Category Archives: Twins baseball

GameChat – Red Sox @ Twins #3, 12:10pm

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Ok, my apologies for the late post – somehow I’ve managed to get sick.. ain’t that fun?

But the Twins are doing pretty well in rubber matches this season so lets see if that translates to beating the BoSox today!

Boston @ Minnesota
Pedroia, 2B Dozier, 2B
Bogaerts, SS Mauer, DH
Ortiz, D, DH Plouffe, 3B
Napoli, 1B Colabello, 1B
Gomes, J, RF Kubel, LF
Carp, LF Suzuki, K, C
Ross, D, C Parmelee, RF
Middlebrooks, 3B Hicks, CF
Bradley Jr., CF Escobar, E, SS
  Buchholz, P   Hughes, P, P
  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Boston 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 3 9
Minnesota 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 12

Well now that was fun! Despite Perk going through a bit of a closer slump right now, we managed to get that rubber match win again! Frankly, this is the first time we have won a home series against the BoSox since Target Field’s first season … ouch. They’ve clearly had our number here for most of it. Glad that we were able to make it happen today. Phil Hughes’ experience against them might have had a LOT to do with that. I am pretty happy with his performance against them today – wish he could have gone longer but not if it meant he’d have given them crooked numbers in the box score.  Of course, they managed to get that tie anyway to give us an extra inning.

Looking at the box score, it’s clear to see that Kurt Suzuki continues to really shine in this lineup and I love how he seems to not only hit well, but to hit CLUTCH! He always shows up when absolutely necessary. And Hicks hardly needs additional recognition because the confidence booster he received from getting that walk-off winner and the support from his team mates does a lot for this young man. Let’s hope that he can pull it together and build on it to return to the big hitter we want to see him be. They are both our BOD’s today!

suzukiAaronHicks

Episode 83: Chicken Parm and (Pinto) Beans

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Chris Parmelee hit a walk-off home run to steal a game against the Boston Red Sox, and he’s named after a popular italian food. That’s called bi-winning. You can download the new Talk to Contact (@TalkToContact) episode via iTunes or click here you can download the new episode, and if you want to add the show to your podcast player, this is the RSS Feed.

parm

The Twins Phil Hughes out dueled Justin Verlander in Detroit and the Twins stole the series from the Tigers. Did Phil Hughes do enough to garner this week’s Pitcher of the Week?

The Twins have been making roster moves left and right, call-ups, send-downs, concussion DL stints galore. We review what’s been going on with the roster and what may be coming as Josh Willingham begins his rehab. Byron Buxton is back on the DL, is it time to be worried?

Joe Mauer is set to overtake Kirby Puckett in career WAR, but are you ready to admit that he’s a better player? We tackle that debate and more. 

This week’s Down on the Pond profile is on Twins AAA LHP Kris Johnson. Hopefully he doesn’t tear his UCL like Jose Fernandez and seemingly everyone else in baseball.

 

You can follow Cody on Twitter (@NoDakTwinsFan) or read his writing at NoDakTwinsFan, you can find Paul on Twitter (@BaseballPirate) and you can find Mr. Jay Corn on Twitter (@Jay__Corn)!
If you enjoy our podcast, please take a couple extra minutes and rate and review our show now that it is back on iTunes.  iTunes ratings probably help MLB decide which podcasts to blacklist.

GameChat – Red Sox @ Twins #2, 7:10pm

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well it’s a heck of a lot nicer out there today than it was yesterday.. not a WHOLE lot warmer but the combo of 10 degrees and some actual sunshine sure does seem to be a monumental change.

Let’s see if Correia can’t go a little deeper into the game tonight and let the bullpen have a break. I wouldn’t mind if he figured out how to keep Ortiz off the bases too. Yeah, I’d like that.

Boston @ Minnesota
Pedroia, 2B Dozier, 2B
Victorino, RF Mauer, 1B
Ortiz, D, DH Plouffe, 3B
Napoli, 1B Parmelee, RF
Sizemore, G, LF Suzuki, K, DH
Pierzynski, C Pinto, C
Bogaerts, SS Nunez, LF
Middlebrooks, 3B Escobar, E, SS
Bradley Jr., CF Hicks, CF
  Doubront, P   Correia, P
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Boston 2 0 2 1 1 1 0 0 2 9 12 1
Minnesota 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 4 10 2

Apparently David Ortiz likes hitting at Target Field. Or maybe he likes hitting against Twins pitching. Either way, I’ll be glad to see him leave. – JC

GameChat – Red Sox @ Twins, 7:10pm

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so Boston comes to town and all the warmth leaves the state… coincidence? correlation? causation?  You will have to be the judge.

especially since once again, I don’t get to watch any baseball and it will be all I can do to catch the score here and there while at choir rehearsal. 🙁

Boston @ Minnesota
Pedroia, 2B Dozier, 2B
Victorino, RF Mauer, 1B
Ortiz, D, DH Plouffe, 3B
Napoli, 1B Kubel, LF
Sizemore, G, LF Suzuki, K, C
Pierzynski, C Parmelee, RF
Bogaerts, SS Nunez, DH
Middlebrooks, 3B Escobar, E, SS
Bradley Jr., CF Santana, D, CF
  Peavy, P   Nolasco, P
  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Boston 1 0 0 1 0 1 3 0 0 6 11 0
Minnesota 0 5 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 8 13 0

Well I missed most of the game but got into the car to come home in time to hear Boston tie it up..  which sounded pretty frustrating if you ask me.

However, I got home and settled in just in time to see Parmelee end it in spectacular fashion so .. it seems like I basically got to see the best part of the game! (although knocking Jake Peavy out in the 6th inning isn’t too shabby). Anyway, it seems somewhat a given that Chris – newly returned to the 40 man roster not to mention to Target Field – is tonight’s BOD!

Chris Parmelee (photo: J Megenhardt/MLB.com)
Chris Parmelee (photo: J Megenhardt/MLB.com)

GameChat – Twins @ Tigers #3, 12:08

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Happy Mothers’ Day to all you moms out there!

mothersdaybaseballSam Deduno takes the mound for today’s rubber contest against the Tigers. Joe Mauer reportedly showed up today saying his back felt pretty good, so he’s at least back in the lineup for the second consecutive day at DH.

I won’t be around for the game today. I’ll be spending the day with my mom and family having dinner at a casino 🙂

Let’s hope Deduno makes it a terrific Mothers Day for Twins fans.

Go Twins!

Minnesota @ Detroit
Dozier, 2B Kinsler, 2B
Mauer, DH Hunter, To, RF
Plouffe, 3B Cabrera, M, 1B
Colabello, 1B Martinez, V, DH
Pinto, C Kelly, D, 3B
Nunez, LF Jackson, A, CF
Parmelee, RF Avila, C
Hicks, CF Romine, A, SS
Escobar, E, SS Davis, R, LF
  Deduno, P   Ray, R, P
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Minnesota 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 4 10 1
Detroit 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 3 7 1

I missed the entire game, so I have nothing but the box score to go on here, as far as naming a BOD.

Sam Deduno appears to have had a decent enough start. That’s great to see.

The two Eduardos, Nunez and Escobar, each had a couple of hits.

But I’m going to go with Josmil PInto as BOD for his two hits, two runs scored and a RBI.

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Josmil PInto (photo: JC/Knuckleballs)

GameChat – Twins @ Tigers #2, 12:08pm

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I would definitely like to see some great baseball this afternoon but .. I’m moving a piano into my house so I will likely only get to listen to the game, if that. I wouldn’t mind seeing a return to the pitching duel with Gibby out there – matching up great pitching with great pitching is a rare thing for us with Detroit so I think we should take full advantage of it.

Go Twins!

Minnesota @ Detroit
Dozier, 2B Kinsler, 2B
Suzuki, K, C Hunter, To, RF
Mauer, DH Cabrera, M, 1B
Colabello, 1B Martinez, V, DH
Parmelee, RF Jackson, A, CF
Nunez, LF Kelly, D, LF
Escobar, E, 3B Castellanos, N, 3B
Hicks, CF Avila, C
Santana, D, SS Romine, A, SS
  Gibson, P   Scherzer, P
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Minnesota 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 8 2
Detroit 0 6 0 0 0 0 3 0 x 9 11 1

Kyle Gibson had another one of those “welcome to the Big Leagues” kind of days against the Tigers. On the other hand, his defense in the second inning did him no favors at all.

It was good to see Joe Mauer’s name at least in the line up again and someone who looks like him step in to the batters box. Now we just need to get the real Joe Mauer back.

Anthony Swarzak’s contributions should not go overlooked. He relieved Gibson to start the 3rd inning and proceeded to throw four shutout innings against what appears to be the best line up in the AL. Too bad the effort was wasted.

Hey, has anyone noticed that Eduardo Escobar is hitting .322 (small sample size) and Danny Santana is at .412 (smaller sample size)? – JC

GameChat – Twins @ Tigers, 6:08pm

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*** RAIN DELAY OVER…

A weekend series in Detroit… this could either be a lot of fun or.. not so much.

In case you missed it, Sam Fuld is officially on the Concussion DL and Nunez has been brought up in his place – plus some other roster news:

All in all, it makes for a bit of the same ol’ same ol’ kind of feeling with the injury bug.

Minnesota @ Detroit
Dozier, 2B Kinsler, 2B
Suzuki, K, C Hunter, To, RF
Plouffe, 3B Cabrera, M, 1B
Colabello, 1B Martinez, V, DH
Kubel, LF Jackson, A, CF
Nunez, DH Castellanos, N, 3B
Parmelee, RF Avila, C
Hicks, CF Romine, A, SS
Santana, D, SS Davis, R, LF
  Hughes, P, P   Verlander, P
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Minnesota 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 9 0
Detroit 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 10 0

I didn’t get to even listen to anything but the last two innings tonight, but I was pretty much shocked to see the Twins not only scored twice on Justin Verlander, but that Phil Hughes had kept the Tigers off the board for 7 innings. How cool is that combination?

Yes, Perk gave up a run in the 9th, but with the critical strike outs, we’ll let that pass this time.

Kurt Suzuki obviously had a big 2 out, 2 RBI single, but I don’t think there’s any doubt that Hughes is our BOD. – JC

Phil Hughes (photo: JC/Knuckleballs)
Phil Hughes (photo: JC/Knuckleballs)

GameChat – Minnesota @ Cleveland #4, 11:05am

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Welcome to Breakfast Baseball – especially if you happen to be a west coast Twins fan.

This is the last game in this series in Cleveland and our boys’ chance to even things up – for this trip. In the broader picture of division match-up for the season, we still have the edge on the Indians but we can’t afford to give that up so go Twins!

Unfortunately, we’re getting even more bench pinching. Fuld is having issues with headaches and neck stiffness and yeah, they are checking him for concussion issues. Not sure where that leaves us but Gardy is going to have a few issues today.

Minnesota @ Cleveland
Dozier, 2B Bourn, CF
Escobar, E, CF Swisher, 1B
Plouffe, 3B Brantley, LF
Colabello, 1B Santana, C, C
Kubel, LF Murphy, Dv, RF
Suzuki, K, DH Cabrera, A, SS
Pinto, C Raburn, DH
Herrmann, C, RF Chisenhall, 3B
Santana, D, SS Aviles, 2B
  Correia, P   Masterson, P
  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Minnesota 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 4 5 1
Cleveland 1 1 0 0 2 1 3 1 x 9 15 1

Well that wasn’t any fun.. I really do put it down to lack of flexibility.. as in, there is a reason we have a 25 man active roster and not having 25 available players is highly problematic. The Twins are basically still hoping that Mauer will be able to play “tomorrow” and Fuld is now on the DL.. these are not good things and it leads to losing baseball games.

Episode 82: Kicked off of iTunes, Tough Joe Mauer, and Darren Wolfson

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iTunes and MLB, tyrants of industry, don’t cha know!  You cannot download the new Talk to Contact (@TalkToContact) episode via iTunes but if you click here you can download the new episode.  And if you want to add the show to your podcast player, this is theRSS Feed. 

selig-736642

In our little part of the internet, the big news this week was MLB asking iTunes to remove several baseball themed podcasts because of what they believe was copyright infringement.  We were one of the podcasts removed, we were fired up, and spent the first ten or so minutes discussing this entire situation.

We also had the opportunity to purchase some free tickets through ScoreBig.com, an online ticket auction site. We detailed the purchase process and the pros and cons of using this ticket provider.

Then we finally circled back around to Twins news.  We talked about the phantom DL and Mike Pelfrey, Aaron Hicks’ concussion, and the current Twins roster construction. Jay took a strong stand on Joe Mauer’s toughness, and Eric strongly disagreed.
Darren Wolfson joined us for almost thiry minutes to give us the scoops on the upcoming MLB draft, and all thing Twins.
We closed out the podcast with our regular segments selecting hitters and pitchers of the week, talking beer, baseball and the news.
101 minutes of fun.  Thanks for listening.

You can follow Cody on Twitter (@NoDakTwinsFan) or read his writing at NoDakTwinsFan, you can find Paul on Twitter (@BaseballPirate) and read his writing at PuckettsPond.com, and you can find Mr. Jay Corn on Twitter (@Jay__Corn)!
If you enjoy our podcast, please take a couple extra minutes and tell iTunes and MLB that we think what they did on Wednesday really stinks.

GameChat – Minnesota @ Cleveland #3, 6:05pm

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Another rubber match. I have to start trusting Nolasco at some point if he keeps doing well enough but .. not yet.

Still no Mauer and now EE in left field.. this could be interesting.

Minnesota @ Cleveland
Dozier, 2B Morgan, CF
Fuld, CF Swisher, 1B
Plouffe, 3B Brantley, LF
Colabello, 1B Santana, C, 3B
Kubel, RF Murphy, Dv, RF
Suzuki, K, C Cabrera, A, SS
Pinto, DH Chisenhall, DH
Escobar, E, LF Gomes, Y, C
Florimon, SS Aviles, 2B
  Nolasco, P   Salazar, P
  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Minnesota 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 3 9 0
Cleveland 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 4 9 1

…that was a hard fought game actually – I don’t think the Twins have much to regret except that they didn’t come out on top –especially against a division opponent, that stings. When the walk-off was only possible because poor Escobar had one bad play in Left Field where he has very little experience? Yeah, he’s not feeling good about it either. I feel kind of bad for him.

We’ll have to see what happens in the final game of the series tomorrow.. for our west coast fans, you get breakfast baseball!