This is where my hatred with Minnesota fans begin. It is Sunday afternoon, the kids don’t have school the next day, it is beautiful out and 10,000 or more fans decide to leave the park. What purpose is there for leaving the park early at 4 PM on Sunday? Do you need to beat the traffic home to start the grill? Was it too hot for you?
So Duensing wiggled out of another jam in the top of the 9th getting Pierre to roll into a double play allowing Bobby Jenks to enter the game with a three run lead and a save situation. As you see, if the Sox would have plated another runner, the Twins more than likely would have never faced Jenks and this story may have not been written. Orlando Hudson stepped into the box and had an unbelievable at-bat seeing 10 pitches, fouling off four straight and eventually walking on a ball that was maybe two inches outside. Mauer also walked on four pitchs where Jenks wasn’t even close, recessitating a crowd that had been waiting for 5 innings for something to scream about. Jason Kubel, who before this AB had two hits already, lined a two strike single past SS Ramirez that plated Hudson, breathing even more life into the crowd and causing everyone in the park to come to their feet. Jason Repko, who replaced Jim Thome in the 8th after Thome led of the inning with a single, came to the plate in an enormous situation, especially for a player who hasn’t seen a lot of regular at-bats in the last month. Repko worked a walk after laying off a few close pitches which forced the bases loaded. Cuddyer walked to the plate and I looked at my friend. We both raised our eyebrows in hopes Cuddy would lash one in the stands. Another great at-bat led to a laser to right center scoring two and the Twins had runners on first and third with no outs with Delmon Young coming to the plate. Young has arguably been the Twins top clutch performer all season and he didn’t let the Twins fans down. He lined a looping fly ball to right center field which could have been caught by Rios who hesitated and allowed the ball to drop. With Cuddyer rounding third, Rios threw the ball into the middle of the diamond, no mans land, causing the ball to roll all the way to the White Sox dugout and plating Cuddyer. The REAL Twins fans rejoiced. This was the best game I’ve been to so far this year and that includes opening day, sitting behind home watching David Price blow cheddar and Twins coming out victorious, Kubel’s two home run performance and Scott Baker’s 12k’s.
As for those who left the park early, I am glad you did because next time you’ll be keeping your asses in the seats and hoping you saw what the rest of witnessed on a Sunday afternoon. And thanks for leaving early because there was no traffic on the way home and getting out of parking lot B was a breeze. And those of you who had kids and forced them to leave a game they would remember for the rest of their lives, you should be ashamed that you had to leave early to sit in a car when you couldn’t have the patience to watch another 30 minutes or great baseball.
