On Tuesday over at ESPN's Sweetspot, an article was penned about the golden age of leadoff hitters. Major League Baseball could be in the middle of one of the best year's ever for the leadoff hitter. 1965, 1975, 1987, and 2004 were some other great years for men at the top of the order but this year could be historic. Players like Shin-Soo Choo, Austin Jackson, Alex Gordon, Ian Kinsler, and Carl Crawford are leading a pack of leadoff hitters that are among some of the best in all of ...
Updated 05-08-2013 at 06:04 PM by Cody Christie
When the Twins traded Francisco Liriano to the Chicago White Sox last July, it seemed like the club was getting a bag of balls and some chewing gum in return. There wasn't much to get excited about with names like Pedro Hernadez and Eduardo Escobar. Flashforward a couple of months later and it is starting to look more and more like the Twins got some servicable players. Escobar has built himself a nice little niche in the Twins clubhouse. Manager Ron Gardenhire uses him as a late inning ...
Since the Twins won last Sunday to go 4-2, they have lost five consecutive games and fallen to the basement of the AL Central. More to the point, they now have one of the worst run differentials in the AL and their offensive, defensive, and pitching stats are among the worst, as well. There haven't been many positive surprises and there have been disappointments throughout the roster. The #1 disappointment has to be Aaron Hicks, hitting a microscopic .057 with an OPS of .155. Vanimal ...
Twins fans have been spoiled in the last two seasons. Ben Revere made base stealing look easy. Even Denard Span could swipe a base or two if the club needed it. Both of these men are in different uniforms to start the 2013 season. In fact, three of the top four base stealers from the 2012 Twins are no longer with the organization. Last year the Twins stole 135 bases, which ranked first in the American League. In 2011, the club finished in 10 place in the AL with 92 stolen ...
Updated 04-10-2013 at 06:55 AM by Cody Christie
Six games is only the first step in a marathon, but the Twins have been more entertaining than I though they would be. I don't think any of the question marks have been answered, but they have managed to be in every game and managed to squeak out three one-run wins out of the first six games. I am not getting my hopes up, but there are a lot of things that make this club worth watching. In no particular order, here are some observations I have after one week of baseball. ...
There were a few surprises on Opening Day at Target Field but for the most part, the game went according to plan. Justin Verlander pitched well. Joe Mauer got his hits. Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder know how to get RBI. The inexperienced Minnesota bats didn't know how to get an RBI. This all led to the Tigers coming out on top. One interesting move made was actually a player left on the bench. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Ron Gardenhire turned to his bench and ...
Originally posted at Kevin Slowey was Framed! Yesterday, I unveiled what will almost certainly go down in history as my most popular original idea: a weekly (fake) mailbag. In that mailbag I asked myself... I mean, I was asked about the Twins player I am higher on than most. I chose Pedro Florimon because I think his defense can provide enough value to overcome his complete lack of contribution on offense. I am not sure I explained my point very well and I wasn't feeling good about ...
Updated 03-16-2013 at 05:01 PM by Brad Swanson
Rumors have been swirling about the possibility of the return of Jim Thome to the Minnesota Twins. There are plenty of different things floating out there so let's try and organize some of these thoughts. Here is some of the information that is known to the public. Thome, the 42-year old slugger, is still unemployed and he wants to find a team to play for in 2013. Over the past couple seasons, Thome has been looking to play for a contender so he could ...
It's official. Twins position players are required to report to Fort Myers today. The team's first official workout will be held tomorrow morning. Quite a few of the players have already reported for duty and have been taking part in informal workouts. The road to the Opening Day 2013 officially starts now and it's time to get the bad taste out of their mouths from the last two seasons. This could be quite the challenge with the roster that has been compiled by the front ...
In Twinsland, this offseason has been marked by a couple of trades that have been embraced by the community and a couple of free agent acquisitions that have been viciously attacked by a large portion of the fan base. Most of us love what Terry Ryan did with the Twins' only marketable surplus, center fielders. Moving Denard Span for Alex Meyer and then flipping Ben Revere for Vance Worley and Trevor May were classic Ryan moves, taking advantage of competitive ...
TwinsFest is one of the most fun weekends for fans of the Minnesota Twins and this past weekend was no different. There is excitement building for the new season, fans can gather to talk about their passion, and the players are happy to interact with fans of all ages. During the last couple of years, one of my favorite parts of the weekend has been the fan question and answer session with Terry Ryan, Jim Pohlad, and Dave St. Peter. It offers fans ...
On Tuesday night, one of the legs of the Minnesota Twins caravan made a stop in the Fargo-Moorhead area. The location for this event was "The Venue" at "The Hub." Doors opened at 5:00 pm but the event didn't start until 6:30 pm. The hour and a half "pre-game" was for fans to enjoy a ballpark meal of hot dogs, chips, and soda. Current Twins players Scott Diamond and Glen Perkins along with Twins great Tony Oliva were there to take part in the festivities. Cory Provus was there to give ...
Updated 01-23-2013 at 07:11 AM by Cody Christie
Earlier last week, I looked into some of the Twins possible candidates for the leadoff hitter role in 2013. With Denard Span and Ben Revere traded to the National League, there is some question about who will step up and earn the leadoff spot out of spring training. Aaron Hicks looks like the leadoff hitter of the future but that doesn't mean that he will star the year in Minnesota. This could leave a big hole in the first spot in the batting order. ...
Over the last two seasons, the two men that accounted for most of the at-bats in the leadoff spot for the Twins were Denard Span and Ben Revere. These two men have been traded away this offseason and this leaves a gaping hole at the top of the order (and in center field but that's a post for a different day). There will be a few different candidates to be the lead-off hitter and a lot of the decision will come down to who wins the vacancies in center field and ...
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