CLEVELAND INDIANS 11, MINNESOTA TWINS 3 IN CLEVELAND

Date:  Tuesday, April 26, 1994.

Batting stars:  Dave Winfield was 2-for-4 with a home run, his second.  Chuck Knoblauch was 2-for-5.  Scott Leius hit a home run, his third.

Pitching stars: None.

Opposition stars:  Albert Belle was 2-for-4 with two doubles.  Eddie Murray was 2-for-4 with a double.  Paul Sorrento was 2-for-4 with two runs.  Kenny Lofton was 2-for-5 with a triple, a double, a walk, two runs, and two RBIs.  Manny Ramirez hit a three-run homer, his fourth.  Candy Maldonado hit a home run, his second.  Mark Clark pitched 6.2 innings, giving up three runs on eight hits and two walks and striking out two.  Jose Mesa retired all seven men he faced, striking out one.

The game:  In the first, Kenny Lofton walked and Albert Belle delivered a two-out two-run double to give Cleveland a 1-0 lead.  The Twins tied it in the third when Scott Leius led off with a home run.  With two out in the inning, Alex Cole singled, stole second, and scored on a Chuck Knoblauch single to give the Twins a 2-1 lead.

The Indians got the lead back in the fourth, and this time they kept it.  With one out, Albert Belle doubled, went to third on an Eddie Murray single, and scored on a Paul Sorrento single.  The next batter went out, but Manny Ramirez hit a three-run homer to give Cleveland a 5-2 lead.

Dave Winfield homered in the sixth to cut the lead to 5-3, but that was as good as it got.  Candy Maldonado led off the seventh with a home run.  Kenny Lofton then doubled, went to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly to make the score 7-3.

Cleveland put it away in the eighth.  Paul Sorrento singled with one out, with two down, Manny Ramirez reached on an error, Tony Pena hit an RBI single, Kenny Lofton had a two-run triple, and Mark Lewis hit an RBI single.  The score was 11-3, and that’s where it stayed.

WP:  Mark Clark (2-0).

LP:  Pat Mahomes (1-1).

S:  None.

Notes:  Alex Cole was in left.  Shane Mack played the most games there with 66, followed by Pedro Munoz at 42.  Cole played the most games in center, with 84, but Rich Becker was there in this game.

Kirby Puckett was batting .333.  He would finish at .317.  Rich Becker was batting .305.  He would finish at .265.  Alex Cole was batting .303.  He would finish at .296.

Paul Sorrento had played for the Twins from 1989-1991.  Jim Thome was at third base for Cleveland.  He would play for the Twins from 2010-2011.

Kenny Lofton was a really good player.  He was a six-time all-star, every year from 1994-1999.  He led the league in hits once, in triples once, and in stolen bases five times.  In those five seasons, 1992-1996, he averaged sixty-five stolen bases.  Over seventeen seasons, he batted .299/.372/.423.  He also won four gold gloves, so he was considered a fine defender.  I don’t think he belongs in the Hall of Fame, but he was an excellent player for many years, and if he was in the Hall of Fame I don’t think he’d be the worst player there.

Pat Mahomes started, and after the game he had an ERA of 8.41.  Mark Guthrie was the only reliever used, and after the game he had an ERA of 12.75.  It was early in the season, obviously, but while those numbers would come down neither of them had a good season in 1994.

Mark Guthrie has a son, Dalton, who played briefly for Philadelphia from 2022-2023.  If I knew that, I’d forgotten it.  A utility player, he has batted .244/.393/.333 in forty-five major league at-bats.  He played in AAA for Boston in 2024 and is currently a free agent.  He’s twenty-nine, so it’s an open question whether he’ll get another chance.  He does have a good OBP in AAA, so he might someone might sign him.  Or, of course, they might not.

Record:  Cleveland was 11-7, in first place in the AL Central, percentage points ahead of Chicago.  They would finish 66-47, in second place, one game behind Chicago.

The Twins were 7-14, in fifth (last) place in the AL Central, 5.5 games behind Cleveland.  They would finish 53-60, in fourth place, fourteen games behind Chicago.

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 48-48 (.500).

DETROIT TIGERS 12, MINNESOTA TWINS 4 IN DETROIT

Date:  Friday, April 21, 1967.

Batting star:  Tony Oliva was 2-for-5 with a home run (his first) and two RBIs.  Russ Nixon was 2-for-5.  Cesar Tovar was 2-for-5.  Rod Carew hit a home run, his first.

Pitching star:  Dwight Siebler pitched a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.  Jim Perry pitched a scoreless inning, giving up a hit and a walk and striking out one.

Opposition stars:  Jim Northrup was 3-for-5 with a three-run homer (his first), a double, and two runs.  Ray Oyler was 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, and two RBIs.  Bill Freehan was 2-for-5 with a home run (his third) and two runs.  Al Kaline was 2-for-5 with two RBIs.  Denny McLain pitched seven innings, giving up three runs on eight hits and four walks and striking out two.

The game:  The Twins loaded the bases in the first on an error and two walks, but did not score.  They got on the board in the third when Cesar Tovar singled and scored from first on a Tony Oliva single.  The lead lasted until the bottom of the third.  Don Wert drew a one-out walk, followed by a Gates Brown triple and an Al Kaline single, putting Detroit up 2-1.

From there it was all Tigers.  With one out in the fourth Denny McLain and Dick McAuliffe walked, followed by a Don Wert RBI single.  A run scored on an error, Al Kaline hit an RBI single, and Jim Northrup hit a three-run homer.  With two out Bill Freehan followed with another home run.  When the rally was over, Detroit led 9-1.  They added three more runs in the sixth.  Northrup singled with one out.  With two down, Freehan singled, Ray Olyler hit a two-run double, and a wild pitch scored Oyler from second, making the score 12-1.

Rod Carew hit a two-run homer in the seventh and Tony Oliva homered in the ninth, but the Twins never got back into the game.

WP:  Denny McLain (2-1).

LP:  Dave Boswell (0-1).

S:  Larry Sherry (1).

Notes:  Russ Nixon was behind the plate.  Jerry Zimmerman was the regular catcher in 1967, as Earl Battey was injured most of the season.  Cesar Tovar was in center in place of Ted Uhlaender.

Zoilo Versalles was batting .385.  He would finish at .200.  Russ Nixon was batting .333.  He would finish at .235.  Sandy Valdespino was batting .333.  He would finish at .165.  Cesar Tovar was batting .313.  He would finish at .267.  Obviously, batting averages are skewed this early in the season.

Dwight Siebler had an ERA of zero.  He would finish at 3.00.

This was Rod Carew’s first career home run.  He would hit ninety-two in his career, with a high of fourteen in 1975 and 1977.

Cesar Tovar played in every game in 1967 despite not having a regular position.  He played 72 games at third base, 64 games in center field, 35 games at second base, ten games in left field, nine games at shortstop, and six games in right field.  He actually played in 164 games in 167 due to a couple of tie games.  He also led the league in at-bats and plate appearances.  He finished seventh in MVP voting that year, one of five seasons in which he received MVP votes.

As shown below, and as you probably know, the Twins lost the pennant by one game in 1967.  You have to think a healthy Earl Battey would’ve made the difference.  Jerry Zimmerman was known as a fine defender, but he batted .167/.243/.192, for an OPS of .436.  Even in the 1960s, that’s terrible.  One might also fault the Twins’ front office for not going out and getting a catcher who wasn’t an automatic out at the plate.

This was the only triple Gates Brown would hit in 1967.  He hit nineteen in his career, with a high of six in 1964.

You would be hard pressed to find a pitcher who had consecutive years better than Denny McLain in 196-1969.  As you know, he won 31 games in 1968.  But for the two years combined he was 55-15, 2.37, 1.00 WHIP.  He won the Cy Young Award both years and was the MVP in 1968.  He led the league in wins, starts (82), and innings pitched (661) in both years, led the league in WAR in 1969, and led the league in complete games in 1968 (28).  For the two years combined he had 51 complete games.

This was the next-to-last game of Dwight Siebler’s major league career.  He would appear in one more game (April 30), finish the year in AAA, and then his playing career was over.

Record:  Detroit was 6-3, in first place in the American League, one game ahead of Cleveland and New York.  They would finish 91-71, tied for second place with Minnesota, one game behind Boston.

The Twins were 2-5, in tenth place in the American League, three games behind Detroit.  They would finish 91-71, tied for second place with Detroit, one game behind Boston.

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 48-47 (.505).

MINNESOTA TWINS 6, CLEVELAND INDIANS 5 IN CLEVELAND (GAME 1–10 INNINGS)

Date:  Friday, August 25, 1967.

Batting stars:  Harmon Killebrew was 3-for-4 with a triple, a walk, and two RBIs.  Mudcat Grant was 2-for-2.  Tony Oliva was 2-for-4.  Ted Uhlaender was 2-for-5 with a two-run homer (his sixth) and three runs.

Pitching star:  Ron Kline pitched four innings of relief, giving up one run on three hits and one walk and striking out two.

Opposition stars:  Chuck Hinton was 3-for-5 with a home run (his eighth) and two runs.  Duke Sims was 2-for-4.  Max Alvis was 2-for-5.  Vic Davalillo was 2-for-5.  Joe Azcue hit a home run, his ninth.  Orlando Pena pitched three shutout innings of relief, giving up one hit and striking out two.

The game:  With one out in the first Ted Uhlaender singled, went to third on a Cesar Tovar single, and scored on a sacrifice fly to put the Twins up 1-0.  Chuck Hinton homered leading off the bottom of the first to tie it 1-1.

The Twins regained the lead in the third when Ted Uhlaender reached on an error, was bunted to second, and scored on a Harmon Killebrew single.  In the fourth Mudcat Grant singled with one out and scored on a two-out two-run homer by Uhlaender to put the Twins up 4-1.

Cleveland got one back in the fourth when Vic Davalillo led off with a single, went to second on a ground out, and scored on a two-out single by Max Alvis.  In the fifth, two-out singles by Chuck Hinton, Davalillo, and Leon Wagner produced a run to cut the lead to 4-3.  In the sixth, Max Alvis led off with a single and, with two out, Larry Brown singled and Don Demeter doubled to tie it 4-4.

It stayed 4-4 until the tenth.  Tony Oliva led off the inning with a single and Harmon Killebrew followed with an RBI triple.  A sacrifice fly scored him to give the Twins a 6-4 lead.  In the bottom of the tenth, Joe Azcue hit a home run to cut it to 6-5, but no one else reached base and the Twins were victorious.

WP:  Ron Kline (6-0).

LP:  John O’Donoghue (7-7).

S:  None.

Notes:  Hank Izquierdo was behind the plate in place of Jerry Zimmerman.  Jackie Hernandez was at short in place of Zoilo Versalles.  Cesar Tovar was at third.  Rich Rollins played the most games there with 97, with Tovar following at 72.  Sandy Valdespino was in left in place of Bob Allison.

Hank Izquierdo was batting .333.  He would finish at .269.

Stan Williams started for Cleveland.  He would pitch for the Twins from 1970-1971.

Hank Izquierdo came up to the Twins in early August and stayed the rest of the season.  He played in sixteen games and got twenty-six at-bats.  That was his only major league action, and when he made his debut he was thirty-six years old, which has to be one of the oldest debuts ever.  He was born in Cuba and made his professional debut in 1951 at age twenty.  He played in the Cleveland, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Minnesota, and Houston organizations.  He never hit–the only year he had an OPS of over. 800 was 1955 in Class B Keokuk.  He obviously loved baseball–he played in the Mexican League until he was forty-three, and managed there as well.  Later, he was a scout for the Twins and the Cubs.

Jim Perry pitched in relief.  He was mostly used out of the bullpen in 1967, making eleven starts and twenty-six relief appearances, pitching 130.2 innings.  He had led the league in starts in 1960 and would do so again in 1970.

Record:  Cleveland was 60-69, in seventh place in the American League, 12.5 games behind Minnesota.  They would finish 75-87, in eighth place, seventeen games behind Boston.

The Twins were 71-55, in first place in American League, a half game ahead of Boston and Chicago.  They would finish 91-71, tied for second with Detroit, one game behind Boston.

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 48-46 (.511).

MINNESOTA TWINS 4, CALIFORNIA ANGELS 1 IN CALIFORNIA

Date:  Friday, September 18, 1992.

Batting stars:  Chuck Knoblauch was 2-for-3 with a walk.  Pedro Munoz was 2-for-4 with a triple.  Gene Larkin was 2-for-4 with two RBIs.

Pitching stars:  Scott Erickson pitched 7.1 innings, giving up one run on four hits and two walks and striking out six.  Rick Aguilera pitched 1.1 scoreless innings, giving up one hit.

Opposition stars:  Lee Stevens was 2-for-4.  Gary Gaetti hit a home run, his twelfth.  Bert Blyleven pitched six innings, giving up three runs on six hits and one walk and striking out three.

The game:  Chuck Knoblauch led off the game with a single.  With one out Shane Mack was hit by a pitch, and with two out Pedro Munoz delivered an RBI single to give the Twins a 1-0 lead.  In the second, Lenny Webster singled with one out, went to second on a ground out, and Chuck Knoblauch delivered an RBI single to give the Twins a 2-0 lead.  In the third, Shane Mack led off with a single, went to second on a ground out, and Gene Larkin delivered an RBI single to give the Twins a 3-0 lead.

Meanwhile, Scott Erickson was in complete control.  The Angels only had one hit through six innings and only once advanced a man to second base.  That changed in the seventh, when Gary Gaetti led off with a home run to cut the Twins’ lead to 3-1.  California also got a pair of infield singles in the inning, but a double play took them out of the inning.

The Twins got the run back in the eighth.  Pedro Munoz hit a one-out triple and scored on a Gene Larkin single to make it 4-1.

And that was it.  California got only one more hit, a two-out double by Chad Curtis in the ninth, but it did not lead to anything.

WP:  Scott Erickson (13-10).

LP:  Bert Blyleven (8-9).

S:  Rick Aguilera (39).

Notes:  Lenny Webster was behind the plate in place of Brian Harper.  Gene Larkin was at first base in place of Kent Hrbek.  Jeff Reboulet was at short in place of Greg Gagne.  Terry Jorgensen was at third in place of Scott Leius.  J. T. Bruett was in center in place of Kirby Puckett, who was at DH in place of Chili Davis

Terry Jorgensen was batting .400   He would finish at .310.  Kirby Puckett was batting .328.  He would finish at .329.  Shane Mack was batting .322.  He would finish at .315.  Chuck Knoblauch was batting .302.  He would finish at .297.

Gary Wayne had an ERA of 2.01.  He would finish at 2.63.  Rick Aguilera had an ERA of 2.93.  He would finish at 2.84.

Gary Gaetti had played for the Twins from 1981-1990.  Bert Blyleven pitched for the Twins from 1970-1976 and 1986-1988,

The Twins were pretty much out of the race at this point, which is why there were so many reserves and September call-ups in the lineup.  It’s kind of impressive that with that lineup, the Twins still won.

Pedro Munoz hit eight triples in his career.  His career high was in 1992, when he hit three.

Record:  California was 66-81, in fifth place in the AL West, twenty-four games behind Oakland.  They would finish 72-90, in fifth place, twenty-four games behind Oakland.

The Twins were 82-66, in second place in the AL West, 8.5 games behind Oakland.  They would finish 90-72, in second place, six games behind Oakland.

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 46-46 (.500).

MINNESOTA TWINS 6, BALTIMORE ORIOLES 4 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Monday, May 28, 1990.

Batting star:  Kirby Puckett was 3-for-4 with two home runs (his seventh and eighth) and four RBIs.  Gene Larkin was 2-for-3 with a home run (his third), a double, and a walk.  Dan Gladden was 2-for-4.  Gary Gaetti hit a home run, his sixth.

Pitching star:  Tim Drummond pitched 1.1 scoreless innings, walking two and striking out one.  Juan Berenguer struck out three and walked one in two shutout innings.  John Candelaria pitched a perfect inning.

Opposition stars:  Randy Milligan hit a home run, his third.  Dave Johnson pitched 5.2 innings, giving up two runs on seven hits and a walk and striking out two.

The game:  Joe Orsulak tripled with one out in the first and scored on a sacrifice fly to give Baltimore a 1-0 lead.  Kirby Puckett homered in the bottom of the first to tie it 1-1.  Randy Milligan homered leading off the second to put the Orioles in front 2-1.  It went to 3-1 in the third when Baltimore scored on three walks and a wild pitch.  It went to 4-1 in the fourth when Bob Melvin led off with a double, was bunted to third, and scored on a ground out.

The Twins got a run in the fifth when Gene Larkin homered.  Each team put men on second and third with one out in the sixth, but neither team scored.  In the seventh, Junior Ortiz doubled with one out and went to third on a Dan Gladden singled.  With two out, Kirby Puckett hit a three-run homer to give the Twins their first lead at 5-4.  Gary Gaetti homered in the eighth to give the Twins an insurance run.

Baltimore drew four walks, but did not get a hit after the fourth inning.

WP:  Juan Berenguer (4-0).

LP:  Joe Price (0-2).

S:  John Candelaria (2-0).

Notes:  Junior Ortiz was behind the plate in place of Brian Harper.  Fred Manrique was at second base.  Al Newman played the most games there at 89, with Manrique second at 67.  Gene Larkin was in right field.  John Moses played the most games there at 52, with Shane Mack at 51 and Larkin at 47.  Jim Dwyer was the DH.  Larkin played the most games there with 43, followed by Carmelo Castillo with 35, Randy Bush with 27, Paul Sorrento with 23, and Dwyer with 22.

Kirby Puckett was batting .327.  He would finish at .298.  Dan Gladden was batting .325.  He would finish at .275.  Gene Larkin was batting .314.  He would finish at .269.  John Moses was batting .308.  He would finish at .221.

Terry Leach had an ERA of 2.03.  He would finish at 3.20.

David West started for the Twins, giving up four runs on three hits and four walks in four innings.  He was a top Mets prospect, and came to the Twins in the Frank Viola trade.  In a four-year career with the Twins, he went 15-18, 5.33, 1.52 WHIP in 63 games, 47 of them starts.  The Twins traded him to Philadelphia after the 1992 season and he went on to have a few decent years for them, mostly out of the bullpen.

Joe Price was in the last year of a pretty good career.  He played eleven seasons, mostly for Cincinnati.  In 372 games (84 starts), he went 45-49, 13 saves, 3.65 ERA, 1.30 WHIP.   He had an ERA under three in four of those years and under four in eight of them.  He had a few down years in there, mostly toward the end of his career, but for the most part he was a guy you were happy to have on your team.

John Candelaria had twenty-nine career saves, five of them in 1990.  He was a starter most of his career, but moved to the bullpen in 1989, his fifteenth major league season.  He would be traded to Toronto about two months after this game for Pedro Munoz and Nelson Liriano.

Record:  Baltimore was 20-25, in fifth place in the AL East, four games behind Toronto.  They would finish 76-85, in fifth place, 11.5 games behind Boston.

The Twins were 26-18, in third place in the AL West, 4.5 games behind Oakland.  They would finish 74-88, in seventh (last) place, twenty-nine games behind Oakland.  They would have the worst record in the American League after this date (48-70).

Random Record:  The Random Twins are 45-46 (.483).