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Also posted at wgom.org Paul Jata (1949) Aaron Fultz (1973) Pat Neshek (1980) Outfielder/first baseman Paul Jata did not play for the Twins, but was in their farm system in 1976. He was born in Astoria, New York, went to high school on Long Island, and was drafted by Detroit in the fifth round in 1967. His minor league numbers don’t stick out, but he was always very young for his league, reaching AA at age 20 and AAA at age 21. He made the Tigers out of spring training in 1972 at age 22
Since the front office will not use the language 'full rebuild'- let's take them at their word and approach offseason with dual purpose of setting us up with more depth for future while also fielding a more competitive team in 2014. While many postings are rightly talking up the minor league teams and speculating as to when/who will make impact, I'd like to know what realistic estimates would be for the following moves for 2014 as I believe this combination of trying to field a somewhat competi
In my last "Rejiggering" post, the Twins' starting rotation got an overhaul by adding a borderline ace and a mid-rotation reliever. This is the minimum the Twins must do to have even a shot at being competitive in 2014. If they don't improve their pitching, nothing else matters. Since that post, the Twins' pitching has gotten worse--Kyle Gibson has been sent down, and Scott Diamond and Vance Worley remain with him in AAA. This underscores the futility of regarding the current staff as viable
[TABLE=class: tr-caption-container] [TD=align: center]http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pfGvYWNUy-U/Uiadg78Eu1I/AAAAAAAAAq4/5S1qwvRBrms/s400/Pinto.jpg[/TD] [TD=class: tr-caption, align: center]Rock Cats, Red Wings, and now Twins catcher, Josmil Pinto [/TD] [/TABLE] I'll be the first to admit that the bulk of my Rock Cats coverage this season has centered around Miguel Sano. And it's for a reason -- he's the best prospect that has played for New Britain since I have been following the team. People
The Minnesota Twins have made a habit of losing over the last three seasons. With back-to-back 90 loss seasons and the team on track to make it three in a row, there hasn't been a lot to be excited about at the major league level. Poor starting pitching and a lack-luster offense have created a "Debby Downer" attitude among the former Twins faithful. When Minnesota was in the midst of winning six division titles in nine years, a culture of winning was created even as there were changes to the p
There are 20 players born in 1989 who make my end of 2013 Twins prospect list. I remember the very day that one of them was born, Michael Tonkin, because he was born on my ninth birthday and I remember it well. The 1989 bunch range from AAA/MLB players in Tonkin and Josmil Pinto down to current low-A pitchers, Tim Shibuya and Madison Boer. 1989 (20): 10. Josmil Pinto, C, RH, DOB: 3/31/89 2013 AA/AAA/MIN (AA/AAA stats): 528 plate appearances, .309/.400/.482 (.882) (.790 career), 32-1-15, 66 w
Also posted at wgom.org Ced Landrum (1963) Matt Capps (1983) Outfielder Cedric Bernard Landrum did not play for the Twins, but was briefly in their minor league system. He was born in Butler, Alabama, went to high school in Sweet Water, Alabama, attended the University of North Alabama, and signed with the Cubs as a free agent in 1985. Standing a 5’9″ and weighing 165 pounds, he hit for a solid average in the minors, although with little to no power. He was hitting .336 at AAA Iowa in 199
In baseball's postseason, “every single pitch is so important; every at-bat, no matter what inning.” That was Cedar Rapids Kernels third baseman Travis Harrison talking after Monday’s regular season finale about the playoffs, which start for the Kernels Wednesday night in Davenport against the Quad Cities River Bandits. Harrison knows what he’s talking about, too. He was a member of the rookie level Elizabethton Twins team that won the Appalachian League a year ago. http://knuckleballsbl
We're Still Doing This? (Twins 3 Rangers 2 -- Game 133) Forgot this was a solid win until a Rangers fan reminded me of it on Twitter. Close game against a great pitcher and a good team. Twins win. I was more excited about another Morneau homer. Morneau may be Canadian, but his backstory makes him a real American hero. Brash but charming slugger finds early success, suffers a career- (and life-) threatening injury, and is just now getting to the part where the audience stands back on their fe
As some of you may not know I am the Events Chair for the Halsey hall SABR (Society for American Baseball Research) Chapter. Basically my job is to set up and run the spring and chapter meetings each each year. They are usually located in a church basement with serious baseball fans and most of the people are men in their 50's adn 60's . SABR, as well as a baseball, has serious age problem. Which is a whole another blog post in its own because attendance has never been higher. One of the reason
Also posted at wgom.org Don Williams (1935) Jerry Crider (1941) Danny Goodwin (1953) Terry Jorgensen (1966) Right-hander Donald Reid Williams made three appearances for the Twins in 1963. He was born in Los Angeles and was signed as a free agent by the Kansas City Athletics in 1956. He pitched fairly well in Class D, but did not do particularly well after that. He missed all of the 1959 season and was traded to the White Sox in 1960. The White Sox sent him on to the Twins minor-lea
Originally posted at Kevin Slowey was Framed! I'm just going to admit that it is getting harder and harder to watch Twins baseball. First, the lineup and rotation are drab to say the least. With Mauer hurt and now Morneau traded, there isn't a lot of star power. Second, the season is so long and we don't even have the mirage of a possibly competitive team at this point. That being said, I do watch the games and I do enjoy them. There is plenty to look forward to in September, even if the
Today was the first full day in Twins Territory without Justin Morneau. Although most people weren't too surprised to see him depart, it does leave a large, Canadian void at first base. He had one hell of a Twins career. I wrote a piece on my blog about his departure. So check it out if you're interested. Now, onto today's minor league action. ROCHESTER 3, SCRANTON W/B 2 As a result of today's win, the Red Wings' season will come down down to a final game Monday. Per the Red Wings: "The win
As the minor league seasons wind down and the trading period is over for the season, I have established my new Twins prospect list heading into the offseason. While I will post the full list at the end of this series, I decided to take a different approach and list the players not in rank order, but in year of birth order. Within each calendar year I then order players by level in the system, not by actual birthdate. The period goes from 1986 to 1996, which was an interesting fact alone. Orga
Before he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday, Justin Morneau penned an open thank you letter to Twins fans and the only organization he has ever known. He discussed how he has grown up in the organization from a "wide-eyed 22-year old kid" to now being "someone my friends and family could be proud of." Minnesota has become his "second home" and he will always have connections here because his "wife, kids, and family are Minnesotans." In the end, he apologized for never winning a
Years ago, back when there were frequent playoff berths and easy jokes to crack amid winning seasons, we debuted a segment called: Sargent Gardy's Lonely Hits Club Band. Part Beatles homage, part McLaughlin Group homage, all goofy. Few people read them...but I was amused enough to make a t-shirt in their honor. I was wearing that t-shirt yesterday when my father-in-law sent the following text message: "Morneau is gone-hope they can get him back next year." My wife and I reacted as most fans did,
Folks, When the Twins announced their players being sent to the Arizona Fall League (AFL), John Bonnes made an off-hand comment about a Twins Daily road trip. Something of that magnitude might be a little fanciful, but I'm thinking about going and he and I agreed maybe a clearinghouse would be useful for those who plan to go, or are considering it. The Twins players will be on the Glendale Desert Dogs. All the AFL games are in the Phoenix area. Our guys have games from October 8 to Novemb
On Saturday, Tait went 2-for-4 with a walk and his 17th double. The 19-year-old is hitting .219 with 17 doubles and 15 home runs at High-A Cedar Rapids.
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Winning the Cedar Rapids Kernel prize from TD is far better than winning the FIFA World Peace Prize. Thanks.· 0 replies
