rwilfong86

Thanks, folks. 
A few weeks ago, I wrote a blog inviting feedback for some paint schemes for the wall in a room that has transitioned from our youngest son's bedroom to our office. Alas, he got married and moved to North Carolina -- we like the married part, just wish he didn't live so far from northern Indiana. That post is here: https://twinsdaily.com/blogs/entry/23701-help-design-my-man-cave/ 
The goal was to combine a Fathead with some shelving to create a space to display the set of Tony Oliva baseball cards I've gathered, along with some others. I invited feedback to the following ideas: 
 
And the one I chose was...
No. 6. 
So, next up was using a friend's table saw to rip some MDF board into 5/8" x 5/8" strips, followed by cutting a quarter-inch angled groove to hold the cards. Then Mrs. IT took over, handling the priming and painting. Finally, my brother-in-law, much more adept at such projects than me, helped me stick the Fathead and place and mount the strips. 
Here's what I got: 

 
I'm pretty pleased. Mrs. IT needs to do a little touch-up painting, touching up the screw holes and a few more spots. What you see here are a complete set of Topps, Kelloggs and Hostess Oliva cards on the left, plus a couple extra odds and ends. On the upper right are my Killebrew cards, with Carews underneath. Neither of those are complete.
Eventually, I'll tighten them up so I can add some other favorites from over the years -- Hrbek, Puckett, Gaetti, etc. Probably need to get a Wynegar and some others. It may not take long for Lewis to make an appearance on the IT Wall of Fame. And depending on how full I want to make the space, I may also include a few non-Twin favorites and/or legends from over the years, namely Brock, Aaron, Clemente, etc. I don't have any that are particular valuable (and none graded), but on the wall will at least bring more enjoyment than in boxes under the bed. The total space is about 84 inches by 40 inches.
Thanks to @Cornholio, @Rod Carews Birthday, @Wyotwinsfan, @davidborton, @DocBauer, @gil4, @nclahammer, @Original_JB, @dcswede, @Khaddie and @Puckett34 for great insights and suggestions.
I was originally thinking I'd go with No. 8, but after coming up with a number of mockups, I was starting to lean toward No. 6 by the time I posted. So to get a couple early affirmations of that option helped firm up that decision. Some other comments:
There were some good suggestions that would have given it a much more professional feel (and would have been beyond my capability or cost more than I was prepared to spend. A couple folks cautioned about covering up too much of the Fathead. With that encouragement, I did move the strips out a bit. They end up overlapping by about three inches, rather than the six inches I originally planned. I think that was an improvement, so thanks for those suggestions. If I was to do anything different with the layout, I'd give each row another quarter to half inch of space (starting at the bottom) to push the top row up to have even less overlap with the letters.  A few people had ideas for some additions, suggesting some autographed photos, Homer Hankies, etc. (And speaking of, I need to track down one of this year's.) I do plan some of those things with the next steps. The exterior wall of the room has about 43 inches on each side of a window, so I'm thinking of putting in a relatively high shelf for the four Wheaties/Kelloggs boxes (still full) from 1987 and 1991. I may do a second shelf with some autographed balls, but I really don't have any significant ones. I do have some other things, however, such as a Rod Carew RC Cola can and an Oliva-signed cap, etc. I'm only a few years from retirement, so I'll need to consider where to go with two jerseys. I'm perhaps the only person on TD with a game-used Travis Miller jersey. I never thought I'd buy a gamer of anyone, but when you're in the team store and see one with your last name on it, it's tough to resist. My congregation gifted me another jersey when transitioned from pastoring there to another ministry opportunity. In total, I have another 10 or so linear feet of wall space on this half the room to use for such things. Mrs. IT gets the other side of the room. So again, thanks. If anyone heads through northern Indiana on the toll road and wants to stop off for a visit, I'd be glad to show it in person! 😃
 

And while I'm at it, I do have another spot in the house that folks might find interesting. I've been fortunate enough to have been able to combine some work-related travel with vacations and have been to all 30 current stadiums (plus a dozen or so that have been closed)*. I spent some time to create some collages from photos I've taken along the way (plus a handful from the Web of stadiums that I went to before I started taking pictures). Here's what we have in our entry hallway. Each frame is a division, with the teams in alphabetical order from top to bottom.
 
 
*Lest you think that's impressive, what's more impressive is the amazing Mrs. IT. She's been to 24, even though she's not a baseball fan. When someone asked her about it, her response, "I don't like baseball, but I like some people who like baseball." 
 
 

Twins fans,
I have been a Twins fan for over 30 years and we all share a deep fandom, love and passion for the team. Over the years I've been able to meet players and collect some cool Twins items and I'd love to get the communities experiences also. 
In the title of this article, I asked "Whats your favorite"...Twins autographed item you have? If you don't have any autographs, what's your most sentimental or favorite Twins item?
Lastly, keep this positive, I want to use this as a chance to have Twins fans of all ages share who they collect, stories of meeting players, etc. 
What's your favorite or most memorable experience meeting a Twins player? (POSITIVE ONES ONLY).
Bonus points if you include a photo. Let's hear some of the stories and moments that made you a Twins fan. 

At the end of May my wife and I made a trip to see the Wind Surge play. I didn't recognize most of the prospects but we quickly became fans of a young man named Yoyner Fajardo. That game Fajardo went 4/5 with a double, stole 2 bases and scored 2 runs. Fast forward to 2 weeks ago. We bought one of his MILB cards off eBay and figured we would take the chance and send it to him TTM to try to get an auto. And lo and behold today, look what showed up! How about that! Lifelong fans now!

At the end of May my wife and I made a trip to see the Wind Surge play. I didn't recognize most of the prospects but we quickly became fans of a young man named Yoyner Fajardo. That game Fajardo went 4/5 with a double, stole 2 bases and scored 2 runs. Fast forward to 2 weeks ago. We bought one of his MILB cards off eBay and figured we would take the chance and send it to him TTM to try to get an auto. And lo and behold today, look what showed up! How about that! Lifelong fans now!

At the end of May my wife and I made a trip to see the Wind Surge play. I didn't recognize most of the prospects but we quickly became fans of a young man named Yoyner Fajardo. That game Fajardo went 4/5 with a double, stole 2 bases and scored 2 runs. Fast forward to 2 weeks ago. We bought one of his MILB cards off eBay and figured we would take the chance and send it to him TTM to try to get an auto. And lo and behold today, look what showed up! How about that! Lifelong fans now!

At the end of May my wife and I made a trip to see the Wind Surge play. I didn't recognize most of the prospects but we quickly became fans of a young man named Yoyner Fajardo. That game Fajardo went 4/5 with a double, stole 2 bases and scored 2 runs. Fast forward to 2 weeks ago. We bought one of his MILB cards off eBay and figured we would take the chance and send it to him TTM to try to get an auto. And lo and behold today, look what showed up! How about that! Lifelong fans now!

The Luis Arraez trade is getting embarrassing for the Twins
Arraez has THREE five-hit games this month. The most five-hit games by any player in a career since 1956 is ten by Pete Rose.
JOE NELSON
 
Arraez has THREE five-hit games this month. The most five-hit games by any player in a career since 1956 is ten by Pete Rose.
Luis Arraez looks like a cinch to win the National League batting title and he could threaten to become the first .400 hitter since Ted Williams in 1941. Meanwhile, Pablo Lopez, the right-hander the Twins received by trading Arraez to the Marlins, has been an average starting pitcher. 
Arraez is a hitting machine and the Twins may have made a gigantic mistake by letting him go in an effort to quench the franchise's thirst for a high-end starting pitcher. 
https://www.si.com/fannation/bringmethesports/twins/the-luis-arraez-trade-is-getting-embarrassing-for-the-twins?fbclid=IwAR1nSzZ5oMX_gZhjU9hBH3OFoZAlrH54ZWXoiCTv8jAmXIPGI19VeKNDglE
 
My view from the beginning was that this trade would backfire. Obviously the jury is still out and hopefully Lopez will be the guy the Twins need to anchor the front of the rotation, even more so with the likelihood Sonny Gray is gone after this season.
 

The Luis Arraez trade is getting embarrassing for the Twins
Arraez has THREE five-hit games this month. The most five-hit games by any player in a career since 1956 is ten by Pete Rose.
JOE NELSON
 
Arraez has THREE five-hit games this month. The most five-hit games by any player in a career since 1956 is ten by Pete Rose.
Luis Arraez looks like a cinch to win the National League batting title and he could threaten to become the first .400 hitter since Ted Williams in 1941. Meanwhile, Pablo Lopez, the right-hander the Twins received by trading Arraez to the Marlins, has been an average starting pitcher. 
Arraez is a hitting machine and the Twins may have made a gigantic mistake by letting him go in an effort to quench the franchise's thirst for a high-end starting pitcher. 
https://www.si.com/fannation/bringmethesports/twins/the-luis-arraez-trade-is-getting-embarrassing-for-the-twins?fbclid=IwAR1nSzZ5oMX_gZhjU9hBH3OFoZAlrH54ZWXoiCTv8jAmXIPGI19VeKNDglE
 
My view from the beginning was that this trade would backfire. Obviously the jury is still out and hopefully Lopez will be the guy the Twins need to anchor the front of the rotation, even more so with the likelihood Sonny Gray is gone after this season.
 

The Luis Arraez trade is getting embarrassing for the Twins
Arraez has THREE five-hit games this month. The most five-hit games by any player in a career since 1956 is ten by Pete Rose.
JOE NELSON
 
Arraez has THREE five-hit games this month. The most five-hit games by any player in a career since 1956 is ten by Pete Rose.
Luis Arraez looks like a cinch to win the National League batting title and he could threaten to become the first .400 hitter since Ted Williams in 1941. Meanwhile, Pablo Lopez, the right-hander the Twins received by trading Arraez to the Marlins, has been an average starting pitcher. 
Arraez is a hitting machine and the Twins may have made a gigantic mistake by letting him go in an effort to quench the franchise's thirst for a high-end starting pitcher. 
https://www.si.com/fannation/bringmethesports/twins/the-luis-arraez-trade-is-getting-embarrassing-for-the-twins?fbclid=IwAR1nSzZ5oMX_gZhjU9hBH3OFoZAlrH54ZWXoiCTv8jAmXIPGI19VeKNDglE
 
My view from the beginning was that this trade would backfire. Obviously the jury is still out and hopefully Lopez will be the guy the Twins need to anchor the front of the rotation, even more so with the likelihood Sonny Gray is gone after this season.
 

The Luis Arraez trade is getting embarrassing for the Twins
Arraez has THREE five-hit games this month. The most five-hit games by any player in a career since 1956 is ten by Pete Rose.
JOE NELSON
 
Arraez has THREE five-hit games this month. The most five-hit games by any player in a career since 1956 is ten by Pete Rose.
Luis Arraez looks like a cinch to win the National League batting title and he could threaten to become the first .400 hitter since Ted Williams in 1941. Meanwhile, Pablo Lopez, the right-hander the Twins received by trading Arraez to the Marlins, has been an average starting pitcher. 
Arraez is a hitting machine and the Twins may have made a gigantic mistake by letting him go in an effort to quench the franchise's thirst for a high-end starting pitcher. 
https://www.si.com/fannation/bringmethesports/twins/the-luis-arraez-trade-is-getting-embarrassing-for-the-twins?fbclid=IwAR1nSzZ5oMX_gZhjU9hBH3OFoZAlrH54ZWXoiCTv8jAmXIPGI19VeKNDglE
 
My view from the beginning was that this trade would backfire. Obviously the jury is still out and hopefully Lopez will be the guy the Twins need to anchor the front of the rotation, even more so with the likelihood Sonny Gray is gone after this season.
 

Our partners at FOCO have announced the release of a really cool bobblehead and we'd like to share it with our Twins Daily users. The bobblehead is a celebration of Kirby Puckett's six (!) Silver Slugger Awards. This bobble is limited to only 96 units so you're getting something quite unique and special.
FOCO is a partner of Twins Daily and we receive credit for purchases made using our affiliated link here. All proceeds from sales using this link are returned to our users via special offers and free gifts!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!

I've mentioned my Jorge Lopez connection in several threads on this website and figured I would write it out if anyone is interested in reading it. I met the girl who became my wife in 2015, she is from Puerto Rico, lived in Chicago as a young adult and was a White Sox fan. She moved to the lovely state of Kansas in the summer of 2016 and one of our mutual interests was watching baseball. I spent a few months learning as much as I could about the history of Puerto Rican baseball and I gradually converted her to being a Twins fan, we both really liked Jose Berríos and started following his career during the summer of 2016 and started collecting his baseball cards. We were both excited to see the Cubs end their run of futility that season and as a former resident of Chicago she was able to see both of the Chicago teams win a World Series in her lifetime.
The following spring we were watching the World Baseball Classic, Puerto Rico was playing Mexico, I remember turning the game on and not really paying attention and she says to me, "The pitcher is Jorge Lopez, I went to school with him." My response was confusion, how did I not know about him before? She told me that they were childhood classmates in their hometown of Cayey, PR and he always liked playing baseball and volleyball and handball and ended up going to the military academy in Caguas and she lost touch with him after high school. We started following his career after that where he toiled in the Brewers organization through the summer of 2018 when he was traded to the Royals in the Mike Moustakas trade but quickly gained attention from baseball fans when he carried a perfect game into the 9th inning against our beloved Twins.
A couple months after that we were sitting in church when she gets a notification on her phone, Jorge had sent her a friend request on Facebook. That was when we found out more about him after they had lost touch and the challenges that his son had been experiencing. His son Mikael was born with a condition called "Familial Mediterranean Fever" which affects his digestive system; because of this Mikael wears a backpack that supplies nutrients to his body (eventually he will need an intestinal transplant). He quickly became one of our favorite players to cheer for, we were looking forward to getting to see him pitch for the Royals but in September of 2020 due to his ineffectiveness as a starter the Royals DFA's him and we were sad. Baltimore quickly picked him up and he struggled during the 2020 and 2021 seasons where they eventually moved him to the bullpen. Before the 2022 season we connected with him again on Instagram and we started keeping in touch with him there, we learned his son was doing better and hoped that with his bullpen role being more defined he would finally put it together. And he did! He made his first All Star game appearance and I remember staying up way past my bedtime to watch him come into the game to face one batter, Jake Cronenworth, and got him to ground out on 3 pitches. It was such a grand moment. His name came up in trade talks, a number of teams seemed to be interested, I hoped the Twins would make a move but I wasn't hopeful. I had just finished voting in a local election on August 2nd, and came home and turned the TV on when I saw the Twins had traded for Jorge Lopez! We were so excited that he was gonna be on our favorite team! He wasn't as sharp after the trade but we hoped after a full offseason with the team and the chemistry with the other Puerto Rican players and the stability of his sons situation he would be the Jorge Lopez he was before the trade and so far this season he has been much better, currently with a 1.71 ERA in 22 games. We still interact with him on Instagram and keep in touch as often as we can.
I think the biggest thing I've learned from Jorge Lopez is that we all are fighting battles the world may never know about. When he comes into pitch, you will always see that huge smile on his face, deep down he is just a Puerto Rican kid who loves playing baseball. Whether he continues to do well or struggles, he is a man who is easy to cheer for and I hope more Twins fans will show him some love and compassion 😊
Thanks for reading!