Results from a state fair poll reject public funding for a new Vikings stadium by a two-to-one ratio, according to a news release this week from the Minnesota House of Representatives. When asked if public funding should be used to help pay for the stadium, 66.4 percent of poll participants said no while 24.5 answered yes. The poll, with 9,926 participating, didn’t ask other stadium questions such as whether it’s important to keep the Vikings in the state, or if public funding from a metro area lodging tax is acceptable. https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hinfo/Fair/2010Results.pdf
The Twins starters for next week’s series against the White Sox in Chicago could be Francisco Liriano, Brian Duensing and Carl Pavano. The major league season ends on October 3 and the Twins have a six game lead on the White Sox today.
WCCO talk show host and former Twins newspaper reporter Dave Mona believes if the Twins come out of next week’s series with a four game lead in the Central Division they will be solidly positioned to end the season in first place. “It will be devastating to the White Sox who will realize that the race is pretty much over because there are no more head-to-head meetings between the teams,” he said.
Liriano pitched Winter Ball prior to this season. Now he’s at a career high for innings pitched, with 172.1. The September 1-7 issue of USA Today Sports Weekly included the following from him: “I won’t pitch winter ball this year, not at all. I’m going to go home and rest. I think I need a break.”
Twins shortstop J.J. Hardy is hitting .444 in his last six games with eight RBI and seven runs scored.
The Twins franchise needs two more wins to reach 4,000 victories since the club began operations here in 1961. Only five other American League teams have won more games since 1961.
Ron Gardenhire needs eight more wins to reach 800 as Twins manager.
Mona’s award winning Gopher vignettes are heard prior to Minnesota football broadcasts on WCCO Radio. Tomorrow’s vignette (about 10:30 a.m.) is devoted to legendary broadcaster Tom Brokaw, a University of South Dakota alum, who perhaps has mixed emotions about Saturday’s game between the Gophers and Coyotes. Brokaw, while growing up in South Dakota, was captivated by Gophers football, including by his hero, Gophers All-American Paul Giel. Mona’s vignette references Brokaw’s book A Long Way From Home and how the small town South Dakota boy “knew every Gopher player from a religious weekly reading” of the Minneapolis Tribune.