Border Battle This Weekend At Target Field

I grew up in central Wisconsin, and consequently, have been a fan of the Milwaukee Brewers for as long as I can remember. However, I also have an affinity for the team that calls the Twin Cities home, too. In fact, I regularly root for both the Twins and Brewers. Except maybe for this weekend.

Rooting for both the Brewers and Twins has always been a natural for me. Even though we lived in Wisconsin, I can remember back in 1982 when all of us piled in dad’s ’78 Olds Delta 88 and road tripped over to Minneapolis to see this new stadium the Twins were playing in– something called ‘The Metrodome,’ I think. And when the Brewers moved to the National League in 1998, it became even easier to root for both teams, because they weren’t competing against each other in the same division anymore.

An added twist this year is the Twins' new manager, Paul Molitor. While he's a Minnesota native, I remember him more from the days when he was with the Brewers, between 1978-1992. I've always been a big Molly fan. He was the captain of 'Brewers/Pepsi Fan Club,' of which I was a member when I was a kid back in the 80's. I had his poster on my bedroom wall (along with Gorman Thomas). I even went to his induction ceremony into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York back in 2004.

Now that he's managing here in Minnesota, I find myself even more of a Twins fan. (It doesn't hurt that he's got the team playing great baseball and sitting in first place, while the Brewers, meanwhile, are in the cellar and have the worst record in baseball this year.)

So I’ll be there Saturday, still sporting my Milwaukee gear, thanks to the cool retro Brewers logo shirt my wife bought me earlier this year. But, I won't be too upset if the home team comes away with another victory. And, I’ll be doing as mean a rendition of “We’re Going To Win Twins” as anybody else, too.