Out of the blue

What do Tom Selleck, Rollie Fingers, Ron Burgundy, Billy Dee Williams and Carl Pavano have in common?

They are all members of the American Mustache Institute, which incidentally is “Protecting the rights of, and fighting discrimination against mustached Americans by promoting the growth, care and culture of the mustache.” Actually, I don’t know if any of them are members, but I can’t think of a nobler cause than that of the AMI. I take that back, I can: I just realized I am and always have been deathly afraid of mustaches.

Incidentally, I’m off on a tangent before I even start this column. What I was going to say is that I bumped into Matt Niskanen at the Hoyt Lakes Water Carnival softball tournament last weekend, and he and his team, at least most of it, could have been part of the AMI. Lots of mustaches. Very Pavano-ish, yet perhaps a little bit creepy. But enough about that.

I had a chance to ask Nisky about his contract situation. The Mountain Iron-Buhl alum is a restricted free agent this offseason after his rookie contract and three years in the NHL, so the Dallas Stars have the right to match any offer sheet he might sign with another team.

Said Nisky of the situation: “I can't really discuss any details besides, we are going thru the negotiating process. My agent and Dallas are trying to get a deal done that works best for both parties.”

Niskanen is coming off the worst season of his young career, when he just had three goals and 12 assists after 26 and 35 points, respectively, in his first two years. But indications are should he re-sign with the Stars, he’ll have every opportunity to play a big role along the blue line again. After all, he is just 23. That said, Dallas is looking for the young defender to step up his game. Here’s an excerpt from Dallas Morning News beat writer Mike Heika a couple of weeks ago in his summer blog:

“If he wants to prove himself to the team, he should probably come into training camp in great shape and be ready to compete for top minutes. As strange as it sounds after last season, he has a great opportunity to take big minutes here if he were to really up his game.

The Stars wanted him to grab the opportunity last season, and I believe that because of the budget, they will give him a great chance again this year. But there is a time limit to this chance, because I do believe new ownership will be in place and I do believe the defense will be changed before the end of next season. That said, it is early in the negotiating process. Niskanen can wait until August or September to get a contract done and still come in and make his point in training camp.”

It remains to be seen what the future holds for Nisky. Best of luck to him from this corner.

So what was I talking about earlier? Oh yeah, mustaches. How about Pavano and his mustache single-handedly keeping the Twins afloat during their awful stretch prior to the All- Star break? He has not lost in his last 10 starts, picking up eight wins in the process with a 2.36 ERA over that span to go with four complete games. After an ignominious, injury-plagued stint with the Yankees, Pavano, who is tied for the league lead with 13 wins, has been reborn over the past two seasons and has propelled himself into Cy Young race in the AL.

And the rest of the Twins staff has recently followed suit (about time Brian Duensing joined the rotation), while the bats have come alive as well. How about the stretch that rookie Danny Valencia had lately? Backto back 4-hit games and four straight games of at least three hits isn’t too bad. Delmon Young is looking more and more like a former No. 1 overall pick every day, climbing up to fourth in the league in average and third in RBIs and is borderline in the MVP conversation. Joe Mauer has caught fire lately; the 5-hit, 7-RBI night in KC is proof enough of that. And Justin Morneau should be back from his concussion soon.

All of which begs the question: Do the Twins need to make a move before Saturday’s trading deadline or not? A lot of fans are still clamoring for the Twins to go out and trade for an ace, namely Houston’s Roy Oswalt after they missed out on Cliff Lee and Dan Haren. Oswalt comes with a hefty price tag though, and personally, I think his teammate Brett Myers just might be a better option. He’d certainly be and come cheaper, and he’s pitched well of late, coming off a 12-strikeout complete game this week. Another less expensive vet that could help the Twins staff is the Cubs’ Ted Lilly. Either one would be better than breaking the bank for Oswalt, but then again what do I know. The Twins could just stand pat at the deadline and hope that their recent resurgence, better health and the history of second half success carries them.

Either way, it’s going to be another fun pennant race with a bitter rival again. It seems to alternate as to who it is yearly, with the White Sox the team to hate this season with the Tigers fractured and fading.

“Sweet Lincoln’s mullet!” ~ Ron Burgundy

I only break out that quote out because Vikings training camp is just around the corner, and that means it’s close to Jared Allen time again. Although, last I saw, his mullet (he cut it for his wedding) hasn’t grown back - yet. That’s OK. I’m working on mine to make up for it, just in case.

Until next time…

Brian Miller is a longtime local sports writer and the co-founder of iSportsNorth. He currently resides in Eveleth and can be reached at miller24bri@gmail.com.