DETROIT TIGERS 7, MINNESOTA TWINS 6 IN DETROIT

Date:  Sunday, May 29, 1983.

Batting stars:  Dave Engle was 2-for-4 with a double.  Randy Bush was 2-for-4.  John Castino was 2-for-4.

Pitching star:  Rick Lysander pitched 4.2 innings of relief, giving up two runs on four hits and striking out three.

Opposition star:  Lou Whitaker was 3-for-4 with a double.  Glenn Wilson was 2-for-4 with a triple.  Larry Herndon was 2-for-4 with a double.  Kirk Gibson hit a home run, his second.

The game:  Detroit jumped on Twins starter Frank Viola in the first inning.  Lou Whitaker, Enos Cabell, and Larry Herndon started the first inning with singles, producing a run.  A double steal of second and home produced a second run, and a ground out brought home a third, making it 3-0 Tigers.

It stayed 3-0 until the fourth, when the Twins struck back off Jack Morris.  Bobby Mitchell, John Castino, and Gary Ward all singled to load the bases.  An error brought home one run and a wild pitch scored another.  A pair of sacrifice flies followed, making the score 4-3 Minnesota.

The lead lasted until the bottom of the inning.  Chet Lemon walked and scored on a Lynn Jones triple.  Lou Whitaker hit a two-out RBI double to make it 5-4 Detroit.  But the Twins came back to tie it in the fifth on consecutive doubles by Dave Engle and Lenny Faedo.  

It stayed 5-5 until the seventh, when Lou Whitaker singled and scored on a two-out triple by Glenn Wilson.  The Twins tied it again in the eighth on consecutive two-out singles by Kent Hrbek, Gary Gaetti, and Randy Bush.  But in the bottom of the eighth Kirk Gibson homered to make it 7-6 Tigers, and this time the Twins couldn’t come back.  They went down in order in the ninth.

WP:  Aurelio Lopez (3-2).

LP:  Rick Lysander (1-4).

S:  None.

Notes:  Lenny Faedo was at short.  Ron Washington played the most games there with 81, followed by Faedo with 51.  Bobby Mitchell was in center.  Darrell Brown played the most games there with 76, followed by Mitchell with 44.  Mickey Hatcher was in right field in place of Tom Brunansky.

Dave Engle was batting .327.  He would finish at .305.  Lenny Faedo was batting .308.  He would finish at .277.  Kent Hrbek was batting .302.  He would finish at .297.  Mickey Hatcher  was batting .300.  He would finish at .317.

Rick Lysander had an ERA of 2.98.  He would finish at 3.38.

As you may know, Jack Morris would pitch for the Twins in 1991.

This was one of five triples Lynn Jones would hit in an eight-year career.  Glenn Wilson hit twenty-six triples in a ten-year career.  1983 would be his high, with six.

Jack Morris v. Frank Viola sounds like a great pitching matchup, but while Morris was a star in 1983, Viola was not.  He was in the second year of his career, and it would be the second year in which he had an ERA over five.  He would lead the league in earned runs allowed in 1983 with 128.  He was a lesson to me in patience with young players.  After two seasons, he was 11-25 with an ERA of 5.38, and I was ready for the Twins to give up on him.  Luckily, I was not running the Twins, because in 1984 he would go 18-12, 3.21 and finish sixth in Cy Young voting.

Glenn Wilson was born on the same date that I was, December 22, 1958.  He was not a star, but he had a respectable career.  He played for ten seasons and had a line of .265/.306/.398.  He made the all-star team in 1985 with Philadelphia, a year in which he drove in 102 runs.  He got a tenth-place vote for MVP that year.  Again, not a star, but a good ballplayer.

Record:  Detroit was 22-22, in fifth place in the AL East, three games behind Boston and Toronto.  They would finish 92-70, in second place, six games behind Baltimore.

The Twins were 21-27, in sixth place in the AL West, 7.5 games behind California.  They would finish 70-92, tied for fifth with California, twenty-nine games behind Chicago.

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 52-53 (.495).

MINNESOTA TWINS 2, KANSAS CITY ROYALS 0 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Thursday, May 24, 1973.

Batting stars:  George Mitterwald was 3-for-4.  Jim Holt was 2-for-4 with two doubles.  Steve Braun was 2-for-4 with a double.  Bobby Darwin was 2-for-4 with a double.

Pitching star:  Bert Blyleven pitched a complete game one-hit shutout, walking two and striking out seven.

Opposition star:  Dick Drago pitched a complete game, giving up two runs on eleven hits and two walks and striking out six.

The game:  Neither team got a man to scoring position until the third, when Jim Holt led off with a double, but he only got to third.  In the fourth, Bobby Darwin led off with a double and went to third on a passed ball.  The next two batters went out, but George Mitterwald delivered an infield single to put the Twins ahead 1-0.

Ed Kirkpatrick led off with a bunt single in the sixth, the only hit Kansas City would get.  The Twins got an insurance run in the eighth.  Steve Braun doubled with two out and scored on a Danny Thompson single.  It was more than enough, and the Twins got the victory.

WP:  Bert Blyleven (5-6).

LP:  Dick Drago (4-4).

S:  None.

Notes:  Harmon Killebrew was at first base.  He missed much of the season, playing just 57 games at first.  Joe Lis had the most games there at 96.

Jim Holt was batting .313.  He would finish at .297.  Rod Carew was batting .308.  He would finish at a league-leading .350.  Steve Braun was batting .304.  He would finish at .283.  Larry Hisle was batting .300.  He would finish at .272.

The Twins had eleven hits, four of them doubles, and two walks, but still didn’t have that many scoring threats.  They had a leadoff double in the third and put men on first and third in the seventh, but those were the only times they threatened but did not score.

When I saw the score, my first thought was “Bert must have pitched that game.”  Sure enough.  He had a league-leading nine shutouts in 1973 with twenty-five complete games.  He also led the league in WAR, ERA+, FIP, and strikeout/walk ratio.  It was also the only time he won twenty games.  Somehow, he only finished tied for seventh in Cy Young voting.  

Record:  Kansas City was 23-20, fifth in the AL West, four games behind Chicago.  They would finish 88-74, in second place, six games behind Oakland.

The Twins were 21-17, tied for second with California in the AL West, 3.5 games behind Chicago.  They would finish 81-81, in third place, thirteen games behind Oakland.

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 52-52 (.500).

COLORADO ROCKIES 6, MINNESOTA TWINS 2 IN COLORADO

Date:  Sunday, May 18, 2008.

Batting stars:  Delmon Young was 2-for-4 with a triple and a double.  Justin Morneau hit a two-run homer, his eighth.

Pitching star:  Bobby Korecky retired all four men he faced, striking out one.

Opposition stars:  Todd Helton was 2-for-4 with a home run (his fourth) and three RBIs.  Clint Barmes was 2-for-4 with a home run, his third.  Garrett Atlkins was 2-for-4 with a double.  Jeff Francis struck out seven in 6.2 innings, giving up two runs on six hits and two walks.

The game:  The Twins missed chances to take the lead early.  Brendan Harris led off the game with a double but remained on second.  Michael Cuddyer led off the second with a triple, but remained on third.  Delmon Young tripled with one out in the third, but he also remained on third.  It cost them, because in the fourth Clint Barmes hit a home run, putting Colorado ahead 1-0.

The Twins took the lead in the sixth.  Delmon Young led off with a double, and this time Justin Morneau hit a one-out two-run homer to make it 2-1.  But in the bottom of the sixth, Todd Helton hit a two-out home run.  Garrett Atkins followed with a double, Brad Hawpe walked, and Jeff Baker singled home a run to make it 3-2 Rockies.

The Twins missed another chance in the seventh when Howie Clark led off with a double and was stranded at second.  The Twins then gave the game away in the bottom of the seventh.  Omar Quintanilla walked and Willy Taveras reached on an error.  A bunt moved the runners up and Matt Holliday was intentionally walked.  Todd Helton then delivered a two-run single, the only Colorado hit of the inning.  With two out, Brad Hawpe and pitcher Taylor Buchholz both walked, forcing in a run to make the score 6-2.  The Twins went down in order in the last two innings.

WP:  Jeff Francis (1-4).

LP:  Kevin Slowey (0-4).

S:  None.

Notes:  Mike Redmond was behind the plate in place of Joe Mauer.  Brendan Harris was at second base in place of Alexi Casilla.  Adam Everett was at shortstop.  Nick Punto played the most games there with 61, followed by Harris with 55 and Everett with 44.  Howie Clark was at third base.  Brian Buscher played the most games there with 64, followed by Mike Lamb with 55.  Craig Monroe was in center field in place of Carlos Gomez.  Michael Cuddyer was in right field.  Denard Span played the most games there with 85, followed by Cuddyer with 58.

Justin Morneau was batting .306.  He would finish at .300.

Dennys Reyes had an ERA of 0.73.  He would finish at 2.33.

What a frustrating game for the Twins.  They had three doubles, two triples, and a home run, and yet only scored two runs.  They had zero singles and went 1-for-12 with men in scoring position.

This was Howie Clark’s first game for the Twins.  It was his only game at third base for them, and one of only four he played for them.  Those were the last four games of his major league career.

Michael Cuddyer had forty-two triples in his career, with a high of seven in 2009.  Delmon Young had eleven triples in his career, with a high of four in 2008.

Manny Corpas pitched the ninth inning for Colorado.  He had been brilliant in 2007, 4-2, 2.08, 19 saves, 1.06 WHIP.  It was the only good year of his career.  He only had one other season in which his ERA was below four, and only one in which his WHIP was below 1.35.  But for that one year, he was outstanding.

Record:  Colorado was 17-27, in third place in the NL West, eleven games behind Arizona.  They would finish 74-88, in third place, ten games behind Los Angeles.

The Twins were 21-22, in third place, 1.5 games behind Chicago.  They would finish 88-75, in second place, one game behind Chicago, due to losing game 163.

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 51-52 (.495).

MINNESOTA TWINS 13, DETROIT TIGERS 6 IN DETROIT

Date:  Friday, June 15, 1973.

Batting stars:  Bobby Darwin was 4-for-5 with two home runs (his ninth and tenth) and seven RBIs.  Jerry Terrell was 3-for-5.  Larry Hisle was 3-for-6 with a double and two runs.  Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-3 with a double, two walks, two runs, and four RBIs.  Tony Oliva was 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs.  Rod Carew was 2-for-5 with a walk and two runs.

Pitching star:  Jim Kaat pitched 6.2 innings of relief, giving up two runs on five hits and two walks and striking out three.

Opposition stars: Willie Horton was 3-for-5 with a home run (his eighth) and two RBIs.  Norm Cash was 2-for-3 with a double and a walk.  Aurelio Rodriguez was 2-for-5 with a home run, his fifth.  Dick McAuliffe hit a two-run homer, his third.

The game:  The Twins’ first five batters reached base.  Rod Carew and Larry Hisle singled and Tony Oliva walked to load the bases.  Harmon Killebrew hit a two-run single and Bobby Darwin had an RBI single.  That chased Detroit starter Jim Perry from the game.  The Twins would get another run on an RBI ground out to take a 4-0 lead.

The Twins missed a chance to expand the lead in the second, when they got two singles and a double but failed to score because they lost two men on the bases.  It looked like it would hurt them, as Willie Horton led off the bottom of the second with a home run, Norm Cash singled, and Dick McAuliffe hit a one-out two-run homer to cut the lead to 4-3.

The Twins came back in the third, when Harmon Killebrew walked and Bobby Darwin hit a two-run homer to make it 6-3.  Detroit got one back in the bottom of the third on singles by Mickey Stanley, Al Kaline, and Willie Horton to cut the lead to 6-4.

The Twins once again expanded their lead in the fourth.  Rod Carew walked with one out and Larry Hisle followed with a single.  Harmon Killebrew walked to load the bases with two out and Bobby Darwin delivered a two-run single to make it 8-4.  The Tigers again got one back when Aurelio Rodriguez homered with two out in the bottom of the fourth, making the score 8-5.

Nobody scored in the fifth, but in the sixth, Tony Oliva singled with one out and Bobby Darwin hit a two-out two-run homer to make the score 10-5.  The Twins got a couple more in the seventh.  George Mitterwald reached on an error and Jerry Terrell singled.  With two out, Tony Oliva hit an RBI single and Harmon Killebrew had a two-run double to make the lead 13-5.

Detroit got one in the eighth when Willie Horton singled and scored on a Norm Cash double, but that was it.  The Twins won, 13-6.

WP:  Jim Kaat (7-4).

LP:  Jim Perry (7-5).

S:  None.

Notes:  Harmon Killebrew was at first base.  He was injured much of 1973, so that Joe Lis was the regular first baseman.  Jerry Terrell was at short.  Danny Thompson played the most games there, with 95 to Terrell’s 81.

Rod Carew was batting .340.  He would finish at a league-leading .350.

Jim Perry had pitched for the Twins from 1963-1972.  He was traded to Detroit shortly before the 1973 season start for Dan Fife, the father of college basketball coach Dane Fife.

Jim Kaat had started on June 11, but pitched only 3.2 innings.  He would start again on June 19.  He was thirty-four years old and was having a poor year, so the Twins, thinking he was about done, waived him on August 15.  He was claimed by the White Sox, but would only pitch for another ten seasons.

By game scores, this was not Jim Perry’s worst game of the season.  On July 20 he gave up six runs in a third of an inning.  Despite that, he went 14-13 for the season with a 4.03 ERA.  He had some games where he was really bad, but he also had seven complete games and one shutout.

Aurelio Rodriguez has all the vowels in his first name.

Record:  Detroit was 30-48, in fourth place in the AL East, one game behind Milwaukee.  They would finish 85-77, in third place, twelve games behind Baltimore.

The Twins were 31-25, in second place in the AL West, 1.5 games behind Chicago.  They would finish 81-81, in third place, thirteen games behind Oakland.

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 51-51 (.500).

MINNESOTA TWINS 2, BALTIMORE ORIOLES 1 IN BALTIMORE

Date:  Saturday, July 11, 1987.

Batting stars:  Randy Bush hit a home run, his sixth.  Gary Gaetti hit a home run, his sixteenth.

Pitching star:  Frank Viola pitched a complete game, giving up one run on eight hits and two walks and striking out five.

Opposition star:  Dave Van Gorder was 2-for-2 with a walk.  Ron Washington was 2-for-4.  Alan Wiggins was 2-for-4.  Mike Griffin pitched a complete game, giving up two runs on five hits and four walks and striking out three.

The game:  With one out in the third Dave Van Gorder walked, Alan Wiggins singled, and Ron Washington delivered an RBI single to give Baltimore a 1-0 lead.  The Twins came right back in the fourth, as Randy Bush led off with a homer to tie it 1-1.

Each team had men on first and third with one out in the fifth, but did not score.  With one out in the sixth, Gary Gaetti homered to give the Twins a 2-1 lead.

And that’s where it stayed.  The Twins loaded the bases with two out in the seventh but did not score.  The Orioles got a single in each of the last three innings, and moved a runner to third base with two out in the ninth, but a ground out ended the game.

WP:  Frank Viola (8-6).

LP:  Mike Griffin (1-3).

S:  None.

Notes:  Al Newman was at shortstop in place of Greg Gagne.  Tom Brunansky, normally in right, was in left in place of Dan Gladden.  Mark Davidson was in center in place of Kirby Puckett.  Randy Bush was in Brunansky’s spot in right.

Roy Smalley was batting .314.  He would finish at .275.

Frank Viola had an ERA of 2.96.  He would finish at 2.90.

Ron Washington had played for the Twins from 1981-1986,

The only substitute in the game was Mike Young, who pinch-hit for Ken Gerhart with two out in the ninth.

Baltimore was 1-for-8 with men in scoring position.  The Twins were 0-for-4 with men in scoring position.

This was the only complete game of Mike Griffin’s career.  He made 24 starts and 43 relief appearances in parts of six seasons.

This was the last major league game for Dave Van Gorder.  At least he got to go out on a high note.

In the “things that would never happen today” file, it’s rare that anyone pitches a complete game at all.  But to do it when the score is 2-1, and to be allowed to stay in the game after giving up a leadoff single in the ninth, and to be allowed to stay in when the tying run moves to third, would simply not happen today.

Record:  Baltimore was 34-53, in sixth place in the AL East, 19.5 games behind New York.  They would finish 67-95, in sixth place, thirty-one games behind Detroit.

The Twins were 49-39, in first place in the AL West, two games ahead of Kansas City and Oakland.  They would finish 85-77, in first place, two games ahead of Kansas City.

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 50-51 (.495).