Morneau 'Slams Brewers, Twins Sweep Milwaukee

by Jesse on May 25, 2009 1:59 AM EDT in Game Recaps Comment 14 comments

Minnesota Twins' Joe Mauer, left, and Justin Morneau celebrate their manliness after both going upper deck in a baseball game Sunday, May 24, 2009, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

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Minnesota continues to slug its way to victory, while Scott Baker puts in his finest performance of the year.

A lot happened Sunday night. Joe Crede left the game after being hit by a pitch (he's day-to-day), as did Joe Mauer (well, he was hit by a pitch, he didn't leave the game), Denard Span was pulled to to feeling "light headed", a lot of home runs were hit and Baker pitched into the ninth inning. Oh, and it all culminated in a sweep of an old school rival.

The sweetest part of the action was watching Mauer turn on an inside pitch in the bottom of the first, pulling it into the upper deck for his 10th bomb of the season. DId I say pull? Yes I did. To right field? Yes. I did. After talking about how Joe compacts his swing on inside pitches in order to pull them, and thus reducing his power, he proved me wrong and I couldn't be happier. He let Dave Bush get his first pitch across before demolishing what would only be the first Minnesota shot to the upper deck.

It was a beautiful sight.

Crede's two-run shot to deep left gave the Twins the lead for good, while Justin Morneau joined the Salami crew in the seventh. After a Nick Punto walk and a Carlos Gomez single, Milwaukee reliever Mitch Stetter came inside on Mauer and caught his hand. The intial call was that it was a foul ball; Joe's initial reaction was to offer at the ball before pulling up, but home plate umpire Adrian Johnson felt at some point the ball came into contact with the bat and called Joe back down the line. Naturally, this illicited a response from Ron Gardenhire.

Gardy yelled. Joe said "Aw, shucks, Mr. Johnson" and showed where the ball made its mark on his hand. Eventually Johnson caved, and rightly so if the proof was right in front of him, and instead of Gardy getting tossed (which, let's admit it, we all thought would happen), Joe got first base. Justice.

And then Justin went boom.

Mega-boom.

Upper deck boom.

20090524_brewers_twins_0_medium

Justin Morneau's 13th ended Stetter's night, and pretty much Milwaukee's too, eliminating all but the slimmest of hopes for a late-inning comeback. Scott Baker pitched into the ninth, getting one out before Prince Fielder went opposite field for a two-run shot that barely cleared the fence. It brought Milwaukee within three, and Joe Nathan came in to slam the door. Mike Cameron and Corey Hart struck out swinging to end the series.

The win brings the Twins to within one game of .500. It was one of the best and most complete series of the year for the home team, so hopefully that "clicking on all cylinders" thing can stick around for a little while.

Stars of the Game
#3: Joe Crede (2-for-2, HR, RBI, R, .175 WPA)
#2: Justin Morneau (1-for-3, HR, 4 RBI, R, BB, .158 WPA)
#1: Scott Baker (8.1 IP, 7 H, 6 K, 0 BB, 3 R, .346 WPA)

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Comments

Stetter

Stetter’s pitch to Morneau was disastrously awful. Justin Morneau has been dreaming about that big fat belt high middle in fastball since junior high. Literally, DREAMING about it, and drooling.

Incontrovertible reports indicated he hit that pitch 250 feet at age 4.

You DON’T GO THERE against Justin Morneau, and the Brewers paid the price tonight.

"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 May 25, 2009 5:30 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Well

The ball was heading for his knee caps from a side-winding lefthander before breaking more than a foot over the inside corner below the knees. Credit Justin for recognizing the slider out of his hand and adjusting his swing to the flight of the ball. He might be the only left-handed hitter in the game who hits that one out.

"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot

by cmathewson on May 25, 2009 10:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Another Questions

Another shot: where on earth do you pitch to Joe Mauer now? You CAN’T go away, he can hit that out the other way easily, or just shoot a basehit to left. Inside has always been the easy choice, but after that shot today, he’s showing he can turn around on off-speed stuff in too.

I still think if you’re a pitcher, you have to try fastballs low and in and get him to roll over on it. But watch out, because he can still turn over on that now too.

No limit to how this guy can amaze.

by AdamOnFirst on May 25, 2009 5:41 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

You forgot the best part

If you pitch around Mauer and he walks (or still gets a hit), you get to face Morneau who is hitting .340 in his own right.

by Cobra312004 on May 25, 2009 10:55 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Followed by Kubel

who’s also well over .300.

Great 1-4 hitters to start the season.

by Adam Peterson on May 28, 2009 10:39 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Fastballs inside

breaking balls away. Don’t miss. A pitcher needs to pound him all day inside to have any success, IMO.

by Adam Peterson on May 28, 2009 10:38 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

If Mauer plays

another ten years, he will be regarded as one of the greatest hitters of all time. Mark my wards.

Will the Real Thor Please Stand Up ... ?

by the Real Thor on May 25, 2009 9:03 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

It will be shocking to me if he doesn’t hit .400 in a season at some point. He may very well do it this season the way he’s going (.537 BA at home!?). And if he keeps hitting HR’s at anything close to this pace he will be the most dangerous hitter in the game.

On a related note, the Twins need to lock him up NOW before he plays his way out of our price range. Mauer needs to be a Twin for life.

by Cobra312004 on May 25, 2009 10:46 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That may be going a little too far.

“It will be shocking to me if he doesn’t hit .400 in a season at some point.” Those days have come and gone. You can’t judge Mauer after just 98 PA… wait until the magical 220 PA plateau comes, then we’ll think about comparing Mauer to Ted Williams.

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by Andersklasen on May 25, 2009 11:07 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

It's a popular question: Who in baseball could hit .400?

On the top of my list is Joe Mauer.

I’d be shocked if he DID manage to ever hit .400…I’d be shocked if anyone did it, it’s such an outrageous feat in today’s game. And with Mauer, it would mean he’d be posting an OBP over .500. It would take one hell of a lot of luck, but if anyone could do it…it’s Joe.

by Jesse on May 25, 2009 11:12 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I just don’t see it happening. He would need a good BABIP, which is possible cause he hits the ball so damn hard, and he would need a lot less hits because he walks so much. Who knows. I guess if anyone can do it he can.

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by fetch9 on May 25, 2009 11:57 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

If Punto plays...

another ten years he will be regarded as the worst player of all time. Mark my words. He is one more 0 -fer from having a slugging percentage under .200. He sucks. As much fun as this winning streak has been to watch, every time Punto gets up I want to puke.

Go Twins!!!!

Founding member of the Dick Jauron Fan Club.

by taskersd on May 25, 2009 12:16 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

How could this team start baseballs best player and its worst?

"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot

by cmathewson on May 25, 2009 10:23 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

How does a 2-time batting champion get better? Joe has shown marked improvement at the plate so far this season, both in contact and power. If he can keep up his current pace (unlikely I know but a guy can dream) he should at least double his career total in HR’s.

I didn’t take my statement lightly. I understand just how hard it is to hit for over .300 in baseball today, much less .400. But I truly believe that Joe, at only 26 years old, is only just cracking the surface of what he’s capable of doing for the next 10 years. Health permitting, I really think he will do it someday and retire as one of the greatest hitters in baseball history.

by Cobra312004 on May 25, 2009 12:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs