TWINS TRIVIA is hopefully a fun and informative site that will help you to better enjoy the Minnesota Twins and their wonderful history. “History never looks like history when you are living through it” – John Gardner, former Secretary of Health
Ft. Myers Miracle (High A) outfielder Brent Rooker has been named Twins minor league Player of the Week. Rooker appeared in six games for the Miracle, hitting .348 (8-for-23) with three home runs, 12 RBI and four runs scored. In 76 games between Rookie Elizabethton and Ft. Myers, Rooker has hit .262 (45-for-172) with seven doubles, 13 home runs, 38 RBI and taken 21 walks.
A 38th-round pick of the Twins last June (2016), Rooker had to give the Twins permission to select him again. Rooker, 22, the Southeastern Conference player of the year as a red shirt junior at Mississippi State, had the second-highest average exit velocity in Division 1 baseball last season, hitting .387 with 23 home runs in 67 games.
The Tennessee native was drafted by the Twins in the Competitive Balance Rd A (35th overall) in the 2017 First-Year Player Draft out of Mississippi State University. What the Twins saw from Terry Brent Rooker at the plate was enough to convince them to re-draft him at No. 35 overall on Monday. A right-handed hitter, he signed for the full slot figure of $1.935 million after a record-setting season at Mississippi State.
Mark Portugal (P) – August 14, 1985 – Signed by the Minnesota Twins as an amateur free agent on October 2, 1980. Debuted at the Dome against the Oakland A’s but came away the loser in a 7-4 game.
Brian Dozier led off Sunday’s game at Comerica Park with a homer off Matt Boyd, and the Twins went on to win, 6-4, to take the rubber game of the series. It was Dozier’s 25th home run leading off the first inning over the last five seasons, second-most in the majors behind Charlie Blackmon (27). Dozier now has 10 home runs since the All-Star break; only two other American League players have as many: Joey Gallo (11) and Nelson Cruz (11). Over the past two seasons, Dozier has 38 post-All-Star break homers; no other player has more than 31.
Justin Upton flung the ball into the air and the bat out of his hands as his second walk-off homer of the year lifted the Detroit Tigers to a 12-11 win over Minnesota at Comerica Park last night. The home run was part of a six-run comeback Detroit compiled over the final three innings to stun the hot-hitting Twins and snap their season-high six-game winning streak.
Matt Belisle
The Tigers jumped on Jose Berrios and the Twins for a 5-0 lead after just one inning of play but then Paul Molitor‘s boys came back with all their bats blazing and put up 11 of the next 12 runs between the third and sixth innings to take a commanding 11-6 lead. Matt Belisle gave up the walk-off blast by Upton but the relievers before him, Trevor Hildenberger gave up 1 run and Dillon Gee gave up 4 runs of which 3 were earned. Only Ryan Pressly went unscathed in his 2/3 of an inning.
The hitters had a night to remember, 11 runs on 19 hits and a walk, a HBP and an error thrown in for good measure. Eddie Rosario, Max Kepler and Joe Mauer all hit home runs. Everyone that stepped to the plate for Minnesota had at least one hit and Brian Dozier and Jason Castro had 3 apiece.
It is tough to lose a nine inning game when you get 19 hits and score 11 runs, how tough is it? Not counting tie games the Twins have played 9,048 games since they started play in 1061. In those 9,048 the Twins have played 66 nine inning games when they have had at least 11 hits and scored 19 or more runs, their record in those kinds of games is now 64-2.
Willie Banks
Prior to last night the only time the Twins lost a game like this was on August 4, 1992 at Comiskey Park II. The Twins must like hitting against the pitchers from Chicago’s south side as the Twins have had 12 games like this against the White Sox and won 11 of them. The one loss was that game in 1992 when the White Sox blew out the Twins 19-11. This is a game that Willie Banks will never forget, Banks pitched 1.2 inning of relief and gave up 10 earned runs after relieving Twins starter Bill Krueger who lasted just 2 innings giving up 7 earned runs. This game was a blow out from the get-go and last night game was a back and forth affair that was won with a walk-off home run. Either way you have to put a game like this in the “bad beat” category.
One player made his big league debut in a Twins uniform on August 13.
Andy Kosco (OF/1B) – August 13, 1965 – Signed as a Free Agent with the Minnesota Twins in June 1964. Debuted as a pinch-hitter in Cleveland Stadium in a 3-1 Twins defeat at the hands of the Cleveland Indians.
One major league debut in a Minnesota Twins uniform on August 12.
Bill Zepp (P) – August 12, 1969 – Signed by the Minnesota Twins as an amateur free agent in 1968. A Twins 3-2 lead at Yankee Stadium had suddenly turned into a 10-3 deficit when the Yankees scored 8 runs in the bottom of the seventh inning and Bill Zepp made his big league debut in a mop-up role throwing 1.1 scoreless innings allowing no hits or walks while striking out Thurman Munson.
Eddie Rosario delivers key blow for Twins at Detroit
Eddie Rosario
Eddie Rosario’s three-run homer in the fourth inning gave the Twins a lead that they never gave up in Minnesota’s 9-4 victory at Detroit last night. The home run was Rosario’s 15th this season, but only his second with more than one runner on base. The other three-run shot was his first homer this season, and it also came against the Tigers. Friday’s homer at Comerica Park was only Rosario’s third in a road game this season. Among the 112 major-league players with at least 15 homers this season, only one other player has hit at least 80 percent of his circuit clouts at home: Cincinnati’s Eugenio Suarez has hit 17 of his 20 home runs at Great American Ball Park.
Today’s big league debut on August 11 just pitched against the Twins a few days ago and was at one time a Twins first round selection.
Matt Garza
Matt Garza (P) – August 11, 2006 – Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 1st round (25th) of the 2005 MLB June Amateur Draft. Garza took it on the chin in his big league debut against the Blue Jays at the Dome. His start lasted just 2.2 innings (67 pitches) allowing 7 runs on 8 hits and 2 walks while striking out two batters and got pinned with the 7-1 loss.
Joe Mauer rapped out three hits in the Twins’ win over the Brewers yesterday. It was the 162nd three-hit game of Mauer’s career, third most for any Twins player since the franchise moved to Minnesota from Washington in 1961, behind Hall of Famers Rod Carew (214 three-hit games for the Twins) and Kirby Puckett (208).
Bartolo Colon threw seven shutout innings in the Twins’ 4–0 victory over the Brewers. It was Colon’s fifth career win against Milwaukee. The first came on July 2, 1998, when he beat them with help from home runs by Indians teammates Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome and Shawon Dunston.
