Category: Kenta Maeda

March 20, 2023

The Twins are doing … something

The Twins are winding down exhibition play, and although I always fight the temptation to read too much into spring training, it’s hard not to after the club fell to 8-12-3 on Sunday with a lackluster loss to the Atlanta Braves. The Twins mustered all of two hits in the 5-0 defeat. Expectations are riding... Continue Reading »

March 9, 2023

Something actually resembling a Twins lineup played baseball this week

A Twins lineup consisting of Joey Gallo, Carlos Correa, Max Kepler, Jose Miranda, Donovan Solano, Kyle Farmer, Michael Taylor, Trevor Larnach and Ryan Jeffers — in other words, a lineup we might actually see during the regular season — took the field this week and won, edging the Baltimore Orioles 7-6 in Grapefruit League action.... Continue Reading »

February 27, 2023

Thank you, Max Kepler

Max Kepler, the Berlin-born right fielder for the Twins who continues to work on recapturing his 2019 homer-hitting form, has restored my faith in humanity. I say this after reading an MLB.com story about Kepler and how an offseason spent in Paris with his girlfriend has him feeling refreshed for the new season. That alone... Continue Reading »

January 22, 2023

We hardly knew ye, Luis Arraez

Luis Arraez, the defending American League batting champion, is a 25-year-old infielder who has consistently hit near or better than .300 in his young career, a once in a generation talent who is most often compared to Hall of Famer Rod Carew, and a player who has more career walks than strikeouts — only 131... Continue Reading »

August 30, 2021

Twins lose finale, but still take series from Brewers

Despite Sunday’s loss, the Twins still managed to take the series from the Milwaukee Brewers after wins Friday and Saturday. And the standout performance of the series belonged to pitcher Andrew Albers, who hadn’t pitched at the major league level in four years until he recently faced the New York Yankees. He pitched well against... Continue Reading »

August 25, 2021

Losing streak grows to 4 games after Twins drop Game 1 in Boston

The Twins put up a fight in their Game 1 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday, but couldn’t overcome nine runs allowed through five innings, finally losing 11-9. It was a long night for rookie pitcher Griffin Jax, who was handed a 3-1 lead — Max Kepler hit a first-inning leadoff triple —... Continue Reading »

August 15, 2021

Twins, Tampa trade blowout victories

The Twins had one of their biggest blowout wins of the season on Saturday, a 12-0 defeat of the Tampa Bay Rays that makes up for the Twins’ 10-4 loss on Friday. The Twins scored the 12 runs on 16 hits, eight of them extra-base hits, including home runs from Max Kepler, Luis Arraez, Brent... Continue Reading »

August 9, 2021

Wow. Twins get series win over AL West-leading Houston Astros

I disappeared for a few days after I saw the Houston Astros on the schedule. They hit and pitch well, they are 20 games over .500 and they have had mostly success against the Twins, including in the postseason, of late. So, I ignored the internet and TV, thinking the Astros would make quick work... Continue Reading »

August 4, 2021

3-run dingers power Twins to come from behind win

Mitch Garver hit a three-run homer, Jorge Polanco did the same in the ninth and that was pretty much all the Twins needed to rally from a 5-4 deficit to a 7-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday. Reliever Alex Colome walked a tightrope in the bottom of the ninth, allowing a hit and... Continue Reading »

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Hi, I’m Rolf Boone, Twins fan.

I became a fan of the Minnesota Twins after a friendly wager in the early 1980s. I survived Ron Davis, the meltdown in Cleveland, Phil Bradley at the Kingdome and then marveled at a rising generation of stars and two World Series wins in 1987 and 1991. Brad Radke made the 1990s bearable, while Kirby Puckett’s eye injury, exit from the game and eventual death made it almost too much to bear. The new century ushered in more talent — Joe Mauer, Johan Santana, Joe Nathan, Torii Hunter, Justin Morneau — and consecutive seasons of playoff baseball, followed by consecutive seasons of losing baseball. A winning season returned in 2015. So here we are. Go Twins.