TWINS TRIVIA is hopefully a fun and informative site that will help you to better enjoy the Minnesota Twins and their wonderful history. “History never looks like history when you are living through it” – John Gardner, former Secretary of Health
Former Minnesota Twins catcher Tom Nieto, a member of the franchise’s unforgettable 1987 World Series championship team, passed away on March 27 at the age of 65. His family shared that he died in Florida following a heart attack, leaving behind a long baseball life that touched clubhouses across the majors and minors alike.
Nieto’s career wound through several organizations, but in Minnesota he found the role that Twins fans remember best: a reliable, defense first catcher who helped stabilize a pitching staff during one of the most pivotal seasons in franchise history.
From California to the Big Leagues
Born in Downey, California, Nieto played his college ball at Oral Roberts University before being drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the third round in 1981. He reached the majors in 1984 and served as Darrell Porter’s backup during the Cardinals’ 1985 pennant run.
After a stop in Montreal, the Expos dealt him to Minnesota — a move that would place him squarely in the middle of one of the most improbable championship seasons in modern baseball.
A Quiet Contributor to a Loud Season
The 1987 Twins were a team built on personality, power, and the Metrodome’s peculiar magic. But every championship club needs its glue pieces, and Nieto was one of them. Working behind the plate with a staff that included Frank Viola, Bert Blyleven, Les Straker, and a bullpen full of characters, Nieto provided the steady defensive presence that managers covet in a backup catcher. He appeared in 47 games that season, and while his offensive numbers were modest, his value came in the trust the staff placed in him and the professionalism he brought to the job.
He earned a World Series ring that fall as the Twins stunned the baseball world by beating the Cardinals — the very team that drafted him — in seven games. For Twins fans, his name sits comfortably in that long list of role players whose contributions don’t always show up in the box score but are woven into the fabric of a championship.
Dan Serafini was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 1st round (26th) of the 1992 MLB June Amateur Draft from Junipero Serra HS (San Mateo, CA). Serafini debuted with the Twins on June 25, 1996 in the second game of a DH at the Metrodome against the New York Yankees.
Serafini was the Twins starter and pitched 4.1 innings (80 pitches) allowing 5 earned runs on 7 hits, 2 hits while striking out one Yankee batter. Serafini was the losing pitcher in a Yankee 6-2 win. That was the only game Serafini pitched for the Twins in 1997 and he appeared in 6 games in 1997. He 1998 he made the Twins starting rotation starting 28 games with a 7-4 record with a 6.48 ERA. Serafini was a hit-to-contact pitcher with questionable control as he struck out 46 and walked 29 in 75 innings. On March 31, 1999 he was purchased by the Chicago Cubs. Serafini finished his career with the Twins with a 9-6 record and a 5.88 ERA in 35 games. Serafini pitched 105.2 innings allowing 129 hits while striking out 62 and walking 42.
Serafini went on to pitch for the San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds and finished his big league career with the Colorado Rockies in 2007 appearing in 3 games. That same year, he was suspended for 50 games for using performance-enhancing drugs. Serafini apparently still had hopes of pitching in the majors and hung around in the minors through 2013 and pitching in Mexico, China and Japan.
Scott Edward Klingenbeck was born on February 3, 1971 in Cincinnati, Ohio and passed away unexpectedly on May 20, 2025 at the age of 54. Klingenbeck grew up in Cincinnati, where his love for baseball was evident from a young age. A standout athlete at Oak Hills High School, he quickly earned a reputation as a dominant pitcher with a strong work ethic. His talent led him to Ohio State University, where he excelled as a collegiate pitcher, winning 10 games in 1990 and 11 in 1991—both ranking among the top 10 single-season win totals in program history.
Klingenbeck was first selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 57th round of the 1989 amateur draft but did not sign. He was then taken by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 60th round of the 1991 amateur draft, but once again, he did not sign. Finally, he was chosen by the Baltimore Orioles in the fifth round of the 1992 amateur draft. He signed and made his pro debut that season with the Kane County Cougars.
Scott made his Major League debut on June 2, 1994, pitching seven innings against the Detroit Tigers and securing a win. Over the course of his career, he played for the Baltimore Orioles (1994–1995), Minnesota Twins (1995–1996), and Cincinnati Reds (1998). His most notable trade came in July 1995, when the Orioles sent him to the Twins in exchange for pitcher Scott Erickson, the 1991 AL Cy Young runner-up.
Cristobal Mendoza was born in Ceiba del Agua, Cuba on December 3, 1934 and passed away at the age of 89 on September 9, 2024 in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina. Mendoza was better known to Minnesota Twins fans as Minnie Mendoza who played for the Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins organization for 16 seasons between 1958 and 1972.
Mendoza was originally signed as a amateur free agent by the Cincinnati Reds but was released after two seasons and was signed by the Washington Senators as a free agent in 1958 at the age of 23. The Washington Senators had a long history of signing Latin American ballplayers, thanks largely to scout “Papa Joe” Cambria. Cambria convinced Mendoza to join the organization’s Missoula Timberjacks in the Class-C Pioneer League.
But it would be a long time before Mendoza would make his debut in the big leagues. Matter of fact it took 12 years and over 1,800 minor league games before a Rod Carew injury in 1970 resulted in Mendoza got his opportunity to put on a big league uniform. It was was not even the Senators team that he signed with since the Washington Senators moved to Minnesota after the 1960 season and became the Minnesota Twins.
Mendoza made his major league debut at White Sox Park on April 9, 1970 when he entered the game as a defensive replacement for third baseman Harmon Killebrew in the ninth inning of a game that the Twins were leading 6-4 against the Chicago White Sox and won by the same score. He went hitless in his first eight games going 0 for 9 before getting his first big league hit and run scored in his ninth game when he singled as a PH against the Baltimore Orioles Mike Cueller at Memorial Stadium. Mendoza played in his 16th and final big league game on June 7 at Washington before being sent to the minors never to play in the big leagues again. His big league career was short, just 16 games, 16 PA’s, 3 hits, 2 RBI and 2 runs scored. That said, he reached the big leagues, and that is something to be proud of.
In 1974-75, Mendoza embarked on his career as a minor league manager beginning in Mexico. He returned to organized baseball as a coach and scout for several teams, primarily the Baltimore Orioles and Cleveland Indians organizations. He served on the Orioles’ major league coaching staff as their first-base coach in 1988. Among his accomplishments with Cleveland, Mendoza is credited with scouting and signing a young Bartolo Colon, who went on to win 247 games and the 2005 American League Cy Young award.
Brant Alyea was born in Passiac, New Jersey on December 8, 1940 and passed away at the age of 83 in his Pennsylvania home on February 4, 2024. Alyea was a very athletic student lettering in three sports at Rutherford High School, playing quarterback for the Bulldogs and starring in basketball and baseball.
According to his SABR Bio, after graduating from high school Alyea accepted a scholarship to Hofstra College in Hempstead, New York, a seemingly perfect fit as the small Long Island institution was established on a campus bequeathed by a Dutch lumber magnate, William Hofstra, in the 1930s, and their athletic teams were known as the Flying Dutchmen. More significantly, Hofstra would give Alyea the opportunity to play basketball as well as baseball. The basketball team was then coached by another Dutchman originally from New Jersey, Butch van Breda Kolff. Alyea and the Dutchmen enjoyed significant basketball success in the NCAA College Division. In the 1959-60 season, they finished 23-1, losing only to Wagner College of Staten Island by two points in January, but that loss cost them the conference title and they were not selected for postseason play. The next year, Alyea led the Dutchmen in scoring and rebounding, and Hofstra was selected for the small-college tournament, in which the team was eliminated by Albright College.
But it was Alyea’s baseball skills, particularly his power that attracted baseball scouts and eventually led to his signing with the Cincinnati Reds in the Spring of 1962. The Reds assigned their 6’5″ prospect to Geneva (New York) of the Class D New York-Penn League, and he clubbed 32 home runs while hitting .319 in just 105 games. Those healthy numbers made Alyea a prime target in the Rule 5 draft, which at that time covered all first-year players who had not been placed on the 40-man roster, and Alyea was snatched up by the Washington Senators.
While most of us have been enjoying our week-end, the Minnesota Twins front office has been hard at work burning up the phone lines looking high and low as they work to improve the team. Today they made their second trade in as many days when they traded their 2021 first round selection (26th over all) RHP Chase Petty to the Cincinnati Reds for RHP Sonny Gray who himself was the Oakland A’s first round selection (18th over all) back in 2011 before moving on to the Yankees in 2017 and finally the Reds in 2019. The Twins also received right-handed minor league reliever Francis Peguero a 24-year old Dominican who pitched in High A ball in 2021.
This is one of those “potential for experience” kind of deals. A type of trade that the Minnesota Twins disdained over they years. In a way it is similar to the Kenta Maeda deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers for prospect pitcher Brusdar Graterol a few years back. The big difference in that deal was that Graterol was big league ready and Petty is straight out of high school and has all of 5 innings of pro ball under his belt. Another trade that comes to mind was the 2010 deal with the Nationals when the Twins traded catcher Wilson Ramos for closer Matt Capps and Twins fans were not happy campers. Capps went on to save 45 games for Minnesota over three seasons. Ramos is still catching in the big leagues after 12 seasons (seven teams) and has two All-Star games and a Silver Slugger on his resume. You just never know how these kinds of trades will work out.
Unless something unforeseen happens the Minnesota Twins will not be booking a lot of frequent flyer miles in 2015 as they will only have to fly 23,866 miles this coming season. Only seven teams, the Indians with 23,499, the Brewers with 23,429, the White Sox with 23,180, the Tigers with 22,508, the Cubs with 20,953, the Cardinals with 20,875 and the Reds with 20,612 will fly fewer miles than our home town boys. The Mariners on the other hand will be on the other end of the spectrum and will need to fly 43,281 miles to play out their schedule of games in 2015.
The site I used to look up this information has information going back to 2009. Based on their numbers the 2015 Minnesota Twins will fly fewer miles than any Twins team has flown from 2009 through 2014.
Miles flown by the Minnesota Twins
2014 – 29,532
2013 – 29,043
2012 – 25,546
2011 – 32,199
2010 – 27,398
2009 – 25,315
So when you hear those Minnesota Twins radio and television announcers talk about the teams grueling travel schedule you can say, “what a bunch of BS”, they got it easy.
Hosted by the Minnesota Twins at Target Field the 85th MLB All-Star game and everything surrounding it is finally in our rear view mirror and to be honest, I am kind of glad to see it come to an end. Don’t get me wrong, it was a fun event and the Twins and the Twins Cities did a great job putting together all the festivities but the constant barrage of All-Star game hoopla on TV, the radio, the internet and newspapers was getting to me. This was a long-term project for the Twins and as a former project manager myself in a former life, I know how tough and pressure-packed it can be, but when the project comes to a successful end it is nice to sit back like George Peppard, aka John “Hannibal” Smith used to do on the “A-Team” and say “I love it when a plan come together”. Great job Minnesota Twins!
All-Star Fan Fest was an interesting event and the only All-Star activity that I actually attended in person. I attended Fan Fest from about 11 AM to 5 PM on Friday and was shocked at how few people were actually there. You could walk up to any activity or display and there were no lines at all for anything but some food concessions. There were many cool things to do and see. This place was baseball heaven for kids and I am sure the crowds picked up in ensuing days and many baseball fans were able to partake in this fun event. What I particularly liked at this Fan Fest was that once you paid your entry fee pretty much everything else inside the event including autographs from former Twins players and Hall of Famers were free unlike Twins Fest where you pay to get in and then still have to pay to get autographs from former Twins players. Maybe the Twins should consider this approach to TwinsFest too, I know the money goes to the Twins Community Fund and that is all well and fine but don’t price yourself out of the range of the average fan.
Brian Dozier
What about the Home Run Derby? Yep, I watched it on TV and for the most part it was pretty boring. They say the Home Run Derby is better in person but on a cool windy evening with a 90 or so minute rain delay I think sitting at home in front of the TV served me just fine. Twins second baseman Brian Dozier participated in the derby with his older brother Clay pitching and I thing Dozier knocked three balls into the stands but not enough to move on to the next phase. Colorado Rockies first baseman and former Twin Justin Morneau was also a participant but he too was eliminated fairly early in the competition that ended about 11 PM local time when Oakland A’s outfielder Yoenis Cespedes hoisted the Home Run Derby Trophy and what looked like a professional wrestling belt high into the air claiming his second Home Run Derby championship in a row. What’s with the weird belt?
You can’t talk about the 2014 Home Run Derby and fail to mention foolish local lad Jacob Jacobson, 19, who tweeted a picture of his “injured” hand that supposedly he hurt trying to catch one of derby participant Giancarlo Stanton’s home run balls. Stanton caught wind of the tweet and responded that he would give Jacobson one of his gloves and a Home Run Derby ball. The next day the teen’s father, Jeff Jacobson, told the Star Tribune the appearance of his son’s hand is actually from a birth defect, and that he’s “learning that social media is not necessarily the venue to use to make fun of situations.” Jacob Jacobson ended up apologizing and said that what started out as a joke between friends ended up getting away from him. Hello – earth to Jacob!
I watched the All-Star game on TV and it held my interest for most of the night, not a great game but an interesting game for the most part. The “I grooved a pitch to Derek Jeter” comment from Cardinals hurler and National league starter Adam Wainwright and then shortly thereafter Wainwright recants and says he really didn’t mean to say what he said added some spice to the game. Pitchers having been grooving pitches to batters for a variety of reasons in MLB for as long as I can remember, they just don’t announce it to the general public 15 minutes after they did it. I could care less if Wainwright grooved a pitch to Jeter or not but the way he handled the situation was pretty dumb, an embarrassment for MLB, Jeter and himself.
Scott Diamond
The Twins thought that they had found a genuine diamond in the rough when they acquired Scott Diamond from the Atlanta Braves as a Rule 5 draftee back in 2010 but less then four years later found out they had cubic zirconium instead and threw their diamond back into the rock pile and wouldn’t you know it, the Cincinnati Reds came by and put Scott Diamond in their pocket hoping to hit it big. Diamond had started 58 games for the Twins over the span of three seasons (2011-2013) and posted a 19-27 record with a 4.43 ERA. A pitch to contact starter, Diamond allowed 398 hits in 343 innings. Diamond had his best season in 2012 when he went 12-9 with a 3.53 ERA for a team that won a total of 66 games.
Kendrys Morales
Kendrys Morales who the Twins signed a month or so ago and are paying roughly $7.4 million dollars has been sending out feelers recently that he wouldn’t mind staying in Minnesota on a longer deal. I sure hope that the Twins don’t bite on that hook and resign Morales, actually their best move would be to send him packing at the trade deadline for whatever they get offered. In 34 games todate this supposed power hitting DH/1B has hit one home run and is hitting for a .230 average. Signed to be a full-time DH, Morales has filled in at first base now and then since Joe Mauer has taken a vacation of yet undetermined length from his first base duties due to yet another injury just when he thought he was getting hot after his average dipped to .254 about a month ago. By the way, is there a slower runner in all of baseball then Kendrys Morales? Man, this guy can clog the bases like no one I have ever seen before, I think former Twins catcher Earl Battey who was not known for his speed could have run circles around Morales.
You hear the term that so and so was optioned to triple AAA and that he has no options left. What does that mean and how many options are there? Neil deMause did a nice blog about options and their history that you can check out by going to Sports on Earth.
GM Terry Ryan
The Twins dropped their first post All-Star game to the Tampa Rays yesterday at Target Field 6-2 and now stand seven games under .500 at 44 wins and 51 losses. Time for Terry Ryan and Rob Antony to raise the white flag and start listening to offers for a number of players on this team, too many to mention by name. Start bringing up some young players and let’s see if all those potential future stars in the minors can play big league baseball. You can’t keep selling the future forever and now is as good a time as any to see what you have under the covers. I know Byron Buxton has been hurt most of the season and he is currently in A ball but had he not been hurt he would have been at AA and maybe AAA by now. Your best coaches are here in the big leagues, why not just bring Buxton up and throw him in centerfield and see what the man can do? Centerfield has been a black hole for the Twins for some time now, how about putting Buxton out there now? Miguel Sano is injured but why not bring him up on September 1 to travel with the club, get acclimated to the big leagues and maybe even get an at bat at DH now and then? You have some young pitchers in Rochester like Trevor May, Alex Meyer, and Logan Darnell and others that can strut their stuff at Target Field so why not buy them a ticket to Minneapolis and show your diminishing group of Twins fans that you indeed have real players that can play baseball and are not just something called “potential”. Don’t forget that potential is defined as possible, as opposed to actual, expressing possibility, capable of being or becoming. OK Mr. Ryan, the fans are calling you, time to turn over your hold cards and show us what you really have in your hand.
May 16, 1928 – Alfred Manuel “Billy” Martin was born in Berkeley, California. Billy played in the majors for 11 seasons with the New York Yankees, Kansas City A’s, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Braves and finished his career with the Minnesota Twins in 1961. Martin managed the Twins in 1969, the Detroit Tigers in 1971-1973, the Texas Rangers in 1973-1975, the Oakland A’s from 1980-1982, the New York Yankees from 1975-1979, 1983, 1985 and again in 1988. Billy Martin died as the result of an automobile accident on December 25, 1989.
May 16, 1983 – The Twins enter the ninth inning at the Metrodome trailing the Oakland A’s 7-0. The Twins hit four home runs in the bottom of the ninth (Dave Engle, Bobby Mitchell, Gary Gaetti, and Mickey Hatcher and they score 6 runs. They have the tying run on first when Dave Engle who pinch-hit a home run to lead off the rally strikes out to end the game. Hatcher’s home run was also as a pinch-hitter marking the third time in Twins history they have pinch-hit two home runs in the same game. The attendance was only 7,056 and you wonder how many fans were actually still at the Dome to witness this amazing comeback that fell a run short. Boxscore
Harvey Mackay
May 16, 1984 – The Twins sell 51,863 tickets to their 8-7 loss to the Blue Jays, but only 6,346 fans show up for the game. The skewed numbers are the result of a massive ticket buyout plan organized by Minneapolis businessman Harvey Mackay to keep the Twins in Minnesota; if the club does not sell 2.41 million tickets this season it can break its lease with the Metrodome. Taking advantage of reduced prices on the Family Day promotion, Mackay pays $218,718 for 44,166 tickets. Boxscore
May 16, 2010 – Jason Kubel hit a stunning grand slam off Mariano Rivera with two outs in the eighth inning Sunday, and the Twins snapped a nine-game losing streak against the Yankees with a 6-3 victory in Yankee Stadium. Kubel’s third homer of the season and sixth career slam snapped a string of 51 straight converted save opportunities for Rivera at home, tying the major league record set by Eric Gagne with the Dodgers. Nick Blackburn (4-1) allowed three runs and nine hits in seven innings for Minnesota, which picked up its first win against New York since Aug. 13, 2008. The Twins had lost 12 straight overall against New York, counting the sweep in last year’s AL division series. Boxscore
Rochester (AAA – International League) right-handed pitcher Yohan Pino is the Twins Minor League Player of the Week. The 29-year-old Pino made two starts for the Red Wings, going 1-0, 0.82 ERA (11.0 IP, 1 ER) with four walks nine strikeouts and a 7.0-inning complete game shutout vs. Pawtucket on Thursday. The Turmero, Venezuela native has made four appearance (2 starts) for the Wings this season, going 2-0, 0.59 ERA (15.1 IP, 1 ER) with six walks and 12 strikeouts. Pino’s fastball is in the mid-to-high 80’s and he has great curveball and slider. Pino suffered a foot injury in 2008 and he has not been the same pitcher that once threw a no-hitter in 2007.
Yohan Pino
Pino, a right-hander was originally signed by the Twins in 2004 and spent parts of six seasons in the Twins system before being the PTBNL in a trade that helped the Twins acquire right-handed pitcher Carl Pavano in August of 2009. Pino also spent time in the minor league organizations of the Blue Jays and Reds before he was resigned by the Twins this past offseason and was invited to Spring Training.
