mikelink45

As a person who hates excess strikeouts, I keep looking at Sano and wondering why he is not lower in the order where he will kill less rallies. Of course if we had Morrison hitting or Grossman more than .100 it might help shift Sano to 6. I like the idea of lots of hits at the top and Sano does not seem to be learning the strike zone or how to control his bat.

Rosario has established who he is and we get some good and bad mixed with more good. More than any of these players I am concerned about Buxton because we are no longer at the point where his struggles should just be seen as growing pains. Its time for him to put it together and keep it together. He is the one player who many of us have superstar expectations for and this start is really disappointing.

Any injury is a cause for worry. I imagine that when people heard that Dizzy Dean hurt his toe there was nothing to worry about, but then it ended his career. https://www.fangraphs.com/tht/tht-live/the-dizzy-dean-injury-cascade/ "Most importantly, it shows the cascade potential of any injury to a pitcher. He broke his toe, leading to shoulder and arm issues and quieting a great career. For pitchers, any injury can lead to other injuries. Altered mechanics or additional stress can cause issues up the pitching motion’s kinetic chain. Fixing one link in the chain could cause the next weakest link to break. Sometimes a weak link can cause another weak link to break. It can be a vicious cycle."

Their is nothing favorable in this matchup which means we might sweep them. Lets dream, hope, enjoy.

The one you don't have always looks better than the one you have and the FO has shown a tendency to want to have players that they can claim as their own rather than promoting from within. Take Kinley out of the conversation and the Chagois decision was just bad. I do not need any metrics to change my mind and Kinley is no more advanced than what we have so why create the confusion. I'm still waiting for Lynn to be better than Gonsalves.

I am always interested in the back stories – some of which are not typical baseball anecdotes. Each year now we celebrate #42 – in fact most of you reading this have already identified Jackie Robinson from his number and we can look at his Hall of Fame plaque and celebrate his strength of character as well as his baseball prowess. And there is no doubt his ten-year career is Hall Worthy. He averaged 6.1 WAR with a peak of 9.7 despite the hate and abuse he endured daily. His career average was .311 and he had just under 20 stolen bases per year at a time when his baserunning forced a change in the opposing teams fielding and pitching strategies. He had a career OPS+ of 132. Late summer saw pitcher Dan Bankhead join Jackie on the team. Of course, he was not the first black player in the majors – that would be Moses Fleetwood Walker of the Toledo Blue Stockings, however, because of the racism of the game’s biggest star – Cap Anson – he was forced not to play against the Chicago team and it established a racist code that would not be broken until Robinson over a half century later. Yes, I do resent Anson and I admit that he was not the only racist, but no one else had his leverage or sought to use it like he did. Mid-season of 1947 the American League brought in it’s first black player – Larry Doby with the Cleveland Indians. He had played for the Newark Eagles in the Negro League and like Jackie, served in the war before breaking in to MLB. In his second season with Cleveland he was joined by the already ancient – Satchell Paige – and they won the world series. He accumulated 49.6 WAR in 12 ½ years with a 286 BA and 135 OPS+. He too is in the Hall of Fame. Less recognized was Hank Thompson and Willard Brown who played for the St Louis Browns in 1947. Coming in two days apart they were the third and fourth African American players to integrate the game. Thompson was a third baseman with seven seasons in the Negro Leagues and was known for his strong arm. He played nine years of MLB before being sold to the Minneapolis Millers. He achieved 24.8 WAR in 8 ½ years batting 267 with a 116 OPS+. When Brown joined him it was the first game with two African Americans starting for one team. “Home Run” Brown had played in the Negro Leagues for 13 years before coming to MLB and he opened his career with an inside the park home run, but racism drove him from the game and back to the Negro Leagues. 1948 saw the Dodgers add another Hall of Famer – Roy Campanella and Cleveland add Hall of Famer Satchel Paige. Campanella suffered a terrible car accident and paralysis to end his career. The Catcher had 34.1 WAR for 10 years, batted 276, averaged 24 homeruns and had 123 OPS+. How does his stats match up with Mauer before his concussion? Roy had three MVPs. Entering 1949 only three teams had added black players and only one team – The New York Giants with a very old Monte Irvin would add to the ranks. Irvin had only 7 1/2 years left on his Hall of Fame career, but he made the most of them with 21.3 WAR, 293 BA, and 125 OPS+. The other teams that had black players added to their rosters too. Minnie Minoso joined the Cleveland Indians and should be in the Hall of Fame. He had 50.3 WAR, nine times an all-star, a 298 average and OPS+ of 130. Luke Easter was 33 and played only three full seasons out of six that he appeared in with 9.3 WAR, 274BA and 125 OPS+ . The Dodgers added too – Don Newcombe. Newcombe would go 149 – 90, 3.56 ERA with 38 WAR in 10 years with a two year military service breaking up the consecutive years of playing. Going in to the 1950’s the braves added Sam Jethroe in centerfield. He would achieve 8.7 WAR in three years and was 33 when he debuted. In 1951 the league had its biggest surge in black players. The Braves added Luis Marquez, the Giants Ray Noble and Artie Wilson, and a guy named Willie Mays! I do not need to give Mays stats to remind you of his status. The White Sox joined the list of teams with two signings in 1951 – Sam Hairston and Bob Boyd, while the Indians continued to add with pitcher Sam Jones (102- 101). Entering the 1952 season there were 16 teams and only six had African-American players. In 1953 Philadelphia (Now Oakland) A’’s added Bob Trice and the Cubs hit the jackpot with Ernie Banks! This meant half the teams now had crossed the colored barrier. 1954 saw that jump to ¾ when Curt Roberts signed with the Pirates, Tom Alston with the Cardinals, Nino Escalero and Chuck Harmon joined the Reds and Carlos Paula signed with our predecessors – the Senators. The Yankees finally moved in 1955 with Elston Howard, a terrific catcher, who might have been a HOF except for having to share a position with Yogi Berra. John Kennedy signed with the Phillies in 1957 leaving just two teams without African American representation. Detroit with the largest African American population of any city in the US was next to move and signed Ozzie Virgil, Sr in 1958! It took the team 11 years to get the courage or rather to overcome their biases. And this left Boston. It was 1959 when the last team broke the color barrier and signed Elijah "Pumpsie" Green. Green pinch-ran for Vic Wertz in a 2-1 loss to the Chicago White Sox. Later in 1959 Earl Wilson became the first black pitcher to play for the Boston Red Sox. According to baseball historians the Red Sox held a try out for Jackie Robinson in 1945 but decided not to sign him. They could have been first but ended up last and certainly lost out on a lot more. Jackie led the Dodgers to six pennants and one World Series victory in his 10 seasons in Brooklyn. We know how long it took the Red Sox to get their series title. As bad as that miss was, two years later, the Red Sox had a chance to sign Willie Mays, but passed again. Pumpsie Green retired in 1963 after five seasons in the big leagues, four in Boston and one as a sub for the New York Mets. He hit .246 added 2.9 War, 721 OPS. Think of what this initial class meant to baseball – Hall of Famers: Jackie Robinson, Larry Doby, Satchel Paige, Roy Campanella, Ernie Banks, Monte Irvin, and Willie Mays. Add to that list Hank Aaron who also debuted in the Negro League before signing with the Braves. Plus all-stars – Elston Howard and Minnie Minoso. Considering the time from Fleetwood Walker to Jackie Robinson it is acceptable to look at the baseball records with some question marks.

I share the desire to see Gonsalves in MLB. Nice to have some good pitchers around the team again.

As an usher at that Ramos game, he immediately became one of my favorites and continues to feel like a really underrated pitcher, along with Pascual.

https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-18-036/?loclr=eanotw The library of Congress has given us a historical gift - the scouting reports of Branch Rickey. He was a vital part of baseball history, even beyond signing Jackie Robinson and this is where you can check it out. Here are some notes from the introduction and entries that struck me: Rickey’s 1963 scouting report on Hank Aaron, who broke Babe Ruth’s long-standing home run record of 714 in 1974. Rickey wrote "Surely one of the greatest hitters in baseball today. Can hit late with power, - good wrists. But in spite of his hitting record and admitted power ability, one cannot help think that Aaron is frequently a guess hitter." A 1955 scouting report on Roberto Clemente, who amassed 3,000 hits in his Hall of Fame career for the Pittsburgh Pirates A report dated March 30-31, 1964, on future National Basketball Association great Dave DeBusschere, where Rickey predicted that DeBusschere “should become a corking good major league pitcher.” For Hall of Famer Bob Gibson, Rickey noted on March 14, 1964, “when trying out young players… scouts and coaches would keep in mind Bob Gibson as a model for comparison and rate the prospect’s stuff accordingly.” About Richie Allen - “Rollie Hemsley at Indianapolis, Bill Adair at Toronto, Larry Shepard at Columbus, Kerby Farrell at Buffalo and Harry Walker at Atlanta all believe that outfielder Allen is the best major league prospect in the International League. A colored boy, very young, and belongs to Philadelphia. He has extraordinary power to all fields. Arm not great, but adequate. Highly desirable in any deal with Philadelphia. I am sorry not to have been able to see this boy in action, but rating give to the player by baseball men generally put him immediately as a regular in any major league outfield. I would risk a heavy deal to have the Cardinals Get this player.” Minnesotan Twins 2B Bernie Allen – “Tall boy from Purdue. Left hand hitter, has power and I believe he can outrun Rollins. I doubt if he is a .300 hitter. Hit .269 in 1962, Not hitting a lick this year…” Bob Allison – “A 275 hitter with exceptional power. Looks the part of a great athlete. Right hander all the way. He has everything it takes to be a long time major league regular.” Earl Battey – “A big colored catcher. Looks overweight, but has a remarkable action. Quick and has power at the plate, plenty of it. Looks like he likes to play. I can imagine him in a World Series.” Minnesota born, Yankee – John Blanchard – “If Blanchard’s habits were good and his team relationship satisfactory, St Louis could use him. I would not take him unless I were permitted to have a conversation with the player with results satisfactory to myself.” Harmon Killebrew – “A big right hand hitter with as much distance power as any man in the game. Strikes out a great deal. I would not be interested in obtaining his contract in any kind of possible trade. I don’t want him at the price.” It will take a lot of time to sort out everything, but this is a very personal glimpse into the game in the early 60's.

It is my hope that they will step up to the future and bring up Gordon so we have a real SS in the lineup.

Lance has the disadvantage of facing a team that knows him. I hope he does well. My assessment of the relievers opening day performance does not match your optimism except for Reed. However, I know it is only one game and they stand in stark comparison to our starters, but I am hoping for more and better performances as we go forward.

I am enjoying this start and waiting until May to make any judgments. Are the Twins that good? Are the Orioles that bad? Next up the pirates who did a sell off so their expectations are lower too. We have to beat them, but we are still waiting for the real tests.

As we carefully analyze each game of the new season and try to read the tea leaves on each swing of the bat I thought I would provide just a little change of pace and look at another story from baseball history. While Civil War general Abner Doubleday is mythologically given the title of the founder of the game of baseball, a myth that has been refuted by nearly every scholar, we should look at baseball and an even more famous General – William Tecumseh Sherman. In his biography by James Lee McDonough we learn the following: “…a number of friends with whom Cump (Sherman) played a primitive form of baseball, using yarn balls. From time to time the balls were hit into a garden adjoining the playing field, whose owner became irate at his garden being trampled by young me retrieving valls. When the man began confiscating the balls and throwing them into his stove, Sherman and his buddies sought revenge. They filled a ball with gunpowder. Soon the unsuspecting garden owner seized the devilishly prepared thing and cast it into his stove; a fiery explosion rocked the house, leaving the man suffering with burns and damage o his home. The boys, naturally, had waited close by to observe the result of their scheme. Suddenly the angry man burst forth from his house, intent upon chasing down the culprits. He managed to catch the slowest of the boys as they ran.” Sherman being fleet of foot escaped unscathed! The Smithsonian takes the relationship to baseball and the Civil War another step forward with this statement, “The evolving Knickerbocker Code or rules had its origins in metropolitan New York in 1845. Union soldiers, more familiar with the game, introduced others, including Southerners and Westerners to baseball throughout the Civil War, resulting in thousands of soldiers learning the game. Upon returning home, the game spread to friends and neighbors and soon the sport was played in every region of the country, solidifying its title as “The National Pastime." http://americanhistory.si.edu/blog/2012/08/civil-war-baseball.html

Wonderful memories! You really solidified Blyleven's rank among the all time greats.

I am not a Gibson fan, at this point I want Romero and Gonsalves in the rotation.

I know the FO is everyone's favorite so it is up to the old man to say that sometimes what we need is already in the cupboard. Did anyone else see Chagois pitch for the Dodgers? Yes we could have used him.

We were told that Rodney would be exciting - truth in advertising. But Molitor seems to have gone back in time and demonstrated very poor bullpen judgment. Interesting game, but we need Molitor to figure things out or his bench coach (what the hell does a bench coach do?) needs to earn his keep. The other hidden message for me is the fact that Sano striking out does nothing to move the game along - hopes of a home run are not always a good strategy.

Why would Dozier sign now. If they wanted him, last year was the right time, now he has the right to be a FA and the Twins can now say to angry fans - we tried.

Like the Twins - the Orioles swept up inexpensive and surprising free agents to fill out their rotation and they have the master manager - the best in the majors from my perspective and thus they will continue to challenge the odds.

No Dozier should not accept anything. That is not my point, my issue is that there has been no offer of any kind from the FO for the last year or more.

Dozier has been our most dependable vet, but the FO seems to be willing to let him move on without taking a chance with a short extension. The middle of the diamond will eventually have Javier and Lewis - I hope, but in the short term I am not seeing Gordon/Polanco with the same contribution that Dozier makes. Should Sano have health or other issues and Escobar takes the FA route we really do not have a good 3B option either. As solid as the OF seems (I am not a Grossman/LaMarre fan), the infield looks like a real Achilles heel for us. One more infield injury and we are really stretched. I certainly hope we bring up Gordon then, but on a win now team this is a crucial issue.

I have had a feeling that Falvey wants his fingerprints on the entire roster and is quick to release the players of the old regime if he can find someone new that he can plug in. So Kinley in and three relievers we have been waiting for, for years, move on to new MLB teams. I think we even see that with Dozier who deserved at least an attempt at an extension.

The extra roster spot if it really exists is flexibility to call anyone up from the minors that they want. We have no really need to go outside the organization again at this point.

Tiant was one of the most entertaining of all the Twins pitchers. He had that great windup that put his back to the hitter before he unwound and tossed the pitch.

Does he make us better? If not forget the nice story. I would like to be rooting for the underdog, but this is when the Twins build towards a WS. I would rather have Lamonte Wade if we are going to have an extra outfielder. But Vargas makes more sense.