Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Twins Can’t Find Groove

Every time Roy Halladay pitches to the Minnesota Twins, the results usually aren’t too pleasant for the Twins. But miraculously, on Monday night, the Twins somehow got to Halladay for five runs, but it was more likely Halladay faltering then the Twins solving the Toronto Blue Jays’ ace. Evidence in point includes the fifth inning wild pitch that Halladay threw that helped the Twins tie the game as Luis Castillo scored with Jason Bartlett scoring on a Gregg Zaun error in the same play. Mike Redmond summed it up when he said, “Halladay was really grinding it out.” But yet the Twins were unable to keep the Blue Jays offense down, as Twins starter Kevin Slowey gave up 5 earned runs in his start.

But the poor pitching performances didn’t end there for Monday’s high-scoring affair. Matt Guerrier, who before Monday had a fourteen inning scoreless streak, gave up three runs in the eighth inning in Monday’s contest. The Twins bullpen might be tired right now, but its time to buckle down before the all-star break in hopes that the club can trim a six and a half game deficit in the Central Division. Twins Tickets for the Jays series are well worth it if you haven’t been to the Metrodome to see the Jays explosive offense yet.

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Twins Offense Inconsistent

The Minnesota Twins offense continues to be extraordinarily inconsistent as they put up 10 runs in Sunday’s win over the Milwaukee Brewers but only one run against the New York Mets on Monday night. John Maine had another stellar outing for the Mets as he pitched against the hapless Twins hitters. The only runner who came around to score was Jason Tyner, who slapped a lead-off single and was driven in by a bloop Michael Cuddyer double. I can’t resist picking up Mets pitcher Jorge Sosa in my fantasy league to pitch against the Twins on Tuesday night. My current smack talk: “Well my shutout for the week is virtually secured with Jorge Sosa pitching against the Twins.” Sorry but come on piranhas.

Juan Rincon gave up another four earned runs or so Monday for the second straight game, and many feel like his trade value is plummeting. The Twins should have dumped him for something before these two disasters. Hopefully, "Roidcon" can come back to pitch a few solid innings before pulling a Dennys Reyes and complaining about shoulder stiffness. Amazingly, the Twins .500 play still has them only 6 ½ games back of the Cleveland Indians, who aren’t helping themselves pull away at the moment. The Detroit Tigers have been lukewarm as of late too, making it look as if the AL Wildcard might be hard pressed to come out of the Central after all. Why not pick up some Twins tickets and to see if they are able to gain ground during their next home stand?

Monday, June 11, 2007

Twins vs Nationals Series Overview


The Minnesota Twins vs. the Washington Nationals series at the Minneapolis Metrodome was definitely an odd weekend baseball series. The Twins have a better record than the Nationals and at the “Homerdome,” it should have been an easy series sweep for the Twins. Starting pitcher Carlos Silva couldn’t get his act together Friday night as the Twins lost 5-8. The righty allowed seven runs on nine hits in three-plus innings. Joe Mauer returned to the line-up after his release from the injured list and hit a triple in his third at-bat, but it wasn’t enough to get the Twins a victory.

Saturday was a rare loss for Twins star pitcher Johan Santana as the Twins fell 1-3. Santana gave up a three-run homer to Ryan Zimmerman in the third inning that proved costly in the Twins' loss to the Nationals. Justin Morneau hit a solo shot to center field in the second inning for the Twins' only run.

Sunday was a definite must win situation and the Twins pulled it off 6-3. Boof Bonser was on the mound and threw more pitches in the first few innings than a major league starter ever should. Bonser spent so much time on the mound that manager Ron Gardenhire thought it was actually detrimental to the offense. "Today, honestly, I felt that our offense was clicking and he took us out of our offense by having too many long innings out there," Gardenhire said. "We really had to battle through it." And battle, they did. In fact, five of the six runs the Twins earned were driven in by singles!

Next up for the Twins is a week long home stand. The Atlanta Braves come to town for 3 games starting on Tuesday and then the border battle between the Minnesota Twins and the first place NL Central Milwaukee Brewers really heats up over Fathers Day weekend. Get your dad and head to the Metrodome for a weekend of excellent baseball. There are still great Twins vs. Brewers tickets available! Go Twins!

Thursday, June 07, 2007

Twins Get Timely Win

Thank goodness the Minnesota Twins were able to pull out an 8-5 win over the Anaheim Angels on Wednesday night to salvage an overall dismal West Coast road trip. The Twins enter interleague play this weekend, where they have traditionally dominated National League teams. Wednesday night’s win helped to gather momentum going into the series with the Washington Nationals, one of the National League’s worst. Hopefully the Twins will be inspired to go for a home-stand sweep against them before taking on some tougher National League foes.

It doesn’t feel like it, but the Twins finished 2-4 on the road trip, sandwiching four straight losses versus some uncanny opponent pitching. They would like to play .500 baseball on the road but after how bad the offense performed in the four losses, the Twins should feel lucky. The offense will most likely be bolstered this weekend, as manager Ron Gardenhire plans on activating Joe Mauer from the disabled list. Gardenhire wants to bat Mauer in the No. 2 spot in the order in hopes of getting greater production from the spot. The move also allows Michael Cuddyer and Justin Morneau to stay in their current batting spots.