Twins Notes

The time between the end of the regular season and the end of the playoffs is exceedingly difficult as a fan of a team that is not in the playoffs, especially with the one-sided playoff series thus far. The news on the Twins has been sparse, with most of it simply being rumors about potential trades or free agent signings which may or may not have their basis in reality. Every day, I search the web for news on the Twins, and usually I just come up with things like this quote in the Pioneer Press: "If the Twins can't re-sign free agent Torii Hunter, plans are to trade, sign a free agent or go in-house to find his center field replacement." Really? They're not going to make a centerfielder appear out of thin air? Anyways, without further ado, there were a couple of minor notes about the Twins recently, so here they are:

• The article above that provided the useless "news" on the Twins' centerfield situation did actually give some real news: Joe Mauer will have hernia surgery in the offseason. This does not seem very serious, as he has had the same surgery previously (in the minors) and expected recovery time is only 4-6 weeks.
• The Twins' tentative schedule for 2008 was released, and it includes a 14-game road trip surrounding the 2008 Republican convention, which will take place in Minneapolis. That long road trip is part of a brutal stretch where the Twins are on the road for 24 of 30 games from August 21st to September 21st. The Twins start the season on March 31st at home for four games against the Angels.
• An agreement was finally reached between Hennepin County and the owners of the land needed for the new ballpark. This seems like it was the last hurdle to clear in order to open the stadium in 2010, other than actually constructing the stadium itself.

And, in non-Twins related news, another Patriots' player was fined, as apparently Tom Brady isn't as perfect as some people think he is.