Argument in a bar - AJ & Nick Punto

At a bar on Friday night (as some of you may know from my text) I was asked by a friend what my thoughts were on the 2008 Twins. We'll call my friend "Fred" because, well, that's his name and there is no "protect the innocent" in my world, if the innocent are "innocent" they should get a lawyer (RTS - different "Fred" than you know.) As I reflected on the season I apparently stepped on Fred's toes, to put it mildly. Two topics came up that stoked the fires: AJ and Nick Punto. I didn't get ticked at Fred because Fred had some harebrained views rather it was because when I said that I hated AJ and that I thought Punto was not our solution at shortstop and that Punto actually cost us 3 or 4 games with errors in 2008, I was told, in no uncertain terms, "you don't know what you are talking about. You haven't watched nearly as many games or bet on as many games as I have and don't have a basis for your argument. Seriously, you are really off base and don't understand it." That's what he said to me. Honestly, I felt like I was in the Big Lebowski "you have no frame of reference here, Per. You're like a child who wanders into the middle of a movie. . ."

So, I chalked most of it up to his being really drunk and not realizing he was being an assface. However, I woke up in the morning, ticked off and needing to prove my point and what better way than FTLOSBW.

A.J.

The issue over AJ was my comment that I "hated him." Fred told me I was ridiculous and didn't realize how good AJ was. I tried to tell Fred that I hated him because he was a douchebag but Fred went on to detail some run in with AJ at a restaurant following Game 4 of the 2002 ALCS where the Twins were down in that series 3-1 and Fred's father approached AJ at that restaurant and said "Hey, thanks for the season" and AJ apparently responded "We're not done yet! ! ! It ain't over! ! !" in some sort of "I'm a competitor! ! !" inspiring way (remember, we then went on to get clobbered 13-5 in Game 5.) Fred continued by telling me how great AJ was when was with the Twins (yeah, knew that, thanks) and it wasn't his fault he was traded (again, I follow the team, I was 'up to speed' on that one too.) My point was, AJ is a dickhead. He reminds me of that kid on the playground who threw fits when things weren't going his way and always argued that the calls were going against him. I said nothing about him not delivering clutch hits or making plays, just that the guy is, well, a f'er. It hurts that much more when he delivers a clinch hit against the Twins because I don't like the guy as personally as I can get to know him through my t.v. and the internet. Ozzie sums it up perfectly: "You play against A.J., you hate him. You play with A.J., you hate him a little less."

Here are some examples of why I hate AJ:

He is in the middle of stuff like this

and crap like this

Plus, he is totally the kind of guy that does this - half a page down

Nick Punto

My rant on Punto wasn't that the guy was an poor infielder, it was that he was an average infielder and that he actually cost us games in 2008 with errors (I didn't mention his sometimes brutal plate appearances or the fact that he is as likely to hit .210 as he is .300.) This is where I got a little pissed as Fred got extremely condescending.

Just to prove that I wasn't talking out of my arse, here are a few games that Nicky's glove cost us this year that I remembered and was able to quickly Google and find.

May 31, 2008; Yankees v. Twins -

Punto’s fielding error led to three unearned runs. Twins lost 7-6 in 12 innings.

Aug. 28, 2008; M's v. Twins -

Bottom of 9th, up 2-1. Punto dropped a three-hop grounder from Jose Lopez for an error. Rookie pinch-hitter Clement hit into a double play that scored Beltre and sent the game to extra innings. Twins lost 4-2 in 11 innings.

Sept. 3, 2008; Toronto v. Twins -

Punto's error in the seventh allowed Toronto to tie the score 3-3 at the time; lost 5-4 in 11-innings.

To back up my "gut" feeling, I implore you to look at Aaron Gleeman's blog. Go down to the second bullet point for Tuesday, September 09, 2008.

I would like to just say: "In your face, Fred."