Twins Lose Two of Three to White Sox

After Friday night's impressive victory over the hated South Siders at the Cell, a series victory looked promising. However, things took a sharp turn south, as the Twins offense fell flat in the final two games of the series. Here is my reaction to the series in Chicago and the first week of the season, in which the Twins went 3-4.

-The Twins pitching and hitting has been very inconsistent so far. In their four losses, the Twins have scored a total of two runs. In their three wins, they have scored 24 runs. It's clear that the Twins are missing Joe Mauer in the lineup right now, but they still should be putting up better performances. Hopefully, they can get on track when they start a seven game home stand at the Dome tonight. On the pitching side, Glenn Perkins has been the only starter to deliver a solid performance thus far. This is probably due in part to the absence of Mauer and his ability to call such a good game that the pitchers just go on auto pilot and don't shake him off at all. In addition, Scott Baker makes his first start this week after a brief appearance on the DL. Liriano, Slowey, and Blackburn all have to improve, and Perkins needs to do just what he did in his first outing. The return of Baker should help solidify things, and Mauer's eventual return behind the plate in a couple weeks should help as well. The Twins just haven't looked that sharp so far, with the exception of Friday against the Sox.

-Speaking of Friday, what a game it was! Joe Crede was greeted very warmly by the Sox faithful, but proceeded to hit a home run in his first at-bat, drawing boos from the same fans that gave him a standing ovation moments earlier. Crede's home run was the obvious highlight of the series. It was sweet to hear Hawk Harrelson call Crede's bomb. In your face, Hawk! You can put it on the board....YEEEeeeeSSSS!!!!! Crede looks good in a Twins uniform.

-I like Justin Morneau in the 3 hole until Mauer returns. The Twins need someone who can make contact and consistently get on base. Michael Cuddyer wasn't doing that in his brief time batting third. He struck out way too much and isn't a patient enough hitter. Usually, you put your best hitter in the 3 hole. With Mauer out, Morneau clearly fits that bill. In his first game there on Friday, he was terrific, belting a home run and driving in four.

-Gardy's outfield rotation still bugs me. In my opinion, Delmon Young, Jason Kubel, and Denard Span need to be in the lineup virtually every day. Span is self-explanatory. He is the leadoff hitter and is a terrific catalyst for this team. He is also probably the best defensive outfielder on the team. As for Young and Kubel, they need to be in there to provide some punch to this lineup. Let's not forget, Kubel was second on the team in home runs last year with 20 and Young has adjusted his approach to generate more power. We saw that on display in his first at bat in Chicago on Sunday when he launched a home run to deep center field. I hate how people like to rag on Delmon Young. While his defense isn't great, it's no worse than Michael Cuddyer's. Plus, Young is unquestionably the most talented of any of the outfielders. He needs to play almost every day. I think Michael Cuddyer and Carlos Gomez should be the ones rotating in and out of the lineup. Cuddyer has had one good season in his career and that was when he was batting in between a batting champ and an MVP. He will probably never again reach the level he did in '06. As for Gomez, he's got great potential, but he shouldn't be playing more than Young. He is still impatient at the plate and doesn't generate much power. Plus, he is a terrific pinch runner or late inning defensive replacement off the bench. My message to Gardy is to quit playing favorites and play the best players. This lineup needs as much punch as it can get, so Delmon and Kubel need to be in there as much as possible.

More to come this week, as the Twins host the Blue Jays and Angels at the Dome. Let's get on a roll.

My condolences to the families of Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart and legendary Phillies broadcaster Harry Kalas. Adenhart was a terrific up and coming prospect and it is a terrible tragedy that he died in the way that he did. Kalas was one of the great broadcasters in the business. Phillies games won't be the same without him. I'm glad he got to call a World Series win for his Phils last year.