Johan Santana is gone.  So are Torii Hunter and Lew Ford.  Somebody forget to tell the Minnesota Twins.  Either that or the Chicago White Sox haven't noticed.  Yesterday, the Twinkies made it four out of five this season over the struggling Sox who have now dropped seven of their last twelve.

How the Twins continue to survive year after year on a shoestring budget and with en masse player defections is beyond anyone's comprehension.  To replace Hunter, the Twinkies went out and got Carlos Gomez in the Santana trade.  While Gomez isn't a power threat like Hunter, the guy is a world class pest.  Along with Delmon Young, he comprises the fastest left side of the outfield in the bigs.  And he seems to have taken the torch from Hunter as a world class Sox killer.

In the words of The Joker from "Batman I", "Where do they get those marvelous toys.?"

Meanwhile, when opportunity comes knocking, the Sox refuse to answer the door. 

The Sox are off today before opening a series in Toronto Friday night.

Lightning Round

• First baseman Paul Konerko is suffering from an inflamed hand. Konerko said it's the result of being pitched inside so much.  Great, Paulie.  Why don't you just draw opponents a diagram?
• Outfielder Alexi Ramirez will not accompany the team to Canada because of visa issues.  The fear is that if he goes to Canada, he may not be able to re-enter the U.S.  The way Ramirez has played so far this year, there's not much of a down side there.  Too bad the Sox Triple A affiliate isn't still in Vancouver.  They could just drop him off.