...I went for a walk, on a winter's daaaaaay.

Sorry, I had to. ;)

I second that "oy," BG. I believe that's what I said in my comment on 'Pulling a Blyleven's' site after that horrible inning with all the runs. Runs... too many runs... OMG WE LOST TO KANSAS CITY!

Fish glue, 3M duct tape, staples... do what it takes to keep your arm on, Bradke, and give us a win.

Perhaps Carlos should drop down on his knees and begin to pray (begin to praaaay.)

Here's hoping Ol'One Arm can pitch effectively tomorrow and give us another option instead of the Jackal in the post season. Silva's not inspiring a lot of confidence in me right now.

Nice, E-6, nice.

Why do i always end up going to games we lose? (well, i think i'm 50/50 this year.) and i swear i've seen Silva pitch more than anyone else this season. GOD! now I'll have to go to a game this weekend to wash this losing taste out of my mouth. I thought we had it at the end!

E-6, i am sure Carlos has been praying. i know i have been praying. the rosary is in my pocket, close at hand, well-worn. the first 2 innings i was joyful. that's how it is with me when my boy works - i love, just love, to see him take them down in 7 pitch innings. when he is on, he is an unassuming magician - it reminds me of the various Eastern arts of self-defense (& i'm not talking about switchblades a la West Side Story): use the opponent's perception of their strength over you against them. they think they can hit you, then let them. that is the beauty of Silva, & why i love to see him work when he is on. tonight, with the stakes placed as they were, i was hoping he would be on. i know he wanted the same. the reason Silva stayed & Lohse didn't is Silva has heart - i know he wanted this. for what ever reason, he didn't have it. for that, i am sad - & i know that he is sad.

before the game i bought sunflowers for my man - sunflowers are a totem of strength in adversity. i was at the store, & i bought some sunflowers, then i thought - what the hell, i will buy 10 sunflowers! so i did. i wanted Carlos to show to all the nay-sayers that he belongs, that he has heart & courage, & he can carry this team, as he did throughout his starts last year. alas, i cruel trick has been played on poor Carlos. for that, i weep.

Is that a Yiddish or Aussie 'Oy'? Just curious.

semi-relatedly, don't you hate it when you find something you really like at Trader Joe's and then you go back and they don't have it because they have that bizarre buying policy? Because I sure do. People should take the advice literally. Hold on to that raisin bran. You may never see it again.

So I have nothing against Silva, but this is NOT his season.. I hope he proves me wrong, but I think that the rotation in the postseason should consist of like, Santana, Bonser, Baker, and Garza/Radke, "aka" anyone but him. I cant imagine him pitching against the Yankees (whether we catch up with em in the ALDS or ALCS). They have so much firepower and Silva gives up so many homeruns.. That could end up a major "Oy" and potential momentum shifter.. I guess we'll see!

They have Trader Joe's in Amherst?

Oh, and I'm goin up to watch Radke pitch tomorrow night, I'm so pumped, he's basically my hero, I hope all goes well!

Carlos,
I still love you because you wear your heart on your sleeve. But remember, love only goes so far, if we need to bring back the poolboy we will.

Love, Spamsmom

Gardy & Crew have done most everything right this year. Let's hope that includes letting Silva come out of the 'pen in the playoffs. He CANNOT start a game, particularly against the Yankees. I can't bear to watch that (again).

Wouldn't it be fun if we beat the Tigers in the ALCS and the Cardinals in the World Series? A little nostalgia?

I think of these things when watching a team named after heads of state defeats a team I like named after a genetic phenomenon.

Nice symmetry, Ryan, but the Cardinals suck. The Padres are going to pound them in the LCS. Speaking of which, when the Strib is looking for Twins fans in San Diego (for the World Series) I want to know. This is my dream.

Dear Ms. Goddess,

I went, didn't I?

Sincerely,
Batgirl

i'm still holding onto dreams of a cardinals-twins world series.....but for my own, selfish, st. louis-dwelling reasons. also, because the cardinals are a lot less good than the mets.

also, i have grown very weary of this whole carlos silva sucking act. let us all pray to whatever gods we have that bradke survives tomorrow with enough arm strength to get through the postseason. because i can't decide which would be worse as the fourth starter: silva or baker. *shudder*

Twayn apologizes for the length of this post; keyboards, sentiment and insomnia do this to him sometimes:

Yes, it was a hard one to lose. From my vantage point in Section 226 I watched the game and the out-of-town scoreboards. “Yes – an early lead on a Mauer RBI double. Yes – Silva looking good through two. Yes – Toronto takes an early lead.” Everything was lining up according to plan, and I love it when a plan comes together. And then things went awry. But I couldn’t feel that bad when Silva started to suck in a hurry in the third. Nor when he explored new levels of sucking in the fourth. Nor when the ass-bats came out and stuck around half a game too long. Because later, as it became clear that Detroit was going down like a cheap euphemism, the Chairman strode to the plate again, stood mightily in his stance, and Jeter was 0-for-Hump Night, and Cano was sitting six points back, and, Lord love him like a son, Joe of the Average laid a perfect bunt hit down the third-base chalk. And Cuddy stroked a single and Rondell drove them in and, yes, the eighth inning sucked again, in an at-the-plate-wise type of manner, as Bert would say. But in the ninth Nicky Punto did some awesome Tiny Superhero stuff and there was that old phoenix hope rising again. Then Cuddy went Boom and that mythical bird was getting higher and brighter. And then the baseball gods said no. “No – we will now make the one true American League MVP the victim of a randomly fluctuating strike zone, for he’s cute but not dreamy and plays on a small-market team that's not even coastal and needs to work on his cliches and intangibles. No – we will now make the Tyniest of your hitters drive the ball to right field for a sure out, then to further flummox you, we will turn it into a jaw-dropping-even-for-the-Royals two-base error to give you one last gasp of hope before we deliver our metaphysical punchline and revel in the comedy of your petty consternation. No – we will not let you gain ground upon the Tigers and bring you one game closer to the dream that is the division title. Not tonight. See us tomorrow. We’re capricious, you know. Fortune may favor you then, but Time may not be on your side. We’ll let you know.” No, it was not an easy game to lose. But I had a different perspective tonight. Part of it is this low thrumming feeling inside, knowing we’re going to the playoffs, and not having the first clue about how the starting rotation is going to get us through even the first series, and loving every eternal second of it. But also, I sat next to two of my brothers at the Dome tonight, watching the game and the scoreboards and talking baseball. The elder of us, two years my senior, eleven months ago had a heart attack and emergency bypass surgery. He’s fine now, good as new, although he’s a Cardinals fan and the scoreboard watching was a bit intense for him tonight. But you wouldn't know it from looking at him and talking to him, maybe because he was so recently reminded of something that most of us don't always bother to remember, and you can see it in his eyes, and I picked up a little bit of it from him tonight. He knows what could have been, and that from here on out, everything is pure gravy. Enjoy.

Nice post twayn, although I don't know if being a cardinals fan is really the best idea for some one with heart trouble right now.

I'm sure part of the Twins problems is me. I bought a new Twins cap last night (my old one is white -- or, rather, was originally white) to celebrate the playoff spot, so of course it has not been through any proper mojo situations yet. I have left it home today and am wearing my Twins pin (from '91) instead. This weekend I will wear both together and hopefully get some mojo transference.

Aside from the fact that my family will hate me a little more today (all it takes is for the leaves to start changing or someone to mention "California Dreamin" and I sing the song all day long, trying to do the melody and the harmony at the same time--something that can not be accomplished by mere mortals, Bradke is my shining knight, giving me hope. I want this game for him. I want this game for the team. I want this game for the pennant. I want this game. Please Brad, take care of your arm.

PS I am not sure I have yelled as loud watching a Twins game in a long time as when my Michael went BOOM last night, he has a sweet swing. Congrats on #23.

Yes, this is sucking time for Carlos. But when despair hits, you look around and see that others have it just as bad, if not worse.

Imagine the despair we'd feel if Johan was winless in September with an 11.something ERA and lasting only 2 innings in his last game before the playoffs. That's essentially your New York Mets and their "ace" Pedro.

On a totally different subject, you have to sort of smile when the 90-something crowd decides to "throw down". From the PiPress:

"I'd rather play the Yankees," he said, "because I know we can beat them."

Privately, there is no club Pohlad would rather beat than George Steinbrenner's Yankees.

"That's right," he whispered.

http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/sports/baseball/15625362.htm or click me for the link.

Twayn,
Brillant posting, I re-read it after watching Cuddy's HR in 4 different camera angles and you are right, we need to enjoy our gravy. THere are 20 teams that have NO games to play after Sunday, and we have been in that grouping too many times in the last 45 years to stop being joyful when we get to have a post-season. Besides the Twins seem to do their best when no one besides the loyal believes.

Twayn, that was very nice, but I have to take issue with one point. 129 RBIs totally qualifies young Mr. Morneau as "dreamy."

And BG, regarding Trader Joe's, all I can say is dang. There goes my plan to lure you back to the Twin Cities with Tandoori Naan and Fruit Floes.

Twayn,

Even though I've not been anywhere close to having a moment like your brother where I've looked "The Other Side" square in the face and, even though I still find myself stupidly worrying about stuff in my life that I can't control and which ultimately doesn't matter anyway, I have been working on changing my former knee-jerk-reaction way of thinking when it comes to our Twins not winning a game.

I'm enjoying the ride this season has given us. I know that, in a little while from now (and this makes my heart very heavy), I will no longer have that palpably joyous anticipation a morning brings when everything is new again and I wake up and think, "There's a game tonight!" How lucky I am to get another opportunity to see The Chairman at bat, or to see Sideshow Pat pitch or to see the Bedimpled One work his magic or (insert your own here)!

Of course, I'm happy when the Twins win; but when they don't, I'm also happy with the simple fact that I'll get to see our boys play again the next night. And this, as you so eloquently put it, Twayn, is indeed the gravy.

Being into baseball has enriched my life in ways I would have never thought possible just a few months ago. I, for one, am going to savor the gravy and be grateful I've been able to partake in this magical season and that all of us have such a grand group of guys to root for and to love.

(reading JimCrikket's link)

... Craig Kusick died?

Oh no... I didn't even know he was sick...

My day just got a whole lot worse...

-- Mark
(Rosemount High School, class of '96)

Sorry for dropping that on you in that way, Mark. They did mention Kusick's passing on the TV broadcast last night.

Here's a link from the strib (or click me). Seems like he was a real class guy. http://www.startribune.com/509/story/706514.html

*sigh* O, the misery. The misery of turning on the game last night, all a-twitter with the possibility of tying the Tigers for the division lead - only to be smashed into really, really, really small pieces by the 6-1 score mocking me from the top of the screen. O, Carlos, why must you toy with us so? O, Mark Redman, what enables you to lull the umpires into a trance so profoundly deep that anything remotely close to the plate is called a strike? 'Tis befuddling indeed. And yet the day brings new hope - hope for peace in the Middle East, hope for man caring more for his fellow man, hope that Brad Radke can still pitch without his arm following the ball to the plate. And hope for next week, for we will be playing baseball whilst others, particularly those in monumentally hideous black uniforms who dwell in Chicago, will not. And this is what makes today a very, very good day. (And I didn't even have any Trader Joe's cereal this morning.)

>>Boof wouldn't know angst if it bit him on the ass.

BG, my darling dear, you really MUST find some sort of symbol indicating 'do not take a sip of hot coffee from this point onward' to insert just before lines like this.

Infield needs a paper towel.

--infield

Keep your raisin bran. Around here, we eat Bitch Sox for breakfast. Yum!

I was watching the premiere episode of "Heroes" (for the umpteenth time on nbc.com yesterday), and when the cheerleader healed her broken body, I was thinking: "how very Bradke."

In fact, the whole show is very 2006 Twins...these unassuming people with superpowers being drawn to each other and a shared purpose...

OK, Kevin Kernan of the NY Post just reported on "Cold Pizza" that the Twins are considering starting Johan Sunday if a win means winnng the division. Where do they get this stuff? I can't imagine Gardy even thinking of doing that. With the rotation in the shape it's in, you can't assume you can get by with one start out of Johan in round 1, no matter who you play.

Dear Mr. Crikket,

Batgirl heard it on good authority from the BoSox radio announcers that Joe Mauer would be moving to third base very soon, so she takes everything with a grain of salt.

Sincerely,
Batgirl

Twayn:

I agree.

On Tuesday night, I went to the Dome with Big Brother 2 to celebrate his birthday. We chatted baseball while Johan pitched, Lew went yard, and Joe made it interesting in the ninth. It was a wonderful night, not only because we won the game, but because Big Brother 2 is the reason I’m a Twins fan and because we lost our wonderful Big Brother 1, at age 26, several years ago.

Any night you can watch baseball with the ones you love is gravy, indeed.

Randy’s little sister

Twayn, no need to apologize for the length of your comments. However, breaking it up a little more would be easier on the eyes. I turned a little cross-eyed trying to keep my place! I'll forgive you, though, because your blog the other day was priceless! ;0)

Yes, I was extremely disappointed with the game last night. It kind of concerns me that after starters 1 and 2 we are a little uncertain (OK a LOT uncertain). On the other hand, I kind of feel like Dan Berreiro. He's usually about as positive and sweet as our friend Reusse, but he has been saying he believes that this is the most thrilling regular season in Minnesota in the past 30 years--in any sport! In addition, he said about a week ago that if Santana was to get violently ill the next day and couldn't pitch in the post-season, he would still not count us out at this point. In other words, they have done so many unbelievable things you just don't know.

Maybe Carlos will get a win for us in the playoffs--I'd rather not test that theory, though!

First post here and I had to comment on last night's game... why why why must Silva pitch this way, or pitch at all? Is there really nobody else to take his spot in the rotation? Does the team just cave-in when Silva takes the mound, knowing he's going to get shelled? He's 2-6 now since that start against the Bluejays in August, which includes that hideous game in Baltimore that I witnessed first-hand... Not the way to be pitching heading in to the postseason.

RIP Mongo

You will be missed

BG, I assume you are insinuating that not everything reported by the media establishment is necessarily accurate.

As a former sportswriter myself, I'm DEEPLY insulted by such an insinuation! for shame.

You sully the good name of such upstanding members of the profession as Jay Mariotti and Sid Hartmant simply by suggesting that we can't always rely on every word they say/print.

;)

Dear BG, Your posting today was full of Buddhist wisdom. We must live in the moment, even if the moment, as you would say, sucks. Tasting - truly taking the time to taste - the Trader Joe's raisin bran and the banana slices is transcendant. It helps one stop pondering why the #@$&%*! the Redman who gave Detroit 9 runs in a third of an inning last week had our guys swinging at ghost pitches. Carlos we know is our guru. He teaches us humility and to not expect much. But Redman? Why does he hate us so? Ommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Ah yes. Craig "Mongo" Kusik ... one of the founding members of the "Minnesota Lumber Company" .
----
One of the truly great early advertising campaigns.
----
Whatever happened to Les Straker?

playing hooky today and just discovered the Tigers are on ESPN2 this afternoon... first Jays hitter reaches on an error and ends up scoring on another error by Rogers (fielded a bunt and threw it in to left field trying to get the guy at 3rd). Gotta like that start. GO JAYS!

Dear BatGirl

Chien-Ming Wang won #19 last night, could he possibly win the Cy Young over Johan ?

Will you be driving down from Red Sox Nation for any of the games ?

Do you think I could get a Jeter is my 2006 AL MVP non sexual man crush t shirt ?

p.e.m.

Dearest Public Enemy Mike

Have you wondered into some Twighlight Zone where the President does not exist =p

Hey how'd Jeter do last night ;-)

Much Love
WonderWoman

I am headed for the game tonight, and have mentally prepared myself by imagining the worst (5 gopher balls in the first inning followed by the sight of Radke's arm detaching at the shoulder and falling to the mound) and consoling myself with the knowledge that, come what may, even if it's 6 homeruns and both arms falling off, there will be a standing ovation as he heads off to the dugout for the last time, and I will be there.

public enemy mike, I do hope you are being sarcastic! Maybe sadistic is more like it--trying to sabotage this site. WOW!! Wang has the sam amount of wins as Cytana and an ERA about 75 points higher and 150 fewer K's. As for Jeter, I'm trying very hard to figure out your intentions when the people who come to this site are very adamant that Jeter should not get MVP. I personally think you are just trying to stir something up!

pem's such a funny guy and we do enjoy comedy here :)

Our old friend Kenny Rogers (the pitcher) is throwing more like Kenny Rogers (the "Gambler") and the Jays lead 5-0, still hitting in the 4th. Keep it up, Jays!

Doggone it... those Jays just keep scoring faster than I can report! 6-0 in the 4th... but Kenny's day is over.

Thanks for the updates, JC! AWESOME!!! Hopefully the White Sox will continue to play like crap when we get em!

It's actually the Tiggggers that are losing at the moment but I agree, hrbekfan.

Although it is now 7-0, Beckett is starting to implode on the mound for the Jays and Detroit now has the bases loaded with 1 out in the 4th. Seems we aren't the only team with a few starting pitchers who seem to have a limit of 3 good innings.

I can't explain it, but I'm actualy getting nervous FOR Bradke already... I can't imagine what he's feeling right now.

Mike, being in love with Jeter is all well and good, but that doesn't make him MVP material. Take away the average and his numbers are decidedly, well, AVERAGE. He's not MVP material. You could plug just about anyone into his spot and the Yankees would be exactly where they are now. He's not "above and beyond," he just comes to work every day and does his job. No better and no worse than anyone else. Now put down the pinstriped Kool-Aid and join us in the real world.

Laurie, Laurie, Laurie... you poor delusional soul.

Derek Jeter is a Yankee. By definition, then, he is more valuable than anyone else.

In fact, I'm surprised there hasn't been some sort of attempt to turn the Batting Champion race from being determined based on, well, you know, actual performance, to something that writers, fans and other experts can vote on... so that award, too, can be given to Mr. Jeter because... well... his numbers will be "close enough"... yanno?

Dear Mr. Crikket,

True. While the numbers put him in third, he is really, intangibly, in first.

Sincerely,
Batgirl

Exactly, BG. Like the intangible way he's able to make routine plays at shortstop look incredibly hard because God didn't give him the physical ability to actually get to all the ground balls that a guy like... say... Juan Castro.. can reach.

Oh, come on, you two. Poor Derek. What has he done to deserve so much animus? You just hate him because he's good-looking and biracial and plays for the most popular team. Oh, wait. That's the other one, innit? Whatever. In any case, I think the way things are playing out is sheer, unadulterated perfection. The Tigres lose today. Brad takes the hill and wins tonight, fish glue running into his undies and blood spurting from his nearly severed shoulder, and we pull even with Day-twah. Then we clinch the division against the Bitches, thereby adding delicious insult to delectable injury. This season has been a fariy tale all along - why should it change now?

But, but, but Jim don't you see? Thats what makes Jeter such an inspiration to us all!

"Derek Jeter is a Yankee. By definition, then, he is more valuable than anyone else."

JimCrikket, I believe you are confusing cost with value. Cost does not account for return on investment. Value is determined by cost compared to performance. In that regard, the Yankees deliver the least value of any playoff-bound AL team this year. As of today, the Yankees have won just two games more than the Twins, at a cost of about $60 million each. At least their bottom line compared to us improved last night. Yesterday afternoon, their one game advantage over the Twins was costing them about $120 million. King George needs to consult more often with his Chancellor of the Exchequery.

I will add that today I read a most amusing comment from a Yankee fan on another Website, in which said fan claimed that, "Jeter's intangibles are better than anybody's in the league." I've scoured MLB.com and Baseball Prospectus and can find no statistical category named Intangibles. I also could not find statistical categories named Heffalumps or Woozles.

I'm glad the Chairman is still in position to win the batting title (unless it suddenly becomes an award that's voted on), but I have to admit I think it would have been pretty hilarious for Jeter to be leading... only to look in the paper a week before the end of the season and be looking up at his own team mate, Cano, who suddenly had enough at-bats to be eligible for the award.

As it is, I guess I'll have to just snicker about Derek getting edged out for second.

"I also could not find statistical categories named Heffalumps or Woozles."

Derek leads the lead in both categories.

And for the record, I'm not the one confusing "value" with "cost"... that would be George ;)

On a sour note, the bertin Tigers just pulled within 7-6 of the Jays in the 7th.

"leads the league"

duh

Ok, that's great, have y'all had enough yet?

To say that Jeter brings no value above a replacement player, or that " He's not "above and beyond," he just comes to work every day and does his job. No better and no worse than anyone else." (shame on you Laurie) is insane.

Jeter has accounted for a bunch of big clutch hits to tie or win ballgames, as well as some momentum-swinging plays. There are, at best, 3 teams in the majors who would not take Jeter as their shortstop, and some of those three are crossing their fingers for the future (I'm looking at you, Jose Reyes).

That being said, while Jeter should not win the MVP (though I must admit, the Sports Guy on the bandwagon threw me a little), he definitely should be in the conversation...just toward the end. I don't buy Thomas and have soured on Dye, but Morneau and Santana should (Santana wont but should) finish higher than Jeter.

Let's not get out of control though.... Just because the McCarvers and Bucks of the world have lost their minds doesn't mean y'all should start sounding like raving lunatics too.

Rationally yours,
YankeeFan

YF, I really don't mind Jeter being "in the conversation" as long as the phrase "should not win the MVP" is also included. He's mentioned as the front runner for absolutely no reason except that he's a Yankee. On any other team, with his numbers, and he's not even in the top 10.

Cant speak for the others, YF, but expecting rationality out of me when the topic is the Yankees is simply asking too much. So long as baseball continues to be irrational in it's approach (or lack thereof) to a reasonably level playing field when it comes to payroll, I'll continue to be equally irrational in my comments toward the Evil Empire.

I hope you understand it's certainly nothing personal.

Dearest Yankee Fan -

You're my second favourite Yankee Fan next to my friend Greg - but honestly -if we cannot be raving lunatics on batgirl where else can we go??

I'd really not like to spend my time in the looney bin during the play-offs=)

Much Love
Wonder Woman

JC, I didn't word that last post good at all. In fact, I seem to remember I have a habit of saying things awkwardly every once-in-a-while. What I was referring to was our opportunity to catch up to the Tiggers. We've got a good chance to tie with them today, and we need the WS to keep playing like crap this weekend. Sorry about that!

Meanwhile, I was away for a while, and when I was able to check in again I find myself laughing hysterically at several hilarious posts. Thanks JC, twayn, etc. :0)

(I kind of find a strong affinity for people who make irrational comments against the Evil Empire.)

hrbekfan, I misunderstood... my bad.

BG... the announcers on the ESPN2 broadcast of the Tigers/Jays game just said that the matchup tonight was Hudson vs Baker... this is another one of those "dont believe everything the media says" kinda things, right?

Oh and by the way... its a final... 8-6 Jays!

WOOOHOOO!!! Hudson Vs Baker, eh? You know, the Twins haven't exactly made it a deep secret that Radke is starting tonight. What kinda sources do they have? OOFDA!

I think they are just nutty...

I heard Homer Hankies go on sale on Oct 2. Is that right?

ohhh noooo... not "nutty"! LOL

Dear Jim Crikket:

Per one of your previous posts, I have decided NOT to boo A.J. when I go to the game on Sunday. Instead, I am going to chant "Jell-o shots!" to see if I can get into his head. D'you suppose that will work?

P. S. - Tigers are trying to give it away again today! Thanks for the loss, boys!

smaki... best of luck getting in to AJ's head... but I'm pretty certain that if you're successful, you'll get there and find it to be pretty empty.

Dear Mr Crikket,

re: AJ's head

HAHAHAHAHA!!!

lovingly,
kafumbly

So did Pitchin' Kenny Rogers get the same wonderful plastic surgery that the Singin' Kenny got? You know, the kind that looks as if his face was melted into a liquid state and then smoothed over with a trowel? I'll always remember fondly how cranky Kenny was when he was with the Twins, as he faded down the stretch (hmmm...sounds familiar) and was subsequently left off the playoff roster. Wah, wah. Hopefully, his shiny new face helps him to keep his chin (I suppose there's only one now) up, even when he's pitching badly or when cameramen dare take pictures of him.

Doggone it all, JC, you did it again!

I simply must remember to NOT drink anything whilst reading one of your posts...

You owe me a new keyboard...

Im dangerous when I'm left idle by myself for too long, I guess. Sorry JetChick :)

as if the boys needed any more motivation tonite, jays win!!!! bradke starts!!! put me in gardy , I'M ready to play. wish i could be there. be loud and proud twins fans..... thanks B.G.

Re: Jeter and the MVP...

Someone needs to remind all the sportswriters who seem to accept the idea that awarding Jeter with the MVP this year is acceptible as a sort of lifetime achievement award that there already exists such an award. It's called induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame. And Jeter will be enshrined as soon as he is eligible, deservedly so.

That is all.

Speedy

I am no fan of Derek, but, he is in the top 4 or 5 with the fall of the red sox, the injury to pronk, and the refusal of the voters to consider pitchers. Morneau, on the other hand, is in the top 1.

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!