Friday October 10, 2003

TWINS THOUGHTS

DISCUSSION QUESTION OF THE WEEK

ALCS SERIES

NLCS GAMES THIS WEEKEND

TIMBERWOLVES THOUGHTS

NFL “EXPERT” PICKS

MAILBAG

FRIDAY FOOTBALL PICKS AND RANDOM RAMBLINGS

TWINS THOUGHTS

The Twins season is officially over, but there is still plenty going on with the organization. Earlier in the week, Doug Mientkiewicz had successful wrist surgery. Next week, lefty Johan Santana will be having what the team is referring to as ‘minor elbow surgery’ to remove some bone chips. Is there really such a thing?

Yesterday, the Twins also officially signed their manager Ron Gardenhire through the 2005 season. I was frequently harsh toward some of Ron Gardenhire’s managerial decisions, how he’s overly loyal to ‘his’ guys, how he’s terrible with young players, and other game time decisions. But the players continually talk about how much they love playing for him, and I think that is pretty important. I think a lot of times we watch so much of the Twins every day in a critical way, so we see every little decision from under a microscope. I think Gardy may get a lot more credit nationally than he does locally. I’m sure if we watched other managers as closely as we do Ron Gardenhire, we may be just as overly critical. Stability within the organization is an important thing, and yesterday’s signing ensures that. Unfortunately, Gardenhire has said he wants to bring back all of his coaches. That means Scott Ullger will probably be back as hitting coach. UGGH! Where will Paul Molitor fit into the organization? That should be interesting as well.

And finally, be sure to check the Twins web page frequently during the offseason. If for nothing else, the Twins top pitching prospect JD Durbin will be writing a journal for the web site. He is playing on Team USA this fall. This entry, he discusses some entertaining things. Pitchers and catchers are the only ones there, and the rest of the team will be reporting shortly. Durbin is quite the character. As quiet as Joe Mauer is, Durbin is just the opposite, so it’ll be fun to read.

Be sure to take a look back at yesterday’s posting. In it, I discussed what I think the Twins should do from a roster standpoint heading into the 2004 season. Also, be sure to answer this week’s DISCUSSION QUESTION OF THE WEEK, as it applies to the Twins offseason.

DISCUSSION QUESTION OF THE WEEK

I’m sure you’ve got plenty of comments on my thoughts on the 2004 Twins. We’re going to make this another discussion question.  There are many new readers to the site since the last time we had a Discussion Question, so let me again explain how this works.

1.)     Take a look at the below question and take some time to think it over.

2.)     Send me an e-mail (before next Wednesday, Oct. 15) with your thoughts on the subject.

3.)     Check back on Thursday, when I post your thoughts on this web site.

So, here’s the Question of This Week:

“The Twins had a very good 2003 season. Terry Ryan has some very difficult roster decisions to make. IF YOU WERE TWINS GM TERRY RYAN, what would you do this offseason? What would your priorities be? Who do you think will be on the 2004 Minnesota Twins team roster?”

Thanks for thinking about it, and I can’t wait to hear the responses.  Please be sure to e-mail me.

ALCS GAME 2 (Yankees 6, Red Sox 2)

Well, the Yankees got exactly what they needed from their starter, Andy Pettitte. 6+ innings of solid pitching. The Yankees countered an RBI single by Sox 2B Damian Jackson in the top of the 2^nd inning, with a 2-run home run by Nick Johnson to give them a 2-1 lead after 2 innings, a lead they would never give back. They added single runs in the 3^rd and 5^th innings to go up 4-1 before Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek hit a solo home run to cut the lead to 4-2. A Jorge Posada double in the bottom of the 7^th inning gave the Yankees their final lead of 6-2. Pettitte was solid for 6.2 innings, allowing just the two runs and recording 5 strikeouts. He did have to work out of a number of situations. The Red Sox did get 9 hits (and 2 walks) off of him. But Jose Contreras pitched a very strong 1.1 innings, striking out one. I tell you what, he is looking strong. He throws hard and that split finger pitch is sharp! Then, Mariano Rivera had another quick 9^th inning to close the game out. Here is the weekend schedule (all times Central) for the ALCS:

Game 3 - Saturday, 3:05 - Roger Clemens vs. Pedro Martinez

Game 4 - Sunday, 6:35 - David Wells vs. John Burkett

(all games on Fox)

NLCS GAMES THIS WEEKEND

Game 3 - Friday, 7:05 - Kerry Wood vs. Mark Redman

Game 4 - Saturday, 6:35 - Matt Clement vs. Dontrelle Willis

Game 5 - Sunday, 3:05 - Carlos Zambrano vs. Josh Beckett

(all games on Fox)

TIMBERWOLVES THOUGHTS

I’m excited. I love the NBA. I love watching the up-and-down action on the court, the strategies, the team play and the individual talents. I love watching the Timberwolves because traditionally they are one of the best passing teams in the NBA. Well, last night, the Wolves played their first preseason game. They beat the Milwaukee Bucks 99-98 on a three pointer by point guard Keith McLoud with 2 seconds to go. Not sure who Keith McLoud is? Here’s a great article on the man in yesterday’s Star Tribune. Kevin Garnett led the Wolves with 30 points. Former Buck Sam Cassell added 21 against his former teammates.  The Wolves actually played very short-handed. Latrell Sprewell, Michael Olowokandi, Wally Szczerbiak, Troy Hudson and Ndudi Ebi all didn’t play.

As you know, frequently, I encourage the readers of this site to visit the Twins Geek site. Well, now that the Twins are done and the Wolves are in training camp, I have to encourage everyone to go to the Wolves Geek site and bookmark it. Cory does a great posting on all things Timberwolves!

 

NFL “EXPERT” PICKS
 

OK, I have not done well the last two weeks. After starting off well the first three weeks, I managed to just pick 15 games correctly in the last two weeks combined. Not good at all. I need to turn this around before I get too far behind.

So, here are this week’s football picks by our panel.  If you are in an office pool or just pick games for fun among friends, be sure to take a look at our picks. Then, look specifically at mine, and try not to have too many similar to mine. That would probably be best.

This week, we have a couple of other questions that I asked the panel to answer as well.

The first is something that I wrote about on this site quite some time ago.  Is NASCAR a sport?  I think it is certainly a debatable question. When I wrote that report, I was doing what I could to get into a Fantasy NASCAR league. They wouldn’t let me in if I said NASCAR wasn’t a sport. So, here is my real opinion.

The second question is DH or no-DH?  Basically it’s a question of American League or National League, what style do you prefer. This is one of those questions that will never go away, I’m sure!

Then we took a look at three big college football games taking place this weekend.  The first is the 13^th ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers playing tonight at the Dome against the 19^th ranked University of Michigan Wolverines. Second, in a battle of Florida teams, it’s #5 Florida St. taking on the #2 University of Miami. And finally, in a Big 12 clash, it’s the #1 ranked, University of Oklahoma trying to lasso the 11^th ranked Longhorns of Texas.

I had also asked the panel to give me the list of the Top QB, RB and WR of this week’s NFL games, but when the Vikings Randy Moss received three votes, I realized that I must not have asked the question quite right, since the Vikings have their bye this weekend.

So, without further ado, here are our picks:

To summarize our picks:

Kansas City @ Green Bay - Chiefs 6-3

Houston @ Tennessee - Titans 9-0

Carolina @ Indianapolis - Colts 9-0

NY Giants @ New England - Patriots 8-1

Chicago @ New Orleans - Saints 8-1

Oakland @ Cleveland - Browns 5-4

Philadelphia @ Dallas - Eagles 7-2

Tampa Bay @ Washington - Buccaneers 9-0

Miami @ Jacksonville - Dolphins 9-0

Pittsburgh @ Denver - Broncos 9-0

Buffalo @ NY Jets - Bills 7-2

Baltimore @ Arizona - Ravens 9-0

San Francisco @ Seattle - Seahawks 9-0

Atlanta @ St. Louis - Rams 8-1

Is NASCAR a sport? No, 6-3.

DH or No-DH? No-DH, 6-3.

#13 Gophers vs. #19 Michigan - Michigan 5-4

#5 Florida St. vs.  #2 Miami - Florida St. 6-3

#1 Oklahoma vs. #11 Texas - Oklahoma 7-2

Be sure to check back over the weekend to see how we did.

MAILBAG

I got a few e-mails this week that I wanted to share and be able to respond to online. Some were positive. Some, well, not so much positive at all. But that’s ok. As I’ve mentioned from the onset of this website, I am going to put my opinions and thoughts out there, online, for others to read and enjoy, and then debate, if you want to. I realize not everyone is going to agree with everything I have to say, but I’m still going to say it. So, let’s get to the Mailbag, and start with a very honest reader who is not a big fan of my site:

Dude, I don't usually do this, but your blog is really <bleep>.  I'm sorry, but there's no partiality at all, and you seemed to be blinded by blind loyalties to the Twins (e.g. your 'hey bert' sign on your site). I'm a Twins fan through and through, but jeezus, have a little objectivity. Maybe you should read a little more www.aarongleeman.com, or www.twinsgeek.com to get some sort of take on reality. Sorry, I just can't read your blog anymore.

Jon

Well, I should point out that I have replied individually with Jon on this since then. I love all replies, even this one. If you have some constructive criticism for me, I would be more than happy to read it, and then consider it. This particular e-mail didn’t exactly instruct, other than to tell me to read Aaron’s Baseball Blog and the Twins Geek sites more often. (Note - I read those two sites first thing every day, for what it’s worth!) Since, this e-mail, we have corresponded, and I do now know what Jon’s issue is, and he was right. So, Thanks Jon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Let’s look at another e-mail that I absolutely loved. This one is in reference to Tuesday’s entry in which I bashed the actions of Manny Ramirez and Derek Lowe in their ALDS Game 5 win, and then announced that because of it, I would be cheering for the Yankees. Kelli, who lives in DC and is a huge Red Sox fan, even though she grew up in western NY, disagreed (somewhat) with my entry, but I appreciate how she argued her point in an attempt to convince me otherwise.

Hi Seth,
First time on your blog and already sending a message. I got a mouth on me, I guess.
After watching the game last night, sometimes on the edge of the chair, sometimes pacing the floor, sometimes in the next room with my husband shouting out the count to me, I think you have half a point about Manny (yeah, no class, obnoxious walk to first) but not about the superiority of the Yankees.
I won't belabor this, because I don't want to come off as some freakish Red Sox cultist. I'm not even from Boston. Just have many happy memories of trips to Fenway with Dad and Bro, watching them on tv, etc. In fact, if my oldest boy hadn't become a baseball nut this year, I wouldn't be trolling the blogosphere looking for people to talk about this with at all. But I've fallen back in love with this old flame, and now it's too late. I can't do much else this month. I've already written it off.
My point about the Sox (and why you should pull for them tomorrow and through next week) is that the sum is greater than the parts. Individually they can act worse than frat boys on a bender. Collectively, there is unity and love there. Can you say that about the Yankees? Yeah, those guys are pros, they get the job done and they are good to their fans. But there's something so tiresome about the whole thing. Deter looks smug and self-satisfied (who wouldn't be?), then he does what needs doing on the field and at bat. Good for him. He's a machine! Is there love on that bench? I don't see it. It's all business.
The Sox, on the other hand, are baseball's island of misfit toys. There are superstars, yeah. But what about Millar, who worked his way up from the boondocks, just kept playing for the love of the game, fell into the Red Sox' lap, and has found a home. It ain't all ABOUT winning and it sure as heck ain’t all about baseball. These guys have magic. They will do ANYTHING to stay alive for another day, and they play for each other as much as themselves. Ever read John Keegan's "The Face of Battle?" Excellent military historian. He argues that soldiers have never fought for grand abstractions like God and Queen and Country. They fight for each other. This year's Sox are like that. Teams like this come along so rarely. You gotta see this. I saw it in the shaved heads, in the way Ortiz walked Jackson off the field like a wounded son, and threatened to go into the stands to defend his honor. I was cursing Jackson one minute, but after that realized how wrong I was (and did you see him CRY at the end of the game?). You can slam Ramirez or even Lowe for crude, unnecessary gestures. It IS bad sportsmanship and I do not condone it. But I understand these as expressions of their relief--I came through for the team when they needed it most! Don't knock them too hard for it.
I dunno. Did I convince you? Probably not. But I enjoyed visiting your blog and look forward to seeing your postmortem of tomorrow's game.
Sincerely,
Kelli

Well, Kelli did not succeed in her attempt to get me to cheer for the Red Sox… but good try. Just look at her argument. I mean, if you can throw John Keegan into an e-argument, how can I possibly not love that!?  I did admit on Tuesday that I was letting the actions of the few/two affect my thoughts on the whole, and I know that isn’t fair. I am a huge David Ortiz fan, and was very impressed by his behavior in that game. But, I will admit this in a partial concession: I just can’t cheer for the Yankees either. In other words, Go National League!

Tim (from MN) wrote the day after the Sox knocked off the A’s and advanced to the ALCS. He also disagreed with me cheering for the Yankees.

That was a pretty cool game, right down to the wire. I do agree that the show boating moments were sour, that is not the way to behave on a professional field ... or any field for that matter. But, I am willing to cut the Sox some slack because we just don't know what subtle taunting went on during that game or previous games. I wonder if there isn't some under the surface thing with the A's that provokes that sort of behavior ... AJ did the same thing last year & the A's cried 'foul'. Isn't it a bit symmetrical? It's difficult to refrain from, at least, asking the question.
As for the Yankee's taking it all, I really hope not, it is impossible to get over the obscenity of their spending ... I don't mean to imply that the BoSox are a low budget team, but Steinbrenner's notion of "world series or nothing" just flies into the face of competition & the wonder of sports in general. I will take nothing away from the players, they are excellent & do conform to a sense of dignity, but that it not the point. The 'Boss' is the culprit & I refuse to root for him.
Besides, wouldn't be cool to see the "Curse of the Bambino" finally broken?

I think that Tim speaks for a lot of baseball fans when he mentions his dislike of the Yankees organization, and George Steinbrenner’s spending in particular. Let me first say this, I see nothing wrong with what George Steinbrenner does. It’s perfectly legal (until the rules change, which is up to the player’s union, they can’t complain), and if I were a player, I would want to play for an owner willing to do what it takes to win. Personally, they go about it in a different way than I would, but it works and it has been successful. I sometimes think that is really the issue. Fans from other markets just being jealous of the success of the Yankees. They don’t like them for the same reasons many sports fans don’t like the Florida St. and Miami college football teams, the Duke men’s basketball program, Notre Dame football. Fans don’t like teams that consistently win. They get sick of it. They like teams that start small, and work their way up, which as a Twins fan, I can appreciate. Also, and Tim specifically mentioned this, to say that the Yankees are a big-market team and the Red Sox are ‘small-market’ would be absolutely ridiculous! Actually, to say that Chicago is a small-market team is pretty bad too! So, maybe I’m a Marlins fan for the rest of this season!!

And, would I want to see the “Curse of the Bambino” broken? Only because I am so sick of hearing about it! Part of me wants the Cubs and Red Sox to play in the World Series so one of the two cities would quit being so over-dramatic and whining.
Finally, Leslie, who is a Twins fan from New Jersey is a little more blunt in his thoughts on baseball. His subject of this e-mail “Screw Baseball!”:

I am done as a baseball fan. Major League Baseball is a corrupt sport where big market teams win while small-market teams don't have a prayer to keep up with the big-market teams. It's been very obvious in the playoffs so far where the Twins could not keep up with the Yankees and Braves could not keep up with the Cubs. It's very likely that you will see a big-market WS between Yankees and Cubs. Tell me who really cares. Baseball has low ratings. College football and the NFL basically beats them. NBA beats MLB. Not many ballparks sell out in MLB with the exception of Yankee Stadium. I know too many people that can give a rat's <butt> about baseball.
George Steinbrenner has clearly destroyed the sport in general with escalating salaries and raiding the small-market teams. It would not surprise me if lot of small-market teams are done. I have a feeling that this was the Twins last run of playoffs. I have a feeling the Twins will probably have a losing season next season and it won't be long till the Twins or the rest of small-market teams are extinct if there is no salary cap. This crap can't go on like this. I personally think MLB should have locked the players out to get what they needed which is a salary cap.
I lost a lot of interest in baseball. Baseball can go to hell. Maybe I will follow the sport again in 20 years where tickets are reasonable, where teams have equal opportunity to win, when Steinbrenner dies, where there is a salary cap, and when players like Mark Prior stop the nonsense of dictating what team he wants to go.
It's a good thing the NBA has a strict cap where teams like the Knicks don't have the freedom to buy players like Yankees. If the NBA was like baseball, Jason Kidd would do his stuff in L.A. or San Antonio. I really hope the NHL is insistent on a salary cap and then I hope baseball follows hockey's way.
NHL,NBA, and the NFL is good enough for me. I will even take independent league baseball in the Newark Bears.
              

Ah, Leslie, where do I start on this? Corrupt is a pretty strong word. I guess I just don’t see it like maybe most people do. You may be right, maybe baseball should have locked out the players to get a salary cap, but… they didn’t, and this is the system that we have. I’m certainly not going to begrudge the players getting what they can, getting their fair market value. I certainly can’t blame a player for playing/working where he wants to. As we’ve all noticed, alleged small-market teams have been able to find much success in recent years. The Yankees have not won every World Series. With the Yankees paying so much money in revenue sharing, the gap is not as big as some people think. Yes, Minneapolis is a small(er)-market team, but Carl Pohlad is rich. He has every ability to spend more if he wants. (As I mentioned in my Twins 2004 posting yesterday, I think the Twins will be better if they mix some of their current players with some of their top prospects.) And, if anyone really believes that Carl Pohlad is losing money owning the Twins, don’t. Carl Pohlad didn’t become a billionaire by making poor business decisions in his life. So, I will always fight the big market-small market argument.

I love baseball, and I think it’s important for baseball fans to remember that no matter how much money the players are making, they are playing the same game of baseball. 3 outs an inning, 9 innings in a game. 4 balls, 3 strikes. 60 feet, 6 inches. It’s all the same, so if you really like baseball, logic would say that watching the Yankees/Red Sox series would still be doable!

Oh, and for the record, the Newark Bears are the New York Yankees of that independent league. They get these players like Jose Canseco, Jim Leyritz, Rickey Henderson and Jose Lima. Because of the salary restrictions in that league, and the contract demands of the above players, Newark got salary help from the other teams in the league to pay their contracts.  I love independent baseball! I think that it is fun to watch, cheaper to attend, and the talent level is very high. So, if you’re going to give up major league baseball, independent league ball is a good place to go.

OK, that’s it for today, and that’s it for this week! If you have any thoughts on anything you’ve read today, let’s discuss it. If you have any comments on the Twins, the Wolves, the Wild, the NFL, fantasy football, or these mailbag entries, please, send me an e-mail, and let’s discuss it! Thanks again, and have a great weekend!

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