Category: General Blogging

This is a general blogging category.

Will Paul Molitor be managing the Twins next year?

It has been a heck of a year for the Minnesota Twins organization as they bounced back from a 59-103 season in 2016 to a 83-76 season todate and became the first team in MLB history to make the play-offs after losing 100 or more games.

No one saw this coming, if they said they did they are BSing you. I though they would improve to an 80-82 mark and I thought that was optimistic on my part. The team has had a heck of a season but there is still plenty of room for improvement.

The guys at the top, Derek Falvey and Thad Levine with a few minor exceptions have sat back, watched, and learned in their first year at the helm of the good ship Minnesota Twins. Yes, they did make some trades at the deadline that indicated the Twins were out of playoff contention but maybe that turned out to be a blessing in disguise as it seemed to rally the team and gave them a “we will show them” attitude.

Manager Paul Molitor found himself in a strange situation as he had just finished year two of a three-year deal when Falvey and Levine came on board with an edict from owner Jim Pohlad that Molitor stays as the Twins manager in 2017. I don’t think it was that big a deal for Falvey or Levine to have Molitor stay around for one more season as it appears that they had planned to sit back and watch in 2017 plus they had some don’t raid their previous organizations for one year stipulations they were abiding by. They sure weren’t expecting the Twins to make the playoffs in 2017 so they had to figure they could dump Molitor when the 2017 season ended with no problem. 

But now with the Twins heading for the playoffs and expectations even higher for the future, the pressure is going to be on Falvey and Levine to bring Paul Molitor back, after all, how do you fire a manager that took your team from 103 losses to the playoffs? A lot I think depends on the relationship that Falvey and Levine have with Molitor and I am not in a position to know how good or bad that relationship really is. But like everyone else, I have an opinion, and from where I stand, it seems that relationship is one of tolerance, as long as no one throws the first rock, the relationship will continue to co-exist.

The problem is that everyone in management wants to put their own people in positions that have an impact on their future employment. Who wants to stake their future on someone who you didn’t select for the job in the first place? On the other hand, if they send Molitor packing and the team doesn’t take the next step forward, then Falvey and Levine will find themselves with the creek rising and more rain predicted.

If Falvey and Levine decide to keep Molitor they need to give him a longer term deal after forcing Molitor to manage in his least year of a three-year contract. At least that is what I would ask for if I was Molitor. Having said, that I recently read a book by Ron Simon who was Molitor’s agent when he was a player and he stated in his book that Molitor was a very easy-going individual who was not necessarily all that confident in his ability (at least outwardly) and preferred to avoid conflict. 

So what will happen? Falvey and Levine find themselves in a damned if they do and damned if they don’t situation and we will just have to see what they do. It will be much easier to keep Molitor at the helm than it will be to fire him, that will tell us a lot about what these guys are made of. This duo has said all along that the number of wins will not be the decision maker but when it comes right down to it, what is more important than win and losses? Don’t they play this game to win?

Twins clinch their first ever wild card spot

Joe Mauer and Max Kepler celebrate. Courtesy of Dustin Morse

After losing at Cleveland to the Indians 4-2, the Twins retreated to the clubhouse to watch the Angels play the White Sox in Chicago because an Angels loss and the Twins could celebrate their first playoff appearance since 2010 which seems, oh so long ago. The Mighty Whities came through for Minnesota with a extra-inning walk-off 6-4 win as the Angels fifth reliever of the night Blake Parker gave up a two-run walk-off home run to outfielder Nick Delmonico. The corks were popped and the Twins celebrated getting into the 2017 MLB playoffs.

What I find interesting is that while the 2017 Minnesota Twins fought for a wild card that no one mentioned that the Minnesota Twins have never been a wild card participant. All of their previous eleven forays into the playoffs have been as winners of their division.

Their appearance in this years playoffs will be extra special because they will be the first team in MLB history to lose 100 games (103 to be specific) in the previous season and see playoff action the next year. Even stranger when you consider that the Twins did this with a new Chief of Baseball Operations, a new GM but a returning manager in Paul Molitor, not many managers survive to return after losing 103 games.

The team has four games to play, one more this afternoon in Cleveland against the first place Indians and then they fly home to finish off the season with three home games against the Detroit Tigers.

The Twins current record stands at 83-75 with four games to play. It will be interesting to see how the Twins do in their last four games as the World Champion Twins won just 85 games in 1987.

So congratulations to the Minnesota Twins and good luck in the playoffs! A victory over those hated New York Yankees in Gotham (assuming the Red Sox hold on to win the division) would be OH SO SWEET! In a one game series anything can happen.

What a motley crew this is

Can you identify these 2017 Minnesota Twins rookies?

Mitch Garver is number 15 in the Lobo mascot outfit and Aaron Slegers is wearing the Knicks basketball uni and I believe that Adalberto Mejia is on the far right in Salvador Perez gear.

One time Twins pitcher Jim Donohue passes away

James Thomas Donohue Jr. was born in St. Louis, Missouri on October 31, 1937 and died on September 9, 2017 in the city where he was born.  Jim Donohue was a 1956 graduate of CBC (Christian Brothers College), a prominent Catholic high school in the St. Louis area.

Donohue who friends called “Bones”, was signed by the St. Louis Cardinal prior to the 1956 season at the age if 18 and assigned to play for the Class D Gainesville G-Men in the Florida State League where he was 5-6 as a starter/reliever and he posted a very nice 2.08 ERA in 95 innings.

Donohue continued working his way up the Cardinals minor league ladder but in June of 1960 he was traded by St. Louis to the Los Angeles Dodgers. His stay in their system was relatively short because that November the Detroit Tigers snagged him with a Rule 5 pick. Donohue made the 1961 Tigers team and debuted in the majors on April 11, 1961. Used strictly in relief, his stay in Detroit too was destined to be a short one as on June 7, 1961 the Tigers traded him to the Los Angeles Angels. Donohue spent the rest of 1961 with the Angels splitting his time as a starter and as a reliever. Donohue started the 1962 season in LA but on May 29th the Minnesota Twins acquired him in a trade for pitcher Don Lee. 

Bones appeared in six games starting one for the Twins in June of 1962 before being sent to the minors never to pitch in the big leagues again. As far as I can determine, Donohue spent 1963 and 1964 in the Twins minor league system without being invited to spring training before leaving baseball behind. In Jim’s brief stay in Minnesota he pitched in just 6 games and had no wins with one loss, and a save in 10.1 innings with a 6.97 ERA.

Jim Donohue is the 78th former Minnesota Twins player to pass away. Although Jim Donohue’s time with the Minnesota Twins was short, he did pitch for the organization and as such is part of the Twins wonderful history forever. Thank you for the memories Jim Donohue. We at Twinstrivia.com want to express our condolences to the Donohue family and all of Jim’s friends and fans.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch Obituary

Food safety at MLB ballparks

The Minnesota State Fair opened today for its 12 day run and when I think of the fair I think of two things, politicians and food. This morning my alarm went off and what did I hear first? None other than Dave Lee of WCCO radio interviewing Senator Amy Klobuchar.

We don’t go to the state fair every year but when we do go we try to taste some of the new foods that they have available which brings to mind a recent article I ran across that Sports Illustrated did a couple of weeks ago in ranking food safety at MLB ballparks in 2017. Food safety standards are not standard across the board so it is difficult to rate and compare, here is what SI had to say about that.

Are standards the same across the country? It can be difficult to compare ballparks since each city, county and state reports restaurant inspections differently. Nonetheless, all departments follow the food code set forth by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which offers a consistent model. Health department representatives said that inspections are largely standardized. Some violations, though, did mean different things in different municipalities. For example, a walk-in refrigerator that didn’t have a thermometer was a non-critical violation in Anaheim and Oakland, whereas it was critical in Toronto and D.C.

The Seattle Mariners and Safeco Field had the best ranking and the Tampa Bay Rays and Tropicana Field had the lowest ranking. So where do the Minnesota Twins and Target Field rank against other MLB ballparks in 2017 as far as food safety is concerned? Sadly, their food safety ranks in roughly the same category as does their pitching. You can read the SI article here.

2017 MLB Ballpark Food Safety Rankings

Former Twins outfielder Danny Walton passes away a age 70

Former Minnesota Twins player Danny Walton passed away on August 9, 2017 at the age of 70. Daniel James Walton was born in Los Angeles, California on July 14, 1947 and passed away on August 9, 2017 in Morgan, Utah.

Walton’s pro baseball career started in 1965 when he was drafted in the 10th round by the Houston Astros.  A much heralded minor league slugger, he put up huge numbers in Triple-A and appeared headed for major league glory. Many fans compared him to Mickey Mantle, with the full expectation that he would succeed The Mick as the game’s next great slugger. In fact, Walton’s nickname was “Mickey.” This obviously never came to pass.

Walton debuted with the Astros at the age of 20 on April 20, 1968 but he only got 2 plate appearances with Houston before they traded him to the Seattle Pilots in August 1969. Walton was so dominant in the American Association in 1969 that The Sporting News voted Walton its Minor League Player of the Year. The following year, 1970, the Pilots became the Milwaukee Brewers and Walton quickly became a fan favorite. His growing strikeout rate and a knee injury finally forced the Brewers hand and they traded Walton to the New York Yankees in June of 1971. Receiving little playing time in New York they then traded Walton to the Minnesota Twins in October 1972 for catcher Rick Dempsey.

Walton’s time in the Minnesota organization lasted 3 years but he only appeared in a Twins uniform in 37 games in 1973 and 42 games in 1975 and spending the rest of his time in AAA. Playing for the Twins AAA Tacoma Twins in 1974 Walton tried switch-hitting smashed 35 home runs, knocked in 109 runs while hitting a respectable .263. Danny Walton’s strikeouts continued to plague him and he hit just .176 with 5 home runs for the Twins in a total of 79 games and 179 PA’s in 1973-1975. In December 1975 the Twins traded Walton to the Los Angeles Dodgers for 2B Bobby Randall.

After playing in 18 games for LA he was traded back to his first team the Houston Astros where he again played briefly before being released in March of 1978. Walton then went to Japan to play for the Yokohama Taiyo Whales in the Japan Central league where he appeared in 75 games before leaving there and signing with the Seattle Mariners in March of 1979 but he never played in a big league game for them. In March of 1980 he was released by the Mariners but was signed by the Texas Rangers where he appeared in the final 10 games of his big league career. The Rangers traded him to the Cincinnati Reds in December of 1980. Walton spent the 1980 season in AAA before calling it a career. 

Over a professional career that lasted from 1965 to 1980, Walton played for six major league teams and 13 minor league franchises.Outside of his one decent season in Milwaukee, he never gained traction in the major leagues. But he didn’t give up, kept going back to the minor leagues, and became one of the greatest Triple-A sluggers of the expansion era. In parts or all of 10 Triple-A seasons, he hit 184 home runs and slugged .507.

To this day, Walton remains a minor league legend. While not many major league fans saw Walton play, many fans of my age and older have heard the stories of his prodigious power and his tape-measure home runs. There is a certain mystique to the name Danny Walton. All things considered, that’s not a bad legacy to have.

After leaving baseball, Walton worked as a welder. He was the happiest man with a great love for life and people. He was loud, funny and very affectionate. He had so many friends that loved to be in his company.

 In 1983, Danny married Judy in Elko, Nevada. It was love at first sight for them and they were able to spend 34 wonderful years together.

Danny is survived by his wife, Judy, sisters, Charlene (Steve) Alzugaray, Marian (Larry) Kane, brother-in-law, Mick (Christine) Jungles, Brard (Dixie) Bailey, Lyle (Lisa) Bailey, and his children, Cody (Vicki) Walton, Amy Walton, Shelly Walton, Jason Polaro, Daniel Zahl, Bryan (Cassie) Roberts, and Brandon (Tonya) Robertson and nine grandchildren.. He was preceded in death by his parents and one sister, Catherine May Walton and brother-in-law, Vaughn “Duck” Bailey.

The Hardball Time did a great story on Danny Walton that you can read here.

Danny Walton Obituary

Rest in Peace Danny Walton and thank you for the wonderful memories.

It was a bad beat, maybe one of the worst ever

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.

Twins set to participate in fun Players Weekend

Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association are introducing the inaugural Players Weekend from August 25-27, when all players will wear colorful, non-traditional uniforms featuring alternate designs, and Twins players are excited for the chance to show off their personalities to the fans.

Miguel Sano uni

The Twins will be in Toronto for a three-game series that weekend, and players will be allowed to have a nickname placed on the back of the jerseys made by Majestic Athletic, as well as wearing and using uniquely colored and designed spikes, batting gloves, wristbands, compression sleeves, catcher’s masks and bats.

Twins set to participate in fun Players Weekend

UPDATE: Twins Players Weekend nicknames explained

Don Baylor Passes away at 68

Minnesota Twins pinch hitter Don Baylor drops his bat after hitting a game winning single with the bases loaded in the eighth inning in the ALCS with the Detroit Tigers, Oct. 8, 1987, Minneapolis, Minn. The Twins went on to score three more runs in the inning to win game one of the series 8-5. (AP Photo/ Rusty Kennedy)

Former American League MVP in 1979 and National League Manager of the Year Don Baylor has passed away at the age of 68 after a 14 year battle with multiple myeloma.

Baylor graduated from Austin High School as one of the first African-Americans to attend the school and the very first to play baseball and football for the school. Baylor had an opportunity to become the first African-American to play football at the University of Texas but Baylor wanted to play football and baseball but Texas football coach Darrell Royal was opposed saying that was put too much pressure on Baylor and wanted him to focus on football so when the Orioles drafted in round 2 in 1967 it was an easy decision for Baylor. By the way, the Minnesota Twins selected 3B Bob Storm in round 2 just 2 picks earlier.

Remembered for his charisma and kindness off the field, Baylor was also a force to be reckoned with at the plate in a terrific 19-year career as a player. A three-time winner of a Silver Slugger Award and an American League All-Star, Baylor hit .260 over the life of a career that was highlighted by Most Valuable Player honors as a member of the 1979 California Angels. 

Baylor, nicknamed “Groove” helped a team to the postseason on seven different occasions and, in the waning stages of his career, was traded from the Red Sox to the Twins for the stretch run in 1987. He’d go on to collect seven hits in 18 at-bats during the playoffs that season, including a game-tying two-run homer in Game 6 of the World Series. Minnesota would rally  for six more runs following that key hit, and the Twins ultimately rode that momentum to a Game 7 victory and a World Series championship.

Following his playing days, Baylor became the first manager in Colorado Rockies history in their inaugural 1993 season. By the time the strike-shortened 1995 campaign rolled around, Baylor’s Rockies finished the season with a 77-67 record, leading to the first postseason appearance in franchise history as well as NL Manager of the Year honors for Baylor. That marked the first of three straight winning seasons for Baylor, who also later spent three years managing the Cubs (2000-02). Baylor’s managing record was 627-689. Baylor is one of four men to win an MVP award and Manager of the Year, joining Kirk Gibson, Frank Robinson and Joe Torre.

Baylor’s time in the dugout would continue for more than a decade, as he also served as a bench coach for the Mets and a hitting coach for the Braves, Mariners, Rockies, Diamondbacks and Angels.

SABR Bio

Baylor is survived by his wife, the former Rebecca Giles; his son, Don Jr.; his brother, Doug; his sister, Connie; and two granddaughters. His marriage to Jo Cash ended in divorce.

Don Baylor Obit New York Times

Austin Legend Don Baylor: A Life Well Lived