Sep/0711
Barry Bonds in Minnesota
While this season comes to a close, there is much speculation regarding the future of several current Twins…. Will Santana be traded? Will the Twins resign Hunter? One question that is just starting to surface…. Will Barry Bonds land in Minnesota?
Barry has publically stated that he wants to play for 1 or 2 more years. While everyone in baseball knows that Barry is past his prime playing days, the popular consensus is that he can still see and more importantly hit the ball. Since his days in left field are likely over, it only make sense that he makes his way out of the friendly confines of AT&T ballpark and to the roster of an American League team in need.
Usually a guy like Barry would likely be snapped up by one of the big market teams like the Yankees, Red Sox or White Sox. This situation is somewhat different though. All of those teams have their DH and are not looking to pay for a guy who will ride the bench. After reviewing the current AL rosters it appears that the following teams are NOT in need of Barry’s services:
Red Sox: Big Papi
Yankees: Giambi
White Sox: Thome
Tigers: Sheff
Indians: Hafner
Angels: This is typically platooned by Garrett Anderson and Vlad
Orioles: The DH is also platooned by Aufrey Huff and Kevin Millar
Athletics: Frank Thomas
That leaves the following squads with immediate DH needs:
Royals, Mariners, Devil Rays, Rangers, Blue Jays and our beloved Twins
In my opinion, the Royals would never make a move… They are happy living at the bottom of the AL Central. The Blue Jays could make a move considering that they are in a constant battle to overcome the evil empires of Boston and New York. The Devil Rays are horrible and would not bring in a guy like Bonds (because even Barry wouldn’t bring in ticket sales to that God forsaken stadium).
That leaves the Mariners, Rangers and Twins as contenders.
As I see it, this is a three team race. The Twins might have a slight advantage in that they are still considered “playoff contenders”. With better situational hitting, next year they could be back in the mix in the AL Central.
So…. What would the fans of Minneapolis and St. Paul think about Bonds? I’m not sure. Personally, I would love to see him play DH and hit his 20 Homeruns and 80 RBIs. The second reason i’d love to see him would be because of what he would do to the rest of the lineup. Put Cuddy in the clean up spot and Bonds at fifth… All of a sudden Cuddy will see GREAT pitches. Think of this lineup:
Bartlett
Mauer
Morneau
Cuddy
Bonds
Hunter (i’m praying that they find a way)
Left Fielder
Third Baseman
Castilla
I’d take that.
Sep/0722
10 Reasons Why I’m Rooting for the Yankees
10. They started off the season poorly and no one thought they had a chance, this year's version of the Twins from last year.
9. Now that the Red Sox have won their championship, I'm tired of them.
8. I will never favor a team from Anaheim. Why? Think Ducks and 2002 ALCS.
7. They have a owner who wants to win.
6. A-Rod may be the best player or our lifetime and he deserves a title, lets hope he doesn't choke like usual.
5. I can't cheer for Cleveland after taking our place atop the Central.
4. October baseball in New York is great!
3. "Drew Billy Beane", or whatever his name is, won't root for them.
2. This may sound crazy, but New York is due for a championship.
1. You know Turtle and the gang are cheering for the Yankees. 
Sep/074
Big Time Defense With a Shot of Peterson
The only thing missing from last year's record setting Vikings defense was a pass rush. Without QB pressure the Patriots exposed the Vikings and provided the NFL with a blueprint for a poor season. That all changed in week one with new defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier. After watching this defense dismantle the Falcons and pressure Harrington into multiple bad decisions, I'm thinking playoffs.
With the Lions, the pathetic Chiefs and the offensiveless Packers on the schedule before a true test away at the Bears, the Vikings have a legitimate chance of being 4-1 or 5-0 before a tough stretch with the Cowboys, Eagles and Chargers to wrap up the first half.
For the first time in a long time I'm excited to see what this defense can do, if Peterson will stay healthy and put up 1,300 yds with 12 TD's and how Jackson and Rice will develop. It was fun to see how much fun the players where having on the sidelines in the fourth quarter. Everyone seems more comfortable with Childress, his system and just how good this team can be.
Then again it was the Vickless Falcons.
Up next, a chance to give the "10 win" Lions a reality check. I can't wait.
Sep/072
“I never liked him, anyway,” Blyleven said, of Sweeney.
An interesting take on Friday's game from ESPN's Buster Olney:
As Scott Baker edged toward a perfect game Friday night, the tension seemed to reflect everywhere, from his face, to the Twins dugout (where his teammates kept a continent of space between themselves and Baker), to the club's broadcast booth.
Play-by-play man Dick Bremer and color analyst Bert Blyleven spoke openly about the possibility of a perfect game, as the middle innings rolled on. By coincidence, Bremer had been asked to sing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" at the seventh-inning stretch, but he had forgotten about that, he admitted. When a production crew approached him after Baker got the 19th, 20th and 21st outs in the top of the seventh, he thought their presence was somehow related to the special event that Baker was generating. Bremer sang, as asked, and then quickly refocused on Baker and his work.
Blyleven talked about his own no-hitter, how he had approached his catcher during the game and spoke openly about what was happening -- Hey, I'm pitching a no-hitter -- and he acknowledged that when he was broadcasting David Wells's perfect game against the Twins in 1998, he had been rooting for the left-hander to complete the feat, because of its special nature.
We all remember where we were for particular moments in history. I was standing behind on a couch in Nashville when Mookie Wilson's ground ball rolled through Bill Buckner's legs in 1986, and sitting on the same couch when Kirk Gibson dropped his bat head on Dennis Eckersley's slider in 1988.
But we also remember who we shared those moments with, and in this case, it would be Bremer and Blyleven, who were exceptional in describing the drama that was building -- and also in mirroring the feelings of anyone was happened to be watching, whether it was in the Metrodome or via satellite, in New York.
The perfect game ended in the top of the ninth when Baker walked the leadoff hitter, but the fans in Minnesota stood and cheered, partly to honor his near-accomplishment, but partly out of encouragement; he still had a no-hitter in progress.
With one out, veteran slugger Mike Sweeney, one of the game's great ambassadors, came to the plate as a pinch-hitter, for his first at-bat since June 17. It seemed like a good matchup for Baker, because he had been mixing a nasty slider with his fastball all night. Maybe Sweeney would roll over a breaking ball and into a doubleplay, you thought.
Baker threw. Sweeney swung. And when his looper began to drop into an area, in short left-center, where there were no fielders, your heart sank with the ball. Bummer.
"I never liked him, anyway," Blyleven said, of Sweeney.
Perfect.
After the no-hitter was lost, the search was on for the person -- or persons -- who jinxed it, writes Phil Miller. The near no-hitter was the culmination of a couple of crazy weeks for Baker, writes Kelsie Smith. Sweeney described what Baker tried to do against him, within this Bob Dutton story.