Twins fans can be forgiven if the upcoming season fills them with a growing sense of excitement and trepidation. Yes, Opening Day should be a joy, with Johan Santana on the mound, Joe Mauer behind the plate, an MVP at first and the rest of a crack team facing the woeful Baltimore Orioles. But just as a wedding is not necessarily an indicator of a good marriage, we all know that first game does not reflect the quality of the forthcoming season. With last week's demotion of Matt Garza, replaced by the erratic Carlos Silva, the pitching staff seems as capable as an airplane whose wings are held together with spit and mud. For the life of me, I can't help but be confounded by the schizophrenic nature of the Minnesota Twins, a team that seems utterly capable of developing talent, and then often incapable of taking unique approaches to exploiting that talent to its fullest.

As much as the Opening Day parade doesn't need my figurative rain to add to the actual downpours predicted for Monday, I can't see the Twins earning the Central Division Crown (or even the Wild Card) unless they take a much more creative approach to their starting pitching staff. Specifically, that means, in my mind, promoting Matt Garza. But I would also suggest best utilizing their starters with a four-man rotation.

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I should have known better than to get excited about last night's U.S.-Guatemala match. Anyone with a rational bone in their body would have recognized the silliness of this encounter. The U.S. has made it abundantly clear in recent years that they can beat any team in their region on home turf, especially Guatemala. In fact they'd never lost to Guatemala on U.S. soil, and last suffered defeat to the pint-sized Central American country two decades ago.

What the Americans need to prove in the wake of last summer's debacle in Germany is that they can defeat World Cup-caliber competition on foreign ground. But the team will never get that chance if U.S. Soccer continues to schedule friendlies against crappy CONCACAF countries in half empty Texas stadiums.

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By Stephen A. Litel

I'll be honest with you that I am under the weather. Therefore, I did not want to stay up late after the Wolves/Jazz game to write a full article on the game, instead choosing to rest. So, why don't you tell me what you saw in the game? What were the positives? What were the negatives?

I did manage to stay awake long enough to watch the entire game and will be able to contribute to the conversation myself, but why don't you start the conversation today?

Stephenwolvesguy22@hotmail.com

The U.S. men's national soccer team will seeks its fourth straight victory under interim-coach Bob Bradley tonight. They take on Guatemala at 8 p.m. CST in Frisco, Texas. On Sunday the U.S. coolly dispatched a dangerous Ecuador squad 3-1. The enigmatic Landon Donovan was spectacular, scoring all three goals for the Americans. (See a clip of his hat trick here.)

Even more promising for the U.S. was the play of Benny Feilhaber and Michael Bradley. The former, who plays his club ball at Hamburg in the Bundesliga, went the full 90 in the defensive midfield slot and was a cool presence in the center of the pitch. Bradley, who suits up for Herenveen in Holland, came on at halftime and helped spark a dominating second half by the Americans. The two youngsters (19 and 22 respectively) are the heirs apparent to recently retired playmaker Claudio Reyna. Hopefully we'll see more of them tonight.

Guatemala has never beaten the Americans on U.S. soil. Don't expect that to change. Folks will be gathering locally at the Sweetwater in St. Paul to watch the match. It's the bar inside the Best Western Kelly Inn (at Marion and 94), and will be showing the game in high def. Here's a map.

By Stephen Litel

Honestly, what do you say after a game like that? I could speak on the fact that Minnesota blew a 25 point lead, the worst blown game in franchise history. Maybe I could speak on the antics of players sitting on the bench, showing that they do not care or have any ownership in any of the embarrassment on the court. What about a plea to Glen Taylor to fire Kevin McHale?

There seems to be no point in any of that. That has been written by countless writers for three years now.

After the meltdown was complete, I made my way to the Timberwolves locker room, yet could not find myself to join the media throng surrounding the players who actually stuck around to answer questions. As Mike James, Randy Foye, Craig Smith, Mark Madsen, and Kevin Garnett each took their turns in front of the microphones, I hung back, knowing what was being said.

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Turns out Joe Mauer's endorsement deal with Land O' Lakes milk is appropriate. Joe's a growing boy.

A spring-training physical showed the Twins' All-Star catcher is now 6' 5", a full inch taller than he was last year. That isn't too unusual for a 23-year-old, but it is rare for a guy who makes his living crouching behind home plate.

Even at 6' 4", Mauer was tall for a catcher. "I don't agree that Mauer is a future star behind the plate, and it has everything to do with his height," wrote Joe Sheehan on BaseballProspectus.com in 2004. Sheehan's argument stemmed from a list he culled of all 6' 4" catchers in baseball history who had any sort of career. There were 22 of them, none memorable.

Sheehan was wrong, of course, and Mauer is a star. But the off-season growth-spurt puts him in even more exclusive company. At the time of Sheehan's writing, he also listed all of Major League Baseball's 6' 5" catchers. There were six.

Many teams move their tall catchers to other positions to reduce injury risk, something the Twins seem dead-set against. A stress-fracture scare on Mauer's left leg last week didn't even sway them. "History points out that there are many big catchers who caught for years and years," Twins general manager Terry Ryan told the Star Tribune.

He then ordered Mauer to drink another glass of milk.

By Stephen Litel

As the Timberwolves 2006-07 season begins to wind down, most likely without a playoff berth, blame has begun to be thrown around. With a majority of the blame focusing on the Minnesota front office, shreds of the same have filtered down to the players, including Ricky Davis.

A lot of people have negative thoughts of Davis, some justified, some odd. It is not surprising that when asked the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of "Ricky Buckets," a majority bring up his fake triple-double, when he shot at the opponent's basket in the closing minutes to secure the final needed rebound for the honor. Therefore, some of the knocks on Davis are indeed self-inflicted.

Personally, I have found Ricky Davis to be a very motivated player. Admittedly, I have not made a decision in my own heart and mind on him, so I decided to seek him out to answer to some of his biggest criticisms. Finding him in an empty locker room before the Wolves thrilling last second win against the Portland Trailblazers on Sunday, Davis was more than willing to speak.

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By Stephen Litel

Timberwolves fans are split on the issue of fighting for a playoff berth or losing to secure a better draft pick. In a worst-case scenario, the Wolves win just enough to miss out on the playoffs AND lose their draft pick to the Los Angeles Clippers, which makes the situation even more divisive. With the 2007 Draft class expected to be the deepest in years, Minnesota would have many options there to continue to build a solid core of young players.

Count me in as one believing that continuing to fight for a playoff berth is the right move. Although I do not believe that Minnesota will be able to win enough to eventually grab that last playoff spot, they are doing exactly as they should be. As a believer in the Wolves young trio of Randy Foye, Rashad McCants and Craig Smith, Minnesota already has a nice core of talent for the future. Eventually, the first round pick owed to the Clippers from the Sam Cassell-Marko Jaric trade has to be paid and this may be the time to do it.

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By Stephen Litel

Minnesota has had plenty of ups and downs on this trip--okay, mostly downs, but let's focus on the ups for a second: Garnett's 30 point/16 rebound game Tuesday night in Phoenix; Foye's huge game last night; and one guy getting glossed over in all the talk today.

As this road trip winds mercifully down, Mike James has played some of his best basketball of the season. The road to fans' forgiveness may be a long one, but James is finally playing like someone who buys into what Minnesota is doing and wants to stick around after this season.

Advertised as a "Sam Cassel-lite" for this new-look Timberwolves team, James has really been closer to "Will Avery-lite": Averaging 10.1 points, 3.8 assists, and 2.1 rebounds per game this season--all below his career averages--James has not only disappointed the fans and his teammates, but also himself. But beginning with the loss in Los Angeles, something seemed to have clicked with James, who ended that contest with 18 points and 11 assists. He followed that strong performance with 13 points on 3-5 shooting from three-point range in Phoenix, which was especially surprising, as he's struggled with the long-distance shot all season.

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By Stephen Litel

Unfortunately, it has become commonplace: As each and every loss mounts for the Timberwolves, the cameras naturally shift from the action on the court to Kevin Garnett watching from the sidelines in the final moments. The cameras capture Garnett looking confused, mad beyond belief or just plain numb.

These are the shots that people around the NBA nation see nightly, fueling the speculation that The Big Ticket has finally had enough and will leave the Twin Cities. Before the trade deadlines of the past two seasons, Timberwolves fans—along with fans of potentially new Garnett teams—have anticipated the news of his departure.

As the Timberwolves playoff chances slim at best, Kevin Garnett was absolutely brilliant to start the game with 20 points and 12 rebounds at the half. Garnett looked like a man on a mission, almost as if to say to his teammates "We're either going back to the playoffs or we're going down with me firing away."

Yet, the first half was a microcosm of the Timberwolves entire 2006-07 season. Garnett was stellar, the Timberwolves as a team played nearly as well as possible... and they still trailed by four at the half.

So, why do I believe that Garnett will retire as a member of the Minnesota Timberwolves? Is it wishful thinking? Do I have some insider information that I'm not divulging? Or could it be complete naiveté and stupidity?

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