Twins-Cleveland: Salvage a 5-2 road trip
Posted on August 29th, 2007 – 5:28 PMBy La Velle
Isn’t that funny to look at? If the Twins win today they’ll go 5-2 on this trip, yet the trip will be defined by what they failed to do in their head-to-head with the Indians.
They must win this game, then take three from the Tribe next week at the Dome - which may begin with another Santana-Sabathia showdown on Monday, so you may want to wander downtown.
Torii is beat up after crashing into the wall on Tuesday, but he’s not sitting this one out.
The Twins are very disappointed in Glen Perkins’ rehab outing on Tuesday for Class AA New Britain. In addition to giving up two homers and six runs, he failed to back up third on one play, failed to cover first on another, tipped his pitches and looked lethargic on the mound. He’s not getting activated anytime soon, based on that outing.
By the way, E-Town outfielder Ozzie Lewis has been named Appalachian League player of the year. He hit .325 with 9 homers and 50 RBI. It happened a few days ago, sorry.
Lineups
Twins: 1. Casilla, 2B. 2. Bartlett, SS. 3. Hunter, CF. 4. Morneau, 1B. 5. Cuddy, RF. 6. Rondell, DH. 7. Redmond, C. 8. Tyner, LF. 9. Punto, 3B. Pitching: Santana
Santana:1. Sizemore, CF. 2. Cabrera, SS. 3. Hafner, DH. 4. Martinez, C. 5. Garko, 1B. 6. Guiterrez, RF. 7. Lofton, LF. 8. Gomez, 2B. 9. Blake, 3B. Pitching: C.C.
247 Responses to "Twins-Cleveland: Salvage a 5-2 road trip"
Less than 50 plate appearances and Punto will qualify for the batting title!
And someone really needs to show Gardy how to use the internet. He could look up that Kubel is a better hitter, regardless of pitcher’s handedness, than Tyner or Rondell.
Much rather have Kubel in the DH spot tonight than RonDL. I’m a Tyner fan so always happy to see him contribute to the lineup. Go Twins!
C’mon everybody lets start with the whining about Punto in the lineup. It wouldn’t be a gameday on a Twins Blog without incessant whining and complaining about Nick Punto!!!!
whining about him won’t do any good, the Twins are going to play him no matter what.
Johan, great start! Considering we are going to have a tough time scoring one run against CC, let alone two, it is a bad feeling when you allow two runs before getting anybody out.
Horrible job by Santana. What is he doing?
Here we go again.. 2 to 0 in the first inning. I can’t wait for the twins to expand their lineup so they don’t have to play the same old retreads every game.
Steve,
Do you blame everyone for complaining about Punto and his significant playing time?
Santana looks awful.
Maybe there should be a limit on Punto comments. I’ll get the is out of the way now for EVERYONE so we can spend the night on other things. If Punto does anything dumb, don’t say anything, just refer to this post!
Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto!
Darn Punto! Darn Punto! Darn Punto!
Oh boy, this is going to be a long game if Santana can’t find the strike zone.
Santana, could you possibly look any worse? Wow, this is absolutely pathetic from your ace.
The beginning of every game of this series has been so repetitive….and sickening.
This is bad. Isn’t Santana supposed to be the ace? He looks nothing like one tonight.
Of course when the hitting has gotten slightly better the pitching starts slumping. That isn’t going to win games.
This series has shown what this season has been about…inconsistency.
When the Twins get great pitching, they can’t hit…when they hit, they can’t pitch.
Add in the fact that your ace is getting shelled, and it puts the season pretty much in a nutshell…that it’s over.
I’d like to disagree but it has been the pattern all year.
Nora,
Disagree on what?
That the season is over?
The carnage continues. Santana has absolutely nothing tonight.
This has gone beyond pathetic. Johan, you look like Sidney Ponson tonight.
Twins have no business playing this bad. The fans should boycot the rest of the season and let the twins play in front of empty seats. This team is very overmatched.
I don’t disagree. I try to remain a positive fan (rare indeed here) but I can’t anymore. To have a even an inkling chance they have to win this game and it is not looking good.
Twins are not overmatched if Santana pitched well, he isn’t so he is getting hit.
so much for the cy young…
Johan’s consecutive streak of 5+ innings may be in jeopardy…as is any chance of him winning another Cy Young.
C’mon everybody lets start with the whining about Punto in the lineup. It wouldn’t be a gameday on a Twins Blog without incessant whining and complaining about Nick Punto!!!!
I believe my negativity was directed towards the craptacular Tyner and White.
On the positive side, my hopes for the Twins are not diminished…
…but my hopes for the Twins were always on what they can do in 2008, with Santana, a more experience Garza and Francise coming back off of elbow surgery.
Kevin,
Why would you ignore Punto also?
I mean, Tyner isn’t “that” bad…he’s hitting .300 coming into this game!!!!
funny how people in here jump all over a 2 time cy young award winner because of a bad start..
Cy Young? Cy Young? (in my best Jim Mora intonation) :p
i agree Rick, i said to myself at the start of the year to not get beat up over a bad team because 2008 is gonna be their year but in light of all the craptastic performances they turned in its pretty hard to stay positive…
Nico,
What makes you think 2008 is going to be any better?
The fact that Liriano is back?
Well, you can’t count on Liriano returning to pre tommy john surgery form his 1st year back. I would like it but can’t count on it.
Where was that pitch?
I am also not convinced that in 2007 they could do much damage in the playoffs if they make it, but 2008 has some possibilities to emerge strong and go deep,… (just my opinion)
Rick N.,
I am asking…based on what?
What, in 2008, are they going to have that’s such an improvement over what they have in 2007?
With Tyner manning the DH position fulltime next year this team is primed to kill the ball.
Liriano being back, young starters with more experience, nathan and santana in contract year poised to put up huge numbers, kubel finally getting a league average BABIP, mauer/cuddyer staying healthy, casillia easily replacing castillo with more experience
good enough for an answer Erik?
Before 2007 they were fishing for starting pitching (Ponson and Ortiz)…
Before 2008 it will be hitting. Neither is desirable, but pitching is harder to find and a lot more risky…
mh, yeah this isn’t exactly just any average game during the season. It is a huge game and when your ace gives up 4 runs in the first inning, you bet it is huge.
Nico,
No, that’s not a good enough answer.
You shouldn’t be banking on Liriano being back. The guy is coming off of Tommy John surgery…it usually takes close to two years for a pitcher to completely return from it.
Young starters with more experience or not…knowing this organization, they’ll go out and sign a guy like Kip Wells to take over one of those spots. Great pitching or not, you need to score runs.
Contract years are overrated…ask Andruw Jones.
Kubel still won’t get regular playing time because Ron Gardenhire doesn’t know how to manage.
What, in 2008, is going to make Mauer and Cuddyer stay healthy? Cuddyer had one 15-day DL stint this year…he’s been healthy besides that. Is Mauer suddenly going to become made of steel and become not capable of staying healthy? Injuries happen…it’s not like it changes on a yearly basis.
So you get out of Casilla what you got out of Castillo…is that really going to improve this offense to where it’s better than it’s been this year?
Rick N.,
Have you seen the “hitters” this organization has signed over the last few years to come in and “help” them?
Yeah, not going to happen.
Dare I say LNP is worthless at the plate. Lets see how low Gardy will let his avg. plummet before he sits him down to protect him from an absolutely horrible batting avg.
Erik, Liriano will have had 1 1/2 years of recovering from TJ, and hes obviously not your regular pitcher, but yes, this one has to do a little bit with “hope”…you mightve heard of it.
As much as i understand your feelings for TR and his love for veteran pitchers, he simply did not have anyone with even remote major league experience to plug into the holes he had to fill this year, thereby making trades necessary. he doesnt have that excuse next year because garza and baker have finally proven that they belong and slowey managed to pick up some starts.
id like to present subject #2, Mr. Torii Hunter regarding the value of contract years
there will be new young guys for gardy to pick on next year, so maybe, maaayyybeee Kubel wont be his punching bag anymore
obviously injuries happen, but Mauers oblique injury still lingers robbing him of all the little power he has (he said so himself)
casillas BA is not as empty as castillos cause he at least has a double every 200 ABs, plus he has speed, something castillo has totally lost on the metrodome turf and yes, its gonna improve the offense if 7 of your 9 hitters actually manage a hitting value better than replacement level (casilla, bartlett, mauer, cuddy, morneau, hunter(yeah, still hoping), kubel)
Nico,
While it’s obvious Liriano was a special talent pre-TJ surgery, you should never anticipate a guy coming back from TJ surgery and producing at a similar level he was before it. It just doesn’t happen…at least not right away.
Did Justin Verlander or Jeremy Bonderman have any experience before they were plugged into the Tigers rotation? No. That’s what is wrong with this organization and why they’re currently 7.5 games out of first. I realize the offense has been horrible, but the Twins gave 17 starts to two replacement level pitchers, and it cost them. You shouldn’t need “experience” to earn a spot in starting rotation.
Contract years are what they are…they’re a crapshoot. You’ll have your players like Hunter who have good years, and you’ll have guys like Andruw Jones who struggle. I tend to think, and many people would agree, that a player usually regresses, or rises up to the mean. That’s usually how it happens.
What new guys? Denard Span? Matt Tolbert? Right.
I thought it was Mauer’s quad injury that was affecting his power…not his oblique. I could be wrong though. Either way, you can’t expect Mauer, or any player for that matter, to suddenly become injury free over the span of a year.
So you’ll have Casilla, Bartlett, Mauer, Cuddyer, Morneau, Kubel, and MAYBE Hunter. Those haven’t been the issues this year…sure, some of those guys haven’t produced to the level that one would hope, but that doesn’t make up for the lack of production from the DH and 3b spots…positions you NEED production from.
There’s just no reason why I think 2008 is going to be any significant improvement where it’s going to be “the year” for this organization.
Don’t be messin’ with Santana. He’s just posturing for contract leverage.
Man, Morneau is really struggling.
Erik, if you’re that convinced the Twins cannot improve next year, you ought to find a new team to root for. I do think Liriano will be an improvement to the staff. Mauer is closer to a .340 hitter then a .300 hitter. I’d like to think Mourneau will be able to avoid going 6 week with 1 HR next year. The offense from the 3B position almost has to improve dramatically no matter what they do. Hopefully Kubel will be better, can he be worse? The production at DH also has to be better, again, how could they really make it worse?
A further point is that unlike last year’s team, this team doesn’t have anyone having ‘career’ years that they won’t be able to repeat with the possible exception of Hunter. Virtually all of the other positions should be able to maintain or improve thier offensive output next year.
Gee, I wonder if any Indian hitters will get hit tonight. Uh, probably not. They’ll “get” plenty of hits though…
howeda7,
So because I question the direction of the organization, and because I’m not an optimistic rube means I should find myself a new team to root for?
Typical.
I never said Liriano wouldn’t be an improvement…but I’m not going to bet on a pitcher coming off of perhaps the most significant arm surgery in the game and think he’s going to provide the production he did for the club in 2006. The likelihood of that happening just isn’t good.
I agree that Mauer is close to a .340 hitter than a .300 hitter…but once again, Mauer isn’t the main issue with this offense. Has he regressed from 2006? Of course…but he’s still been very solid, and is the least of the offensive issues.
Morneau’s HR drought was a fluke…he has also regressed…but who’s to say that he’s not a .280 hitter compared to a .320 hitter that he was a year ago?
The third base position will improve based on what? Punto still getting everyday AB’s? As long as Ron Gardenhire is the manager, he’s still going to find ways to get Nick Punto AB’s…and that’s not good for any offense.
I am one of the biggest Kubel supporters…he should get better…IF he gets consistent playing time and backing from the manager…which he has not. Sitting him against a lefty like Sabathia is wrong IMO. He NEEDS to play…he’s an everyday player. Stop handling these guys with baby gloves.
The DH production…you ask how they can make it worse…how can they make it better? Have they made it better over the last few years?
If you think Baby J is a consistent 340 hitter…..well anyways …good to have him in the lineup for the biggest series of the year…Mr. March.
I, too, believe 2008 could be a big year, but the Twins have to upgrade to at least an average third baseman and a DH who can stay healthy all year. If Torii leaves, that leaves a huge hole.
Liriano can’t be counted on for next year. He may be healthy, but how long will it take him to regain his sharpness? And will the Twins try to alter his delivery to get rid of that whipping motion when he throws his slider?
It looks like we’re back to taking up a collection to buy a run.
Erik,
You have the most negative attitude I’ve ever seen … are you a displaced Red Sox fan circa 2003?
Who could have seen significant improvement from 2006 first half to 2006 second half? Who could have seen sig. imp. from 2000 to 2001?
Who could have seen 90 to 91?
LEN3,
Those questions, and issues you bring up are HUGE issues. The Cuddyer’s, Mauer’s, & Morneau’s aren’t the problem…it’s the lack of production and gaping holes that are the 3b and DH spots…and like you said, if Hunter leaves, that opens up another HUGE hole.
There are just way too many questions regarding the offense…again. And that’s why it’s tough to be optimistic about 2008.
Will the pitching be good? Yes…probably very good. But it’s been very solid this year with the exception of the 17 starts given to the -VORP pitchers. That still hasn’t or doesn’t make up for the lack of run production.
With the way TR has approached free agency over the years, who says he’s going to upgrade the 3b and DH positions? And with the way he covets his pitching prospects, who’s to say he’s going to ship off a Slowey to get a guy like Edwin Encarnacion (Just an example).
while its obvious that TJ is a major surgery, guys DO come back from it rather regularily without any further problems, sometimes even stronger
verlander was a premium #1 round pick who got a 3mill signing bonus with a pedigree that was much higher than any of the twins pitchers and was basically expected to perform like he did. i know that #1 round picks dont always pan out, but the talent level at those prices is alot higher than what the twins can pay
there will be new guys in the clubhouse, simply because we are gonna ‘lose’ some players to FA, and if its Span and he doesnt produce, Kubel is practically off the hook
you were right about Mauers quad, and no, you cant expect them to become injury free, but it seems like this particular injury hurt him alot more than anything else because hes basically jason tyner behind the plate right now.
if you check the twins VORP right now, theres 5 batters in the double digits (M&M, cuddy, torii, bartlett) and everyone else at replacement level which basically means that if those guys dont produce, we may aswell go home after the 1st (exactly whats happening right now)
if we manage to even the levels out, we should produce alot more consistently
plus we’re getting alot better production from CF and C than most of the league which means that CF and C are basically our DH and 3B spots and vice versa. just cause theyre named otherwise doesnt make em less important.
Wobble….does it ever get old watching this, or do you have to detach yourself to be objective??
Josh,
There’s a difference between negative and realism.
If you knew me, you’d know that I’m the biggest Twins fan around…but I’m also a realist…and right now, looking at the holes the Twins face going into 2008, it doesn’t give me the optimism to claim that 2008 could be “the year.”
Erik, you are allowed to disagree, I simply meant it must be hard to support a team if you feel it is THAT far away from competing. For example, I find it hard to be a Vikings fan right now. Doesn’t mean I stop rooting for them, but I’m not optimisitic about them, and it makes it harder.
Even if Liriano is 75% of what he was last year, that is still probably a positive addition to the rotation.
Mourneau probably is closer to a .280 hitter then .320, but I also think he will eventually hit for power more consistantly and break the 40 HR barrier.
With how bad Punto has been, how could 3B not improve significantly. Do you not think they will find a 3B who will at least hit .250 with moderate power? Buscher should be good for those #’s even if they don’t acquire anyone. Heck, I would like to think that even if they run Punto back out there next year (shudder the thought) that he will hit at least .250. The same goes for the DH spot.
Nico,
While the success rate of TJ surgery is very high these days, it still doesn’t makes sense to bank on a guy coming off of it just a year and a half ago. I never said Liriano wouldn’t be the same…I have said that I’m not going to bank on him coming back, in 2008, and being the same pitcher…or anything quite similar.
The point I was making with Verlander and Bonderman is that you don’t, or shouldn’t need experience to win a starting spot…ESPECIALLY when you are the superior player/pitcher, which is exactly what Garza, Baker, and Perkins were…and instead, the Twins went with Ponson and Ortiz…for much more money.
It’s tough being a catcher playing with a bum quad…but once again, it doesn’t make you invisible from getting injured again. Injuries happen…they just do.
So we’re getting more production from the CF and C positions than most people…I don’t see that making this offense better, do you? They’re still a average-to-mediocre-to-bad offensive team…the production that the Twins are getting from Hunter and Mauer isn’t making up for the lack of production they’re getting from the Punto’s, & White’s of the team.
Trust me, I’m a huge Twins fan…that’s obvious. However, the 2008 season just offers too many questions to be a complete optimist.
I’ve turned away from Erik’s posts in the past, but I think he’s being more realistic than negative.
You guys need a real 3B. I think you continue to let Kubel develop in left field. Gotta get a real DH. They really need a professional hitter who can move runners over and have productive outs.
I’d like to see Hunter, Cuddyer, Mauer and Morneau together for one more year.
LEN3,
Thanks. I don’t want to be the negative village member, or the guy that tries to stir the pot all the time.
But I’m really just trying to remain a realist right now…and it’s tough to be optimistic about the 2008 club when you’ve got the question marks that the Twins do.
Right now, there’s no reason why Kubel & Buscher shouldn’t be playing everyday. They are future players with this club while a guy like Rondell White, and probably Nick Punto aren’t…at least Punto isn’t an everyday player. Yet the manager and GM of this club just don’t know when to cut bait with certain guys…and that’s why it makes things so frustrating.
This has been a frustrating year for everyone I am sure…
And there you go again…another horrific AB for Punto.
BTW, a question for LEN3…any word on whether the organization is going to send some guys from the GCL Twins to Beloit and/or Ft. Myers now that they’re season is done?
Punto’s ABs make me chickle anymore. Hard to play 8 guys vs. 9
What’s the contract status for Bartlett, Kubel, Tyner, etc… meaning not the obvious guys that have been in the contract spotlight? I’m just curious is all.
Nice night for Casilla.
Just let the kid play through his mistakes…he needs to learn and grow.
Control is one of the last things to come back from TJS, as well as the bite on breaking pitches. What does Liriano need to be successful? Control of his FB and his slider. He’s a lefty with good velocity and a decent change, so he’ll probably be slightly better than league average his first year back from TJS, but you probably don’t want him throwing 180 innings either.
Pitching will be the least of the Twins problems next year.
This whole, “you’re negative” because we have the ability to separate homerism from reality is absurd.
Sabathia’s pitch count is getting up there.
theres no ‘banking’ on one guy who projects to be your #5 starter post TJ for a year now that we have garza, baker and boof producing, but i do expect him to be part of the rotation which really doesnt strike me as that unrealistic
the thing about mauers quad injury isnt any problems defensively, but that he doesnt do what he did best last year, namely hitting for XBH power. he has single digit extra bases after the allstar break imho which is not acceptable if (and thats the next point you had included) he’s really supposed to hit like your DH or 3B in a C’s disguise.
my point on the whole CF/C to DH/3B thing was that the roles are basically reversed on the team, meaning we get CF/C production from DH/3B and DH/3B production from our CF/C position which makes us league average with room for improvement (i still think Kubel would be better suited for the DH spot, even though i like him defensively in LF)
Wow..Bases loaded against Sabathia. Come on twins, show us you have a pulse and some heart in this game.
Twins have a chance right now to get back into this.
anyways, i expect to the bullpen to be our real problem next year, simply because i dont think you want any of the guys in there in remotely close games except for guerrier (who HAS to regress, i doubt hes that good) and neshek (who just cant throw 150 innings a year to save us)
Hunter and Morneau continue to not come up with a clutch hit to save their lives.
i dont know if it just me but was the ump tying to show up justin i didn’t like how he called strike three if i was justin
Hey mf,
Jason and Jason are in 0 to 3 stage, while Jason is arbitration eligible after the season.
michelle, that is Hunter Wendelstedt’s third strike call. He has been doing it all season long.
That is the umps way of telling Morneau to grab some bench. If you don’t swing the ump punches you out.
ha! at La Velle
Thanks LEN3!
Tyner is the arbitration case 
Are there any big bats the Twins can pick up in the off season without giving up too much pitching. In other words, sign someone to a 2-3 year contract outright.
Hey mf,
Jason and Jason are in 0 to 3 stage, while Jason is arbitration eligible after the season.
Tyner has to be the pre-arb, counting his time with the Rays, or it maybe Kubel who’s time counted while he was on the 60 day DL…
Agh, either way, we’re stuck with Tyner for years. 
I would like to know just who has enrolled Morneau in LNP’s hitting school?
Nobody, LNP has infected the whole team it seems.
This game isn’t over, folks. C.C.’s pitch count is getting up there. Johan has to hold it at four runs, and the Twins have to jump on Betancourt/Perez in the eighth and Borowski in the ninth…
jumping on Perez, very funny LEN
100 pitches and RonDL 2 bagger….. ya never know
Borowski must be getting saves with 3 run leads cause his era is 5. That will catch up with cleavland when it really counts for them.
This game isn’t over, folks. C.C.’s pitch count is getting up there. Johan has to hold it at four runs, and the Twins have to jump on Betancourt/Perez in the eighth and Borowski in the ninth…
You’re referring to the fact Borowski’s ERA might be a tad high? As Jon Kruk or Steve Phillips might say, “He gets the job done.”
Yes, look at that the amazing RonDL has once more come through for the team. Makes his two million dollar salary seem to be quite the bargain.
Man..RonDL can run shen he wants to. Good job Ron.
borowskis splits are something like ERA around 3 in saves situations and around 15 in non-save games, i think that explains his high era and still few blown saves
I love having Redmond on this team. He is tough.
I’ll take my chances with Borowski ANY night. He’s not a closer….
need a hit LNP
I’ll take my chances with Borowski ANY night. He’s not a closer….
His clutchness and grittiness are off the scales though.
but… didn’t get one
LNP, give me one good reason why you are swinging at a 2-0 pitch when CC’s pitch count is over 100. There is absolutely no excuse for that unless you are going to at least make solid contact, which you didn’t.
That’s 3.76 ERA in save situations, which is still high.
La Velle, we still have to get within one before the 9th though I think. I wouldn’t be surprised to see CC come back out for the 7th inning, even with 109 pitches.
Santana did keep his streak of 5 or more IP alive
LEN3,
Have you heard what the Twins org. is going to do with the GCL Twins players?
They seemed to get two off Borowski fairly easily last night. Perhaps keeping it close might leave the opening for a comeback. Provided the right people come up.
Where was that 1-1 pitch to Lofton?
It doesn’t get any better than that.
My gosh.
That’s 3.76 ERA in save situations, which is still high.
At this point, the only spot for Borowski is closer if you want him on your team. He can’t pitch multiple innings like a long reliever. Also I wouldn’t want him pitching in situations with runners on, or if he’s not starting the inning. He’s Bob Wickman without the belly and god-awful goatee.
yikes…really doesnt make me feel all that good to see rincon warming in the pen anymore…
Great job by Johan after that rough first.
Erik, I won’t have that answer for you until tomorrow. I wouldn’t expect too many to be moved up
Just a hunch, and I know it makes me negative, but there’s not way Castillo gets to Gomez’s grounder.
Why does Casilla get the bunt signal after being 3 for 3 tonight? Are you joking Gardenhire?
I can’t believe that LNP (123) is 3rd in games played on the is team behind Hunter (130) and Morneau (127). That says a lot about why this team is 7.5 (soon to be 8.5) games back in a mediocre AL central.
Austin,
I assume Casilla attempted that bunt on his own.
Typical Hunter at-bat tonight. Well at least we see that you have the grounder to SS down Torii!
Erik, that could very well be and that would be a sign of inexperience.
Austin,
Or the fact that Casilla thought he could utilize his bunting abilities to get on base.
It’s a crapshoot…if he gets on, great…if he doesn’t, like he did, it becomes a huge mistake.
Hindsight is 20/20.
i agree erik. I don’t think gardy manages every at bat, only certain situations. I think gardy lets the hitter make the decision more than we think. Not saying that is always good, but i think that is how he handles his players.
With Ortiz in Colorado can we call Juan “The White Flag?”
Rincon sounds similar to ra-MOAN
and that is what he reminds me of lately
BT,
We also know that Gardy allows guys, like Tyner, Casilla, etc, to decide when they steal or not.
Erik- The one reason I have to disagree with that is because he was 3 for 3 prior to that point. It wasn’t like he was struggling from the plate. He has been stroking the ball. Hopefully that was just Casilla on his own and hopefully he will learn from it.
Good outing for Rincon.
erik, i know. I don’t always think it is good though. what bugs me is that gardy expects casilla to always make the right decision but still gives him free reign to make his own choices. I think you have to take away some freedom from those young players to keep them from making those mistakes that can kill a rally (caught stealing 3B with 2 outs)
Austin,
That’s fine.
Sometimes a player gets a feeling that they can get a bunt down…it happens…and it’s going to happen with a guy like Casilla.
It comes with the package.
This is why Gardy doesn’t play Kubel, Buscher or other lefties. So they can pinch hit in the 8th or 9th.
One at-bat >>>> A game full of at-bats.
no kidding. i would rather have punto get 4 AB than have Buscher have to face a LHP. I just hate that about gardy.
Typical Morneau as of late. He looks the least bit like an MVP this season during the stretch drive.
BT,
The issue with how Gardy has handled Casilla is that he tends to not allow him to learn on the fly…this whole benching/fining thing is a bit ridiculous.
I wonder if Bartlett got fined for his errors over the last two games…he obviously didn’t get suspended. If he’s going to get on one player for “mistakes,” it makes sense to hold everyone accountable.
Casilla needs to play 2b and leadoff everyday from ehre on out. He’s at the point where the Twins need to see what he’s got…and benching him, playing him sparingly for guys like Punto isn’t the right way to do it.
Morneau isn’t seeing the baseball well lately…not at all. Yikes.
not as much as I hate Morneau looking at strike 3 (again) and just strutting back to the dugout.
KeVin,
The whole “protecting our young left handed hitters against tough left handed pitchers” is ridiculous.
When do you expect these guys to learn to hit left handed hitters? During BP? Wrong.
Let them play…stop giving AB’s to Punto and White, which should be looked upon as “stealing.”
Erik, I can completely understand that if there was an out or two in that inning, but I don’t think you wanna waste a first out on that. Especially if you were 3 for 3 prior to that at-bat. That must mean that you were swinging the bat pretty well, as Casilla was tonight.
So can we DH Kubel for White please?
Nice at-bat by Cuddy. Too bad that the pitcher was backing up the wild throw at third. We gotta get this run in here.
Erik, I am with you here. Why is Kubel not entering the game right now?
Austin,
Attempting to bunt for a hit with two outs is the worst thing he could have done.
Once again…why isn’t Kubel PH’ing for White here?
casilla does need to learn on the fly, TR forced that on everyone when he dealt castillo. Lets tighten the reigns on him a little and make him take signs and such instead of benching of him when he makes a mistake. Playing in fear of getting benched does not help young dynamic players like casilla. how about sliding punto some pine for not being able to hit anything!
So why is a guy like Jason Kubel on this team?
KeVin,
The whole “protecting our young left handed hitters against tough left handed pitchers” is ridiculous.
When do you expect these guys to learn to hit left handed hitters? During BP? Wrong.
Let them play…stop giving AB’s to Punto and White, which should be looked upon as “stealing.”
You have no idea who I am do you? I was being sarcastic. Compare Rocketpig’s forumn activity tonight compared to here. You’ll see who I am.
Rondell with the HUGE RBI.
I assume Gardy’s going to use Cali to start the bottom 8th…no?
KeVin,
No, I know who you are…trust me “wan.”
I was agreeing with you.
Looking ahead, the good news is that Punto gets to bat in the 9th. Sarcasm intended.
gardy gives guys like rondell and punto waaayyy too much rope. why can’t he pull the plug on those guys? I was chuckling last night when rondell hit for punto. I was thinking only the twins can have a guy hitting .159 (white) hitting or a guy hitting .198 (punto).
BT,
It’s the veteran presence.
Gardy loves the veteran presence.
Looking ahead, the good news is that Punto gets to bat in the 9th. Sarcasm intended.
I put that’s going to be a battle of titans, JoBo versus Punto…
Not sure why it didn’t post.
How do you italicize with these blogs?
Please tell me that Neshek or Guerrier is going to be brought in rather than Cali.
Why Rincon Gardenhire?
boy, using rincon for another inning is really pushing your luck
How do you italicize with these blogs?
HTML tags, without spaces.
Again Gardy is making bad decisions on the bullpen this roadtrip. This is not the time to rest your best relievers. This is an important game!
hate to see a second inning by Rincon
[i]So like this?[/i]
Or like this?
Holy Crap, I can just see it now when Autism is ready for bed tonight and is writing in his little diary: Dear Diary, I, for the life of me, don’t know why little Casilla bunted tonight. Give it a rest.
do you think Cleveland feels comfortable throwing borowski out there with a 5.64 era? how does a guy get 38 saves with that era.
Ok Bob Barber, I thought it was already past an old man’s bedtime.
BT- Yeah I actually do think Cleveland feels confident. We will find out tonight if Rincon can get this last out.
can’t we all just get along?
Don’t you mean your old man’s? If it were, I’m sure you’d be snuggled up with him.
$100 says Borowski shuts down the Twins offense tonight.
Any takers?
Austin, they shouldn’t feel that confident considering what happened the day before.
Erik, I don’t think you are gonna get any takers around here.
Here comes Borowski…to a very lukewarm reception!
i would not call tyner, punto, casilla offense. Offensive maybe, but not offense.
I won’t take the bet. he seems like he can shut the door when needed.
Nora- It is a completely different ballgame when you enter the 9th with a one run lead compared to a three run lead.
Here comes Borowski…to a very lukewarm reception!
He’s not getting the “Joba” reception? Surprise, surprise.
Please say someone, anyone, will PH for Punto…
Bob Barker, if you really feel the need to sleep with my dad, then go right ahead. I always knew there was something wrong with you.
Kevin I would hope that we would see Buscher batting second this inning.
we are down by one run, but it seems like 10 for some reason
This has to be rally time!
No thanks Autism, Your Mom was enough.
I swear…if Punto bats this inning…
is it mauer’s night to pull a kirk gibson?
Bob Barker, that wasn’t my mom, it was your own.
Twins will pinch hit for Punto Right?
Now you might have to bunt with LNP and go from there.
Len B. is still funny.
Um, really good time to PH for Punto. Kubel would be a good choice.
I can’t bring myself to like someone with so little power, such an awful OBP, and such awful outfield routes. So here’s to Jason Tyner.
AGH, &#%&*%_#%&*#_%&#!!! Punto is hitting.
Gardy had better plan on bunting Punto here.
God he is absolute horrible
you have to be kidding me. it isn’t like he has done a good job of bunting
can he get it down? ugh nope
Damn it Punto you are horrible!
So you PH Buscher for Casilla but not for Punto?
What a freakin’ joke.
my god! enough already. he has to go. COME ON GARDY!
I think Autism and Punto are related.
Are you kidding me? They pinch hit for Casilla but not Punto?
La Velle, please, please, please, please tell Gardy to stop playing Punto.
PLEASE.
you know, im really at a loss of words right now, what the …. is goin on in gardys mind at this point?
[IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW ANGRY YOU ARE. THERE’S NO SWEARING ON THIS BLOG]
It is like Punto is trying to be this bad!
Well that is typical. Way to go boys, you come into the most important series of the season down 5.5 out and you leave 8.5 out.
i love gardy, he used to shop in my store, but seriously….. punto cannot bunt from the left side…. then they go Buscher instead of a guy who went 3 for 4 or Kubel…..
A joke.
Complete joke.
How much worse can Punto get? How much worse can Gardenhire get?
Gardy is to blame here. You can’t have players in your starting lineup who only perform in one area of the game.
we don’t deserve to win when you let punto hit in the 9th. he can’t hit or bunt. let buscher and casilla play every day and see if they can help in 08.
turn out the lights the party is over. I don’t want to hear any of this BS about if we sweep KC and Cleveland we can be right back in it. not happening
wow, how much worse can this get….. punto is the worst player in baseball. period.
Yes Coomer, continue to make excuses for Punto.
Punto sucks…stop trying to make excuses for the bum.
Ok, if Punto gets the bunt down, a grounder isn’t a double play and we get one more AB,…
at least i won’t have to plan life around watching the games as much. Can get yardwork done, lift weights…. etc…. oh well. Gophers v Ball St. Saturday
Exactly they pinch hit for a guy who had 3 hits but lets Punto bunt away. There is absolutely no logic to that. Same with Rincon for a 2nd inning it worked but that was luck.
LEN3, I know you don’t want to get fired, but at some point you have to go into the post-game interview and ask the manager what every fan wants to know and that is “Why is Punto in the lineup and how many times are you going to let him burn you by not getting the easy sac bunt down before you decide to stick him on the bench, where he should be?”
…one more AB may not of one this game, but still I feel a little cheated.
LNP/LVP
Anybody think a petition should be started to have Gardenhire committed? The only possible explanation of leaving Punto (0 for 10 for this series) in and then pinching hitting for Cassila (3 for 4 tonight) has to be that he has lost his mind. Perhaps Gardenhire has mad cow disease and is no longer responsible for his actions. Maybe he is hearing voices, which tell him to “Play Punto, have Punto bunt when the game is on the line, always have Punto in the line up”.
Whatever the reason, something surely must be done to stop this insanity.
I don’t think this is Gardy’s best year. I still repect him for winning several division titles, but I think he owes the fans an explanation for this most recent quizical set of decisions.
Hey, I am easy. I would be happy if he just said I made a mistake and thought Punto was over his bunting woes…
Completely embarassing that Punto is still in the lineup. He has popped up on bunt attempts at least 4 times this year.
Forget the fact that he didn’t get it down, it shouldn’t be an issue because he shouldn’t be in the majors.
Odds that we see a piece about Punto being fined???
Oh wait, that won’t happen. This team only publicly chastises young players, not gritty veterans.
I could manage this team to a division title if it had an MVP, Batting Champ, Cy Young, and a bunch of overachievers on it.
you know, its kinda ironic cause ive always tried to defend gardy so far but i think i just lost all the respect i had for the man in a single inning
i dont think theres a reasonable explanation of what gardy tried to do here when he had guys sitting on the bench who could win the game with a single swing
LEN3, please asked the ? Austin mentioned…the paying public deserve to know why Punto continues to get chance after chance & Gardy owes an explanation. Why should anyone show up @ their stupid ceremony tomorrow or games in the future when we have to put up with McSuckin (from byto.com) at 3rd base? PLEASE ASK THE QUESTION or at least ask rhetorically in your STrib column.
It started with Gardy not PH’ing Kubel for White in the 8th.
I mean, why is Kubel on the bench, or on this team, if he’s not going to hit in that situation?
Season Bertin’ over! Gardy will not pinch hit for himself (Punto) so we get to watch the entirely predictable result. TR needs to either fire Gardy or trade Punto because Gardy refuses to not play himself (Punto) if he is available. I hate to say it but the best thing Nick could do for the team this season is step off the curb wrong and break his ankle and go on the DL the remainder of the year. As long as he is available, Gardy will play him and he will be Bertin’ bad on offense.
Maybe Gardy left in Punto to hit in order to prove some sort of point to Terry Ryan?
Nah, nevermind.
You have to love Steve’s post (third post of the night) in light of the game developments. HAH! That idiot has to be Gardy’s wife…has to be! The moron comes on here each night, leaves one post calling everyone on here either an idiot or a moron for being critical of Terry Ryan, Gardenhire, or PUNTO (???) then scurries away back into the shadows of hence he came. He demonstrated tonight though who the true idiot is, that’s for sure.
I am so interested in reading the game story/notes tonight.
La Velle will never ask Gardy why he’s such an assclown when it comes to Punto because it was La Velle a few years back that asked that twit why he doesn’t put a horribly ineffective Joe Mays in the bullpen. That was the instance when Gardy made talk-show fodder for two days by replying “We don’t do things like that around here.” That’s because Gardy thinks that he’s managing his kid’s little league team where you make sure you get everyone in the game and everyone has a good ‘ole time and go out for ice cream cones after the game. I and a few others on here have always been in the minority when opining that Gardenhire is NOT a big league manager…nor will he ever be. He was a guy who got an opportunity, which had never come previously, to manage this team because the team was going to be contracted–no one else was going to take the job. He has made one asinine decision upon another and like Forrest Gump stumbles upon fortunate circumstances (e.g., playing in a division whereby you can expect one team or another — Royals, White Sox, Tigers — to completely collapse down the stretch on an annual basis) just to turn around in the postseason and demonstrate how over-his-head he truly is. There was no better example of this than last season when his club (the proverbial choke-artists they are in high-pressure situations) got SWEPT by a team in the playoffs by a team that got swept in a four-game series in the ALCS by a team that got swept by the KC Royals in the last must-have series of the year, then accordingly, got beat four games to one by the St. Louis Cardinals. The man is nothing more than a bowling-alley loitering piece of white-trash who had to buy a copy of “Baseball Managing for Dummies” at Roseville’s Har-Mar Barnes and Noble just to get him through each game. Anyone who wants to defend this man’s coddling managerial style has the right to his or her opinion as we who despise it have ours. But when you look at the job Lou Pinella has done with the Cubs and the job John McLaren has done with the Mariners it’s difficult to say how managing doesn’t have any impact as to how a team plays.
The best investment in the future that
TR could make is to eat the $2.4M that is owed to Gardy Jr. (Punto) in 2008 and get him off of the roster so Gardy couldn’t play himself every night. Regardless of who hit the line-up is better and the Twins have a better chance to win the game! I have been a Twin’s fan since Bert was a rookie (1970 for those of you keeping score at home) and this is team is even more Bertin’ frustrating than 2005 because this year we really could have had the pieces we needed with just a little bit of work on TR’s part. TR did not give Gardy the pieces he needed to succeed. Just like TR traded away Castro to get him out of Gardy’s way, he needs to trade or cut Punto or we will be subject to the same for another year.
Ryan is a little over his budget of 70M so he dumps Castillo to save some of that, then refuses to make an effort to get some hitting.He said “I have to keep my blinders on”. Ridiculous!! That means he doesn’t want to face the painful fact that his team is a joke as far as offense goes! Everyone knows it. His theory is “you win with pitching and defense”. Bad theory. You win with pitching,defense AND offense!! Unless he gets 2 or 3 good hitters (very unlikely) the twins will not be able to catch the front runners in 2008.
Wow, John.
I like baseball too, but it might be affecting you negatively. I’m all for you expressing your opinion about the Twins’ manager’s abilities, but that post sounds like it comes from a disturbed individual.
Prozac, brother. Counseling. Something.
Sabathia is annoying with his post game quote:
“I definitely feel like people are still doubting us and not taking us serious,” Sabathia said. “I think we’re here to stay.”
Why do players always say goofy things like this esp. when their team was a favorite to win it this year anyways? And as for ‘here to stay’ it is only one year. We’ll see.
John,
Gardy is certainly not perfect, but the man is an unqualified success as a manager. Four division titles and he’s never had a losing season (we’ll see how this year turns out) with a career 55.5 winning percentage and three times (at least) finishing in the top 3 for Manager of the Year. And all this despite almost a complete turnover from his roster from his first season. Torii is the only regular left from that year. Cuddyer was called up in July and got in 112 at-bats. Johan was a middle reliever and got in 14 starts when Brad Radke was hurt.
IIRC, Gardy managed several years in the minors and never had a losing season there as well. He got the job because TK recommended him as the best for the job.
And IIRC, Baseball Analysts or some other similar site had an article showing how Gardenhire is perhaps the best at managing a bullpen in the history of the game.
As far as his postseason record, the Twins have been upset once and pulled off one upset, both against Oakland. Otherwise, they lost to the Yankees twice and the eventual WS champions (Angels). I suppose if postseason success is a measuring stick, then Bobby Cox should have been fired a long time ago.
I don’t agree with every move Gardy makes, but I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt more often than not. Many things that fans complain about he learned from the “great” TK, such as preferring veterans over rookies, defense over offense, etc.
The man knows how to win and his record speaks for itself. Get used to him because he will be the manager of the Twins as long as he wants the job.
Actually Josh,
That may be a different John than the regular one that appears on here (or an imposter) but if that post was by regular John, well, he is recognized by most bloggers here as one of the more insightful and courteous baseball minds to post their opinions. I myself don’t always agree with him but he’s hardly the whack-job you infer that he is just because he may not share your hero-worship affection for Gardy.
Like I said it may be a different John but the regular John, Klobs, Steve from Fridley, are neither shy nor apologetic about stating an opinion that might run counter to the unicorns dancing across the rainbow love-fest perception you have of a team that finds new and creative ways of embarassing themselves.
Gardy needs to get his lips of Punto’s ass, that is for sure! After the debacle that was last night many people expressed anger and confusion over a ridiculous decision by a manager who sometimes seems more interested in making friends with the players rather than being their boss. If that means they should be insulted by an individual whose limited baseball knowledge is almost legendary on this blog then they might not be the ones in need of counseling.
“Way to go boys, you come into the most important series of the season down 5.5 out and you leave 8.5 out.”
There were more important series than this. I’d say the most important one was the three at HOME against Detroit that they blew following the Oakland sweep. At that point they still had a more legitimate shot than this week’s “Well if sweep this week AND next week…and then they play .500 and we play .750″ long shot.
Honestly, like it’s been said. The season has been over for a LOT longer than yesterday.
T, When you have the chance to sweep the division leader in a series and only be 2.5 back or even win 2 out of 3 and be 4.5 back at the end of August, I think that classifies as an important series. The Detroit series was important too, but as you saw we were able to blow that series and still hang around and have this chance at the end of August to be right within striking distance. So if we were 2.5 or even 4.5 out right now, you would be one of those people insisting that the season was still over.
LEN3, I do like your column today on the game last night. It was nice to see a mention of LNP’s horrible batting average and the fact that he is the worst hitting regular in the majors! Nice work.
I’m still wondering what needs to be done to get Gardy to stop putting Punto into the lineup. He’s hitting under .200, botches rudimentary plays that were taught in little league like bunting, and makes one good defensive play every other week, and yet Gardy treats him like he’s A-Rod and keeps putting him in the lineup. With all the injuries that have happened to this team, you would have thought Punto could have gotten hurt somewhere along the way…..
One can only hope….maybe Ross Gload can step on his hand when he inevitably slides into first….
Yeah, but Austin, the notes still had Gardy bubbling with glee over a play Punto made on Tuesday.
TUESDAY.
Just got into work this morning….
Is there any doubt that last night’s game (and in essence, our entire season) was defined by One Nick Punto.
They stuck with him and they paid the price.
I still cannot believe it…you can’t even begin to criticize, you can only laugh. The guy makes an out-of-this-world play Tuesday night and he is allowed not just a start, but a ninth inning at-bat last night????
Somewhere Lew Ford is wondering what he did that was so bad.
The Twins front office is in a terrible situation this season. They had hope of winning the division for too long to make a call on the season. If they would have just been 10 out at the trading deadline we could be looking at our young guys for next season. But we have the unfortunate situation of being too close to make a big move either way. The way I see it is there have been too many mistakes made by the front office and manager this year for us to have a chance. Ponson, Ortiz, Punto, White, trading Castillo. Mauer needs to learn that he is never again in his life going to feel 100%, buck up and play through pain, or move to a full time DH. The biggest pain is yet to come. Hunter is walking after the season. Santana is going to be traded or is going to walk. 2009 is going to be a bad year. The new park will be nice (next to the garbage burner) for about two years, then when we are still a sub .500 team people won’t want to pay the $35 for a decent seat anymore and do what Minnesotans do, not care. I have been a Twins fan since I was 9 and they hooked me with the ‘87 season. I have never been this down on them, even in the ’90s when they were beyond terrible.
It’s not that bad, Chazzy.
And you’re wrong about the stadium and the momentum…I know things can come and go in a hurry, but the Twins have an enormous fan base right now compared to what they had in the 90’s.
I guess my feelings are that that momentum is going to get sucked right out of us when the team is not going to resign their two most popular players. At this point, for me, all signs point to a relapse of the 90’s Twins. TR has been great, but what has he done since acquiring Stewart a few years back. Not much. And the Polhads are not going to front 25M to resign any one player, thus the saying goodbye to TH and JS.
Joe Goosman has been, to me, an intriging prospect. Drafted as a 6′5″, 250 lb. ss tells me he has a lot of natural ability in baseball’s 100 top prospects of 2006 a Miami based scout compared his bat speed and power through the hitting zone at age 16 to A-Rod. He could play 3b, backup Justin at 1-b, be an option in left, right handed option at dh. Questionable attitude but he is only 22-23 years old. Anyway that is what Gardy’s real job is. It cracks me up that people question his mood the day after a game. If a move works he is a genius, if he doesn’t he is a bum. Possible trade bait - Boof going home to Tampa -
d/rays need pitching. Another possibil-
ity Rincon maybe or Swarzax. Rodger claims I think that we have at least 20 pitching prospects in the minors. In the last 4 years we have drafted great value pitching prospects at the expense of hitting prospects. I think it’s time to trade these pitching prospects for hitters. We can’t afford to keep losing them to the minor league draft and rule V. Feedback would be apprecia-
ted.
Need to bring up the Land Value topic here regarding what the landowners think the value of the land is as opposed to what the Twins and County think it is worth.
If the County deems that the land is worth 15 million, and the landowners argue that it is worth 50 million, then I as the County should go to the landowners and demand that they cough up some dough for unpaid property taxes. Obviously if they think the land is worth more, than they should pay for those higher property value taxes.
So I ask the landowners, what do you want to do next?
“Somewhere Lew Ford is wondering what he did that was so bad.”
Punto can’t hit. Ford can’t field or hit. Neither can run the bases very well anymore.
However, there’s no basis for “Why is Punto with the team and Ford isn’t?” Both are completely different roles with the team. Punto plays 2B, SS, 3B…Ford is the “4″th outfielder. Ford I don’t believe has ever played the infield and Punto has RARELY played outfield.
Both are career bench players, and neither can “replace” the other as far as that role goes.
If you’re going to use either in a “Why ___ and not ____” conversation, it should be (if anything) why White and not Ford, and why Punto and not Tolbert.
So please. At least make some sense. And seriously, Punto sucks. We know. It’s done to death and then revived and killed again.
Move on. The sooner you do the better you’ll feel about yourself.
I don’t have time to read all the posts but I’m sure Gardenhire is being criticized for not hitting for Punto. If no one else wants to spout the company line, I will. The Twins had only one infielder left, and no one even remotely capable of playing in the middle infield for the bottom of the ninth and beyond. Punto would have moved to second, with Buscher staying in at third. Now, Gardenhire chose to let Punto bat because a) a sacrifice was in order and there were no bunters on the bench and b) Casilla has shown to be a lesser hitter left-handed. Hence only Casilla was hit for.
I don’t care if Heintz or Cuddyer is playing second, the Twins should have hit for Punto and probably Casilla as well. Of course, it didn’t work out and the Twins lost the game.
I will continue to watch as much Twins baseball as I can. The youngsters should get their chances to show what they can do. I hope Casilla straightens out and that Buscher shows himself to be capable. I also hope that Tolbert and Morales are recalled and show something.
please people leave nick punto alone.try going into a batting cage and hit a 90mph fastball. I know i could not do it. I think the only time you can knock a professional ballplayer is if he is not putting out effort or is a jerk like randy moss
GENO,
That’s a poor argument and excuse to back up Nick Punto.
Punto’s job is to be able to hit a 90 MPH fastball, right? I mean, he’s getting paid $2+ million dollars to do that, right?
Well, don’t you think he should be able to do such a thing, rather than continually fail at his profession? If you, or I, went into our job on a daily basis and constantly failed at what we were getting PAID to do, I sure as heck don’t think we’d be making that trip to our job on a daily basis.
Do you?
Terry Ryan has let this team down, big time. He has done nothing and I mean nothing, to improve this ball club in the past year. Signing re-treads like Ponson and Ortiz, trading Castillo? Acquiring a stiff like Cirillo? Please tell me what he has done this year to help? In fact, stretch it to at least 2 years, Tony Bautista? Redmond is his only quality acquisition in years!
“trading Castillo?”
Yeesh. There are STILL people who think the Castillo trade was what doomed this season? Get. Over. It.
This team was not making the playoffs this year, and Castillo was in NO WAY going to be back next year. So why keep him around?
“Redmond is his only quality acquisition in years!”
You say Redmond wa the only good aquisition in the same paragraph you blast Ryan for dumping Castillo. So make up your mind. Was Castillo a good pick up or not?
And just how many years back are we talking? Because Romero to LAA for Casilla seemed to have worked out nicely. As did that whole AJ trade thing. And honestly, that’s only 3-4 years ago. Hardly as far back as your cry of “years” seems to indicate.
“The Twins had only one infielder left, and no one even remotely capable of playing in the middle infield for the bottom of the ninth and beyond. Punto would have moved to second, with Buscher staying in at third.”
They PH Buscher for Punto, who’s more likely to A) get a hit or B) sac fly and can play third. Casilla (who’s 3-4 at the time) hits anyway. And if they think he stinks from the left, keep him hitting from the right.
Erik:
The posting was not about Nick Punto per se. Read the second part of the posting. You did not or would not get the point trying to be made.
GENO,
No, I read the last part…and I still don’t see your point.
Who cares if a player is putting forth the effort and has a great attitude while sucking…he’s still sucking at something he’s getting paid great money to do.
You, me, or anyone else would not be able to sustain our job if that was the case…we just wouldn’t…yet for some reason, Nick Punto has remained an everyday player for the Twins.
Erik
I can’t believe I keep answering your replies. I see that you are a regular on this site. You may have noticed my suggestions about the black hole that is 3b (i.e. Andy LaRouchd of the Dodgers) even made a suggestion of Joel
Guzman of the D/Rays). Asked for feedback on this. Got none. As a lifelong Twins fan(went to first game in 1961) I am almost ashamed of myself for saying this but I root against NP every at bat hoping his average goes down enough so we are forced to replace him. If the Twins are crazy enough to pay him 2M should he offer to pay them back? Pardon me, I have to go talk to my cat. At least she understands what I am trying to say.
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