The Minnesota Twins vs. The Chicago White Sox
Saturday August 26th, 2006
The Matchup
Johan Santana (15-5 3.01 ERA)
VS.
Jose Contreras (11-6 4.25 ERA)
The Buildup: On paper, this looked like a classic duel between often dominant power pitchers. So quite naturally, it would be one's first inclination to expect a low-scoring affair. 15 runs and 22 hits later, this assumption would be proven incorrect as a slugfest that took 2 extra frames to complete ensued.
The Action: As both pitchers settled in, it didn't take long for the Twins' bats to come alive. Thanks to a Justin Morneau single and a Rondell White triple, the Twins were on the board in the top half of the second inning. In steps little piranha Jason Tyner, who smacks a single in front of JD - or Jermaine Dye - to score White. Tyner then steals second, setting up his partner Jason Bartlett in piranha-related antics, drilling a ground rule double that scores Tyner. Minnestota 3-0. In the bottom half of the frame, Rob Mackowiak grounded out to Morneau, which scored Paul Konerko, who led off the inning with a single.
The Twins stormed back in the top half of the third. As if they were personally insulted that a ground out would score a run, they decided to not only get that run back, but add and extra one for good measure. Back-to-back singles by Morneau and Michael Cuddyer setup what would be a nice inning for the Twins. In steps White who sharply grounds out to score Cuddyer from third. I may not be the best speller in the magical kingdom, but I do know how you spell the word clutch: T-Y-N-E-R. With two outs, JT singles home Torii Hunter, who reached on a fielder's choice earlier in the inning. Minnesota Lead 5-1.
The fourth inning saw Ross Gload homer for the Chi-Sox, while the fifth saw Torii return the favor with a blast of his own. #21 on the year for Hunter. Will he reach 30? Continuing this power surge trend, Sandy Alomar stepped in and lifted one over the wall to dead centerfield, making the score Minnesota 6, Chicago 3.
After several anti-climatic scoreless innings, Konerko added to the Homer fest with his 29th of the year and a pansy by the name of Alex Cinton hit a sacrifice fly off of Pat Neshek to score Joe Crede from third. JOE NATHAN TIME!! Ok, so this one is in the bag. Nathan comes in, strikes out the first two batters, walks the third batter, gets the count to 3-2 on the fourth batter and gets him on a breaking ball - you know, same old deal. NOT SO IN THIS GAME! After Nick Punto used a sacrifice fly to score Jason Tyner from third, Japanese gay porn star Tadahito Iguchi singles to setup Jermaine Dye to become the hero and strengthen his MVP candidacy. Boy, did JD deliver. After hitting a foul ball the distance of a towering blast, he kicked the dirt, got his bearings and BAM: lift off - big number 38. I heard a collective CRAP! resonate from Twins Nation, but 'dis ain't ovah' said the malnourished orphan licking dirt on the street corner.
EXTRA INNINGS - No. 10: nothing. No. 11: something. What do you get when you mix a dash of Lew Ford with a smidge of Nick Punto? Nooooooo, you don't get a Ford Punto, which would be a sweet ride, you get the GAME-WINNING RUN!! After a single by Ford, a sac bunt by Bartlett, and a ground out by Luis Castillo, Punto plays playa hater with a single that landed right in front of (wait for it) Jermaine Dye. A virtual FU that gave twins fans reason to stand and cheer. So, with the game and series win hanging in the balance, the ball was given to Willie "On a Tear" Eyre. Former Twins' catcher AJ Pierzynski embarrasses himself with a groundout, Scott Podsednik reaches on a bunt single - which proves he is devoid of any and all balls. Finally, the Gay Porn Star steps in to sharply ground into a tailer made 6-4-3 double play to end the game. And that my friends is a TWINS WINNER!!
Player of the Game: Nick Punto? No! Jason Tyner!! Without Tyner's heroics during the course of the game, the Twins can take 3 runs off the board. JT was by far the player of this game.
The Result: With Detroit falling to the Indians the Twins are only 4 back in the loss column for the division lead and soared to 1.5 games up in the win column for the AL Wild Card Race Saturday night!
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