Entries by Bob Marshall

Outrage at Second

[fusion_text]Previously on this site I have recommended a baseball rule change, requiring a baserunner to slide toward the base he is approaching and awarding a doubleplay when this rule is broken. The urgency of such a rule change increased tonight when a slide that should be illegal not only broke a shortstop’s leg, but changed […]

Next Year’s Twins

[fusion_text]Everyone’s a general manager these days, and I’m no exception. Rather than linger on the Twins’ surprisingly successful 2015 season – which, thankfully, finished above .500 but short of the playoffs – I am already in roster-planning mode for 2016. And what a happy prospect it is! Start with starting pitching, the heart of a […]

A Stupid Rule

[fusion_text] When I think of stupid rules in sports, I usually land on the golf course, where plenty of rules designed to add strokes to my score – usually involving the ball hitting a foreign object – are a mystery, both as to scope and necessity. This week, however, the NFL introduced us to a […]

Rule Change at Second Base

[fusion_text]The playoff-bound Pittsburgh Pirates lost their star rookie shortstop for the season when his leg was hit by the base runner’s slide. Even though the shortstop was several feet away from the base, the slide was legal because the runner reached the bag with his outstretched hand while his feet were colliding with the shortstop. […]

Golf and Twins

[fusion_text]I have discovered a thread common to two of my hobbies: playing golf and watching the Twins. It is this: something always goes wrong, and what that is constantly changes. If I’m putting well, my driving is off; if my irons are good, my chipping lets me down. Etc. For the Twins, two weeks ago […]

Twins Resurgent

[fusion_text]Of all the times this year I have given up on the Twins, counted them out for the year, been resigned to their mediocrity, perhaps none was as premature as last night. After erupting for four runs against White Sox ace Chris Sale in the second inning, the Twins were coasting at home. Rookie starter […]

Backyard Birding

[fusion_text]Inspired by a chance encounter with a Pacific Coast Flycatcher in the olive grove next to our guest house I decided to head outside before breakfast – not that early, but, at 7:30, before the neighborhood chain saws and power drills whirr into action. From the back terrace I was rewarded with the sight of […]

Surprising Twins at the Break

Since I have written off the Twins twice already, I owe them a positive notice at the traditional midsummer break, which finds them with the third best record in the entire American League. Regardless of what transpires the rest of the year, I applaud them from turning a projected wasted year into a season of […]

All-Star Idiocy

[fusion_text]I voted 32 times for Brian Dozier to be added to the All-Star roster. Needless to say, he was outpolled by the Kansas City Royal he was up against (forget the other three). Why Major League Baseball would nominate a Royal as one of five nominees for the final fan-selected spot boggles the mind, when […]

Twins Fall Fast

[fusion_text]One week after the Twins had the best record in the American League they are falling toward mediocrity, and maybe more. When they were in first I had no idea, as I suggested in a previous post, what they were doing there. As for why they have lost four straight, with more to come, the […]