Jeff A

Also posted at wgom.org. Bill Hands (1940) Al Williams (1954) Right-hander William Alfred Hands pitched for the Twins for most of two seasons in 1973 and 1974. He was born in Hackensack, New Jersey, went to high school in Rutherford, New Jersey, and signed with San Francisco as a free agent in 1959. Hands struggled early in his minor league career, and as a result he spent a full year in Class D, Class C, Class B, and Class A. After a fine season in 1962 at Class A, however, he was jumped to AAA Tacoma. He struggled his first year there, but did well in 1964 and even better in 1965. Hands made four apperances with the Giants in 1965, then was traded to the Cubs with another future Twin, Randy Hundley, for Don Landrum and Lindy McDaniel. He did not do well in his first season with the Cubs, and in 1967 he was used primarily out of the bullpen. He had a good year there, and was placed in the Cubs rotation in 1968, where he stayed for five seasons. His best year as a Cub was probably 1969, when he went 20-14, 2.49 with a 1.14 WHIP in 300 innings. He continued to be a solid member of the rotation through 1972. After that season, Hands was traded to Minnesota with Bob Maneely and Joe Decker for Dave LaRoche. Hands pitched fairly well for the Twins in 1973, but his won-lost record did not reflect it, and when he got off to a slow start in 1974 he was pulled from the rotation and sent to the bullpen. He pitched very well there, posting an ERA of 2.93 and a WHIP of 1.09 in 61.1 innings as a reliever. The Twins gave him four starts in August and he still did well, going 2-1, 3.44, but after a bad start on September 1 they surprisingly placed him on waivers. The Rangers snapped him up and put him in their rotation, where he pitched well through 1975. He was traded to the Mets early in spring training of 1976, but opted to retire instead. After retiring from baseball, he moved to Orient, Long Island where he purchased a service station and started a retail oil business, both of which proved successful. At last report, Bill Hands was still living in retirement in Orient. Right-hander Albert Hamilton (DeSouza) Williams pitched for the Twins from 1980-1984. He was born in Pearl Lagoon, Nicaragua and signed with Pittsburgh as a free agent in 1975. He pitched in the Pirates’ organization for a year and a half without particular distinction and was released in July of 1976. He then returned to Nicaragua, where he fought in the Nicaraguan Revolution. He did not play in organized baseball for three years. He snuck out of the country, as the Nicaraguan government would not grant him a visa, and in January of 1980, Williams signed with Minnesota. He made fifteen starts in Toledo, going 9-3, 2.10 with a WHIP of 0.95, and was called up to the majors. He was used both as a reliever and a starter and did well, going 6-2, 3.51. He was in the starting rotation beginning in 1981 and stayed there through 1983, not doing great but not doing terribly, either. He started 1984 in the rotation as well, but got off to a bad start and was sent back to AAA Toledo in early May. He came back a month later and did somewhat better, but got injured in early July and missed the next two months, coming back in September. The Twins released Williams after the season. He signed with the Yankees, had a mediocre season in AAA Columbus, and then his playing career came to an end. No information about Al Williams since that time was readily available.

Also posted at wgom.org John Donaldson (1943) Larry Hisle (1947) Mike Redmond (1971) Infielder John David Donaldson did not play for the Twins, but began his professional career in their minor league system. Born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina, he signed with the Twins as a free agent in 1963. He played for Class A Orlando that year, hitting .251, and was chosen by the Kansas City Athletics in the first year player draft. He hit .315 at Class A in 1964, and was promoted to AAA the next year. He struggled at first, but he hit .298 in Vancouver in 1966, earning his first promotion to the majors in late August. He started out 1967 batting .339 in Vancouver and was promoted to Kansas City in early June. He was the regular second baseman the rest of the way and hit fairly well, but when the team moved to Oakland the next year he apparently left his bat behind. Donaldson slumped to .220, lost his starting job, and was traded in June of 1969 to the Seattle Pilots. He did not do much better there, started 1970 in the minors, and was traded to Oakland in May. He was seldom used and spent all of 1971 at AAA, being traded to Detroit in May. He was traded to Baltimore in February of 1972 and sold to San Diego of April that year. Donaldson did not get back to the majors until 1974. He was sent back to Oakland before the 1974 season and started the year with the Athletics, but was sent back down in early May and did not play in the majors again until the last game of the season, when he was allowed to make a farewell appearance before ending his playing career. There are a lot of people named “John Donaldson” in this world; wikipedia lists entries for eleven of them. What you do find about John Donaldson in regard to baseball is about the great Negro League pitcher John Wesley Donaldson. There is, however, a John D. Donaldson, age more than sixty-five, living in Sunset Beach, North Carolina. It does not seem far-fetched to think it is the same one. Outfielder Larry Eugene Hisle played for the Twins from 1973-1977. Born and raised in Portsmouth, Ohio, Hisle was drafted by Philadelphia in the second round in 1965. He began his career with Huron, South Dakota, in the Northern League, where he hit .433 in 60 at-bat sin 1966. Moved up to Class A Clearwater in 1967, he hit .302 with 23 homers. He was jumped to the majors in 1968 and stayed for two weeks, going 4-for-11, but the Phillies wanted him to play every day and sent him to AAA San Diego, where he continued to hit. Hisle was the regular center fielder for the Phillies in 1969 at age 22 and hit .266 with 20 homers, finishing fourth in the Rookie of the Year voting. In 1970, however, he slumped to .205, and when he did no better at the beginning of 1971 he was sent to the minors in late May. He again bashed the ball in the minors, and was only 24, but was traded to the Dodgers after the 1971 season. Hisle hit .325 with 23 homers for AAA Albuquerque in 1972, but not only did the Dodgers not promote him, they traded him to St. Louis after the season. He never played with the Cardinals, however, as they sent him to Minnesota with John Cumberland for Wayne Granger in November. Hisle won a starting outfield job for the Twins in 1973 and held it for five years. He played primarily left field for the Twins, but saw a fair amount of action in center and also played right on occasion. He had some fine years for the Twins, playing regularly except for 1975, when he missed a couple of months with injuries. His best year as a Twin was his last one, 1977, when he hit .302 with 28 homers and a league-leading 119 RBIs. He made his first all-star team that year and finished 12th in MVP voting. Hisle became a free agent after the season and signed with Milwaukee. He had an equally strong season with the Brewers in 1978, hitting .290 with 34 homers and 115 RBIs. He made his second all-star team that year and was third in MVP balloting. In April of 1979, however, he suffered a torn rotator cuff and was able to play only sporadically after that. Hisle kept trying to come back, but finally ended his career after the 1982 season, having had only 274 at-bats in the last four seasons. As a Twin, Larry Hisle hit .286/.354/.457 in 662 games. Hisle stayed in baseball, and was the hitting coach for the Toronto Blue Jays from 1992-1995. He is currently employed by the Milwaukee Brewers, for whom he is the Manager of Youth Outreach. He is also the president of Major League Mentoring, a youth mentoring program in Milwaukee. He appears to be working very hard in both positions. Catcher Michael Patrick Redmond was with the Twins from 2005-2009. He was born in Seattle, went to high school in Spokane, Washington, and attended Gonzaga University. He signed with Florida as a free agent in 1992. He showed no power in the minors, never hitting more than four home runs in a season. His averages were decent but not outstanding, ranging from the .250s to the .280s. He reached AA in 1995, AAA in 1997, and made his debut in the majors at the end of May, 1998. He was always a part-time player, never getting more than 256 at-bats with the Marlins. Redmond did well in that role, however, hitting over .300 four times. He stayed with Florida for seven seasons before becoming a free agent after the 2005 campaign. Redmond signed with the Twins and remained a part-time player, although he set a career high in at-bats in 2007 with 272. He again did a good job in a part-time role, hitting over .300 twice more. As a Twin, Mike Redmond hit .297/.339/.359 in 863 at-bats. He dropped to .237 in 2009, however, and was allowed to become a free agent again. Redmond signed with Cleveland, again as a part-time catcher, but was released in mid-July, ending his playing career. He has stayed in baseball, however, and is currently the manager of the Miami Marlins.

Also posted at wgom.org John Donaldson (1943) Larry Hisle (1947) Mike Redmond (1971) Infielder John David Donaldson did not play for the Twins, but began his professional career in their minor league system. Born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina, he signed with the Twins as a free agent in 1963. He played for Class A Orlando that year, hitting .251, and was chosen by the Kansas City Athletics in the first year player draft. He hit .315 at Class A in 1964, and was promoted to AAA the next year. He struggled at first, but he hit .298 in Vancouver in 1966, earning his first promotion to the majors in late August. He started out 1967 batting .339 in Vancouver and was promoted to Kansas City in early June. He was the regular second baseman the rest of the way and hit fairly well, but when the team moved to Oakland the next year he apparently left his bat behind. Donaldson slumped to .220, lost his starting job, and was traded in June of 1969 to the Seattle Pilots. He did not do much better there, started 1970 in the minors, and was traded to Oakland in May. He was seldom used and spent all of 1971 at AAA, being traded to Detroit in May. He was traded to Baltimore in February of 1972 and sold to San Diego of April that year. Donaldson did not get back to the majors until 1974. He was sent back to Oakland before the 1974 season and started the year with the Athletics, but was sent back down in early May and did not play in the majors again until the last game of the season, when he was allowed to make a farewell appearance before ending his playing career. There are a lot of people named “John Donaldson” in this world; wikipedia lists entries for eleven of them. What you do find about John Donaldson in regard to baseball is about the great Negro League pitcher John Wesley Donaldson. There is, however, a John D. Donaldson, age more than sixty-five, living in Sunset Beach, North Carolina. It does not seem far-fetched to think it is the same one. Outfielder Larry Eugene Hisle played for the Twins from 1973-1977. Born and raised in Portsmouth, Ohio, Hisle was drafted by Philadelphia in the second round in 1965. He began his career with Huron, South Dakota, in the Northern League, where he hit .433 in 60 at-bat sin 1966. Moved up to Class A Clearwater in 1967, he hit .302 with 23 homers. He was jumped to the majors in 1968 and stayed for two weeks, going 4-for-11, but the Phillies wanted him to play every day and sent him to AAA San Diego, where he continued to hit. Hisle was the regular center fielder for the Phillies in 1969 at age 22 and hit .266 with 20 homers, finishing fourth in the Rookie of the Year voting. In 1970, however, he slumped to .205, and when he did no better at the beginning of 1971 he was sent to the minors in late May. He again bashed the ball in the minors, and was only 24, but was traded to the Dodgers after the 1971 season. Hisle hit .325 with 23 homers for AAA Albuquerque in 1972, but not only did the Dodgers not promote him, they traded him to St. Louis after the season. He never played with the Cardinals, however, as they sent him to Minnesota with John Cumberland for Wayne Granger in November. Hisle won a starting outfield job for the Twins in 1973 and held it for five years. He played primarily left field for the Twins, but saw a fair amount of action in center and also played right on occasion. He had some fine years for the Twins, playing regularly except for 1975, when he missed a couple of months with injuries. His best year as a Twin was his last one, 1977, when he hit .302 with 28 homers and a league-leading 119 RBIs. He made his first all-star team that year and finished 12th in MVP voting. Hisle became a free agent after the season and signed with Milwaukee. He had an equally strong season with the Brewers in 1978, hitting .290 with 34 homers and 115 RBIs. He made his second all-star team that year and was third in MVP balloting. In April of 1979, however, he suffered a torn rotator cuff and was able to play only sporadically after that. Hisle kept trying to come back, but finally ended his career after the 1982 season, having had only 274 at-bats in the last four seasons. As a Twin, Larry Hisle hit .286/.354/.457 in 662 games. Hisle stayed in baseball, and was the hitting coach for the Toronto Blue Jays from 1992-1995. He is currently employed by the Milwaukee Brewers, for whom he is the Manager of Youth Outreach. He is also the president of Major League Mentoring, a youth mentoring program in Milwaukee. He appears to be working very hard in both positions. Catcher Michael Patrick Redmond was with the Twins from 2005-2009. He was born in Seattle, went to high school in Spokane, Washington, and attended Gonzaga University. He signed with Florida as a free agent in 1992. He showed no power in the minors, never hitting more than four home runs in a season. His averages were decent but not outstanding, ranging from the .250s to the .280s. He reached AA in 1995, AAA in 1997, and made his debut in the majors at the end of May, 1998. He was always a part-time player, never getting more than 256 at-bats with the Marlins. Redmond did well in that role, however, hitting over .300 four times. He stayed with Florida for seven seasons before becoming a free agent after the 2005 campaign. Redmond signed with the Twins and remained a part-time player, although he set a career high in at-bats in 2007 with 272. He again did a good job in a part-time role, hitting over .300 twice more. As a Twin, Mike Redmond hit .297/.339/.359 in 863 at-bats. He dropped to .237 in 2009, however, and was allowed to become a free agent again. Redmond signed with Cleveland, again as a part-time catcher, but was released in mid-July, ending his playing career. He has stayed in baseball, however, and is currently the manager of the Miami Marlins.

Also posted at wgom.org Ryan Jorgensen (1979) Matt Tolbert (1982) Kevin Slowey (1984) Catcher Ryan Wayne Jorgensen played a total of three innings for the Twins in 2008. He was born in Jacksonville, Florida, went to high school in Kingwood, Texas, and attended LSU. He was then drafted by the Cubs in the seventh round in 2000. He really never had a productive offensive season in the minors above Class A; his best was 2004, when he hit .259 with eight homers for AAA Albuquerque. The Cubs traded him to Florida in March or 2002 in a trade that involved Dontrelle Willis, Antonio Alfonseca, and Matt Clement. Jorgensen does not seem to have been a regular catcher even in the minors; once he got above Class A, he never got as many as 250 at-bats in a minor league season. He was with the Marlins for about two weeks, presumably when one of their catchers was injured. He got four at-bats in four games and was 0-for-4. Jorgensen was traded to Cincinnati in March of 2006 and got another two weeks or so in the majors with the Reds in 2007, going 3-for-15. He became a free agent after the 2007 campaign and signed with Minnesota. He hit .247 in Rochester and got a September call-up, going 0-for-1 in two games. He signed with Cincinnati for 2009, but decided to retire instead. At last report, Ryan Jorgensen had moved back to Kingwood, Texas. Infielder Christopher Matthew Tolbert was with the Twins from 2008-2011. He was born in McComb, Mississippi, went to high school in Centreville, Mississippi, and attended the University of Mississippi. He was drafted by Minnesota in the sixteenth round in 2004. He has generally hit for a decent average in the minors, but with little power and only an average number of walks. He has hit over .300 in the minors twice: in rookie ball in 2004, when he hit .308, and in a half-season at Ft. Myers in 2006, when he hit .303 in 155 at-bats. After hitting .293 at Rochester in 2007, Tolbert spent most of 2008 with Minnesota, although he was injured part of the time. He hit .283 that season in 113 at-bats. He was with the Twins for a little over half of 2009, but hit only .232 in 198 at-bats. He began 2010 with AAA Rochester, but was called up in mid-May and spent most of the rest of the season in Minnesota. He was with the big club almost all of 2011 as a futility infielder, batting .198 with an OPS of .518. A free agent after 2011, he signed with the Cubs and did not have a particularly good year playing for AAA Iowa in 2012. He signed with the Phillies, has been injured most of the season, and is currently on a rehab assignment. As a Twin, he hit .230/.288/.319 in 605 at-bats. He turns 31 today. His future does not look particularly bright, but he hustles and he plays a lot of positions. It’s possible that his major league career is already over, but it would not be all that surprising if he got another call-up at some point. Right-hander Kevin Michael Slowey pitched for the Twins from 2007-2011. He was born in Conroe, Texas, attended high school in Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania, and attended Winthrop University. He was drafted by the Twins in the second round in 2005. He was tremendous in the minors: his highest season-long ERA was 2.12 and his highest WHIP was 0.96. Slowey pitched only 7.2 innings of rookie ball in 2005 before being moved up to Beloit, where he posted an ERA of 2.24 and a WHIP of 0.78 in 64.1 innings. He made 14 starts at Ft. Myers in 2006 and was almost unhittable, going 4-2, 1.01 with a 0.68 WHIP before being promoted to New Britain. He was 10-5, 1.89 in 20 starts in Rochester in 2007. Slowey made his major league debut that year, going 4-1, 4.73 in 13 games, eleven of them starts. He was fairly good in 2008, but missed half of 2009 with a wrist injury. He was in the starting rotation in 2010, and did okay, going 13-6, 4.45, 1.29 WHIP in 28 starts. He was injured much of 2011 and was ineffective when he did pitch. After the season, he was traded to Colorado for a player to be named later (Daniel Turpen). He did not play for the Rockies, however, as he was traded to Cleveland about six weeks later. He was injured much of the season and did not pitch particularly well in eight AAA starts. A free agent after the season, he signed with Miami, made their rotation, and has pitched very well so far in 2013. As a Twin, he was 39-29, 4.66 with a WHIP of 1.30. He appeared in 100 games, 90 of them starts, and pitched 532.2 innings. He’s 29 today, has yet to establish himself, and has had injury problems. Kevin Slowey still could have a solid major league career, but if he doesn’t make it this time, it seems likely that time is going to run out on him.

Also posted at wgom.org Ryan Jorgensen (1979) Matt Tolbert (1982) Kevin Slowey (1984) Catcher Ryan Wayne Jorgensen played a total of three innings for the Twins in 2008. He was born in Jacksonville, Florida, went to high school in Kingwood, Texas, and attended LSU. He was then drafted by the Cubs in the seventh round in 2000. He really never had a productive offensive season in the minors above Class A; his best was 2004, when he hit .259 with eight homers for AAA Albuquerque. The Cubs traded him to Florida in March or 2002 in a trade that involved Dontrelle Willis, Antonio Alfonseca, and Matt Clement. Jorgensen does not seem to have been a regular catcher even in the minors; once he got above Class A, he never got as many as 250 at-bats in a minor league season. He was with the Marlins for about two weeks, presumably when one of their catchers was injured. He got four at-bats in four games and was 0-for-4. Jorgensen was traded to Cincinnati in March of 2006 and got another two weeks or so in the majors with the Reds in 2007, going 3-for-15. He became a free agent after the 2007 campaign and signed with Minnesota. He hit .247 in Rochester and got a September call-up, going 0-for-1 in two games. He signed with Cincinnati for 2009, but decided to retire instead. At last report, Ryan Jorgensen had moved back to Kingwood, Texas. Infielder Christopher Matthew Tolbert was with the Twins from 2008-2011. He was born in McComb, Mississippi, went to high school in Centreville, Mississippi, and attended the University of Mississippi. He was drafted by Minnesota in the sixteenth round in 2004. He has generally hit for a decent average in the minors, but with little power and only an average number of walks. He has hit over .300 in the minors twice: in rookie ball in 2004, when he hit .308, and in a half-season at Ft. Myers in 2006, when he hit .303 in 155 at-bats. After hitting .293 at Rochester in 2007, Tolbert spent most of 2008 with Minnesota, although he was injured part of the time. He hit .283 that season in 113 at-bats. He was with the Twins for a little over half of 2009, but hit only .232 in 198 at-bats. He began 2010 with AAA Rochester, but was called up in mid-May and spent most of the rest of the season in Minnesota. He was with the big club almost all of 2011 as a futility infielder, batting .198 with an OPS of .518. A free agent after 2011, he signed with the Cubs and did not have a particularly good year playing for AAA Iowa in 2012. He signed with the Phillies, has been injured most of the season, and is currently on a rehab assignment. As a Twin, he hit .230/.288/.319 in 605 at-bats. He turns 31 today. His future does not look particularly bright, but he hustles and he plays a lot of positions. It’s possible that his major league career is already over, but it would not be all that surprising if he got another call-up at some point. Right-hander Kevin Michael Slowey pitched for the Twins from 2007-2011. He was born in Conroe, Texas, attended high school in Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania, and attended Winthrop University. He was drafted by the Twins in the second round in 2005. He was tremendous in the minors: his highest season-long ERA was 2.12 and his highest WHIP was 0.96. Slowey pitched only 7.2 innings of rookie ball in 2005 before being moved up to Beloit, where he posted an ERA of 2.24 and a WHIP of 0.78 in 64.1 innings. He made 14 starts at Ft. Myers in 2006 and was almost unhittable, going 4-2, 1.01 with a 0.68 WHIP before being promoted to New Britain. He was 10-5, 1.89 in 20 starts in Rochester in 2007. Slowey made his major league debut that year, going 4-1, 4.73 in 13 games, eleven of them starts. He was fairly good in 2008, but missed half of 2009 with a wrist injury. He was in the starting rotation in 2010, and did okay, going 13-6, 4.45, 1.29 WHIP in 28 starts. He was injured much of 2011 and was ineffective when he did pitch. After the season, he was traded to Colorado for a player to be named later (Daniel Turpen). He did not play for the Rockies, however, as he was traded to Cleveland about six weeks later. He was injured much of the season and did not pitch particularly well in eight AAA starts. A free agent after the season, he signed with Miami, made their rotation, and has pitched very well so far in 2013. As a Twin, he was 39-29, 4.66 with a WHIP of 1.30. He appeared in 100 games, 90 of them starts, and pitched 532.2 innings. He’s 29 today, has yet to establish himself, and has had injury problems. Kevin Slowey still could have a solid major league career, but if he doesn’t make it this time, it seems likely that time is going to run out on him.

Also posted at wgom.org Ben Revere (1988) Outfielder Ben Daniel Revere played for the Twins from 2010-2012. He was born in Atlanta, went to high school in Lexington, Kentucky, and was drafted by Minnesota in the first round in 2007. He mostly rose one level at a time, playing in rookie ball in 2007, Class A in 2008, advanced A in 2009, AA in 2010, and AAA in 2011 before being called up to the big club because of injuries. He hit over .300 each minor league season, with a high of .379 in Beloit in 2008. He hit ten triples in each of his first two seasons in the minors, but only hit four in each of the next two seasons. He has little power and does not draw a lot of walks (his high is 40 in 2009). He does have speed, stealing around forty bases a year. He wasn’t terrible with Minnesota in 2011, but he wasn’t great, either, hitting .267/.310/.309. He started 2012 in Minnesota as a fourth outfielder, but was sent back to Rochester for about a month, then came back and was a regular most of the season. After the 2012 season, he was traded to Philadelphia for Trevor May and Vance Worley. As a Twin, he hit .278/.319/.323 with 74 stolen bases in 254 games. Installed as the regular center fielder for the Phillies, he is off to a poor start in 2013. A fine defensive player, most of his offensive value lies in his ability to hit for a high average and steal bases. How successful he is at those two things in the major leagues will go a long way to determining whether he has much of a major league career.

Also posted at wgom.org Ben Revere (1988) Outfielder Ben Daniel Revere played for the Twins from 2010-2012. He was born in Atlanta, went to high school in Lexington, Kentucky, and was drafted by Minnesota in the first round in 2007. He mostly rose one level at a time, playing in rookie ball in 2007, Class A in 2008, advanced A in 2009, AA in 2010, and AAA in 2011 before being called up to the big club because of injuries. He hit over .300 each minor league season, with a high of .379 in Beloit in 2008. He hit ten triples in each of his first two seasons in the minors, but only hit four in each of the next two seasons. He has little power and does not draw a lot of walks (his high is 40 in 2009). He does have speed, stealing around forty bases a year. He wasn’t terrible with Minnesota in 2011, but he wasn’t great, either, hitting .267/.310/.309. He started 2012 in Minnesota as a fourth outfielder, but was sent back to Rochester for about a month, then came back and was a regular most of the season. After the 2012 season, he was traded to Philadelphia for Trevor May and Vance Worley. As a Twin, he hit .278/.319/.323 with 74 stolen bases in 254 games. Installed as the regular center fielder for the Phillies, he is off to a poor start in 2013. A fine defensive player, most of his offensive value lies in his ability to hit for a high average and steal bases. How successful he is at those two things in the major leagues will go a long way to determining whether he has much of a major league career.

No major league players with connections to the Minnesota Twins were born on this day.

No major league players with connections to the Minnesota Twins were born on this day.

Also posted at wgom.org Rudy Meoli (1951) Roy Lee Jackson (1954) Infielder Rudolph Bartholomew Meoli did not play for the Twins, but he was in their farm system for a couple of months in 1979. He was born in Troy, New York, went to high school in Covina, California, and was drafted by California in the fourth round in 1969. He hit .351 in rookie ball, but after that his averages, while solid enough, are not that impressive, especially when combined with the fact that he had little power. He did, however, draw quite a few walks, giving him very good OBPs. He moved steadily up the ladder, reaching AA in 1971 (a year when he got a September call-up) and AAA in 1972. He was in the majors for all of 1973, a year in which he was they Angels’ “most regular” shortstop, starting 87 games. He did not hit, batting only .223, and spent much of 1974 in the minors, coming back to California at the end of July. He got another full year in the majors in 1975 as a utility player, batting .214 in 126 at-bats. The Angels gave up on him at that point, and he started moving around. California traded him to San Diego after the 1975 season, but he was traded again, this time to Cincinnati, before the 1976 season started. He was in AAA Indianapolis for two seasons, then was sold to the Cubs before the 1978 campaign. He started the season as a utility infielder for the Cubs, but hit even worse than previously and was sent back to AAA in early July. The Cubs released him after the season and he signed with Philadelphia for 1979. He got back to the big leagues for about six weeks, but again did nothing offensively and was sold to Minnesota in late June. He was in AAA the rest of the season, batting .265/.360/.365 in 189 at-bats. He was released by the Twins prior to the 1980 season, signed with San Francisco, but was released at the end of spring training and his playing career ended. There was obviously something teams liked about him, because he kept getting chances, but he hit .212/.289/.267 in 626 major league at-bats spread over six seasons. He seems to be fondly remembered in his original home town of Troy. At last report, Rudy Meoli was the owner of Global Marketing Technologies of Placentia, California, and was a consultant for E-Z Sales & Marketing, Inc. of Gardena, California. Right-hander Roy Lee Jackson made 28 appearances for the Twins in 1986. Born and raised in Opelika, Alabama, he attended Tuskegee University and signed with the Mets as a free agent in 1975. He was a starter early in his minor league career and pitched well, reaching AAA in 1977. He pitched well in AAA for four consecutive years, consistently posting ERAs in the mid-threes, but got only brief chances in the majors until 1980, when he began shifting to the bullpen. He was with the Mets for the second half of the season that year and was pretty average. After the season, Jackson was traded to Toronto. He was a pretty valuable man in the Blue Jays’ bullpen for four seasons. His best year was probably 1982, when he was 8-8, 3.06 with a 1.11 WHIP in 97 innings. Jackson was still pitching well for Toronto in 1984, but was released late in spring training in 1985. He did not sign for a month and then went to AAA with Baltimore. The Orioles traded him to San Diego in late June. He pitched well for the Padres, but was released again late in spring training of 1986. The Twins signed him the same day. He made 28 appearances as a Twin and actually pitched fairly well, posting a 3.86 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP in 58.1 innings. Still, the Twins let him become a free agent, and he signed with Milwaukee for 1987. Jackson made four appearances at AAA for the Brewers, did poorly, and his playing career came to a sudden end. He believes that the sudden end to his career was because he was vocal about his Christian religious beliefs. The charge is hard to prove, of course, but he sure seemed to get released a lot for a pitcher who wasn’t that bad. The Museum of East Alabama, located in “historic downtown Opelika”, has “a large selection of memorabilia from Roy Lee’s Career”, so if you’re ever in historic downtown Opelika, be sure to stop by. Roy Lee Jackson is currently living in his home town of Opelika, where he is the pastor of the New Creation Service Center, a non-denominational church.

Also posted at wgom.org Rudy Meoli (1951) Roy Lee Jackson (1954) Infielder Rudolph Bartholomew Meoli did not play for the Twins, but he was in their farm system for a couple of months in 1979. He was born in Troy, New York, went to high school in Covina, California, and was drafted by California in the fourth round in 1969. He hit .351 in rookie ball, but after that his averages, while solid enough, are not that impressive, especially when combined with the fact that he had little power. He did, however, draw quite a few walks, giving him very good OBPs. He moved steadily up the ladder, reaching AA in 1971 (a year when he got a September call-up) and AAA in 1972. He was in the majors for all of 1973, a year in which he was they Angels’ “most regular” shortstop, starting 87 games. He did not hit, batting only .223, and spent much of 1974 in the minors, coming back to California at the end of July. He got another full year in the majors in 1975 as a utility player, batting .214 in 126 at-bats. The Angels gave up on him at that point, and he started moving around. California traded him to San Diego after the 1975 season, but he was traded again, this time to Cincinnati, before the 1976 season started. He was in AAA Indianapolis for two seasons, then was sold to the Cubs before the 1978 campaign. He started the season as a utility infielder for the Cubs, but hit even worse than previously and was sent back to AAA in early July. The Cubs released him after the season and he signed with Philadelphia for 1979. He got back to the big leagues for about six weeks, but again did nothing offensively and was sold to Minnesota in late June. He was in AAA the rest of the season, batting .265/.360/.365 in 189 at-bats. He was released by the Twins prior to the 1980 season, signed with San Francisco, but was released at the end of spring training and his playing career ended. There was obviously something teams liked about him, because he kept getting chances, but he hit .212/.289/.267 in 626 major league at-bats spread over six seasons. He seems to be fondly remembered in his original home town of Troy. At last report, Rudy Meoli was the owner of Global Marketing Technologies of Placentia, California, and was a consultant for E-Z Sales & Marketing, Inc. of Gardena, California. Right-hander Roy Lee Jackson made 28 appearances for the Twins in 1986. Born and raised in Opelika, Alabama, he attended Tuskegee University and signed with the Mets as a free agent in 1975. He was a starter early in his minor league career and pitched well, reaching AAA in 1977. He pitched well in AAA for four consecutive years, consistently posting ERAs in the mid-threes, but got only brief chances in the majors until 1980, when he began shifting to the bullpen. He was with the Mets for the second half of the season that year and was pretty average. After the season, Jackson was traded to Toronto. He was a pretty valuable man in the Blue Jays’ bullpen for four seasons. His best year was probably 1982, when he was 8-8, 3.06 with a 1.11 WHIP in 97 innings. Jackson was still pitching well for Toronto in 1984, but was released late in spring training in 1985. He did not sign for a month and then went to AAA with Baltimore. The Orioles traded him to San Diego in late June. He pitched well for the Padres, but was released again late in spring training of 1986. The Twins signed him the same day. He made 28 appearances as a Twin and actually pitched fairly well, posting a 3.86 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP in 58.1 innings. Still, the Twins let him become a free agent, and he signed with Milwaukee for 1987. Jackson made four appearances at AAA for the Brewers, did poorly, and his playing career came to a sudden end. He believes that the sudden end to his career was because he was vocal about his Christian religious beliefs. The charge is hard to prove, of course, but he sure seemed to get released a lot for a pitcher who wasn’t that bad. The Museum of East Alabama, located in “historic downtown Opelika”, has “a large selection of memorabilia from Roy Lee’s Career”, so if you’re ever in historic downtown Opelika, be sure to stop by. Roy Lee Jackson is currently living in his home town of Opelika, where he is the pastor of the New Creation Service Center, a non-denominational church.

Also posted at wgom.org Ken Retzer (1934) Jeff Reboulet (1964) Catcher Kenneth Leo Retzer did not play for the Twins, but was in their farm system in 1965. He was born in Wood River, Illinois and signed with Cleveland as a free agent in 1954. He began in Class D and rose very slowly. He hit for good averages most years, but with very little power. He reached Class A in 1956, but then missed 1957 due to military service. When he came back in 1958, he was once again in Class A. He got to AAA in 1959, went to the Philadelphia organization in mid-season of 1960, and was in the White Sox’ chain in 1961. He appears, however, to have remained the property of the Indians all that time, as he was traded in early September of 1961 by Cleveland to Washington. He was in the majors the rest of the season, batting .340 in 57 at-bats. He stayed with the Senators through 1963 and was their main catcher for those years, although he only caught 80-100 games each season. His average dropped each season, and when he got off to a poor start in 1964 he was sent to the minors in early May. After the 1964 season Washington traded Retzer to Minnesota for Joe McCabe. He spent 1965 at AAA Denver, hitting .270/.361/.357. He went to spring training with the Twins in 1966, but was traded to Houston shortly before the season started for Walt Bond. He remained in AAA for the rest of his career, playing in the Houston organization in 1966 and in the Baltimore and Cleveland systems in 1967. For his career, Ken Retzer hit .264/.316/.367 in 690 at-bats. He apparently is active in the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association and is reputed to be a very nice man. Infielder Jeffrey Allen Reboulet played for the Twins from 1992-1996, taking over the utility infielder role from Al Newman. He was born in Dayton, Ohio, went to LSU, and was drafted by Minnesota in the tenth round in 1986. He was a shortstop for most of his minor league career. His highest minor league average was .287 in Class A in 1986; he never topped .260 in a full minor league season after that. He also had no power: his highest home run total in the minors was four. Still, he came up to the majors in May of 1992 and stayed for ten years. He was always a reserve: the Twins used him primarily at shortstop, but he also played quite a bit of second and third as well as outfield. In his years with the Twins, he played every position except pitcher. His best year as a Twin was 1995, when he hit .292 in 216 at-bats. As a Twin, Jeff Reboulet hit .248/.335/.342 in 450 games with just over a thousand at-bats. He became a free agent after the 1996 season and signed with Baltimore, where he stayed for three years. After his worst year in the majors, when he hit .162 in 154 at-bats in 1999, he was sent to Kansas City. He had one year as a Royal, then moved to the Dodgers for two years. He was sent back to the minors for a month in 2002 and was released late in spring training of 2003, signing with Pittsburgh in April. Reboulet began 2003 in AAA, but came up to the majors in mid-May and got the most at-bats he’d ever had in a season, 261. He was pretty much the same hitter he’d always been, however, and after that season his playing career came to an end. After his retirement, Jeff Reboulet went back to Dayton and is a co-founder of Horizon Wealth Management, LLC, a full service financial planning and investment advisory firm. He is also the president of REB Sports Academy of Kettering, Ohio, an indoor sports training facility.

Also posted at wgom.org Ken Retzer (1934) Jeff Reboulet (1964) Catcher Kenneth Leo Retzer did not play for the Twins, but was in their farm system in 1965. He was born in Wood River, Illinois and signed with Cleveland as a free agent in 1954. He began in Class D and rose very slowly. He hit for good averages most years, but with very little power. He reached Class A in 1956, but then missed 1957 due to military service. When he came back in 1958, he was once again in Class A. He got to AAA in 1959, went to the Philadelphia organization in mid-season of 1960, and was in the White Sox’ chain in 1961. He appears, however, to have remained the property of the Indians all that time, as he was traded in early September of 1961 by Cleveland to Washington. He was in the majors the rest of the season, batting .340 in 57 at-bats. He stayed with the Senators through 1963 and was their main catcher for those years, although he only caught 80-100 games each season. His average dropped each season, and when he got off to a poor start in 1964 he was sent to the minors in early May. After the 1964 season Washington traded Retzer to Minnesota for Joe McCabe. He spent 1965 at AAA Denver, hitting .270/.361/.357. He went to spring training with the Twins in 1966, but was traded to Houston shortly before the season started for Walt Bond. He remained in AAA for the rest of his career, playing in the Houston organization in 1966 and in the Baltimore and Cleveland systems in 1967. For his career, Ken Retzer hit .264/.316/.367 in 690 at-bats. He apparently is active in the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association and is reputed to be a very nice man. Infielder Jeffrey Allen Reboulet played for the Twins from 1992-1996, taking over the utility infielder role from Al Newman. He was born in Dayton, Ohio, went to LSU, and was drafted by Minnesota in the tenth round in 1986. He was a shortstop for most of his minor league career. His highest minor league average was .287 in Class A in 1986; he never topped .260 in a full minor league season after that. He also had no power: his highest home run total in the minors was four. Still, he came up to the majors in May of 1992 and stayed for ten years. He was always a reserve: the Twins used him primarily at shortstop, but he also played quite a bit of second and third as well as outfield. In his years with the Twins, he played every position except pitcher. His best year as a Twin was 1995, when he hit .292 in 216 at-bats. As a Twin, Jeff Reboulet hit .248/.335/.342 in 450 games with just over a thousand at-bats. He became a free agent after the 1996 season and signed with Baltimore, where he stayed for three years. After his worst year in the majors, when he hit .162 in 154 at-bats in 1999, he was sent to Kansas City. He had one year as a Royal, then moved to the Dodgers for two years. He was sent back to the minors for a month in 2002 and was released late in spring training of 2003, signing with Pittsburgh in April. Reboulet began 2003 in AAA, but came up to the majors in mid-May and got the most at-bats he’d ever had in a season, 261. He was pretty much the same hitter he’d always been, however, and after that season his playing career came to an end. After his retirement, Jeff Reboulet went back to Dayton and is a co-founder of Horizon Wealth Management, LLC, a full service financial planning and investment advisory firm. He is also the president of REB Sports Academy of Kettering, Ohio, an indoor sports training facility.

Also posted at wgom.org Ron Washington (1952) Infielder Ronald Washington was with the Twins from 1981-1986. Born and raised in New Orleans, Washington signed with Kansas City as a free agent in 1970. He was in the Royals’ system for six years, only one of them higher than Class A, and did nothing of any particular note apart from play several positions; he was used as a catcher, outfielder, shortstop, and second baseman. Washington was traded to the Dodgers after the 1976 season. He thrived in AAA Albuquerque, hitting .348 in about a year there. He got a September callup in 1977, but was apparently injured much of 1978. He was in the Mets’ organization in 1979, and was traded to Minnesota in late March of 1980 for Wayne Caughey. In 1981, Washington hit .289 with 15 homers in AAA Toledo and got a September call-up. He was the semi-regular shorstop for the Twins in 1982-1984, sharing the position with Lenny Faedo and Houston Jimenez, among others. He hit for a decent average, but rarely walked and had little power. He also was not considered a particularly good defensive shortstop. Washington was put into more of a utility role in 1985, spent time in the minors in 1986, and was released in late March of 1987. As a Twin, Ron Washington hit .265/.294/.373 in 1,258 at-bats. Baltimore picked him up and sent him to AAA Rochester, bringing him back to the majors for the second half of the season. He moved on to Cleveland for 1988, getting one more full season in the majors as a reserve shortstop. He moved on to AAA for Houston for 1989, getting about three weeks in the majors, then to Texas’ AAA team for 1990 before ending his playing career. Ron Washington remained in baseball after that, serving as a minor league coach and manager for the Mets from 1991-1995, and coaching at the major league level for Oakland from 1996-2006. He has been the manager of the Texas Rangers from 2007 to the present, reaching the World Series in 2010 and 2011.

Also posted at wgom.org Ron Washington (1952) Infielder Ronald Washington was with the Twins from 1981-1986. Born and raised in New Orleans, Washington signed with Kansas City as a free agent in 1970. He was in the Royals’ system for six years, only one of them higher than Class A, and did nothing of any particular note apart from play several positions; he was used as a catcher, outfielder, shortstop, and second baseman. Washington was traded to the Dodgers after the 1976 season. He thrived in AAA Albuquerque, hitting .348 in about a year there. He got a September callup in 1977, but was apparently injured much of 1978. He was in the Mets’ organization in 1979, and was traded to Minnesota in late March of 1980 for Wayne Caughey. In 1981, Washington hit .289 with 15 homers in AAA Toledo and got a September call-up. He was the semi-regular shorstop for the Twins in 1982-1984, sharing the position with Lenny Faedo and Houston Jimenez, among others. He hit for a decent average, but rarely walked and had little power. He also was not considered a particularly good defensive shortstop. Washington was put into more of a utility role in 1985, spent time in the minors in 1986, and was released in late March of 1987. As a Twin, Ron Washington hit .265/.294/.373 in 1,258 at-bats. Baltimore picked him up and sent him to AAA Rochester, bringing him back to the majors for the second half of the season. He moved on to Cleveland for 1988, getting one more full season in the majors as a reserve shortstop. He moved on to AAA for Houston for 1989, getting about three weeks in the majors, then to Texas’ AAA team for 1990 before ending his playing career. Ron Washington remained in baseball after that, serving as a minor league coach and manager for the Mets from 1991-1995, and coaching at the major league level for Oakland from 1996-2006. He has been the manager of the Texas Rangers from 2007 to the present, reaching the World Series in 2010 and 2011.

Also posted in wgom.org Pedro Ramos (1935) Luis Quinones (1962) Sean Douglass (1979) Yoslan Herrera (1981) Right-hander Pedro (Guerra) Ramos played for the Twins in 1961 and was the starting pitcher in the first game the Minnesota Twins ever played. He was born in Pinar del Rio, Cuba, and signed with Washington as a free agent in 1953. He had a fine year in 1954, split between Class C and Class B ball, and started 1955 in the major leagues, pitching mostly out of the Washington bullpen. He split 1956 between starting and relieving, and joined the starting rotation permanently in 1957. He led the league in losses the last three years the team was in Washington, but did not pitch that badly. His ERA for those three years was 3.93 and his WHIP was around 1.30. In two of those years he led the league in starts and batters faced, in one of them he led the league in innings, and he made the all-star team in 1959. When he came to Minnesota, he continued along that same path: Ramos was 11-20, 3.95 with a WHIP of 1.30. Just before the 1962 season, the Twins traded him to Cleveland for Vic Power and Dick Stigman. He had another sub-.500 year with a sub-four ERA, going 10-12, 3.71 in 201 innings, the sixth consecutive season he had thrown more than 200 innings. A fast runner, he was sometimes used to pinch-run on days he wasn’t pitching. He pitched well for the Indians again in 1963 but had a bad year in 1964 and was traded to the Yankees in September. The Yankees put him in the bullpen and he took over as their closer, saving eight games in 13 appearances to help the Yankees get to the World Series. He had two more fine years in the Yankees bullpen as well. He was traded to Philadelphia during Spring training of 1967, but after pitching eight poor innings he was surprisingly released. The Phillies turned out to be right, however. Ramos signed with Pittsburgh in 1968, but pitched poorly in AAA. He pitched briefly with the Pirates in 1969, but was released again in early June. Cincinnati picked him up and kept him in their bullpen the rest of the season, but things did not go well there, either. Ramos signed with Washington late in spring training of 1970, but could do no better and was released at the end of April, ending his playing career. He did a variety of things after that. He scouted in Latin America, opened a cigar business in Miami, and spent some time in prison on drug and weapons charges. He was a part-time pitching coach for Miami Dade Community College in the 1990s. At last report, Pedro Ramos was the owner of a cigar manufacturing business in Nicaragua. Infielder Luis Raul (Torruellas) Quinones played in three games for the Twins in 1992. Born and raised in Ponce, Puerto Rico, Quinones was signed by San Diego as a free agent in 1980. He was somewhat up and down in his minor league career, but was mostly pretty average at bat; his best year prior to making the majors was 1982, when he hit .288 with 16 homers in a season spent mostly at AA Amarillo. Oakland took him in the Rule 5 draft after that season and obviously worked something out to keep him, because he spent most of the season in the minors before getting his first taste of big league life with 45 plate appearances. Oakland moved him on to Cleveland after the 1983 campaign. He was in the minors for the Indians for a little over a year, getting traded to San Francisco in May of 1985. He was in the big leagues with the Giants for most of 1986, getting called up in early May. He was used almost exclusively as a reserve, playing in 71 games but making only 22 starts. The Giants released him after the season. He signed with Oakland, but eight days later was traded to the Cubs for Ron Cey. He was with the Cubs the second half of 1987, but was on the move again before the next season, traded to Cincinnati. He was in AAA most of 1988 but came up to the Reds in May of 1989 and stayed there through 1991. He never hit; his best year was 1989, when he hit .244 with 12 home runs. The Reds released him after 1991 and he signed with Minnesota. Quinones started the 1992 campaign with the Twins but played in only three games, going 1-for-4 with an RBI, before being sent to AAA. He did not have a particularly good year at AAA Portland, and was allowed to become a free agent after the season. He signed with Houston and started the 1993 season in AAA with the Astros, was released, signed with the Mariners, and stayed in AAA with the through the 1994 campaign. He was apparently out of baseball for a few years, although he may have been playing in Mexico or something, and then played for independent Atlantic City in 1998-1999 before ending his playing career. Luis Quinones was a manager and coach in the low minors for a while. Most recently, he was the hitting coach of the West Michigan Whitecaps (Tigers organization) in 2010. However, no information about what Luis Quinones has done since then was readily available. Right-hander Sean Reed Douglass did not play for the Twins, but was in spring training with them in 2004. Born and raised in Lancaster, California, he was drafted by Baltimore in the second round in 1997. His minor league record is not particularly exceptional but is fairly solid; he would generally post an ERA in the low-to-mid-threes and a WHIP in the 1.30-1.40 range. He was up with the Orioles for parts of three seasons, bouncing back and forth between Baltimore and AAA from 2001-2003. His time in the majors was not successful, and the Orioles put him on waivers after the 2003 season. Minnesota signed him and took him to spring training in 2004, but they placed him on waivers near the end of the exhibition season. Toronto signed him and he started the season in the majors, but after three scoreless innings he was sent back to AAA. He came back to the Blue Jays in late July, but was not particularly successful. A free agent after the season, he moved on to Detroit and got the most playing time of his career, making sixteen starts for the Tigers. He did not do much with them, though, and was waived after the season. Cleveland selected him, but apparently thought better of it and released him less than two months later. He played for a few years in Japan, but then his playing career came to an end. For his major league career, Sean Douglass was 7-13, 6.11, 1.61 WHIP in 207.2 innings. He appeared in 54 games, 31 of them starts. His last season in Japan appears to have been 2008; no information about Sean Douglass since that time was readily available. Right-hander Yoslan (Betancourt) Herrera did not pitch for the Twins, but he made six starts for AAA Rochester in 2010. He was born in Pinar del Rio, Cuba. He was a member of the Cuban National Youth team from 1999-2000 and pitched for Pinar del Rio in the Cuban National League. He was left off the Cuban Olympic team in 2004 due to injury. In 2005, he defected and settled in the Dominican Republic. Herrera signed with Pittsburgh as a free agent in 2007. He was in the Pirates’ system for three seasons, spent mostly in AA. He struggled in his first year but pitched pretty well there in 2008-2009. The Pirates seemed reluctant to give him a chance at a higher level, however; despite going 17-10, 3.35 in his last 212 innings of AA, he got only five appearances at AAA. He did make five major league starts in 2008, going 1-1, 9.82 in 18.1 innings. The Pirates let him go after the 2009 season and he signed with Minnesota for 2010. His first three starts there were pretty good, but his last three were awful and he was released with a record of 0-3, 6.08 in 26.2 innings. What he did for the next couple of years is unclear, but this year he is playing for Lancaster in the Atlantic League. He’s 32 today and has nothing to recommend him as a prospect. On the other hand, teams are always looking for pitching. As the great philosopher Joaquin Andujar told us, you can sum up baseball in one word: youneverknow.

Also posted in wgom.org Pedro Ramos (1935) Luis Quinones (1962) Sean Douglass (1979) Yoslan Herrera (1981) Right-hander Pedro (Guerra) Ramos played for the Twins in 1961 and was the starting pitcher in the first game the Minnesota Twins ever played. He was born in Pinar del Rio, Cuba, and signed with Washington as a free agent in 1953. He had a fine year in 1954, split between Class C and Class B ball, and started 1955 in the major leagues, pitching mostly out of the Washington bullpen. He split 1956 between starting and relieving, and joined the starting rotation permanently in 1957. He led the league in losses the last three years the team was in Washington, but did not pitch that badly. His ERA for those three years was 3.93 and his WHIP was around 1.30. In two of those years he led the league in starts and batters faced, in one of them he led the league in innings, and he made the all-star team in 1959. When he came to Minnesota, he continued along that same path: Ramos was 11-20, 3.95 with a WHIP of 1.30. Just before the 1962 season, the Twins traded him to Cleveland for Vic Power and Dick Stigman. He had another sub-.500 year with a sub-four ERA, going 10-12, 3.71 in 201 innings, the sixth consecutive season he had thrown more than 200 innings. A fast runner, he was sometimes used to pinch-run on days he wasn’t pitching. He pitched well for the Indians again in 1963 but had a bad year in 1964 and was traded to the Yankees in September. The Yankees put him in the bullpen and he took over as their closer, saving eight games in 13 appearances to help the Yankees get to the World Series. He had two more fine years in the Yankees bullpen as well. He was traded to Philadelphia during Spring training of 1967, but after pitching eight poor innings he was surprisingly released. The Phillies turned out to be right, however. Ramos signed with Pittsburgh in 1968, but pitched poorly in AAA. He pitched briefly with the Pirates in 1969, but was released again in early June. Cincinnati picked him up and kept him in their bullpen the rest of the season, but things did not go well there, either. Ramos signed with Washington late in spring training of 1970, but could do no better and was released at the end of April, ending his playing career. He did a variety of things after that. He scouted in Latin America, opened a cigar business in Miami, and spent some time in prison on drug and weapons charges. He was a part-time pitching coach for Miami Dade Community College in the 1990s. At last report, Pedro Ramos was the owner of a cigar manufacturing business in Nicaragua. Infielder Luis Raul (Torruellas) Quinones played in three games for the Twins in 1992. Born and raised in Ponce, Puerto Rico, Quinones was signed by San Diego as a free agent in 1980. He was somewhat up and down in his minor league career, but was mostly pretty average at bat; his best year prior to making the majors was 1982, when he hit .288 with 16 homers in a season spent mostly at AA Amarillo. Oakland took him in the Rule 5 draft after that season and obviously worked something out to keep him, because he spent most of the season in the minors before getting his first taste of big league life with 45 plate appearances. Oakland moved him on to Cleveland after the 1983 campaign. He was in the minors for the Indians for a little over a year, getting traded to San Francisco in May of 1985. He was in the big leagues with the Giants for most of 1986, getting called up in early May. He was used almost exclusively as a reserve, playing in 71 games but making only 22 starts. The Giants released him after the season. He signed with Oakland, but eight days later was traded to the Cubs for Ron Cey. He was with the Cubs the second half of 1987, but was on the move again before the next season, traded to Cincinnati. He was in AAA most of 1988 but came up to the Reds in May of 1989 and stayed there through 1991. He never hit; his best year was 1989, when he hit .244 with 12 home runs. The Reds released him after 1991 and he signed with Minnesota. Quinones started the 1992 campaign with the Twins but played in only three games, going 1-for-4 with an RBI, before being sent to AAA. He did not have a particularly good year at AAA Portland, and was allowed to become a free agent after the season. He signed with Houston and started the 1993 season in AAA with the Astros, was released, signed with the Mariners, and stayed in AAA with the through the 1994 campaign. He was apparently out of baseball for a few years, although he may have been playing in Mexico or something, and then played for independent Atlantic City in 1998-1999 before ending his playing career. Luis Quinones was a manager and coach in the low minors for a while. Most recently, he was the hitting coach of the West Michigan Whitecaps (Tigers organization) in 2010. However, no information about what Luis Quinones has done since then was readily available. Right-hander Sean Reed Douglass did not play for the Twins, but was in spring training with them in 2004. Born and raised in Lancaster, California, he was drafted by Baltimore in the second round in 1997. His minor league record is not particularly exceptional but is fairly solid; he would generally post an ERA in the low-to-mid-threes and a WHIP in the 1.30-1.40 range. He was up with the Orioles for parts of three seasons, bouncing back and forth between Baltimore and AAA from 2001-2003. His time in the majors was not successful, and the Orioles put him on waivers after the 2003 season. Minnesota signed him and took him to spring training in 2004, but they placed him on waivers near the end of the exhibition season. Toronto signed him and he started the season in the majors, but after three scoreless innings he was sent back to AAA. He came back to the Blue Jays in late July, but was not particularly successful. A free agent after the season, he moved on to Detroit and got the most playing time of his career, making sixteen starts for the Tigers. He did not do much with them, though, and was waived after the season. Cleveland selected him, but apparently thought better of it and released him less than two months later. He played for a few years in Japan, but then his playing career came to an end. For his major league career, Sean Douglass was 7-13, 6.11, 1.61 WHIP in 207.2 innings. He appeared in 54 games, 31 of them starts. His last season in Japan appears to have been 2008; no information about Sean Douglass since that time was readily available. Right-hander Yoslan (Betancourt) Herrera did not pitch for the Twins, but he made six starts for AAA Rochester in 2010. He was born in Pinar del Rio, Cuba. He was a member of the Cuban National Youth team from 1999-2000 and pitched for Pinar del Rio in the Cuban National League. He was left off the Cuban Olympic team in 2004 due to injury. In 2005, he defected and settled in the Dominican Republic. Herrera signed with Pittsburgh as a free agent in 2007. He was in the Pirates’ system for three seasons, spent mostly in AA. He struggled in his first year but pitched pretty well there in 2008-2009. The Pirates seemed reluctant to give him a chance at a higher level, however; despite going 17-10, 3.35 in his last 212 innings of AA, he got only five appearances at AAA. He did make five major league starts in 2008, going 1-1, 9.82 in 18.1 innings. The Pirates let him go after the 2009 season and he signed with Minnesota for 2010. His first three starts there were pretty good, but his last three were awful and he was released with a record of 0-3, 6.08 in 26.2 innings. What he did for the next couple of years is unclear, but this year he is playing for Lancaster in the Atlantic League. He’s 32 today and has nothing to recommend him as a prospect. On the other hand, teams are always looking for pitching. As the great philosopher Joaquin Andujar told us, you can sum up baseball in one word: youneverknow.

Ballplayers like Jason Tyner don't have a "prime".

Also posted at wgom.org. Patrick Lennon (1968) Benj Sampson (1975) Luis Perdomo (1984) Outfielder Patrick Orlando Lennon was in the Twins’ minor league system for a couple of months in 1995. Born and raised in Whiteville, North Carolina, he was named North Carolina High School Athlete of the Year in 1986 and was drafted by Seattle with the eighth pick of the 1986 draft. His early minor league numbers were fairly pedestrian, but in 1991 he hit .329 with 15 homers at AAA Calgary, earning him a September call-up. Lennon was apparently injured much of 1992, as he had only 48 at-bats in AAA and two in the majors. He became a free agent after 1992 and signed with Colorado. He was released in April, signed and was out of baseball until July, when he signed with Cleveland. A free agent again after the season, he went to Boston for 1994, was released in July of 1995, and signed with the Twins. He hit .400 in 115 at-bats, but the Twins still let him go after the season. He spent a month in the big leagues in with Kansas City in 1996 and was released at the end of April. Lennon signed with Oakland and finished the season in their minor league system. He started the 1997 in AAA with the Atheletics, but was called up in mid-May and spent most of the rest of the season in the majors, the most big-league playing time he ever got (116 at-bats in 56 games). Lennon signed with Anaheim for 1998, was released in spring training, and went to Toronto, where he got 33 major league at-bats over two seasons before being released in June of 1999. He finished the season for the Tigers’ AAA team, was in AAA for Montreal in 2000, split 2001 between the Yankees’ AAA team and the Mexican League, split 2002 and 2003 between AAA and independent Long Island, and was a Long Island Duck in 2004 and 2005 before his playing career finally came to an end. He played in the minors for twenty seasons, hitting .295 in nearly six thousand at-bats, but got only 189 at-bats in the big leagues. At last report, Patrick Lennon was an instructor for Play Like A Pro Baseball in Hauppauge, New York. Left-hander Benjamin Damon Sampson pitched for the Twins for parts of two season from 1998-1999. He was born in Des Moines and went to high school in Ankeny, Iowa. Minnesota drafted him in the sixth round in 1993. He pitched well in the low minors, but less well as he went up the ladder. In parts of four AAA seasons, totally nearly three hundred innings, he never had an ERA below five. Despite that, he got two shots with the Twins, which is probably more of a statement about the Twins’ pitching in the late 1990s than anything else. He got a September call-up in 1998 following his best AAA season, when he went 10-7, 5.14 with a WHIP of 1.55 for Salt Lake. He made the Twins out of spring training in 1999 and was their fifth starter. That lasted for three starts, by which time Sampson had an ERA of 15.00. He stayed in the majors most of the season, pitching out of the bullpen except for one start in early August. He did not pitch well in either role, and was sent to the minors on August 19. He was in the organization three more years, pitching well in Ft. Myers in 2001 and in New Britain in 2002, but flopped again when promoted to AAA Edmonton later in 2002. The Twins finally let him go after that season and he signed with Colorado, for whom he had a good year at AA Tulsa. He then went to Taiwan for 2004 and to Italy for 2005 before retiring as a professional player. Benj Sampson’s big-league numbers, all with Minnesota, are 4-2, 6.83 with a WHIP of 1.78 in 88.1 innings. He appeared in 35 games, six of them starts. After retirement, he went into the business world. From 2006 to 2008, he was an account manager for USA ScoreTables, working with high schools in Texas to install scrolling media into gymnasiums, arenas, and stadiums. At last report, Benj Sampson was the national accounts consultant for Learning Through Sports, Inc., which is a leading publisher of digital game-based learning programs for K-12, as well as being a key figure in the company’s STAR mentors program. Right-hander Luis M. Perdomo made his debut for the Twins in 2012. He was born in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic, and was signed by Cleveland as a free agent in 2003. He apparently spent a couple of years in the Dominican Summer League, as b-r doesn’t give any stats for him until 2006. A reliever his entire career, his numbers in the low minors are pretty good. Still, he did not make AA until mid-way through the 2008 season and was traded to St. Louis in late July. He was left unprotected that off-season and was chosen by San Francisco in the Rule 5 draft. The Giants kept him, but put him on waivers in early April before he had played a game for them. San Diego claimed him and kept him in the majors almost the entire season. He did not pitch particularly well, however, going 1-0, 4.80, 1.52 WHIP in 35 appearances (60 innings). He did pitch well in AAA in 2010, but did not pitch well when sent there again in 2011 and was allowed to become a free agent. Minnesota signed him and sent him to New Britain. He pitched very well there, continued to pitch well when promoted to Rochester, and spent nearly two months in the majors, where he did okay in seventeen innings. He has had problems with his control, which bothered him in the majors and are plaguing him in AAA so far this season. He’s 29 today, so he’s obviously not a top prospect. Still, he’s had some success in the minors, did not do badly in his time with the Twins, and with relief pitchers it can be hard to tell. It’s not out of the question that Luis Perdomo might get another shot or two at the big leagues.

Also posted at wgom.org. Patrick Lennon (1968) Benj Sampson (1975) Luis Perdomo (1984) Outfielder Patrick Orlando Lennon was in the Twins’ minor league system for a couple of months in 1995. Born and raised in Whiteville, North Carolina, he was named North Carolina High School Athlete of the Year in 1986 and was drafted by Seattle with the eighth pick of the 1986 draft. His early minor league numbers were fairly pedestrian, but in 1991 he hit .329 with 15 homers at AAA Calgary, earning him a September call-up. Lennon was apparently injured much of 1992, as he had only 48 at-bats in AAA and two in the majors. He became a free agent after 1992 and signed with Colorado. He was released in April, signed and was out of baseball until July, when he signed with Cleveland. A free agent again after the season, he went to Boston for 1994, was released in July of 1995, and signed with the Twins. He hit .400 in 115 at-bats, but the Twins still let him go after the season. He spent a month in the big leagues in with Kansas City in 1996 and was released at the end of April. Lennon signed with Oakland and finished the season in their minor league system. He started the 1997 in AAA with the Atheletics, but was called up in mid-May and spent most of the rest of the season in the majors, the most big-league playing time he ever got (116 at-bats in 56 games). Lennon signed with Anaheim for 1998, was released in spring training, and went to Toronto, where he got 33 major league at-bats over two seasons before being released in June of 1999. He finished the season for the Tigers’ AAA team, was in AAA for Montreal in 2000, split 2001 between the Yankees’ AAA team and the Mexican League, split 2002 and 2003 between AAA and independent Long Island, and was a Long Island Duck in 2004 and 2005 before his playing career finally came to an end. He played in the minors for twenty seasons, hitting .295 in nearly six thousand at-bats, but got only 189 at-bats in the big leagues. At last report, Patrick Lennon was an instructor for Play Like A Pro Baseball in Hauppauge, New York. Left-hander Benjamin Damon Sampson pitched for the Twins for parts of two season from 1998-1999. He was born in Des Moines and went to high school in Ankeny, Iowa. Minnesota drafted him in the sixth round in 1993. He pitched well in the low minors, but less well as he went up the ladder. In parts of four AAA seasons, totally nearly three hundred innings, he never had an ERA below five. Despite that, he got two shots with the Twins, which is probably more of a statement about the Twins’ pitching in the late 1990s than anything else. He got a September call-up in 1998 following his best AAA season, when he went 10-7, 5.14 with a WHIP of 1.55 for Salt Lake. He made the Twins out of spring training in 1999 and was their fifth starter. That lasted for three starts, by which time Sampson had an ERA of 15.00. He stayed in the majors most of the season, pitching out of the bullpen except for one start in early August. He did not pitch well in either role, and was sent to the minors on August 19. He was in the organization three more years, pitching well in Ft. Myers in 2001 and in New Britain in 2002, but flopped again when promoted to AAA Edmonton later in 2002. The Twins finally let him go after that season and he signed with Colorado, for whom he had a good year at AA Tulsa. He then went to Taiwan for 2004 and to Italy for 2005 before retiring as a professional player. Benj Sampson’s big-league numbers, all with Minnesota, are 4-2, 6.83 with a WHIP of 1.78 in 88.1 innings. He appeared in 35 games, six of them starts. After retirement, he went into the business world. From 2006 to 2008, he was an account manager for USA ScoreTables, working with high schools in Texas to install scrolling media into gymnasiums, arenas, and stadiums. At last report, Benj Sampson was the national accounts consultant for Learning Through Sports, Inc., which is a leading publisher of digital game-based learning programs for K-12, as well as being a key figure in the company’s STAR mentors program. Right-hander Luis M. Perdomo made his debut for the Twins in 2012. He was born in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic, and was signed by Cleveland as a free agent in 2003. He apparently spent a couple of years in the Dominican Summer League, as b-r doesn’t give any stats for him until 2006. A reliever his entire career, his numbers in the low minors are pretty good. Still, he did not make AA until mid-way through the 2008 season and was traded to St. Louis in late July. He was left unprotected that off-season and was chosen by San Francisco in the Rule 5 draft. The Giants kept him, but put him on waivers in early April before he had played a game for them. San Diego claimed him and kept him in the majors almost the entire season. He did not pitch particularly well, however, going 1-0, 4.80, 1.52 WHIP in 35 appearances (60 innings). He did pitch well in AAA in 2010, but did not pitch well when sent there again in 2011 and was allowed to become a free agent. Minnesota signed him and sent him to New Britain. He pitched very well there, continued to pitch well when promoted to Rochester, and spent nearly two months in the majors, where he did okay in seventeen innings. He has had problems with his control, which bothered him in the majors and are plaguing him in AAA so far this season. He’s 29 today, so he’s obviously not a top prospect. Still, he’s had some success in the minors, did not do badly in his time with the Twins, and with relief pitchers it can be hard to tell. It’s not out of the question that Luis Perdomo might get another shot or two at the big leagues.

Also posted at wgom.org. Tom Norton (1950) Steve Lombardozzi (1960) Joe Crede (1978) Alejandro Machado (1982) Right-handed reliever Thomas John Norton made 21 appearances for the Twins in 1972. Born in Elyria, Ohio, he attended St. Clair County Community College of Port Huron, Michigan. Norton signed with Minnesota as a free agent in 1969. He was somewhat up and down in his minor league career. After a decent but unspectacular season in AA Charlotte in 1971, Norton played the full 1972 season for the Twins. He was apparently injured part of that time, as he went two months without appearing in a game. For an undrafted 22-year-old who had never pitched above AA, he was pretty good: 0-1, 2.78 with a WHIP of 1.39 in 32.1 innings. Those would be his career numbers, though, as he never pitched in the big leagues again. He pitched well for AA Orlando from 1973-1975, but flopped whenever he was promoted to AAA. Minnesota gave up on him after the 1975 season. He made three starts for AA Knoxville in the White Sox organization in 1976 (he was a starter most of his minor-league career), but then his playing career came to an end at age 26. It was a brief career, but he got to spend a full season as a major league player, and there is probably not a huge number of pitchers with over 20 appearances who have lower career ERAs. No information about Tom Norton’s life after playing baseball was readily available. Second baseman Stephen Paul Lombardozzi was with the Twins from 1985-1988. Born in Malden, Massachusetts, he attended the University of Florida and then was drafted by Minnesota in the ninth round in 1981. He hit quite well in the low minors, but less well as he went up the ladder. Still, he hit .264 with 14 homers in AAA Toledo in 1985, which was good enough to get him a September call-up in which he hit .370 in 54 at-bats. He became the starting second baseman the next year and would hold the job for two seasons. Lombo never hit anywhere near as well again, but he was an excellent defensive player. He helped the Twins win the championship in 1987, but early in 1988 the Twins decided they could no longer live with his lack of offense and traded for Tom Herr. Due to Herr’s injuries, Lombardozzi still started about half the games, but in spring training of 1989 he was traded to Houston for two players to be named later (Ramon Cedeno and Gordon Farmer). Lombo never got much of a chance in Houston, spending most of his time in the minors, and was released in May of 1990. Detroit picked him up and sent him to AAA the rest of the season, after which his career came to an end. As a Twin, Steve Lombardozzi hit .233/.307/.345. After his playing career ended he ran a small business for a while, but then decided he wanted to get back into baseball. He was a minor league infield instructor for the Pittsburgh Pirates for a while. At last report, he was the head baseball coach at Good Counsel High School in Olney, Maryland. His son, also named Steve Lombardozzi, is an infielder for the Washington Nationals. Third baseman Joseph Crede played for the Twins in 2009. A cousin of major league pitcher Dennis Higgins, Crede was born in Jefferson City, Missouri and attended high school in Westphalia, Missouri. The White Sox drafted him in the first round in 1996. Crede had some fine years in the minors; his best was probably 2002, when he hit .312 with 24 home runs for AAA Charlotte. Those numbers were for less than a full season, because after having been given cups of coffee in the majors in 2000 and 2001, Crede was brought up for good in late July of 2002. He immediately became the starting third baseman for the White Sox, a job he held through the 2008 season. He was a very durable player early in his career and had some fine seasons for the Southsiders. His best year was 2006, when he hit .283 with 30 home runs and won a Silver Slugger award. The next year, however, injuries started to bother him, and he was never the same player again. He inexplicably made his lone all-star team in 2008, when he hit only .248 with 17 homers. He became a free agent after that season and signed with Minnesota. Crede was the Twins’ regular third baseman when healthy, but unfortunately “when healthy” was only about half the team’s games. As a Twin, he hit .225/.289/.414, with 15 home runs in 333 at-bats. He was out of baseball in 2010, signed a contract with Colorado for 2011, but did not report to spring training, deciding instead to retire. At last report he was living on a farm near Westphalia, Missouri. He was recently inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. Infielder Alejandro Jose Machado did not play for the Twins, but was in their minor league system from 2008-2009. Born in Caracas, Venezuela, he signed with Atlanta as a free agent in 1998. He had some fine years in Class A, but struggled for a while when placed above that, which is understandable given his age. He played for several different organizations in the minors. The Braves traded him to Kansas City in July of 2001, the Royals sent him to Milwaukee in July of 2003, Milwaukee essentially gave him to Montreal in March of 2004, and the now Nationals traded him to Boston in January of 2005. He was gradually getting better as he went along, and in 2005 Machado hit .300 at AAA Pawtucket. That got him a September call-up, in which he went 1-for-5 with a walk and scored four runs. At present, those are his career numbers, as he has not made it back to the majors since. He dropped to .260 at Pawtucket in 2006, became a free agent, signed with Washington, and was left unprotected in the Rule 5 draft, when he was selected by Minnesota. He has not been able to stay healthy since then. Machado missed the entire 2007 season with injuries, but was in the Twins’ system the next two years. He was still injured part of the 2008 season, but hit .338 in 195 at-bats. Injuries again plagued him in 2009, when he hit .253 in 150 at-bats spread over four minor league teams. He became a free agent again after the 2009 season and signed with Florida. He was sent to AAA, released in mid-May, and finished the season in AA with Atlanta. He became a free agent after the season but did not sign with anyone, ending his playing career No information about Alejandro Machado since that time was readily available.

Also posted at wgom.org. Tom Norton (1950) Steve Lombardozzi (1960) Joe Crede (1978) Alejandro Machado (1982) Right-handed reliever Thomas John Norton made 21 appearances for the Twins in 1972. Born in Elyria, Ohio, he attended St. Clair County Community College of Port Huron, Michigan. Norton signed with Minnesota as a free agent in 1969. He was somewhat up and down in his minor league career. After a decent but unspectacular season in AA Charlotte in 1971, Norton played the full 1972 season for the Twins. He was apparently injured part of that time, as he went two months without appearing in a game. For an undrafted 22-year-old who had never pitched above AA, he was pretty good: 0-1, 2.78 with a WHIP of 1.39 in 32.1 innings. Those would be his career numbers, though, as he never pitched in the big leagues again. He pitched well for AA Orlando from 1973-1975, but flopped whenever he was promoted to AAA. Minnesota gave up on him after the 1975 season. He made three starts for AA Knoxville in the White Sox organization in 1976 (he was a starter most of his minor-league career), but then his playing career came to an end at age 26. It was a brief career, but he got to spend a full season as a major league player, and there is probably not a huge number of pitchers with over 20 appearances who have lower career ERAs. No information about Tom Norton’s life after playing baseball was readily available. Second baseman Stephen Paul Lombardozzi was with the Twins from 1985-1988. Born in Malden, Massachusetts, he attended the University of Florida and then was drafted by Minnesota in the ninth round in 1981. He hit quite well in the low minors, but less well as he went up the ladder. Still, he hit .264 with 14 homers in AAA Toledo in 1985, which was good enough to get him a September call-up in which he hit .370 in 54 at-bats. He became the starting second baseman the next year and would hold the job for two seasons. Lombo never hit anywhere near as well again, but he was an excellent defensive player. He helped the Twins win the championship in 1987, but early in 1988 the Twins decided they could no longer live with his lack of offense and traded for Tom Herr. Due to Herr’s injuries, Lombardozzi still started about half the games, but in spring training of 1989 he was traded to Houston for two players to be named later (Ramon Cedeno and Gordon Farmer). Lombo never got much of a chance in Houston, spending most of his time in the minors, and was released in May of 1990. Detroit picked him up and sent him to AAA the rest of the season, after which his career came to an end. As a Twin, Steve Lombardozzi hit .233/.307/.345. After his playing career ended he ran a small business for a while, but then decided he wanted to get back into baseball. He was a minor league infield instructor for the Pittsburgh Pirates for a while. At last report, he was the head baseball coach at Good Counsel High School in Olney, Maryland. His son, also named Steve Lombardozzi, is an infielder for the Washington Nationals. Third baseman Joseph Crede played for the Twins in 2009. A cousin of major league pitcher Dennis Higgins, Crede was born in Jefferson City, Missouri and attended high school in Westphalia, Missouri. The White Sox drafted him in the first round in 1996. Crede had some fine years in the minors; his best was probably 2002, when he hit .312 with 24 home runs for AAA Charlotte. Those numbers were for less than a full season, because after having been given cups of coffee in the majors in 2000 and 2001, Crede was brought up for good in late July of 2002. He immediately became the starting third baseman for the White Sox, a job he held through the 2008 season. He was a very durable player early in his career and had some fine seasons for the Southsiders. His best year was 2006, when he hit .283 with 30 home runs and won a Silver Slugger award. The next year, however, injuries started to bother him, and he was never the same player again. He inexplicably made his lone all-star team in 2008, when he hit only .248 with 17 homers. He became a free agent after that season and signed with Minnesota. Crede was the Twins’ regular third baseman when healthy, but unfortunately “when healthy” was only about half the team’s games. As a Twin, he hit .225/.289/.414, with 15 home runs in 333 at-bats. He was out of baseball in 2010, signed a contract with Colorado for 2011, but did not report to spring training, deciding instead to retire. At last report he was living on a farm near Westphalia, Missouri. He was recently inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. Infielder Alejandro Jose Machado did not play for the Twins, but was in their minor league system from 2008-2009. Born in Caracas, Venezuela, he signed with Atlanta as a free agent in 1998. He had some fine years in Class A, but struggled for a while when placed above that, which is understandable given his age. He played for several different organizations in the minors. The Braves traded him to Kansas City in July of 2001, the Royals sent him to Milwaukee in July of 2003, Milwaukee essentially gave him to Montreal in March of 2004, and the now Nationals traded him to Boston in January of 2005. He was gradually getting better as he went along, and in 2005 Machado hit .300 at AAA Pawtucket. That got him a September call-up, in which he went 1-for-5 with a walk and scored four runs. At present, those are his career numbers, as he has not made it back to the majors since. He dropped to .260 at Pawtucket in 2006, became a free agent, signed with Washington, and was left unprotected in the Rule 5 draft, when he was selected by Minnesota. He has not been able to stay healthy since then. Machado missed the entire 2007 season with injuries, but was in the Twins’ system the next two years. He was still injured part of the 2008 season, but hit .338 in 195 at-bats. Injuries again plagued him in 2009, when he hit .253 in 150 at-bats spread over four minor league teams. He became a free agent again after the 2009 season and signed with Florida. He was sent to AAA, released in mid-May, and finished the season in AA with Atlanta. He became a free agent after the season but did not sign with anyone, ending his playing career No information about Alejandro Machado since that time was readily available.

Also posted at wgom.org Greg Wells (1954) Larry Pashnick (1956) Jacque Jones (1975) The original Boomer Wells, first baseman Gregory De Wayne Wells had 54 at-bats with the Twins in 1982. Born in McIntosh, Alabama, he went to Albany State University (where he also played football and was drafted by the Jets in the sixteenth round) and signed with Pittsburgh as a free agent in 1976. He signed with the Pirates on March 26 and was released on April 7, making one wonder why Pittsburgh bothered in the first place. He played for independent Beeville in the Gulf States League that year, and was signed by Cleveland on February 14, 1977. The Indians released him on March 27; apparently teams liked the idea of signing Wells a lot more than they liked actually having him around. In mid-June, he signed with Toronto and finally got a chance to play for a major league organization. He was dominant in the low minors, but was simply fairly good when he was jumped from Class A to AAA. In 1981, though, he hit .292 with 20 homers at Syracuse and was called up to the majors once the strike ended. He spent the rest of the season in Toronto. After the season ended, he was traded to Minnesota as the player to be named later in a deal that sent Hosken Powell to the Blue Jays. The Twins sent him to AAA Toledo, where he had his best minor league season, hitting .336 with 28 home runs. He got a September call-up and was used in fifteen games as a first baseman and DH, but hit only .204 with no home runs. The Twins released him after the season and he went to Japan, where he played for ten years. He became a star in Japan, making the all-star team five times and becoming the first American to win the triple crown. He was inducted into the Albany State University Hall of Fame in 2003. At last report, Greg “Boomer” Wells was living in Cartersville, Georgia and helping care for his elderly mother. Right-hander Larry John Pashnick appeared in 13 games for the Twins in 1984. He was born in Lincoln Park, Michigan, attended Michigan State, and was signed by Detroit as a free agent in 1979. He did fairly well at every stop in the minors and reached the majors in 1982, beginning that season with the Tigers. He was in the big leagues for most of the season, was used both as a starter and in relief, and did reasonably well in both roles, going 4-4, 4.01 in 94.1 innings. He began 1983 in AAA, but had two stints in the majors totalling about two months. He did not do as well this time and was traded to Minnesota after the season for Rusty Kuntz. He started 1984 with the Twins and actually did pretty well, going 2-1, 3.52 with a 1.28 WHIP in 38.1 innings. Still, the Twins sent him out in late June, and he never made it back to the major leagues. In fact, 1984 was his last year, as his playing career ended after that. Not that he would have been a superstar, but it seems odd, given his record, that he did not get more of a chance. At last report, Larry Pashnick was living in Livonia, Michigan was the owner of Pashnick Sales LLC. He was active in Detroit Tigers’ alumni events and also in various charitable events. Outfielder Jacque Dewayne Jones played for the Twins from 1999-2005. Born and raised in San Diego, he attended Kennesaw State University of Kennesaw, Georgia, one of five major league players the school has produced. He was drafted by the Twins in the second round in 1996. Jones played for the U. S. Olympic team that year, so his professional career did not really get going until 1997. He hit well, showing double-digit home run power and narrowly missing .300 in both 1997 and 1998. He started 1999 in AAA, but was in the majors by early June and didn’t look back. He played center field in 1999, played both center and left in 2000, was in left field from 2001-2003, and moved to right for 2004-2005. Jones was a solid big-league outfielder throughout his tenure with the Twins. His best season was 2002, when he hit .300 with 27 home runs and 37 doubles. His numbers dropped in his last two years in Minnesota, and Jones became a free agent after the 2005 season. He had a fine season for the Cubs in 2006, but in 2007 his power disappeared: he still hit .285, but had only five home runs. The Cubs traded Jones to Detroit after the season, and he collapsed. He hit only .165 in 79 at-bats for the Tigers in 2008 and was released in mid-May. He signed with Florida and was with the Marlins for a month, but continued not hitting and was released again. Jones spent 2009 with the independent Newark Bears, and was signed by Minnesota for 2010. He had a fine spring training, but was sent to AAA Rochester, where at this writing he was hitting .280 with little power. He became a free agent after the season and was not signed, ending his playing career. It was a pretty good career, though. As a Twin, he hit .279/.327/.455, numbers which are pretty much the same as his career numbers. Jacque Jones is currently the batting coach for the AA San Antonio Missions in the San Diego organization.

Also posted at wgom.org Greg Wells (1954) Larry Pashnick (1956) Jacque Jones (1975) The original Boomer Wells, first baseman Gregory De Wayne Wells had 54 at-bats with the Twins in 1982. Born in McIntosh, Alabama, he went to Albany State University (where he also played football and was drafted by the Jets in the sixteenth round) and signed with Pittsburgh as a free agent in 1976. He signed with the Pirates on March 26 and was released on April 7, making one wonder why Pittsburgh bothered in the first place. He played for independent Beeville in the Gulf States League that year, and was signed by Cleveland on February 14, 1977. The Indians released him on March 27; apparently teams liked the idea of signing Wells a lot more than they liked actually having him around. In mid-June, he signed with Toronto and finally got a chance to play for a major league organization. He was dominant in the low minors, but was simply fairly good when he was jumped from Class A to AAA. In 1981, though, he hit .292 with 20 homers at Syracuse and was called up to the majors once the strike ended. He spent the rest of the season in Toronto. After the season ended, he was traded to Minnesota as the player to be named later in a deal that sent Hosken Powell to the Blue Jays. The Twins sent him to AAA Toledo, where he had his best minor league season, hitting .336 with 28 home runs. He got a September call-up and was used in fifteen games as a first baseman and DH, but hit only .204 with no home runs. The Twins released him after the season and he went to Japan, where he played for ten years. He became a star in Japan, making the all-star team five times and becoming the first American to win the triple crown. He was inducted into the Albany State University Hall of Fame in 2003. At last report, Greg “Boomer” Wells was living in Cartersville, Georgia and helping care for his elderly mother. Right-hander Larry John Pashnick appeared in 13 games for the Twins in 1984. He was born in Lincoln Park, Michigan, attended Michigan State, and was signed by Detroit as a free agent in 1979. He did fairly well at every stop in the minors and reached the majors in 1982, beginning that season with the Tigers. He was in the big leagues for most of the season, was used both as a starter and in relief, and did reasonably well in both roles, going 4-4, 4.01 in 94.1 innings. He began 1983 in AAA, but had two stints in the majors totalling about two months. He did not do as well this time and was traded to Minnesota after the season for Rusty Kuntz. He started 1984 with the Twins and actually did pretty well, going 2-1, 3.52 with a 1.28 WHIP in 38.1 innings. Still, the Twins sent him out in late June, and he never made it back to the major leagues. In fact, 1984 was his last year, as his playing career ended after that. Not that he would have been a superstar, but it seems odd, given his record, that he did not get more of a chance. At last report, Larry Pashnick was living in Livonia, Michigan was the owner of Pashnick Sales LLC. He was active in Detroit Tigers’ alumni events and also in various charitable events. Outfielder Jacque Dewayne Jones played for the Twins from 1999-2005. Born and raised in San Diego, he attended Kennesaw State University of Kennesaw, Georgia, one of five major league players the school has produced. He was drafted by the Twins in the second round in 1996. Jones played for the U. S. Olympic team that year, so his professional career did not really get going until 1997. He hit well, showing double-digit home run power and narrowly missing .300 in both 1997 and 1998. He started 1999 in AAA, but was in the majors by early June and didn’t look back. He played center field in 1999, played both center and left in 2000, was in left field from 2001-2003, and moved to right for 2004-2005. Jones was a solid big-league outfielder throughout his tenure with the Twins. His best season was 2002, when he hit .300 with 27 home runs and 37 doubles. His numbers dropped in his last two years in Minnesota, and Jones became a free agent after the 2005 season. He had a fine season for the Cubs in 2006, but in 2007 his power disappeared: he still hit .285, but had only five home runs. The Cubs traded Jones to Detroit after the season, and he collapsed. He hit only .165 in 79 at-bats for the Tigers in 2008 and was released in mid-May. He signed with Florida and was with the Marlins for a month, but continued not hitting and was released again. Jones spent 2009 with the independent Newark Bears, and was signed by Minnesota for 2010. He had a fine spring training, but was sent to AAA Rochester, where at this writing he was hitting .280 with little power. He became a free agent after the season and was not signed, ending his playing career. It was a pretty good career, though. As a Twin, he hit .279/.327/.455, numbers which are pretty much the same as his career numbers. Jacque Jones is currently the batting coach for the AA San Antonio Missions in the San Diego organization.

I'm more than twenty years older than he is, so don't feel bad. Besides, as I always say (honestly), life just keeps getting better.