Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Live Blog Gone.

I deleted the live blog of game 163. I didn't like the way it turned out and don't think I will be doing that again. Cool idea, but baseball is a bad subject for that media. Maybe the Winter Meetings will be a better time to live blog.

Tomorrow I plan to write a blog on the first round of the ALDS and NLDS. It will focus primarily on the Twins/Yankees series with a few updates about what is going on around the rest of the MLB. Stay tuned.

Monday, October 5, 2009

There Must Be Some Magic In That Old Air Supported Dome

The Twins were supposed to play their last game in the Dome Sunday afternoon, but it appears the Dome has a few memories left to hand out. Twins fans will have one more opportunity to watch their team play under the Teflon sky with hope in their hearts. Tuesday afternoon the Twins will face the Detroit Tigers in a winner take all game for the American League Central Division Title.

The Tigers have been reeling the last few weeks going 4-6 in their last ten and blowing a seven game lead over the Twins in the month of September. The Twins have been the hottest team in baseball going 16-4 in their last 20 games. The Twins have the momentum leading into this game and will have a huge advantage in possession of the home field.

On paper the pitching match-up looks to favor the Tigers. Right hander Rick Porcello will take the mound Tuesday for the Tigers to face right hander Scott Baker for the Twins. Porcello has a better ERA against the Twins, but at 20 years of age the rookie is untested in big games. While Baker hasn’t played in many big games either; he is older and has much more seasoning at the minor and major league levels. Baker will be facing a Tiger lineup that he has faced several times in the past, and Porcello and the Tigers will be forced to make a decision. Do they pitch to Joe Mauer or not? The easy answer is ‘not’, however Jason Kubel and Michael Cuddyer will be more than happy to make them pay for putting Mauer on base.

The Twins line-up is one of the hottest in the majors. Mauer has all but secured his third batting title in four seasons and leads the American League with a 1.031 OBS. Cuddyer has filled the hole at first base left by Justin Morneau and leads the team with 32 home runs. Kubel has career highs in 27 home runs and 102 RBIs this season and has developed into one of the Twins most consistent power threats. However, these guys can’t carry the team by themselves. They need someone to set the table for them, and that is what the top and bottom of the order have been doing. Nick Punto is looking like the piranha of 2006. While his batting average is a meager .228; he has been battling pitchers lately and having good at-bats. He draws many walks and can give pitchers a hard time on the base path. He also does the little things well like laying down sacrifice bunts and turning double plays. Denard Span is the best leadoff batter the Twins have had since Chuck Knoblauch. His patience at the plate is almost as good as Mauer’s and I wouldn’t want anyone else patrolling the outfield. Orlando Cabrera has come in and provided some excellent veteran leadership while maintaining a 15 game hitting streak.

Defensively the teams match up pretty evenly. The infield and outfields are a wash, but the Twins have an advantage behind the plate. Not only does Mauer call a better game than Gerald Laird, but he throws out more base stealers and is better at blocking the plate. This game probably won’t be decided on defense; however I could see Curtis Granderson having some trouble with picking up fly balls against the Teflon ceiling given his recent defensive woes in his home park.

The key for the Tigers in this game will be to score first. They have to take the crowd out of the game if they want to win. The key for the Twins will be to work the count against the rookie Porcello. If they can get a runner or two on base ahead of Mauer with one or less outs then they just might rattle the kid enough to cause him to make a mistake. The Tigers are a tough team, but I think the Twins will win this game. After a disappointing one run loss in the 163rd game last season the Twins are hungry, and they will be looking to eat big, fat meatballs coming across the plate.