MINNESOTA 4, TEXAS 2 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Wednesday, September 23.

Batting stars:  Dan Gladden was 2-for-3 with a home run (his eighth), a triple, and a walk, driving in three.  Don Baylor was 1-for-1 with an RBI.

Pitching stars:  Bert Blyleven pitched 6.2 innings, giving up two runs on four hits and five walks with five strikeouts.  Juan Berenguer retired all four batters he faced, striking out one.  Jeff Reardon pitched a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.

Opposition stars:  Oddibe McDowell was 3-for-4 with two home runs, his thirteenth and fourteenth.  Tom O'Malley was 1-for-1 with a double.

The game:  Neither team got a hit through the first two innings.  That ended with the first batter of the third, when Blyleven left a pitch up to McDowell, who put the Rangers ahead 1-0.  There were no more hits in the game until the first batter of the fifth, when Blyleven again left a pitch up to McDowell, who put the Rangers ahead 2-0.  The Twins got their first hit in the fifth, a two-out single by Tom Brunansky, and tied the game in the sixth on Gladden's two-run homer.  Texas had the bases loaded with two out in the seventh, but Berenguer came in and retired Ruben Sierra on a ground out to end the threat.  In the eighth, Roy Smalley delivered a pinch-hit single and scored the go-ahead run on Gladden's triple.  Baylor came through with a two-out single later in the inning to make the score 4-2.  O'Malley hit a two-out double in the ninth to bring the tying run to bat, but Reardon got Jerry Browne on a fly to center to end the game.

Notes:  Kent Hrbek remained out of the lineup, with Randy Bush again playing first base and batting third.  Hrbek did come in to play defense in the ninth after Bush had been removed for a pinch-hitter...Kirby Puckett, batting fourth, was 0-for-4, dropping his average to .329...The scoreless inning dropped Reardon's ERA to 4.36, the lowest it had been since he pitched a scoreless inning in his first appearance of the season.  It would not go lower, and he would end the season with an ERA of 4.48...McDowell hit fourteen homers in 1987.  Six of them came against the Twins...The effects of September roster expansion can be noticed in this game, as the teams combined to use four pinch-hitters and five pinch-runners.

Record:  The Twins were 82-70, in first place by five games over Oakland, which lost to Cleveland 8-6.

MINNESOTA 6, TEXAS 4 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Tuesday, September 22.

Batting stars:  Tom Brunansky was 2-for-4 with a home run (his thirty-first) and a double, driving in two.  Gary Gaetti was 3-for-4 with a double, scoring once and driving in one.  Kirby Puckett was 1-for-3 with a two-run homer (his twenty-seventh)  and a walk.

Pitching stars:  Keith Atherton retired all seven batters he faced, striking out one.  Jeff Reardon pitched a scoreless inning, striking out one.

Opposition stars:  Pete O'Brien was 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs.  Oddibe McDowell was 1-for-3 with a home run (his twelfth), a walk, and a stolen base (his twenty-first).  Jeff Russell pitched 4.2 innings of relief, giving up one run on two hits and no walks with two strikeouts.

The game:  Most of the scoring came early.  Puckett hit a two-run homer in the first to give the Twins a 2-0 lead.  McDowell homered in the second to make it 2-1.  O'Brien hit a two-run double in the third to put the Rangers up 3-2, but in the bottom of the third Greg Gagne homered to tie it and Gaetti hit an RBI single to put the Twins in front 4-3.  Brunansky homered in the fourth to make it 5-3, but Bob Brower created a run in the fifth on a single, a stolen base, and a stolen base-plus-error, cutting the margin to 5-4.  Then the scoring pretty much ran dry.  The Rangers put a man on third with one out in the sixth and one second with one out in the ninth, but could do nothing with them.  The last Twins run came in the eighth on Brunansky's RBI double.

Of note:  Kent Hrbek remained out of the lineup, with Randy Bush again playing first base and batting third with Puckett dropping to fourth...Gene Larkin was the DH in this game and the prior game.  Apparently TK believed that Bush's first base defense was superior to Larkin's.  Or, possibly, he believed that Bush would hit better if he played in the field...Puckett held his average at .332.

Record:  The Twins were 81-70, in first place by four games over Oakland.  Oakland had lost the previous day while the Twins were idle; they won this day, defeating Cleveland 10-2.

MINNESOTA 3, CLEVELAND 2 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Sunday, September 20.

Batting stars:  Kirby Puckett was 3-for-4 with a two-run homer (his twenty-sixth) and a double, scoring twice.  Gene Larkin was 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI.  Gary Gaetti was 1-for-2 with a walk.

Pitching stars:  Les Straker pitched six innings, giving up two runs on six hits and two walks with four strikeouts.  Juan Berenguer struck out two in two shutout innings, giving up one hit.  Jeff Reardon pitched a perfect inning with one strikeout.

Opposition stars:  Rich Yett pitched a complete game, giving up three runs on eight hits and four walks with one strikeout in eight innings.  Dave Clark was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer and a double.

The game:  Larkin's ground ball single in the second scored Puckett with the first run of the game.  There was no more scoring until the sixth, when Randy Bush drew a one-out walk and Puckett followed with a two-run homer to make it 3-0.  The Twins needed the runs, because Clark hit a two-run homer in the seventh to cut the lead to 3-2.  The Indians got the tying run to second with one out in that inning, but their last nine batters were retired.

Of note:  Kent Hrbek remained out of the lineup, with Bush playing first base and batting third...Puckett, in the cleanup spot, raised his average to .332...This was one of four complete games Yett pitched in his career...It was the fourth home run of Clark's career.  He would hit two more before the season ended and have sixty-two for his career.

Record:  The Twins were 80-70, in first place by 3.5 games over Oakland, which defeated Kansas City 7-6.

MINNESOTA 3, CLEVELAND 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Saturday, September 19.

Batting stars:  Greg Gagne was 2-for-4 with a home run (his eighth) and a double, scoring twice.  Gary Gaetti was 1-for-4 with a home run, his thirtieth.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-4 with a stolen base (his twelfth) and an RBI.

Pitching stars:  Frank Viola pitched seven innings, giving up an unearned run on six hits and a walk with four strikeouts.  Jeff Reardon struck out three in two shutout innings, giving up one hit.

Opposition stars:  Tom Candiotti took a complete game loss, pitching eight innings and giving up three runs on eight hits and a walk with seven strikeouts.  Julio Franco was 3-for-4 with a run.  Brook Jacoby was 2-for-4 with a double.

The game:  Gagne homered in the first inning to give the Twins a 1-0 lead.  Gaetti homered in the fourth to make it 2-0.  Joe Carter's RBI single in the sixth cut the lead to 2-1, but Puckett delivered an RBI single of his own in the bottom of the sixth to make it 3-1.  The Indians had only one baserunner after that, on a two-out single in the eighth.

Of note:  Dan Gladden was once again out of the lineup, with Mark Davidson leading off and playing left field...Kent Hrbek remained out of the lineup, with Randy Bush playing first base and batting third...Puckett raised his average to .329...Viola lowered his ERA to 2.99.

Record:  The Twins were 79-70, in first place by 3.5 games over Oakland, who defeated Kansas City 9-5.

MINNESOTA 9, CLEVELAND 4 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Friday, September 18.

Batting stars:  Randy Bush was 2-for-3 with a home run (his tenth), a stolen base (his eighth) and a walk, driving in five.  Tom Brunansky was 2-for-3 with a home run (his thirtieth), a triple, and a walk.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-4 with a home run (his twenty-fifth) and a walk, driving in two.

Pitching stars:  Bert Blyleven struck out nine in eight innings, giving up four runs (three earned) on five hits and three walks.  Jeff Reardon struck out two in a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.

Opposition stars:  Brook Jacoby was 3-for-4 with a two-run homer, his thirtieth.  Cory Snyder was 1-for-4 with a home run, his thirty-second.  Julio Franco was 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base, his thirtieth.

The game:  Blyleven left a pitch up to Snyder in the third and he put the Indians up 1-0.  The solo homer didn't hurt the Twins, though, as they bounced back with two in the bottom of the third and took control with a four-run fourth.  Puckett homered in the third and Brunansky and Bush homered in the fourth, with Bush hitting a two-run shot.  Bush hit a two-run single in the sixth to make it 8-1.  Cleveland scored two in the seventh and one in the eighth but never really got back into the game.

Of note:  Bush was again at first base and batting third, with Kent Hrbek remaining out of the lineup...Puckett batted fourth and raised his average to .327...Cleveland's starter was Darrel Akerfelds.  He lasted four innings, allowing six runs (three earned) on six hits and three walks with one strikeout.

Record:  The Twins were 78-70, in first place by 3.5 games over Oakland, who defeated Kansas City 4-0.

CHICAGO 13, MINNESOTA 10 IN CHICAGO

Date:  Wednesday, September 16.

Batting stars:  Greg Gagne was 3-for-5 with a home run (his seventh) and two doubles, scoring twice and driving in two.  Dan Gladden was 2-for-5 with a home run (his seventh) and a double, scoring twice and driving in two.  Chris Pittaro was 2-for-4 with two runs.

Pitching star:  Steve Carlton pitched two shutout innings of relief, giving up two hits and a walk with two strikeouts.

Opposition stars:  Harold Baines was 3-for-5 with a home run (his nineteenth) and a double, scoring twice and driving in four.  Ozzie Guillen was 3-for-5 with three doubles, scoring twice and driving in three.  Greg Walker was 2-for-5 with a home run (his twenty-fifth) and a double, scoring twice.

The game:  Gladden led off the game with a home run to put the Twins up 1-0.  The White Sox got the run back in the second, but the Twins got single runs in the third and fifth to lead 3-1.  That's when it went bad.  Chicago got three doubles in a five-run fifth to go ahead 6-3 and scored seven times in the sixth, getting a two-run homer from Baines and a solo shot from Walker, to take a 13-3 lead.  To the Twins' credit, they came back and made a game of it.  Gagne homered and Don Baylor doubled in a three-run seventh that made it 13-6.  Gary Gaetti hit a two-run double in a three-run eighth that made it 13-9.  They scored once more in the ninth to cut it to 13-10, but could not get the tying run up to bat before the game ended.

Of note:  Gladden was not only back in the lineup, he was in center field, with Kirby Puckett given the day off.  Puckett was used as a pinch-hitter in the ninth and popped up, making his average .326...Randy Bush batted third and played first base, with Kent Hrbek out of the lineup...Billy Beane was in right field, with Tom Brunansky again shifting to left...Pittaro was at second base, with Steve Lombardozzi out of the lineup...Mike Smithson started for the Twins but pitched only 4.2 innings, allowing six runs on six hits and two walks with two strikeouts...Jose DeLeon was the Chicago starter.  He went 6.2 innings, allowing six runs (four earned) on seven hits and four walks with six strikeouts...This was one of two times the Twins used Carlton in relief.  Cleveland had pitched him in relief nine times.  Before the 1987 season, the last time he had been used in relief was 1971.

Record:  The Twins were 77-70, in first place by 3.5 games over both Kansas City and Oakland.  The Royals lost to California 6-4 and the Athletics fell to Texas 4-1.

CHICAGO 8, MINNESOTA 2 IN CHICAGO

Date:  Monday, September 14.

Batting stars:  Don Baylor was 1-for-2 with two walks and a run.  Greg Gagne was 1-for-3 with a walk and a run.  Randy Bush was 1-for-1 with two RBIs.

Pitching star:  Roy Smith pitched a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.

Opposition stars:  Dave LaPoint pitched 8.2 innings, giving up two runs on four hits and six walks with three strikeouts.  Greg Walker was 2-for-4 with two doubles and four RBIs.  Ivan Calderon was 1-for-3 with a home run (his twenty-fifth) and two walks, scoring three times.

The game:  Calderon homered leading off the second to give the White Sox a 1-0 lead.  Carlton Fisk and Walker led off the fourth with back-to-back doubles to make it 2-0.  Chicago took control in the fifth.  Their first two batters went out, but a single, a walk, and a single loaded the bases and Walker delivered a three-run double to make it 5-0.  The Twins did not score until the ninth, when three walks loaded the bases and Bush drove in two with a two-out single.

Of note:  Dan Gladden started the game in left field, but batted second, with Al Newman leading off and playing second base in place of Steve Lombardozzi...Kirby Puckett was 1-for-4 to drop his average to .327...Gene Larkin again played first base, with Kent Hrbek again out of the lineup...Frank Viola started and pitched five innings, allowing five runs on eight hits and two walks with five strikeouts.

Record:  The Twins were 77-68, in first place by 3.5 games over Kansas City, which overtook Oakland for second by beating California 8-5 while the Athletics lost to Texas 2-1 in eleven innings.

Player profile:  Ken Williams was the starting centerfielder for the White Sox, going 2-for-5.  He's best known now for his years as the Sox' general manager, but he actually had a substantial playing career.  He was drafted by Chicago in the third round in 1982, reached the majors as a September call-up in 1986, and was the White Sox' most-regular center fielder in 1987, starting 105 games there.  He had a decent season, batting .281 with 11 homers and 21 stolen bases.  He walked only 10 times, though, so his OBP was only .314.  He was only twenty-three, though, so he certainly looked like a good young player on the rise.  Instead, he never had a good year again.  He had a horrible 1988, batting just .159 in 220 at-bats and losing the center field job to Dave Gallagher.  He was traded to Detroit before the 1989 season, batted just .205 as a reserve, and was batting .133 in June of 1990, when he was waived and taken by Toronto.  He did little for them, too, and was waived again in June of 1991, this time claimed by Montreal.  He did okay for the Expos as a reserve, batting .271 (in 70 at-bats), but was released after the season.  He had a good year in AAA Denver (Milwaukee organization) in 1992, but he did not get a call-up and his playing career was over.  He became a scout for the White Sox after that and gradually worked his way up, holding various positions before becoming the general manager in November of 2000.  He left the GM job in 2012 and became the team's executive vice-president, a job he continues to hold.

MINNESOTA 7, CLEVELAND 3 IN CLEVELAND (10 INNINGS)

Date:  Sunday, September 13.

Batting stars:  Greg Gagne was 3-for-4 with two doubles and two runs.  Gary Gaetti was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring once and driving in two.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-4 with a run and two RBIs.

Pitching stars:  Bert Blyleven pitched six innings, giving up two runs on six hits and three walks with three strikeouts.  Jeff Reardon struck out three in 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up one hit.

Opposition stars:  Mel Hall was 3-for-5 with a home run (his sixteenth), a double, and a stolen base (his fourth), driving in two.  Brook Jacoby was 1-for-3 with a home run (his twenty-eighth) and a walk.  Tom Candiotti pitched 9.1 innings, allowing five runs on nine hits and three walks with eight strikeouts.

The game:  The Twins took the lead in the first on two singles and a wild pitch.  Steve Lombardozzi drove in a run with a single in the second to make it 2-0.  Blyleven left a pitch up to Jacoby in the bottom of the second, cutting the lead to 2-1.  The Twins made it 3-1 in the fifth, but a pitch left up to Hall made it a one-run game again in the sixth.  Hall struck again in the eighth, delivering an RBI double to tie the score at three.  The Twins took over in the tenth.  Puckett singled in the go-ahead run, Gaetti doubled home a pair of insurance runs, and Randy Bush's sacrifice fly rounded out the scoring.  Reardon, who came in with one out in the eighth, retired the side in order in the bottom of the tenth without a ball leaving the infield.

Of note:  Dan Gladden was back in the leadoff spot and in left field, going 0-for-4 with a walk...Gene Larkin was once again at first base in place of Kent Hrbek.  Hrbek was used as a pinch-hitter for DH Don Baylor in the eighth, going 0-for-1 with a walk...Bush played right field in place of Tom Brunansky...Puckett raised his average to. 327.

Record:  The Twins were 77-67, in first place by 4.5 games over both Oakland and Kansas City.