Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Guest Post: A Change of Heart

(With the Twins Geek out of commission for the time being, today's guest post is brought to you by Nick Nelson of Nick's Twins Blog.)

Our beloved Twins Geek is amidst a dreadfully busy week, but didn't want to let down his readers so he's asked me to come on and put together a guest post. I'm sure no one here is particularly interested in my batty opinions, but fortunately I've been in constant contact with Mr. Bonnes so I'll simply relay his thoughts to you as best I can.

The most important thing that Geek wanted me to communicate to his audience is that he has finally flipped on the Carlos Gomez issue. As many who read this blog are undoubtedly aware, John has long been a believer that Gomez belongs in the minor leagues right now, while Delmon Young should be starting for the Twins in left field with Denard Span taking over in center. As many may also be aware, I happen to fall on the opposite side of this issue and the two of us have argued the point to great lengths in various places, ranging from comments sections to podcasts to local bars. Now, these debates can at long last come to a rest.

It was apparently quite the epiphany for the Geek. "Good golly," he told me (that's how he talks), "I can't believe I haven't seen it until now." Finally coming to the realizations that Gomez's considerable defensive edge outweighs any negligible offensive upgrade that Young provides with his ability to single his way to a .260 batting average and that Gomez can learn to make adjustments at the plate as easily in the majors as he would in the minors, John called me to concede around 10 o'clock last evening.

I admire John's humility in this matter and have no doubt that upon his return, he will tell you all in his own words how far astray he was. And I'm certain that by no means will he be upset with me for abusing my guest posting privileges to put forth anything less than a genuine, straight-shooting article.

Welcome to the light, John. Glad to have you aboard.

Monday, June 15, 2009

Phoning It In: Mauer Leading Batting Race

This is going to be a tough week to post, and the only reason I'm jumping on right now is because I may not be able to for the rest of the week. But I wanted to call your attention quickly to this post over at 'Very Well Then' blog. I hand cranked out these numbers by hand on my way home from Wrigley yesterday and discovered the same thing - that even though Joe Mauer needs 21 more plate appearances to qualify for the batting title, he would WIN the batting title if the season ended today. How does that work? Click on over and find out.

I hope to talk to you all again soon. But it's going to be a CRAZY week