Gardenhire Enters 700 Club

The chase for the AL Central features the Tigers and the Twins, as we head to one more week of the season following this weekend. It's the storyline that creates interest for baseball fans that are patiently waiting for the playoffs to start.

While the attention was on the Twins and the Tigers winning their games on Tuesday night, no one talked about Ron Gardenhire accomplishing his 700th victory in the Twins' 6-4 victory over the White Sox.

Anytime a manager can achieve that many victories for one club, it says a lot about the job he has done. That's the case with Gardenhire.

Gardenhire's feat can't be discounted. It's not easy to accomplish as a manager of a club that runs their team on a small budget.

No question the Twins manager benefits from managing in a division that features teams that have the same payroll as the Twins, but he still has to win.

People can talk about Gardenhire taking his teams to the playoffs in his first three years at the job as his best work, but one can make a case that he done a better job last year and this year

We believe Gardenhire's best work comes from this year and last year. He managed a team that features many young hitters and pitchers that are learning on the job.

Think about hard that is. Ask Trey Hillman and Eric Wedge about managing a team that is learning how to win, and they will explain the process of teaching is not easy.

Everyone figured the Twins would have a losing season last year and this year, but to their credit, they position themselves to be in a pennant race both times.

Last year, the Twins overachieved by playing in Game 163. They had no business playing in that game after blowing games they should have won, yet they persevered.

This year, the Twins perform the same feat by putting themselves in a position to be in first place with a four-game set against the Tigers next week. It's remarkable since they inserted several new starters in the rotation last month.

Gardenhire should get his due for this, yet fans whine about his moves often on blogs and on message boards after a loss. What do people expect?

It's not like the Twins are the Yankees and the Red Sox—where everyone expects them to win.

They don't have a big budget where they can buy each player or make moves in the summer. So Gardenhire deals with a hard task

He does a fine job keeping guys interested in playing.

The Twins could have quit this year after a rough August, but they plugged along with victories and here they are.

Gardenhire made bad decisions in his first few years of the job, but now, he never makes decisions that make fans question them.

He quickly takes guys out of the game if they don't have it, and we saw that on Tuesday when Jeff Manship and Francisco Liriano struggled.

He did a good job of giving at-bats to Michael Cuddyer, Delmon Young, and Carlos Gomez in a crowded outfield.

He gives young players a chance to play better.

Seriously, what's there to complain about Gardenhire?

It says a lot about the man that he preferred staying in Minnesota rather than trying his hand in a situation where he can win championships. He loves the organization and the area to be in there.

It's time to stop moaning about his deficiencies and appreciate his ability to manage a team when times are tough.

Baseball managers respect him for what he has done.

It's about time fans do the same.