The Twins and the A's

Connie Mack once said that he made his biggest profits in the years his Athletics were in the chase all season long, only to fall just short in the end. That way, the team's fans were drawn to the stadium in large numbers because of the pennant race, but he didn't have to pay his players the bonuses they would get as part of a World Series team.


It seems like the Twins have taken that strategy to heart the last few years. Their per-game attendance numbers the last few years have been remarkably consistent:

• 2006: 28,210


• 2007: 28,349


• 2008: 28,425


• 2009: 28,488

The numbers have been virtually the same despite differing results. In 2006, the Twins had one of the greatest in-season comebacks ever, going from being 10.5 games back as late as August 7 to winning the division. In 2007, they finished third; after the All Star break, they were never any closer than 4.5 games out. Yet attendance wasn't affected. Last year, they fought down to the wire again, losing the division in a playoff. Again, almost no change in attendance.

I guess the consistent thing about those years is that the Twins have always had a roster that was just good enough to overachieve. As weird as it sounds, they never seem to be predicted to do well, despite having the fifth most wins in the AL this decade. People always want to see them as baseball's little overachievers.

Some people ask how they can be considered underdogs with players like Mauer, Morneau, and Nathan on their team. But if you get away from first- and second-tier players (with guys like Span and Cuddyer in the latter), the Twins fall off in talent pretty quickly. The difference between the Twins and the Yankees is not at the top of their rosters - it's when you get to players like Punto and Gomez and Tolbert, guys who wouldn't sniff the majors if they were in the Yankees organization.

Obviously, finances are a huge reason why this difference exists. I don't imagine it will get much better in the new stadium, either. The Twins will have more money to spend on free agents, but how much of that will they try to spend to keep Mauer and Cuddyer? The extra income they'll get from a new stadium will not be immediately noticable on the field, I fear.

So I think we're going to have many more seasons like this one, where the Twins seem to be playing above their heads, fighting to the end for a playoff spot. They'll always be in the chase, and sometimes they'll even win the pennant, but they'll always make it interesting.

Connie Mack would be proud.