Three weeks from opening day at Target Field ...
Welcome to the Thursday edition of The Cooler, where nobody wants to talk about the weather but we do it anyway. Let's get to it:
*February was the month nobody wanted, and so far March has been the month nobody asked for in Minnesota — at least when it comes to the winter weather.
If it feels like a general malaise has set in, you're not alone.
If you are a homeowner, you're probably wondering what you're going to do with all the snow that's supposed to fall this weekend (on top of all the snow you already have piled up everywhere). At least it fits nicely with the "it always snows during the boys' hockey state tournament" tradition.
If you're the Minnesota Twins, you have plenty of space for the snow at Target Field. The problem is that in three weeks from today, you're supposed to play a baseball game there against Cleveland.
As you can see from the above photo — taken by colleague Howard Sinker on Wednesday night — that would be pretty difficult at the moment.
The good news? Things can change in a hurry in March, and it will *probably* at least be in the mid-40s when the Twins try to play at the end of the month.
And if they can't because of this stubborn winter? At least the Twins are slated to hit the road after that three-game series and won't be back at Target Field until April 12 against Detroit.
*Wright Thompson on any subject is a must-read, but Thompson on what really happens at the NFL Combine? You'll want to stop what you're doing and dive into it.
*An official review at the end of the Bulls/76ers game led to the two teams being brought back on the court with 0.5 seconds left and the Bulls leading 108-107. The problem for the Bulls? Otto Porter was already in the middle of an NBA-mandated postgame drug test and missed the finish. Luckily for the Bulls and the league, Philadelphia couldn't get a shot off. Here's Porter on the strange situation: *By the way, the win was Chicago's sixth in its last nine games after an awful start. The Bulls are just 19-47, but there is at least some hope. Former Wolves guard Zach LaVine led all scorers with 39 points in the win.