Billy Nash (1865)
George Harper (1892)
Rollie Hemsley (1907)
Jim Mills (1919)
Wally Yonamine (1925)
Don Mincher (1938)
Ken Reitz (1951)
Doug Jones (1957)
Tom Klawitter (1958)
Phil Hughes (1986)
June 24, 2011: Khaaaa….n?
So, I'm pretty sure the Wolves had at least a semi-competent draft last night. Huh.
2011 Game 73: Twins at Giants
2:45 Central? What kind of goofy game time is that? Programming Note: This is the MLB.tv free game of the day.
The Dunce 4-6, 74.2 IP, 4.82 ERA, 3.59 FIP, 3.96 xFIP, 1.3 WAR
The Freak 5-6, 98.1 IP, 3.39 ERA, 3.02 FIP, 3.07 xFIP, 2.2 WAR
You know, I saw some mainstream junk asking what Lincecum(5-6)'s problem was this year, and I gotta tell ya: looks like the answer is "nothing." Score some runs for him, and he'll beat the other team every time. He's again on pace to throw a total buttload of innings; how long is that arm going to hold out? Is he that once-in-a-generation guy who can do that? I hope so, 'cause I always liked him.
Meanwhile, Duensing also has been better than his mainstream numbers suggest, though certainly nowhere near as good as Lincecum. This isn't a game to be betting on the Twins, though it would be nice to steal a win before the Wolves amuse and depress us all at another draft tonight.
Two more days until Thome and Twitchy are back, right? I've been trying not to say "When the Twins are all healthy" because I'm not convinced it's ever going to happen, but wouldn't it be awesome?
Father Knows Best: A Fatherhood Story
*It appears that the poster we lined up wasn't able to meet deadline. So, whether he knows it or not, JoePos will be our special guest writer today*
Throughout our cross-country move from Kansas City to Charlotte, friends have asked the same question again and again: How are the kids taking it? It's a thoughtful question, a heartfelt question, and I very much appreciate them asking. But, the truth is, they already know. They're taking it exactly like just about every kid who has ever moved. If there's one thing you can say about moving, it is that the feelings are universal ... and cliche-ridden. Just about every adult who has ever moved to a new place has felt overburdened and has promised themselves, at least on some level, to never move again. Just about every child who has moved has felt, at least on some level, like Ralph Macchio from The Karate Kid.
Our girls are 6 and 9 and, so, have been a spectacularly erratic bundle of emotions. This is particularly true of Elizabeth, the older one. One minute, she's excited about a new life. The next she's collapsed in tears. The next, she's talking giddy about the puppy we're going to get*. The next she's talking about how she will never have a happy thought for the rest of her life.
*Fathers are not above bribing daughters.
There are a million things that have jolted me about being a parent, of course, and one of those is the drama. Even as a kid, I thought those family sitcoms on television were overwrought, but as a parent I have found that LIFE seems to be overwrought. A disagreement at recess, a cross word on the school bus, a misunderstanding with a friend, all these turn into long conversations right out of the The Brady Bunch with the slow version of the theme song playing in the background.
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Game 72 Recap: Twins 1, Giants 5
LP: Nick BlacKburn. WP: Voglesong
Save? Nope, but a closer did pitch in the game !ONE!O!N!O!N!O!N!Nnnnn
Over the last one game the Twins are 0-1. While that may be upsetting to some, if we back up a bit you'll see that over our last two games we're 1-1. That's right fellas, the Twins have been playing .500 baseball for 2 days. Awesome.
We all knew that the Twins win streak would have to come to a close sometime. Unfortunately, that time was wednesday night. Blackburn didn't pitch awfully, allowing 4 hits over 6 innings, but he did walk 3 and the hits he allowed were loud. 3/4 of our infield committed an error last night, so, yeah, the defense was sloppy to say the least. The offense was worse, mustering only 4 hits off Voglesong. But, don't let this get you down. The local nine have played exceptional baseball of the last month. I haven't had this much fun watching baseball since the race down the stretch in '06. So, for today, I'm going to stay positive.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyMal2onfuM
Art: I love hanging out in San Francisco, there are a ton of galleries and museums showing excellent work. The SFMOMA holds a world class collection of modern and contemporary art. Just across the street from the SFMOMA lies the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts where they focus on big ideas, long contemplative conversations, and community interaction through art. I love the YBCA. Down in Golden Gate Park you have the de Young Museum which was recently renovated, and has a stunning observatory. If you happen to be in the bay area before July 17th, I would recommend you stop by the de Young and view Rupert Garcia: The Magnolia Editions Projects 1991–2011. Magnolia Editions, a fine art printmaking workshop, has been around a long time producing extremely good art that is extraordinarily well crafted. Speaking of printmaking, Crown Point Press is also located in San Francisco. Almost single handedly, they raised the bar for fine art etching and intaglio in America. Considered the leader in the etching revival, they published early print works by Chuck Close, Richard Diebenkorn, Wayne Thiebaud, and later threw their support behind the conceptual artists of the late 1970s. After stopping by these printshops you find yourself with a hankering to pull a few prints of your own you can stop by Griffin Press Co. in Oaktown and pick up one of the more beautiful and indestructible presses ever built. Oh, yeah, they're really, really heavy. And after you've made your first print you'll want to have a beer, why not stop in to the Magnolia Pub? Yeah, it's in the haight, you'll never get the smell of patchouli out of your clothes, but the beer is definitely worth the risk.
Minor Details: Games of 6/21 and 6/22
ROCHESTER
Tuesday—Rochester 5, Charlotte 4 in Rochester (10 innings). Trevor Plouffe had four hits including a double and a home run. Jeff Bailey had two singles and a double. Joe Nathan pitched a scoreless inning, giving up a hit. Anthony Slama struck out five in two shutout innings.
Wednesday—Charlotte 8, Rochester 7 in Rochester. Aaron Bates had two doubles to raise his average to .340. Dustin Martin had two hits. Joe Nathan allowed an unearned run in one inning, giving up a hit and a walk while striking out three.
NEW BRITAIN
Tuesday—New Britain 6, Bowie 5 in New Britain. Yangervis Solarte had two doubles to raise his average to .325. Brian Dozier had two hits to raise his average to .333. Liam Hendriks gave up two runs (one earned) on eight hits and a walk while striking out six in seven innings.
Wednesday—New Britain at Bowie. Postponed.
FT. MYERS
Tuesday—Palm Beach 5, Ft. Myers 0 in Palm Beach. Reggie Williams singled and doubled. Jhon Garcia allowed four runs on four hits and two walks in 3.2 innings.
Wednesday—Palm Beach 6, Ft. Myers 5 (10 innings). Aaron Hicks singled, doubled, and tripled. James Beresford and Steven Liddle each singled and doubled. Reggie Williams had two hits. Tom Stuifbergen allowed two unearned runs on four hits and two walks in five innings.
BELOIT
Tuesday—West 8, East 3. Michael Gonzales was 1-for-2. Danny Ortiz was 0-for-5. Adrian Salcedo allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits in two-thirds of an inning.
Wednesday—No games scheduled.
ELIZABETHTON
Tuesday—Bluefield 6, Elizabethton 5 in Elizabethton (13 innings). Nick Lockwood had three hits. Kennys Vargas and Niko Goodrum each singled and homered. Randy Rhodes singled and doubled. Eddy Rosario and Miguel Sano each singled and doubled. Derek Christensen gave up a run on three hits in four innings, striking out five.
Wednesday—Bluefield 4, Elizabethton 3 in Elizabethton. Kennys Vargas singled and homered. Pedro Guerra struck out four in three shutout innings, giving up one hit.
GCL TWINS
Tuesday—Twins 4, Orioles 0 at Orioles. Jorge Polanco singled and doubled. Candido Pimentel and Aderlin Mejia each had two hits. Angel Mata pitched four shutout innings, giving up two hits and two walks.
Wednesday—Rays 5, Twins 1 at Rays. Hein Robb allowed four runs on six hits and two walks in 1.1 innings. The Twins had only four hits.
DSL TWINS
Tuesday—Twins 5, Diamondbacks 4 at Diamondbacks. Erick Gonzalez singled and tripled. Junior Subero struck out five in four shutout innings, giving up three hits and three walks.
Wednesday—Twins 7, White Sox 5 at White Sox. Jhon Silva had two hits. Yorman Landa struck out five in 3.2 innings, giving up a run on two hits and two walks.
June 23, 2011: Stutter Step
Everyone loses sometime, and usually, it's when the opposing pitcher is Ryan Vogelsong.
Happy Birthday–June 23
George Weiss (1894)
Jack Smith (1895)
Karl Spooner (1931)
Dave Bristol (1933)
Tom Haller (1937)
Dave Goltz (1949)
Marty Barrett (1958)
Jim Deshaies (1960)
Hensley Meulens (1967)
Josh Byrnes (1970)
Mark Hendrickson (1974)
Superchunk – Come Back From San Francisco
Jobu, I am not attempting to play another barrel full of monkeys covers game. I am just ripping off your idea of songs including the citiy the Twins are playing in.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gm_6tNpUk-Q
After today the Twins come back from San Francisco. Well, back to Milwaukee.
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Loading... 2011 Game 72: Twins at Giants
Nick Blackburn 6-4, 91 IP, 3.16 ERA, 4.50 FIP, 3.82 xFIP, 0.6 WAR
Ryan Vogelsong 4-1, 64.2 IP, 1.92 ERA, 2.93 FIP, 3.37 xFIP, 1.5 WAR
If you find yourself looking at these numbers and saying, "What the hell is a Ryan Vogelsong?", you're not alone. Although his name seems only vaguely familiar to me, he's actually a couple of months older than I am and he's been kicking around pitching "meh" baseball for seven years now. From 2003-2006 he pitched rather poorly for the Pirates, then completely disappeared until last year when he pitched not so well for the Phillies AAA team, then was traded and pitched not particularly well for the Angels AAA team. So, naturally, now he's an effective starter for the defending champions.
Blackburn is an enigma as well, putting together a season (and, I suppose, a career) that I never saw coming. The Twins are now just seven games under .500 and six and a half games out of first after one of their best stretches ever, and although this is the kind of game that would have filled me with dread a few weeks ago, I'm finding it harder and harder to be pessimistic.
Keep it rolling, boys.