Welcome to Thunderdome!

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I am a diehard baseball fan. I have not written about this season since opening day. Opening Day: For the Love of The Game But now it is the second season, playoff baseball for the ALCS and NLCS and World Series. October is the best baseball month of all.

My hometown team is still alive and fighting for a playoff spot. The Minnesota Twins play the Detroit Tigers in a one game playoff for the AL central crown on Tuesday at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis. Welcome to Thunderdome!

The "Humptydome," as it is affectionately known, was recast as the Thunderdome in 1987 when our beloved "Fab Four" – Kirby Puckett, Gary Gaetti, Kent Hrbek and Tom Brunansky – and our aces in the bullpen, Frank "sweet music" Viola and the "old man" Bert Blyleven, led the Twins to their first World Series Championship by beating a great Detroit Tigers team in the ALCS and the heavily favored St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series. The local newspapers sponsored "Homer Hankies" (hey, it's Minnesota) that the fans waved and shouted at the top of their lungs. When this happens the decibel level goes to 110 on the meter or better inside the dome. Twins fans powered their underrated "Twinkies" to World Champions with four wins in the Thunderdome. (They did it again in 1991 with a slightly different lineup of players).

This year's team reminds me of that underrated 1987 team. The Twins are powered by the "M & M" boys – Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau, two of the best hitters in baseball, and role players Michael Cuddyer, Jason Kubel and Delmon Young. Unfortunately, the only ace in the bullpen is their closer, future Hall of Famer Joe Nathan. Pitching is the missing piece to a championship team.

The Twins overcame a 7 game deficit in September to force a tie with the Detroit Tigers and a one game playoff for the AL central crown and the right to play the hated New York Yankees in the first round of the ALCS playoffs. This is the kind of finish that baseball fans live for in October. Win or lose, the Twins have made this a memorable season, their last in the Thunderdome before moving to their new outdoor stadium, Target Field, for the 2010 season.

So welcome to the Thunderdome, Tigers! "Two teams enter, one team leaves. Two teams enter, one team leaves." Go Twins! For the love of the game.

Update: TWINS WIN! TWINS WIN! TWINS WIN! Five AL Central Division crowns this decade, and it would have been six (lost to the Chicago White Sox 1-0 in a one game division title playoff in 2008). The Twins will need great pitching to get over the hump and into the World Series.