Running Diary: Twins vs. Tigers AL Central One-Game Playoff

I will have a running diary for today's one-game playoff starting at 4:30 P.M. My prediction: an 8th inning implosion by the Tigers pen gives the Twins a 4-2 win.

4:30 P.M. : Congratulations to TBS on one of the dumbest programming decisions in history. Nothing like having According to Jim as your lead-in to a one-game playoff.

4:43: 16 months ago, I was watching Rick Porcello pitch in the Florida State League All-Star Game. They grow up so fast. And yes, I'm pissed that I missed out on seeing Stephen Strasburg sole appearence here until March.

4:46 - Watching Al Leiter on the MLB Net pre-game and them running highlights of his 2-hit gem in the one-game playoff against Cincy makes me feel old. My God, that was already 10 years ago?

5:01- Ron Darling, thankful to leave the prison sentence that was being on SNY for the 2009 season, gets to call his first meaningful game in over a year.

5:04- This entire Miguel Cabrera situation is a beauty. Even the Mets weren't this dumb the last 2 years.

5:07- It's 44 degrees and raining in Minneapolis. I don't see how Target Field will pose any sort of problem.

5:11- Text from my friend Tyler (a loyal Tigers fan):" We're 9 min into the broadcast and they've already listed about 37 reasons/stats why the Twins will win. This is gonna be a fun broadcast to watch."

5:18- Joe Mauer legs out a double with two out and one of the purest swings in the game. You think Bobby Bowden wishes he had taken that football scholarhsip to FSU right about now? Yeah, me too.

5:20- Porcello doesn't even look remotely fazed and gets Jason Kubel to pop out to short to end the first.

5:22- A "beat your wife, Miggy, beat your wife! (clap clap)" chant would've been solid, but as we all know, Minneapolis is classier than most.

5:24- Cabrera breaks out of a wretched 0-11 slump, with a one-handed double to the wall. Now THAT'S strength.

5:26- " It's like we say on the NBA ON TNT....win or go home," says Chip Caray. Nice to see Turner has learned the plug portion of the Broadcast from FOX.

5:27- Denard Span is one of those guys that won't get mentioned in the papers, but he's a player that you don't win without. Here's hoping the Mets can find/grow those kind of players.

5:31- Those final 2 outs are exactly why you trade for Orlando Cabrera. Despite his reported surliness in the clubhouse, he just gets it done.

5:46- Tigers avoid a double play after Curtis Granderson beats a nick Punto flip to 2nd. Darling dontests that Punto needed to make a better throw, but I don't think Punto had much of a choice considering how close Granderson was to the bag.

5:47- Maggloio Ordonez singles home Granderson for the first run. Maybe that haircut was for the best.

5:49- Miggy shuts everybody up with a 2-run blast into the football seats. Speaking of which, did you know Brett Favre played his old team last night?

5:59- Span makes it happen again with a single to right moving Matt Tolbert to 3rd. It's the little things.

6:01- nice to see Johan is still revered in the Twin Cities with all those jerseys. No need to worry, the Savior will rise again in March.

6:03- A botched pickoff attempt at 1st allows Tolbert to score. Bad move, you can't be focusing on the runner with 2 outs.

6:07- With the bases loaded, Kubel whiffs to end the inning. Let's just say he's not having the best of days.

6:09- Nice to see Tyler Hansbrough secure at least one endorsement before he fades into bolivian.

6:17- Great job by Punto to stand down the take-out slide by Ryan Raburn.

6:20- Worth noting: Rick Porcello has one less win in one season than Joba Chamberlain does in 3.

6:24- Colorado will not have Jorge De La Rosa in the rotation for the NLDS. That's a huge loss, now throws Jason Hammel into Game 4 and I'm not so sure he's ready.

6:27- Did you know this might be the last baseball game ever played in the Metrodome? They should mention that.

6:49- Kubel belts one almost to the upper deck to trim the lead to one. With the efforts this month from him and Cuddyer and Justin Morfneau, Delmon Young should probably be selling his house right about now.

6:53- Cuddyer works a 2-out walk with a great AB and Porcello is done. I would've let him face Delmon Young before pulling the plug.


6:55- Texas leaguer falls in and Cuddyer goes to 3rd.

6:56- Is pinch-hitting Brendan Harris for Jose Morales THAT big of a difference? That's making a move for the sake of it.

6:57- moot point, he gets plunked on the first pitch. The wheels are coming off for Detroit.

7:00- Impatient hitting by Tolbert bails Zach Miner out of disaster. 3-2 going to the 7th.

7:01- "God I hate Zach Miner, he's trying to kill me."- Tyler

7:07- Seems a little too early to be bringing Jon Rauch in, I'd much rather have him facing their heavy-hitting righties.

7:13- Delmon Young's favorite reliever, Jose Mijares, enters. From the same bullpen that brought us Dennys Reyes and Eddie Guardado, the Twins certainly do not discriminate against waistlines.

7:20- Matt Guerrier induces an inning-ending grounder and the Metrodome is coming back to life. Jim Leyland went into the tunnel for a heater.

7:29- After Punto reaches, they decide not to have Span bunt and tghen punches out. Puzzling call, may come back to haunt them.

7:30- Immediately upon typing that. Cabrera hits a 2-run homer. I know nothing.

7:32- "Why is Miner still in? Is Leyland alive?"- Tyler

7:35- Question: Why was Miner throwing him a hanging slider when Cabrera couldn't catch up to his fastball?


7:44- Magglio Ordonez puts the defribilluator to the Tigers with a homer just over the left field wall. I'm telling you, they should have these every year, 3 straight thrilling Game 163's.


7:47- I know Joe Nathan doesn't usually go 2 innings but with the season on the line, he has to be out there.

7:49- Now this is just aspiring announcer in me, but the 8th inning of a tie game is not the time to be going to the human interest story about how the Tigers are doing this for Detroit.

8:02- So just so were clear: Joe Nathan wasn't worth bringing in to start the 8th, but was ok to bring in with one out? A MENSA-worthy move by Gardy there.

8:13- A Wally Backman-esque bunt by Ramon Santiago. Nathan v. Granderson, buckle up.

8:16- This is exactly who you want up if you're the Tigers.

8:19- Once again, I know nothing. That said, what a lousy call.

8:22- Lousy baserunning by Granderson there, you have to wait for that to fall. When you have first and third with no one out and you can't cash in, maybe it's not your day.

8:28- How many times does a leadoff walk in the bottom of the 9th comes into score?

8:30- The division-title winning run on 2nd and here comes Fernando Rodney.....I'm actually worried what might happen to Tigers fans in the next 5 minutes.

8:34- What a play by Inge. Big names tend to do big things in these games.

8:36- If you needed any reason to keep watching after 3 and a half hours, Craig Sager's purple suit makes an appearence. Thank you, TBS.

8:46 Who says September call-ups who only make 3 appearences aren't useful? What wheels by Don Kelly, although Mauer should've been made Kelly blown him up.

8:50- What is Ryan Raburn thinking? Just let that one drop.

8:51- What is Delmon Young thinking? You have the cloer rattled and the place going and you're gonna swing on the first pitch? Nice going.

8:57- As a Met fan, I know exactly what's about to happen. Opposite field single by Span to win it.

9:01- Incredible play by Raburn, and dumbfounded that they sent Casilla on a ball that shallow (shades of Junior throwing out Cuddyer last year). What a game. And what a horrendous call by Chip Caray who yelled "BASE HIT!" before Raburn even had a play on it.

9:15- You figure with Fernando Rodney going into his 3rd inning of work that this won't end well for the Tigers.

9:16- Simply put, Curtis Granderson is the balls of the Detroit Tigers. Great catch.

9:18- Randy Marsh must be getting a playoff spot from one of these teams. Wow, was that awful.

9:30- Bases loaded and Inge at the plate.....this is where putting Rauch in in the 7th hurts them.

9:38- And the Tigers go back to their Mets impression....weak.

9:40- You can't possibly expect a closer to go 4 innings, right? right?

9:43- Young and Casilla have plenty of speed to break up a double play, but if Alexi Casilla beats you, it wasn't gonna happen anyway.

9:45- What a game, sucks it had to end. Congrats to the Twins on a miraculous comeback and will now receieve a 1 and 2 asswuppin courtesy of the Yankees.