Vikings

The Vikings took a running back known for catching the ball out of the backfield as their first pick yesterday. No one will know if he was the best available back with those skills until he actually plays, BUT I like the philosophy that goes with that pick. The Vikes now have three good, interchangeable backs who can catch the ball AND run if called upon. Relying on ONE good back who was known primarily for running has put the Vikings in the hole for 10 years now. It's time to think differently.

Their next pick? An offensive lineman. Their third pick? A defensive lineman to add depth. All the choices were good AND in the right order. They even picked up another offensive lineman with their 5th pick.

They got some good picks yesterday. I'm more excited about the coming season than I was last year.

Go Vikes!

Twins Rally, Win!

I didn't look for that. Sano is fast becoming one of my favorite players. He's even making cool plays at third.

Go Twins!

ESPN

I warned of the massive layoffs that ESPN would be experiencing over a month ago. Over 100 employees were let go yesterday.

Don't think that this is the end. ESPN is losing subscribers as more and more people cut their ties to cable television. You can't be a profit center AND spend that much money for sports. Something had to give.

TV sports contracts rights will begin to shrink. The pot will start getting smaller from now on. A few superstars will still be paid the big bucks. But there will be less of them. The ripple effect won't happen right away. But the biggest ripple just hit.

ESPN, FOX Sports, The Turner Stations, and others cannot exist the way they are with a dwindling supply of revenue. Cable television is changing in America. And the result is that major league sports will start to feel the pinch as well. Money is no longer unlimited.

Vikings First Round Pick...

The Vikings traded that pick last year for Sam Bradford.

We don't draft until the 16th selection of the second round. There's lots of good players left, but there never were many good offensive lineman available this year. IF you're going to miss a first round pick, this was the year to do it.

Twins

I always say, if you're gonna' get beat, really get beat. It was a good game (3-3) through 5.

Those last four innings? Let's just say they followed my suggestion. (14-3!!!)

Still in the hunt. Still watching and hoping for something better.

Ervin Santana (Buxton!)

And Vargas and Sano.

THAT was what the Twins should be doing. Three weeks into the season, and they are back to .500. I can't believe they got my interest back.

Santana is unreal.

Dozier!

The Twins needed a major highlight last night. They got it in the form of a bases-clearing double by Dozier. The Twins did hold on to win 3-2.

I'm no longer interested in every game, but am still checking on progress during commercial breaks. I guess that means I still care somewhat.

Go Twins!

In other sports news:

The Vikings open the season with a Monday night game against New Orleans. That just got more interesting as all reports seem to show Adrain Peterson is signing with the Saints. Go Vikings!

Twins

I was almost interested in them for three weeks this season. Maybe next year...

I'm just glad all the primetime shows are back this week. It's not like I won't have plenty to watch the next few weeks.

Wild Eliminated, Twins Lose, Brawl

A typical Saturday of sports in Minnesota.

Sixth Inning Comeback

I think the fans needed this one more than the Twins.

Justin Verlander walked the Twins to victory. It sure helped that Rosario picked a good time to hit his first home run of the season.  .500 is the goal until they get their act together.

Go Twins!

Buxton? One hit in three at bats. He struck out the other two times. He's now struck out half the time he's been at the plate this year. Yes, he leads the majors in that category. Average? "Up" to .094.

Byron Buxton

4 for 49 (.082) for the season, 24 strikeouts. ONE run scored.

The Twins have now lost 7 of their last 10.

Wild Win, Still Down 3-1 In Series

And the Twins were rained out on ESPN.

Ouch!

I didn't waste my time on The Twins last night. Three losses in a row. Losing. Interest. Fast.

Twins Strand 12, Score 1, Lose (again...)

sigh

Twins Lose 2-1 In 10

I hate wasting so much of my time watching a game like this.

I don't mind pointing fingers, either.

Byron Buxton 0 for 3, and he struck out with the bases loaded.

The Twins are 7-5 and have the best ERA in baseball.

Buxton's 0.93 batting average is taking it's toll.

Santana: One Walk, One Hit, Complete Game Shutout

That was such a great game. Santana's ERA is down to 0.41.

Even Buxton got a double.

Twins Score One, Lose

Is Buxton ever going to resemble a major league hitter? 3-37 at the plate (.081 average), 20 strikeouts.

Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before...

The Wild are now down 2 games to none in the first round of the playoffs.

Their season is on the brink of collapse.

Bombs Away

The Twins FINALLY had a day with some hitting. That they drew a boatful of walks didn't hurt either. They are now tied with the Tigers for first with Chicago coming to town for the weekend.

Go Twins!

Two Losses in A Row

Detroit appears to be very good. Our hitting is suspect. Not a good sign of things to come.

Kyle Gibson had a total collapse in the fourth. In other words, he looked like his old self again.

Great Pitching Continues

BUT, they lost anyways.  That's baseball.

Raw and Smackdown

I was surprised how much I enjoyed Raw last night. The Superstar Shakeup (switching a few wrestlers from Smackdown) kept the show interesting all night. I expect Smackdown to be good for the same reason tonight.

Maybe it was just not having any corporate people on my TV screen that helped. I could get used to that, too.

Best Record in the American League

That was one very good first week of the season. They have today off.

Bad Pitching, Sano's "Defense" Returns

An ugly game. The first loss. The key to a successful season is to avoid losing streaks. We'll see if the Twins can limit the streak to only one today.

4-0!

The last time they started the season 4-0? 1987.

1987 was a great year.

Pitching and defense were the keys last night.

Go Twins!

And Byron Buxton better wake up soon...

Most interesting? Sano played first last night. Why is this interesting? Sano has never played first base before. I don't think he's even practiced there. Paul Molitor was seen giving him tips on how to field the position in pre-games last night.

We thought Vargas or Park would be the DH this year, but with both being sent down, most thought Kepler would be the backup. But Kepler is too big an asset in the outfield (his incredible catch last night showed that). That left Escobar at third, and THAT was a great move.

Way to go Molly!

Timberwolves

During an off day this week, the Wolves visited the Minneapolis Orphanage. "It's heartbreaking to see their little sad faces with no hope, " said Jose, age 6.

3-0!

Relief pitching. Patience.

The Twins are walking themselves to victory. 6 walks in the first game. 9 in the second. 7 yesterday. That's 22 walks in just three games. You have to credit KC's inept pitching staff as well, but that kind of extra offense is hopefully a bright sign of  Paul Molitor's managing style. Getting on base is a lot more important than HOW you get on base.

It also wears out an opposing team's pitching staff.

The Twins started last season 0-9. I'm not saying the rest of the season is going to be this good, but this sure is the better start Twins fans desperately needed.

Go Twins!

Pitching, Patience

The Twins are 2-0 on the young season. The first time they can say that since 2007.

I MISSED the 7th inning yesterday, so I waited to watch the replay this morning to actually see it.

Good stuff.

The pitching is surprisingly good.  And the patience? NINE walks yesterday. Castro had four of them all by himself. That's how you win baseball games when you're just an average team.


Sano's triple to the opposite field was a thing of beauty. Escobar's 3-run shot the same inning was equally nice.

More please.

Wrestlemania

WWE ended their Wrestlemania week last night with their 5th consecutive sellout show in Orlando. This time it was Smackdown doing the honors.

Wrestlemania pretty much went according to plan. Goldberg and Undertaker both lost, and are now retired.

Brock Lesnar is the Universal Champion. Naomi became a two-time women's champ.

The biggest surprise? The Hardy Boys are back and won the tag titles.  But this week always represents a new beginning for WWE. RAW and Smackdown both came through for that. Finn Balor returned from an injury. The Revival showed up on the tag team scene. And Tye Dillinger and Shinsuke Nakamura got promoted to the big time  as well.

Next week the brands will be exchanging a few of the their top stars in their "Superstar Shakeup" to help keep their programs fresh. And Stephanie will be kept off TV for awhile.

That's the best news of all.

All told that was upwards of 22 hours of wrestling TV viewing in just 5 days.

That's enough for now.

I'm ready for the Twins at noon today. For those keeping track, the Twins are tied for second now in the division.

Pitching, Defense, Patience

Santana was efficient on the mound. Buxton made two great catches. The Twins were patient at the plate when they needed to be in the seventh.

Sano might have hit a home run, but his error in the ninth means his defense hasn't improved either. It  just won't register in the boxscore because the of hometown record keeping.

The Twins won their first opener in nine seasons. And they are still tied for first atop the AL Central.

They have today off.

A very good first day of the season.

Madison Bumgarner

What a day. Bumgarner had a perfect game going through five innings yesterday and hit two home runs himself. The real story. San Frans's weak bullpen cost him the win in the ninth.

Baseball is back.

Twins today at 3 p.m. It'll probably be a little wet.

Opening Day

I remember when this day used to give me goosebumps. Now with the Twins the way they are, it barely registers. Three games today, the Twins have their first game tomorrow. They are currently tied for first in the AL central. Don't get used to it.

It the biggest weekend of the year for wrestling fans, too. Wrestlemania used to be three hour show on Sunday nights, now it's an entire weekend of events. There was a four-hour Hall of Fame special on Friday night. Saturday featured  the biggest NXT show of the year. And Wrestlemania will be a 6-hour extravaganza  (including a two-hour pre-show) today.

As big as it has gotten, now. It can never live up to the hype.  It's also too long to watch all at once. I'll be catching up on all the shows during the next week, a couple hours at a a time.

Randy Moss, at age 40 is coming out of retirement. He's signed a contract to play soccer for the Charlotte Independence. It's kind of a "Triple A" type league, a step below MLS. He wants to show the world how good he is. Be aware this press release came out on April 1st. Something smells fishy to me.

Connecticut Women LOSE

Now, THAT'S an upset.

Mississippi State beat them in OT last night.

The 100+ game winning streak is over. 4 straight national championships is over.

Finally a basketball game worth watching.

I missed it.

sigh