#-1: Twins (Last Week: -3). Again, this is a default choice, and sure as fuck the Lynx don't deserve it. They start off by finishing getting buttfucked by the Yankees 6-4; they lose all three games of the series at the Dome, and are swept for the season, 0-7. But they then win two of three from the White Sox at home to finish the first half of the season a not-insurmountable four games from division-leading Detroit.
All three All-Stars acquit themselves nicely over the festivities in St. Louis. He should've done better, but Joe Mauer making it to the First Round Swing-Off in the Home Run Derby is as good as you should expect him to do for a first-timer who didn't find his power stroke until this year. Let's just hope he hasn't lost it now that he participated. He then followed that up with a game-tying RBI double and a run in the game itself. Joe Nathan allowed a walk and a hit (the former broke a streak of 18 National League batters retired), but in what probably is the At-Bat Of The 2009 ASG, fooled Phillie and St. Louis native Ryan Howard into swinging at a dirt-digging slider (?). Justin Morneau didn't have a hit, but even he could've gotten on the board if not for Jayson Werth's running catch in left-center, so I'll give him credit (for that and for the fact that he was none too happy that the Canadian national anthem was a recording).
Now, however, the Twins embark on the second half with what possibly could be the worst road trip of their year: A 10-game sojourn through the American League West, starting Friday with three against Texas, then three with Oakland, and finally four against the Los Angeles Angles Of Anaheim Angels Of Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim Angels Of. ...
#-2: Lynx (Last Week: -1). Their loss at home to San Antonio, a team that had not won a road game at all this season (the second team to notch such a win against the Lynx), shows me that this team, as talented as it is, plays up or down to the level of their competition. That showed in the to-back portion of their back-to-back with the Silver Stars, a 83-76 win. But then the Atlanta Dream crushed them at Target Center 91-77 in their annual weekday afternoon game, which makes me question how good they really are despite their perch in second place in the Western Conference.
Maybe Coach Jen Gillom is right when she says they need to work on their defense. Atlanta shot 53% from the field and a jaw-dropping 78% from The Land Of The Three-Pointers, which dovetails perfectly to the facts that Lynx are third-worst in opponent's FG% and worst in the WNBA in 3PT%. They are the second-highest scoring team in the league but also the second-worst in opponent's PPG; they've fully adopted a run-and-gun style, and they're lucky that their average margin is a .26 win, especially when the other team gets 2.74 more rebounds than they do. Can they regain their composure in games at Seattle, who sit a half-game behind the Lynx, and at Phoenix, conference leader and highest-scoring team in the league?
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