The Minnesota Twins have the second best record in Major League Baseball. Their 14-4 start is the surprise story in baseball in 2001. Morning Edition’s Cathy Wurzer catches up with LaVell Neal, who covers the team for the Minneapolis Star Tribune to get his view of team.
CATHY WURZER: Well, despite losing to the Boston Red Sox 9-4 last night, the Twins still have the second best record in the Major Leagues. Their 14-4 start is the surprise story in baseball so far. As a matter of fact, the Twins are on the cover of "Sports Illustrated" this week.
Tonight at Fenway Park in Boston, the Twins best pitcher, Brad Radke, will put his 4-0 record on the line as he faces the best pitcher in baseball, Pedro Martinez. Joining us from Boston is La Velle Neal, who covers the Twins for the "Star Tribune." Good morning.
LA VELLE NEAL: Good morning, Cathy.
CATHY WURZER: There has been a lot of talk about tonight's pitching match-up, La Velle. What do you think of it?
LA VELLE NEAL: I think it's one of those things that make baseball such a wonderful sport because it doesn't just become a game, it becomes an event. And that draws attention from across the country. You've got two good teams going against each other.
And you got a pitcher in Brad Radke, who once won 20 games. And he's highly respected. And you've got Pedro Martinez on the other side, who is not only the best pitcher in the League right now, but maybe one of the best pitchers of all time. So it's going to be a lot of fun at Fenway Park tonight.
CATHY WURZER: Now, there's a fair amount of Twins fever building up here in Minnesota. There are long lines out in front of the dome to buy tickets. But La Velle, what are the chances of this team breaking our hearts in the end?
LA VELLE NEAL: When you start out 14-3 like the Twins did, that gives you some wiggle room a little bit. So if you have a couple down periods, you've got a good record in hand already. And now, you'll be able to absorb some of the losing.
So if the Twins just play 500 ball the rest of the way, they could be in the playoff hunt, at least for a wild card spot and perhaps for the division championship. But they have to continue to play consistent baseball, and they've got to pitch well in order to win.
CATHY WURZER: It's still fun with the hot start. I know you talked with Paul Molitor, who's now a Twins coach, about hot starts. What did you learn about him as a player?
LA VELLE NEAL: Well, Molitor had an up-close-and-personal view of what not to do when your team is off to a good start. But his Brewers team in 1987 started off 13-0. And they were 20-3 at one point.
And there was a lot of excitement in Milwaukee. There were people running to the ballpark to buy tickets. And the players just being in a great mood when they come to the clubhouse. And there's a lot of the same things that the Twins and the Twins fans are going through right now.
What Molitor found out is that once a couple things go wrong, the veteran players on the team have to step up and not let it snowball. You're going to lose a couple games. You're going to have a stretch when you lose maybe five out of seven games or lose three or four in a row. But you've got to have the mental toughness in order to do the little things to help you win and stop those prolonged losing streaks.
And frankly, that's the mark of a winning team. The Yankees never had a prolonged losing streak over these last three years. And that's why they're considered the best team in the League right now.
CATHY WURZER: And we have a stretch of games coming up here, La Velle, that should, I would think, be a pretty good test of how good this team really is.
LA VELLE NEAL: Yes, we do. Over the next 37 games, the Twins are going to play the Red Sox. They're going to play the Yankees. They're going to play the Texas Rangers. They have the Oakland Athletics, who a lot of teams think were the Twins of 2000. That's a team that has a lot of young up-and-coming players. And then there's the Seattle Mariners.
So over the next six to seven weeks, the Twins are going to run up against a lot of the better teams in the League. And I think once we get into June, we're going to be able to have a good idea of just what this team can do and if they really have chances of making the playoffs.
CATHY WURZER: Before you go, I got to ask you about Cristian Guzmán, who dislocated his finger on Sunday by sliding headfirst into what, second base I believe it was.
LA VELLE NEAL: That's correct.
CATHY WURZER: What's his prognosis for returning to the lineup?
LA VELLE NEAL: It's much better. Guzmán, before yesterday's game, picked up a bat and was able to grip it. But he was able to get his hand in his glove, which is an important thing, since he needs to catch the ball as a shortstop.
CATHY WURZER: Right.
LA VELLE NEAL: And there's a chance that he will not have to go on the disabled list, which everybody will be happy to hear. He's available right now as a pinch runner. So he can still be of some use here over the next couple of days while his finger heals.
CATHY WURZER: Thanks. La Velle Neal covers the Twins for the "Star Tribune."
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