Tag Archives: 1991 rewind

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Twenty-three

MINNESOTA 5, SEATTLE 4 IN MINNESOTA (10 INNINGS)

Date:  Thursday, August 22.

Batting stars:  Randy Bush was 2-for-4 with a three-run homer (his fifth) and a walk.  Brian Harper was 2-for-4.  Kent Hrbek was 2-for-5 with a double.  Chuck Knoblauch was 2-for-5.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-5.

Pitching stars:  Jack Morris struck out seven in 6.1 innings, giving up two runs on eight hits and five walks.  Rick Aguilera pitched two shutout innings, giving up a hit and a walk.

Opposition stars:  Rick DeLucia pitched 6.1 innings, giving up one run on six hits and two walks and striking out three.  Greg Briley was 3-for-5 with two stolen bases, his seventeenth and eighteenth.  Pete O'Brien was 2-for-4 with a walk.  Jay Buhner was 2-for-5 with a double.  Edgar Martinez was 2-for-6 with a double and two runs.  Harold Reynolds was 2-for-6 with a double.

The game:  Martinez led off the game with a single, went to second on a ground out, and scored on an O'Brien single to give the Mariners a 1-0 lead.  Each team missed a chance in the second.  In the third O'Brien hit a two-out single and scored on Buhner's double to make it 2-0 Seattle.

Each team put a man on second in the fourth but neither scored.  The Twins had two on in the sixth and the Mariners loaded the bases in the seventh, but the score remained 2-0.  The Twins finally got on the board in the seventh when Mike Pagliarulo doubled and scored on Knoblauch's two-out single.  Seattle came right back in the eighth.  Dave Cochrane singled, and with two out Martinez had an RBI double and Reynolds had a run-scoring single, putting the Mariners ahead 4-1.

It was still 4-1 going to the bottom of the ninth.  With one out, Al Newman walked, Knoblauch singled, and Bush hit a three-run homer to tie the score 4-4.  Seattle went down in order in the top of the tenth.  With two out and none on in the bottom of the tenth, Leius hit a walkoff home run to win the game for the Twins.

WP:  Aguilera (4-4).  LP:  Mike Schooler (0-1).  S:  None.

Notes:  Shane Mack was in left field, with Dan Gladden out of the lineup.  Gene Larkin took Mack's place in right.  Knoblauch was the leadoff batter, with Bush batting second.  Bush replaced Chili Davis in the DH slot.  Newman was again at shortstop in place of Greg Gagne.

The Twins again made liberal use of their bench.  Gagne pinch-ran for Brian Harper in the eighth.  Davis pinch-hit for Larkin in the eighth and stayed in the game in left field, with Mack moving to right.  Junior Ortiz replaced Gagne in the ninth and was the catcher.  Gladden pinch-hit for Pagliarulo in the ninth and stayed in the game in left field, replacing Davis.  Leius entered the game in the tenth at third base.

Puckett raised his average to .330.  Harper went up to .312.  Mack was 0-for-4 and was batting .306.  Aguilera lowered his ERA to 2.38.

The Twins stranded nine men and went 2-for-12 with men in scoring position.  The Mariners stranded fourteen men and went 2-for-19 with men in scoring position.

Morris threw 137 pitches in his 6.1 innings.

It seemed odd that Schooler had not had a decision before this game, but he missed the first half of 1991, not appearing in his first game until July 12.  He had five saves to this point.

Edgar Martinez was the leadoff batter for Seattle in this series.  It was his second full season, and he was still primarily a third baseman at this point.  He batted leadoff 67 times in 1991 and was good at it.  He didn't steal any bases, which is no surprise, but he batted .307 as a leadoff batter with an OBP of .405.  He would move down to (primarily) the number two spot in 1992 and would not return to the number one position.

The White Sox did not play and Oakland defeated California 2-1, so those two teams moved in to a "virtual tie" for second place.

Record:  The Twins were 74-49, in first place in the American League West, six games ahead of Chicago and Oakland.

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Twenty-two

MINNESOTA 9, SEATTLE 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Wednesday, August 21.

Batting stars:  Shane Mack was 3-for-3 with a triple, a double, a walk, and five RBIs.  Brian Harper was 2-for-3 with a hit-by-pitch and two runs.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-3 with two runs.

Pitching stars:  Kevin Tapani pitched eight innings, giving up one run on four hits and three walks and striking out one.  Denny Neagle pitched a scoreless inning, giving up two hits.

Opposition stars:  Ken Griffey was 2-for-3 with a double.  Bill Swift pitched two shutout innings, giving up a hit and a walk and striking out one.  Russ Swan pitched two shutout innings, giving up two hits and a walk.

The game:  Edgar Martinez led off the game with a double, went to third on a fly ball and scored on another fly ball to give the Mariners a 1-0 lead.  The Twins came back with six in the bottom of the first, and they did after their first two batters were retired.  Puckett singled, Chili Davis walked, and Harper was hit by a pitch to load the bases.  Mack hit a bases-clearing triple and scored on Kent Hrbek's single.  Scott Leius walked and Al Newman delivered a two-run double.  The Twins led 6-1 and were never threatened after that.

The Twins added two runs in the second for good measure.  Singles by Puckett and Harper put men on first and second with two out.  Mack's double brought them both home to make it 8-1.  The final run of the game came in the seventh, when Davis singled, went to second on a ground out, and scored on Mack's single-plus-error.

Seattle only got close to scoring twice after the first inning.  Griffey doubled leading off the sixth but could only get as far as third base.  Greg Briley doubled with two out in the ninth but was thrown out at the plate trying to score on a Scott Bradley single.

WP:  Tapani (11-7).  LP:  Bill Krueger (10-6).  S:  None.

Notes:  Newman started at short in place of Greg Gagne.

With a big lead, the Twins made lots of substitutions.  Gagne pinch-hit for Chuck Knoblauch in the sixth and stayed in the game at shortstop, with Newman moving to second base.  Gene Larkin pinch-hit for Puckett in the seventh and stayed in the game in right field, with Mack moving to center.  Junior Ortiz replaced Harper behind the plate in the eighth.  Randy Bush replaced Hrbek at first base in the eighth.

Puckett raised his average to .329.  Harper raised his average to .310.  Mack raised his average to .310.  Tapani lowered his ERA to 2.97.

Tapani threw 111 pitches.  Today, with a lead that big, he would undoubtedly have come out after seven innings, if not sooner.

Krueger started for the Mariners but lasted only two innings.  He surrendered eight runs on seven hits and two walks and struck out two.

It seems kind of amazing to have the last out be made at the plate in a 9-1 game.  In that situation, if there's any chance that the runner might not make it home safely (other than falling down or something), you hold him at third, because that run is meaningless anyway.  It could be, I suppose, that, knowing the run was meaningless, Seattle assumed Dan Gladden would concede it and not make a throw to the plate.  If so, they were wrong.

I don't recall what the deal was with Gagne at this point.  I had assumed he was nursing a minor injury, but if so, why use him late in a game like this?  It's clearly not a case of being able to bat and not play in the field, or vice-versa, because he did both here.  He would not be back in the starting lineup until August 24, but he would play in each of the two games in-between.  I'm sure there was a reason, but I don't know what it was.

Mack had an eight-game hitting streak.  He was 15-for-32 over that streak with three doubles and three triples.  The three triples have come in the last two games.  His average jumped from .292 to .310.

The White Sox lost to Detroit 12-9.  Not only did they lose another game to the Twins, but they were only a half-game above third-place Oakland.

Record:  The Twins were 73-49, in first place in the American League West, 5.5 games ahead of Chicago.

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Twenty-one

MINNESOTA 10, SEATTLE 5 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Tuesday, August 20.

Batting stars:  Junior Ortiz was 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs.  Shane Mack was 2-for-4 with two triples, a stolen base, (his seventh), and three runs.  Kent Hrbek was 2-for-4 with a double and three RBIs.  Chuck Knoblauch was 2-for-4 with a walk.

Pitching star:  Mark Guthrie struck out four in 3.2 scoreless innings of relief, giving up two hits and no walks.

Opposition stars:  Greg Briley was 3-for-3 with two doubles and two runs.  Alvin Davis was 2-for-3 with a home run (his eleventh) and three RBIs.  Harold Reynolds was 2-for-4.

The game:  The Twins started the scoring in the third.  They opened the inning with singles by Ortiz and Al Newman, but a double play left them with a man on third and two out.  Knoblauch and Kirby Puckett each walked, loading the bases, and Hrbek delivered a bases-clearing double to give the Twins a 3-0 lead.

It didn't last long.  In the fourth, Ken Griffey, Jr. doubled.  With one out, he scored when Jay Buhner reached on an error.  Briley doubled, a sacrifice fly scored a run, and Omar Vizquel singled home another to tie the score 3-3.  The tie didn't last long either, though, as the Twins scored three in the bottom of the fourth.  Mack led off with a triple and Mike Pagliarulo singled.  Al Newman was hit by a pitch, and with two out Knoblauch delivered an RBI single which was followed by a run-scoring wild pitch, giving the Twins a 6-3 advantage.

The Twins increased the lead in the fifth when Mack hit his second triple of the game and scored on an Ortiz single.  The Mariners got back into it in the sixth.  With one out, Briley singled and Davis hit a two-run homer to cut the Twins lead to 7-5.  But the Twins put it away in the seventh.  Hrbek singled, went to second on a wild pitch, and scored on a Chili Davis single.  Walks to Pagliarulo and Ortiz loaded the bases, a wild pitch scored a run, and a ground out scored another to put the Twins up 10-5.  Seattle did not threaten after that.

WP:  Scott Erickson (16-5).  LP:  Erik Hanson (7-6).  S:  None.

Notes:  With Erickson pitching, Ortiz was catching.  Newman was at short replacing Greg Gagne.  Gene Larkin pinch-hit for Hrbek in the eighth and stayed in the game at first base.

Kirby Puckett was 1-for-4 with a walk and was batting .327.  Mack raised his average to .304.

Erickson pitched 5.1 innings, allowing five runs (three earned) on seven hits and two walks and striking out four.  His ERA went to 2.96.  Hanson started for Seattle and pitched four innings.  He allowed six runs on seven hits and two walks and struck out three.

The White Sox lost to Detroit 5-0, so the Twins lengthened their lead.

Record:  The Twins were 72-49, in first place in the American League West, 4.5 games ahead of Chicago.

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Twenty

OAKLAND 8, MINNESOTA 7 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Monday, August 19.

Batting stars:  Mike Pagliarulo was 2-for-4 with a three-run homer, his fifth.  Kent Hrbek was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer (his fourteenth), a double, and two runs.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-4 with a home run (his thirteenth) and two runs.  Brian Harper was 2-for-4.  Shane Mack was 2-for-4.

Pitching star:  Steve Bedrosian pitched three innings, giving up one run on two hits and two walks and striking out two.

Opposition stars:  Brook Jacoby was 3-for-5.  Terry Steinbach was 2-for-4.  Jose Canseco was 2-for-5 with a home run (his thirty-fifth) and two runs.  Rickey Henderson was 1-for-3 with a three-run homer (his eleventh) and two walks.  Joe Klink pitched 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up three hits and a walk and striking out one.

The game:  Canseco hit a two-out homer in the top of the first to give the Athletics a 1-0 lead.  Puckett responded with a two-out homer in the bottom of the first to tie it 1-1.  There was no more scoring until the fourth, when Oakland exploded for five runs.  Terry Steinbach started the inning with a walk.  Jacoby singled and Brad Komminsk had an RBI single to give the Athletics the lead.  Mark McGwire walked to load the bases.  With one out, Mike Bordick laid down a squeeze bunt.  Rickey Henderson followed with a three-run homer to give Oakland a 6-1 lead.

The Twins came right back in the bottom of the fourth.  With one out, Hrbek and Chili Davis hit back-to-back doubles to score one run.  Harper singled, but Davis was thrown out at the plate.  Undaunted, Mack singled and Pagliarulo hit a three-run homer to cut the Athletics' lead to 6-5.

In the fifth, singles by Canseco, Jacoby, and McGwire plated a run to make it 7-5.  In the bottom of the fifth Knoblauch walked and Hrbek hit a two-run homer to tie it 7-7.

There was no more scoring until the ninth.  With one out, Dave Henderson walked.  He went to second on a ground out and Steinbach delivered an RBI single to give Oakland an 8-7 lead.  In the bottom of the ninth Randy Bush hit a pinch-hit one-out double, but a ground out and a pop up ended the game.

WP:  Klink (9-3).  LP:  Steve Bedrosian (4-3).  S:  Dennis Eckersley (34).

Notes:  Dan Gladden was on the bench for this game.  Mack moved to left and Gene Larkin went to right.  Knoblauch moved up to the leadoff spot and Larkin batted second.  Al Newman was at shortstop in Greg Gagne's place.

Bush pinch-hit for Newman in the ninth.  Scott Leius then pinch-ran for Bush.

Puckett raised his average to .328.  Harper went up to .306.  Mack got over .300 for the first time all season at .301.

David West started and lasted just 3.2 innings, allowing six runs on six hits and three walks.  He struck out four.  Terry Leach gave up one run in 2.1 innings to make his ERA 2.78.

The Athletics' starter was Joe Slusarski.  He pitched four innings and also allowed six runs.  He gave up seven hits and and one walk with one strikeout.

You may remember Brad Komminsk--he was a can't-miss prospect who missed.  The Braves took him with the fourth pick of the 1979 draft.  He tore up the minors and made his major league debut with Atlanta in mid-August of 1983.  He batted .222 in 36 at-bats, but he was only twenty-two.  He was doing well in AAA in 1984, came up to the majors at the end of May, and batted .203 in 301 at-bats.  He stuck with the Braves the entire 1985 season, but batted just .227.  He did draw a fair number of walks, but not enough to offset his low average.  Also, he was supposed to be a power hitter, and he was in the minors, but his high in home runs for Atlanta was eight in 1984.  He was with the Braves through 1986, was with Milwaukee in 1987, was in the minors all of 1988, played for Cleveland in 1989, was with Baltimore and San Francisco in 1990, and was with Oakland in 1991.  He hit well in AAA, but for some reason could not translate that to the majors.  It's true that he rarely got regular playing time--his high in at-bats in a season was 301--but it's also true that he never showed he deserved it.  For his career, in 1119 plate appearances, he batted .218/.301/.336 with 23 home runs.  He was in AAA with the White Sox in 1992-1993, played in the Northern League in 1996, and played one game of AAA for Detroit in 1997.  He was a long-time minor league coach and manager.

The White Sox lost to Detroit 3-2, so the Twins maintained their lead.

Record:  The Twins were 71-49, in first place in the American League West, 3.5 games ahead of Chicago.

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Nineteen

MINNESOTA 6, OAKLAND 4 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Sunday, August 18.

Batting stars:  Mike Pagliarulo was 2-for-3 with a walk.  Shane Mack was 2-for-4.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-4.

Pitching stars:  Carl Willis pitched five innings of relief, giving up one run on two hits and no walks and striking out four.  Rick Aguilera pitched a perfect inning and struck out one.

Opposition stars:  Dave Stewart pitched 6.2 innings, giving up three runs on seven hits and five walks and striking out five.  Dave Henderson was 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, and two runs.

The game:  The Athletics again took the early lead, scoring twice in the first inning.  Rickey Henderson led off with a single and Dave Henderson walked.  The Hendersons then pulled off a double steal-plus-error, with Rickey scoring and Dave going to third.  A ground out scored Dave and gave Oakland a 2-0 lead.  The Hendersons produced another run in the third when Rickey walked and scored from first on Dave's double.

The Twins got on the board in the bottom of the third when Dan Gladden walked and scored from first on Chuck Knoblauch's double.  The Athletics got the run back in the sixth when Dave Henderson singled, went to third on a Jose Canseco single, and scored on a ground out.  Just like yesterday, Oakland led 4-1.

The Twins got a pair of walks in the sixth but did not score.  In the seventh, however, Mike Pagliarulo walked, Greg Gagne singled, and Dan Gladden was hit by a pitch, loading the bases.  A sacrifice fly scored one run and Puckett singled home another, cutting the lead to 4-3.  The Twins continued the comeback in the eighth.  Chili Davis led off with a single and Brian Harper delivered an RBI triple, tying the score.  Mack singled to put the Twins ahead.  He went to third on a Pagliarulo single and scored on a ground out to give the Twins a 6-4 advantage.  The Athletics went down in order in the ninth.

WP:  Willis (7-2).  LP:  Rick Honeycutt (2-3).  S:  Aguilera (32).

Notes:  Al Newman pinch-ran for Harper in the eighth.  Gene Larkin pinch-hit for Gagne, also in the eighth.  In the ninth, Newman went to shortstop and Junior Ortiz replaced Larkin and went behind the plate.

Puckett raised his average to .326.  He was 6-for-14 in the series so far.  Harper was 1-for-4 and was batting .304.  Willis lowered his ERA to 1.93.  Aguilera's ERA was 2.47.

Willie Banks started for the Twins but pitched just three innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on two hits and three walks and striking out one.  His ERA was 6.28.

I've written about this before, but Carl Willis was an incredibly valuable pitcher for the Twins in 1991.  Time after time, he came in and pitched multiple innings out of the bullpen.  He either retained a lead or kept the Twins in the game over and over again, and saved the rest of the bullpen.  He would wear down and have a poor September, but I think it's safe to say the Twins might well have not won the division without him.

Rick Honeycutt came up in 1977 with Seattle and had a fine career as a starter through 1986.  He then moved to the bullpen and had a fine career as a reliever through 1996.  For his career, he posted an ERA of 3.84 and a WHIP of 1.35 in 268 starts.  He posted an ERA 3.36 and a WHIP of 1.22 in 529 relief appearances.  He came up at age 23 and was in the majors until age 43.  He made two all-star teams and led the league in ERA in 1983.  Not a Hall-of-Famer or anything, but still, that's a career to be proud of.

Oakland entered this series trailing the Twins by four games.  They now trailed by seven.  The White Sox defeated the Yankees 11-3, so the gap between those two teams remained the same.

Record:  The Twins were 71-48, in first place in the American League West, 3.5 games ahead of Chicago.

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Eighteen

MINNESOTA 12, OAKLAND 4 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Saturday, August 17.

Batting stars:  Chuck Knoblauch was 3-for-5 with two runs.  Kent Hrbek was 2-for-2 with three walks and three runs.  Chili Davis was 2-for-3 with a walk.  Brian Harper was 2-for-4.  Shane Mack was 2-for-5 with a double and three RBIs.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-5 with two runs.

Pitching stars:  Jack Morris pitched a complete game, giving up four runs on eight hits and no walks and striking out six.  He threw 113 pitches.

Opposition stars:  Jose Canseco was 2-for-4 with a home run (his thirty-fourth), two runs, and two RBIs.  Harold Baines was 2-for-4.

The game:  The Athletics opened the game consecutive singles by Rickey Henderson, Dave Henderson, Canseco, and Baines, producing two runs.  A double play made it 3-0 in the top of the first.  The Twins got on the board in the second when Hrbek walked, went to third on a Davis single, and scored on a ground out.  Oakland got the run right back in the third when Canseco homered, giving the Athletics a 4-1 lead.

It was all Minnesota after that.  In the bottom of the third Dan Gladden led off with a walk and scored on Knoblauch's double.  Puckett followed with an RBI single, and singles by Hrbek and Harper brought home another run, tying the score 4-4.  The Twins had two out and nobody on in the fifth, but a walk to Hrbek, a single by Davis, and a walk to Harper loaded the bases.  Mack then unloaded them with a three-run double to give the Twins a 7-4 lead.

The Twins kept adding on.  In the sixth, again with two out and none on, singles by Knoblauch, Puckett, and Hrbek scored one run, a walk to Davis loaded the bases, and Harper delivered a two-run single to increase the lead to 10-4.  In the seventh, Mike Pagliarulo doubled, went to third on an Al Newman single, and scored on a sacrifice fly.  The Twins finished the scoring in the eighth when a Hrbek walk, a Gene Larkin single, and a double play produced the team's twelfth run.

WP:  Morris (15-9).  LP:  Bob Welch (10-8).  S:  None.

Notes:  Newman was at shorstop, replacing Greg Gagne.  Gagne would play the next day, but then would miss two days and be used as a late-game replacement in three more before returning to the starting lineup August 24.

Larkin pinch-hit for Davis in the eighth.  Randy Bush pinch-ran for Hrbek in the eighth and stayed in the game at first base.

Puckett raised his average to .325.  Harper raised his average to .305.

Welch pitched 5.2 innings.  He was allowed to stay in the game long enough to allow nine runs on eleven hits and four walks.  He struck out one.  The Athletics had used six pitchers in the twelve-inning game the day before, so I assume Welch was simply being asked to take one for the team.  He threw one hundred pitches.  Eric Show pitched the rest of the game, going 2,1 innings while allowing three runs on five hits and two walks.

I know it was a different era, but there was still no real reason for Morris to pitch a complete game.  The Twins had used only four pitchers in the previous game, and one of them had only thrown six pitches.  The game was well in hand after six.  Yes, I know Morris didn't want to come out of games, but that's why you have someone called "the manager" who makes decisions that are in the best long-term interest of both the player and the team.  I'm glad that, for the most part, we've moved past that phony macho thinking in baseball.

By game scores, this was actually Welch's third-worst game of the season.  The worst was on May 5, when he allowed eleven runs (eight earned) on thirteen hits and two walks in 4.2 innings for a game score of two.  The second-worst was June 28, when he allowed nine runs (eight earned) on nine hits and three walks in three innings for a game score of five.  His game score in this game was eight.  Those three games probably went a long way to giving him an ERA of 4.58 for the season.

Knoblauch was 8-for-13 with two doubles and two walks over his last three games.

Canseco had three home runs in the two games of the series.

The White Sox lost to the Yankees 4-2, so the Twins were starting to put some space between themselves and second place.

Record:  The Twins were 70-48, in first place in the American League West, 3.5 games ahead of Chicago.

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Seventeen

MINNESOTA 5, OAKLAND 4 IN MINNESOTA (12 INNINGS)

Date:  Friday, August 16.

Batting stars:  Chuck Knoblauch was 4-for-6 with a double.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-5 with two stolen bases, his ninth and tenth.

Pitching stars:  Steve Bedrosian retired all ten men he faced, striking out four of them.  Rick Aguilera pitched a scoreless inning, giving up one hit and striking out one.

Opposition stars:  Mike Moore pitched 7.2 innings, giving up two runs (one earned) on six hits and a walk and striking out six.  Jaime Quirk was 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs.  Jose Canseco was 2-for-5 with two home runs, his thirty-second and thirty-third.  Harold Baines was 2-for-5 with a double.

The game:  The Twins took the early lead.  In the second, Brian Harper hit a one-out single and scored from first on a Shane Mack double.  In the third, Dan Gladden reached third on a single-plus error and scored on a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0.

The Athletics tied the game in the fourth.  Canseco led off the inning with a home run.  Baines followed with a double and scored on Quirk's one-out single to even the score at 2-2.  Oakland took the lead in the sixth inning.  Canseco again led off with a home run.  Mark McGwire drew a one-out walk and scored from first on Quirk's double, giving the Athletics a 4-2 advantage.

It stayed 4-2 until the ninth.  Chili Davis led off with a single-plus-error, reaching third base, and scored on a ground out to cut the margin to 4-3.  Still, there was no one on with one out.  Randy Bush then delivered a pinch-hit double and pinch-runner Scott Leius scored on Mike Pagliarulo single to tie it up 4-4.

The Twins had a chance in the tenth when Puckett reached third base with two out, but Davis struck out to end the inning.  Gene Larkin hit a one-out double in the eleventh but did not advance.  In the twelfth, Knoblauch doubled with one out.  Puckett's infield single put men on first and third, and Kent Hrbek delivered an RBI single to win the game for the Twins.

WP: Aguilera (3-4).  LP:  Gene Nelson (1-4).  S:  None.

Notes:  As noted above, Bush pinch-hit for Mack in the ninth.  Leius then pinch-ran for Bush and Larkin went to right field in the tenth inning.  Al Newman pinch-hit for Greg Gagne in the fifth inning, presumably due to an injury to Gagne.  Gagne would miss one game, play one game, then miss two more before returning to the starting lineup.

Puckett raised his average to .324.  Harper was 1-for-5 and 3-for-20.  His average fell to .302.

Kevin Tapani started for the Twins.  He pitched 7.1 innings and allowed four runs on eight hits and three walks and struck out five.  His ERA went to 3.06.  Aguilera's ERA fell to 2.52.

Bedrosian had been struggling coming into this game.  He had allowed at least one run in each of his last four appearances.  His ERA had jumped from 3.54 to 3.97 over that span.  He sure came through in this game, though, and could well be considered the player of the game.

Bush had an awesome year as a pinch-hitter in 1991.  He went 13-for-34 with two doubles and two home runs.  He also walked eight times, giving him a line of .382/.500/.618 as a pinch-hitter.  His pinch-hitting numbers for his career are nowhere near that, but are still not bad for that role.  In 362 pinch-hitting appearances, he batted .242/.346/.353.

Mike Moore had a really good year in 1991, going 17-8, 2.96, 1.34 WHIP.  His best year was probably 1989, when he went 19-11, 2.61, 1.14 WHIP, made the all-star team for the third time, and finished third in Cy Young voting.  He also had solid years in 1985 and 1988.  Other than those years, he was a below average pitcher.  I don't know if he just got lucky, if the defense made a difference, or if he just was able to put it together some years but not others.  For his career he was 161-176, 4.39, 1.42 WHIP.  If you caught him in one of his good years, though, he was a very valuable pitcher.

The victory snapped a three-game losing streak.  The White Sox lost the Yankees 6-5, so the Twins gained a game.

Record:  The Twins were 69-48, in first place in the American League West, 2.5 games ahead of Chicago.

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Sixteen

CALIFORNIA 9, MINNESOTA 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Thursday, August 15.

Batting stars:  Dan Gladden was 2-for-4 with a stolen base, his ninth.  Chuck Knoblauch was 1-for-2 with two walks.

Pitching star:  Terry Leach pitched 3.2 innings, giving up one run on one hit.

Opposition stars:  Mark Langston pitched seven shutout innings, giving up two hits and three walks and striking out three.  Shawn Abner was 2-for-4 with a home run (his second), two runs, and two RBIs.  Lance Parrish was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer, his fifteenth.  Wally Joyner was 2-for-5 with two doubles and two RBIs.  Luis Sojo was 1-for-4 with a home run, his second.

The game:  The Twins had men on first and second with none out in the first and did not score.  In the third, the Angels exploded for five runs.  With one out, Joyner doubled and Gary Gaetti singled him to third.  Dave Parker hit an RBI double, there was a run-scoring ground out, Abner had an RBI single, and Parrish hit a two-run homer,  making the score 5-0 California.

The Twins had men on first and second with two out in the third and did not score.  Abner homered in the fifth to make it 6-0.  In the sixth, Donnie Hill walked and Luis Polonia and Joyner hit back-to-back doubles to increase the lead to 8-0.  Sojo homered in the eighth to make it 9-0.

The Twins finally got on the board in the bottom of the eighth.  With two out, they got consecutive singles by Gladden, Knoblauch, and Shane Mack, avoiding the shutout with a score of 9-1.

WP:  Langston (15-6).  LP:  Scott Erickson (15-5).  S:  None.

Notes:  Gene Larkin was at first base with Kent Hrbek on the bench.  With Erickson pitching, Junior Ortiz was behind the plate in place of Brian Harper.  Al Newman was at shortstop in place of Greg Gagne.

With the changes, Mack was in the third spot in the batting order, with Puckett batting fourth and Chili Davis fifth.

Erickson pitched just three innings, allowing five runs on seven hits and a walk.  His ERA went to 2.89.  It was his second consecutive bad start and third out of four.  His injury was clearly affecting him, but the Twins kept sending him out there.

Puckett was 0-for-4 and was batting .323.  Ortiz was 0-for-4 and was batting .194.  Denny Neagle allowed three runs in 2.1 innings to make his ERA 5.63.  Leach's ERA went down to 2.73.

I'm pretty sure that, when Mike Fetters came in to pitch the ninth for the Angels, John Gordon solemnly stated, "This is not a save situation."

1991 was probably Langston's best year.  He went 19-8, 3.00, 1.16 WHIP.  He finished sixth in Cy Young voting that year and probably should have been higher.  From 1987-1995 he was a consistently good pitcher, making the all-star team four times, but 1991 was the best.

The White Sox lost to Detroit 6-4, so the Twins maintained their lead.

Record:  The Twins were 68-48, in first place in the American League West, 1.5 games ahead of Chicago.

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Fifteen

CALIFORNIA 7, MINNESOTA 4 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Wednesday, August 14.

Batting stars:  Chili Davis was 2-for-4 with a walk, a double, and two RBIs.  Shane Mack was 2-for-5.  Kent Hrbek was 2-for-5.

Pitching star:  Carl Willis pitched three innings, giving up one run on two hits and striking out two.

Opposition stars:  Luis Polonia was 2-for-3.  Wally Joyner was 2-for-4 with a home run, his sixteenth.  Dave Winfield was 1-for-4 with a two-run homer, his twenty-second.  Lance Parrish was 1-for-4 with a home run, his fourteenth.

The game:  The Twins loaded the bases with none out in the second inning, but Mike Pagliarulo was caught looking, Greg Gagne hit into a forceout at the plate, and Al Newman grounded out.  The Angels started the scoring in the third when Luis Sojo doubled, went to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly.  The Twins got on the board, and in fact took the lead, in the bottom of the third.  Mack and Randy Bush opened the inning with singles.  Kirby Puckett bunted them over and Davis delivered a two-out two-run double to give the Twins a 2-1 lead.

California took the lead back in the top of the fourth when Dave Parker walked and Winfield hit a two-run homer.  The Twins tied it 3-3 in the bottom of the fourth when Gagne tripled and scored on Newman's sacrifice fly.  The Angels went into the lead to stay in the fifth when Dick Schofield singled and Joyner hit a two-run homer to make the score 5-3.

The Twins had their chances, but could not catch up.  They had three consecutive one-out singles in the fifth, but Brian Harper flied out and Pagliarulo grounded out to end the inning.  With one out in the sixth, Newman reached on an error, Mack singled, and Dan Gladden had an RBI single to cut the lead to 5-4.  The tying run was on second, but Puckett and Kent Hrbek each struck out and the Twins never threatened again.

California added single runs in the eighth and ninth to close out the scoring.  In the eighth Polonia and Joyner singled and a sacrifice fly brought home the run.  In the ninth Parrish homered.

WP:  Kirk McCaskill (9-15).  LP:  David West (3-3).  S:  Bryan Harvey (27).

Notes:  Mack started in left and batted first in place of Gladden.  Bush played right field and batted second.  Newman was at second base in place of Chuck Knoblauch.

Gladden pinch-hit for Bush in the sixth and stayed in the game in left, with Mack moving to right.  Scott Leius pinch-hit for Pagliarulo in the seventh and stayed in the game at third base.

Puckett was 1-for-4 and was batting .326.  Harper was 0-for-4 and fell to .304.  Willis' ERA fell to 1.94.

West pitched five innings, giving up five runs on five hits and one walk and striking out four.  McCaskill also pitched five innings, giving up three runs on eight hits and two walks and striking out three.

The Twins went 4-for-14 with men in scoring position, which isn't so bad, but they stranded ten men, including (as shown above) twice leaving the bases loaded.  The Angels stranded only two men despite going 0-for-3 with men in scoring position.  The Twins out-hit California 10-8.

The White Sox defeated Detroit 9-8 to gain a game on the Twins.

Record:  The Twins were 68-47, in first place in the American League West, 1.5 games ahead of Chicago.

Keeping Track

1991 Rewind: Game One Hundred Fourteen

4 Comments

CALIFORNIA 8, MINNESOTA 3 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Tuesday, August 13.

Batting stars:  Chili Davis was 1-for-3 with a double and a walk.  Kent Hrbek was 1-for-3 with a double and a walk.

Batting stars:  Terry Leach struck out two in 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up one hit.  Denny Neagle pitched 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up three hits and three walks and striking out two.

Opposition stars:  Jim Abbott pitched 7.1 innings, giving up three runs on six hits and four walks and striking out four.  Wally Joyner was 3-for-6 with a double and two RBIs.  Luis Polonia was 3-for-6 with a stolen base (his thirty-third) and two RBIs.  Lance Parrish was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer (his thirteenth), a walk, and two runs.  Gary Gaetti was 2-for-4 with two walks.

The game:  The Angels put men on first and third in the first inning but did not score.  The Twins got on the board in the bottom of the first when Kirby Puckett hit a two-out single, stole second, and scored on a Davis double.  California took a 2-1 lead in the second when Shawn Abner singled and Parrish followed with a two-run homer.

The Angels took control in the fourth.  Abner walked and went from first to third on a ground out to third base.  An error scored him and put Luis Sojo on second.  Dick Schofield walked.  There were then three consecutive RBI singles, by Polonia, Joyner, and Gaetti, to put California up 6-1.

The Twins got somewhat back into it in the sixth.  Gene Larkin walked and went to second on a passed ball.  Greg Gagne delivered a run-scoring single with two down and Dan Gladden followed with a triple to cut the margin to 6-3.

That was as good as it got.  The Angels added a couple of runs in the ninth on RBI singles by Polonia and Joyner.

WP:  Abbott (11-8).  LP:  Willie Banks (1-1).  S:  Bryan Harvey (26).

Notes:  Brian Harper came out after the fifth inning and was replaced by Junior Ortiz.  He had batted ending the fifth--perhaps he was injured in the at-bat.  Al Newman pinch-hit for Scott Leius in the eighth and Mike Pagliarulo pinch-hit for Gagne in the eighth.  Both stayed in the game, with Newman going to shortstop and Pagliarulo to third base.

Puckett was 1-for-5 and was batting .327.  Harper was 0-for-3 to make his average .308.

Banks pitched 3.1 innings, allowing six runs (five earned) on six hits and three walks and striking out three.  His ERA was 6.35.  Leach lowered his ERA to 2.76.  Neagle went down to 3.18.

This was Banks' second start of his career.  He would make one more this season.

It was also the second appearance of Neagle's career.  He had made a start on July 27.  He would make three more relief appearances and then make two more starts at the end of the season.  That would, of course, be the extent of his career with the Twins, as he was traded after the season with Midre Cummings for John Smiley.

The Twins were 2-for-12 with men in scoring position.

The White Sox lost a doubleheader to the Tigers, 11-9 and 4-3, so despite the loss the Twins gained a half game on their nearest challenger.

Record:  The Twins were 68-46, in first place in the American League West, 2.5 games ahead of Chicago.