The Speckled Mind

Monday, October 02, 2006

It's October 2nd. Do you know where your Twins are?

Oh, you knew it was coming.

I'm pretty sure I still fall short of the Biblical requirements for a prophet. But, you'd have to admit I was pretty close to accurate in my assessment of the Twins that I gave on the first day of the regular season. And for the record, I have been with them through thick and thin--a fact to which my wife will attest (sometimes with and sometimes without rolling her eyes).

How does one sum up a season this remarkable? The stats speak for themselves, for the most part. The Twins finished first in batting, second in pitching and third in fielding in the American League.

Oh, yeah. And let's not forget first in the A.L. Central. A fact for which we need to thank a host of people. We would like to thank the White Sox for choking. We would also like to thank the Tigers for choking. Probably most of all, we would like to thank the Royals for NOT choking. A bit of luck, a bit of skill. Perhaps more the former than the latter. But either way, our boys are staying home instead of flying to New York. And that is a VERY good thing. A couple of other notables:
  • Joe Mauer became the first American League catcher to win the batting title.
  • Johan Santana will, without a doubt, win the Cy Young award
  • Gardenhire will finish in the top two (with Jim Leyland) and may win the American League Manger of the Year award.
  • Justin Morneau will finish in the top three for American League MVP voting (with Derek Jeter and David Ortiz) and DESERVES to win the award
  • Never before has a team taken over sole possession of first place in a division on the last day of the regular season.
  • Santana became the first player to snag the pitching quadruple crown (best in Strikeouts, ERA, Innings Pitched and Wins) since Hal Newhouser in 1945.
I could go on and on. But I won't...right now. Here's the important thing--the first playoff game is tomorrow at 12:00 against Oakland. Whatever you are doing at that point, stop and listen to the game. Cheer. Yell at your radio. Heck, skip work and go to the game. These guys deserve our support.

Oh yeah. Cheer for the Tigers too. They need it right now.

Labels:

posted by timmer k. at 10:32 AM

7 Comments:

  • pretty awesome finish. i should probably cheer for oakland, since they're down the street and all, but i've really enjoyed watching your boys this season.

    i just wish the games weren't so early. damn yankees.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 3:16 PM  

  • Well, the Twins had an incredible year which they needed if they were to overcome their terribe start. Personally I'm excited that 2 teams from the A.L. Central are in the playoffs.

    Now I think the Twins have all the presure on them. They've been expected to win it all for some time while Detroit is just glad to be here.

    My problem with Twin fans is 1. they are, for the most part, fair weather and 2. they can't be happy to just cheer for the Twins they have to hate somebody. Personally I think it's repression of anger in other areas of life. So much for Minnesota nice. Anyway, I'm rooting for the Twins and Tigers. Good luck and enjoy the playoffs.

    By Blogger Jerod Lucius, at 3:38 PM  

  • Timmer---glad to see you telling everyone to cheer for the Tigers on your blog:) I have been all season and am still hoping to keep most of my friends when they make it to the Series....

    It's been fun living near Detroit over the last couple months =0)

    By Blogger Victoria, at 4:36 PM  

  • Barry Zito really had your number. Can the Twins really pull this off if Mr. Santana cannot come through in the clutch?

    By Blogger Joe, at 5:59 PM  

  • If I had money for every time I've watched the A's win the first game of a series only to lose in 5, I could afford to take off of work on Friday to go to game 3.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 9:12 PM  

  • well played

    By Blogger Joe, at 11:04 PM  

  • I don't really think Santana was the problem yesterday. 8 innings, 2 runs and 8K's. Worked himself out of a nasty jam.

    The offense just has to step up. The A's (despite a brilliant pitching performance by Zito) did get a bit lucky yesterday too. How many times does Castillo fail to get a bunt down? Only once this year by my count. Also, Morneau hit the stuffing out of the ball all four times he was up and went 0-4. That won't last.

    The A's will get Boofed today. Mark my words.

    And the Tigers will score 10 runs against Mussina. Course, they will probably still lose 11-10.

    Stupid Yankees. Stupid, stupid Yankees.

    By Blogger timmer k., at 9:31 AM  

Post a Comment

<< Home