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Historical Play Through of the Minnesota Twins on OOTP 24 - 1964 World Series Champions!

Vanimal46

Entry posted by Vanimal46 in Twins Historical Sim OOTP ·

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Introduction of the series here

Part 2: 1961-1962 Offseason MLB expansion here

In the 1962 regular season, the Minnesota Twins showcased their talent with players like Harmon Killebrew, Jack Kralick, and Don Lee earning All-Star nods. With a 45-40 record, they stood in 4th place at the All-Star break. A notable trade saw Lenny Green moved to the St. Louis Cardinals, paving the way for the rising star Tony Oliva. However, their playoff hopes dimmed by September 20, finishing tied for 3rd with the New York Yankees at 90 wins. The Red Sox represented the AL, while the San Francisco Giants emerged as NL champions.

During the offseason, Pedro Ramos and Harmon Killebrew originated the "Get to Know 'Em" campaign because Metropolitan Stadium is hovering around 55% of its capacity...

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The Houston Colt .45s, led by @USAFChiefin his first season of ownership, struggled as expected for an expansion team, losing 113 games. Despite the challenges, they had the promising 18-year-old outfielder Rusty Staub as a building block for the future. The Chicago White Sox experienced a significant downturn, going from 102 wins in 1961 to 65 wins in 1962.

The San Francisco Giants, boasting players like Willie McCovey and Willie Mays, dominated the 1962 season, earning the World Series title by defeating the New York Yankees in a 4-1 series. Willie McCovey is also this series' 1st Triple Crown winner for batting! 

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In the 1962-63 offseason, individual accolades came as Zoilo Versalles won a gold glove at shortstop, and Harmon Killebrew and Bob Allison secured silver slugger awards. A major trade involved sending Bernie Allen to the Milwaukee Braves for Frank Bolling and Sandy Alomar. The Twins made no notable free agent signings. Even with the lack of activity, the team was predicted to perform very well in the upcoming season.

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The 1963 season was marked by a close pennant race with the Twins, Yankees, and White Sox.

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Despite a strong showing, the Twins were eliminated on the 161st game of the regular season. Pascual led MLB in pitching wins with 20, and Killebrew topped the charts in home runs with 42. The Los Angeles Dodgers, led by Sandy Koufax, won the World Series against the New York Yankees.

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In the 1963-64 offseason, Gold Gloves were awarded to Earl Battey and Zoilo Versalles, while Battey, Rich Rollins, and Bob Allison earned Silver Slugger Awards. The Twins signed 18-year-olds Dave Boswell and Reggie Smith. A major trade with the Baltimore Orioles brought Jackie Brandt to the Twins.

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The 1964 season was a year made for the cinema theatres! 

The Twins are 52-29 and in 2nd place in the AL at the All-Star break. 1.5 games back from the New York Yankees, It was another star studded affair for the Twins, with 7 All-Stars named.  21 year old RP Pete Magrini, C Earl Battey, 1B Don Mincher, 2B Rich Rollins, 3B Harmon Killebrew, LF Bob Allison, and RF Tony Oliva were named to the All Star team. 
 
The Twins are in a 3 way tie with the Yankees and Tigers at the trade deadline with a 64-39 record. At the deadline, the Twins traded SP Pedro Ramos to the Los Angeles Dodgers for RP Ron Perranoski. While Ramos had a 2.81 ERA in 94 innings prior to the deadline, the underlying numbers were not promising, and 25 year old Phil Niekro was ready to make the transition from reliever to the starting rotation. 
 
It was a 3 team race starting in September between the Twins, Yankees, and Tigers.
 
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With 2 games left in the season, it was still anyone's chance to win the division. The Twins and Yankees played in a 1 game take all series to represent the AL in the World Series. Game 163 was dictated by both catchers throughout the game. Earl Battey came through with the walk off hit in the 12th inning. 

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The Twins faced a powerhouse 107 win LA Dodgers team led by Triple Crown winning SP Sandy Koufax. The Twins won the series 4-2 for their first title since relocating to Bloomington, MN! 

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16 Comments

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ashbury
34 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

If you find the other Easter Egg, I will virtually toast you for winning the WS with your close, personal friend Sid Hartman!

Reputation: Inexperienced. I'm devastated.

Personality: Personable.  I'm flattered.

Age: 37.  I'm thrilled.

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USAFChief

"With 2 games left in the season, it was still anyone's chance to win the division"

 

what is this "division" nonsense?

This is MLB, not the NFL. Two league winners meet to determine the world's best baseball team.

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Vanimal46
7 hours ago, ashbury said:

What became of Mack Jones?  I thought he was a great rule-5 pickup, but I didn't spot him in any of the displays.

Turns out that hiding him on the MLB roster in 1962 was bad for his development. He hit below the Mendoza line that year and wasn’t able to find his swing in AAA. We were in win now mode and couldn’t wait for him to take his lumps anymore… That prompted you and me to make the trade for CF Jackie Brandt in the 1963-64 offseason. 

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ashbury
5 hours ago, Vanimal46 said:

Turns out that hiding him on the MLB roster in 1962 was bad for his development. He hit below the Mendoza line that year and wasn’t able to find his swing in AAA. We were in win now mode and couldn’t wait for him to take his lumps anymore… That prompted you and me to make the trade for CF Jackie Brandt in the 1963-64 offseason. 

Oh yeah, I remember now.  That was a long time ago.

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ashbury
16 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

It's been a tough start for (now) Cyborg @USAFChief as owner of the Houston Colt .45s. Rome wasn't built in a day, as they say. 

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So the original Chief from 1961 has already kicked the bucket at 99+, and had to be reinstated? 

Meanwhile I'm a young and spry 37-year old who will live forever, plus with a well-deserved WS title on my resume already.   Sweet.  Flags Fly Forever.

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Vanimal46
1 minute ago, ashbury said:

So the original Chief from 1961 has already kicked the bucket at 99+, and had to be reinstated? 

Meanwhile I'm a young and spry 37-year old who will live forever, plus with a well-deserved WS title on my resume already.   Sweet.  Flags Fly Forever.

A candlelight vigil was held on November 13, 1962 when the original Chief visited the great beyond. Luckily in his will, he signed up for the same program Ted Williams signed up for and he is a successful use case! 

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Vanimal46

In the 1964 offseason, @AceWrigley won the Powerball, and decided to purchase the newly re-branded California Angels! Congrats young man! You've got some work to do hiring a new manager and compete against @USAFChief to be the first expansion team to win a WS title. 

AceWrigleyCAAngels.PNG.3b46f7347e6e31f07fb42b20e0c05a05.PNG

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ashbury
8 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

A candlelight vigil was held on November 13, 1962 when the original Chief visited the great beyond. Luckily in his will, he signed up for the same program Ted Williams signed up for and he is a successful use case! 

Oh, this just gets better and better.  The same program as Teddy Ballgame, you say? 

Quote

The operation was completed and Williams' head and body were preserved separately. The head is stored in a steel can filled with liquid nitrogen. It has been shaved, drilled with holes and accidentally cracked 10 times, the magazine said. Williams' body stands upright in a 9-foot tall cylindrical steel tank, also filled with liquid nitrogen.

Executive Summary: Chief's a head case.  (I always knew it.)

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Vanimal46
22 hours ago, ashbury said:

What became of Mack Jones?

Here's the batting stats from him so far. He's got a steep hill to climb now because Jackie Brandt is an elite fielder in CF. 

MackJones1964.PNG.5a6d91b38c7f4740c3af7246aacde416.PNG

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ashbury
13 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

Here's the batting stats from him so far. He's got a steep hill to climb now because Jackie Brandt is an elite fielder in CF. 

MackJones1964.PNG.5a6d91b38c7f4740c3af7246aacde416.PNG

Jones's batting numbers at AAA look pretty enticing though.

It looks like that '64 squad was blessed with good health for all the regulars.  If that were to change, I could see Jones being a real asset as a fourth outfielder.

The real Jackie Brandt started to slide in his hitting performance after the '64 season.  That's another reason to not sleep on having a guy like Mack Jones to step in for a leading role. 

I loves me some good defense up the middle, but there is a lower limit on how many runs any defender can save, while there is no upper limit on runs a player can score.

Can't argue with success and Brandt clearly contributed to a world championship.  But a front office can't be complacent, and CF looks (with the benefit of real-world hindsight of course) like a potential trouble spot.

You're set in RF for a while, however. :)

Have I ever mentioned that OOTP is an absolute blast?

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ashbury

Ha, one more Mack Jones nugget.  While reading a TD article about Max Kepler, I scrolled down on Max's b-r.com page, and glanced as his most-similar players.  For whatever it's worth, his ninth best comp is.... Mack Jones.

Don't know whether that makes Jones's case stronger or weaker, TBH.

(Jackie Brandt's most-similar players? Chuck Hinton, Tommy Agee, Mike Devereaux.)

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AceWrigley
13 hours ago, Vanimal46 said:

In the 1964 offseason, @AceWrigley won the Powerball, and decided to purchase the newly re-branded California Angels! Congrats young man! You've got some work to do hiring a new manager and compete against @USAFChief to be the first expansion team to win a WS title. 

AceWrigleyCAAngels.PNG.3b46f7347e6e31f07fb42b20e0c05a05.PNG

Can anyone truly compete with USAFChief? 😀

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