On Christmas Day, I went to church. Afterward, I had to get a hot chocolate, so I went to the convenience store. While there, I saw the Minneapolis Star-Tribune and that their Sportsman of the Year was in that day's sports page. There was a picture of Joe Mauer and Chester Taylor of the Vikings on the front page. Knowing that it couldn't be Taylor over Mauer, I figured it must be a Twin. But would they pick Mauer, the first catcher to win an AL Batting Title? Or would they go with AL MVP Justin Morneau? How about Johan Santana, who won his second AL Cy Young Award? Maybe Terry Ryan? I was excited to get home and see who was selected. When I got home, I found that they had determined that The Minnesota Twins Organization was the Sportsmen of the Year, and it is a perfect choice. It was a perfect ending to the year. Any of the names above could have been mentioned, and several others. It was an absolutely incredible 2006 for the Minnesota Twins full of ups and downs, highs and lows, and extremes in both directions. It has also been a very good year for the SethSpeaks.net site. So, today, the final day of 2006 in which there will be a new posting, I thought it would be fun to take a look back at the year 2006 starting from the beginning. Hopefully it will create some memories and smiles for you. If so, please feel free to e-mail me or leave some Comments down below. Happy New Year!

The very first blog entry of 2006 was on January 3rd. It was a Question and Answer with Chris Coste, a former college teammate who became one of the biggest and best stories of 2006. In it, he talks about life in the minors, what it would be like to finally get to the big leagues, Ryan Howard, Jim Thome and a lot more. If you haven't checked it out before, please do so because I really think you will enjoy it!

Here is the checklist of the Q&As of 2006. If you missed any of them, be sure to check them out now:

10/23/06 - Q&A with Danny Santiesteban

10/18/06 - Q&A with Danny Powers

10/13/06 - Q&A with Kyle Geiger  

10/10/06 - Q&A with Alexander Smit

10/6/06 - Q&A with Trent Oeltjen

10/3/06 - Q&A with Doug Deeds  

8/15/06 - Q&A with Juan Portes

7/14/06 - Q&A with Kevin Slowey (Your Questions)

6/30/06 - Q&A with Caleb Moore

6/28/06 - Q&A with Erik Lis

6/23/06 - Q&A with Pat Neshek (Your Questions)

5/30/06 - Q&A with Trevor Plouffe

5/12/06 - Q&A with Paul Kelly

5/9/06 - Q&A with Brian Duensing

5/5/06 - Q&A with Matt Garza

5/2/06 - Q&A with Kyle Waldrop

4/28/06 - Q&A with David Winfree

4/25/06 - Q&A with Josh Rabe

2/24/06 - Q&A with Tommy Watkins

2/20/06 - Spring Training Q&A (Part 2)

1/3/06 - Q&A with Chris Coste

 On January 18th, the Minnesota Twins Caravan came to Warroad. Ron Gardenhire, Rick Anderson, Lew Ford, Jason Bartlett and John Gordon appeared and it was a great night. Ten days later, I had an amazing time at Twins Fest and talked to a lot of people.  

 

On February 20th, Spring Training officially began. I was fortunate to post a Spring Training Q&A with six players at various stages of development. I also wrote about seven stories to follow through training camp.

 

On March 2nd, the Twins played their first spring training game and it was televised. After five months without baseball, it was great to watch and (over) analyze a baseball game again! There was also a mention of Twins Rule V pick Alejandro Machado and his defense!

 

And then came the news that shocked me to a level that surprised even me. On March 5, the boyhood hero Kirby Puckett suffered a stroke at his home in Arizona. And then on the next day, we heard that he had passed away. I couldn't really even think, so I just posted links to so many great articles and tributes to Kirby Puckett. Even now, that whole event barely seems real to me. As Bob Sansavere wrote, heroes aren't supposed to die! A few days later, there was an incredibly touching tribute to Kirby at the Metrodome that was televised and I can't imagine there was a dry eye. It was at this event when Ron Gardenhire said that the team would honor Puckett with all-out hustle throughout the season.

 

After a rough week, I did have a happy event. After not placing in the top table in Poker League, I was able to win a weekly tournament! Yay!

 

And then came the start of the season, a season full of optimism despite the fact that Jason Bartlett had been sent to the minors, losing the starting job to Juan Castro. I need to thank the good folks at Banjo Brothers who sponsored our 2006 Minnesota Twins predictions. It is where I posted my thoughts on the upcoming season and several of you did as well.

 

The season started with an incredible pitching matchup between the AL's top two pitchers, Johan Santana and Roy Halladay in Toronto. The Twins lost. "Joe Mauer went hitless. Maybe he is overrated! Justin Morneau struck out twice. He must really be a bust. Johan Santana was not on his game."

 

You may remember "The Confrontation." That was FUN!

 

Things did not go well for the Twins to start the season. Even a huge Twins fan like myself had his doubts. "reality also tells us that this Minnesota Twins team is not even in the same category as the Chicago White Sox. They are also not close to the Cleveland Indians. I think that they may be close to the Detroit Tigers, and we will hopefully find out this week that they are still ahead of the Kansas City Royals. I really hope we see that."

 

By the end of April, I was talking crazy! Imagine if this would have happened: "I wonder if we are to the point where we need a strict platoon with Cuddyer and Morneau at 1B. Cuddyer should also play some in RF or even at 3B just to keep ready and get some at bats against righties, but it is starting to make sense."

 

The next weekend, the Twins played the infamous series in Detroit. You know, the one where the Twins lost the three games by a combined 33-1! Although that was the low point of the season, things did not necessarily get better.

 

On May 15th, my girlfriend and I became the parents of a  beautiful baby girl. It was the same day that I was supposed to start my new job. Needless to say, I didn't make it in that day.

 

On May 21, Chris Coste finally got the call up to the Phillies that he deserved! There was a lot of great news at this same time. This is when the Twins FINALLY got the new ballpark funding that they needed!

 

In mid-May, a few changes happened. Carlos Silva went to the bullpen and Kyle Lohse went to Rochester. Francisco Liriano was finally put into the rotation and Boof Bonser came up. (at the same time, Matt Garza moved up to AA.) Of course, I thought that a few more changes were needed! By the end of May, the Twins were playing so poorly that we started thinking about which players would be on the Twins roster in 2010 when the stadium opened! Many of those players were part of my Top 50 Twins Prospects that came out at that time. The one highlight for the Twins as they started June was that Joe Mauer was hitting .362. In May he hit .386, but that was just the start of things.

 

As has been well documented, after a June 8th loss to the Seattle Mariners, the Twins were at their worst record. Justin Morneau was hitting just .235 and got benched for a game. He came back with a big weekend against the Orioles. He was 7-12 with three homers and nine RBI. His average went up to .255. Joe Mauer's average was up to .386.

 

On June 13th, the Twins and Red Sox played and the pitching matchup was Johan Santana against Curt Schilling. I needed to do an Analysis of the Aces. But that became just a small part of the story. You may remember that game as the one where Jason Kubel hit a game-winning Grand Slam to break a 1-1 tie in the 11th! That is also the day that Tony Batista was released and the team finally recalled Jason Bartlett. Three days later, the Twins traded Juan Castro to the Reds for Brandon Roberts.

 

On June 23rd, Pat Neshek was absolutely dominating the International League. He was nice enough to do an interactive Q&A. He answered several questions from you, the readers including questions about why he wasn't with the Twins yet! The night before was Roger Clemens return to the Astros, and it was a national coming out party for Francisco Liriano. The rest of the country got to see what we knew we had!

 

Later in June, the Twins hosted the LA Dodgers in a three game set. That was the series when Joe Mauer went 11-13. As Charley Steiner later said, it was one of the most amazing displays he had ever seen, in part, because three hits went to left, three to center and three to right, with one more going to each gap. By the end of June, the Twins were 42-35, but they were still 11 games behind the Tigers in the AL Central. June was an incredible, historic month for the Twins. Joe Mauer was named the AL Player of the Month (Justin Morneau finished second in voting). Johan Santana was the pitcher of the month (Liriano was second). Francisco Liriano was named the AL Rookie of the Month. It was the first time that one team won all three awards in the same month. For the month, Mauer hit .452/.528/.624, and Morneau hit .364/.400/.737 with 10 homers and 29 RBI.

 

On July 6th, Pat Neshek finally got the call to the big leagues! he met the team in Texas and it wasn't long before he made his impressive Major League debut against the Rangers.

  

Joe Mauer and Johan Santana were named to the American League All-Star team. Francisco Liriano, who had already traveled to his home in the Dominican Republic, was later added to the American League roster. At the same time, I started writing for the Twin Cities Dugout.

 

The first game back from the All-Star game, Francisco Liriano gets hit hard by the Indians. Is something wrong? Also, Jason Kubel's knees are sore. Two key young players with issues. Hopefully neither is too serious! Also, Matt Garza is promoted to AAA Rochester. At the same time, Lew Ford, Shannon Stewart and Torii Hunter all went on the Disabled List. Jason Tyner and Josh Rabe come up and contribute immediately. With so many injuries and issues in the pitching staff, is it time to call up Matt Garza? Not yet... it's Mike Smith time!

 

On July 20th, Chris Coste hits his first big league home run. It comes in San Diego against starter Mike Thompson. Two days later, he rips a long home run off of the Braves John Smoltz. A couple of weeks later, he hit a homer off of Tom Glavine and I had to ask if the Phillies would see Greg Maddux the rest of the season?! 

 

 On August 7th though, Francisco Liriano started and gave up four runs on 10 hits in four innings. He is having elbow problems and is headed for the DL. The Twins have been playing great, and have nearly caught up in the Wild Card race, but they are still so far behind the Tigers. Within days, Matt Garza is finally called up, along with Boof Bonser.

 

On August 9th, Justin Morneau hits a Joel Zumaya fastball into the right field bleachers. It gave him 30 home runs on the year, the first time a Twins player had reached that mark since 1987! With the same swing, Morneau reached the 100 RBI plateau. Later in the season, Torii Hunter hits his 30th homer. Michael Cuddyer also ended up at over 100 RBI.

 

Matt Garza then made his debut, and after a strikeout of Reed Johnson to lead off the game, things went downhill for the phenom. Garza went just 2.2 innings and gave up seven runs on eight hits and two walks.  The next day, the Twins grounded into six double plays. Things were again looking bleak. They were playing so well, but could the makeshift lineup and starting rotation really compete in a pennant race? (On a more positive note, I did do an Analysis of Matt Garza's first big league win)

 

When Mark Redman shutout the Twins, the team was a 1/2 game behind the White Sox in the Wild Card, but things were not positive. Something was needed. I thought Alexi Casilla would be added to the Twins postseason roster. Before the trade deadline, Terry Ryan sent pitching prospect Adam Harben to the Chicago Cubs for Phil Nevin.

 

On September 3rd, Bert Blyleven used some completely inappropriate words in the pregame show. He thought that the bit was being taped and he could do a do-over. Unfortunately, it was on live TV, shortly after noon and a Sunday! Oops!

 

Kevin Slowey had a remarkable 2006 season. He was named to the Team USA Olympic Qualifier team. He was called on to start the championship game against Cuba, in Havana, in front of 40,000 fans. And he got the Win! He would come back to the states and join the Rochester Red Wings as they were making their first playoff appearance in a very long time!

 

Can anyone forget the Carlos Silva start against the Devil Rays? Six shutout innings. 59 pitches. And, a tummy ache. I just remember thinking that Brad Radke threw until his arm almost literally fell off. Torii Hunter was playing on a bad foot. Joe Mauer is probably hurt more than we know. And Silva can't pitch with a tummy ache! Frustration in September! But two days later (Sept. 8), the Twins beat the Tigers and had a 1/2 game lead over the White Sox in the Wild Card!

 

And then there was even more hope for the Twins. Francisco Liriano started and went three shutout innings to help the Rochester Red Wings advance to the second round of the International League playoffs. Some said he looked as strong as he had all season.

 

On September 12th, Justin Morneau hit a Game-Winning homer and the Twins and there fans were as high as could be. And then the very next day, Francisco Liriano made his return to the Twins. He started and looked dominant. Unfortunately, in the third inning, his season came to an end when he felt more pain in his left elbow. It was such a deflating moment. Watching it was just so surreal. Of course, you realize that the Twins chances are hurt, but you have to look at it from a personal level and just hope that he will be ok. He would try the 'rest and rehab' method again, but in October, he had Tommy John surgery and will miss the entire 2007 season.

 

With the Twins 7-3 win over the Red Sox on September 19th, the team had pulled to within 1/2 game of the Detroit Tigers! On September 25th, the Twins clinched a playoff spot with a win over the Royals and an Indians win over the White Sox! After the horrible start in April and May, the Twins were now playoff bound!

 

Arguably the best Twins story of the year may have been the return to the mound of Brad Radke on September 27th. He gave up only an unearned run and three hits in five innings against the Royals. Although he was not near 100%, he was deemed healthy enough to be the Game 3 starter in the playoffs. 

 

And then, on the final day of the season, the Twins needed a win over the White Sox coupled with a third straight loss by the Tigers to the Royals to win the division. It didn't look good at all early, but as the afternoon went on, things started getting crazy. The Royals had a huge comeback against the Tigers and went to extra innings. The Twins came from behind against the White Sox too. And now, the Twins won the AL Central division title. It was the only day throughout the whole season that the Twins held the division lead. 

 

Of course, the playoffs did not go as well for the Twins as we had hoped. A three game sweep at the hands of the Oakland A's was unfortunate. However, it should not at all discount the amazing season the Twins had. Division Title. Justin Morneau won the AL MVP (which was very controversial!). Johan Santana won his second AL Cy Young Award. Terry Ryan was named the Executive of the Year. Joe Mauer became the first catcher in AL history to win a batting title. Torii Hunter won another Gold Glove. Mauer and Morneau each won Gold Glove Awards. 

 

Since the season has been completed... The Twins picked up a bunch of hardware. They also picked up the $12 million option on Torii Hunter for 2007 which I didn't like at first, but based on how the market is going this season, it isn't so bad! Former Twin Joe Niekro passed away. Matt Garza and Alexi Casilla were named the Twins Minor League Pitcher and Hitter of the Year.

 

In terms of free agency, the team has not done a lot. They have signed Jeff Cirillo to play some 3B and DH. They signed Ken Harvey to a minor league deal with a shot at a DH spot. They also gave minor league deals to Carmen Cali and Mike Venafro. They dropped Luis Rodriguez and Willie Eyre from the 40 man roster, but Rodriguez has already been signed to another minor league deal. They drafted Alejandro Machado in the Rule V draft, but they lost both Kevin Cameron and Levale Speigner. In the minor league portion, they lost Erold Andrus and Justin Jones in the minor league portion.

 

I am sure several other minor league deals. Sadly, that may include Sidney Ponson. I know that the Twins Winter Caravan will be starting in a couple of weeks. At the end of January, Twins Fest will be attended again by me. I can't wait. Just six weeks or so until Spring Training! After the New Year, I believe that I will have to start posting more and more on the site including some new Fantasy Perspectives, hopefully some Q&As and we shall see what else we can do!

I hope that others have enjoyed the Year 2006 as much as I have. For me, it was the most exciting Twins season that I can remember. To go from the lowest lows that the team had in the first couple of months to being the top team in baseball the rest of the way. To see the star power of the Twins roster as well as the continually strong minor league system. Twins fans, we are lucky to get to follow and enjoy what Terry Ryan, Jim Rantz and others have created for us!

Hopefully 2007 will be another great year for you, me and the Minnesota Twins!

NFL "Expert" Picks

Well, here we are, Week 17, the final week of the NFL season. Kyle Waldrop will almost certainly be our winner. The fight is for second place. I want to thank each of our panelists and encourage you to stop by the blogs of our panelists. I know that the football picks aren't for everyone, but I do think it is something fun and different during the offseason. On another note, yes, I notice that there are just 15 games below. I sent the schedule out early and had just 15 games. I suppose I could have gone back and added the one, but this isn't a problem.

If you have any questions or comments, e-mail me or leave comments below. If you would like any information on the panelists, or the updated standings, check out the Official SethSpeaks 2006 NFL "Experts" Picks page.

Well, that is it for today, for the week and for the year. I do wish you a very Happy New Year! Thank you again for stopping by the site. Please feel free to e-mail me or leave some Comments below.