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 minor league pitcher and Minnesota native Mark Hamburger has been suspended without pay for 50 games without pay after a second violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program for a drug of abuse according to the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball. The suspension of Hamburger who is currently a free agent will start immediately upon his signing with another Major League organization.
The Twins had signed Hamburger as an amateur free agent in 2007 after he attended one of their open tryout camps. Hamburger pitched in the Twins minor league system in 2007 and part of 2008 before the Twins traded him to the Texas Rangers for Eddie Guardado. Hamburger made his big league debut with the Rangers in August 2011 and pitched in 5 games for the Rangers and posted a 1-0 record with a 4.50 ERA in just 8 innings. In June of 2012 he was picked up by the San Diego Padres on waivers and then just a month later he was again waived and this time he was picked up by the Houston Astros only to be released by the Astros this month.
Several sources have reported that the Twins have agreed to sign 32-year-old RHP Kevin Correia to a two-year $10 million contract. Correia was a San Francisco Giants 4th round pick in 2002 and made his major league debut as a reliever at the age of 22 with the Giants in July of 2003. Correia spent parts of 2003-2005 with the Giants before joining the Giants full-time from 2006-2008. Correia has also spent time with the Padres in 2009-2010 and the Pirates in 2011-2012.
Since Correia became a full-time starter in 2008 he has a 49-51 record with a 4.73 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP in 132 starts during which he has averaged about 5.9 innings per start for some pretty bad teams. Correia has a career 6.0 SO/9 but the last two seasons he has a 4.6 SO/9. Correia is another of those so-called “pitch to contact” inning eater pitchers that the Twins seem to want to collect. We are not talking a Cy Young winner here but for the money and considering the state of the Twins starting staff Correia should fit in nicely. I like the signing, another item checked off on Terry Ryan’s to do list.
According to MLB, “The non-waiver Major League trading deadline has been July 31st since the 1986 season. Prior to that season, the non-waiver deadline for trades within each League was June 15th and there were also distinctions between when intraleague and interleague trades could be made. Waivers were necessary at all times for interleague trades, with the exception of two non-waiver interleague trading periods: February 15 – April 1 and 5 days after conclusion of World Series – the day before the last scheduled day of the Winter Meetings.
The first appearance of a trade deadline in the Major Leagues came when the National League established a deadline of August 20th in 1917. After that date, a player had to clear NL waivers before being traded. The American League followed suit in 1920, but with a deadline of July 1st. The following year, both the AL and NL agreed on a deadline of August 1st. On December 14, 1922, the deadline was changed to June 15th after gaining approval at the Joint Major League meetings held at the Hotel Commodore in New York. It would stay June 15th until after the 1985 season. In 1953, the interleague trading rules were amended as to require waivers between June 15th and the conclusion of the championship season. The first non-waiver interleague trading period was created for the 1959 off-season and it was from November 21–December 15. In 1970, the start of the period was moved to begin 5 days after the World Series instead of November 21. Seven years later, a second non-waiver interleague trading period was created, February 15–March 15. In 1981, that period was extended through April 1 and was in effect until all distinctions between interleague and intraleague trading were abolished prior to the 1986 season.”
Players may be traded between Major League Clubs until 4:00 p.m. (EDT) on Tuesday, July 31st without Major League waivers in effect.
In July between 2000 and July 25 of 2012, the San Diego Padres have made the most trades, a total of 38 and on the other end of the spectrum, the Angels have made the fewest deals, just 11. The Minnesota Twins have made the second fewest number of trades in that time frame, just 13 but the Francisco Liriano trade the other day would add one to the total. Looking at the rest of the AL Central, the Tigers have made 15 deals, the White Sox have made 25 not counting the recent Liriano deal, the Royals have swung 26 deals and the Indians lead the division with 27 trades. It appears that the addition of two wild card spots this season has deceased the amount of deals but we still have time to bring that number up.
The following table tracks the number of trades that have occurred between June 1-July 31. Three-way trades are counted as one trade.
Who would have thunk it? The Twins have traded Francisco Liriano within the AL Central Division to the Chicago White Sox for minor league pitcher Pedro Hernandez and infielder Eduardo Escobar. I have not seen any previous reports of the Mighty Whities interest in Liriano but that is how these trades often happen, all the rumors of interested teams are just that, rumors. At first blush it does not appear like the Twins received much in return but time will tell, we will just have to wait and see. Then again it is not like the Twins traded a superstar, Liriano had to be traded and obviously the Twins don’t think that moving him to Chicago will hurt them long-term.
Pedro Hernandez
So what did the Twins get for Liriano? They received 23-year-old lefty Pedro Hernandez. Hernandez is just 5’10” and goes about 200 and was signed by the San Diego Padres as an amateur free agent in 2006 and was traded to the White Sox this past winter in the Carlos Quentin deal. Hernandez has one big league game under his belt when the White Sox called him up for one start just 10 days ago against the Red Sox but it was not a pleasant experience for Hernandez who lasted just 4 innings giving up 12 hits, 3 home runs and 8 earned runs. In his 6 minor league seasons, Hernandez has 33-13 record with a 3.42 ERA and 1.24 WHIP. Hernandez is not a strikeout pitcher and has given up 453 hits in 428.1 innings. Not exactly what I was hoping to get in return for Liriano but he is left-handed and is only 23 years old.
The other player that the Twins received for Liriano was 23-year-old switch hitting 2B/SS/3B Eduardo Escobar. Escobar was signed by the White Sox as an amateur free agent in 2006. Escobar appeared in 9 games with the White Sox in 2011 and in 35 games this season. In the minors, Escobar played mainly at SS and 2B but with the White Sox this season he played primarily at 3B although he also played a few games at SS and 2B and even appeared in the outfield for a game. In his 89 big league at bats over two seasons, Escobar hit for a .202 average with no home runs and 2 stolen bases.
The Twins announced after todays loss at Detroit that that they have optioned 1B Chris Parmelee to Rochester and called up RHP Samuel Deduno and plan to start him on Saturday against the leagues top team, the Texas Rangers. I like Parmelee a lot but he is being short changed with the Twins and he needs to play. On the other hand, I understand that Gardy has no position for him right now and with the All-Star break coming up, why not send him to Rochester and give him a chance to get some game action. Who knows, in a couple of weeks with the trading deadline coming up, there might be some opens spots on the Twins roster.
Samuel Deduno
The 29 year old Deduno is being called up and will see his first big league action of 2012 after seeing 4 games (2.2 innings) with the Rockies in 2010 and 2 games (3 innings) with the Padres last season. Deduno was originally signed by the Rockies in March of 2003 as an amateur free agent but was signed off waivers by the San Diego Padres in January of 2011. He became a free agent in November 2011 and almost immediaetly signed with Minnesota. In his 8 seasons in the minors Deduno has a 45-45 record with a 4.18 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. In Rochester this season Deduno has started 9 games and has a 1-2 record with nice 2.14 ERA and a WHIP of only 1.17 . Having said that, Deduno has only pitched 42 innings which comes out to less than 5 innings a start and that is being caused primarily by his 4.7 bases on balls per 9 innings so control is an issue for Sam but on the plus side, he has only given up 27 hits in those 42 innings. So if the Texas Rangers are swinging, Deduno has a chance. Welcome to the Twins Sam! When Deduno appears in a Twins game, he will be the 40th different player the Twins have used this season and we haven’t gotten to the All-Star game yet.
I have no issue with the Twins organization giving these guys a shot, who knows when you might catch lightning in a bottle.
47 hitless at bats for the Twins came to an end when Jamey Carroll hit a single in the first inning against the Mariners yesterday. That was the longest hitless streak by a major-league team since the Padres went 47 at-bats without a hit in June 1995. Source: Elias
Chris Parmelee’s run in the seventh inning last night snapped the Twins scoreless streak at 25 innings. It was the Twins first run since scoring three in the eighth inning in Monday night’s 4-3 loss against the Angels in Anaheim. The scoreless streak was the longest by a Twins team since they went 26 consecutive innings without scoring a run from July 31-August 3, 1994. Parmelee’s double in the seventh inning last night was the Twins first extra-base hit since Alexi Casilla’s double in the eighth inning Monday night in Anaheim. The Twins went 92 plate appearances between extra base hits. The Twins 65 extra-base hits are the fewest among American league teams this season. Source: Twins Game Notes
The Twins won for the first time last night when being out-hit by their opponent (1-12), it also marked the first time (in game number 25) that the Twins held their opponent to two runs-or-less.
Tonight’s Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Felix Hernandez is a true Ace. King Felix has gone at least 6.0 innings in 172 of his 211 games started (81%), including 92 of last 101 starts (91%), and 6 of 6 so far in 2012. 29 of 32 (91%) in 2011.
Samuel Benedict Perlozzo was born in Cumberland, Maryland on March 4, 1951. Growing up in Maryland, Sam enjoyed playing football and baseball and was probably better known as a football player playing running back and safety but his lack of size kept him from pursing the gridiron. Sam earned a baseball scholarship to George Washington University where he played for three seasons from 1970 to 1972. In his final year, Sam was the star of the team hitting .345, leading the nation in stolen bases and getting named as an Academic All-American. Sam ended up signing a free agent contract with the Minnesota Twins on August 15, 1972. Perlozzo started his professional career in “A” ball with Fort Lauderdale in 1973 and played in Dubuque in 1974 and Reno in 1975. Back in those days some of the big league clubs had co-op teams where a team was made up of players for several big league clubs so even though Sam was signed as a Minnesota Twin, he did not get to play on a team of Twins minor leaguers until he joined the Orlando team in 1976. Sam Perlozzo made his major league debut on September 13, 1977 at Comiskey Park replacing Bob Randall at 2B in the seventh inning but he did not get an at bat that day. Sam ended up playing in 10 games for the Twins in 1977 going 7 for 24 (.292 average) and scoring 6 runs. As it turned out, those 10 games would be the only games that Sam played in a Minnesota Twins uniform as he spent 1978 in AAA Toledo. In the spring of 1979 Perlozzo and the Twins had reached an agreement that if Sam did not make the Twins ballclub coming out of spring training he would be granted his release and that took place on March 30, 1979. Perlozzo signed with the San Diego Padres and spent the season playing in Hawaii before getting a September call-up. Unfortunately for Sam he was suffering from a groin injury at the time and only got two at bats with the Padres before being carted off the field after he reinjured his groin. That my friends marked the end of Sam Perlozzo’s big league playing career. In January of 1980 the Padres sold Perlozzo to the Yakult Swallows of the Japanese League and Sam played ball there in 1980 hitting .281 with 15 home runs and 43 RBI’s in 118 games. In 1981 Sam joined the New York Mets as a player/coach in AAA Tidewater but after that season, Sam, who was 30 at the time, walked away from his playing days and moved into coaching and managing.
Perlozzo managed various teams in the Mets minor league system from 1982-1986 winning three league titles while never having a losing season. Perlozzo ended his minor managing league career with a 364-263 (.581) record in five seasons. The following season (1987), Sam was promoted to the New York Mets as a third base coach and he stayed in that role through the 1989 season. Perlozzo then went on to coach for the Cincinnati Reds from 1990-1992, the Seattle Mariners from 1993-1995, and the Baltimore Orioles from 1996-2005. In August of 2005 Perlozzo was named as the Baltimore Orioles manager after Lee Mazzilli was let go. After nearly two years at the helm, Perlozzo could not get the Orioles over the hump and on June 18, 2007 Sam was replaced by Dave Tremblay as the O’s skipper. Sam then returned to coaching with the Seattle Mariners from 2008-2009 before joining the Philadelphia Phillies as a coach in 2009. Perlozzo is still coaching with the Phillies and has now been a big league coach or manager for 25 straight seasons. Sam obviously loves the game of baseball. In the off season, Sam lives in Tampa, Florida and enjoys playing golf and spending time with family and friends. Sam’s son Eric was drafted by the Orioles in the 2007 amateur draft.
You can listen to the Sam Perlozzo interview by clicking here. Be sure to check out our other interviews with former Twins players by going to the Interview Archives page, there are 35 different interviews you can check out.
William (Bill) Joseph Rigney, The Minnesota Twins fifth manager, passed away at the age of 83 in Walnut Creek, California on February 20, 2001.
After Bill Martin was fired as the Twins manager after only one season (1969), Bill Rigney managed the Twins from 1970-1972 and had a 208-184 won/lost record. The Twins finished in first place in Rigney’s first season as the Twins skipper in 1970 but they lost 3-0 to the Baltimore Orioles in the ALCS. This was the only title that Rigney won as a manager in his 18 year managing career. Rigney was fired 70 games in to the 1972 season and was replaced by Frank Quilici. Rigney also managed the New York Giants in 1956-1957, the San Francisco Giants in 1958-1960, the Los Angeles Angels from 1961-1964, the California Angels from 1965-1969 and finally he finished his MLB managing career with one more year at the helm of the San Francisco Giants in 1976. Rigney was the American League Manager of the year in 1962.
Bill Rigney, known as the Cricket or Specs, played in the big leagues for 8 seasons from 1946-1953 as a 2B, 3B, and shortstop for the New York Giants and was an All-Star in 1948 and played in the 1951 World Series when the Giants lost to the New York Yankees. Rigney had a little pop in his bat too as his 24 doubles and 17 home runs in 1947 indicate.
After his playing and managing career were over, Bill Rigney was a broadcaster for the San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics. He also scouted and was briefly in the front office for the Angels, Padres, and the A’s. Bill Rigney served his country in the US Coast Guard during World War II.
Make sure you check our Today in Twins History page daily to see what interesting things happened each and every day over the long and glorious history of the Minnesota Twins.
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.
In their first year of eligibility, Kirby Puckett and Dave Winfield are elected to the MLB Hall of Fame. The former Twins are the fourth pair of teammates selected by BBWAA in the same year.
Kirby Puckett who spent his entire career as a Minnesota Twin was a Twins icon from the day he was called up in 1984 until he lost sight in his right eye and had to leave baseball after the 1995 season at the age of 36. Puckett, a fan favorite where ever he went led the Minnesota Twins to World Series championships in 1987 and 1991 and was an All-Star for 10 consecutive years. Kirby Puckett suffered a massive stroke and died on March 6, 2006.
Dave Winfield
Dave Winfield is a Minnesota native and attended the University of Minnesota where he was a star in both baseball and basketball. In 1973, he was named All-American and voted MVP of the College World Series as a pitcher. After his college eligibility was concluded, Winfield was drafted by four teams in three different sports. The San Diego Padres selected him as a pitcher with the fourth overall pick in the MLB draft and both the Atlanta Hawks (NBA) and the Utah Stars (ABA) drafted him and though he never played college football, the Minnesota Vikings selected Winfield in the 17th round of the NFL draft. Winfield signed with the San Diego Padres and the Padres immediately put Winfield in right field and Winfield was on his way to a Hall of Fame career with not a single day of minor league baseball on his resume. Winfield’s 22 year career also included stops with the Yankees, Angels, Blue Jays, Twins, and the Cleveland Indians. Winfield had 3,110 career hits with hit number 3,000 coming at the Metrodome in a Twins uniform.
Former Minnesota Twins minor league pitcher and Minnesota native Mark Hamburger has been suspended without pay for 50 games without pay after a second violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program for a drug of abuse according to the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball. The suspension of Hamburger who is currently a free agent will start immediately upon his signing with another Major League organization.
