For those of you looking for a moment of levity to cut the tension from Game 1's frustration and/or Game 2's must-win feel, please allow Twins manager Ron Gardenhire to provide it. During his pre-game press conference Thursday afternoon, Gardenhire was asked if he was nervous when he saw Joe Mauer diving into first base last night trying to beat Mark Teixeira to the bag. Gardenhire admitted he was -- after all, jammed thumbs, spiked hands ... a lot of things can happen when your $184 million man sprawls all-out.
So how did Gardenhire, in the heat of the moment, deal with this feeling of trepidation?
"When he dove, I slapped Nick Punto," he said, drawing laughs in the media room.
It's not clear exactly where Punto was slapped, or if it happened repeatedly.
And for the record, Gardenhire wasn't upset that Mauer was trying to beat out the hit -- just anxious he might injure himself.
