Closers, We Don’t Need No Stinking…Oh Wait

The Twins got dealt pretty devastating news today with reports that closer Joe Nathan . For a Twins staff that ranked eleventh in the American League in ERA in 2009 (it’s lowest overall ranking since the 90s) and facing a move into a potentially more home run friendly ball park, this is bad.

It’s not season over, but in terms of injuries the only one that could hurt the Twins’ chances more would be Joe Mauer going down. If Morneau went down, the simple answer is Cuddyer at first base, Kubel in right field and Thome at DH.  If Scott Baker went down it would suck as he is the team’s ace right now. But while Brian Duensing isn’t a world beater, Baker isn’t Johan Santana incarnate himself and Duensing wouldn’t be fighting for a spot in the rotation for most teams, he’d be a lock for a spot going in. There’s a gap between the two, but it’s not as huge as it could be.

With Nathan out, odds are you’re looking at Jon Rauch/Matt Guerrier as your closer, neither of whom are your prototypical closers. Guerrier would probably be my choice of the two, because while Rauch has a better fastball Guerrier has the pitches not to struggle with left-handed hitters.  Jesse Crain and Jose Mijares have better fastballs than even Rauch, but struggle even more hitters from the opposite hand.  Ditto Pat Neshek, and that’s if you forget the fact that his best pitch (the slider) is usually the last thing to come back after a year-long lay off.

In the minor league, Anthony Slama has gotten a lot of play for his K/9 rate, but left-handed hitters in the high minors have owned him, which dictates that he would need another pitch (curveball? changeup? split fingered fastball?) Rob Delaney has been good, but his best case profile is more Guerrier than Nathan. Outside of perhaps 2009 draft picks Billy Bullock and Ben Tootle who are too green to consider yet, you have a collection of stuff guys who lack elite stuff and command guys who lack elite command.

The one possible ray of light as a long-term closer in the system is in theory closing would mean Francsico Liriano could throw closer to 95 than the 92 he averages while starting, letting his stuff play up a little more and creating a bit more separation between his change-up, slider and fastball. The paradox in this is for this to happen, he’d have to fail once again as a starter, and that would leave the rotation without someone who has the potential to be a more traditional ace than Scott Baker.

Pitching was the elephant in the room coming into the 2010 season, With Nathan going down, it’s simply stamping its hooves a little harder.

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Posted by jewscott on 03/09 at 01:01 PM
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Picture of the Week!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tragedy always comes in threes.

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Posted by Klobs on 03/01 at 11:15 PM
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Picture of the Week!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Twins manager notes that the sun is “really battling its gaseous core off.”

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Posted by Klobs on 02/26 at 03:55 PM
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Breaking News! Twins Sign Orlando Hudson Last Week.

According to BYTO’s sources, second baseman Orlando Hudson was signed by the Minnesota Twins sometime in the last few days. Hudson is expected to allow the Twins to play Nick Punto at a variety of positions, including designated hitter, catcher, and third base.

Hudson has spent parts of eight seasons with the Blue Jays, Diamondbacks, and Dodgers, collecting four meaningless Gold Glove awards, and two All-Star appearances. Refreshingly, Hudson should actually help the Twins win baseball games in 2010.

In other news, the Twins have signed Jacque Jones to a minor league contract. Jones spent last season in the independent Atlantic League, posting a .311/.339/.504 line. In 2008, Jones batted .147 in 134 plate appearances with Detroit and Florida in 2008.

Be sure to check out our BYTO forums for more discussion and information.

Posted by Klobs on 02/09 at 03:06 PM
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Twins bring in Jim Thome to Clog Bases, Sock a Few Dingers

According to the Star Tribune, the Twins have signed left-handed future Hall of Fame designated hitter Jim Thome, who hit a respectable .249/.366/.481 last season with Chicago and Los Angeles. According to the Star Tribune’s Joe Christensen:

“The Twins have agreed to a one-year, $1.5 million deal with slugger Jim Thome, a person familiar with the negotiations said today, adding that the deal includes up to $700,000 in incentives.”

Thome is an old man, with nineteen seasons in the league, and should move Delmon Young to the bench against right-handed pitchers.

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Posted by Klobs on 01/26 at 05:20 PM
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Trade Analysis: Twins Trade Carlos Gomez for J.J. Hardy

Wow. Somebody must have put some serious caffeine in Bill Smith’s cup. Where in recent years, the Twins would seemingly wait around for months to make their first off season move, Bill Smith struck quickly sending center fielder and Johan Santana trade centerpiece Carlos Gomez to the Brewers for former All-Star shortstop J.J. Hardy.

Shortstop was a position that had been a major hole for the Twins since they sent Jason Bartlett to Tampa Bay as part of the Matt Garza for Delmon Young swap. Hardy, if he plays to form, has the ability to be the Twins best shortstop since Roy Smalley manned the position in the ‘70s. At the plate, Hardy game revolves around his power, hitting 24 and 26 homeruns in 2007 and 2008. He’s also coming off a major slump year where his batting average and power took a major hit. Hardy has a good reputation with the glove, though it’s more in a Jay Bell kind of way than an Ozzie Smith sort of way. He doesn’t have the great range most scouts want in a shortstop, but he positions himself well, has a great arm and doesn’t make errors. He won’t become a free agent until after the 2011 season, so if Hardy bounces back he won’t be a short-term rental.

Giving up Gomez is interesting, because Gomez is the Twins best defensive centerfielder. The problem is without improvement his bat makes him a fifth outfielder right now. Gomez has all the tools, and if he learns how to use them he could be something and grow up to be a Devo White or Torii Hunter type of centerfielder. But Denard Span can play centerfield in the short run and the Twins’ two best prospects—Ben Revere and Aaron Hicks—are centerfielders where the Twins best shortstop prospect is an open-ended debate question and not likely to be ranked in the top twenty.

The free agent market for shortstops was grim, filled with a bunch of thirty-somethings who either had a good glove or an ok bat, but never both of the two. Hardy’s biggest strength is that he just turned 27 and could be the Twins solution at shortstop for years to come. Or, he could continue to play like he did last season. Still, it was a risk worth taking for the Twins, and Bill Smith has to be commended for going out and pulling the trigger quickly.

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Posted by jewscott on 11/06 at 12:13 PM
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Twins send Carlos Gomez to Milwaukee for James Jerry Hardy

According to multiple news outlets, the Minnesota Twins have acquired shortstop J.J. Hardy from the Milwaukee Brewers for Carlos Gomez. There is no truth to the rumor that Kevin McHale infiltrated the Twins front office and managed to include a future first round draft pick in the deal, however.

Hardy struggled last season after strong showings in 2007 and 2008. His .229/.302/.357 line resulted in a demotion to Triple A Nashville.

Gomez, the centerpiece of the Johan Santana trade, doesn’t really know how to play baseball, but is really fast and has a strong handshake, which once caused manager Ron Gardenhire to “bow down.”

Minor league pitchers Philip Humber and Deolis Guerra are the remaining players acquired for Santana, as pitcher Kevin Mulvey was sent to Arizona to complete the Jon Rauch trade.

The move also indicates that shortstop Orlando Cabrera, acquired at the trade deadline for minor leaguer Tyler Ladendorf, will not be returning to the Twins.

Discuss this deal on BYTO!

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Posted by Klobs on 11/06 at 11:46 AM
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BYTO’s Top Acquisition of 2009!

It’s difficult to single out the Twins’ best acquisition, mostly because none of the new Twins had a performance to separate themselves from the rest, aside, perhaps, from Jon Rauch.

As we’ve come to expect, the Twins’ offseason moves paid few dividends, as Joe Crede’s inability to hit baseballs and/or stay healthy, and Luis Ayala’s general terribleness helped keep the team chasing .500 for most of the season. The Twins four main in-season pickups, Orlando Cabrera, Ron Mahay,  Jon Rauch, and Carl Pavano each had a hand in the Twins run to the playoffs. Take away the contributions of any of them, and you’re looking at a 162 game season, and second or third place. Looking at most of their performances independently, that these four guys made such a difference is a tough pill to swallow, but in context, it’s a little easier.

Orlando Cabrera, while horribly misplaced in the second spot in the batting order, provided usable offensive numbers for a shortstop, and was not as damaging as the rest of the guys Gardy chose to “handle the bat,” i.e. “make outs,” in front of Joe Mauer. Defensively, Cabrera didn’t impress, but I’m sure that his positioning was top-notch.

Ron Mahay only pitched 10.2 innings with the Twins, including the playoffs, and did his job with little notice. He also sated Gardy’s need to have multiple southpaws in the bullpen, so he can do what good managers do to win ballgames.

Jon Rauch was able to use his incredible height, and resulting intimidating mound presence to get a few key outs, and become the Twins most reliable reliever down the stretch, taking some of the load from the most used reliever in baseball.

Finally, we come to Carl Pavano. Pavano’s numbers certainly won’t jump out at you, unless you are a connoisseur of nondescript starting pitching (and, as a Twins’ fan, you may just be). The real value of Pavano, ironically, was his ability to actually pitch, as the rest of the Twins rotation crumbled through injury and ineffectiveness. Does that make Pavano’s acquisition better than that of Jon Rauch? Well, that’s for you to decide, and you have. Congratulations to Carl Pavano, BYTO’s Top Acquisition of 2009! Yay!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Posted by Klobs on 11/05 at 10:54 AM
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BYTO’s Top Defensive Plays of 2009!

In our second installment of BYTO’s Twins Greatest Hits, 2009 edition, we present the top ten defensive plays of the season, as voted on by BYTO members. Sadly, these plays wouldn’t be the breakthrough on your Twingo card you were hoping for.

10. Alexi Casilla Takes One Away from Billy Butler.
August 22 vs. Kansas City

4-3.

 

 

 

9. Denard Span Finds a Seat in the Bullpen.
August 24 vs. Baltimore

FO7.

 

 

 

8. Delmon Young Takes One Away from Carlos Gomez.
June 19 vs. Houston

F7.

 

 

 

7. Michael Cuddyer Goes Cheek Deep in the Baggie.
July 10 vs. Chicago

F9.

 

 

 

6. Carlos Gomez Brings Back a Grand Slam.
July 7 vs. New York

F8.

 

 

 

5. Brendan Harris Snags a Shot at the “Hot Corner.”
October 9 vs. New York

L5.

 

 

 

4. Nick Punto Tries to Break His Collarbone, Again.
October 7 vs. New York

4-3.

 

 

 

3. Denard Span saves Joe Nathan.
October 3 vs. Kansas City

F9.

 

 

 

1 (tie).  Alexi Casilla’s Ridiculous Flip to Second Base.
August 26 vs. Baltimore

4-6.

 

 

 

1 (tie). Joe Mauer Tags Out Brett Gardner at Home.
May 17 vs. New York

1-2.

 

 

 

 

 

Be sure to check out our BYTO forums for more discussion and information.

Posted by Klobs on 11/02 at 05:29 PM
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BYTO’s Top Offensive Plays of 2009!

Recently, the fans at BYTO voted for the top offensive plays of the Twins’ 2009 season. In a season full of great moments and amazing plays, it was surprisingly easy to whittle the list down to ten, but we did it! Here’s the results of that voting!

 

10. Justin Morneau's Grand Slam.
May 24 vs. Milwaukee


Nothing more to see here than a huge shot to right field to open up this game against the Brewers.








9. Joe Mauer's Mammoth Upper Deck Shot.
May 24 vs. Milwaukee


Mauer takes a brief hiatus from his pansy opposite field home runs to hit one in real man's land.







8. Joe Mauer's RBI Single off Zach Greinke.
October 3 vs. Kansas City


Mauer takes the late season showdown between the presumptive MVP and Cy Young winners and plates the first run of the game for the Twins.








7. Michael Cuddyer's Triple to Finish off the Cycle.
May 22 vs. Milwaukee


Cuddy becomes the third Twin in two seasons to happen to hit for a single, a double, a triple, and a home run in the same game after ripping a pitch into the Dome's left field corner.








6. Joe Crede's Walk-off Grand Slam.
May 14 vs. Detroit


Apparently Tiger fans feel Joe Crede treats them unfairly, and this walk of grand slam might be exhibit A.








5. Orlando Cabrera's Go Ahead Homer in Game 163.
October 6 vs. Detroit


Orlando Cabrera scrapes the wall to put the Twins ahead 2-1 in the seventh. Some think that this ball should have been caught, but they don't realize that Cabrera is a veteran winner, and knows how to handle the bat.








4. Joe Mauer's First at Bat Home Run.
May 1 vs. Kansas City


Joey's amazing season starts out with something that would become all too familiar, a home run just over the wall in left field.








3. Michael Cuddyer's Go ahead Shot in Game 161.
October 3 vs. Kansas City


After blowing the lead assembled against Greinke by Mauer and Young, Cuddyer continues to carry the team with this big solo homer putting the team back in front.








2. Alexi Casilla's Game 163 Winning Single.
October 6 vs. Detroit


Casilla's poor tag at third a few innings earlier had him set up to be the villian, but his single through the right side to put the Twins in the playoffs ended any thought of that.








1. Jason Kubel's Go Ahead Grand Slam to Complete the Cycle.
April 17 vs. California


What's to say? Jason Kubel announced his presence with authority by capping off an improbable cycle with this grand slam to give the Twins a two run lead.







Stay tuned for the Twins' top defensive plays of the 2009 season, as voted by the fans at BYTO!

Be sure to check out our BYTO forums for more discussion and information.

Posted by Klobs on 10/30 at 11:29 AM
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The RBI Baseball School of Post Season Pitching Management

Here’s a token blog to piss off someone off and maybe explain a little bit why pitching needs to be a lot higher on the Twins offseason shopping list. In the arguments of why playoff baseball is won from the top of your rotation down, the following question was asked to me after I pointed out that the team that has led the American League in ERA during postseason play has been the league’s World Series representative.

Q: How many of those teams led the American League in ERA in the regular season play.

The answer is what he wanted to hear, but not for the reason he wants to hear. It doesn’t matter. The Yankees are the prime example of this. Currently, the Yankees led the AL in postseason ERA, and are one win away from being the AL representative in the World Series. Their team ERA of 1.91 is also significantly lower than their 4.26 ERA in the Regular Season. Is this proof that baseball’s playoffs is a crap shoot? Possibly. But then again, take a look at how the Yankees are using their pitchers in the postseason.

Three pitchers are getting the lion’s share of innings pitched—C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettite. To illustrate, here’s a chart showing how much more usage these three are getting:
Percentage of Innings Pitched by Sabathia, Burnett and Pettite
Regular Season: 44.3%
Post Season:  67.5%

Percentage of Starts Made by Sabathia, Burnett and Pettite
Regular Season: 61.1%
Post Season: 100%

Add one more pitcher to the list, and the point becomes even clearer:
Percentage of innings pitched by Sabathia, Burnett, Pettite and Mariano Rivera
Regular Season: 48.8%
Post Season: 79.8%

Throw in eight inning man Phil Hughes, and you take the percentage of innings thrown by the Yankees better pitchers to just a hair below 85%. If you just take Sabathia into account, the Yankees best starter, he’s gone from pitching roughly 16% of the Yankees regular season innings to pitching 32% of their post season innings so far. That will probably drop to 28.2% Thursday night barring extra innings. But if the Yankees win, it also sets Sabathia up to increase that percentage by a hefty margin when they skip Pettite and have him start Game 1 of the World Series.

This tactic isn’t as uncommon as one would think. The 1987 Twins gave the lion’s share of innings to five pitchers –Frank Viola, Bert Blyleven, Les Straker, Juan Berenger and Jeff Reardon. The team ranked 10th in the AL in ERA during the regular season, but the pitching was fine in the Playoffs simply because it didn’t have to throw the ghost of Joe Niekro or Steve Carlton during those games.

Are the playoffs a crapshoot? Sure, to an extent. But they’re a crapshoot where loaded dice are encouraged. A solid rotation 1 through 5 is a good thing in the regular season. It’s going to be at a serious disadvantage to a better 1 through 3 in the playoffs though, for the simple reason that who your #4 and #5 starter may be is kind of irrelevant. Who your number 1 starter is far more relevant, since he’s going to get far more innings than in the playoffs than anyone else, and be counted on to win a game 7 and keep your team alive if it comes to that.

Yes, the Twins have holes in the offense. Ignoring the hole at the top of the rotation though that’s been there ever since Santana left, however, could turn out to be way more disastorous if the goal is to put together a team that can win in the postseason.

Be sure to check out our BYTO forums for more discussion and information.

Posted by jewscott on 10/21 at 10:04 AM
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Twins v. Tigers—One Game For All the Money

In the words of the immortal saint MC Hammer, we’ve got to pray just to make it today.

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Posted by jewscott on 10/06 at 09:23 AM
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A bullpen rant

I know, you have probably heard it before on numerous websites, blogs, etc. It may seem like beating a dead horse, but if the Twins are going to continue with the same recipe that has landed them in 3rd place and given them their current 53-54 record, then it needs to be discussed.

What has to happen for the Twins and their ‘leader’ Bill Smith to make a change in their bullpen? Are they actually still fooled by the early success that guys like R.A. Dickey and Bobby Keppel had in their respective seasons?

Both Dickey and Keppel had excellent months of June - they posted ERA’s of 0.66 and 0.00 respectively ignoring the fact that Keppel threw just 6.1 innings in June. However, since their ‘honeymoon’ with the Twins, both Dickey and Keppel have been awful; absolutely awful.

In July, Dickey and Keppel posted ERA’s of 7.94 and 6.75 respectively and have followed that up by posting ERA’s of 8.10 and 7.36 respectively during the early portion of August. Sometimes when you dig beyond the ERA statistic, you find that a pitcher has been on the receiving end of some poor luck. However, don’t even both digging into Dickey and Keppel - because the ERA tells you everything you need to know.

Just unbelievable. Again, how are these guys holding their jobs? If you were that bad at your daily job, would you still hold your position? I know there are other factors involved when it comes to professional sports, but that is no excuse.

If not for dominant seasons from Joe Nathan and Matt Guerrier along with a very good season from Jose Mijares, the numbers regarding the Twins bullpen would look much, much worse. However, for some reason both Dickey and Keppel continue to hold their jobs in the Twins bullpen - stronger than one would expect actually.

Get this - in a 4-1 ballgame in which the Twins trailed the Indians last night, Manager Ron Gardenhire opted to bring in Dickey. Why? Well, he was not going to use someone like Mijares or Guerrier that early in the game and the Twins really have no other options beyond those guys. Don’t you view that as an issue?

I do - but I guess Bill Smith, Gardenhire, and rest of the decision makers do not.

I asked this on my Twitter last night, but would Anthony Slama (currently at AA) and Rob Delaney (currently at AAA) really be ANY worse than what Dickey and Keppel are giving the Twins? I mean, honestly? Could they not post the same terrible BB rates? Or K rates? Or current lack of success?

Even if those two were to struggle as often as Dickey and Keppel, which I would not see happening, would you not rather go to war with the guys who are going to be here beyond this year? Rather than two guys that should find themselves no where near the mound on what is considered a postseason ‘contender?’

If you were to ask the Twins why Slama and Delaney continue to sit in the minors, they would most likely feed you the same Twins bullshit about them needing to work on their leadership, their makeup, or that they don’t provide enough ‘veteran presence.’

Well, that is what is wrong with this organization. That is what has been wrong with this organization, and that is the main thought process and mentality that has landed the Twins in their current spot of 3rd place behind both the Tigers and White Sox.

It is just unfortunate that that mentality is not going to change quick enough for it to have an affect on this baseball team that seemingly has a ‘chance.’ It is just too bad the front office has failed to give this team that ‘chance.’

As for Francisco Liriano - ugh. Don’t get me started.

(This blog was originally posted at my new Twins blog, http://andwewillseeyoutomorrownight.blogspot.com/)

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Posted by statfreak101 on 08/06 at 02:19 PM
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Community Twins Player Rankings: #8 Jim Kaat, #9 Brad Radke

Brad Radke was the Jim Kaat of this decade for the Twins. Jim Kaat was the Brad Radke of the 1960s. Both of them had a tinge of Rodney Dangerfield to them as well.

When I was 10 or so, I introduced my dad, who spent the 1965 season working as an usher at Met Stadium as a high school student, to the latest craze at the time—a little video game called Baseball Stars. My dad generally hated video games, but he took a liking to this one and the little feature that allowed you to create your own team. He set out to build the Twins team from his youth complete with Rod Carew at second, Killebrew at third and Oliva in right. The game allowed for five pitchers. His five were Camilo Pascual, Dean Chance, Mudcat Grant, Dave Boswell and Al Worthington to close things out. Given what I knew about baseball came from the back of baseball cards, I asked him about Jin Kaat. He explained that Kaat was a good pitcher, but when those other guys took the mound, you always felt something special could happen.

In certain ways, he was right. Kaat spent 13 years in Minnesota and his name is all over the team record book for career stats. But he was never really the best pitcher on his staff, outside of 1966 when he would have won a Cy Young Award had it existed for both leagues at his time (granted, his ERA+ that year was a very good but not outstanding 131, Kaat’s highwater point for his career). From the time the Twins landed in Minnesota to 1964, the rotation was fronted by Camilo Pascual—a big Cuban with a blazing fastball and a knee-buckling curve. Pascual led the AL in strikeouts from 1961 to 1963 and finished runner up in 1964. Then his arm went out in 1965, and he was fairly mediocre for the rest of his career. Mudcat Grant stepped in with a big 1965, and then Kaat had his big year in 1966. But then a trade brought in Dean Chance, with his Hideo Nomo-esq delivery and live arm. Chance stepped into the ace position, and another youngster, Dave Boswell blossomed as well. Chance fronted the rotation the rotation in 1967 and 68. After he blew out his arm in 1969, Boswell stepped up and led the way. Boswell started having arm troubles in 1970, but fortunately the Twins had a 19-year-old kid down on the farm named Bert Blyleven to step into his place.

My dad was less complimentary toward Radke, calling him a junkballer throughout his career—an assessment that may not be fair. But Radke always had the same demons that Kaat had. When he came up in 1995, he was far from the most likely to lead the rotation for the next decade. That crown was worn by Frankie Rodriguez, with his big fastball and big bending slider. But after all the hard throwers flamed out, there was Radke winning 20 games in 1997 on a team that rivaled the worst Twins teams more than the best ones. Radke would continue to pitch well for the next decade, though his standing often waivered. Eric Milton replaced Radke as the Twins pitcher most likely to shut the opposition down in 1999. But he could never really stay healthy. Joe Mays then rode a power sinker to a big year in 2001, but arm troubles dinged him too. In 2003, finally a legitimate contender rose to take Radke’s place at the top of the rotation in Johan Santana . Then in 2006, Francisco Liriano pushed Radke back even further in the rotation, then Boof Bonser stepped into Liriano’s place after Liriano’s elbow blew out. Meanwhile, Brad Radke was busy pitching through a torn labrum, an injury that usually proves to be a death knell for pitchers. And while he was doing it, he was pretty much the same Brad Radke he had always been.

Though it doesn’t look it, the art of throwing a baseball is way more violent an act than a linebacker hurtling himself into a running back at 20 miles an hour. The human body just wasn’t made to stand up to the kind of motion it takes to do that. Jim Kaat and Brad Radke greatest strengths in many ways may have been that they didn’t have that ability. Both made up for it with smarts. Both pitchers were always near the league leaderboard in terms of fewest walks allowed. And while there were times when the opposing team would figure them out, they were very good for a long time. And there’s something to be said for that. The formula for winning a World Series may call for a fierce, hard throwing Jack Morris type. But having a Kevin Tapani behind him surely is nothing to sneeze at.

Twins’ Top Players Community Ranking Project results:
1.Harmon Killebrew
2. Kirby Puckett
3. Rod Carew
4. Tony Oliva
5. Kent Hrbek
6. Bert Blyleven
7. Johan Santana
8. Jim Kaat
9. Brad Radke

Be sure to check out our BYTO forums for more discussion and information.

Posted by jewscott on 08/06 at 11:26 AM
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Community Twins Player Rankings: #7 Johan Santana

On February 2, 2008, the Twins parted ways with two-time Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana, sending him to the New York Mets for Carlos Gomez, Deolis Guerra, Kevin Mulvey and Philip Humber. Will this trade go down as the worst in Twins history? Probably not. In fact, with the way the Matt Garza/Jason Bartlett for Delmon Young trade is going down.

There’s not a lot that really needs to be said about Santana’s Twins legacy at this point. So here’s a look at the worst trades the Twins made by decade:

1960s:

Worst Trade:

December 10, 1969: The Minnesota Twins trade Graig Nettles, Dean Chance, Bob Miller and Ted Uhlaender to the Cleveland Indians for Luis Tiant and Stan Williams.

Luis Tiant was two years removed from an ERA title in Cleveland, and was suppose to help make the Twins rotation nearly invincible as they looked to get past the Baltimore Orioles. Tiant started strong, with the Twins winning the first ten games Tiant started (with Tiant posting a 6-0 record) before he succumbed to injury. Tiant would later injury his elbow and it was feared he would never recover. The Twins released him before the 1971 season.

Of the four players traded by the Twins, only one had his best days ahead. Unfortunately, Nettles went on to be one of the better third baseman of the 70s and early 80s. He was widely considered one of the best gloves at third base in the decade and he hit with surprising pop. Bill James once argued that Nettles was the best position player in baseball ever to have a last name starting with “N.”

To add salt to the wound, Tiant was picked up by the Red Sox after the Twins released him. He struggled in 1971, but then found his past form and fronted the Red Sox rotation for the first half of the decade, helping lead the Sox to the World Series in 1975.

Runner Up

The 1960s were the golden era for Twins baseball, and as one would expect most of the moves the team made worked in their favor. The possible exception was a three-team trade in June, 1964 that sent Lenny Green to the Angels and Jerry Kindall to the Twins—if only because the 1965 Twins might have been better served with Green at second than Kindall in 1965. But that’s grasping at straws.

1970s
Worst Trade:

December 4, 1978: The Minnesota Twins trade “Disco” Dan Ford to the California Angels for Danny Goodwin and Ron Jackson.

The 1970s Twins were renown for trading off its talent when it got expensive, but surprisingly none of their big trades ever really netted them a big goose egg. Bert Blyleven went on to have some great seasons after leaving Minnesota, but Roy Smalley turned out to be one of (if not the) best shortstops in franchise history. Rod Carew had some great years after leaving Minnesota. But Kenny Landreux was fairly decent in return until he got too expensive and was shipped off to the Dodgers and Dave Engle who was (albeit one of the worst ever) an All Star. “Disco” Dan Ford never quite reached the heights that either of those players did, but he did earn MVP votes when he reunited with Carew to lead the Angels into contention. In return the Twins got Goodwin, who is notable for being one of (if not the) worst overall number 1 picks of all-time (twice, even) and Jackson, whose hitting and approach would have had late 70s Twins fans jealous of Scott Stahoviak had they glimpsed into a crystal ball and seen the future.

Runner Up:

The Twins traded catcher Rick Dempsey for Danny Walton in 1972. Walton had showed promise, but never really hit again. Dempsey was never great, but he carved out a nifty little career for nearly two decades, winning a ring with Baltimore in 1983.

1980s

Worst Trade:

December 4, 1988: The Minnesota Twins traded Mark Portugal to the Houston Astros for Todd McClure.

Mark Portugal always had great stuff. On September 21, 1986, he pitched his best game for the Twins, striking out 13 in a start against Texas (taking the hard-luck 2-1 loss while pitching a complete game). The problem was he could never seem to be healthy. His health improved when he went to Houston, though he still missed quite a few games. But he was an above-average starter for a couple of years, with his best season coming in 1993 when he went 18-4 with a 2.77 ERA. The Twins still have an ABP out on the whereabouts of Todd McClure.

Runner up:

There are a few contenders here, but the Tim Teufel and Pat Crosby for Billy Beane, Joe Klink and Bill Latham deal in 1985 begs the poetic question if Beane goes into the Hall of Fame, will he wear a Twins cap?

1990s

Worst Trade

July 7, 1995: The Minnesota Twins trade Scott Erickson to the Baltimore Orioles for Scott Klingenbeck and a player to be named later. The Baltimore Orioles sent Kimera Bartee (September 19, 1995) to the Minnesota Twins to complete the trade.

Erickson was supposedly on his last legs when the Twins dealt him off to Baltimore. But Erickson, the consummate ground baller, adjusted well when he got away from the fast Metrodome turf. He improved enough to be a decent option at the end of the Orioles rotation, helping get the Orioles to the playoffs the first three years he pitched there. If Klingenbeck isn’t a code name among Twins scouts for a pitcher to avoid, it really should be.

Runner Up:

Paul Sorrento never got a chance to show what he could do at first base because Kent Hrbek was winding down his career at the position. The Twins traded him to Cleveland before the 1992 season, and he worked out pretty well in a Ryan Garko sort of way. The prize of the deal, Curt Leskanic, had a decent career as well, albeit after he went to the Rockies in the expansion draft following the season.

2000s

Worst Trade (so far):

July 15, 2000: The Minnesota Twins traded Todd Walker and Butch Huskey to the Colorado Rockies for Todd Sears and cash.
Yes. Walker was never going to play second base for the Twins again after his feud with Tom Kelly. But how nice would it have been to have him at second base in 2003 instead of Luis Rivas?

One, if not both, of the 2008 trades likely surpasses this one as the worst of the decade. Which one it is depends on whether or not its Carlos Gomez, Delmon Young or none of the above who lives up to his “potential.”

● To not completely slight Santana’s talents, the best five individual seasons by Twins pitchers (IMO):

Johan Santana, 2004
Johan Santana, 2006
Johan Santana, 2005
Frank Viola, 1988
Bert Blyleven, 1973

Santana’s 2007 season ranks in the top 10, easily as well. Not bad for a guy who really only had four full years as a starter in a Twins uniform

Twins’ Top Players Community Ranking Project results:
1.Harmon Killebrew
2. Kirby Puckett
3. Rod Carew
4. Tony Oliva
5. Kent Hrbek
6. Bert Blyleven
7. Johan Santana

Be sure to check out our BYTO forums for more discussion and information.

Posted by jewscott on 08/05 at 04:53 PM
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