Scott Baker extends his great run of pitching since a disastrous first two months of the season, as he notched his eleventh win in his last twelve decisions, beating the lackluster Cleveland Indians 4-1. Baker labored through six innings, throwing 100 pitches, or what's known around the Twins clubhouse as "time to throw in the towel," and Baker kindly obliged, letting the bullpen finish the task and help Baker secure his 13th victory of the season. Things must have been clicking for the Twins, as even Nicky Punto got two hits, including the game-tying double in the fourth inning that also scored the eventual winning run due to a Jamey Carroll error. Coupled with the White Sox dominating the wild-card leading Red Sox and the Tigers mounting a terrific comeback against the defending American League champions, not only does the Twins win against lowly Cleveland look like small potatoes, but they were unable to make up any ground on Detroit or extend their lead over third-place Chicago. Six games out with 27 games to play, it's becoming increasingly clear that the Tigers are going to win this division. Expect the bottom to fall out on the Twins not here in Cleveland but in Toronto, which has been nothing short of a house of horrors for them the last three-four years. Dropping at least three of the four games against the Blue Jays will likely put the nail in the coffin for the Twins.For the Twins sake, they would like to hope that their ultimate collapse doesn't come until a week from now, for the mere reason that football season has official
ly started and with the Gophers opening TCF Bank Stadium and the Vikings employing the Brett Favre circus, Minnesota sports fans' attention is going to quickly divert from the Twins. The Gophers' overtime win against Syracuse on Saturday was a good game to watch and breeds hope for Brewster's Millions, who perenially come into every season with high hopes that are traditionally dashed by mid-October. And with this season being perhaps the most-anticipated Vikings season since perhaps the arrival of Randy Moss, people are going to drop the Twins like a sack of potatoes here in a week or so. It's the general psychology of being a sports fan in a prime market -- you follow the teams that you can when they're in season, and when there's an overlap, you focus more intently on the club that's less likely to rip your heart out. Now I know that there are some folks out there that would like to argue that the Vikings are more classic heart ripper-outers, but around here at the MTRC, it's nice to know that the pressure of sucking isn't relegated to Ron Gardenhire's bunch.
ly started and with the Gophers opening TCF Bank Stadium and the Vikings employing the Brett Favre circus, Minnesota sports fans' attention is going to quickly divert from the Twins. The Gophers' overtime win against Syracuse on Saturday was a good game to watch and breeds hope for Brewster's Millions, who perenially come into every season with high hopes that are traditionally dashed by mid-October. And with this season being perhaps the most-anticipated Vikings season since perhaps the arrival of Randy Moss, people are going to drop the Twins like a sack of potatoes here in a week or so. It's the general psychology of being a sports fan in a prime market -- you follow the teams that you can when they're in season, and when there's an overlap, you focus more intently on the club that's less likely to rip your heart out. Now I know that there are some folks out there that would like to argue that the Vikings are more classic heart ripper-outers, but around here at the MTRC, it's nice to know that the pressure of sucking isn't relegated to Ron Gardenhire's bunch. Nick Blackburn tries to follow up his only good start of the second half today against David Huff, a guy who the Twins have twice burned and then were burned by him in his last appearance against them. Considering the embarrassment that's going to happen north of the border, the Twins better win today to save face.
Photos: (1) AP/Mark Duncan; (2) AP/Kevin Rivoli
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