Good luck to the Twins in the home opener tonight
Month: July 2020
So we have baseball again
Prior to the New York Yankee vs Washington Nationals game just a few days ago, (July 23) Major League Baseball had not played a game since the 2019 World Series ended, a span of 266 days, the longest baseball drought in major league history. COVID-19 has caused the Minnesota Twins to miss 105 games before they opened the season on July 24 in Chicago against the White Sox in a season like none of us have ever seen before.
The 2020 MLB season will be just 60 games long, a sprint and not a marathon like we are used too watching in a season that usually lasts 162 games. The changes in MLB this season are mind boggling starting with the fact that the games will be played with no fans in the stands. The Toronto Blue Jays can’t play their home games in Toronto. There is no minor league baseball in 2020. Sixteen teams will make the play-offs. Opening day rosters have 30 players, a couple weeks later they drop to 28 and then a couple weeks after that they drop to 26. No traveling announcers, they will work out of the home ballparks, official scorekeepers will do their work from home by watching games on television with some special feed links.
Remembering the Twins first season from 1961 – Week 15
I have been working on a very long term project whereas I do a brief recap of Twins games on my “In This Day in Twins History Pages.” So my plan is to give you a brief recap of the Twins first season as it plays out on a weekly basis. For more info on a particular game you can also click on the date and go to the appropriate “In This Day in Twins History Page” as there you will often get to see some player pictures and supporting documentation. We will see how long I can keep up with it, no promises. So let’s see what we have for week fifteen.
The 38-54 Twins are mired in ninth place 21 games out of the lead behind the New York Yankees who have a three percentage point lead over the Detroit Tigers. The embarrassing part is that both expansion teams (Senators and Angels) are ahead of them in the standings.
Remembering the Twins first season from 1961 – Week 14
I have been working on a very long term project whereas I do a brief recap of Twins games on my “In This Day in Twins History Pages.” So my plan is to give you a brief recap of the Twins first season as it plays out on a weekly basis. For more info on a particular game you can also click on the date and go to the appropriate “In This Day in Twins History Page” as there you will often get to see some player pictures and supporting documentation. We will see how long I can keep up with it, no promises. So let’s see what we have for week fourteen.
The Twins are now 34-50 and mired in ninth place 20.5 games behind the AL leading Detroit Tigers who have the New York Yankees nipping at their heels just a 1/2 game back.
Remembering the Twins first season from 1961 – Week 13
I have been working on a very long term project whereas I do a brief recap of Twins games on my “In This Day in Twins History Pages.” So my plan is to give you a brief recap of the Twins first season as it plays out on a weekly basis. For more info on a particular game you can also click on the date and go to the appropriate “In This Day in Twins History Page” as there you will often get to see some player pictures and supporting documentation. We will see how long I can keep up with it, no promises. So let’s see what we have for week thirteen.
The Twins, now 33-47 were 5-3 this past week and moved up one spot in the standings to eighth place just a half game ahead of the Angels and one game up on the last place Kansas City Athletics. The 51-29 Tigers are still hanging on to first place with a half game lead on the New York Yankees. Over in the National League the Cincinnati Reds have a three game cushion over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Twins pitching leaders in complete games by decade
A complete game in baseball is about as rare nowadays as finding a pay phone at your local corner service station. The complete game has gone by the wayside and this year with what is going on in baseball with the COVID-19 situation it will be even more of a rare occurrence.
The top ten MLB pitchers in complete games from 1961 to 2019 are all in the Hall of Fame. The leader is Gaylord Perry with 303 complete games and tenth on the list is Jim Palmer with 211. The Twins Bert Blyleven is number six on that list with 242 complete games.
If you only look at the American League from 1961 through 2019 the leader is Bert Blyleven with 222. Bert is also the all-time Twins leader in complete games with 141 followed by Jim Kaat with 133. So now you know why Bert always brags on TV about pitching complete games.
If we look at Twins complete game leaders by decade you get a list that looks like this:
- 1960’s – Jim Kaat with 102
- 1970’s – Bert Blyleven with 101
- 1980’s – Frank Viola with 54
- 1990’s – Kevin Tapani with 19
- 2000’s – Brad Radke with 19
- 2010’s – Carl Pavano with 10
Remembering the Twins first season from 1961 – Week 12
I have been working on a very long term project whereas I do a brief recap of Twins games on my “In This Day in Twins History Pages.” So my plan is to give you a brief recap of the Twins first season as it plays out on a weekly basis. For more info on a particular game you can also click on the date and go to the appropriate “In This Day in Twins History Page” as there you will often get to see some player pictures and supporting documentation. We will see how long I can keep up with it, no promises. So let’s see what we have for week twelve.
The Twins once again had a 3 win and 4 loss week and remain in ninth place with a 28-44 record, a full 18 games out of first place and they haven’t gotten to the All-Star break yet. The 46-26 Detroit Tigers have a 1.5 game lead on the Bronx Bombers.
MLB highlights unique features for 2020 season
This is a copy of a MLB press Release dated June 29, 2020. I put a copy of it here so that everyone is aware of the rules and regulations that will be used by MLB in 2020.
First Workouts of 2020 Summer Camp presented by Camping World to Be Held
Major League Baseball today announced some of the unique features that will be a part of the 2020 regular season, including health and safety protocols that will impact play on the field as well as revised operating procedures away from it. Summer Camp presented by Camping World begins on Wednesday, July 1st, the mandatory reporting date. All Players and Club staff will be required to go through medical testing and screening processes before entering Club facilities. Full baseball activities and first workouts will be allowed on Friday, July 3rd and each Club’s Opening Day will be held on either Thursday, July 23rd or Friday, July 24th. A sampling of the modifications for the 2020 season, which are documented in the comprehensive Operations Manual that has been distributed to the 30 Major League Clubs, includes: