Hot Stove 1988 Preview

The Twins returned from the franchise’s first World Series victory in more than 60 years without tinkering much with the roster. Here are the depth charts going into the opening series in New York (stats from 1987), * = new to the team.

C
Tom Nieto .200/.276/.314 1 HR
Tim Laudner .191/.252/.389 16 HR
*Dwight Lowry .200/.200/.280 0 HR (w/DET)

1B
Kent Hrbek .285/.389/.545 34 HR
Gene Larkin .266/.340/.382 4 HR
Randy Bush .253/.349/.413 11 HR

2B
Steve Lombardozzi .238/.298/.352 8 HR
Al Newman .221/.298/.303 0 HR

SS
Greg Gagne .265/.310/.430 10 HR
Newman

3B
Gary Gaetti .257/.303/.485 31 HR
Newman

LF
Dan Gladden .249/.312/.361 8 HR
Mark Davidson .267/.321/.327 1 HR

CF
Kirby Puckett .332/.367/.534 28 HR
Davidson

RF
Tom Brunansky .259/.352/.489 32 HR
Bush

SP
Frank Viola 17-10 2.90 ERA 1.18 WHIP
Bert Blyleven 15-12 4.01 ERA 1.31 WHIP
Les Straker 8-10 4.37 ERA 1.35 WHIP
*Charlie Lea 0-1 36.00 ERA 6.00 WHIP (w/MON)
Joe Niekro 7-13 5.33 ERA 1.49 WHIP (w/NYY & MIN)
Steve Carlton 6-14 5.74 ERA 1.65 WHIP (w/CLE & MIN)

CL
Jeff Reardon 8-8 4.48 ERA 1.22 WHIP

RP
Juan Berenguer 8-1 3.94 ERA 1.31 WHIP
Keith Atherton 7-5 4.54 ERA 1.40 WHIP
*Tippy Martinez (DNP)

Manager Tom Kelly is keeping things pretty consistent. Mark Vancil summarized the changed in a paragraph in the Star Tribune.

The Twins will open 1988 as they opened 1987, with Tom Nieto having won the starting catcher’s job from Tim Laudner, and with designated hitter a community-service spot. With the right-handed Rhoden on the mound, Kelly will start Randy Bush at DH with either Gene Larkin or one of three outfielders getting the call tomorrow against lefthander John Candelaria. Last season, against Oakland lefty Curt Young, Mark Davidson started in left with Dan Gladden at DH. And that’s the only difference in the Twins’ first title defense.

The new faces on the team were characterized by being low-risk gambles. The Twins were most hopeful that Charlie Lea will help them sure up their Viola and Blyleven and pray-for-rain rotation. Lea was a very strong pitcher for Montreal in the early 1980’s, but has pitched only one inning since 1984 due to arm problems. Kelly and the Twins hope that Lea will return to form while second-year man Les Straker improves on his rookie season, giving the Twins a deeper rotation than the year before. Andy MacPhail addressed the rotation in a Q & A with Mark Vancil.

Q/ You have stockpiled a number of pitchers - Mike Mason, Fred Toliver, Karl Best, Allan Anderson, Mark Portugal, Jeff Bumgarner, Jim Davins, Roy Smith, Jamie Easterly and Jim Winn - at Class AAA Portland. Have you provided yourself with a safety net in case Lea, Niekro, Carlton or Martinez fail?

A/ Between Winn, Mason, Anderson, Portugal and some of the young arms like Davins, we feel like we’re going to be able to pick from some good young arms if we get into trouble. We have more to choose from as far as available pitching than we did last year. Last year when we ran into trouble we had to look outside for help. This year I think we’re going to have more to choose from within our system.

For the second straight season, Tom Nieto beat Tim Laudner out in spring training to be the team’s every day catcher, but Kelly is still not happy with the catching situation, and may give 30-year-old Dwight Lowry a look early in the season.

Word was that Steve Lombardozzi was close to losing his job at second base because of a “lack luster” spring, but Kelly gave him the benefit of the doubt, probably based on his World Series success the previous fall. If Lombardozzi hadn’t gotten the job, it may have been Chris Pittaro starting at second base. As with catcher, Kelly still does not seem settled on second base, and it may be an area for upgrade in the middle of the season.

The fear in the Twin Cities, however, was that standing pat the way the Twins did would not be enough. Both Oakland and Kansas City made moves in the off season that make them look a lot better on paper. Dan Barreiro’s headline on April 3 summarizes the mood: “The Twins could be better and not be good enough.”

What a difference a year makes

Then…

Coffeyville Whirlwind, 10/2/2006

Twins Week: Division Champions

Results

9/25 def 8-1
9/26 def 3-2
9/27 lost to 4-6
9/28 def 2-1
9/29 lost to 3-4
9/30 lost to 3-6
10/1 def 5-1

Weekly Totals 4-3 28 RS 21 RA

In the fall of 1987, I was all of nine years old, and so excited about the Twins division title that I wanted my parents to buy me a “Division Champions” sweatshirt. My mother talked me out of it, suggesting that I might regret having a shirt that only said “Division Champions” after the team won the World Series. The next few weeks were rough at school, seeing that just about everybody else had Twins shirts, but I was confident that I would own an even better prize before the month of October was over.

And so it is today, 19 years later. I will not be purchasing any Division Championship merchandise. Nope, I want my son’s onesie to proudly say “World Series Champions”.

It took a little help from the Royals, but the Twins became the only team in history to take sole possession of first place for the first time after the final game of the season.

I will post the final regular season stats and preview the playoffs tomorrow. Today, however, Minnesota celebrates.

Final AL Central Standings
96-66 801 RS 683 RA -
95-67 822 RS 675 RA 1.0 GB
90-72 868 RS 794 RA 6.0 GB
78-84 870 RS 782 RA 18.0 GB
62-100 757 RS 971 RA 34.0 GB

Oh, I almost forgot:

Final MLB Batting Stats
1. Joe Mauer, MIN .347
2. Freddy Sanchez, PIT .344
3. Derek Jeter, NYY .343
4. Robinson Cano, NYY .342

Now…

A sampling of blog headlines from the past week:

Santana to the Dodgers?

Mauer hernia watch

When did Johan Santana become Brad Radke?

Free Agent Marketplace: CF, Part 1

LeCroy to start at catcher for Twins

Hunter’s Home Farewell

GOTW: 9.26.1967

Tuesday September 26, 1967
Metropolitan Stadium
Bloomington, MN

California Angels (81-74) @ Minnesota Twins (90-68)

With less than a week left in the 1967 season, the Twins were tied for first place with the Boston Red Sox, while the Chicago White Sox were 0.5 games back, with the Detroit Tigers also on their heels 1.5 games back. The Twins actually held a slight lead before they lost to the Angels 9-2 the day before.

   California Angels             Minnesota Twins                      
1. A Rodriguez          3B    1. Z Versalles          SS
2. J Fregosi            SS    2. C Tovar              3B
3. R Reichardt          LF    3. H Killebrew          1B
4. B Morton             RF    4. T Oliva              RF
5. D Mincher            1B    5. B Allison            LF
6. W Held               CF    6. R Carew              2B
7. B Knoop              2B    7. T Uhlaender          CF
8. B Rodgers            C     8. J Zimmerman          C
9. J McGlothlin         P     9. J Kaat               P

Jim Kaat took the mound for the Twins. Kaat was just one year removed from his 25-win season, and was having another solid season, coming into the game with a 15-13 record and a 3.11 ERA.

Kaat was perfect through the first two innings, and the Twins offense got on the board in the bottom of the second inning. With one out, Bob Allison tripled off of Jim McGlothlin and later scored when Rod Carew knocked him in with a single.

The Angels answered in the top of the third in what was a nightmare inning for Kaat and the Twins. A lead off single by Bobby Knoop represented the first hit off of Kaat, who walked the next batter, Buck Rodgers. McGlothlin came to the plate batting .132/.179/.151, so the Twins figured to get at least an out before the lineup turned over. Swinging away, the Angels pitcher hit a grounder to the Kaat, who threw to Cesar Tovar at third to get the lead runner. Unfortunately, Tovar dropped the ball and the Angels had the bases loaded with nobody out.

Lead off man Aurelio Rodriguez made Kaat pay for the error by knocking a two-run single to center. Kaat finally got the first out, but loaded the bases again with one out by hitting Rick Reichardt with a pitch. This time it was clean-up man Bubba Morton that made the Twins pay for the mistake, though his infield single only scored one.

In the end, the third inning could have been worse for the Twins. With the bases loaded, Kaat settled down to strike the final two men out, and the Twins escaped only down 3-1. After the third, Kaat settled in, allowing just three more Angels to reach safely the rest of the game.

Bob Allison’s solo home run in the bottom of the fourth cut the lead to a single run, but the Twins remained down until the sixth inning. With Tovar at first and no outs, Harmon Killebrew smacked home run number 42 off of McGlothlin, the shot that gave the Twins the lead for good. A couple of unearned runs later in the inning pushed the home team’s lead to 6-3.

Killebrew hit one more home run in the seventh for good measure, his 43rd (tied for the league lead at the time) that wrapped up the scoring for the game. Kaat completed his 16th win by allowing just five hits and striking out 13 while walking only two Angels. The Twins, with the help of a Red Sox loss, took a one game lead in the American League.

AL      W   L    GB      WP      RS      RA
MIN    91  68     -     .572    663     574
BOS    90  69   1.0     .566    711     601
CHW    89  68   1.0     .567    526     473
DET    89  69   1.5     .563    661     567

Stars of the Game
1. Harmon Killebrew MIN 2-for-4, 2 HR, 3 RBI
2. Jim Kaat MIN W, CG, 2 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 13 K
3. Bob Allison MIN 3-for-3, 3 R

Box

Unfortunately, as it turned out, this was the last victory for the Twins in 1967. They dropped the series finale against California the next day, then were swept in Boston in a two-game series in which they only needed to win one to take the pennant.

The Franchise 1937

1937 Washington Nationals

Manager: Bucky Harris 14th Season (8th with Washington 651-571-15)
73 W 80 L 5 T 757 RS 841 RA 6th AL 28.5 GB (New York 102-52-3)
4.79 RPG (AL = 5.23) 4.58 ERA (AL = 4.62)
.692 DER (4th AL)

All Stars (3) Rick Ferrell, Wes Ferrell, Buddy Myer

Franchise (1901-1937) 2684-2864-85; 8-11 WS

The franchise took another step back in 1937, and had its third losing season in the last four years, and seemed quite a bit more than just four years removed from its last AL Pennant. The team stumbled out of the gate, going just 1-6 in its first seven games, and never really got back on track.

In early July, Washington played a three-game series against the Yankees in the Bronx. The resulting frustration is a great illustration of the Nats’ entire season. The eventual World Series Champions knocked the Senators around in all facets of the game in a 16-2 win in game one. Joe DiMaggio, in his second year, went 5-for-5 against Nats’ pitching at hit for the cycle. In that same game, a benches-clearing brawl erupted, and Joe Kuhel was ejected along with New York’s Jake Powell, who got into it over a week-old issue. The Yankees took game two 12-2, and though Washington was able to make it interesting in the finale, the Yankees won that game as well, 4-3, outscoring the Nats 32-7 over the series.

The Yankee dominance over Washington was nothing new. From 1935-1937, Washington won just 22 out of 66 games between the two teams, a .333 winning percentage.

Yankees aside, the big news was a mid-season trade between the Nats and the Red Sox. There had been rumors for weeks in advance that a trade would go down, and the Sporting News nailed the names about a week before the trade actually happened. Washington sent Bobo Newsom and Ben Chapman, both of whom had worn out their welcome in Washington, to Boston in exchange for a battery of brothers, Wes and Rick Ferrell (the former who was also becoming a headache in Boston) and out fielder Mel Almada.

The deal ended up being one of those that worked out for both teams. Boston got some star power, Washington got a very good catcher to fill a hole, and both teams were able to unload some headaches. It all worked out very well for both teams when a post-trade game featuring the Newsom-Ferrell pitching matchup drew 22,000 to Griffith Stadium for a late June game.

Roster/Stats
Bold = Player new to Washington in 1937

C Rick Ferrell .229/.348/.262 1 HR -1.4 BFW 6 WS 10 FRAR 1.1 WARP3
By the time Rick Ferrell made his way to Washington he was a veteran of eight major league seasons and had already established himself as one of the premier catchers in the game. At 5′10″ 16o lbs, Ferrell was built like a catcher. He grew up on a farm in North Carolina, one of seven brothers, including pitcher Wes, who he caught in Boston with the Red Sox and now in Washington. Rick’s numbers in 1937 were pretty indicative of his career, though he typically carried a higher batting average. Still, it was his OBP that usually stood out, a product of very good plate discipline.

1B Joe Kuhel .283/.357/.400 6 HR -1.4 BFW 14 WS 19 FRAR 4.9 WARP3
On May 13, 1937 in a game at Chicago, Kuhel tied a record with three triples in one game. White Sox management must have taken notice, because after the 1937 season they traded the very popular Zeke Bonura to Washington in exchange for Kuhel.

2B Buddy Myer .293/.407/.384 1 HR -0.2 BFW 15 WS 19 FRAR 5.3 WARP3
Myer rebounded from his stomach ailment the year before to have a solid season in 1937. Still, at the age of 33, his days of playing in 140+ games at second base were over, though he did still appear in 119 games in 1937.

SS Cecil Travis .344/.395/.439 3 HR 1.3 BFW 22 WS 47 FRAR 9.5 WARP3
Somewhat under appreciated (Travis was not among the Senators who appeared in the All Star Game), Travis may have been the team’s MVP in 1937. The 23-year-old enjoyed his best season so far, including a game-winning hit late in the season against Boston that helped to eliminate the Red Sox from contention. All of his defensive numbers indicate that he was among the elite at his position, both with the bat and in the field.

3B Buddy Lewis .314/.367/.425 10 HR -1.0 BFW 20 WS 16 FRAR 5.9 WARP3
After fading a bit down the stretch in 1936, Buddy Lewis was a bit more consistent in his sophomore effort. He led the team in home runs with 10, and total bases with 284. THe highlight of the season for Lewis was an eight hit day, executed during a doubleheader against the Browns on July 25. Though Lewis demonstrated some range at third base, he had trouble handling the ball, and was charged with 29 errors, including four in the same game on August 10.

LF Al Simmons .279/.329/.434 8 HR -0.7 BFW 11 WS 20 FRAR 4.0 WARP3
Simmons, who had been quite a power hitter for the A’s and the White Sox in his prime, was 35 years old when the Senators purchased him for $15,000 in April of 1937 to fill a hole in the outfield. It looked as though Simmons might supply some much-needed power for Washington when he homered in the season opener at Yankee Stadium. Unforunately, Simmons would connect with just seven more home runs in 1937, though he would show flashed of his old self in 1938.

CF Mel Almada .309/.365/.404 4 HR 0.6 BFW 14 WS 19 FRAR 4.6 WARP3
Ben Chapman started the season in center field for Washington, but was traded to Boston in early June. The Mexican-born Almada, who came from the Red Sox in the same trade, was essentially a throw-in, but he ended up with about the same number that would have been expected from Chapman, minus the baggage. After a slow start in 1938, however, Almada was quickly traded to the Browns.

RF John Stone .330/.403/.480 6 HR 2.1 BFW 22 WS 20 FRAR 7.7 WARP3
Stone was, without question, the team’s best hitter in 1937. Though his home run number was low, he led the team in slugging, OPS (.883), doubles (33), and triples (15). History may have been kinder to Stone, who hit .310/.376/.467 for his career, had he played longer. An illness ended Stone’s playing days in 1938, when he was only 32 years old.

SP Wes Ferrell 11-13 3.94 ERA 1.45 WHIP 1.5 PW 13 WS 5.1 WARP3
Though he came to the team late, Ferrell was Washington’s most reliable and successful pitcher in 1937. Ferrell, however, was used to winning more. In eight previous seasons, he had won 20+ games six times, including 25 wins in 1935 and 20 in 1936. Though he pitched reasonably well for Washington in the season and a half that he was there, he didn’t approach those numbers, in part due to a lack of run support, though Ferrell didn’t pitch as well as he had earlier in his career either.

SP Jimmy DeShong 14-15 4.90 ERA 1.57 WHIP -0.8 PW 11 WS 3.7 WARP3
DeShong, who was notoriously wild, set a career mark in that regard in 1937. He walked 124 batters during the season, compared to 86 strikeouts in 264 innings pitched. To his credit, however, he was able to get through the season with just three wild pitches.

SP Monte Weaver 12-9 4.20 ERA 1.42 WHIP 0.6 PW 11 WS 3.7 WARP3
Weaver became a part of the starting rotation for the first time since 1934. He made some changes in the years in between, including dropping his vegetarian diet which was pretty universally blamed for his poor performance over the last several years (though it is reported that he was on the diet during his good seasons as well).

SP Pete Appleton 8-15 4.39 ERA 1.42 WHIP -0.3 PW 7 WS 2.8 WARP3
Though his pitching numbers weren’t particularly strong, Appleton provided his own run support on May 30 when he knocked in six RBI in a 4-for-5 effort against the Red Sox. He RBI total for the season: 7.

RP Syd Cohen 2-4 3.11 ERA 1.47 WHIP 0.6 PW 4 WS 1.5 WARP3
Cohen’s best season was his last, but his numbers indicate that he was one of the better relief pitchers in baseball.

RP Ed Linke 6-1 5.60 ERA 1.69 WHIP -0.7 PW 4 WS 1.1 WARP3
The only thing that Linke seemed to do well in his last season with Washington was eat innings. He appeared in 36 games (7 starts) and pitched 128.7 innings.

1937 World Series
The Yankees made it two in a row over the cross-town Giants with a 4-1 World Series victory. This time, the Yanks did it with pitching, allowing the Giants, who led the NL in home runs that year, just over two runs per game in the series.

A pair of big games for the 1987 Twins

Before we get to the game, I need to note that I attended the first annual SBG convention over the weekend. We managed to have a good time even though the Twins didn’t do their part to make the convention enjoyable. Not much to add to what folks have already posted here and here.

Now, on to fall baseball that was fun in Minnesota. I originally posted these in April as part of the Hot Stove 1987 series.

Sunday September 27, 1987

Twins 8, Royals 1

Three Twins home runs in the first inning and a complete game by Bert Blyleven were instrumental in the victory that clinched the Twins a tie for the AL West crown. Mark Vancil captured it well in his lead to the game story in the Star Tribune:

The crowd. The inning. The pitcher. All three added up to a magic number of one.

The Twins got a charge out of a record 52,924 fans, reduced the season’s biggest game to an inning and rallied behind veteran Bert Blyleven to clinch a tie for the American League Western Division title Sunday with an 8-1 triumph over Kansas City in the Metrodome.

A Royals loss or a Twins victory tonight in Texas would secure the team’s first championship in 17 years.

It is rare in an 8-1 game for both teams to point to a defensive play in the first inning as the keyto victory, but that was the case in the final home game of the regular season.

After Bert Blyleven, on three days rest, walked lead off man Willie Wilson, Kevin Seitzer laced a single to put runners at first and third with nobody out. Just as Tom Kelly was having doubts about his decision to go with Blyleven, Friday’s hero George Brett hit a shot on the ground to Gary Gaetti at third. What followed may be the signature defensive play of the season.

Gaetti tossed to Al Newman to complete the first leg of the 5-6-3 double play that one might expect in this situation. Newman, rather than throwing to first to complete to play, noticed that Wilson hesitated ever so slightly on his way to home. Newman instantly turned and fired a perfect strike to home. Newman described the play as he fought back tears in Vancil’s story:

“That was the biggest play of my major league career,” said Newman, whose throw nailed Wilson at the plate. “I don’t think I’ll ever make a bigger one either, unless it’s in the World Series. That was a key situation. With runners on first and third, no outs and Brett up, you’re thinking, if not three runs, at least one.

“I’ll tell you. Those guys (fans) almost brought a tear to my eye. There were 52,000 standing and cheering. It was awesome.”

The Twins escaped the inning, and put together an enormous first inning of their own to end the game just after it started. Newman started it off with a one-out double. He scored on a Kirby Puckett home run. A Gary Gaetti solo shot and a Kent Hrbek two-run blast completed the five-run inning.

After that, it was all left to Blyleven, who didn’t disappoint, pitching nine innings while allowing only one run. Blyleven remembered the last time he pitched in and won a key September game in Sid Hartman’s column:

“In 1970 (Blyleven’s rookie year) we saw a nine-game lead in the West reduced to three games and I was called on to pitch against the second-place California Angels in Anaheim,” he recalled. “I beat them, we increased our lead to four games, and from that we ran away with the division.”

Following the game, Twins did a curtain call for the fans. Dan Gladden ran along the warning track slapping high fives with the fans and throwing some of his gear as souveneirs.

The Twins wrap up the season on the road, starting Monday in Texas. Any Twins win or Royals loss will clinch the Division. The A’s were eliminated as a result of their fifth straight loss.

—-

Monday September 28, 1987

Twins 5, Rangers 3

Twins Clinch AL West Title

For 24 out of 31 players on the Twins’ roster, the celebration was completely new. Those players had never won at the major league level before Monday’s clincher in Texas.

For six players, the win had to be particularly sweet. Kent Hrbek, Gary Gaetti, Tom Brunansky, Frank Viola, Tim Laudner, and Randy Bush all came up together in 1982. That season, the Twins lost 102 games, the worst record since the franchise moved to Minnesota. Now, six seasons later, they were pouring champagne on each other in the clubhouse at Arlington Stadium.

It didn’t look as though the celebration would happen early. Joe Niekro allowed three runs in the first inning. That Texas lead held until the top of the fourth. With two on and two out, Steve Lombardozzi launched a drive into the left field bleachers. The score remained tied until the eighth.

Once again, Lombardozzi came through with an RBI single to put the Twins ahead. An insurance run scored on a balk, but the Twins focus turned towards finishing the game before the Royals-Mariners game (a game the M’s led throughout) became a final.

At about 10:35 PM, Jeff Reardon coaxed Geno Petralli to hit a liner to Lombardozzi at second; Lombo relayed to Hrbek for the double play, and the celebration began.

The night’s hero summed it up to Mark Vancil in the Star Tribune:

“We wanted to get it over before they flashed a final on the Kansas City game,” Lombardozzi said. “We wanted to win it ourselves. And we went out and did it. I wanted to make the 1987 highlight film. Now I’m in Twins history forever.”

Though the celebration continued into the night, all eyes now turn to the AL East race that will determine who the Twins play in the 1987 ALCS.

Born 9.24.1965
Scott Leuis

Born 9.24.1921
Clyde Vollmer

A Rarity in Politics (plus a classic meltdown)

During my senior year of high school, I participated in the Close Up program to learn about government at the federal level (and to take a week-long trip to Washington DC in the middle of the school year).

As part of that trip, I had a chance to meet with both Senators from Minnesota (Rod Grams and Paul Wellstone at the time - I suppose that dates me a bit) and my district’s representative, Jim Ramstad.

A little background on my political lens in high school: a few weeks before the trip, I had sent $5 to the Republican National Committee to help with Bob Dole’s run for President. If you wanted to hear GOP talking points at my high school, I was one of the people you could find. During the trip, my friends and I made it our goal to get Congressional passes (the little cards that get you into the chambers) from each of the Republican heavyweights at the time - Dole, Gingrich, etc (some day I will write about getting chased out of Newt Gingrich’s office by a secretary).

That said, I was least impressed with the visit with Rod Grams. He repeated some Republican talking points, acted irritated that he had to talk to a group of high school students, and maybe took a question or two before leaving after maybe 10 minutes total.

Our Senators at the time couldn’t have been more different politically or personally. After waiting about 40 minutes for Wellstone, he came marching in with about a half-dozen staffers behind him, gave us a quick, impassioned speech about how we (youth) were America’s most precious resource, answered a few questions, then lost a game of good-cop bad-cop with one of his staffers who explained that “the Senator is very busy and needs to be moving on now”.

As an aside, Wellstone had the gift of woo, and it was even apparent in the short time that I saw him in person. I understand how he became such an inspirational figure to a lot of people, and I do think that he was genuine.

Back to the story, the final person we met was Ramstad. It was a smaller group, about five of us, and he asked each of us our names and why we came to Washington. Upon learning that we were interested in getting into politics, he told us how he got his start, and gave us suggestions to get involved.

All I knew about Jim Ramstad before the visit was his reputation for moderation. I learned that day why he was so respected among his peers. There was nothing phony about him, and you wouldn’t have guessed from our conversation that he was even a politician. He certainly didn’t seem to belong in Washington. We sat in his office and chatted for a good 45 minutes before we had to leave for our next event.

Though my personal politics have shifted a few times since, I was proud to be able to vote for Ramstad in several elections. My family has since moved, and was a little sad that I wouldn’t be in Ramstad’s district anymore.

Now, during his ninth term, Ramstad is calling it quits. It is certainly a loss for Congress, and Minnesota’s third district.

He said he has grown tired from the relentless physical grind of service in Washington and weary of being a lonely centrist in an increasingly polarized legislative body.

“After 17 years of getting on a plane every Monday and coming back every Friday, I’m burned out,” Ramstad said at a news conference Monday. “I’m tired. I still have a passion for policy and a passion for politics, but I want to be home.”

Similar to Terry Ryan, it sounds as though Ramstad is just burned out. It is not all that surprising, and he even discussed it a decade ago with a few high school students in his office, and I could sense that it was wearing on him, even then. In that regard, I am glad he can step away on his terms.

The congressman called himself one of the last of a “dying breed of Republican moderates.” He has increasingly called on Washington politicians to “work in a more bipartisan and pragmatic way,” as he put it Monday. “People need to put aside the harsh rhetoric on both sides of the aisle.”

You hear that a lot from politicians, usually when they want someone to stop arguing and vote for their issue. It seemed different with Ramstad, and his voting record seems to be evidence that it is.

I would like to think that there will be others like him in elected office in our country: thoughtful, honest, not beholden to a strict party line - I just won’t hold my breath waiting.

Born 9/21/1965
DJ Dozier
Former Viking running back (is he the one who lost his shoe prompting a classic Jerry Burns meltdown?) turned outfielder for the Mets. Where is he now?

Update: Turns out it was Alfred Anderson who lost his shoe, my apologies to Dozier. Here is the meltdown in question, from this site. I might actually care about the Vikings if Burnsie was still doing post-game interviews.

Born 9/21/1934
Jerry Zimmerman
One of Minnesota’s beloved back up catchers.

The Franchise 1936

1936 Washington Nationals

Manager: Bucky Harris 13th Season (7th with Washington 578-491-10)
82 W 71 L 0 T 889 RS 799 RA 4th AL 20 GB (New York 102-51-2)
5.81 RPG (AL = 5.67) 4.58 ERA (AL = 5.04)
.684 DER (2nd AL)

All Stars (1) Ben Chapman

Franchise (1901-1936) 2611-2784-80; 8-11 WS

Any chance the 1936 Nats had of contending probably went away early in the season. As the Yankees surged to yet another pennant, Washington was plagued by a very slow start. As late in the season as June 21, Washington was playing just .500 baseball.

An illness to a star player was a major factor in the team’s slow start. Buddy Myer, just one year removed from his best season, missed the bulk of the 1936 season due to a stomach ailment. In addition to Myer’s absence, several players slumped in the early months, including Joe Kuhel and Cecil Travis. If not for the emergence of some young players, including C Wally Millies and 3B Buddy Lewis, and some solid performances from the pitching staff; the early season hole may have been even deeper.

Roster/Stats
Bold = Player new to Washington in 1936

C Cliff Bolton .291/.349/.401 2 HR -0.2 BFW 9 WS 14 FRAR 2.1 WARP3
C Wally Millies .312/.345/.377 0 HR -0.2 BFW 6 WS 12 FRAR 1.6 WARP3
An early season injury to Bolton gave a young Wally Millies, purchased from Brooklyn in the offseason, a chance to shine. Once Bolton returned to playing form, he basically platooned with Millies the rest of the season, with Millies primarily playing against left-handed pitching. Bolton will be sold to Detroit early in 1937, while Millies will hang around to be backup catcher for the Nats in 1937.

1B Joe Kuhel .321/.392/.502 16 HR 0.8 BFW 21 WS 10 FRAR 5.6 WARP3
At the age of 30, Kuhel had more HR and RBI (118) than he had in any season prior. For his efforts, Kuhel finished sixth in AL MVP voting.

2B Ossie Bluege .288/.375/.342 1 HR 0.2 BFW 9 WS 22 FRAR 3.0 WARP3
A year after his spectacular season, Buddy Myer fought with a stomach ailment all season and only appeared in 51 games for the Nats. Once again, veteran Ossie Bluege rescued the team by seemingly defying his age to play very well at yet another position on the infield. This will be Bluege’s last season as a regular, however. When Bluege retired after the 1939 season, he had compiled a .272/.352/.365 stat line in 18 seasons. Over that same time period, Bluege compiled 382 FRAR mostly at third base.

SS Cecil Travis .317/.366/.433 2 HR -0.1 BFW 15 WS 12 FRAR 3.3 WARP3
The 22-year-old Travis shifted from 3B to SS in 1936, a position that he would spend most of his career playing. Travis put up numbers very similar to his 1935 stats, which was a bit of a disappointment to Nats’ fans.

3B Buddy Lewis .291/.347/.399 6 HR -0.3 BFW 16 WS 26 FRAR 4.0 WARP3
Buddy Lewis was hailed in Washington as one of the better prospects the team had seen in a while. Due to injuries, the 19-year-old got a chance to show his stuff early in the season. Lewis may have been the reason that the team kept its head above water during the first two months of the season. With many of the Senators’ stars either hurting or slumping (or both), Lewis, it was proclaimed in The Sporting News, got 41 hits in his first 103 at-bats of the season, including a 15-game hitting streak early in May. Though his numbers came down to a more realistic level by the end of the season, Lewis showed consistently good defense at third base, and may have been the best rookie not named DiMaggio playing in 1936.

2B/SS Red Kress .284/.329/.427 8 HR 0.6 BFW 12 WS 16 FRAR 3.2 WARP3
Even with Buddy Myer’s illness, Washington was working with a bit of an embarrassment of riches in the infield. Kress, essentially playing the role of utility man, had a very good season and even showed some power off the bench.

LF John Stone .341/.421/.545 15 HR 2.8 BFW 21 WS 23 FRAR 7.5 WARP3
Stone very quietly had his best major league season in 1936. While he was in the AL’s top ten in most offensive categories, he did not appear on the MVP ballot. Among the most similar batters to Stone according to baseballreference.com is Mike Greenwell, which is probably a pretty good comparison in terms of impact.

CF Ben Chapman .332/.431/.486 4 HR 2.1 BFW 19 WS 11 FRAR 5.2 WARP3
The arrival of Joe DiMaggio in the Bronx made perennial All Star center fielder Ben Chapman expendable. Griffith sent OF Jake Powell to New York in exchange for Chapman, a move that worked out in the short term for Washington. Chapman didn’t stay for long, however, and was traded to the Red Sox in June of 1937. Today, Chapman is probably most famous (or infamous) for his vicious comments directed at Jackie Robinson when he was manager of the Phillies in 1947.

RF Carl Reynolds .276/.329/.392 4 HR -1.1 BFW 6 WS 9 FRAR 1.3 WARP3
Reynolds was one of the pieces that came from Boston in the Heinie Manush trade. This is the same Reynolds that played a solid right field for the Nats in 1932 before being traded in the deal that brought Goose Goslin back to Washington. 33-year-old Reynolds was a lot different than 29-year-old Reynolds, however, and the Nats dealt him to the Minneapolis Millers after the season.

SP Bobo Newsom 17-15 4.32 ERA 1.54 WHIP 1.4 PW 19 WS 6.1 WARP3
This was one of the few years in Bobo’s career that he pitched in the same place for an entire season. It was also his most successful season in Washington.

SP Jimmy DeShong 18-10 4.63 ERA 1.57 WHIP 0.5 PW 14 WS 3.5 WARP3
DeShong spent the previous two seasons with the Yankees, where he was used primarily in relief. 1936 represents his career best season by far. He will slowly decline over the next three years, and will eventually be released by the team.

SP Earl Whitehill 14-11 4.87 ERA 1.61 WHIP 0.2 PW 12 WS 3.2 WARP3
This was Whitehill’s final season with Washington. He was traded to Cleveland as part of a three team trade during the off season. Whitehill spent four years with Washington, but never again recaptured whatever it was that led him to have a career season in 1933.

SP Pete Appleton 14-9 3.53 ERA 1.37 WHIP 3.0 PW 18 WS 6.2 WARP3
Born Peter Jablonowski, he had his name legally changed to Appleton in 1933. Pete had spent six previous seasons in the majors, mostly pitching in relief. Like DeShong, Appleton made the most of his first chance to start regularly, and had a career season. Also like DeShong, Appleton would never again come close to his 1936 numbers.

SP Joe Cascarella 9-8 4.07 ERA 1.44 WHIP 1.2 PW 10 WS 3.4 WARP3
Cascarella came from the Red Sox in an early June trade. After an 0-5 start in 1937, Griffith let him go.

RP Monte Weaver 6-4 4.35 ERA 1.43 WHIP 0.2 PW 6 WS 1.2 WARP3
Upon the advice of the organization, Weaver dropped his vegetarian diet and was back with Washington after a year in the minor leagues. He will return to the starting rotation in 1937.

RP Syd Cohen 0-2 5.25 ERA 1.61 WHIP -0.2 PW 1 WS 0.3 WARP3
Cohen was the only lefty on the staff aside from Whitehill. He spent all three years of his brief career with Washington.

RP Jack Russell 3-2 6.34 ERA 1.83 WHIP -1.2 PW 1 WS -0.9 WARP3
After a terrible start to the season, Russell was traded to Boston in the deal that brought Cascarella to Washington.

RP Firpo Marberry 0-2 3.86 ERA 1.00 WHIP 0.1 PW 1 WS 0.4 WARP3
The 37-year-old Marberry finished his career with five relief appearances for the team that gave him his start. Marberry was more effective than most of the Washington bullpen, but still retired after the 1936 season.

1936 World Series
Some of the names changed, but the Yankee dominance continued with a 4-2 victory over the New York Giants. Joe DiMaggio batted .346/.370/.462 in his first World Series appearance, while veteran Lou Gehrig hit .292/.393/.583 with 2 HR.

GOTW: 9.19.1967

Tuesday September 19, 1967
Municipal Stadium
Kansas City, MO

Minnesota Twins (85-66) @ Kansas City A’s (59-90)

The American League pennant race in 1967 was about as exciting as baseball gets down the stretch, and the Twins were right in the thick of things. Before play on Tuesday September 19, the AL standings looked like this:

AL      W   L    GB      WP      RS      RA
MIN    85  66     -     .563    617     546
DET    85  66     -     .563    632     552
BOS    85  66     -     .563    667     557
CHW    85  67   0.5     .559    505     466
CAL    78  71   6.0     .523    520     540
WSA    70  79  14.0     .470    517     599
CLE    71  81  14.5     .467    531     578
BAL    68  81  16.0     .456    598     548
NYY    66  85  19.0     .437    493     578
KCA    59  90  25.0     .396    504     620

Just a half game separated the top four teams. Tuesday’s games included a battle between two of those four team with Boston in Detroit, while the White Sox were in California.

The Twins were fortunate to have a rare, four-game home-and-home series against the worst team in the league. Minnesota had won the first game on Monday 2-0 in Kansas City. After Tuesday’s game, the teams would head to the Met for two more games to complete the season series, a series that the A’s led 7-8.

   Minnesota Twins               Kansas City Athletics                
1. Z Versalles          SS    1. B Campaneris         SS
2. C Tovar              3B    2. J Donaldson          2B
3. H Killebrew          1B    3. R Jackson            RF
4. T Oliva              RF    4. R Webster            1B
5. B Allison            LF    5. M Hershberger        LF
6. R Carew              2B    6. S Bando              3B
7. T Uhlaender          CF    7. J Gosger             CF
8. J Zimmerman          C     8. D Duncan             C
9. D Boswell            P     9. J Nash               P

Though Twins’ starter Dave Boswell was 13-11 on the season with a 3.07 ERA, he was coming off one of his worst starts of the season, a September 15th game against the White Sox in which he left in the second inning after allowing four hits and two walks in that frame.

The Twins’ offense gave Boswell some help right away, scoring a run in each of the first three innings. In this first, a Tony Oliva double knocked in the run. Rod Carew’s lead off triple was the biggest hit of the second inning, while Harmon Killebrew’s double helped create the run in the third.

The A’s stayed with the Twins for the first few innings my manufacturing a couple of runs of their own. In fact, the team scored a run in the first without the benefit of a base hit. Bert Campaneris’ lead off walk eventually led to him scoring on a wild pitch. In the third, Campaneris did his thing again, turning a lead off single into another run that scored without the benefit of an RBI hit, this time scoring on a ground out.

Despite the runs, Boswell was pitching pretty well save a couple of walks and a pair of wild pitches. Through three innings, he had allowed just two hits. The Twins, on the other hand, had six hits through three innings, four of which were of the extra-base variety. Still, the Twins only led by a single run.

That changed in the fifth when another extra-base hit, this time a Bob Allison double, scored the Twins’ fourth run of the game. Four runs in the top of the seventh, three of which were unearned, all but put the game away for the Twins. Boswell didn’t allow a hit after the third, and held the A’s to just two runs on two hits over his complete game victory.

Stars of the Game
1. Dave Boswell MIN 9 IP 2 H 2 R
2. Bob Allison MIN 3-for-5, R, 2 RBI
3. Bert Campaneris KC 1-for-2, 2 BB, 2R, SB

Box

Boston scored three in the top of the ninth inning to come from behind to defeat the Tigers, 4-2. The loss dropped the Tigers from a tied for first place into fourth in the AL thanks to a 3-0 White Sox win over the Angels. The standings after Tuesday’s games:

AL      W   L    GB      WP      RS      RA
MIN    86  66     -     .566    625     548
BOS    86  66     -     .566    671     559
CHW    86  67   0.5     .562    508     466
DET    85  67   1.0     .559    634     556
CAL    78  72   7.0     .520    520     543
CLE    72  81  14.5     .471    533     578
WSA    70  80  15.0     .467    517     601
BAL    69  81  16.0     .460    601     548
NYY    66  86  20.0     .434    493     581
KCA    59  91  26.0     .393    506     628

The race continued down the wire until, of course, the Red Sox defeated the Twins on the last day of the season to take the pennant.

Born 9/19
Scott Baker (1981)
Javier Valentin (1975)
Pedro Munoz (1968)
Larry Schlafly (1878)

Molitor’s 3000th

Monday September 16, 1996

Three years to the day after Dave Winfield joined the 3,000 hit club, another St. Paul native also reached that milestone in a Twins uniform.

The ball hung in the lights of Kauffman Stadium, and major league history hung in the balance. When Paul Molitor’s fly ball finally fell between two Royals outfielders on Monday night, the St. Paul native became the 21st player ever to reach 3,000 hits.

He wasn’t satisfied. As the Royals relayed the ball back to the infield, Molitor, 40, churned around second and slid, face-first, into third, and became the first player ever to triple for No. 3,000.

“It wasn’t the sharpest of hits, but it was in the right place,” said Molitor, who entered the game needing two hits for 3,000 and got three. The historic hit, which came in the fifth inning of a Twins’ 6-5 loss, occurred on the third anniversary of the 3,000th hit by Dave Winfield, a fellow St. Paul native and former Twin

-Jim Souhan (Star Tribune 9/17/1996)

Paul Molitor had signed with the Twins before the 1996 season excited to play for his hometown team and looking forward to being in the same lineup with Kirby Puckett (which of course didn’t work out). He came into the season with 2,789 career hits. The Twins started a nine-game home stand on September 6 with Molitor 13 hits away from the milestone. While it appeared unlikely that he would reach it in front of the Metrodome crowd (the Twins started a nine-game road trip immediately following the homestand), there was some hope.

Molitor ended up with 11 hits in the nine games, and took to the road with the team only two hits short. In the first game of the road trip at Kaufmann Stadium, Molitor became the first player to triple for his 3000th hit as mentioned by Souhan above; but also became the first player to reach 3000 in a year in which he had 200 or more hits on the season.

On the same day, Chuck Knoblauch reached his 1000th career hit, and there was some speculation that he may some day join Winfield and Molitor on the 3,000 list.

Winfield’s 3000th

Twins fans had very little to cheer about from 1993-2000, so when the opportunity to watch a couple of local players make baseball history in a Twins uniform came around, it was about as exciting as it got for the team during that time period.

Thursday September 16, 1993

When the hit finally came, it was almost as good as Dave Winfield had pictured it. Time and again, in dreams, on buses and at stoplights, the Twins’ 41-year-old designated hitter had played out the moment in his mind, and this was one scene: Runner in scoring position. Ninth inning. The very best opponent he possibly could face, maybe Oakland relief ace Dennis Eckersley, on the mound.

When the hit finally came, it wasn’t a screaming line drive that split two outfielders and rolled to the wall for a double. It didn’t win the game outright - Chip Hale’s single in the 13th gave the Twins a 5-4 victory.

But when Winfield’s ground ball with one out in the ninth snuck between two diving A’s infielders, third baseman Craig Paquette and shortstop Mike Bordick, for a clean hit to left field, it was good enough. Good enough to earn Winfield hit No. 3,000.

-Steve Aschburner (Star Tribune 9/17/1993)

At the time, Winfield was just four months removed from major surgery on his back. It was a bit of a wonder that, at age 41, he was even able to make a run at the milestone. Winfield entered the 1993 season, his first with the Twins, with 2,866 career hits. By the time September started, Winfield was just 10 hits away from 3,000.

It was clear that the pressure was starting to get to the 20-year veteran, however, and Winfield hit a slump during the first two weeks of September. From September 1-15, he managed just eight hits in 49 plate appearances (he batted .182/.245/.364 over that time period). Prior to the game against Oakland, Tom Kelly admitted that his chase had been a distraction, not only to Winfield, but to his teammates as well.

The pressure was lifted once Winfield made it to 3,000, a hit that helped the Twins stay close in a game that they would eventually win in extra innings.

A couple of other St. Paul native players were present for the milestone. Jack Morris and Paul Molitor were both on hand to witness the milestone. Both were on the Toronto roster at the time, and the Blue Jays happened to have a day off in Minneapolis before they started a weekend series with the Twins. Molitor, of course, would make some history of his own three years later… (to be continued)