Links of the Day for 6/14/06

By Intern Jimmy

Grand Finale: Wowzers! The inning struck 12 and Jason Kubel’s bat went on record to say “Keep Me, I’m Good” to cap a nailbiter of a game in walk-off grand salami fashion. The marquee matchup with the BoSox featured a clash of titan pitchers in Curt Shilling and Johan Santana. The pitcher’s duel didn’t disappoint, combining to sprinkle 11 hits over 16 workhorse innings and striking out 18 between them. The 1-1 knot remained until Boston tacked one on in the top of the 12th. Things looked bleak when Mauer inconceivably struck out looking. All that changed after Kubel officially indoctrinated himself into Twins lore.

Epic victories like this convince you that anything is possible in the 2nd half. Sure the glass has looked half empty for a while, but 12.5 games back with 100 to play isn’t loony, especially when the wild card could easily come out of the Central. With the youth movement maturing rapidly before our eyes, there’s no telling what these kids are capable of. Mauer hit for .400? Why not. Liriano challenge Santana for the Cy en route to the ROY? Likely. Morneau hit 30 bingers this season? It’s bound to happen to some unsuspecting Twin. Kubel gain more confidence on a daily basis? Happening, with impressive results. Cuddyer belt grand slams bi-weekly? Check back next week.

Fast Start: Francisco Liriano is a marvel to behold. It’s not often filthy phenoms like this bust onto the scene, let alone fall into your team’s lap in an obscenely one-sided 3 for 1 deal. And it’s a marvel of modern sports that two like-talented (and like-handed) pitchers share a clubhouse. So just how similar has the Franchise’s jump out of the gate been to his mentor? I’ll let the numbers do the talking. Quite stunning, actually.

Santana’s 1^st 9 Starts (Age 21-22):

Date	IP	Hits	ER	BB	K
4/7/00	5	5	1	2	2
4/12/00	3.2	10	7	1	2
4/22/00	3.1	5	6	6	3
9/16/00	5.1	6	3	1	2
9/21/00	4.2	7	7	3	4
6/1/01	4	6	5	2	4
6/26/01	5.1	6	4	1	5
7/1/01	5	4	2	1	2
7/6/01	5.1	8	4	1	1
Totals	41.2	57	39	18	25

Liriano’s 1^st 9 Starts(Age 21-22)

Date	IP	Hits	ER	BB	K
9/14/05	5	2	2	1	6
9/20/05	3.2	6	6	3	6
9/25/05	6	5	4	3	8
9/30/05	7	5	2	0	8
5/19/06	5	2	1	3	5
5/26/06	5	4	0	1	6
5/31/06	6	1	0	4	4
6/6/06	6	7	3	2	3
6/11/06	7	1	0	2	6
Totals	50.2	33	18	19	52

Is it me or do Twins fans have collective amnesia regarding Santana’s first few turns on the mound? Is Liriano’s ceiling greater than the Sears Tower? It’s downright frightening how untouchable he is this early in the process and he’s still learning. I feel sorry for the American League in the years to come.

*Thanks to the splendid people at baseball almanac.com for a top notch site, who made finding Santana’s early box scores much easier than I anticipated.

Required Reading: Not just because this article heaps praise upon Mr. Twin, Chairman Mauer, but because it’s Gammons and Gammons is the truth when it comes to the diamond. When you catch the eye of PG to merit a title shout out, you’re special. And if you’re not an ESPN Insider, you need to reevaluate your priorities.