Twins, Cole DeVries Look Good Through Seven in Loss to Rangers

If I was not a born and raised native of Minnesota and had been born in a state without a team to call mine, I think it would have been pretty easy to fall in love with the Rangers. I've always kind of liked them, but have maintained strong loyalties to the Twins, of course.

The Rangers overcame a 3-0 deficit in the 9th to win 4-3 in 13 innings over the Twins. Ian Kinsler lined a game-winning single in the 13th inning for the AL West-leading Texas Rangers.

Cole DeVries pitched seven scoreless innings on a great performance. I love seeing a Twins starting pitcher actually do well. :) Casey Fien followed up with a great performance as well.

The Twins were an out away from shutting out the Rangers at Arlington. That never happens... especially to the Twins. Minnesota had padded a 1-0 lead in the top of the ninth with two unearned runs off Joe Nathan. Then, Kinsler led off the ninth reaching on a two-base throwing error. Glen Perkins threw a wild pitch. Elvis Andrus then had an RBI groundout before Hamilton popped out to third base.

After losing five straight, the Twins managed to give the Rangers back to back 4-3 wins in extra innings. The Rangers are very easy to like. Even when you are on the other side.

Despite my disappointment we didn't at least win the series, I am proud of the Twins for giving the Rangers a run for their money. After all, the Rangers have eight players going to the All Star game. That is almost enough for one team. The Twins have one.

Mauer Makes All Star Team

Joe Mauer was selected to the American League All-Star game after finishing second in fan balloting to the Texas Rangers catcher Mike Napoli. Mauer finished with 2,922,422, while Napoli tallied 4,317,718.

Josh Willingham and Scott Diamond were potential candidates to represent the Twins. Willingham (LF) has 17 home runs and leads the Twins with 55 RBIs. Diamond has the lowest ERA among Twins starters, at 2.61. Both players were passed over as reserves.

Mauer is batting .324 with four homers and 36 RBIs.

Adam Dunn, White Sox Pummel Twins

It has been/will continue to be a busy week for me as a Twins fan.

I went to the Twins-White Sox game on Monday as well as Wednesday. I am going to the Twins-Royals game on Friday with some coworkers and the Twins-Royals double header on Saturday with my friend, Scott.

Busy, busy Twins week.

Not to sound like every other fan in the land of 10,000 lakes, but it sure would be nice if the Twins were winning these games instead of losing. That's a no brainer, right?

Seriously though. I will, based on a rough estimate of a 2.5 hour game, spending almost 13 hours at Target Field this week. I love baseball. I watch it at home, at the gym and (obviously) in person. But I'm going to level with you. Time flies when you are having fun. Generally, you are having more fun when you are winning...

Yesterday was brutal. The atmosphere at Target Field as the Twins lost to the Chicago White Sox 12-5 was TERRIBLE. Time was not flying. Fans were not having fun. 

It was so bad, Adam Dunn snapped an 0-for-24 slump with a three-run shot. Brutal. Let's try to pull together a sweep against the Royals, Twins. I would like to keep some money in my pocket by avoiding the mind-numbing beers Target Field has to offer in lieu of a win.

Minnesota Twins Choose Byron Buxton, Outfield

Byron Buxton made a splash as he signed as the Minnesota Twins' second overall pick. Buxton received a $6 million signing bonus - the biggest contract in this year's draft class.

The Twins announced the signing Wednesday, one day after Buxton joined the team for batting practice and a physical at Target Field. Buxton is an 18-year-old outfielder from Appling County High School.

The $6 million bonus is bigger than Joe Mauer received when he was signed by the Twins.

The number one overall pick, Carlos Correa, received a $4.2 million bonus from the Astros.

Target Field Photos

I recently went around Minneapolis, St. Paul and a few of the surrounding suburbs to take photos of all the great venues! I took pictures of 24 total venues.

Enjoy these Target Field photos!

Great Twins Prospects

The Twins are clearly in need of some new and developed talent. Here are my top Twins prospects we need to keep within the organization.

Travis Harrison, 3B
Joe Benson, OF
Brian Dozier, SS
Hudson Boyd, RHP
Liam Hendriks, RHP
Aaron Hicks, OF
Oswaldo Arcia, RHP
Kyle Gibson, RHP
Miguel Sano, 3B
Eddie Rosario, 2B

Notice how heavy I am on the pitching prospects. This highlights the Twins' deep need for quality and consistent pitchers. Who do you consider to be a future major contributor?

Twins Win Two in a Row

Well, Minnesota... looks like we have a winning streak on our hands!

Before the win on Monday over the Oakland Athletics, the Twins were 0-28 when heading into the 8th trailing their opponent.

The Twins beat Oakland on Monday after trailing. The Twins beat Oakland on Tuesday after trailing. The wins are great! Especially as we are tied with the Chicago Cubs for the worst record in baseball. However, I would argue the more important aspect of the games is the ability of the Twins to overcome a deficit.

Keep it up, boys. We need more wins to get out of the cellar.