Uh oh….
I was a bit busy this weekend, so I didn’t really keep up with Twins’ news. I skim my RSS feed today to learn that Mijares is on the DL with elbow soreness (I was wondering what Burnett was doing back in the majors) and Neshek is out of commission for a few days with a middle finger issue. To top is off, Blackburn is also complaining about elbow soreness. Elbow soreness = bad news.
Like I said earlier in the year, it’ll be injuries that will bring the Twins down in 2010. If, God forbid, Blackburn is sidelined for the year, do the Twins go out and splurge on Washburn and hope for the best? Personally, I think either Duensing or Perkins could pitch as well as Washburn can at this point.
Luckily, the offense is still clicking and Baker, Slowey and Liriano seem to be anchoring the starting rotation. As long as they have that going for them, the Twins should be okay.
Opening Day!
Well, that was a little bit of a let down. Baker was his normal terrible and wild early-season self, and the big bats were pretty quiet. Denard Span looked especially bad, with three strikeouts, but Joe Mauer also looked like he wasn’t his normal patient self. Hopefully it was all opening day nerves, and the boys will be back to normal soon.
On a positive note, Pat Neshek and Jesse Crain looked pretty good last night and both had wicked sliders working. It’ll be important for those two to keep up the good work with Nathan down and out. I see that Rauch was named the official Closer, and I’m okay with that. Pat Neshek might end up being the better choice once he’s 100%, but I think it’s a good idea to pick one guy to start as the closer. Everyone will know their role and it won’t really disrupt anyone’s preparation routines.
I was also impressed by Delmon Young. It was exciting to see him turn on an inside fastball and crush it to left field. Add in a little speed (infield single and stolen base) and not looking too goofy out in left field and it looks like we might be getting closer to the guy Bill Smith thought he traded for. I hope Gardy gives him a pretty long leash this season so that he can get his confidence back.
I also want to give a shout-out to my favorite ex-Twins: Garrett Jones and Carlos Gomez. Go-Go was 3-4 with a home run for the Brew Crew, and Jones mashes two homers for the Pirates (one which ended up in the Allegheny!)