Twins bid adieu to interleague play for another year

July 5, 2008 – Sadly, the Twins ended their interleague play for another year with a 5-0 shutout of the Milwaukee Brewers. The Twins end 2008 interleague play with a major league best 14-4 record. The Twins now have a 120-90 record in interleague play which comes out to a winning percentage of .571 and that is not too shabby. Interleague play started in 1997 and during the first five years each division played the same division from the other league. As of 2002 the format was changed so that teams played interleague games against various divisions. The Twins record in interleague play by year is:

YEAR RECORD
1997 7-8
1998 7-9
1999 10-7 
 2000  7-11
 2001  9-9
 2002  10-8
 2003  10-8
 2004  11-7
 2005  8-10
 2006  16-2
 2007  11-7
 2008  14-4
 TOTAL  120-90

 

The Twins have played the Milwaukee Brewers the most frequently since they are designated as natural rivals and the Twins hold a winning 29-23 record against the Brew Crew. The Twins have never lost to the Montreal Expos in interleague play and never will. Twins interleague play records against the National League teams are:

Milwaukee Brewers 29-23
Pittsburgh Pirates 11-7
Houston Astros 10-7
Cincinnati Reds 8-7
Arizona D-Backs 8-4
Chicago Cubs 8-10
San Diego Padres 6-3
New York Mets 6-3
St. Louis Cardinals 6-9
Florida Marlins 4-2
Atlanta Braves 4-2
Washington Nats 4-2
Los Angeles Dodgers 4-2
Montreal Expos 3-0
San Francisco Giants 3-3
Philadelphia Phillies 3-3
Colorado Rockies 3-3

Maybe the Twins should move to the National league!

Senator’s Tidbits

July 4, 2008 – The team played in two stadiums, American League Park in 1901 through 1902 and then played in Griffith Stadium from 1903 through 1960. Griffith Stadium as known as National Park from 1903 through 1920.

Washington’s best season was in 1933 when their record was 99-53. Their worst season was in 1904 when their record was 38-113.

The team made World Series appearances in 1924, 1925, and 1933 with their only World Series championship in 1924.

Team colors were Navy, White, and Red.

Sixteen players with Washington Senators roots are in the major league Baseball Hall of Fame.

The Washington franchise hosted two All-Star games, in 1937 and again in 1956.

The Senators had two rookie of the year winners, ironically they were both outfielders and they were back to back in 1958 (Albie Pearson) and 1959 (Bob Allison).

The Senator’s never had a Cy Young award winner but did have 3 MVP winners. Walter Johnson a right handed pitcher won in 1913 and again in 1924. Roger Peckinpaugh, a shortstop, won the award in 1925.

Two Washington Senator pitchers threw no hitters, Walter Johnson in 1920 and Bob Burke in 1931.

Four Washington batters hit for the cycle, Otis Clymer in 1908, Goose Goslin in 1924, Joe Cronin in 1929, and Mickey Vernon in 1946.

In their final year in Washington, the Senators finished in 5th place with a 73-81 record.

So what Twins should go to All-Star game?

July 3, 2008 – Catcher Joe Mauer should be the starting catcher if there is no last minute push by Jason Varitek voters. Varitek does not even deserve to be in contention but with the heavy Red Sox nation vote he is a perennial high vote collector. Justin Morneau deserves to start at 1B but again with the heavy Red Sox voting it is very likely that Kevin Youkilis will get the starting nod there but I see no way that Morneau will not make the team. I think that will be it for the Twins unless Joe Nathan gets selected. If you look at saves alone then Nathan is running fourth behind Frankie Rodriguez, George Sherrill, and Jonathan Papelbon. Rodriguez is first in saves so he is a shoe in, Sherrill might be the only Oriole selected and then you have to wait and see if Francona wants to go with his man Papelbon or the Twins Nathan. Joe Nathan is a premier closer and deserves to be on the team but the odds are 50-50 at best, it all depends on how AL manager Terry Francona structures his pitching staff and if he goes heavy with starters or closers.

2008 Twins Draft Notes

June 14, 2008 – The Twins first pick was number 14 and they used that pick to take outfielder/pitcher Aaron Hicks from Woodrow Wilson High School in California. Although the 6”2” and 170 pound Aaron has a great arm and had pitched in high school, the Twins plan to have Hicks become a position player and that fits with Aaron’s preference of playing every day. Hicks throws right handed and is a switch-hitter and would like to become a great center-fielder like Kirby Puckett and Torii Hunter have been and Carlos Gomez hopes to become in the near future in the land of 10,000 lakes. Hicks is projected as a 5 tool player for Minnesota. Hicks signed with Minnesota on Friday, June 13 for a reported $1.78 million and will be reporting to the Gulf Coast league Twins. The Twins also announced that they had signed 10 other (their number 4, 5, 6, 9, 12, 15, 17, 23, 27, and 39th) draft picks.

In all 52 players were chosen byt the Twins. 24 of the picks were hitters and of these 24 hitters, 13 were college players and 11 were high school players. The position breakdown for the hitters was 2 catchers, 1 first baseman, 3 second baseman, 2 shorstops, 5 third basemen, and 11 are outfielders.

28 of the picks were pitchers. 19 of these were college players and 13 throw right handed and 6 are lefties. The remaining 9 pitchers taken were high schoolers and of these 5 were right handed and 4 are lefties.

The biggest name local player drafted by the Twins is 3B Joe Loftus from Holy Angels High School but it appears that the Twins will not be able to sign Loftus unless they come up with a 6 figure bonus. Joe has committed to Vanderbilt University if he chooses not to sign with the Twins. Not all of these players will be signed but hope springs eternal each year as new blood is brought into each organization.

Twins Need to Make Some Moves

June 8, 2008 – Well, 62 games have come and gone and there are 100 games left to play and the Twins are sitting with a .500 record. After losing Hunter and Santana and going into the season with a no name starting pitching staff you have to think that playing .500 baseball would satisfy most fans as they watch some of the young players gain experience but apparently that is not the case. That kind of surprises me because this team is fun to watch most of the time but there will be games that will make you wonder. The loss of Hunter and Santana does seem to have negatively impacted attendance as average Twins home attendance in 2008 has dropped to 24,234 from an average of 28,350 in 2007. On the road the Twins are not a good draw either, as only one team, the Baltimore Orioles have attracted fewer fans then Minnesota has. Seldom near the top in overall attendance, the Twins are currently 23rd in overall attendance as compared to 22nd in 2007. Hopefully the fans will get behind this team as it has some stars like Morneau, Mauer, and Nathan and some stars in the making like Gomez, Casilla, and Young. This team just needs experience to challenge for a division title.

Having said that, I am very frustrated with Twins management failure to do something to plug the hole they have had at 3B for years. If this is a young team getting used to playing with each other and getting experience, why are the Twins sending out Lamb to play 3B? Lamb is certainly not a stellar 3B nor the power hitter that the Twins thought they were getting, he has limited range and his throws to first are almost always an adventure. He has provided no power to-date. Geez, get the guy out of there and bring up somebody from the minors that can play the position and let him get some experience. What have the Twins got to lose? Realistically they are not in the division race although they are only 4 games out and the experience gained by a young 3B would be invaluable. What do we gain by sending Lamb out there day after day? If Twins management thinks they are in this race, then do something, make a deal for a REAL 3B and let Lamb do what he does best, pinch hit and play 1B & 3B enough to rest the regulars. So Mr. Smith, you signed Lamb for 2 years, admit the mistake and let’s move on, don’t keep tying Gardenhire’s hands behind his back by forcing him to send Lamb out to 3B day after day.

The pitching staff needs your attention too Mr. Smith, make a deal and sending Boof somewhere where he can get another chance to get in the rotation and acquire some young talent for us to build on. Rincon has shown that he is done here in Minnesota, why do we keep sending him out there? He will probably not fetch much in a trade but I think we have a case here for addition by subtraction, bring Korecky back and he can fill Rincon’s spot, he can’t do any worse. If nothing else, bring Danny Graves up and give him another shot.

2008 MLB Draft Just Around The Corner

May 30, 2008 – The 2008 First-Year player draft will take place on June 5-6 at the Disney Sports complex in Florida. For the second year in a row, MLB has chosen to televise the event on ESPN2. Unlike the NFL draft that drags on and on, MLB allows just 5 minutes between first round picks.

The Twins like many other teams, have done so-so in this draft. Since the draft started in 1965, the Twins have had 46 first round picks and have chosen a pitcher in the first round just 15 times. That seems strange for a team that always talks pitching and fielding over hitting but he Twins have never had a pitcher drafted in the first round become a star and have had a number of big time flops. Over the years they have drafted pitchers like Dick Ruthven (did not sign), Eddie Bane, Bryan Oelkers, Tim Belcher (over all number 1 pick in the 1983 draft but would not sign with Minnesota), Jeff Bumgarner, Willie Banks, Johnny Ard, Todd Ritchie, Dan Serafini, Mark Redman, Ryan Mills, and Adam Johnson. Their most recent pitcher picks have been Matt Garza, Kyle Waldrop, and Glen Perkins and the jury is still out on these guys.

I would like to see the Twins cut back on their drafting of high school players and focus more on college players that have more experience and can get to the big leagues sooner. But this draft is not always about potential and ability as money often determines who gets drafted when. This year the Twins have 2 picks (numbers 14 and 27) and are one of just two teams with multiple picks in the first round. One of the picks is a sandwich pick due to the loss of Torri Hunter.

Here is a nice site that might be worth you time to check out and it includes a possible mock draft – http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/draft .

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Categorized as MLB Draft

Washington Senators Managers

May 29, 2008 – The Washington ball club had 18 different managers between its first season in 1901 and its final season in Washington in 1960. Job security was not on your side if you were a manger for the Senators/Nationals since it appears they changed managers like teams change uniforms today. Nationals management must have had a real love/hate relationship with Bucky Harris because he served as their manager on three different occasions, the first time between 1924-1928, again between 1935-1942, and for the third and final time between 1950-1954. Harris put in more years (18) as the Nationals skipper than any other manager.

Jimmy Manning 1901
Tom Loftus 1902-1903
Malachi Kittiredge 1904
Patsy Donovan 1904
Jake Stahl 1905-1906
Joe Cantillon 1907-1909
Jimmy McAleer 1910-1911
Clark Griffith 1912-1920
George McBride 1921
Clyde Milan 1922
Donie Bush 1923
Bucky Harris 1924-1928
Walter Johnson 1929-1932
Joe Cronin 1933-1934
Bucky Harris 1935-1942
Ossie Bluege 1943-1947
Joe Kuhel 1948-1949
Bucky Harris 1950-1954
Chuck Dressen 1955-1957
Cookie Lavagetto 1957-1960

Pat Neshek Out For The Year?

May 12, 2008 – The injury to Pat Neshek’s elbow is a serious blow both to the Twins and to Pat Neshek. The Twins lost a quality set up guy and a pitcher that I think manager Gardenhire could put into a tight situation and feel comfortable that he would get them out of the jam with a minimum of damage. If needed, you could count on Neshek to get a strikeout if the situation required it. Pat will be out for several months and very possibly the season. Even more serious is the possibility for both Pat and the Twins is that rest alone will not cure the partial tear in his elbow and that surgery may be necessary but that will not be known for some time and if that comes into play, then we could be looking at no Neshek in 2009 or even worse, if this is a career ending injury. Neshek throws the ball very hard and how much faith will Pat have in the elbow coming off an injury like this? Although I have never met Pat, he sure seems to be a very personable guy and is one of the players that seem to enjoy his interaction with the fans from his home state. The fans will miss him and I will miss watching him on the mound as opposing batters flail at his offerings. The Twins bullpen took a big hit losing Pat but that is part of baseball. Who will step up and take over that setup spot? Will it be Juan Rincon, Mark Guerrier, or Jesse Crain? Dennis Reyes is best when he faces a batter or two so he is not a good choice, Brian Bass is unproven. Bob Korecky is not a lights out kind of a pitcher but more prone to give up hits and walks and wiggles his way out of trouble. Maybe the right man is the Cincinnati Reds all time saves leader that the Twins currently having pitching in Rochester in Danny Graves? It might be time to give him a shot at the big leagues again.

Quit Using the Term Twinkees!

April 21, 2008– The other day I was watching a Yankee game on MLB Extra innings and one of the Yankee announcers said something that really sticks in my craw. I don’t remember who the announcer was but he was giving score updates on the other games in the American league and when he got to the Twins game he said “and the Twinkees are beating” the Royals by so and so. Damn! I hate that term the “Twinkees”, I take it as a derogatory term, maybe it is not the way it was intended but that is the way I take it. Where did that term “Twinkees” come from anyway? I hear the term used frequently when someone is ripping the Twins for one thing or another. I may be all wrong but it seems to me the term “Twinkees” was coined back in 1982 when the Twins were off loading a number of high priced players like Erickson, Smalley, and Wynegar and traded them to the Yankees and in return the Twins got players like Paul Boris, Ron Davis, Greg Gagne, Pete Filson, Larry Milbourne, and John Pacella. The Twins had so many ex-Yankees on the roster that some people started calling the Twins the “Twinkees”. Then is then and now is now, let’s quit calling our Minnesota Twins the “Twinkees!

Who is the best team in the AL Central division?

March 31, 2008 – The Central Division will be tough again this year and with the division having no particularly weak sisters, but it is very possible that only one playoff team will emerge from the Central division in 2008. My reasoning is that the teams will face each other 18 times and that will takes its toll on the overall records and they beat up on each other. So how do I see the teams finishing this year? First let’s take a look at each team.

Chicago White Sox – Nick Swisher and Orlando Cabrera are some nice additions to an aging club. The starting pitching is questionable but if Danks and Floyd come through the starters could be tough. Jenks as a closer is top notch but Dotel whom the team acquired to set up has been terrible this spring. The Sox seem to have no plan and appear to be veering away from the solid defense that they wanted to get to a couple of years ago. I don’t see this team progressing as long as Ozzie Guillen manages this team.

Kansas City Royals – Everyone says this is a much better team than it has been in the past but then again that is not saying much. Having said that, I actually like this team, they are not ready to win a title but they are building a nice team around Gordon, Butler, DeJesus, Guillen, Teahen, Greinke and several others. They still need to improve at catcher, 2B, and in their pitching both in the starter role and in the pen. Meche is their only proven starter but Greinke can be very good if he gets his head back on straight and Bannister showed flashes of being a very nice starter. I don’t see what signing Tomko does for the team other than add someone that can throw some innings. Soria the closer looked good last year but the rest of the bullpen with the exception of Gobble could stand an upgrade. It will be interesting to see what Trey Hillman can do with this bunch, he never played in the major leagues but he has been a very good manager in Japan for a number of years.

Detroit Tigers – Maybe the best hitting team in baseball this year and they have Jim Leyland to lead them. After they acquired Cabrera and Willis from Florida this winter, most everyone has conceded the division title to Detroit in 2008. They are solid in every position but the broken finger that Granderson suffered will hurt the team in April. I see Granderson as a leader and sparkplug on this team and they need him back as quickly as possible. The weak link on this Tiger team is the bullpen where they miss Zumaya terribly and there is not guarantee when and if he will be back. Their old closer and former Twin Todd Jones gets the job done but it is seldom pretty. There used to be an old Baltimore closer, I forget his name and Earl Weaver his manager used to call him two pack so and so because Weaver would go through two packs of smokes in the ninth inning waiting for this pitcher to get the side out and the save.

The Cleveland Indians are picked by some to defend their Central title this year. From a hitting perspective this team is almost as good as Detroit and that is with Travis Hafner having an off season. If he comes back strong, this is a team that will be in the hunt all year long. You throw in a pitching staff led by CC Sabathia and Fausto Carmona and the pitching is looking pretty good. The remaining starters are likely to be Jake Westbrook, Paul Bryd who is no spring chicken and throws slow and slower and Cliff Lee figures to come back after a disastrous season in 2007. Strangely enough, just like the Tigers, the Indians have a closer that never makes it looks easy but seems to get the job done in Joe Borowski.

Finally we get to Minnesota, at first blush it is easy to say that the Twins are in trouble, after all, they lost Johan Santana and Torii Hunter the two biggest stars on the team. But let’s not be so quick to give up on this team, they should be improved from a hitting perspective. I think Delmon Young will do as well as Hunter did although with fewer home runs. Mauer, Morneau, and Cuddyer should be expected to put up better numbers then they did last year. Harris is an improvement over what we had at 2B last year and the same can be said for 3B with Lamb. What appears to be a platoon at DH should be better with Kubel and Monroe but personally I would like to see Kubel earn that position outright. Gomez in center will be exciting to watch but you will need to be happy if he hits .265 and steals a bunch of bases. Everett is a glove guy but I think he will surprise a few people with his bat too. But can they pitch you say? That sir is the question; can the elderly Livan Hernandez still get guys out for 200 innings one more time? Can Liriano come back like he pitched in 2006? Can Boof can over the hump and throw 200 innings? Can Baker stand up to a full season on the mound? Is Slowey a young Radke? Time will tell but the Twins are counting very heavily on this bunch of starters. If the starters can be just half way decent, then the Twins bullpen and Nathan the closer will do their job and the Twins will be sitting pretty. Can they catch the ball? Not as well as they have in the past I’m afraid as they are weak at 2B and 3B. The outfielders all have great arms although Gomez may not always throw it where he wants to. All in all, I think the Twins will be an exciting team to watch.

So when we look at the final scoreboard standings in October, what will we see? I think it will look like this.

 

Tigers 98-64

Indians 96-66

Royals 84-78

Twins 80-82

White Sox 76-86