According to ELIAS – Ervin Santana

Two-hit shutout for Santana

Ervin Santana

Ervin Santana threw a two-hit shutout for the Twins against the Orioles last night, improving to 7-2 with a 1.80 ERA in ten starts this season. Since the franchise moved to Minnesota in 1961, only two Twins pitchers had an ERA that low through their first ten starts of a season: Francisco Liriano was 9-1 with a 1.36 ERA in his first ten starts in 2006 and Scott Erickson was 7-2 with a 1.63 ERA in his first ten starts in 1991.

Santana also improved to 4-0 in four road starts this season. His teammate Phil Hughes has also won his first four road starts this year. It’s just the third time in Twins franchise history that two pitchers each won their first four road starts of a season. It happened in 1913 with Walter Johnson (won first five road starts) and Joe Boehling (four), and in 1979 with Jerry Koosman (five) and Geoff Zahn (five).

Major League Debuts as Minnesota Twins – May 21 – Plouffe, Bonser, L Rodriguez, Larkin, Eufemia, Boris & Crider

The following seven players made their major league debuts in a Minnesota Twins uniform over the years on May 21.

Trevor Plouffe

Trevor Plouffe (SS/2B/OF/3B) – May 21, 2010 – Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 1st round (20th) of the 2004 MLB June Amateur Draft. A nice debut at shortstop for Trevor going 2 for 5 with a run scored and two RBI.

 

Boof Bonser

Boof Bonser (P) – May 21, 2006 – Traded by the San Francisco Giants with Francisco Liriano and Joe Nathan to the Minnesota Twins for A.J. Pierzynski and cash on November 14, 2003. A solid major league debut in his six inning start but the Twins bullpen let him down and cost him his first big league win. Boof? Twins Know What It Means

 

Luis Rodriguez

Luis Rodriguez (2B/3B/SS) – May 21, 2005 – Signed by the Minnesota Twins as an amateur free agent on June 1, 1997

 

Gene Larkin (1B/OF) – May 21, 1987 – Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 20th round of the 1984 amateur draft. Going 2 for 4 with an RBI in your first big league game is pretty nice.

 

Frank Eufemia

Frank Eufemia (P) – May 21, 1985 – Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 18th round of the 1982 amateur draft. Debut not too shabby considering he was pitching in a blow-out loss, 3.1 innings and no runs allowed.

 

Paul Boris (P) – May 21, 1982 – Traded by the New York Yankees with Ron Davis and Greg Gagne to the Minnesota Twins for Roy Smalley on April 10, 1982. Boris’s major league debut was one he would like to forget.

 

Jerry Crider (P) – May 21, 1969 – Signed by the Minnesota Twins as an amateur free agent in 1962

To see other Major League Debut’s as Minnesota Twins

This Day in Twins History – April 27

1961 – The expansion Los Angeles Angels play their first home game bowing to the Twins at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles, 4-2. The 74-year old baseball legend Ty Cobb, in his last-ever visit to a ballpark, throws out the first ceremonial pitch. This was the first American League game to ever be played in Los Angeles. Box Score

Camilo Pascual

1965 – Camilo Pascual hits a grand slam home run off pitcher Stan Williams in a 11-1 Twins win over the Indians in Cleveland Stadium. Camilo pitches a complete game two hitter and strikes out five in the process. Pascual is the first and only Twins pitcher to hit a grand slam home run. Pascual had also hit a grand slam home run as a Washington Senator at Yankee Stadium I on August 14, 1960 in a 5-4 win over the New York Yankees. Box Score

1969Harmon Killebrew hits his 400th HR and the Twins take over first place in the AL West by beating Chicago 4-3. Box Score

1980 – The Twins score 10 runs in the first inning on their way to a 20-11 thrashing of the Oakland A’s. Minnesota starter Geoff Zahn can’t hold the 10-0 lead, allowing 8 runs in 4 1/3 innings, and Doug Corbett picks up the win in relief. Box Score

1994Scott Erickson, who allowed the most hits in the majors the previous season, pitched Minnesota’s first no-hitter in 27 years and the Twins third no-hitter as the Twins beat Milwaukee 6-0 at the Metrodome. Box Score

2010 – In a very unusual game at Comerica Park, the Twins beat the Detroit Tigers 2-0 as Francisco Liriano beats Justin Verlander. What’s unusual about that you ask? It was one of those rare baseball games when neither team scores an earned run. The Twins used two pitchers and the Tigers had four hurlers take the mound. Since 2001 this has occurred to the Twins just three times and two of the three occurrences were against the Detroit Tigers. Box Score

2011 – The Tampa Rays beat the Twins 8-2 in Target Field on a cold blustery night in a game that we attended. The temperature at the start of the game was 40 degrees with a stiff 17 MPH northerly wind blowing in from left field. Shortly after the game began, the snow started falling and flurries lasted the entire game making Target Field look like a giant snow globe. The Twins played Christmas carols as the game went along and a fan that came to the game dressed as jolly old St. Nick danced in the stands. It was a weird day at the old ballpark to be sure. I even over-heard some fans saying that the Metrodome wasn’t all that bad……… Box Score . Kind of like today I guess.

Don’t forget to check back on the today in Twins history page every day, there is a lot of cool info out there.

The Twins trials and tribulations with finding starting pitching

The Minnesota Twins have a long history of problems developing starting pitching. Using 100 starts as a barometer, since 1961 the Twins have signed and developed just 11 pitchers in their system that have gone on to get 100 or more starts in a Twins uniform. The only first round pick in the bunch is Pete Redfern, three round tw0 picks, two round three picks, one fourth round pick, one fifth round pick, Brad Radke was an eighth round pick, one 29th round pick and an amateur free agent (Dave Boswell).

Since the June amateur free agent draft started in 1965 the Twins have drafted 31 pitchers in round 1 or as round 1 supplementary/compensation picks. Actually part of the Twins issues with starting pitching relates to spending money or the lack there of. The first two right-handed pitchers drafted by the Twins in round 1 were Dick Ruthven in 1972 and Tim Belcher (first overall pick) in 1983 who both refused to sign with Minnesota and went on to have long careers in MLB. The first left-handed pitcher drafted in round 1 to start any games was Eddie Bane and his Twins career lasted 25 starts. As I mentioned earlier, the draft started in 1965 but the Twins only drafted starting pitching in round 1 twice (Ruthven in 1972 and Bane in 1973) between 1965-1981. The first RHP that they drafted in round 1 that actually started a number of games (45 in Twins career) was Willie Banks who the team drafted in 1987. Since 2000 they have drafted a pitcher in round 1 a total of 17 times.

Starting pitching signed and developed by the Twins since 1961

Brad Radke
Rk Player GS From To Age G W L IP ERA
1. Brad Radke 377 1995 2006 22-33 378 148 139 2451.0 4.22
2. Bert Blyleven 345 1970 1988 19-37 348 149 138 2566.2 3.28
3. Frank Viola 259 1982 1989 22-29 260 112 93 1772.2 3.86
4. Dave Goltz 215 1972 1979 23-30 247 96 79 1638.0 3.48
5. Scott Baker 159 2005 2011 23-29 163 63 48 958.0 4.15
6. Scott Erickson 153 1990 1995 22-27 155 61 60 979.1 4.22
7. Dave Boswell 150 1964 1970 19-25 187 67 54 1036.1 3.49
8. Nick Blackburn 137 2007 2012 25-30 145 43 55 818.2 4.85
9. Allan Anderson 128 1986 1991 22-27 148 49 54 818.2 4.11
10. Pete Redfern 111 1976 1982 21-27 170 42 48 714.0 4.54
11. Roger Erickson 106 1978 1982 21-25 114 31 47 712.0 4.10
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 12/20/2016.

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If you can’t find, sign, and develop your starting pitching, you only have a few options at your disposal, you could make a trade, you can sign a free agent, or you can find one on the waiver wire (ha, ha, ha). 

The option I want to write about here is the Twins attempts to trade for starting pitching since the turn of the century, a total of 17 years. Trading for starters hasn’t exactly gone as planned either.

The Nats are the first team since the ’06 Twins to do what?

There is a nice piece over at MLB.com that you might enjoy taking a look at called “The Nats are the first team since the ’06 Twins to have a finalist for all four major BBWAA awards“. If you have a few minutes, check it out. The Twins traded or fired all four.

Twins masters of the pickoff

In baseball, a pickoff is an act by a pitcher, throwing a live ball to a fielder so that the fielder can tag out a baserunner who is either leading off or about to begin stealing the next base.

Twins career leaders in pickoffs

Frank Viola

Rk Player PO G W L W-L% SV IP ERA BF
1 Frank Viola 27 260 112 93 .546 0 1772.2 3.86 7450
2 Jerry Koosman 24 94 39 35 .527 7 601.1 3.77 2527
3 Mark Guthrie 20 240 29 27 .518 8 489.2 4.19 2101
4 Francisco Liriano 17 156 50 52 .490 1 783.1 4.33 3341
5 Roger Erickson 17 114 31 47 .397 0 712.0 4.10 3074
6 Allan Anderson 15 148 49 54 .476 0 818.2 4.11 3474
7 Dave Goltz 15 247 96 79 .549 3 1638.0 3.48 6887
8 Johan Santana 14 251 93 44 .679 1 1308.2 3.22 5281
9 Geoff Zahn 14 133 53 53 .500 0 852.0 3.90 3621
10 Jim Kaat 14 468 189 152 .554 5 2959.1 3.28 12385
11 Bert Blyleven 11 348 149 138 .519 0 2566.2 3.28 10542
12 Vic Albury 11 101 18 17 .514 1 372.2 4.11 1630
13 Jim Merritt 11 122 37 41 .474 6 686.2 3.03 2760
14 Jim Perry 10 376 128 90 .587 5 1883.1 3.15 7791
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 10/13/2016.
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Some interesting pickoff tidbits

Four time Cy Young award winner and Hall of Famer Steve Carlton pitched for the Minnesota Twins in a total of just eight games in his short stint in Minnesota in 1987-1988 and he had one pickoff and that was the last one in his illustrious career in which he picked off a MLB career leading 144 runners.

Tippy Martinez pitched for Minnesota in his final season in the big leagues in 1988 after pitching for the Yankees in 1974-1976 and the Orioles in 1976-1986. According to Wikipedia:

“Martinez may be best known for picking off three Toronto Blue Jays at first base in one inning during an August 24, 1983 game at Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium. The Orioles, having replaced both their starting catcher and his backup while rallying to tie the game in the ninth inning, entered the tenth with reserve infielder Lenn Sakata in the game at catcher. Three consecutive Blue Jays hitters reached first base and each one, thinking it would be easy to steal a base on Sakata, took a big lead. Martinez picked off all three baserunners, then became the winning pitcher when the Orioles won the game on Sakata’s home run in the bottom of the tenth.”

Korean pitcher ordered to do community service for firing a pickoff throw at opponent’s head.

In 2014 Jon Lester of the Red Sox finishes his year having faced 346 batters with at least one runner on base, yet without having attempted a single pickoff throw.

Did you remember back to when Twins pitchers batted?

The Designated Hitter rule came into play in the American League for the first time in 1973 and pitchers in the AL had to put their bats into storage where they still sit today. Since 1973 very few AL pitchers have had to dust off  and apply pine tar to their bats before walking to home plate to try to get some wood on the ball.

Do you know what pitcher got the last hit for the Minnesota Twins before the DH cane into play? How about that last Twins pitcher to bat before the DH?

I guess it was fitting that a Minnesota native Dave Goltz would be the last Twins pitcher to bat at Met Stadium before pitchers were told not to bother to bring their bats to spring training the following season. But back to the last Twins pitcher to get a hit before the DH, it happened in the same game that Goltz had the last pitcher’s at bat in front of only 3,193 fans at Met Stadium. This pitcher finished his 1972 season with a .160 average which was a career best and six RBI. Two of those six RBI came in that last at bat when he hit a double and had two RBI off Chicago White Sox pitcher Dan Neumeier to make the score Twins 10 and the mighty whitey’s 0 in the top of the fifth inning. So who was this guy? You might be surprised. But if you can’t figure it out at least take a guess and then you can look it up in the box score.

Bobby Korecky
Bobby Korecky

After the 1972 season Twins pitchers never got a hit again outside of any post season action until 1997 when Interleague play was introduced. With Interleague play pitchers once again batted in NL parks but the DH was still in play in AL parks. There was one game since the DH started that a Twins pitcher came to bat in a home game and actually had a hit and that was Bobby Korecky back on May 19, 2008 in a four hour 12 inning marathon against the Texas Rangers.

Here is a list of Twins pitchers that have gotten hits since the DH came on the scene in 1973

Rk Player Date Tm Opp Rslt PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI
1 Kyle Gibson 2015-06-16 MIN STL L 2-3 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
2 Mike Pelfrey 2015-05-20 MIN PIT W 4-3 2 2 0 2 0 0 0 0
3 Kevin Correia 2014-07-12 MIN COL W 9-3 3 3 0 1 1 0 0 1
4 Kyle Gibson 2014-06-02 MIN MIL L 2-6 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
5 Scott Diamond 2013-06-26 MIN MIA L 3-5 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
6 Scott Diamond 2012-05-18 MIN MIL W 11-3 3 3 1 1 0 0 0 0
7 Scott Baker 2011-06-24 MIN MIL L 3-4 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
8 Francisco Liriano 2011-05-22 MIN ARI L 2-3 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 1
9 Scott Baker 2011-05-21 MIN ARI L 6-9 2 2 0 1 1 0 0 0
10 Carl Pavano 2010-06-26 MIN NYM W 6-0 4 3 0 2 0 0 0 0
11 Carl Pavano 2010-06-20 MIN PHI W 4-1 4 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
12 Scott Baker 2008-06-26 MIN SDP W 4-3 3 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
13 Kevin Slowey 2008-06-13 MIN MIL W 10-2 4 4 1 2 1 0 0 2
14 Bobby Korecky 2008-05-19 MIN TEX W 7-6 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
15 Livan Hernandez 2008-05-17 MIN COL L 2-3 3 2 0 1 0 0 0 1
16 Nick Blackburn 2008-05-16 MIN COL W 4-2 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
17 Johan Santana 2007-06-24 MIN FLA W 7-4 3 3 1 1 0 1 0 1
18 Johan Santana 2007-06-19 MIN NYM W 9-0 5 4 1 1 1 0 0 0
19 Carlos Silva 2006-06-21 MIN HOU L 3-5 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
20 Francisco Liriano 2006-05-19 MIN MIL W 7-1 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 1
21 Joe Mays 2005-06-10 MIN LAD L 5-6 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
22 Johan Santana 2005-06-08 MIN ARI W 10-0 4 4 1 1 0 0 0 0
23 Johan Santana 2004-06-20 MIN MIL W 4-2 4 4 0 2 0 0 0 1
24 Johan Santana 2004-06-15 MIN MON W 8-2 4 4 0 1 0 0 0 1
25 Kyle Lohse 2003-06-21 MIN MIL L 1-8 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
26 Brad Radke 2003-06-20 MIN MIL L 2-3 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
27 Johan Santana 2003-06-07 MIN SDP W 6-2 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
28 Joe Mays 2003-06-03 MIN SFG W 6-4 3 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
29 Johan Santana 2002-06-23 MIN PHI W 5-1 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
30 Kyle Lohse 2002-06-16 MIN MIL W 7-6 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
31 Eric Milton 2002-06-15 MIN MIL W 5-2 4 4 0 2 0 0 0 1
32 Rick Reed 2002-06-14 MIN MIL L 5-7 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
33 Brad Radke 2001-07-13 MIN MIL L 3-6 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
34 Kyle Lohse 2001-07-12 MIN MIL W 13-5 4 4 0 2 1 0 0 1
35 Brad Radke 2001-06-17 MIN CHC L 4-5 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
36 Juan Rincon 2001-06-16 MIN CHC L 4-11 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
37 J.C. Romero 2001-06-15 MIN CHC L 3-5 2 2 1 1 1 0 0 0
38 Joe Mays 2000-07-07 MIN PIT L 6-8 2 1 1 1 1 0 0 0
39 Sean Bergman 2000-06-03 MIN CIN L 3-9 2 2 0 1 1 0 0 0
40 Joe Mays 2000-06-02 MIN CIN L 3-4 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
41 Dan Perkins 1999-06-11 MIN MIL W 9-7 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
42 Eric Milton 1998-07-02 MIN CIN L 7-8 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
43 Eric Milton 1998-06-22 MIN HOU W 5-3 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 1
44 Eric Milton 1998-06-06 MIN PIT L 3-4 3 3 0 2 0 0 0 0
45 Mike Morgan 1998-06-05 MIN PIT L 1-6 2 2 1 1 0 0 0 0
46 Bob Tewksbury 1997-09-02 MIN CHC L 3-9 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1
47 Rich Robertson 1997-06-14 MIN HOU W 6-1 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 1/2/2016.

Note that in 2009 Twins pitchers had no hits. Twins pitchers also had no hits between 1973 and 1996 although four pitchers had plate appearances, but sadly they all culminated with a strike out.

No-hitters and near no-hitters in Twins history

No-hitterSince the Twins started play in April of 1961 there have been 148 complete game no-hitters thrown in the majors, Minnesota Twins pitchers have thrown five of them.

Rk Player Date Opp Rslt App,Dec IP R BB SO Pit BF
1 Francisco Liriano 2011-05-03 CHW W 1-0 SHO9, W 9.0 0 6 2 123 30
2 Eric Milton 1999-09-11 ANA W 7-0 SHO9, W 9.0 0 2 13 122 28
3 Scott Erickson 1994-04-27 MIL W 6-0 SHO9, W 9.0 0 4 5 128 31
4 Dean Chance 1967-08-25 (2) CLE W 2-1 CG 9, W 9.0 1 5 8 31
6 Jack Kralick 1962-08-26 KCA W 1-0 SHO9, W 9.0 0 1 3 28

During that same time frame (1961-present) MLB pitchers have thrown 534 complete game one-hitters and came with-in spitting distance of getting their name on the no-hitter list. Eleven different Twins pitchers accomplished that feat and Bert Blyleven did it three times in a Twins uniform.

Bert Blyleven
Bert Blyleven
Rk Player Date Opp Rslt App,Dec IP H R BB SO Pit BF
1 Scott Baker 2007-08-31 (2) KCR W 5-0 SHO9, W 9.0 1 0 1 9 111 29
2 Scott Erickson 1992-07-24 (1) BOS W 5-0 SHO9, W 9.0 1 0 2 3 106 30
3 Ken Schrom 1985-06-26 KCR W 2-1 CG 9, W 9.0 1 1 5 4 32
4 Geoff Zahn 1980-06-06 TOR W 5-0 SHO9, W 9.0 1 0 3 6 32
5 Dave Goltz 1977-08-23 BOS W 7-0 SHO9, W 9.0 1 0 3 10 32
6 Bert Blyleven 1974-07-04 TEX W 3-1 CG 9, W 9.0 1 1 4 6 32
7 Bert Blyleven 1973-09-26 OAK W 4-1 CG 9, W 9.0 1 1 1 8 29
8 Jim Kaat 1973-07-01 CAL W 2-1 CG 9, W 9.0 1 1 0 7 29
9 Bert Blyleven 1973-05-24 KCR W 2-0 SHO9, W 9.0 1 0 2 7 30
10 Dean Chance 1967-05-11 KCA W 8-0 SHO9, W 9.0 1 0 6 8 34
11 Dave Boswell 1966-07-30 BAL W 7-0 SHO9, W 9.0 1 0 1 11 30
12 Mudcat Grant 1965-09-25 (1) WSA W 5-0 SHO9, W 9.0 1 0 2 7 30
13 Gerry Arrigo 1964-06-26 (1) CHW W 2-0 SHO9, W 9.0 1 0 1 8 31

In 55 seasons of play the Twins have had one or fewer hits in a game 36 times and on five of those occasions they were not able to muster even a single hit. This past season the Twins had only a single hit in a game three times which tied them with 1980 when they also were one-hit three times.

Rk Date Opp Rslt PA R H BB SO LOB GmLen
1 2015-08-14 CLE L 1-6 28 1 1 1 7 0 146
2 2015-07-31 SEA L 1-6 30 1 1 1 11 2 143
3 2015-06-09 KCR L 0-2 31 0 1 4 5 4 170
4 2013-05-24 DET L 0-6 31 0 1 3 12 4 155
5 2012-05-05 SEA L 0-7 30 0 1 2 10 3 153
6 2012-05-02 LAA L 0-9 29 0 0 1 9 2 148
7 2011-09-05 (2) CHW L 0-4 28 0 1 0 9 1 146
8 2011-04-02 TOR L 1-6 30 1 1 4 7 2 150
9 2010-08-23 TEX L 0-4 32 0 1 6 9 5 160
10 2008-05-06 CHW L 1-7 32 1 1 3 5 4 147
11 2005-08-23 CHW W 1-0 27 1 1 2 3 2 128
12 2000-08-01 BAL L 0-10 32 0 1 2 15 5 173
13 1998-07-16 SEA L 0-3 31 0 1 3 11 4 151
14 1998-05-17 NYY L 0-4 27 0 0 0 11 0 160
15 1988-05-21 TEX L 0-3 30 0 1 2 2 3 139
16 1987-06-26 TEX L 0-1 31 0 1 6 7 4 146
17 1985-08-19 MIL L 1-4 29 1 1 0 8 1 138
18 1985-07-14 DET L 0-8 31 0 1 3 7 4 148
19 1982-09-28 (1) TOR L 0-3 28 0 1 1 2 1 93
20 1982-09-04 BAL L 0-3 30 0 1 2 7 3 123
21 1980-10-05 KCR L 0-4 32 0 1 3 2 5 125
22 1980-08-21 (2) DET L 2-4 31 2 1 3 6 2 127
23 1980-04-23 CAL L 0-17 33 0 1 4 1 6 161
24 1976-08-10 BAL L 0-2 29 0 1 1 5 2 127
25 1976-06-14 BOS L 0-5 30 0 1 4 2 3 140
26 1974-09-28 CAL L 0-4 35 0 0 8 15 8 142
27 1970-09-21 OAK L 0-6 28 0 0 1 9 1 141
28 1970-08-13 WSA L 0-1 28 0 1 1 7 1 122
29 1969-08-10 BAL L 0-2 31 0 1 3 8 4 118
30 1969-05-15 BAL L 0-5 29 0 1 2 6 2 141
31 1968-05-08 OAK L 0-4 27 0 0 0 11 0 148
32 1967-04-30 (2) WSA L 0-3 29 0 1 2 0 2 120
33 1964-09-06 BOS W 2-1 27 2 1 1 4 1 125
34 1964-09-02 BAL L 0-2 29 0 1 1 10 2 134
35 1962-09-10 LAA L 0-5 31 0 1 2 9 4 128
36 1961-09-24 WSA L 1-4 30 1 1 2 6 2 140
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 11/20/2015.

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A great summary of near no-hitters by Stew Thornley called Lost in the Ninth.

Twins and post season play

As 2014 is coming to an end it is a good time to look back on another Twins season, their fourth in a row without post season play. But you have to be a winner to make post season play and the Twins have been anything but a winner the last few years. It has been a toss-up when you try to determine who has been more inept, the Twins players on the field or the ownership and Twins executives that sit behind their desks and make the decisions that determine the experience that Twins fans will have to live with during the up-coming season.

The Twins have had many losing seasons over the years and the real core Twins fans complained but they accepted the team they had and they looked forward to the next season with renewed hope for more wins “next year”. But it is seems different now, I am not sure why, maybe the fans are more passionate, maybe it is social media that allows Twins fans to better express their frustrations but today’s Twins fans are just plain mad and disgusted with the caliber of play their home team has displayed since the 2010 ended. Hopefully the Minnesota Twins organization feels some of the passion that Twins fans have and will start to look at the product from the fans perspective and see what they can do to make the fans experience a little more fun and and not so tough on the wallet.

Since the Washington Senators moved to Minnesota after the 1960 season and became the Minnesota Twins the team has played 8,617 regular season games, winning 4,274, losing 4,335 and playing to a tie on eight occasions in 54 seasons of play. Boy, how time flies by, I still remember that 1961 season.

Looking back at Twins history they have two World Series winners and a third World Series appearance in which they lost game seven to Sandy Koufax and the Los Angeles Dodgers. In addition to the 8,617 regular season games the team has played a total of 64 post season games winning 25 and losing 39. Their last post season appearance was in 2010 and that brief playoff run lasted just three games when they were swept by the New York Yankees 3 games to zip. The teams last post season win was back in 2004 (if I am not mistaken that is about 10 years ago, YIKES!) when they beat the Yankees in game 1 of the ALDS series before losing the next three games.

So let’s take a look at the hitting and pitching statistics of the Minnesota Twins in post season play. Let’s see who stood out under the bright lights of post season play and who couldn’t or didn’t deliver when the pressure was on. The names you will see below will bring back many memories, some good, some bad, some sad and in some cases you will say “who in the hell is so and so, I don’t remember him”. But it is fun looking back.

 Hitting in Post Season (had at least one PA)

Rk Player #Matching PA ? AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP OPS SB
1 Dan Gladden 24 115 104 17 29 6 3 1 15 9 12 .279 .348 .771 7
2 Kirby Puckett 24 109 97 16 30 3 2 5 15 8 17 .309 .361 .897 3
3 Kent Hrbek 24 103 91 10 14 1 0 3 12 11 12 .154 .252 .516 0
4 Greg Gagne 24 96 89 12 19 5 0 4 10 5 22 .213 .271 .675 0
5 Torii Hunter 21 88 80 15 24 8 1 3 8 5 11 .300 .337 .875 2
6 Jacque Jones 18 79 76 6 15 5 0 2 5 1 23 .197 .215 .557 0
7 Michael Cuddyer 21 78 74 5 25 2 1 2 8 4 18 .338 .372 .845 0
8 Corey Koskie 18 78 67 8 15 4 1 1 9 7 21 .224 .321 .679 0
9 Cristian Guzman 18 75 67 9 16 3 0 1 2 5 12 .239 .301 .630 3
10 Doug Mientkiewicz 14 56 53 4 12 1 0 2 6 3 5 .226 .268 .626 0
11 Chuck Knoblauch 12 55 46 8 15 3 0 0 5 7 5 .326 .407 .799 6
12 Harmon Killebrew 13 54 40 6 10 1 0 3 6 14 10 .250 .444 .944 0
13 Tony Oliva 13 53 51 7 16 5 0 3 5 2 10 .314 .340 .928 1
14 Gary Gaetti 12 53 47 9 13 3 1 3 9 3 8 .277 .340 .914 2
15 A.J. Pierzynski 14 50 45 6 14 0 1 2 7 4 4 .311 .360 .849 0
16 Tom Brunansky 12 50 42 10 12 4 0 2 11 8 7 .286 .400 .924 1
17 Shane Mack 11 44 41 4 9 2 1 0 4 2 11 .220 .250 .567 2
18 Luis Rivas 14 43 38 3 6 1 0 0 1 2 9 .158 .195 .379 0
19 Tim Laudner 12 43 36 5 8 2 0 1 6 7 9 .222 .349 .710 0
20 Chili Davis 11 42 35 7 9 2 0 2 6 7 11 .257 .381 .867 1
21 Brian Harper 11 41 39 3 13 4 0 0 2 2 4 .333 .366 .802 0
22 Joe Mauer 9 39 35 1 10 1 0 0 1 4 7 .286 .359 .673 0
23 Shannon Stewart 8 38 35 1 10 2 0 0 2 2 6 .286 .316 .659 1
24 Steve Lombardozzi 11 37 32 5 11 1 0 1 5 4 4 .344 .417 .885 0
25 Jason Kubel 8 32 29 0 2 1 0 0 0 3 13 .069 .156 .260 0
26 Bob Allison 10 30 26 3 2 1 0 1 3 3 10 .077 .167 .397 1
27 Zoilo Versalles 7 30 28 3 8 1 1 1 4 2 7 .286 .333 .833 1
28 David Ortiz 9 29 29 0 8 3 0 0 4 0 10 .276 .276 .655 0
29 Justin Morneau 7 29 29 4 9 3 0 2 4 0 3 .310 .310 .931 0
30 Mike Pagliarulo 11 28 26 5 8 1 0 2 5 1 4 .308 .333 .910 0
31 Matt LeCroy 10 28 26 2 7 0 0 0 1 2 9 .269 .321 .591 0
32 Denard Span 6 28 28 1 10 1 0 0 1 0 2 .357 .357 .750 1
33 Delmon Young 6 27 24 2 5 1 1 0 0 2 6 .208 .296 .630 1
34 Cesar Tovar 6 27 26 2 6 0 1 0 1 1 2 .231 .259 .567 1
35 Randy Bush 11 26 22 5 5 1 1 0 4 3 4 .227 .308 .671 3
36 Frank Quilici 9 26 22 2 4 2 0 0 1 4 4 .182 .308 .580 0
37 Leo Cardenas 6 26 24 1 4 0 1 0 1 1 8 .167 .200 .450 0
38 Don Mincher 7 25 23 3 3 0 0 1 1 2 7 .130 .200 .461 0
39 Earl Battey 7 25 25 1 3 0 1 0 2 0 5 .120 .120 .320 0
40 Nick Punto 6 25 21 0 6 1 0 0 1 3 2 .286 .375 .708 0
41 Don Baylor 7 21 18 3 7 0 0 1 4 1 1 .389 .476 1.032 0
42 Joe Nossek 6 21 20 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 .200 .200 .400 0
43 Rich Reese 5 21 19 0 3 0 0 0 2 2 2 .158 .238 .396 0
44 Scott Leius 9 20 18 2 5 0 0 1 2 2 3 .278 .350 .794 0
45 Rod Carew 5 17 16 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 5 .063 .118 .180 0
46 George Mitterwald 4 16 15 2 5 1 0 0 2 1 5 .333 .375 .775 0
47 Dustan Mohr 7 15 14 4 7 2 0 0 0 1 4 .500 .533 1.176 1
48 Orlando Cabrera 3 15 13 1 2 0 0 0 0 2 3 .154 .267 .421 1
49 Lew Ford 4 14 12 1 3 1 0 0 2 0 3 .250 .357 .690 1
50 Luis Castillo 3 14 11 0 3 0 0 0 0 3 3 .273 .429 .701 0
51 Jim Thome 3 13 10 2 1 0 0 0 0 2 3 .100 .308 .408 0
52 Orlando Hudson 3 13 12 2 4 0 0 1 2 0 2 .333 .333 .917 0
53 Gene Larkin 12 12 11 1 3 1 0 0 2 1 1 .273 .333 .697 0
54 Rondell White 3 12 12 1 5 1 0 1 2 0 0 .417 .417 1.167 0
55 Brendan Harris 3 12 12 1 3 0 1 0 1 0 3 .250 .250 .667 0
56 Al Newman 6 11 9 0 2 0 1 0 1 1 1 .222 .300 .744 0
57 Sandy Valdespino 5 11 11 1 3 1 0 0 0 0 1 .273 .273 .636 0
58 Danny Valencia 3 11 9 1 2 1 0 0 2 1 3 .222 .273 .606 0
59 Jason Bartlett 3 11 11 0 3 1 0 0 0 0 2 .273 .273 .636 0
60 Henry Blanco 4 10 8 1 2 0 0 1 2 0 2 .250 .222 .847 0
61 J.J. Hardy 3 10 10 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 .100 .100 .300 0
62 Danny Thompson 3 9 8 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 .125 .222 .472 0
63 Mudcat Grant 3 9 8 3 2 1 0 1 3 0 1 .250 .250 1.000 0
64 Brant Alyea 3 9 7 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 .000 .222 .222 0
65 Bobby Kielty 7 8 7 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 3 .000 .125 .125 0
66 Junior Ortiz 4 8 8 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 .125 .125 .250 0
67 Jason Tyner 2 8 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 .000 .250 .250 1
68 Jimmie Hall 2 8 7 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 5 .143 .250 .393 0
69 Jim Kaat 4 7 7 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 6 .143 .143 .286 0
70 Rick Renick 3 6 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .167 .167 .333 0
71 Denny Hocking 3 6 6 0 3 1 0 0 1 0 1 .500 .500 1.167 0
72 Ted Uhlaender 2 6 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167 .167 .333 0
73 Matt Tolbert 2 6 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .200 .333 .533 0
74 Carlos Gomez 1 6 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 .000 .333 .333 0
75 John Roseboro 2 5 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 .200 .400 0
76 Jim Holt 2 5 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 .000 .000 0
77 Paul Sorrento 4 4 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000 .250 .250 0
78 Roy Smalley 4 4 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 .500 .750 1.750 0
79 Jim Perry 2 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 .000 .000 .000 0
80 Paul Ratliff 1 4 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .250 .250 .500 0
81 Dave Boswell 1 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 .000 .000 .000 0
82 Rich Rollins 3 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000 .333 .333 0
83 Jose Offerman 3 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .000 .000 .000 0
84 Tom Prince 2 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 .000 .000 0
85 Phil Nevin 1 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 0
86 Jose Morales 1 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 .000 .000 0
87 Sal Butera 1 3 3 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .667 .667 1.333 0
88 Charlie Manuel 2 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 .000 .500 .500 0
89 Les Straker 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 .000 .000 0
90 Jack Morris 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 .000 .000 0
91 Jarvis Brown 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 0
92 Pat Borders 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 .000 .000 0
93 Bert Blyleven 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 .000 .000 0
94 Jerry Zimmerman 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 0
95 Dick Woodson 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 1.000 2.000 0
96 Stan Williams 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1.000 0
97 Frank Viola 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 .000 .000 0
98 Kevin Tapani 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 0
99 Mike Ryan 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 .000 .000 0
100 Ron Perranoski 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 0
101 Camilo Pascual 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 0
102 Graig Nettles 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 1.000 2.000 0
103 Tom Hall 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 .000 .000 0
104 Scott Erickson 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 .000 .000 0
105 Mark Davidson 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 0
106 Rick Aguilera 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 0
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 12/17/2014.

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Pitching in Post Season (faced at least one batter)

Rk Player #Matching W L W-L% ERA GS CG SHO SV IP ? H ER HR BB SO WHIP
1 Jack Morris 5 4 0 1.000 2.23 5 1 1 0 36.1 35 9 1 10 22 1.24
2 Brad Radke 6 2 3 .400 3.60 6 0 0 0 35.0 37 14 6 8 17 1.29
3 Johan Santana 11 1 3 .250 3.97 5 0 0 0 34.0 35 15 2 10 32 1.32
4 Frank Viola 5 3 1 .750 4.31 5 0 0 0 31.1 31 15 3 8 25 1.24
5 Bert Blyleven 5 3 1 .750 3.18 4 0 0 0 28.1 27 10 3 5 23 1.13
6 Mudcat Grant 3 2 1 .667 2.74 3 2 0 0 23.0 22 7 3 2 12 1.04
7 Kevin Tapani 4 1 2 .333 6.04 4 0 0 0 22.1 29 15 1 5 16 1.52
8 Jim Perry 5 0 1 .000 6.75 2 0 0 0 17.1 21 13 6 6 10 1.56
9 Joe Mays 3 1 1 .500 4.76 3 0 0 0 17.0 21 9 4 2 4 1.35
10 Jim Kaat 4 1 3 .250 4.41 4 1 0 0 16.1 24 8 1 4 7 1.71
11 Eric Milton 3 1 0 1.000 1.65 2 0 0 0 16.1 13 3 2 3 9 0.98
12 Scott Erickson 3 0 0 4.91 3 0 0 0 14.2 13 8 4 9 7 1.50
13 Dave Boswell 2 0 1 .000 1.35 1 0 0 0 13.1 10 2 0 9 7 1.43
14 Carl Pavano 2 0 2 .000 4.15 2 0 0 0 13.0 15 6 3 1 12 1.23
15 Carl Willis 7 0 0 2.92 0 0 0 0 12.1 8 4 2 2 5 0.81
16 Kyle Lohse 5 0 2 .000 3.00 1 0 0 0 12.0 9 4 1 2 14 0.92
17 Les Straker 3 0 0 6.94 3 0 0 0 11.2 12 9 1 7 7 1.63
18 Rick Reed 3 0 2 .000 8.18 2 0 0 0 11.0 15 10 6 2 8 1.55
19 Juan Berenguer 7 0 1 .000 5.23 0 0 0 1 10.1 11 6 1 3 7 1.35
20 Jeff Reardon 8 1 1 .500 2.70 0 0 0 3 10.0 12 3 1 3 8 1.50
21 J.C. Romero 12 0 1 .000 5.59 0 0 0 0 9.2 10 6 1 6 7 1.66
22 Juan Rincon 8 0 0 5.19 0 0 0 0 8.2 6 5 1 6 9 1.38
23 Dan Schatzeder 5 1 0 1.000 3.12 0 0 0 0 8.2 6 3 0 3 8 1.04
24 Rick Aguilera 7 1 1 .500 1.08 0 0 0 5 8.1 7 1 0 1 6 0.96
25 Brian Duensing 2 0 2 .000 11.25 2 0 0 0 8.0 14 10 2 2 4 2.00
26 Joe Nathan 6 0 1 .000 4.70 0 0 0 1 7.2 8 4 1 6 9 1.83
27 Francisco Liriano 2 0 0 5.87 1 0 0 0 7.2 7 5 1 4 8 1.43
28 Ron Perranoski 5 0 1 .000 10.29 0 0 0 0 7.0 13 8 0 1 5 2.00
29 LaTroy Hawkins 10 1 0 1.000 6.75 0 0 0 0 6.2 9 5 0 1 11 1.50
30 Mark Guthrie 6 1 1 .500 1.35 0 0 0 0 6.2 3 1 0 4 3 1.05
31 Tom Hall 3 0 1 .000 6.00 1 0 0 0 6.0 6 4 1 4 6 1.67
32 Stan Williams 2 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 6.0 2 0 0 1 2 0.50
33 Boof Bonser 1 0 0 3.00 1 0 0 0 6.0 7 2 0 1 3 1.33
34 David West 4 1 0 1.000 6.35 0 0 0 0 5.2 3 4 1 8 4 1.94
35 Nick Blackburn 1 0 0 1.59 1 0 0 0 5.2 3 1 0 2 3 0.88
36 Al Worthington 3 0 0 1.69 0 0 0 0 5.1 5 1 0 2 3 1.31
37 Eddie Guardado 5 0 0 9.00 0 0 0 3 5.0 10 5 2 2 5 2.40
38 Carlos Silva 1 0 1 .000 10.80 1 0 0 0 5.0 10 6 1 0 1 2.00
39 Camilo Pascual 1 0 1 .000 5.40 1 0 0 0 5.0 8 3 0 1 0 1.80
40 Matt Guerrier 5 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 4.2 1 0 0 1 4 0.43
41 Steve Bedrosian 5 0 0 3.86 0 0 0 0 4.2 6 2 0 2 4 1.71
42 Jim Merritt 2 0 0 2.70 0 0 0 0 3.1 2 1 0 0 1 0.60
43 Jon Rauch 5 0 0 3.00 0 0 0 0 3.0 1 1 0 2 1 1.00
44 Terry Mulholland 1 0 0 3.00 0 0 0 0 3.0 3 1 1 0 0 1.00
45 Dick Woodson 2 0 0 10.12 0 0 0 0 2.2 5 3 0 4 2 3.38
46 Johnny Klippstein 2 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 2.2 2 0 0 2 3 1.50
47 Brian Fuentes 2 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 2.2 1 0 0 0 2 0.38
48 Grant Balfour 2 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 2.2 0 0 0 0 2 0.00
49 Terry Leach 2 0 0 3.86 0 0 0 0 2.1 2 1 0 0 2 0.86
50 Scott Baker 1 0 0 3.86 0 0 0 0 2.1 3 1 1 0 2 1.29
51 Jose Mijares 5 0 1 .000 4.50 0 0 0 0 2.0 1 1 1 2 0 1.50
52 Joe Niekro 1 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 2.0 1 0 0 1 1 1.00
53 George Frazier 1 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 2.0 1 0 0 0 2 0.50
54 Dean Chance 1 0 0 13.50 0 0 0 0 2.0 4 3 1 0 2 2.00
55 Michael Jackson 4 0 0 16.20 0 0 0 0 1.2 6 3 0 2 2 4.80
56 Jesse Crain 4 0 1 .000 16.20 0 0 0 0 1.2 7 3 2 1 1 4.80
57 Ron Mahay 3 0 0 5.40 0 0 0 0 1.2 0 1 0 1 2 0.60
58 Keith Atherton 3 0 0 5.40 0 0 0 0 1.2 1 1 0 1 0 1.20
59 Bob Miller 1 0 1 .000 5.40 1 0 0 0 1.2 5 1 0 0 0 3.00
60 Bill Zepp 2 0 0 6.75 0 0 0 0 1.1 2 1 1 2 2 3.00
61 Kenny Rogers 1 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 1.1 1 0 0 1 3 1.50
62 Tony Fiore 1 0 0 20.25 0 0 0 0 1.1 4 3 0 2 0 4.50
63 Bob Wells 2 0 0 9.00 0 0 0 0 1.0 2 1 0 0 2 2.00
64 Dennys Reyes 2 0 0 9.00 0 0 0 0 1.0 1 1 1 2 0 3.00
65 Pat Neshek 2 0 1 .000 9.00 0 0 0 0 1.0 1 1 0 0 1 1.00
66 Bill Pleis 1 0 0 9.00 0 0 0 0 1.0 2 1 1 0 0 2.00
67 Matt Capps 1 0 0 9.00 0 0 0 0 1.0 2 1 0 0 0 2.00
68 Luis Tiant 1 0 0 13.50 0 0 0 0 0.2 1 1 1 0 0 1.50
69 Joe Grzenda 1 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 0.2 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
70 Glen Perkins 1 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 0 0.1 2 0 0 0 0 6.00
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 12/17/2014.

Since the Twins started play in 1961 through the 2014 season a total of 751 players have put on a Minnesota Twins uniform and appeared in a game either as a hitter or a pitcher. Only 162 of them or 21.57% have appeared in a Twins post season game over the 54 seasons the Twins have called Minnesota home.

Vargas and Berrios 2014 minor league players of the year

Kennys Vargas the 24 year-old 1B/DH has been named the Twins Minor League Player of the Year (Sherry Robertson Award) and Jose Berrios a 20 year-old right-handed pitcher has been named as the Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year (Jim Rantz Award).

Kennys Vargas
Kennys Vargas

Vargas was called up by the Twins on July 31 from New Britain and made his major league debut at U.S. Cellular Field on his 24th birthday on August 1 going 1 for 5 with a run scored and two RBI. Vargas has been with the Twins ever since and appears to be a fixture in the Twins line-up for years to come. Between New Britain and his stint in Minnesota Vargas as hit 26 home runs this season. The switch-hitting Vargas is probably going to get some games in at first base but his primary role with the Twins will be at DH.

Berrios is on the fast track to Minnesota, the 20 year-old started the season going 9-3 with a 1.96 ERA for the Ft. Myers Miracle before being bumped up to Double A New Britain where he was 3-4 with a 3.54 ERA. The Triple A Rochester club had an outside shot at making the playoffs late in the season and the Twins sent Berrios to Rochester where he started one game but came up the loser when he lasted just 3 innings and gave up 6 earned run. Berrios had a great season and the only fly in the ointment here is that he was pulled from a game late in the season with a sore arm. Berrios pitched after that episode but it is certainly something to keep an eye on. Berrios has all kinds of potential and I would hate to see some kind of an arm injury slow down his development and delay his arrival in a Twins uniform. I think that Berrios has as much or more potential than any pitcher the Twins have in their minor league system and I can’t wait to see him pitch at Target Field in as a Minnesota Twin.

Jose Berrios
Jose Berrios

I sure hope that winning the Jim Rantz award does not jinx Berrios. If Berrios checks out the previous Jim Rantz award winners, he might not show up in Minnesota in January to accept his award. Maybe the Twins should consider renaming the award instead of have it named for Jim Rantz a long time Twins executive but who was a career minor league pitcher from 1960-1964 and never got a taste of pitching in the major leagues.

Previous Jim Rantz award winners

2013 – Andrew Albers
2012 – B.J. Hermsen
2011 – Liam Hendriks
2010 – Kyle Gibson
2009 – David Bromberg
2008 – Anthony Slama
2007 – Kevin Slowey
2006 – Matt Garza
2005 – Francisco Liriano
2004 – Scott Baker
2003 – Jesse Crain
2002 – J.D. Durbin
 

Congratulations to both Kennys Vargas and Jose Berrios on their great season!