Summer is all about the baseball.

So, its that time of year when baseball is the only major sport going on in the country. Heck, even most European soccer leagues are done for the year. So, that being said, I’m going to be giving you three baseball related items and a Victoria note. Tally-ho.

ITEM ONE: Jim Souhan, always prescient, has an article in the today’s Star Tribune that says that the Twins need a good hitting third baseman. Additionally, he mentions that an outdoor stadium could be just the ticket for the Twins, and grouses that gas has jumped pass a buck fifty a gallon. This is the same article I’ve been seeing for the past 3 years or so, ever since Cory Koskie went to the Blue Jays. The Twins have always been OK without that luxury, but this year, they don’t have Shannon Stewart, and they don’t have nearly as reliable pitchers. So, I guess what I’m trying to say is, the Twins should try to get a third basement soon.
Does anyone else find it ironic that what made the Twins successful may be their undoing at the deadline? They made a few good trades to bring in top flight talent after nurturing guys like Chuck Knoblauch in our system, and they got quality players in return. Now, the Twins need a couple pieces to push them over the edge and are aghast that the mediocre teams they wish to acquire talent from request quality prospects in return. The fact is, not all of our AAA pitchers are going to make it, as much as we want them to, and it may, at some point, be time to trade what might be for what is, just to ensure ourselves the best shot at a title. Sad as it may seem, the Twins window isn’t infinite, and I fear it may be closer to being closed than fans wish to believe, thanks entirely to payroll constraints. That’s the end of my rant.

ITEM TWO: Before the Twins-Brewers series, Bugs and Cranks threw down the Milwaukee versus Minneapolis gauntlet. I’ve never been so offended in my life! Wait. The BEST you can do is berate Minneapolitans for enjoying alcohol you can buy for more .25 cents on Friday night and having multiple cultural interests? Wow. Oh, and Yovani Gallardo looks like Derick Turnbow, except more like a dumbass.

ITEM THREE: So, was there anyone out there who had “Cubs” written down as the team that everyone expected to degenerate into a madhouse this year? Oh. Right. Everyone. Carlos Zambrano and Michael Barrett were known to be hotheads. Alfonso Soriano is a malcontent, and then they threw in Lou Piniella. Delightful. The best part is, they are on WGN, so the whole country can watch their antics.

ITEM FOUR: The promised Victoria item. The city had a full blown standoff the other day, as a drunken man pulled out a shotgun and started shooting at nothing in particular in his house. His wife asked why, and he said he was “practicing.” That was the point in which, as any normal person would, the wife called the police. Eventually, the neighborhood was evacuated, and he was eventually taken down. The video is here. Now, he was clearly drunk and more than a little nuts, but let think for a minute. He was “practicing” by shooting drywall aimlessly? I’ve heard of target practice to improve accuracy, but what was this? Pulling the trigger practice? Not jumping after hearing a gunshot practice? There are, at this point, more questions than answers.

(Brewers fans photos courtesy the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal)