Oh look, the three teams that normally play in the Twin Cities summer are playing again! Just like old times!! And next week we'll include the Wild!!! A fourth team, and a non-summer one, in a summer survey? Just not like old times!!!!
#0: United FC (Last Week: -1). Toss some love to the Loons; even though they coughed up a lead and finished pool play in the MLS Is Back Tournament with a 2-all Draw against Colorado last Wednesday, they remain, through five Matches that count toward the regular season, unbeaten. Moreover, they survived another lead-up-coughing last/Tuesday night and upset arguably the most in-form side in this tournament, Columbus, 5-3 in Penalty Kicks (which, let's be honest, is the worst on-field way to find a winner in sports) to advance to the Quarterfinals. They have exhibited a lot of grit in Orlando; the backline, including plugged-in Centerback Jose Aja (filling in while reigning Defender Of The Year Ike Opara takes this tournament off for health precautions), has been stout; the Defensive Midfield pairing of Ozzie Alonso and Jan Gregus has been a formidable first line of defense; the right-side stack of Romain Metanire and Ethan Finlay has been a productive (albeit one-sided) vector of offense; and Robin Lod was finally able to break through with the first Goal of the Eighthfinal Game against the Crew. We have to watch the health of Metanire and Alonso. But I feel good about their QF tilt versus the San Jose Earthquakes Saturday night. Remember that in the last Game before the league (and the world) shut down, MNUFC thrashed the Quakes in San Jose, 5-2. It feels as though they have the Earthquakes' number; I hope I haven't just jinxed them.
#-1: Twins (Re-Entry!). In some ways I feel sorry for Major League Baseball. While it's because they have made a series of missteps over the decades, the zeitgeist that somehow the league is going to blow it again was a bit, well, overblown. The pandemic just fell while baseball was about to start. People were thinking that The National Pastime would be the sport -- not basketball or hockey, two leagues that were about to enter postseason play -- that would bring the nation back to normalcy. Those are lofty existential hopes that MLB simply could not live up to. Now, the bickering between ownership and the players did not help. But what happened was a plan that was decided very early on in negotiations shortly after the league shut down: A 60-Game season, played mostly intra-division, in front of no fans. The bubble concept was shot down, and with over a dozen members of the Miami Marlins organization testing positive for coronavirus, maybe this plan of playing in home parks will turn out to be a bad idea. What I'm saying is that it felt inevitable that there would be some baseball played this summer, and here we are.
The Minnesota Twins come into this season squarely as one of the best teams in the majors and a championship contender. And the lineup has not disappointed yet, guiding this club to a 3-1 opening week record, including a series win at the White Sox and capped with a 6-3 doubling-up of St. Louis last/Tuesday night in the home opener of what would have been a glorious day to watch a ballgame at Target Field. Starting Pitching, of course, will be the question mark that decides how this year will wind up for the Twins, but small sample size aside, it feels good to be able to just assume that a part of a side you're rooting for is going to be awesome.
Assuming the virus does not fuck up the team's plans, they'll finish up their eight-Game homestand with a second and final matchup against the Cardinals, four over the weekend vs. Cleveland, and a pair of a back-to-back, home-and-home, two-and-two series against Pittsburgh.
#-2: Lynx (Re-Entry!). In case you missed it, the dynasty of the Lynx is over. I was taken aback when I learned a couple Months ago that the OG Lynx, Seimone Augustus, did not reach an agreement with the squad and signed as a free agent with Los Angeles. That means that the four players that won the franchise's first three titles (in '11, '13 and '15) are now all gone. (Oh, did you know that Rebekkah Brunson retired before the season started and is now assisting Reeve and serving as an analyst forLynx Timberwolves broadcasts?)
So the team is basically starting over. Well, they have Sylvia Fowles, so the cupboard isn't completely bare. But Cheryl Reeve now is in rebuilding mode -- WNBA writers for The Athletic think only New York will be worse this season -- and she's putting rookies and second-year players around Big Syl to see what she's got. So far this mini-season (the WNBA is in a bubble, or "Wubble," in Florida, like Major League Soccer) they've split their first two Games. They made a herculean comeback in the Fourth Quarter to defeat Connecticut by eight in the season opener Sunday afternoon (they outscored the Sun in the final stanza 27-12), but then got clobbered by 24 last/Tuesday evening to arguably the favorite to win the title this season, Seattle. At least Fowles became the all-time rebounder in WNBA history in the loss, moving herself past ... Rebekkah Brunson, oddly enough.
They "host" (naming hosts and visitors may be unnecessary in a neutral court, but I think it's for sorting out who wears which colors) Chicago tomorrow/Thursday and "visit" Connecticut (Minnesota was the home team in their first matchup) Saturday.
#0: United FC (Last Week: -1). Toss some love to the Loons; even though they coughed up a lead and finished pool play in the MLS Is Back Tournament with a 2-all Draw against Colorado last Wednesday, they remain, through five Matches that count toward the regular season, unbeaten. Moreover, they survived another lead-up-coughing last/Tuesday night and upset arguably the most in-form side in this tournament, Columbus, 5-3 in Penalty Kicks (which, let's be honest, is the worst on-field way to find a winner in sports) to advance to the Quarterfinals. They have exhibited a lot of grit in Orlando; the backline, including plugged-in Centerback Jose Aja (filling in while reigning Defender Of The Year Ike Opara takes this tournament off for health precautions), has been stout; the Defensive Midfield pairing of Ozzie Alonso and Jan Gregus has been a formidable first line of defense; the right-side stack of Romain Metanire and Ethan Finlay has been a productive (albeit one-sided) vector of offense; and Robin Lod was finally able to break through with the first Goal of the Eighthfinal Game against the Crew. We have to watch the health of Metanire and Alonso. But I feel good about their QF tilt versus the San Jose Earthquakes Saturday night. Remember that in the last Game before the league (and the world) shut down, MNUFC thrashed the Quakes in San Jose, 5-2. It feels as though they have the Earthquakes' number; I hope I haven't just jinxed them.
#-1: Twins (Re-Entry!). In some ways I feel sorry for Major League Baseball. While it's because they have made a series of missteps over the decades, the zeitgeist that somehow the league is going to blow it again was a bit, well, overblown. The pandemic just fell while baseball was about to start. People were thinking that The National Pastime would be the sport -- not basketball or hockey, two leagues that were about to enter postseason play -- that would bring the nation back to normalcy. Those are lofty existential hopes that MLB simply could not live up to. Now, the bickering between ownership and the players did not help. But what happened was a plan that was decided very early on in negotiations shortly after the league shut down: A 60-Game season, played mostly intra-division, in front of no fans. The bubble concept was shot down, and with over a dozen members of the Miami Marlins organization testing positive for coronavirus, maybe this plan of playing in home parks will turn out to be a bad idea. What I'm saying is that it felt inevitable that there would be some baseball played this summer, and here we are.
The Minnesota Twins come into this season squarely as one of the best teams in the majors and a championship contender. And the lineup has not disappointed yet, guiding this club to a 3-1 opening week record, including a series win at the White Sox and capped with a 6-3 doubling-up of St. Louis last/Tuesday night in the home opener of what would have been a glorious day to watch a ballgame at Target Field. Starting Pitching, of course, will be the question mark that decides how this year will wind up for the Twins, but small sample size aside, it feels good to be able to just assume that a part of a side you're rooting for is going to be awesome.
Assuming the virus does not fuck up the team's plans, they'll finish up their eight-Game homestand with a second and final matchup against the Cardinals, four over the weekend vs. Cleveland, and a pair of a back-to-back, home-and-home, two-and-two series against Pittsburgh.
#-2: Lynx (Re-Entry!). In case you missed it, the dynasty of the Lynx is over. I was taken aback when I learned a couple Months ago that the OG Lynx, Seimone Augustus, did not reach an agreement with the squad and signed as a free agent with Los Angeles. That means that the four players that won the franchise's first three titles (in '11, '13 and '15) are now all gone. (Oh, did you know that Rebekkah Brunson retired before the season started and is now assisting Reeve and serving as an analyst for
So the team is basically starting over. Well, they have Sylvia Fowles, so the cupboard isn't completely bare. But Cheryl Reeve now is in rebuilding mode -- WNBA writers for The Athletic think only New York will be worse this season -- and she's putting rookies and second-year players around Big Syl to see what she's got. So far this mini-season (the WNBA is in a bubble, or "Wubble," in Florida, like Major League Soccer) they've split their first two Games. They made a herculean comeback in the Fourth Quarter to defeat Connecticut by eight in the season opener Sunday afternoon (they outscored the Sun in the final stanza 27-12), but then got clobbered by 24 last/Tuesday evening to arguably the favorite to win the title this season, Seattle. At least Fowles became the all-time rebounder in WNBA history in the loss, moving herself past ... Rebekkah Brunson, oddly enough.
They "host" (naming hosts and visitors may be unnecessary in a neutral court, but I think it's for sorting out who wears which colors) Chicago tomorrow/Thursday and "visit" Connecticut (Minnesota was the home team in their first matchup) Saturday.
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