The Victoria Times

Links of the Day 11/19/09

2009-11-19T09:36:00.003-06:00

Typically on Thursday's Beth wakes up for me and puts together a well thought out, creative post, then when I do the links and set the time so they appear below her post on the site. Not today friends! Why? Was it because she dared counter my divine opinion? YES!
OK, no. Really, I just wanted to say that hey, I'm leaving! If I post between now and Monday, it's from the road! I'll be in Murfreesboro, Tennessee for the Arkansas State-Middle Tennessee State football game. Arkansas State is no longer bowl eligible, but that doesn't mean it won't be a good time! I'll see you jokers later! On to the links...

No arguments here. Zack Greinke wins the Cy Young.

Watch out if you're in Chicago. Those Bears fans'll getcha.

Your World Cup field is set, though Ireland begs to differ.

I See Your Point, and Raise You a Counterpoint

2009-11-19T08:35:00.003-06:00

As is no doubt well-known, Ryan is the complainer, and I’m the naïve cheerleader of this site.

Yesterday, Ryan wrote about the Manager of the Year Award, which was, again, not won by Twins Manager Ron Gardenhire, and wrote his reasons that Gardy shouldn’t have won it. I will state right here that I’m not entirely sure he should’ve won it. I think he’s a fine manager, and definitely has deserved his second-place finish so many times, but each year, it seems one manager out-shines him. He should get a lifetime achievement award or something. (Just like people were complaining a couple of years ago about a player not getting the MVP. It’s not that he deserved it that year—if I recall, there was no outstanding player that year—but rather that he had been good for so long. I completely disagree with turning an award like the MVP—something meant for a single year—into a lifetime achievement award. That’s what the Hall of Fame is for.)

Anyway, I thought I’d make some counterpoints to Ryan’s article, in the name of journalism giving equal press to both sides. Or in the name of being a contradictory brat. Whatever…

Gardenhire is incapable of putting together a batting order. The Twins were consistently weak at the number 2 spot in the lineup…

I’m not sure who Ryan thought Gardy should put there. Did he want Delmon Young? Or Carlos Gomez? Joe Crede? I’m just not sure. It’s not like there weren’t better options some of the time, it’s simple that batting order positions 1, and 3-9 were the right people. Gardy just happened to have an extra 8 or 9 batter he needed to do something with. Granted, he could’ve moved everyone up a slot, so the traditional clean-up hitter was batting third, because often the number 5 hitter is pretty similar to the number 4.

Which is not to say Gardy was without his faults. In fact, I often complained about his batting order—even beyond not having Alexi Casilla follow Joe Crede who would follow Brendan Harris who followed Delmon Young who followed Carlos Gomez who followed Matt Tolbert, but only because they’d be in numerical order. No, my problem was all the times that the 3-4-5 hitters were Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, and Jason Kubel. I know they were pretty much the three best hitters, but that’s just asking for the intelligent opposing manager to bring in a lefty to face the left-handed* middle of the order late in a close game. By sticking Cuddyer between Morneau and Kubel, it gives the manager pause. Cuddyer, a right-handed batter who generally does well against left-handed pitchers, would make the opposing manager have to decide whether to bring in a righty to face Cuddyer, knowing Kubel, a lefty who hit well off of right-handed pitchers, was coming up behind him. The fact that usually there was no good option as a pinch-hitter on the bench meant all three had to face the left-handed pitcher most of the time. That was my problem with Gardy’s line-ups.

* I think all three guys are right-handed, but they bat left, and that’s the key here.

Gardenhire devastated the bullpen. If individual relievers were allowed to go full innings, rather than one or two outs at a time, the bullpen would have been saved. Instead, Bill Smith had to go out and restock, adding Jon Rauch and Ron Mahay.

Conversely, I think using pitchers for shorter periods can be useful. If Jose Mijares only faces one batter, he can likely pitch nearly every other day. As a strong lefty reliever, this could be important.

Yet, I agree Gardy did totally amuse some pitchers with too many appearances, but how often did you want to see Bobby Keppel come onto the mound? Or any of the other guys who spent more times on planes between Rochester and Minnesota than they did on the mound whose names are slipping my mind?

Here, I give some blame to Bill Smith. I’m still very bitter about losing Craig Breslow. While Breslow is not a strong left-handed pitcher blowing pitches by the opponent, he’s a smart* pitcher, and generally was able to get through innings without too much trouble. I know he started 2009 poorly, but based on his past performance, I was surprised to see he was given so short of a leash. In general, Gardy didn’t have a lot of solid pitchers to work with in close situations until Jon Rauch, and to some extent Ron Mahay, came around.

Gardenhire is terrible with young players, especially if they aren't his favorites. Terry Ryan and Bill Smith have always had to contend with this. Kyle Lohse had to be jettisoned, after which he flourished in Cincinnati. Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett didn't get along with Gardenhire and were packaged up and sent to Tampa, where they became key members of a World Series team.

To some extent, this is true, but he’s certainly not the only manager to suffer from this. I would also like to point out that Smith mentioned that he did not want to trade Bartlett, but the Rays demanded that as part of the deal (to which the Twins countered with a demand for Harris...I’m not sure how smart of a move that was on Smith’s part. Note: I LOVE Brendan Harris. But he’s not really an equal of Bartlett). How much of Bartlett’s ability to do so well was a direct result of being forced to work so hard in Minnesota? No one will ever know… Also, a fact I don’t think most people realize: Brendan Harris is almost a year younger than Bartlett. I think because Bartlett was so much older when he was called up (probably why Gardy had bigger demands of leadership from him), many people perceived him as being younger than he was. If Bartlett were two years younger (that is, being 28 this year, rather than 30), there would be a much stronger argument.

Gardenhire is terrible with young players Part II Players that have come up with the Twins have always done well, because the minor league system is so well constructed. …it will be Smith who will be blamed and not Gardenhire. Fortunately, fundamentally sound players whose development wasn't monitored by Gadenhire, like Jose Morales contributed in the end to the team's success.

Who was the manger when Mauer and Morneau got called up? I know Gardy can play favorites, but you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone on Earth who doesn’t. Gardy, from all appearances, loved Torii Hunter. Torii Hunter didn’t love a young Justin Morneau. Gardy seemed fine with a young Justin Morneau (when Justin needed a good talking-to early in his career, Gardy spoke to Justin, not the press). Gardy does play favorites. However, Bill Smith is in charge of who gets sent up and sent down. There is no reason that Carlos Gomez (much of the basis of Ryan’s argument) Bill Smith couldn’t send Gomez to Rochester when it became apparent Gardy was not going to use Gomez in Minnesota.

Gardy did have his hands tied. Span is needed to be a leadoff hitter. Young, from what I can tell, was a slightly more refined player than Gomez. Thus, Young got playing time over Gomez much of the time. Gardy did work to get Gomez into the field in his strongest ability: offense. The thing is, in the minors, that’s when managers work on developing players. Managers in the majors have to worry about winning games. Gardy couldn’t pull the better hitter out of the line-up to give Gomez more experience hitting. At least, not if he didn’t want his head on a chopping block! Fans want teams to win. Many teams going through re-building struggle trying to convince fans “We’re developing players here! Just hang on a couple of years!” Fans want wins.

Again, I reiterate, I don’t think Gardy definitely deserved Manager of the Year. But Joe Giardi getting votes is preposterous, when you consider that it would’ve taken real talent to not take that team to the playoffs/World Series. Although I probably could’ve managed it...

Timberwolves update: They’re now at 1-11, or a 8.3% winning percentage.

Wild Update: The Wild haven't done much better with a 7-12-2 record, for a 33.3% winning percentage.

Too bad Bill Smith couldn't get votes

2009-11-18T16:10:00.004-06:00

In today's Manager of the Year voting, Ron Gardenhire was voted second, perhaps disappointing a few. I think it's appropriate though, given that the Twins turn around was thanks to Bill Smith's reaction to Gardenhire's mismanagement, rather than anything Gardenhire did. Well, that and some dumb luck.
First, let's take a look at the mistakes he made that Smith turned into benefits.
Gardenhire is incapable of putting together a batting order. The Twins were consistently weak at the number 2 spot in the lineup, mostly because Gardenhire consistently put shortstops or second basemen at the 2 hole, regardless of their ability at the plate. The only time the Twins had a strong hitter in the two spot before Smith got involved was when they put Mauer there. Why Gardenhire didn't see the light and put a good hitter, no matter the position is beyond me. Bill Smith adjusted and picked up Orlando Cabrera, because he can hit AND he plays the middle infield. I hope the Twins can resign Cabrera, if only because Gardenhire is stupid enough to bat Punto second again next year.
Gardenhire devastated the bullpen. Just a year and a half ago, the Twins featured one of the strongest bullpens in the league, however they eventually broke down as the season progressed. Why? Too many appearances. If individual relievers were allowed to go full innings, rather than one or two outs at a time, the bullpen would have been saved. Instead, Bill Smith had to go out and restock, adding Jon Rauch and Ron Mahay. With the injured Boof Bonser and Pat Neshek hopefully coming back, perhaps more depth will keep the bullpen in tact until about July next year.

Of course, there were a few lucky turns of events that gave the Twins the late season boost they needed. Of course, they had to happen to offset the typical blunders he makes.
Gardenhire is terrible with young players, especially if they aren't his favorites. Terry Ryan and Bill Smith have always had to contend with this. Kyle Lohse had to be jettisoned, after which he flourished in Cincinnati. Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett didn't get along with Gardenhire and were packaged up and sent to Tampa, where they became key members of a World Series team. The inability to aid young players in their development continued this year, and would have continued if it weren't for Justin Morneau's injury. Because of his typical slow starts, Delmon Young lost a lot of playing time early. When he struggled to rebound after the death of his mother, he continued to lose playing time, and was redressed by Gardenhire. It takes a special lack of awareness or compassion for someone to realize that a kid in his early 20s might not be completely back within two weeks. It's even more ridiculous that he was left on the bench to dwell on his mother's passing and his own shortcomings on the field, rather than put in the game to help get his mind back on playing good baseball. When Morneau went down, that meant one player or another would have to get on the field more. With regular playing time, Young excelled.. Somehow, Punto, no matter how bad he is, gets to play every day, so Gardenhire has the capability to let players work through their slumps. Delmon Young never would have had the chance, had it not been for Morneau's injury.
Gardenhire is terrible with young players Part II Players that have come up with the Twins have always done well, because the minor league system is so well constructed. Players that have come over in trades, left to develop in Minneapolis and not, say, Rochester, have languished. Carlos Gomez was acquired from New York in the Santana trade. He spent very little time in the minor leagues and as a result, he has failed to develop. Smith recognized that Gomez likely never will develop in Minnesota and sent him to Milwaukee to prepare the team for next year. It was the right move, and will be even if Gomez turns into a 30HR type of guy, which he could with the right coaching. It wouldn't have happened in Minnesota, however. The thing that bothers me is that when it happens, it will be Smith who will be blamed and not Gardenhire. Fortunately, fundamentally sound players whose development wasn't monitored by Gadenhire, like Jose Morales contributed in the end to the team's success.

It's nice to think that the Twins are a cute little story because they keep getting to the playoffs out of the AL Central. Great. It's been one of the worst divisions in the game since baseball went to 6 divisions instead of 4. The talent the Twins have, especially over the past couple of years, should mean the Twins are winning the division by 10 games annually. They shouldn't be taken lightly in the postseason. If the Twins are only inching into the postseason because of dumb luck and the gifted General Management of Bill Smith, the Twins will forever be an afterthought.

Links of the Day 11/18/09

2009-11-18T09:20:00.002-06:00

A video from the Jets-Raiders game. What do you THINK is happening.

The Bengals signed Larry Johnson, a move that should not have surprised anyone.

What do you think of the Twins new unis? Landon Evanson loves them.

NFL Power Ranks: Week 10

2009-11-17T11:45:00.000-06:00

Wow, what a finish to that game last night. The Smartest Man Who Ever Lived made a pretty dumb decision at the end there, and the Colts are almost as highly ranked as you can be, with 89.45 points out of a possible 100, and 100 is mathematically impossible. In fact, the highest score any team could realistically get is probably around 92-93. So that's pretty good. The Saints stayed undefeated as well, and hung onto the #2 spot, while the Vikings win coupled with Cowboys and Patriots losses moved them up to #3, while the Patriots fell to #4. At #5, we have the Bengals. Wait, let me fix that typo.....

Holy crap! The Bengals are ranked #5. Ironically when I updated my little top 5/bottom 5 graphic for week 10 from 2008, I was able to cut and paste the Bengals logo from the bottom to the top. They now hold a 7-2 record and are on top of the AFC North all by themselves, and they have a guy playing WR named Ochocinco....

The Browns solidfied themselves as the worst team in the NFL Monday Night on national TV and dropped to last. I caught part of the game at Buffalo Wild Wings, and I wonder if B-Dubs has ever tried to seek damages against the NFL and ESPN when the Browns are on Monday Night Football, because it was completely dead there tonight. This caused the Lions and Rams to move up a spot, the Raiders to stay put, and the Redskins actually won so welcome back, Tampa, to the bottom 5.

There was a lot of movement in the ranks this week, with so many teams hovering around .500 and with only 2 teams with byes. The biggest gainer this week is the Titans (+7) who have won 3 straight and move all the way up to #17 after a horrible start. The Chargers and Jaguars both move up 6 spots by beating playoff contenders and building some more momentum for their own playoff races. The biggest losers were the Seahawks (stick a fork in them) and the Falcons, who are trying their best to disprove me calling them an elite team a few weeks back. The Broncos also fell 5 spots, beginning their collapse earlier than usual.

Playoff Projections
NFC
First Round Byes: #2 Saints, #3 Vikings
#11 Packers @ #8 Cowboys
#9 Eagles @ #13 Cardinals
Top 3 Out: #16 Falcons, #19 Giants, #21 49ers

AFC
First Round Byes: #1 Colts, #4 Patriots
#10 Ravens @ #5 Bengals
#7 Steelers @ #6 Chargers
Top 3 Out: #12 Texans, #14 Broncos, #15 Jaguars

Full Ranks:
1. Colts - 89.45 - Even
2. Saints - 82.88 - Even
3. Vikings - 74.76 - +2
4. Patriots - 72.55 - -1
5. Bengals - 71.40 - +2
6. Chargers - 68.01 - +6
7. Steelers - 62.91 - -1
8. Cowboys - 62.89 - -4
9. Eagles - 61.58 - -1
10. Ravens - 61.47 - +5
11. Packers - 61.40 - +3
12. Texans - 60.89 - -1
13. Cardinals - 59.65 - Even
14. Broncos - 53.63 - -5
15. Jaguars - 52.61 - +6
16. Falcons - 51.19 - -6
17. Titans - 46.01 - +7
18. Dolphins - 45.95 - +2
19. Giants - 45.70 - -2
20. Jets - 45.05 - -4
21. 49ers - 43.23 - +4
22. Bills - 40.73 - -4
23. Panthers - 40.48 - Even
24. Bears - 38.02 - -2
25. Seahawks - 36.10 - -6
26. Chiefs - 35.90 - Even
27. Redskins - 34.09 - +1
28. Buccaneers - 26.20 - -1
29. Raiders - 23.72 - Even
30. Rams - 21.02 - +1
31. Lions - 17.36 - +1
32. Browns - 16.17 - -2

Links of the Day 11/17/09

2009-11-17T09:39:00.003-06:00

Did you watch the St. Peter's-Monmouth tilt on ESPN? OF course not, it was on at 3 in the morning (4am local time!)

This would explain why I keep following sports, even thought I'm a terrible pessimist.

Former Minnesota wrestler and fake athlete Brock Lesnar's career may be over, due to a bacterial infection.

The best part of last night's game

2009-11-16T19:41:00.004-06:00

The post game press conference last night after the incredible Colts victory was one of my favorite moments in weeks. Bill Belichick was prodded and harassed over and over about his decision to go for the first down on 4th down late in the 4th quarter. Ultimately, the decision backfired, and the Patriots came up short. No matter how the question was phrased, Belichick kept saying that he went for the first down because he thought they could get that yard, and they would then have the opportunity to run out the clock. No matter what the question, "We thought we could get that yard," Belichick would say. Then, at the very end of the press conference, one question stuck out. Before, Belichick had been annoyed and gruff, but this question really ticked him off:
"You know it was 4th and 2, right?"
Hilarious.

Links of the Day 11/16/09

2009-11-16T18:15:00.002-06:00

Late links today because, frankly, I've been lazy.

The Broncos are lost without Kyle Orton. Wait, that doesn't seem right.

Hey, Michelle Wie won something. Took her long enough. What is she, 30? No? 20? Oh....

That old Tennessee-Buffalo rivalry...

Am I worried?

2009-11-15T13:05:00.003-06:00

Tonight the Colts will be on national TV again, playing against their nemesis, the New England Patriots. The Patirots are playing extremely well right now, while the Colts are definitely not. The Pats have most of their top talent ready to play, while the Colts are nicked up across the entirety of their roster, office and defense. About the only thing to hang my hat on is the fact that the game is being played in Indiana. I am not disillusioned. The Colts will probably lose this game.
I'm not worried though. It's still early enough in the season that a possible loss would serve as a wake up call rather than a panic attack. The Colts still would have a record as the remainder of the season commences. And like I said, the Colts are not playing their best football. I feel like if they were, they would be the better team. I want the Colts to win, but I don't think it will tell me a whole lot, or worry me terribly if they don't.

Links of the Day 11/15/09

2009-11-15T10:37:00.002-06:00

Remember how my simulation last year had TCU winning the National Championship? Well....

More proof that NFL fines are ridiculous.

Hello Ohio!

I'm OK without replay

2009-11-14T12:24:00.002-06:00

Many talking heads and bloggers have decried the decision by owners to not expand instant replay in baseball. I understand the concern. Precision and getting things right has become paramount this day in age. Most other sports use replay to their benefit, of course, so why shouldn't baseball?
Part of the allure of baseball, for me, anyways, is the mental aspect of it. Part of the game is the ability of the player to influence the call of the umpire on close plays. Part of it is the ability to understand every aspect of the situation, from the count, to the score, to the weather to the way the umpires have been calling a game.
Part of what makes pitchers brilliant is their ability to manipulate a strike zone. Part of what makes a veteran valuable is their rapport with umpires (assuming they are more Cal Ripken than Albert Belle). Most of the time, calls are easy and correct. More often than not, difficult calls are correctly made as well. Those difficult calls add to the spice of the game and affect the tempo and momentum of a game, particularly after a heated debate with a manager.
More than any sport, I find baseball to be an art. Other sports are often violent competitions, where precision is vital. In baseball, there is a beauty to the pace and gameplay of the game. With art, as with baseball, I find it better if some things are left open to interpretation.

Links of the Day 11/14/09

2009-11-14T09:37:00.002-06:00

Will anyone ever be able to stop ESPN? No.

Notre Dame continues to suck. This time because of basketball.

The NHL Suspension flow chart.... revealed!

NFL Power Ranks: Week 9

2009-11-13T10:11:00.003-06:00

So why would my picture this week be of the Buccaneers? Especially wearing what they are wearing? Believe it or not, their win over Green Bay in Week 9 didn't propel them all the way to the top of the computerized power ranks, since I normally put a picture of the #1 ranked team up top. Instead, they actually managed to climb out of the bottom 5 teams by finally getting their first win of the season. Sadly, I will now have to go back to using their current logo in the top 5/bottom 5 grid, since I said I would leave it as "Bucco Bruce" until they finally won a game. How ironic is it that they finally won that game wearing the creamsicle jerseys, a uniform they rarely ever won with?

Anyways, the Colts and Saints are still #1 and #2 while staying undefeated. The Eagles loss dropped them 5 spots to #8 which allowed the Partiots to move to #3 while the Cowboys jumped all the way up to #4 now that they have taken control of the NFC East. The Vikings still get no respect (or is it justified?) staying at #5.

As I mentioned above, with the awful teams in the NFL this season, a single win can bump you up several spots. Tampa went from dead last to #27. Detroit is back where they belong, at the bottom of the ranks. The Rams stayed put at #31, the "surging" Titans jumped all the way to #24, which bumped Cleveland and Oakland down a few spots, and I would like the welcome the Washington Redskins to the bottom 5, you earned it.

The biggest gainers this week were Seattle (who still suck, but are playing slightly better), Dallas, and Tampa. The biggest losers were the Eagles and Bears, who dropped 5 spots each. I was also going to rip on my favorite team, the 49ers, for falling from #1 all the way to #25 in just a few weeks, but their win over the Bears last night gets them off the hook.

Projected Playoff Matchups
NFC
First Round Byes: #2 Saints, #4 Cowboys
#8 Eagles @ #13 Cardinals
#10 Falcons @ #5 Vikings
Top 3 Out: #14 Packers, #17 Giants, #19 Seahawks

AFC
First Round Byes: #1 Colts, #3 Patriots
#11 Texans @ #6 Steelers
#7 Bengals @ #9 Broncos
Top 3 Out: #12 Chargers, #15 Ravens, #16 Jets

Full Ranks:
1. Colts - 87.71 - Even
2. Saints - 84.05 - Even
3. Patriots - 75.26 - +1
4. Cowboys - 74.53 - +5
5. Vikings - 72.90 - Even
6. Steelers - 70.74 - +1
7. Bengals - 68.87 - +1
8. Eagles - 65.46 - -5
9. Broncos - 63.09 - -3
10. Falcons - 60.60 - +2
11. Texans - 60.54 - Even
12. Chargers - 59.61 - +2
13. Cardinals - 57.39 - +2
14. Packers - 57.28 - -4
15. Ravens - 53.37 - -2
16. Jets - 48.62 - +3
17. Giants - 45.24 - +1
18. Bills - 45.20 - +2
19. Seahawks - 44.59 - +6
20. Dolphins - 44.58 - -4
21. Jaguars - 44.16 - +2
22. Bears - 42.10 - -5
23. Panthers - 38.59 - -2
24. Titans - 35.46 - +4
25. 49ers - 31.91 - -3
26. Chiefs - 28.46 - Even
27. Buccaneers - 27.46 - +5
28. Redskins - 25.86 - -4
29. Raiders - 25.50 - -2
30. Browns - 22.44 - -1
31. Rams - 19.51 - Even
32. Lions - 18.09 - -2

Photo: AP/Chris O'Meara

Links of the Day 11/13/09

2009-11-13T09:11:00.002-06:00

This is why polls are important.

Jared Allen. Just..... Jared Allen.

This is why you shouldn't handle beavers.

Gomez versus Young

2009-11-12T07:53:00.000-06:00

It’s old news by now (I wrote this last Friday, but I assume…) that the Twins traded their fourth-outfielder/center fielder Carlos Gomez the Brewers for shortstop JJ Hardy. This should make my friend E happy. She likes JJ Hardy. That’s neither here nor there, though.

I knew going into the offseason—which sucks, by the way—that the Twins were going to trade either Gomez or left-fielder Delmon Young. Cuddyer was still under contract (and, in fact, the team picked up his option for the 2011 season), and is a bit older and has faced some (freak) injury issues. (I think it’s important to point out the “freak” injuries versus the chronic injuries. Freak injuries involve broken bones/dislocation when something unusual happens. Joe Crede’s back problems are chronic. Michael Cuddyer dislocating his finger, and then having his foot broken while on re-hab is more freakish. Although two dislocated fingers—albeit, different fingers—in one season borders on chronic.) This will bring down his value slightly, and he’s higher valued on the Twins for his clubhouse presence. For a team that is often littered with young, unexperienced players, there is value in veteran leadership. While Joe Nathan is older, he was also traded to the Twins, whereas Cuddyer has only known the Twins, from the draft day forward. Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer have moved out the definition of “young players”, but both have a few years to go until they reach the age of 30. I could keep arguing, but let’s just put it down as a positive that Cuddyer stays. Span is the leadoff hitter the Twins have been waiting for for years. He’s solid defensively (although not quite up to Gomez’s incredible level). Span was staying.

Both Gomez and Young were wanting to be full-time players, but both were young. Both had moments of brilliance, and both had moments of frustration. Gomez was clearly stronger defensively, while Young was not exactly carrying a gold glove—unless it was literally gold—in left field (caveat: many have commented that because of the lights at the Metrodome, left field was the hardest position to play there. I’m not saying that Young is great, but he might be a little better than Minnesota got to see). One of them was going to go. It turned out last Friday to be Gomez to the Brewers.

I think I know why they traded away Gomez rather than Young.*

* Totally kidding. It’s a crack-pot theory that amuses me.

Young came to the Twins in a trade with Tampa Bay. Twins fans know how good Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett have been since leaving Minnesota. (Eduardo Morlan, the final guy the Twins sent to the Devil Rays, is still an unknown quantity.) The pieces that the Twins got in return—Jason Pridie, Delmon Young, and Brendan Harris—have not been up to par. Pridie has not played much with the Twins, but his minor league career does speak about his future as a fourth outfielder. He’s four months older than Delmon Young, but has only 11 major league at-bats (Young has 1,741). We got a solidly average (but cute!) player in Brendan Harris. He’s okay everywhere in the infield (except, perhaps, catching and pitching; I would venture he’d be well below average in those two positions), but nothing that you’d write home to Dad about. So, the Twins traded away a pretty good shortstop and a pretty good pitcher for a couple of average guys and one young unknown. (I still believe Young has a chance to break out. Then again, I’ve believed every year for the last two or three years that the Royals might finally break out of their funk, so take it for what it’s worth.)

Carlos Gomez came to the Twins in a trade with the Mets. Gomez was the centerpiece of the deal for Santana. The Twins just lost Torii Hunter and needed a center fielder. Remember back when Denard Span was a bust and at that point our best option was Pridie (remember how key getting Pridie in that trade was?!) The other guys in the trade include the unknown commodity of Deolis Guerra (who’s not yet 21), Kevin Mulvey (who was mediocre despite my feeling that he’d be the best prospect and later “traded” to the Diamondbacks in a trade of waivered players for Jon Rauch), and Phillip Humber, who was designated for assignment after many poor performances. Really, none of the four players turned out to be anything to write home about (yet). However, with the trading of Gomez, now we can say that Johan Santana was traded for Rauch (who has acquitted himself well for the Twins so far), JJ Hardy (unknown commodity), and the elusive Deolis Guerra. That trade might look better by the end of the 2010 season. We can only hope.

One last, unrelated, thought. Rafael Palmeiro won the first base Gold Glove in 1999—despite playing only 28 games at first base. No one would’ve considered giving Michael Cuddyer a Gold Glove for first base this year…and he played 34 games at first. Of course, Palmeiro had a .996 Fielding Percentage, and Cuddyer had a .986, so clearly he didn’t deserve it.

Timberwolves update: They’re now at 1-8, or a 11.1% winning percentage. As was pointed out in a Twitter post, the fans can relax, because there are only 73 games left this year!

Wild Update: Conversely, the Wild have improved their record to 7-10-0, for a 41.2% winning percentage.

Links of the Day 11/12/09

2009-11-12T07:11:00.000-06:00

I do love a good mock draft.

Cool interview with Dick Vitale.

Was former Purdue Boilermaker Bernard Pollard blackballed?

Soccer slowly making ground

2009-11-11T13:08:00.003-06:00

An odd sight gracd many visitors to ESPN.com this morning. The feature story was a link to this article about the Soccer Power Index. For a nation who espouses the NFL and American football as the greatest game on earth, why is soccer nosing into the American psyche at a faster rate, it seems, than football is emerging as a popular global sport?
Well, the fact that ESPN has the contract with at least two European leagues doesn't hurt. The fact that they will be airing the World Cup is pretty good too. Of course, they got the rights because they could make money overseas, but they are also able to air some of these games stateside, lending some more attention domestically.
Soccer, though, is seeping into the American sports world subtly, slowly. Instead of a grandiose domestic league, attention is being paid to the soccer formats that already exist. If ESPN can make poker a spectator sport, surely they can infiltrate the EPL and make Americans care about that. Most people resent anything being shoved down their throat, and America simply has not wanted to enjoy the sport. Now, individual Americans have begun to follow the sport and those that don't like it can still ignore it.
The NFL, by comparison, is garish and forceful. It is trying too hard to garner European attention. Now that ESPN has footing in Europe, they may be well served to let ESPN do the heavy lifting, letting those in Europe that would appreciate football do so on their own terms.

Links of the Day 11/11/09

2009-11-11T10:49:00.003-06:00

First off, thanks to all the veterans for their service, and also for making an awkward work week.

Women's soccer is out of control.

Charlie Weiss is an ass.

Buffalo sure is TRYING to garner some attention.

So here I go

2009-11-10T20:02:00.004-06:00

Last night, I honestly fell asleep on the couch as I was trying to think of something to say. I have stopped drinking pop when I am not at Real Job Inc, and I am tired all the time. Today though, I am writing a post about the first of my trips. I will be leaving a week from Thursday or Friday (depending) headed for Murfreesboro, Tennessee to take a look at the Arkansas State Red Wolves and the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders play some football.

The Red Wolves were the team I picked for this little adventure, so I will start there first. The Red Wolves are having an unfortunate season. They were tabbed to finish at the top of the division this year, but instead are 2-6 and 1-3 in conference. they have games remaining against Florida Atlantic, Middle Tennessee State, North Texas and Western Kentucky. Three of those games are very winnable, and a win in all four would make the team bowl eligible. The toughest test will come against Middle Tennessee State, the game I will be at. The only game they have really struggled was an early season matchup versus Nebraska, so they very well could be much better than their record indicates.

In Murfreesboro, the Blue Raiders have shown themselves to have an explosive offense. The Red Wolves have been stout defensively, but MTSU has scored 27 points or more in all of their wins, and sputtered to 14 or less in their losses. Things depend on Dwight Dasher, who leads the team in passing and rushing, having scored 22 total touchdowns. Like Arkansas State, the Blue Raiders' record may be somewhat misleading, simply because they have played the dregs of the conference so far, leaving the third and fourth place teams in the conference, as well as Arkansas State left on their schedule. They are already bowl eligible, but need to win out to have a shot at the conference championship.

One more team, I would like to check out is North Texas. As I mentioned a while back, I am actually going to the wrong game. The addition of Louisville to the schedule jimmied the times around for the Arkansas State schedule, so I ended up taking time off of work for what was supposed to be the 11th game of the season, and it turned into the 10th. Since I should be watching their game, I will preview them and give a recap of their game in a few weeks as well. The Mean Green of Texas are having a tough season. They are playing at the bottom of the Sun Belt, thanks in large part to atrocious defense. Even when they beat Western Kentucky, they allowed 49 points. Ever since their opening week win against Ball State, the lowest points allowed total that they have had has been 33 against Louisiana-Monroe. One highlight is running back Lance Dunbar, who has 13 touchdowns on the season.
So yeah, I'm all ready to head down to Tennessee. It will be a good trip, I think, and my first college football game in my plan for random road trips. I'm not sure how I am going to get there, or what my exact plan is quite yet. Perhaps I will leave on Thursday before the game so I can just leave the site to Beth that day. Not for a week though.

Links of the Day 11/10/09

2009-11-10T10:38:00.002-06:00

Congress, apparently, is left with nothing to do.

Falcons coach Mike Smith? Feisty.

LeGarrette Blount, that crazy Oregon Duck who got all punchy in week one, has been reinstated.

While you have been watching football....

2009-11-10T00:45:00.004-06:00

NCAA basketball appears to have started. I honestly can't think of anything relevant to add to this, because the season snuck up on me so. No word if I will be able to think of other excuses later in the season...

Links of the Day 11/9/09

2009-11-09T12:38:00.002-06:00

Get anything worthwhile at the Twins sale? Probably not.

A glowing ode to Orlando Cabrera.

Larry Johnson, the nutbar, is probably done for his career.

Joe Christiensen is giving me body issues

2009-11-08T13:11:00.004-06:00

Star Tribunist Joe Christiensen is right up there with LaVelle E. Neal on Twins coverage, and he has been all over the Gomez-Hardy trade. He seems to like it. I don't mind it. He clearly has some apprehensions, however, saying:
The deal has the potential to look very good for the Twins if Hardy can regain his pre-2009 form, but that “if” is as big as Hardy’s 6-2, 190-pound frame.
That seems to be the question. Hardy was an all star in 2007, however -- wait a minute. 6'2 190 is big?! For a professional athlete? Hold on.
/measures height, steps on scale
Oh man, I 'm HUGE! 6'2 1/2" and 195 pounds! Thanks a lot, Joe Christiensen, for making me self conscious.

Links of the Day 11/8/09

2009-11-08T11:44:00.002-06:00

So Purdue beat Michigan yesterday. First time they have won in Ann Arbor since 1966.

Jahvid Best had a terrifying injury for Cal yesterday, however it appears that his prognosis is good.

This is why America is having financial problems. Everything is the Yankees' fault.

What I learned today in college football

2009-11-07T18:04:00.002-06:00

Well, let's see. Purdue won at Michigan for about the first time wince the Nixon administration, despite being pretty bad this year. Speaking of bad, an awful Illinois team nipped the Gophers in Minneapolis. I have no idea what any of this means. This has been a strange and hard to decipher football season. The only thing that I actually learned, I think was that Wake Forest has a linebacker by the name of "Gelo Orange". One of the few rules we operate by here at the Times is that there is always room for Gelo.