Anyone worried about the upcoming 6 games with the Twins?

[TwinsBrewersWorldSeries]

Normally, my loyalties are tested during this six game stretch, but after our sweep of the Cardinals and the Twins collapse to 20 games below .500, i figured this year it would be easy to root for the hometown Brewers over my first love the Minnesota Twins. That said, the Twins are just playing out of their minds right now. Will it end in Milwaukee? A team that was left for dead a few weeks ago is now only 6.5 games out of their division lead. What is scary is that this run has happened despite an absolutely pathetic display from their offense. The Twins have always found success as a result of good pitching and defense. Their pitching and defense were far below average in April/May, but for whatever reason have been on fire in June. I really think 2011 is the Brewers year, but given that the Twins always seem to get hot for the series against the Brewers (2010 not withstanding), i fear that losing 4 or 5 of 6 could put us back into a funk.

[JoeHova]

I assumed the Twins would do something like this. Unfortunately, they're never just terrible (recently). I thought all along that they would pull a 2006 and come from way behind to win the division and it's starting to look like they're making their move. So, I am a bit worried about playing them. Regardless of their inherent moral inferiority, they always seem to play the Brewers well (they have somehow amassed a 36-28 record against Milwaukee despite representing a repugnant state and having repellent players) and I doubt this year will be any different.

[And That]

(they have somehow amassed a 36-28 record against Milwaukee despite representing a repugnant state and having repellent players)

What's repugnant about Minnesota?

 

Seems like an unnecessary shot.

[JoeHova]

And That wrote:

What's repugnant about Minnesota?

All the Minnesotans.

[RightFieldCoder]

I'm assuming we take one of six games. Anything better will feel like luck.

[rluzinski]

Teams are hot and then they aren't and then they are again. Unless there are corresponding roster changes that contributed to a hot and cold streak, I don't worry about that kind of stuff. I also am not concerned about team vs team records, except for what it implies regarding the relative strength of AL vs. NL (the AL has been much better for quite some time).

 

So far this year, the twins have scored 3.8 runs/game and have given up 4.5 runs/game. They are probably probably closer to a .500 team than that suggests but despite their recent hot streak, they have still have had a very poor 2011 so far. Anything can happen in 6 games but I am more concerned about games against the Cards and Reds than anyone else.

[JohnBriggs12]

They were 17-37 just 3 weeks ago and completely dead. They are 15-2 since. That may be the most impressive turnaround I've ever seen. The pitching in particular has been lights out giving up an average of just 2.35 runs a game in that stretch.

 

The good news is they are due to cool off sometime and lose a series.

[And That]

All the Minnesotans.

That's ridiculous.

[endaround]

Much more worried about the fact that Yuni is still the shortstop, Kottaras is the best candidate to DH and that players in Nashville are being blocked by worse players in Milwaukee.

[JoeHova]

That's ridiculous.

I'm just joking around, I live in Minnesota.

[razzzorsharp]

I will take credit for the turnaround. I put a little cash on the Twins weeks ago when they were 30:1 to win the central. Sorry.

[joepepsi]

That's ridiculous.

I'm just joking around, I live in Minnesota.

That's how I took your post. I live on the WI/MN border, have great friends from MN and enjoy visiting the Cities. But I grew up in Iowa, so any good natured dissing on Minnesota is well earned and fine by me. Plus, as a general rule, Minnesotans are rather arrogant when it comes to comparing themselves to other Midwesterners. Except Dakotans. For some reason Minnesotans seem to have a special bond with them. Don't even want to know what that's about.

[ECpackers]

i'm not worried about it at all, we'll win 4 of 6 i think....

 

 

well, Minnesota is a beautiful state, much like wisconsin, the further north you go, the better it gets, if you're into lakes n rivers, hidden away communities.

 

the repugnant minnesotans you speak of....probably the vikings fans. and not the vikings (the dudes who came in wooden ships and were in that movie pathfinder..lol)

[RockCoCougars]

Plus, as a general rule, Minnesotans are rather arrogant when it comes to comparing themselves to other Midwesterners. Except Dakotans. For some reason Minnesotans seem to have a special bond with them. Don't even want to know what that's about.

 

This is spot on, I've never met more provincial folks then those from Minnesota. You are right about the Dakotas thing too. Some Minnesotans actually even attend college there, may as well winter in Siberia. Minnesotans are also even more extreme bandwagon jumpers than we have in Wisconsin. In the mid-90s, there were a few days in which the St. Paul Saints outdrew the Twins and the year before Randy Moss, approximately half the Vikings games were blacked out.

[pebadger]

Won't be at all surprised if the Brewers end up short of 3 combined victories in the two series. The Twins weren't as bad as their start, they play in a better league and are hot. The Brewers aren't hot right now. The best thing going into the weekend is that the Twins have to fly here from SF after what amounts to a late afternoon start (CT) while the Crew get a day off. Pitching lines up decently enough for the Twins. With a lefty (Liriano) going against him, Yo won't get much run support even if he pitches well. Baker v Wolf is probably the best matchup for the Crew. Pavano/Narveson is a push at best for the Crew.

[And That]

I'm just joking around, I live in Minnesota.

"Hey, you're a jerk... no, just kidding!" isn't that funny to me, I guess.

 

I've lived in Minnesota about half my life, and Wisconsin about half my life.

 

Minnesota drivers, as a group, are generally much worse than Wisconsin drivers, but beyond that... if you put 5 people from Wisconsin and 5 people from Minnesota in a room dressed in non-sports related attire, I couldn't tell you who was from which state. There's not that much of a difference.

 

Provincial attitude? I've never got that vibe from anyone in this state.

[RockCoCougars]

"Provincial attitude? I've never got that vibe from anyone in this state.

 

I take it that you didn't attend school there.

[And That]

I take it that you didn't attend school there.

High school and college.

[chuckcrim]

I currently live in Minneapolis, and the comment about the bad drivers here is spot on! For some reason, a lot of Minnesotans talk negatively about Milwaukee, and they do it without knowing the first thing about MKE. They think Minneapolis is the greatest city of all time, don't even try arguing it with them. I refer to this state as East Dakota, and that really fires em up.

[joepepsi]

I currently live in Minneapolis, and the comment about the bad drivers here is spot on! For some reason, a lot of Minnesotans talk negatively about Milwaukee, and they do it without knowing the first thing about MKE. They think Minneapolis is the greatest city of all time, don't even try arguing it with them. I refer to this state as East Dakota, and that really fires em up.

East Dakota! I love it. Yeah, they tend to think they are a cooler version of Wisconsin.

[Oxy]

I currently live in Minneapolis, and the comment about the bad drivers here is spot on! For some reason, a lot of Minnesotans talk negatively about Milwaukee, and they do it without knowing the first thing about MKE. They think Minneapolis is the greatest city of all time, don't even try arguing it with them. I refer to this state as East Dakota, and that really fires em up.

East Dakota! I love it. Yeah, they tend to think they are a cooler version of Wisconsin.

I've always preferred Baja Manitoba.

[sbrylski]

I'm moving to the Twin Cities in August (from Madison). Love those nicknames.

[JoeHova]

"Hey, you're a jerk... no, just kidding!" isn't that funny to me, I guess.

You've never heard of facetiousness? I don't actually think Minnesotans are scum. However, I do think fans of their sports teams are annoying. Thus, I chose to be excessively mean when talking about one of their teams. I thought it would be pretty clear I was employing a rhetorical device but I guess not.

[djoctagone]

I currently live in Minneapolis, and the comment about the bad drivers here is spot on!

but we practice the zipper!

[DatHoser]

We'll probably lose 5 outta 6 to them, but at least I learned East Dakota and Baja Manitoba.