Links for April 23rd

It’s hard to be unhappy with the Twins performance this year when you consider that last year they were sitting at 7-11, the exact opposite of this year’s record. And how can you complain when the team is in first place in the division, tied with Baltimore (Who knew the Orioles had recovered so well from their opening series sweep?) for the second best record in the American League? Of course, dropping two of three to the Royals, including a wasted Ramon Ortiz’ consecutive quality start, (a missed opportunity considering their May schedule) really makes it hard to get into a celebratory mood.

It doesn’t help that there are question marks about when Rondell White and Luis Castillo will be able to return and how effective they will be. Or that Ron Gardenhire wants a third catcher (a natural result of Redmond being among the nine best bats available, due to White and Jeff Cirillo's injuries). Then there's the fact that we Twins' fans have been spoiled the last few years, and are thus a little freaked out by Joe Nathan's performance so far. And Anthony Swarzak, one of the Twins' best pitching prospects, is going to be out for fifty days for violating the league's drug policy (recreational, not performance).

And yet, the Twins are coming home in first place, something they could not say the entirety of last year. So life, while complicated, is good. And now, onto the Quick Links:

• Jesse Lund of Twinkietown has a look at Alexi Casilla, aka L'il Luis.
  
• "It takes two to tango and two to mambo/But you can do it all with just one Bombo"
• So any talk of resigning Torii might be moot, since there's the possibility he'll be ineligible for three years. At least he'll take Mike Sweetney with him.
• Brian Meehan of the Oregonian tells the story of how Pat Neshak became "Sideshow Pat". And Jonah Keri of ESPN.com has an interview with the submariner from Brooklyn Park
  
• If there's one reason to lament the advent of contacts and Lasik, it's the effect it's had on baseball players' eye wear.
  
• Finally, if you're looking for information on who the Vikings' are going to be taking in the NFL draft on Sunday, make sure to stop by the Ragnarok for player previews and other draft day discussions.