October 2009

Let’s Hope It’s Not The End…Of The World

It’s sad really that the Twins season is already over. I know, some may
think that it’s gone on long enough and they have set us up for failure
and heartbreak too much already this year. Some may be looking forward
to Target Field more than to sitting in the Metrodome any more this year, but honestly I didn’t want to have watch a potential Yankees vs. Phillies World Series. Why, you ask? Well, the Phillies
won the World Series last year, so really, do they need another
victory? No. The Yankees…well I’m pretty certain that they harbor the
anti-Christ and if they win the World Series, it would mean that the
end of the world is upon us.
It’s
not wonder why A. Rod has to wear a hat or helmet…he’s got to hide
those horns of his. Right now I am holding out for a miracle and
praying that God will let the Angels
come back and beat the Yankees…I mean the Evil Empire. The Beast (A.
Rod) needs to be throw into the lake of fire and sent back to where he
came from.Do you believe in Angels? I know, I do. GO ANGELS!!

I
really have way too much time on my hands now with Twins season being
over and I know that baseball will be over even sooner for me if it
becomes a Phillies/Yankees World Series. I’m pretty sure at that point, I will have post-season wiped from my brain all together.

This
off-season, there will likely be not so many posts…I’ll try to keep
everyone up-to-date on the off-season Twins news. Let’s hope this
doesn’t mean news of Nathan getting traded, because that will not make
me happy and it will make me want to hunt Bill Smith down even more.

All In A Year

Okay, so I’m sad that Twins baseball is over for the season. I would
have liked baseball season to keep me nourished for a few more months (yes,
I am aware that even if the Twins would have gone to the World Series
baseball wouldn’t fill in until Spring Training started…not even
close.) . It all just feels too bittersweet…this ending. I
hoped that even though our future looked dismal, facing the Yankees in
the first round of the playoffs, that we would some how be able to
surpass the Evil Empire and take them down. I was let down. The Twins
let me down, TBS let me down (in case
you didn’t watch the games on TBS, they were ridiculously biased toward
the Yankees…and showed only replays of Yankees games/plays.), I was let down by the umpires and their lack of good calls. Yes, I was really let down.

I
am still saying that I believe that the poor call from the umpire Phil
Cuzzi cost us the game. He missed a fly ball of Joe Mauer’s that was
about a foot inside the foul line (even after hitting the outfielders glove!)…instead
Joe got a base hit, which was good, but a double with the next couple
at bats would have scored him, rather than leaving him at third base
where he would never see home. That would have been the run that kept
us tied in the game after Mark Texieria hit a solo shot in the bottom
of the 9th. Now would the Twins have been able to still duke it out and
win a tied game? I’m going to side with yes, they would have. I don’t
care if you don’t believe me, or agree with me. This is my opinion. No one else’s.

Here’s a cool send-off to the Metrodome video from ESPN:
http://espn.go.com/videohub/player/embed.swf

Here
however is the one that almost made me cry at the Dome when the game
was over on Sunday night and I realized it was my last game there as
well (yes, I know besides Vikings games):

Now enjoy some pictures from Game 3 of the ALDS 2009…the Final game at the Metrodome for Twins baseball!

The new and improved “Yankees=Evil Empire” signView from the 2nd to last row in centerfield on the upper level!If you look closely, you’ll notice Joey Highsocks (aka, Joe Crede!)The line ups for both teamsThe lady with the crazy Metrodome hatThe last Metrodome field runner! He was the best I ever got to see!

And a bonus photo! courtesy of Joenathan.com (from baseball unplugged 2009 with Michael Cuddyer, Joe Nathan and Matt Guerrier)

I got in one of the pics (I’m in the teal sweater next to the host)

Take Down The Evil Empire


I
have made improvements to the Evil Empire sign…which I will post
pictures of after Sunday’s game (which I’ll be at…probably in the
worst seats in the Metrodome, but I don’t care!)

Check out this story about a Yankees fan that Scruffy from Peanuts from Heaven encountered while in class. Just reminds me why I don’t like the Yankees OR their fans.
Yankees Fan Story

Just remember:

Comment t’appeles-tu ?

So here it is…the list of nicknames (I have) for the Twins players on the team…and why. Enjoy!



26 Boof Bonser - Boof (draw it out and make it sound like you’re booing him.)

28 Jesse Crain – Crainadian (his last name, plus the fact that he’s from Canada…I will give credit to Kristina from Peanuts in Heaven for this too!!)

63 Armando Gabino – –

54 Matt Guerrier – Matty G (kinda like Warren G, except white.)

44 Bobby Keppel – Krappel (he sucks, aka he’s crappy)

37 Ron Mahay – –

50 Jose Mijares – (just fun to say his last name over and over…Me-Har-is)

36 Joe Nathan – –

17 Pat Neshek – Pat Nah-Shak! (say it fast and almost Chinese-like…or like you’re sneezing)

60 Jon Rauch – Oscar (his last name sounds like grouch, so Oscar the Grouch…hence Oscar)

30 Scott Baker – Timmy (his real name is Timothy Scott Baker…so I call him Timmy)

53 Nick Blackburn – Pumpkin **** (or PT) (his wife calls him this…I don’t know why exactly, but it makes me laugh nonetheless)

52 Brian Duensing – –

47 Francisco Liriano – Fran (I am not his biggest fan, so a girl’s name seemed fitting and mean to call him)

49 – Jeff Manship - –

48 – Carl Pavano – Tall Dark and Dreamy (he’s tall, he’s got dark features…not really “dreamy”, but I don’t like the word handsome, so dreamy it became)

15 Glen Perkins – Tremendous Twelve (Perkins restaurant has a breakfast called the “Tremendous Twelve” and his last name is Perkins…so yeah)

59 Kevin Slowey – Kev (don’t really have much else other than “my future husband”…)

51 Anthony Swarzak – (Swarzy just to shorten his name)

7 Joe Mauer – Joe or Baby Jesus (yeah, it’s fun)

58 Jose Morales – Mo (after learning this from Matty G…plus it works on the Larry, Curly and Mo level too)

55 Mike Redmond – Patch (2
years ago, he kinda sucked at the play and most of the time he played
like he had a patch over one eye…so yeah, I know I’m weird)

32 Brian Buscher – Butcher (mainly cause of Timmy being “Baker”…so we have the Butcher, the Baker…now just need the Candlestick Maker…)

18 Orlando Cabrera – OC (nothing cool)

25 Alexi Casilla – Larry (him and Go-Go are bff’s so, he became Larry when we didn’t have one)

24 Joe Crede – Joey High Socks (thanks to Heidi, I call him this…I have nothing of my own besides “Joe Crede”…lame, I know.)

23 Brendan Harris – –

33 Justin Morneau – Yeah I usually just call him Justin…nothing special.

8 Nick Punto – Nicky…(which usually prompts Katie to say “Punto” in response, sort of in a Marco Polo way.)

20 Matt Tolbert – Matty (lame, yes.)

5 Michael Cuddyer – Cuddy (who doesn’t call him this?)…other nickname includes “Dimples” (thanks to my coworker!)

22 Carlos Gomez – Go-Gomez or Curly (Go-Gomez because he’s speedy, and Curly because of 1. his hair, and 2. he seems to pal around with Mo.)

2 Denard Span – (don’t have anything, but thanks to Heidi, anytime he does anything it’s referred to as that being “Denarded”)

21 Delmon Young – Kirby (thanks
to Katie’s mom…she thought (when she glanced quickly) that he looked a
little bit like Kirby Puckett…so since we’ve been calling him this,
he’s hit home runs. It shall continue)

16 Jason Kubel – Kubes (seems to feel like a shortened version of his last name…) or else I refer to him as Amy’s lover (my cousin LOVES Kubel.)

Coming At Ya Like A Blitz!

This
weekend’s series with Kansas City were games to not be missed! It was
do or die time for the Twins and on Saturday they had to take on their
arch nemesis from KC, Zack Greinke. Thankfully, the Twins, as of late,
have stepped up to the plate (quite literally) and played their hearts
out. I have been in awe of what these boys are capable of and how great
they are doing. It really feels like I’m cheering for the underdog that
no one ever thought would get this far. I love this feeling, and I’m
sure the Twins are equally as pleased with the outcome and where they
stand as of today.

Friday night’s
game was outstanding, to say the least. Who knew that Delmon Young had
it in him to hit a grand slam, the first of his career. He was on fire
and has really stepped up lately. It’s good to see that the Twins are
finally getting what they paid for with Delmon. It’s just a shame he
couldn’t have found himself, so three months ago when we could have
kicked into high gear and not had to face a one-game playoff against
Detroit. I know, I can’t know for sure if we would be better than where
we are now, but I’ve gotta believe we would be.

Jason
Kubel’s fridge (that he has lag behind him) apparently had the string
that kept it attached to him break when he made the diving catch in
right field…only to have the fridge tackle him and make him fall to
the ground. It’s good to see that the fridge is good for something!
Lord knows, it only slows down his running.

Friday’s 3 Stars of the Game: (other than the Chicago White Sux for helping us out.)

1. Orlando Cabrera (went 3 for 5 and extended his hitting streak)

2.Delmon Young (hit his first career grand slam off of Greinke!)

3. Jeff Manship (recorded his first MLB win, and he did very well! I was proud!)

Saturday’s
game was nerve wracking. I didn’t know if the Twins had the fight inside
them to beat Zack Greinke. Although, the Twins have had success against
Greinke, because this was his breakout year, they were scared. I liked
Delmon Young’s quote before they faced Greinke (HERE)
“Yeah, we need to go to church and pray to score some runs,” Young
said. “He’s nasty, and he’s looking to go for a Cy Young. [CC} Sabathia
got crushed tonight, so it's all on his hands. It's national TV, going
up against an AL MVP candidate [in Joe Mauer], so he might go nine
tomorrow.” Glad you threw those extra prayers up to the big Man,
Delmon! He listened!

What an unbelievable catch Denard Span made
in right in the 9th inning, to help Joe Nathan set a franchise high of
47 saves. If you missed the catch, go HERE.

Saturday’s 3 Stars of the Game:
1. Nick Blackburn (he
pitched outstanding for only being on 3 days rest. He went 7 innings,
with only 2 earned runs and 5 strike outs. He however did not give up 1
of those 2 runs…Mijares let those runners come home.)
2. Delmon Young (he went 2 for 4, driving in 3 of our 4 runs!)
3. Michael Cuddyer (he got a home run when I asked for it…not making Delmon Young do all the work and score all the runs for the Twins.)

Sunday…Sunday was a fantastic game to be at! It was sort of a blow out by the Twins. Katie and I sat, scoreboard watching (the
Tigers were play the White Sux again…and we were cheering for the
White Sux to beat them…but they were down 4-0 early on in the game.).
I think Jason Kubel must not have liked that the Tigers were winning so
with two on in the first inning, he blasted a 3-run home run. (sidenote:
I think Jason Kubel also liked that my cousin, who is by far his
biggest fan, was watching from more than 4,000 miles away…so he felt
he needed to blast a couple home runs out, just for her! I told her,
she has to watch tomorrow’s game as well.)

It was good to
see Carl Pavano have some magic with only three days rest as well. I
was disappointed that Brian Duensing wasn’t the starting pitcher, but
at least my fears of Carl didn’t come true! Carl Pavano was the last
Twins starting pitcher for this season that I hadn’t seen before
yesterday…so now after that, every pitcher to have started this
season (spot start, minor league call-up, etc…) I have seen.

For
those who didn’t see the post-game celebration, it was really neat.
Players from the ’87 and ’91 seasons. Torii and Santana sent video
messages thanking fans for being voted to the all-Metrodome team. It
was especially neat seeing Kirby’s son remove the final number from the
countdown to outdoor baseball, though with tomorrow’s game and
potential post-season play…it wasn’t the last game at the Dome. All I
can say is: BRING ON THE EVIL EMPIRE!

Sunday’s 3 Stars of the Game:
1. Jason Kubel (he went 3-4 with 2 3-run home runs, and a blooper single before having Gomez pinch run for him in the 7th.)
2. Delmon Young (also had 2 home runs in the game, both solo shots only, but equally as great!)
3. Orlando Cabrera (went 3 for 5 with 2 RBI’s and 2 doubles.)

Tomorrow
besides game #163: I will post the list of my nicknames for the current
Twins roster…and possibly try to explain the reasons behind the
nicknames.

Here We Come To Save The Day!

I
know that the Twins are the long shot to win the Division this year. I
know it’s an uphill climb for them, and they need to sweep the Royals
starting tonight, and the White Sux
need to sweep the Tigers in their three-game series in order for us to
not have to face the one game playoff between us and the Tigers. I want
to win the Division when Katie and I are at the game on Sunday…I want
2006 to make a comeback.

It was a great win yesterday for the
Twins. I’m sure Detroit fans were getting as upset about the game as
the Tigers players themselves were. I’m not gonna lie, it was quite
amusing to see the anger on their faces. I did however think it was
ridiculous that Marcus Thames thought that Scott Baker was trying to
intentionally hit him. Come on, it’s Scott Baker…I don’t think the
guy has a mean bone in his body! But boy did Scott Baker get the stink
eye from Thames when he went up and in and Thames had to move out of
the way. Thames was trying to go all ghetto on poor innocent Scott
Baker. Marcus
Thames has definitely climbed onto the list of dirty players that I
dislike. Take a look at this slide (when he was “sliding into second”
after he got hit by the pitch)…where is second base, you ask?
Well…he slide very far off second base…and with a VERY late slide.

The game was definitely an interesting one to say the least. Both benches clearing after Delmon Young got hit in the 9th (after both teams were issued warnings by the umpire)…Delmon got upset with Mijares (which I thought was ridiculous…Mijares didn’t hit him! It was Bonderman.). The benches cleared (which you can see HERE), even the bullpens, and Bonderman, Laird and the acting manager were all ejected (due to the warnings the teams were issued about hitting batters.).

I’d like to take personal credit for Joe Mauer
getting the stick out and getting a couple hits yesterday. It was
jersey day at my work, so I opted to participate and wear my Mauer jersey (which doesn’t get wore very often because I’m not a Mauer girl as many of you know.). Joe went 2 for 4 with an intentional walk. Your welcome, Joe, for the extra love I was showing you.

3 Stars of the Game:
(we had a lot of guys who preformed yesterday, so there were a few
close calls here as to who would get a star…but here goes.)
1. Delmon Young (he went 3-4, took one for the team…aka he got hit by a pitch. He did well!)
2. Nick Punto (he went 2 for 3 with a walk)
3. Joe Mauer (he got the stick out and went 2 for 4 with an intentional walk.)

And now as promised for the win yesterday…the 3 Stars for all the games I missed giving them out. Here goes nothing.

9/25/09 Stars of the Game:
1. Denard Span (went 2 for 4)
2. Michael Cuddyer (went 2 for 4 as well)
3. Joe Mauer (sure he went 0 for 2, but he did muster up 3 walks. He did get on base…)

9/26/09 Stars of the Game:
1. Denard Span (he went 4 for 5 and had a career high 6 RBI’s.)
2. Matt Tolbert (he went 3 for 5)
3. Joe Mauer (went 2 for 4 with a walk and 2 RBI’s.)

9/27/09 Stars of the Game:
1. Orlando Cabrera (went 3 for 5)
2. Denard Span (went 2 for 5)
3. Joe Mauer (went 2 for 5)

9/28/09 Stars of the Game:
1. Nick Blackburn (pitched a solid 7 innings with only 1 ER, 1 walk and 4 K’s.)
2. Denard Span (went 2 for 4)
3. Jason Kubel (also went 2 for 4)

9/29/09 Stars of the Game:
1. Orlando Cabrera (went 3 for 4 with an RBI…I give credit to the hiked up socks)
2. Jason Kubel (went 2 for 3 with 2 RBI’s)
3. Denard Span (went 2 for 4)

9/30/09 Stars of the Game:
1. Delmon Young (went 2 for 4 with an RBI)
2. Denard Span (went 2 for 5)
3. Jose Morales (sure he went 0 for 2, but he did have 2 walks to get on base.)

Now that listing all the three stars has exhausted me…I’m going to sign off. Watching tonight with two tv’s to watch the Tigers/White Sux game and the other will be on FSN
watching the Twins take on the Royals. Please, Chicago, help us out!! I
will promise to try and be nicer to you if you do this favor for me.
Thanks.

Beautiful Ending


If there was any time to panic, today would be that day. The Twins are
one loss (and a Tigers win) away from defeat. I don’t want to be the
bearer of bad news, nor do I want to have to hear all the Tigers fans
cheer and riot if the Tigers win today. Nope. I want it to come down to
the wire. I want a long drawn out and nail biting season that doesn’t
end until the bitter end. It’s been a few days since I last
posted…part of the reason, is I’ve had real life to deal with
(unfortunately) and part of the reason is because I don’t want to jinx
the season by saying anything wrong.

I read the funniest quote from Justin this morning on the Star Tribune’s site:

“Every night I dream about some scenario,” Morneau said. “Like, what if I swing a lighter bat?”

He added: “I had a dream the other night that I was playing right field. And [Matt] Tolbert was
playing center field. It was unbelievable. We were in Pittsburgh, and
we were playing on a high school field. We were up 8-1, but I couldn’t
hit the ball out of the infield. Detroit lost, so we would have been
tied, but we ended up losing 9-8.”

How could they blow that lead?

“It
was frustrating because I was playing right field, and I couldn’t move,
and Tolbert kept standing right next to me. I couldn’t get him to move
over, and they kept hitting balls to center.”

I’ve
realized I miss Justin. Yes, he is sitting on the bench every night and
every time they show the dugout, he’s there, but it’s not quite the
same as seeing him puff up his cheeks to swing at the fast balls that
he enjoys and crank a homer out of the park. I also still miss Kevin
Slowey. I have been very deprived, and I haven’t even got to enjoy
seeing him on the bench during this road trip. My guess is that he
didn’t make this trip, which is very sad.

Now, my
stipulation for today’s game. If the Twins pull this off and win
today…I will go back through all the games I’ve missed writing about
and award the three stars of the game. They haven’t lost a series since
I last blogged, so they haven’t been revoked. But if the Twins lose, I
won’t award them the rest of the season, and the past ones will fade
away into the Twins existence, sort of like the Metrodome. Now, I don’t
want to be Debbie Downer, but Mike Remond is behind the plate going
into today’s game. Our odd have just decreased. I’m trying to stay
positive though….but amongst this rain in Minnesota and in my heart,
it’s difficult.

Updates after the game.


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