Physically: Liriano looks like something different from his 2006 self, but I don't think anyone expected that to continue, even as it was happening. He sat in the low-mid 90s, getting to at least 93, and keeping it solid late into the game. The fastball had very good movement and he seemed to locate it slightly better as the game went along. His mechanics didn't look perfect- he fell away somewhat in his follow through- but he's doing a better job keeping the shoulder closed and a MUCH better job repeating his motion. He admitted that he was nervous going into the game, so I'm not going to worry that he was consistently low and out of the zone for the first couple of innings. Few Cleveland batters made solid contact with any of his pitches, and he was missing bats with everything he through (whether Cleveland batters are making solid contact with anyone's pitches these days is another question). His slider looked like an out pitch, even though it was not the 80++ super out pitch it was. It was good and promises to improve a bit more as he calms. The change actually looked better than it used to; he didn't leave it up, he threw it for strikes, and it sat about 9-10 mph under the fastball.

Psychologically: Like I said, he was obviously somewhat nervous, but kept his composure fantastically well, getting out of all three little jams he found himself in. He never seemed to be in trouble, and even when he was behind in the count he seemed very confident to throw any of his pitches. He worked very well with Mike Redmond, who played a large part in managing Liriano's peaks and valleys through the game through gestures, pitch calls, and conversations. Six shutout innings also must be good for his psyche: it's no complete game, but it was enough to put his team in an excellent position and didn't tax him so much that expectations will be unrealistic. Everyone knows that Minnesota fans are unwaveringly faithful to their heroes, so Liriano has a boatload of wiggle room here, but this start should make everyone feel a little better about his health, his effectiveness, the rotation as a whole, and the team's postseason chances. The symbolism of moving into first place for the first time since early may in his return start will not be lost on anyone.

Statistically: It won't take much in this category to make Liriano extremely valuable. He's replacing Livan Hernandez, who is probably just a shade below a replacement player for the year (-5.7 vorp, 0.6 SNLVAR) and substantially worse of late. If Liriano pitches 8 more games, about 35-40 IP with something like 8 k/9, 3 bb/9, 1 hr/9 and an era in the 3.00s, he could be worth 2 wins over what Livan was giving them. Realistically, that calculation makes plenty of sense. Off the top of my head, I would say that the Twins would go about 3-6, maybe 4-5 in 9 more starts by Livan. With Liriano, I think it will be more like 6-3, or maybe 5-4 as he has a hiccup or two in reacclimating himself. Of course I want to get caught up in the 2006 hysteria and expect them to go 8-1 in his starts and run away with the division, but the improvement here is real and I can appreciate that for what it's worth.

Finally, since the Twins stayed under payroll this year, I thoroughly hope they act in good faith with Liriano and pay him as if he achieved super 2 status. The million or two bucks it will cost them will go a long way in player and fan relations, and may save them money down the road when he is arb eligible.

This is a pretty good story. Liriano finally back, and the Twins finally catch the Black Sox after blowing two previous break points. I don't seriously see the Twins winning the division...but wait, I don't see the Sox doing so either. So, unless the Tigers get really hot, maybe the Twins can win it after all. With Punto in a regular slot? And 5 rookie starting pitchers, or so it seems. Average age 17. How many wins to take the division? 86-87? I guess the Twins can get there.

It'll be interesting to see how the moveable objects the Twins will be facing do against the so far very easily resisted force of the 2008 road apple Twins. As easy as their remaining schedule is, they have a couple awful road trips coming up, especially the RNC-driven 14 game safari. I've got this odd mix of excitment and dread that the AL Central race is going to turn into some sort of slow motion, three ring, clown car accident. It'll be fun to watch, but there's a good chance my team won't win, possibly for some stupid reason that's utterly unsatisfying.

I'm sure Brian Freakin' Sabean breathed a sigh of relief.