May 26, 2005
Open Chat: 5/26/2005
It is 5:47 AM as I write this, and I'm feeling a little bit better. I went to bed early last night, almost immediately after Travis Hafner's game-winning bloop single into left field off J.C. Romero. I hate losing games like last night's, because it could so easily have been a win. It was there for the taking over and over again, and the Twins just couldn't take it.
It would have been a win if Joe Nathan hadn't chosen Ben Broussard's at-bat in the bottom of the ninth inning as the time to give up his first home run since August 19, 2004. However, when the opposing starting pitcher gets knocked out of the game with an injury after 4.2 innings and you can muster just one measly run in 5.1 innings against an unprepared, overworked bullpen, I suppose you don't much deserve to win anyway.
Plus, it's hard to be too rough on Nathan, who has been about as good as a closer can possibly be for his entire time with the Twins. Last night's blown save was of the one-run variety, and it was still just his fifth in 57 chances with the Twins. That means he has slammed the door successfully 91.2% of the time, including 86.7% so far this season. Romero, on the other hand, is ripe for complaints and currently owns the least impressive 0.98 ERA in baseball history.
Okay, that's all you're going to get from me today. Feel free to pick this up in the comments ...
Today at The Hardball Times:
- Ten Things I Didn't Know Last Week (by Studes)
Today's Picks (37-29, +$910):
Oakland (Haren) -110 over Tampa Bay (Nomo)
Boston (Miller) -125 over Toronto (Chacin)
