Happy Birthday Man Muscles!

Happy 27th birthday, Joe Mauer. We love you. A lot.

Twins Ink Man Muscles For 10 More Years?

After much negotiation and patience, Joe Mauer has reportedly agreed to stay with the Minnesota Twins for 10 more years. The exact amount of the deal is yet to be revealed, but I’m pretty sure it’s unheard of.

Upon hearing this news, Minnesota ice fisherman drinking beer on one of the frigid 10,000 lakes, snow plow operators making the roads tolerable in Brainerd, and parka salesman in Ely all dropped what they were doing to stop and cheer.

Yep, Minnesotans are happier than penguins in a blizzard about now.

It's Love

So, we're going to interrupt our exciting Saturday night to update you on one of our favorite players. We're actually considering changing our name to Babes Love Ryan Zimmerman, cause wow.

I've cleared my schedule to watch the last nine Washington Nationals games, just to see him hit. Yes, it's been pretty painful, but watching Zimmerman continue his impressive hitting streak -- now sitting at 27 games -- has made it all worth while.

Zim homered in the top of the eighth inning Saturday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks, taking righty reliever Juan Gutierrez deep to center, giving the Nationals a 2-0 lead for his sixth longball of the year. He's now batting .336 on the season with 21 RBIs. Hot.

Sentator Crushingham (yeah, we're still working out the nickname thing) will get a shot at hitting safely in consecutive game #28 when the Nats take on 24-year-old Max Scherzer (0-3, 3.38 ERA) and the D'Backs for game two game of the three game series.

Get Well Soon Chutley

I've been searching for an excuse to post this delicious picture of Chase Utley, so we're just gonna go ahead and talk about his right hip. It turns out the three-time All-Star is doing very well after his November surgery.

The Philadelphia Phillies second baseman just recently started taking swings off a tee and hitting soft tosses, but docs say he's far ahead of the original 4-6 month prognosis.

Utley, 30, played through pain for most of the 2008 season, but ended up batting .292 with 104 RBIs and a career-high 33 bombs. You can tell about where it started to hurt the most, seeing as how he hit .352 in April with his average dropping to .279 over the last five months. He belted 21 homers in the first 59 games, but nailed just 12 in the last 103.

When asked what his favorite World Series moment was, he responded, "It’s a blur. I’d have to say the last pitch. There’s so many... I tend to remember other people’s plays before I remember mine."

Modest, too.

[Rotoworld] | [Phightin' Phils] | [Phollowing the Phillies]

It Was Love At First Sight

We love you, baseball. With all of our hearts. Even with those nasty little habits like steroids and Bud Selig, we just can't seem to quit you.

[Diamond Hoggers] | [Baseball, Life and Other Stuff] | [Subway Squawkers]

Shhh! There's a Milestone Nearby!

We are so on the Jay Bruce bandwagon.

Bruce Almighty, The Boss, The Deal, The Beaumont Bruiser, The Cincinnati Bowtie, The Bruise, call him what you like. This kid is ridiculous right now.

The rookie sensation smashed another longball Monday, an opposite-field liner just clearing the left-field wall in the fourth inning of the Cincinnati Reds' 5-4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies.

In his first 7 big league games, the 21-year-old center fielder is batting .577 (15-for-25) with three homers, seven RBIs and 2 stolen bags.

Will it last? No. Sadly, nothing this good lasts forever. Let's enjoy it while we can, at least until Ken Griffey Jr. re-enters the limelight with career home run #600.

[Redleg Nation]