Twins vs Rays, 08-11-2012, 6:10pm

[minn55441]

I'm surprised no one has commented on Revere's assist at 2B. I know it's baby step improvement, but still an impressive throw compared to previous attempts.

Very nice throw, right on the button and not a lot of air under it. I think all of the revere haters have run for cover.

[minn55441]

11 hits through 6 innings for Blackie.

[greengoblinrulz]

isnt this about a Nick Blackburn version of a perfect game???

[minn55441]

I was going to call it a quality start, but then thought better of it and deleted that part of the post.

[greengoblinrulz]

Hey Bert, was that ball that Doumit missed 'glowing'.....he is tough to listen to

Wouldnt say anything about how, 40 secs earlier, he talked about how easy it was to see the ball on popups......

[ashburyjohn]

Twins are in for a tough one tonight against David Price. Like most great pitchers we will have to get to him early.

I guess we have our proof that Nick Blackburn is a great pitcher, then, because the Rays got to him early.

[minn55441]

Hey Bert, was that ball that Doumit missed 'glowing'.....he is tough to listen to

Wouldnt say anything about how, 40 secs earlier, he talked about how easy it was to see the ball on popups......

OK, I'll just come out and say it. Drew would have caught that ball.

[minn55441]

Nice inning for Burton.

[minn55441]

Nice inning for Burton. So is that a feather in the cap of Krivsky? He has really pitched well this year and I think he was the main guy behind the signing.
Does that improve his chances of eventually succeeding Ryan?

[J-Dog Dungan]

Wow, really hard to win when your 9-1-2-3 guys are a combined 0-15. That is just terrible. Revere is in some kind of slump after that 21 game hit streak

[greengoblinrulz]

Gardy said postgame about Blackie/starters.....Ill take 3/4 er in 6IP any day......WOW have we lowered expectations

[jokin]

Wow, really hard to win when your 9-1-2-3 guys are a combined 0-15. That is just terrible. Revere is in some kind of slump after that 21 game hit streak

Mauer and Willingham aren't doing all that much better:

Last 4 games:
Mauer 3/14 .214
Willingham 3/15 .200
Revere 2/18 .111

Last 10 games:
Mauer 8/36 .222
Willingham 5/34 .147
Revere 15/45 .333

[jokin]

Gardy said postgame about Blackie/starters.....Ill take 3/4 er in 6IP any day......WOW have we lowered expectations

Well, given that Blackie's game-ERA was 6.00, that actually lowered his ERA to 7.33, so technically Gardy is cheering on the obvious improvement...and that 2.00 WHIP rate gave the infield extra double play practice. With the 3 dingers given up tonight, Blackie also vaulted himself into the HR/9 lead among starters, now standing at 2.18/9I. So yes, a quality start all the way around.

[Top Gun]

J. Marquis (W, 6-6) cg 2 hit shutout over pirates!

[greengoblinrulz]

J. Marquis (W, 6-6) cg 2 hit shutout over pirates!

sure.....no Rick Anderson telling him to quicken up his pace

13gms for SD 83.2IP 79h 34er (3.66ERA) 70k (7.5/9) 21bb 10hr's

[jokin]

J. Marquis (W, 6-6) cg 2 hit shutout over pirates!

sure.....no Rick Anderson telling him to quicken up his pace

13gms for SD 83.2IP 79h 34er (3.66ERA) 70k (7.5/9) 21bb 10hr's

We make light of it, but this really is inexplicable. Was there an underlying medical issue, philosophical difference, mechanical adjustment? How does a pitcher go from possibly delivering the worst SP performance by a starter in the opening 2 months to practically a reliable #3 starter with only a team change to account for obvious difference?

[Top Gun]

I remember him beating the Yankees in April, but the Twins kept jerking him around as the 5th sp. Favoring Hendriks!

[jokin]

I remember him beating the Yankees in April, but the Twins kept jerking him around as the 5th sp. Favoring Hendriks!

2 out of 6 quality starts after that (w/ 4 dreadful ones) and then he was gone soon after the Cole DeVries-like 8 ER batting-practice performance in 1.2 innings against Milwaukee. Seems like the Twins have gone full circle.

Since joining the Padres, 8/13 QS- good to be back in the NL and Petco Park!

[jokin]

http://espn.go.com/blog/sweetspot/po...-marquis-event

Great article on Marquis, with the money quote:

"One of the reliably entertaining things about baseball is that pitchers you think are done -- because they must be done, must have absolutely nothing left in the tank whatsoever -- surprise you, because they don’t really agree with what you or I think. They’d rather keep giving it a go, and whether you want to celebrate small sample sizes, selective situations or honest-to-god comebacks, they make it happen.

Enter Jason Marquis stage right, a perfect example of why -- to quote with former Cardinals ace Joaquin Andujar’s “favorite word” -- with pitchers youneverknow. With Saturday night’s two-hit shutout of the Pirates, Marquis provided yet another reminder that as long as someone is still willing to let you play, you have a chance to make your career a going concern."


"Using Bill James’ fast and fun metric, Game Score, Marquis’ start grades as an 86 against the Pirates, which ties exactly with a career-best mark he’s achieved three times before, for three different teams: in 2005 for the Cardinals against the Nationals; in 2007 for the Cubs against the Pirates; and in 2009 for the Rockies against the Dodgers.

Matching that with the Padres makes Marquis four-for-four in personal excellence in different team togs, which is perhaps no surprise since Marquis’ career has featured so many resurrections that it’s an open question over who envies him more, cats or zombies."

This is why I advocated hitting the waiver wire for DFA-available potential SPs available to bolster the Twins, "trying out" for the Twins on the releasing team's dime, rather than the strictly in-house approach- which included a pitcher with virtually no shot as anything but a spot-starter at most, like Duensing. The claimed retreads don't work out, they get released at essentially not cost.