http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IA2yEVG_T8s

I feel an attack of Henry V coming on…

Now, soldiers, march away:
And how thou pleasest, God, dispose the day!

go get ’em Sox.

Matchup: Chicago (86-69) at Minnesota (84-72), 7:10 p.m. CT
Probable Starters: Javier Vazquez (212 2/3 IP, 3.77 RA, 1.19 WHIP, 170 K) vs. Scott Baker (179 1/3, 3.91, 1.22, 124)
Pythagorean Record: Chicago, 86-69 (772 RS, 684 RA); Minnesota, 85-71 (801 RS, 721 RA)
Hit List Rankings: Chicago, #7; Minnesota, #12
Prospectus: Two and a half games behind the White Sox, the Twins begin their final stand tonight at the Metrodome. Minnesota will need a sweep or a series win to make the final weekend interesting. If Chicago and Minnesota are within a half-game after the last scheduled game of the season on Sunday, the White Sox will have to make up their postponed game with Detroit at home on Monday, and depending on that outcome perhaps play an 163rd contest against Minnesota at home the next night to decide the division, because Chicago won the tie-breaker coin flip, and thus would get to host the potential one-game playoff. These two teams have played practically to a draw this year, with Chicago winning eight of 15 contests. The White Sox have endured an offensive downturn since Carlos Quentin was felled on September 1—they have a 724 OPS in 18 games without their MVP candidate, scoring 4.4 runs a game, compared with 791 and 5.1 beforehand—but the slide has been kept from being worse by an unlikely source: Dewayne Wise, the 30-year-old Quad-A journeyman outfielder with 361 major league plate appearances to his name entering 2008, has hit four homers and driven in 10 in 44 September PA.

This Twins-White Sox series is not only a final-week battle for first place, it is also a clash of baseball ideologies, which makes the rivalry between the two franchises even more compelling. The White Sox are a slow team that runs on power—they’re first in the majors in homers (223), last in the majors in triples (13), and second to last in the AL with just 63 steals. The Twins are a faster squad that preaches bat control and the ability to hit for average from the majors to the lowest levels on the farm, and it shows in the finished product—Minnesota is second in the AL with a .280 average, last in homers (108), first in triples (43, split 22-21 home and road, so they’re not turf-generated), and fifth with 95 steals. Minnesota has speed spread equally throughout its roster, at least as measured by triples, for 11 Twins have between three and five three-baggers. No team in the integration era has had more than 11 players with three or more triples, while three other squads since 1947 besides this year’s Twins have hit that number—the 1993 Rockies, and the 1983 Cardinals and Blue Jays. Chicago, meanwhile, doesn’t have a single player with as many as three triples.

I’m excited/nervous/scared shitless

Win tonight and the Twins are staring elimination in the face. Lose tonight and things just keep getting pushed back.

A win tonight is far from critical, but if they get one it pretty much locks things up.

but not at the expense of doing permanent harm to his wrist.

One thing for sure…the starters will have to go deep into games or the bats will have to break out big time to have a fighting chance…or else…

I assume Griffey and Konerko are basically givens, so who gets LF — Wise, right?

“Anticipation has a habit to set you up
for disappointment in evenin’ entertainment BUT
tonight there’ll be some love
tonight there’ll be a ruckus yeah regardless of what’s come before.”