Game 140: Twins @ Blue Jays
by Jesse
on Sep 4, 2008 6:05 PM EDT
in Game Threads
Minnesota Twins @ Toronto Blue Jays
Pregame
Over what's been the most disappointing stretch of the season for the Twins as far as wins and losses go, their last chance to avoid a sweep over this two-week road trip is tonight. Kevin Slowey gets the call, and he's been as close to an ace as you can get over his last four starts. 25.1 innings in that period, just six earned runs, 28 strikeouts and a pair of walks have made for a very impressive run, as he's allowing less than a base runner per inning. With a strikeout-to-walk ratio approaching six to one, and with double-digit strikeouts in two of his last three starts, it's pretty safe to say that Kevin's found his "out pitch"; it'd be an interesting study to see which pitch(s) he actually uses in plate appearance-ending situations. Tonight, the Twins desperately need another good performance from Slowey. They need a win, and the best shot at one of those elusive things would start with keeping the opposition off the board.
Jesse Litsch: He's not the moderate strikeout threat he was in the minors, but the 23-year old ginger righty still does well to limit his free passes. Litsch has a wide arsenal, including the traditional fastball(s), along with a slider, curveball, changeup and cutter. A ground-ball pitcher who still manages about six innings a start, Litsch is young but may see a quick career arch where he peaks around 25-26, and then starts an early decline.
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Right, okay...
…not a fan of giving Tolbert a start. The Twins are trying to win games, and even though rosters have expanded I’m far more comfortable with that expansion being utilized as depth in a pennant race. We have a right-handed pitcher on the mound, so I’d prefer to see Brian Buscher back out there.
by Jesse on Sep 4, 2008 6:07 PM EDT 0 recs
Ok I did just check to be sure...
…and yeah, he’s still belting RHP: 345/373/486 in 142 AB’s.
Tolbert: 276/333/379 in just 58 AB’s.
by Jesse on
Sep 4, 2008 6:11 PM EDT
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If they want to play Tolbert
Put him at short. Punto has awful batting left handed.
by matty_b on
Sep 4, 2008 6:55 PM EDT
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+1
Yep. How does Buscher end up on the bench today? Ugh.
by Adam Peterson on
Sep 4, 2008 6:58 PM EDT
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I've had Will Smith running thru my head all day...
Nana-nana-nanaNA…nana-nana-naNA…nana-nana-nanaNA…nana-nana-naNA…gettin jiggy wid it….
by Jesse on Sep 4, 2008 6:46 PM EDT 0 recs
Just noticed the Twins are 5 games back
from Boston in the Wild Card race.
OOHHHHHHH, so THAT’S what’s supposed to happen when you lose like the Twins have recently? Good lord we’re lucky to only be a game out of first right now.
by Jesse on Sep 4, 2008 6:48 PM EDT 0 recs
Watch out...
The Red Sox will not only run away with the wild card, but may very well catch Tampa for the division. These guys are like the NHL team that bides its time all season and then picks it up during the playoffs…
by Adam Peterson on
Sep 4, 2008 7:00 PM EDT
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Calls of the Night
1. Slowey: 6.1 innings, 5 K, 1 BB, 2 runs, 7 hits
2. Litsch: 5 innings, 3 K, 2 BB, 4 runs, 8 hits
3. Delmon Young, Justin Morneau HR for Twins
4. Joe Nathan finally locks down a save on the road trip.
5. Twins win 6-3
by Jesse on Sep 4, 2008 6:51 PM EDT 0 recs
I'm not even going to watch the game then...
may you prove prescient! I say Kubel gets the HR instead of Morneau tonight. I also think Delmon gets one. Maybe it’s the extra rest lately, but he’s been taking some serious hacks the last couple games.
by Adam Peterson on
Sep 4, 2008 7:02 PM EDT
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Right...midnight in the UK.
Enjoy the game tonight kids…I’ll see you in the morning!!
WIN TWINS!!
by Jesse on Sep 4, 2008 6:53 PM EDT 0 recs
Bert is so awesome.
“We called those foul balls ‘the ugly finders’ and that one went right over Eddie Guardado’s head.” Plus this:
by matty_b on Sep 4, 2008 7:20 PM EDT 0 recs
Crap
2 on nobody out. I can’t wait for this road trip to be over
by matty_b on Sep 4, 2008 7:21 PM EDT 0 recs
Mauer walks
Punto on third and Mauer at first.
Lets go Morneau!
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:01 PM EDT 0 recs
Morneau hits a sharp grounder
back to Litsch…
leadoff double wasted! DAMN!
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:02 PM EDT 0 recs
nice play by Tolbert
would have been even sweeter if he could have made the play…..
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:25 PM EDT 0 recs
Punto flies out to Rios
and Gladden says now that Rios deserves a gold glove.
Why? because he made a nice catch on Tolbert and a routine catch on Puntos fly ball?
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:30 PM EDT 0 recs
Casilla gets a hit but no
Span is thrown out at second……
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:32 PM EDT 0 recs
and Slowey gives up the first career homer to
Travis Snyder
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:35 PM EDT 0 recs
Slowey is Po'ed at Span
for getting thrown out at second base on a half ass run down to second
by 33MorneauMVP on
Sep 4, 2008 8:35 PM EDT
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Scutaro out on a bunt
its named a sac bunt but it sure looked like an attempt at a base hit bunt….
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:38 PM EDT 0 recs
and we are going to get swept....
yet again by Toronto. Why can we not win against Toronto? We ALWAYS lose vs the Jays
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:46 PM EDT 0 recs
I know
Hasn’t it been 8 straight? I have no idea why they own us so bad
by matty_b on
Sep 4, 2008 8:48 PM EDT
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its something like that
I have no idea why we always lose to them.
by 33MorneauMVP on
Sep 4, 2008 8:50 PM EDT
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Slowey gives up another base hit to
Snider…3-0 Toronto
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:57 PM EDT 0 recs
and now Gardy will make the move
and he brings in the only good pitcher in our pen right now: Craig Breslow
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 8:58 PM EDT 0 recs
As shitity as the Twins have played this road trip
they’re really fortunate to only be 1 and 1/2 back after tonight (if the score holds).
by matty_b on Sep 4, 2008 9:01 PM EDT 0 recs
Breslow Ks Inglett
can we make Breslow our new closer? he is more effective than Nathan this year…..
by 33MorneauMVP on Sep 4, 2008 9:03 PM EDT 0 recs
Maybe the road trip
Nathan’s numbers are still outstanding. But breslow could be used in more high leverage situations, like the 8th inning rather than Crain or Guerrier.
by matty_b on
Sep 4, 2008 9:19 PM EDT
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Also
Screw this game. I can’t wait to get back to the dome tomorrow.
by matty_b on Sep 4, 2008 9:20 PM EDT 0 recs
Today's pregame
Gardy said that last night was not the end of the world for the club.
Well how about tonight G-man?
What Gardy doesn’t realize is that it’s not the end of the world b/c this team is already dead. There is no life left and I don’t think the fans (the machines and people) at the Dome can re-inflate this team back to a playoff club.
The rest of this season is nothing but a masturbatory exercise where the standings are the grainy hottie on the pirated feed of Skinamax channel and the Bitch Sox are your parents walking in on you. In other words every game you’ll get the high of maybe this is the game where they turn it around but at the end of the night you are left feeling empty and unsatisfied. Oh and Chicago, yeah mom and dad are almost home and that series at the Dome is when you’re going to get caught w/ your pants down…
So go ahead and root root for the home team but the Twins have a hell of a lot more games on the road so I’m not holding my breath or anything else in hope of some October baseball. Oh sure I could be wrong and I’ll be happy if am I but the picture is so fuzzy I think you’re better off turning off the lights and just going to sleep.
by caluofmn on Sep 4, 2008 11:56 PM EDT 0 recs
Negative
Way to much negativity at the end of this thread. This has been a disappointing time. But the Twins are still right in it. While we are a flawed team, the White Sox are a pretty solidly flawed team as well. Frankly, we had no business being here in the first place. I didn’t believe this team had a real shot to make the playoffs until after the all-star break. And even though I still don’t totally get how they are doing it, the fact remains they are only a game and a half out of this thing. The Sox are no powerhouse.
This is one of the first years where I took a long time to really believe in the Twins, bu the facts remain they are right in it and they CAN pull this one out.
"You can't sit on a lead and run a few plays into the line and just kill the clock. You've got to throw the ball over the damn plate and give the other man his chance. That's why baseball is the greatest game of them all."
~ Earl Weaver
"In God we trust. All others must provide evidence."
~ Billy Beane
by AdamOnFirst on Sep 5, 2008 7:11 AM EDT 0 recs
+1
Remember, we’re coming home after a long and disappointing road trip. All we need to do is stay within a game of Chicago coming into our three game set. Yes, this team is sliding right now, but we’ve seen them bounce back at home after sweeps in Boston and New York. Let’s go out and get the Tigers!
by Adam Peterson on
Sep 5, 2008 9:18 AM EDT
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No Doubt
they CAN but will they pull this one out?
They lose a series against Seattle, split against Oakland and are swept by Toronto. I think 4 of those games were lost after the 8th inning and Nathan pitched close to 50 pitches in 1 outing.
It seems it doesn’t matter who comes out of the pen they can’t get it done. I wouldn’t be surprised if Crain doesn’t see an inning in awhile now and for all those “Gardy use Nathan more” well that didn’t work out too well.
This has been a GREAT year, better than I believed the team could have but not as good as I hoped for. I always hope the Twins will find away into the post season and give us another title but the wheels are falling off this wagon. I can’t look at the road trip and think this is a team that will make it. The fact that they are only 1.5 games back is more luck than anything else.
Go ahead and surprise me Twins, serve me up a large plate of humble pie but if they don’t make it do I get to tell you I TOLD YOU SO?
by caluofmn on
Sep 5, 2008 11:02 AM EDT
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Did we really "use Nathan more" though
My main objection was that on the road, Gardy will not bring Nathan in to a tie game because he may be needed later to close out the 12th inning. Evan with his recent struggles, Nathan’s our best pitcher. Feel free to bring him into a non-save situation a time or two.
Let me put it this way. I wouldn’t put money on the Twins coming back to win the division unless I got about 3 to 1 odds. I’m not ready to jump off a cliff because we looked mentally and physically exhausted in Toronto either.
by Adam Peterson on
Sep 5, 2008 1:43 PM EDT
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I'd take those odds too
hey maybe home cookin’ will get the team to play better but they are going to have to play alot better and it will have to carry over to the next road trip.
The team just looks beat yesterday and I’m getting ready to just think about what a great year it’s been and not worry about whether they make it in the playoffs anymore.
If they do great, if they don’t well it’s still been a fun year.
by caluofmn on
Sep 5, 2008 3:37 PM EDT
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