Monthly Archives: April 2017

Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–April 8

John Peters (1850)
Kirby Higbe (1915)
Stan Wasiak (1920)
Charlie Maxwell (1927)
Turk Farrell (1934)
Takao Kajimoto (1935)
John Hiller (1943)
Catfish Hunter (1946)
Randy Marsh (1949)
Mac Scarce (1949)
Gary Carter (1954)
Alex Gonzalez (1973)
Timo Perez (1975)
Jeremy Guthrie (1979)
Matt Ford (1981)
Chris Iannetta (1983)
Felix Hernandez (1986)
Yonder Alonso (1987)

Stan Wasiak holds the record for most wins as a minor league manager, 2,530.  He managed from 1950-1986, managing at levels from Class D to AAA.

Pitcher Takao Kajimoto won 254 games in Japan and was a twelve-time all-star.

Randy Marsh was a major league umpire from 1981-2009 and is currently a director of umpiring.

Yonder Alonso was drafted by Minnesota in the sixteenth round in 2005, but did not sign.

We would like to wish a happy birthday to the brother of Daneeka's Ghost.

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2017 Twins Game Logs, Game Logs

Twins at Comiskey Park. 7pm

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After a sweep of the Royals at home, the Twins head east to play the White Sox. The Sox  got a new sponsor name for their stadium but I don't recall what it is so I will call it Comiskey Park.

The Sox had a rain out and sit at 1-1 on the season. Twins are tied for first with a 3-0 record.Phil Hughes toes the rubber for the visitors while newcomer Derek Holland starts for the Pale Hose.

Weather should not be a problem, with cloudy and cool tonight and a warmup in Chicago for the weekend.

 

Friday Music Day

FMD: 4/7/17 – The 50 State Project

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First off, let me wish my lovely wife a happy birthday: Happy Birthday Philosofette.
Great, now that that's out of the way, let's do something fun.

Last week I had the privilege of driving across half of the country. We passed through a decent number of states, and as we did so I often found myself thinking, "I wonder what song would be a good song for [the state we are driving through right now]?" I know this type of thing has been done other places, but I thought it might be fun to put together a WGOM 50 State Song List (plus DC).

So nominate your, uh, nominations. Use whatever criteria you see fit. Name dropping (for example: "I'm from New Jersey," for New Jersey), artist home (for example, Springsteen, for New Jersey), or anything else that fits the state (for example, a song by Garbage, for New Jersey).  Then, chime in on others nominations.  If it seems like there's a consensus forming, I might add it to the list.  If the consensus changes, I'll change the list.  You know.  Whatever.  It's informal.  Also, I'm a big fan of not necessarily going with the obvious (though sometimes I suppose you have to).

I've gotten us started with two nominations.

'The List' SelectShow
Keeping Track

Minor Details: Games of April 6

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Twins affiliates did not exactly get off to a rousing start.  Two teams were rained out and two were shut out.

ROCHESTER AT SYRACUSE

Postponed due to inclement weather.

MOBILE 2, CHATTANOOGA 0 IN CHATTANOOGA

Mobile got an unearned run in the fifth and a Luis Tejada homer in the ninth.  Chattanooga had only three hits.  Two of them came in the first inning, and both runners were lost on the bases, one picked off and the other caught stealing.  The Lookouts only once got a man as far as second base.

Kohl Stewart pitched six shutout innings, giving up the unearned run on three hits and three walks with one strikeout.  Mason Melotakis struck out two in a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.  Edgar Corcino had two of the three Lookout hits, going 2-for-4.  Travis Harrison had the other, going 1-for-3.  Nick Gordon was 0-for-4.  LaMonte Wade, Engelb Vielma, and Tanner English were all 0-for-3.

JUPITER 4, FORT MYERS 0 IN JUPITER

Dereck Rodriguez pitched well for four innings, allowing just one run on four hits, but fell apart in the fifth, allowing three Hammerhead runs to put the Miracle down 4-0.  Fort Myers had eight hits, but only once had two in the same inning.  They got a man to third five times, but could never grab the other ninety feet, going 0-for-9 with men in scoring position.

Rodriguez struck out four in 4.1 innings, but allowed four runs on seven hits and a walk.  Randy Wells retired all five men he faced and Lachlan Wells struck out three in two shutout innings, giving up one hit.  Chris Paul and Alex Perez were each 2-for-4, with Perez getting a double.  Luis Arraez was 1-for-4 with a triple.  Trey Vavra was 1-for-3, Max Murphy was 0-for-3 with a walk, and Zander Weil was 0-for-4.

CEDAR RAPIDS AT BELOIT

Postponed due to wet grounds.

TODAY'S TILTS

Rochester at Syracuse--Already postponed
4:30  Cedar Rapids (Eduardo Del Rosario) at Beloit (Brendan Butler)
5:30  Fort Myers at Jupiter (Scott Squier)
6:15  Mobile (Osmer Morales) at Chattanooga

Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–April 7

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John McGraw (1873)
Oral Hildebrand (1907)
Bobby Doerr (1918)
Jerry Hoffberger (1919)
Tom Phoebus (1942)
Bill Stoneman (1944)
Pete Van Wieren (1944)
Bobby Mitchell (1955)
Ricky Bones (1969)
Brett Tomko (1973)
Ronnie Belliard (1975)
Adrian Beltre (1979)

Jerry Hoffberger was the principal owner of the Baltimore Orioles from 1965-1979.

Pete Van Wieren was a broadcaster for the Atlanta Braves from 1976-2008.

We would also like to wish a happy birthday to the Philosofer's wife.

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2017 Twins Game Logs

Game 3: Royals at Twins

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Jason Hammel (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Kyle Gibson (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

DAY GAME ALERT! (again)

Kyle Gibson takes the mound for the first time this year after a rough 2016. This will be an interesting start, though, as we'll get to see if playing four square during the offseason pays off. He's in the last year of his contract, so I hope for both his sake and the team's sake that it works. I have been cautiously optimistic heading into this year (because that's what baseball is all about, ammiright?) and the first couple games haven't done much to bring me back down from that. Of course, it's the pitching that is likely to crush our spirits.

I've been able to watch both games, which means I can give reasonably informed opinions backed up by eye-testy stuff. One of the things I've been most happy about in this SSST is Miguel Sano. Dude looks really good to start the year and I've been impressed by his patience. If it weren't for yesterday's wind he'd have a couple extra dingers.

It'd be really awesome to start the season off with a sweep of the Royals, so let's do that.

Keeping Track

Full Season Minor League Preview

ROCHESTER RED WINGS

Classification:  AAA

League:  International League

League set-up:  There are three divisions in the International League:  North, South, and West.  There are six teams in the North and four each in the South and West.  Four teams go to the playoffs:  the three division winners plus a wild card team.  The Red Wings play in the North Division.

Home field:  Frontier Field

Season opener:  April 6 in Syracuse.

Manager:  Mike Quade

Coaches:  Batting coach Chad Allen, pitching coach Stu Cliburn.

Notable players:  D. J. Baxendale, Jose Berrios, J. T. Chargois, Mitch Garver, Niko Goodrum, Byungho Park, Ben Paulsen, Kennys Vargas, Zack Granite, Daniel Palka.

Division opponents:  Buffalo Bisons, Lehigh Valley IronPigs, Pawtucket Red Sox, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, Syracuse Chiefs

Other opponents:  Charlotte Knights, Columbus Clippers, Durham Bulls, Gwinnett Braves, Indianapolis Indians, Louisville Bats, Norfok Tides, Toledo Mud Hens

CHATTANOOGA LOOKOUTS

Classification:  AA

League:  Southern League

League set-up:  There are two divisions in the Southern League:  North and South.  There are five teams in each division.  The season is divided into two halves, with the winners of each half qualifying for the playoffs.  The Lookouts play in the North Division.

Home field:  AT&T Field

Season opener:  April 6, home against Mobile.

Manager:  Jake Mauer

Coaches:  Batting coach Javier Valentin, pitching coach Ivan Arteaga.

Notable players:  Nick Burdi, Ryan Eades, Stephen Gonsalves, Tyler Jay, Felix Jorge, Kohl Stewart, Dan Rohlfing, Nick Gordon, Engelb Vielma, Lamonte Wade

Division opponents:  Birmingham Barons, Jackson Generals, Montgomery Biscuits, Tennessee Smokies

Other opponents:  Biloxi Shuckers, Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, Mississippi Braves, Mobile Bay Bears, Pensacola Blue Wahoos

FORT MYERS MIRACLE

Classification:  High A.

League:  Florida State League

League set-up:  There are two divisions in the Florida State League:  North and South.  There are six teams in each division.  The season is divided into two halves, with the winners of each half qualifying for the playoffs.  The Miracle plays in the South Division.

Home field:  Hammond Stadium

Season opener:  April 6 at Jupiter.

Manager:  Doug Mientkiewicz

Coaches:  Batting coach Steve Singleton, pitching coach Henry Bonilla.

Notable players:  Sam Clay, Randy LeBlanc, Williams Ramirez, Dereck Rodriguez, Randy Rosario, Cody Stashak, Lachlan Wells, Luis Arraez, Zander Weil, Max Murphy

Division opponents:  Bradenton Marauders, Charlotte Stone Crabs, Jupiter Hammerheads, Palm Beach Cardinals, St. Lucie Mets

Other opponents:  Clearwater Threshers, Daytona Tortugas, Dunedin Blue Jays, Florida Fire Frogs, Lakeland Flying Tigers, Tampa Yankees

CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS

Classification:  A

League:  Midwest League

League set-up:  There are two divisions in the Midwest League:  Eastern and Western.  There are eight teams in each division.  The season is divided into two halves, with the top two teams in each half qualifying for the playoffs.  The Kernels play in the Western Division.

Home field:  Perfect Game Field

Season opener:  April 6 at Beloit.

Manager:  Tommy Watkins

Coaches:  Batting coach Brian Dinkelman, pitching coach J. P. Martinez.

Notable players:  Eduardo Del Rosario, Lewis Thorpe, Zach Tillery, Ben Rortvedt, Lewin Diaz, Ariel Montesino, Jermaine Palacios, Christian Cavaness, Aaron Whitefield, Travis Blankenhorn

Division opponents:  Beloit Snappers, Burlington Bees, Clinton LumberKings, Kane County Cougars, Peoria Chiefs, Quad Cities River Bandits, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers

Other opponents:  Bowling Green Hot Rods, Dayton Dragons, Fort Wayne TinCaps, Great Lakes Loons, Lake County Captains, Lansing Lugnuts, South Bend Cubs, West Michigan Whitecaps

TODAY'S TILTS

1:05  Rochester (Jose Berrios) at Syracuse (Taylor Hill)
5:15  Mobile (Tyler Carpenter) at Chattanooga
5:30  Fort Myers at Jupiter
6:30  Cedar Rapids (Eduardo Del Rosario) at Beloit (Brendan Butler)