Swept, and That's All

Things didn't go so well this afternoon. Before an announced crowd of almost 14,000 (though any observer could see that there were fewer cranks than that), the Twins were swept by the Cleveland Indians, losing 6-2. The Tribe has won 16 of their last 20, boasts a lineup that is dangerous from top to bottom, and have sent a message to the Central in the clearest possible terms: this year's division title goes through them. To the rest of the league: see you in October.

Scott Baker wasn't quite as dominant as his last outing, giving up 3 runs off 3 hits and 2 hit-batsmen in the 1st before recording a single out (after 27 pitches!) One fellow scribe grumbled, "this ain't the Kansas City lineup, kid." True, so true. But give the kid credit. After that horrendous start he settled down, struck out the next 2 batters and induced a ground-out to end the inning and keep the damage at bay. The Indians didn't score on Baker after that. And if you want to point out that Baker didn't have a single 1-2-3 inning, I would counter with the fact that through 5 full, he had but 1 fly out to 8 ground outs and 6 K's (though that might be different if 1 of the 4 towering doubles had been caught--then again, the score'd be different, too). Not too shabby. That he never lost his composure is one of many signs that this kid's going places.

Nick Blackburn came in and worked 3 innings, 2 of them perfect, and struck out 3 himself. True, things fell apart in the 9th, as what was a close 3-2 ballgame suddenly turned into an insurmountable 6-2 lead, all off a number of hits and walks, including touching the usually untouchable contortionist Pat Neshek for a double and a single, and that was all she wrote.

Offensively, Brian Buscher went 2 for 4. Nick Punto went 1 for 3, raising his average exactly 1 point, to a gaudy .198.

So that's what you get in September. A near-empty house where the cry of the hecklers echo across the turf, Scott Baker showing us his mettle, the kid Blackburn warming up to the big leagues, and a preview that perhaps the newest Central Division team to waltz into the World Series might just be the Cleveland Indians. If you're lucky, you'll sit around pondering the future with your fellow fan, and enjoy an afternoon out of the relentless heat.