I seriously question the character of people who hate the Twins.

That was one of the funniest things I've ever heard.

"With his team on the verge of elimination, Mr. Cy Young couldn't make it past the fifth inning on three days' rest."

Failing to realize that Gardy himself said he pulled Santana to save him for the game that never came. And Twins fans agree that was stupid.

Another good one though, is the whole thing about getting beat in the play-offs four times in a row.

He fails to realize that the Yankees in the last 4 years have lost to that years World Series team (oddly enough a Wild Card every time)

Arizona
Anahiem
Florida
Boston

And he's STILL dwelling on the Burke tackle? My memory isn't too fresh, but didn't most EVERY analyst say that was a clean hit? All except Chicago ones anyway?

Yeah they've taken 4 of 5 in the season series. But they've finished a poor 2nd three years straight. I'll respect them more when they win the division. And then will laugh at them just as much when they fail to get a pennant. Because you know once they finally win the Division, they won't shut their mouths about it until the playoffs are over (which hopefully would be just as quick as ours have been the last two years)

Well that is the quality of journalism you get from a tabloid. I go to college on the south side and I am pretty sure the Onion and the campus newspaper get better circulation than the daily Southtown, and better columnists. And I KNOW that Batgirl gets more circulation.
But this is the kind of thing Sox fans are known best for, bashing other teams while totally forgetting the fact that their franchise sucks like a black hole. Their best selling shirt last year (as I am sure some of you guys know) was one that looked like a Cubs logo, with the word “Chokes” instead of “Cubs”. They are parasites, and thankfully for all Twins fans, we should not worry. The exterminators really don’t get going until oh about September, and they wear “TC” caps.
Being at the game was kind of tough. One run on 14 hits means we got really unlucky, and Radke pitched on heck of a game with nothing to show for it, but he is tough and will handle it better than most. Although my friends and I had a good laugh each time the Sox ran themselves out of an inning under their new, beautiful “FUNDAMENTAL” sign. Hunter gunning out Scott P and Mauer throwing out Iguchi however made the game totally worth while. I think it is safe to say we have regained the moral high ground.

"Although my friends and I had a good laugh each time the Sox ran themselves out of an inning under their new, beautiful “FUNDAMENTAL” sign."

That was pretty cool. Especially since ESPN the other day was lauding them and their new "Smartball" gameplan.

Did they suddenly forget that's what the Twins have played since as far back as I remember?

Oh, and the other funny thing is...for a team all about "Smartball" most of the runs they've gotten against the Twins have been Home Runs.

Umm...might just be my browser, but the URL in the story links back to www.bat-girl.com. Browser error on my end, formatting error on your end, or the writer decided to be really sneaksy in a way I'm pretty sure is impossible.

The link reloads the Batgirl page for me, too. Also, the link for "Goin' Yard with Jonzard" needs to be fixed.

If I remember correctly from my Chicago days, the Daily Southtown is one of those papers where the travel budget consists of enough money for the columnists to go to the corner bar and get poopyfaced while watching the game they're covering on the saloon TV. Then they go to the library and write on one of the public computers, all the while toggling between their work and porn sites. Some people just shouldn't be allowed access to modems, cable TV and beer nuts.

Isn't "assinine" spelled with one "s"?

Let's not get our undies in a bunch over this. This guy's covering a second-rate team for a third-rate paper and he's doing a fourth-rate job.

You'll find better writing contributed daily to this site from a whole host of people who, unlike Lawewski, don't do it full time.

To quote Jacque Jones, "Does it look like we're worried? It's early, Dude."

The Bitch Sox pitchers can't walk tight-ropes all season. The law of averages will catch up with them and the Twins are going to charge right by them into the top of the standings.

I don’t like things like this. The difference between C.C. Sabathia hating the Twins and this joker and his fellow Bitch Sox fans is that they hate so much more than the team, they hate the players, the fans, city, state and I am sure so much more. Sabathia just hates the Twins as a team, not the players…

How many years will it take him and the rest of Bitch Sox nation to get past last July? 3-6 more years?

My favorite part of the column was when Mr. Ladewski invited all his nutty Sox buddies over to watch the big game, who all proceeded to beat the &%*$ out of him when they saw his homage to Captain Cheeseburger hanging in the front room.

Sigh. To all fans and non-fans of the so-called "Bitch Sox": stop bitching about the fact that we call them the Bitch Sox. The reason they are the Bitch Sox is because for three years straight they've bitched about how they're more talented and the Twins are going down, how Torii's collision last year was dirty (although baseball players and analysts outside of the south side disagree almost unanimously), and how they'll be rooting against their own division come October, and blah blah blah, and they never actually DO anything about it. And they're at it again. I never actually hated the Bitch Sox until they started bitching so much about getting beaten.

But isn't it hypocrisy to complain about them saying nasty things about us when we ourselves call them Bitches? I don't think so, primarily because (a) we mostly call them that simply because we find it amusing, and (b) the name is a direct response to them saying nasty things about us instead of backing up their words on the ballfield. If the Bitch Sox would just shut up and play, they would be the Bitch Sox no more. Maybe this is the year of the White Sox and not the Bitch Sox, but I'll believe it when I see it...

That link doesn't work for me - I have a migraine this morning, probably caused by having to watch 2 more bases-loaded 1-out situations in which the Twins failed to score, and I live in Chicago, so I have to watch them on Bitch Sox TV, so I probably don't really need to read this, but I have to say I am curious.

It's APRIL. God. Have you not been paying attention to the last 2 seasons? We all know how this will end.

Migraines and a town full of Bitch Sox fans really don't mix, though, y'know?

A recent visit to a BitchSox fan forum revealed a thread about their most hated teams. The Twins were a concensus #2 behind the Cubs in almost every post (The Vikings were also very prominent).

I also read a thread where a Red Sox fan was trolling the site, riding the BitchSox fans about their lousy team. I had to respond that it was very impolite, and just wrong to kick the poor Bitchies when they were down. Besides, as a Twins fan, nobody should be picking on my bitches.

It is only appropriate that the city with big shoulders needs them to cry on.

well duh... the Twins are the target. If Cleveland or Detroit or KC were winning the division the last 3 years, they would be the most "hated rival".

But this article is second rate. Designed to do one thing, antagonize people. I hate articles like this. The guy has nothing to say, so he makes a list. pfft.

Dear Mr. Ladewski:

Go lay by your dish.

Good boy.

Cordially,
TR

OK, I found the article.

I realize the Daily Southtown is, umm...not really a newspaper, but still, how did this man get a job again? And is he 12? And will anyone in this town EVER stop bitching about that play at the plate? It's just too pathetic for words, really, so I have no more to waste on this.

OK, wait, a White Sox fan in Chicago should really not have words about where a particular team ranks in the hearts and minds of his native town.

Wrigley - sells out.
US Bitchular Field - almost always near empty. I mean, they have take your dog to the park day! On a weekend! So, y'know, it's quite rich of him to list that as a Twins failing.

Shut. UP!

It all depends on the fan.

Some fans are good. They root for their team firstly, but they have a depth of knowledge about the game and a concern for regional loyalty. Much like in the NCAAs when my Illini had their great run and I also rooted for all the other Big 10 schools, when the White Sox can or can't make the playoffs regardless, I'd root primarily for the AL Central rep. That means the Twins. I knew they probably wouldn't win, because except for 2002 it's just not been in the cards for any AL Cent teams to really do their thing lately, but I still'd rather see our relatively low-payroll division dismantle the east bastards.

And yet I'm still a die-hard sucks-when-we-lose White Sox fan. Oh, and also a Cubs fan, albeit to a much smaller degree. Born a Cubs fan (dad was one), grew up a Sox fan (because they had, at the time, a TV crew I could listen to, Harry was just a rambling mess at the end).

It happens. Different fans, different attitudes. I'm always annoyed when I see other Sox fans displaying insipid mouth-breathing stupidity on forums, they make us all look bad. But they're not the vast majority, just the loudest majority. Most of us really don't plan on assaulting any Royals 1B coaches. A lot of us recognize Torii's charge last year as a staged momentum-builder and a part of baseball, not illegal or dirty.

"And they're at it again. I never actually hated the Bitch Sox until they started bitching so much about getting beaten."

Well, we've been getting beaten since the 19-tweens. You want to see people bemoan their existence go talk to pre-2004 Red Sox fans. We grew to accept our never-going-to-win-it-all status, despite what Kenny Williams or whoever else may say to the contrary. Just like the Cubs, our pleasant buoyant drunken neighbors across town. We certainly were spoiled by heightened (and summarily deflated) expectations in 2000, and then the season that almost was in 2003, and then a brief view of the top last year. Those are the mental and spiritual equivalents of pulling off really sticky bandaids, and who among you can say you don't give out a "OW DAMMIT" or bitch briefly after such pain?

You want to see a team in Chicago take losing hard? A growing contingent of Cubs fan want Dusty Baker fired, because they think they can second-guess his moves better.

Sigh. What a city.

In terms of rivalries...here's how I'd say it goes:

1) Packers. A no-duh rivalry.
2) Cardinals. Cubs-Cards is a pretty good matchup of drunken fans who've recently gone berzerk over baseball on account of their steroided sluggers.
3) Indians. Yeah. Those Major League movies were mean!
4) Knicks. Bulls-Knicks in the 90s were always rough ones.
5) Twins. This is a very recent rivalry, relatively. It's building, to be sure, but not quite to a status where it's known nationwide except for the fact we've fought for the central lately.

So...yeah.

Pander
-Sox fan.

FWIW, for anyone struggling with the link, here it is directly: http://www.dailysouthtown.com/southtown/columns/Acurrent/ladewski.htm

hardly worth the eyestrain reading it through.

It's an honor to be hated by such a misguided individual. And if he really wants to stand with Sabathia, he'll need to likewise admit that his 'hate' is really about jealousy...

Oh my, what a good laugh I had at the notion of the Twins "playing dirty" because the catcher blocks the plate (!).

Jealousy can make people so very unattractive.

Don't worry Mr. Ladewski, I know you're just a sad, angry person on the inside, and that's what makes you say such venomous things. I understand that you're afraid the Twins will make your team look silly by September, and all your hopes will be dashed yet again. I could tell you that won't happen, but I'd be lying. And really, it's better to be honest with ourselves, isn't it?

The Twins don't care if you hate them. Johan will continue throwing strikes, and Shannon will continue getting base hits, and Torii will continue robbing batters of homerun balls whether you write hateful columns about them or not.

Don't you know that by harboring so much spite and resentment, you only poison yourself from the inside out?

Gentle Readers,

BG apologizes sincerely for the problem with the link. It was late and BG was sleepy. It is all better now.

Love,
BG

Now, see, what I find irksome about this article is how it goes beyond accusatory of the Twins (although I had to take a few deep breaths when they knocked El Presidente) -- the idiot takes swipes as Minnesotans in general.

Knocking the Metrodome? Accusing Twin Cities people of caring about Green Bay more than the Twins?

Childish.

CarrieIC:
"Now, see, what I find irksome about this article is how it goes beyond accusatory of the Twins (although I had to take a few deep breaths when they knocked El Presidente) -- the idiot takes swipes as Minnesotans in general."

As a native Minnesotan now living in Chicago, umm, yeah, that crap did really irritate me. So childish, so petty, so jealous. That any paper would actually publish this prepubescent rant is beyond me.

Somebody please jog my memory:

Is this the same person who had relations with our ex-president?

Curiously,

NIH

I was laughing so hard I could only get a paragraph or so in before I had to stop or I would have hurt myself. I'm picturing Carl Everett in his evening gown, just not quite attractive enough to be Miss Duluth. That image makes my week!

Huzzah, Pander.

Intelligent and gentle-man-or-womanly fans of other teams are always appreciated. (Note the general regard for our eastern friend Yankeefan.)

I teach in Chicago, and a student (who skipped my class to go to the game last night) just reported to me that she ended up removing her TC hat because she was honestly frightened by drunken and abusive second-deck fans. Sad. I know that this is not the standard of behavior for all Sox fans. I work with very nice, very committed, and very classy Woxers. But I have had similar experiences at the Cell.

Twins fans: this is another good place (besides glovework and hitting the cut-off man) to keep the moral high ground. Do lets keep the dome hospitable, although noisy and raucous.

Sermon complete. Sorry.

Hey, did anyone else notice Joe Crede thinking about barreling into Mauer at the plate last night? The Bitch Sox seem preoccupied with taking him out this year. He thought better of it.

And I resent the comment about Miss Duluth. Has he seen the women in Duluth? Chicago and Duluth had a commerce rivalry in like, the 1870s, but get over it. We should not have to put up with petty provincialism from the likes of Chicago.

I bet he hates old people and children, too.

He needs to let go of his anger...maybe loosen his collar a bit.

In the voice of Eric Cartman, "God, I hate you Bitchsox and bloated-face columnist guy."

About Mauer being taken out by some Sox player – If they were to do that I think a few things happen. First, I don’t know if Mauer gets hurt like Burke did last year, Mauer knows how to set up for the play. If he does get hurt or injured on the play and the Twins feel it necessary to get back and the Sox they will do it that game, or if it is not possible the very next, they wont make the mistake of doing absolutely nothing and than reminiscing about it a year later.

The issues he complains about used to be taken care of by the starting pitcher.

A.J. trips your player? Drill A.J.
Jones flips his bat? flip him.
Hunter bowls your catcher? Doesn't the catcher call the pitches when Hunter bats? Don't whine about it, just put down a thumb and when he's shaking it off and walking to first, tell him "Hey, I can hit you, too."

As for name recognition, maybe he should try to be a little less ignorant ABOUT THE GAME HE COVERS FOR A LIVING! Freaking A, his job is to KNOW BASEBALL and he clearly doesn't because he just told us he can name only TWO TWINS! Nice credibility, jackass.

I'm a Mets fan, and I haven't seen a Twins game in it's entirety since the 1991 World Series. I don't cover Twins games 19 times a year like he does... but let me give it a shot:

Hunter, Jones, Stewart, LeCroy, Ford, Cuddyer, Tiffee, Morneau, Mauer, Restovich, Bartlett, Ojeda (he still around?), Rivas, Santana, Radke, Mays, Nathan, Rincon, Mullholland, Romero, Crain.

How'd I do? 21 of 25? I know I'm missing two starters, a backup catcher and a RP or two.

And if the Twins aren't the fan favorite of Minnesotans, didn't they become the first team EVER to draw 3 million fans?

That's the only legitimate point he has is the bat flipping and runners hitting fielders, and all of that is only an issue because they truly ARE the Bitch Sox and don't stand up for themselves or retaliate.

God, Journalists today suck out loud. If that jackass can get a job covering a MLB baseball team, then I deserve to be named "ruler of everything"

And people wonder why we call them Bitch Sox fans.

This "columnist" is no better than the idiot Bitch Sox fans who invade the Twins MLB board.

In fact, I'd lay odds he's actually one of them.

Idiot Bitch Sox fans...

I went to college in Winona, where a lot of suburban Chicagans send their brats. A fairly good friend of mine, who happened to be an english and education major (now an elementary teacher) routinely started email flame wars with arguments just like this. So, I'd have to surmise that this is a function of the greater Chicago education system.

And did anyone else notice that the "author"'s email is at AOL? What kind of publication doesn't have its own internal mail system? NO CREDIBILITY in my mind.

Mommy, Mommy, Torii's LOOKING at me! Make him stop!

Truly hardly worth getting angry about. But does anyone else think it's a bit paradoxical to elevate Captain Cheeseburger to hero level and then accuse the other team of such crimes as playing dirty (umm, you mean, like hitting batters on purpose?) and showing up the other team (like, say, glaring into their dugout)?

Smitty

Amen.

http://www.sportsphds.com/editorials/readarticle.php?articleID=235

Wow, what's up with all the hate writing on baseball blogs? That article is no better than the other one. And the comments are unbelievable.

Smitty,

That's what happens when you win a few straight division titles. Get used to it.

Helpfully,
YankeeFan

P.S. I always love to hear the "don't worry, we know how it turns out in September" type of comments... reminds me of pre-2004 Yankee fans...

i want to hit that guy... hard...

Hey, Clayton, we leave that kind of stuff to classy shirtless father and son teams from ChiTown.

As a wise man once said, it's good when you get booed on the road!

P.S. YankeeFan, just now I was responding to Brienne's link which was a thing about why this guy hates the White Sox. Don't bother to look, it's the same level of intelligence as the Laweski thing. Guess I am just spoiled by the quality of our discourse here.

All right, all right. Smitty is right. We shouldn't be haters. Let's just win a bunch of games and bask in the glory of victory instead of drown in the negativity.

It's still really fun to hate the Bitch Sox and read about others who agree, though!!

YankeeFan has some good experience to share here--he knows what he's talking about. I hate the nastiness of these articles, including the one a Batling linked to a few days ago comparing Rivas to a bucket of shit, but maybe this is just what you have to live with when you are the dominant team in a division. We're the ones to beat, so why wouldn't they hate us? But even so, I hate to read this kind of stuff.

Along with hrunting, I also appreciated Pander's intelligent and reasonable post. A view point like that adds to a good discussion. But I'll have to take your word for it that more like you exist, Pander.

BWAHAHAHAAHA. . .I'm sorry. . .can't stop laughing.

AAAH, Oooh, can't breathe. . .

That some good stuff.

Another thing that annoys me and I bet annoys a lot of Twins fans that don't live in the Cities...

The Twins aren't just for the people in the Cities. There are Twins fans all over the state. Hence the "Twins Territory" thing.

I just wish people would realize this.

And how dare he say Minnesota cares more about the Packers than the Twins. That's like blasphemy.

Kind of reminds you of last year, same silly comments by some Sox fans (such a variance in quality it is remarkable), and the same outcome as in 2002 & 2003.

What we Twins need to do is pool some money so that on October 1st, we can take out a full page add in what ever toilet paper Mr.Ladewski is writing for, proclaiming that our Twins have won the Miss Duluth title for the forth year in a row. Hopefully, we can put the add right next to the beloved Mr. Ladewski. We should also give some tips on how to properly remove ones foot from ones mouth.

Candace,
As much as it pains me, I do recall a legitimate sports marketing survey/study that was done maybe 5 years ago. It was supposedly a statewide thing. It measured fan loyalty and interest and the dollars spent on sports teams. As I recall, the Vikes were #1. I believe the Gophers (all sports) were #2. Packers were 3. Twins ranked 4 and Wolves 5. This was pre-Wild. I could be remembering the exact orders wrong, but it seems to me the Pack outranked the Twins. But remember, this was immediately following the Becker/Stahoviak/Walbeck era.

hey, as a Cubs/Brews fan i hate the ChiSox and since the Brews move to the NL have become a Twins fan (somebody's gotta beat the south siders)...but that's a funny ass article to me. incorrect at times, obviously, but i loved they "that's like being named Miss Duluth three years in a row".