OK, that was a total deadline scramble with the rain delay and Carlos Gomez making history, so hopefully the two game stories I filed made some sense. Emptying the notebook here before heading to the hotel for some quick sleep with the day game tomorrow:

(*) After flight delays leaving Tulsa, Okla., Manager Ron Gardenhire landed in Chicago during the seventh inning and didn’t come to the ballpark. He will be at the helm for Thursday’s series finale.

(*) As for Gomez, where to begin? I guess it’s fair to say Twins fans are quickly forgiving management for the Johan Santana trade.

“He’s special,” Twins third base coach Scott Ullger said. “Don’t blink, he’s that fast. I mean, total package. And he’s just learning the game, too. He’s learning how to hit, he can bunt, steal, he can throw, he can play center field. He reminds me of Torii Hunter out there in center field.”

Gomez said he’s keeping as many mementos from the game as he can: a ball, bat, etc. I told him the Hall of Fame might be calling, asking him to send something to Cooperstown.

“No, not Cooperstown, my home,” he said, flashing a big smile. “I don’t know. It’s mine. I work hard for this.”

Asked him about that lightning fast home run trot, and he said, “The game today started too late. I say, ‘Let me run the bases quick so the game goes fast.’ ”

Yes, he is becoming a sports writer’s dream.

The cycle is the perfect achievement for Gomez, who aims to be a complete player who can beat teams in so many ways.

“Everybody knows I can hit a home run,” he said. “But no, it’s not my time right now. I try to put something different on this team. They don’t pay me to hit home runs. They pay me to score some runs and defense. And that’s what we try to do every day.”

OK, for more on his cycle, please check out the game story.

(*) But something else struck me late tonight. Ullger seemed very pleased with the lineup after using Matt Tolbert to replace Mike Lamb at third base and Nick Punto to replace Adam Everett at shortstop. Tolbert and Punto batted eighth and ninth in the lineup, respectively.

“I thought one of the key at-bats in the game was whenMatt Tolbert came up and walked before Nicky Punto [in the five-run sixth],” Ullger said, unprompted.

Asked specifically about the contributions Tolbert and Punto made, Ullger said, “They prepare themselves. Nicky’s a good player. I’ve said it before I think he’s way too good to be a role player. And Matt’s going to be a great player. He does nothing but work hard.”

Lamb is batting .209. Everett .162.

Are you thinking what I’m thinking?

I get the feeling those two former Houston players need to start producing soon or the Twins will be inserting Punto (.265) and Tolbert (.298) into the lineup on a regular basis, hoping for the same kind of spark they got from the original Piranhas in 2006.

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