Lavelle Neal, who covers the Twins for the Star Tribune, talks about the Minnesota Twins winning American League Division Series against Oakland A’s…and what lies ahead in American League Championship Series against Anaheim Angels.
The Minnesota Twins improbable season continues with Game 1 of the American League Championship Series scheduled at the Metrodome. The Twins advanced to the ALCS with a 5-4 victory over the Oakland A's in the deciding game of their series. The Twins built a four run lead going into the bottom of the ninth inning, only to see closer Eddie Guardado give up a three run homer. But that was all Oakland got and the Twins hung on for the victory.
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CATHY WURZER: Welcome to Morning Edition. I'm Cathy Wurzer. The Minnesota Twins' improbable season continues with game one of the American League Championship Series, scheduled for tomorrow night at the Metrodome.
The Twins are in the ALCS after a 5 to 4 win over the Oakland A's in the deciding game of their series yesterday. The Twins built a 4-run lead going into the bottom of the ninth, only to see Eddie Guardado give up a 3-run homer. But that was all Oakland got and the Twins hung on for the victory. La Velle Neal covers the Twins for the Star Tribune, and he joins us on the phone this morning. Good morning, La Velle
LA VELLE NEAL: Hey, Cathy. What's going on?
CATHY WURZER: Good. Well, nothing much here. You're covering all the action, actually. Did you think that was the best game of the series yesterday?
LA VELLE NEAL: Yeah, I thought so. And the Twins being able to keep that score at 2-1 for so long just took a lot of effort from Brad Radke, some good defensive plays, and just a lot of intensity from the club overall. And the runs he scored in the top of the ninth ended up being huge because Eddie gave up that homer in the bottom of the inning. But they pulled it out and they're moving on.
CATHY WURZER: Should fans be concerned about Steady Eddie who gave up that 3-run homer?
LA VELLE NEAL: No, not really. I think Eddie's got problems pitching in Oakland. There's something about that stadium. I think he would like to see it blown up and never play in there again.
And it's funny because he lives in Stockton, California, which really isn't that far from Oakland. He has a lot of friends and relatives at the game yesterday, but he's had some of his worst defeats or worst struggles there this year. So you have to remember, saving 45 games, that means you're pretty doggone good. And every reliever is going to have a little quirk here and there. And I think Eddie's quirk is just trying to pitch in Oakland.
CATHY WURZER: Were you surprised that the game wasn't sold out yesterday in Oakland?
LA VELLE NEAL: No. It was a strange day in Oakland. They had a bunch of things going on. The Giants were in town playing the Braves. The 49ers were home playing a football game.
And there was a big running race called The Bridge Relay, I think. It's a popular road race for all the running fanatics in the country. So they had a lot of options going on in the Bay Area. You throw that in with the fact that their upper deck seats, the seats that are similar to the right field upper deck seats that the Twins were selling for $10 a seat, were going for $35 a seat in Oakland. You throw that in, the cost plus all the other sports options they had yesterday, that I think it affected the tenants.
CATHY WURZER: Let's talk about Denny Hocking. He had a great game yesterday, but it appears he's been injured.
LA VELLE NEAL: Yes. Yes, Denny, the utility player looks like he's done for rest of the postseason. I guess during the post-game scrum on the field, somebody spiked his hand and opened up a big gash.
And it doesn't look good now for Denny. It's too bad because he's contributed a lot to the cause here. And he's going to have to watch the rest of it from the side.
CATHY WURZER: Now, what are the keys to beating Anaheim?
LA VELLE NEAL: Well, Anaheim plays the game with the same aggressiveness and the tenacity that the Twins do. And a lot of people do argue that they have a better roster than the Twins. They have an excellent player in left field in Garret Anderson, who's become a star in the majors with his ability to hit for average, for power, and to drive in runs.
They have Darin Erstad, the kid from the Dakotas, playing center field who's also considered one of the top center fielders in the game. They have Tim Salmon, a veteran right fielder. And they have Troy Glaus, who's a tremendous power hitting third baseman.
And they have a good starting rotation. Not great, good, but they also have a very good bullpen. A lot of scouts can think that the Twins have the best bullpen of the playoff teams this year, but Anaheim certainly is right behind them in that category. And the big question is that if the Twins can score any runs in the ninth inning off of closer Troy Percival, who in his entire career, which is now going on, I think, 10 or 11 years, has never given up a run to the Twins.
CATHY WURZER: La Velle, thanks for joining us.
LA VELLE NEAL: No problem, Cathy.