OUTSIDE LOOKING IN
What rain?
As late as Thursday of last week, the weather forecast called for a 70 percent chance of rain throughout the day this past Saturday.
Belgian-American Days organizer Dawn Vlaminck decided to cancel the inflatables, which there were expected to be more of than in previous years, because of the predicted rain showers.
"Now watch, it won't rain," Vlaminck said Saturday morning while watching the Pickleball Tourmament. "If I hadn't cancelled the inflatables, it probably would rain all day."
Just as Nostradamus Vlaminck predicted, only a few drops fell and everything went as planned.
Lyon County Sheriff Eric Wallen and I were talking about the weather and he took out his phone to show me how the storm cell that was headed straight for Lyon County split in half as it got closer and the divided cell went on either side of the county.
The skies darkened again at the conclusion of the parade around 5 p.m.. Otherwise, everything on Friday, Saturday and Sunday went on as planned.
It's never a good thing to have rain wash out a community event when so much work goes into planning and organizing. Even though some areas are in need of some rain, those organizing, participating or attending Belgian-American Days were grateful to have been able to stay dry.
Although only two teams signed up to participate in the 1st annual Pickleball Tournament during Belgian-American Days, it was quite enjoyable to watch and more teams will likely participate next year when the word spreads about how much fun it seems to be. Fittingly, the two-person winning team received a giant jar of pickles and the runner-up team received a smaller jar.
Pickleball is becoming an increasingly popular sport among people of all ages. It's fast-paced, yet the players don't have to run as much as in tennis.
Buxton on mend ... again!
One of the most frustrating things for fans of the Minnesota Twins is to see Byron Buxton being placed on the injured list time and time again.
The Twins brass has coddled the five-tool player so much that they have gone so far as to remove the Gold Glover from his position in center field in order to prevent him from being injured all the time, and instead have had him become one of the most overpaid designated hitters in baseball.
So, what happens? Buxton strained his hamstring anyway and was once again placed on the 10-day injured list recently.
Buxton, who makes over $14 million per year, has only played 100-or-more games in a season once in his nine-year career. He had already missed nearly one fourth of the team's 110-plus games this season despite not playing defense and striking out 109 times among his 347 plate appearances. Striking out one-third of the time greatly reduces the number of times he has to run on the bases, yet still is unable to stay healthy.
Because he possesses speed and power when he is healthy, there are teams willing to trade for him. The Twins had a chance to unload him at the trade deadline for a couple of prospects or a pitcher that could possibly help them win the division, but chose not to.
Buxton is barely above the Mendoza line this season, batting just .207, which is 137th among major leaguers. He has shown pop in his bat at times as evidenced by his 17 home runs, but consider this: His on-base percentage this year is a dismal .294, 127th in the majors; his slugging percentage is .438, 67th in the majors; his OPS (on-base, plus slugging) is .731 or 96th overall; and his wins-above-replacement (WAR) is 0.8 or 198th best in the majors.
And despite all this, Buxton generally hits third in the lineup because Twins analytical executives Derek Falvey and Thad Levine, along with manager Rocci Baldelli are under the impression that hitting home runs despite amassing a lot of striking out is a much better option than having high batting averages (see Luis Arraez). That's why they acquired all-or-nothing Joey Gallo, who is hitting just .174 but has 17 home runs while striking out 121 times in 280 plate appearances.
Stiking out seems acceptable in major leagues baseball today, but every time a batter strikes out there is no chance to move a runner along via a groundout or a flyball that could lead to a run or runs. It also lessens the chance for an error by the opposing team.
Some diehard fans pointed out to me that the Twins have a winning record so something is working right. My response is that the team is hovering over the .500 mark despite playing in the worst division in baseball.
The Twins are where they are atop the standings because of a good pitching staff. Even so, the Twins would currently be on the bottom of the standings in the American League East.
VFW raffles off bench
The Minneota-Taunton VFW is again selling raffle tickets for a beautiful wood bench made and donated by John DeSmet. The bench is in the Mascot office to view. Tickets are $5 and can also be purchased at the Mascot office or by contacting a local VFW member.