The hapless 2021 Minnesota Twins finished with 73-89 record and were dead last in the AL central Division finishing one game worse than the Kansas City Royals and four games worse than the Detroit Tigers.
Here is my WAG for 2022
Tag: Josh Donaldson
Twins & Yankees agree on a blockbuster
Less than two days ago the Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees agreed on a blockbuster trade but Twins and Yankee fans are in a quandary about what to think of the deal. Social sites for both teams seem to be up in arms about the deal with both sides thinking they got the short end of the stick.
The trade in question calls for the New Yorker’s sending 29-year old catcher Gary Sanchez and 30-year old third baseman Gio Urshela to Minnesota for 36 year-old third baseman Josh Donaldson, 27-year old shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa and 24-year old catcher Ben Rortvedt.
It appears that there were multiple reasons to make the trade. The Twins seem to be looking to get out from under the $50 million the team owes Donaldson over the next two seasons and the Yankees have wanted to move Sanchez for some time. It is one of those situations where you swap my problems for your problems. The Yankees were in desperate need of a shortstop and the Twins had just acquired Kiner-Falefa from Texas earlier in the day. So in order for the Yankees to take Donaldson and pay him what he is owed the Yankees needed to get Kiner-Falefa in the deal and they wanted Rortvedt to replace Sanchez. Getting Donaldson and Kiner-Falefa made Urshela expendable and he was on his way to Minnesota.
2021 Twins Turkey of the Year
Happy Thanksgiving everyone
Time seems to have gotten away from me and it was only in the last few days that I realized it was that time again, time to pick another Twins Turkey of the Year. This years winner will be number 13. So far we have only had one repeat winner and that was President and CEO Dave St. Peter who took the honors in 2013 and again in 2019.
With the 2021 Minnesota Twins expected to do well and go deep in the playoffs by their fans and the so called baseball experts and then to see the team finish 73-89 and in last place in the American League Central Division you would have to think that there were more turkeys then you could shake a stick at. You would be right.
So where do the Twins go from here?
Minnesota Twins fans and the team itself had such high expectations going into 2021 and yet as we approach the midway point in the season we find the team floundering badly at 31-42. The season opened on April 1 and the team reached their high-water mark for the season on April 8 when they were three games over .500 with a 5-2 record. Since then it has been one step forward and two steps back.
So how do you explain this? How does a team that everyone expected to be a serious contender and pretty much a playoff lock in 2021 play such terrible baseball that it is basically unwatchable? Where do you start? Like in most businesses you have to start at the top.
Did you know?
According to mlbtraderummors.com – The Minnesota Twins for signing Josh Donaldson: Minnesota also received revenue-sharing and didn’t exceed the luxury tax threshold, so signing Donaldson put the Twins in position to give up their third-highest draft selection. However, the Twins are actually giving up their fourth-highest pick in the 2020 draft, which is their third-round selection. The Twins’ actual third selection is their pick in Competitive Balance Round B, but those picks aren’t eligible to be forfeited as compensation for QO free agent signings.
Josh Donaldson coming to Minnesota
I was watching the MLB channel last night when they interrupted their programming with breaking news that the Boston Red Sox and manager Alex Cora had mutually agreed to part ways after the previous days bombshell of the “caught stealing” penalties dropped on the Houston Astros by MLB. Then just a few minutes into that, they had more breaking news, this time the report was that a source (turned out to be MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand) had reported that third baseman Josh Donaldson had agreed to accept a four-year deal with Minnesota for $92 million guaranteed, including an $8 million buyout of a $16 million club option for a fifth year.
The Twins all-opponent team third baseman
Third Base – Wade Boggs is my pick today but when you have to choose among players like Brooks Robinson, George Brett, Sal Bando, Graig Nettles, Buddy Bell, Doug DeCinces, Carney Lansford, Adrian Beltre, and Josh Donaldson it is no easy task and on another day it might have been one of the others. It is tough to go wrong here.
Boggs who many knew as the chicken man played in the big leagues for 18 season with the Red Sox (1982-1992), the Yankees (1993-1997) and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (1998-1999). Boggs was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2005, selected as an All-Star 12 times, won five batting titles, eight Silver Slugger awards, and was a two-time Gold Glove winner.
He showed the Minnesota Twins no mercy in the 162 games he played against them hitting .344 with an OPS of .870. In his 730 PA’s against Minnesota he had 220 hits of which 42 were doubles, 7 triples, 5 were home runs and he walked 82 times to boot. In his 162 games against the Twins he went hitless just 24 times and on May 20 and May 31 of 1986 he had five hits in each game.
Wade Boggs is an interesting person and was a very good baseball player, if you would like to learn more about him, check out his SABR Bio.
Our previous selections for the Twins all-opponent team
According to ELIAS
Cruz and Dozier send game to extras in almost unprecedented fashion
Nelson Cruz homered in the top of the ninth inning to give the Mariners a 1-0 lead, but Brian Dozier answered with a four-bagger in the bottom of the ninth inning to tie it. Seattle then won in 11 innings at Target Field, 4-1.
The only other game in major-league history that was scoreless through eight innings, and then went to extra innings tied, 1-1, after a solo homer in the ninth for each team was played on Opening Day at Kansas City in 1972. The White Sox and Royals played out that scenario with ninth-inning homers by Dick Allen (in his White Sox debut) off Dick Drago and by Bob Oliver (father of Darren) off Wilbur Wood. The Royals won, 2-1, in the 11th inning, on a walk off single by John Mayberry.
Brian Dozier hit his 23rd home run yesterday afternoon, tying a single-season career-high, done last season. Dozier has 28 doubles and needs five to tie his career-high of 33, done in both 2013 and 2014. He needs one home run to tie Roy Smalley’s 24 in 1979 for most homers by a Twins middle infielder in club history and he enters today tied with Josh Donaldson for first in the AL in extra base hits with 54. Sources: ELIAS and Twins Game Notes.