The Welsh Centre has been home to a milonga for many years, but its always had problems and the organisers moved to Conway Hall and renamed their club Carablanca.

Later Oktango decided to run a milonga and a year later, not everyone knows about the reopening. Which is a shame, its a large floor and the venue is nice.

You can read a detailed review on Ms Hedgehog’s blog and there is a website with the latest info.

These days, pre-milonga classes are taught by Luis Rodriguez who regularly teaches at South London Tango with Claire Loewe. The class was too early for me but I would recommend Luis. I’ve had many good dances with people from South London Tango so he must be doing something right.

The food buffet was served in two rounds, the first round finished pretty quickly and a little later in the evening they had a second delivery. I’m not sure if its always like that. I didn’t notice any mints but I always carry a pack of gum with me when I go dancing.

I’m not sure what the role of the dance hosts were. There were clearly more men that night. Some men sat there talking while I stood there watching the dancefloor for almost an hour before I started dancing. Eventually I realised who the dance hosts were (they had a white sticker with their names printed on it) and I think their role was to dance with beginners or students of Oktango (and each other).

I found the layout of the chairs a little unusual. Most of the chairs were where the food buffet was, near the entrance. But there were a couple of chairs oddly placed around the far side of the dancefloor which some couples took up.

My friend arrived a little after 9 and we started dancing. There were varying skill levels on the dancefloor and even though there was lots of space, some people still danced large and didn’t always flow. Some couples stayed close or in the centre trying out moves while most moved in the line of dance. There were no lanes as far as I could tell.

My greatest criticism for the night would be the music. When I first arrived, I thought they were playing Pugliese, but then it sounded a little more polished/modern so it was probably ColorTango. Milongas and vals were usually from the Golden age. But apart from that, all the other tangos seemed to be from Modern Orchestras. The whole night I did not hear a DiSarli, Canaro, Calo or Troilo (or any tango from Golden Age). I heard many familiar songs but it was always a more modern version of the song.

Are modern orchestras such as ColorTango still considered traditional music?

Don’t get me wrong, I like the modern orchestras but they all sound very similar to me (especially after a whole night). They’re all very polished and lack the character of the older orchestras. So towards the end of the night, I was looking forward to the neuvo tracks which offered a bit of variety.

I prefer my music arranged in tandas with cortinas. I think the music was arranged in tandas (but I couldn’t tell because the distinction between the modern orchestras aren’t strong enough to me) but there were certainly no cortinas. Feedback from the regulars is that they like the music at the Welsh Centre.

The Welsh Centre has a lot of potential but unless I go with someone I can dance with, I’m not sure I’d go again. The large space means that its a good venue to practise and the number of beginners there means that I can bring beginner friends along and not worry about them not finding anyone to dance with. The idea of dance hosts (male and female) is a good idea but I think you might need to take their classes before they ask you for a dance. In the end, for one night it was a good alternative to Negracha and Carablanca. These days, I still talk to people who don’t know there’s a milonga at the Welsh Centre. I think its worth help spreading the word so that everyone knows its open.

LangDetectes>en GoogleDicC

llano, liso, igual, uniforme, a nivel, constante, equitativo, ecuánime, apacible, imperturbable, par, nivelado, hasta, aún, incluso, con, emparejar, allanar, nivelar, igualar

Maybe because I didn’t grow up in California, where he was the voice of the California Angels for the better part of a decade, but when I think of Dick Enberg, I think of AFC football games and Merlin Olson.  Still, the 75-year-young master of the microphone will be calling out an occasional “Oh My!” when Adrian Gonzalez (assuming he stays put) hits a late inning homer for a win.  The Padres inked Enberg to voice the television broadcasts for 2010.  (I’d LOVE to have that job.)  [SI]

News and Notes…

The Oakland As signed reliever Joey Devine to a one-year deal, avoiding arbitration.  Acquired for Mark Kotsay (brilliant!) from the Braves a couple of years ago, Devine had an amazing 2008 but his elbow went awry in 2009 and he had Tommy John surgery in April.  Devine will earn about $560K.  [MLB]

Two guys playing ball in the Dominican Republic are heading home…  Jarrod Saltalamacchia, he of the long name and sore shoulder, reinjured his throwing wing swinging a bat.  “Salty” has thoracic outlet syndrome – which is when a rib contracts a nerve or artery heading into the arm.  Some players have had the rib removed (Jeremy Bonderman) to deal with the problem…  [MLB]

Meanwhile, Indians catching prospect Carlos Santana (not THAT Santana) came home with a pretty nasty case of the flu…  [MLB

The Cleveland Indians added four players to their roster…  Brian Buscher, a mobile third baseman who looks to be able to get on base but isn’t adding a lot of power, joins the infield.  Luis Rodriguez, a shortstop, was added likely as a utility infielder – but isn’t much of a hitter.  To the bullpen, the Tribe added Mike Gosling – who at best projects as a long reliever with control issues – and Jason Grilli, who had a really good year in 2008 but not many others like it.  Obviously, the Indians are hoping he can find his good form and fortune and help in the later innings but he looks to be about a seventh inning guy at best these days.

Tampa released reliever Ramon Ramirez, whom they had acquired from the Reds.  Must be a roster limitation move because this Ramon Ramirez had shown little reason to think he might not be an okay pitcher.  Somebody will sign him.

Happy Birthday! I noticed that the last couple of days were not loaded with birthdays – and it makes sense.  There are a lot of people born at the end of September or early October (like, say, my dad) because the parents hook up for the holidays and share a little holiday cheer.  Is anyone not surprised at the number of people born in February, March, and April?  I mean, there are a lot of weddings and anniversaries between May 15 and late July.  But to be born in December – what was the occasion?  I mean, other than Valentine’s Day (meaning a lot of mid November babies), what reason is there to get a couple in the sack around March first?

I digress.

Those celebrating with cards, cake, or remembrances include:  Patrick (Cozy) Dolan (1872), Harry “Suitcase” Simpson (1925), who played for 17 different Negro Leagues and Major League teams in his long career, Clay Dalrymple (1936), Chico Salmon (1940), Wayne Garrett (1947) – and for some reason I can still see his Topps baseball card in my head when he was with the Mets, Larry Anderson (1952), Gene Nelson (1960), Damon Berryhill (1963), Darryl Hamilton (1964), Paul Byrd (1970), and Chad Durbin (1977).

Luis Rodriguez, below, is a student in master basketweaver Abe Sanchez’s whole rod juncus basketweaving class at the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum. Luis is also the museum’s Education Specialist for the Community Outreach Programs. He’s wearing a Día de los Muertos shirt in honor of the festivities which he helped organize at the Palm Springs Art Museum a few blocks away, where he constructed a beautiful altar as a floor installation.

Open weave baskets were used for gathering berries, nuts, acorns, flowers, etc., and were often quickly woven at the gathering site.

Luis and the other students are using the juncus Abe gathered last week-end with his pal, Acjachemen elder, Marian Walkingstick.

Abe brought his most recent and astonishingly beautiful basket to show the class—Rhus trilobata, aka basket sumac, for the coils, juncus and dyed juncus for the patterns, on a foundation of deergrass. The basket is inspired by basketweavers who used cross stitch patterns for their designs. This is the first time Abe used cross stitch patterns for his baskets.

The students’ open-weave whole rod juncus baskets are less complex than Abe’s coiled basket, but I imagine they will be treasured by their weavers.

Teaching classes is a large part several contemporary basketweavers’ commitment to revitalize the indigenous cultural tradition of basketweaving. This revitalization is of critical importance. Until recently, traditional California basketweaving was an endangered art. Yet in the past, nothing else touched indigenous people’s lives so completely. Native Californians used baskets for cooking, sifting acorn meal and serving food, storing water and household goods. They wove harvesting baskets, seed beaters, winnowing baskets, granaries, burden baskets, fish-trapping and fish-netting baskets, cradle-board baskets, intricately woven gift and ceremonial baskets. Some of their houses and ramadas were essentially large woven baskets.

M. Kat Anderson’s Tending the Wild discusses this revitalization in comprehensive detail.

Reafirmando su pretensión a campeonar, el piloto de la Universidad Garcilazo de la Vega, Michael Espinosa, logró llevarse la quinta fecha, con un manejo inteligente de las series, apretó cuando fué necesario y cuidó cuando la situación lo exigía. Desde la tanda de clasificación, imprimió su sello, se llevó la Pole Position y con esto, un punto valioso para su cuenta personal.

La primera serie, partiendo desde el lugar de privilegio, no dejó dudas que lo que quería era llevarse la fecha, con un ritmo impresionante, gracias a la potencia de su Toyota Levín, el único 2.0 litros en esta categoría y en un trazado que le convenía abiertamente, comenzó a abrir una luz con respecto a sus rivales, trás él, Carozzi, Rodriguez, Lama y Bailetti bailaban otra música. Primer golpe de escena, ni bien comenzada la serie, se despista Bailetti, pegándole a un cartel de publicidad y acabando con las esperanzas del hasta hoy Campeón de la categoría; luego seguiría el mismo camino el Doctor Carozzi, quien se quedó llegando a la “U” antes de la recta, con lo que uno de los protagonistas del Torneo, perdía puntos valiosos. Bien andaba Rodriguez, por delante de Lama, hasta que el motor no quizo acompañar mas y explotó, dejando una enorme estela de humo y para hacerla mas complicada, una huella de aceite en la pista, en la que mas de uno patinó.  Gana la serie Espinosa, luego llegaría Lama y tercero en la planilla Luis Rodriguez, quien a pesar de romper, logra clasificar, pero era sabido que en la siguiente serie, no largaría.

En la segunda, con grilla invertida, Espinosa no se hace mucho problema, con paciencia, comienza a sobrepasar a los rivales, cosa que es mas fácil decir que hacer y con una gran estrategia, llega a la punta la serie, Carozzi contenía a Lama, a quien se le veía falto de potencia en el Levín 1.6. La serie termina con Espinosa manejando muy bien los tiempos y como escolta a un inspirado Carozzi, tercero Lama.

La serie final encontraba a Espinosa con 6 puntos de ventaja sobre Lama y 12 sobre Carozzi, con lo que la serie , si no pasaba nada raro, de esas cosas que le venían sucediendo una vez por carrera, sería de mero trámite.  Larga bien Carozzi en punta, asediado por Lama, Bailetti que se reincorporó a la carrera, luego de solucionar los inconvenientes surgidos del impacto con el cartel y Espinosa.  El de la Garcilazo comienza a apretar, dando cuenta de los pilotos del Lama Competicion instalándose a la maletera de Carozzi y desde esa posición comienza a regular la marcha, sabiendo que ahí, ganaba la fecha y se catapultaba a la punta absoluta del Campeonato y de paso, ayudaba al Doctor Carozzi a recuperar algunos puntos perdidos en la primera serie. Para colmo de males, Bailetti sobrepasa a Lama y le quita el tercer lugar de la serie y un valioso punto en el Torneo.  Todo le salió redondo a Espinosa, inclusive, cuando se le desprendió el parachoque posterior, luego de un toque y este abanicaba en cada curva, agarrado solo por un lado, si le hubieran puesto la bandera negra con círculo anaranjado, que obliga a una parada en los pits para reparar y si Lama ganaba la serie, empataban en puntos, pero la carrera la ganaba él, por haber obtenido la Pole;  al final no pasó, ya que el bendito parachoque decidió dejar la carrera por propia voluntad, que es lo que debía evitar la bandera de sancion, ya que le pudo caer a algún competidor.  Finalmente gana la serie el Doctor Carozzi, luego Espinosa, Bailetti y Lama.

Resultados Extraoficiales Turismo Light

From photographer Luis Rodriguez, “I welcome you to experience for the first time, in breathtaking color and style- a new era in photography. My craft has been around for many years. But now is a different era… A modern remake of a historic art form.” Check out ayereternal.com for more photos and Rodriguez’s portfolio.

Tip

There are no real tips here just keep thinking 5:30. By the way, we will be doing this next year, so make sure you keep track of the benefits in your journal because we seem to forget those a lot sooner than the hurt. This truly has been an incredible journey. Thanks

The Team

We had three of our starters out and our bench players just didn’t even show. It was a pivotal game that determined our eligibility to the playoffs and it look like we had no shot. We literally started the game with 4 players. There bench was filled, which only meant that as we got tired they could just sub in a player or two and we would have to defend fresh legs. At that point in life Monday night basketball at First Baptist was everything to us. So my cousin Luis and I were determined to develop some form of strategy to counter this huge disadvantage. He committed to being the toughest defender on the floor and scrape away more rebound then anyone else. I committed to stretch the floor as much as possible by running faster than anyone else and hitting from the outside. Now it’s not like we were the only ones on the floor but our center was 5’6 and didn’t speak much english. Needless to say we didn’t have a lot to work with. The buzzer finally goes off and within the first three plays the plan starts to work. My cousin Luis is scrapping the glass for rebounds and I’m screaming down the floor like a middle school kid chasing a girl he likes. We opening the game with 6 unanswered fast break point. By half time we were up 30 and by the 4th quarter the ref came over to our bench and told our coach we had to slow down our defense it was “not a good display of sportsmanship.” It was one of the greatest moments in my high school basketball church league career.

The Word

Acts 16:25

25 Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening.26 Suddenly, there was a massive earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors immediately flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off!

Application

We often focus on Paul and Silas singing in the middle of this time of pain and captivity. Still, there is something about being together. I believe there is a increase of faith and power when we are back to back in anything. This week has just sured up my appreciation of this incredible team. As we get ready for this weeks live recording, and this next school year. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the calendar.  Still, I sit back and marvel in the great team that God has established and look forward to not just doing what we see but all the things we don’t see. All the ministry still not discovered all the students still not seen. Regardless the circumstance, if we stick together, and look to Him in all we do, there is no limit.

Prayer

Help me to be a better team player. If there are issues I have with others on the team help me to handle them in a Godly fashion. Lord, continue to build us with others who are gifted and have a heart for this generation. There is no limit.

Done while eating a Turkey Melt at my desk:

San Diego Padres
2008: 63 – 99 Last in NL West
Runs Scored: 637 Lowest in NL
Runs Allowed: 759 7th in NL and most in the division.

This, of course, despite the fact that the park is a cavern, making everyone’s ERA about a half a run better than it would be anywhere else, and making hitters look worse. Padres and their opponents scored nearly 170 runs in road games more than in home games, the biggest discrepancy in the NL.

OFFENSE:

The good ones are better than you think – Adrian Gonzales is awesome, Jody Gerut and Brian Giles were very good. Chase Headley wasn’t bad, Kevin Kouzmanoff is tolerable. Nick Hundley, Tadihito Iguchi, and Khalil Green were atrocious – even after you cut them slack for the park. Few part timers were any good.

DEFENSE:

Average at best. The middle infield was below average (Greene, Iguchi, Gonzales), and except for Giles (who is old and immobile), the outfield was pretty good. Okay team efficiency, didn’t make too many errors. The catching was the second worst in the NL – Josh Bard and Hundley were bad and couldn’t stop the running game.

PITCHING:

Jake Peavy and Heath Bell are great. Chris Young and Trevor Hoffman were average at best, as was Cla Meredith. The rest were below average, including Greg Maddux, Randy Wolf, Cha Seung Baek, and Josh Banks. The bullpen had holes. They need a serious upgrade.

CHANGES:

Greene to St. Louis, David Eckstein in to play 2B. Jody Gerut moved full-time (since moved), more Chase Headley is good. Kevin Correia added from SF, Josh Geer added from AAA to rotation. Hoffman allowed to go to Brew-Crew, Bell now closer. Rookies all over the bullpen (Luke Gregerson, Edward Mujica, others).

OUTLOOK:

I don’t see how this is better. I guess a full season (never happened) of Chris Young is good. Headley and Gerut full time is better. Luis Rodriguez or Everth Cabrera, the new SS, has GOT to be better than Greene played last year. Okay – maybe 30 runs better for the pitching staff, but the defense isn’t getting better and the offense isn’t really BETTER as much as it’s not going to be too much worse unless Giles loses it and Hundley can’t improve. Correia wasn’t that good in SF, and he doesn’t have the other numbers to help out. I’ll predict 650 scored and 740 allowed. That’s still just 71 wins.

The two nice win streaks look good, but they had a 4 – 19 stretch in between. Figure that things balance out, and the they’ll start hurting when they leave the NL West to play other teams. But, as it stands, the 24 – 23 record they have right now is a mirage.

Let’s take a look at fantasy Shortstops headed into 2009. This group is very top heavy. My strategy is, if you don’t get one of the top three, then wait. There is a Cecil Fielder sized drop off after you get past the big three. So in honor of the of some of the best (and worst) Shortstops of all-time, let’s see who are the best fantasy Shortstops in 2009.

Honus Wagner Division

The best of the best, Wagner is the greatest SS of all-time (Arod doesn’t count because he is a cheater) and these three Shortstops are by far and away the best Shortstops in this fantasy draft.

Ramirez is the #1 SS

2. Jimmy Rollins, Phillies. After winning the MVP in 2007, Rollins had a very disappointing 2008. I think he bounces back in 2009 and will have a better fantasy season than Jose Reyes. Look for Rollins to put up a .285/20/80 with 40+ sb’s and over 110 runs scored

3. Jose Reyes, Mets. While I question Reyes as a player (I don’t think he is a winner), there is no questioning his fantasy value. Reyes is a look for 110+ runs scored, 15+ hr’s and 50+ rbi

Alan Trammell Division

It’s not that Alan Trammell was a bad player. A matter of fact, Trammell was one of the better Shortstops in the game from 1983-1990. The point is that there is a major drop off from Honus Wagner to Alan Trammell. These next 10 guys are the last 10 guys you want to draft before you have to scramble.

4. Stephen Drew, Diamondbacks. I have Drew ranked higher than Jeter and Furcal because 1. He can stay healthy and 2. In Keeper Leagues he is a much better option due to his age (26). Drew seems to be getting better with age and it’s not out of the question that he approaches a 30 hr season.

5. Derek Jeter, Yankees. Jeter’s runs, hits, hr’s, rbi’s, avg and obp have declined in each of the last 3 years. But in the weak category of SS, Jeter still provides value. Expect Jeter to put up a .305/10/65 with 10 sb’s.

6. Rafael Furcal, Dodgers. Furcal was off to a rip roaring start in 2008 before his back gave out. Furcal hit double digit hr’s from 2003-2006 but with a bad back I am not sure he can reach double figures again. The Dodgers should have a very good offense, so 100+ runs and a .300 avg should be expected from Furcal in 2009.

7. Troy Tulowitzki, Rockies.I had asked in a post, “Can Tulo Bounce Back?” My answer back then was yes and my answer no is yes. Will Tulowitzki be as good as his rookie year? Probably not but he can certainly put up a .285/20/80.

Don't sleep on Hardy

8. JJ Hardy, Brewers. Hardy has really come on with the power slugging 50 hr’s in the last 2 years. Hardy seems to be underrated in most drafts but he is good for a .280/28/80 in 2009.

9. Michael Young, Rangers. Young will qualify as a 3B and a SS but has move value as a SS. Last year was the first year since 2003 that Young didn’t have 200 hits. Will his switch from SS to 3B hurt his offense? I don’t think it will but his days of 200+ hits and 100 rbi are gone.

10. Jhonny Peralta, Indians. Peralta had a career year in 2008 putting up a .276/23/89 with 104 runs scored. Peralta is tearing up Spring Training hitting .435/3/11 in 46 ab’s. The Indians lineup looks to be improved in 2009 with the returns of Martinez and Hafner, so it’s possible Peralta could improve on his 2008 performance. If only he stole bases he would be much higher up on the food chain.

11. Alexei Ramirez, White Sox. Alfonso Soriano part 2. A tall, lanky 2B who has all the potential in the world? Sounds like Alfonso Soriano part 2 to me. Ramirez had a solid rookie year putting up a .290/21/77 in just 480 ab’s. Now moving over to SS, Ramirez still will qualify at 2B for fantasy purposes which raises his stock even more. The only stat Ramirez hurts you in is obp(.317 last season) but a .300/25/90 with 10+ sb’s is not out of the question for Ramirez.

12. Mike Aviles, Royals. Aviles qualifies at SS and at 2B but has more value at the 2B position. The New York native burst on to the scene last year and hit .325 with 10 hr and 51 rbi in just 102 games for the Royals. I like Aviles to hit .300 again but not .325. Look for a .310 avg with 15 hr and 60 rbi from Aviles in 2009.

13. Miguel Tejada, Astros. Tejada looks to be on the downside of his career as his avg, hr’s and rbi’s have declined each of the last 3 seasons. Tejada is going to bat 5th this year so a rebirth in rbi’s is possible. A .280/14/80 should be expected from Tejada this season.

Kevin Elster Division

Elster was mostly a good glove, no hit SS with the Mets, Yankees, Phillies, Rangers, Pirates and Dodgers. Elster did have one magical year by his standards in 1996, when he hit 24 hr’s and knocked in 99 runs for the Rangers. Most of these next 19 guys are either good glove, no hit or can marginally help your fantasy team in 2009.

14. Jed Lowrie, Red Sox. Now the starting SS will get you runs scored and a solid obp. Might lose ab’s when Lugo returns from the DL.

15. Orlando Cabrera, A’s. A very consistent player, you know what you are going to get. .280 batting average with 8 or 9 hr’s, 60-70 rbi and 20 sb’s.

16. Yunel Escobar, Braves. Don’t give up on him just yet. He is still only 26 and has has shown good patience at the plate in his short time in the majors.

17. Ryan Theriot, Cubs. Good average, solid obp and will get you 20+ sb’s.

18. Elvis Andrus, Rangers. The new starting SS in Texas, Andrus has good value in Keeper Leagues. He will probably go threw some typical rookie struggles but he can run (54 sb’s in Double A). Expect 25-30 sb’s in 2009.

19. Edgar Renteria, Giants. Clearly on the downside of his career but he is back in the NL where he belongs. Still capable of hitting 10 hr’s and driving in 55.

20. Jason Bartlett, Rays. Zero power what so ever but he will get you stolen bases (53 in the last 3 years).

21. Khalil Greene, Cardinals. An obp killer (.276 combined last 2 years) but leaving Petco should help him get back to the 20 hr mark in 2009.

22. Christian Guzman, Nationals. Will get you a .300 avg and maybe 50 rbi’s and that is about it.

23. Erick Aybar, Angels. 15+ sb potential but will have to hold off Izturis and perhaps Brandon Wood for playing time.

24. Yuniesky Betancourt, Mariners. See Khalil Greene but without the 20 hr potential.

25. Cesar Izturis, Orioles. Very much like Jason Bartlett and will get you 20 + sb’s.

26. Jeff Keppinger, Reds. Will replace Gonzalez at some point during the season. Is a better offensive option than Gonzalez

27. Alex Gonzalez, Reds. After missed all of 2008 with a fractured knee (ouch!!) he will be competing for playing time with Keppinger. Gonzalez could hit 10 hr’s but is an obp killer.

28. Nick Punto, Twins. One of the dubbed “Piranhas,” Punto is a typical good glove, not hit SS. He will get your team 15 – 20 sb’s

29. Jack Wilson, Pirates.At 31, Wilson is headed towards the end of his career. Not that he was any better when he was 26. Wilson might move into a platoon role to make room for Brian Bixler.

30. Adam Everett, Tigers. The only reason he is still in the league is because of his defense. The Tigers version of Jason Bartlett?

31. Marco Scutaro, Blue Jays. A better offensive option than John McDonald and that is not saying much.

32. Luis Rodriguez/David Eckstein, Padres. Uglier and ugliest. Neither of these players add any value to your team.

Keep An Eye On

Brandon Wood, Angels. I didn’t rank Wood because I have no idea what the Angels plan on doing with this guy. He is killing the ball this spring to the tune of .347/4/13 in 49 ab’s but the Angels have Figgins at 3B, Aybar at SS and Rivera at DH. Keep an eye on this situation. If he is able to get playing time over any of the above names, then Wood is a pick up you should make.

En esta ocasión vamos a hablar a uno de los juegos más interesantes de la primera época de Dinamic: Camelot Warriors. Se trata de un videojuego plataformas de ambientación medieval, pero que desde Dinamic se le quiso dar unos componentes de aventura que lo convertiría en uno de los juegos más completos de la época. En su desarrollo participó un equipo bastante amplio, capitaneados por Victor Ruiz, el código fue a cargo del propio Ruiz y Florentino Pertejo; la programación por parte de Snatcho, Santiago Morga, Víctor Ruiz y Luis Rodríguez; la música fue compuesta por Ignacio Bergareche; y la portada sería diseñada por Alfonso Azpiri, conocido dibujante de comics como Mot que colaboraría con las compañías de videojuegos españolas.

Para seguir leyendo pulsa aquí.

El desplazamiento de los Reyes a Palma coincide en el tiempo con el bicentenario de la Batalla de Bailén, primera victoria sobre las tropas napoleónicas durante la Guerra de Independencia. El ayuntamiento de la localidad jiennense, gobernado por la Agrupación Independiente de Bailén, ha arremetido –con el apoyo del PP– contra el Ejecutivo de José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, a quien culpan de que ningún miembro de la Familia Real acuda a la conmemoración

Desde Casa Real se recuerda que la Familia Real acudió en pleno a la inauguración de los actos conmemorativos del Bicentenario el pasado 2 de mayo en Móstoles, donde se homenajeó a los alcaldes que en la misma fecha de 1808 firmaron el bando de alzamiento contra Napoleón que marcó el inicio de la sublevación ante las tropas francesas.

Historia:desde wikipedia.es

La Batalla de Bailén (también conocida como la Batalla de Baylén) se libró durante la Guerra de la Independencia Española y supuso la primera derrota en la historia del potentísimo ejército napoleónico, la Grande Armée. Tuvo lugar el 19 de julio de 1808 junto a la ciudad jienense de Bailén. Enfrentó a un ejército francés de unos 21.000 soldados al mando del general Dupont con otro español ligeramente más numeroso (unos 24.000) a las órdenes del general Castaños. El ejército francés fue derrotado y hecho prisionero, la primera derrota militar de Napoleón. En esta batalla se distinguió el futuro Libertador de Argentina, Chile y Perú, José de San Martín, por entonces ya veterano oficial de carrera del ejército español.

Consecuencias:

La derrota del general Dupont en Bailén tuvo graves consecuencias para el esfuerzo de guerra francés. La noticia se extendió por toda la península y forzó al rey José I Bonaparte a abandonar Madrid, además de poner en duda la aparente invencibilidad de los franceses. Napoleón tuvo que acudir a la península con un nuevo y numeroso ejército para consolidar su dominio.

Compartir:

Deja tu opinión acerca de: no es importante para los Reyes de España la conmemoración de Bailén?

As promised, Thunder Thoughts look at the All 15 Year Team nominees begins today with a look at the four finalists at catcher.

Anyone who’s followed the Thunder throughout their history is certainly familiar with David McDonough, who has covered the team since its inception in 1994. Dave is one of the most well-respected and likeable people in the Thunder press box.  For what it’s worth, he was also one of the first people who would actually talk to me when I first started covering the team.  That sounds like nothing…but trust me, that’s something.

Similar to what I did with Steve Rudenstein and the Top 30 Prospects breakdown (which will return this week with prospects #21-25, by the way), Dave’s going to be our featured writer and the following are his thoughts on Walt McKeel, Steve Lomasney, Virgil Chevalier and Dioner Navarro.  With his experience in covering the team, he brings a unique and welcome perspective to Thunder Thoughts, and I hope you all enjoy both his analysis and mine for the Trenton Thunder’s All 15 Year Team.

The following is Dave’s breakdown, mine will follow after all of his are done…

Walt McKeel: Walt McKeel was never going to be an impact player, and he never did get much big league time, only 11 games in parts of three seasons. In his second year at Trenton, in 1996, he was arguably the MVP on a first-place team. The 24-year-old batted .302 with 16 home runs and 78 RBIs and handled the pitching staff in excellent fashion, including Minor League Pitcher of the Year Carl Pavano. When the Red Sox rewarded McKeel by sending him up to Boston just in time to miss the Eastern League playoffs, the Thunder sputtered without him, and lost in the semi-finals. The killer was that McKeel sat on the bench in Boston, and got into one game without an at-bat.

It was McKeel’s best year in professional ball. He stayed around until he was 30 with the Red Sox, Blue Jays, Tigers and Rockies organizations, but never did much. But the Thunder would not have been in first place in the Southern Division of the Eastern League in 1996 without him.

Steve Lomasney: The pride of Peabody, Massachusetts, Steve Lomasney was always going be the Red Sox catcher of the future. The future never happened. Lomasney was a 21-year-old power hitting backstop when he got to Trenton in 1999. He had crunched 22 homers in Single-A in 1998, but he had also struck out 145 times. He hit 12 homers in 47 games for the Thunder in 1999, and everyone thought he was on his way. The Red Sox even brought him up at the end of the season, and let him get into one game, to the delight of all his family and friends in Peabody. Turns out, that was his only big league game.

Injuries on and off the field and struggles at the plate did him in. He was hurt for part of 2000. After he hit 10 home runs for Trenton in 58 games in 2001, he got the call to Pawtucket. When he floundered at the start of the 2002 season, he was back in Trenton. A completely demoralized Lomasney struggled badly, batting .210 in 109 games with an astronomic 133 strikeouts. That was pretty much it for him. He hung around for a few more years but never got out of AAA. His lifetime Minor League batting average for 12 years was .229. Just a reminder to us all how hard this game really is.

Virgil Chevalier: Every team has one or two guys you look at and think, “Well, he’ll probably never make the majors, but baseball sure could use someone like that coaching or managing.” Guys like former Thunder players Gavin Jackson (96-98), Nate Tebbs (97-99), Tom Sergio (02), Andy Cannizaro (03-05) and Anton French (02), who, as it happens, is now a minor league instructor for the Phillies. And from last year’s club, Jason Brown and Noah Hall.

Chevy was like that, too. Over the 3 ½ seasons (98-01) he played for Trenton, he grew from a shy guy to a confident veteran, to whom the young players could go for guidance. The first Native American to play for the Thunder (sorry, Joba), he had been signed by the Red Sox as a free agent after an open tryout at Fenway Park. He was originally a catcher, but played only 9 games there for Trenton. He was mostly a first baseman and outfielder. In 1999, he hit .293 with 13 homers. In all, he played nine minor league seasons, and got mentioned in “Moneyball”, although not as prominently as Youkilis. I think the exact quote was, “Who is Virgil Chevalier?” I can tell you he is, Billy Beane – a class act all the way.

Dioner Navarro: He was a top prospect for the Yankees when he joined the Thunder in 2003. He had good hands, a good arm, and when he batted .341 in 58 games for Trenton, at the age of just 19, he was considered, along with teammate Robby Cano, to be a future regular at the Stadium. Some how, it never happened. In 2005, Navarro went to the Dodgers in a three-way deal that saw Randy Johnson got to the Yankees. He never did much with the Dodgers, and last year, with the Devil Rays, he was the victim of a freak accident in June and ended up batting .227. The Rays still call him their starting catcher, and he’s only 24, but so far, he has been one more example of the fact that the Thunder have never had a catcher who went on to be a big league impact player.

Not on the ballot: Joe DePastino: Joe hit 17 homers in 79 games as the Thunder catcher in 1997, and hit .295 in 73 games in 1998. All told, in 158 games for Trenton, he had 29 homers and 103 RBIs. He’s now the manager of single-A West Michigan in the Tigers organization.

But my favorite story about DePas comes from 2000, when he was a back-up catcher for the Bowie BaySox. The BaySox hosted the Double-A All-Star game. One of the catchers voted to the team was late, and Joe was in the stands, about to watch the game. So they hoisted out, gave him his shin guards and told him he was on the squad. He didn’t play, of course, but it is written now for posterity that a catcher batting .215 in 19 games was a member of the American League AA All-Star team. Surely an inspirational story for us all.

Dave’s Vote Goes to: Walt McKeel.

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Ashmore’s Thunder Thoughts: As some of my regular readers may know, I started regularly following the team as a fan in 1999 before eventually covering the team as a writer in 2006.  In terms of catchers, I came in somewhere around the Steve Lomasney era, if you want to be so generous as to call it that.

With that said, here’s my look at each of the four catchers.  Also, to borrow Dave’s idea (see: steal) I’m going to take a look at someone who stands out for me who isn’t on the ballot.

Walt McKeel: McKeel was picked in the third round of the 1990 draft by the Red Sox, and became just one of 10 players selected in that round to make the big leagues.  He went from prospect to suspect to journeyman pretty quickly, as five years came between his penultimate and final Major League cups of coffee in 1997 and 2002, with the Red Sox and Rockies, respectively.

McKeel caught for parts of three seasons in Trenton, and was eventually succeeded by Joe DePastino in 1997.

Steve Lomasney: Rather than essentially recap what I’ve written about Lomasney in the past, I’ll simply include my 2006 feature on Lomasney from when he came back to Waterfront Park as a member of the New Britain Rock Cats.  After that, I’ll share my two favorite memories of Lomasney’s career as a fan…

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Steve Lomasney enjoyed his finest season in 1999 as a member of the Trenton Thunder. The starting catcher of the most successful team in franchise history, Lomasney parlayed his year into a September call-up from the Boston Red Sox, where he got into the last game of the season against the Orioles and got two at-bats.

Seven years later, and all Lomasney has is that taste of what his career could have been.

After being named the Red Sox Minor League Player of the Year, Lomasney went into the 2000 season with lofty expectations. Baseball America considered him the number one prospect in the entire Red Sox organization and he seemed to be in line for another September call-up at the very least. But injuries ended his season two months early, so that call-up would have to wait.

In 2001, the Peabody, Mass. native was up with Triple-A Pawtucket, an injury away from getting another chance at wearing the uniform of his hometown team. But it was another injury of his own that altered the course of his season and ultimately his career. Lomasney was struck in the eye with a line drive during batting practice, fracturing his orbital bone and damaging his cornea.

As a result, the call-up he was waiting for never came, and the chance of wearing a Red Sox uniform again went away with it after not re-signing with the organization following his fourth straight season in Double-A in 2002.

He caught on with the Orioles organization in 2003 and with the Reds for 2004 and 2005, spending all three seasons with their Triple-A teams. But Baltimore and Cincinnati didn’t see anything from him that warranted a big league call-up either, his struggles being capped by a meager .160 batting average in limited action with the Louisville Bats last season.

Lomasney only played for a few innings in his only big league appearance in Camden Yards, but it served as a microcosm of the reason why he‘s never been able to stick in the show. He threw out both base runners who tried to steal against him, but also struck out in both of his plate appearances.

“Three-two counts both times,” Lomasney said. “I was swinging hard, but I had a little bit of the jitters in me.”

Always known more for his glove than his bat, Lomasney entered the 2006 season with 2,790 professional at-bats. He’d struck out in 961 of them, an alarming rate of one strikeout per 2.9 at-bats.

Numbers like that won’t get you anywhere, especially the big leagues, and that’s why the 28 year-old Lomasney finds himself in the visiting dugout of Trenton’s Waterfront Park, spending his fifth season at the Double-A level.

Now with the New Britain Rock Cats, the Eastern League affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, Lomasney is again struggling, hitting just .194 with no home runs and three RBI. Having gone from the next Carlton Fisk to the next Crash Davis, he returns to the site of that breakout 1999 season at a very different stage of his career.

“When I first got here, I said I’d never been on this side of the field before,” Lomasney said, across the diamond from the home dugout he spent four seasons in.

“We had great fans and great players here, it was a great organization to be with.”

Even with his slow start, his teammates and coaches seem to be behind him.

“He’s a veteran presence behind the plate,” said Rock Cats manager Riccardo Ingram, who noted that Lomasney was working well with his other catcher, Jose Morales.

“Steve knows his role here, and his role is basically to be a veteran leader. I think he’s fitting the bill well.”

Lomasney, who’s already accumulated seven strikeouts in thirty-one at-bats this season said he’d been contacted by several independent league teams over the past few seasons, but feels his best chance to get back is by staying in the minors.

With his chances in affiliated baseball quickly diminishing, this is one opportunity where Steve Lomasney can’t afford to strike out.

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My two favorite Lomasney moments involve a bench clearing brawl and a broken bat walk-off home run. 

The first occured on my Dad’s birthday in 2000 and was against the Binghamton Mets.  We were sitting on the first base side, and prospect at the time Leslie Brea was on the mound for the B-Mets.  Brea had already hit Lomasney once in the game, and then proceeded to drill him again in his next at-bat.  In what is still the only bench clearing brawl I’ve ever seen in over 400 games, Lomasney charged the mound, but never really got to his target.  Mets catcher Jimmy Gonzalez got to Lomasney before he was able to charge Brea, and after a few minutes order was restored.

I asked Lomasney about this during our 2006 chat, and he said the following:

“Well, earlier in the year, Leslie and I…he was pitching a really good game, and I hit a home run off of him and it ended up being the game winning run, but it was earlier in the game.  I don’t know if he took that too well.  I got to know Leslie after all this, and he’s a good guy, but he hit me twice.  He hit me twice, and they were both definitely intentional.  After he hit me, I kind of just looked at him, and he yelled something to me, and I basically just snapped and charged him.  I didn’t get to him, the catcher caught me, Jimmy Gonzalez.  But we cleared it and had a pretty good one for a little bit.  But that’s the nature of the game.  Guys get hit, you get hit twice, and you’ve got to have your respect.  You can’t just lay down for people.  That was the only time I ever charged the mound.  It happened, and it was just one of those things.”

The broken bat walk-off home run was against Bryan Malko and the New Britain Rock Cats.  I was sitting behind the home dugout, and I can remember watching a part of the bat go flying instead of the ball…which of course went sailing over the wall for the game winning home run.

Again, I was lucky enough to ask Steve about this as well a few years back…

“I don’t really tell a lot of people about that, because a lot of people don’t believe it.  It was unbelievable.  I knew I hit the ball good, and the bat kind of exploded in my hands.  I think part of it actually went in the New Britain dugout.  I had the handle in my hand, and I was watching the ball and I remember thinking, ‘I think I hit a home run.’  I was jogging slow, and finally it went out for a walk-off home run, and I took the handle and put it in my back pocket and finished my trot.  After the game, everyone couldn’t believe that just happened.  I didn’t know if the bat was already broken or what, but I hit the ball good and the bat just exploded.”

Virgil Chevalier: I actually don’t remember Chevy as a catcher at all.  I actually remember much better as an outfielder, where he permanently switched to in 1999.  For someone his size, he wasn’t that bad of an outfielder either.  At the plate, Chevy had some of his best years for the Thunder, hitting .293 in 1999 and .309 in 2000.  He was one of the guys who would always sign autographs for fans, and was always very friendly.

As someone who had followed the team for three seasons at the time, I can remember how weird it was to see Chevy in a B-Mets uniform in 2002.  One of his game used, signed red Thunder hats sits on one of my shelves back home as a memory of my days as a Thunder fan.

Dioner Navarro: Navarro was one of the more hyped prospects the Thunder had at the time he first put on a Trenton uniform in 2003.  Following the somewhat painful switch in affiliations from Boston to the Yankees, both Navarro and Robinson Cano gave the Thunder the star power they hadn’t had in several years.

He played pretty well behind the plate in Trenton, and was usually pretty accessible to the media by all accounts.  Unfortunately, he never really lived up to the hype that was placed on him, and has bounced around a few teams since being dealt by the Yankees in the ill-fated Randy Johnson trade.

Not On The Ballot: Damian Sapp.  Sapp’s friendly nature, willingness to sign autographs, and occasional tape measure blast made him one of my favorites from the 2000 team.  The 1996 Boston Red Sox Minor League Player of the Year, Sapp seemed destined to play in Fenway after quickly rising through their farm system in first three years.

Turns out, the only time he would seet foot in Fenway Park would be to pick up that award.

Injuries, specifically to his knees and back, wrecked any chance Sapp had at a Major League career.  He eventually ended his career with Nashua Pride of the Atlantic League, where I got to ask him about his time with the Thunder… 

“Oh, I loved Trenton. The fans, the place, the atmosphere, everything about that place I just loved. I mean everywhere from the front office to every last fan was nothing but warm and welcoming. Anything you ever needed, if they could help in any way, they would. Very faithful fans. It was a pleasure to actually get a chance to play there.”

Still only 32 years old, there had been rumors as recently as last year that he might return to professional baseball.  Oddly enough, those rumors were preceeded by one that he was contemplating a career in professional wrestling.

Mike’s Vote Goes To: Virgil Chevalier.  He deserves to be on the team somewhere, and if he isn’t going to be on there as an outfielder, then let’s stick him behind the plate… 

Other Thunder Catchers: Pedro Gonzalez, Tim McConell, Joe Perona, Matt Brown, Alex Delgado, Dana LeVangie, Jeff Martin, Richie Borrero, Bill Haselman (rehab), Chris Madonna, Chad Epperson, Damian Sapp, Shea Hillenbrand, Luis Rodriguez, Mike Figga, Kelly Ramos, Michael Rose, Andy Dominique, Andrew Larned, Dan Mooney, Omar Fuentes, Dave Parrish, Sandy Madera, Nathan Griffin, Jason Brown, Omir Santos, Tommy Rojas, P.J. Pilittere, J.T. LaFountain, Dan Conway, Joe Muich

Mike Ashmore, mashmore98 AT gmail.com 

It’s been incredibly hard to get into the most recent Twins games.

Between star players uncertain about their futures (note: two separate links there), an ace pitcher performing well below his standards (again, two links), and a lineup that regularly includes near-worthless veterans such as Rondell White, Luis Rodriguez, Chris Heintz, Jason Tyner, and Nick Punto instead of future-of-the-organization young guns such as Jason Kubel, Brian Buscher, and Alexi Casilla.

To be fair to Heintz, Mike Redmond is still out with a finger injury and it has just been brought to the surface that Joe Mauer has struggled with a possible hernia injury since mid-season.

But there’s no reason for Nick Punto to stop Brian Buscher from gaining defensive experience at the ML level, especially if Gardenhire says that Punto practically has the 2B job heading into spring training next year.

And maybe it’s a good thing we never saw Denard Span get called up from AAA. Generally, if a player gets a September call-up, it means he has a chance to get a starting job the next spring, or at least he is in the team’s immediate plans for the future. Is it possible the Twins are planning for Torii Hunter to be their top offseason priority? One can hope. As much as I may have bashed him in the past, there really is no hope for next season if he is not brought back. Span certainly won’t do the job. I’m not confident the team could find an adequate replacement in free agency, either. It’s such a tough situation with 3B an apparent hole now that Punto is in line for second and Buscher not getting playing time, even when the games don’t count. And a powerful DH is needed for the team, too. In my eyes LF is solid with Jason Kubel showing what he is capable of with his play in August and September.

I’m going to the game today, it starts at 1 and Kevin Slowey is pitching. I want to be positive but also realistic, so I will come out and say it: I could possibly be attending Torii’s last game in the Metrodome with a Twins uniform on. Apparently he got a standing ovation for every at-bat in yesterday’s game, so I imagine today’s will be even more emotional for some. Look for another post recapping today’s game and other thoughts tomorrow morning.

Scott Baker gave up 3 runs in 5 innings and it was a 3-2 game heading into the 9th but a combination of Nick Blackburn starting his 4th inning of relief and Pat Neshek giving up a couple of hits allowed the Indians to double the score for a final of 6-2.

Brian Buscher had 2 hits in 3 at-bats, he also scored a run. Justin Morneau, Michael Cuddyer, Jason Kubel, and Chris Heintz were all hitless in a total of 16 at-bats. Jason Tyner, Luis Rodriguez, and Torii Hunter combined to go 5-for-10 with 2 RBI as the 1-2-3 hitters.

It’s pretty much over for the season. Not that it wasn’t over when the team was 5.5 games back of Cleveland, but now that deficit is 12.5 and the Twins show no signs of life. They’re also 9 games out of the Wild Card spot. Their record is now 69-71 and I think the goal for this season might be to have a .500 record.

There is no game today and a series starts against the White Sox tomorrow night. Look for a post about Torii Hunter’s contract situation, and possible offseason moves, in the morning.

I had a busy weekend and school started yesterday, so hopefully along with it comes regular posts again. Before I get to last night’s game I want to talk about something that’s been bothering me. It pains me to continually see Rondell White, Jason Tyner, Nick Punto, Luis Rodriguez, etc. in the lineup when guys like Jason Kubel, Brian Buscher, and Garrett Jones are riding the pine. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge fan of Tyner and Punto makes some really great defensive plays. But I want to see what Jones can do on a regular basis. I’ve always been a fan of Kubel’s and seeing him with a .364 average and .438 OBP in the month of August helps me in my bid to have others accept him as a Major League hitter. I think people forget this is his first full season in the Majors. Hurting him this season has been Ron Gardenhire generally benching him against left-handed starters. And Buscher has been alright, a definite offensive upgrade over a Punto/Rodriguez combo at the hot corner. The team has done a decent job of bringing up younger starters though, with Kevin Slowey making a start last night and Nick Blackburn getting his first Major League work in the game before that.

So injuries have kinda hit the team hard lately. Joe Mauer is out with a leg injury while Dennys Reyes will probably need surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow, ending his season. Tommy Watkins is out with a “lower abdominal muscle strain” and can be activated in a few days. Last night Mike Redmond left the game after re-injuring his dislocated finger. Mauer actually had to take a pitch to finish Redmond’s at-bat.

Speaking of last night, it looked like the Twins were in position to win with a 2-run lead heading into the 9th, but after Dick and Bert constantly talked about where your pitches SHOULDN’T be if you don’t want Travis Hafner to hit a homer off of you, Nathan gave one up with a runner on 2nd. Hafner would get the game-winning sacrifice fly in the 11th inning. Slowey lasted just 5 innings but gave up only 1 earned run. Julio DePaula gave up 2 runs in his 1 inning of work. Carmen Cali continues to be horrendous, throwing 8 pitches to 2 different batters with both of them reaching: one via walk and another from a hit by pitch.

Justin Morneau had a decent night, going 3-for-5 with 3 RBI but no runs scored. Kubel was 2-for-4 with an RBI, a run, and a walk. Rodriguez had a surprising night, collecting 3 hits in 4 at-bats with an RBI.

Scott Baker pitches for the team today in a game that starts at 12:10 in the afternoon. He’s obviously been hot as of late and he faces Fausto Carmona who sports a 3.31 ERA and 14 wins.

Jason Bartlett hit a 1-out double in the first. Joe Mauer followed with a 4-pitch walk. Torii Hunter saw one pitch and grounded into a double play. I was nearly certain that it would set the tone for the rest of the game, but I couldn’t have been more off. 10 Twins had at least 1 at-bat and only 3 of them had batting averages less than .400 for the night. Mauer was 1-for-5 with a run scored and a walk, Rondell White was 1-for-4 with 2 RBI, and Nick Punto was 0-for-5. Everyone else had at least 2 hits, except pinch hitter Jason Tyner who singled and would later score. Torii ended up with 3 hits, 4 runs, and a stolen base. Bartlett was 3-for-6 with an RBI and a run (coming from his 4th homer of the year) but he also struck out 3 times. Alexi Casilla had 3 singles and 2 RBI in 6 at-bats, while Justin Morneau had 2 hits in 5 at-bats, including a 2-run single in the 7th (to bust the game open from 6-3 to 8-3). Michael Cuddyer had 2 hits, including his 20th double, and 2 runs scored, with an RBI and 2 walks. I don’t want to leave Mike Redmond off the list, who had 2 hits, 2 RBI, and a run scored. Both of his hits were patented singles.

Matt Garza continued to pitch very effectively, giving up 3 runs over 7+ innings pitched. He faced 3 batters in the 8th and they all reached. He was aided by just 2 strikeouts but 3 double plays. He allowed 9 hits and walked 2, and he did a great job of putting a leadoff triple by Jose Lopez to waste. In total Garza had 10 fly outs but 9 ground outs, a pretty good ratio.

Pat Neshek and Joe Nathan needed just 23 pitches to finish off the game with Pat collecting a strikeout and Joe getting 2 Ks in his first game since August 5th.

The important thing now is for the Twins to carry this to today’s game, an afternoon series-decider that starts at 3:30. Scott Baker looks to keep the team in it, after giving up 6 runs the last time he pitched.

Detroit won and Cleveland lost yesterday, but it’s because they played each other. The Twins are 7 back in the division, but if they win and the Indians win tomorrow it will be a 6-game deficit to both teams.

Jason Kubel’s strained oblique muscle feels better and the team thinks they can keep him off the DL. He will take live batting practice on Friday and final decisions will be made after that. Third baseman Brian Buscher will start rehab from his infected leg with the Red Wings of Rochester. He can come off the DL on August 22nd.

Sources in the Boston area are reporting that outfielder Wily Mo Pena will be released or traded by this Friday. Wily can play all 3 positions in the OF and is only 25 years old. In 2004 he had 26 home runs in 110 games, followed up with 19 home runs in 2005 in 99 games played, and had 11 homers, 15 doubles, and 2 triples last season in 84 games played. He still probably isn’t finished developing as a player and if given significant playing time, he would definitely be an improvement over Rondell or anyone else we could put at the DH spot. He seems like a guy that Terry Ryan would want to go after; young, cheap, has power potential and is a better pinch-hit option than Luis Rodriguez or Jason Tyner. However, I’m doubtful Terry will try to do anything for the rest of the year, and there really isn’t anything he can do anymore to help propel the team to the playoffs. He feels the team can win with what they have. As far as I’m concerned, Carmen Cali could be sent down even before any roster move would be made, but that would be how I’d handle making room for Pena on the roster.

Today’s game starts at 12:05 so I’ll make this quick: Johan Santana went 7 innings, gave up 2 runs on 4 hits, walked 2, and struck out 5 to get his 10th win of the season. Jason Kubel hit a 2-run homer in the 7th to give us a 4-2 lead. Luis Rodriguez added his second homer of the year in the 9th to make it 6-2. Nick Punto made a great fielding play at second base, go to Twinsbaseball.com and then click on “Neshek discusses Final Vote” which will bring up the highlight reel box and you can click on Punto’s play from there to see it. Today’s the last day to vote for Pat Neshek to try and get him into the All-Star Game. He’s currently in third place, but fans on his website are taking it into overdrive today. Most of them have pulled all-nighters the past couple of nights, and have worn out their cell phones using the text voting. If you can, try and get in a few votes for him (or more). Kevin Slowey pitches today, hopefully some of the offense we saw yesterday can carry over into today’s game.

Carlos Silva rebounded after a bad first inning, highlighted by Frank Thomas‘ 500th career home run, to go a total of 7 innings with 5 earned runs and 5 strikeouts. He walked 2 and allowed 6 hits, 3 of them in that 4-run first inning. Silva is now 6-8 on the season and was 3-3 in the month of June. You could really see Silva’s excitement show through when he got an inning-ending double play in the 6th inning and a strikeout of Thomas to end the 7th.

Torii Hunter had two homers in the game, amassing 3 RBI between the two of them. He helped a lineup that had just 1 hit, other than Hunter’s, from the 3 through 9 spots. Michael Cuddyer had that 1. Jason Tyner, playing right field and batting leadoff, was 3-for-4 with an RBI and 2 runs scored. Jason Bartlett, back in the 2-hole, was 2-for-3 with an RBI and 2 runs scored. Justin Morneau was back today but not surprisingly didn’t look like the slugger MVP he is, going 0-for-3 with an RBI and a walk, but with 2 strikeouts. In general his swings didn’t look crisp, or normal for that matter. I expect it’ll take him the better part of this next road trip to get back into the swing (no pun intended) of things.

The Twins really got going on the basepaths yesterday with Bartlett getting 2 stolen bases (he’s now 15-for-15 on the season), while Luis Rodriguez added his second of the year.

After the game it was announced that pitcher Matt Garza has been called up from Rochester. He’ll spend one week in the bullpen and then start one of the games in a doubleheader the team has at the end of next week. Third-string catcher Chris Heintz was sent down to make room. The move definitely doesn’t surprise me, but there’s still some things they can do. They have Garrett Jones and Matt Tolbert at AAA. Jones, who has already been up with the team once this season, has 11 home runs in 72 games for the Red Wings. Tolbert has a .348 batting average with a .404 OBP in 61 games. If the Twins for some reason need a pitcher, look for Nick Blackburn to be the next one in line for a promotion to the team. He’s currently 5-1 with a 1.57 ERA in 8 starts for Rochester.

The game tonight is against the Tigers at Comerica Park. It starts at 6:05 and Johan Santana will try to get us the first win in the series. It’s kind of a big one as the Twins are 6 games behind Detroit for 2nd place in the division.

Scott Baker threw 7 innings yesterday, allowed only 4 hits, struck out 9, walked 1, and the only run he allowed came in the 8th inning when a sacrifice fly was hit off of Pat Neshek. I’m just glad we didn’t waste a start like that, from our 5th starter. He doesn’t seem to have his head on straight, and to be honest I’m not optimistic that he can string two quality starts together. He had 9 Ks through 5 innings and that is a career high for him.

It was a pretty big pitcher’s duel with both starters combining for 15 innings pitched and 10 hits allowed. The Twins got 3 hits in the 12th to give them 9 on the night, which is kind of a high number for only 2 runs scored. But everybody in the lineup except Mike Redmond and Nick Punto got a hit, and nobody had more than 1. Lew Ford had a pinch-hit single in the 12th and Jeff Cirillo hit the game-winning, pinch-hit bloop single to center. It’s funny though, he doesn’t fit the Twins’ criteria for “good, clubhouse guys who don’t really play good baseball” like a Luis Rodriguez or Rondell White, or even Phil Nevin from last season. Cirillo was quoted last night, after the game was over, as saying “So it’s weird that you’re celebrating a hit but it’s a bloop hit. But we’re like, ‘Whatever, all right, let’s jump up and down and go home.’” I’m not sure how any of you readers interpret that, but it seems to me like he didn’t really care, or it wasn’t a big deal to him. He has complained about playing time, saying he’s only a backup, but it’s just kind of a weird situation.

Dennys Reyes, Pat Neshek, Joe Nathan, and Juan Rincon threw 5 innings of hitless baseball last night to help keep the team in the game. Pat and Joe each struck out 3, but Joe was able to go 2 innings to further help the bullpen rest. Juan needed just 6 pitches to get out of his inning, and he got the official win.

Tonight’s game starts at 7:10 and we have Boof Bonser starting for us. The pitcher we’re facing is 2-5 this season with an ERA of 5.75, but he doesn’t walk a lot of people and his strikeout numbers are pretty good. He allowed 11 hits in 4 innings in his last start, so hopefully we can get the bats going early against him.

After losing the first game on Friday, and Justin Morneau for an unknown amount of time (maybe the whole Toronto series) with a bruised lung, the team rallied for a rout on Saturday (11-1 win for Carlos Silva), and then they played good baseball yesterday, winning 7-4. Johan Santana pitched 6 innings, allowed just 1 earned run (a run also scored on a Luis Rodriguez throwing error) on 5 hits, and struck out 8. He walked a batter and also hit a batter, but both of those can be debated. I saw the walk on the MLB Gameday thing, and it showed all 4 of the balls as being thrown on the border of the strike zone. The umpire was inconsistent all day, and you would know that if you were listening to the announcers. And on the hit batter, if it did hit the guy, it barely barely barely grazed his elbow…they showed the replay and you couldn’t see a change in the ball’s movement after it was supposed to hit him. I think that umpire was out to get us though, as he ejected Michael Cuddyer when Cuddyer was nearly at the dugout after arguing balls and strikes, and once that happened Mr. Ron Gardenhire threw his hat and came running out to defend Michael, but he was tossed immediately. Oh well, we won the game and that’s what matters.

Joe Mauer provided some much-needed offense with 2 home runs, his first 2-homer game since 2004. One was a solo in the 1st and the other was with a runner on in the 6th.

Pat Neshek and Joe Nathan each gave up a run in relief of Santana, although Neshek’s was on a homer and Nathan gave up 3 hits to help the run score.

You’ve probably all seen this commercial before, but I think it’s hilarious so I’ll show it anyway.

A highly unlikely, extremely unthinkable bases-loaded walk of none other than Torii Hunter in the bottom of the 9th gave the Twins their first lead of the game, and the win and the sweep. It’s especially fun because Hunter has just 11 walks this year; 4 of them intentional. I think we all know he’ll swing at anything within 2 feet of the plate, yet didn’t swing once in his 9th-inning at bat. 
 
 

Scott Baker got shelled, which wasn’t totally unexpected. He has flashes of brilliance; like his 8 and 1/3 inning, 2-run performance earlier this year. But his 6.37 ERA in 16 starts in the majors last year, in my opinion, shows that he isn’t ready to be a full-time starter in the bigs. He allowed 10 hits in just 3 innings of work, giving up 6 runs. He also walked a guy and struck out 3. Lucky for him, the White Sox pitchers combined for 8 walks and 7 runs on only 7 hits. Also on his side was our bullpen. Jason Miller, Matt Guerrier, Pat Neshek, and Joe Nathan combined for 6 innings of no-hit ball. Neshek needed only 9 pitches to retire the side in his inning, while Nathan threw just 5 in the top of the 9th. 
 

In the third inning, down 6-1, our bats came alive when Justin Morneau hit a sac fly with the bases loaded and Hunter followed him with a double in the left field corner to score both runners. Jeff Cirillo and Chris Heintz each had an RBI single in the 6th when they tied it up. 
 
 

The Joe Mauer injury saga continues a little longer, with the possibility of him returning in tomorrow’s game ruled out completely. Kelly Thesier wrote more on the subject, but the jist of the article is that his leg is still sore and obviously we don’t want to rush him back. It’s not like Mike Redmond has been doing so incredibly bad as a replacement. 
 

Luis Castillo did not play yesterday, his legs are a little sore. Nick Punto filled in nicely, going 0-for-2 with 3 walks. Nobody can turn the double-play ball as quick as Luis can, but Punto is the top defensive infielder we have on our ML roster, so I’m comfortable seeing him at second over Luis Rodriguez. 
 
 

In order to make room for Kevin Slowey, Jesse Crain was placed on the 60-day DL. Also, reliever Julio DePaula was demoted back to Rochester. 
 

Again, no game today as the team travels to Oakland for a 3-game series and a 6-game West Coast trip overall. I’ll do some highlights of the Fort Myers Miracle, the High-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins.

Johan Santana pitched an absolutely amazing game, throwing 103 pitches in 7 innings, 67 of those for strikes. Santana gave up Sammy Sosa’s 598th career homer in the 2nd, but Justin Morneau was there in the 4th for a 2-run shot to give us the lead. Justin was also there in the 5th with a 3-run home run, his 13th of the year and second of the game. That was the 7th time in Justin’s young career that he’s had two or more homers in a game. Torii Hunter added his own 2-run home run in the 8th to make it 7-1. Michael Cuddyer scored on each of those homers 
 

Santana only gave up 4 hits, and although they completed the cycle (a single, a double, a triple, and a homer) they only amounted to that one run. Johan also walked two, both times the recipient being Sosa. The big story has to be Johan’s 13 strikeouts, though. Oh, and all of them were swinging strikeouts, too. He struck out the side twice, and had at least one in every inning he pitched. It was important for him to go deep into the game, with Glen Perkins just placed on the Disabled List and Dennys Reyes likely to follow (he’ll have an MRI on Thursday to see what needs to be done). Pat Neshek struck out the side in his 1 inning and Joe Nathan came in to get two strikeouts on just 10 pitches. 
 

Jason Bartlett also has a sore shoulder/back and has been sitting out recently. Nick Punto has played short while Luis Rodriguez played third base last night. 
 

The Twins play at 1:00 PM today and Boof Bonser will be pitching for us. Let’s hope he can pull out another Win so we can win the series and get on a roll.

Scott Baker pitched a gem on Saturday by going 8 and 1/3 innings and allowing just 2 runs, both solo homers, with one of those coming in the 9th inning. He struck out 5 and walked none. Joe Nathan came in and recorded the final 2 outs, but did not get a save. 
 

Torii Hunter got us the lead in the second with a 2-run homer and we would never lose the lead. 
 
 
 

On Sunday things were going pretty good until Ramon Ortiz gave up a 3-run homer in the 5th. Ortiz went 4 and 1/3 innings and gave up 5 runs, all earned. He also gave up 10 hits in that span. That only made the score 5-5, though; Dennys Reyes was credited with the loss. He gave up a run on 2 hits while recording just an out. His ERA this season is now 6.57. We might be better off putting him in the rotation: In 2004 with the KC Royals, Denny started 12 games (with a total of 40) and posted a 4.75 ERA in 108 innings. Pat Neshek and Matt Guerrier pitched a combined 3 and 1/3 hitless innings, with Pat striking out 2 and Matt striking out 1. Also, after typing most of this, I’ve come across this little article in the Pioneer Press. Turns out that Reyes has had shoulder soreness since April, but in line with the Twins’ style, just told Gardy yesterday after he got the loss. It’s unknown how long he’ll be out for, and he has to be out until it heals, because he can’t throw his “best pitch” (according to him it’s his slider) with the pain. 
 

Michael Cuddyer started us off on the right foot with a 2-run homer to left (that was rightly called by Dick Bremer) and that started a 4-run 3rd inning for us. When it was tied 5-5 we had a chance to score when Luis Rodriguez got a leadoff double, but after Luis Castillo bunted him to third, Nick Punto and Cuddyer failed to do anything. I recently finished the book Moneyball by Michael Lewis and it talks about the Oakland Athletics’ style of play. Basically, they don’t do any sacrifices because it gives the other team an out. Their opinion is that a runner on second will probably score on a ball out of the infield, so why waste an out advancing them to third? I agree with that concept during that play in yesterday’s game. Castillo is obviously a good leadoff man, so wasting his at bat when a speedy Rodriguez was on second was a bad decision. But, I guess the A’s can have Moneyball and the Twins will try their luck with small ball. 
 

Also, if you get a minute, check out this article previewing our series coming up against the Rangers. If you don’t read it, don’t be surprised by some lineup changes. 

Carlos Silva takes the mound tonight in Texas. The game starts at 7:05.