Francisco Liriano

v

Nick Blackburn

Francisco Liriano was probably my favorite post-Santana pitcher, Kevin Slowey excepted. If Johan brought me back to baseball after taking a couple of years off Frankie made me pretty nuts about baseball again. 2006, I think we can all agree, was just about the most magical season for the Twins since 91. No Twins team grabbed the attention of Minnesota fans and made them care like that team.

Report from Baseball-Reference.com.

Look at those numbers. Dude was incredible.

And now he plays for the White Sox.

Tonight's game is going to be probably one of the stranger games I will have watched in the past few years. Seeing Frankie dressed in those awful grey and black colors, hearing Stribbie's boo him like he was Joe Mauer, knowing that he is going to make Morneau look like Adam Everett at the plate. It is going to be weird.

Frankie, it was good to know you. If it wasn't for you in 2006 I probably wouldn't have been so nuts about this team that I would have started google-ing Twins blogs, lurking around some of them (Will Young and this new wpa stat, Seth and his access to minor league players, Gleeman doing Gleeman stuff, and Batgirl being super fun) until I found one that had all of that in one place that I just couldn't resist from posting on any longer.

Thanks again Frankie, because of you I am here. Now leave some sliders hanging for your old pals, will ya?