Date: 7/18/09

Opponent: Texas Rangers

Home/Away: Away

Starting Pitcher: Baker

Final Score: W 4-1

Record: 47-44

Best Moment: Bakerbaker has a good outing! He didn't even fall apart in the 6th. He went 8 innings with only 6 hits and 8 strikeouts. His only run came off a solo homer in the 4th. Nathan pitched the 9th for his 25th save, and the Twins get another series win on the road. A sweep sure would be nice...but then again, it is Liriano pitching. Luckily Baker's long outing means we should have the good members of the bullpen available for the final game.

On the offensive side, the peculiar alignment of the planets in the sky led to a rare occurence: Casilla and Punto BOTH had hits. In the same game. Even more miraculous, Punto managed an extra-base hit, his 5th of the year. He also retained TOP COW status with a walk (still don't get it). Cuddyer went 2 for 4 with a home run and RBI double, and Morneau and Gomez each had 2 hits and drove in a run.

Most Questionable Moment: Nelson Cruz gets called safe at 1st on an infield hit fielded by Joe Nathan in the 9th inning. Nathan tried to tag him, but missed, and then threw to 1st. I thought he was out on the throw, and even if he wasn't I do think he was running out of the baseline. Gardy got ejected arguing the play, which was fun, and the play ended up not mattering.

Worst Moment: The home plate umpire gets nailed in the balls by a foul ball. This, of course, was the Worst Moment for him. It was more like the Most Hilarious Moment for me. I laughed for a really long time after that and watched the replay multiple times. It's probably a little funnier for me since I'm female and feel no sort of sympathy pains. He had to keep running to the dugout during the game, which naturally set me off into peals of laughter again.

Quotations of the Day: 

• "I wouldn't say it was crucial or anything, but it's definitely in the direction I want to be headed. I want to have a big impact on this team the second half." - Scott Baker, after the game. I want you to have a big impact, too, Bakerbaker. Hopefully a positive one.
• "We started off so bad, we knew that was an aberration. You know you're not that bad of a road team. Now we're trying to make up ground and get back to .500 on the road." - Ron Gardenhire, on the team's road performance. Gardy used the word "aberration"?!?! I am...speechless. Are we sure it was actually Gardy speaking?
• "[The umpire] said [Cruz] didn't go out of the basepath. Well, which one are we talking about? Because he went all around the one down the middle...That was great baserunning, because if you get away with that, you get away with murder." - Ron Gardenhire, on the play in the 9th inning.
• "I don't know. I think he pulled it out." - My sister, referring to...I actually have no idea what she was referring to, but rest assured Matt and I took it the wrong way.
• "I could here the grunt up here. I don't know if it got him up around the collar bone.........I'm told it did not get him in the collar bone unless he's had some terribly disfiguring accident." - Dick Bremer, initially mistaking where the home plate umpire was hit after he was smoked in the groin by a foul ball.

Suck-Ass Performance of the Game: Denard Span (0 for 5, 3 left on base).