Keg Taps and Matt Capps

This break from blog-ennui inspired hiatus is brought to you by the trade deadline and my wonderful friends. (Also the letter B and the number 6.)

First off...wonderful friends.



I heard the Rock Bottom Brewery event was fun last night, and I know some of you were there. Thanks to Jen from Lipgloss & Baseball and our friends Sarah and Baramee for ensuring I was there in spirit as well. This fits quite well into my new hobby of pestering baseball players by proxy long-distance. No one is safe!

(Which reminds me, I really need to make friends with people in Sacramento to go on Boof-watch for me...)


I am happy to hear that Nick Punto was his usual magically charming self. Thanks for being a good sport and playing along with our shenanigans Nick!


And then there's the trade deadline drama.

Two things:

A) I really like Matt Capps and I am happy he's in a Twins uniform. He improves the bullpen and the team, assuming we don't see a Cappsian meltdown of epic proportions anytime soon. (It happens. Trust me.)

and

B) I am not thrilled about this trade.

After much deliberation, I have decided that these two statements are NOT mutually exclusive. Take that for what it's worth.

Good luck to Wilson Ramos, who deserves to be in an organization where he's not Mauer-blocked to the extreme.

And finally a couple requests:

1) if anyone who doesn't already have a blog of their own wants to guest-post anything ever, please let me know. It needs to fit in with our philosophy here, but other than that...sky's the limit. I am kind of busy, and baseball-blogging has fallen way down on my list of priorities right now. I hate this place to collect cobwebs, so give me a shout if you're interested.


2)My Red Sox fan friends, if you're reading this, Fenway Tour...worth it or not worth it?

An open Slama letter

Dear Anthony Slama,

Please be good, so that A) we can do some winning and B) the fanbase doesn't attack you like feral rabid dogs.

Help us Obi Wan Anthony, you're (apparently) our only hope.

Good luck out there,

Those Girls.

PS Maybe try to grow a Pavano-stache. Just a thought.

My Final Vote philosopy and making All-Star Game plans...

I know the Final Vote is supposed to basically be a bit of whimsical fun. And it is. I've voted for Delmon...not really because I believe he's had an all-star caliber season (It's been good...but not THAT good. It pains me to say it, but Pavano is the most deserving of the non-M&M players), but because he's OUR player, and it's my futile protest against MLB's insistence that everything in the universe comes down to a Boston/NYY rivalry. Also I need to vote for someone on the AL side, as my heart votes for Joey Votto.

I wish the Final Vote was run differently though. Why make us choose if we're going to put another Red Sock, or another Yankee on the team? If this is mostly about motivating fans to get involved...Red Sox Nation and the Evil Empire are ALREADY always constantly involved. How about fans from the teams that know their season is not going so awful well right now? They also know that for the most part, their players are never going to make the team by fan-voting. (Or teams whose season IS going well, but get snubbed anyway...) I wish the Final Vote was all about them. Choose the five players from teams that only have one token representative and give them something to be excited about too.

Here would be my Final Vote players if I was in charge of the world:

AL
Craig Breslow OAK
Paul Konerko CWS
Billy Butler KC
Adam Jones BAL
Shin-Soo Choo CLE (In the world where I am in charge, he is not injured)

NL
Andrew McCutchen PIT
Miguel Montero ARI
Ryan Zimmerman WAS
Carlos Gonzalez COL
Heath Bell SD

In the world where I run things, Joey Votto obviously made the team outright.

The real National League ballot comes closest to my philosophy...but of course the National League doesn't have the Yankees and the Red Sox to deal with.

(Apologies to my Red Sox and Yankees friends...but even you guys have to appreciate the realities of the over-hype-age sometimes, right?)

Anyway, I will continue to vote for Delmon and Joey. (With a couple votes thrown in for Michael Young too...sorry Delmon), and I will enjoy the All-Star Game for what it is.

And if you're looking for All-Star Game plans...might I make a suggestion? Twins bloggers may have already gotten an email about this, but for everyone else...

Pillsbury United Communities is opening up Target Field for Home Field Advantage, a private screening of the game via satellite on Tuesday night. This is fundraiser for PUC, a nonprofit organization with multiple locations in Minneapolis' inner city neighborhoods; their efforts reach nearly 10% of the population of Minneapolis. It sounds like a fun opportunity to appreciate Target Field in less of a crowd, and watch our All-Star M&M boys kick some National League tail, from the comfort of the best ballpark in baseball. Bonus...you're helping out your community, and your ticket purchase is tax deductible, if you're into that sort of thing.


There's a special deal on tickets that ends TODAY, so if you're interested check it out. After today (Wednesday), you can still buy tickets here.

Like the lame icebreakers at work, but less awkward.

I promise one day soon, I will have the time and energy to post something substantial more than once a week. I swear.

But for right now, let's make this about you.

Let's all get to know each other. Leave a comment...even if I already know you or you're a lurker and have never left a comment til now. Who are you? How'd you come to be a Twins fan? If you're not a Twins fan...who do you root for? Why? Have a blog or website? Pimp it. (Note to Spammers: This does not mean YOU.) Tell me something interesting. Or something boring. Doesn't matter.

Let's be friends.

I'm handing the reins over to you guys today. Have at it!