Postgame: Span activated, Pridie optioned, Twins stunned
Posted on June 24th, 2009 – 10:24 PMBy Joe Christensen
MILWAUKEE — The Twins activated Denard Span from the 15-day disabled list after tonight’s 4-3 loss to Milwaukee and optioned outfielder Jason Pridie back to Class AAA Rochester. Span had been out with an inner-ear infection.
NOTES FROM A QUIET CLUBHOUSE
Nick Blackburn became the first Twins pitcher to throw back-to-back complete games since Brad Radke did it on June 19, 1998 and June 25, 1998. Before his complete game against Pittsburgh last week, Blackburn had zero complete games for his big league career.
He entered the ninth inning with 84 pitches. By the time Jason Kendall stepped in, Blackburn’s pitch count was at 93. The game-time temperature was 92 degrees. Blackburn had to bat four times, going 0-for-4 at the plate, including an eighth-inning strikeout.
Asked about pitching in the heat on a night he also had to bat, Blackburn said, “It’s weird, I thought I’d thrown a lot more pitches than that. Because usually when you’re out there, especially in the Dome, they don’t sneak up on you like that. I looked up and I think I was at 75 pitches in the seventh inning, which really surprised me. I thought it was 80 or 90-plus. I felt a little more tired, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing for me. It kind of helps me stay back at times, get on top of the ball better.”
No matter how you slice it, Blackburn was cruising. He got two quick outs before J.J. Hardy hit his bloop single to center.
Then came Jason Kendall, who has a .279 slugging percentage. That’s lower than several pitchers, including Jeff Suppan, Adam Wainwright, Max Scherzer and Micah Owings. The Twins had Matt Guerrier warming, but Manager Ron Gardenhire said he gave no thought to pulling Blackburn.
“You can’t really seriously think we’re supposed to take him out,” Gardenhire said. “Don’t even go there. You can’t take Blacky out there; that’s a joke. Don’t even ask that question. Blacky’s in complete control of the baseball game.”
Blackburn said Kendall hit his one “really bad pitch of the night.” The ball sailed high off the left-center field wall. Asked if he thought it was going out, Kendall scoffed saying, “I don’t hit home runs.”
He’s right, he hasn’t hit one all season. I detailed the wild and crazy play in my game story. Brendan Harris and Blackburn were both charged with errors, as both runners scored.
Harris said, “You can chalk that up — a double in the gap and that kind of play — as probably the last thing I expected.”
Asked how the team was taking the loss, Jason Kubel said, “I think we’ll be alright. I think it’s one of those things where nobody can really believe it happened.”
49 Responses to "Postgame: Span activated, Pridie optioned, Twins stunned"
Word.
It’ll be good to get Dizzy Span back. When we were kids we listened to Dizzy Dean broadcast games all the time. He is the one who said, “It ain’t bragging if you can do it.”
He also said once, “The doctors x-rayed my head and found nothing.”
Really! You could look it up if you want, it won’t hurt nothing.
What was your favorite 2009 Jason Pridie moment?
“Alright” isn’t really a word (last paragraph).
/pet peeve
This loss is on Gardy. You’ve got to pinch hit for Blackburn with a runner on and a one run lead in the eighth inning. Why not pinch hit Morales for Blackburn in the eighth instead of pinch hitting him for your hottest hitter in the ninth?
No, the loss is on Harris and even he admits it. Set and throw, the inning is over and Blackburn’s ill-advised throw never happens.
From the game story:
Harris took Kubel’s throw with enough time to get Hardy at home plate, but his throw was several feet up the first-base line.
“It’s kind of disappointing,” Harris said. “I should have made a better throw than that, but I got a little excited and pulled it a little bit.”
Harris didn’t get thrown under the bus. He stepped in front of the bus.
If Punto is at short and makes that poor throw, fans would be calling for his head on a platter this morning.
Welcome to life as a starting shortstop, Brendan.
Wow…Gardenhire sounding pretty defensive there. Maybe the “heat” of an underwhelming and mediocre season starting to get to him?
I mean, how could he possibly be surprised somebody would ask that question?
Blackburn needs to make a better pitch. Harris needs to make a better throw. Mauer can’t just wave at the ball and let it get by him. Blackburn has to make a better throw to 3B (or not throw it at all). Lots of opportunities to have that play not happen.
Where the !@#$ was the strike 3 call on Hardy in the 8th? Black threw a slider I think and the ump kinda flinched but did not call it. Next pitch he hits that bloop single. Sometimes I really wonder if these umps are paid off…
I was okay with leaving Blackburn in for the entire 8th inning and sure didn’t expect the ensuing plays. If I’m a ballplayer out there I would be scratching my head and thinking “what the hell just happened?” It’s a game that the Twins could have/should have won but we could also have scored a couple more runs and then it wouldn’t have come down to that last play.
How much are we paying Joe Nathan again to save games?
He entered the
nintheighth inning with 84 pitches.
When are the Twins going to go on that roll they keep talking about? I’m starting to think this isn’t even a .500 team but a .498 team.
We need Punto back at SS. He is the TEAM leader…….
Punto at SS……
“You can’t really seriously think we’re supposed to take him out”
um, i seriously think you’re supposed to take him out. and if the goal is to win ball games, i don’t think the idea of pinch hitting for blackburn in the top of the eighth with a one run lead is as ridiculous as gardy tries to make it sound.
With a 1-2 count in the bottom of the 8th, Blackburn threw what should have been called the third strike to J.J. Hardy, but unfortunately the ump bailed him out. Thanks a lot Jim Joyce.
the ump didn’t screw the Twin’s, their slumping offense and multitude of mistakes on one play beat them
Twin’s margin for error is razor thin when they can’t score more then 3 runs against a bum like Looper(5.16)
Gardy has a right to be cranky, but it isn’t as if Blackburn was throwing a 2-hitter. It is a legitimate question.
My first impression of the throw was if it would have been PERFECT, the runner would have slid under the tag. We have seen that quite a bit this season.
“It’s kind of disappointing,” Harris said. “I should have made a better throw than that, but I got a little excited and pulled it a little bit.”
You don’t normally here much from Harris in Twins articles, pretty good team guy if he steps up and takes the blame like this.
I think both Harris and Blackburn got a little too into the moment. Harris was wide on the through and Blackburn tried to overcompensate by throwing to 3rd.
What was Gardy thinking! You HAVE to pull these guys when they hit 100 pitches. You HAVE to turn the game over to the bullpen in this situation. Where was Ayala? I thought he wanted to be the 8th inning guy?
It’s definitely a legitimate question. I’ve said this before, but a guy like Kendall is a solid, veteran hitter who faced Blackburn 3 times before. It was going to be tough to fool him. It would’ve been worth bringing somebody in to throw something new at Kendall.
After the non strike call on Hardy, and after that garbage hit, that inning just started to have bad vibes.
Blackburn’s CG last week was with a cushion of a lead, against the Pirates, and at home. Completely different story.
Gardy’s answer to a legit question was BS. I don’t think he should be killed for leaving Blackie in, but i think it would have been legit to pull Blackie there. This is the man that pulled Santana from a 17 K game with a chance to tie history.
Right Juice. Too many mistakes on the play. It’s not pretty when the boys start throwing the ball all over the place. A bad pitch, an awkward bounce off the wall, the outfielders stumbled a little, throw to the relay man slightly off, the relay to home not perfect, not blocked cleanly, and then Gardy looked away and missed the best part, he said,lol.
I agree with Dick…No way Blackburn should be hitting in the 8th with a 1-run lead and a man on-base. Why do we have a BP or players on the bench? In the previous game, Gardy brings in Guerrier and Nathan with a 4-run lead?! I’m starting to think Gardy is losing it. Maybe the heat is getting to him
This team is going to need to score more runs pretty soon. Both Ms are slumping a bit at the moment and that alone is a recipe for some pretty suspenseful nights, even when the pitching is going well.
Dick says: “This loss is on Gardy. You’ve got to pinch hit for Blackburn with a runner on and a one run lead in the eighth inning. Why not pinch hit Morales for Blackburn in the eighth instead of pinch hitting him for your hottest hitter in the ninth?”
Great point!
If Guerrier comes in and blows the lead Gardy gets pounded for pulling Blackburn too soon. That is the nature of second guessing every single thing that a manager does. What if is a powerful thing.
I don’t think whichever direction Gardy would have decided to go would have been clearly “wrong” in that situation. A case can be made for either choice… letting Blackburn hit or PHing for him and bringing in Guerrier.
What IS certain is that no matter which decision he made, if it turned out badly for the Twins, he was going to get grilled in here this morning. I can just imagine the howling if he had PH for Blackburn (who was, you have to admit, on a pretty good roll… something like 7-8 outs in a row) and then Guerrier comes in and gives up even 1 run to tie the game.
I thought Gardy’s strong reaction to the question was mostly out of frustration. Of course the question was going to be asked and the press wouldn’t be doing their jobs if it wasn’t. But just because it’s a legit question doesn’t mean the decision itself was bad.
Good post, Jim C. But, the he!! with complete games from now on. Bert’s not calling the shots, use the bullpen.
if not for a long winning streak against the NL last year that team has a .500 record. this team has .500 record and it doesn’t appear any winning streak against the NL is happening to save them and it had a sub .500 in 07. that’s 2 1/2 yrs of .500 baseball.
why isn’t this team better? is it the wrong mix of players or is it gardy’s leadership?
imo, with the talent this team should be 5 gms ahead of the tigers not 5 gms behind.
“No, the loss is on Harris and even he admits it. Set and throw, the inning is over and Blackburn’s ill-advised throw never happens.
From the game story:
Harris took Kubel’s throw with enough time to get Hardy at home plate, but his throw was several feet up the first-base line.
“It’s kind of disappointing,” Harris said. “I should have made a better throw than that, but I got a little excited and pulled it a little bit.”
Harris didn’t get thrown under the bus. He stepped in front of the bus.
If Punto is at short and makes that poor throw, fans would be calling for his head on a platter this morning.
Welcome to life as a starting shortstop, Brendan.”
You are completely and totally wrong in blaming Brendan Harris. The runner was going to score regardless of his throw. Maybe one throw in ten gets the runner-maybe! The error should have been charged to Mauer who feebly attemtped a sweep tag without fielding the ball. If Mauer catches the one-hopper throw, he could have thrown the runner out attemtping to take third base. Harris had to rush his throw because the play wasn’t there. If he held unto the ball, Gardy would have blamed him for not trying to get the runner at home.
“Set and throw”. You are a fool if you think the SS can take time to do that on that play. If he does that, the runner is already standing on home plate. You must be drinking the Kool-Aid Gardy is serving Fran. Wake up!
The real problem is that there isn’t a setup guy to go to that is Nechek/Rincononjuice good to go to. Liriano should move to the pen and fill that role. Then the Twins should sign Pedro or let Swarzak fill the hole in the rotation left by our WORST starter.
Liriano should move to the pen and fill that role
Because he’s done so well under pressure this year?
Agree with C3POMAN. I felt the runner would have been safe on a good throw.
But take it easy on Fran, he’s still upset over the Brett Favre thing.
holy cow! a new post and we haven’t got this topic hashed out yet!
I’m sure part of the decision of leaving blackie in is simply that it looked like he could finish the inning, and they didn’t want to use the bullpen if they didn’t have to. Remember, we’ve only got 6 relievers right now, and a string of very hot games coming up that will really test our teams conditioning and endurance. Give the Pen a night off and they’ll be in much better shape for today’s game and this weekend.
No one could’ve seen that weird play coming though, strange things happen in baseball sometimes. We need to get our offense consistent to the point where a two run freak play doesn’t lose us the game. Mauer has only one hit in his last 9 plate appearances, Morneau has been slumping a bit lately, and we still are struggling horribly to get guys in once they do get on base.
If we get our offense clicking, a play like last nights will stop costing us games.
Maybe one throw in ten gets the runner-maybe!
LOL. Set and throw and the inning is over. Not a routine play, but one that a shortstop at any level absolutely has to make and way more often than one time in 10.
As Joe wrote: “Harris took Kubel’s throw with enough time to get Hardy at home plate, but his throw was several feet up the first-base line.”
Harris made a bad throw that cost his team the game and (to his credit) acknowledged it.
Your loyalty to him is admirable. It’s also ridiculous.
Anyone else tired of seeing Tolbert, the automatic out, in the lineup. During his final at-bat I kept saying to myself, the best we can hope for here is a BB or HBP…
You can’t tell me there’s not another player in the minor league system who could at least hit above .200 at the major league level.
CPAMAN — if there’s “no way” Harris can throw him out, then he should hold onto the ball to keep the runner from advancing.
And folks - blaming Gardy for two errors takes a bit of mental gymnastics worthy of Nadia Comaneci…
But take it easy on Fran, he’s still upset over the Brett Favre thing.
Harris’ throw was kind of Favre-like, now that you mention it.
Brett has to make good throws, even when he’s a bit rushed. Otherwise, he gets in trouble. Same goes for Brendan.
Brett Harris.
I like that.
But Span would have fielded the carom just as cleanly, made a perfect throw to Punto, who would have been set already, but not so far away from home, did the pivot/throw perfectly and Hardly would have been deda meat at home. oops, i started laughing.
we can bag on the throws until the cows come home. The key part of the play was the ball Kendall hit. Tough luck situation for Harris to not have a good throw and Blackie to make an ill advised throw. The hit is the key however.
Oh for the love of crap people…
It was a goofy loss, nothing more.
[JimCrikket @9:31] said it best… you can second guess everything until your blue in the face. Neither taking Nick out or leaving him in was a wrong choice and he was one out away from getting through the 8th…
In regards to the bizarre, yet crappy, finish… I didn’t think (and after seeing it again on replay), I still don’t think Harris could have gotten the runner at home…or maybe on the “perfect” throw but it was close regardless and throwing it home was the right thing to do. And of course, Blackburn should have never thrown the ball but everything was in the heat of the moment and crazy things happen in baseball.
Chalk this one up to one of those games in a 162-game season, you won’t see again.
You are completely and totally wrong in blaming Brendan Harris.
Harris is blaming HIMSELF! He’s doing what a good teammate does and stepping up to take the blame for a bad throw.
Let’s say Harris makes a good throw and still doesn’t get the runner. Guess, what….a good throw to Mauer means Kendall doesn’t advance to third.
So even IF Harris doesn’t get the runner, a good throw home doesn’t let the runner on 2nd advance to third.
Thus Blackburn (or a reliever) pitches with 2-out in a tie game with a runner on 2nd instead of a runner advancing to third and then home on a second bad throw.
Also, Fran’s assessment of fan loyalty in this is dead on. There WAS a similiar play earlier this year in which Punto made a throw that pulled Mauer off the bag and lead to a run.
Guess who was crucified for the next week because of it. Yep…Punto.
There’s enough blame to go around on the actual play–including two bad throws and a poor effort by Mauer–but I come back to this:
If Gardy had a pen he trusts, he most likely pinch hits for Blackburn in the top of the 8th, and we most likely aren’t having this conversation.
And that problem isn’t going away until Bill Smith at long last decides to make a legitimate attempt to do something about it, and throwing ever increasing levels of sh!t against the wall in the hopes something finally sticks isn’t a legitimate attempt.
The bullpen has been a sore spot for a year now.
“Lots of teams have bullpen problems” isn’t an excuse. I thought the idea was to be better than ‘lots of teams.’
Yes you can take him out. He’d had given up 11 hits already…It was time…So yeah you can take “blacky” out…(Why does everyone on the team have a nickname that ends in “Y”?? What are we a bunch of 10 year olds?)
