Devlin Clark

I agree but somehow they won't. If they didn't last year, they're unlikely to this year.

Absolutely love this article. Agree that this is what the FO might do. Would make sense to lock him up while they can.

The Twins have struggled to score runs, that's no secret. The nine runs they scored on Saturday were the most they'd scored in the last six games. The offense is striking out at not just an alarming pace; but a record breaking one as well. They're currently on pace to catch the 2021 Cubs, who set the all time record. The Twins have 667 coming into today's game against TOR, in 65 games (10.26/game). Gallo and Michael A. Taylor lead with 62 each. But is this the Twins biggest problem and should it be something they try to address at the trade deadline? The Twins pitching staff has been much better than the offense, well, the rotation has. The entire staff has the second best ERA in baseball at 3.46, just behind HOU at 3.28. The Twins as a staff are also number two in all of MLB in strikeouts with 617, behind TOR with 625 and second in quality starts with 32, behind only Seattle's 33. So what's the problem? The Twins are having one of the best season for pitching they've had in a decade. The problem is allowing runs late in the game. (Courtesy of ESPN, these stats are before the 6/11 game vs TOR) So what inning has been the most problematic? If we use the graph below, it tells us the 7th innings. That's the inning that the SP usually gets pulled and the bullpen comes in. When you have Lopez with anERA over 4 that's a recipe for disaster. Factor in Jax, Pagan and Alcala and this bullpen has been total, garbage (outside of Duran, Headrick and a few select others.) If the Twins have any hope of staying above .500 and winning the division and ending the 0-18 streak in October (you know which streak I'm talking about, and it's not The Undertaker's) they will need to acquire bullpen help. I truly think despite the strikeouts, the offense can scrap runs across, there's too many good hitters not too. My suggestion for Falvey and Co: Dont wait until the trade deadline to make a move. Do it now, build a lead in the worst division and baseball, and enjoy the summer. (Photo courtesy of ESPN)

"I always love Minnesota and the Twins" is what Dale Scott said when I asked him what it was like to umpire Twins games during his career spanning 3,897 MLB games. Dale has a very unique story, not just from the point of view as an umpire who was on the field for 3 World Series (including the 2001 series), but 3 All Star Games, and 3 no hitters (including Scott Ericksons for the Twins), but also as a human being. You see, Dale was hiding a secret, for his entire 30+ year career as an MLB Umpire, he was hiding his sexuality. He was gay. Dale's story is much more than just being the first gay umpire though, he umpired through death threats from Billy Martin and the NY Mob (yes, for real!), the World Series in 2001, where he talked about the hit off Rivera, to Billy Martin throwing dirt at him, to being the home plate Umpire for Scott Erickson's No Hitter. "He didn't have much control that day, '' Dale recalled. This interview was a unique one. In the timestamps below, I breakdown what we talked about. As a Twins fan, you'll wanna hear the story about Scott Erickson's No Hitter, the Kirby story, as well as the name association game we play. Also, he reveals that Gary Gaetti may have been psychic on one particularly historic night in Boston, Dale talks about being one of the 5 umpires to eject Tom Kelly in his career. So please give it a listen, Share, subscribe on YouTube, and comment down below if you like the podcasts or if I should stick to Twins only content. https://youtube.com/@MLBTheShowPodcast https://youtu.be/43jzRFLwmTc This extra length interview was recorded in January. • 6:40 - 9:08 What a typical day in Umpire School was like for him and what working a 2 man umpire system was like. • 13:20 - 16:51 What his first professional night as an umpire in 1981 was like in the Northwest League and what he learned about how to be a professional. • 25:35 - 29:25 His MLB Debut (1 game) where he got to umpire a game of the defending World Champion Detroit Tigers and how that was for him. He goes into great detail about the game. • 29:30 - 31:26 George Brett welcomes him and his hilarious first reaction to Brett "knowing his name" • 42:57 - 49:10 1988, Former Twins (and current Yankees) Manager Billy Martin throws dirt all over Dale. Dale talks about how he is the last umpire to eject Billy Martin in his career. • 53:30 - 56:34 How the Billy Martin ejection led to death threats from the NY Mob a few weeks later. https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02FVWADVKD1NCuPo4LYL567wA6oZyPa9et6cDJ5FMJAiqmP7Pgy9bgyjdLEKLxGDvYl&id=506813119&mibextid=Nif5oz • 1:02:16 - 1:05:15 Scott Erickson's No No in 1995. Dale details that day as the home umpire. https://www.facebook.com/devlinc1984/videos/931821894630972/?mibextid=Nif5oz • 1:31:00 - 1:33:20 Gary Gaetti story that you HAVE to hear about the day the Twins turned 2 triple plays in one night. https://www.facebook.com/devlinc1984/videos/169588002656678/?mibextid=Nif5oz • 1:33:22 - 1:34:45 Kirby story you HAVE to hear! • 1:35:01 - 1:36:20 What it was like to umpire the Twins games specifically. • 1:54:50 - 1:55:55 What it was like to come out as an umpire and how two players reacted in ST 2017. • 2:10:38 - Word Association was so much fun. We talked about several HOFers or all time greats, as well as many Twins. What were his thoughts on them? Find out. Also, see which legendary Pitcher and former Cy Young winner he says was "not one of my favorites". Who did he describe as "a changed man, much more humble" Including Twins word association. What does he think of some of the biggest and best names in Twins history? What words does he use to describe them? Find out. The story about ejecting TK for one of the five career elections is outstanding. Dale Scott Clip 6.mp4 Dale Scott Clip 7.mp4

I cant imagine how much fun it would be to umpire kids this age. It was such a fun interview to do! Be sure to like and subscribe to my YT channel as I have several other Twins' interviews on there and am coming out with more soon!

"Remember kid, there's heroes and there's legends; heroes get remembered, but legends never die. Follow your heart kid, you'll never go wrong"That iconic line spoken by "Babe Ruth" to Benny "The Jet" Rodriguez, moreso than any line truly encapsulates what The Sandlot is all about. Benny befriends the new kid. We all have either been a Benny or Scott Smalls, trying to fit in, make new friends,waiting for someone to reach out with a warm smile and a friendly hand. In 2018, for the 25th Anniversary of The Sandlot, I had the amazing privilege to interview the writer, director, and narrator of that film; David Mickey Evans. We talked about a variety of topics including how the origin of the film was based on a true experience, what our favorite scenes are, how the swimming pool scene was filmed, what the movie means to people, and much more. The Sandlot transcends baseball films. Yes, on its surface it's a baseball film, but underneath its more. It's about commoradarie, friendship, coming of age, struggling to be accepted, and much more that kids throughout time have battled with. I have included time stamps below so you can see what we talked about. If you love baseball and baseball movies, this is an interview you absolutely CANT miss. As always, my sincerest thanks to David Mickey Evans for taking 31 minutes to be on the show. https://youtu.be/z2ak0H5rrvE You can find The Show About The Show on my YouTube Channel (MLBTheShowPodcast) and follow me on Twitter @Devlin_Clark84. 3:08 Origins of The Sandlot, where the idea came from and growing up in the CA valley and also details how Hercules was a real neighborhood dog. 7:00 - Did they know that they were making something special? How special the movie was. 9:00 - Why they decided to shoot in Utah? 10:34 - Why the friendship between Benny and Smalls is so relatable. Was Benny always the one who was going to be the good guy? 13:02 - How great the adult cast was and what it was like working with James Earl Jones,how he was added after a few weeks of filming and how all his scenes were shot in a single day. 16:20 - How the swimming pool scene happened, how it resonated with most teenage boys. Based on real life experience. The hilarious "advice" he gave Squints, what Squints asked him about the scene. 21:04 - Fourth of July scene is both of our favorite scenes. He talks about that scene, how it went down. He shot that entire scene in 2 hours. 24:30 - How the iconic last PF Flyers came about. The slogan played into the scene. 26:40 - How often does he keep in touch with the kids from the movie? 28:30 - What ever really happened to Bertram? He got really into the 60s and nobody ever saw him again, plus his favorite line from the movie. If you like more interviews about baseball movies, comment down below and I will keep making them and sharing them. The Sandlot is much more than a movie: it's magic.

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The Dozier one is the one on this list that I would say is more "fun" than "biggest". But it was such a rare and epic comeback

Thank you very much!

The Twins last year wanted him to throw his slider more than his change-up. The change-up is what he had success with in BAL earlier last season. He looks like a totally different pitcher.

Gallo with another huge HR tonight and Kepler got off the hitless streak with his leadoff HR. Hopefully after tweaking his knee, he will be okay to return during the homestand.

Great article! You hit the nail on the head, need the bullpen to continue to pitch well! Arreaz is still his old self! Fun game tonight!

Absolutely can't disagree with you on that one! However, it was a regular season HR and although there's 2 of those on this list, I think the Hrbek GS in the Series was bigger. That said, I would replace the Dozier HR with the Killebrew one if I re do the list in the future.

Amazing comment and great memory! I thought about putting Cabreras HR from game 163 in there as an HM candidate but these were more important. But I could be talked out of the Dozier one.

I generally agree. However, given all the rule changes and lack of shift, I say give him a month. Also, Correa is 2-14 or so after his hit today. Some guys take a while to ramp up and get going, even against the worst teams. That said, if Kepler is hitting under .200 on May 1, I absolutely agree with you. The issue is, the Twins love his defense and he is very good out there.

My 6-4-3 on Sundays Twins Game Sunday was the game many Twins fans were hoping for. After two consecutive close games, both by 2-0 wins, the Twins were able to put up seven runs today. four of them coming off the bat of off-season free agent signed Joey Gallo. He was 3-for-5 with two home runs and four RBI. The Twins start the season 3-0. They start a three-game series against Luis Arraez and the Marlins on Monday, but before that let's look at what happened today: Max Kepler drew a five-pitch walk to start the game. Maybe this will be what gets him going and allows him to relax at the plate. He was left stranded. He had a hard hit out to end the third inning with runners on. He's been hitting more hard line drive outs than weak ground balls and fly outs. Jose Miranda stays hot and extended his hit streak in the second with a single to center. He's really seeing the ball well. Ryan Jeffers in his 2023 debut shot a broken bat single through the infield in the second for an RBI and 1-0 lead for the Twins. He had another RBI single, this time to center, in the fourth, scoring Gallo. RISP The Twins have done a nice job of getting guys around to score, when they were on base in scoring position. compared to the Royals who were 0-18. Joey Gallo had his first three extra base hits of the season today, including a massive home run into right field of 431 feet. Hard contact in back to back at bats. Great sign for Gallo. His second one of the season and day was in the seventh and extended the Twins lead to 6-1. Joe Ryan was absolutely dealing today. Other than a solo home run, which was the first run of the season for the Royals, it was Ryan's day. He was changing speeds, but also got his velocity up to 95.7 in the first inning. His final line is 6IP, 3H (1HR), 1ER, 2BB, 6Ks. The home run came on a 3-2 pitch. Ryan had Olivares 1-2 and missed the outer corner the next two pitches. It was extremely close. 4 Things I liked to see Byron Buxton continues to get on base at the DH position. Trevor Larnach continues to reach base with a single in the seventh and an RBI single (two outs) in the eighth. Joey Gallo and the offense getting going. Three extra base hits, two home runs and four RBI. He can be the key off-season signing if he hits 40 home runs. They need him to be at his All-Star and Gold Glove level. Seven of the hits the Twins had today were with two outs. Other than one of the Gallo home runs, every other Twins run was scored with two outs. 3 stats about the series Twins were 9-for-26 (34%) and Royals were 1-for-20 (5%) with RISP. The Twins were also patient, drawing 11 walks in three games. Twins pitchers recorded 25 strikeouts (8.3/game) over the series with game totals being 11, five and nine. This wasn't the cleanest game for the Twins, but it was a stark contrast to the close pitchers duels we saw the first two games. The Twins escaped with a win and ended up 3-0 to start the season. Ryan and Gallo carried the team today as they embark on a road trip to Miami. Your first place Minnesota Twins take on the Miami Marlins tomorrow with Tyler Mahle making his 2023 debut against Johnny Cueto.

JD, Thanks for your feedback! I definitely appreciate it. I took into account some HRs from the 1965 WS, some from the 69 season, and even Harmons 500th HR, but when I thought about it in terms of what it meant to not only the team in that moment, but also fans, I could bump any of these. If I did bump one, it would be the Dozier. That was more fun that anything, but it was also one of the biggest bc it capped off the biggest comeback in Target Field history (to that point). Thanks for reading and for the feedback!

I was at that Thome flagpole HR game and my gf at the time was bored and made us leave early. I heard the roar of what happened on the Metro Transit. It was also my birthday.

Just started writing for TD in the last week. Just my other articles as I have an article up about my interview with Matt Lawton!

Thank you Raymond!

2-0. That's been the theme of the 2023 season so far, for the 2023 Twins. Two days after defeating the Royals 2-0 behind two runs in the 6th inning, and some very timely infield defense, the Twins managed to scrape across runs and turn it over to the bullpen. Sound familiar? Here is my 6-4-3 on Saturday's 2-0 victory. Six things or players who stuck out to me, during today's game. Four things I really liked to see, and updates on three former Twins who had a good day! • Byron Buxton remains hot at the plate. Buxton doubled to left in the first, a hustle double that resulted in Twins fans collectively holding their breath after he had the wind knocked out of him and was slow getting up. After a walk by Larnach, Jose Miranda singled to center to score Buxton. In the sixth, Buxton singled to right, and advanced to second on a passed ball by Perez, Miranda grounded into a fielders choice, advancing Buxton to third, he scored on a shallow sac fly which was made possible by a great piece of base running by Miranda who faked like he was going to tag, which caused the ball to be cut off, rather than have a play at the plate. Through two games as DH, Buxton is slashing .444/.444/.778. I love to see him pulling the ball, taking extra bases, being aggressive on the base paths and you've seen what the results are through the first two games. • Christian Vazquez collected two more hits today and is batting .571 on the season. After calling an outstanding game two days ago with Lopez, and having seen Gray struggle after a seven-pitch first inning, Vazquez hasn't had any issues at the plate. Given he's in a timeshare with Jeffers, I have to think we will see Jeffers tomorrow in the series finale, as the Twins try to remain unbeaten. Having that veteran bat in the catcher position, usually a weak spot on offense, has been a pleasant surprise so far through two games. • Sonny Gray-- Gray wasn't as sharp as he normally has been, issuing four walks in five innings. He's been trying a two-seam fastball and Morneau on the broadcast said he's trying to get a feel for it and see where he can be effective. Three of those four walks were in the third inning, yet he was able to hold the Royals off the scoreboard. Gray had his defense help him in the fourth with two guys on and one out. He got Nicky Lopez to ground into an inning-ending double play. He got the win but wasn't as sharp as he has been. His final line was (W-1) 5IP, 3H,0R,4BB, and 1K on 81 pitches, just 53 strikes. • Twins bullpen-- For the second game in a row, the Twins bullpen pitched outstanding and was the highlight of the game. After Gray threw his five innings, the Twins bullpen consisted of Alcala, Jax, Thielbar, and J. Lopez. The bullpen pitched well and gave up just one hit and struck out four combined. Alcala, Jax, and Thielbar all recorded a hold, while Jorge Lopez recorded his first save of the 2023 season. • Twins infield defense-- Once again, the infield defense, save for a Miranda error early in the game, was spectacular, showing range of motion, quick releases, and an awareness of the situation(which the Twins haven't had in recent years on defense) this was a welcome sight. They were aided again by two HUGE double plays by Lopez in the fourth and Isabel in the sixth, both of which ended any hopes of KC scoring. If the infield defense continues to generate double plays at this rate, (four in the first two games; and in BIG situations to get out of potentially dangerous innings) it will be another boost to the pitching staff. • Strike rate of 49%. The Twins pitchers combined, continued to throw strikes, with the exception of Gray, whose command was hit and miss all day, the Twins threw 86 of 132 pitches overall for strikes and 20/35 (57.1%) first pitch strikes. The bullpen threw 34/49 pitches for strikes, a whopping 69.3%. Not issuing free passes and managing to get double plays, will continue to be crucial for the Twins bullpen as we get deeper in the season. 4 Things I really liked seeing • Timely hitting--More clutch hits in the middle to later parts of the game, getting insurance runs for the Twins. • Aggressive baserunning-- Buxton turned a single into a double, and later scored today and was also aggressive on opening day. The Twins being able and willing to be aggressive and take chances on the bases has paid off so far and gotten them extra runs. • Continued to get out of jams-- The Twins have gotten out of two potential jams per game, via ground ball double plays. These have been huge for them as it's really handcuffed the Royals to a few extra-base hits and no real threats after. • Bullpen success-- Through two games, the Twins bullpen has pitched 7.1, 1H,0R, 2BB, 4K. They've entered in the middle of the game both days and have been lights out after that. Given last season's struggles, this has been the brightest spot so far in the 2023 season so far, in my view. 3 Former Twins who had a good day: • Mitch Garver-- The former Twins catcher hit a pair of 3R HRs today in a 16-3 win over the Phillies. He was two for four with 3R scored, 2HR, 6 RBIs and is hitting .500 in this young season. • Josh Donaldson- Hit his first HR of the season in a 7-5 loss to the Giants. That was his only hit, • Gio Urshela-- He was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBI in a 13-1 routing of the Athletics. The Twins have looked good so far and have yet to allow a run on the season, Gray wasn't as sharp as Lopez was, but he made enough pitches to get himself out of jams and keep his team in the game. The Twins will go for a series sweep tomorrow with Joe Ryan on the mound.

Tha k you Neil, glad you realize that it was supposed to make the reader stop and pause. Was also important to me to list WHY they were on the list.

There were many many Harmon HRs that should've made the list.

I thought about making an HM section and adding in the 1965 and Jim Thome flagpole shots. Too many to choose from! Thanks for reading!

Since 1961 the Twins have had some huge Home Runs hit against them (looking at you Didi Gregorious and Tom Lawless), but they've also hit their fair share of big ones. Most have come in the World Series, but two in particular in my mind, have been huge regular-season home runs. Below, I outline all of them and the reasons why I ranked them where I did. If you have any comments, please let me know below! • 6. Brian Dozier--July 10, 2015 vs Tigers The Twins came into this game 42-40 and were set up for a mid-July battle with the division rival Tigers. The Twins trailed six to one going into the bottom of the ninth, then the Twins bats came alive off Tigers closer Joakim Soria. After a two-run single by Danny Santana brought the Twins back to within a run at six to five, Brian Dozier stepped up and cranked the first pitch, with two runners on, into the LF bleachers for the win. The win, erased a 6-0 Tigers lead in the 8th inning, to this writer, is the most dramatic walkoff HR ( second biggest regular season HR in Twins history), in Target Field history. Listen to Dick Bremers call on this if you haven't, I can listen to it over and over. https://youtu.be/5denizzi9yg • 5. Jacque Jones--April,1, 2002 vs Royals After an entire off-season of contraction rumors from MLB, Bud Selig, and many news media outlets, Jacque Jones took the 2nd pitch of the season from Jeff Suppan and deposited it over the fence. Statement made. The Twins were here to stay, and it was a perfect way to kickoff what would be a special, but heartbreaking, season for the Twins and their fans. This HR, by extension the season, showed everyone nationally that the Twins deserved to be in MN, in MLB and weren't going to roll over and move to NC. Still one of my favorite HRs. It makes this list due to the statement it made after an off season of controversy and an unknown future. https://www.mlb.com/video/jones-goes-deep-twice-in-opener?partnerId=web_video-playback-page_video-share • 4. A.J. Pierzynski--October 6, 2002 vs A's The Twins were tied with the A's at two games each with a deciding game five, to determine who faced the Angels in the ALCS. With flamethrower Billy Koch on the mound, AJ Pierzynski stepped up and took the first pitch he saw over the RF fence to give the Twins a 4-1 lead. (Ortiz later homered to extend it to five to one). This wasn't the game-winner, but it was the most important as it extended the lead and gave the Twins the ability to win the game in the ninth, even if they gave up runs (which they did). It's the HR that's become synonymous with that series, and in my view, is the 4th most important one in Twins history, given the situation, and who it came off of. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5denizzi9yg • 3. Dan Gladden--October 17th, 1987 vs Cards One of the most iconic HRs in Twins history is also one of the most important. The Twins, in their second WS in franchise history, had the Dome field advance. The crowd of 55,171 were waiving Homer hankies and waiting for something to cheer about, in the fifth inning, (newest) Twins HOFer Dan Gladden gave them just that. He deposited the second pitch from right-hander Bob Forsch over the LF fence into the bleachers. This lands at number three on the list because it took place in a WS game, it was Game one and for all intents and purposes, sealed the win for the Twins. It's one of the biggest and most iconic HRs in Twins history, but it's not even the most important one from this series by a Twin, what are the two above it? https://youtu.be/G3vPnlkBrog • 2. Don Baylor,Kent Hrbek--October 24th, 1987. This is kind of a cheat to add two guys to this spot, but honestly, they both deserve it, given the circumstances. With the Twins down five to two going into the bottom of the fifth, they scored a run on a Gaetti rbi, and then Don Baylor came up with the Twins down 5-3, and promptly hit a two-run home run off lefty John Tudor to tie the game at five. The Twins scored again that inning and made it six to five. In the sixth, Hrbek hit a GS to centerfield to give the Twins a 10-5 lead at the time. The Twins don't win this game, and therefore the series, without either of these two gigantic home runs, in the most clutch spots, with their season on the line. These land at two on the list because when I asked TK once at Twinsfest where ranked these he replied "behind Kirby, in front of everyone else". That was good enough for me! https://youtu.be/r6tPmCoVVNI https://youtu.be/bGqlEL54hr8 • Kirby Puckett--October 26,1991 vs Braves What else was it going to be? In the 11th inning, after telling Chili Davis he was thinking about bunting, to which Davis replied "bunt my a**", Kirby took a Charlie Leibrandt changeup on the outer half of the plate, into the LF bleachers, sending all 55,155 Twins fans into exuberant cheers, and giving the Twins new life in the series, after getting absolutely destroyed in ATL and coming back to MN down three games to two. It wasn't just that it was an extra-inning game. It was just that it was the World Series. It wasn't just that the Twins won the WS the next day, this comes in at number one because...it was Kirby. The best player, a fan favorite and a player that I, and many many other fans in the Twins Cities and all around Twins Territory idolized, just hit the biggest HR in team history. In the eyes of this (at the time 7-year-old)fan, it made Kirby something even more than a player, and almost larger than life. There wasn't anything he couldn't do on the field, this proved it. This was also the moment that I became a Twins fan and is the one lasting memories from my childhood that I will never forget. That day, Kirby went from a man to something more. A hero in all Twins fans eyes, it is also the day my love affair and undying fandom (and a lifetime of heartbreak, apparently) began. https://youtu.be/Dig7fkSg6EY