20. Yikes!
I've already said too much...
Kevin "Malingerer" Slowey v Brad Penny
Per Joe C:
Revere CF
Plouffe 2B
Mauer C
Kubel DH
Valencia 3B
Parmelee 1B
Benson RF
Tosoni LF
Nishioka SS
Some thoughts: