Twins set lineup for Chicago’s home opener
Posted on April 7th, 2008 – 12:01 PMBy Joe Christensen
CHICAGO — Denard Span gets another start in right field today, as the Twins face the White Sox in Chicago’s home opener.
UPDATE: Kevin Slowey played catch before the game. Manager Ron Gardenhire said the team would see how he feels before deciding what the next step is.
TWINS
1. Carlos Gomez, CF
2. Denard Span, RF
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Justin Morneau, 1B
5. Delmon Young, LF
6. Jason Kubel, DH
7. Brendan Harris, 2B
8. Mike Lamb, 3B
9. Adam Everett, SS
Starting pitcher: RH Nick Blackburn
WHITE SOX
1. Nick Swisher, CF
2. Orlando Cabrera, SS
3. Jim Thome, DH
4. Paul Konerko, 1B
5. Jermaine Dye, RF
6. A.J. Pierzynski, C
7. Carlos Quentin, LF
8. Joe Crede, 3B
9. Juan Uribe, 2B
Starting pitcher: RH Javier Vazquez
U.S. Cellular Field. First pitch: 3:05 p.m.
373 Responses to "Twins set lineup for Chicago’s home opener"
Why are we batting 2 *rookies* at the top of the lineup?!?! Gomez, I can understand, but Span?!?!? Come on now. Don’t we want to win?!?!?
Why is span playing at all why isn’t monroe out there and Kubel at DH or vice versa.
I’d rather take a look at Span than Monroe. I think Monroe is done… Span has shown this year a knack for getting on base - Monroe hasn’t been a productive offensive player since 2006.
Span has done it in one game Monroe is a proven hitter at the major league level axcept for last year.
I actually like the speed at the top of the order if either gomez or span can reach base then both Joe and Justin should have a chance to drive one of them in right away.
Span has not proven he can get on base. he has played in one game.
BC,
True good point BUT why waste the time of putting Span in there when Monroe is gonna be with you all year and could use the at bats now to get going. Span is gone once Cuddyer gets back.
Shawn
why are we batting 3 lefties in a row at the 2,3,4 spots?
BC,
True good point BUT why waste the time of putting Span in there when Monroe is gonna be with you all year and could use the at bats now to get going. Span is gone once Cuddyer gets back.
The Twins are treating Span like an eventaul every day starter… kind of the way they brouhg Casilla up. They want him to play everyday whether its in the MLB or AAA.
Problem with that logic is, where’s Span going to start this year or in the coming years?
If they have Monroe, they should be playing both Monroe and Kubel and bring up Pridie, because it’s clear they think of him as a 4th OF who can handle all of the positions as well as the stick.
I know they want to reward Span, or maybe show his ability off for a future trade, but I don’t see how this helps the team.
Shawn i really don’t think it’s a waste of time the Twins need to see what Span can do and having Monroe as a PH option later in the game is better then having Span PH don’t you think?
why isn’t tolbert starting??? he is the hottest hitter right now and a lot better option in the 2hole. i rather have him than any of the other 3 (lamb, everett, harris)….
I like this lineup.
vs a RH pitcher put the leftys in. Its not like Monroe has been tearing up the ball this year. I am sure Monroe will pinch hit for one of the 7-9 guys in the order today, aka “bathroom break hitters” and start tomorrow.
The only change I would make would be to put Tolbert somewhere in there.
BC
First off the Twins know what Span can do already. It’s not like he is a 19 year old rookie. Second, if you have the lead late in the game you shouldn’t need a PH option. Monroe gives this lineup a much better chance of scoring runs than Span does. I don’t like Span playing but if he must start bat him in the 9 spot and use his speed there.
BC,
Yeah thats true. Good point BC, Never looked at that way
howard at 220 brought up a good point that they may be “marketing” span to other teams.
Problem is we know what Span can do over his entire minor league career: get on base at a paltry rate (.323 in AAA). He’s not going to magically start getting on base now, against tougher pitching.
Jama how many MLB at bats does Span have two? I want to see what he can do against major league pitching because we still don’t know with %100 certainty that Gomez will stick.
I actually don’t mind this lineup against a righty. Harris is playing decent. I probably would have started Tolbert today, but Tolbert is going to get plenty of time this year. I think Gardy is trying to get Lamb to hit. Hopefully it starts today. Harris should bat in the 2 hole against a lefty starter, if you use these same guys.
I don’t mind having Span in the 2 hole, if you play him. He missed a double by inches yesterday. I think Span is being given an opportunity for his spring training success and for the way he handled going down to minors again. I also think he may be getting a little time to show other teams what he can do as a potential trade option.
I really wish the Cuddy injury wouldn’t have provoked Gardy to drop Mauer to the 3 spot. He’s a perfect #2 hitter and has the patience to allow Go-Go to steal in the event Go-Go reaches first.
I have no interest in seeeing Monroe fail miserably against right handed pitchers, so I’m glad Span is in the lineup.
I was hoping Tolbert would get thirdbase today to keep his bat in the lineup
Would have been nice to see Buscher or Ruiz in there instead of Span. Have Kubel in RH, and have a legit batting threat as your AAA call-up for Cuddy. Heck, even John Knott would have been a better call-up. Span, as good of a guy as he might be, is not a legit prospect anymore and has zero chance of driving the ball around the park. He might get som walks and beat out some singles, but if you are going to call someone up from AAA, bring up someone who can hit. Moreover, playing him in RF decreases even more of his value. How many RF’s in the league have no power? Hmmmm, Span.
Agreed, Dustin. Why sit Tolbert after yesterday?
Other than that not much to groan about when we’ve seen such futile offense so far from most of these guys…
Span has had a huge minor league track record of nothingness…Why continue to waste AB’s in the Majors?!?!?!
Only Gardy would put a slap hitting cf with very modest minor league numbers in the 2 hole and playing RF. This is a joke.
anybody else think the Twins should and/or realistically could unload some of their pitching depth for a bat, I mean look at the guys in the minors for them who could have some value and some even have experience in the majors:
Rochester:
Carmen Cali
Zach Day
Casey Daigle
Julio Depaula
Brian Duensing
DANNY GRAVES
Philip Humber
Kevin Mulvey
Glen Perkins
New Britain:
Armando Gambino
Yohan Pino
Ryan Mullins
Oswaldo Sosa
Jose Mirajes
Anthony Swarzak
Fort Myers:
Cole Devries
Deolis Guerra
Jeff Manship
Tyler Robertson
AND whatever other guys I missed who might supposedly have potential.
I mean, looking at that list of names, how many guys really have a shot to make it to the bigs as a P with this team? It would seem to me we almost have TOO MANY good and potential young pitchers and would hinder there ability to advance and improve by keeping them all…
if nothing else, they can definitely AFFORD to send someone off if they really want another bat if for some reason (hopefully not) Lamb and Everett turn into Bautista and castro and Tolbert cools off.
Agree Dustin. Only thing I can think of is to try and get Lamb going. He is the 3B for the season, so I don’t think they are going to take AB’s away this early when he is starting slow. Its been great to see Tolbert hit, reminds me of when Williams got called up a couple seasons ago. Hope he helps keep Punto out of the batters box and only as a defensive replacement.
PJS,
Such a great point. I see no reason to move Mauer, regardless of the Cuddy injury. Just slide Young up to that spot (where he will probably hit someday anyways). Keeps Mauer at the 2 spot and keeps us from lefty-lefty late in the game.
FYI, young pitching phenoms at Fort Myers:
Deolis Guerra: 1.80 ERA, 5 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 6 K’s
Tyler Robertson: 3.60 ERA, 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 6 K’s
for comparison
Francisco Liriano: 6.75 ERA, 5.1 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 8 K’s
couple good debuts for those guys.
keep
Since it took Garza to bring in D. Young, I would say it is highly unlikely any of those guys would bring in a proven quality bat. Also, who would you bring in?
FYI, young pitching phenoms in the majors:
Liriano: 13-5, 144.7 IP, 108H, 177K’s
Guerra: NA
Robertson: NA
keep,
Good point.
Although many of those minor league pitchers are currently getting the cr-p kicked out of them early in the season.
saam -
I guess I wouldn’t necessarily be looking to bring in a guy quite the level and potential of Delmon, ie->former #1 or 1st RDer even, unless we could get one…
But names that come to mind of the top of my head would be:
Edwin Encarnacion
Garret Atkins (or the rockies AAA 3B, forgot his name but is a highly touted prospect)
Hank Blaylock(twins have talked about him before and like him)
Nomar Garciaparra
Mike Lowell
Bill Mueller
Ty Wiggington
not sure about any other prospects maybe, but thats a quick list of 3B - men
JT - i had no intention of that information being used to say that they should be in the Majors right now…just an update on their success thus far.
sane - a lot of pitchers get the crapped kicked out of them early in the season, look at Justin Verlander.
Keep
Thanks for the list. Several of those aren’t options because they make too much money (Lowell) or their team wouldn’t trade them for minor league talent (Atkins). And I’d rather have Lamb than Garciaparra, but maybe that’s just me.
I should add that I agree with you that the Twins should consider trading some of their pitchig prospects for offense, I just don’t think they will get much (any) immediate help.
I expect to see this OF everyday, until Cuddyer returns. Good choice to have Span bat 2nd.
Keep,
I know. Wasn’t meant to be a counter-argument to you. Was more to show how awesome Liriano was. I just love looking at those numbers. If Guerra gets close to that…man, should be fun in 2010, 2011, etc.
I’ll throw some shortstop names in too, and they’re just names, not even sure if some would be an upgrade:
Alex Cintron
Bobby Crosby
Alex Gonzalez
Hanley Ramirez (not happening but how sweet would that be)
Michaek Young
J.J. Hardy
Tomorrow, Sparky plays third.
Edwin’s got tools but loses them all too often. You could hardly start a season worse than he has to this point. He’s made 3 plays that weren’t counted errors that could have been (that Ive seen). I love the idea of him, especially when he’s goin’ good, but his streakiness is scary. People in Cincy already want him out, and he could well be in a few weeks.
Sorry, excited to talk about a Red (moved to Cincy a year ago).
Keep,
Hanley would be sweet…but as a DH. His defense would kill us, especially on the turf. That bat though, nice. Perhaps a move to 2B when we trade Swarzak and Robertson for him!!
Sparky has only had 3 AB. He needs to play. Someone needs to provide a spark to this team. Sparky is ready and waiting.
Craig must be joking. Span shouldn’t be a regular hitter on any MLB team. If he play CF you can justify it a little by his position but at RF he should not be playing.
Sparky can play all he wants tomorrow as it is off day.
Twins will face only one lefty, Thornton, out of the bullpen.
Danks will likely pitch in this series, and expect some lineup changes.
MORE TOLBERT please!
Craig… Is your real name Jim Souhan? Just curious.
JT - word, I agree.
saam - I agree with you somewhat about the level of talent they could get back, but it depends on the guy we’d give up.
I have to think guys like Blackburn, Perkins, Humber, Slowey, Mulvey, Duensing, Sosa and Mirajes would bring a good return.
Out of those though I wouldn’t want to lose Blackburn, Slowey, or Duensing the most. But I said of the three last year (Baker, Slowey, and Garza) that the one I would have traded first would have been Baker. but I’m okay that they lost Garza now, seems like its working out pretty well for us right now (as far as Delmon Young)
kb - isn’t Encarnacion only like 22 or 23 still though?
Could be a Wally Pipp kind of situation that develops with Span. Cuddyer might be available.
I hope every day that Sparky plays TOMORROW, but never TODAY!
Span has not proven he can get on base.
Monroe hasn’t shown much of anything this year either. He unfortunately looks like another White at the moment.
Agreed, Dustin. Why sit Tolbert after yesterday?
Gardy choose to go with Harris and Everett as starters, so I’m guessing he’s going to let that play out a bit longer before totally giving up on it. Some of us were already talking about jostling the lineup when Morneau was struggling, but Gardy kept with it and it looks like Morneau’s back so far.
Tolbert will get some face time (and maybe a start or two) on this road trip. Just be glad Gardy’s still sticking with Punto as a bench role.
And since this is the first game of the season on grass for Everett, it’ll be interesting to see if his defense is actually struggling or if turf is involved somewhat.
I agree that trading pitching makes sense but those names that were thrown out were ridiculous. They are either guys who’s current team wouldn’t trade them for 2 MLB starting pitchers or guys that have no business even playing baseball any more (I’m lookin at you Nomar). If the Twins are going to trade some of their young, minor league pitching it is going to be for young minor league hitting. They would get guys that most people haven’t heard of that are in AA tearing the cover off the ball. Maybe a younger Evan Longoria or Ryan Braun. I know those 2 guys aren’t getting traded but a player like that who hasn’t moved real quickly through a teams system.
I hope every day that Sparky plays TOMORROW, but never TODAY!
I can see Gardy with that sign over his office door.
“Nick Punto will start tomorrow…”
“Sparky can play all he wants tomorrow as it is off day.”
Hahaha! You are right.
Sparky plays Wednesday!
Keep,
I hope we keep Slowey and Duensing as they have the biggest upside. Blackburn would be a great trade right now, especially if he can string a couple strong starts together before Liriano gets back. Unless he turned some magical corner, I just can’t imagine him being this good. He has never missed bats in his minor league career…but perhaps he found a way too.
I believe both Baker and Slowey will have greater and longer careers then Garza. However, I believe that Young is slightly over-rated and will be a Cuddyer type hitter unless he learns how to stop swinging so much. Plate discipline could make him awesome, but the Twins aren’t known for taking a lot of pitches. Let’s not forget that Kubel’s full season numbers (not just his great second half) were greater in OBP and SLG then Young last year.
T-
What makes you think that Everett’s defense is struggling? I think we all know that #’s of errors have no correlation to actual defensive value. As far as I can tell, he has more range then any SS we have had in a long time. The more balls you get too, the greater range you have, the greater chance of having increased error totals.
the padres have a load of 3b. kouzmanoff is young and they have chase headley who has shown power and matt antonelli a on base guy stuck behind kouzmanoff. they may even be trying headley in the of and i think antonelli has played some 2b. but they are loaded don’t know what they might need in return. imo any of the 3 would be a big upgrade.
Eckstein and Sparky on the left side.
Cuddyer for Eckstein. Straight up.
the Pads don’t need starting pitching this year though
why are we not starting tolbert, who is by the way one of the hottest rookie hitters in the league. i just dont understand, what are going to do trade him away to the yankees or dodgers come july and let him blossom in a star elsewhere just like Ortiz did in boston. GARDY stick to what is hot a switch hitter with speed that your high on, before other teams come calling. PLEASE!
Jama,
I agree. If we’re going to move pitching, we’re going to get someone stuck in a system with great potential.
Good point about the Padres. That is a great example. Just like we have Pitchers at AAA who would have MLB jobs with other teams, there are teams with hitters at AAA who would have MLB jobs with other teams…like the Twins. Garza was a good first step, lets keep that train rolling.
Jama - I agree and disagree with the “who’s current team wouldn’t trade them for 2 MLB starting pitchers” statement. some of those guys ya, others I disagree because there names pop up in trade rumors all the time.
ie-> Encarnacion, Blaylock, Crosby, Lowell, Mueller, Wiggington, Cintron.
look what the Marlins traded Miguel Cabrera for:
Andrew Miller
Cameron Maybin
Mike Rabelo
Burke Badenhop
Eulogio De La Cruz
Dallas Trehorn
granted, Dontrelle Willis was in there too, but if it was just Cabrera, I’m guessing it would have only been Andrew Miller and a couple of the other guys (NOT including Cameron Maybin.)
its not that far off, and I don’t believe that Andrew Miller is light years above our guys as a prospect. and I’m not looking to nab a Miguel Cabrera.
Got something against midgets?
” And since this is the first game of the season on grass for Everett, it’ll be interesting to see if his defense is actually struggling or if turf is involved somewhat.”
T i’m glad you brought that up because so far i haven’t been all that impressed with his defense i’ve seen nothing really special about him at all.
agreed twinsfan… tolbert should be the everyday starter now. kid was hot in the spring and hot now, and speedy…
JT,
“we all know that #’s of errors have no correlation to actual defensive value”
If you say NO correlation, I have to disagree.
There is definitely SOME correlation. One error per game will get a SS released in two weeks.
BC of ND,
What would impress you with his defense? I’m always interested what someone means when they say they aren’t impressed. Is he not getting to balls you think he should? Is he not making plays you think he should? Not much range? Weak arm?
Just curious as to what leads you to your opinion about his defense.
gobble - i like the example of the padres and them having players stuck in the minors who could have jobs elsewhere.
the guy for Colorado (in AAA) I mentioned is another example, btw, his name is Ian Stewart, last year at AAA he hit .304, with 15 HRs and 65 RBI (had a 30 HR season in A ball) and had 43 ABs in the majors, but hit only .209.
Anyway, that would be the one guy I’d be thinking of going after if I wanted one, and it fits the mold of a guy stuck in someones system with potential that you guys are referencing.
T,
Sort of a straw man argument there. There is no such thing as SS who has one error per game. Those are guys who play slowpitch softball! In reality, errors, (not of the every game non-existent variety) have no correlation to defensive value. Perfect example is Jeter. He usually has very little error totals, yet he is by far the worst defensive SS in the game. If we look at # of errors as an indication of defensive ability, he would be considered great. In comparison, Everett’s errors this year make it seem like he is “struggling” or “not great defensively”. Yet, I doubt anyone would think Jeter is a more effective defensive SS then Everett. Defense is so hard to judge, because our eyes are sometimes all we go on. Hence, Jeter seems great because he makes that play in the hole. However, he misses balls up the middle because he has no range. Furthermore, players like Hanley or Rollins look great because they dive alot, are athletic, but actually don’;t have great range either. Then there is Everett. He is small, short, not overally athletic looking, doesn’t dive a lot, so people assume he is not a great SS. Just look at Gold Glove voting. You telling me that Hunter was one of the top 3 defensive OF’s the past 2 years? Jeter one of the best SS?
Tobert has had one nice week in the Bigs, let’s not annoint him the second coming of Chuck Knoblauch just yet.
That said, I’m not seeing any reason why we brought in Adam Everett. For his glove supposedly? It’s been sketchy at best. All he has been is a skinnier Nick Punto.
Keep,
Good example. Stewart is a great fit. Clear track record of success in the minors…strugle in the majors so his value decreases, other options for Colorado at the position…lets get him!
If you say NO correlation, I have to disagree.
There is definitely SOME correlation. One error per game will get a SS released in two weeks.
Aberration.
JT,
I know your question was directed to BC, but here is my unsolicited opinion.
Everett has not fully regained his “legs” from his broken leg last year and it appears his range and the velocity on his throws are not there yet.
Perfect example is Jeter. He usually has very little error totals, yet he is by far the worst defensive SS in the game.
No, that would be Hanley Ramirez, he’s in a class all by himself when it comes to poor SS play.
(Jeter is definitely among the worst though)
When I think back to the days of Steve Garvey playing and oooops I vomited a little bit in my mouth.
BC and JT - I also am not impressed even slightly so far by Everetts Defense.
All indications and things I heard about him when he came over was he was an Ace SS and probably the best in the National League defensively. I have a hard time believing any of that after watching him so far…
He has shown me limited range, rock hands (not soft like scouts said), and a painfully erratic arm, several throws in the dirt and high, not really a canon for an arm you like to see from a SS. anyway, nothing like the super-defensive SS he’s suppose to be thus far.
And I actually thought playing on the turf would make him even better (even surface, no dirt), but it seems to me he’s having trouble adjusting to the increased speed the ball comes at him.
Everett so far this year is 5th in the AL among SS for zone rating. Also, of the top 5, he has by far the most chances. His two errors (one throwing, one fielding) are among 23 chances, with the next closest at 16 chances. Once again, fielding percentage just doesn’t mean much in defense. He also is tied for the most out of zone balls converted to outs. Seems like a pretty darn good SS to me.
Re Everett’s defense: His range factor this year has been 5.93. Barlett’s last year was 4.67 and Punto’s (at SS) 4.87. In 7 games he has 2 errors. Last year Bartlett had 4 errors in the 1st 7 games…
So the numbers say that his defense so (and he is just learning the turf) is a major improvement over the SS defense last year.
I am certain, btw, that the Twins can (and should) get Ramirez if they want to (check my blog for the argument if interested)
keep
I’ll go through some of your players mentioned.
Nomar- No thank you
Crosby- Hasn’t been healthy his whole career. I wouldn’t trade anything other than a low level prospect and Evertt for him
Wigginton- No thank you, he isn’t much of an upgrade if any over Lamb.
Lowell- Way too much money and the Sox aren’t giving him up.
Encarnacion- He is the only one I would contemplate trading for and I know the Reds want a lot for him.
Blaylock- There’s a reason he’s always on the market, he can’t defend and he’s not consistent with the bat.
Mueller- I hope you are joking.
Cintron- Is that even an upgrade?
I think if the Twins are going to make a trade for a 3B or SS they need to trade for a guy they know is going to be the answer. All these guys with the exception of Encarnacion are short term fill in. The Twins need to get guys that are in their early 20’s that can help this team in the future. I would be okay with trading a Blackburn and a Duensing if they were going to get an Evan Longoria in return. Otherwise it is just more of the same.
snepp, JT,
Sorry, just meant that there is SOME correlation between errors and defensive value. NO correlation is an exaggeration and my exaggeration was even worse.
the guy i would go for is colorados shortstop Troy Tulowitzki … id pay some pitching for him and they need pitching atm.. i would say if blackburn gives 2 more great starts they may be interested in him… you know.. you have to give up great pitching if you want great hitting.. and blackburn may be a great pitcher…
other ones i would trade blackburn for is hanley ramirez (since next year hes in arb and they wont pay him the 8-10 mil a year) or chase headley (3rd baseman prospect that is a switch hitting power hitter)
this is though if blackburn shows a liriano type first part of the year..
All I know is Everett has made a ton of bad throws to 1st.
what would the A’s want for Eric Chavez?
When I think back to the days of Steve Garvey playing and oooops I vomited a little bit in my mouth.
Keep,
I have a theory that people like to see athletic plays in the field. It is why we love to see Punto out there diving around and stuff. Someone like Everett, who has a legit history as a great SS, we expect to see diving around, doing flips like Ozzie, and making flashy plays. Everett just doesn’t do those things, so we assume he must not be that good. However, things like zone rating and out of zone outs are something that doesn’t count flashy. He is amazing in those categories, things that actually translate to runs saved and games won. Still, I have a feeling because he is small and not flashy, people will continue to make evaluations of his play that simply aren’t true. Is that possible?
if blackburn shows a liriano type first part of the year
why trade him then? Wouldn’t it make more sense to trade some from Guerra/Swarzak/Humber/Mulvey? The first 2 probably have more value to a team like FLA
JT, I don’t know where the straw man comment came from, as I’m just now responding to your first post addressing me.
What I’ve seen from Everett so far is more when it comes to his throws. I don’t know how much it’d have to do with turf vs. grass…but I wonder if because he’s having trouble reading the ball on turf if it’s translating to him rushing his throws. Morneau’s done a good job adjusting to the three new guys hurling balls at him, but they still look a little off target or underpowered at times.
Everett has incredible range and makes spectacular plays from other SS into routine plays for him. Do a little research on defensive baseball
Thank’s AaronK
this is a test on seeing if i can get the website on my name but this site is where i always go if i want to know about a player.. just type in the full name.. one thing i found was that gomez’s 40 time is a 4.29
Thanks Thyrlos. Was about to publish those numbers.
Where do you see Ramirez playing if we get him?
As I was saying When I think back to the days of Steve Garvey playing and oooops I vomited a little bit in my mouth.
What about Eric cahvez
thrylos,
because you have to give up good players to get good players.. ala garza for young.. i wouldnt be suprised if we traded blackburn or swarzak or slowey for someone like longoria or Tulowitzki
T says: “Monroe hasn’t shown much of anything this year either. He unfortunately looks like another White at the moment.”
And this is surprising because…?
Here’s another 3B for the list: Dallas McPherson–3HR for AA Alberquerque this year already.
JT,
Ramirez would be the Twins’ DH this season and maybe the starting SS (his defensive stats are like Bartlett’s) from next on, but it would probably make sense to be a DH for the long run. Nothing like solving the DH problem for 5-6 years.
Eric Chavez would be an excellent player for the Twins to target.
If the main draw for the Twins to get Everett was for his glove then if he is still recovering from an injury isn’t it almost like we got an average fielding non hitting version of LNP
Tulowitski is untouchable. So is Longoria. Love to see them in a Twins uniform, but it will never happen. Well, maybe not never. Perhaps when they are 34-35 and declining, we will pick them up as a DH or something for 5 mil a year. Well, in 10 years it will probably be 25 mil a year.
JT - i can agree with you on the ‘fantastic’ play front. And I guess I’ve mostly noticed everett’s throws, which have been very inconsistent, but I was expecting more so far considering he was brought in to shore up the Defense and thats what he was known for, we knew he wasn’t going to hit. but those ‘range’ numbers or whatever are some interesting food for thought…
jama - as for all those names, as I said, they’re just names that came to mind, not sure if some would even be an upgrade, thanks for your thoughts though.
But if the Twins are looking ahead to 2010, I would really like to see them dump some pitching for a young bat at 3B or SS, it makes too much sense.
Eric Chavez is another target for the Twins cause the A’s are alway dumping there payroll
liondragon,
I would have no problem sending Guerra, Casilla, Span, Revere and Swarzak to the Marlins for Ramirez… I understand that we have to give good players and all of the above are practically blocked by others in the Twins’ system for the foreseeable future.
Tulowitzki is untouchable.
Longoria is just unlikely.
Longoria for Slowey is very unlikely.
Longoria for Swarzak is nuts.
lion
You are dreaming if you think the Rockies are giving up Tulo. Why not just ask for A-Rod while you’re at it. And you think Blackburn would get him? I don’t think they would trade him for Blackburn, Liriano, and Baker together.
“Tulowitski is untouchable. So is Longoria. Love to see them in a Twins uniform, but it will never happen. Well, maybe not never. Perhaps when they are 34-35 and declining, we will pick them up as a DH or something for 5 mil a year. Well, in 10 years it will probably be 25 mil a year.”
ya well young was untouchable by fans too.. if we offered something amazing that they really needed we might be able to get one of them
Jimmy Bee….fact is he is already better then LNP and Bartlett defensively, even if he is injured. Alas.
Thrylos,
I predicted him as a great DH a few posts above. I agree with you. I don’t know about him being as good as Bartlett defensively. Hanley is truly pretty horrible, whereas Bartlett was actually very decent, with good range. Yet, perhaps he can still be a decent SS. With that bat, man, would have great value at SS (or 2B)…but still valuable at DH or an OF corner.
JT I’m just going off what i’ve seen so far and i’m not saying he’s horrible but as you noted he’s ranked what 5th now in the AL out of 14 that doesn’t make him a great improvement. Maybe he will improve as he gets used to the turf but thus far i haven’t seen him make any game changing plays as SS.
and the twins DO NOT have any legit players coming up in there system from what I can tell.
Been disappointed with Plouffe so far, Buscher and Moses haven’t lived up to their potential and are getting older.
I’m wondering if a few years down the road its Mauer at 3B and Ramos as the C.
I am not sure that Chavez would be much an upgrade over Lamb… Just look at his numbers after MLB started testing for PEDs. Not that I am pointing a finger, but I am just leery about people (esp. from Bay area teams) whose performance has dropped after 2005…
Young was never untouchable. He had problems with management on the Rays…and the Rays are still attempting to re-build (or perhaps just “build”). Colorado is a contender and has decent payroll options, and the Rays have publically said that they have the team in place that they think is ready to make a run in the near future. Still, you never know. I just don’t see the Rays doing a firesale like the Marlins did.
i would say hanley should be our 2nd baseman if we got him.. dont need as much range there..
thrylos - ” understand that we have to give good players and all of the above are practically blocked by others in the Twins’ system for the foreseeable future.”
thats my whole philosophy as to why I think the twins should trade some of their pitching as mentioned much earlier in this thread.
McPherson is an OF now, maybe to protect him from recurrence of his back problems.
Keep,
Agreed. Not a great bat among them.
BC of ND,
Thats what I figured.
“I’m just going off what i’ve seen so far…”
Perhaps, just perhaps, our eyes aren’t the greatest judge of defensive ability.
I don’t know if the Twins have enough in the farm system to get Han Ram. I think it would cost them at least 5 of their pitching “prospects”/MLB starters. The Marlins know what they are doing when they dump All-Star players. They usually don’t take quantity over quality. I don’t see any positional players that the Marlins would want back. I could see them maybe going for a Swarzack/Blackburn/Guerra/Slowey/Mulvey trade, or there abouts. Other than that they are going to be able to trade him to the Sox for 2 positional players and 2 quality starters. The Twins just don’t have any positional players to give up.
Albert Pujols is not hurt he is faking his injury and I think St Louis knows it . I think that if players were using PED’s and they had hugely inflated statistics then if the team knows it they say that the player has to get surgery and if they play as well without PED’s then they say the surgery hlped but if they can’t perform as well they blame it on injury. I think that some of the injuries are cover ups to protect there star players from controversy
The Marlins also usually wait until a player gets expensive to trade him away. I beleive Ramirez is still in the serfdom salary stage for another couple of years. I don’t see a possible way that this trade would happen.
Jimmy,
I see no drop-off in his overall numbers from the beginning of his minor league career until now, except for games missed due to injury.
If he was a PED user, I would expect some big drop-offs or big spikes in his numbers. I think he is most likely an awesome hitter. Still, in today’s game its hard to imagine anyone is innocent. Even LNP looked a little stronger a few years ago….
“the twins DO NOT have any legit players coming up in there system”
I assume you mean batters (because there are a lot of “legit” pitchers in their system). From the under 25 crowd the following are ranging from “great” to “good” prospects:
Eric Lis 1/OF
Ben Revere OF
Joe Benson OF
Ozzie Lewis OF
Dustin Martin OF
Rene Leveret 1B
unfortunately, they are all blocked in the Majors. The only good young IF prospect is Casilla
Monroe sits because he dogs it. Or is it just me that sees that? I haven’t seen much enthusiasm from him. Like he’s just going through the motions. On this team? That’ll get your butt on the bench every time.
thrylos - yes, I absolutely meant position players, infielders to be specific.
jama,
I still think that Casilla/Guerra/Swarzak/Humber/Revere or something like that without giving Slowy and Blackburn (add Boof if you want an ML-ready pitcher with low salary) would do it as far as The Marlins know what they are doing when they dump All-Star players, remember the Castillo trade 
and as far as outfielders, they’re in the same boat as pitchers in our system, they are expendable as well.
Young - 22 years old, still 3 years of arbitration left.
Gomez - 22 years old, 4 years of arbitration left
Cuddyer - 28 (I think) - signed contract in offseason.
-those guys you mentioned won’t sniff the Majors unless an injury or trade happens.
I’d say they could get a pretty good young bat for a combination of Joe Benson, Dustin Martin, jose Mirajes and Perkins/Mulvey/Humber/Slowey/Blackburn/Sosa
isn’t it almost like we got an average fielding non hitting version of LNP
…That would be LNP.
Diebonsen Romero (3b) and Wilson Ramos (C) are pretty dang good position prospects.
For sure better prospects than Lewis and Martin.
thrylos,
Not sure why, but Leveret has not even made it out of xst, and really doesn’t need to go back to Eliz again. Lis has no real position except Dh, and again is starting slowly, this time at AA.
Benson has 3 doubles, but again is striking out too much. Martin has started well. ozzie homered in his first game.
The majority of ‘prospects’ in the field have started very poorly this year.
And I really don’t see the need to play Revere in rookie ball.
“rush him”?? not really. Given the snail’s pace the position players are moving in this organization, he wouldn’t be ‘rushed’. As Aaron Gleeman noted, the Twins blew it trying to move Alex Romero off the 40-man last year for Ramon Ortiz, and didn’t take Garret Guzman back. BOTH would be better on the big club in RF now than Span’s squirt gun offense.
what are you guys smoking?
ramirez has better #’s than david wright and tulowitzki has better #’s than reyes and we couldn’t get either player for the best pitcher in baseball.
of course if we offer punto and rincon we should be able to get just about anyone.
think about it what would we have to get for mauer?
thrylos
That Castillo trade is really the only one that I could come up with off the top of my head that the Marlins didn’t at least equal the pieces coming back in with what went out. I would add that Castillo didn’t exactly tear it up when he was with the Twins. I think I can hear his knees screaming all the way from New York.
remember the Castillo trade
Castillo was a good lead off man for a year, but he was also on his last legs when he was traded to the Mets.
From what I’ve read it doesn’t sound like the Mets fans are all too happy with the contract he signed.
we couldn’t get either player for the best pitcher in baseball.
You have to remember that the bigger issue with Santana was the need to immediately sign him to a contract.
Had Santana been signed to a 4-5 year deal at the time of the trade the Twins would’ve gotten something closer to what they wanted.
Of course, if Santana were under contract for 4-5 years he wouldn’t have been dealt.
“Casilla/Guerra/Swarzak/Humber/Revere”
Good god, that better be a hell of a player.
Revere can not be traded as he was drafted less than a year ago… and he shouldn’t because he is going to be good. Ditto that for Guerra.
as for PED users, I think you can tell the instant you look at a guy if he is one. There is something about there body type to me that stands out, I’ll call it the ‘Hulk’ effect. They just look way more put together than other guys that would be comparable in skill level.
Guys that have the ‘Hulk’ effect in recent memory:
A-Rod(saw him play single-A ball for the Appleton Foxes when I was a kid, he was very noticealby skinnier back then, but still had power…),
Pujols, Carlos Pena, Adam Dunn, there are a lot more, but I haven’t seen a lot of them this year
but anyway, I’m done with work so I’ll blog ya later…
Twins fans discussing trade possibilities is great comic theatre!
Twins fans better not complain to much more regarding Lamb or we may acquire Brandon Inge
sid–I agree…much better to discuss why Denard Span is a starting corner OF for us, instead of Barry Bonds.
How many HR has Span hit in his minor league career?
Tolbert should have started for Lamb. Sitting Lamb may get his attention and get him going at the plate.
There is no chance of getting Hanley here. It would take MLB ready talent, and at least two of such players. Guerra would have to go, and I don’t think the Twins have another player good enough. A lot of good talent but nothing great. The Marlins could hold him for another 2 years like they did with Cabrera.
I can hear the theme music now…
Where in the World is Barrrryyyy Bonds?!?!?(Complete rip off of Where in the World is Carmen San Diego)
we arnt trading guerra in any trade.. him with robertson is our future..
blackburn probably wont get traded either but like swarzak slowey revere span ploffee and ramos pretty much are blocked out in our farm.. i wouldnt mind trading some of them for a really good hitting 3rd baseman or ss or even 2nd base..
Guerra was a centerpice of the Santana trade, I dont see the Twins dealing him to easily.
its funny.. the marlins get like 60 million a year just from revenue shares and tv shares and such.. though they cant hold more then a 21 million dollar baseball club.. and we call pholad cheap
“jama” Barry Bonds was last seen high over Mt Everest floating away lifted and powered by his over inflated head
you guys should all do the hit streak fantasy thing on mlb.com.. you guess a hitter each day and if they get a hit your streak continues.. first to 56 gets 1 mil
AM,
The idea of talking trade is fine.
Hell, I do it myself.
The comic parts are the suggestions of getting Evan Longoria for Anthony Swarzak or Troy Tulowitzki for Kevin Slowey.
you guys should all do the hit streak fantasy thing on mlb.com.. you guess a hitter each day and if they get a hit your streak continues.. first to 56 gets 1 mil
you guys would be so good at it..
i liked the rumors of boof for young… good times…..
As I was saying When I think back to the days of Steve Garvey playing and oooops I vomited a little bit in my mouth
click on me too get great biography on gomez
Congratulations are in order. The Baby Jesus is schedule to playhis 3rd straight day game behind the dish. Way to go Joey!!! Those 24 year old legs aren’t that bad after all!!!
“Congratulations are in order. The Baby Jesus is schedule to playhis 3rd straight day game behind the dish. Way to go Joey!!! Those 24 year old legs aren’t that bad after all!!!”
congrats to boof also for not giving up more then 3 runs in 2 STRAIGHT DAYS!!!!!!
WOW!
A couple of years ago, Sabernomics and Baseball America were so giddy over Andy Marte, they sounded like he was a sure thing Hall of Famer….. The guy is a bum.
They should have just asked Tom Kelly to take a look at Marte, before making themselves look stupid.
bunt single for Gomez to lead off the game
Move over Ichiro….we got a new bunting phenom!!!
Bunt was close to the line. Perfect.
Chicago battery looks a little out of sync.
AJ can’t hang on to the ball.
SB for Gomez. No throw.
Noooooo. Span swings at ball 4
A couple things…
Headley is being converted to the outfield, which the Padres should do.
Morneau vs Vazquez: .382-6-12
Kubel: 1 for 16
Morneau: .267-1-5
Everett: 5 for 10
Delmon: 3 for 8
They had read Tom Kelly’s report on David Ortiz and didn’t get back to him on Marte.
Vasquez can’t find the plate.
Gomez was out of the batting box when he made contact with the bunt. Look at his left foot. I expect Ozzie to call him on it soon.
Sure is easier to bunt for a hit when the pitcher isn’t hitting behind you
Dan Barreiro regurgitation.
Sheesh, that is so trite and unimaginative.
another double play… argh…
Gomez may run into that problem down the road. I remember a couple of occassions where GoGo’s bunt attempt came up and hit his leg when he was OUT OF THE BOX. Sooner or later, they’re gonna call it. It’s kinda like 3 seconds in the NBA. They never call it until you least expect it.
damn it delmon
With the Rays dropping the “Devil” from their nickname, I think Minnesota should amend their name to Twin Killings!
Young swings at a high slider with little and late movement, just enough to cause a ground ball.
Crafty pitching or just lucky?
C’mon DY.
Gotta work ahead Nick. Simple as that.
Good Lord Batman!!!
David Ortiz was always hurt and an immature whiner when he was with the Twins. Tom Kelly liked him anyway and tried to help him. David finally matured a little, and that is good. Too bad he still is kind of a whiner. He would strike out a lot less, and hit for higher average with more home runs, had he listened to TK. David isn’t very bright, though.
Blackburn getting hit hard so far.
NOt a good start for Blackburn
one pitch from getting out of this
Don’t know yet jama, he could get out of the jam and calm down a little bit
A double play would be great
Robert even if he calms down it doesn’t mean that it wasn’t a good start of the game.
im beginning to really dislike j vavra…theres something in the twins hitting philosphy that is against hitting line drives and loves just making contact and hitting it into the ground…the numbers should certainly bear that out…never have i seen so many double plays…youd think gardy would be screaming bloddy murder by now…i am….
atta boy. let’s get out of here still tied.
Fans whining about the K call by the 1st base ump.
Dye whining about a properly called strike.
The Mighty Whitey Whiners.
one of the very few if any former twins that i really disline…aj
Power discrepancy.
The starters for the chi sox have 10 HR’s. We have 3. Chicks dig the long ball.
2 K’s in the first, Blackburn is not known for striking guys out. I wonder if it’s just the fact that people havent’ seen him or if he is pitching that much better.
Lucky they only got one run.
Nice try, A.J…..
although I will point out that A.J. has 2 HR and 7 RBI through one week…
Mauer had 7 HR and 60 RBI all of last year…
Think about it. I’m not arguing A.J. is the better player, but it is fascinating to think about, considering Mauer is our Baby Jesus.
“theres something in the twins hitting philosphy that is against hitting line drives”
Uh,……what?
Hopefully he settles down and gives them 6 good innings. With an off day tomorrow, Gardy can use the bullpen if need be.
So Span wouldn’t let ball 4 go by, and Morneau did. Shoulda been the opposite.
Coulda had more than 1 run in the 1st.
Bill, I’m not a chick, but I don’t mind the long ball either. It would be great if more than 2 guys on this “revised” offensive lineup could hit one over the fence. I’ve been waiting for Young to really get ahold of one. All we heard about all Spring was that when he made contact it made a different sound. I thought that was a good thing, maybe I was wrong.
I don’t understand why he didn’t have more K’s in the minors, he has a hell of a curve
atta boy harris….bout time we start doing the right thing….
Jason
Look out you are going down a slippery slope there. The people on this blog would kill their first born if they thought it would help Mauer.
Lamb better get a hit because I don’t want to depend on Everett.
If Mauer wasn’t from Minnesota, he wouldn’t but a Twin, much less our starting catcher. Drafting him was simply a PR move to put butts in the seats. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a nice player but I have never seen such a weak hitting 6′5″ player in all my years of following baseball. Wouldn’t Mark Texiera look good in a Twins uniform? I know Morneau is our 1B but Texiera came up as a 3B and can probably roan the OF a bit. Plus, there’s thing thing called the DH!!!
I know Lamb has been awful but wouldn’t you put him on first in this situation?
Not much of a hit, but I’ll take it.
Bill, are you crazy? Logic doesn’t have a place on Joe’s blog. Who would want another power hitting corner infielder?
Wow. Mike Lamb showed up today!!!
yes, I would have walked him
I guess Lamb is capable of hitting!
Gardy is a genius. Sac bunt works perfect.
I was just thinking that Lamb was pulling the inside slider and I was wondering if he’d go with the pitch on an outside fastball.
He did, little duck fart type down the line for an RBI.
If Mauer was high power low average…. we’d be bitching bout that….. he is a good player
Was Lamb’s double a bloop down the line or a shot in the gap? I’m following on the internet.
Good at bat for Lamb
Mauer probably isn’t even one of the top 3 hitting catchers…..in the AL Central.
it should make gomez sick when he sees the tape of what he k’d on a 3/2 pitch
Was Gomez’s AB at least respectable or did he swing at garbage?
Bill, Mauer is the only catcher in AL history to win a batting title.
OK, maybe he’s #3. Purdue has declined quite a bit.
#1 Victor Martinez
#2 AJ
#3 Mauer
#4 Pudge
#5 Redmond
#6 Buck
lambs hit was a soft liner over 3b down the line a bit….nice hitting
Jama, he struck out on a tough slider on the outside, it was a good pitch and hard to lay off of.
I love trolls.
Pudge, not Purdue. Freudian slip. My Dad is a Purdue alum.
you can have AJ
mj1
Was it that bad? I think he gets nervous with guys on base and thinks he has to hit a double or HR to get the RBI’s. Somebody tell him a walk is okay in that situation.
One year does not a career make. Yuo know who else won a batting title?? Kevin Seitzer. Where is his plaque in Cooperstown?
Bill,
We coulda had Mark Prior.
And Texiera wouldn’t have taken a home town discount to play here unless he was geographically challenged.
he needs to learn to lay off that pitch, as it was definately ball 4…another rally killer…
I’m not saying Mauer sucks. I’m just saying that both Martinez and AJ are better hitters right now. Again, the kid is 6′5″ 225 lbs and he’s slaps the ball like a panzy ass middle infielder.
Mark who?
Only time I have confidence in Gomez right now getting on base is when he bunts…
Nick Swisher has to be one of the slowest and oddest lead off hitters in the league. What is Ozzie thinking batting him lead off?
jama, his AB was okay. He took the Hunter/Cuddy swing for strike 3.
Swisher hitting lead off is a head scratcher.
jama, I think Ozzie is looking at his lineup full of old, slow hitters and thinking it really doesn’t matter who he puts in the leadoff spot
WHEN GOMEZ OVERSWINGS IT IS STRANGE THAT HE GOES DOWN TO ONE KNEE. THIS IS SOMETHING JOE VAVRA WILL HAVE TO ADDRESS. IT IS HARD TO TAKE OFF QUICLY WHEN YOU HAVE ONE KNEE IN THE DIRT.
Blackburn’s leadoff walk is only the 2nd walk for a Twins starter this year….both of ‘em Blackburn’s.
bill b…do you not think that this j vavra character has something to do with the hitting of these twins…not only mauer whos not hitting the long ball…but i agree mauer for his size should be putting a much bigger sting on the ball…
Unlike the Twins, not every team in the league sticks craptastic hitters at the top of the lineup just because they’re fast. (referring to Span)
Blacburn looking like the 6th starter today.
mj1
I sure hope Vavra has something to do with the Twins hitters. He is the batting coach.
twins seem to finesse the damn ball rather than attack it….swings are sorta ho hum …
Swisher hits leadoff by default.
Blackburn has thrown a lot of pitches considering it is only the second inning. I hope that bullpen is ready.
Foot race Mauer vs AJ
my point exactly jama…
did you guys hear Bert call Denard Span Darnell Span yesterday? I wonder if he considers him a pirhanta.
Blackburn will struggle a bit with a deep lineup like the Sox because he is too predictable with the fastballs down the middle but he can overpower a lot of teams.
At this rate, Blackburn won’t go more than 5 innings today.
vavra teaches the hitting concept of ground balls to the infield with runners on base and lazy pop flys when no runners are on. and he has done that very well.
Blackburn is getting out of some jams though. That’s promising, except for the fact that he got into those jams. I wonder if he will last 5 innings at this rate.
Time for Boof to throw in his natural LR position
Robert: or maybe Bert’s a big fan of My Name is Earl (Darnell = Crabman). not the worse name screw-up he’s ever had.
Gomez is going to win the batting title at this rate
Will they have Mauer bunt him over? Isn’t that what most teams #3 hitters do?
Time for Bonser to start LR warm ups. “Let’s go Booser, lets go”. “Lets go Booser, here we go.”
Bert is probably confused…. since they are playing in She-cago
Mauer really needs to learn to start pulling those pitches down the middle of the plate to get some power into the ball.
Span should have stolen 2nd by now.
What teachers (coaches) teach is not always what their students choose to do.
At this rate the Twins are going to have 5 200 inning pitchers this year.
Booser Time LR “lets go booser, here we go”!!!! “Here we go boozing Booser, here we go”
I guess it’s the same as a bunt.
Jimmy go back to bed!
did span just screw up by not tagging?
He did tag.
Gomez has struck out 9 times in 30 AB. That preposterous pace can’t continue.
If Gomez can continue batting 367 he can strike out as much as he wants
strike out=no dp possibility.
Hitters hit, not Vavra.
gomez could probably hit 400 if he ever becomes a great contact hitter and stop swinging from the heels— goo goo ozzie…lmao
Chief Whiner Guillen gets tossed.
jama I was only joking around. I am about to go home and watch the game. Peace out all
So Gomez should hit like Mauer, and Mauer like Gomez??
bert: dont lat she-cago get any more runs
The Twins will keep working with Gomez. If the K’s continue too long, they will have to send him down to work on his swing.
I doubt Gomez goes down hitting 300+. The kid is here to stay.
It is Gomez’s first time seeing any of these pitchers and ballparks.
One of these Chicago hitters are going to guess fast ball and cream a home run……
listening to the sox radio interesting to hear their take on things.
Congratulation to Span on his first MLB hit.
He’d be a good average CF for some team sometime.
Blackburn started out the 3rd pretty good (2K’s on 7 pitches), but he got himself in another jam. 61 pitches thru 3 innings.
Well……….maybe not. Not enough power.
The Twins aren’t going to let Gomez bat 600 times and strike out 180 times. They wouldn’t do that to the kid.
Craig or Jama if you could have one player be the best in MLB at one position other then pitcher what position would it be. Also if you had to choose just one for your team which of the following would it be
1/ The best pitching in all of MLB with the worst run support in all of MLB
or
2/ The best run support in all of MLB with the worst pitching in all of MLB
Mauer is 1 for 2 with an RBI. Quityerbellyachin.
Why did Guillen get tossed on a swinging strikeout? Was it another punch out by the 1B umpire?
ggg
What do they think??
Six or seven of Gomez hits have been bunt singles, team will adjust to defend that.
Tigers let Granderson strike out that many times. Didn’t bother him last year
Harris can hit, XBH’s are something this team desperately needs.
sox announcers are complaining about the ball and strike calls going to blackburn.
Ben, actually only 5 of Gomez’s hits have been bunts or infield singles.
ozzie got tossed for bitching from the dugout because of the “nose to toes” strike zone.
Lamb with the wedge shot.
alright! bats seem to have a little more life today
lets see what noodle-arm Everitt can do
And you guys wanted Tolbert to play for Lamb today. Lamb’s only hit 2 doubles and 2 RBIs today.
I am baffled by all the what-if trades for a shortstop. The Twins’ future shortstop is Casilla, and the current shortstop covers more ground than Bartlett did last year. Now, 2B and 3B are currently occupied by guys that are below-average major leaguers at their positions. I definitely think Harris should be looking over his shoulder, because Tolbert can play 2B as well as he can, and Tolbert is hitting better than Harris.
Harris/Lamb looking good at the plate Everett looking like crap as usual.
So teams are going to play Gomez to bunt leading off the game? I kind of doubt that and even if they do then he will hit away.
How come the Sox are always getting Screwed. It must be a conspiracy to hold down the best team in baseball. Just like how they made us take down the little World Series Trophie next to the score on our TV broadcasts.
have to admit tolberts bat would have looked good coming up after lambs double…i bet theres going to be alot of talking about tolbert taking over for everett full time…tough spot for gardy and its still so early in the season……
Harris is doing just fine, he’s made some great defensive plays and he’s batting well.
Brasky….Redmond #5? That was a joke, I assume…
Wow…my point on A.J. v. Mauer sparked some Mauer critique that even stretched where I was willing to go….look, he’s one of the best players on our team, if not the best….but to think that one hot week by A.J. can produce nearly 1/3 of Mauer’s season from a year ago is pretty crazy…
A.J. also has one more World Championship than Mauer since that change was made…but again, I’m just throwing that stuff out there…would much rather have Mauer…
jimmybee,
1. Shortstop, but not by Bill James’ standard.
2. Depends on how you define best and worst.
come on Blackburn hitters are given you a chance today to get your first win
And I want to once again praise Gardy for keeping Punto comfortably on the bench….that decision is paying off offensively today.
Sox TV announcers just said that Ozzie laughed hard at Gomez after his K the previous at-bat because of that swing.
Blackburn gets his 10th out finally. What’s he thrown, 75 pitches?
Harris can’t turn 2. Can’t field.
is blackburn going to make it through the 5th?
That failed DP had more to do with a weak throw from your boy Everett than it did with Harris.
“Sox TV announcers just said that Ozzie laughed hard at Gomez after his K the previous at-bat because of that swing.”
HAhahahahahhahahahah! I love Ozzie!
call me carzy but i was hopping that Blackburn would could pitch the 5th but he done
Vasquez has a nasty slider and makes lots of hitters look foolish.
Ozzie acts like a kid lots of times, doesn’t he.
Blackburn: 80 pitches thru 4
Bass warming up int BP, probably going to pitch 5-7 innings.
After 4, Blackburn has thrown 80
Bass is up in the bullpen
how week is the white sox ball pen the Bobby is a good closer but i cant rember how good everybody eles they have are
“call me carzy but i was hopping that Blackburn would could pitch the 5th but he done”
Dano,
You are carzy, and funny too.
Wasn’t the fastest grounder, and Harris didn’t hurry his throw. And Everett doesn’t have an all=star arm.
3 slows in a row. Wasn’t close at 1st.
And here comes Blackburn for the 5th.
Dave T.
that’s (Ramirez) a what if trade for a DH not a SS…
Nick no runs this inning
lets get AJ out
90 pitches for Blackburn.
90 pitches nicks parbly done
Blackburn got through his last inning on 10 pitches and I think 5 were to Dye
into 8th game of the year and twins pitching has been the biggest and most pleasant surprise…hell, with any offense at all they should be 6-1 –i just hope the pitching can continue to improve and turn into one hell of a pitching staff….we just have to hope the offense will catch up one of these days……blackburn is awesome…so composed ….gonna be a good one..
“Wasn’t the fastest grounder, and Harris didn’t hurry his throw. And Everett doesn’t have an all=star arm.
3 slows in a row. Wasn’t close at 1st.”
Super slo-mo. Like Tim Teufel and Roy Smalley Jr., only Roy could throw pretty good.
At 24, it may be too early to relegate Hanley to a DH role. Let alone pay him his money for just being a DH
“90 pitches nicks parbly done”
Yeah, parbly.
Blackburn showed some real poise out there today. Struggled at times but never gave in and has a chance for a win. Go Twins
Wah, wah, the mean old umpire isn’t playing fair
i think matt is pitching better then he did at home
someone please inform the twins that its really ok to lead a team by more than one run …northing wrong with 7-2 8-2 or better…..nice pick by lamb…nice inning…
They really are the Whine Sox, aren’t they?
so far the twins biggest fear has been the twins nicest surpise …pitching and to think the franchise is still in fl gettin in shape…things are looking nice at this point…keep it up…
amazing how everett looked at that 1st pitch right down the middle of the plate…looked like he should have hammered it somewhere…
Ok, Gomez reallllllly needs to stop stricking out
stricking=striking
Franchise was assigned to Rochester for his next start. He starts Tue in AAA on the road.
If the ump was calling the low strike, he isn’t anymore.
Alright Matt, lets use that big curve to get a ground ball dp
neshek in
Vavra’s got to go.
Swisher hits lead off cause he’s an on-base machine. Definitely not fast, but what are the other options for the White Sox? Nada.
joe vavra …you’re no rick anderson
Young looks like his game is down a notch today both at the plate and now that weak throw.
Guerrier threw some low strikes the ump called balls.
Just the first element on the road to the grand slam.
Ouch.
WTF Neshek?
crede does it every year…..that joe vavra is what hitting is all about, you can pull the ball once in awhile and hit it out of the park too….even the outs were hard hit….need a big comeback…..
Strike zone has gotten smaller and smaller.
Let me get this straight?
When most of the hitters have career years in 2006 it has nothing to do with Vavra taking over as hitting coach, it was entirely about talent and the players themselves?
When most of the hitters have down years in 2007 it has everything to do with Vavra as hitting coach and nothing to do with talent and the players themselves?
Makes sense to me.
What’s with all of this talk about firing Joe Vavra? Two years ago when LNP was having a career year everyone was glad Ulger was out of that role.
It would seem to be either a talent issue or an organizational flaw.
They’re speculating Neshek’s hands might be a tad cold.
His hands might be cold? Did his tampon fall out too?
Cold-it’s nice down here in Chiacgo today! Windy yes, but not snowing or as crappy as it was for the Cubs’ opener.
Imagine that, Dickbert making excuses.
need one of those big hits…..
wheres monroe in this spot???
Phantom call by Dick
I hate how the Comcast announcers use the word “we” when talking about the Sox. Trying to make it sound like it´s them who actually plays, I guess.
Jenks looks weird with the new blonde beard. Kinda creepy.
Is that something swisher started?
Tolbert hit that ball so well he froze my broadcast.
TOLBERT!!!!
mine too t
Flapjacks!
Carlos should be in AAA, hes not ready.
Gomez couldn’t beat that double play?
I am telling you, this is the lineup the twins should go with each day until Cuddy is healthy
1. Span CF
2. Tolbert 3B
3. Mauer C
4. Morneau 1B
5. Young LF
6. Monroe RF
7. Kubel DH
8. Harris 2B
9. Everett SS
Gomez hasn’t played himself out of the job yet.
Tolbert should continue to start. No excuses for that. And look what he does when he comes in. Gets a PH.
how many double plays now in 8 games….14 or 15 and 3 HR –something is not right in this offense- but i think i would keep tolberts bat in there, even at the expense of everett right now….??? not sure or maybe harris, but he is hitting the ball pretty well or as good as anybody else i should say…dont know what to say, as this offense should be so much better….even just a hit here and there would make such a difference,but those double play rally killers….ouch
Oh well… a day off tomorrow
Rincon looked good………command and movement.
Gomez had a rough day. He needs some time in the cage. Too bad Tony O isn’t there to talk to him about his approach.
Crede’s grand slam was about 340 feet.
Did the whining get to the ump?
ya cant take gomez out yet…needs to be schooled tho…wonder who talks to him as his communicator…speaks such poor english….agree that tolbert needs to start….kubel and monroe both need to be in lineup….put span back on bench for a few games…twins need to start spankin the ball for once…chi has 10 hrs …if twins even had 6 our record would be that much better…
340 feet more than we hit one….
I’m not slamming Vavra, he does a great job, but I wish Oliva and Carew could work with the players at times during the season. Vavra doesn’t have a huge, inflated ego. He would be fine with it.
twins need a day off to regroup…its really frustrating when you see so much talent and such little to show for all the good things that have happened…the coming of gomez, the great pitching by the youngsters, livan coming thru, the play of tolbert-so many positive things and yet …..oh well a day off and get it on again wed….
Span batted second and had a hit, a walk, a stolen base, and a run scored. Good job.
6. Monroe RF
Has Monroe ever played RF in his life? Can he even play CF with any sort of credibility?
FTR: Tampa Bay vs. New York on ESPN. They’ve finally figured out his name is Jason Bartlett instead of Josh.
i love reading all the negative posts by everyone. it’s always something. if the offense was strong right now and the pitching was weak, it would be “FIRE RICK ANDERSON” or “RELEASE LIVAN!”, “WHAT WERE THEY THINKING SIGNING HIM”. i live out in san francisco and if you guys really want something to bitch about watch the giants games. you’ll have a field day!
Span has done well. If he was hitting with any luck, his OBP would be .500 and his BA would be .400.
