Open Sesame

It's opening day for the Twins! And some of the TWT staff is headed down to Humbert H. Humphrey Snow Globe for the game (and the return of Namesake). I'm bringing my notepad, and expecting mostly to write about the ridiculous things that Carlos Gomez says and does, which I anticipate to be the focus of a lot of my attention and blogging this season. Apparently his outfield cohort agrees...

"Everything about him makes me laugh," said right fielder Michael Cuddyer. "Especially just how fast he is. He beats out everything."

Justin Morneau agrees too...

Ask a Twin about Gomez this spring, and the response would be a head shake and a giggle. When Justin Morneau stopped laughing, he said: "He is one of a kind. In so many ways. He can absolutely fly. He's the kind of athlete who comes along very rarely, with that speed and also having power.

I'm not sure exactly what kind of omen or metaphor it is that we will get somewhere in the neighborhood of 8 inches of snow today too...more gilded finger-tipped folks than me are required for that. But it is also little bit ridiculous and I'll take that as a good sign for the guy who craps lightning. Typical pre-season predictions are a bit tiresome...do you really care who finishes third or fourth in the National League Southeast Division? Instead, I offer you these slightly more specific predictions for our new 6-tool (the usual 5, plus he is a bit of one) center fielder:

I predict he will steal 7 bases tonight, including two inappropriately while playing defense, and will slide into the left fielder on one after missing the bag. He will unquestionably be the first to get to his defensive position while running out at the beginning of the game, narrowly beating Gardy during his trek from the clubhouse to his seat in the clubhouse. He will strike out three times by a combined seven feet of bat-to-ball space. He will lose one ball in the baseball-colored dome and have it Jose Canseco him in the head, whereupon he will still pick it up and gun the guy out at second. He will beat out a routine ball to short to go 1 for 4, and forget three teammates names during a post-game press conference, including himself as he tries to refer to himself in the third person.

And I will love every bit of it. Commence giggling...