Tag: Chuck Knoblauch

This Day in Twins History – February 6, 1998

The Twins trade their 1991 Rookie of the Year and four-time All-Star 2B Edward Charles “Chuck” Knoblauch to the New York Yankees and in turn receive pitchers Eric Milton and Danny Mota along with shortstop Cristian Guzman and outfielder Brian Buchanan and $3 million in cash.

Chuck had first been drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 18th round of the 1986 amateur free agent draft but chose not to sign primarily because his father felt that he was not ready for pro ball so Chuck went on to play for Texas A&M. The Minnesota Twins selected Knoblauch with their first pick (25th overall) in the 1989 amateur free agent draft and four days later Knoblauch signed his first professional contract. After signing with the Twins, the 5’9″ and 175 pound Knoblauch played A ball in Kenosha and Visalia and then in 1990 he moved up to AA ball Orlando under manager Ron Gardenhire. Knobby won the Twins starting 2B job coming out of spring training in 1991 and his big league career was underway. Knoblauch, a right-handed hitter played in 151 games during the 1991 World Championship season hitting .281 while scoring 78 runs and stealing 25 of 30 bases. Knoblauch won the ROY award going away garnering 26 of 28 first place votes. As time went by in Minnesota and the Twins teams struggled, Knoblauch became more aloof and distant from the fans and was known as a difficult autograph to get. In June of 1995 things got ugly in Seattle when Knoblauch was walking toward the team hotel when a 15-year-old boy asked him for an autograph. Knoblauch ignored him. Just as Knoblauch reached the door, the kid yelled, “Knoblauch, you suck!” Knoblauch spun around, backed the kid against a wall and cursed him out. The cops were called. The kid said Knoblauch had torn his shirt and scratched his neck. Knoblauch said he hadn’t laid a hand on the kid. No charges were pressed.

In August 1996 in August, Knoblauch passed up free agency by agreeing to a five-year contract extension. According to a March 1998 Sports Illustrated story, “Frustration had turned Chuck into a zombie.” Lisa Knoblauch is describing her husband’s Season of the Living Dead with the 1997 Minnesota Twins. “He was sad, desolate, miserable. He felt stuck in a five-year contract with a team that was sure to get worse. Requesting a trade seemed the only way out.” During this same time period, Knoblauch’s father (Ray) was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and was quickly losing his battle with the dreadful disease. The Twins and the Yankees agreed on a deal and the trade was made, Knoblauch was a New York Yankee but only after a supposed deal with the Cleveland Indians for pitchers Chad Ogea and Steve Karsay and infielder Enrique Wilson was turned down by Minnesota.

The same I article goes on to say “According to a reporter who covers the team, “Knoblauch whined and whined about wanting a long-term deal. So the team finally commits to him for five years at $30 million, and his commitment to the team lasts barely a year.” One member of the club’s front office says, “During the seven years Knoblauch was in Minnesota, he evolved into a bratty tyrant who ran roughshod over the people around him. Hardly anyone–from his teammates to the clubhouse kids to the valets who park the players’ cars—was unhappy to see him leave.”

Knoblauch played in New York from 1998-2001 and the team went to the World Series each year he was there, winning 3 and losing to Arizona in 2001. But Chuck’s time as a Yankee was not all peaches and cream as he started to develop a throwing issue and as time went by, his throws to first base from 2B grew progressively problematic. In 1999 Chuck committed 26 errors at 2B and slowly the Yankees started to use him more and more as a DH and in the outfield. Knoblauch played just 82 games at 2B for the Yankees in 2000 and that was the last time that Chuck played 2B in the big leagues. After the 2001 season Knoblauch left the Yankees through free agency and signed with the Kansas City Royals but hit only .210 in 80 games and the once promising career was over.

Chuck Knoblauch was named in the Mitchell Report and later appeared before a Congressional Committee to give testimony. He admitted using human growth hormone in 2001. A full text of that report can be seen here. In September of 2009, Chuck Knoblauch surrendered to authorities in Harris County, Tex., after he was charged with assaulting his common-law wife. Knoblauch entered a guilty plea in exchange for deferred-adjudication probation. Chuck Knoblauch is now doing motivation speaking through AthletePromotions.com. There is a nice piece written by Classic Minnesota Twins about the May 2, 2001 “Dollar Dog Rebellion” when Knoblauch and the Yankees were at the Metrodome that you will enjoy raeding.

Eric Milton

The left-handed starting pitcher Eric Milton who was the Yankees number one pick (20th overall) in the 1996 amateur free agent draft was the supposed plum in the Knoblauch trade. Although the big lefty (6’3″ and 210 pounds) pitched for Minnesota from 1998-2003 starting 165 games and putting up a 57-51 won/lost record, he never attained the super star status that many expected of him.  Milton struck out 13 and no-hit (5th no-hitter in Twins history) the Anaheim Angels 7-0 at the Metrodome on September 11, 1999 but even then he was critized because it was an early Saturday morning game due to an up-coming Minnesota Gopher football game at the Dome later in the day and many of the Angels regulars sat out the game. In his six seasons in Minnesota, Milton struck out 715 in 987 innings with a 4.76 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. The Twins traded their one time All-Star pitcher to the Philadelphia Phillies on December 3, 2003 for pitcher Carlos Silva, infielder Nick Punto, and a PTBNL who turned out to be pitcher Bobby Korecky.

Cristian Guzman

The switch-hitting shortstop Cristian Guzman played for the Twins from 1999 through the 2004 season before leaving as a free agent. The speedy Guzman led the league in triples in 2000, 2001, and 2003 and was named to the All-Star team in 2001. Guzman wasn’t a bad shortstop but for some reason he just was not given a lot of love by either the fans or the team. You can view a Twins commercial with Cristian Guzman in their 2001 “Get to Know’em” campaign here.

 

 

Brian Buchanan

The big (6’4″ and 230 pounds) right-handed hitting outfielder Brian Buchanan did not turn out to be the bigger slugger that the Twins had hoped they had acquired and “Buck’s” stay in Minnesota only lasted from 2000-2002 for a total of 143 games. In those 143 games, Buchanan hit .258 with 16 home runs but it was his 113 strikeouts in 414 at bats that kept Buchanan from becoming a regular outfielder. The Twins sent Brain to the San Diego Padres for shortstop Jason Bartlett on July 12, 2002. Buchanan is the son-in-law of former Boston Celtic great John Havlicek.

Danny Mota was a right-handed pitcher but his stay in Minnesota was very brief, Mota pitched in four games for the Twins in 2000 and that turned out to be his entire major league career. The Dominican born Mota appeared in 4 games throwing 5.1 innings allowing 10 hits and 5 runs and ending his big league career with a 8.44 ERA. I am not sure much else needs to be said about Mr. Mota.

Last April the Platoon Advantage did a piece on Chuck Knoblauch and his “Twins Family Tree” that I have copied here because I think it is kind of cool. Danny Mota’s Twins contribution is left out and of course Delmon Young has since been traded but never the less these kinds of family tree charts are fun and interesting to look at. It teaches us to look past the original trade and what it brings to the ballclub.

 

Twins Hall of Fame voting now open

Fan voting for the Twins Hall of Fame class of 2012 is now open and will remain open through midnight on January 4, 2012. The 2012 ballot has 18 former players. After the voting deadline has passed, votes will be counted and the top vote-getter with at least 50% of the ballot will be elected and honored during the 2012 season. If a second candidate receives 75% of the vote, there will be two candidates who will receive membership in the Twins Hall of Fame. Started back in 2000, the Twins Hall of Fame currently has 23 inductees that you can see on the “Twins Hall of Fame” page on this site. I would urge you to stop over at http://minnesota.twins.mlb.com/min/fan_forum/hof_ballot.jsp and vote for the player or players that you think are worthy to admission into the Twins Hall of Fame.

I am lucky enough to have seen all of these players play in a Twins uniforms and that makes it a bit easier I think for me to vote than for some of the younger voters who can only go by statistics and what they have heard and read about the player(s) in question. Voting is conducted by a 54-member committee, which includes local and national baseball writers, Twins broadcasters, Twins Hall of Fame members, local TV and Radio members, select Twins front office personnel and the fans so I am not sure exactly how much say the fans really have in this vote. Sure it is a popularity thing, much like the All-Star game voting in that respect but still it is fun for the fans to vote and have their say in who deserves the honor of being a Twins Hall of Fame member.

I vote every year and this year my votes go to:

1. Camilo “Little Potato” Pascual a right-handed pitcher who pitched for the Senators/Twins franchise from 1954-1966. Pascual was known for having the best curveball in his era and in his 13 seasons with the franchise he posted a 145-141 record for a team that was often closer to the cellar than the penthouse.  Camilo finished what he started and he led the AL in complete games in 1959, 1962 and 1963. He led the AL in strikeout for three consecutive seasons from 1961 to 1963 and he won 20 or more games in both 1962 and 1963. Camilo Pascual who I think has been a forgotten man by the Twins to this point is 77 now and no one deserves to be in the Twins Hall of Fame more than he does. It is a disgrace that this great pitcher has been left out of the Twins Hall of Fame for so long.

2. Allan “Red” Worthington was a right-handed reliever for the Twins from 1964-1969 and a strong case can be made that Al Worthington was the Twins first great closer. The man put up amazing numbers back when closers role did not really exist and relief pitchers pitched several innings at a crack. Look at these numbers and tell me how we would look at a closer today that put up numbers like this. In Worthington’s 6 seasons in Minnesota he was 37-31 with an ERA of 2.62 and a WHIP of 1.19 while having a 7.6  SO/9 ratio. Al Worthington, now 82, deserves your vote.

3. Cesar “Pepe” Tovar passed away at the age of 54 in 1994 and is no longer with us but memories of this wonderful little player are still with me. Tovar played for the Twins in a number of roles for 8 seasons from 1965-1972 after being acquired in a trade from Cincinnati. Pepe could play anywhere, as a matter of fact he played all nine positions in a game for the Twins back on September 22, 1968 and Tovar remains the only Twins position player to start a game on the pitcher’s mound. The 5’9″ 155 pound right-handed hitting Tovar spent most of his time in the outfield but he also played 3B, 2B, and Shortstop. 1970 was probably his best year and that year he played in 161 games, had 726 plate appearances, scored 120 runs, led the league in doubles (36) and triples (13), while hitting 10 home runs and knocking in 54 more to go with his .300 batting average. That doesn’t even count his 30 stolen bases.

One player I will probably never vote for the Twins Hall of Fame is former 2B and 1991 AL Rookie of the Year Chuck Knoblauch. Don’t get me wrong, Knoblauch was a great player but his attitude stunk, his me first thinking, and his relationship with the fans left a lot to be desired so Knobby will not be getting a vote for the Twins Hall of Fame in the near future.

So PLEASE, get out there and vote!

You’re outta here!

December 23, 2010 – One of the fun things about going to baseball games for me is that you never know when a manager or player ejection will take place over a close play or a bad or missed call by an umpire. It is these kinds of calls that make baseball the game that it is and that is why I hope that MLB never goes “instant replay crazy”. It is always fun for the fans to see the players emotions get the best of him, right or wrong, and then watch as he has his say with the umpire. Sometimes it is just a few words, probably not nice ones, that force the ump to throw that player out of the game and at other times the player gets to go on and on for what seems an eternity before he gets the heave-ho. Actually, I think that this is a part of baseball that is slowing going by the way-side as umpires are just too dang quick with the thumb and their ejection buttons. Baseball is after all, entertainment, and what better way to give the fans their money’s worth then to let them watch a good old fashion debate between an upset player and an umpire. Come on now, what is more fun than seeing a player stick his nose right in the umpires face and call him an %#@-hole or a *^%$-up? Give the fans in the stands a chance to yell “kill the ump” and really get into the game. It really makes no difference if the player or the umpire is in the right, give the player a chance to have his say, maybe kick some dirt on the plate or the ump’s shoes, or throw his cap out to second base, or maybe run over to first base, jerk it off its foundation and send it flying half way out to an outfielder that is standing there with his glove up to his face to hide his laughter? Or listen to the fans cheer or boo as the player starts chucking bats and balls back onto the playing field from the dugout. It is just fun and will generate water cooler and Facebook talk for days. Maybe it adds 5 minutes to a game that would otherwise be forgotten but now you have a classic situation that may stick with a fan forever. Maybe 30 years from now some fan will tell his kids, I remember this one hot summer night back in August of 2010 I think it was, and the Twins were playing the Yankees at Target Field when Bobby Akens went ballistic after getting called out on a play at the plate or just a few days later in Boston when Joe Smith went nuts after getting called out on strikes for the third time in the game. Umpires need to realize that baseball is entertainment and that we fans did not put our good money down for tickets to watch them ump, we paid to see the players play so it is time for the umpires to play their part and show some patience and do their part in the production and continue to let baseball be the best entertainment sport there is. Let the players play, have their say, and if need be, if all else fails, throw their butt out.

Torii Hunter
Torii Hunter

The Twins have had their fair share of player ejections (105) over the years and the one that stands out for me is the Joe Niekro ejection, the one with the nail file falling out of his back pocket, a real classic and one of my favorite Twins moments. What about you? Do you have a favorite Twins player ejection story? Did you know that the Twins player with the most ejections has 5 and that it is none other than outfielder Torii Hunter? Hunter of all people, which surprised me when I looked at the numbers and saw that. So here is a complete list of all Minnesota Twins player ejections from 1961 through 2010 that will maybe jog your memory a bit. I am not including any coach or manager ejections here as that will be a story for another day.

(Ejection list updated through 2012 as of March 2013)

5 – Torii Hunter

4 – LaTroy Hawkins, Kent Hrbek

3 – Rod Carew, Dan Gladden, Eddie Guardado, Cristian Guzman, Jacque Jones, Chuck Knoblauch, Tony Oliva, Dave Ortiz, Vic Power, Denard Span

2 – Bob Allison, Earl Battey, Tom Brunansky, Brian Harper, Mickey Hatcher, Ron Jackson, Corey Koskie, Brad Radke, Rich Reese, JC Romero

1 – Allan Anderson, Wally Backman, Bert Blyleven, Orlando Cabrera, Jamey Carroll, John Castino, Jack Cressend, Mike Cubbage, Michael Cuddyer, Chili Davis, Ron Davis, Scott Diamond, Jim Dwyer, Terry Felton, Pete Filson, Greg Gagne, Johnny Goryl, Lenny Green, Dave Hollins, Butch Huskey, Craig Kusick, Ken Landreaux, Fred Manrique, Charlie Manual, Pat Mears, Doug Mientkiewicz, George Mitterwald, Joe Niekro, Camilo Pascual, Tom Prince, Kirby Puckett, Nick Punto, Mike Redmond, Kenny Rogers, Jim Roland, Phil Roof, Mark Salas, Carlos Silva, Mike Smithson, Rick Sofield, Shannon Stewart, Danny Thompson, Danny Valencia, Jesus Vega, Frank Viola, Mike Walters

Did you know?

November 26, 2010 – That in the 1989 Amateur draft the Minnesota Twins drafted two AL Rookie of Year winners in Chuck Knoblauch (first round) and Marty Cordova (tenth round) as well as two 20-game winners in Denny Neagle, albeit not with Minnesota (third round) and Scott Erickson (fourth round). And then, in round 52 they drafted Denny Hocking as a catcher and he went on to become one of the lowest-drafted players to ever reach the majors. Hocking had a 13 year big league career and was a Minnesota Twin between 1993-2003. In 1997 Hocking played games at 1B, 2B, SS, 3B, RF, CF, LF and DH. Though he was drafted as a catcher, Denny never donned the “tools of ignorance” in a big league game.

 

Good Eye, Good Eye!

May 15, 2010 – The Twins preach to their pitchers that the batter should earn his way on base via a hit, just throw the ball over the plate and take your chances that the batter will hit it to one of your fielders. In recent years, the Twins pitching staff has always been one of the league leaders in fewest bases on balls allowed.

But the shoe is on the other foot when it comes to the Twins hitters where the coaching staff tries to teach patience at the plate, after all, a walk is just as good as a hit. Plus, the more pitches you see, the better the odds are of the batter getting a hit and the quicker the pitcher reaches their so called pitch limits. This year the Twins hitters have taken that advice to heart and after 32 games they have walked 147 times and are on pace for about 700 walks which would be the most not only in Twins history but in franchise history. The 1956 Senators walked 690 times and the most walks by a Twins team was the 1962 Twins when they walked to first base 649 times. Let’s take a look at the top 10 career Twins and Senators batters that believed that a walk was indeed as good as a hit.

Minnesota Twins

HOF Harmon Killebrew played for the Senators/Twins from 1954-1974
HOF Harmon Killebrew played for the Senators/Twins from 1954-1974
Rank Player Bases on Balls Plate Appearances Base on Ball %
1 Harmon Killebrew 1,321 8,018 16.48%
2 Kent Hrbek 838 7,137 11.74%
3 Bob Allison 641 4,641 13.81%
4 Rod Carew 613 6,980 8.78%
5 Roy Smalley 549 4,675 11.74%
6 Chuck Knoblauch 513 4,571 11.22%
7 Kirby Puckett 450 7,831 5.75%
8 Tony Oliva 448 6,879 6.61%
9 Matt Lawton 408 3,150 12.95%
10 Tom Brunansky 394 3,760 10.48%

 Washington Senators

Eddie Yost
Eddie Yost
Rank Player Bases on Balls Plate Appearances Base on Ball %
1 Eddie Yost 1,274 7,461 17.08%
2 Joe Judge 943 8,906 10.59%
3 Buddy Myer 864 7,028 12.29%
4 Mickey Vernon 735 7,769 9.46%
5 Ossie Bluege 723 7,452 9.70%
6 Clyde Milan 685 8,312 8.24%
7 Sam Rice 680 9.879 6.89%
8 Buddy Lewis 573 5,937 9.65%
9 Joe Kuhel 530 5,234 10.13%
10 Goose Goslin 488 5,810 8.40%

Former Twins 2B and ROY Chuck Knoblauch pleads guilty

March 16,2010 – Former Twins second baseman and 1991 AL Rookie of the Year Chuck Knoblauch has pled guilty to misdemeanor assault on his common-law wife. According to the original criminal complaint, Knoblauch’s wife stated to police that Knoblauch hit her in the face and choked her last September. According to court records, Knoblauch entered his plea today in exchange for a deferred- adjudication probation. If Knoblauch completes his one-year probation successfully the conviction on the assault of a family member would be expunged from the record. Knoblauch was also fined $1,000.

Former Twins ROY Chuck Knoblauch Accused of Assaulting Wife

Knoblauch mug shotSeptember 29, 2009 – Former Minnesota Twins Rookie of the Year Chuck Knoblauch now faces a felony criminal charge in Texas for an alleged attack on his common-law wife outside their Memorial-area home. Knoblauch turned himself into authorities on Tuesday after investigators obtained a warrant for his arrest. He’s accused of beating, then choking his wife during a drunken rage early in the morning of Friday.

Knoblauch was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the first round (25th overall) of the 1989 amateur draft. Knoblauch won the starting 2B job in the spring of 1991 and was a key player in the Minnesota Twins World Championship season in which he also won the American league Rookie of the Year award. After a contract dispute, Chuck Knoblauch was traded by the Twins to the New York Yankees for Brian Buchanan, Cristian Guzman, Eric Milton, Danny Mota and cash on February 6, 1998. Not long after his arrival in New York, Knoblauch started having problems throwing to first base and that eventually led to the Yankees letting Knoblauch go via free agency in November of 2001. The Kansas City Royals signed Knoblauch in 2002 but he only played 80 games there before he announced his retirement.

Chuck Knoblauch was one of more than 100 players who were accused of using performance-enhancing drugs in the 2007 Mitchell Report on baseball’s steroids era. Knoblauch later acknowledged using performance enhancers.