Date: 9/19/09

Opponent: Detroit Tigers

Home/Away: Home

Starting Pitcher: Pavano

Final Score: W 6-2

Record: 76-72

Best Moment: Don Kelly loses Cabrera's routine fly ball in the roof, allowing the 8th inning to balloon into a 5-run rally. I genuinely felt bad for the guy. As a defensive replacement, you don't want to have a major fuck-up of that sort. But Span was having trouble with balls out there as well, so it clearly wasn't just being new to the Metrodome. The Dome is a fickle bitch though, just the way I like my bitches. I have no idea what I mean by that. This could be one of the last games where we can take advantage of such plays. You could see by Verlander's expression after giving up Kubel's bloop single that he just couldn't believe it. Talk about bad luck: he was absolutely dominating us (outside of Mauer's homer, which was absolutely crushed) and then in the space of a few minutes the game took a complete U-turn on a ball lost in the ceiling and a broken bat single.

On a side note, no wonder we have so few errors. Our scorekeeper rules almost everything a hit. Take a look at Punto overrunning that pop-up and having it bounce off his glove, or Tolbert's throw the game before that pulled Cuddyer off the bag. Pity the poor pitchers who suffer the statistical consequences of those rulings.

And is it time to retire the Mr. Anti-Clutch moniker for Cuddyer? He could hardly be more clutch with Morneau out. Maybe it's the added pressure of being the main power-threat in the lineup. Besides Kubel. And that Mauer guy. It's hard to care regardless. Let's hope he keeps it up (I know, I know, that's what she said).

Most Questionable Moment: Anyone else think maybe we should not try to steal bases on Gerald Laird? He may look like a chipmunk, but his arm has the pinpoint accuracy of a sniper rifle (and I would know).

Worst Moment: Bottom of the 8th inning. Punto struck out swinging, the offense was largely MIA, and I thought we were sure to lose. Thank you Metrodome. And Delmon Young, for that hilariously ungraceful sprawling catch.

Quotations of the Day:

• "We definitely weren't thinking something like that was going to happen. But I think this team always knows in this dome, especially with the amount of fans here, we just get a little momentum going and we will break through and make something happen." - Denard Span, on the ball lost in the ceiling.
• "We wish we would have played like this more of the season, but better late than never. We've still got a chance. We've given ourselves a chance. Hopefully we can play like this the next 14 games." - Michael Cuddyer
• "The guy is a stud. That's what studs do, go back out there in the eighth with 100-and-some pitches, and he says, 'Either I'm going to win it or I'm going to lose it.' You've got to respect a guy like that, to be able to go out and dominate." - Michael Cuddyer, regarding Verlander.
• "That was huge, you could say that was probably the play of the game. We only have four more regular-season games, and I guess we took advantage today." - Michael Cuddyer, commenting on the missed catch because of the Dome.

Suck-Ass Performance of the Game: Brian Buscher (0 for 3, 2 strikeouts, 3 left on base) and Nick Punto (0 for 3, 1 strikeout, 3 left on base). Everyone else had a hit in the lineup except these two losers.