I've generally avoided making too much mention of baseball this year, but I think it's high time for yet another mention of the Minnesota Twins. How 'bout those Twins? The team seems to be hitting mid-season stride right as the All Star break nears. Since the team was largely ignored in All Star voting, most of them will get a well deserved rest. Last year, Shannon Stewart came in right after the break and turned fortunes around. This year, it looks like he'll be prime to make his return to the team from injury right about that time. On top of it, the pitching seems to be getting together. Three consecutive complete game shutouts for Radke, Santana, and Lohse? Followed up by one run allowed against the hot Detroit Tigers, who are fresh off of taking two of three from the Yankees at Yankee Stadium? Santana leads the AL in strikeouts, tied with Ben Sheets of the Brewers for second in the majors behind Randy Johnson. And imagine if the Twins hadn't dealt a few of last years starters - Eric Milton and Kenny Rogers lead their respective leagues in wins! On a side note, where was David Ortiz (beside the DL) when he played for the Twins? Second in the AL in homers, tops in RBIs, and a potential MVP candidate? How about rookies Joe Mauer and Lew Ford leading the team in batting average (Johan Santana's .375 BA in interleague games not withstanding) with .340 and .319, respectively? Granted he's only played in 31 games due to his early season knee injury, but Mauer has a .612 slugging percentage, placing him behind Manny Ramirez, but ahead of David Ortiz, Vlad Guerrero, Hank Blalock, and most everyone else in the league. A.J. who? And there's Juan Rincon. Where the hell did he come from this year? Last year, every fan knew that if Rincon came into the game, it essentially meant that the game was already lost and Juan was coming in to mop up so that Hawkins, Romero, or Guardado wouldn't have to. This year he comes out of the woodwork with an 8-3 record, 2 saves, 51 Ks, 1.94 ERA, and an opponents' BA of .186. This is the same guy, right? Joe Nathan may not be Eric Gagne, but he's quickly made Minnesota fans forget about "Everyday" Eddie Guardado, who may have worn his emotions on his sleeve, but who also made fans chew on their nails everytime he came into a close game. There may be a lot of baseball left to be played yet, but the Twins are looking good for the moment....