Greetings from Cleveland, where I’ve filed another dispatch from the ALCS and have turned my attention to the Rockies and Diamondbacks. This gives us a feel for what October baseball would be like at Twins home games after 2010.

Two words you don’t like hearing at a baseball game: wind chill.

A few regulars have complained about recent postings from the ALCS, saying they can get that information elsewhere and would prefer more updates on the Twins. This is probably a good time for a quick refresher.

We started these baseball blogs in February to enhance our regular coverage. My goal, for example, was to take you along for the ride during my endeavors as a ball writer. I’m on assignment at the ALCS, so I figured you’d like a few extra tidbits. Meanwhile, we’ve got La Velle monitoring the home front. If Twins news breaks during the ALCS, chances are you won’t see it on this blog first, but stay tuned with La Velle.

None of the blogs were meant to be a one-stop shop for all relevant Twins news. For that, we encourage you to visit our main Twins page, where you’ll find all of our print coverage (still the core of what we do) and links to each blog.
Those of you itching for Torii Hunter, Johan Santana and Carlos Silva updates … relax. We’re on top of it. There simply isn’t any news. The Twins will hold their organizational meetings this week in Fort Myers, Fla., and if news emerges, La Velle will have you covered. He and I are splitting up the offseason, with one of us monitoring the team each day.

Some of you are such hardcore fans that you might be interested in items – Arizona Fall League updates, various minor-league assignments, etc. – that aren’t reported here simply because our editors don’t feel they have relevance to the mass audience.

If you find interesting blurbs, feel free to post them here. The same goes for any big scoops you see on the Internet. That’s a benefit of having a blog, knowing readers can help reporters stay on top of everything.

Anyway, hopefully we’ve got a better understanding now and can get back to watching the playoffs. Some of us wait all year for this.

Baseball beat reporting has changed a lot since I started doing this in 1998. That year, when I covered the San Diego Padres en route to the World Series, I didn’t even have a computer with Internet access. These days, I feel clueless if I don’t spend an hour each morning scanning the web for baseball news.

This blog is my attempt to take you along with me, as I try to provide the Star Tribune with the best baseball coverage possible. When an interesting story catches my eye, I’ll give you the link. When I get a scoop, I’ll try to tell you here first. When I stumble upon some fun behind-the-scenes stories while checking in on the Twins and other teams in spring training, I’ll share them here. Occasionally, I’ll answer some of your most pressing questions, especially as the season gets under way.

As a traditionalist, I still hope my best work appears in our newspaper’s morning edition. But the beautiful thing about a blog, is I now have limitless space here and no real deadlines. My colleague, La Velle E. Neal III, has his own blog. He’s our main Twins beat writer, and trust me, he’ll keep things interesting over there.

I spend a lot of time around the Twins, too, but as our national writer, I need to keep an eye on developments around the game. Frankly, I could use your help. So fill up the comment section. Pitchers and catchers are reporting. Let’s get the ball rolling and have some fun!