twins/mlb
Joe Christensen, the Star Tribune's national baseball reporter, has covered the big leagues since 1998. A Faribault native, he graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1996. Before working for the Star Tribune, he spent three years covering the Orioles for the Baltimore Sun. He also covered the Padres and Dodgers for newspapers in Southern California. He'll share his thoughts here on the Twins and all things baseball.
Posts about MLB
Willingham wins Silver Slugger Award
Posted by: Joe Christensen Updated: November 8, 2012 - 6:39 PM
Twins left fielder Josh Willingham won his first career Silver Slugger Award on Thursday, an honor that goes to the best offensive players at each position.
Managers and coaches voted Willingham, Josh Hamilton and Mike Trout as the three top offensive performers among American League outfielders. In his first year with the Twins, Willingham batted .260 with 35 home runs, 110 RBI and an .890 OPS (on-base-plus slugging percentage).
Other AL Silver Slugger Awards went to A.J. Pierzynski (catcher), Prince Fielder (first base), Robinson Cano (second base), Miguel Cabrera (third base), Derek Jeter (shortstop) and Billy Butler (DH).
A walk down memory lane with Tony O.
Posted by: Joe Christensen Updated: October 12, 2012 - 2:12 PMWith the regular season winding down, and Miguel Cabrera closing in on baseball’s first Triple Crown in 45 years, I saw Tony Oliva at Target Field and asked the Twins legend what he remembers about that magical season for Carl Yastrzemski in 1967.
“Forget about ‘67,” Oliva said, with a chuckle. “What about ‘66?”
“I don’t want to hear about ‘67,” Oliva said. “I put that out of my brain when we lost. We went to Boston to win one game, and we lost both.”
Yes, this was Boston’s Impossible Dream. One of the most famous pennant races in baseball history. Four teams slugging it out through the late summer -- Twins, Red Sox, Tigers and White Sox. The Twins entered a season-ending two-game series at Fenway Park, needing just one win, but Yastrzemski helped give Boston a sweep and the American League pennant.
Yastrzemski batted .326 with 44 home runs and 121 RBI. Harmon Killebrew also hit 44 home runs, but Yaz still gets credit for the Triple Crown.
“I think that was one of those dream years, when everything went perfect,” Oliva said.
But what about ‘66? Baseball had a Triple Crown winner that year, too, when Baltimore’s Frank Robinson batted .316 with 49 and 122 RBI.
Robinson ran away with the home run title (Killebrew was second with 39) and RBI title (Killebrew was second with 110). The biggest obstacle between Robinson and the Triple Crown was Tony O., who was a two-time reigning AL batting champ after batting .323 as a rookie in ‘64 and .321 in helping the Twins win the pennant in ‘65.
A check on Baseball-Reference.com, shows that Oliva went 4-for-4 on Sept. 11, in an 11-6 win over Robinson’s Orioles at Met Stadium. Oliva was batting .320, and Robinson was at .313 with three weeks remaining.
Oliva, now 74, said he got into a fender bender and suffered whiplash sometime right around then. Though he didn’t miss a game, his success waned. He finished the year batting .307 and tipped his hat to Robinson, the league’s MVP.
“Cabrera reminds me of Frank Robinson because Robinson was a righthanded hitter, and if you pitched him away, he could hit it out of the ballpark to right field,” Oliva said. “Cabrera is a dangerous hitter like that because you can’t pitch him inside or outside.”
No doubt, and looking back, you realize that facing Tony O. was no picnic for an opposing pitcher, either.
Group of Minnesotans won't forget the night they hung out with Lewwww Ford
Posted by: Joe Christensen Updated: September 14, 2012 - 12:48 PMI wrote my Sunday column on Lew Ford last week, detailing his long road back to the majors after being released by the Twins in 2007. We talked by phone last week, and he mentioned how much he missed Minnesota’s fans, wishing there was still a chance to come here with the Orioles this season.
He told me about the time in 2009, when a group of Minnesotans went to one of his games with the Long Island Ducks, each wearing a T-shirt with a letter that spelled out “L-E-W-W-W-W-W!"
I included that story in the column, then received an e-mail this week from the guy who organized the group. His name is Max Page, and he’s working now as a legal clerk in Brainerd. He provided more details.
In July 2009, Max was working as an eighth-grade social studies teacher in the Bronx. There were nine people in the group that went to see the Ducks that night and most of them were teachers. They all donned green T-shirts with the letters painted in black, and the spelling actually went "L-E-E-E-W-W-W-W-!"
From Max’s e-mail:
I threw a baseball to one of the LI Ducks’ bullpen pitchers that said “Want to meet 9 Minnesotans at High Heat Bar [located a couple miles from the Ducks’ stadium] after the game? Check one: Yes No Maybe”
Lew checked yes, met us at the bar, partied with us for a couple of hours and called some of my friends saying, "Hey, this is Lew Ford." He was the coolest guy ever.
I ended up missing the last train back to NYC, which meant I missed my flight back to MN the next day, but all totally worth it.
Manager Ron Gardenhire tells a story about once seeing Lew out with a few people on one of the Twins road trips. Gardenhire asked if these were friends of his in town to see him, and Lew said, no, just some folks he'd met playing an online video game.
There are all kinds of stories about Lew helping to repair other players' computers. There's also the one about Ford burning himself with when he ironed a shirt while wearing it. Not true, he insists. He's a smart guy, but the Twins often kidded him for being goofy.
Basically, when it comes to ballplayers, Lew Ford is just different. And as Max and his friends will tell you, he's different -- in a good way.
Opposing scouts continue to study Liriano, Span ahead of trade deadline
Posted by: Joe Christensen Updated: July 20, 2012 - 11:44 AMEleven days from the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, Francisco Liriano and Denard Span remain the Twins most likely trade candidates. Josh Willingham is on that list, too, but he’s under contract through 2014 at $7 million per, and as soon as the Twins moved him, they’d be hunting for another righthanded power hitter.
As for Justin Morneau -- even with the recent injuries to Joey Votto, Jose Bautista and David Ortiz -- I just don't see it. Here's a piece about Morneau's trade value from earlier this month.
If the Twins traded Span, they could move Ben Revere to center and promote Chris Parmelee from Class AAA Rochester to play right field. Aaron Hicks, their 2008 first-round draft pick, is another center fielder who looks like he’s turned a corner at Class AA New Britain.
The Twins had deep discussions with the Nationals about Span last July but wound up keeping him. The leadoff man is batting .282 with a .348 on-base percentage and nine stolen bases. From the No. 2 spot, Revere is batting .313 with a .342 OBP and 20 stolen bases.
The Reds, Nationals and Orioles are all teams looking for a leadoff hitter who gets on base. The Yankees could look to Span to play left field, with Brett Gardner likely done for the season.
Span, 28, is playoff tested and making just $3 million this year. He’ll make $4.75 million next year, $6.5 million in 2014 and has a $9 million option for 2015 with a $500,000 buyout.
Liriano, 28, is a pending free agent, making $5.5 million. His next start is scheduled for Monday in Chicago.
Scouting the scouts
Vern Followell, the Twins pro scouting coordinator, was at Fenway Park this week for Red Sox/White Sox.
Teams with scouts at Target Field on Wednesday for Liriano's outing included: the Angels, Yankees, Red Sox and Pirates. The Mets and Reds had scouts here this week and were probably there Wednesday, too. (The Marlins and Padres were also here, but I don’t think they’re looking for the same things. There have been Blue Jays scouts crawling around all season, but they are everywhere.)
For what it’s worth, I was told that scouts for the Angels and Yankees both got up and left Wednesday’s game after Liriano exited after six innings and 10 strikeouts. So let your imaginations run wild.
Braves scout Jim Fregosi was here for two Liriano starts on the previous homestand, but at the time, there were indications Atlanta didn’t view Liriano as enough of an upgrade. It’s possible that has changed. As Ken Rosenthal notes today on FoxSports.com, the starting pitching market appears to be shifting, with the possibility of Cole Hamels and Zack Greinke getting moved shrinking. The Twins could benefit from this.
Liriano's future uncertain
Here’s what we know: Liriano went 0-5 with a 9.45 ERA in his first six starts and got demoted to the bullpen. Since returning to the rotation on May 30, the lefty is 3-4 with a 2.84 ERA in 10 starts, a stretch that includes 77 K, 28 BB in 63.1 IP. Liriano has 25 strikeouts in his past two starts, but gave up a big home run in each, and lost 4-3 to the A’s and 2-1 to the O’s.
It’s possible the Twins won’t get an offer they like and will keep Liriano, offering him a one-year, $12.5 million deal in hopes of getting a compensation pick if he leaves. We've been told he's looking for a three-year deal and that the team has yet to approach him about a contract extension.
Asked Thursday if Liriano's trade value is going up, Twins GM Terry Ryan said, “You know I’m not going to get into that. It’s all in the eye of the beholder, don’t you think? There are certain people that are going to like [Liriano], certain people that aren’t going to like [him], and certain people that will be right in the middle. So, you don’t need me to respond to that. You’ve already got your answer. You’re watching the same thing I am."
Programming note: La Velle has our coverage from Kansas City, so check his blog later for tonight's starting lineups.
Mauer's role uncertain for All-Star game, as AL looks to swing the tide
Posted by: Joe Christensen Updated: July 10, 2012 - 4:05 PMKANSAS CITY, MO. -- The American League has owned a decided edge in interleague play in recent years, but the National League has won the past two All-Star games and the past two World Series.
Tonight the AL will be trying to reverse that trend at Kauffman Stadium in another All-Star Game to decide home-field advantage in the World Series.
Both lineups are stacked with the usual array of superstars, but in many ways, the most compelling drama could come in the middle to late innings. That’s when Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, R.A. Dickey, Chipper Jones and the Twins’ Joe Mauer could have their chance to make an impact.
Mauer, the lone Twins representative, is 2-for-8 with a double and a walk in nine career All-Star plate appearances. AL manager Ron Washington has two backup catching options on the bench, in Mauer and Baltimore’s Matt Wieters, so it’ll be interesting to see how this plays out.
For more on Mauer and former Twins closer Joe Nathan, click here. And for more on Dickey, click here.
NATIONAL LEAGUE (42-38-2)
1. Carlos Gonzalez, DH
2. Melky Cabrera, CF
3. Ryan Braun, LF
4. Joey Votto, 1B
5. Carlos Beltran, RF
6. Buster Posey, C
7. Pablo Sandoval, 3B
8. Dan Uggla, 2B
9. Rafael Furcal, SS
Starting pitcher: RH Matt Cain (9-3, 2.62 ERA)
AMERICAN LEAGUE (38-42-2)
1. Derek Jeter, SS
2. Robinson Cano, 2B
3. Josh Hamilton, LF
4. Jose Bautista, RF
5. Prince Fielder, 1B
6. Adrian Beltre, 3B
7. David Ortiz, DH
8. Mike Napoli, C
9. Curtis Granderson, CF
Starting pitcher: RH Justin Verlander (9-5, 2.58 ERA)
Kauffman Stadium. First pitch: 7 p.m. TV: Fox (Ch. 9).
Follow along on Twitter: @JoeCStrib
Facing baseball's stars of tomorrow, Twins prospect proves he belongs
Posted by: Joe Christensen Updated: July 8, 2012 - 9:55 PMKANSAS CITY, MO. -- Twins outfield prospect Oswaldo Arcia faced two of the biggest-name pitchers in minor-league baseball during Sunday’s All-Star Futures Game and didn’t look the least bit overmatched.
Arcia, a Venezuela a native who made the jump from Class A to Class AA last month, lined an RBI double down the right-field line in his first at-bat against Jameson Taillon, the righthander Pittsburgh selected with the No. 2 overall selection in the 2010 draft.
In his second at-bat, Arcia faced Zack Wheeler -- the pitcher the Mets received from the Giants in last year’s Carlos Beltran trade -- and grounded to third base. Tallion’s first pitch to Arcia was clocked at 98-miles per hour. The pitch he put in play against Wheeler was clocked at 97-mph.
Baseball America ranked Tallion as the sport’s 15th best prospect entering the season, with Wheeler at No. 35.
“Every pitcher is good, every pitcher throws hard,” Arcia said of the talent in the Futures Game. His World Team took a 17-5 loss against the U.S. Team before a big crowd at Kauffman Stadium, but it didn’t seem to spoil his experience.
Arcia, 21, who entered the game in the fifth inning, also made some good catches in right field and showed off a strong right arm. He had an elbow injury last season, but you wouldn’t have known it watching his throws Sunday.
A strong lefthanded hitter who is listed at 6-foot, 210 pounds, Arcia has batted .303 with eight homers, 20 doubles, four triples and 45 RBI in 73 combined games this year between Class A and Class AA. He has a .369 on-base percentage and .491 slugging percentage.
He said his English still needs work, but he politely handled a few interviews Sunday. Asked how it felt to be a part of the annual Futures Game, he said, “Wow, I’m happy.”
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