U-G-L-Y, you ain't got no alibi...

...that was UGLY.

Bases loaded for the Twins - twice - late in the game, and what happens? Thome and Morneau strike out to end the innings.

I swear, we left as many people on base as Glenn Beck has functioning brain cells (actually, we had 11 team LOB, so even more!). Combine that with a lovely 3-10 with RiSP, and you're gonna lose. A lot. Even to the Royals.

THE ROYALS!

What do you think is gonna happen when we start playing GOOD teams and have ass-bats (RIP Bat-Girls's Blog) instead of at bats like that?

And Mr. Pavano, sir? I know you got knocked around today, but your previous starts were pretty stellar. Let's revert to that form, OK?

And Jesse? Jesse Crain? Stop the bleeding. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, work on your mechanics with Rick "Best Damn Pitching Coach Period" Anderson and be the dominant bad-ass we all know you can be. I like you, I do. Maybe it's the goatee, maybe it's the flashes of brilliance, maybe it's both of those combined with your tenure in the bullpen. Maybe it's the fact that Jesse Crain just sounds like a bad-ass name, the kinda guy you'd want riding behind you on a wide-glide Harley through Post-Apocalyptic America:

"Crain, take him out!"
"Jesse, find him and deal with him!"
"Don't you die on me, Jesse Crain! Dyin's not on the menu!"

OK, I'm done with cheesy 80's action flick cliche dialogue.

And you know what? I really shouldn't complain. Every team is going to have off days like this. And The Twins are still 9 and 4. Four straight series victories to open the season, the best since 2002. And considering how our boys usually get better as the season progresses, I can only imagine how much ass they're gonna kick over the coming months.

It's a good time to be a Twins fan, an occasional ugly loss or not.

Go Twins!