Twins eight-run first dooms Giants

​Single. Double. Single. Double. Single. Double. Single. Double. Strikeout. Double.

That's the Twins first inning recipe for eight straight runs with only one out--and that "K" was the result of Carl Pavano trying desperately to join the chorus with three straight hacks. This off the normally brilliant young pitching phenom Madison Baumgarner, one of the heroes of last year's World Series.

Those 9 hits with only out is a feat that has never been accomplished in the "live-ball" era (at least according to the wags at Deadspin.) After that, the Twins cruised to a 9-2 victory, their eigth in a row, and ninth in ten games.

The Cleveland Indians lost. The Detroit Tigers lost. The Minnesota Twins are now 6.5 games behind, an improvement of ten games since June 1, when they've gone 15-3.

There's been a ton of strange shit going down this magic month of June, including Alexi Casilla's cracking a home run in back-to-back games for the first time in his erratic career. Two home runs in two games... oh, and the dude hit but one in 221 prior contests.

MLB

​Casilla's just one of the success stories for this surging club. Casilla, is a career .253/.310/.336 hitter, and just happens to be on fire right now, like the other Skippys. His June numbers? .333/.392/.486 with 2 HR, * RBI, and 5 stolen bases.

And what about this kid Ben Revere? He was the spark plug in the Twins' first-inning GTO, opening the frame with a sharp single, and closing it out with a double to score the eighth and final run of that inning.

Some power, some well placed singles, and let's not forget Carl Pavano's eight solid innings, scattering nine hits and giving up but two runs. Pitching, hitting, defense... did the Twins have a sit down with the Devil and give up their collective souls? Half this team is still injured, the regulars are barely hitting, and the Skippys are emerging triumphant. I can't explain it? Can you?

MLB

Slowey's absence is obviously the key to the Twins' recent success.

​Well, apparently, Joe Souhan has the mystery figured out. According to Aaron Gleeman, Souhan Tweeted yesterday,

My imagination or did Twins turn it around after Slowey's plane landed in Fort Myers?

Frankly, I'm stunned that anti-blogger Souhan Tweets at all from his hand-cranked laptop. As Gleeman points out, the Twins actually went 1-6 when Slowey left, but their white-hot streak actually began (obviously by coincidence) with Kubel and Thome landing on the DH. But Souhan has it in his mind that Kevin Slowey is to blame, has written as much, and now has to piece this shit together somehow. Pathetic.

In the spirit of all that is good and holy, I ask you to ignore the acid Tweets of certain Star-Tribune Twits, and enjoy this musical interlude in honor of the baseball's hottest club. This my favorite version of "We're Going to Win Twins!", from the Hall Brothers New Orleans Jazz Band, a sort-of Dixieland-meets-Minnesota take on the ubiquitous song :