Division playoffs Day 4

A's 8, Twins 3. Hey! Billy Beane's shit does work in the playoffs every so often! At least we can put that particular bit of bullshit to rest. The Twins picked a terrible time to stop playing defense didn't they? They looked terrible the whole series and Morneau's gaffe in the 7th that led to 4 runs was almost as costly as Torii Hunter's ill-timed dive on Wednesday. Hunter also made a base-running error in the 6th as het got tagged out at the plate with only one out. Replays showed that Hunter may have beaten the tag, but here's the thing on tag plays. If the throw beats you, you are probably out. I think thats the hardest call for the umpire to see when the tag is applied and when the runner touches the plate. If the throw beats you, and it did beat Hunter, you are usually out. And its a terrible play by Hunter to get thrown out there. You are down two runs, the out is worth more than the run at that point. Finally, although as a fan, it was compelling to see Brad Radke out there gutting it out on his shredded shoulder, I can't help but wonder if Gardenhire wouldn't have been better off starting, you know, someone whole.

Tigers 6, Yankees 0. Wow! Think Kenny Rogers was a little pumped up? Holy crap! The Detroit crowd was pretty into it too. Great day to be an anti-Yankee rooter, for sure. The "Greatest Lineup Ever" got 5 hits and 2 walks while striking out 9 times. Whee! Of course it was really only the "2nd Greatest Lineup Ever," since Torre inexplicably benched Sheffield for Bernie Williams. Cleanup hitter one day, on the bench the next. And now the Yankees get to pitch Jaret Wright in an elimination game. Sweet.