Mmmm...Beer

It's Saturday night, and I've got nothing to do. Hubby's away on a trip, and kids are gone too. All my girlfriends are either busy or don't feel like going out. All of this is ok, no big deal really, except I'm in the mood to go out for a beer. I have beer here, but I'm not a fan of drinking alone. So I guess I can pretend I'm going out with someone...hmmm, who should it be? (Oh, calm down. It's just a couple beers, and maybe wings. Besides, I'd totally invite hubby to come along.)

People I'd Take Out for Beer Based Solely on Their Looks:
Johan Santana
Nick Blackburn
Matt Macri
Matt Holliday
David Wright
Albert Pujols
Mike Aviles
Adam Rodriguez from CSI:Miami

People I'd Take Out for Beer Because I Think They'd Be a Ton of Fun and Tell Funny Stories:
Cuddy
Mike Redmond
Nick Punto
Gardy
Boof
Joe Nathan
Bert Blyleven
Kent Hrbek
Duff and Geof from Ace of Cakes
All my blogging and Twitter friends

Well, thinking about this does cheer me up a bunch.

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If you're going to a party to watch the Big Game on Sunday, and it's your job to bring dessert, avoid bringing this cake -- you might get laughed at:


Photo from cakewrecks.blogspot.com

In fact, see this post and this post from Cakewrecks for more hilarious examples of what to avoid bringing to the party.

A Few Things

Brad Radke was my boyfriend -- my first baseball love. And now he's in the Twins Hall of Fame. I'm so proud. And I miss him.

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Jason Kubel avoided arbitration and signed a brand new 2-year contract. Good for him. I guess. I mean, I'm glad he's on the team and all, but I just can't love him. I don't know why. Maybe it's because he reminds me of Dr. Alex Karev from Grey's Anatomy. His character is such an ass on that show. They have the same cocky smirk, so I guess I make the association, unfair as it may be. Sorry Jason.

Photo from FOX Sports


Photo from www.greysanatomyinsider.com

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Seth Everett on XM MLB Radio said something about new stadiums hosting "Flush Offs" during construction. They invite construction workers and their families, members of the media, and other folks they can round up to go in the various restrooms and activate the sinks, toilets, and urinals all at the same time to make sure the plumbing and sewers can handle the demand. He said that they make a big party of it, playing music over the public address, and making a spectacle of counting down to the flushing moment.

I have one question: how do I get in on this? I totally want to be part of Target Field's inaugural flushing.

The k-bro Twins Fest Report

On Sunday, mini-bro, j-bro, j-bro's buddy z, and I braved zero-degree temperatures and journeyed to the Metrodome for the largest mid-winter baseball festival in the major leagues.

Luckily, we were able to park about as close to the Dome as possible, so we kept our jackets in the car and ran to the door. That was really helpful; it's a drag to have to carry your jacket all over.

As we first walked in

When we first walked in, Gardy was at the radio stage talking about Cuddy, and he said something like, "I'm just trying to get him to Twins Fest." My first thought was, "uh oh" because I had read somewhere that he didn't make it Friday due to illness. Getting my picture taken with him was my number one priority.

After Gardy was done, Nicky Punto put on the headset for his turn at the radio interview. We stayed for a few minutes, but we soon wanted to get going to the main floor. I did snap a quick photo as we were walking down the steps.

Our favorite shortstop looking adorable

Speaking of photos, it turns out that I would make a lousy photojournalist. I get caught up in everything going on, I forget to take pictures. So I have to use a lot of words to make up for it.

We did a fair amount of shopping at the collectors' booths; mini-bro collects baseball cards, and he wanted to add to his collection. I treated myself to a Twins grab-bag and scored a nice poster of Cuddy, Justin, and Joey from that stadium construction commercial, a red Twins hat, some Twins school supplies, and a Torii Hunter Gold Glove bobblehead (turns out the Twins Sisters got the exact same grab bag -- what're the odds?).

Soon, it was lunch time, so we grabbed some food and headed back to the radio stage to listen to more interviews.

The first Dome Dog of 2009

John Gordon and the other radio guys were interviewing Jason Kubel. He's not a terribly interesting interview.

Jason Kubel talking about his new contract

But when Jason was done, Nick Blackburn and Kevin Slowey stepped in to be interviewed. Now we're talking. Unfortunately, we couldn't stay too long because we had to go get in the photo line.

Is it me, or does Nick Blackburn get better looking all the time?


It looks like I caught Kevin Slowey with a dumb look on his face. He was much friendlier than this makes him look.

When we were waiting in the photo line, we heard several rumors about Cuddy not being able to make it at all because his whole family is ill. Although I still haven't been able to confirm it, I did believe it and forgot all hopes of seeing him. Oh well, all was not lost. We did get to meet Scott Baker.

Poor Scott. We were towards the end of the line, so by the time we got there, he'd been there almost a half-hour, standing and smiling. He looked so exhausted; it must be hard shuffling from radio interviews to autograph signings to photo stations for three days. But, even though he seemed tired when we first reached him, he bucked up and chatted nicely and smiled for the camera. I appreciated that.


Scott Baker is a good sport.

After that, we went on the pressbox/clubhouse/dugout tour. I've done that before, and it was no different this time.

View from the pressbox.

After that was done, it was time to go. We sprinted in the frigid cold back to the car and headed home. It felt odd leaving the Metrodome and not being stuck in parking lot traffic for hours.

Now I'm ready to bring on spring training and opening day.

When [Bad] Grammar and Baseball Collide

As I've mentioned before, one thing I like almost as much as baseball is good grammar. And as a result, I like to make fun of poor grammar on professionally-made things. If someone pays good money on a sign or website, it really should be correct.

So, imagine my glee when two of my favorite grammar-centric humor blogs (or humor-centric grammar blogs) chose to publish baseball related entries on the same day!

First, from The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks, we have this.

Not only is it unclear how many worlds the series applies to, but apparently SEPTA doesn't really think they're champs.

[For the record, you do not use quotation marks to emphasize words. You would, however, use them to indicate sarcasm or irony.]

Then, from RED PEN, INC. (the author of which also writes a baseball fangirl blog The BILF Report) we have this:


Because these biggest stars belong to the game, it should be game's, not games.

This isn't the first time that MLB has messed up on their e-publications. See here and here for proof. But they are also guilty of another apostrophe blunder. I saw this every time I logged into Game Day Audio to listen to day games last season, and it bugged me like crazy.

Again, because the games belong to the day, it should be TODAY'S GAMES.

Seems like MLB needs a good proofreader.

Oh, and check out the blogs I listed above. They're a ton a fun.

Scraping Together Some Thoughts

After a week of scraping ice off my windshield, sidewalk, and face, I'll scrape together a couple of random thoughts about baseball to help warm me up.

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Well, Bert and Jack didn't get into the Hall of Fame. That's too bad. Bert's votes went up a smidge from last year, but, alas, not enough. Honestly, I don't understand the Hall of Fame voting. Well, I understand that the members of the BBWA vote for the inductees, but I don't understand what goes through some of their minds.

First of all, how can Bert go so long without getting in. His numbers are good enough compared with other inductees, and the stats don't change as time goes by, but he still can't catch a break. And he's understandably frustrated.

Secondly, how do 5% of the voters decide not to vote for Rickey Henderson. I've heard the excuse that since Babe Ruth didn't get 100% of the vote, no one else should either. That's stupid. If you think that someone belongs in the Hall, then vote for him. Period. Besides, the ones who didn't vote for Babe Ruth must have been morons.

And, though I've mentioned it before, it's still stuck in my craw that broadcasters don't get a vote. You can't tell me that great announcers like Vin Scully and Harry Kalas aren't knowledgeable enough to make an intelligent vote. I'm sure they would've voted for Bert, Rickey, and Babe.

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So, there's been some talk that the Twins really need to re-sign Joe Mauer this year, before teams start thinking they have a shot at offering him bagillions of dollars. I couldn't agree more. In fact, I was listening to the MLB talk radio on XM the other day, and a Red Sox fan called in to talk about their needs at catcher, and he said something like they only needed to worry about the next two years and then they can sign Joe Mauer. Umm, excuse me? Mitts off my catcher, bub!

Dear Mr. Smith,
You want to make a bunch of fans in Minnesota after Torii and Johan left on your watch? Sign Joey to a 10-year deal. NOW!
Love,
k-bro

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I'm colossally irritated that single-game tickets aren't going on sale until March 7. Usually they start selling them at Twins Fest. I really, really, really want to go to the final game of the season -- final game in the Metrodome. Actually, I'm one of the few fans I know who doesn't actually mind the Dome. In fact, I see some charm in it -- and there are some great Twins memories there. Oh well, I'll clear my calendar for that morning and expect to spent a bunch of time hitting refresh on the ticket-selling browser page or redial on my phone.

Checking In

Hi. How's everyone? Bored? Tired of winter? Missing baseball? Yeah, me too.

I wanted to check in and say hi. I still think about baseball all the time; it's just too bad that I don't really have anything to say about baseball.

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I suppose I could mention the passing of Mr. Pohlad. I didn't really know much about him other than that he owned the Twins. My opinions of his ownership style are, I suppose, very much like many other fans' -- both good and bad. There's not really anything I can say that hasn't already been said. My sympathies to those who loved him.

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So, we're all still waiting for that great set-up pitcher. Hel-LO? Mr. Smith? Did you forget? Are you going to do something? Better hurry up.

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Twins Fest is coming up! I'm hoping to go on Sunday. I will be good to experience baseball things again. I've been there before; it's a great way to get excited about the upcoming season.

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The Hall Of Fame inductees will be announced Monday. Sounds like Rickey Henderson is a shoo-in (<-- I had to look that up to make sure it wasn't "shoe-in," but my original instincts were right). I'm hoping that Bert and Jack Morris finally make it in this time too. I'm looking forward to hearing the news.

Shoes!

This has nothing whatsoever to do with baseball, but I was so amused that I wanted to share it.

Back in July, when fans all over Twins Territory were anxiously awaiting the return of Francisco Liriano, I wrote a post where I sarcastically mentioned that he might have the power to understand why there are always random shoes laying on the side of the road. Well, I wonder if he has the power to figure this out...

Thousands of Shoes Dumped on a Miami Interstate


Photo from kare11.com

Coincidentally, despite the number of shoes on this road, no one seems to know where these came from either.

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graphic from wondercliparts.com

Get well soon Joe Mauer! Apparently, he had a little procedure to take care of a kidney obstruction. I seem to remember that he's had kidney stone problems in the past. I hope this will make him good as new and ready to go for spring training.