A tribute to my favorite baseball team…
NOTE: The text for this post was taken directly from the YouTube description of the video
Looking at baseball cards can bring a lot of nostalgia to some fans, and for others it provides a fun look at stats and other historical information. Every week day there will be a new baseball card on Twins Dugout for you to check out!
Today’s Card: Jose Morales 1981 Fleer
The Twins are fighting injuries in a big way right now.
Of course it all started with Joe Nathan undergoing season-ending surgery before the season even started.
Then of course the other big one is Justin Morneau who has been out of action for nearly 2 months now because of the effects of a concussion.
Kevin Slowey is out of the pitching lineup because of an injury.
40 year old DH Jim Thome is banged up, and will not be in the lineup tonight.
Last night Jason Kubel got hit on the wrist, and even though it’s not broken (fortunately), his wrist and hand are swollen, and he’s listed as day-to-day.
New Twins reliever Brian Fuentes had his back “lock up” on him during warm-ups yesterday, and he’s not going to be available for a couple of days.
Orlando Hudson is having problems with his ankle, and although he played last night and insists that nothing is
wrong, manager Ron Gardenhire said it was obvious that his ankle was bothering him.
Tonight’s lineup:
1. Denard Span, CF
2. Alexi Casilla, 2B
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Michael Cuddyer, 1B
5. Delmon Young, LF
6. Danny Valencia, 3B
7.Jose Morales, DH
8. Jason Repko, RF
9. J.J. Hardy, SS
I really, really, REALLY don’t like having a lineup without Morneau, Kubel, or Thome.
Hopefully Francisco Liriano has a good night.
With Orlando Hudson going to the 15 day DL recently, the Twins brought up catcher Jose Morales from AAA to fill the roster spot instead of bringing up another infielder.
Ron Gardenhire felt that he was okay with the infielding situation because of being able to use Cuddyer, Cassilla, Hardy, Punto, and Vanlencia, and (fingers crossed) hoping that soon Justin Morneau would be back to take his spot at first base as well.
Gardenhire commented that the reason he wants to carry 3 catchers for a while is so that he can put Joe Mauer as the DH from time to time, and have a pinch hitting option for Butera late in the game without having to move Joe to the catcher position.
I’m good with that. That explanation makes sense to me. But I’m still confused about one thing…
Let’s all play baseball manager for a moment.
If you have decided to bring up a catcher from the minors, why choose Jose Morales instead of Wilson Ramos? Ramos is one of the top rated minor league players out there. Why not bring him up for another stint in the bigs?
To be honest, I don’t have a solid answer for that myself.
In fact, I can’t really make it make sense in my mind.
Don’t get me wrong… I don’t expect it to be a big deal. I don’t expect Joe Mauer to miss too much time over the next couple of weeks. I imagine that the plan is to play Mauer during the night games, and during the day games let Drew Butera catch while Joe plays DH.
But the fact still remains that Wilson Ramos is one of the top baseball prospects in the country. Wouldn’t experience in the big leagues be helpful to him?
Some have said that Gardenhire wants Ramos to play every day to gain experience. That answer makes sense to me when you’re talking about a full time roster spot. I understand that that’s the reason that Butera is ultimately on the roster while Ramos stays in AAA. But would 15 days away from AAA really hurt his growth all that much? And wouldn’t getting a chance to face some big league pitchers a couple times in those 15 days actually be better experience for him?
Another reason I heard is that the Twins ultimately plan on trading Ramos, while Morales will end up as the backup catcher as soon as next year. Again, I understand trading Wilson Ramos when you have Joe Mauer locked up for the next 8 years. But wouldn’t bringing Ramos up help showcase him a bit? Wouldn’t it potentially help his trade value?
The only other option that I can think of is that the Twins look at Jose Morales as being a better baseball player than Wilson Ramos.
And that one I can’t buy at all.
BALTIMORE — Twins second baseman Orlando Hudson landed on the 15-day disabled list on Sunday because of a strained right oblique muscle — although he tried all he could to stay on the active roster.
Read The Whole Article Here:Hudson goes on DL for a second time | StarTribune.com
Hudson will be headed to the 15 day DL for the second time this season, but it brings up some interesting (and potentially scary?) questions about the real status of Joe Mauer.
Mauer has been battling some soreness lately, leading to the Twins giving him some extra days off at the catcher position.
And now when our second baseman gets hurt, the Twins bring up Jose Morales… another catcher? Butera will probably still get the spot of primary backup catcher, according to the article, with Morales able to pinch hit for Drew late in games. While Morales probably is a better hitter than Butera, do you really bring up a guy to pinch hit for your backup catcher if you expect your starting catcher to play?
The whole thing seems kind of strange to me. I think there’s more going on with Joe Mauer than Gardenhire wants to share with the world at this point.
It’s Saint Patrick’s Day, right? Everyone is keeping their eyes out for those leprechauns that are running around. The great thing is, if you catch one, you’ll get some wishes granted!
These are the top 10 things that Minnesota Twins fans plan on wishing for if they catch one of the little guys.
Somehow I don't think Twins fans will be wishing for cereal
Bad Behavior has blocked 1 access attempts in the last 7 days.
