From My Mind To Yours

By William Thayer: SPM MN Writer
Posted Monday, June 1, 2009

Now that the trade with the Tampa Bay Rays is over a year old, it looks as if the Rays certainly have the better of deal. The Twins received Delmon Young and Brendan Harris for Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett. At the time this looked like a good deal for both clubs. The Twins needed a power hitting right handed batter and the Rays gave up on such a player (Young). The Twins had a pitcher in Garza who thought he could throw fastballs by every hitter thus becoming un-coachable. Both players basically needing a new start with new surroundings. Throw in often injured Jason Bartlett and you have the Rays quietly becoming master thieves in the night. You would have to say that right now Harris is not only out performing Young, he is also a lot more valuable. The other thing that hurts is that Garza actually grew up and matured into the power pitcher that the Twins staff still does not have and Bartlett is either leading or is in the top 5 for batting. Young has become such of a frustrating player that you can read between the lines whenever coach Ron Gardenhire is asked about Young. Gardy (as his players and media alike refer to him as) is finally saying that yes Young should be driving the ball more. Driving the ball means to hit with power either pulling it or hitting to the opposite field. Gardy has also said that with the influx or surplus of outfielders that he has that, “Young is who we traded for so Young is going to play”. You decide just how frustrating this must be for the skipper. Any other team with title hopes and possibilities would have sent this player down to the minors.

Another trade that has gotten my ire and other fans is the Carlos Gomez for Johan Santana trade. Gomez like Young has potential. Potential is just a nice way of saying that said player is not quite ready yet. Gomez like Young should be in the minors honing his skills. Skills such as: using his speed and his ability to hit a major league fastball. The Twins at the time of the trade had the chance to trade with the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox were offering Jon Lester and Justin Masterson and Jacoby Ellsbury. All of the players were not offered in the same trade, but right now even one of those mentioned straight up for Santana would be better than Gomez and his Harmon Killebrew swinging for the fences approach. It becomes a tough pill to swallow knowing that all we received for Santana is a late inning defensive replacement and a pitcher (Phil Humber) that cleared waivers.

I know that it is really hard for teams to give up on young hitters especially the Twins when they gave up on David Ortiz but there has to be some sort of formula. We all have to remember that when we gave up Ortiz, he was always injured and the Red Sox took a flyer on him and signed him for the minimum. It was so bad for Ortiz that he told his agent to even start inquiring into playing for the Japan League.

The Twins did pull of a tremendous trade in getting rid of A.J. Pierzinski to the San Francisco Giants for closer Joe Nathan, and pitchers Boof Bonser, and Francisco Liriano. These trades are not the norm as one is not always apt to take the bait. In the Pierzinski case, the Twins were ready to bring up Joe Maeur and the league, along with the Twins were quite sick of AJ and his antics. That trade is certain to go down in history as one of the greatest in Twins lore. Just think if every draft and every trade went as planned, every team would be in 1st place.

Well now that ESPN has told the world that the Minnesota Vikings have given Brett Favre an ultimatum (which is not true but should be)…Brett, either sh!@#%$# or get off the pot! Favre cannot use the anger driven adrenaline to want to play just to get back at the Green Bay Packers twice a year. That to me is even more childish than him not being able to make up his mind. Hey if you can commit to one year, why not two years? If he has enough in his tank to even think about playing this year, then why stop there? As far as Favre not being one of the guys, not hanging out with the guys after games as was the case in New York that to me is not that big of a deal. Hey Favre is pushing 40 and most players are early 20’s to early 30’s. How many friends should a guy have that are 15-20 years his junior? As far as Favre being aloof, to me all players are a little strange. Their lives are different than most of us commoners. Besides, look at his beautiful wife. Most guys would rather be at home with that little dish than chugging beers and knockin shots down with the fellas wouldn’t they?

This saga of Favre being a Viking has now hit the most famous Viking quarterback in history, Francis Tarkenton has put his two cents by chastising Favre in the national media. Fran, penny for your thoughts? Fran does have some valid points top his diatribe ridden banter. Fran has said that Favre should think about the team more and not so much about himself. He said a lot more stuff but the basic premise is that Favre should stay home with his lovely dish and let the NFL and the Vikings keep Jim Marshall’s record for consecutive games by a starter at 282….well some say 270. After hearing Fran’s rants about Favre, I couldn’t help but think about Fran’s career. He was great if not fantastic, of Frantastic if you will. He was the face of the franchise and the franchise quarterback. His scrambling was unforgettable and always gave him a way of getting the job done. Some unconventional ways as it were. The one thing that I cannot forget is the three worst games he ever played, (aside from that Monday night game vs. Atlanta, losing to former Viking QB, Bob Lee) were the three Super Bowl losses. This is another topic for another day and another scribe.

If the Vikings really wanted to have Favre for one year, they should also try and talk John Madden, the president of the Brett Favre Fan Club into coaching his favorite human being.

Another problem that Favere has created is, what about John David Booty? He too wears the number #4 and of that is Favre’s #. I suppose that with a name like Booty you really do not need a number. In fact if this does happen, Booty should wear the #1 jersey to go along with such a gifted name.

The one problem that Favre can fix is opposing defenses stacking the line to take away our running game. Out of the three QB’s, Favre is the only one who can convert 3rd. down pass plays. Hopefully short 3rd. down pass plays. The Vikings know this and they know that Adrian Peterson is in his prime. A prime that is one bad tackle away from ending his prime. Running backs longevity is about as quick as Mickey Hatcher’s home run trot so they have to find the right compliment to go coincide this great, record setting ball carrier.

Stay tuned for more information on the Favre front as he may change his mind just to see if he is still wanted.

billythayer@hotmail.com
May 1, 2009 - MAUER RETURNS WITH BIG NIGHT

Joe Mauer made his return to the Twins after some inauspicious injury kept him from playing in March and April. In his 1st at bat he took a 2-0 pitch from former battery mate, Sidney Ponson and heaved a home run well into the left centerfield seats. He also went on to carry an average of over .600 into Sundays (5-3-09) pinch hitting at bat in which he drove in Denard Span with his patented opposite field line drive single. It may be hard to fathom this because hitters tend to mature later and eventually learn more about themselves but Joe looks way ahead of any player I have seen. Keep in mind that he just turned 26 on the 19th of April. I know that the Twins have had great former stars in Kirby Puckett, Rodney Carew , Harmon Killebrew and Kent Hrbek, but Joe will become the best player we (Twins) have had even before his 30th birthday! Sorry purists he is that good. In fact he is such a good athlete that he could be the starting quarterback the Vikings need and the starting point guard the Timberwolves need! Being the incumbent batting champ, he may very well win another even though he missed 1/6 of the season. Missing 1 month should still warrant 400 plus AB’s which one would hope should be enough to qualify.

The one thing that became a bright spot with Joe being hurt is we witnessed another sweet swinging line-drive hitting catcher in Jose Morales. Jose was sent down after the Twins loss to the Kansas City Royals on the 3rd of May. This was only out of respect to Mike Redmond who is a favorite of management, teammates and fans alike. However, it is quite obvious that Morales is not only good enough, he is ready and will surely be called up soon.

The one player they should have sent down in my humbled opinion is Carlos Gomez. Gomez is the last remaining player we are still waiting for to develop after the Johan Santana trade. We did receive more, but it was Gomez that was the focal point the trade. The other player in that trade is Phil Humber who recently cleared waivers, meaning after being demoted no other team wanted him. The reason they should send down Go-Go is he is just not ready to be a late inning centerfielder and base running threat. The last team to have just a base runner was the Oakland Athletics who employed Herb Washington to go into games in the later innings and try to steal bases. This was the crazy mind of A’s owner, Charles O Finley back in the early 70’s! Gomez is now basically a pinch runner if you will. Well Go-Go is the last person who can just sit and wait. He is a high intensive player who needs to be in the game which is why they should send him down. Not to mention this 4 outfielder system is absolutely atrocious at best. Getting back to the Santana trade, the teams that were in the running for Johan really had our hands tied. They were the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Mets and Yankees, and of course the Boston Red Sox. All of these teams new that we would not be able to keep Johan with his impending free agent status. They basically offered whatever they felt they could lose. I mean c’mon, we are talking about one of the best pitchers of the aughts and this is all we could get for him, a late inning defensive replacement/base runner and a soon to be journeyman rogue pitcher? The Twins would have received more if it would have been one their starters or prospects. This way there would have been more teams in the running and thus would have at least gave us the home run threat or high average hitter that the needed then and still needs now. Or better yet the one glaring need is bullpen help, long and short! Is it too early to get a gauge on this trade? Well last I checked the Mets still haven’t one anything and neither have we and isn’t that the biggest gauge?

Keeping in tune with the Twins last season at the Metrodome, here are the box scores for the first opener and the last opener. (Coincidentally both games were vs. the Seattle Mariners).

From My Mind To Yours is my way of telling you what is going on in the world of sports, so if you keep reading this column you will become a lot more knowledgeable than your average sports aficionado. You will become a Sports Smith!

e-mail: billythayer@hotmail.com

Twins Finding Answers Without Having To Ask

Fort Myers, Florida 3-26-09

I will start out my column from Hammond Stadium, the Minnesota Twins winter/spring home since they moved into Fort Myers in 1991 after leaving Tinker Field in Orlando by saying this: Ft.Myers, FL 80 degrees and sunny, Mpls., Mn 47 rainy, and cold.

At first glance when I walked up to the stadium I could see the likes of Harmon Killebrew, Tony Oliva, Paul Molitor and Tom Kelly all doing their part to help this years squad and perhaps future stars get a real of taste of iconic greatness. Killebrew, wearing his famous #3 on his back is standing there watching batting practice and from the likes of it whatever advice he is forth-giving it seems to be working, especially with current slugger, Justin Morneau. In the time I spent there Justin was on the ball by smashing an opposite home run vs. Toronto’s Matt Clement on 3-22-09, and a dead center bomb off of Baltimore’s promising young star, Jeremy Guthrie. Justin is also staying on the ball by getting hits up the middle and to the opposite field, all the while recovering from the flu bug that has traveled around the Twins this spring. The advice that Harmon is giving him must just be confidence because as far as homers go, Harmon pulled the majority of his 573 home runs and Justin is more of an all over the field type hitter. How do I know this? I saw a lot of Harmon’s bombs as a young lad growing up at the Old Met’. The Twins for some reason are really addressing the power issue this spring. Is it because they are starting to realize that one of the main reasons they have fallen short of post season success is their lack of power? One would hope. Heck one would wish that is their thinking. You can see it in Delmon Young’s swing. You can hear coach Ron Gardenhire defend his young player (Young) by actually letting him pull more balls. Gardy’ is sort of letting his gard down by not discouraging the home run, because Young isn’t the only player to find the fences this spring. The result so far is promising as the 3 home runs already for Delmon would attest. Young has also kept his average above .300. Of course some of the home runs in spring training are aided by the strong Florida wind. We Twins faithful will take it because there has not been a wind aided home run in Minnesota since 1981. Besides, a home run is a home run and we could sure use any advantage we can get. Gardenhire also played a big part in acquiring free agent slugger, Joe Crede. Crede has not done too much this spring but as he will tell you, “spring time is mainly used for getting his timing down right”. Timing and the always crucial, hand –eye coordination. He also is trying to get a feel of his new team by hoping to be the third star named Joe. Besides the Twins will always have that great defense that they have had as long as former coach Kelly is around. Kelly has been hitting ground balls and fly balls at a record pace this spring, and in springs past. The fly balls he hits are actually called “Fungoes”. Carlos Gomez is another exciting player that is currently at 3 home runs this spring as well. Hmm.. with a lineup of Morneau, Crede, Michael Cuddyer, Gomez, Young, sweet swinging Jason Kubel and the injured but always dangerous, Joe Mauer, the Twins look like they are poised to make another playoff run this season. (Let’s hope that my Mauer metaphor isn’t turned around. You know the dangerous and always injured.) The Twins staff and brass will always stress the Twins way’ by hitting to all fields and advancing runners, so to see them actually letting it fly is surely a good sign of them adding another weapon to their arsenal. The Twins have had to rely on such an approach because they do not have the money to go out and sign anyone they please like the Bankees and Chowder Sox can. Don’t misunderstand me, the Twins really do not need the prototypical 30 plus homer guy, they do need each guy in the heart of their lineup to rack up 15-30 HR’S and a bases loaded double now and then wouldn’t hurt either.

Twins Pitching Still Admired and Still a Strong,
Integral Part to Their Success

The Minnesota Twins are going into the 2009 season with having their rotation already in place. Not many teams can say this since pitching is the most important part to a team’s success. They not only have their rotation in place, they actually have a five man rotation. A five man rotation that averages in at the ripe old age of 25! Also take into consideration that Francisco Liriano seems to be back in great form. What’s most important about this talented left hander is he feels like he did when success was at his command. The success he enjoyed back in 2006 where he would have been the winner of the Cy Young, the MVP and the Rookie of the Year! That was then, this is now.

The opening day starter, or the ace’ of the staff is the elder statesman (at 27), Scott Baker. Baker is coming off a season in which he went 11-4 with 141 strike outs in 172.1 innings is something that he says he wants to improve on. He wants to build on this past success and become the go to guy when ever needed. Let’s not forget that Baker carried a perfect game into the ninth inning against the Kansas City Royals only to give up a walk and a one out hit to Mike Sweeney and finished with a complete game one hit shut out on 8-31-07. The Twins thought so much of Baker that they signed him to a $15 million contract.

The go-to guy last year was the tall Mauer look-alike, Nick Blackburn. (yes ladies there is another person who looks like Joe, well at least his side burns anyway). At least the go-to guy for the one game playoff vs. the Chicago White Sox. He pitched an exceptional game with his only blemish being a home run to straight away center field off the bat of Twins killer, Jim Thome. Blackburn also has something to build on by coming off an 11-11 record with a team leading 193 innings pitched.

The brains of this operation is Kevin Slowey. Slowey, if you were to compare our staff to the Atlanta Braves staff of the mid to late 90’s would be compared to Greg Maddux. You might say that is a bit of a stretch but there are similarities that you cannot deny. Both are not your power pitchers or pitchers who rely on strikeouts. Both could probably play quite a chess match or give you a great poker face. They rely on location and control. Slowey may never break the record (a team record in my mind) of former Twins pitcher Carlos Silva in bases on balls category, but you count on him making the hitters swing at his pitch. In 2005 Silva only walked 9 batters in 188.1 innings and a couple of them were intentional! He also may never break a plane of glass with his fast ball, but he will give the Twins every opportunity to win every time he toes the rubber.

The fifth starter is local lad from Stillwater MN, Glen Perkins. He also starred for the Minnesota Gophers and he is another left hander giving the Twins two left handed starters. He seems to be fearless and is the one pitcher on the staff who isn’t afraid to challenge opposing hitters.

The bullpen is anchored by the 3rd above average Joe, Joe Nathan. Last year he started mixing in sliders and breaking pitches to his already heated fastball. This fastball has been clocked at 100+ mph! With movement. There was concern amongst the Twins that Joe was hurting because he bailed out of the World Baseball Classic for team USA. It was nothing more than a little hiccup. A precautionary measure if you will. The one concern that the Twins did not address in the off season is the ever coveted set-up guy’. There thinking must have been that RHP, Jesse Crain woud be able to be the right handed guy and last season’s success story, Jose Mijares being the hefty…I mean lefty . Well Crain is Crain and he may never be the pitcher that his potential would let him become. Mijares came into camp looking like he did not miss one meal in the off season and thus this spring he remains on the bubble because of his girthy waddle. In Layman’s terms he’s over weight! All of this 8th inning set-up guy conundrum would not even be a problem if last year’s set-up guy (another local lad from Park Center High School in Brooklyn Park) Pat Neshek didn’t go down with arm trouble early in the 2008 season. It remains to be seen just when this side armer can return this season if at all.

Twins Bench Must Come Up With Clutch Late Inning Heroics

The one thing that separates our Twins from the other great teams is we really do not have that clutch home run guy to come in off the bench. There will be times late in games where Gardenhire will try to pinch hit and off set righty-righty and lefty-lefty match ups. They really do not have anyone who is competing for this spot. Matt Tolbert will be a bench guy, but he is a utility player known more for his glove. Then you have Mike Redmond who told me that he has always been an opposite field hitter. As it stands right now, hitting right handed and hitting to right, right? He will be the starting catcher until Mauer comes back. Redmond, with his hit the other way mentality will give us that big hit from time to time. He is so valuable to the Twins as a backup, that they did not even pursue Ivan Rodriguez who they could have picked up for a song and dance. Other than that we will have to rely on one of the four outfielders being sat down waiting for their chance to deliver that sought after game winning pinch hit. The non frugal teams can go out and pick up anyone they want while the less fortunate teams have to pick and choose to win from within. The bench can be a great plus but when the only bench we have are utility infielders it takes away possible late inning rallies and match ups that really don’t pose any threat to opposing managers and pitchers. Throw in Brendan Harris and Brian Buscher to the mix and hopefully they can deliver in the clutch. One thing is for sure though all players on the 25 man roster will be fundamentally sound. This means that if they cannot hit in the clutch, at least they field in the clutch. The Twins have stressed defense by thinking they would almost want to save a run than score a run. If you think otherwise, go ahead and visit their Fort Myers complex and you will see the above mentioned former players and managers hitting ground balls and fungoes to even the more experienced players. More experienced players like their other free agent signing, Nick Punto. Nicky will give you and everybody excitement on the defensive side alone. At last check, he is the leader in ESPN’s “Web Gems”.

VIBES DIATRIBES FROM THE SCRIBE: Hack Wilson’s 191 RBI in 1930 for the Chicago Cubs may never be broken. He stood at 5’6….. Bert Blyleven’s 60 complete game shutouts are not a record but who can even contest the 60 complete games? This a stat that goes with his already astonishing curveball and 287 career victories while winning two World Series and playing on some pretty poor teams. I bring this up because he is still not in the Hall of Fame. …..Denton True Young (Cy Young) won a baseball record 511 games. He also completed 749 games. Which record is unbreakable? Both of them if you were to ask me…..Pete Rose finished with a baseball record 4256 hits. He is still black balled from baseball but who is even going to come close in hits?

Enjoy this upcoming season of the greatest in the world…EVER!

billythayer@hotmail.com www.myspace.com/billythayer

March 2009

MINNESOTA WILD:

The “Skating W’S finally came back home on the 10th of March to their beloved palace that is known as the XCEL Energy Center. It is located in downtown St.Paul, MN. In some sort of imminent domain the Wild have to leave this said paradise to make way for the Minnesota High School League. The MHSL puts on display the men and women’s hockey tournaments and the men and women’s basketball tourney and they even throw in the wrestling tourney just to keep the fine city of St.Paul and their coffers in the black. You see these events take place at the end of February and pretty much run through the end of March. I am not saying that I am against this wonderful exhibit, no I am saying that at least the women’s events could be held at another venue. I for one have been watching the high school hockey tournaments ever since Billy Thayer starred for Willard Ikola and the Edina Hornets back in the mid 1970’s. That was the Edina East Hornets to be sure. This can be quite taxing on the Wild knowing they have to embark annually on this ridiculous road trip. They actually came home for 1 game to play the very dangerous San Jose Sharks. Think about this schedule of road and opponents if you will: They play 12 of their 16 games in the month of March on the road! Throw in the west coast trip of San Jose, Vancouver, the Los Angeles Kings (who have owned the Wild this year) and the Anaheim Ducks, well this would test anyone, right? I’ve been on the road in my various bands and I know that no matter how healthy you are or what kind of chromosome count you may have, you will be subjected to unhealthy air in your non-germicidal rooms. Without being Monk-Like, this travel situation does not bode well as players and travelers in general would attest. Brent Burns is the latest example of having a sickness that has kept him from playing in the past week. The same Brent Burns who the Wild have turned to as their defensive stalwart. A proud product of their fine farm system you might say. I am not saying that you will get sick on the road, I am merely stating that in this particular time of year, it does not help to be around places that are unfamiliar to you. Remember I am not a doctor, I just live like one! Also remember, at your home it is your towels, your door knobs, your pillows, sheets and carpet and your food. The Wild players and coaches will tell you that this situation does not hold any bearing on their fate. Bull Roar! They are simply towing the company line. What team in their right mind would want to go and play this grueling schedule against these power house teams in the most critical time of the year? If there was ever a time to read between their lines it would be now. As I speak to you, the Wild have to go back on the road through the air to play the game on the ice. Again!

As it sits right now, the Wild are in contention for the 8th and final playoff spot. Actually they are tied for the 7th spot with three other teams so they do have a stake in the hunt for Lord Stanley’s Cup. They do also have more than a pleasant surprise waiting for them and their playoff run. They have Marian Gaborik coming back soon. How soon? Well, seeings how they decided not to participate in this years trading deadline, they must be thinking that having Gabby come back anytime will not be soon enough.
NBA: Kobe Bryant is the best in the league. At it stands right now, he may even rival the likes of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Julius Erving. These are my personal favorites. The only thing Kobe needs now is a nick-name and an underwear endorsement deal. You really cannot say who is the best, you can only say who could change a game when it really matters. This is where Kobe and his ice cold veins come alive. If you can look past his pompous ass demeanor, in basketball terms he really is an ambassador for the game as far talent and greatness alike are concerned. Think about how Jordan created his persona, then think about Kobe and his plight, pretty much the same right? These are guys who not only can make a difference, they can change the difference!

March 11th. 1999 Stephon Marbury’s wish is granted. He claims he does not want to play with Kevin Garnett. Well Stephon, you were granted your wish and now you are granted the opportunity to play with Garnett and his defending NBA Champions, the Boston Celtics. What is wrong with this picture? Oh yes, Marbury still has yet to win anything with anyone and now he will grace himself to the Celtics and step right into the title run that will begin in mid April. The New York Knicks had enough this Marbury brat that they ate his $20 million salary this year as a healthy scratch! The Knicks basically just got rid of this narcissistic fraud of a teammate. Is he reason the Wolves have never won? Is he the missing piece that the Celtics need to repeat? What if this little brat would have stayed with the T’wolves? Flip would still be here and banners would be hanging from the ceiling just like Sir Charles said. You don’t get that many chances to put this kind of team together and you can look at the past record books to back up any theory you may have on this touchy subject. KG should have said no to Marbury coming to Boston just for leaving him and all those titles that should have been. If Marbury ever played guitar, his favorite effect pedal would have to be the Cry Baby wah-wah.

This is my 4th rip of Marbury and it probably will not be the last. Especially if the Celtics win the forth coming title while my fellow basketball`brethren are subject to yet another spring of lost title hopes and lost ping pong balls.

Next week a baseball report from the beaches of Fort Myers, FLA. Don’t worry this will be a baseball scribe and not another side note that the so-called stars of the game can’t get a grasp of on the 4 letter station.

billythayer@hotmail.comFebruary 2009

Now that the Super Bowl is over and the inauspicious hype of this epic event is long since over, we frozen sports zealots of the north, can turn our attention to our winter teams. Yes, I am talking about the Minnesota Timberwolves and the enigmatic Minnesota Wild. Not long after you read this latest masterpiece of mine, the Minnesota Twins will be swinging for the fences down in Fort Myers, Florida. I will be able to give all of you a full report from the Twins spring training seeing how I will be down there being as it may. Hmmm, the warmth of the Florida sun, the sound of the wooden bats hitting baseballs, outdoor baseball, and real grass stains on home uniforms! I could go on with this believable fairy tale of mine, but it still is only the beginning of February and the only hot stove action is the incumbent story of the steroid boys. They know who they are and it is becoming real, real sad that these stat juicers have to take away the real story, and that being what matters most; the integrity of the great game of baseball! The battle lines have been drawn and until the players in question come out and admit their usage, the media will have to speculate and the fans will have to decide just which stat is credible and which has been tainted. Besides I think the most astonishing conditioning program was that of the greatest player of all time, Babe Ruth, who would consume hot dogs and beer and philander about with promiscuous women. At any rate, with the way the purists act of these hallowed records these players who would no doubt be in the Hall of Fame have to be sitting in their fiefdom more nervous than a call girl in church.

Let’s not forget the Manny Ramirez debacle going on right now. For some reason ($$$$) Manny has this belief of being able to get a 3-4 year contract in the 100 millions. Whether this is his agent Scott Boras telling Manny to wait or Manny holding out and being just blatantly greedy who knows. What we do know is that this greed for the all mighty sports dollar is so out of hand that this cat and mouse game of chicken is getting harder and harder to swallow. Especially when Manny has the option of being Manny and not quite trying his hardest because his hair hurts on that particular day. You see Manny has turned down numerous 1 year contracts at the paltry sum of 24 million and this will not sit well with “Joe the Plumber” or “Victor the Ventriloquist”. Money is real tight these days so why would anyone turn down 24 million for 1 year? Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe this will all come to a screaming halt and athletes will have to come back down to earth and realize that 24 million for 1 year is far too much and settle for just the chance to play for the minimum…Yeah right!

Did anybody enjoy the latest Super Bowl as much as I did? I am sure you did. I still think that our Vikings would be in better position if they went after Mike Shanahan; the former Denver Broncos head coach. I hate to throw you under the bus Brad Childress, but if this guy is available, he is just too good of a football mind to pass up.

Speaking of passing things up, I think that if a coach who is in the assistant capacity is granted an interview then his current team can terminate his contract if someone else becomes available. Case in point, our own Leslie Frazier was up for numerous head coaching vacancies and if he were to take one we would be out a coordinator and would have to hire within. This is when former San Francisco 49ers head coach Mike Nolan was available for the same position. In this case it was the ever coveted defensive coordinator spot. Well someone now has him (Nolan) and as luck would have it we still have Frazier. But what if Farzier was accepted and Nolan was passed up by us? Is there some sort of unwritten law that advocates a team to stay faithful why other teams can upgrade their staff? Keep in mind that I used this Nolan gentleman because he was the coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens when they won the Super Bowl with one of the better defenses I, and the league has ever seen. Another groovy example is that of the Vikings allowing Tony Dungy to interview for the head coaching job with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a few moons ago. This example is a bit different because we all know that we lost the better coach in Dungy over Denny Green and that was also a few moons ago!

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES: Put me in the “I knew we were better than this” category. I knew that the Wolves current roster and late additions would eventually pay off. It just took Kevin McHale a little longer to be agreed upon. He was the equivalent of the NFL’s, Matt Millen. He did dismantle the team that had Kevin Garnett and it wasn’t too long ago that the Wolves were in the Western Conference finals. Well now that the team is playing at such a high level, he should be credited with putting this team together as well as coaching this over-achieving team. He has made some peculiar trades and not so advantageous draft choices but right now what is their weakness? Well the one glaring need is none other than experience. You can always say your platitudes but unless they can find a game changer with one of their four #1 draft picks that they have next year , I cannot see anything that can help them anymore than what they are doing. They have youth, a great rebounder on the glass both offensively and defensively, they have excellent three point shooters they have more than enough of a bench. They also have stars in Al Jefferson, Randy Foye, and the harmonious Kevin Love. McHale was surely scrutinized for trading away future Rookie of the Year candidate O.J. Mayo for Love. Funny thing happened on the way to the 10-4 record, everyone in the basketball world is raving about this rookie Love. Everyone except the powers at be who decided to keep Love off of the rookies game at this years All Star game. What a travesty! Kevin Love is already one of the best rebounders in the game and once he gains confidence in his shot, he will in my humbled opinion help all of us forget the one that got away.

They eventually will find their defense sooner or later. I mean we played the Lakers pretty good until Kobe Bryant took over and helped the LA Lakers win with 132 points. But hey the Lakers have a lot of bullets and with someone like Kobe they are going to do this to a lot of teams. Kobe, by the way is judged by many of the Wolves as the best and hardest to defend in the game today. What I noticed from being 20 feet from Kobe is that when he shoots he hits only the dead center of the net. No rims or bricks here folks. Watch this guy and you will agree that he could put a bee-bee through a life-savers hole in the dark from half court and probably for the game winner!

On a side note about Kobe is that the fear that keeps him up all night is cleaning up his dogs- dog crap.

It is so nice to see the game and actually have some sort of hope. Even with Garnett the Wolves were toyed with and teams would just pull away from them in the final quarter. I also have noticed that teams are adjusting to us now rather than the latter. It always seemed like it did not matter what we did strategically the other team would basically say he we are come and get it. Now that same team that we are playing is taking notice and having to pick their poison against us because we are winning ugly, in late fashion and with timely team unity.

MINNESOTA WILD: Just across the river and into the great, historic city of St. Paul, the defending Northwest division champs Minnesota Wild are fighting for their proverbial lives as far as winding down and gearing up the last two months and trying to gain the playoffs for the chance to play for Lord Stanley’s Cup. This is not easy as long as the Detroit Red Wings are still playing at such a high level. We should also not forget the San Jose Sharks and their goal scoring prowess. The Wild will fight to the end and even though they may not score enough they do however defend with the best of them. Coach Jacques Lemaire has instilled upon them his defensive style of hawkey and he really believes that if you skate hard and check aggressively you will have a chance to win the game. A lot of goal scorers do not like this brand of hockey and they are the ones we cannot go after at the trading deadline and get in for the playoffs. It cannot be the money that holds us back because we hockey lovers are the model franchise and one of the bigger hockey markets in the NHL. The problem is that goal scorers like to score goals and they figure if they are always checking then that will hurt their chances of scoring. So in saying, this hypothesis of mine, the Marian Gaborik situation shouldn’t be that hard to figure out, he wants to play for a team that puts the emphasis on offense. With that being said, what the Wild should put their focus on is signing free-agent to be All Star goalie Niklas Backstrom. It would be a shame to not sign this guy because he is what epitomizes their system. What are they waiting for anyway? The Wild’s philosophy has always been that the best offense is a great defense.

As it stands right now, the Wild are in the playoffs climbing up from the 6th place seed. In hockey, home ice really doesn’t matter all that much because anybody in the know will tell you as much.

Seriously, the only sport where the home team has a real advantage is college basketball because the fans are so close to the court and in college the marching band sits in the student section and together they can really cause havoc. So Wild, score when you can, skate hard and bring this city of St.Paul, Lord Stanley’s Cup!

VIBES, DIATRIBES FROM THE SCRIBE………Gordie Howe finished his playing career at the age of 51 with over 500 stitches on his face…….Howe also won the MVP of the WHA in 1974 at the age of 46…..Bill Mosienko of the Chicago Blackhawk’s scored three goals in the last game (3-23) of the 1952 season in a record that quite possibly will never be broken, 21 seconds…….The most hated teams in sports are: Dallas Cowboys, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Lakers. They have two things in common, they win titles and they have always kept the same uniform style…..Peyton Manning was ousted from the playoffs in the first round for the 6th time in 9 tries……Adrian Peterson won the rushing title with 1,760 yards this past year, which happens to be a perfect mile…..

Keep those e-mail’s coming: billythayer@hotmail.com

January 2009

MINNESOTA VIKINGS: Well now that we finally made the playoffs with a 10 win season, we can all relax and wait for the next miracle to happen. You see in the playoffs anything can happen and with the way our defense is playing and our running game is running, well, I like our chances. The dysfunctional Philadelphia Eagles are the first team on our list to destroy and conquer. The Eagles achieved their second season invitation by out classing and out playing my least favorite team of all time, the Dallas Cowboys, 44-6! I always have said that for a team to make any sort of difference in the playoffs, they have to play great football in December. This is exactly what the Vikings did. Somewhere along the way coach Brad Childress loosened up his troops and had them playing more like a team. They started winning the ugly games, games in which they easily could have lost like they would have in years past. Case in point: They won the game vs. the New York Giants even though they knew that the Chicago Bears were losing. They did not back their way into the playoffs! This is Brad’s 3rd year as our coach and up until a few months ago it was hard to tell which was drier, our inside air, his throat or his humor. He stuck with his knee slappin satire and eventually put a throat lozenge in and things really turned around. Not so long ago there were “Fi-Yer Chill-Dress” chants billowing from the Metrodome faithful and always a sense of doubt from the head scratching- scribes of my colleagues and I. Brad knew that last years team was a little too apathetic in a laconic sort of way. This year’s team has had its share of big plays and eventually led the league in plays of 20 yards or more. Maybe he was trying a little too hard in the beginning and eventually went with his way and not what the owners were expecting as much. Whatever the reason, coach Childress has our attention and the whole NFL is listening as we all try and clear our own throats.

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES: Al Jefferson has to be one of the best power forwards/centers in the game today. He always can get a shot off. He is the master of the fake. Once Kevin Love starts draining his shots and Randy Foye can stay hot they should win more than their share of games. Love needs to gain confidence in his shot whether it is a hook shot or a 10 foot jumper. He has already proven his rebounding prowess, so hold the mayo and feel the love.

This may be another year in which the Wolves traded the rookie of the year for the second year in a row. That’s if O.J. Mayo joins Brandon Roy. You would have to think that with all of the talk and hype that surrounds these players that someone like Rashad McCants, Randy Foye or Sebastian Telfair would start to get annoyed and show the team and the league that they are just as good. They are young and full of talent and all come from successful teams so why not step it up and start draining some mid-range jumpers.

With the two big guys clogging up the middle (Love, Jefferson) all we need is some sharp shooters from the perimeter and a little defense and we should be able to at least scare some future opponents. Make it a little uncomfortable for teams coming into our den and posting up against us.

Another point that should be noted is the fact that when the powers that be say that we are in a rebuilding year and they previously traded another future star rookie for Kevin Love, then why is Brian Cardinal getting more playing time? Especially that embarrassing game vs. the Dallas Mavericks in which the Wolves squandered a 29 point lead and lost by 7. This 29 point lead/deficit was a record for both teams. The irony of course is that with this being the 20th anniversary of the Wolves, comparisons are setting in. Ugly comparisons. This 29 point lead will be lost in infamy. As it stands right now, nobody is even talking enough to care about such a loss. The Mavs scored far too many second chance points. This is where Love would have really helped. Or if we kept Mayo, then he surely would have helped by wanting the ball and draining buckets. Their only offense seems to be Jefferson. In this particular loss, it seemed like everybody was knocking down jumpers, and now when the game became a game, nobody wanted the ball.

The one thing that is comparable to the Wolves futility is that between our frigid weather and horrible traffic is that having a team such as this plays right into our own little disdain.

MINNESOTA WILD: Where is Marian Gaborik? If he wants to be traded then he better start to find a way to stay healthy. The Wild really needs to have someone who can score. I am not saying that the early fast start that Mikko Koivu and his line mates had were an aberration. No, it’s just that they are not your typical goal scorers. Gaborik is. There are a lot of teams that have pure goal scorers and these are the teams that are usually in first place or hovering close. It’s hard to believe that without Gaborik the leading scorer for the Wild is Koivu with 11 goals and 35 points. Heck there are 5 players in the NHL with at least 20 goals already. Why can’t the Wild get one of these snipers? Is it coach Lemaire and stifling coaching strategy? One things for sure within the Wild family, you are not going to get any answers only speculation from the media such as yours truly.

How About Them Cowboys? Is there anyone more happier over the defeat that the Cowboys had to endure on their recently nationally televised game than yours truly? It’s not that I dislike them personally, it’s more like I really loathe their players that they time and time again sign and boast about. I am a purist and until these troubled, spoiled players realize that they are the cancer of the game then I will continue to rally against them and fine pure bliss in any downfall that may occur for them. For instance Jerry Jones signing Pac Man Jones, the guy who along with his entourage put a man in a wheel chair turned out to really back fire for the leagues team. The commissioner eventually suspended this said player only to have the Cowboys sign him when the suspension was uplifted. Players like this may never really learn their lesson as evident by someone with an ego the size of Texas would attest through their willingness to sign them. Let’s not forget the main culprit, Terrell Owens. Do you think that Philadelphia QB Donovan McNabb felt a little solace in beating TO’s team and knocking them out of the playoffs in such a dominant fashion? Then there’s the owner calling out my favorite Cowboy, Marion Barber. If the guy is hurt, then let him be and don’t throw him under the bus as Jerry Jones did this past season. You have the infamous Hail-Mary game in 1975 then you have the Herschel Walker debacle and last but not least the beloved North Stars moving to the hot bed for hockey city, Dallas.

Vibes, and Diatribes from the North Scribe: …..The fans in Philadelphia really did boo Santa. It was on December 15th 1968 vs. the Minn. Vikings…..Former T’wolves coach Randy Wittman’s career record as head coach stands at 100-212….After watching countless beer commercials throughout local and nationally televised sporting events, just remember that they never actually drink the beer they are advertising. It has to be some sort of law or stipulation…..The 1975 Hail-Mary game in which the Dallas Cowboys pushed off on our Minnesota Vikings, Fran Tarkenton’s father never saw the outcome because he tragically passed away from a heart attack midway through the 3rd. quarter. His name was Dallas and ironically enough he was a minister….The game in which the Vikings beat the New York Giants to get into the playoffs, the score board at the Metrodome did not show the score of the Chicago Bears game. The Vikings said it was to protect their players by not showing that score. You see if we were to have lost that game and the Bears were to win their game we would have been knocked out of the playoffs. I personally think that it was because of the fact that if the score showed the Bears leading by a lot and the Vikings down by a lot, well they probably feared that people would leave, thus losing out on concession sales….On December 29, 2008 the T’Wolves went 1-16 from the floor in the second quarter. A game in which they eventually won 108-98…Adrian Peterson became the 1st Viking to win the rushing title this year with 1,760 yards…Happy New Year people!

Keep those e-mails coming: billythayer@hotmail.com also visit www.myspace.com/knightcrawlerusa www.myspace.com/billythayer
December 2008

MINNESOTA WILD: As I alluded to in my previous masterpiece, Marion Gaborik could have and should have been the next Minnesota sports hero to have his # 10 jersey retired. Joining Francis Tarkenton and the always cheerful Tom Kelly. The reason that I have brought this up is because when he did play and was healthy to play, the fans and his teammates really rallied around this talented hockey player from Trencin, Slovakia. You may ask yourself “Where is Trencin, Slovakia”? Well I for one do not know, having never been there, but I will say that it is somewhere in Slovakia. There is no one affiliated with the Minnesota Wild that will give you any information on # 10. This only leads us to speculate and hypothesize The conundrum is that the media cannot say whether this is punishment for his turning down the Wild’s latest million dollar offer or is he injured again. I know that injuries are a part of the game but for the most part hockey players are tougher than a beef jerky sandwich. The one intriguing thought is that he may have injured his groin playing hackey sack before a practice. Forgive me if I spelled hackey or sack wrong, its just that the mere thought of losing our best and purest goal scorer in such a triteful way has this cub reporter a little disheveled. It is almost as if the fans are so energized and Wild management are keeping fans at bay in sort of centripetal force manner. We are playing very well without him but eventually we are going to have to find someone to ignite Joe Satriani’s “Crowd Chant” instrumental, especially on the power play. Satriani’s song was originally written for Star Trek and called “Party On The Enterprise” I knew there was a connection to Gene Roddenberry’s sci-fi classic.

Niklas Backstrom continues to amaze everyone in hockey with his stellar goal tending. He has kept us in a lot of games especially in the games where we have had to rely on him in those goofy shoot-outs.

MINNESOTA VIKINGS: In the latest installment of “In Gus We Trust” The Minnesota Vikings quarterback has really shown his teammates and the local fans; he is tough. He has gotten himself off of the cushy but hard surface of the Metrodome floor numerous times this year. I think that really rubs off on his fellow teammates and they are starting to rally around him. This is an intangible that only a coach can hope happens with his team. Having a quarterback act as a coach on the field. Someone with answers. Someone who can deliver the leadership and guidance that this team has lacked for so long. Gus may not be the most fleet of foot signal caller back there but he gets the job done and after leaving the Metrodome with a victory over the hated Bears, the Gus led Vikes are in sole possession of 1st. place. They still have to play 4 more games and with Gus they have actually have an identity now. They can win ugly and with future Hall of Fame running back, Adrian Peterson carrying the ball and carrying would-be tacklers. So what’s in Gus’ nickname anyway? I think that for at least 1 more year and a good playoff run, Gus Frerotte can lose the “Can We Trust The Rust From Gus”? moniker that has been following this 37 year old QB all year. Let’s just call him Guts Frerotte. If you look around the National Football League this year you will find that a lot of teams in contention have QB’s in their late 30’s. So this is not an aberration. It’s all about the experience and having guys around you that trust your ability. Besides on the touchdown pass to Bernard Berrian, (that tied and NFL record for the longest pass play in NFL history with 99 yards of un-touched pay dirt) Berrian told me that he never has caught an easier pass in his career. Go ahead watch the replay, you will see that Berrian didn’t have to break stride or adjust his route or even extend his soft hands. At all! I know that the super star on the team is Adrian. What I am trying to bring to the forefront is that every team needs a QB. Whether it’s to pass the ball or just simply manage the game plan. We now can say “You Can Drive Our Bus, Gus”!

Lets all hope that the next time you read my column, the Vikings will be hosting and winning at least one playoff game and ready to roll into this years Super Bowl in beautiful, Tampa Bay, Tampa Bay!

Now that the league and their Warden, Roger Goodell, (the latest commissioner) have sort of layed back on the pending suspension of the Vikings “Williams Wall” our Vikings look to have one of the best defensive fronts in the league. I am speaking of Kevin and Pat Williams of course. The Sunday night game in which they (the front four) stopped the Bears 4 times at the goal line and set up Berrians 99 yard TD, which may have been the turning point in the season! Jared Allen is really something to watch and his honesty with a drastic truth sort of cadence is the real deal and probably the best pass rusher we have had since the Johnny Randle, Keith Millard and Chris Doleman days. You can throw in Ray Edwards and Brian Robison as well. Having a great defensive front plays right into the hands of the secondary. Right now their isn’t a better cornerback than Antoine Winfield. (At least from the tackling side of things). Another rising star that has benefited from a pass rush is 3rd year pro # 23, Cedric Griffin. He seems to be making all of the plays he has had to make given the fact that most teams try and stay away from Winfield’s side.

NEW VIKINGS STADIUM: Somehow they need to get back outside and play like the Vikings of old. I’m not trying to put us fans in the ancient, Roosevelt fire side chat days. The days of watching television without a remote control. Watching T.V. until the signal shut off at midnight. Or age myself by saying that my fellow class mates and I had to walk to school up hill both ways. No, I am merely saying that with all of the cold weather that we have here, and the sarcasm we harbor, we could use it to our advantage. You may think that the cold would be a detriment to their fan base. On the contrary, every year when the mercury towers above freezing, there are people wearing shorts and washing their cars. Bring us back to the Super Bowl years of Vikings past. We Minnesotans spend enough time indoors! Back in the 1970’s no team wanted to come into Minnesota and play in this cold weather. Back then we had an identity. I will bet you a snow ball that if the Vikings played in the new Gophers stadium the place would be packed, rocken and festive. We would actually see grass stains and players breathing. All 106 of them! It may sound like a pipe dream to many of you right now, but I know that it would give us an edge and we would win a lot of those games where you wouldn’t leave the Metrodome scratching your head from one of those askewed losses. Besides the Vikings lease runs out in 2011 and if they were to build a new stadium, they would have to play in the Gophers new digs for at least a year anyway. That’s if the legislature can grant them this one wish. Every year the price goes up another $50 million. Personally I cannot see the great people of Minnesota agreeing to vote for another stadium on their account. You know that if it were to come up that there would definitely be a referendum. What most people can agree to though is putting comedians and a pseudo wrestler in political office from the public sector. Speaking of 2011, if the Vikings do not win a Super Bowl by then, they will have gone 50 years without a title! Ouch!

As I gaze into my crystal ball I see a few quarterbacks that should be available for next year’s team. This is of course if they decide that Gus and his leadership intangibles are now what need. The one name that intrigues me the most is an M.V.P. QB. Michael Vick, Prisoner, will be available and he would be better than what most people may think. You know that he is getting himself in shape spiritually and physically. Heck isn’t that all those prisoners do in there? You see my crystal ball is unlike most because I am from Crystal. Crystal, MN that is. Hmmm….

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES: Call me crazy and out of the norm but I like the T’wolves and I like having pro basketball in town and I like going downtown to block E. I just don’t like the bad luck that this franchise has had to endure. One person who is the Lucifer of the league is former T’Wolve, Stephon Marbury. With the country trying to get its financial legs under them, this ungrateful little brat has not played a minute yet this year. All the while collecting $20 million plus this year! You will recall that we traded future Hall of Famer, Ray Allen to get Crybury to play along side Kevin Garnett. Oh that was so long ago wasn’t it? The commissioner has got to step in and put a stop to this because Marbury and this situation really gives the league a black eye and most certainly will drive off even the most loyal of fans.

I had a chance to speak to rookie Kevin Love after his 1st career double-double following Saturday the 29th of November. I just had to ask him what his favorite Beach Boys song was. Without hesitation he said “ California Girls” You see, he is the nephew of Beach Boys lead singer, Mike Love which in turn makes him 1st cousins with Beach Boys genius, Brian Wilson. With that family tree wouldn’t it be nice if they sang the National Anthem before one of the up coming games?

Vibes, and Diatribes from the local Scribe: After watching the Vikings beat the Bears with the throw back uniforms, did they not look much more Viking like than they do with those new age look that they now are donning? Throw back night should be go back night......During last years Stanley Cup the 3rd highest TV market was the Minnesota market. Behind only the two teams that participated of course…...When tht Dallas Stars come to town their a lot of homecomings with Brett Hull, (UMD) Mike Madono, Mark Parrish and the most important one is the fact that this is our old team, the North Stars…..

Keep those e-mails coming: billythayer@hotmail.com also visit www.myspace.com/knightcrawlerusa www.myspace.com/billythayer

November 2008

I am William Thayer and I approve this column…..

Well now that the World Series is over and our winter teams are in full swing and the Vikings enter the second half of their 47th season, the only sunshine we Minnesotans will see after 5:00 pm is the chance that maybe one of these said teams can actually hold our attention enough to at least make us forget about how cold our winters really are. The Minnesota Gopher football team has been a pleasant surprise in the eyes of the life long nay-sayers of sports lore. The Gophers have actually made fans of college football that may have not been in years past. They have a young QB in # 8, Adam Webber. They are moving outdoors next year and with head coach Tim Brewster and his never ending luster to appreciate the positive, they look like they are headed in the right place which hopefully will be a New Years Day bowl game. If not this year, then maybe soon which is more than we could have asked for giving the current plight of last years season long debacle.

MINNESOTA WILD: They opened this season much like they opened last years campaign, going undefeated in the 1st. two weeks. The one glaring difference is the stealth like act of the franchises all-time offensive leader, #10 Marion Gaborik. Sure they are winning and maybe there is a little less dissention in the locker room, but they are going to need him and someone to replace Brian Rolston and his 30 plus goals. They also are going to need Rolston’s and Gaborik’s scoring prowess on the power play that is becoming another one of their glaring weaknesses. Think back to the game vs. the Montreal Canadiens on October 30, 2008 the Wild spent almost the entire 2nd. Period on the power play and did not score. They miss Rolston’s booming shot and need Gaborik’s quick hands don’t they?

If they can figure out a way to hold a lead, a substantial lead by today’s hockey game, they would be better for the long haul and thus would create less tension among the Wild fans in “Wild Nation”. This will still have us clamoring for more offense and less defense of course. This pattern happened last year and it is carrying over to this year. For whatever reason they seem to go into this shell and with a lead of at least two goals they become shell-shocked by either having to go into overtime or even lose it in the final minutes.

I will say that the new line of Mikko Koivu and fellow Finland countryman, Antii Meittinen and former Wild playoff hero, Andrew Brunette sure are making a lot of us feel the excitement whenever they hit the ice. They seem like they have been playing together well before this year came about. You may remember that in the off season the Wild had told Gaborik that he would be centered by Koivu and that hasn’t been the case as of yet. It remains to be seen if this has anything to do with the disappearance of our favorite Wild player. You see he has turned down the Wild’s contract offers in the past and even this years offers only to be sitting somewhere waiting for whatever to be forth coming. I for one happen to like him but I don’t like the fact that he can turn these ridiculous offers that today’s athletes can warrant. If they do trade him, just don’t trade him to Boston please. I think we Minnesotans have had enough of losing our star players to those Chowder Heads to the east. Besides Marion, if you stay with the Wild for another 5-10 years, you could become the 3rd. player wearing #10 to be retired in Minnesota sports history.

But hey, it’s a long season. A very long season, and as long as Jacques Lemaire is the head coach they will be competitive and right in the thick of things.

Somewhere along the line Brent Burns should get some ice time as a forward. He already likes to bring the puck up the ice from the defensive position and he does play the forward position on power plays so it may make for the coaching staff to finish this natural progression.

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES: It’s too early to tell but I will say that maybe they made the right choice in trading O.J Mayo for Kevin Love. Their thinking had to be that they already had enough guards and that they needed a big man to help free up current star Al Jefferson. So far, so good. I am not the only one who is in the Love camp. Like I said it is early in the season and if Love continues to play at this level and eventually raise this level, he will be the big man with the good vibrations. If this doesn’t pan out like they wanted it sure will lead to the demise of the legendary Kevin McHale and his Hall of Fame pedigree. We all know that McHale likes to work with these young big guys and his prize pupil was former Wolves and current Boston Celtic star, Kevin Garnett.

The one obvious need the Wolves are lacking is on the defensive end and a person in the know would be hard pressed to say who is our best defender. Former #1 pick (2007) Corey Brewer is the talk of the town as far as being a defensive stalwart, but who is going to guard all of the big men that happen to play in the same Western Conference as our beloved Timberwolves? For the Wolves to have any sort of chance in this conference they are going to need some help and if they get any sort of scoring from the perimeter as new-comer Mike Miller would attest then maybe he can create some double teams and if they can score from there we could tire some defenses out. Sort of create a defense from our offense. Anyway you look at it; Randy Wittman has his hands full with another very young team that hopefully won’t add futility to his career 97-193 record.

With Love making the headlines already and with Big Al’ coming into his own these two big fellas could give a lot of teams fits. Maybe as the year goes by, there could be some teams calling for one of our many guards to warrant another nice and nifty trade. I don’t think that when they drafted shooting guard Rashad McCants with their #1 pick (2005) they envisioned him coming in off the bench. Same can be said about fellow guard and also former #1 pick (2006), Randy Foye. The Wolves brought in sharp shooter Miller to give them offense from three point land. Is this a rebuilding year? Will the high draft picks from years past start panning out? Will the energy stay electric in the Block E Castle? Can luck finally beget us from all the hardship that this franchise has had to endure? I think so and if they continue to hustle and play the game right this winter should be fun, fun, fun in downtown Minneapolis, MN

MINNESOTA VIKINGS: Now that Adrian Peterson has become the face of our offense, he is finding that his sophomore season has been tough sledding. However, he is still running hard and when we are leading he is chewing up valuable time off the clock thus giving him more star status than his break-away runs that we became accustomed to seeing last year. “In Gus we Trust”. You bet. I think that for a QB to be successful he needs to learn the game in practice by running the offense without the feeling of being discouraged from game time mistakes. Look at Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay, he sat behind Brett Favre for years and learned without having to be thrown to the fire. This goes out to you Tarvaris Jackson. Sit back, let Gus run the show; learn the offense and how to read defenses. In years past it was almost unheard of for a QB to ready right away. Some do make it soon but they are the aberration. Duante Culpepper came in his 2nd. year but he had future Hall of Famer’s Cris Carter and Randy Moss, and a brilliant running game with Robert Smith carrying the ball like a hot comet. Same can be said about Ben Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh. He survived with a great defense and basically did not throw all that much. Speaking of quarterbacks the Vikings should go after either one from the Houston Texans. Matt Shaub is the incumbent but Sage Rosenfels sure isn’t far behind. If Gus cannot do the trick this year they should follow my lead because when there is two QB’s there is sure to be controversy.

The Vikings avoided the negative chant from the hateful faithful this week of their disdain for coach Brad Childress. Winning a game like this in the way that they did by opening up the offense and creating turnovers on defense surely doesn’t hurt that chorus. Now that the big three off season acquisitions finally played together, the big money spent should be money earned as the season heads into the second half. We will have to see if they can put together a winning month in December and not just November.

VIBES FROM THE SCRIBE…..Kevin Love is the Nephew of Beach Boys lead singer, Mike Love……During the baseball playoffs on TBS didn’t Harold Reynolds sound identical to Chris Rock?.....Former NFL running back Travis Henry has 9 kids from 9 different mothers!.....Since 1961 three players have won the home run title and World Series title the same year (Roger Maris 61, 1961; Reggie Jackson 32, 1973; Manny Ramirez 43, 2004….. What TV ad bothered you more: political savagery or sexual dysfunction? I suppose that when Tampa Bay, Tampa Bay’s Matt Garza was pitching, anything was better than watching him and his habitual spitting ….The Vikings Herschel Walker trade with the Dallas Cowboys in 1989 kept them from having a high draft choice by giving the Cowboys their top two in 1990 and 91 and their # 1 in 1992, thus giving the Cowboys the players that would eventually lead them to three Super Bowls in the 1990’s….OUCH! If you asked the one who spear-headed this trade, GM Mike Lynn, I think he would love to do a complete 360 on that trade….?

October 2008

MINNESOTA TWINS: In a division that nobody seemed to want, the Chicago White Sox finally won it on the last day. Game # 163 in a playoff that was unauspiciously coined in favor of a team that was inferior to the team that comes from the nations 14 largest market. That’s right folks we Minnesotans lost game162 and a half by a coin toss to be the host for this epic event. Are they serious? Do they really need the television money that bad where they have to decide this by flipping a coin. The commissioners office must have said “We Want….We Need That TV Revenue From The 3rd Largest Market In The Free World” Well this keeps the hope of a Windy City World Series alive seeings how this is the 1st. time that both the Chisox and the Cubs are in the playoffs at the same time since 1906. It also throws out my wish of a border battle WS with the Milwaukee Brewers. You would think that the way our luck goes that the Twins had someone from the Timberwolves office and their stuffed animals to call the flip. The Twins won the the season series 10 games to 8. Therefore they should’ve been the host. Instead Twin Killer, Jim Thome scored the only run of the game by crushing one of Nick Blackburn’s fastball over the centerfield fence. Oh well at least Joe Mauer won another batting title this year and should be able to join Justin Morneau as the only Twins to win any sort of award by adding gold gloves to their pedigree. At least the Minnesota fans were there to give them support throughout the year. The last series at home vs. Chicago was something no one who was there will soon forget. All 2 million of them! Not to mention the 120,000 fans for this said series. You had Carlos Gomez getting 4 hits and a chance at hitting a walk-off homer to complete the cycle. A cycle which would have been his 2nd of the year. Is it just me, or does that sound awfully rare? It’s probably as rare as Denard Span having the same opportunity to homer off in cycle fashion in the same game and inning.

The way the season went it was almost fitting how this game came about. We missed so many chances as did they, but you just have to think that their may not be this kind of a chance again. It should have never came down to this because all that we had to do to avoid this was win one lousy game throughout the year. I can think of at least 20 games that we should have won. There are a lot of questions and needs that will be answered this forth coming off season, and the way Coach Ron Gardenhire keeps his teams together, I like our chances to win 1 more game!

DELMON YOUNG: Ever since Denard Span came up the second time this year he has been on fire and he was called up a second time because of an injury to un-healthy but wealthy Michael Cuddyer. Well the Twins certainly don’t want to take away Span’s outfield spot and lead-off prowess. You see, they now have four outfielders. Five if you want to count Jason Kubel. The conundrum they face is what are they going to do with this many outfielders and only three can play. Well I was thinking that Cuddyer was expendable and very attractive to certain teams that would actually trade with us. Maybe somehow we can find someone to bat after the big Canadian Morneau because the way opposing teams are pitching us is that they are not worried about Joe and his singles. They also are not worried about who is hitting after Justin so they continually pitch him outside crap. Can you imagine how many home runs he would have with someone like Jermaine Dye, or Jim Thome batting after him? Anywho, after seeing the body language with Young, he looks like the odd man out in the outfield sweepstakes. He doesn’t listen to the coaches, takes way too many bad at bats and quite frankly, just doesn’t seem to care about the Twins way of doing things. It is not easy to give up on such a young talent lad in the young and talented Mr. Young. But they have a very young and talented outfield already with Cuddyer being the elder statesmen at the ripe old age of 29. Hmm. They Tampa Bay Rays called Delmon the “Demon” and they got rid of the word Devil in their sir name and they got rid of the Demon. Now they are in the playoffs. Coincidence? Or Irony? I really couldn’t tell you because right now I am trying to find out what one win we could have used the most. O.K. got it. the last one!

MINNESOTA TWINS and CHICAGO WHITE SOX OFFENSIVE COMPARISONS: As of September 25th the run differential was led by the Twins 813- 777 and the Twins led in sacrifice hits 50-27. All of this may be academic to some, but what amazes me is that Chicago out homered the Twins 225-111 and we outscored them. I guess in the end the dagger was decided by that one element we haven’t had in almost 30 years. The long ball!

PITCH COUNT: There is so much being said in recent years about starting pitchers and their pitch count. The Minnesota Twins and their coaching staff for years have been adamant about this and it is up for so much debate among the purists and former pitchers. Bert Blyleven for one is not afraid to say that he thinks the pitch count is overrated and that in his day there wasn’t even such a thing. He has said to me that if a pitcher is still in the game in the later innings, that is when he is finding his groove and most pitchers of his ilk felt like it was their job to start and finish the game in which they started. I know there is the new style with specialists that will come in for one inning or one batter. Keep in mind that Blyleven’s era was started in the early 1970’s and carried over to the early 1990’s so it wasn’t that long ago. Another former Twin ( albeit for 1 year ) used to be thrown to the wolves by his former Manager with the Detroit Tigers, Sparky Anderson when he would let Jack stay in the game even if he was getting hammered. Look at what CC Sabathia did for the Milwaukee Brewers. He single handedly carried that team into the playoffs by winning three games on three days rest and each game going well over the 100 pitch count. Same thing can be said about former Twin Johan Santana who seemed to finally get his wins and believe it or not he became stronger in those said games. Blyleven also had 60 complete game shutouts and 242 complete games so you can see his disdain.

A weird stat from the past is when Juan Marichal beat Warran Spahn 1-0 in which both starters went 15 innings on the 2nd of July, 1963. Sorry, I can’t give you how many pitches were thrown between the two because back in that day they didn’t even record them.

billythayer@hotmail.com myspace.com/billythayer

September 2008

Boof Bonser looks like the power pitcher we have needed, albeit from the bullpen side of arms. There are times when the bullpen is needed to get that important K-O. Think about it, if the bases are juiced and the tying or winning run is on 3rd. ,well a strikeout surely would be in order. Perhaps even two, or three. The latter may be a bit too much to ask. Nonetheless, Boof can get that big out and judging from the radar, it looks like he is hitting 94 MPH+. Having Eddie Guardado coming back to join the team, should really help ameliorate their late inning woes for the simple fact that he is a fearless veteran and would probably have some sort of a rejuvenating reunion with the Metrodome mound and the friendly confines deep in the tradition rich fan friendly Metrodome. Even though there is only 93 baseball games left there. Will he still be called “Every Day Eddie” even though this will give the Twins 3 lefties in the pen? We don’t need you to live up your moniker Eddie, just come in the game and save the lead for Joe Nathan. Soon we will find the proper nomenclature that is sure to fit into the lexicon of our local vernacular.

We all know that Boof can drive you nuts if he has to go more than 3-4 innings which is why he shouldn’t start. But then again everybody in the bullpen drives me nuts this year excluding closer Joe Nathan of course. I think the bullpen is perfect for Boof because of his power pitching ability. He seems to get himself in trouble at times as a starter and he paces the mound as if this ritual will guide him through another inning or out. Boof, THROW STRIKES!!!! Trust your stuff. Use that downward angle that always seems to work. Take care of yourself because as you know and the Twins know, this is a great time to audition for next year’s team. Whatever team that may be.

If the Twins do not make the playoffs this year, it will be a direct result of bullpen failure. Then again they have had to rely on the bullpen quite a bit more this year because of their young starting pitching staff. None of these young starters have ever thrown this much in their whole life, so it makes sense to have the bullpen eat up innings more often than not. Once a starter starts nearing the 100 pitch count, or I should say when the coaching staff starts sniffing it, you can hear the mitts popping down the 3rd. base line bullpen. Or wherever their bullpen is. I just made reference to the 3rd. base pen because that is where the Twins have their bullpen at the Metrodome and of course you the reader of this fine piece of literature would be more prone to hear mitts popping. If this year’s bullpen could have held half of the leads they have blown, they would be in first place and should be in first place with breathing room to spare. They call the bullpen the “Firemen” and Firemen are supposed to put fires out, not throw gas on them and ignite them even more!

Denard Span has sure been a pleasant surprise hasn’t he? There was a lot of nattering from the nay-sayers. They were saying that we could not trade or let Torii Hunter go because we did not have a replacement for him. This of course was before they and the reason they insisted on acquiring Carlos Gomez from the New York Metropolitans in the Johan Santana trade. Speaking of which, is anyone glad that the New York Yankees decided not to go through with trading their prospects for the loveable lefty? I for one am. I think that the New York Bankees actually did the Twins a favor by sticking to their plan of wanting to keep their young talent. The last I checked, the players the Banks were dangling in front of us: Ian Kennedy, Phil Hughes and Melki Cabrera were either injured or not really a factor. Span has been this year’s version of Shannon Stewart. The Twins traded for Stewart half way through the 2003 season in which would became a playoff run. It seemed that in 2003 every time Stewart came to bat, he delivered a big hit and this is just what Span has been doing since his latest call up earlier this year.

Speaking of Torii Hunter, I hate to say this or bring this up, but for the last few years of him patrolling centerfield it seems that he may have lost a step or two. Take for example the triple that Nick Punto hit off of his glove in Anaheim on 8-21-08. There was a time not so long ago that he admittedly makes that catch. Heck, I would have to say that I think Punto has a better chance of making that catch. There were little plays in his last years with the Twins that he just seemed to miss. I do not know if this was a direct result of him breaking his ankle in Boston back in 2005, or just age slowing him down. It could just be me thinking that he should never miss because after watching him it seemed like he never missed. Until that inside the park homer in the 2006 playoffs that the Oakland Athletics, Mark Kotsay hit where Hunter dove and missed and of course the ball rolled all the way to the wall resulting in this unthinkable feat.

Vibes and Diatribes from the Scribe: Stan Musial the legendary hall of famer from the St. Louis Cardinals, finished his career with 3,630 hits,1,815 at home and 1,815 on the road. How’s that for consistency?...As of August 26, 2008, Carlos Gomez had 114 strikeouts this year and if opposing teams keep their scouting reports of pitching him breaking balls away and fastballs down and in, he is certain to break former Twin Bobby Darwin’s team record of 145 K’s during the 1972 season……Joe Mauer has 606 hits in 1,921 career at bats going into their longest road trip since 1969. With his track record and his perfect swing, he is a lock to win another batting title this year. Well maybe not a lock but a pretty good bet. Well maybe not a bet if you don’t gamble. Lets just say he has more than enough talent to win this coveted Silver Slugger award……Nick Punto is the official, un-official leader for Web Gems on my favorite TV show, ESPN’s, Baseball Tonight…… The Twins, even without Michael Cuddyer and his #1 draft pick pedigree have a starting outfield of 1st. round draft picks. With left fielder Delmon Young being the 1st over-all pick in 2003…. Speaking of road trips, the Twins are embarking on a very long trip that consists of 14 games in 15 days. This is during the dog days of summer and it will be their last dog leg trip of the year and…..Hmmm, emBARK, DOG LEG, DOG DAYS, sounds like some rough sledding doesn’t it? Let’s just hope that the Chicago White Sox and their homer-happy batsmiths slip for a paws at this time in their own doggy-doo.

From My Mind To Yours is a copyright of FMMTY local #3

billythayer@hotmail.com myspace.com/billythayer

Mid- Month Minnie 8-20-08

Nick Punto is unofficially the “Web Gem” leader for ESPN’s Baseball Tonight The question remains is how are they going to keep Adam Everett ( Adam and Eve rett )in the lineup. He is a great fielder. Do we need to have another light hitting fielder to come in off the bench to provide defense or do we want to have someone with power to put fear in the latter parts of close game opponents? ……August 19th Kevin Slowey sets a career high with 12 strike outs. Ironically that is the most since former Twin Johan Santana rang up 17 Texas Rangers one year ago to the day….Alexi Casilla is rehabbing his injured throwing hand and judging from his strong hand shake he should be ready to join his mates when they embark on their ridiculous 14 game, 15 day road trip. In fact, as they embark on this dog leg of this seasons dog days, this is the longest trip since 1969 in which they played 17 games in 15 days. I for one cannot understand why the Twins should have to leave town just because of the Republican National Convention. Heck, I know that these staunch Republicans would love to take in a game and this would have been a great way to showcase our small market baseball squad. Embark, dog leg, dog days…… hmmm sounds like tough sledding. Lets hope Chicago and there home run happy batsmen get tired and fall into their own doggy doo ….Carlos Gomez is sitting at 114 strikeouts going into this road trip and judging from what manager Ron Gardenhire’s take is, he seems to think that Go-Go is just swinging through everything right now. On the flip side as I witnessed Go-Go and his quest to break Bobby Darwin’s team record of 145 for a season, the Oakland Athletics own Jack Cust was striking out eight times in the three game series! I actually am not sure if it was eight times. I lost count at six in the last two games. Cust is leading the American League with 158 whiffs and counting. Cust is also able to hit a home run every 15.19 at bats so far in his brief two year career! Same with the National league leader Ryan Howard and his holy bat of 162 K’s this year. Could you take 33 HR’S over 162 knock outs?.....Joe Mauer is now the AL leader in batting with a .324 average. This above average Joe has 606 hits in 1,921 at bats giving him a .315 average for his brief and stellar career. Keep in mind people he is only 25 years old. He also should be able to collect his 1st. of many gold glove awards at the catcher position. The Twins have not had such an award since Earl Battey won in 1961, 62 from the catcher position.

There are a lot of teams that are pulling the injury card out as their excuse for bad seasons. Well the Twins have had their own share of the MASH squad and this being sort of a weird year in which hand problems have topped the injury list to key players. It seems like every time they get someone off the disabled list, someone else goes on it….Maybe now that Francisco Liriano is back from his year and a half long stint on the Tommy John elbow list, he just may be the missing ingredient as far as finding a pitcher to lead them into the post season……

Mid-Month Minnie 8-3-08

The Minnesota Twins led by all-star slugger Justin Morneau and his countless big hits slipped just ½ games behind the Chicago White Sox. The Whities came into Minneapolis for a 4 game series hoping to protect a lead from a team ( Mn ) that nobody gave a chance at the outset. The Twins and their young talented arms took 3 out of 4 from the Pale Hose and ended the home stand by taking the rubber match from the now depleted Cleveland Indians. Alone in 1st. place heading into Seattle trying to protect their own ½ game lead is something we all as Minnesota Sports fans can really pay attention to. The Tribe was the team that was favored at the beginning of this season. After all they came within one game of the World Series last year and virtually had the same team coming in, the same team minus some key players due to unfortunate injuries.

The fans are noticing the team’s success and are now being noticed by a section over a quarter million strong for the seven game home stand vs. Chi. and Cle.

The Twins started the day after the trading deadline by releasing two veterans in Livan Hernandez and Craig Monroe. They brought up the much anticipated return of 2006 pitcher of the half year, Francisco Liriano and he notched his 1st. win since said season. While all of the big market teams mortgaged their future by trying to win NOW, the Twins with their lil’ train that could mentality upgraded through their own farm system. Hernandez’s biggest attribution this season was to mentor and anchor a pitching staff that averages 24 years young. Well you could say his work was done and thus gave the team the nerve to call up Liriano. Randy Ruiz was also called up the same day from the same from Rochester…. NEW YORK! The Twins AAA farm club. Ruiz collected his 1st career hit on an opposite field single to right on the 1st. of August.

Twins injuries should not be a concern as much as they are making the masses seem. Michael Cuddyer should be back within a week or two and that should give them a much needed boost in the offensive front. They will have a problem when he does come back because like Cuddyer, Denard Span is also a #1 draft pick who along with Alexi Casilla have really been more than valuable. Where are they going to put Cuddyer? Well, there are only 3 outfield spots and 4 players vying for them. Speaking of Casilla, I had the chance to shake his right hand and judging by the grip in this young man, it shouldn’t be long before he comes back to defend his pesky hitting and gold glove like defense at 2nd base.

Justin Morneau drove in some big runs in the Chicago series and along with him are his best friend Joe Mauer and their potent 1-2 punch from the 3rd and 4th spot in the lineup which is enough for any fan of any sport to appreciate just how valuable they are to their team. They also should add a gold glove to their pedigree that includes this years all star appearance and Morneau’s 2006 MVP and Joe’s batting title of the same year.

First place on the 3rd of August is great but as Morneau put it “I just hope we can be in first on September 28th”

Vibes, Scribes and Diatribes Joe Mauer is hitting .370 vs. lefties this year….Cleveland’s Paul Byrd is 7-1 at the Metrodome in his career…..The Twins new stadium is coming together right on target and promises to be one of the best ever!......Their is a real possibility that we could have an all Disney World Series w/Angels and Dodgers, and all Sunshine State WS between the Marlins and Rays, a Big Apple WS w/ the Mets and the Yankees and a Windy City WS for the Cubs and White Sox….Personally, I would love to see a border battle with the Brewers and the Twins!

billythayer@hotmail.com

7-20-08 / William Thayer’s Mid-Month Minnie

With the Major League Baseball season just past the its half way point, the 55-43 Minnesota Twins opened the second half by taking two out of three from the Texas Rangers. Aside from that little hiccup in Boston, the Twins have been one of the hottest teams in the league. They beat the Rangers who for the second time this season came into the dome red hot only to leave shaking their heads and wondering how top get that magic back.…..again! The Rangers have to start realizing that they are the worst team in the two most important categories as far as keeping the other team from scoring. They do not care about working on defense and they traditionally are lousy on the pitching front. If they could get any sort of pitching and defense they would be a team to reckon with. After all, baseball is the only sport where the defense has the ball. Especially with the offense they always seem to put together. They have a real super star in Josh Hamilton and they have the American Leagues top hitter in Ian Kinsler. Nonetheless, taking two out of three from the Rangers really says something about our young pitching staff. They held these powerful Rangers to 3 runs in three games. Right handed Scott Baker had a no-hitter going into the sixth only to fall behind Talyor Teagarden 3-1 and giving him a fastball that Teagarden parked into the left field seats for his first hit and of course first home run. The two games preceding had the Twins young lefty Glen Perkins and the bull pen shutting out Texas 6-0.

The New York Yankees are next for the team that has two personalities, the team that has two lives. I am talking about the Minnesota Twins. On a side note, there are more sets of Twins born in Minnesota than any other sate in the union. The Twins are going to have to play 36 out of their remaining 64 games away from home. Starting on August 21st, the Twins will have to play on the road until September 4th. This of course is because the other half of the Twin Cities, St. Paul, will be hosting the Republican National Convention. If the Twins are to make any sort of lee way, they are going to have to start winning series on the road. They also have to start beating left handed starters with whom they are 13-14 as opposed to 41-28 vs. righties. If we can start out this road trip vs. NY winning the series, that should give us confidence and leave the pin stripers using their hanky’s. Hey, how about that? The New York Hankees!

It should also be noted that the Twins bats are really on fire and if they can get any sort of production from Carlos Gomez they will be able to outlast the Chicago White Sox in what now appears to be a two team race in the American League Central.

Twins of a different feather ( look-alikes ) John C. McGinley ( Srubs )-Mike Redmond………….Hugh Grant-Phil Mickelson…………Brian Rolston-Ben Affleck…….David Ortiz-Florida Evans ( Mom from Good Times )…….Mike Madano-Napoleon Dynamite……..Willie McGee- E.T.

July 2008

October 2007 Mnls., MN

Johan Santana: They should trade him. I alluded to this in past columns. However, with that being said, I think that this situation has the 1989 trade written all over it. You know the one in which we traded Frank “Sweet Music” Viola to the New York Mets. In fact, they both are left-handed, both are unhappy about current contract status, both have great change-ups, and both have lost their secret weapon, the swing and a miss. (I personally think that the swing and a miss is the greatest event in sports.) If Santana were to be traded to a team in the National League it would keep him away from playing against and burning the Twins and help him be effective again since the National League teams have not seen him and his arsenal of pitches. The Twins could pull this off because teams in the American League have seen enough of Santana that they have pretty much figured him out. We probably could get the most for him right now. If he was the “ace” of the staff, we probably would’ve faired better this past season and last post season. I have three key games in which # 57 has let us down: 1) Game #1 2006 opening playoff game at home vs. the Oakland Athletics. Granted the final score was 3-2 but aces are supposed to win low scoring 1 run games. It also didn’t help that he gave up that home run to Frank Thomas. 2) August 29 , September 3 2007, lost both games to the 1st. place Cleveland Indians and CC Sabbathia when we needed him the most and we were still in the race. Hey, I’m not saying that he is washed up by any means. What I am saying is that I don’t think he is worth 20 million a year. I think that we will be alright come next spring with all of our young pitching led by the Matt Garza and his nervous spitting habit. Johan, you gave us great memories! Right now we need you as trade bate! Isn’t it a little more soothing knowing that our nucleus of talent all have had off years? This should help in the negotiating process shouldn’t it?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

September 2007 Mpls., MN

Joe Mauer: Here is another interesting story line I have about Minnesotas very own, Mr. Joseph Mauer. In my humble opinion I think he should be our lead-off hitter. I know in my past columns I lobbied for Joe to play a new position, 3rd. base. This of course may very well happen sooner than later. If nothing else it will prolong his career. Getting back to my latest wish, now that Luis Castillo has been traded and we do need a quintessential lead-off hitter, why not try Joe Mauer there? He doesn’t hit for power, yet. He draws the most walks, sets up the rest of the line up by choosing his pitch, waiting for his pitch or whatever he’s doin’ up there. He also manicures the left handed batters box with his cat like graceful left foot. He also has enough speed to pose a threat on the base paths. I know that typically catchers do not bat lead-off. Well they normally don’t win batting titles either, or do they? Jason Kendall batted lead-off for the Oakland Athletics and he did it for quite some time. Not only would this make sense but it would also solve their other problem. Manager Ron Gardenhire would love to have Justin Morneau batting clean up but that would mean having 2 lefties in a row, when Mauer’s batting 3rd of course. So you could add by subtracting with Mauer moving up to lead off and Morneau batting third. Besides Michael Cuddyer is not our best option in the clean up slot. Torii Hunter is. Morneau may very well be our best hitter and putting him in the 3rd. hole would separate the dynamic “M’s” by putting whoever in the 2 hole. Basically, our line up would be (1) Mauer C,(2) Jason Bartlett SS, (3) Morneau 1B, (4) Hunter CF, (5) Cuddyer RF, (6) Jason Kubel LF, (7) Mike Piazza DH ….Gotcha. Wishful thinking! (7) Rondell White DH (8) Alexi Casilla 2B (9) Nicky Punto 3B. Relax folks they will find a spot for Punto because he is cheap and he is our best infielder. With that being said, and hoping they can somehow sign Hunter, this will be the players that they have to choose from and wouldn’t it make sense to try Mauer batting lead-off?

Little Kids Playing Baseball: When I was growing up, I used to play baseball sun up to sun down. The only thing that would stop my pals and I was someone’s mother bellowing those famous words, “Igor, lunch time”! Of course we would resume play later and into the evening until our dads would come home with their suit coat draped over their back and tickets to the real game for that evening in their hand. Wow, how things have changed. Even if we only had three guys we would still play hot box. Does anyone remember hot box? It’s where you try and beat the rundown between two guys with gloves. This of course was played with tennis balls so if you got hit in the rundown you wouldn’t get hurt. In fact a lot of those childhood games were played with tennis balls. Homerun derby in someone’s back yard would have been quite expensive for our dads if we would have played with a real baseball. You also needed a tennis ball for street hockey as well. If no one would play with you, then you could throw or shoot the tennis ball against the garage for hours on end. There are plenty of parks out there then and there are plenty of parks now if they were to try something like this. Kids today have a hard time organizing these events on their own, and this is a main reason for their lack of outdoor activity. I am trying hard not to age myself but back then “Pong” was the only video game option. What a dumb game that was. After you figured out the angles of this Atari game you could pretty much master the ball and where you wanted it to go. I used to do drum rolls with the angle on high speed up in the corner. As far as mastering, the same can be said about Mattel Football. That was pretty cool though because you could carry it in your pocket and play it in school. You also could play it in the dark and on mute! I think that was the first version of “Gameboy” wasn’t it? Yes, back then the only trouble we got into was to play ding dong ditch, or worse yet, throwing snow balls at moving cars. Oh well at least I still get a kick out of watching the Little League World Series. I wonder if those kids are having any fun. Of course they are. They are playing with their friends and playing outside and not with their thumbs!

Agents vs. Owners And the Almighty Righteous Bookoo!: The owners in sports should just give the agents their commission so the player will stay with current team. Wouldn’t it be cheaper to get rid of those blood sucking sports anti –christs! Think about how many players in their contract years saying repeatedly just how much they love the city and their fellow teammates only to be strung along by commission hungry agents who make sure that once the season is over that it would be in their best interest to move to another team? They don’t even take into consideration that the player may not even have a preference to how much another team may want him. The player gets into this war of absurdity over upfront money, bonus money and guaranteed money and long term money. Sometimes they even leave over the difference of 1 million dollars. What’s the difference you say? Its in the language of the contract where the agent gets the long term effect so of course he ( agent ) gets more money on commission and the player loses out on having his children and family being moved when they were perfectly happy in the city where they were. This is where the Torii Hunter and Johan Santana contracts will eventually come forth. They both want to stay here in beautiful four seasoned Minnesota. With that being said wouldn’t it behoove the Minnesota Twins Brass to just give the agent his commission and work out the players contract on their own. The only reason Johan will get the most money out there is because his agent will tell him how much that hippy south paw (with the almost as good a curveball as Bert Blyleven) received from the San Francisco Giants. I am of course referring to Barry Zito and his 895 million dollars a year contract. I am being facetious of course only to emphasize just how ridiculous Zito’s contract is. Johan’s agent will tell him that he ( #57 ) deserves more in which case talent wise he does. However, how much is the limit on happiness and greed? It’s the percentage that the agent will go for in every case. That is why Carl Pohlad should just say, “take this commission check and have Johan call me”. That way all three parties involved will get theirs. If, in the worst case scenario we lose Johan, we should trade him and not lose him to free agency where the NY Bankees are waiting. We should almost succumb to the fact that we cannot sign all of our core players. Johan would almost certainly warrant at least five players with at least two starting position players. Hey, we did get five players for Frank Viola back in 1989 and those players helped our 1991 run. I hate to think of that probability though because I like our chances with Francisco Liriano coming back and Matt Garza coming into his own. Somebody kidnap Johan’s agent and keep him away from our # 57 so we can enjoy the new park with the players we developed!

Local Team Offense: What you need is an offense that runs with a peristaltic rhythm. Steady and consistent. Right now the Timberwolves, Vikings, Wild and Twins all are in the bottom third of each of their respective leagues. Of the above mentioned,

Who has the worse offense of the 4 major teams? It’s been a long time since the Minnesota Vikings set the league record for team scoring with 556 points in 1998! That’s an average of 34 points a game. It’s no wonder that Johan Santana is even pondering the thought of relocating when every time he toes the rubber he feels he has to pitch a gem of a game. I already know that the Twins deficient offense has cost him 1 Cy Young award and numerous victories. He could almost solidify his place in baseball immortality if he was playing for a team that could actually average more runs than the bottom third of their competitors. Actually as I am writing from my mind to yours, the Twins are second to last in runs scored! I happen to think that with this upcoming Minnesota Vikings season that we are headed for more of the same. More of the same as last year! Low scoring, defensive battles. I guess I could live with this game plan if we actually could win and win it all. I’m not completely sold on the fact that last years team was as futile in their offensive execution as the score would lead us to believe. With that being said, I hope that they opened up their game book and ripped up that 2 yard dump pass on third and long. Somewhere, somebody has to emerge and become a star offensive threat. Hmmmm, someone like Troy Williamson, or Adrian Peterson. Besides, how many more games can we sit through 3 and a half hours of watching a 6-3 defeat? Keep those e-mails coming and get outside before your mom calls you to dinner!

billythayer@hotmail.com www.myspace.com/knightcrawlerusa

JULY 28, 2007

Minnesota Twins: Every time that you think they are done and finished, they find a way to get back in the race and look pretty feisty doing it. There may not be a more resilient team in all of sports. When the offense isn’t hitting, or they lose 3 in a row, everyone starts thinking, “Ok this is it” only to be strung along by another classic Twins resurgence. Great hitting….timely hitting, always the same great defense, and what do you know, there they are, right back in the thick of things! Of course they could make it so much easier for themselves by playing more consistently, with reckless abandon. Maybe, just maybe they are playing consistently and this is how good that they really are. I mean a Tiger can’t change his stripes right? Just think how much better they would be if they had that big-bopper to go along with the big four of Justin Morneau, Joe Mauer, Michael Cuddyer and Torii Hunter. We as fans have been clamoring over this concept for the past three or four years. On July 27th the guppie powered Twins were 9 games out so resiliency or not, they have a tough road to hoe. In my personal opinion I have the Aneheim Angels beating the Detroit Tigers to advance to the WS and eventually winning it all. Maybe next year the resilient Twins can put together another great season and win the WS. I sure wouldn’t bet against them.

Barry Bonds: By the time that this wonderful magazine goes to press, he may very well be the all-time home run champ. He is becoming the O.J. Simpson of free will. Orenthal was found innocent, right? Is he living free? Barroids never has been caught doing steroids, right? Is he the most miserable athlete that you have ever seen? Most of Bonds’ misery may very well stem from self-infliction. Think about how good Babe Ruth must have been when all he needed was hot dogs, cold beer and promiscuous women. Nonetheless Barry will be the all-time home run king and no one cares. How long will the San Francisco Giants hold on to this modern day martyr? How much longer will they have someone in the outfield like Bonds who cannot and will not run down balls anymore? He is almost starting to remind me of Willie Mays during his last years. Does anyone remember the 1973 WS? The Giants have been out of the race since early June. They probably were hoping he would have hit number 756 by now so they could trade him and start putting together something with their pitching rich roster. He cannot be a good example for anyone involved with that team by the bay. A record that is so coveted has to have some sort of integrity and right now the commissioner Bud Selig is trying his best to not be in attendance when # 755 or 756 hits the record books. Mr. Selig, you and the other owners kept your head in the sand during the 1998 season when it became quite obvious that something was askew with all of the home runs being hit. C’mon, Brady Anderson hitting 50 home runs in 1996. Maybe that is when this all started. Shortsops like Kevin Elster hitting upper deck, opposite field moon shots. It’s now become you and the good ole boys problem Bud, because now that the home run has brought people back to the park, your main problem now is keeping them there. One thing is for sure though you can count on ESPN being there with their neutral stance. Because after all, Barry’s steroid use is all being alleged anyway right? I guess that the purist in me should not worry too long because the natural body of Alex Rodriguez has reached 500 home runs at the age of 32! The record should be his in no longer than 7 years and everyone can watch to see if Barry follows him around to crown him. Hey isn’t that what Hank Aaron is doing with Barry? Don’t get wrong folks, Barry is a talented ball player and I do respect him immensely. If it were as easy put a steroid drug in you to hit home runs then don’t you think the WWF would be lining up with bats in their hands? No way. Hitting a baseball is still the hardest thing to do in any sport and Barry swings the lightest bat with the keenest eye so he still merits the respect. Somehow, somewhere down the line he should explain his activity with steroids so we can at least decide if his record should be an asterisk or an accommodation.

Scandal In Sports: Wow, the National Basketball Association, the National Football League and Major League Baseball have some hot topics to address during this summer in the year of our lord 2007! The baseball problem has been well documented and well exposed in the above mentioned paragraph. With that being said, Tim Donaghy, who just happens to be a referee in the NBA has been suspected of cheating by the FBI and now the Mafia is threatening his life or else. I always thought that if sports were to be fixed it would have to come from the referees and not the players. I guess that he officiated alot of games in which there were some questionable calls. Imagine that, questionable calls in the NBA. You know, phantom fouls, technical fouls, three second violations, etc…..Who knows how many more refs and league officials are involved by having the Mafia paying for a favorable point spread. Innocence is lost because now the flood gates are about to open and if these league officials want to keep any sort of integrity they will tell us the real truth. Maybe what we need is to have Barbara Walters interview Donaghy with the same line of questioning that she asked Marv Albert when he was caught wearing women’s clothes. Right now the sporting public just wants something cut and dry. No more gray area. Don’t insult our intelligence, we deserve the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help us truth. I hate to think that after all of these years of following and covering sports, that their really is some form of manipulation involved through referees and maybe even some players. However, the latter being highly unlikely because there is far too much to lose as a player than that of an official. Yikes, even Pete Rose smells like his name now doesn’t he? Michael Vick is another hero that has failed to keep his success under close watch. Dog fighting? Are you serious Mike? I think that he just recently signed a multi-year contract worth the paltry sum of $120 million. What the heck is he doing running a dog-fighting ring? (allegedly) Is his life that rough? Oh boy, when the federal government indicts someone as they have in the Vick case they usually have enough proof to win. They even say that there is more NFL players involved in this sick and crazy under ground world of dog fighting. I guess that by now “Pac Man” Jones has already sent a bone to the soon to be conVICKted since this recent NFL player debacle has turned all of the attention away from him and all of his police blotter activity. Maybe the gift that he sent him was $3800 in singles.

June 30, 2007

Current Twins: Lets face it, the current Minnesota Twins are a good looking bunch of lads. You can see it by looking in the stands. Young girls like them and follow them. They cannot even decide on which one they like the best. Joe Nathan, Michael Cuddyer, Joe Mauer, Jason Bartlett, Justin Morneau, Johan Santana, etc…The Twins promotions department has done a great job of selling these young “GQ Boys Of Summer”. Of course it doesn’t hurt that they are extremely talented as well. Look around the Metrodome next time and you will see a lot of girls wearing their favorite Twins jersey on their back. In fact, the camera guys do a lot of panning around the road team’s stadium showing girls who have traveled to see their favorite Twin.

These guys are good guys as well. You never hear about them getting into trouble, or disrespecting their home life and they keep their names off of the police blotter. This of course is great for the game of baseball because having these girls infatuated with their favorite Twin has also brought them knowledge of the game. You can hear girls screaming for the hit and run or questioning the umpires call. All this adds up to the greatest advantage of all….T.V. night has changed! That’s right guys, you can thank these current Twins for allowing you to be able to watch baseball everyday now. No more sneaking in the kitchen to see how Morneau's doing. No more, “I’ll go to the store for you, honey”, only to hear what the score is on the radio. The girls know what they like and right now they are watching, reading, and talking baseball because of these loveable rock stars who just happen to play baseball -- very good baseball!

Egos In Sports: Think about how much better teams would be if they would stick together. It has to come down to egos, selfishness and attitudes. Today's current player may not want to stick with a team regardless of how much success that he has had with said team. Money plays a big factor in this of course, but the biggest factor to me is how that player is regarded. The San Antonio Spurs are one of the last teams I can remember who have stuck together through all of their success. They have quiet superstars, if you will. Last time I checked, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant are still playing in the league, so why aren’t they still together? They probably could have won two or three more titles if it had not been for one of them to lose judgement on what mattered most to them -- winning! I mean, come on; how much money do you need today?

Better yet, money probably isn't even a factor anymore since it is more important to try and start another dynasty, giving one player all of the credit. There are a lot of examples of this in today’s egomaniacal, money-driven sports world. It's just too bad that when a team has a group of players who look like they get along great, they cannot seem to finish out their commitment to their team or their fans. I will have more on this later. Leggo my ego!

Mighty Ducks: The cheap-shotters will have until Labor Day to celebrate their Stanley Cup. By that time the National Hockey League will have changed considerably. We hockey fans will start seeing a lot more big players and a lot more physical play. The Wild drafted big players and if the commissioner's office allows teams like the Ducks to play like they did to win Lord Stanley’s Cup, we will see more teams getting bigger and physical! The Ducks looked a lot like the Philadelphia Flyers of the mid-70’s with Dave Schultz gooning the Broadway Bullies. I remember when the Flyers played the Russians in an exhibition game, and the coach of the Russians had his team skate off and not play the rest of the game because of the rough play. Chris Pronger is a cheap shot bully, who deserves a lot more than a couple of games in the commissioner's box. I thought they were going to crack down on this cheap shot sort of mentality. Does the name Todd Bertuzzi ring a bell, Mr. Bettman?

Concussions in football: Football is way too violent. Most running backs say that getting tackled feels like being in a car crash. You have guys who are huge and can run like the wind. Speed and power will always meet with a violent impact!

However, we fans cannot get enough of our modern day gladiators. In fact, they have a whole cable channel devoted to just football. So why change anything? The money is good, television ratings are up and everybody’s happy, right? Well, everybody who can walk normally without the pain they suffered through years of physical abuse. This, too, will be covered further by your favorite “Cub Reporter” as the National Football League goes through the litigation process of former players vs. the current league office. How has it come to that point?

Vibes From The Scribe This exhilarating section return next month with more exciting little tidbits for you and your favorite rival to debate, tackle and discuss at your favorite libation station. However, here is a sneak preview: After winning the gold medal in the running competition at the 1936 Olympics, Jesse Owens could not get a regular job so he raced animals at local fairs to make money.

May 24, 2007

Knuckle Ballers: Do you think that the Yankees, who have to play the Boston Red Sox 19 times a year have someone who can throw the knuckle ball? This would help them in the long run. Batting practice on the day that they will face Tim Wakefield, the Bosox goofy wiffle baller. I know that a lot of players can throw the wiffle ball for fun. This does make sense to me because Wakefield is the only one in the big leagues who is throwing the pitch at the major league level. With that being said, wouldn’t it behoove teams to actually practice hitting this alien pitch? You all know how fastidious George Steinbrenner is and how truculent that their fans can be, or is it the other way around? I am just trying to start something with the idea of having a special batting practice pitcher who can throw the knuckler. Sort of the roving knuckler. Hitting the knuckle ball, how oxy-moronic. Closed-circuit to George, this is the last bit of advice that you will get from me.

Minnesota Twins: They still need a big bopper. Look at our bench compared to the other elite teams. Piranhas are great but not when we are behind. I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that I think the Kansas City Royals will be out of the playoff picture when the trading deadline comes on July 31st. With that being said, the Twins should go after the Royals Mike Sweeney. He is sort of a veteran (10 years 69 days +) and KC is going with a youth movement. I will bet you that KC would take Scott Baker, Lew Ford and some future player to be named later. Mark my words, somebody will go after him. Somebody like the Bankees. It should actually be a no-brainer to the Twins brass because Sweeney loves to hit in the Metrodome. We also need some right-handed punch. Of course there are a few more right handed Twin killers that would fit nicely with us, Sweeney just happens to come to mind. You see that opposing pitchers will go right after our little guppies and take their chances giving up singles ,rather than worry about giving up the long fly that we do not have from the top and bottom of our lineup. We just have to decide if we are going to be contenders, or pretenders . Ahhh, if only everyone had a chance to ameliorate their favorite team. Terry Ryan for a day…Hmmm

Minnesota Twins Stadium: Well it looks like we will be breaking ground and not breaking wind after all. I have heard some of the ideas that they have in store for our cozy little ballpark. One of the innovative ideas will be heating the ground from underneath, so that when it does snow, the snow will melt. In theory of course. Heated grass, what a great idea! There was a lot of talk of tearing down Brookdale for the new site. I was totally for this idea. How ironic would this have been. They of course tore down Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington to build the largest mall, The Mall Of America. What I am saying is they talked about tearing down a mall to build a stadium. Twenty five years ago they tore down a stadium to build a mall! I know that the Twins finally finalized the deal to have their stadium downtown, however, the Vikings are still looking for a site. Hmmmmmm……..Brookdale. 694 and Highway 100. Sounds good to me!

Joe Mauer: There are a lot of people talking about moving Mr. Mauer from catcher over to 3rd. Base . To me this makes sense because Joe could actually pull this off. Heck, he is such a gifted athlete that if he wanted to he could walk right into the Vikings training camp and win the starting quarterback position. His arm is strong enough to go bear hunting with an apple. His accuracy is so precise, he could throw a B-B through a life-savers hole. These are just a few of the attributes that make him one of the best catchers in the game today. However, we need him to produce at the plate even more than behind the plate. You see, every time the Minnesota Twins start a series the pitchers and the catchers (along with their respected coaches) go over game plans and scouting reports on how they want to pitch opposing hitters. At the same time the hitters scout and plan their opposing pitchers. Strategy at its finest. You see where I am going with this? Joe could be so much more productive as a hitter if he did not have to worry about calling such a great game for his hurlers. Basically just go up there and hit. This is why most catchers are not the best hitters in the game. Their value is defense, not offense. Which is why having Joe being the 1st. Catcher to win the batting title is even more incredible than ever! Not to mention most catchers are short and stocky and are prone to injury more so than any other position player. We will eventually see Joe switch to another position soon, if not later. Besides, other than Ken Griffey Jr., who has a better swing than “Cool Joe”?

Vibes From The Scribe: Here is my name for the new park… “The Metro Home“...Not so much? …Did you know that the guy (William Woodson) who does those clever radio ads for the Twins is the same fella who thirty some years ago did the opening narration for the Odd Couple show? You know, “Can two divorced men share an apartment without driving each other crazy?”...Former Twin, Cesar Tovar is the all-time leader in breaking up no-hitters…Former Twin Casey Blake now with the Cleveland Indians, has 13 home runs, 75 hits and 39 RBI in just 4 plus years vs. the Twins….. In 1941 Joe DiMaggio hit in 16 straight games after his record streak of 56 games was stopped. Giving him 72 games out of 73 games with a hit!….Our very own Tony Oliva was the first designated hitter ( DH )in 1973 to hit a home run…The New York Yankees colors are white with dark blue trim, not white and black like most people think…Johan Santana is the only player ever named Johan in baseball…..Minnesota is the home of the Twins in baseball and strangely more sets of twins are born in Minnesota than any other state in the U.S.A….The Minnesota Twins were the first professional baseball team to be named after a state, and not a city…..

Twins Of A Different Feather: (Look-alikes) Jason Kubel- Denny Hocking…Eric Balfour ( Milo on 24 )- Joe Nathan….Martina Navratilova-Tom Petty….Gary Busey- John Elway…Chipper Jones- Clint Howard….Spurs coach Gregg Popovich- Donald Sutherland…...Lakers coach Phil Jackson- Col. Sanders…David Ortiz-Florida Evans ( the mom ) from Good Times

April 28, 2007

Harmon Killebrew: Somehow the Minnesota Twins with their (our) new stadium coming up they should involve the “Killer” and his name. The Baltimore Orioles have a barbecue stand with Boog Powell’s name endorsing the rights. Now Boog may very well be some sort of fire pit aficionado and Harmon may not, never the less, Harmon and his name or number, #3 belong as a big part of the Twins and the new park. If you think about it, Harmon and Kent Hrbek and Tony Oliva are probably the last of the big names the Minnesota Twins can push as the face of the franchise. With the past three spring departures of Bob Casey, Kirby Puckett, and Herb Carneal, Harmon and his hall of fame pedigree, is the face of the Twins. We all know that they named a road after him (Killebrew Drive) on the south side of the Mall Of America. We also all know that his batting stance is the logo for Major League Baseball. How about “Killebrews Kove” or “Kave?” Using this logo of course. There is a lot of stats and records that they could use I guess we will have to wait and see what they decide to go for.

Baseball in April: Television is so important to the revenue stream that it almost dictates the time and place for the “Great American Pastime” to be played. With that being said, I am sure that all of the stadium bashers and roof wishers are getting their say in with all of the inclement weather that we are having. If the Vikings cannot get their stadium built, that would mean that they will be in the Metrodome for a while. With that being said, why couldn’t we go back into the Dome if the weather dictates so. Hey, if baseball would quit being so dependent on ESPN they could actually play the first week of games during the day. Traditionally this is how the game was played anyway. I know that a lot of players do not like to play under the lights. The ball is already hard enough to see , let alone to try and see it under the lights. It also is not fair to have all of these northern teams without roofs to have to play on the road for the first week either. Besides, I thought that teams get their revenue from suites and sponsors. They don’t have to be dependent on ticket sales as much so go ahead and play the first series during the day. ESPN could broadcast them and people will find a way to attend the game or games regardless. I saw the highlights of the 1965 world series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and our own Mn Twins and every game was played during the day. I happen to like day games don’t you?

St. Paul Saints: They should do some sort of 5 year anniversary of the Mn Twins playoff run. The 5 year of course would be because it was the first since 1991. Think about how many Twins on that 2002 team that are now plummeting with other teams, or they simply are just not in baseball anymore. You could almost have the infield we had in ‘02. Denny Hocking, Luis Rivas, Christian Guzman, Doug Mientkiewicz. Matthew LeCroy. LaTroy Hawkins, Brian Buchanan, Michael Restovich Todd Sears, Mike Lamb, Jay Canizaro, Tony Fiore, Mike Trombley, and Jack Cressand. Think about what kind of night that would be. Think about how far those Twins got with that kind of talent. The Saints are always on the cutting edge for entertainment at the ball park so why not? Mientkiewicz is only playing in the big leagues because of his glove. Better yet, he lucked out and hooked up with the New York Bankees.

Roger Clemens: He is making a mockery of the old fashioned term “Teammate”. No longer will he be asked to train in hot weather or actually hang out with his team . The way that the Yankees are pitching he could almost set his price if he hasn’t already. I believe if you do the math, Clemens makes roughly 4 million per month. That’s if he joins in May. O.K. I will do the math, Roger made 18 million last year in which he went 7-6 in 19 starts. In the words of the late Mel Jass,”he’s got a good job”. Wouldn’t it be a shame to waste the purple-lipped Alex Rodriguez’ great season on a team that may not even make the post-season? Boo Hoo. I feel so sorry for the Banks. It is a bit exciting though to watch them lose. Its becoming as fun to watch them lose as it is to watch the Twins win. Come October, it won’t matter if A-Rod chokes again because he won’t have the chance to. That’s right, regardless if Clemens joins, the Yanks will not even make the post season because the Boston Red Sox have beaten them at their own game. They have out spent the Banks! They have spent wisely and went after pitching. Pitching and defense will always be the most important part of a teams success. After all in baseball, and only in baseball, the defense has the ball. Even if Roger has the kings ransom.

Kent Hrbek and Doug Mientkiewicz: I have been hearing comparisons of the two former Twins first basemen as far as their fielding is concerned. Let me tell you from first hand experience, Hrbek was the better best fielding first baseman I ever saw. He could catch that foul pop down the first base line with ease. He could turn the 3-6-3 double play with ease. He pretty much did everything at first with ease. Scooping bad throws, turning double plays, throwing home, doing commercials, you name it, he did it all. Mientkiewicz is a fine fielder and probably still in the game and not with our St.Paul Saints because he is such a great fielder. He is not as good as big Kent was. Not to mention Kent’s hitting prowess so there.

Minnesota Twins: They still need a big bopper. Look at our bench compared to the other elite teams. Piranhas are great but not when we are behind. I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that I think the Kansas City Royals will be out of the playoff picture when the trading deadline comes on July 31st. With that being said, the Twins should go after the Royals Mike Sweeney. He is sort of a veteran (10 years 69 days) and KC is going with a youth movement. I will bet you that KC would take Scott Baker and some future player to be named later. Mark my words, somebody will go after him. Somebody like the Bankees. It should actually be a no-brainer to the Twins brass because Sweeney loves to hit in the Metrodome. We also need some right-handed punch. There are a few more right handed Twin killers that would fit nicely with us. We just have to decide if we are going to be contenders, or pretenders . Ahhh, if only everyone had a chance to run their favorite team. Terry Ryan for a day…Hmmm

New Stadium: (Also see above scribe on Baseball In April) Give me a shovel. Heck, everybody grab a shovel. We may just get this thing done already! 2010 cannot come too soon can it? I need to see shadows, grass stains, and Friday twi-night double headers vs. the Oakland Athletics! We will miss our great defense because of the advantage we have on turf. Hey wouldn’t swivel seats be cool? We will play outdoors without a roof. Not to worry though, when April rolls around we Minnesotans can handle the chilly weather. It may just give us an unfair advantage. We stay inside all winter long as it is. We need one major sport outside don‘t we? Did I say we could have a cold weather advantage? I guess that’s better than ground ball triples and light blinded infield doubles.

Vibes From The Scribe: Here is my name for the new park….The Metro Home…. Not so much?… Did you know that the guy who does those clever, funny radio ads for the Twins is the same guy who 30 some years ago did the opening narration for the Odd Couple? You know, “Can two divorced men share an apartment without driving each other crazy?” ….Former Twin Cesar Tovar is the all-time leader in breaking up no-hitters….. Former Twin Casey Blake with the Cleveland Indians has 13 home runs, 75 hits and 39 RBI in just four plus years against the Twins…. See you next month for the month of June!