Author: David Shama

Tony Spadafora, a local stadium authority who for years has studied the Vikings’ need for a new facility, emailed that his research shows an Arden Hills stadium will cost $980 million versus $985 million for a new building on the Metrodome site.  Spadafora wrote: “The Arden Hills plan builds a retractable roof stadium with plenty of room for tailgating, which most fans want, and costs $5 million less than the Metrodome plan. Or you can say the Metrodome plan builds a fixed roof stadium with little room for tailgating, which few fans want, and costs $5 million more than the Arden Hills plan.”

The Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission website arrives at a different conclusion. The MSFC projects Arden Hills will cost about $200,000 to $300,000 more than the Metrodome site.  https://www.msfc.com/stadium.cfm

If a new stadium is built on the Metrodome site, the Vikings will have to play a couple of seasons at TCF Bank Stadium.  The switch in venues, including because of more limited seating capacity, will result in decreased revenues for the Vikings and it’s believed that any new stadium transition plan will compensate the franchise for lost revenue.

Timberwolves’ basketball executive David Kahn is often second-guessed for not retaining Kevin McHale as coach two years ago.  McHale is a better coach than Kahn-hire Kurt Rambis and McHale may have a successful run as the new Houston coach, but the situation in Minneapolis was bad two years ago.  McHale’s image with the Wolves franchise, mostly because of his poor personnel decisions while leading the basketball department, was negative.  No one should blame Kahn for wanting a fresh start back in 2009.  Most NBA administrators would have done the same.

Angela Hermann is Canterbury Park’s new Paddock analyst, replacing Kevin Gorg who is busy with FOX Sports North Twins coverage.

Ostrich and camel racing, among the track’s most popular promotions ever, returns on Sunday, July 17.

Happy birthday on Saturday to WCCO Sports Huddle host Dave Mona.

The Intercollegiate Tennis Association has named Carleton’s Luciano Battaglini the Wilson/ITA National Women’s Coach-of-the-Year.  He coached Carleton to a second place finish in the MIAC and a top 20 national ranking.

Any hopes the Twins have of being a competitive team this season and beyond begin with first baseman Justin Morneau and catcher Joe Mauer, two former American League MVP’s who might just have copies on their nightstands of Reverend Robert Schuller’s book Tough Times Never Last But Tough People Do.

The Twins are short on talent throughout the organization and if the “M&M Boys” don’t produce as in the past, Minnesota is in trouble.  No, Morneau and Mauer can’t carry the team to the post-season alone but when they play like All-Stars the Twins are much more productive at the plate and in the field.  And their production eases the physical and mental burdens on teammates.

Last summer Morneau was approaching career numbers when he suffered his now famous concussion.  He was batting .345 with 18 home runs and 56 RBI.

His recovery from the concussion was slow and there was uncertainty about his return to the team.  Although Morneau has played in 43 games, he has struggled with his hitting and even at times in the field.  A career .283 hitter, he’s batting .230 with two home runs and 13 RBI.

This spring Morneau is so frustrated he has probably made his baseball life worse than it needs to be.  He badly wants to be a leader for the Twins and bail out a ballclub with a 16-32 record, the worst in the big leagues.

Want a picture of a guy trying too hard?  Grab a camera and point it at the 30-year-old Morneau who in his best season (2006) hit .321 with 34 home runs and 130 RBI, and won the AL MVP award.  Trying to recover from the long layoff from the concussion meant regaining his timing at the plate and in the field.  And Morneau was hit by the flu bug this spring and lost weight.  Now he even has a sore neck, no doubt a repository of his tension.

The mental weight of trying to carry his team has been a setback, too, and one that can best be cured by this prescription: “Chill out a bit, young fella.”

Mauer’s woes have included the flu, too, along with bumps and bruises, and that not so well-known condition referred to by the Twins’ organization as “bilateral leg weakness.”  Overall diagnosis: the 28-year-old catcher has been a physical wreck this spring after off-season knee surgery.

Mauer has experienced lots of hurts during his eight year major league career.  This season is the second in three he has been placed on the disabled list in April.  He hasn’t played since April 12 this year, appearing in just nine games so far.

Don’t be surprised if management asks the Twins’ $184 million man to come by the office for an exit interview after this season that includes a suggestion to buy an outfielder’s glove.  Yes, Mauer wants only to catch but the club needs his offense in every game and the organization’s investment is way too rich not to have him on the field.

Mauer is a three-time batting champion who should still have his peak years as a hitter ahead of him.  How can the Twins afford to risk unnecessary injury to Mauer by keeping him at catcher, baseball’s most punishing position?

The suggestion here is to send Mauer to right field and move Jason Kubel to left.  Mauer is athletic and his powerful arm will be an improvement over Kubel who actually is an underrated outfielder.

Outfielder-infielder Michael Cuddyer, 32, is in the last year of his reported $10.5   million contract.  At his age and price tag, it’s not difficult to imagine this is Cuddyer’s last season in Minneapolis.  Also, opening up the outfield roster would be a potential Delmon Young trade. The Twins’ regular left fielder has been consistently inconsistent offensively since coming here from Tampa Bay and his fielding is average(let’s be nice) at best.

Ideally, the Twins would be able to trade both Cuddyer and Young while improving their talent-poor bullpen, or acquire middle infielders, or a catcher, who can both hit and field.  Such additions would fit on a foundation of the resurrected “M&M Boys.”