I probably don't have to tell you that the Twins are looking good. After today's weird come-from-behind 7-6 victory over the woeful White Sox (Torii Hunter took four straight balls to walk in the winning run in the ninth, for Christ's sake--one of eight free passes the Sox gave up), we've won four straight series in a row, and handed the Sox their first sweep of the season (which is itself difficult to fathom). The cynic in me says, well, we ran a gauntlet of mediocre teams and one division-leader facing growing pains; the optimist sez that we beat four clubs who are still pretty damn strong (the Blue Jays and White Sox aren't necessarily slouches). So, despite injuries, are we starting to fire on all cylinders?

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Once upon a time, in the era of old steel-and-concrete stadiums, there was a triumphant heckler who used to prowl the stands in Philadelphia's Shibe Park. His name was Pete Adelis, the "Iron Lung of Shibe Park", and he would yell, howl, cajole, bang on pans and a helmet he wore, administering fierce tongue-lashings to whomever his beloved Phillies happened to meet.

During yesterday's Memorial Day matinee at the Metrodome, the spirit of Adelis must have inhabited some fellow in the good seats, a bellowing man who may or may not have been the tipping point in the Twins 10-4 victory.

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"Why do I have to be a model for your kid? You be a model for your kid." --Bob Gibson

Though you wouldn't catch me on one of those idiotic rafts in 'McCovey Cove', if I were living in the San Francisco Bay Area and cared about baseball as I do, I would be there to watch Mr. Barry Bonds plow his way toward Hank Aaron's home run record.

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Last weekend looked like it was going to be a complete debacle for the road-weary Minnesota Thunder. On Friday night ancient Brazilian Zinho headed home a goal in the 51st minute to give Miami FC a 1-0 victory in front of a pitiful crowd of 722 at the Orange Bowl. The loss left the Thunder with an 0-3-2 record to start the season, scoring a paltry three goals in the process.

Then the squad traveled to San Juan to take on the Puerto Rico Islanders and went down a goal almost immediately when former Thunder standout Melvin Tarley broke through alone and buried the ball in the back of the net. The Thunder rallied to tie it up in the 35th minute. Rodrigo Hidalgo drove a free kick in from the left flank that was deftly headed into the goal by Brian Farber.

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Here's something to think about: the Twins, as anyone who heard yesterday's radio broadcast knows, went 4-6 over their last two series, which gave them a 4-9 record over their romp through the heart of America, with stops in Cleveland, Milwaukee, and finally, "Fun Central", Arlington, Texas. (For whatever reason, I can't stop thinking about its proximity to Dallas, which recalls Errol Morris' The Thin Blue Line... and that gives me a minor freak out. Especially when I add the memory of who used to own the Rangers.) Now, it was great to see the Twins take two of three from Milwaukee and the same from the woeful Rangers. And they looked pretty damned good in the process.

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BatGirl--she of the Lego game recaps, Boyfriend of the Day, hilarious Photoshop jobs, and the best sports nicknames around ("Chairman" Mauer, "Sweetcheeks" Hunter, etc.)--announced yesterday that her popular Twins blog is going dark. She blamed the constraints of new motherhood for her lack of blogger energy. Too bad--it was a magical run while it lasted. From her final entry:

Thank you for reading and for sharing this with me. Remember, that it's only a game but it's the best game on earth and it's our privilege to watch it, that everything looks better in Legos, and that the word "ass" is inherently funny. And do Batgirl a favor--when your favorite player strikes out with the bases loaded or muffs a bunt or walks a guy in and the crowd around you boos, I want you to stand up and shout at the top of your lungs, heart bursting with unconditional love, THAT'S MY BOYFRIEND.

Well, this season has got me beat...

In all likelihood, it will take until mid-August for that creeping cynicism to finally take hold in the Pollyannas, and they realize that the season is shot. It's certainly taken hold of me. Do I think it's possible for the Twins to rebound? I do. Stranger things have happened. Do I, the neg-head, want a comeback? You bet--if anything, it would give me a lot to write about. Baseball is not a Hindenburg sport, like auto-racing. Disasters get old in baseball--such as having a team with a division title, MVP, batting champ and Cy Young winner one year having none of these the following season (a good possibility). Our sport's failures take forever, festering over the course of 162 games. Rare is the team that's kicked out on the final day; it's extremely rare in this day of wild-cards. Oh, we can crow all we want about overtaking the Tigers on the last contest of the 2006 season. But we all know things came to a grinding halt three contests later, while the Tigers got to see the World Series.

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Congratulations to the Atomic Bombshells, who beat the Rockits to take home the Minnesota Rollergirls championship last month at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium. Didn't make the event? Don't fret. Check out this fantastic behind-the-lines rollergirls doc, filmed on the scene by the vlog wizards at CoolHunting.com:

After the madness of the Kentucky Derby--20 horses jostling for a clean patch of dirt for a mile and a quarter--The Preakness is something of a letdown. The field is set at nine, with only four Derby contestants returning to the starting gate at Pimlico. Street Sense will be there, of course, along with the other two horses that finished in the money, Curlin and Hard Spun. The other retread is Circular Quay, a late runner that I was dumb enough to throw some money at two weeks ago and who finished sixth.

There's a reason none of the other five horses competed in the Derby. They look to be a bunch of stiffs. King of the Roxy is the only semi-impressive beast, having finished second (to Tiago) in the Santa Anita Derby. I'm also semi-intrigued by C.P. West, who's only finished out of the money once in eight runs, but against suspect competition.

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The Minnesota Thunder are winless in four matches, posting an 0-2-2 record. The squad's last game was a bummer, with the Vancouver Whitecaps netting the game winner in the 88th minute and spoiling the Thunder's home opener.

This weekend the Thunder will try to right things on the road. Tomorrow night the squad will take on Miami FC. Folks will be gathering locally at Brit's Pub to watch the nationally televised match. Kickoff is 7 p.m. CST. Then the Thunder travels to Puerto Rico for a Sunday afternoon clash with the Islanders.

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