Tag: Paul Molitor

Twins searching for a new manager

Ron GardenhireI was driving up to Duluth to enjoy a short two-day getaway when I heard the first reports over the radio that Ron Gardenhire was going to be dismissed as the Twins manager after 13 seasons at the helm of the Minnesota Twins. Gardenhire has a 1,068-1,039 won/lost record as the Twins skipper and he led the team to 6 division titles in his first nine years before the team fell on hard times between 2011-2014 when they lost 90 or more games each season. Although Gardenhire led his team to the playoffs six times, his teams have had little success in post-season play as they only advanced past the first round once and the team had a 6-21 playoff record. Gardenhire’s 1,068 wins place him second on the Twins all-time manager win list trailing only the legendary Twins skipper Tom Kellywho has 1.140 victories to his credit. When Gardenhire won his 1,000 game earlier this season he became only the 10th manager in MLB history to win that many games with just one team.

The announcement of the Twins management change was made by GM Terry Ryan and Ron Gardenhire was in attendance which in itself was kind of unusual but yet I would not have expected anything different from Gardenhire who I think is a class act all the way. It was who wasn’t there that really stood out to me, where was team president Dave St. Peter and owner Jim Pohlad? Yes, I saw a replay of the press conference and I heard Terry Ryan say that both had conflicts and would be available for questions later. What a bunch of BS that is. The team manager is the face of your baseball team and yet the owner and team president don’t attend the press conference? How ridiculous is that? If they had conflicts on Monday then schedule the press conference for another day, firing the manager a day or two later will not change the Twins record. It is all about perception and to me it appears that Jim Pohlad and Dave St. Peter don’t want to be associated with Gardenhire being relieved of his duties. It is as if they told Terry Ryan that you can stay on as the Twins GM but first you have to send Ron Gardenhire packing. Pohlad himself said in so many words that the GM was responsible for making the final call on the manager’s job. Get real Mr. Pohlad, how dumb do you think we are? I know some teams don’t have their team presidents and owners attend these kind of press conferences but the Twins usually do and when there is good news to be shared, you can count on seeing the smiling faces of Jim Pohlad and Dave St. Peter behind that table.

On one hand I hate to see Ron Gardenhire go as the Twins manager because I believe that for the most part he did a good job as the team skipper based on the players he had and I liked his attitude and how he interacted with the fans. He seemed like one of us even though he was a major league manager and only 30 people in this world can say that. On the other hand the Minnesota Twins organization has to make some kind of a statement to the dwindling Twins fan base that something is being done to try to get the good ship U.S.S. Twins back out to deeper water and back on course after they had scrapped the bottom for the last four years. Fans are jumping overboard in record numbers and the Twins crew is trying to throw a life preserve over the side to get some fans back on board but it may be too little to late. Gardenhire has been offered some type of job within the organization that as yet is not defined and Gardenhire is pondering his options but it is obvious the man wants to get in the managers seat again and I think that some organization will probably give him that opportunity in the not too distant future. I hope so, I want to see Gardenhire charging out of that dugout again with his face red with disgust and his cap hand in hand telling the umpires that “they missed that one”.

The entire Twins coaching staff were on the last year of their contracts so they are all out of work unless the new Twins manager chooses to bring them back. But who will be the new Twins manager? Around the middle of August Terry Ryan stated to Sid Hartman at the Star Tribune that Gardenhire still had a year left on his contract and he expected him to be back in 2015. The again what was he going to say, I am going to fire Gardy after the season ends? Ryan has stated that the Twins will look inside the organization and outside the organization to find the right man for the job. The leading candidate according to the press and the general public in some of those “who should the new Twins manager be” polls appears to be Paul Molitor. Even Sid Hartman is campaigning hard for Molly.

I just don’t see Molitor as the right fit for the Twins managers job. I know he is a hall of fame player, played for the Twins, and coached for the Twins but these are not necessarily working in his favor right now. Great ball players have historically not made good managers. Molitor’s personality more closely resembles Tom Kelly in his prime than it does Ron Gardenhire. Molitor seems more like the old school gruff and tough manager and with all the young players that the Twins will have on the roster I am not sure this is a good fit. Molitor has been a Twins coach all season and how many times have you seen him interviewed or quoted in the past year about Twins play? Not many, Molitor seems to prefer a low profile and if the Twins are looking for a manager that will help to market the team, Molitor is not the guy. Another thing working against Molitor is that he is a Twins insider and fans are looking for changes in the organization and next man up internally is not what the fans want. The fans don’t want to see the same old thinking and if the team hires another Twins insider it is unlikely that much will change.

GM Terry Ryan
GM Terry Ryan

So who is going to be the new Twins manager? I don’t know the answer to that, no one does right now. But I would be willing to bet it is not Molitor or anyone else in the current Twins organization. If an internal candidate was going to manage the Twins in 2015 I think that Terry Ryan would have pulled the trigger at the end of August and brought him in as an interim manager so that he could test drive the Twins for the rest of the year and management could evaluate the new skipper at the same time. That didn’t happen so I see it as a sign that the new Twins manager is working in another organization at the present time. Ryan has been in baseball a long time and he knows a lot of people, this will come in handy now.

I will miss Ron Gardenhire and I wish him the very best but I am glad that this change was made and I am looking forward to seeing who will be managing the Minnesota Twins in 2015 and beyond.

200 hits in a season

Jose AltuveLast Wednesday Houston Astros 2B Jose Altuve went two for five in the Astros 5-2 win over the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field. His single in the seventh inning was his 200th hit of the season. As of today, Altuve, a 2014 All-Star has 206 hits and the hitter closest to him in hits is Indians outfielder Michael Brantley with 180 hits. The 24 year-old five foot six inch second sacker who is in his fourth season with the Astro’s is showing everyone that he is a real good baseball player. In the last 10 seasons MLB hitters have had 200 or more hits on 36 occasions but last year there were none and this season Altuve may well be the only one. Is pitching taking over baseball?

So when was the last time the Minnesota Twins had a hitter with 200 or more hits in a season? Can’t remember? Maybe that is because it hasn’t happened for many a year. The last Twins hitter to have 200 or more hits in a season was 39 year-old DH Paul Molitor back in 1996. The amazing Kirby Puckett did it a total of five times including four in a row from 1986-1989 and he came up just short in 1985 with 199 hits. The Twins now in their 54th season have had only 13 hitters that have gotten 200 or more hits in a single season. The Twins have never had more than one hitter in a season get 200 or more hits but in 1977 Rod Carew had 239 hits and Lyman Bostock came up just short with 199 hits.

Twins hitters with 200 or more hits in a season

Kirby Puckett

Rk Player H Year ? Age G AB R HR RBI BA OPS Pos
1 Paul Molitor 225 1996 39 161 660 99 9 113 .341 .858 *D3/H
2 Kirby Puckett 210 1992 32 160 639 104 19 110 .329 .864 *8/DH45
3 Kirby Puckett 215 1989 29 159 635 75 9 85 .339 .843 *8/HD
4 Kirby Puckett 234 1988 28 158 657 109 24 121 .356 .920 *8/H
5 Kirby Puckett 207 1987 27 157 624 96 28 99 .332 .900 *8/DH
6 Kirby Puckett 223 1986 26 161 680 119 31 96 .328 .903 *8/H
7 Rod Carew 239 1977 31 155 616 128 14 100 .388 1.019 *3/H4D
8 Rod Carew 200 1976 30 156 605 97 9 90 .331 .858 *3/4H
9 Rod Carew 218 1974 28 153 599 86 3 55 .364 .879 *4/H
10 Rod Carew 203 1973 27 149 580 98 6 62 .350 .881 *4/H
11 Cesar Tovar 204 1971 30 157 657 94 1 45 .311 .725 *798/5H4
12 Tony Oliva 204 1970 31 157 628 96 23 107 .325 .878 *9/8H
13 Tony Oliva 217 1964 25 161 672 109 32 94 .323 .916 *9/8H7
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 9/15/2014.

 

This Day In Twins History – August 8

8/8/1962 – With the score tied at 3 apiece at Municipal Stadium in Kansas City, A’s rookie third baseman Ed Charles steals home with two out in the ninth to score the winning run in a A’s 4-3 win over the Twins. Ray Moore and Jerry Zimmerman were the Twins battery at the time.

8/8/1974 – The Royals – Twins game at Royals Stadium is briefly interrupted by President Nixon’s resignation speech. The speech is broadcast after it begins and the next inning is delayed until the conclusion of the speech. The Twins prevail over the host Royals‚ 3 – 2 in 14 innings when Tony Oliva‘s sacrifice fly drives home Rod Carew. Bill Campbell pitches 7 innings of relief for the win.

White sox shorts8/8/1976 – This has nothing to do with the Minnesota Twins but still it deserves to be remembered for its “strangeness”. Thirty-seven years ago, on Aug. 8, 1976, the Chicago White Sox made sartorial history by wearing shorts in a win over the Royals. The Bermudas were the idea of—who else?—owner Bill Veeck. The shorts were worn in a total of three games.

8/8/1987 – The Twins beat the Oakland A’s 9-2 at the Metrodome as Twins pitcher Steve Carlton wins the 329th and final game of his Hall of Fame career. Carlton pitches 8 2/3 innings giving up 2 runs while striking out two batters.

8/8/1988 – The Indians and the Twins were scoreless after 3 innings at the Metrodome with Allan Anderson on the mound for the local nine. In the top of the fourth inning with no one out, the Indians Ron Washington and Willie Upshaw singled to put runners on first and second and then Joe Carter smashed a long drive to the left field corner where Twins outfielder Dan Gladden snagged it for an out and wheeled and fired a strike to Steve Lombardozzi at 2B to nail Washington and then Lombo relayed the ball to Gene Larkin at first to get the runner there by at least 5 feet and completed the unusual 7-4-3 triple play. The Twins went on to win the game by a 7-2 score with Galdden going 3 for 5 with a run scored, a stolen base, and a RBI. Catcher Brian Harper was 4 for 4 but played second fiddle to Gladden on this day.

8/8/1998 – Paul Molitor stole his 500th base in Minnesota’s 6-3 loss to Baltimore to become only the fifth player ever with 3,000 hits and 500 steals. Molitor joined Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner, Eddie Collins and Lou Brock.

8/8/2004 – The A’s beat the Twins 6 – 5 in 18 innings. It is the second-longest game in the 23-year history of the Metrodome. With the score tied 3 to 3, the A’s score 3 in the top of the 18th off Terry Mulholland to take a 6-3 lead. The Twins come back with 2 in the bottom of the 18th with a Morneau home run but leave Matthew LeCroy stranded on first when Koskie and Cuddyer flyout to end the rally and the Twins hope of a huge comeback victory. The game lasts 4 hours and 57 minutes.

8/8/2005 – One time Minnesota Twins manger (1976-1980) Gene Mauch passes away at the age of 79. Mauch was the seventh manager in Twins history. I think one of my favorite Gene Mauch quotes was “I’m not the manager because I am always right, but I am always right because I am the manager”.

8/8/2009 – The Twins third manager, Cal Ermer passed away at the age of 85 in Chattanooga, Tenn. Ermer replaced the fired Sam Mele in June 1967 with the Twins in sixth place with a 25-25 record. The Twins went 66-46 the rest of the season but lost the American League pennant on the final day of the season. Ermer was fired after the Twins finished in seventh place in 1968 with a 79-83 record.

2014 All-Star Peanuts Gang Statues

MLB announced that Major League Baseball, the Minnesota Twins and Peanuts Worldwide, as part of a new collaboration between the organizations, unveiled 10 life-size statues of the iconic Peanuts Gang, including Charlie Brown and Snoopy, dressed in full Twins baseball uniforms at St. Paul’s Rice Park on May 28th.

These statues are set to welcome St. Paul residents and visitors alike to the city’s downtown area for the next three weeks in advance of MLB All-Star Week. On hand for the unveiling were Twins Owner and Chief Executive Officer Jim Pohlad, Team President Dave St. Peter, City of St. Paul Director of Marketing and Convention Planning Jake Spano as well as a starting lineup of St. Paul natives, including Twins first baseman and All-Star Ambassador Joe Mauer, Twins Bench Coach and All-Star Ambassador Paul Molitor and Snoopy, the World’s Most Famous Beagle and Official Peanuts All-Star Ambassador. The statue unveiling marked the start of a new multi-year marketing relationship between the league and the legendary comic strip brand that also forms a special retail program. This retail component consists of replica statuettes modeled after the life-size statues in Rice Park, as well as other related merchandise including apparel, novelties and collectibles.

The 10 life-size statues are decorated with full baseball gear to go along with their uniforms, including mitts, cleats, bats and in Schroeder’s case, catcher’s equipment. Standing between five and six feet tall and weighing between 200-300 pounds, these Twins-themed All-Star statues will reside in St. Paul’s Rice Park until June 16th at which point they will move to the Minneapolis Convention Center for MLB All-Star festivities through July 15th. This special line of commemorative statues and their replica statuettes, commissioned in conjunction with Forever Collectibles, depicts the Peanuts gang as Twins players, dressed in uniforms adjusted for each character’s style.

2014 All-Star Game Snoopy Figurine (Target Field Exclusive - June 6 game - 10,000 available)
2014 All-Star Game Snoopy Figurine (Target Field Exclusive – June 6 game – 10,000 available)

The statuettes, which stand between five and seven inches, will be available through MLB.com and at the Majestic Twins Clubhouse Store beginning June 2nd. Photos of all 10 life-size statues and the replica variations are available at MLB.com. The Twins will also host Peanuts Day at Target Field on June 6th when the first 10,000 fans will receive a limited-edition Snoopy figure. Only fans in attendance at this Twins versus Houston Astros game will be able to complete the entire limited-edition collection. In addition to the replica statuettes, in the coming months fans can obtain a wide variety of memorabilia featuring the Peanuts Gang characters, representing all 30 MLB clubs. Items will include apparel, headwear, novelties and collectibles, among other items and will be available nationwide.

MLB All-Star Week at Target Field includes the 85th MLB All-Star Game (July 15th), Gatorade All-Star Workout Day (July 14th) featuring the Home Run Derby, Taco Bell All-Star Sunday (July 13th), including the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game and the Taco Bell All-Star Legends & Celebrity Softball Game, and T-Mobile All-Star FanFest at the Minneapolis Convention Center (July 11th-15th).

Click on the figurine to see the slideshow and place your cursor on the figurine during the slide show to view the description.

[Show picture list]

A month to remember for Chris Colabello

Chris Colabello
Chris Colabello

Minnesota Twins 1B and outfielder Chris Colabello had a month to remember in April and now he ranks at the top of the list of some pretty good players that knew how to knock in runs for the Minnesota Twins. Some interesting names on this list of Twins that had 20 or more RBI in the first month of the season.

Rk Player Split Year G RBI PA AB R H 2B 3B HR SB BB SO BA OBP OPS
1 Chris Colabello April/March 2014 24 27 102 95 11 28 9 0 3 0 6 26 .295 .343 .827
2 Kirby Puckett April/March 1994 25 26 116 112 14 39 11 0 2 0 2 10 .348 .371 .871
3 Ron Coomer April/March 2000 22 23 92 83 14 22 4 0 5 0 7 9 .265 .326 .820
4 Brant Alyea April/March 1970 17 23 60 53 7 22 4 0 5 1 7 7 .415 .483 1.257
5 Justin Morneau April/March 2008 27 22 110 97 12 26 4 0 6 0 11 16 .268 .345 .840
6 Kent Hrbek April/March 1982 22 22 100 86 18 27 5 2 8 0 13 15 .314 .404 1.102
7 Dave Hollins April/March 1996 25 22 103 82 19 24 4 0 7 1 19 18 .293 .437 1.034
8 Matt Lawton April/March 2000 26 22 118 102 18 38 9 0 3 5 14 12 .373 .449 .998
9 Paul Molitor April/March 1996 25 21 114 101 24 39 7 1 2 5 11 10 .386 .439 .973
10 Pat Meares April/March 1996 24 21 95 84 16 27 4 3 3 3 6 19 .321 .372 .920
11 Doug Mientkiewicz April/March 2001 23 21 87 79 14 30 6 1 6 0 6 14 .380 .425 1.134
12 Harmon Killebrew April/March 1971 21 21 91 81 7 26 6 0 3 2 10 16 .321 .396 .902
13 Torii Hunter April/March 2002 27 20 115 105 23 39 5 0 9 5 8 21 .371 .409 1.085
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 5/2/2014.

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It will be interesting to see how many RBI Colabello will end up with in 2014. Harmon Killebrew wih 119 and Kirby Puckett with 112 ended up leading the league in RBI’s in the season they had 20 or more RBI’s in April. Dave Hollins on the other hand had 22 RBI in April and finished the season with 53. Strangely enough Dave Hollins, Paul Molitor, and Pat Meares all had 20 or more RBI in April of 1996 and yet the team finished the season at 78-84 with Paul Molitor and Marty Cordova ending up with over 100 RBI.

A nice record to have for Chris Colabello but it is a long season so it will be fun to watch to see if Colabello can maintain his RBI pace or if this past month is just an anomaly.

You can check out a nice article written about Colabello and his history by Dan Cook of WCCO Radio here.

The day the DH was born – January 11, 1973

After a seven-hour meeting in the Lancaster Room of the Sheraton-O’Hare Motor Hotel in Rosemont, Illinois, American League owners voted 8-4 for something they called the “designated pinch hitter for the pitcher,” or DPH, an abbreviation quickly modified to DH. I asked Clark Griffith how the Twins voted and here is what he had to say. “The Twins voted for it and I think that was a mistake. The vote was based on having Killebrew and Oliva for DH. I was involved in the drafting of the rule and after the vote it occurred to me that we used the wrong statistic to support it. The stat used was pitcher BA v. hitters BA and it should have been pitchers and those who hit for pitchers v. other batters. In essence, that means measuring the ninth hitter with all others. The effect of not removing a pitcher for a PH was not considered either. The DH is a horrible rule that should be allowed to go away. I love reading NL box scores for their complexity.”

From what I can determine, Charlie Finley, former Oakland Athletics owner, is generally credited with leading the push for the DH in 1973. He was strongly supported by American League President Joe Cronin and owners Nick Mileti (Cleveland), Jerry Hoffberger (Baltimore), John Allyn (Chicago) and Bob Short (Texas). John Fetzer (Detroit), Bud Selig (Milwaukee) and Calvin Griffith (Minnesota) would make 8 votes in favor with Boston, New York, Kansas City and California voting against the DH.

 

Current rules for the DH

A hitter may be designated to bat for the starting pitcher and all subsequent pitchers in any game without otherwise affecting the status of the pitcher(s) in the game. A Designated Hitter for the pitcher must be selected prior to the game and must be included in the lineup cards presented to the Umpire-in-Chief.

The Designated Hitter named in the starting lineup must come to bat at least one time, unless the opposing club changes pitchers. It is not mandatory that a club designate a hitter for the pitcher, but failure to do so prior to the game precludes the use of a Designated Hitter for that game.

Pinch hitters for a Designated Hitter may be used. Any substitute hitter for a Designated Hitter himself becomes a Designated Hitter. A replaced Designated Hitter shall not re-enter the game in any capacity. The Designated Hitter may be used defensively, continuing to bat in the same position in the batting order, but the pitcher must then bat in the place of the substituted defensive player, unless more than one substitution is made, and the manager then must designate their spots in the batting order.

A runner may be substituted for the Designated Hitter and the runner assumes the role of the Designated Hitter.

A Designated Hitter is “locked” into the batting order. No multiple substitutions may be made that will alter the batting rotation of the Designated Hitter.

Once the game pitcher is switched from the mound to a defensive position this move shall terminate the DH role for the remainder of the game. Once a pinch-hitter bats for any player in the batting order and then enters the game to pitch, this move shall terminate the Designated Hitter role for the remainder of the game.

Once a Designated Hitter assumes a defensive position this move shall terminate the Designated Hitter role for the remainder of the game.

At first, the designated hitter rule did not apply to any games in the World Series, in which the AL and NL winners met for the world championship. From 1976-1985, it applied only to Series held in even-numbered years, and in 1986 the current rule took effect, according to which the designated hitter rule is used or not used according to the practice of the home team. The list below shows the career numbers for players that played at least 50% of their games at DH.

Rk Player G From To Age AB R H HR RBI BA
1 Harold Baines 2830 1980 2001 21-42 9908 1299 2866 384 1628 .289
2 Frank Thomas 2322 1990 2008 22-40 8199 1494 2468 521 1704 .301
3 Don Baylor 2292 1970 1988 21-39 8198 1236 2135 338 1276 .260
4 Edgar Martinez 2055 1987 2004 24-41 7213 1219 2247 309 1261 .312
5 David Ortiz 1969 1997 2013 21-37 7057 1208 2023 431 1429 .287
6 Hal McRae 1837 1973 1987 27-41 6568 873 1924 169 1012 .293
7 Chili Davis 1562 1988 1999 28-39 5525 808 1540 249 954 .279
8 Andre Thornton 1225 1977 1987 27-37 4313 650 1095 214 749 .254
9 Travis Hafner 1183 2002 2013 25-36 4058 619 1107 213 731 .273
10 Billy Butler 1015 2007 2013 21-27 3768 445 1124 118 562 .298
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 1/5/2014.
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The list below shows the numbers for Twins players that played at least 50% of their games at DH.

Rk Player G From To Age AB R H HR RBI BA
1 Glenn Adams 501 1977 1981 29-33 1387 138 390 29 196 .281
2 David Ortiz 455 1997 2002 21-26 1477 215 393 58 238 .266
3 Paul Molitor 422 1996 1998 39-41 1700 237 530 23 271 .312
4 Chili Davis 291 1991 1992 31-32 978 147 276 41 159 .282
5 Jose Morales 290 1978 1980 33-35 674 79 200 12 101 .297
6 Dave Winfield 220 1993 1994 41-42 841 107 222 31 119 .264
7 Jim Thome 179 2010 2011 39-40 482 69 128 37 99 .266
8 Danny Goodwin 172 1979 1981 25-27 425 52 103 8 55 .242
9 Jim Dwyer 145 1988 1990 38-40 329 47 95 6 43 .289
10 Rondell White 137 2006 2007 34-35 446 40 102 11 58 .229
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 1/5/2014.

Terry Ryan hires former teammate Sam Perlozzo

Sam Perlozzo with Philly in 2012
Sam Perlozzo with Philly in 2012

The Twins announced their Minor League managerial and coaching staffs this past Friday and there was only one major change from last season. Former Baltimore Orioles manager (2005-2007) Sam Perlozzo has been named Minnesota’s Minor League infield and base running coordinator. Perlozzo replaces Paul Molitor who was added to the Twins coaching staff for the 2014 season.

Perlozzo  was signed by the Twins as an amateur free agent in 1972 and was a teammate of GM Terry Ryan in Orlando in 1976. Perlozzo, a second baseman played 10 games for the Twins in September of 1977 but was released by Minnesota in March 1979.

I did an interview with Sam in the spring of 2012 when he was a coach with the Philadelphia Phillies that you can listen to at http://wp.me/P1YQUj-1ig .

Here and there

 

Paul Molitor
Paul Molitor

Yesterday the Minnesota Twins announced that they have added Minnesota native and former Twins player Paul Molitor to their major league coaching staff. Molitor will oversee base running, bunting, infield instruction and positioning, plus assist with in-game strategy from the dugout for manager Ron Gardenhire. I don’t consider this as any kind of bold move by the Twins and I don’t see it adding any wins to the Twins victory total but with the way the Twins have run the bases the last few years it can’t hurt. Molitor served as a bench coach under Tom Kelly back in 2000 and 2001 and coached for the Seattle Mariners in 2004. Despite what has been written over the last couple of years, I still don’t see Molitor as a strong candidate to replace Gardenhire when he vacates the managers seat. I don’t think it is a secret that Molitor covets a big league managers job but teams have not exactly been knocking down his door to discuss a possible managers position with him. I find it interesting however; that Molitor has turned up as a coach with the Twins when TK was nearing the end of his tenure and with Seattle in Bob Melvin‘s final season at the helm in Seattle. Molitor isn’t exactly “Mr. Personality” so I will be interested to see how he interacts with the Twins fans in Ft. Myers come February.

 

Wilkin Ramirez
Wilkin Ramirez

Outfielder Wilkin Ramirez was activated from the 60-day disabled list and then  outrighted to Triple-A Rochester. Ramirez may exercise his right to declare  free agency and determine if anybody else wants him or he can choose to resign with Minnesota as Doug Bernier did recently. The Twins 40 man roster is 36 but is expected to go to 37 when Samuel Deduno is taken off the 60-day disabled list.

Glen Perkins
Glen Perkins

The Twins also announced yesterday that Twins closer Glen Perkins underwent arthroscopic surgery two days after the 2013 season ended, but he should be ready for spring training in February. Perkins, who saved 36 games in his first full season as the Twins’ closer, had the procedure to repair the meniscus in his right knee. So why did the Twins wait so long to announce this? What would they have to gain? The Twins continue to keep team medical issues close to the vest.

Darin Mastroianni
Darin Mastroianni

Outfielder Darin Mastroianni underwent surgery last week to have the pin in his left ankle removed. The hardware, removed last Wednesday, had been inserted during his May surgery to repair the broken bone in his foot, suffered during the final week of spring training. He too also is expected to be fully healed by spring training.

Baseballamerica.com did a nice little piece on Max Kepler about a week or so ago that you can read at Max Kepler Adds At-Bats In Fall League – BaseballAmerica.com.

Byron Buxton
Byron Buxton

Minor League Baseball and the Topps Company announced on October 22nd that outfielder Byron Buxton, the second overall pick in the June 2012 Draft by the Minnesota Twins, is the 2013 winner of the 54th annual J.G. Taylor Spink Award as the Topps/Minor League Player of the Year. Buxton finished among the top 12 MiLB™ players in six offensive categories, including a Minor League-best 18 triples. His 109 runs ranked second.

Lincecum
Lincecum

The San Francisco Giants announced that they have agreed to sign free agent to be RHP Tim Lincecum to a two-year $35 million no-trade deal pending a physical.  The 29-year-old Lincecum just completed a $40.5 million, two-year contract that paid him $22 million this past season, that come out to $1.2 million per win this past season. Lincecum has a career record of 89-70 with a 3.46 ERA but that is not the whole story. After posting a 40-17 record with a 2.90 ERA in his first three seasons in the majors, his last four seasons have been a different story. During the last four seasons in which the Giants have won the World Series twice, Lincecum has won 49 games while losing 53 and his ERA has jumped to 3.87 and if you look at the last two years, he has a 4.76 ERA. His KO/9 have dropped from a league leading 10.5 in 2008 to 8.8 in 2013 and his velocity has dropped noticeably. This deal is just plain outlandish and will make this years off season hunt for free agent starters even that much more difficult for teams like the Twins that are desperate for starting pitching. I know Lincecum has won two Cy Young‘s and has thrown a no-hitter but there are many people out there that feel that Lincecum is sliding quickly and he may spend more time in the near future coming out of the bullpen then he will as a starter. This is a bad signing for the Giants and for baseball in general, the only winner here is Tim Lincecum.

 

WORLD_SERIES_neutral

 

The Cardinals and the Red Sox play game 1 of the 2013 World Series starting tonight and  I really have no clear cut preference as who wins the Series but it might be an interesting series to watch. I am leaning a bit towards the Red Sox to win but we will have to wait and see how it turns out. Here is a little something fun for you to look at to see how the Cardinals and Red Sox regular season  prices compared at the register courtesy of Team Marketing Report FactBook.

Taking a look at hitting streaks

Former Twins outfielder Micheal Cuddyer set a Colorado Rockies team record recently when he had a 27 game hitting streak from May 28 through June 30 for the Colorado Rockies. During his streak Cuddyer hit .372 with 6 home runs, 19 RBI and 17 runs scored. The longest Twins hitting streaks this season belong to Joe Mauer with 15 gamer and a 10 gamer, Trevor Plouffe with a 12 gamer and Justin Morneau with an 11 game hitting streak. The Twins have had some pretty good hitting streaks over the years but the longest streak of 31 games goes way back to 1980 and belongs to Ken Landreaux.

 Twins hitting streaks over 15 games

Ken Landreaux

Rk Strk Start End Games AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BA OPS
1 Ken Landreaux 1980-04-23 1980-05-30 31 125 13 49 5 1 2 19 .392 .937
2 Brian Harper 1990-07-06 1990-08-04 25 99 14 38 12 0 2 16 .384 .981
3 Lenny Green 1961-05-01 1961-05-28 24 94 14 34 9 2 0 11 .362 .955
4 Torii Hunter 2007-04-11 2007-05-09 23 94 17 35 12 0 5 19 .372 1.054
5 Cristian Guzman 2002-08-01 2002-08-25 23 97 16 35 5 0 2 12 .361 .841
6 Marty Cordova 1996-06-05 1996-06-29 23 91 16 35 10 0 2 18 .385 1.007
7 Kirby Puckett 1993-09-26 1994-04-20 23 97 16 34 8 0 2 21 .351 .895
8 Kent Hrbek 1982-04-17 1982-05-13 23 91 14 28 6 2 5 17 .308 .949
9 Shane Mack 1992-07-26 1992-08-18 22 88 13 40 4 1 1 9 .455 1.057
10 Ben Revere 2012-07-16 2012-08-07 21 90 17 34 5 1 0 13 .378 .862
11 Chuck Knoblauch 1991-09-02 1991-09-25 20 80 10 32 4 1 0 7 .400 .923
12 Ted Uhlaender 1969-08-16 1969-09-07 20 88 16 27 5 0 1 16 .307 .748
13 Nick Punto 2006-07-04 2006-07-28 19 75 12 30 6 2 0 12 .400 .979
14 David Ortiz 2002-07-17 2002-08-06 19 74 17 31 5 0 7 18 .419 1.258
15 Brian Harper 1993-07-20 1993-08-12 19 74 9 29 7 0 1 11 .392 .971
16 Roy Smalley 1979-04-29 1979-05-20 19 81 19 36 3 1 6 16 .444 1.234
17 Bob Allison 1964-06-12 1964-06-28 19 64 14 31 8 0 7 11 .484 1.530
18 Bobby Kielty 2002-09-18 2003-04-21 18 62 10 22 6 1 5 13 .355 1.132
19 Chuck Knoblauch 1997-08-07 1997-08-26 18 79 8 28 2 1 2 6 .354 .867
20 Gary Gaetti 1983-05-06 1983-05-27 18 76 9 25 5 0 3 8 .329 .887
21 Rod Carew 1974-09-07 1974-09-27 18 70 12 26 4 1 1 5 .371 .988
22 Rod Carew 1973-05-30 1973-06-19 18 77 17 31 3 4 3 8 .403 1.122
23 Trevor Plouffe 2012-06-30 2012-07-19 17 67 13 22 4 0 4 11 .328 .951
24 Jacque Jones 2001-09-30 2002-04-12 17 63 16 26 2 0 6 13 .413 1.230
25 Cristian Guzman 2001-06-08 2001-06-26 17 74 16 29 3 1 3 12 .392 1.004
Rk Strk Start End Games AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BA OPS
26 Paul Molitor 1998-08-31 1998-09-19 17 75 12 25 3 2 3 12 .333 .909
27 Chuck Knoblauch 1993-07-29 1993-08-18 17 69 12 27 5 1 1 4 .391 .978
28 Kent Hrbek 1991-08-11 1991-08-30 17 62 13 26 6 0 4 16 .419 1.203
29 Kent Hrbek 1990-08-21 1990-09-07 17 68 10 23 2 0 3 15 .338 .900
30 Kirby Puckett 1988-09-15 1988-10-02 17 72 17 33 8 0 2 19 .458 1.126
31 Kent Hrbek 1982-05-25 1982-06-13 17 69 12 28 1 2 5 19 .406 1.120
32 Tony Oliva 1970-05-13 1970-06-02 17 73 9 23 5 0 1 13 .315 .775
33 Tony Oliva 1964-07-16 1964-08-01 17 77 11 28 5 1 2 4 .364 .935
34 Orlando Cabrera 2009-09-19 2009-10-06 16 73 21 30 5 1 2 16 .411 1.010
35 Joe Mauer 2008-08-04 2008-08-24 16 63 13 22 0 1 1 10 .349 .870
36 Justin Morneau 2006-06-22 2006-07-09 16 59 13 26 5 0 6 16 .441 1.308
37 A.J. Pierzynski 2002-05-26 2002-06-14 16 60 12 24 7 2 2 7 .400 1.096
38 Matt Lawton 2000-04-13 2000-04-30 16 59 11 26 6 0 1 11 .441 1.121
39 Chili Davis 1991-07-21 1991-08-07 16 61 13 25 7 0 6 17 .410 1.313
40 Kirby Puckett 1991-07-06 1991-07-26 16 64 10 28 3 1 1 13 .438 1.033
41 Kirby Puckett 1986-04-16 1986-05-03 16 74 23 32 5 1 10 20 .432 1.394
42 Gary Gaetti 1984-08-05 1984-08-19 16 65 9 22 4 0 1 9 .338 .814
43 Mickey Hatcher 1983-07-20 1983-08-27 16 62 11 25 5 0 1 12 .403 .948
44 Dave McKay 1975-08-29 1975-09-17 16 60 4 20 3 0 0 10 .333 .743
45 Danny Thompson 1973-04-28 1973-05-17 16 65 7 22 4 1 1 11 .338 .810
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 7/27/2013.

Some pretty exceptional hitters on this list. Who appears on this list the most often? Kent Hrbek and Kirby Puckett each had four streaks of 16 games or longer. The biggest surprise on this list has to be Nick Punto with his 19 gamer back in 2006, the eighth longest hitting streak in Twins history.

Just for fun let’s take a look at what opposing hitters have the longest hitting streak when they face Twins pitchers over the years.

Twins opponent hitting streaks of 20 games or more

Ron LeFlore

Rk Strk Start End Games AB R H HR RBI BA OPS Tm
1 Ron LeFlore 1977-08-03 1981-09-11 26 108 29 43 2 13 .398 1.010 DET-CHW
2 David DeJesus 2008-09-11 2011-04-10 25 105 16 40 2 15 .381 1.027 KCR-OAK
3 Magglio Ordonez 2002-08-19 2003-09-10 23 90 19 32 10 20 .356 1.112 CHW
4 Jim Thome 1994-07-08 1996-07-18 22 90 20 36 7 16 .400 1.210 CLE
5 Ichiro Suzuki 2006-05-01 2008-08-06 20 89 17 40 2 3 .449 1.046 SEA
6 Paul Konerko 2006-07-26 2007-07-08 20 75 15 29 6 16 .387 1.180 CHW
7 Carlos Lee 2003-07-02 2004-07-27 20 82 14 31 4 17 .378 1.010 CHW
8 Rey Sanchez 1999-04-21 2001-04-07 20 74 13 33 0 12 .446 1.090 KCR
9 Rocky Colavito 1963-07-03 1964-07-22 20 78 17 34 9 25 .436 1.403 DET-KCA
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 7/27/2013.

Those of you that remember Ron LeFlore should take a few minutes to read this story published earlier this year. Even if you never heard of LeFlore, check it out.

The state of the Twins at mid-season

The Twins left Minnesota and the country yesterday with their tails between their legs after losing their fifth straight game and four in a row to those hated New York Yankees. The Yankees were slumping when they limped in to town but that didn’t stop this bunch of misfits and cast-offs from kicking some serious Twins butts here in Minnesota. I have seen better visiting Yankee teams at Ft. Myers in spring training then what they put on the field the past few days at Target Field and yet you just knew that some way and some how that the Twins would find a way to lose to this bunch of has been’s that make up the 2013 New York Yankees. I have no idea how the Twins can keep losing to the Yankees year in and year out, it’s like there is a Yankee curse on the Twins. Even the New York Times is getting in on the action with a headline that reads “Yankees Thrash Twins to Complete 4-Game Sweep.”

I know everyone is frustrated with the Twins play again this season as the team record stands at 36-46 so far this season. Before the season started I saw the Twins going 74-88 this season so that is not far off the mark at mid-season. The younger players are learning and you can see improvement here and there but this team has a long ways to go to be a serious contender. However;  the team is playing like any young team normally plays, some days they surprise you with their ability and other days they frustrate you with their bone-head plays, but this is all part of learning to play in the big leagues.

GM Terry Ryan
GM Terry Ryan

Having said all that, I think that Terry Ryan needs to make some changes. There are players on this team with no Twins future and should be moved but the problem is that you get nothing for them in return. I have really enjoyed watching Justin Morneau over the years, just like I did Michael Cuddyer but he needs to be moved to give him a chance to play for a contender and the Twins must find out if Chris Parmelee is the Twins first baseman of the future. The Twins should eat some of Morneau’s salary and move him for the best prospect(s) they can get. If they don’t move him they have to pay him anyway and they will get no prospect at all. The most talk about a Twins player being traded has been about closer Glen Perkins. I would hate to lose Perkins but I would trade him if an offer of a top-notch prospect was presented. I am not talking a prospect playing in low A ball, I am talking a serious prospect that can help this team this year or next year. The Twins have always found closers and they will find another to replace Perkins. The Oakland A’s have done this for years and it has worked for them, it should work here too.

Ron Gardenhire
Ron Gardenhire

That brings us to the manager, Ron Gardenhire. I have always liked Gardy as a manager and still do. Who doesn’t like Gardy, he is an easy guy to like and he has been here forever and has won almost 1,000 games. Gardy isn’t the one losing these games, the Twins players are, but still, things seemed to have gotten stale here in the Land of 10,000 Lakes  and sometimes changes are necessary.  If Gardy gets fired he will be managing another team next year or the year after for sure, but who should replace him? There is no one on the current coaching staff that seems to fit the bill. A number of people have mentioned Paul Molitor as a possibility but I don’t see that happening. The Twins said that Molitor was not a good fit to join the coaching staff and some said it was because he would put too much pressure on Gardy who is managing in the last year of his contract. I don’t think that is the reason at all, I think there are several reasons. First of all Molitor has absolutely no managing experience and no coaching experience to speak of. Next, Molitor has some baggage in his personal life that he brings from his playing days that does not excite the Twins organization very much and does not fit their mold of someone they would like to see lead their young players. Finally Molitor’s personality is not going to excite the Twins fan base, I know he is from St. Paul but his personality is more like TK’s then it is Gardenhire’s. Great players seldom make good managers. The Twins will probably let Gardenhire’s contract expire after the season ends and that is not what I though would happen just a few months ago but things change. The Twins need to reinvigorate their fan base after three losing seasons in a row and the promise of prospects in the pipeline alone isn’t going to put fans in the seats at Target Field, the fans need to see the Twins organization make some serious changes that are visible and at least show the fans that they are trying to make this team better. Just talking a good story doesn’t do it any more, we Twins fans need to see some action.

Tom Brunansky
Tom Brunansky

One more thing before I wrap up this blog today.  Joe Vavra was the Twins hitting coach from 2006 through 2012 but was reassigned after last season. During Vavra’s tenure in Minnesota, the Twins have consistently ranked among the best in the league for both individual and team hitting stats. Former Twins player Tom Brunansky was named the Twins hitting coach after last season. Over the last few years the fans have clamoured for Vavra to be let go and finally Terry Ryan made it a reality after the 2012 season. So what did that change do for the Twins? The team is hitting worse than ever and yet I have not heard a single utterance of getting rid of Brunansky. So why is no one complaining about the job that Bruno is doing as the hitting coach for a team that claims that they are only interested in results? I am not saying he should be fired, I am just wondering why Brunansky seems to have that Teflon armour surrounding him.