Dome Arigato

So say the Oakland Athletics, who have taken it to the Twins in the first two games of the ALDS. The Twins now head out to Oakland for two must win games, with a pitcher with a broken shoulder being all that stands between them and the end of a magical season.

How did it happen? Chances are good you saw the highlights. The Twins have not hit well at all during the series, with only three solo home runs and a scratched-out, too little too late Game 1 run, to show for 18 opportunities against the A's pitching staff. Johan Santana and Boof Bonser both pitched well enough to win, but neither did. Meanwhile, Torii Hunter's miscalculation on Mark Kotsay's sinking liner in Game 2 serves as an appropriate emblem for the series thus far - close, but not close enough.

So can the Twins come back? Sure. The A's have choked before, losing series after taking 2-0 leads against both the Yankees and the Red Sox. The last game is usually the most difficult one to win. The Twins have been resourceful all season and have had to play like a playoff team since Memorial Day.

A few hunches:

• Someone unexpected will deliver a key blow in the next game. Someone like, say, Phil Nevin.
• Radke will be heroic. He may have only one start left in his arm, but he's such a gamer that I wouldn't bet against him.
• Danny Haren is a good pitcher, but he's inconsistent. And someone on the Twins is going to get him early on.

There's a psychic toll here for the Twins; how many times can a group of individuals go to the well? We'll find out soon enough.