subject: Minnesota Twins Tickets - New Stadium, Another Postseason Run [print this page] The Twins haven't quite wrapped up the postseason. Not yet. Still, the Twins have a six-game lead (as of Sept. 8) in the A.L. Central and look to be heading back to the playoffs once again as Twins fans celebrate the first season at newly built Target Stadium. Though the Twins haven't had a great deal of success in the postseason, hope springs eternal, particularly when you have two former Most Valuable Players and a surprisingly strong pitching staff that has been overlooked for much of the season.
Everyone expected this year that Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer would have big seasons, which isn't exactly expecting much considering that they are two of the premier hitters in the entire league. With such a tandem at the heart of their order, the Twins already have an advantage on many of the teams in the division, though they were stuck behind the surprising White Sox for much of the season. When Mauer got off to somewhat of a slow start, particular in terms of power production, it seemed that the Twins could be in for a long season.
But as Mauer started to turn it around and Morneau got off to a great start to the season, other players started stepping up. Despite playing in a largely fill-in role, Jim Thome has continued to mash and is leading the team in homeruns with 22 despite playing in less than 100 games this year. The biggest surprise, however, has been the breakout season of Delmon Young. Though Young still doesn't walk as much as he should, his run production has been phenomenal all season long and has helped carry the Twins when they needed another bit stick in their lineup. With a .301 average, 16 homers and 97 RBIs, Young is finally living up to the hype that has surrounded him since being drafted by the Rays in 2006. The scary thing for the rest of the league is that Young is still only 24 years old.
The biggest question mark heading into the season, though, was the viability of their starting rotation. Francisco Liriano was still struggling to come back from injury that held him back the last couple of seasons and the rest of the rotation was filled with pitchers that were coming off of mediocre seasons, at best. But Liriano has had a tremendous bounce back season and has anchored a staff that needed an ace to step up. With a month to go, Liriano had an E.R.A. of 3.24 to go along with a very impressive 13-7 record while also leading the team in strikeouts. Kevin Slowey and Scott Baker have also been steady as third and fourth starters, even if they don't directly sell a great deal of Minnesota Twins tickets.
The other pitcher who has stepped in an enormous way, of course, is Carl Pavano. Left for dead after a disastrous run in New York with the Yankees, Pavano has returned from injury to post a 16-10 record and a very good 3.52 E.R.A. Pavano may not have the type of dynamic stuff that frightens a lot of opposing lineups but he's been getting the job done all season long and is a fundamental reason they are in line for yet another postseason berth.
If the standings hold up, the Twins will likely be playing the New York Yankees once again in the first round. The Yanks have obviously had their number in recent seasons, providing plenty of early round exits, but the Twins are in a new era led by a solid group of superstars and a horde of players that have flown under the radar for most of the season. Many have counted out Liriano and Pavano before, as well as the Twins as a whole. This may be the season that Liriano and Pavano guide them past the first round of the playoffs. Something tells me that's something that former Yankee Pavano would be interested in.
