An MVP On and Off the Field

[John Bonnes]

The 2000 Twins had a clear cut MVP. What made him unique is that he a huge impact on the organization both on and off the field that year. Nick Nelson and John Bonnes review the candidates and unanimously agree on the obvious choice in Part 2 of our discussion on the 2000 Minnesota Twins.

They start by reviewing the top three candidates: Corey Koskie, Matt Lawton and Brad Radke. Koskie had a breakthrough year, and both discuss how Matt Lawton is maybe one of the more forgotten players in Twins history.

However, both agree that the MVP was Radke. His stats on the field certainly bear that out, especially after Nick provide some context for what it was like to pitch in the middle of the steroid era.

But maybe more important, Radke signed a 4-year, $36 million extension midway through what would have been his free agent walk year. The agreement announced to fans that the Twins, who had slashed payroll two years earlier, were planning on spending again.

The move established a cornerstone for the next postseason-bound Twins team. It also provided a moment to remember that we’ll talk about in our final segment of our video, coming out in a couple of days.

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We’re following up on last year’s “Twins in 2000s” series with videos where Nick, John and others discuss the Twins' teams of the 21st century. Just play the video for the discussion. You can also:

• read the original story about the 2000 Twins,
• Check out Part 1 where they give an overview of the 2000 season.
• come back in a couple of days to hear part 3 of their discussion, or
• share your memories or thoughts on the 2000 team below. 

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[RJA]

John, one of my favorite memories of Brad Radke in the lean years including 2000 was how Tom Kelley responded whenever he was asked in the pregame show what his lineup was going to be that day.  He would always say on the mound was going to be "Mister Radke".  He always had great respect for Radke's professionalism and poise, and his stuff of course.