*yaaaaaaaaaawn*
Hmm. Posting before coffee. This should be largely unintelligible. Ah, well, BatGirl will forgive me. She's the forgiving sort. I've just got to remember not to slip up and talk about that time in Reno when she...er, never mind.
Ahem. Moving along.
Let's see. Trying to remember the game. I was there, you know. But until the coffee hits, the memory's a bit shaky. However, I made notes! Yes, planning ahead. Here they are...
Kubel. Boom.
Oh, right. Kubel hit his fortieth home run of the series last night. It was a pretty one, too. Yes, Kubel got out the boom-boom stick again. Or, in the spirit of the sweep, the broom-broom stick.
Right. No puns before coffee. Got it. Stop throwing things, I bruise easy.
Bartlett--diving stop, baserunning, ABs
Oh, yeah! Did you see Bartlett last night? Did you? There's yer leadership, right there! Having good at-bats, getting hits, running the basepaths like the devil (or, alternatively, a plane ticket to Rochester) were on his heels, and making a sweet, sweeeet diving stop in the field.
And I'm not just saying that because he's my #2 boyfriend. (Yes, Boo, you're still #1.)
Ortiz launches moon shot destined to hit Killebrew banner, bounces off speaker to plunk down in front of Torii for a single.
Okay, now that was the single funniest moment of the season thus far. And the luckiest. Then again, I've always wanted to see someone hit one of those banners... But we'll save that honor for the good Doctor, eh?
Silva out. Knee?
No, thank the baseball gods (who are just and kind and hey, thanks for the sweep, guys). Just a cramp. Little charlie horse in the ol' hammy. He's fine.
And was is just me, or were we treated to the 2005 Edition Silva? You know what it was, of course. He wore his socks the right way. The baseball gods smile upon those who wear their socks the right way. Yes they do.
8th: need three pitchers for one out. Bad Justin--no hockey!
Just when the game was cruising along and we're all thinking Papi's speaker-ball will be the most exciting moment of the game, the 8th inning happened. Boo gave up a hit and hit a guy, then Reyes came on and got a grounder to the Doctor, who kinda fumbled it. A lot. Enter the Nathanator, who predictably sat down the first bitch he faced, but then decided to keep things interesting--sac fly/run, single/run, single, popup. But we still had a two-run lead.
They have a lefty sidearmer. Scary.
Not so scary in reality (he let an inherited runner score and dealt us a walk and a hit in the process), but the mere concept of facing a lefty sidearmer gives me the shudders.
Uh...Joe?
Nathan's ninth was, well...a little nerve-wracking. It started out great, with a groundout and a popout, and the loud annoying Boston fan a few rows behind me finally shut the bleep up.
Then there was the single and the stolen base. And then there was Papi, still steamed about that speaker-ball and about getting released all those years ago which is hardly fair because it worked out great for him but there's no accounting for grudges. And Papi smoked a run-scoring single and the Nathanator's laboring at about a gazillion pitches and looking a little peaked, too.
But Joe had a little talk with his glove (he does that, have you noticed?) and my sources tell me his glove said "Snap out of it! You are THE NATHANATOR. THE NATHANEST OF JOES. Sit that bitch down."
And he did.
***************************
Tonight, Liriano pitches AND bats! 6 pm Central, don't miss it.
I get the feeling that sometimes, Nathan thinks we miss Eddie Guardado, and his heart-attack inducing saves. Perhaps someone ought to mention to him that we're very happy with the greater cardiac health we've experienced since he became closer. Really.
Posted by: Katharriet at June 16, 2006 08:41 AMSeems like the baseball gods were having a lot of fun last night...
"David Ortiz, you shall hit a towering homerun...PSYCH!"
"Joe Nathan, you want a save? Fine, but you're going to have the WORK for it."
Oh, and nice work infield.
k-bro
Posted by: k-bro at June 16, 2006 08:46 AMThere I was, in bed, enjoying a relaxing Twins game and drifting into slumberland. The boys were up 4-0 in the seventh and all was well. Then I wake up, the bases are filled with gentlemen wearing those gray uniforms with the REALLY ugly numbers, and things seem decidedly less relaxing. Thank goodness for the fact that, even at his most erratic, our Joe is still the Nathanest. (And nothing Joe has ever done approaches the terror that characterized a few of Eddie's saves.)
Infield, thanks for mentioning the unruly Red Sox contingent. Re-watching Johan's performance from the other night, it was heartening to hear "Here we go, Red Sox, here we go!" drowned out by a resounding chorus of Minnesota-not-so-nice boos. And it was even more heartening to watch our boys drub the Red Sox as they so richly deserve to be drubbed. Now can we please win a series on the road...please??!!??
Posted by: adidasman at June 16, 2006 09:10 AMHello...first time poster here...just wanting to say I think this site is great! I have a immense love for these boys and it's great to have a place where those feelings are mutual...
Posted by: kid_elle at June 16, 2006 09:20 AM"Bad Justin--no hockey!" LOL
It's okay to have runner-up boyfriends, right? Multiple runners-up? Justin's my man, but the Nathanator... gosh... *blushes*
Posted by: wc at June 16, 2006 10:10 AMAlbert Einstein once said, “Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.” Lots of people think he was a pretty smart guy. Here are some lessons from several yesterdays that indicate there's hope for at least a few more tomorrows this summer:
1914 - The Boston Braves were 15 games out on July 6, but won the N.L. pennant by 10 games over the New York Giants.
1930 - The St. Louis Cardinals were 12 games back on August 9, but won the N.L. pennant by two games over the Cubs.
1935 - The Cubs were buried 10 and a half games back on July 5, and won the N.L. pennant by four games over St. Louis.
1936 - The New York Giants were in fifth-place in the N.L., 10 and a half games behind the Cubs. They captured the N.L. pennant by five games.
1942 - The St. Louis Cardinals fought back from a 10-game deficit on August 5 to overtake the Dodgers and win the N.L. pennant by two games.
1951 - The New York Giants trailed the Brooklyn Dodgers by 13 games on August 12, but came back to force a tie on the last day of the season. The Giants won the tie-breaker with Bobby Thomson's historic home run. “The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!”
1964 - The Cardinals were 11 games back on August 24, but overcame the Phillies to capture the N.L. pennant.
1969 - The New York Mets were lagging 10 games behind the Cubs on August 14, yet the Amazing Mets locked up the N.L. East by eight games.
1973 - The New York Mets (remember them from 1969?) were 11 and a half games back in the N.L. East on August 5, but surpassed the Cardinals to win the division.
1973 - The Cincinnati Reds fell to 11 games back by July 1, but overtook the Dodgers to win the N.L. West by three and a half games.
1978 - The New York Yankees trailed by 14 games on July 20, then won 52 of their remaining 73 games (including a one-game playoff over the Red Sox) to win the A.L. East.
1989 - The Toronto Blue Jays were struggling in sixth-place in the A.L. East before going 51-28 in the final 12 weeks to win the division crown by two games over the Orioles.
1993 - The Atlanta Braves faced a 10-game deficit on July 23 before winning the N.L. West over the Giants by one game.
1995 - The Seattle Mariners were mired 13 games behind the California Angels on August 3 before going 35-20 down the stretch to win the A.L. West title.
Only Three Under
Overcome Horrific Start
Twins to Win Central?
Hey, I love the optimism and enthusiasm. But let's not forget that for every resurgence there needs to be an equal but opposite slumpage (e.g., the 1964 Cardinals did not so much "overcome" the Phillies as benefit from an epic freefall on Philadelphia's part) and I don't have much confidence in both the Tigers and the Bitch Sox, currently the 2nd- and 3rd-best teams in baseball behind the Mets, suddenly coming unstuck. For the moment I'm perfectly happy just to have it be fun to watch baseball again and to have some hopes for the future.
Posted by: Word Smith at June 16, 2006 11:30 AM
Why did no one bother to tell me that this game was on Fox last night? I'd have watched the whole thing. Instead, I ended up watching the heart-attack-inducing last two innings and promptly fell asleep on the couch afterward. Ah well.
Excellent work, infield.
Posted by: Annun at June 16, 2006 11:54 AMWord,
Very true, but hope and expectations are different things in my mind. If I buy a lottery ticket, I hope to win several million dollars, though I don't really expect to. For now, I prefer to contemplate what's possible rather than what's probable.
Posted by: twayn at June 16, 2006 12:28 PMI once saw Jim Thome (pre Bitch Sox) hit the Hrbek banner...twice...in the same game.
Another fine entry infield. ;-)
Posted by: bubblemint at June 16, 2006 12:31 PMYeah, Jim Thome used to routinely hit the curtain in his days with the Indians.
I enjoyed your nicknames, BG. Cuddles McDimpley and Twitchy McXanax have got to be my favorites. I'm glad I'm not the only one who notices that Joe Nathan twitches a lot. What's up with that? It's kind of freaky...
Posted by: Sarah at June 16, 2006 12:40 PM"The baseball gods smile upon those who wear their socks the right way. Yes they do."
Amen.
Love the socks. (Not the White or Red ones, though.) :)
Posted by: Mary at June 16, 2006 01:00 PMYeah, but up high and solid isn't enough - where are the stirrups? The real, honest-to-goodness, Wayne Terwilliger stirrups? Somebody on this team needs to bring those back, and fast. I nominate Bart. Or the Chairman. Or both.
Posted by: adidasman at June 16, 2006 02:01 PMOk, first time on your site, love it. I was the girl that got my comment posted next to the "Chairman"'s picture in the Trib last Saturday, and I was told to look at your web-site. Lots of fun, your right about Nathan, I think sometimes he likes to remind us of how bad we had to hold our breath with Eddie and he only gets to pitch once in a blue moon it seems like, so he just wants to have fun. Still voting for Joe, but getting no where by myself, be creative with your email addresses and vote a lot more. Joe Needs to Go......to the All-Star Game!!
BatGirl secrets: when she shot a man in Reno just to watch him die? :)
but seriously, good win, caught the end of it, i wouldn't have cared much except for this site :)
Posted by: mets grrl at June 16, 2006 10:30 PMHey YF: Great haiku!
Posted by: talldrinkowater at June 17, 2006 02:29 AM