=)

much love
WW

I'm glad he is back in the AL. Now I can go see him when he comes to town to play the A's and get great seats as well.

And when it comes to pixie vests he can tell the Twins, that at least KC didn't just cut the sleeves off the home jeresy and call it new.

Good Luck Doug, I hope you have a career year, except when you play the Twins.

Still my favorite Twin.

1. I thought the Royals were dumping the pixie vests before next year. Was that just a rumor? Or are they just dumping the black?

2. Now KC has 3 1Bs: Stairs, Sweeney, and Mientiewicz. The S's frequently DH and Sweeney gets injured enough. Stairs can play OF. Just seems like a logjam at the position though. Maybe KC is planning on finally trading Sweeney?

...a Polish angel gets its wings.

The 2006 Royals are going to be fun to watch, and they might even give the Twins a run for fourth. Welcome back to the division, Dougie!

"at least he'll never have to worry about catching a World Series ball again"

ouch.

Mmmm, alphabet soup.

You really have to wonder how much the Royals hate their beat writers, scoreboard operators and announcers to sign a 2B-1B combo like that :)

Jim H. -

"Fourth"? With Santana, Radke, and Silva? Are you insane? Who let you in here???

Dear Mr. Man,

I assume the last two questions were joking?

Sincerely,
Batgirl

Besides, 4th place means they've beaten the Tigers.

Now I have a reason to take an awesome baseball road trip down to KC and E. Kaufman stadium for BBQ, Dougie Defense, and outdoor ball between the Twins and Royals.

I am now officially psyched for the 2006 season!

Oh... Doug. How far you've fallen.

Yes. Still my favorite Twin.

I don't like this at all. Dougie Doug will probably hit about .360 against the Twins.

AMR, I read the same report--the Royals are ditching the so-called pixie vests. Which rock, but whatever. Good luck to Doug. I hope he bounces back next season in KC. And I won't mock him for joining a losing team. I'm sure there weren't many winning clubs begging a guy who hit .240/.322/.407 this year to come be their starting 1st baseman. A man does what he can with the hand he's dealt.

"You really have to wonder how much the Royals hate their beat writers, scoreboard operators and announcers to sign a 2B-1B combo like that"

hmmm. who could they add at third? too bad AJ catches...

Dear Ms. Girl -

While I cannot say that the last two questions in my post were completely fanciful, let's just say that they were...ummmmm...slight exaggerations. I would never sincerely berate anyone on this fine website for stating his or her views, however inexplicable they might be.

Am I in trouble?

Apologetically,
adidasman

Nope they are not trading Mike Sweeney - ;-)

Much love
WW

Yes...a road trip to KC is definitely in order.

Best of luck Dougie.
I can't wait for the first time he comes back to the Dome.

I shall have my "Keep the ball Dougie" sign all ready to go...

Hey, I think the Royals have hit a gold mine with our boy Manke. His average showed marked improvement last year. If you believe in statistical trends, he's on pace to hit .242 in '06. Terry Ryan will be crying in his cereal when his new first basement only bats .280 with 24 homeruns and 80 RBI.

Sorry if this offends any Dougie fans in the crowd, it was only meant to offend Royals fans.

XOXO,
FL

I believe AJ is a FA next season maybe he can join KC next year?

I wonder if there is a unwritten rule about pixie vests? Only so many teams can wear those things. KC gets rid of them and the Twins get their turn?

Haplo-

Indeed. He had Brunansky flair, and Brunansky attitude, and I loved him for it. Wouldn't have minded him having Brunansky's power ability, though.

This is sad. I was all for the trade that sent him away, but my heart was still pretty pissed at my head for it. It wasn't going to work out like he wanted here, but I still feel like he deserves better than to be exiled in Kansas City. Meh.

If I could rewrite history Dougie Baseball would retire a Twin.

Dougie...Gardy....can't we all just get along?

These are the saddest of possible words:
"Teahen to Grudzielanek to Mientkiewicz."
Trio of Royals, and fleeter than birds,
Teahen to Grudzielanek to Mientkiewicz.
Ruthlessly pricking our gonfalon bubble,
Making a Twin hit into a double-
Words that are heavy with nothing but trouble:
"Teahen to Grudzielanek to Mientkiewicz"

I don't think it's going to work. Rhythm is everything in an infield.

Oh, I almost forgot. The post subject reminded me that I'm still super pissed about our new pixie vests. I am unshakeable on this. I just hope they tell us well in advance which games will have the pixie vest, so I can be sure to avoid them. I'm not sure why, but the fact that the Twins picked up pixie vests make me feel like a surly teenager again.

I seriously think the royals need to work out a trade with the bitch sox for AJ and Mackowiack. And then sign someone like Nomar.

Then, they could have a Pierzynski-Mientkiewicz-Grudzielanek-Garciaparra-Mackowiack infield. With Runelvys Hernandez pitching.

Goesboom,

Somewhere, an official scorekeeper in the American League just felt his heart skip a beat, and he doesn't know why.

MK

I am glad to see that Dougie is going to get to play.

Off topic...It looks as if the drinkowaters will be moving to SoCal toward the end of summer 2006. I am sure glad I will have this blog to read to keep up...We will be living near Angel stadium, so I plan on getting tickets to all the Twins' series there. Look for "circle me Bert" signs!

Mr. and Family Drinkowater,

Best of luck on the move. When I lived in California, this blog was one of the ways I stayed connected to Minnesota, so it works! And I can't imagine you'll mind the weather a whole lot (though 5 years without snow tends to play tricks on the brain).

Best,

Chris

P.S. Here's hoping when the Twins come to play the Los Angeles-y Anaheimers, neither team wears pixie vests, so your eyes won't explode. God forbid both teams do....

"Now KC has 3 1Bs: Stairs, Sweeney, and Mientiewicz. The S's frequently DH and Sweeney gets injured enough. Stairs can play OF. Just seems like a logjam at the position though. Maybe KC is planning on finally trading Sweeney?"

Maybe they intend to DH for Mientkiewicz instead of the pitcher.

Gendo, I know you're joking...but that's a question I've always had.

Does the DH HAVE to hit for the pitcher?

Yes, the DH has to hit for the pitcher. From 6.10 of the MLB Official Rules:

"A hitter may be designated to bat for the starting pitcher and all subsequent pitchers in any game without otherwise affecting the status of the pitcher(s) in the game."

In High School and College a DH doesn't...it would be kinda cool if you could DH for a position player...I don't know why...but it would be.

Chris

I wholeheartedly agree that I do not wish to see either the Angels or the Twins in their pixie vests. My husband is from the Orange County area, so it will be like going back home for him (literally). I will even miss the dome.

One nice thing is the outdoor baseball, and the fact that if we wanted to, we could also go to Dodger games. But do not get me started on Dodger Dogs, there is something evil in those...I will take a Dome Dog any day!

At least the Royals are making a few moves that they think will improve their competitiveness. They can't draw the interest of anyone in the top tier of free agents until they start winning. Say what you will about Doug and his stats, but he has been a part of winning organizations and I don't underestimate that intangible.

Living in Iowa (and preferring outdoor baseball), I've tended to go to KC or Chicago to see the Twins play more than driving up to the Dome. Put me down for the road trips to Kaufman Stadium (which, despite it's age, is still FAR SUPERIOR to most AL stadiums, especially Bitchular Field).

Did anyone notice the third graph at the FoxSports.com link? It seems Ken Rosenthal thinks that Sweet Cheeks was a Royal. This is two days old. Doesn't anyone help these guys fix their posts?

"The Royals, who also have traded for left-hander Mark Redman and signed backup catcher Paul Bako this off-season, are still trying to acquire a corner outfielder. They are expected to lose free agent Jacque Jones to a contender such as the Cardinals or Cubs, but still could trade a reliever for the hitter they desire."

I think he means lose Jones as in lose to other teams competing for his services, not that he thinks Jones was a member of the Royals.

"I'm not sure why, but the fact that the Twins picked up pixie vests make me feel like a surly teenager again."--Chris

y'all have pixie vests. We have Carl Everett. Betcha we are surlier than you right about now.

I'm just anxious to see if Dougie will find his lucky spot in the opposing Metrodome dugout when the Royals are down by a run in the ninth.

He's got a stylish glove and a deadbeat bat,
he's got a babe of a wife and a rally hat.

He's got Boston's World Series last-out ball;
it's a bit of history he stole from the Hall.

So even while wearing those loser Royal blues
Monkey Wrench will stay at the top of the news.

But he has to wonder whether he'll ever again
have near as much fun as he had as a Twin.

The Royals increased payroll this year in order to afford all the letters they'll be sewing onto the back of those jerseys.

Don't be surprised if Tim Spooneybarger and Kerry Ligtenberg pop up in the Royals' bullpen this season.

Gendo:
Oh. Didn't think of that. Hmmm. Thought I was a more sophisticated reader than that.

Royals fan here. I noticed a lot of talk about coming down to KC to watch a game. Glad you can make it! I have attended many KC-Twins games and always noticed the number of Twin fans that made the trip. Hopefully Doug Mientiewicz and the other recent signees can at least make the Royals competitive until the youngsters in the system arrive in a year or two. I cant wait for the day when we can be in a pennant race against each other again.