Tag: Baltimore Orioles

Looking forward to Opening Day 2016

Play BallWhen the umpires call “Play Ball” for the Twins/Orioles game on Monday it will Twins opening day number 56. No I have not attended all the openers but I usually watch them on TV or listen to them on the radio, this time I will be listening or watching on my computer in Cape Coral, Florida.

So who will be in the Twins opening day line-up this year? You can never know for sure until they run on the field but I think that it is a safe assumption that only four players that were in the 2015 season opening loss in Detroit will be in Paul Molitor‘s starting line-up for the start the 2016 season for Minnesota in Baltimore. Those player’s being Kurt Suzuki catching, Joe Mauer at 1B, Brian Dozier at 2B and Trevor Plouffe at 3B. You probably can’t even remember the Twins 2015 opening day line-up, can you?

Here is a chance for you to look back to the last 10 years worth of Twins opening day line-ups. Some players are obviously familiar and others you probably have forgotten even played for Minnesota and some younger fans may have never even heard of some of these guys. For me it is interesting to see how much baseball teams turn-over from year to year and what positions the Twins seem to have trouble with.

C1B2B3BSSLFCFRFDHSPYEAR
2015Kurt
Suzuki		Joe
Mauer		Brian
Dozier		Trevor
Plouffe		Danny
Santana		Oswaldo
Arcia		Jordan
Schafer		Torii
Hunter		Kennys
Vargas		Phil
Hughes		2015
2014Kurt
Suzuki		Joe
Mauer		Brian
Dozier		Trevor
Plouffe		Pedro
Florimon		Josh
Willingham		Aaron
Hicks		Oswaldo
Arcia		Chris
Colabello		Ricky
Nolasco		2014
2013Joe
Mauer		Justin
Morneau		Brian
Dozier		Trevor
Plouffe		Pedro
Florimon		Josh
Willingham		Aaron
Hicks		Chris
Parmelee		Ryan
Doumit		Vance
Worley		2013
2012Joe
Mauer		Chris
Parmelee		Alexi
Casilla		Danny
Valencia		Jamie
Carroll		Josh
Willingham		Denard
Span		Ryan
Doumit		Justin
Morneau		Carl
Pavano		2012
2011Joe
Mauer		Justin
Morneau		Tsuyoshi
Nishioka		Danny
Valencia		Alexi
Casilla		Delmon
Young		Denard
Span		Mike
Cuddyer		Jason
Kubel		Carl
Pavano		2011
2010Joe
Mauer		Justin
Morneau		Orlando
Hudson		Nick
Punto		J.J.
Hardy		Delmon
Young		Denard
Span		Mike
Cuddyer		Jason
Kubel		Scott
Baker		2010
2009Mike
Redmond		Justin
Morneau		Alexi
Casilla		Joe
Crede		Nick
Punto		Denard
Span		Carlos
Gomez		Mike
Cuddyer		Jason
Kubel		Francisco
Liriano		2009
2008Joe
Mauer		Justin
Morneau		Brendan
Harris		Mike
Lamb		Adam
Everett		Delmon
Young		Carlos
Gomez		Mike
Cuddyer		Craig
Monroe		Livan
Hernandez		2008
2007Joe
Mauer		Justin
Morneau		Luis
Castillo		Nick
Punto		Jason
Bartlett		Rondell
White		Torii
Hunter		Mike
Cuddyer		Jeff
Cirillo		Johan
Santana		2007
2006Joe
Mauer		Justin
Morneau		Luis
Castillo		Tony
Batista		Juan
Castro		Shannon
Stewart		Torii
Hunter		Jason
Kubel		Rondell
White		Johan
Santana		2006
C!B2B3BSSLFCFRFDHSP

I am writing this from the Norwegian Pearl as we cruise in the Caribbean Sea on our way to dock in Roatan, Honduras tomorrow morning after leaving Costa Rica last night. Then on to Belize City, Belize and Costa Maya, Mexico before returning to Miami and Cape Coral Florida on Monday. Hot and humid here, I hope you have the same where ever you are when you attend a 2016 baseball season opener. I can’t wait for REAL baseball again.

I almost forgot to mention that while I am in the Caribbean stopping in places like Columbia, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, Belize, and Mexico I have and will continue to be on the lookout for some potential ace pitchers that the Minnesota Twins can sign. But sadly, I must report that like most of the Twins scouts that have looked for good pitching for the last 56 years I too have struck out.

Dean Chance passes away at the age of 74

Dean Chance It has been reported that Dean Chance died of a heart attack at the age of 74 yesterday in his hometown of Wooster, Ohio. Chance was born in Wooster on June 1, 1941 and went on to attend Northwestern High School in Wayne, Ohio where he became a sports legend. Chance was considered by many to be the best high school pitcher in Ohio history, throwing 17 no-hitters (eight in one season) and posting a 52-1 record in high school, including 32 consecutive victories. The Baltimore Orioles signed Chance out of high school for $30,000. After two season in the Orioles organization the team exposed him to the 196o expansion draft and he was taken by the Washington Senators in the 48th round but his stay as a Senator was short-lived as they traded him to the Los Angeles Angels that same day for Joe Hicks in one of several forced trades by AL President Joe Cronin.

Dean Chance who would go on to become a two-time All-Star and Cy Young winner made his big league debut against the Minnesota Twins on September 14, 1961 at Met Stadium and lost 5-2 to Jim Kaat. Chance pitched well going 7.1 innings allowing 10 hits and 3 earned runs and two strike outs. Dean Chance blossomed the following year for the Angels and was 14-10 with a 2.96 ERA 206 plus innings.

Dean Chance met Bo Belinsky for the first time in spring training in Clearwater, Florida, in 1959. When the Angels selected Belinsky from the Orioles in the Rule 5 Draft on November 27, 1961, and the two subsequently made the Angels in 1962, they became teammates and then roomed together during the 1963 and 1964 seasons. Belinsky and the already married Chance made the rounds in Hollywood, and probably became more famous for their off-the-field exploits than they did on a pitching mound.

After the season 1964 season in which Chance led the American League in wins with 20, ERA with 1.65, 15 complete games, 11 shutouts, and 278.1 innings pitched, Chance was rewarded with the Cy Young Award, at the time given out to only one pitcher in baseball. Chance also finished fifth in MVP voting behind Brooks Robinson, Mickey Mantle, Elston Howard and Tony Oliva. Chance pitched for the Angels from 1961-1966 before the Angels traded him along with shortstop Jackie Hernandez to the Minnesota Twins for 1B Don Mincher, outfielder Jimmie Hall and RHP Pete Cimino in December 1966.

Chance, Dean 3The Twins just missed winning the pennant in 1967 but Dean Chance could not blamed for that as he went 20-14 and had a 2.73 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP in a league leading 283.2 innings with a league leading 18 complete games in 39 starts, again league leading. He had two no-hitters that season: a 5-inning perfect game (that’s no longer an official no-hitter) and then a 2-1 no-hitter over Cleveland on August 25th. In 1968 Chance was 14-14 but had a stellar ERA 2.53 and a 0.98 WHIP in 292 innings. The 1969 Twins under Billy Martin won the AL Western Division with 97 wins but Dean Chance was only 5-4 in 15 starts due to a back injury and he missed all of June and July and this was the beginning of the end of Chance’s baseball career. Chance’s only playoff experience took place in game 3 of the 1969 ALCS in a mop-up role when he pitched 2 innings in a 11-2 Orioles win.

In December of 1969 the Twins traded Chance,RHP Bob Miller, 3B Graig Nettles, and OF Ted Uhlaender  to the Cleveland Indians for RHP’s Luis Tiant and Stan Williams. Chance was 9-8 for the Indians in 1970 before being sold to the New York Mets in September where he finished the season. The Mets then traded Chance to the Tigers in March of 1971 where he pitched in 31 games going 4-6 with a 3.51 ERA. The Tigers released Chance in October 1971 and the baseball career of Dean Chance was in the books.

Chance was known for getting his sign from the catcher and then turning his back to the batter until he threw the ball, that motion Chance said, shortened his career according to him, he felt he was lucky to last in the majors the 11 years that he did. As good a pitcher as Chance was, hitting was not his forte, he was a terrible hitter, batting a mere .066 in 662 at-bats for his career, striking out 420 times for one of the highest strikeout rates in history. Chance still holds the Minnesota Twins record for most consecutive at bats without a hit, in 1967 between April 19 and July 23 Chance was 0 for 52 with 35 strikeouts.

Dean Chance was tough on the New York Yankees and Mickey Mantle in particular although Mantle did hit .242 off Chance with three home runs. “Every time I see his name on a lineup card, I feel like throwing up” – Mickey Mantle. Mantle once uttered this memorable quote during Chance’s remarkable 1964 season. As sportswriter Phil Pepe wrote that year, “It’s Chance, not CBS, who owns the New York Yankees. Lock, stock and barrel.” Chance pitched 50 innings against the Yankees that year, allowing only 14 hits and one run, a homer by Mantle. In five starts he threw four complete games and three shutouts, going 4-0 with a 0.18 ERA.

After his baseball ended at the age of 30 Dean Chance did not move to a rocking chair, he went into the carnival business where he owned numerous games “where you can win an item off the top shelf” and traveled all over the country. He was a boxing promoter for a while and he started and was still president of the International Boxing Association (IBA) when he died. Chance also invested in real estate, played Gin Rummy on a professional level and attended many sports memorabilia shows. It is ironic to me that he attended so many memorabilia shows because I mailed him numerous baseball cards over the  years asking for his autograph but I never got a single card back, with or without an autograph. The man was one of baseball’s great characters.

Rest in Peace Dean Chance and thank you for all the great memories.

Dean Chance SABR BioProject

Dean Chance Obit – Star Tribune

Los Angeles Times Obit

Dean Chance: baseball, carnies, boxing. He was worthy of a book.

Bo and Dean: A Lifetime of Fun and Friendship

Chance of a lifetime: Area legend was one of a kind

Mis-Management 101: The American League Expansion for 1961

Remembering 1965 – Part 24 – 100 wins

100 winsThe Minnesota Twins beat the Hank Bauer managed Baltimore Orioles 3-2 at Memorial Stadium and post win number 100 for the only time in franchise history in a 2 hour and 7 minute game. The Twins trailed 2 to 1 going into the 8th inning but Bob Allison hits a two run home run in the top of the eighth inning and the Twins are up 3-2. The Orioles however; were not going to go down without a fight, they load the bases with no one out against Twins starter Mudcat Grant on a walk, a single and a Frank Quilici error and Twins manager Sam Mele brings in Jim Merritt who induces pinch-hitter Bob Johnson to hit into a RF-C double play. Mele then pulls Merritt and brings in 37 year-old reliever Johnny Klippstein to face pinch-hitter Norm Siebern. Klippstein gets Siebern to fly out to center field to earn the save and the Twins put victory 100 into the books.

Box score

The Twins go on to win 102 games in 1965, the most in franchise history. The most games that the Washington Senators ever won was 99 in 1933 when they finished first but lost the World Series 4 games to 1 to the New York Giants.

1965 twins 50th anniversary banner

According to ELIAS

Twins sweep their season series versus the Orioles

Twins-vs-OriolesThe Twins scored an unearned run in the 12th inning that stood up as the game-winner at Camden Yards after Trevor Plouffe knotted the game with a ninth-inning RBI single off Zach Britton. The Orioles had won their previous 77 home games in which they led in the ninth inning or later.

Minnesota completed a sweep of its seven-game season series against Baltimore and has won its last eight games versus the Orioles dating back to last season. That is the longest current winning streak by one American League team against another.

According to ELIAS

Late comeback for Twins in Baltimore

Twins-vs-OriolesThe Twins trailed 3-1 after seven innings in Baltimore, but the Minnesota Twins scratched across three runs in the eighth to come away with the 4-3 victory. Entering Friday, the Twins had been 2-48 this season in games when trailing by multiple runs in the eighth inning or later, including 0-25 on the road. The Orioles meanwhile had been 48-0 this season when leading by two or more runs in the eighth inning or later. Baltimore had won its last 88 home games with a multi-run lead in the eighth inning or later.

Remembering 1965 – Part 15 – Killebrew injured and Pascual has surgery

Both of these events occurred on August 2, 1965.

Harmon Killebrew
Harmon Killebrew

Harmon Killebrew suffers a dislocated left elbow in a collision with Baltimore’s Russ Snyder in the 6th inning while playing first base at Met Stadium. The Twins slugger ends up missng 48 games. Killebrew was leading the AL in homers with 22 and RBI with 70.

Camilo Pascual
Camilo Pascual

Twins pitching Ace Camilo Pascual had surgery on his pitching arm in Washington D.C. and the surgery was deemed a success but how long he would be out was unknown. It turned out that Pascual missed 39 games and returned to the mound for the Twins on September 6. Pascual’s ailment was originally diagnosed as a possible tumor or Lipoma, a fatty growth but it turned out to be a torn muscle.

The Spokesman-Review August 3, 1965

The Killebrew and Pascual articles are on page 18 and the recap of the Twins versus Orioles game can be found on page 19. Actually it is kind of fun to read the entire paper and read about the news back then and see some of the old ads.

Historical look at how Twins measure up to the rest of the league

I have followed baseball for a long time and it seems like the New York Yankees are always beating the Minnesota Twins. Truth or myth? I decided to check it out with an assist from baseball-reference.com .

It turns that the Yankees are indeed the toughest team to beat for our home town nine. Since 1961 they have played the Yankees 600 times and won just 252 of those match-ups for a .421 winning percentage. Actually I am surprised that the winning percentage is as high as it is because it seems like the Twins always lose to the Yankees.

Who do the Twins beat up on most frequently? That would be the Senators/Rangers franchise whom the Twins have played 696 times and whipped them on 366 occasions for a .527 winning percentage.  I have left the Houston Astros off the list since their time in the American League just started last season and I have included the Brewers/Pilots franchise since the Twins play them every year even though they have been in the National League for many of these years.

Here is how the Minnesota Twins stack up against the rest of the American League since 1961.

FRANCHISE TEAMS GAMES WON LOST WIN %
RANGERS SENATORS,RANGERS 696 366 329 .527
TIGERS 779 409 369 .526
WHITE SOX 844 441 400 .524
ROYALS 714 373 341 .522
BREWERS PILOTS,BREWERS 449 232 217 .517
A’S KC,OAKLAND 707 360 347 .509
RED SOX 596 298 298 .500
RAYS 129 63 66 .488
MARINERS 422 205 216 .487
INDIANS 777 375 401 .483
ANGELS 692 331 361 .478
ORIOLES 600 276 324 .460
BLUE JAYS 362 158 204 .436
YANKEES 600 252 347 .421

Interactive Whiteboards by PolyVision

 

Twins add ex-Padre Tim Stauffer to bullpen mix

Tim Stauffer
Tim Stauffer

The Twins recently signed 32 year-old right-handed pitcher Tim Stauffer to a one year $2.2 million deal. Stauffer was a 36th round selection of the Baltimore Orioles in 2000 but he chose not to sign and went on to college. Stauffer then was selected in the first round by the San Diego Padres in the 2003 draft and was the 4th overall pick. Prior to signing with the Padres, Stauffer and his agent Ron Shapiro stepped up and notified the team that Stauffer was suffering from some arm weakness after his last collegiate start. According to reports the Padres eventually signed Stauffer for $750,000, far short of the slot for a fourth overall pick of $2.4 million and way under the $2.6 million the team originally offered. The Padres loved his make-up and honesty and praised his integrity and then gave him almost $2 million less to sign. I guess the old saying “that no good deed goes unpunished” is true, at least it was here.

Stauffer debuted with the Padres in May of 2005 and pitched in 18 games for the friars between 2005-2007 before running into elbow issues and ended up having Tommy John surgery in May 2008 and missed the entire season. Stauffer’s best season was probably 2011 when he started 31 games and had a 9-12 record with a 3.73 ERA in 185 innings. The elbow injury bug struck Stauffer again in 2012 and after pitching just five innings in one game in 2012 Stauffer decided to have elbow flexor surgery in August and was forced to sit out the remainder of the season.

With two elbow surgeries on his resume, the Padres sent Stauffer to the bullpen in 2013 where Stauffer may have found his niche. In the last two seasons Stauffer has gone 9-3 with a 3.63 ERA in which he has struck out 131 batters in 134 innings. Stauffer’s SO/9 ratio has jumped to 8.8 as a reliever after sitting at 6.2 as a starter. Stauffer throws five pitches, a sinker 36% of the time, a cutter 27%, fourseam fastball 16%, a change-up 11% and a curve with a knuckleball grip about 10% of the time. According to Brooks Baseball, Stauffer throws between 76-91 MPH and his change-up generates more strike-outs than an average change-up does. The fly in the ointment as far as Stauffer is concerned besides his injury history is that he has a career 3.0 BB/9 mark and a 1.31 WHIP which kind of goes against the Twins pitching grain but then again maybe the Twins will look at this stat differently under the new Paul Molitor and Neil Allen regime.

So where does Tim Stauffer fit in the Twins pitching staff if at all? The Twins aren’t paying Stauffer $2.2 million to pitch for the Red Wings. According to what I have read Stauffer likes starting and the Twins have promised him a chance to be just that but in reality his chances of starting are about as good as my chances are of starting for the Twins. The Twins have a spot on the bullpen bench with Stauffer’s name on it. The only question is what his role will be coming out of the pen. Some have said that he will get a shot at the set-up role replacing Burton but I don’t see that in the cards, at least not to start the season if at all. I see Stauffer taking over as an upgrade over Anthony Swarzak as the Twins long guy with emergency start potential. We will see how it all plays out this spring.

According to Elias

Joe Mauer
Joe Mauer

It has come to this for Joe Mauer. In the eighth inning of a tie game with runners on second and third and one out, manager Buck Showalter decided that the Orioles should pitch to Mauer (albeit bringing in a tough lefty, Andrew Miller, to do so) rather than put Mauer on and pitch to bring up rookie Kennys Vargas, playing in his 30th big-league game.

And could you blame Showalter? Mauer brought a .271 batting average and four home runs into the game, and was batting .244 against lefties. But deep in Mauer’s statistical profile for this forgettable season lay this nugget: Mauer was batting .320 (16 for 50) in at-bats with two-or-more runners on base, including a two-run triple just two innings earlier. And Mauer came through with a two-run single, propelling the Twins to a 6-4 win. The loss ended Baltimore’s streak of having won the last 21 games in which it scored four-or-more runs, which had been the longest current streak in the majors.

According to Elias

Trevor Plouffe
Trevor Plouffe

Trevor Plouffe‘s solo home run in the seventh inning would not appear to be notable at first glance, especially since the Twins would muster no more offense in their 9-1 loss at Oriole Park at Camden Yards last night. That long ball however was indeed historic – it was the 10,000th home run hit by the Twins/Senators franchise. They were the last of the 16 pre-expansion franchises to reach 10,000 home runs. The Twins have contributed 7,214 of those homers while the Senators hit 2,786. By the way, Plouffe also hit Twins home run numbers 9,999 and 10,001.

Griffith Stadium
Griffith Stadium

The Washington Senators’ longtime home field, Griffith Stadium, had very distant fences and high outfield walls. One of the most remarkable statistics in baseball history: In 1945, the Senators went through the entire season of 78 home games hitting exactly one home run in their own park – and that one was an inside-the-park four-bagger! This wasn’t in 1845; it was 1945! And that 1945 team was pretty good – finishing second, one and one-half games behind the Tigers, who would go on to win the World Series.