As the Twins prepare for their 59th season of play in Minnesota we should look back and be thankful for some great seasons these players have given us in the past. I am using B-R Play Index to come up with the ten greatest seasons by Minnesota Twins players over the years and I am once again using WAR as the tool to do this. I think you might be surprised at some of these.
2018 Twins Turkey of the Year is:
The 2018 baseball season is in the books, free agents everywhere are sitting back and waiting for the offers to pour in, a number of teams (including our Twins) have hired new managers. The temperature is 31 degrees outside and there is a slight coating of snow on the ground here in Plymouth so we know it is time to start sorting our candidates for the 2018 Twins Turkey of the Year.
The Twins finished in second place again this season behind the Cleveland Indians. This past season the Twins were 78-84 as compared to 85-77 in 2017 and this year they were just 13 games back as compared to 17 games behind the year previous. Yet the 2018 Twins were looked on as failures as compared to the 2017 team that was a Wild Card participant albeit for just the one game against the New York Yankees. Manager Paul Molitor was the American League Manager of the Year in 2017 and after the 2018 season ended he found himself unemployed along with most of his coaching staff after signing a new three-year contract just a year earlier. Twins fans were unhappy and attendance dropped to its lowest point since 2004 at the Metrodome. Meanwhile the Twins Front Office added to staff and continued the “new ways of fielding a winning team” such as increasing the number of shifts, playing four outfielders here and there and jumping on the new “opener” strategy employed by teams such as Tampa Bay and Oakland.
Looking back at the Minnesota Twins in the 60’s
The Minnesota Twins started play in 1961 after moving from Washington D.C. where they were known as the Washington Senators. In their final year as the Senators in 1960 the team had a 73-81 record. Between 1946 and 1960 they had one, just one, winning season and that was in 1952 when they barely made it over the .500 mark with a 78-76 record.
Nevertheless the baseball fans of Minnesota were excited about getting a major league team (some might disagree with that description) to move to their state. Team owner Calvin Griffith felt he had some good young players that were just starting to make their mark.
The 1961 team was managed by Cookie Lavagetto until he was fired by Griffith after a 23-36 start and replaced by coach Sam Mele. The team went on to finish seventh in the ten team American League with a 70-90 mark and 38 games out of first place. The team won 91 games in both 1962 and 1963 but in 1964 they fell back to a 79-83 record and fans were calling for manager Mele to hit the road. However; Griffith stuck with his man and in 1965 Mele’s Twins won 102 games and found themselves in the World Series playing the Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale led Los Angeles Dodgers. The Twins came out on the short end of that Series losing four games to three but baseball was exciting in Minnesota.
The 1966 Twins were not able to defend their 1965 pennant and finished with a 89 win season but they were nine games behind the Baltimore Orioles. The 1967 season saw the American League with a pennant race like none before it with the Red Sox, Twins, Tigers, White Sox and Angels battling down to the very end of the season. The Twins started the season at just 25-25 and that was not what the Twins owner was expecting so he fired Mele and brought Cal Ermer to lead his team. The team responded to Ermer and had a one game lead with two games to play with the Red Sox at Fenway Park and they lost both games allowing the Red Sox to win the 1967 AL pennant by one game over Minnesota and Detroit, three games over the White Sox and 7.5 games over the Angels.
The Twins started the 1968 season with six straight wins, five of them on the road but that was their high-water mark for the season and when the season ended so did the managing career of Cal Ermer. Less than two weeks later Calvin Griffith hired Billy Martin as his new manager.
1969 saw the AL break in two divisions with the Twins being part of the six team AL West along with the Oakland Athletics, Chicago White Sox, California Angels, Seattle Pilots, and the Kansas City Royals. 1969 was also the first season that had a best of five ALCS. In this case the West Division winning Twins played the East Division winning Baltimore Orioles and the Twins lost all three games. They lost the first game in Baltimore in 12 innings 4 to 3, the lost game two again in Baltimore in 11 innings 1 to 0 and their third and final game was a blowout 11-2 loss at the Met when Billy Martin went on a hunch and started Bob Miller, a part-time starter/reliever and he lasted just 1.2 innings. Martin’s decision to start Miller turned out to be one of the key reasons he would be fired by Griffith after just one season.
The Twins played winning baseball (.542) in the 60’s and had a record of 789-666. So who were the key Twins hitters and pitchers in the Twins first decade of baseball in the Minnesota? It is difficult to determine the value that a player brings to the team without being arbitrary so the best way that I know of to measure a players worth is WAR. I know of lot of you either don’t like it and don’t know how it is calculated exactly (either do I), but if we apply the same measurement to everyone it will serve our purpose here. The position player with the highest WAR for the period of 1961-1969 probably is no surprise to anyone, it is Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew and the pitcher for that same time period is Jim Kaat.
Twins Filling Coaching Ranks
The Twins announced four new coaches to manager Rocco Baldelli‘s staff yesterday, as they hired Wes Johnson (pitching coach), Jeremy Hefner (bullpen coach), Tony Diaz (third-base coach) and Tommy Watkins (first-base coach). The Twins had retained hitting coach James Rowson, assistant hitting coach Rudy Hernandez and bench coach Derek Shelton.
Joe Mauer calls it a career and a fine one it was
I was watching the KARE 11 News the other day (November 9) when they announced the breaking news that Joe Mauer had announced his retirement. It caught me by surprise but yet I wasn’t surprised at all, it was still kind of shocking. Joe Mauer has been in the sports news in Minnesota since I first heard of him in the late 90’s when he played and starred in three sports at Cretin-Derham Hall High School.
Then Mauer was drafted number 1 overall by the Minnesota Twins in the 2001 June amateur free agent draft. He spent 2001 playing for Elizabethton in the Rookie League, in 2002 he was in Low A ball with Quad Cities in the Midwest League, and in 2003 he started the season with High A Ft. Myers before being bumped up to AA New Britain.
In 2004 the Baseball America number 1 overall rated prospect Joe Mauer made the Twins team in spring training bypassing AAA ball and was the Twins Opening Day catcher on April 5 at the Metrodome in front of 49,584 Twins fans as a 21 year-old. Mauer hit eighth in the line-up that day getting a walk, a strikeout, a walk, and then two singles in his five plate appearances against the Cleveland Indians. Indians starter CC Sabathia was sharp that night and limited the Twins to just two hits over seven innings and was pulled with a 4-0 lead after throwing 104 pitches. The Twins however came back with four runs in the bottom of the eighth sending the game into extra-innings. In the bottom of the eleventh inning Jacque Jones struck out, Matt LeCroy walked, Joe Mauer walked, Cristian Guzman struck out before Shannon Stewart hit a walk-off three-run home run off Chad Durbin for a Twins 7-4 win over the Indians. Joe’s big league career was underway.
Mauer’s second big league game was not on local TV thanks to Victory Sports and it ongoing negotiations with cable and satellite providers, what a game to miss. The Twins won 7-6 in the 15th inning on a bases loaded two out walk-off single by Jose Offerman off Indians reliever Jake Westbrook after five hours of baseball was played. Joe Mauer was the starting catcher and singled in the third inning but was pinch-run for at that point by Henry Blanco. Earlier in the inning Mauer had raced back for a foul ball pop-up and slid in front of the wall on the rubber warning track behind home plate and heard a “pop” in his left knee. By the time the game ended the home-town Twins had lost Mauer, Johan Santana, and Torii Hunter due to injuries. After the game it was thought that Mauer’s injury was just a mild sprain. However; the next day Mauer went on the DL, the first of ten times he will see his name on the DL during his 15 year big league career. A few days later, April 8th, Joe ends up having surgery to repair a medial meniscus tear in his left knee. Mauer returns to the line-up on June 2 but continues to have trouble off and on with the knee swelling and he plays in his final 2004 game on July 15 and his first season as a Twin ends after just 35 games but in that short period he showed all of us what kind of bat he had as he hit .308 in 107 at bats.
Mauer went on to become a six-time All-Star, win three batting titles, win 5 Silver Slugger awards, win three Gold Gloves, and won the 2009 AL MVP award. Mauer start playing first base periodically starting in 2011 and became a regular at first base in 2014 after concussion problems forced him to give up his catchers gear after the 2013 season. Joe made one more appearance as a catcher in a Twins uniform in his final game in 2018 albeit for just one pitch. Many wondered if it was his last game for the Minnesota Twins but Mauer stuck to his guns and said he would decide soon, on November 9 he did just that with a letter to the fans.
Joe Mauer is one of those players that comes along once in a generation but yet took more than his share of abuse from home-town fans in spite of his baseball skills primarily for two reasons, his $184 million eight-year deal he signed in 2010 and the fact that he didn’t play every day. Catchers don’t play every day but fans thought that if you make $23 million a year you best have your butt on the field day in and day out. To his credit Joe never complained.
As is true with may players, their star shines more brightly after they have retired. I remember Harmon Killebrew being criticised for striking out too often, being slow, and poor in the field. Rod Carew was said to be a terrible baserunner and had a surly attitude. We are talking Hall of Fame players here.
That brings up a good point, is Joe Mauer going into the MLB Hall of Fame? He is borderline and the fact that he had to leave his natural position as a catcher due to injury and become a light-hitting first baseman does not work in his favor. That said, his numbers, skills, and longevity are a plus. If I had to bet I would say that yes, Joe Mauer will be a Hall of Famer and here is why. It can be argued that Mauer was the best catcher in baseball when he was forced to change positions due to concussion issues. Concussions are a big deal in sports today and will be looked upon as valid issues in the future. Another reason and maybe even more important is Joe Mauer’s personality. Everybody loves the wholesome All-American boy who pushed milk in ads and that all of baseball respected. Heck, he was never even ejected from any of his 1,858 big league games. Mauer was alway Mr. Clean on and off the field, if he ever did anything bad, only he knows.
Good luck Joe Mauer as you move to another phase of your life, I sure hope we will be seeing a lot of you around Hammond Stadium and Target Field in the future.
Who was this Twins player?
What Twins player holds the Minnesota Twins record for committing the most errors in a single season? How many errors did he have and what year did this happen?
Baseball lifer and former Twins pitcher Bill Fischer passes away at the age of 88
Bill Fischer was born in Wausau, Wisconsin on October 11, 1930 and passed away at his home in Council Bluffs, Iowa on October 30, 2018 at the age of 88. A baseball and basketball player at Marathon High School, Fischer was taken by his high school principal and baseball coach to a Chicago White Sox tryout camp and quickly signed the right-handed pitcher to a $150 a month contract to pitch in Class D Wisconsin Rapids in 1948. The 17-year-old Fischer won his first 10 starts, the first three being a two-hitter, a three-hit shutout, and a two-hit shutout. He had a streak of 26 scoreless innings and finished 14-3 with a 2.63 ERA.
According to his SABR Bio written by Bob LeMoine –
Fischer was drafted into the US Marine Corps in 1951, at the height of the Korean War, and served as a drill sergeant. “I hated it, but I had a job to do,” he said. “I was in charge of a platoon of 75 men. When I wanted my boots shined, I hollered for my personal shoeshine boy to do it, on the double. Everything was on the double. … I had those platoons sick of looking at me, I guess.” Wryly, he recalled that “The only two-year contract I ever had in my life was when I was drafted into the Marines.” His baseball talents kept him in stateside while the war was waging. His San Diego team won the Marine Corps championship and played in Wichita, Kansas, at the National Baseball Congress Tournament.
According to Fischer, he never saw a big league ball game until he pitched in one during spring training. In 1956 Fischer was invited to spring training by the White Sox and pitched well enough to make the team. In his major league debut against the Kansas City A’s on April 21, 1956 Fischer had the misfortune of being called in to relieve White Sox starter Sandy Consuegra in the second inning and promptly gave up a single, triple, single, single before being pulled himself before retiring a single Athletic in what turned out to be a 13 run inning for the home-town Kansas City ballclub. Fischer’s White Sox lost the game 15 to 1 when A’s starter Art Ditmar pitched a complete game with Earl Battey getting the only hit for the Mighty Whitey’s.
In 1958 the White Sox traded Fischer to the Detroit Tigers where he struggled and was picked up on waivers by the Washington Senators late in the season. Fischer credited Senators pitching coach Walter “Boom-Boom” Beck and manager Cookie Lavagetto with helping him find rhythm and relax. “I learned more about pitching in three weeks with Washington than I had learned in all my other years in baseball,” In 1960 Fischer struggled and the Senators traded him to the Tigers who moved him to the KC A’s the following season (1961).
In 1962 Bill Fischer set a record that stands to this day of pitching a record-breaking 84 1/3 consecutive innings without allowing a walk shattering Christy Mathewson’s record of 68 innings. His streak began on August 3rd when he walked Cleveland third baseman Bubba Phillips and ended on the last day of the season on September 30th when Fischer walked Detroit center fielder Bubba Morton, so the streak began and ended with two guys named Bubba.
In December of 1963 the #MNTwins selected Fischer who already had spent parts or all of 8 seasons in the major leagues in the Rule 5 Draft which operated differently than the Rule 5 Draft operates today. The move by Minnesota move reunited Fischer with manager Sam Mele, who was on the Washington coaching staff when Fischer was with the Washington Senators a few years earlier. Fischer struggled in nine appearances out of the Twins bullpen in 1964 and his final major league pitch was hit for a walk-off home run by Oriole catcher John Orsino in a 6-5 win over the Twins giving Fischer the loss in his only decision as a Minnesota Twin. Shortly there-after he was returned to Kansas City and then placed on the retirement list.
Fischer then hooked up with his original team, The Chicago White and pitched for their AAA teams through 1968 before retiring as an active player. He retired from playing in 1968 and moved into coaching with stops in Cincinnati, Boston, Tampa Bay, Atlanta and Kansas City, where he spent the past eight seasons as a senior adviser.
Fischer is survived by his wife, Val, and children, Mike and Melissa. Funeral arrangements are pending.
Thank you for the memories Bill Fischer.
Bill Fischer SABR Bio
Bill Fischer, Royals’ senior pitching adviser and former KC A’s pitcher, dies at 88
Former MLB player and Royals coach Bill Fischer of Council Bluffs dies at 88
Rocco is the Man
Everyone and their brother is reporting that the Minnesota Twins will introduce 37-year old Rocco Baldelli as their 14th manager in Twins history this afternoon at 3 pm at Target Field. Baldelli becomes the youngest manager in MLB.
Baldelli, a Rhode Island native has spent most of his baseball career (playing, front office ad coaching) with the Tampa Bay Rays organization but he did spend one season with the Boston Red Sox before returning to Tampa. Baldelli was the Tampa Bay Devil Rays first round selection (6th pick overall) in 2006. The Twins had the second overall pick that year and chose RHP Adam Johnson who pitched in a Twins uniform in just 9 games winning one and posing a 10.25 ERA. That turned out to be his total big league career.
When Rocco Baldelli emerged as a young star in the minor-league system of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, he drew comparisons to Joe DiMaggio. Baldelli hit .278/.323/.443 with 60 home runs over parts of seven seasons before retiring at age 29 after dealing with a muscle disorder that often left him fatigued.
Now that the Falvey and Levine administration has all their own pieces in place there are no more excuses. The Minnesota Twins going forward are their team. I am excited about having a manager names that comes from outside the Twins organization but I am not sure I am as excited about hiring a manager with no previous managing experience. It will be interesting to see what kind of a coaching staff he surrounds himself with.
Bottom line; I am excited about this hire and am willing to see where the Woonsocket Rocket can take this Twins team. Welcome to Minnesota Rocco and good luck!
SABR Bio about Rocco Baldelli by Eric Frost
Know your Twins numbers
0 – The lowest number worn by a Twins player or field staff is 0 (zero), worn by catcher Junior Ortiz back in 1990 and 1991.
3 – Worn only by Hall of Fame Twins player Harmon Killebrew and retired on May 4, 1975.
4 – Hall of Famer Paul Molitor wore the number 4 as a Twins player in 1996-1998 and as a coach in 2000, 2001, 2003, and 2014 and as a manager from 2015-2018.
6 – Worn by four former Twins players, Billy Consolo, Ted Lepcio, Jim Snyder, and Vic Wertz before Tony Oliva. Tony-O had his number 6 retired on July 14, 1991.
10 – Nine different Twins players wore the number 10 before manager Tom Kelly strapped it on his back from 1987-2001 as the Twins skipper. The Twins retired TK’s number 10 on September 8, 2012.
13 – Ten different Twins players and field staff have worn unlucky number 13, the first player being Bill Tuttle back in 1961 and the last player being Jason Kubel in 2014.
14 – Worn by four players and a manager before Kent Hrbek took the number 14 to glory. Twins retired the number on August 13, 1995.
25 – Hall of Fame and one time Twins player Jim Thome wore the number 25 on his back in 2010-2011.
28 – Worn by 14 different players including Bert Blyleven. The first player to wear the number 28 was Pedro Ramos and the last was Jesse Crain 2004-2010. Bert’s number 28 was retired on July 16, 2011.
29 – The seventh and final player to wear the number 29 was Rod Carew. The Twins retired this number 29 on July 19, 1987.
32 – MLB Hall of Famer and one time Twins player Dave Winfield wore the number 32 in 1993-1994.
34 – Nine players wore the number 34 before Kirby Puckett put it on in 1984 and no one has worn the number since Kirby took it off for the last time in 1995. The number was retired on May 25, 1997.
38 – MLB Hall of Famer and one time Twins pitcher Steve Carlton wore the number 38 in 1987-1988.
42 – Only three Twins players (Gerry Arrigo, Jim Manning and Buzz Stephen) wore the number 42 before the number was retired across MLB in 1997.
47 – Hall of Fame pitcher and one time Twins pitcher Jack Morris wore the number 47 in 1991.
73 – The lowest number that has never been worn by a Twins player or field staff.
83 – In the Minnesota Twins 58 year history Twins players and field staff have worn 83 different numbers.
99 – The highest number worn by a Twins player was 99 and it was worn by Logan Morrison.
Three players were on the active roster for the Twins but never played in a game for the team: Chuck Schilling, who wore number 18, in 1966; Maurice Ogier, who wore number 17, in 1968; and Dave May, who wore number 20, in 1977. Ogier and May never played in the majors.
Information is courtesy of historian and Minnesota Twins official scorer Stew Thornley’s website
Do You Remember the Twins First All-Star Third Baseman
I recently ran across a blog about former Twins third baseman Rich Rollins that you all might enjoy. Rollins played in 888 games for the Twins from 1961-1968 and hit 71 home runs and had 369 RBI with a .272 batting average.
After appearing in just 13 games in 1961 Rollins had a break-out rookie season in 1962, so good as a matter of fact that he was named at the starting third baseman and lead-off hitter for the American League in the first of two All-Star games played that season. In his first at bat at D.C. Stadium he faced future Hall of Fame pitcher Don Drysdale who welcomed him by hitting him with a pitch. Rollins played six innings going 1 for 2 with a hit off Bob Purkey and was replaced by Brooks Robinson. Catcher Earl Battey was also a starter in that game and pitcher Camilo Pascual took the loss with three innings in relief of Jim Bunning and allowed all three runs on four hits in a 3-1 loss to the National League.
In the second All-Star game in 1962 that was played at Wrigley Field, the American League prevailed 9-4. Rich Rollins and Earl Battey were again named starters and the AL lead-off hitter Rich Rollins singled in his first at bat off Johnny Podres. Camilo Pascual and Jim Kaat were also on that team but did not play in the game.
Rollins finished his 1962 rookie season with a .296 batting average, 16 home runs and 96 RBI but New York Yankee shortstop Tom Tresh received the AL ROY award that season. Rollins finished eighth in MVP voting that season with Mickey Mantle winning and Harmon Killebrew finishing third.
I never met Rich Rollins but was lucky enough to get a chance to do a phone interview with him back in July 2009 that is about an hour-long that you can listen to here. There are numerous other interviews with former Minnesota Twins that you can listen to on the Interview Archives page.