Contest Winners and Such

First, let me wholeheartedly thank everybody who sent in a submission for the logo contest I announced last week. I was pleasantly surprised by how many clever, colorful and creative graphics I received, and it was actually extremely difficult to choose one. In the end, I chose the graphic you see above, which was submitted by Brad Miller. It is designed to emulate a Louisville Slugger bat, and I think he did a really great job with it. Great work Brad! I got some other really great submissions, so I'm thinking that when I get around to revamping the site again down the line, I might use one of those (with the author's permission, of course).

Here are the others who won a copy of MLB 08: The Show:
Tom Ecker, Andy Meissner, Adam Palmerton, Alex Halsted

I've put in some time with a PlayStation 2 copy of the game, and I've got to say I've enjoyed it. I don't have time to play video games much anymore, and in fact this is the first baseball game I've put in significant time with since the 2006 version of The Show, but it has a realistic engine and I think most baseball fans will enjoy playing it.

Anyway, in addition to the new logo, I've added a a few things to the sidebar. Near the top you'll see a mini-logo for the blog, designed by Mr. Meissner, and down a little ways you'll see a new "Go-Go vs. Jo-Jo" tracker. This is a little feature I've added just for fun to track the progress of Johan Santana and Carlos Gomez with their new teams. Obviously, it will be a while before we can really assess how well either the Twins or Mets came out on that deal, but for the time being I think it will be kind of fun to compare how the centerpiece on either side of the blockbuster trade is faring with his new club.

Hopefully all the new visuals don't overstimulate anyone who has grown accustomed to the drab, boring, lifeless aesthetic quality that this blog has sported throughout the first three years of its existence. If any of the new additions cause problems for anyone's browser, please shoot me an e-mail and let me know.

With all that out of the way, I'll make a few comments about yesterday's game, with an emphasis on "few." The game wasn't televised, so I was only able to follow part of it online, but from the looks of it, it was another frustrating loss filled with missed opportunities. Kevin Slowey had to leave the game in the fourth inning with right biceps strain, and it's not clear at this point how serious the injury is. If he has to miss significant time, it is possible that Francisco Liriano will be called up to replace him in the rotation; however, it's worth noting that Liriano surrendered four earned runs on six hits over 5 1/3 innings in a tune-up start with Ft. Myers last night.

The Twins did get their first home run of the season yesterday, rendering my friend's prediction false. The homer came off the bat of Jason Kubel, who I imagine will again be benched tonight when the Twins face Royals lefty John Bale. I think I'm starting to feel a fever...