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[Minnesota Twins]

Padres 12, Twins 3: Seventh-Inning Wretch

Baseball. What is it?

Well, if it’s anything like the bowl of miso soup I had last night, it used to be pretty good! But, it’s over now.

Tonight, the Twins hung with the San Diego Padres for the first half of tonight’s Saturday evening contest. But after starter Mick Abel came in for a little piggyback relief, and immediately saw six runs charged to his ledger against only three outs recorded, what was once a promising tight-knit affair became a decisive San Diegan stomping.

Some credit is due to be dished out tonight, so let’s start there. Taj Bradley was much improved in his second start with Minnesota, making his way through five innings with just one hit allowed to a potent Padres lineup. While the usual control issues reared their head — Bradley walked three — the only real damage that the Dads were able to generate themselves came on one swing from Elias Diaz.

In the meantime, the Twins were at work scoring their three runs. James Outman would do a little manufacturing in the third inning, reaching on an infield single, stealing second, and taking the extra 90 feet to score on an RBI single from Trevor Larnach.

Then, after Diaz had tied the game in the top of the fifth, Minnesota would take the lead back on a two-run homer from — who else? — Byron Buxton, one of the last hearts still beating on the 2025 team. Buxton’s 28th homer was one of just two real impact swings against San Diego starter Nick Pivetta, who looked far more dominant tonight than his five-inning, six-strikeout pitching line would imply.

With the game tied 3-3 in the top of the sixth, Rocco’s Magical Arm Barn kicked into gear, and the game completely fell apart. The plan was for Mick Abel to piggyback with Bradley and take this game most of the rest of the way. But a lengthy sixth — Luis Arraez reached on an error to lead things off, before three singles and a walk peppered across two more runs for the Friars — put those plans into jeopardy.

Then, the Twins switched off Jeopardy and threw on Wheel of Fortune, and baby, they went bankrupt.

Then, the Twins switched off Wheel of Fortune and threw on Family Feud, and baby, that big red “X” with the loud buzzer kept comin’ on the screen.

Then, the Twins switched off Family Feud and threw on Press Your Luck, and baby, let’s just say, “yes, whammies.“

It was a seventh inning so abysmal, it deserved three contrived metaphors. To accurately illustrate the pure drudgery of a frame in which the Padres scored seven runs against two completely downtrodden Twins relievers, you sort of need a play-by-play. Here’s how it all went down:

• Tatis Jr. singles
• Arraez singles
• Machado singles; Tatis Jr. scores SD 4 – MIN 3
• O’Hearn singles; Arraez scores SD 5 – MIN 3
• Brooks Kriske relieves Mick Abel
• Laureano pops out (1 out!)
• Sheets singles; Machado scores SD 6 – MIN 3
• Iglesias lines out (2 outs!)
• Cronenworth doubles; O’Hearn and Johnson score SD 8 – MIN 3
• Diaz homers; Cronenworth scores SD 10 – MIN 3
• Tatis Jr. walks
• Arraez walks
• Machado grounds out

It took Mick Abel and Brooks Kriske a combined 103 pitches to get through an inning of work each. Even when the run-scoring had finally ceased for San Diego, the continued walks and steady stream of completely uncompetitive at-bats killed the game as much as the sudden 10-3 score did.

And the Padres were by no means finished — Genesis Cabrera would surrender a two-run shot to Laureano in yet another laborious inning of relief work. But guess what? The lone shutout inning, a very breezy ninth, belonged to Ryan Fitzgerald.

That about sums it up.

Also, I think I have written “yup, that about sums it up!” in every single recap since July 5th (see the preview.)

So, it will not be an early victory for Minnesota this weekend. They still have a shot to upset the Padres tomorrow, but it will require the sort of bounceback performance that this assemblage is not particularly known for. But it’s Labor Day weekend! So, what else are you gonna do? Check that bad boy out. I’ll see ya tomorrow.

STUDS:

SP Taj Bradley (5 IP, H, ER, 3 BB, 6 K)

CF Byron Buxton (1-for-2, R, 2 RBI, BB, HR)

DH Trevor Larnach (2-for-3, RBI)

LF/CF James Outman (2-for-3, 2 R, SB)

DUDS:

RP Mick Abel (IP, 7 H, 6 R, 5 ER, BB, K)

RP Brooks Kriske (IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 0 K, HR)

RP Genesis Cabrera (IP, 3 H, 2 ER, BB, 2 K, HR)

3B Royce Lewis (0-for-4, 2 K)

The Pohlads

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minneso...48704/padres-12-twins-3-seventh-inning-wretch

 

[Minnesota Twins]

Game 136: Padres at Twins

FIRST PITCH: 12:05 PM CDT​

TV: Roku​

RADIO: TREASURE ISLAND BASEBALL NETWORK​

KNOW THINE ENEMY: Gaslamp Ball​

Without getting too glib about the point, we’re probably not going to have a huge audience this afternoon. It’s Labor Day weekend, the weather looks good, the State Fair is approaching crunch time, the game is on Roku, and the Twins stink.

So, I’m going to dedicate this thread intro to one specific thought. It may not even be the greatest of thoughts (hence me pulling it out for a sparse crowd—hahaha), but it’s one that has been kicking around in my brain since the trade deadline.

Upon being cash-dumped traded back to the Houston Astros, one of the first statements Carlos Correa made revealed that he had been asking the Twins organization (possibly for some time) to switch to third base duties (his new HOU position with Jeremy Pena ensconced at SS).

My first thought was “that seems dumb”, what with the way that C-4 handled SS in Minnesota (brilliantly) and how Brooks Lee (next man up for the captain of the infielders) struggled just at 3B. But then, an interesting thing happened: installed as the everyday shortstop, Lee immediately looked comfortable at the position upon Correa’s departure and routinely stated how much more he enjoyed it than 3B.

Some of the defensive numbers back this up…

Obviously, the first thing you’ll notice from Lee’s career defensive numbers are a lot of minus signs in the Total Zone & Defensive Runs Saved categories. Let’s just say that he is primarily in the Bigs for his bat. But interestingly, he has graded out better at SS than 3B or 2B this season.

Of course, I won’t get it twisted—Lee does not profile as an everyday shortstop prospect. Not by body type, metrics, or just general career trajectory (especially with Kaelen Culpepper waiting in the wings).

But in a season where no configuration seemed to have been working, would it really have been so bad to try out Correa at third and Lee at short? What if—just maybe—something would have clicked and instead of falling face-first after early-June the team would have hung around Wild Card contention. Is the bullpen still intact? Is Correa still in town? Is fan morale something other than non-existent?

Flip-flopping 4 & 72 probably doesn’t save the 2025 season. But if both players were up for it, I can’t help but at least cogitate on the notion that it could have been tried—and it wasn’t. As such, today’s contest versus the San Diego Padres will be meaningless all but for the entertainment and contractual paychecks value.

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minneso...ld-labor-day-weekend-brooks-lee-carlos-correa

 

[Minnesota Twins]

Twins 7, Padres 2: Labor of Love

If you were watching the Minnesota Twins play the San Diego Padres today without financial compensation for doing so, you are a baseball die hard. To quote John McClane: “Welcome to the party, pal!”. Fortunately, the home team rewarded your loyalty with a nice series-clinching victory—the first of that kind in these parts since August 10th.

After two innings of general malaise from both sides, the Twins got on the board first in B3 when an Austin Martin walk was paid off by Byron Buxton’s 29th HR of the season off Kyle “Not the Hitman” Hart. 2-0 MN.

The bats went right back on the attack in B4 with Luke Keaschall getting plunked and moved along by a Ryan Jeffers walk before James Outman sent Master Luke home with a solid single into RCF. 3-0 MN.

Continuing to put pedal to metal, Buxton led off B5 with a ringing double. An outburst of RBI knocks—from Keaschall, Jeffers, & Royce Lewis—blew this one open a bit. 6-0 MN.

Meanwhile, this was the Joe Ryan Twins fans had been used to seeing April-through-July. Seven scoreless innings punctuated by a punch-out of Fernando Tatis Jr.

A bit more action: A Lewis bloop single drove in Brooks Lee in B7. 7-0 MN.

Some Tonkin tomfoolery would tomahawk the shutout in T9, but ultimately far too little too late for the Friars.

Your Final: Minnesota Twins 7, San Diego Padres 2.

With the Twins fated to embark on another month of meaningless (at least in the standings) matters, it’s tough to attach much significance to any single nine innings of play. But for those who rode along this holiday weekend afternoon, it was just fun to see Ace Ryan deal again and Buxton bang the ball around the ballpark.

Up next: 4 vs. Chicago White Sox (M afternoon & T-W-H evenings)

Studs​

• Buck Truck: HR, 2B, more just general awesomeness from the franchise cornerstone
• Ryan: 7 IP, 5 H, 1 BB, 8 K
• The Cory Provus & Mark “Mud” Grant pairing in the ROKU TV booth—very entertaining!

Duds​

• Pohlad Ownership Group (perma-dud)

Comment of the Game​

• nagurskiinnortheast identifying the player of the game.

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minneso...ego-padres-target-field-joe-ryan-byron-buxton

 

[Minnesota Twins]

White Sox 6, Twins 5

These Chicago White Sox just have the Minnesota Twins number. The Twins have now dropped three in a row to the White Sox with the season series tied 5-5. The Twins and White Sox sit at the bottom of the American League Central.

It was a back-and-forth game. The Minnesota Twins ultimately fell 6-5 to the Chicago White Sox at Target Field. The game featured multiple lead changes and moments of excitement, but in the end, a late rally by the White Sox in the eighth inning sealed the Twins’ fate.

Bailey Ober was looking for his first win when getting the start – since May.

The White Sox jumped ahead early in the top of the second inning with home runs from Colson Montgomery and Chase Meidroth off Ober, putting the White Sox up 3-0.

The Twins responded quickly in the bottom half of the second. White Sox with many issues in the inning, an error from Mead and three walks. Byron Buxton walks with the bases loaded, and Royce Lewis crossed the plate, 3-1 the score.

In the bottom of the sixth, Royce Lewis stepped up and crushed his 10th home run of the season—a fly ball to left-center—to cut the White Sox lead to one, 4-3.

Covered the MLB and WNBA slates and answered some NFL questions on our longest stream yet (3.5 hours). Many more on the horizon and glad we got at least one bang while we were still live.

️ Royce Lewis home run (+550) pic.twitter.com/2n6hUGBpXf

— Ahaan Rungta (@AhaanRungta) September 1, 2025

Staying in the bottom of the sixth, Byron Buxton beneficial yet again. He hit a sacrifice fly that brought in September call-up DaShawn Kiersey Jr., who had walked earlier in the inning. The run tied the game at 4 a piece, and the Twins were back in it.

The offense wasn’t done. In the bottom of the seventh, Brooks Lee slapped a ground ball to left field for a single, driving in Austin Martin to give the Twins a 5-4 lead, but it wouldn’t hold for long. As the game moved to the eighth, the Twins found themselves clinging to the slim one-run lead, something that isn’t always promising with the team’s current bullpen situation (if anyone was there Saturday night, you know….) In the top of the eighth, the White Sox responded with a two-out rally that would ultimately prove decisive. Brooks Baldwin hits a sharp double to center field, scoring Bryan Ramos from second base to tie the game 5-5.

And just like that, the momentum shifted. Mike Tauchman followed with another double, again to deep center, driving in Baldwin and giving the White Sox a 5-4 lead. The Twins couldn’t come up with any runs in the 9th, and that’s the ballgame.

The Twins play again tomorrow against the Sox. It’s a 6:40 p.m. start. The next three games against the White Sox start at that time. Then the team is off to KC.

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minnesota-twins-game-recaps/48769/white-sox-6-twins-5

 

[Minnesota Twins]

Game 137: White Sox at Twins

Game time: 1:10 p.m.

TV:Twins.TV

Radio: TIBN

Opposing Team Page: South Side Sox

After a fun weekend at Target Field, the Minnesota Twins are rolling into a four-game series against the White Sox that starts on Labor Day.

Game 1 Lineups

Twins

1. Buxton CF
2. Jeffers C
3. Wallner RF
4. Keaschall 2B
5. Larnach DH
6. Lee SS
7. Lewis 3B
8. Julien 1B
9. Outman LF

P. Ober (4-7, 5.14 ERA)

White Sox

1. Tauchman RF
2. Sosa 1B
3. Teel C
4. Quero DH
5. Montgomery SS
6. Mead 3B
7. Benintendi LF
8. Meidroth 2B
9. Baldwin CF

P. Ellard (0-2, 5.87 ERA)

This game against the White Sox could be a good one as we could possibly see Byron Buxton’s first 30-HR season. He hit his 29th over the weekend in the Twins series win over a good Padres team. The White Sox are also coming off a big Sunday win, topping the Yankees 3-2.

Bailey Ober is making his 23rd start of the season for the Twins. He is still looking to snap a winless streak in 15 games started. If he gets a win today, it would be his first win since May 3.

Go Twins!

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minnesota-twins-game-threads/48762/game-137-white-sox-at-twins

 

[Minnesota Twins]

Game 138: White Sox at Twins

First Pitch: 6:40 PM CDT

TV: Twins.TV

Radio: TIBN, WCCO 830, The Wolf 102.9 FM, Audacy, LosTwins.com

Know thine enemy: South Side Sox

With the season firmly over, one reason to watch is for milestones. Byron Buxton is sitting at 29 homers on the year, already the most he’s hit in a season ever. But we all know round numbers are better. He’s leading off tonight, maybe we’ll see his 6th leadoff homer this season.

On the mound for the Twins tonight is Simeon Woods Richardson, who gave up 5 runs in less than 4 innings his last time out. He’s up against Davis Martin, who got a win against the Twins two starts ago.

Today’s Lineups​

Mike Tauchman – DH	Byron Buxton – CF
Kyle Teel – C	Trevor Larnach – DH
Lenyn Sosa – 2B	Brooks Lee – SS
Colson Montgomery – SS	Matt Wallner – RF
Curtis Mead – 1B	Kody Clemens – 1B
Andrew Benintendi – LF	Austin Martin – 2B
Brooks Baldwin – CF	James Outman – LF
Will Robertson – RF	Mickey Gasper – C
Bryan Ramos – 3B	Ryan Fitzgerald – 3B
Davis Martin – RHP	S. Woods Richardson – RHP

[th]

WHITE SOX​

[/th]​

[th]

TWINS​

[/th]​

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minnesota-twins-game-threads/48780/game-138-white-sox-at-twins

 

[Minnesota Twins]

White Sox 12, Twins 3: Bullpen explodes

Going into the top of the 5th, the Twins led 3-1. Nothing good happened the rest of the game.

The game started out good, as Byron Buxton tripled and later scored on Trevor Larnach’s single in the bottom of the 1st. In the 2nd, Mickey Gasper walked, stole 2nd, and scored on Ryan Fitzgerald’s single.

In the 4th, the Twins loaded the bases with nobody out. Gasper hit a sac fly and Austin Martin was thrown out trying for 3rd, making it a double play. Fitzgerald then bunted a pop out to end the threat. If you believe in momentum, this is where it definitely flipped to the White Sox.

In the top of the 5th, after a walk, Will Robertson broke his bat grounding a ball to Richardson, who narrowly avoided a shard of the bat hitting him. In that mess, he overthrew 2nd base, allowing everyone to advance.

View Link

Hard to blame him for this one. The White Sox capitalized on the error, though, as Bryan Ramos doubled, scoring two and tying the game.

In the 6th, Thomas Hatch took over for Richardson and immediately gave up a walk. Curtis Mead then reached on an Austin Martin error, followed by RBI singles by Benintendi and Brooks Baldwin, giving the Sox the lead. From there, it was all downhill, as Kyle Teel and Lenyn Sosa homered in the 7th to make it 7-3. Four straight singles led to two more runs to make it 9-3.

In the 8th, Benintendi blasted a Noah Davis pitch out to right field for a 3-run homer to make it 12-3. That’s the final score, just an awful game.

Studs:

Mickey Gasper: 0-2, BB, SB, R

Byron Buxton: 1-4, 3B, R

Trevor Larnach: 2-4, 2B

Brooks Kriske, for this web gem:

View Link

Liminal space between Stud and Dud:

Simeon Woods Richardson: 5.0 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, HR

Duds:

Thomas Hatch: 2.0 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 5 ER, BB, 3 K, 2 HR

Austin Martin: 1-3, BB, base running error, fielding error

Matt Wallner: 0-4, 3 K

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minnesota-twins-game-recaps/48784/white-sox-12-twins-3-bullpen-explodes

 

[Minnesota Twins]

White Sox 4, Twins 3: Why have good bullpen when bad bullpen cheaper

Watching the White Sox celebrate at Target is like watching your bully get a graduation award. Or something like that. | David Berding / Getty Images

These losses aren’t even funny anymore. They’re certainly not fun.

Not only have the Twins now lost the season series to Chicago, they snapped the White Sox’s 205-game losing streak when trailing after eight innings. Of course it’s THIS team.

On to the parody, and I don’t mean this pretend masquerading as a ballclub.

Man, it’s a late one,
The fall attendance in a downward run,
‘Cause we find the Minnesota Twins certainly done;
The owner’s a fool.
Been stuck in losing,
A self-made beggar trying choosing,
But now this evening’s an evening
To ramp up the joule.

And if you dread these guys, this Quad-A club,
Need a thrill unfurled to wish a dub?
Got a game tonight, but will boost your mood?
For we’re so screwed…

‘Cause we’ve all got a notion jointly accrued
That if the team has no emotion, then the game’s not viewed.
So grab your bat and glove and fighting attitude, yeah;
Play better ball: that’s the deal, or we’ll forget about it.

Well, there was a STUD thing
When Zebby made ‘em miss near every swing,
And in the lineup, Lewis heard his lumber sing,
Ready to clout.
Way out in the audience,
The spectant few became applaud-y; hence,
It fell to later inning arms ready to go,
Hearts fell in thuds,
Just DUDS.

‘Cause we all dread these guys, this Quad-A club;
They can kill our world, a fatal flub.
Had a game tonight, it never boosts your mood.
Yes, we’re so screwed…

‘Cause we’ve all got a notion jointly accrued
That if the team has no emotion, then the game’s not viewed.
(The Comment That We Love was from Nagurski’s brood, yeah.)
Play better ball: that’s the deal, or we’ll forget about it.

Yes, we’ve all got a notion jointly accrued
That if the team has no emotion, then the game’s not viewed.
They have a bat and glove? Not with that attitude, yeah;
Play better ball: that’s the deal, or we’ll forget about it.
Let’s all forget about it…

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minneso...-when-bad-cheaper-justin-topa-kody-funderburk

 

[Minnesota Twins]

Game 139: White Sox at Twins

A consequence of a rubbish bullpen. | Stephen Maturen / Getty Images

First Pitch: 6:40 PM
TV: Twins.TV
Radio: TIBN, WCCO 830, The Wolf 102.9 FM, Audacy
Know Yo’ Foe: South Side Sox

Well, he said, “there’s ball outside,” and he’s letting his brain float;
It’s far too early to think like that.
Well, he said, “they’re not gonna win, but the losing streak just might halt.”
And he doesn’t sleep, mind is racing;
If he dreams, there’s a fear that’s bracing,

So he says, “Maybe,
It’s 3 AM, I should be writing.“
And he says, “Maybe,
Now I can type up the thread, get it done on time,
And my brain’s gonna stay awake, I believe it.“

Well, he’s got a little bit of wonder of how the Twinkies’ll blunder
‘Cause with the Pohlad pocketbook, he’s a fear the team’s growing mold.
He knows the team can’t play near as well as it wants to.
But he doesn’t sleep, mind is racing;
Will he dream, or will fear come chasing?

So he says, “Maybe,
If it’s 3 AM, I should be writing.“
And aching, he says, “Maybe,
Now I can type up the thread, get it done on time,
And my brain’s gonna stay awake, I believe, yes.“

Will we believe the Twins ever make up the joy that we’re used to?
Will the pocketbooks always be stuck at cheap and laze and laze?
To think our happiness is a matter, it’s coming our way? (Yeah?)
But downslide we’re now facing…

Yeah, so he says, “Maybe,
If it’s 3 AM, I should be writing.“
And waking, he says, “Maybe,
Now I can type up the thread, get it done on time,
And my brain’s gonna want a break, I believe, yes;
Now it’s 3 AM, I should be writing.“
And waking, he says, “Maybe,
Now I can type up the thread, and it’s done on time.“

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minneso...-matthews-the-series-is-lost-but-not-the-game

 

[Minnesota Twins]

White Sox 11, Twins 8: Are We Worse than the White Sox?

A sweep at the hands of the White Sox would have been a disaster a few weeks ago. Nowadays, it’s just another Thursday.

After a delay of over two hours, Taj Bradley took the mound for the Twins and had himself a decent start when it was all said and done. Bradley’s stuff was down a bit from his last start when he was regularly hitting 99 MPH with his fastball, but he battled through some tough at-bats and gave Minnesota five solid innings.

The White Sox were able to get to Taj in the third inning. New Twins nemesis Edgar Quero smoked a double over James Outman’s head, while Kyle Teel followed with a RBI single to break the seal. After a five pitch walk to Colson Montgomery, Curtis Mead drilled a double of his own to plate two more runs and give the Southsiders a 3-0 lead.

The Twins bats fought back in the fourth, plating five runs of their own thanks to some timely hitting. Walks to Matt Wallner and Austin Martin put two on with two out, but the Twins scraped together four straight two-out hits to put them up 5-3. The go-ahead hit came off the bat of Mickey Gasper, who pinch hit for Ryan Jeffers after he had to leave the game with a head injury.

The two teams then exchanged runs in the fifth, with Minnesota’s run coming from a Wallner 108 MPH rocket dong off a lefty. It’s his fourth homer run off a left-handed pitcher this season, easily a career high. Unfortunately, things came unraveled for the Twins from there.

With little Joey Pohlad sending their best bullpen arms elsewhere, the Twins were left with scraps to piece together the game after Bradley left. Travis Adams was first up and threw a great sixth inning with his stuff playing up in a shorter role. Adams came back out for the seventh and was not nearly as sharp, allowing three straight batters to reach with a Teel three-run homer to top it off and bring the score even at 7 a piece.

Genesis Cabrera relieved Adams and continued to unimpress. Cabrera hit the first batter he faced, got the next two out (with a run coming in on a sac fly), balked in another run, threw a wild pitch, and then finally put us all out of our misery. 9-7 White Sox.

Noah Davis, the walking earned run machine, the living white flag himself, came in for the ninth inning and gave up runs as he is wont to do. Royce Lewis didn’t help him out, but this dude just has no business being on a major league roster. In 62 MLB innings, Davis has now allowed 71 runs, 99 hits, 30 walks, 17 home runs, and hit 11 batters to top everything off. Of the over 11,000 pitchers in MLB history, Davis has the second-worst ERA among players with at least 50 innings. He’s rapidly closing in on the top spot, just a few runs behind fan-favorite Charlie Stecher of the 1890 Philadelphia Athletics.

The White Sox added more runs in the ninth, unsurprisingly.

STUDS

• Luke Keaschall: 4-5, 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 SB
• Austin Martin: 2-3, 1 BB, 3 scorched balls
• Trevor Larnach: 3-5, 1 SB
• Matt Wallner: 1-2, 1 HR, 2 BB

DUDS

• Second inning Travis Adams: 0 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 1 HBP, 1 HR (his first inning was legitimately very good!)
• Genesis Cabrera: 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 HBP, 1 balk, 1 wild pitch
• Noah Davis: Worst pitcher in modern baseball history. Here’s a list of things that happened the same year there was a pitcher as bad as Noah Davis
  • Van Gogh painted Starry Night
  • Van Gogh died
  • The cardboard box was invented
  • Mercedes-Benz was founded
  • The first American Football game was played
  • NDSU was founded
  • The Picture of Dorian Gray was first published
  • Idaho and Wyoming were made US States
  • The Minnesota Sea Wing Disaster
  • Agatha Christie was born
  • We were closer in history to the CIVIL WAR than World War 1.

These Twins may be bad, but I suppose they’re not boring.

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minneso...ox-11-twins-8-are-we-worse-than-the-white-sox

 

[Minnesota Twins]

The Real MVP of 2005

In the year 2005, MLB’s Most Valuable Player awards went to Alex Rodriguez (AL) & Albert Pujols (NL). But any baseball fan under, say, 30 years old at the time knew the real MVP of the ‘05 season—the EA Sports sim that just might be the best baseball video game ever constructed.

A brief rewind…

I grew up playing various baseball sims in the 1990s and early 2000s—each with their pros and cons. Tony La Russa Baseball II was marvelous at simming stats and seasons—but this was often the gameplay experience. Triple Play 2000 for the PC had a great Home Run Derby mode—but not much else. All Star Baseball 2001 was okay for the Nintendo ‘64 (I once played an entire season with the Boston Red Sox simply because I loved Pedro Martinez & Nomar Garciaparra)—but sort of a one-trick pony.

Then the Sixth Generation of video game consoles dropped—Nintendo Gamecube (my brand of choice), Playstation 2, Microsoft Xbox, & Sega Dreamcast—and I wandered in the desert of baseball sims for a few years. All Star Baseball 2002 for the Gamecube was atrocious, EA’s MVP Baseball 2004 was just okay, and Madden NFL games were SO GOOD at the time that I found myself playing a lot more pixilated pigskin.

But on May 18, 2005, EA Sports changed the baseball gaming landscape—releasing MVP Baseball 2005 for the GCN, XBOX, PS2, & PC. There’s a strong case to be made that no sweet-swinging software has surpassed it since.

What made MVP ‘05 so iconic? Let us count the ways…

Gameplay​

Every solid gaming experience starts with, well, the gameplay engine. Baseball sims are notoriously terrible at this—usually on the “impossible to get a hit or even make contact” front. Somehow, EA developers hit the sweet spot (pardon the pun) of making pitching feel extremely smooth while also not overwhelming the batting experience. Having pitchers naturally wear down—and thus more difficult to execute Brad Radke-esque control—was a masterstroke, allowing for more action in the later innings. While playing MVP ‘05 against the CPU or friends/family, I had as many slugfests as pitcher’s duels.

Minigames & Unlockables​

Have you ever wanted to take batting practice where you could smash suspended trash cans or tattoo roving tractors? Well, MVP ‘05’s hitting mini game is for you! Endlessly addictive.

On the pitching side, the hit-the-colored-squares bullpen mode let players sharpen their pinpoint accuracy on the bump. I don’t care how small those squares got—I was bullseye-ing them with peak Johan Santana.

I can also say with absolutely no equivocation that I unlocked more items in MVP ‘05 than any other video game I ever booted up. From classic players to old stadiums (the Polo Grounds!) to retro-jerseys (some going back to the early 1900’s!), I was motivated to rack up in-game achievements to access the likes of Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Jackie Robinson, Babe Ruth, & Nolan Ryan (with whom I nearly spun a no-no) amongst many others.

Sox Synergy​

With Manny Ramirez on the cover and the intro video leaning heavily into the magical 2004 Boston Red Sox run, MVP ‘05 felt in tune with the cultural zeitgeist. Sure, the Twins were my preferred squad—but I certainly played my share of Red Sox-versus-Yankees contests just to stick it to the Bronx Bombers in the digital domain like the BoSox had done the previous October.

Mic-men & Music​

It was a genius decision to employee the vocal talents of San Francisco Giants broadcasters Duane Kuiper & Mike Krukow for the play-by-play and in-game banter. To this day when I hear them on the mic I think “those are the guys from the game!”.

EA Sports also had a knack for curating perfect sporting soundtracks—and MVP ’05 is no different. You haven’t lived if you never zoned out in mini games to Funny Little Feeling, Pressure Point, or The IROC Z Song.

The Little Things​

• A full minor league farm system for every MLB organization
• “John Dowd” hilariously being the replacement for Barry Bonds, who was—of course—not part of the MLBPA licensing agreement
• The ability to charge the mound (hahaha)!
• A modding community that continues to this day. I had to see this first-hand, so a few months ago I garnered updated 2025 rosters. The amount of time and meticulous player-crafting by folks in the gaming community shows how beloved MVP ‘05 really is.

Alas, MVP ‘05 was a one-hit wonder. In 2006, EA lost MLBPA/MLBAM exclusivity—with 2K Sports swooping in with a better offer. 2K baseball sims had a few good moments—2K10 with Evan Longoria on the cover was solid—but overall they were fairly buggy. One edition had the persistent glitch of first basemen pulling their feet off the bag before recording outs. Another absolutely would not allow tags at third base—so base running was chaos.

In 2014, MLB: The Show became the exclusive home of MLB name-and-likeness. I’ve largely been out of the “new gaming” scene for a number of years now, but the editions of The Show I did play (roughly 2015-2018) were fun—if lacking the same charm as EA’s efforts (adolescent nostalgia probably plays a not-insignificant role here).

Like I said, I’m not much of a gamer anymore—that hobby having largely been replaced by cinema, scripted TV drama, & blogging with a bunch of crazy Twins die-hards (looks around and chuckles). But I do have a 4-year old nephew now and Nintendo does have a new console (Switch 2) out, so there’s a real possibility I might be dipping back into the likes of Mario Kart World or Super Smash Bros Ultimate soon.

But at a time—two decades ago—when baseball was still perched atop the American sporting landscape (perhaps more than ever thanks to the Miracle Sox) and I had just graduated high school (perhaps the most fertile time for gaming), MVP 2005 will always represent the zenith of that realm to me.

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minneso...mvp-baseball-2005-ea-sports-nintendo-gamecube

 

[Minnesota Twins]

Game 140: White Sox at Twins

First Pitch: 6:40 PM CDT

TV: Twins.TV

Radio: TIBN, WCCO 830, The Wolf 102.9 FM, Audacy

Know thine enemy: South Side Sox

The Twins are back in action against the Southsiders, who are rapidly approaching them in the standings. Taj Bradley is looking to build off his excellent start last time out, where he apparently read a scouting report for the first time in his career. The White Sox will counter with a pitcher by the name of Fraser Ellard, who I’ve never heard of before, but does happen to throw with his left hand, meaning the Twins are in for a long night.

Lineups​

I’m including the Twins players’ season OPS vs lefties just for fun too. The lefty thing is truly not over-exaggerated.

Twins

P: Taj Bradley

1. Luke Keaschall, 2B (.471, yikes!)
2. Trevor Larnach, DH (.584, oofta!)
3. Ryan Jeffers, C (.869, yeehaw!)
4. Kody Clemens, 1B (.369, your cleanup hitter!)
5. Royce Lewis, 3B (.749, let’s hear it for being average!)
6. Matt Wallner, RF (.752, not as bad as I thought!)
7. Austin Martin, LF (1.008, historically reverse splits though!)
8. James Outman, CF (.178, yowza!)
9. Ryan Fitzgerald, SS (.143, yeehaw but negative this time!)

White Sox

P: Fraser Ellard

1. Edgar Quero, DH
2. Kyle Teel, C
3. Lenyn Sosa, 1B
4. Colson Montgomery, SS
5. Curtis Mead, 3B
6. Andrew Benintendi, LF
7. Chase Meidroth, 2B
8. Brooks Baldwin, RF
9. Michael A. Taylor, CF

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minnesota-twins-game-threads/48839/game-140-white-sox-at-twins

 

[Minnesota Twins]

Royals 2, Twins 1: Our side can’t hit and our manager hates happiness

Pablo López returns pretty strong, all things considering. But the Twins can’t do much against Michael Wacha, and can’t do anything at all against the Royals’ bullpen, and Rocco ticks me off tonight. Inning-by-inning notes:

1: Four pitches deliver two Twins outs. At least Luke Keaschall and Kody Clemens make starter Wacha work a little before Austin Martin produces the final out on the second pitch he sees.

Apparently Royals 1B Vinnie Pasquantino’s nickname is the Pasquatch? OK. Like Bigfoot, he’s hard to capture, or at least the ball he hits is; Buxton makes a valiant effort, but it’s a double. He doesn’t score. Maybe later he will. During or following the game.

2: Royce Lewis takes a walk and steals. That’s cool! Unfortunately this is when backup backup catcher Jhonny “Crash Davis” Pereda is hitting, which is to say not hitting, so Lewis isn’t going anywhere. Unless he gets good again in the next few years and is about to become a star. Then the Twins will trade him for a Player To Be Conceived Later.

A two-out walk for Pablo but nothing comes of it. The hitter he walks, Jac Caglianone, was a two-way player in college. But a college pitcher with a 4.55 ERA probably isn’t gonna be encouraged to pitch in the majors. Still, talented guy. He doesn’t score. He might later — only during the game. He is Pure Of Groin.

3: The Twins do nothing. With two outs, the Pasquatch does. And then his less-furry teammate, Makiel Garcia, makes a homer. This game is over 0-2

4: Still over, but at least it’s “Moving Right Along.” This is a Muppet Movie reference. Fozzie Bear and Kermit sing that song, written by Paul Williams of Phantom of the Paradise. Fozzie Bear’s catch phrase is “wacha wacha wacha.” The Twins have one hit off Wacha. All things are connected.

Looking at the last week of Saints promotions… there’s Fighting Saints Night, Teacher Appreciation Night (with no free tickets or discounts for teachers), a Monster Food Truck Rally, and “Bluey and Bingo presented by Wanta Thome Law!”

Boy, things sure have changed. I remember when the Saints had things like The Death of Rasputin. Or Atheist Night, which featured two fans running the bases, to be first in the race to begin Evolution. When one dived first into a slip-and-slide at home, representing the “primordial ooze,” the fan looked around and the P.A. announcer said, “are you wondering what you win in the end? It’s an atheist race! There’s NOTHING at the end!”

That was pretty funny. I miss Midway. Speaking of which, I took this outside the library a few years ago:

Me too.

5: Ha-ha, now that I’ve ragged on the guy, who is it but Pereda to deliver the Twins’ first RBI after a Brooks Lee double? I take it back, Jhonny is the new Joe.

Despite a leadoff single by #9 hitter Kyle Isbel, Pablo comes back strong with two strikeouts and a Pasquatch flyout. I’d guess he’s done, his first game back from injury with 77 pitches? A strong outing in any case. Team from that Lorde song 2-1

6: It’s certainly the end of the night for Wacha after only 83 pitches, on a two-out Martin double. Unfortunately the Royals’ bullpen is pretty good. Or, for our purposes, “the Royals’ bullpen has three left-handers.” The Twins don’t do well against left-handers. Or right-handers. But they are worse against lefties. Zerpa is a lefty. Matt Wallner grounds out.

Uh-oh. Garcia singles, and Salvador Perez hits what MIGHT have been a double play, but Lee boots it, everybody’s safe. Then Pereda catches Garcia napping at second! He IS the new Joe. Then a strikeout and pop-out and Pablo gets out of it! Well, done, sir.

7: Twins still bad against lefties. Kody Funderburkerer forestalls the eventual Pen Meltdown.

8: Another Royals lefty pitching, Daniel Lynch IV. ‘Cause that’s such an amazing name, Lord forbid you break the generational tradition with a “Larry” or “David” or whatever. Trevor Larnach actually gets a lefty-on-lefty hit, and advances to second on a groundout. A righty gets Martin for the final out. Larnach doesn’t score. He never will. He’s a sworn Vestal Virgin and doesn’t want to get buried alive. (Yes, that’s what they did to Vestal Virgins who slipped up.)

Justin “Varies Up Who’s On” Topa keeps the score the same.

9: Rocco fail. Rocco HUGE FAIL. Let’s break this down…

Righthanded closer Carlos Estévez pitching. With two outs, Brooks Lee walks. Bringing up #9 hitter, Jhonny Pereda. Who’s had an RBI double, a walk, and a key pickoff! Let the man hit, Rocco! It would be a neat story if he was the hero! This game DOESN’T MATTER!

Nope, the spreadsheet says “pinch hit with switch-hitter in righty-on-righty situation.” So Mickey Gasper hits. And flies out.

I don’t mind decisions that backfire in key games, if the numbers say it’s the right decision. You can make a case for that, and it’s how almost every manager in baseball does things now.

But gawd da**it, Rocco, this game’s unimportant, you had the opportunity to give us something to enjoy, and you crapped all over it.

And if that ain’t the Twins this year, I dunno what is.

Studs of the game go to Pereda anyway, and Pablo López for some nice Houdini work later on. Duds go to Lee for two errors (both were kinda-tough plays), and Rocco for Hating Fun (as Zach pointed out).

COTG go to the Financial Sector discussion, nice Grandma discussion, and then a Teens Purchasing Things Teens Shouldn’t followed by Bad Bottom-Shelf Wine discussion. Plus BobbyDarwinFanClub for explaining the username:

“Bobby was my first favorite Twin for the silliest of reasons, his last name was the same as my much older sister’s husband’s first name. I was probably only 7 or 8 at the time. Didn’t hurt, though that he had a couple of pretty good years at the time. At the old Met, there were two seats high in the upper decks painted (red and yellow?) to mark the longest home runs hit by Twins players… Killebrew, and Darwin. Killebrew’s was the longest of the two, of course”

Really, thanks a ton everybody for keeping these gamethreads fun. You’re the best!

Tomorrow’s game is at 6:15 on FOX, and features Joe Ryan for our gang against something called a Stephen Kolek for the Royals. Enjoy the weekend if ya got one!

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minneso...side-cant-hit-and-our-manager-hates-happiness

 

[Minnesota Twins]

Royals 11, Twins 2: Ah! Well. Nevertheless,

In the game thread, I mentioned that lately the Twins tend to either hit or pitch, never do both. Well, tonight they decided to neither.

All-Star Joe Ryan had his worst start of the season as he couldn’t find the strike zone in an out-of-character, walk-filled outing. After walking the first two batters of the game, an RBI double by Vinnie Pasquantino and three-run dong from Salvador Perez gave the Royals a 4-0 lead before Ryan recorded an out. KC made it a five run first when it was all said and done.

Ryan looked better in the second but was lifted after two innings and 62 pitches. He was apparently battling an illness and there’s no reason to put undue stress on your ace at this point of the season. Unfortunately, the Twins also only have 1.25 good relievers so this one was a wrap as soon as Ryan exited. Thomas Hatch and Brooks Kriske were on mop-up duty and both were bad, to varying degrees. Michael Tonkin pitched a clean ninth, so that’s something, I suppose.

Offensively, there just wasn’t much going on. The Twins added two runs in the third inning thanks to RBI knocks from their lone two good hitters (Byron Buxton and Luke Keaschall), but Royals starter Stephen Kolek did a good job scattering singles and limiting damage. At the end of the day, Minnesota went 1-9 with runners in scoring position and had just two extra base hits and two walks all night. Bad at-bats, bad approaches, and boring offense. Even when the Twins were in the playoff hunt, this was how the lineup was looking more often than not.

Some final fun facts:

• Twins have the worst record in baseball since the trade deadline, a whopping four wins behind the St. Louis Cardinals who are second worst.
• They have the second worst record in baseball since June 1. For those of you counting at home, they still had all their good players for two of those three months!
• Don’t fact check me on this one, but I think James Outman might never get a hit again.

STUDS

• HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

DUDS

• Joe “Down with the Sickness” Ryan: 2 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 4 BB, 2 K, 1 HR
• ThomBrooks Hatske: Why are we giving journeyman, mid-30s pitchers run when there’s a slew of AAA pitchers who could be getting experience
• Mick Abel, Marco Raya, Andrew Morris, Connor Prielipp, Pierson Ohl, Kendry Rojas: apparently!
• All hitters not named Buxton or Keaschall

But hey! We get to watch Justin Jefferson play football on Monday. Skol!

Source: https://www.twinkietown.com/minnesota-twins-game-recaps/48887/royals-11-twins-2-ah-well-nevertheless