The Top Three Questions The Twins Must Answer

August 26, 2011 / Keith / 5 comments

I’ve learned pretty quickly that having a blog named Fire Bill Smith doesn’t get you much love with the mainstream media or bloggers that staunchly support the Minnesota Twins. I think that some of the bloggers that I’m referring to – the ones that get the bit spots on the Minneapolis Star Tribune website, believe that they’re “waiting in the wings” to become the next feature reporter or columnist for the Star Tribune or the ESPN1500 website.

I’ve also made the mistake of tweeting posts from this blog to some mainstream sports columnists as well as local Twins bloggers, but have never been responded to by any of them. Yet, I continue to display their links in my blogroll, and I have every intention of keeping them there. In fact, I will probably add more of them in the near future.

In any event, I’ve compiled a list of the Top Three Questions facing the Twins for the remainder of this season, as well as the next.

Why only three?

Because five would make the mainstreamers a little nervous.

1. Can Joe Mauer get healthy?
Mauer has been riddled with various injuries all season long. After spending two months on the disabled list earlier in the season, he’s had an assortment of other minor injuries and has been generally banged up ever since. It was also reported that Mauer will not be in tonight’s lineup for the third consecutive game, as he continues to suffer from a neck injury sustained while going after a foul ball a few nights ago.

While it is true that playing catcher is a very tough position to play with all of the foul tips, blocking pitches in the dirt, and the constant squatting, he was signed as a catcher. Both he and manager Ron Gardenhire insist that he will continue to catch, so the biggest question is, “can Mauer get healthy this season, or is it truly in the best interest of the team that he be shut down?”

2. Can Joe Mauer stay healthy?
Joe is the face of the franchise, and arguably one of the primary factors in Target Field being built in the first place. Fair or unfair, Twins fans are becoming frustrated with the perceived volume of games Mauer has missed. Maybe a lack of communication by the Twins is partially to blame, and unfortunately, sometimes perception is reality. But the biggest factor with respect to Mauer’s health is that he’s one of the best players in the game – when he’s healthy.

3. Can Bill Smith wise up?
Twins GM Bill Smith has a very poor record of player transactions. I’ll spare everyone the comprehensive list, but by letting relievers such as Brian Fuentes, Jesse Crain, Matt Guerrier, and Jon Rauch leave during the off-season, while not re-signing major league replacements to fill the holes, he put the Twins in a bad position right out of the gate this season.

While it is true that injuries had a lot to do with the team’s poor record, having a bullpen comprised primarily of unproven players was also a major contributing factor.

Another move that hasn’t panned out has been the signing of shortstop Tsuyoshi Nishioka. I liked Nishi at the start of the season and truly rooted for him to succeed. But the reality is that he can’t play at this level, and whoever evaluated him and thought that he could really didn’t know what they were doing.

Then there’s the trade deadline this season, where Smith proclaimed the Twins to be contenders, yet did nothing to improve the club whatsoever. Smith’s contention was that they tried, but just couldn’t get the right deal done. But to me there’s trying, and then there’s doing. Every other “contender” in the division made moves to improve their clubs except the Twins.

Finally, there is the starting pitching question. Not since Johan Santana have the Twins had a true ace of the staff. Since Santana’s departure, the starting rotation has been comprised of number three starters – and that’s being generous.

You’ll notice I haven’t said anything about the fact that Smith should be replaced as General Manger. Well, it’s Friday, and I’m in a good mood.

But if the Twins can’t address these questions, now and during the off-season – Twins fans will have to get used to looking up at the rest of the division for the next several years.

Category: Minnesota Twins / Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Is Joe Mauer a vacation wrecker?

August 26, 2011 / Keith / No comments

A lot of Twins fans are mad at Joe Mauer.

After sitting out Wednesday night’s game against the Baltimore Orioles due to “general soreness” Mauer informed team trainers that he couldn’t play in Thursday’s game due to a stiff neck.

Meanwhile, Michael Cuddyer, who was hit in the wrist with a mid-90’s fastball that sounded like it shattered a bone during Wednesday night’s game was in the starting lineup and went 1 for 4.

To make matters worse for the injury-decimated Twins, Francisco Liriano was forced to leave the game after working two innings and has been placed on the disabled list.

The Orioles beat the Twins 6-1 to sweep the four game series, and in the hours following the game, Mauer has been getting lambasted on the Minneapolis Star Tribune message boards.

Earlier this season Mauer spent two months on the disabled list with bilateral leg weakness.

Perhaps Mauer has suddenly become the lighting rod for scores of Twins fans that have become frustrated beyond the boiling point regarding the many disappointments this season has produced.

In fairness to Mauer, I’ve suffered from many neck and back ailments over the last few years and can testify to the pain and discomfort of these types of “tweaks.” I still continue to get them somewhat regularly, but I’ve found that after receiving treatments such as massage therapy, chiropractic treatment, and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) along with stretching to improve range of motion – I’m pretty much good to go.

I would think that anything that I can get in terms of medical treatment to alleviate pain and stiffness would be readily available for Twins players at Target Field, but I could be wrong. Maybe the injury is more severe than most people believe, but one thing about the Twins is that they don’t really seem to tell you much about injuries, especially where Joe is concerned.

The one thing I question about Joe Mauer at this point isn’t his toughness, but his general awareness of how big his celebrity really is among Twins fans. Does Joe really grasp what it means to be the face of a franchise?

Really – does he get it?

I bet anyone reading this a dollar that there was more than a handful of families at Thursday’s game that came to the Twin Cities from out of town that had planned their trip well in advance and made sure that they got tickets to see a Twins game along with the face of the franchise – the great Joe Mauer, play at Target Field – the stadium that he helped build by re-signing with the Twins (to the tune of $184 million).

I bet there were fans in attendance from all over the Midwest – from Fargo, N.D., Sioux Falls, S.D., and Mason City, IA.

And I also bet that among those families that planned part of their vacation at Target field in downtown Minneapolis were a number of kids that managed to talk their parents into buying them a Joe Mauer jersey so that they could wear it to the one and only Twins game they were going to see this season.

For a lot of Twins fans, Joe Mauer is the Twins. He’s the franchise, plain and simple.

To plan the trip, spend the money on the overpriced tickets and have to deal with the hassle of trying to park downtown on a weekday, going to a Twins game and learning that their hero Joe Mauer wasn’t in the lineup would be the equivalent to planning a vacation around going to Walley World, only to learn upon arriving that it was closed.

Feel better Joe.

Category: Joe Mauer / Tags: , , ,

Can the Twins learn how to lose?

August 25, 2011 / Keith / No comments

The Minnesota Twins are having one of the worst seasons in recent memory and one that will be the worst in Ron Gardenhire’s tenure as manager. They are 3-7 over their last ten games and in danger of finishing last in the division for the first time since the 2000 season.

Their current run differential of -137 is last in the American League, and second to the last in all of major league baseball behind the Houston Astros.

When the Twins began their slide early in the season, Gardenhire proclaimed that the Twins were “not going to get used to losing ballgames.” Joe Mauer recently commented that while in the past a number of other major league clubs that were out of division races stopped playing hard – that would never happen here, not with the Twins.

But are the Twins really playing hard, or are they just sort of showing up? While that’s certainly an area of debate, in Mauer’s case one could really wonder, as he sat out another game last night with “general soreness.”

Attendance at last night’s game was 37,778, ending the consecutive sellouts streak at 37. Could this be a harbinger of things to come for the rest of this season?

One thing that the Twins, along with Twins fans haven’t had to deal with for quite some time is losing. With six division crowns over the last nine seasons, the Twins and their loyal fan base have grown accustomed to winning every year. Obviously this year has been quite different than in the recent past as the Twins are looking up at three teams and the only race they’re involved in is the race to not finish last.

So the question is, can the Twins, as well as Twins fans for that matter, “learn” how to lose?

Based on the current state of the team, as well as General Manager Bill Smith’s poor track record involving trades – not to mention the fact that the central division is getting stronger – the Twins and their fans may just have to get used to it around here for a few years.

This must be what it feels like to be a Kansas City Royals fan.

Category: Minnesota Twins / Tags: , , , ,

Comparing baseball to brain surgery – unique perspective, or mindless drivel?

August 24, 2011 / Keith / 3 comments

I can’t hit a 90 mph fastball. The fact is – most people can’t. The select few that can have been blessed with the ability to not only see a fastball and determine in fractions of a second whether or not to swing, but have also developed the hand-eye coordination and skill to be able to hit the ball hard enough, cleanly enough and in just the right spot on the field to hit safely.

To be a professional baseball player requires not only a good amount of natural talent, but also the proper attitude and mental makeup that drives them to put in the work to learn and improve their skills on a consistent basis. Major league baseball players must also have a very high level of confidence, patience and discipline at the plate, not to mention the ability to deal with failure regularly because even the best major league hitters fail nearly 70 percent of the time.

They have to have a very short memory.

But before a baseball player can even make it to the major leagues, most have to endure a path that lasts an average of anywhere from three to five years after college. For many minor league players, going from hitting .450 in college to hitting .250 or lower in the minor leagues while competing with the best prospects in the country can be an overwhelming and humbling experience that most have never had to deal with.

Added to all of this is the daily grind of taking batting practice, fielding practice, individual instruction, traveling, and playing in games nightly. Professional baseball players have to have perseverance and stamina, as many major and minor league players routinely put in 10-12 hour shifts daily.

The odds of most minor league players making it through to the major league level are not very good, so for the players that do make it to the big leagues – they truly are the best of the best. The financial rewards for making it to the professional ranks are high – the average salary for a major league baseball player is around $3.3 million.

Being a brain surgeon requires many of the same types of skills that major league baseball players require, and the road to becoming a neurosurgeon is a long and arduous one to say the least. To become a brain surgeon, a person must have a college degree, four years of medical school, at least a one-year internship, and another four years of residency before they are ever allowed to operate.

It’s not uncommon for neurosurgeons to spend 12-18 hours in one surgery session, and while they do get breaks, it can be extremely stressful. To work in such an environment requires patience, confidence and stamina – not to mention a high degree of hand-eye coordination.

For a brain surgeon the margin for error, all day long, is pretty much zero. A millimeter too far to the right or to the left could mean the difference between paralysis and mobility, pain or relief, life or death.

The average salary for a neurosurgeon is $471,596.

To say that we as a society hold “professionals” like surgeons, air traffic controllers, or high-ranking public officials to a pretty high standard is a huge understatement.

The 2011 major league baseball season has been frustrating and disappointing to the Minnesota Twins organization and fans alike. While it can be argued that many off-season moves and non-moves were huge contributors to the worst season in recent memory, this season has not been kind to the Twins.

Along with a lot of other fans, I have been critical of the organization as well as the players on a number of occasions this season, and have been chided with responses such as, “Oh, so you think you could do better?”

No, I can’t. But the fact is – I don’t get paid to do it.

Baseball is a hard game to play, there’s no doubting that. I’m sure that running a successful major league franchise is incredibly difficult as well. But just because something is hard to do, does that mean that the people that get paid large sums of money to do it should get “a pass” when they don’t perform?

I can’t hit a major league fastball any better than I can perform brain surgery.

Is it fair to compare baseball to brain surgery? Probably not.

But should fans that spend their hard-earned money to see baseball games, buy over-priced beers and team apparel have a right to hold players and franchises to a high standard?

I’d be very interested to hear what someone else thinks.

Category: Minnesota Twins / Tags: , ,

Note to Ron Gardenhire: Fair or foul – it’s an argument you can’t win

August 19, 2011 / Keith / One comment

During last night’s 8-4 loss to the Yankees, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire was ejected from the game in the first inning for arguing the umpires’ video replay overturn of Justin Morneau’s towering foul ball to right field.

What did Gardenhire really think he would accomplish by trotting out onto the field to bark at the umpires in protest? Did he think that they would fold under the pressure of his belligerence and give way with a “Ya’ know what Ron – you’re right, it was a home run.”

Or did Gardenhire, knowing that the opening game of this four game series with the Yankees was a key to the Twins’ chances at making another miracle run at a division crown, use it as the equivalent to a hockey fight to motivate his team to a grind-it-out emotional victory?

Maybe Gardy was just so fed up with the Twins getting beaten practically every time they play the Yankees that he just couldn’t endure the thought of sitting through another loss. Including postseason play, the Twins are 19-60 against the Yankees under Gardenhire’s tenure as manager.

Maybe home plate umpire Brian O’Nora did Gardenhire a favor.

“In my opinion, if one replay shows it could be fair and one replay shows it could be foul, no one really is positive, how the hell do you change it?” Gardenhire said. “I could show you three views where the ball disappears behind the pole; it depends on the camera angle.”

The fact of the matter is that it doesn’t matter. It’s just like trying to argue balls and strikes – it’s grounds for immediate dismissal.

The question is, if the home run had counted and Gardenhire remained in the game, would it really have mattered? Based on the Twins’ abominable record versus the Yankees over the last decade, combined with the super-sized helping of negative karma the Twins seem to be experiencing this season – not a chance.

Category: Ron Gardenhire / Tags: , ,

The Minnesota Twins Need A Change

August 18, 2011 / Keith / One comment

Category: GM Bill Smith / Tags: ,

A Few More “Billy Blunders” From The Twins’ General Manager

August 17, 2011 / Keith / No comments

I have a hard time disconnecting. I told myself weeks ago that I was done following the Twins this season, and I actually made it a few games without watching at all. But I love baseball, and since DishNetwork doesn’t provide the MLB Network and since ESPN only has a few games a week, I find myself pulled like a magnet to channel 436 on the DVR.

I love the Twins. Which is why I can’t sit idly by and just watch the season go down the toilet – especially when I can’t see how next season is going to be any better. Not with Bill Smith at the helm. That’s why I think he has to go.

I realize there is a huge list of “Billy Blunders” that have led to the current state of the organization. I’ve received a few comments of moves and non-moves that I neglected to mention in my short list from yesterday.

But to me, the ones that really stand out are the most recent ones. Like this past off-season when basically the entire bullpen was allowed to walk. Yeah, let’s fill those oh-so-key relief positions with guys that are unproven at this level. Great idea, Bill. With the exception of Glen Perkins, none of the guys that the Twins came to rely on really had any experience getting major league hitters out.

And what about this season’s trade deadline? At six games back, the Twins had about a one percent chance of making the playoffs. Despite this, Bill Smith proclaimed that “We’re contenders” yet did absolutely nothing to improve the ball club while the “real” contenders in the division made moves to try to strengthen their teams for a stretch run.

Another key non-move in my opinion goes back several seasons; Not since Johan Santana was a starter have the Twins had a true ace of the staff. Since then, the entire pitching staff has been comprised of “number three” guys. You just can’t contend with sub-par starting pitching.

One of the things that I feel has been a real detriment has been winning the woeful central division so frequently in the last few years. This has led to the already-delusional front office believing that we were “this close” to making it out of the first round, when really nothing could be further from the truth.

These are merely my opinions. I’d love to hear yours.

Category: GM Bill Smith / Tags: , ,

A Few Lowlights of Bill Smith’s Tenure as Twins’ GM

August 16, 2011 / Keith / One comment

There are a number of moves and non-moves that have contributed to the demise of the Twins, and in the upcoming days and weeks we’ll discuss all the gory details, but for now, here’s a short list of the “Lowlights” of Bill Smith’s tenure as Minnesota Twins GM:

  • Matt Garza, Jason Bartlett, and Eduardo Morlan to Tampa Bay for Delmon Young, Brendan Harris, and Jason Pridie – Wow, how cool would it be to have a pitcher like Garza now?
  • Johan Santana to the Mets for Carlos Gomez, Phil Humber, Kevin Mulvey, and Deolis Guerra. Smith was offered a package of Jon Lester, Coco Crisp, Justin Masterson, and Jed Lowrie by the Red Sox and turned it down because he wanted Jacoby Ellsbury instead of Crisp. It was also reported the Yankees offered Phil Hughes, Melky Cabrera, and two prospects but Smith turned it down because Ian Kennedy was not included in the deal.
  • J.J. Hardy to Baltimore in December 2010 for minor league relievers Jim Hoey and Brett Jacobson. WTF?
  • Brian Fuentes, Jesse Crain, Matt Guerrier, and Jon Rauch leave as free agents with no attempt to resign any of them. Losing key components of last season’s bullpen and thinking that those holes could be filled by minor league pitchers is simply ludicrous.
  • Trade deadline 2011 –  If the Twins were “contenders” why did he do nothing to improve the club like the real contenders in the division did? And if you were going to trade anyone , wouldn’t the time to do it have been at the deadline when you could have actually got something in return? 
Category: GM Bill Smith / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
 
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