Doing Something Good, Again

UPDATE: I just wanted to let you know that Dewluca has graciously set up a Facebook page for this project (see the comments section for the link). Also, since watching Jim Thome hit homers is so much fun, I've decided that I'll also donate a food item for every tater he mashes. This is gonna be fun!

September is almost here. The summer is winding down, school is about to start, football is ramping up. It's easy to kind of check out on the Twins' season.

But, this is the time the Twins need us most. They're pushing to the playoffs; the call-ups are coming soon. It's just getting good.

About this time last season, I was tired of watching this team flounder and piss away the rest of the season. I needed a fun boost to keep hanging with them. At the same time, I knew I wanted to make a food donation to my local food shelf and I was looking for a way to know how much to buy. So I decided to pledge two food items for every Twins win. Now, as then, I like Twins' wins much better than Twins' losses.

My pledge worked much better than I expected. For one, the Twins must've been truly motivated by my idea, because they pulled it together and won the division. Also, I wound up donating way more than I thought I would -- I figured it would be 30, maybe 40 items. Turned out it was 66 (actually 70).

I had so much fun, I'm going to do it again. For every Twins win from Sept. 1 until the day they're cleaning out their lockers, I pledge two food items. Last year, I pledged for opponents' losses too, but that just seems like bad karma, so I won't do that. To make up for those items, I'll kick one in here and there as my whim strikes me (for such fun things as complete game wins, cycles, dramatic walk-off hits, etc.).

Again, I pledge to find good, healthful foods that families can use, plus few treat items.

I challenge you to join me in this pledge. It's fun, and it makes you feel good. And as far as making the Twins win, it can't hurt and it might help.

Twins at Mariners: Hanging Out with Good People

Recap:
Friday -- Twins 6 - Mariners 3
Saturday -- Twins 1 - Mariners 0
Sunday -- Twins 1 - Mariners 2

Record: 75 - 56, 4 1/2 games ahead. Magic Number: 28

This series featured opportunities to hang out with some fun people and watch great pitching. All three starting pitchers this series were very good and very fun to watch (too bad the bats couldn't help Pavano a little more on Sunday).

On Friday night, Scotty was pretty impressive. It was nice to see him coast along.

Unfortunately, even though I directly requested that Randy Flores make a good first impression, he didn't. I didn't enjoy seeing the bases loaded with no outs.

Then, when Guerrier came out in that situation, I admit, I was pretty nervous. I love Matty, but I know he's been struggling a bit lately (perhaps overused? Again?). But, boy, did he ever cowboy-up -- foul pop and GIDP! Very hot.

Oh, and I guess I need to welcome Brian Fuentes. At least I know who he is. So welcome Brian. It was a funny story when I first heard the news of his claim. My husband and I were hanging out with our dear friends, and their son told me that the Twins got Brian Fuentes. I said, "no, no, no. That was Randy Flores a couple of days ago." Ha. I didn't find out until I got home that the young man was right. Which kind of predicted my new tendency of confusing those two names. Be warned, there's a very good chance if I say "Randy Flores" I mean "Brian Fuentes," or vice versa.

Or not -- I'll try to be careful.

~~~

Saturday I went to another great viewing party -- this time a combo effort by Sooze and TwinsCentric. It was a fun time hanging out with a bunch of great Twins fans and bloggers. I custom-made a t-shirt just for the event: the front featured my little logo girl, and the back said "Chicks Dig the Infield Fly Rule." Also, the famous k-bro k-brownies showed up with me. I think everyone's getting tired of them though; I had a hard time getting rid of them.

Nick Blackburn gave us an awesome game to cheer for, too. In fact, it was smokin' hott! Not only did he strike out Ichiro three times, he totally blew him away. Ichiro was totally over matched in his final at bat. When Gardy took Blackie out after he walked Chone Figgins, I admit that my heart was a little sad. It wanted him to get the CGSO. However, my head realized that bringing in Brian Fuentes in that situation was a good move -- this was exactly why the Twins got him. And he brilliantly struck out Russel Branyon. That's the first impression I liked to see.

~~~

Sunday morning, my family and I went to the State Fair. We did the typical fair things we always do: the Grandstand and Coliseum vendor booths, Ye Olde Mill, the Sky Glide, all our favorite TV stations' and radio stations' booths, bacon, milk, cookies, turkey sandwiches, lemonade, and the Twins booth.

Behind the Twins booth, they had a wiffle ball field set up. As I watched Tony Oliva pitch to little kids (cute!), I heard a voice I recognized. I turned around to see Bill Smith. He was chatting with some fans, so I shuffled his way. My guys wanted to go look at some Ford trucks (I don't know why), so they left, and I waited for Mr. Smith to finish with those other folks.

When it was my turn, he shook my hand and greeted me warmly. The first thing I said to him was, "so Brian Fuentes made you look like a genius yesterday." He said his wife said the same thing. Since no one else appeared to be waiting to talk to him, we hung out for quite a while. I told him I was really enjoying this season and that I was really happy that the team have some great guys on it -- we may have some stars like Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau, but they're not bratty stars like Carlos Zambrano. He said those kind of players don't stay on the Twins very long. We talked about how great Jim Thome is and how the fans seem to really like him. And he said that he really admires Michael Cuddyer because he's such a team-oriented player and that he's so willing to do what's asked of him (Cuddy's played six different positions this season). Bill Smith was very patient talking with this dorky fan and he's great to visit with. He's a really nice guy.

Later, Carl Pavano pitched a good game, -- a wild pitch and a slow outfielder as his only downfalls -- but it wasn't meant to be, I guess. Bummer.

Twins at Rangers: Narrow Escape

Recap:
Monday — Twins 0 - Rangers 6
Tuesday — Twins 3 - Rangers 4
Wednesday — Twins 3 - Rangers 4
Thursday — Twins 6 - Rangers 4

Record: 73-55, 3 1/2 games up

Whew. That was close. That series was ugly, but it could've been horrendous.

On Monday, the Twins narrowly escaped being no-hit thanks to Joe Mauer. No, really, THANKS Joe Mauer. No one wants to be no-hit. And as much as I love historical pitching performances, I don't like them when they happen against my Twins.  Even though it would have been a combined no-hitter, it still would've been historical — I guess they're more rare than single-guy no-hitters. (To be fair, I don't know that for sure, and I'm too lazy to look it up. Someone on Twitter said that — I don't remember who (sorry) — so, ... yeah. This is one drawback to following a bunch of people: someone says something cool four days ago, and there's no going back to find it.)

So, by the time Wednesday's game was over, it looked pretty clear that the Twins would be swept. As if being swept in a regular series wasn't bad enough, being swept in a four-game series would've been almost unforgivable. They were facing Cliff Lee in the final game — this didn't look good.

But, happily, the Twins escaped certain embarrassment, got it together and took the last game. Liriano was stellar, and the offense shook off their yips. Although, it did help that Cliff Lee kind of stunk. Which leads to talk about him "phoning it in" for the Rangers ever since he went there.

These rumors neither surprise nor upset me.

~~~

I guess I should give a nice polite welcome Randy Flores. I really need to follow National League teams more, since the Twins seem to gather their pitching staff from there.

So, Randy, welcome to the Twins. I don't know anything about you, so feel free to make a good first impression.

Angels at Twins: Royal Love

Recap:
Friday -- Angels 2 - Twins 7
Saturday -- Angels 9 - Twins 3
Sunday -- Angels 0 - Twins 4

Record: 72-52; 5 games ahead

I'm in a loving mood this morning. So I thought I'd spread some around...

Brian Duensing -- Aww, honey. It looks like you're all growed up to be a real pitcher. Also, it made my heart sing when you tried so valiantly to come in for the ninth. I'm so proud.
Jim Thome -- Another triple -- your second of the year. I love triples. It's so cute when you have to run.
Jason Kubel -- Ok, so home runs aren't quite as adorable as triples, I do still love them when you hit them. So keep it up.
Any Lefthanded Person Not Named Glen Perkins -- I love you because I honestly think you might be able to help the bullpen. With Mahay and Mijares hurt, and Glen Perkins being (ack) Glen Perkins, you've got a real shot.
Scott Baker -- Rocking the goatee and pitching shutout innings. Very sexy indeed.
Danny Valencia -- That home run was pretty impressive. And you're so cute, I could just give you a big squeeze (in a totally non-creepy way, of course).
Michael Cuddyer -- You not only fought off like 692 pitches from Jered Weaver -- some of which are one you typically strike out on -- and then finally hitting a juicy double, you also sacrificed your ego and intentionally looked silly on the basepaths so that Kubel could score from first. Also, did you see what you did to Weaver's face? I thought his forehead was going to burst. Bonus love for that.
Kevin Slowey -- Get well soon, honey. Again.

And, last but not least, The Kansas City Royals -- You took an excruciatingly cruel scheduling snafu against the White Sox, and beat them two of three. In extra innings. For all three games. All within 24 hours. Thank you.

White Sox at Twins: Fortune Telling

Recap:
Tuesday: White Sox 6 - Twins 7 (Thank you Jim Thome for showing the White Sox that you love the Twins more than them.)
Wednesday: White Sox 6 - Twins 7 (Joe Mauer finally hits his first Target Field homer, then apologizes for it taking so long. What a nice boy.)
Thursday: White Sox 11 - Twins 0 (Ouch)

Record: 70 - 51, 4 games ahead

I gotta admit, after Tuesday's and Wednesday's dramatic, come-from-behind wins, I may have been a little caught up in the excitement of it all. And maybe, just maybe, I allowed myself to think things like "if we can sweep them, then we're a shoo-in for the playoffs." Actually, I was feeling pretty cocky. But, in my defense, I wasn't the only one. Even ESPN folks were saying that Thursday's game was a "must win" for the Sox and that they might be done if they didn't win.

But then Thursday's game brought Twins fans right back to earth -- and not so gently I might add.

You know the tired old adage hopeful baseball fans like to use, especially at the beginning of the season: "it's a marathon, not a sprint." And, while at this time of the season no longer qualifies as a marathon, it isn't sprint-worthy yet either. I guess it's more of a 5k. There isn't a whole lot of time, but a lot can still happen.

With that much season left, trying to predict the playoff picture in the AL Central is a lot like using one of those paper fortune tellers girls make in middle school.

As of today, the future is still unpredictable. The Twins and the White Sox both know what they need to do to get what they want. Heck, even the Indians aren't mathematically eliminated yet.

Every game in the season is important. A win in April counts the same as a win in September. But now, there's a lot less time to try to recover from any extended slump -- there is no waiting a few weeks for a hot streak to begin. There's time for the proverbial pendulum to swing, but not necessarily enough time for it to come back. It's all a matter of execution.

Yeah. The Twins' chances for making the playoff look pretty good today. And it doesn't seem like they'll have to fight off a colossal collapse. But we just don't know.

So the whole "oooh, the Sox's season is over, the Twins are gonna run away with it" attitude I was sporting was premature. I'd better watch out, or else fortunes might change.

Book Review: As They See 'Em

Bruce Weber. As They See 'Em: A Fan's Travels in the Land of Umpires. New York, NY: Scribner, 2009, 356 pp., $16.00 (cover price). ISBN 978-0-7432-9413-3

If you've been a fan of baseball, at any level, for more than 15 minutes, you have an opinion on umpires. For better or worse, whether they're right or they're wrong, whether you notice them or not, there they are. But no one really knows much about them. As critical to baseball as the pitchers mound or home plate, the umpires are also the most criticized, and often the most threatened, part of the game. So it's good to see things from their perspective.

Bruce Weber allows us to look into this odd fraternity of officials with artful and interesting thoroughness. He covers all aspect of umpiring from schooling, to toiling in the minors, to making it in the bigs, to the history of the profession, to the current state of umpiring. Every topic that has an impact on the men (and very few women) who are charged with representing the rules of the game is covered in this great book.

Well-researched and packed with first-hand accounts, this book is rich with interesting detail and fascinating examination. Weber not only does his homework thoroughly, but he also attended an umpiring academy and officiated a few games himself.

Baseball is prone to cliche and hyperbole, but Weber's accounts and descriptions are so well written and creative, this book is quite engaging and enlightening. While he reveals the umpires' perspective favorably, he remains honest and neutral. And even though it's robustly complete, it's not dry or stodgy. He inserts plenty of humor and cleverness to make this book charismatic.

I really enjoyed this book, and I learned a lot reading it. I highly recommend reading it if you care about baseball or umpiring at all; it's worth your time. Grade: A

A's at Twins: Sweep out the Ugly Shoes

Recap:
Friday -- A's 3 - Twins 4
Saturday -- A's 0 - Twins 2
Sunday -- A's 2 - Twins 4

Record: 68-50, 3 games ahead

Well, isn't that nice. A very groovy sweep, with the added bonus of gaining some ground in the division (thanks Tigers!). I like it a lot!

I've gotta admit, I didn't catch much of Friday's or Saturday's games. (I'm really really bummed that I missed Duensing's gem -- I was hanging out with friends who wanted to watch the Vikings preseason game. I know, I know, but they're great friends anyway.)

So, since I went to Sunday's game, I'll talk about that. I had a wonderful time.

• Beautiful day for baseball. After the recent hot and humid streak Minnesota's been having, it was an absolutely glorious day. It was maybe a bit breezy, but not too chilly.
  
  
  
• Ok, I know I'm a grown woman. Heck, even my kids are grown. But I bought myself a package of Twins Silly Bandz.

(If you don't know what Silly Bandz are, don't worry about it. You'll find out soon enough.)
• Remember the breeze? Well, it's a lot swirlier inside the ballpark. To which, my husband proclaims "it's too windy, there's no way anyone's hitting a homerun today." This comes into play later.
• The 9-year-old girl who sung the National Anthem was fantastic. 
• Twingo! I've never done Twingo -- I don't know why; it just never happened. But I quickly learn that it's kind of hard...I mean how often does one see CI, K-PB, or 7-4 anyway? This also comes into play later.
• I want to hug Jason Repko. Ain't no way Delmon Young makes those catches.
• About the fifth inning or so, I find myself shushing guys around me for saying words that rhyme with "bo bitter." Yes, I'm superstitious. 
• About the same time, I notice Kevin Slowey is getting into some 3-ball counts, but he's been also getting a lot of called third strikes. 
• My son seems to have every play that happens printed on his Twingo card. And when Slowey plunked Mark Ellis, he won. He got a t-shirt.

(He thought it was lame, so he gave it to me.)
• Remember the wind and what my husband said about it? Yeah, well Jim Thome went ahead and proved him wrong...right after I told my mom "Jim Thome is horrible against lefties." I guess he showed us, huh? It was awesome that the guy who caught that hot tater was wearing a Thome shirt.
• And then the booing...Kevin Slowey had pitched 7 innings of no-hit baseball, and Gardy took him out and went with Rauch to start the eighth. Many fans were not happy about it. And said so. I agree with Gardy's decision -- Kev just missed a start with elbow soreness; there's no need to re-sore it. Also, he was beginning to pitch erratically and leave some pitches up; he was getting outs by sheer luck. When he hit Ellis, it was pretty clear he was done. Gardy made the right choice. I don't really blame the fans for booing, though. It was turning out to be a special game, and we wanted it to stay that way. It's not very often that an average fan gets to see a no-hitter, and we were mad that it wasn't going to happen this time. Gardy may have made the right decision, but it doesn't mean we have to like it. For what's it's worth, I didn't boo. I don't ever boo (well, that's not exactly true; I've been know to boo an umpire or two). But I did groan when I saw Rauch come out. I would've rather seen Guerrier or Crain.
• Rauch rewarded my groaning by giving up two doubles, and both those runners scored. So much for that. Crain makes it a little interesting by throwing a wild pitch, then getting one of those famous 6-5-4-6 fielders' choices. But then he gets one of those Slowey-esque called third strikes.
• This was my first chance seeing Matt Capps live. Single. Double-play. Ground-out. I'll take it.
• If there was any negative about this game, it was that the Twins left 12 (twelve!) men on base. Not good. Not good at all. But, as long as they win...