Good news, fellow Twins fans! The rumors of my demise were much exaggerated. I'm alive! And ready for some baseball! I fully intended to blog during the winter, but work, general laziness, and the fact that the front office did nothing to inspire me to a rabid, frothing rage all combined to leave me rather uninspired. But I'm back, I've got my tickets to an exhibition game in April, and I'm ready to rock Target Field.

I fully intend to write about as many spring training games as possible (yes, I'm that starved for baseball). It might take me a while to get back into a routine. We shall see.

As I mentioned previously, the front office actually did its job this year, acquiring a new middle infield (J.J. Hardy and Orlando Hudson), a reliever (Clay Condrey, who looks like a convict in his picture), and Jim Thome. Liriano looked really good pitching in the Dominican Winter League, so I'm cautiously optimistic (He can't really get much worse than last year, can he?). Pavano is back this year, and Slowey is back from his injury as well, solidifying the rotation. A lot of people see us as the team to beat in the Central. This makes me nervous. I much prefer to defy expectations than to have to live up to them. Oh well. It's hard not to feel good about the lineup.

Now, the first game of spring training is underway currently. I got home from work during the 6th inning or so, and here's what I've gathered from the radio broadcast.

1. Something to do with Valencia being a baby. Apparently some of the veteran players put baby bottles and diapers in his locker to send a message. I wasn't real clear on why (Anyone have some insight?). It took me a long time to have any idea what the commentators were talking about because I turned it on mid-conversation. I was quite relieved to discover it had nothing to do with Valencia having a creepy fetish though...

2. Mike Maroth sucks (yeah, I don't jump to conclusions at all).

That's all I've got for now. But here's a picture of my dog dressed as a "gay woodland fairy" (according to my cousin). Yes, I'm a horrible person for making my male dog wear wings. However, I think that my own personal entertainment is far more important than his comfort and dignity.