Terry Ryan knocked on the door a few days ago and told Gardy, "Apparently Terry was let go a month ago. There was a glitch in the system and he still got paid. We fixed the Glitch" Gardenhire asked, "So you let him go" Ryan: "We fixed the glitch."

5/12/2005 09:46:00 AM|W|P| Cheesehead Craig|W|P|Ha Ha SBG! Green isn't going to jail, although the man clearly needs couselling. Besides, it seems between Smith and Rincon, the druggies are all here in MN.5/12/2005 10:24:00 AM|W|P| SBG|W|P|I know he isn't going to jail. They don't convict Packers in Wisconsin (*cough* Mark Chmura *cough*).

Good thing the Vikes ridded themselves of that terrible troublemaker Randy Moss. Only good guys can play for the Vikings.5/12/2005 11:33:00 AM|W|P| Anonymous|W|P|No reason to be nervous, SBG. First marriages are usually the best.5/12/2005 12:20:00 PM|W|P| Cheesehead Craig|W|P|A handy phrase should you ever get into an argument with your new bride-to-be

"Oh well, my NEXT wife will understand"5/12/2005 12:54:00 PM|W|P| SBG|W|P|CC, you are a wise man. I'll be sure to use that phrase early and often. :)5/11/2005 05:22:00 PM|W|P|SBG|W|P|Santana starts and gives up 4 runs in 6 innings. Bullpen lets the Twins down. Twins lose 7-4. Commiserate here.|W|P|111585041207419370|W|P|Sigh|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/11/2005 09:43:00 PM|W|P| SBG|W|P|That is exactly what Moss said to me today. Pin this one on Rincon.5/11/2005 02:17:00 PM|W|P|SBG|W|P|I have a question. Suppose the Twins were forced by league rules to release one of the following three players: Justin Morneau, Joe Mauer, or Torii Hunter. Which of these three players would you release? Please add comment below.|W|P|111583916402048887|W|P|Question of the Day|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/11/2005 02:24:00 PM|W|P| SBG|W|P|Oh, and forget about salaries. Just think about which of these players you would part with right now if you had to do so.5/11/2005 02:49:00 PM|W|P| Andrew|W|P|I think the best option would be to see Torii go. One reason is age. Torii is 30. Mauer is 22 and Morneau is 24. Furthermore, good catchers are very hard to come by. The Twins haven't had a legitimate power threat since I've been following them. I think in those regards they are more valuable than Torii. With Lew Ford, Michael Ryan, and when he returns Jason Kubel, Torii is simply more expendable. Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting Torii should go, but if someone had to, I'd have to pick him.5/11/2005 03:38:00 PM|W|P| Brian|W|P|Hunter would be choice #1 because of age. Mauer would be choice #2 because of knees.5/11/2005 05:29:00 PM|W|P| Comedy Club|W|P|Torii, because the organization has always been based on keeping young talent. By the way, that would be a pretty crazy rule.5/11/2005 05:41:00 PM|W|P| Butch|W|P|A no-brainer, Torii would have to be the one let go. The young guys will do more for the Twins in the future. But don't get me wrong, I would be sad to see Torii go but he would have to be the one. On a personal note : really liked the pictures of you and Renee, all of them were VERY good, that young lady did a superior job! Look out Virgina, there is someone breathing down your neck!!! ha ha5/11/2005 08:56:00 PM|W|P| Anonymous|W|P|Torii, without a doubt. Put Lew in center and keep the M and M boys. No brainer.5/10/2005 03:23:00 PM|W|P|SBG|W|P|Closed circuit to Beaner -- I'll be on my honeymoon when tickets go on sale. If you are buying, consider getting me two. Update: Talked to Beaner last night. Hopefully, he'll score me a couple of ducats. I've seen the Stones seven times in four different cities. The best was when Beaner, C-Dub, Finkle, Putzer, and I piled in the car and drove to Chicago for Putzer's bachelor party and saw the Stones at Soldier Field on a hot September night. What are your best concert experiences? Leave a comment below.|W|P|111575676288198178|W|P|The Stones are Coming to Town|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/11/2005 03:42:00 PM|W|P| Brian|W|P|U2 (before anyone knew who they were!) at small venue inside George Mason University. Bono was dynamic. The small venue really brought us close.

Springsteen in '84 at RFK Stadium. We were in the lower deck and kept watching above us as you could see the upper deck actually bouncing. On the infield, people picked up the plywood used to protect the turf, held it above their heads while girls danced on the plywood above them.

The Outfield in 1985 in a small bar in Baltimore. Couldn't have held more than 100 people.5/11/2005 05:53:00 PM|W|P| Butch|W|P|Mom and I went to Newman Field on a warm, beatiful night and saw Willie Nelson put on a non-stop 2hour and 45 minute show that was the greatest entertainment we ever saw. No talking just one song after another! The beer was cold and no skeeters! Great night!5/10/2005 12:42:00 AM|W|P|SBG|W|P|Just like the Twins tonight, I got pretty much nothing. I am tired and worn out. I did rerun the numbers after tonight's 3-0 loss to Baltimore. Wow, what a change one game can have on the contest! Yesterday, SHN was in first place with 52 points and AAC had 51 points. After one more game, the top five are: AAC -- 39 points FRW -- 34 points SHN -- 34 points MAR -- 29.5 points CHC -- 29 points I still have 15.5 points but I've now fallen to 19th place. Just like the weather in Minnesota, the projected results in this contest change daily. Oh, and how about Carlos Silva. Another Quality Start, with 9 hits and 3 runs over 7 innings. Now walks. Two strikeouts. Vintage Silva. But, after pounding on the opposition for four straight games, the Twins bats were almost completely silent, with just three hits and no runs. Yuck, that offensive output did not taste good. The good news is that Chicago had a bad taste in their mouths tonight, losing to Tampa Bay, Tampa Bay 4-2. Isn't baseball funny? The White Sox have just mowed everyone under, and tonight they lose to a team that the Twins absolutely toyed with all weekend. It's a long season. Thanks to those who commented on my question about Mulholland! That makes it a little fun. Shout Outs will be on Wednesday night (Thursday Morning). Let me say something about this blogging thing. My best (or at least what I consider to be my best) articles are written in my head before I start writing. It's really hard to explain. Some nights, like tonight, I have no idea what I am going to say. I could sit here for hours and there's just no inspiration. Other nights, I have an idea and everything I want to say thought out before I even sit down. Man, those are the good nights. I spend a lot more time on the crappy posts than the good ones. Counterintuitive, but true. I'm well into the stream of consciousness tonight, so I'll continue. Did you see Joe Mauer throw out Julio Lugo on Sunday? He was out by 5 feet! I wondered if Lugo was a crappy basestealer or if Mauer just made that fantastic of a throw. Turns out that Lugo was 9 of 10 before that attempt. I was just awestruck by that play by Mauer. Okay, I'd better get some sleep. Here's your parting question. Please leave your answer in the form of a comment. Moss has been laying a Gardenhire is a terrible manager trip on me for at least a couple of years. I don't know why -- perhaps it is my naturally sunny disposition -- but I always try to come up with something positive about Gardy, even though I am not particularly fond of him either. For example, I'll say at least he doesn't abuse his pitcher's arms. Now, however, we see a couple of Twins who have or will have undergone Tommy John surgery. I'm wondering if my line is correct. So the question is, if you were forced to say something nice about Gardy's managing, what would you say? Best answer will get recognized in the SHOUT OUTS! on Thursday. Peace. Out. Update: I haven't said anything about this, but I will now. This man was the MVP of the NBA, and I don't care what the stupid voters decided.

Nash over this guy? Come on!|W|P|111570174026880333|W|P|Just Like the Twins|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/10/2005 09:10:00 AM|W|P| Cheesehead Craig|W|P|No one is going to argue that Shaq is the most dominating force in the game, the fact he only has 1 MVP to his credit is a joke (he should have one once in those Tim Duncan years). However, Phoenix is the most improved team this year going from 29-53 to 62-20 and Nash was the biggest addition. Stoudemire and Marion were already there. Nash essentially replaced Marbury and you can see the difference in the record. I say he is a valid winner of the MVP trophy as he is the undoubtedly the biggest reason for a team's turnaround this year.5/10/2005 09:23:00 AM|W|P| SBG|W|P|Shaq dramatically impacted two franchises. The Heat are now one of two or three teams that can win it all. The Lakers, who played in the finals last year, were dead last depite getting three players in return for Shaq.

Nash was a big upgrade over Marbury, yes. But, he wasn't really missed at all in Dallas.

Shaq's move to Miami basically caused a titanic shift in power in the league. He's the man, in my book. Plus, he wins points for being the funniest player in the NBA. :)5/10/2005 10:12:00 AM|W|P| Anonymous|W|P|The best thing I can say about Gardy is he puts on a good show for the fans when he decides it's time to get tossed out of a game.

Matt5/10/2005 11:23:00 AM|W|P| Butch|W|P|Gardy keeps his goatee short. I agree with you on Shaq. See you on Friday!5/10/2005 03:45:00 PM|W|P| frightwig|W|P|I hate Shaq, because a lot of his game would be illegal if the refs would only call him on his traveling and shoulder-blocks, so there is the part of me that appreciates seeing a pure point guard winning the MVP for being a catalyst for good team basketball.

But I'd also have to agree that Shaq is the more dominant force, and if people are going to use the "his team improved so much after he joined" test, then I'd say he passes that one just as well as Nash, if not more so.

IMO, there really should have been more attention paid to Stoudamire and Nowitzki this year. Stoudamire averaged 26 points and 8.9 boards for that 62-20 Phoenix team; and Nowitzki led his team to 58 wins with 26.1 points and 9.7 boards per game, despite losing Nash on the point. Why shouldn't either one of them be MVP?5/10/2005 04:02:00 PM|W|P| SBG|W|P|Nobody cheers for Goliath. -- Wilt Chamberlain5/11/2005 07:15:00 AM|W|P| SBG|W|P|Stockton was twice the player that Nash is. At least.

I go back to the Lakers. Even with Superboy, a perennial 1st team all NBA guard, the Lakers are an effing Lottery Team without Shaq. And that's after adding Lamar Odom and Caron Butler. That's right, Shaq is SuperMan.5/11/2005 08:09:00 PM|W|P| frightwig|W|P|Big fan of the walking and shoulder blocks, are you? :)5/11/2005 09:21:00 PM|W|P| SBG|W|P|Shaq's not my favorite player, I obviously love KG's game and I like the athleticism he brings. Shaq is brute force. But, he's got great feet for a big guy.5/12/2005 09:23:00 PM|W|P| frightwig|W|P|Great big feet, for sure. And you know what that means!5/12/2005 09:32:00 PM|W|P| SBG|W|P|Why, big shoes, of course!5/08/2005 09:25:00 PM|W|P|SBG|W|P|I suppose a person has to temper one's enthusiasm when one's team is beating up on the Devil Rays. Nevertheless, I'm pretty excited about how the Twins are playing right now. It started on get-away day against Cleveland, when Brad Radke destroyed the Indians and the Twins knocked C.C. Sabathia around a little. Now, fresh off of a three game sweep, in which Johan Santana was dominant, Kyle Lohse looked pretty good, and Joe Mays was sharp until he tired, and where the Twins knocked the ball all over the park, including big weeks by Li'l Harmon and Joe Mauer, I'm feeling good about this team, both in the short and long term. At the risk of gushing about something everyone else already knows, man are Morneau and Mauer a potent combination. They look like fixtures in the three and four holes for a long time. They both hit the ball right on the screws. Morneau, even though he hasn't walked much seems more selective (by the way, when you are hitting .429, you don't need to walk much). Mauer just looks so comfortable. As I mentioned earlier, I took in part of that Radke gem on Thursday. Damn, that guy can really throw it. My favorite thing about the Radke situation is how completely my buddy Moss has bought in. A couple of years ago, Moss was just a tiny bit critical of Radke. But now, Moss has the utmost confidence in him. And, I think Moss has it right. Radke has improved. He's been much sharper the last couple of years. Right now, he and Johan look like the pitchers they were in the second half of the year last year. That bodes well for the home team. Even though my title here proclaims that It's All Good, it's not. I have a question. Why is Terry Mulholland on the roster? Seriously, I want to know. Leave me an answer. The best answer gets a shout out later this week. When Mays got tired this afternoon (and it happened quickly) out comes Mulholland. Bam! Three run homer. Rays right back in the game. I think it was instructive that when Mays lost it, he lost it quickly. The Twins should be watching him closely. When he shows any sign of getting tired, gear that bullpen up! And I'm not talking about Mr. Rubber Arm. Here's another thing that's not "All Good." Again today, I heard Dick Bremer proclaim that Juan Castro was an important part of this team. Dick, you're drinking the Kool-Aid. He's a replacement level player. He's not as good as Nick Punto. I also wanted to comment on Jim Souhan's coverage of the Juan Rincon suspension. He has made some good points, but I believe that he's overreached in some areas and has not gone far enough in others. For example, Souhan says in his Sunday column that it his opinion that "Rincon and a disproportionate number of Latin-American players are taking the fall for a generation of steroids abusers." I, for one, cannot jump to that conclusion. The policy in place is for everyone. If you violate the policy, you should be suspended, right? Did Rincon receive a longer suspension than anyone else who had tested positive for steroids? No. It seems that Souhan's position is that inadvertent or otherwise, these players who have been caught under the policy are either unable to understand the language or not saavy enough to use designer drugs or masking agents. Souhan postulates that "it may be unfair that Rincon was penalized while more blatant and opportunistic cheaters retained a veneer of deniability." Does he mean before or after baseball outlawed the use of steroids? If it's not against the rules, is it cheating? That seems to be what Souhan is saying. He's complaining that players such as (I suppose) Giambi or whoever should have been punished, even though their behavior was not in violation of the rules at the time they did what they did. This is silly. Was it cheating to throw a spitball before baseball outlawed it? No! Does it feel right? That's another question. Is it "cheating" for the Yankees to spend $205 million on their payroll when most teams are spending $70 million or less? No! Does it feel right? That's another question. Baseball needs to fix its financial rules (which it has to an extent with it's luxury tax). But, like it or not, the Yankees are not breaking any rules whatsoever. And, like it or not, neither were any steroid users prior to baseball's actions to clean up the game. Souhan's complaint that players like Rincon may have taken the fall (from baseball) makes me laugh. Friends, it is the media, and not baseball, who have wrought this on players like Rincon. When baseball first instituted its steroid testing policy, baseball was not going to release names on a first offense. The media's response? Toothless! Ineffective! So, baseball, also partially prompted by the inane witchhunt by Congress, toughened up their policy to the current suspend and identify immediately. Had baseball not toughened the policy, a guy like Rincon who tested positive would have been given a notice and would then have been tested to see if he got clean. The policy would have probably educated the ignorant violator and Rincon, if he were such a violator, would not have been suspended right away, would have learned why he tested positive, and would have been given a chance to make changes. Now, when he gets dinged, here we have the media bemoaning the fact that this poor, ignorant Latino got caught and the big fish get away. Mr. Souhan, I suggest you write a column and state unequivocally that the policy in place is too harsh and should be changed. Why? The answer is right there in your column. Those who are sophisticated will never get caught by the test, because they are using undetectable steroids and masking agents. This testing policy never touches the true offenders. It only gets the unsophicated or ignorant offenders. Say it, Mr. Souhan. The original policy was better. Neither policy catches the big time "cheater". And this current policy is too punitive for the unsophisticated or ignorant violator.|W|P|111560941655153727|W|P|It's All Good|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/08/2005 11:42:00 PM|W|P| Anonymous|W|P|Mulholland is here because
a) he makes Gardy feel young
b) Joe Roa was too busy pitching for Indianapolis (AAA)
c) is cheap and lets us get our prospects in line in the minors.
d) he's our closer if Nathan stumbles.
e) he's willing to start a game with 5 minutes notice.

But hey, I like the guy.

And if you think the current penalties are harsh for roids testing, wait until Bud gets Congress what it wants, with the 50/100/lifetime suspension plan.5/09/2005 05:41:00 AM|W|P| SBG|W|P|I'm not sure what the NFL's policy is with respect to steroids specifically, but it's substance abuse policy doesn't suspend or identify a player for his first offense. The player is more closely monitored and punished four games (which is like 64 games in baseball given the relative lengths of the seasons).5/09/2005 06:11:00 AM|W|P| SBG|W|P|Of course, another possibility is that steroid use has been cut back and the policy is working to eliminate steroids. It may catch a few people like Rincon, who may or may not be deserving of a suspension (I can't possibly know the truth), but overall it has seriously curbed steroid use.

It seems to me that Souhan's article bemoans that it is Rincon who is being punished and not someone else. Steroids, it seems, was an institutional problem, and therefore it is the eradication of steroids that should be the goal. That is, if you believe that steroids are harmful. For more on the steroids issue, go to a S.F. Giants blog that covers steroids in far more depth than I would ever care to do.5/09/2005 03:06:00 PM|W|P| Comedy Club|W|P|Only concievable motives for keeping Mullholland on the team:

Cleans toilets with incredible efficiency (relieves wrok from clubhouse guy).

Saved Gardenhire from a band of wild Gypsies in 1975.

Gardy respects that he is the only Major League Pitcher (that I know of) to throw his glove to first base to record an out (that ones true).

Teammates like him because he gets them senior discounts at the movies.

If he left the average age of the club could drop by an eon.

Only player to wear the ugly number 45.

Someone has to teach Jason Bartlett to shave.

and finally,

Terry Ryan knocked on the door a few days ago and told Gardy,

"Apparently Terry was let go a month ago. There was a glitch in the system and he still got paid. We fixed the Glitch"

Gardenhire asked, "So you let him go"

Ryan: "We fixed the glitch"

(Office Space)5/09/2005 03:28:00 PM|W|P| frightwig|W|P|I like the 'Office Space' reference, except when will they move Mulholland down into the storage room and stop bringing him into games?

SBG, you provide the most clear-eyed and thoughtful commentary on Rincon and the drug-testing program that I've seen. You're absolutely right: the media demanded to make names public, because they drooled at the thought of embarrassing more Giambis; but now that the policy is only exposing the marginal and the unwitting--oh, this isn't what we imagined, is it?5/08/2005 04:47:00 PM|W|P|SBG|W|P|I have posted the current standings through Sunday's games above and a table showing every entrant's relative position. I will post again at least once more before the wedding. Note that your leader from last week, yours truly, has plummeted in the standings to 17th. As the contest continues, I will post total standings on particular questions Feel free to trash talk in the comments section. The table below shows each player with how many points they are projected to have for each question and their total score. The questions are numbered 1 through 10 and the actual questions are listed below.

Player	Question										Score
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
SHN	10	0	8	0	0	5.5	9.5	3	6	10	52
AAC	4	8	1	9	9	8.5	7.5	0	4	0	51
PEC	0	0.5	0	0	2.5	8.5	3	0	10	9	33.5
FRW	0	7	0	0	7.5	2.5	0	9	1	6	33
SBM	6	0	0	8	7.5	0	0	0	7	0	28.5
RED	7.5	10	0	0	0	2.5	3	0	2	2.5	27.5
ROG	9	2	6.5	0	0	0	9.5	0	0	0	27
CHC	0	0	4	0	0	0	6	9	8	0	27
MAR	0	0	0	10	0	0	7.5	7	0	0	24.5
SES	1	0	2.5	7	10	1	0	2	0	0	23.5
BUW	7.5	0	9	0	0	0	1	5.5	0	0	23
DYB	4	0	0	0	2.5	10	0	5.5	0	0	22
LEK	1	9	0	0	6	0	0	0	4	1	21
GEB	0	4	5	2.5	0	0	0	9	0	0	20.5
GRB	0	0	10	0	2.5	0	0	0.33	0	6	18.83
TEB	0	0	0	0	0	5.5	0	4	9	0	18.5
SBG	1	3	6.5	2.5	2.5	0	0	0	0	0	15.5
BIJ	0	6	2.5	0	0	5.5	0	0	0	0	14
COD	0	0	0	4.5	2.5	0	3	0	0	2.5	12.5
ANM	0	0	0	0	2.5	0	5	0	4	0	11.5
BEM	0	0	0	0	0	5.5	0	0	0	6	11.5
TWJ	4	0.5	0	6	0	0	0	0.33	0	0	10.83
ADR	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	6	6
STM	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	6	6
BRI	0	5	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	6
JUD	0	0	0	4.5	0	0	0	0.33	0	0	4.83

At the all star break: Question one: How many wins will the Twins have? Question two: What will be the pitching staff's ERA? Question thee: How many quality starts will the Twins have? Question four: What will be Johan Santana's ERA? Question five: How many saves will Joe Nathan have? Queston six: How many games will Joe Mauer play catcher in? Question seven: How many home runs will Justin Morneau have? Question eight: How many games will Luis Rivas have played in? Question nine: How many games will Lew Ford have played in the outfield? Question ten: How many RBIs will Torii Hunter have?|W|P|111558976284931709|W|P|Contest Entries|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/09/2005 11:32:00 AM|W|P| Anonymous|W|P|Wo-hoo! Numero Uno! Just as long as I beat Cheesehead Craig, though, I will be happy.5/09/2005 12:11:00 PM|W|P| SBG|W|P|I'd say that beating CC is an easy task, but I'm in absolutely no position to talk.5/07/2005 10:14:00 PM|W|P|SBG|W|P|When Justin Morneau got hit in the head and went on the disabled list, I thought that he would struggle for awhile. In the Next Big SBG Contest, I predicted that Morneau would have 9 homeruns by the all-star break. Tonight he came in as a defensive replacement(!) in the eighth inning. In the ninth, he got an at-bat and jerked a long homerun off a left hander into the right field seats. What an enormous hitter this guy is. I was wrong. He's gonna hit a lot more than 9. More like 19 or 25. Damn, the Twins have a great one at first base.|W|P|111552233536252677|W|P|When Being Wrong Can Feel Good|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/08/2005 02:03:00 PM|W|P| SBG|W|P|I'll post an update after today's game. Let's just say this: you won't be seeing SBG's name on top anymore. :( I'm in about 13th place going into today's game.5/08/2005 09:53:00 PM|W|P| Cheesehead Craig|W|P|Stud, that all you need to say about him. Stud, stud, stud.5/05/2005 10:17:00 PM|W|P|SBG|W|P|UPDATE: I wanted to call your attention to the Greet Machine today. Your friend SBG is a guest blogger over there. Guess what I'm talking about at his site?! Welcome SBG fans. It's time for Pepper! The Greatest Hits Edition or The Very Best of Pepper! I've scoured the past editions of Pepper! for the very best answers and the most probing topics. This is a special day for me! I feel like a rock band, too addled with drugs to create new material. Instead of creating new music, these burned out druggies recycle the same old pap and hope the public will buy crap that they've already bought. Perhaps their publicist will spice up the retreaded junk with some liner notes or other useless material. But a stinking pile of dung by another other name is still a stinking pile of dung. In that spirit, like a heroin junkie/guitar player, I present you The Very Best of Pepper! (vol. 1). And now, it's time to re-play Pepper! Topic #1: Worst Sports Moment, Lifetime. Useless Liner Notes: This moment was from the very first edition of Pepper!, which drew millions (as opposed to billions) of readers. My good buddy and co-worker Drew agreed to be the first guest. We had a great Pepper! conversation, including this gem. Like the first Super Bowl, the game wasn't called wasn't called Pepper! yet, rather it was called 10 topics, 50 words. Descriptive, but not terribly creative. Consider this episode to be the "Seinfeld Chronicles" of Pepper! Drew: I'm from Cleveland, so take your pick. The Drive. The Fumble. The Shot. Game 7 of the '97 Series. In fact, no team I've ever rooted for, save my high school, has ever won a championship. But really, nothing hurt worse than the Drive. Except the Fumble. And Game 7... SBG: January 17, 1999. Atlanta 30, Minnesota 27. The worst day in the history of the Vikings. Poor Butch. When the Vikings started to kick it away, SBG went out and shoveled the sidewalk. Long after the game, Butch sat speechless in his chair. SBG was genuinely concerned about Butch. Topic #2: Doug Mientkiewicz Useless Liner Notes: Moss told me Thursday that he had heard about a catfight between the two ladies involved. Moss is another good buddy and co-worker. We snuck out for a little Twins action this afternoon. Man was Radke awesome! The first edition with the name Pepper!, the game was already showing the brilliance of handing the reins over to someone else. Moss: Moss once thought Dougie was good for Twins. Great jingle. Wore out his welcome, though. Moss thinks Dougie needs bat with skinnier handle. Moss thinks MLB owns that baseball. Moss predicts Mistresses Mientkiewicz and Benson have publicized catfight before June. (Jody or Anna? Moss chooses Jody �loyal to her man.) SBG: Baseball should move Expos to Brooklyn. Give Mets an intown NL rival. Divide up that TV market a little thinner. Maybe they should play in Manhattan. That would torque off old George. What could owners get for a Manhattan franchise? Plenty. SBG wouldn�t mess with D.C. (Bored with Doug.) Topic #3: Favorite Twins Regular Season Game Ever Useless Liner Notes: The first game of Pepper! to feature a Twins blogger. Appropriately, this game was with Seth from Seth Speaks, who was also the first blogger to link to SBG, the Website. SETH: Not a particular game, but September 23, 2003 - The Twins had to beat the Indians. The Sox had to lose to the Yankees. The Royals had to lose to the Tigers. All three things happened and the Twins were repeat AL Central champions. It was an exciting night! SBG: August 1991. Twins v. A�s. Saturday afternoon. SBG driving across prairie to visit brother. Down 5-0 on strength of five A�s homeruns. Twins mount huge comeback. Harper hits 3-run shot in eighth. A�s get six homeruns. Twins win 8-6. SBG and brother "decide" that night Twins will win World Series. Topic #4: College Useless Liner Notes: I was pretty excited to get Aaron Gleeman to participate in Pepper! His entry was quite entertaining. Here AG and I talk about college life. Aaron: I was hanging out on campus last weekend and overheard a conversation that is the epitome of college. GIRL: Why were your sheets wet? You didn't puke on them again, did you? GUY: Yeah, I must have had too much to drink or something. GIRL: You didn't go to sleep on it, did you? GUY: Yeah, it wasn't that smelly and I was pretty tired. SBG: Best twelve years of his life. (He�s been there multiple times.) Topic #5: Twins stadium Useless Liner Notes: If it's stadium talk, it must be Greet Machine. Not only does Shane run a tremendous site, he's a great blogging friend of SBG. Thanks for all your help on this site, Shane. And check out the Steve Perry reference (speaking of the creator of worthless greatest hits compilations) on Shane's game of Pepper! Shane: Fact: Twins won't stay in the Metrodome forever. Fact: New stadium won't be built without some kind of state financing. Pohlad needs to change his tactic by upping his contribution significantly and picking a site. Legislature needs to change its myopic view of the issue and hammer out a deal. SBG: This has GOT to get done. And it has to be done soon. Twins need to contribute, yes, but SBG cannot stomach the idea of the Twins leaving or folding. State needs to get off ass and find solution. SBG wants to watch Twins outdoors and not at away games. Addendum: Maybe we are close now. Topic #6: -- Bud Selig, Brewers Owner Useless Liner Notes: On the one hand, Cheesehead Craig, writer of Oracle of Cheese and frequent commenter on this site seems to be level-headed. On the other hand, he seems to have drunk the Wisconsin Kool-Aid and is evidenced by this example of his Pepper! game. (Seriously, CC is a fine friend of this site.) CC: Brought baseball back to Milwaukee. I�ll always be grateful for that. Did a decent job as owner and worked hard to get Miller Park built (man I love that place). Problem was, when he became the Commish, he turned the Crew over to his daughter, who is an idiot. SBG: Twelve consecutive losing seasons. Two playoff appearances in 35 years. (One in an expanded playoffs because of 1981 strike.) No playoff appearances since 1982. Fired his daughter, sort of. But, he got a stadium. Topic #7: Mainstream Sports Coverage Useless Liner Notes: The big fish of Twins bloggers. It was quite an honor to have the Twins Geek show up on this page. Before there was anybody else, there was the Twins Geek. His work is really as good as it gets, and he showed his talent on my little site. Oh by the way, his entry on this site generated the biggest one-day traffic this site has ever seen. Twins Geek: I think there�s a general lack of any real integrity regarding the quality of media coverage from corporate entities. I don�t think it�s limited to baseball, but that�s where I see it most, because that�s what I like to study. I also believe they are almost completely blind to their own limitations. SBG: The key advantage that sportswriters have over bloggers is access. They can talk to players, GMs, managers on a regular basis. However, they are limited by politics and often create stories. Read ESPN.COM and think about the agendas they push. I�ve relied less and less on mainstream outlets for analysis. Addendum: When the President of the Minnesota Twins took the time to write to my fellow bloggers and me, I realized how the world of blogging is making in-roads into the coverage of the Twins. All kidding aside, sites like Twins Territory, Aaron Gleeman, and yes, Bat-Girl have shown that people love this team. I wanted to make sure that the e-mail was genuine, so I called the Twins offices and talked to Mr. St. Peter for several minutes. He was quite willing to discuss the stadium and the Twins with me. That shows that (a) he's a good old North Dakota boy, just like the author of this site and (b) he recognizes just a little that more and more people are reading blogs about the Twins. Topic #8: Moss Trade Useless Liner Notes: This was the first time I deviated from the Pepper! formula. Cheer or Die from Vikings Underground was my guest and I played a version of Pepper! on his site, while he played a locquacious version on mine. COD is a fantastic blogger, even if he talks about football. Thanks to COD, along with Shane and Cheesehead Craig for their fantastic effort with the Marital Advice Edition of Pepper! last week. COD: I was against it. I'm of the belief that it should have been Tice that got the pink slip. We could still have all the defensive upgrades (save for Harris) plus have Moss at this point.But I also don't think the Vikings got ripped off in the Randy Moss trade with Oakland. Minnesota got the best deal possible. The bottom line is that from a pure talent and production standpoint the Vikings didn't get even value, but you have to factor in attitude and character questions and once you do that you realize Minnesota was lucky to get what they did for Moss. Moss was a distraction for the Minnesota Vikings which was slowly eating away at the team on a day-to-day basis. Tice and the team let Moss get away with murder and because of it, Tice couldn't discipline other players on the team effectively. What we'll hear from the team leading up to the 2005 season is what they are hoping to have: Addition By Subtraction. But I'll still miss having #84 around. Topic #9: Twins Rotation Useless Liner Notes: Another friend of SBG, Ryan Maus from Twins Chatter weighed in with a game of Pepper! Ryan's site is admirable and one that I check out regularly. I admire the dedication of young guys like Ryan (he's a college student) who are interested in the Twins and have the will to write about them. Keep up the good work, Ryan! Ryan: The best in the Central by far, and potentially one of the best in the bigs. Radke might not repeat his 2004, but he'll be good once again. Johan has to be the odds-on favorite for Cy again in '05. Silva might drop off a little, but Lohse should rebound to pick up the slack. SBG: Chance to be the best Twins rotation ever. Stud at the top. Mr. Dependable in number two slot. Questions below, but if guys have good year, could be very deep. If anyone falters, Baker or Durbin(???) could fill in. Definite strong point. And this is the place to be strong. Addendum: Stud at the top. Check. Mr. Dependable in number two slot. Check. Silva? He's about the same, 10-12 hits a game, but he gives you a chance to win. Lohse? :'(. But, maybe Baker will step up now. Topic #10: Justin Morneau Useless Liner Notes: Possibly the most pleasant surprise of the game of Pepper! was finding out that The Twins Junkie was just 16 years old. What great effort he has shown. It was a delight to have such a fine young fan on my site. Butch was quite impressed with TJ's answers. TJ: If I hear a list of his offseason ailments one more time I will puke. Incredibly excited (who isn't) for sophmore season. Seems to be expressionless at all times, pressure wont get to him. 30+ HR. Moment: 2 HR Game in Seattle. SBG: He looks fabulous in Twins uniform. A little susceptible to high fastballs, let�s see how he adjusts. Tons of power. Big frame. Not bad at first either. Don�t care if his glove is made of stone. I want to see him hitting fourth for years. Li�l Harmon! Addendum: Last year, Dougie Mouthkayvich said that the trading him would come back to bite the Twins. So far this year: Morneau: .396/.411/.717/1.128. Mouthkayvich: .226/.330/.387/.717. And that's after Dougie Mouthball got off to a very hot start. There you have it! A reconstituted game of Pepper! I have had many other guests, but I took the first ten guests for my game of The Very Best of Pepper! Who could forget my game of Pepper! with Derek Jeter? Or the instant classic, Pepper! The Marital Advice Edition? I hope you enjoyed this greatest hits edition. Have a good weekend and don't forget that Jags and Theo will be back tomorrow with tales of great adventures. I leave you tonight with a picture that should not be forgotten. I never thought it would come to this, but with the Yankees' current struggles, something had to be done. George Steinbrenner with the severed head of Yankees' GM Brian Cashman.|W|P|111534946469419514|W|P|The Very Best of Pepper!|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/06/2005 01:58:00 AM|W|P| Andrew|W|P|You can look at that picture like Cashman's head is all that's left after his body disintegrated when the sun hit it, kinda like a vampire.5/06/2005 08:11:00 AM|W|P| SBG|W|P|My question is whether they'll fire Cashman and promote the assistant to the travelling secretary that I met in Florida5/06/2005 08:41:00 AM|W|P| Anonymous|W|P|I would like to change my Pepper! contribution! Boy that sure shows what I know. The state isn't contributing anything, and Pohlad only upped his contribution by $5 million! Yet we are closer to a deal than ever. Amazing! Although my point was more that we shouldn't expect Pohlad to pay for everything because obviously he won't do it. Thanks for the plug SBG!5/06/2005 09:00:00 AM|W|P| SBG|W|P|Shane -- it needed some public financing. You were right about that. Just that it's Hennepin County that is the forward thinking group.5/06/2005 02:39:00 PM|W|P| Cheesehead Craig|W|P|Yeah, my marital advice edition responses were much better than my first foray into Pepper!5/06/2005 02:49:00 PM|W|P| SBG|W|P|The marital advice edition is without peer in the universe of Pepper! Your first edition was good, too, in that it revealed your undying and irrational devotion to all things Wisconsin. We will keep working on you!5/05/2005 09:20:00 AM|W|P|SBG|W|P|Hello SBG fans. I received an e-mail from Dave St. Peter, president of the Minnesota Twins, requesting that I publish the following letter on my site. Friends, I am staunchly pro-stadium and I want to see this done. So, I print Mr. St. Peter's letter in its entirety: Hi Twins Fans: As many of you are already aware, the next 20 days represent the most important chapter in the history of the Minnesota Twins franchise � as we are on the verge of gaining approval for a new open-air ballpark in Minneapolis� Historic Warehouse District. As I�m sure you know, yesterday the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners approved a resolution to build to build a 42,000 seat ballpark in downtown Minneapolis in time for the 2009 season opener. The plan includes $125 million cash commitment from the Twins and a small Hennepin County sales tax of fifteen hundredths of one percent, which amounts to only three cents on $20. Even though the plan calls for no state funding, the Minnesota Legislature must vote to simply allow the Twins and Hennepin County to move forward with the proposal. It is imperative that they vote and approve the plan this session, which ends May 23. If you support the new ballpark plan, I would encourage you to contact your legislator and make your voice heard. To find out who your legislators are, please call Senate information at 651-296-0504 and House information at 651-296-2146, or visit the district finder website at: http://geo.commissions.leg.state.mn.us/districts/start.html. Please let them know that you are happy that Hennepin County and the Minnesota Twins have developed a plan to build a new ballpark and you want to see the ballpark bill pass through the Minnesota Legislature. Please provide your name and address, so your legislator knows you are from their district. In addition, the Minnesota Twins could use your support in sending letters to the editor at the Star Tribune and Pioneer Press. Ballpark opponents are organizing campaigns to block the new proposal and we want to keep the momentum in our favor. Letters to the editor can be sent to opinion@startribune.com or letters@pioneerpress.com. With your help, the Twins will remain competitive and viable in Minnesota for generations to come. Thank you for your support! Dave St. Peter President, Minnesota Twins Baseball Club 34 Kirby Puckett Place Minneapolis, MN 55415 E-Mail: DaveStPeter@TwinsBaseball.com Friends, SBG will be contacting his state representatives, urging them to support the stadium plan. Do the same. This is an important time for Minnesota. Let's get it done!|W|P|111530315483472279|W|P|A letter from Dave St. Peter|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/05/2005 03:44:00 PM|W|P| frightwig|W|P|I've seen information on how the project will be funded, but nothing on where the profits will go. Who owns the naming rights? Who will manage the property? Who will profit from non-baseball events held at the site? How are other revenue streams being allocated?

In short, what does the public get in return for its investment besides outdoor baseball?

I'd also like to know, do we *really* want a ballpark right next to a garbage incinerator? Who chose that site, and why?5/05/2005 04:33:00 PM|W|P| Butch|W|P|frightwig brings up some good points. There will be a lot of questions that will have to be answerd but to a "out of towner" who doesn't get to go to a lot of games having a major league team in the great state of Minnesota not only is good for the state but also for us who live in other but close states. We would never be able to see major league games if the Twins weren't in Minnesota. Every thing possible must be done to keep baseball in the tri-state area. What would summer be like without the Twins? I like watching them on TV, listening to them on the radio while fishing and then a really special day going to a game with my children and grandchildren. Something has to be done to see insure that we all will have a chance to watch them, or if they aren't your favorite team at least go and see your team play the Twins! Keep the discussion going and do what has to be done. GO TWINS.5/02/2005 08:58:00 PM|W|P|SBG|W|P|Well, well, well. Juan Rincon got suspended for 10 days, ostensibly for steroid use. Over at the Fan Club, there is much rending of garments, wailing, and gnashing of teeth. It must be a false positive! He's so small! Not one of our Twins! Yes, one of our Twins. And, SBG is not one bit surprised. Now, I'm not going to say that I suspected Juan Rincon was using steroids. But, he's actually the kind of player you might suspect would be using the stuff. I commented at the Fan Club that it is pitchers who benefit from steroids the most, not hitters. Why? Because steroids promote quick recovery in muscle tissue after the muscles have been strained. Some people seem to think that steroids are magic. Just shoot up the 'roids and poof! you have 30 more pounds of muscle. Actually, what they do is allow a player's muscles to recover faster so that the players can lift weights more often and grow more quickly. That's what happens. Guys lift and shoot up. And they get big. Steroids also help to recover from injury. A guy gets hurt and uses steroids to recover. Or, a guy abuses his arm by, say, pitching every other day, takes steroids and recovers. A guy like Rincon has a lot to gain by taking steroids. He's on the verge of making some big money. I don't know what his economic background is, but I'll guess that he hasn't had a lot in life. He's now on the verge of setting himself up for life. Clearly, the temptation is great. And the strain on his arm, his proverbial golden goose, is also great. To people like me and probably you, baseball is a game. I like going to the ball park. I like watching the game. I like arguing with my friends. But, to guys like Juan Rincon, baseball is something different. It's a business, it's a way to a fortune. But, it extracts a price. And Mr. Rincon (like a lot of others, probably) has chosen to use a substance to help him achieve a level of financial security and competition that is impossible for pretty much everyone else. It's hard for me to condemn. The other issue here for me is the idea that some people have that somehow the Twins players are morally superior to other players on other teams. That is ridiculous. Good chemistry, good guys, good community. These are good marketing ideas, but in my mind at least, not much more. The guys on the Twins teams are probably not much different from any other team. Likely, there are some good guys, some not so good guys, and others in between. In fact, there is at least some evidence that Twins players are or have been, no better than anyone else. Who could forget the famous Kirby Puckett hatchet job in Sports Illustrated? In that article, Jeff Dubay (yes, Drew it's come to that. I'm referring to Puffy in my column) basically said that pretty much every married Twins player was cheating on his wife. Moral high ground? (As a funny aside, Dubay's comments sure got Doug Mientiewicz's shorts in a bunch. Methinks though dost protest too much, Dougie.) My enjoyment from baseball and other sports is in the competition and to some extent some of the underlying drama and controversy (Shaq v. Kobe!). But, I never have, and never will, look up to a professional athlete because of a player's skill at a particular game. It's a liberating position. Players are not idols, they are merely performers. We need a closer. It can be Rick Aguliera, Eddie Guardado, or Joe Nathan. Doesn't matter who, just do the job. In closing, I don't condemn Mr. Rincon. Neither do I feign any sort of surprise. I will, however be following Tuesday night's game. SHOUT OUTS A SHOUT OUT! to GEB, frequent reader of this site. He's got a new website. He is a financial guy who lives out in Utah. Go over and say hi from me. Good luck with the site, and good luck in the Next Big SBG Contest. A SHOUT OUT! to Aaron Gleeman. Good idea to open up your site to comments. I foresee a lot more traffic. A SHOUT OUT! to Cheesehead Craig, Shane from Greet Machine, and Mr. Cheer or Die. You guys are great. Good work on Pepper! How can I possibly top that? A SHOUT OUT! to all the people who sent in their preseason picks. I promise to publish all of those who haven't yet been published. A SHOUT OUT! to Will Young. Thanks for the invite. What's wrong with your site? I haven't been able to access it forever! A SHOUT OUT! to M who has agreed to check in on Jags and Theo while Lucy and I are off enjoying our Honeymoon in Blaine. Wedding Update: Days to the wedding: 12 Days to the honeymoon: 13 Guests invited to the wedding: 21 Guests expected at the wedding: 20 (one nephew will not be coming) Lucy and I will be married in front of our parents, brothers and sisters, and nephews and nieces. I've always wanted a small wedding, and Lucy does too, so that is great. We are having a small dinner and then a party for our guests that night. On Sunday, Lucy and I will be flying to Maui for 8 days and seven nights. Jags and Theo won't be at the wedding, but they will be at the party that evening. I expect that my nieces and nephews will enjoy the boys. That's it! Good night all. SBG Update: I read Patrick Reusse's column today and he made a rather salient point. Remember during spring training how Torii Hunter was talking about no one on the Twins roster would ever use steroids? I commented on this page about Torii's statements with respect to team chemistry and so forth. I really thought that Torii should have kept his mouth shut. Clearly, he cannot possibly speak for all his teammates on this matter. (Plus, he was flat out wrong.) My reaction then, and now, is do the job between the lines. Just to be clear, I think Torii does a very good job between the lines. But, spare me the we're-good-plus-we're-better-people-too nonsense. That's nothing short of arrogance.|W|P|111509000477051660|W|P|Say It Isn't SO!|W|P|sbg@stickandballguy.com5/03/2005 08:41:00 AM|W|P| Cheesehead Craig|W|P|The pharmacist I go to has a poster of "This is Twins Territory", now I get what that means! :)5/03/2005 08:42:00 AM|W|P| SBG|W|P|Ouch! That's a good one, CC!5/04/2005 06:30:00 PM|W|P| Anonymous|W|P|I agree, and have been saying as much at twinsterritory. You can't moralize the game. Good point, SBG