Cody Christie

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3013[/ATTACH] The Twins have been busy adding mediocre arms to their starting rotation this offseason but off in the wings Scott Diamond is preparing for his second full seasons as a big league starter. Diamond burst onto the scene last season with a very impressive first half of the season. He would come back down to earth a little bit in the second half but he was still the best starter out of a very mediocre starting core. In his second full season as a starter, Diamond will have to find a way to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump. There were a few different things that made Diamond successful in his first trip through the American League. Before the end of July, Diamond made 15 starts and posted a very good 2.88 ERA over 100 innings. Opponents hit .266/.299/.388 against him and he posted a very good 9-4 record. Most of his wins during that stretch, six of them, would come in the friendly confines of Target Field. In fact, over the course of the season Diamond would strike out batters at a higher rate at home and his WHIP was much better when pitching in Minnesota. From the beginning of August to the end of the season, Diamond ran into some struggles. He would lose two more games than he won during that stretch and his other numbers ballooned up a little. His ERA rose to 4.44 and opponents were able to hit .285/.320/.472 against him. Things would get worse after he was tossed out of a game in Texas for throwing at a batter. From that point on, his ERA jumped to 5.06 as his innings continued to mount. Entering last season, the most Diamond had pitched in the minor leagues was 162 innings back in 2011. Before being called-up to Minnesota in 2012, Diamond threw 34.2 innings in the minor leagues and he added that to 173 innings at the big league level. It was the first time he had thrown over 200 innings and there might have been a learning curve with his new workload. This could be the reason for some of his struggles down the stretch. Twins fans know that Diamond doesn't strikeout a ton of batters. He stays around the strike zone and this can cause some problems. Home runs became an Achilles heel for Diamond. Out of his 26 starts, he gave up a home run in 13 games and he gave up more than one home run in four games. In the games where Diamond gave up a home run, the Twins were one game under .500 and the team was 0-2 when he gave up more than one home run. One of the biggest areas of strength for Diamond is his ability to limit walks. He led the AL in BB/9 by averaging less than two walks per game. The most walks that he gave up in a game were three and both of those contests were in the last month of the year when Diamond might have been tiring. There were seven games when he didn't walk a single batter and he pitched over six innings in all of those starts. When giving up zero walks, Diamond had a 4-1 record and 1.07 ERA. Since Diamond is going to pound the strike zone, it is important to have a good defense behind him. The Twins will enter this spring with question marks at almost every up the middle position on the club. Joe Benson, Aaron Hicks, and Darin Mastroianni will be fighting for the starting job in center field. The middle infield is a complete question mark as the Twins are expected to have an open competition for shortstop and second base. It can tough for a pitcher to have consistency if there are different players behind him every time he takes the mound. Looking at all of these things, it is clear that there are a few areas for Diamond to concentrate on to find success in his second year. He needs to limit the amount of long balls that he gives up. It is also key for him to continue to manage the amount of walks that he allows. The defense behind Diamond will also be critical for the Twins and their starting staff. If the Twins and Diamond can find a way for all of these to come true, he might be set up to have an even better year in 2013.

As a member of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance, we are asked to take part in a few different voting exercises throughout the year. We pick out the top players in each end of the year award category, we vote for the starters in the All-Star Game, and we submit a ballot for the Hall-of-Fame during each offseason. The calendar has turned from 2012 and that means it is getting close to the announcement of the Class of 2013 for the National Baseball Hall of Fame. With each of the other announcements, the BBA asks each member to post their ballot to their affiliated blog. The Hall-of-Fame vote is the only one for which this is not a requirement. I still feel like the Hall-of-Fame balloting should be posted with my reasons for selecting each candidate. I usually break my ballot into a few different categories because I know that not all of the player listed below will be making a speech in Cooperstown this summer: [ATTACH=CONFIG]3009[/ATTACH] Class of 2012 Craig Biggio (1st Ballot)- Houston Astros Accolades: 7-time All-Star, 4 Gold Gloves, 5 Silver Sluggers BA: .281 H: 3,060 (21st) HR: 219 (144th) R: 1,844 (15th) RBI: 1,175 (162nd) SB: 414 (64th) OPS: .796 WAR: 62.1 (129th) Jeff Bagwell (2012 HOF Vote: 56.0%)- Houston Astros Accolades: 4-time All-Star, 1 Gold Glove, 3 Silver Sluggers, '94 NL MVP BA: .297 H: 2314 (140th) HR: 449 (36th) R: 1517 (63rd) RBI: 1529 (46th) SB: 202 OPS: .948 (22nd) WAR: 79.9 (59th) There have been whispers of PED use surrounding Bagwell but there hasn't been any real evidence against him. He was a power hitting first baseman in the middle of the steroids era and that is apparently enough to convict him. I think he gets the extra boost because some voters won't want to vote for the other players on the ballot. Biggio started his career as a catcher and he moved to second base after three seasons behind the plate. He reached the 3,000 hit mark and this helps him to be one of the best up the middle players in history. It seems only fitting that two of Houston's Killer B's would be elected in the same year. Future Inductions Mike Piazza (1st Ballot)- Los Angeles Dodgers, Florida Marlins, New York Mets, San Diego Padres, Oakland Athletics Accolades: 12-time All-Star, 10 Silver Sluggers, '93 Rookie of the Year BA: .308 (122nd) H: 2,127 (210th) HR: 427 (44th) R: 1048 RBI: 1,335 (89th) OPS: .922 (50th) WAR: 56.1 (117th) Curt Schilling (1st Ballot)- Baltimore Orioles, Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, Arizona Diamondbacks, Boston Red Sox Accolades: 6-time All-Star, '93 NLCS MVP, '01 World Series MVP Wins: 216 (82nd) ERA: 3.46 WHIP: 1.137 (46th) K: 3,116 (15th) IP: 3,261.0 (95th) WAR for pitchers: 76.9 (26th) Shutouts: 20 (244th) Edgar Martinez (2012 HOF Vote: 36.5%)- Seattle Mariners Accolades: 7-time All-Star, 5 Silver Sluggers BA: .312 (96th) H: 2247 (161th) HR: 309 (123th) R: 1219 (161th) RBI: 1261 (124st) OPS: .933 (34th) WAR: 67.2 (108th) Piazza wasn't the best as a defensive catcher but he is the best hitting catcher of all-time. Like, Bagwell there have been PED rumors but again there is no evidence. Schilling might be the second best postseason pitcher behind Mariano Rivera and he was also a very good regular season pitcher as well. He probably won't get in on the first ballot but he should get in at some point in the next few years. Martinez had positive years as a third baseman before becoming the definition of the designated hitter. He is one of the best hitters of all-time and he should be recognized for his place in history. May Never Get In (But Still On My Ballot) Barry Bonds (1st Ballot)- Pittsburgh Pirates, San Francisco Giants Accolades: 14-time All-Star, 8 Gold Gloves, 12 Silver Sluggers, 2-time Batting Champ, '90 NL MVP, '92 NL MVP, '93 NL MVP, '01 NL MVP, '02 NL MVP, '03 NL MVP, '04 NL MVP BA: .298 (235th) H: 2,935 (32nd) HR: 762 (1st) R: 2,227 (3rd) RBI: 1,996 (4th) OPS: 1.051 (4th) SB: 514 (33rd) BB: 2,558 (1st) WAR: 158.1 (3rd) Roger Clemens (1st Ballot)- Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, Houston Astros Accolades: 11-time All-Star, '86 AL MVP, '86 AL Cy Young, '87 AL Cy Young, '91 AL Cy Young, '97 AL Cy Young, '98 AL Cy Young, '01 AL Cy Young, '04 NL Cy Young Wins: 354 (9th) ERA: 3.12 (212th) WHIP: 1.173 (90th) K: 4,672 (3rd) IP: 4,916.6 (16th) WAR for pitchers: 133.1 (3rd) Shutouts: 46 (26th) Jack Morris (2012 HOF Vote: 66.7%)- Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins, Toronto Blue Jays, Cleveland Indians Accolades: 5-time All-Star, 1991 World Series MVP Wins: 254 (42nd) ERA: 3.90 WHIP: 1.296 K: 2478 (32nd) IP: 3824.0 (50th) WAR for pitchers: 39.3 (145th) Shutouts: 28 (134th) With the influx of big name players on this year's ballot, Morris might have missed out on his last best chance in 2012. He was the best pitcher of the 1980's but he was the last player that made my ballot. Bonds was a HOF player before his PED use and his numbers are unbelievable. He is in the argument for the best players of all-time but the steroid factor could keep him out. Much like Bonds, a cloud of PED speculation surrounds Clemens but he still ranks as one of the best pitchers ever. He was putting together a HOF career before he allegedly started using steroids. Under-Appreciated Duo Tim Raines (2012 HOF Vote: 48.7%)- Montreal Expos, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, Florida Marlins Accolades: 7-time All-Star, 1 Silver Slugger, 1 NL Batting Title BA: .294 H: 2,605 (77th) HR: 170 R: 1,571 (53rd) RBI: 980 OPS: .810 SB: 808 (5th) WAR: 66.2 (97th) Alan Trammell (2012 HOF Vote: 36.8%)- Detroit Tigers Accolades: 6-time All-Star, 4 Gold Gloves, 3 Silver Sluggers, '84 World Series MVP BA: .285 H: 2,365 (124th) HR: 185 R: 1,231 (156th) RBI: 1,003 OPS: .767 SB: 236 WAR: 67.1 (91st) This is the first year that I am voting for Raines and Trammell and most of that is because I didn't fully appreciate their body of work. Raines ability to steal bases and get on base at a high rate might make him the second best leadoff hitter of all-time behind Ricky Henderson. Trammell was terrific on both sides of the ball and he has been under-appreciated by the BWAA. He is as good or better than Barry Larkin, last year's selection to the HOF. So who would make your ballot? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

There can be plenty debate about which player is the best in the history of the franchise. Arguments can be made for Kirby Puckett, Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, etc. Puckett brought World Series Championships to the Twins Cities, Killebrew hit mammoth home runs, and Carew might be the best pure hitter in franchise history. Those debates can be fun and there really isn't a wrong answer because they are all important parts of Twins history. On the other side of the coin, there have been some players that didn't find success in a Twins uniform. It can be just as fun trying to pick out some of these players, as it can be to debate the best players in team history. Even as recent as last season with Jason Marquis and Tsuyoshi Nishioka, there has been some players that couldn't find success with the club. In the winter cold of the deep offseason, it can be entertaining to look back at the club's history. In the next few weeks, I will discuss some of the worst players to ever wear a Twins uniform. I won't try to rank these players because that could be quite the daunting task and it is wide open to interpretation. These will be simple profiles on some of the worst players in team history. To kick off the "Worst Twins of All-Time Series," Mr. Butch Huskey... ---------- [ATTACH=CONFIG]3005[/ATTACH] Before the start of the 2000 season, the Twins were looking to add a player with DH experience. They threw half a million dollars at Huskey and gave him the role. The 28-year old had spent multiple seasons with the Mets before coming to the AL to play with Seattle and Boston. The Twins had a young David Ortiz that would also be fighting for at-bats at DH but the experience factor mattered for Minnesota. Huskey was a career .268/.313/.437 hitter and he averaged 13 home runs a season before joining the Twins. He had a couple of seasons where he hit 20 home runs and the Mariners gave him a contract for over $1 million in 1999. He would last less than a season with Seattle before being dealt to the Red Sox. Huskey would be traded for Robert Ramsay, a left-handed relief pitcher that only had two big league seasons. During the 2000 season, Huskey made it into 64 games for the Twins and he hit .223/.306/.353 in 215 at-bats. He had 13 doubles and five home runs while playing 36 games at DH, 15 games in RF, and 9 games at first base. His best offensive performance might have been a 3-for-4 game on April 20th when he had a double, a home run, and two runs scored. This was in the middle of a seven game hitting streak for the DH. In his last ten games with the Twins, he didn't get a single hit and he ended his Twins tenure with a -1.1 WAR. As mentioned before, Huskey was brought in to serve as an experienced DH with the club. David Ortiz would actually finish the season as the Twins primary DH. On Opening Day, it was Huskey batting clean-up for the club with Ortiz not in the line-up. 2000 Opening Day Line-Up 1. Todd Walker, 2B 2. Christian Guzman, SS 3. Matt Lawton, RF 4. Butch Huskey, DH 5. Corey Koskie, 3B 6. Ron Coomer, 1B 7. Jacque Jones, LF 8. Matt LeCroy, C 9. Torii Hunter, CF In an interesting bit of trivia, Huskey would become the last player in franchise history to wear the number 42. Major League Baseball had retired the number to honor Jackie Robinson and his contributions to the game. All of the players that were already wearing the number got grandfathered in and they could continue to have the #42 on their backs. Huskey did wear the number as a tribute to Robinson before having to switch away from it with the Rockies. With Ortiz starting to get more playing time at DH and Huskey not exactly performing well, the Twins sent him to the Rockies along with Todd Walker. The Twins would get back Todd Sears and cash from Colorado to complete the deal. It was starting to look like the beginning of the end for Mr. Huskey. He would finish out the rest of his MLB career with the Rockies during the last few months of the 2000 campaign. Huskey improved his batting numbers to .348/.432/.565 along with 12 extra-base hits in 45 games. In 2001, he would spend the entire year at the Triple-A level for the Rockies before deciding to call it a career. One of the more entertaining moments in the career of Butch Huskey happened at the Metrodome. Pay special attention to the futuristic jerseys that each club is wearing. Sorry for the quality of the video but it was the best I could find. Who else should be featured in the "Worst Twins of All-Time Series"? Leave a COMMENT and you pick could be the next player profiled.

The end of a year brings about plenty of post about the top stories of the year. On Monday, I wrote a post looking back at some of the top Twins headlines from 2012. This included positive years from Josh Willingham and Joe Mauer along with some other news stories that defined the last calendar year for the Twins organization. At the end of the year, it can be an important time to remember all of those that we lost in 2012. The 2011 season saw the Twins dealing with the loss of one of the team's legends, Harmon Killebrew. The men listed below were never elected to the Hall of Fame but they still made contributions to the franchise in multiple decades. Here are the former Twins players that passed away in 2012 with a little bit about their Minnesota playing days: [ATTACH=CONFIG]2993[/ATTACH] Dave Boswell (Twins 1964-70) Boswell played all but one season of his career with the Twins. He was a pitcher on some of the best team's in Twins history during the 1960's. With the club, he amassed a 67-54 record with a 3.49 ERA including 37 complete games. He averaged over 120 strikeouts a season and he had double digits in wins for four consecutive seasons. His best season might have been the 1969 campaign when he won a career high 20 games and helped lead the Twins to the postseason. During the middle of that season, he got in a fight with manager Billy Martin and that might be why is he most remembered. He would hurt his shoulder pitching in the 11th inning of a playoff game he started against the Orioles. Boswell would never be the same. Jack Kralick (Twins 1961-63) Kralick got his start with the Washington Senators and he moved with the club to Minnesota in 1961. He would post double digits in wins during the clubs first two years in Bloomington while pitching at least 242 innings. He threw the first no-hitter in franchise history on August 26, 1962. During the middle of the 1963 season, he would be traded to Cleveland for Jim Perry. Perry would go on to be a staple in the Twins rotation for the next decade and Kralick would only pitch four more seasons. He made his lone All-Star appearance in 1964 with Cleveland but his better days were behind him at that point. Don Mincher (Twins 1961-66) Much like Kralick, Mincher got his start in Washington before the franchise packed up for the Twin Cities. The left-handed slugger would hit 200 home runs during his 13 year career including two campaigns with over 20 home runs with the Twins. Harmon Killebrew took away some at-bats from Mincher at first base as he didn't appear in over 100 games until the 1964 season. He played in all seven games of the 1965 World Series but only managed three hits, one of them being a home run, and a .130 average. He would go on to win the World Series with the '72 Oakland A's. Frank Pastore (Twins 1986) Pastore played in 33 games for the '86 Twins being almost exclusively used out of the bullpen. He posted a 3-1 record with a 4.01 ERA across 49.1 innings. It would be his last season at the big league level as he struggled the next season in the minor league system for the Rangers. Pastore made a name for himself as a starter for the Cincinnati Reds. His biggest moment might have come when he was a 22-year old rookie and he pitched his heart out in the 1979 NLCS. He had a tragic death after being in a coma for multiple weeks following a motorcycle accident. Following his baseball career, he would go on to accomplish many things including multiple college degrees and hosting his own radio show. Jay Ward (Twins 1963-64) Out of the men on this list, Ward played in the fewest amount of games with the Twins. He only managed to get into 21 games and he spent most of his professional career bouncing around the minor leagues. Over his 53 plate appearances with the club, he hit .174/.283/.239 with three doubles and seven walks. Ward would continue playing in the minors until he was 32 years old but he only made it into another six games at the big league level. Following his playing career, he would manage the Twins Midwest League affiliated team, the Wisconsin Rapids Twins, for one season. He would make it back to the big leagues as a hitting coach with the '87 Yankees and the '91-'92 Expos.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2967[/ATTACH] 2012 has come and gone and there were plenty of story lines that comprised the year that was for the Minnesota Twins. After a decade of winning baseball, the Twins have suffered through back-to-back losing seasons for the first time since 2000. Minnesota has been the worst team in the American League for two seasons but there were still some signs of life from the hometown nine. Willingham's monster year: Last offseason the Twins had a choice to make when it came to free agent outfielders. Michael Cuddyer had been with the team since he was drafted and he had become a fan favorite but it was time to go in another direction. Josh Willingham became the man for the job and to say it was quite the year for the burly outfielder would be an understatement. The 35-year old had career highs in home runs, slugging percentage, runs, and he crossed the 100 RBI mark for the first time in his career. On a team that didn't manage many victories, Willingham provided multiple walk-off hits. He was awarded a Silver Slugger Award at the end of the season after being one of the best offensive players in the American League. Mauer back and healthy: 2011 was a nightmare year for the Twins on many different fronts but Joe Mauer being sidelined for most of the season was tough for a lot of fans to take. It didn't help that he was in the first year of the biggest contract in team history. Some changes had to be made to keep Mauer on the field but those changes led to a rebirth for the star catcher. Mauer appeared in a career high 147 games and he was back to his old offensive ways. He fought for the American League batting title for most of the season and he ended up leading the league in on-base percentage. The Twin Cities native son was elected to his fifth All-Star Game and it looks like he will be back to his old ways for years to come. Hicks, Arcia emerge at Double-A: The Twins have been waiting for this type of season from Aaron Hicks since they drafted him in the first round. Oswaldo Arcia had been looking for a healthy season after sitting on the sidelines for parts of 2011. Both of these players would emerge with terrific seasons in the minor leagues. Hicks knocked double digits in home runs for the first time in his career and he also set the New Britain record for triples in a season. He was a threat on the bases by swiping 32 bases in 43 attempts. Arcia spent half the year at High-A but he got better when he was promoted to Double-A. As he had shown in the past, he is able to combine a powerful swing with the ability to hit for a high average. These two top prospects could be appearing at Target Field as early as next season. Winds of change hit coaching staff: At the end of the season, something needed to be done to shake up a team that had finished as one of the worst teams in baseball for the second year in a row. Jerry White, Rick Stelmaszek, and Steve Liddle were let go by the club. These were the biggest changes in the coaching staff since Ron Gardenhire took over as manager in 2001. Tom Brunansky, Bobby Cuellar, and Terry Steinbach were named to the coaching staff. Brunansky and and Cuellar served in similar roles at Rochester and Steinbach has been a spring training instructor with the club. These men will be in charge of trying to turn the franchise around in the next couple of seasons. There will be some young players moving to the major leagues as the franchise tries to return to their winning ways. Span, Revere traded away: There was a simple equation for the Twins when it came to the offseason. The front office needed to add pitching and there was a surplus of outfielders in the organization. This meant that Denard Span and Ben Revere would find themselves on different rosters and the Twins would gain some young pitching to add to a system that desperately needed a shot in the arm. After a couple years of trade speculation, Span was sent to the Nationals organization for top pitching prospect Alex Meyer. The flame throwing young pitcher has only pitched in the lower levels of the minors but he has huge upside. One week later, the Twins sent Revere to the Phillies for right-handed pitcher Vance Worley and pitching prospect Trevor May. These moves are meant to improve the Twins and the future looks brighter

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2955[/ATTACH] Jayson Stark of ESPN likes to try and find some strange but true things that happened in the baseball season. He picks out his strange but true player of the year, game of the year, injury of the year, etc. There are some entertaining items included in his list and I encourage you to check out his entire post over at the four-letter network's site. One of his strange but true tidbits from this season revolves around Ryan Doumit and a strange feat he was able to accomplish in 2012. At the beginning of September, the Twins were playing at US Cellular Field against the Chicago White Sox. Minnesota would easily handle Chicago in the game by a final score of 18-9 and the lopsided win helped Doumit to reach his accomplishment. The Twins found themselves trailing the rival White Sox by a score of 3-0 in the top of the second inning. Minnesota wouldn't be behind for long as they jumped all over starter Jose Quintana. The strange item for Doumit in the inning was the fact that he accounted for the first and the third outs. This wouldn't normally be a strange feat but what happened later in the game would add to this strange but true tale. Minnesota would put together another huge inning later in the game. This time Doumit would be part of the rally instead of the rally killer. As the second batter of the fifth inning, he smacked a single to right field. He would eventually come around to score the second run of the inning on a Trevor Plouffe triple but he wasn't done. Doumit would come up to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded. A short line drive to left field would be enough knock in Joe Mauer and Josh Willingham. Chris Parmelee was the next batter and he would continue the scoring spree by knocking a home run that scored Doumit and Justin Morneau. The Twins would end the frame up 17-4 and Doumit had accomplished something strange but true. By recording two outs in one inning and then getting two hits in one inning, Doumit became the first man in the expansion era to accomplish this feat. He added a solo home run later in the game to top off the scoring for the Twins. Doumit ended the game going 3-for-6 with a home run, three runs scored, and three RBI. He was the only member of the Twins to rack up three hits in their blowout win and he accomplished quite the strange but true feat. What are some of your favorite strange but true stories from America's favorite pastime? Leave a COMMENT and start the conversation.

My 12-year old cousin recently had the idea to write an article to one of his favorite magazines, Beckett Trading Card Monthly. He and I have spent a lot of time in recent years collecting baseball trading cards and it has become a fun hobby for both of us. The editor liked his article so much that he put it on the front page of Beckett.com over the last couple of days. Here is link to the article as it was posted on Beckett.com but below you will find the article in its entirety. [ATTACH=CONFIG]2952[/ATTACH] Why kids should collect baseball cards By Parker Stenseth Baseball card collecting is a hobby for all, but in recent years it has gone a little more toward adults than kids. There are still many reasons kids should collect, though. There are so many reasons kids should collect baseball cards that I won’t be able to address them all. Of them all, I feel the most important is that it helps you connect with others. As an example, I got started on collecting after my cousin, who I now consider one of my best friends, took me to a Twins game and bought me a team set of cards. (I later dropped that set in the sink being six, but my cousin was kind enough to buy me another.) That set of cards sparked a fascination in me that is still there today. Cody and I still go to card shows, still trade and still go to the local store together. I have also heard a story of a dad with a mentally handicapped son and couldn’t relate to him that well but when his son got interested in cards they had something to spend some quality time together with. Another reason kids should collect baseball cards is just the feeling of pulling a good card is like no other. I remembered when I pulled my first autograph, David Wright. I seriously couldn’t stop smiling the next two hours. Also being at a card show is one of the most fun things I can think of. It’s amazing being surrounded by so many pieces of baseball history and knowing you could buy some of what’s there. Then there’s also trading cards with a friend. It’s so much fun looking through your friend’s collection and hearing the stories behind each card and then finding a card in their collection that you want and trading for it. Baseball cards give so much happiness and enjoyment that everyone should feel. Next, I feel cards improve academic skills. I’m currently a seventh-grader that’s doing some mid high school work at school and I give a lot of credit to baseball cards for that. With all the numbers on the backs of the cards for stats and then sorting your cards and finding how much they’re worth, it would be hard not to learn anything about math, logistics or marketing skills. Finally, I feel it’s a better way to spend your time than video games, Internet or anything like that. Baseball cards can give you a longer-lasting satisfaction and you can enjoy them with others. It’s also not dangerous, and there’s no negative influence on younger kids. All things considered, baseball cards are a great hobby for kids and anybody else. It’s something you can do with others, it gives a ton of happiness, could teach you a thing or two, and anyone can enjoy it.

This will mark the third Christmas since NoDak Twins Fan was started back in 2010. Every year I have put together a post that related a famous Christmas story or tale to the Twins. This year was a little different as I took the famous song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" and gave it a very Minnesota Twins feel. It has been fun to put these posts together over the last couple of years so I thought it would be great to do a "Greatest Hits" post. This is in case you have only recently found my blog or maybe you missed one of the Christmas posts along the way. [ATTACH=CONFIG]2950[/ATTACH] Here's a look back through the years of Christmas posts at NoDak Twins Fan: 2010: Twas the Night Before Christmas In my first year of blogging, I took the classic poem/story "Twas the Night Before Christmas" and I gave it a Minnesota Twins theme. The Nishioka signing had just taken place but fans were waiting for other moves to happen. Also the Metrodome roof had recently fallen in so that added to some of the poem. Below you will see a taste of the poem and you can click here to read the rest of it. Twas the night before Christmas, when all through Target Field Not a worker was stirring, for every door had been sealed; The stockings were hung by the dugout with care, In hopes that a free agent soon would be there; Every fan was nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of championships danced in their heads; And Bill Smith in his 'kerchief, and Gardy in a cap, Seem to be spending the offseason on a long winter's nap; 2011: A Twins Christmas Carol Last year, I dove headfirst into the classic Dicken's tale "A Christmas Carol" but things had changed a lot since the previous year. Terry Ryan had returned as GM and he was being haunted by the ghost of Bill Smith. Three other ghosts were sent to Ryan's office that night and there was a lesson to be learned from all of this haunting. Below you will see an excerpt from the story and you can click here to read the rest of it. When out of no where, the lights began to flicker and a cool breeze swept through the office. After a rush of wind, a large figure stood in front of Mr. Ryan's desk. As the lights still flickered, Ryan finally made sense of the figure that was in his presence. It was the ghost of former GM Bill Smith. Smith had been chase from his job and he had some words of wisdom for Ryan.
 "Beware the angry fan base of the Twins. They will never be satisfied until the team can find postseason success again. The players won't fight through injuries. The starting staff is full of holes and the future does not look in the team's favor. They will chase you out just like they chased me. BEWARE!!!" 2012: The Twins Twelve Days of Christmas On Friday, I turned to the classic Christmas song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" and I tied the verses into the franchise and the team's history. There were some connections made in the song to things that are part of the team. In the future, I might have to create a YouTube video to correspond with this song. Below you will see one of the verses from the song and you can click here to read the rest of it. On the fifth day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me...
 Five Schweigert Hot Dogs
 Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers
 And the return of the Target Field Trees Happy Holidays everyone! May it be filled with many blessings!

As they say, "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year." Christmas comes at the beginning of next week and there are always things to be thankful for even if your favorite team has been terrible for a couple of seasons. It might be tough to see the light at the end of the tunnel but it's still not the time of year to be grouchy. So here's a new version of an old Christmas favorite. The tune is to "The Twelve Days of Christmas." To get the full impact of the song, it should be sung as a cumulative song. This means that each verse is built on top of the previous verses. . [ATTACH=CONFIG]2937[/ATTACH] On the first day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... The Return of the Target Field Trees On the second day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees 
 On the third day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees 
 On the fourth day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees 
 On the fifth day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Five Schweigert Hot Dogs Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees 
 On the sixth day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Six Prospects rising Five Schweigert Hot Dogs Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees On the seventh day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Seven coaches yelling Six Prospects rising Five Schweigert Hot Dogs Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees On the eighth day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Eight retired numbers Seven coaches yelling Six Prospects rising Five Schweigert Hot Dogs Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees On the ninth day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Nine foul ball catches Eight retired numbers Seven coaches yelling Six Prospects rising Five Schweigert Hot Dogs Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees On the tenth day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Ten beers-a-pouring Nine foul ball catches Eight retired numbers Seven coaches yelling Six Prospects rising Five Schweigert Hot Dogs Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees On the eleventh day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Eleven flags-a-flying Ten beers-a-pouring Nine foul ball catches Eight retired numbers Seven coaches yelling Six Prospects rising Five Schweigert Hot Dogs Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees 
 On the twelfth day of Christmas, the Twins gave to me... Twelve Gold Glove winners Eleven flags-a-flying Ten beers-a-pouring Nine foul ball catches Eight retired numbers Seven coaches yelling Six Prospects rising Five Schweigert Hot Dogs Four Perkins strikeouts Three Mauer doubles Two Hammer homers And the return of the Target Field Trees A couple of thoughts on the numbers used in this post: There have been 12 different Twins players to win Gold Gloves. There are 11 flags that fly over Target Field to represent the Twins trips to the postseason. The franchise has eight retired numbers with the addition of Tom Kelly in 2012. There are seven coaches that compose the big league staff. The top six prospects in the organization are pretty easy to figure out but after that it can get a little dicey. The rest of the numbers should be pretty easy to figure out.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2933[/ATTACH] Bill Baer wrote an interesting article the other day at ESPN.com letting the world know that it was time to appreciate Joe Mauer. This is a skill that many Twins fans are lacking in recent years especially following his injury plagued 2011 season. As far as the rest of the baseball world, there is probably a little less recognition for Mauer’s continued consistency since the Twins have been one of the worst teams in baseball over the last two seasons. Mauer is one of the best players in baseball and he might just be the best hitting catcher of all-time. One interesting portion of the article took a look at Mauer's career WAR when compared to other catchers that are already enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame. "Mauer currently ranks ahead of Roy Campanella, Rick Ferrell and Ray Schalk. He isn't far behind Roger Bresnahan or Ernie Lombardi. If Mauer can stay healthy and productive through the end of his current contract (a very big if), he very well could be a lock for enshrinement in Cooperstown." So this begs the question, is Mauer nearly a lock for the HOF? If Mauer's career were tragically to end before the start of next season, it doesn't seem likely that he would have the numbers to be elected. He is close to crossing the 1,300 hit mark so he hasn't even made it to the halfway point of the 3,000 hit plateau. His power numbers are never going to get him elected since he has yet to hit 100 home runs in nine years of big league experience. The true test of his greatness might be in his ability to keep his lifetime batting average as high as possible. Mauer is a career .323 batter and he gets on base over 40% of the time. There are plenty of accolades that have started to mount for Mauer. The three batting titles that he has already won are unprecedented for a catcher. He was close to winning his fourth title last season before falling off at the end of the year. Batting titles are great but they don't necessarily mean that he will get enshrined in Cooperstown. Twins fans are well aware of the case for Tony Oliva to make the HOF and he had three batting titles to his credit before he was forced to retire. Mauer's MVP season in 2009 was something that statisticians could drool about because of his combination of power, average, and playing a tough defensive position. One great season doesn't mean a player should be a lock for the Hall. There have been plenty of players to win one MVP and never be close to reaching that mark again. Some consider Justin Morneau's MVP selection as one of the worst in the Division Era. Injuries have made it tough for him to get back to that form. Looking toward the future and projecting the rest of Mauer's career, it is easy to think that he will get strong consideration for the Hall of Fame. His health will continue to be something to watch especially since he is close to 6-foot-6 and he has a lot of weight on those precious knees every time that he squats behind the plate. The Twins will continue to use him at other positions as he ages but his tie to greatness is his ability to be a catcher. When some try to name the best catcher in the history of the game, Johnny Bench usually tops most lists. Yogi Berra, Carlton Fisk, and others are also thought of highly. These men racked up a lot of innings behind the plate and it doesn't look like Mauer will be a full-time catcher for the rest of his career. These men were solid as catchers in a gritty era of baseball. Bench played 17 seasons and caught close to 14,500 innings, Bera caught over 12,000 innings, and Fisk racked up 18.500 innings. Mauer currently sits at 7,224 innings as a catcher and he has averaged 858.2 innings per season. Last season, he logged a little over 600 frames at catcher, which were the fewest he had in a season that he played over 100 games. If this trend continues, it could take away some of his votes when it comes to election time. At this point, it doesn't seem like Mauer would be a lock for the Hall of Fame. It will likely take multiple more seasons at his current rate of production for him to be a lock. Twins fans will get to watch Mauer on every step of his journey and hopefully that path will lead him to the gates of Cooperstown. What does Mauer have left to accomplish to get into the HOF? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2925[/ATTACH] No, this isn't the cheesy mascot race held around the warning track at Target Field. This is a race between the top two prospects in the Twins system to make their debuts in Minnesota. It could be a hotly contested race and it could come down to a photo finish. Tuesday marked the 19th birthday of Twins top prospect Byron Buxton. This means that the two players ranked highest on most Twins prospect lists, Buxton and Miguel Sano, are now both 19-years old. Sano is seven months older than Buxton and he has been in the Twins system since he was 16-years old. This small age gap should still put together quite the race between these two players to see who will get the first call-up to the big leagues. The Twins tend to be patient with their minor league players as they make their way through the farm system. There were some people clamoring for Sano to get bumped up to Fort Myers after his hot start at Beloit last season. He came back down to earth a little bit over the course of the rest of the season and his defense continues to look a little shaky at third base. It was good for him to play the entire year at Beloit and hopefully this makes it easier for him to succeed in 2012. Joe Mauer was the last Twins prospect to sit near the top of national prospect rankings before making his debut. It took him three years to move through the farm system. This included one year in rookie ball, one year at Low-A, and a season split between High-A and Double-A. He would skip the Triple-A level before making his debut. This could be the similar path for both Sano and Buxton. Last season, Buxton would split time between both rookie league teams so there is a good chance that he will spend all of next season at Cedar Rapids. If he plays well enough, he could join Sano and some of the other top prospects in Fort Myers after the middle portion of the season. It seems more likely that both Sano and Buxton will spend all of next year at different levels. Sano will be with Fort Myers and Buxton will be not very far behind with Cedar Rapids. Following the same pattern as Mauer, this could put Sano on track to be a Twins Opening Day starter by 2014. He would need to tear up High-A and Double-A next season before this would ever be an option. If Sano were to take this path, it seems unlikely for Buxton to catch him and pass him. The Twins aren't going to send Buxton through three different levels this season. It only seems possible if the Twins have Buxton skip Low-A and join Sano at Ft. Myers directly out of spring training. After the seasons put together in 2012 by rising stars like Bryce Harper and Mike Trout, it can be easy for fans to want to see what they have in their younger players. Harper was 19 for all of last season and he only recently turned 20. Trout turned 21 in August so last season was considered his age 20 season in the big leagues. These are both tremendous talents and the Twins can only hope that Buxton and Sano turn out as well as last year's rookie duo. Because of their respective levels in 2012, it seems more likely for Sano's powerful bat to be taking hacks at Target Field before Buxton will be roaming the spacious outfield. If Sano has any set backs during the next couple of seasons, Buxton could be hot on his heels. The Twins were already surprised by the power Buxton showed in his first professional season. He also hit for a better average when he was promoted from the GCL Twins to the Elizabethton Twins. This could be a good sign for his future and it shows that he was developing during his time in the system. It would be cool if both players spent all of 2013 and 2014 in the minors and then they both made their debuts on the 2015 Opening Day roster. This would mean a tie for the race to Target Field but it could mean that both players would be sitting at the same amount of big league service time. It would also give some of the young pitching time to develop in the minor leagues. All of this might be getting a little ahead of where the Twins mindset needs to be for 2013. With all of the mediocre pitcher signings in the last couple of weeks, it is hard not to want to look past next season to what the future might hold. Sano and Buxton are two of the best prospects in baseball and fingers are crossed that they will continue to develop along their path to Target Field. So who do you got, Sano or Buxton? The race is on to Target Field and Skeeta isn't involved in this race.