#-1: Twins (Last Week: -2). It's a long season, so even a sweep may not mean anything, but the Twinkies are on top of this week's WMNSS after taking two of three from the Chicago White Sox this week to get to first place in the A.L. Central by a game. And they also took two of three at Cleveland to go 4-2 for this cutoff week. The pitching is starting to solidify; Francisco Liriano and Carl Pavano continue to prove their worth as the top two hurlers in the rotation. And the offense continues to round into form; Delmon Young remains on his career-best year, and Joe Mauer is starting to hit like the MVP he is. They may be so good that they don't need Justin Morneau back at all this year; sit him down and make sure he is all the way back from his concussion.
What worries me this week is the defense, which was noticeably awful in Wednesday's 6-1 loss to the Pale Hose. In a series in this sport, where the slightest imbalance of luck can cost a team a game and then their World Series aspirations, committing errors and mental lapses on the field may be the Twins' Achilles' heel. This week they come back from one of their longest road trips to begin one of their longest homestands. They start with a weekend series vs. Oakland, then another workweek three-game showdown with Chicago.
#-2: Lynx (Last Week: -1). First of all I have to apologize for continuing to ignore the Lynx. Last week I said they had three games this cutoff week. Turns out they were really busy -- they had four. And unfortunately, they lost last (Thursday) night to L.A. at home to finish the week 2-2.
Thursday (last) night's defeat to the Farmers was particularly vexing: In a rematch where the Jynx were blown out by 13 (also at Target Center), the lost the game on a buzzer-beating 17-footer by Tina Thompson. In a season -- actually a history -- where the franchise routinely chokes away leads, the Jinx blew theirs in the fourth quarter this time, taking what was at one in the second quarter a 17-point lead and a six-point lead after three, and turning into a 78-77 defeat. They are now only a half-game ahead of the Sparks for the fourth and final spot in the Western Conference playoffs with five games remaining.
If there is any optimism to be taken from this week, it's that there seems to have been a codification of roles on this team. Chemistry is overblown in sports, especially in baseball, but in basketball people have to know what they're expected to do. Specifically, on a b-ball team you need to have a #1, #2 and #3 scorer. After a season beset by injuries and used to experiment with lineups, I think the Lynx have filled their slots. Seimone Augustus is the go-to girl, obviously. By necessity because of the season-ending injury to Candice Wiggins, Lindsay Whalen is the second option as well as the playmaker, something I still have trouble with even though she seems to be performing well on starter's minutes. Rebekkah Brunson could be the MVP on the team; she's the third scorer (maybe the second if Whalen's not doing well, such as in Thursday [last] night's loss to L.A.) and the leading rebounder. Nicky Anosike's the ballhawk, Charde Houston is the sixth man, etc. There is finally a rhythm to this team. Now they just have to fucking win.
They have four out of their last six, so that's not nothing. They're still in the thick of a playoff race, however. And four of those five final games are on the road. The penultimate week sees the Lynx playing at Washington, a team virtually assured of a playoff spot but jockeying for position and even the Eastern Conference title, Friday (tonight), concluding their home schedule hosting San Antonio, the team they're technically tied for third with (they lose on a tie-breaker, that's why they are the fourth seed if the playoffs started today), Sunday, then going to Seattle, who are 25-4, Tuesday.
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