Tag Archives: Minnesota Twins

Keeping Track

1965 Rewind: Game Eighty

MINNESOTA 4, NEW YORK 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Saturday, July 10 (Game 1 of doubleheader)

Batting stars:  Zoilo Versalles was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer (his ninth) and two runs.  Jimmie Hall was 3-for-4 with a run.  Joe Nossek was 1-for-3 with a double and a run.

Pitching stars:  Jim Perry pitched eight innings, giving up an unearned run on four hits and a walk with four strikeouts.  Al Worthington pitched a perfect inning.

Opposition stars:  Whitey Ford pitched seven innings, allowing three runs on seven hits and a walk with three strikeouts.  Tom Tresh was 1-for-4 with a double and an RBI.

The game:  It was scoreless through four.  In the fifth Hall singled and Nossek doubled, putting men on second and third with none out.  Perry brought home one with a squeeze bunt and Versalles followed with a two-run homer.  The Yankees got one back in the sixth on Tresh's RBI double, but they never got the tying run on base.  The Twins added a run in the ninth on a run-scoring single by pinch-hitter Sandy Valdespino.

Of note:  Rich Rollins, back in the lineup at third base for the first time in a few weeks, was 0-for-3.  Tony Oliva was 2-for-4.  Harmon Killebrew was 0-for-3 with a walk.  Earl Battey was 0-for-3.

Record:  The win was the ninth in a row for the Twins and raised their record to 52-28.  They were in first by four and a half games over Cleveland and Baltimore.

Notes:  Nossek replaced Bob Allison in the lineup but played center field, with Hall moving to left...Hall raised his average to .327...Battey saw his average drop to .309...Mickey Mantle was again not in the starting lineup but was used as a pinch-hitter.

Keeping Track

1965 Rewind: Game Seventy-nine

MINNESOTA 8, NEW YORK 3 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Friday, July 9.

Batting stars:  Don Mincher was 2-for-4 with two home runs (his eighth and ninth) and four RBIs.  Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-2 with a three-run homer (his fifteenth) and two walks, scoring twice.  Tony Oliva was 1-for-5 with a double and two runs.

Pitching star:  Dave Boswell pitched a complete game, giving up three runs on six hits and two walks with eight strikeouts.

Opposition stars:  Roger Repoz was 1-for-2 with a home run (his fourth) and a walk.  Elston Howard was 2-for-4 with a home run, his fourth.  Phil Linz was 2-for-4.

The game:  In the first inning Killebrew hit a three-run homer and Mincher followed with a solo blast to give the Twins a 4-0 lead.  Howard homered in the fourth and Repoz hit an inside-the-park home run in the fifth to cut the lead to 4-2.  The Twins got one of the runs back in the bottom of the fifth as Sandy Valdespino delivered a two-out RBI single.  Mincher hit a three-run homer in the seventh to put the game out of reach.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 0-for-3 with a walk, a stolen base (his tenth) and a run.  Jimmie Hall was 0-for-4 with a run.  Earl Battey was 1-for-4.

Record:  The victory was the Twins' eighth in a row.  It raised their record to 51-28 and put them in first by 3.5 games, as Cleveland lost a doubleheader to California.

Notes:  Hall's average dropped to .321...Battey fell to .314...Repoz was playing center in place of Mickey Mantle, who appeared later as a pinch-hitter.

Keeping Track

1965 Rewind: Game Seventy-eight

MINNESOTA 5, BOSTON 2 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Wednesday, July 8.

Batting stars:  Tony Oliva was 3-for-4 with a double and two runs.  Earl Battey was 3-for-4 with a double and a run.  Bernie Allen was 1-for-3 with three RBIs.

Pitching stars:  Jim Kaat pitched 5.1 innings, giving up two runs on five hits and four walks with four strikeouts.  Johnny Klippstein pitched 3.1 scoreless innings, giving up two walks with one strikeout.

Opposition stars:  Eddie Bressoud was 1-for-3 with a triple and a walk, scoring once.  Felix Mantilla was 0-for-1 with three walks and a run.  Dennis Bennett pitched three innings of relief, allowing one run on four hits and no walks with two strikeouts.

The game:  Allen's two-run single gave the Twins a 2-0 lead in the second.  A sacrifice fly by Hall in the third and another by Allen in the fourth made it 4-0.  The Red Sox got an RBI single by Chuck Schilling in the fifth and a sacrifice fly by Bob Tillman in the sixth to cut the lead to 4-2.  The Twins got another sacrifice fly in the seventh, this one by Harmon Killebrew, to go up 5-2.  With two out in the ninth, a strikeout/wild pitch and a walk brought the tying run to the plate, but Al Worthington came in to retire Schilling on a fly out to end the game.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 0-for-4.  Jimmie Hall was 1-for-2 with a hit-by-pitch and an RBI.  Killebrew was 1-for-3 with an RBI.

Record:  The win was the Twins' seventh straight and made them 50-28.  Their lead fell to a game and a half, however, as Cleveland swept a doubleheader from the White Sox.

Notes:  Hall raised his average to .326.  Battey raised his average to .316...Jim Lonborg started for the Red Sox and took the loss.  It dropped his record to 5-9 with a 3.18 ERA.

Keeping Track

1965 Rewind: Game Seventy-seven

MINNESOTA 9, BOSTON 0 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Tuesday, July 6.

Batting stars:  Jimmie Hall was 3-for-3 with two two-run homers (his fifteenth and sixteenth) and a walk.  Don Mincher was 1-for-4 with a home run, his seventh.  Zoilo Versalles was 1-for-5 with a double and two runs.

Pitching star:  Mudcat Grant pitched a complete shutout, giving up eight hits and four walks with two strikeouts.

Opposition stars:  Bob Heffner struck out six in five innings of relief, allowing one run on two hits and two walks.  Tony Conigliaro was 1-for-1 with a double and three walks.  Eddie Bressoud was 3-for-5.

The game:  A few big inning made the difference.  In the first, Hall hit a two-run homer and Mincher followed later with a solo blast to make it 3-0.  Hall hit another two-run homer in the second to make it 5-0.  There was no more scoring until the seventh, when the Twins got their remaining four runs.  Two singles and a walk filled the bases, an error brought one home, Earl Battey's bunt scored another, and Bernie Allen singled home two more.  The Red Sox had two on in the second, third, and eighth and loaded the bases in the fifth, but did not score.

Of note:  Tony Oliva was 1-for-5 with a run.  Harmon Killebrew was 0-for-2 with two walks and a run.  Battey was 0-for-2 with a walk and an RBI.

Record:  The Twins went to 49-28 and increased their lead over idle Cleveland to two games.

Notes:  Bob Allison was hit by a pitch in the first inning and was removed from the game.  He would not play again for a week and a half...Hall raised his average to .325...Battey's average dropped to .305...This was the second straight shutout for Twins pitchers...I am stunned that, in the seventh inning, with the Twins leading 6-0, the bases loaded and one out, Battey was bunting.  If you did that today, the old school types would scream that these young punks don't know how to play the game properly.  Of course, the old school types probably said that then, too.

Keeping Track

1965 Rewind: Game Seventy-six

MINNESOTA 2, BOSTON 0 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Monday, July 5 (Game 2 of doubleheader)

Batting stars:  Bob Allison was 1-for-1 with three walks and a stolen base (his eighth), scoring once.  Earl Battey was 2-for-4 with an RBI.  Tony Oliva was 1-for-3 with a double and a walk.

Pitching star:  Jim Perry pitched a complete game shutout, giving up seven hits and three walks with eight strikeouts.

Opposition stars:  Dave Morehead struck out seven in six innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on six hits and five walks.  Lee Thomas was 2-for-3 with a walk.  Eddie Bressoud was 2-for-4.

The game:  In the fourth, Allison singled and scored on a stolen base-plus-error to give the Twins a 1-0 lead.  In the sixth, an error, a walk, and Battey's RBI single made it 2-0.  Perry took it from there.  The Red Sox had two men on in the second, seventh, and ninth, but did not score.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 0-for-3 with a walk.  Jimmie Hall was 2-for-4.  Harmon Killebrew was 0-for-4.

Record:  The doubleheader sweep made the Twins 48-28 and put them in first place by a game over Cleveland, who lost to the White Sox 3-1.

Notes:  Hall raised his average to .317...Battey raised his average to .309...It was Perry's first start of the season and only the second time he had pitched more than three innings.  It goes without saying (but we're saying it anyway) that a pitcher in his situation would never be allowed to throw a complete game today, especially after allowing two batters to reach in the ninth.  He would remain in the rotation the rest of the season, although he made a couple of relief appearances down the stretch.

Keeping Track

1965 Rewind: Game Seventy-five

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MINNESOTA 6, BOSTON 2 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Monday, July 5 (Game 1 of doubleheader).

Batting stars:  Jimmie Hall was 2-for-4 with two doubles, two stolen bases (his fifth and sixth) and a walk, scoring once and driving in one.  Tony Oliva was 1-for-3 with a triple and two walks, scoring three times.  Bob Allison was 3-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI.

Pitching star:  Dave Boswell struck out eight in ten innings, giving up two runs on six hits and two walks.

Opposition stars:  Tony Horton was 2-for-4 with a home run, his second.  Lee Thomas was 1-for-3 with a home run (his fourteenth) and a walk.  Bob Duliba struck out two in two shutout innings, allowing two hits and a walk.

The game:  Hall had an RBI double in the first inning, with Oliva scoring from first, to give the Twins a 1-0 lead.  Oliva circled the bases on a triple-plus-error in the third to make it 2-0.  Horton homered in the fourth to cut the lead in half at 2-1, but Zoilo Versalles delivered an RBI single with two out in the bottom of the fourth to give the Twins a two-run lead again.  It was still 3-1 in the sixth when a single and two walks loaded the bases for the Twins with one out.  Harmon Killebrew drove in two with a single and Allison singled in another to give the Twins a 6-1 advantage.  Thomas homered in the ninth and the Red Sox put two on with two out, but Russ Nixon grounded out to end the game.

Of note:  Versalles was 2-for-4 with an RBI.  Killebrew was 2-for-5 with two RBIs.

Record:  The win put the Twins at 47-28, in first place, and a game ahead of Cleveland, which lost to the White Sox 3-1.

Notes:  There were no doubleheaders on Sunday, July 4, but five of them on Monday, July 5...Hall raised his average to .314...With Allison back in the lineup, Killebrew returned to the fourth spot in the order, but Oliva moved up to second, with Hall third...Earl Battey returned to the lineup as well, going 2-for-3 with a walk and a run to raise his average to .303...Largely forgotten now, first baseman Tony Horton was a pretty good ballplayer.  In 1965, as a twenty-year-old, he would hit .294/.361/.485 in 163 at-bats for the Sox.  He went back to AAA in 1966 in favor of George Scott, had an outstanding season there, started 1967 with Boston, and was traded to Cleveland in June, where he spent the rest of his career.  In almost four seasons with the Indians, he hit .269/.316/.439, numbers that don't sound like anything special now but were pretty good for the time.  He was an extremely intense player, a perfectionist, and eventually the pressure of playing major league baseball got to him.  He had what was termed a nervous breakdown in late August of 1970 and never played professional baseball again, his career over at age twenty-five.  He apparently had a successful business career and at last report was living in Pacific Palisades, California.

Keeping Track

1965 Rewind: Game Seventy-four

MINNESOTA 5, KANSAS CITY 2 IN KANSAS CITY

Date:  Sunday, July 4.

Batting stars:  Tony Oliva was 2-for-4 with a three-run homer, his twelfth.  Harmon Killebrew was 1-for-3 with a two-run homer (his fourteenth) and a walk.  Don Mincher was 2-for-4 with a run.

Pitching stars:  Camilo Pascual pitched only 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk, before coming out of the game due to injury. Johnny Klippstein struck out five in four perfect innings of relief.

Opposition stars:  Ed Charles was 2-for-3 with a triple and a stolen base (his eighth), scoring once and driving in one.  Don Mossi pitched 2.1 scoreless innings, allowing one walk with one strikeout.  Starter Fred Talbot pitched 5.2 innings, allowing three runs on four hits and a walk with two strikeouts.

The game:  The Athletics took a 2-0 lead in the fourth when Charles hit a one-out RBI triple and scored on a squeeze bunt.  The lead held until the sixth, when Oliva hit a two-out three-run homer to put the Twins in front 3-2.  After Charles' triple, the Athletics did not get a man on base the rest of the game.  Killebrew added a two-out two-run homer in the ninth.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 0-for-3 with a hit-by-pitch and a run.  Sandy Valdespino was 1-for-4 with a run.  Jimmie Hall was 0-for-4.

Record:  The win made the Twins 46-28 and kept them tied for first with Cleveland, who beat Baltimore 4-2.

Notes:  Bob Allison was again out of the lineup, with Valdespino taking his place in left field...Hall's average fell to .311...Earl Battey was out of the lineup, too, with Jerry Zimmerman taking his place...Pascual continued to battle an injury.  He had not pitched since June 24 and would not pitch again until July 20.  He made three more starts in July, throwing only 11.1 innings, before missing the entire month of August...Given how many Sunday doubleheaders there were, one would think everyone would play a doubleheader on Sunday the Fourth of July.  In fact, there were no doubleheaders played that day.

Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–December 18

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Ty Cobb (1886)
Dick Coffman (1906)
Gino Cimoli (1929)
Moose Skowron (1930)
Zoilo Versalles (1939)
Steve Hovley (1944)
Drew Coble (1947)
Roy Howell (1953)
Jim Clancy (1955)
Scott Bailes (1961)
Willie Blair (1965)
Joe Randa (1969)
Jose Rodriguez (1974)
Byron Buxton (1993)

Drew Coble was an American League umpire from 1982-1999.

We would also like to wish a very happy birthday to cheaptoy.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–December 18 →

Keeping Track

1965 Rewind: Game Seventy-three

MINNESOTA 3, KANSAS CITY 2 IN KANSAS CITY (11 INNINGS)

Date:  Saturday, July 3.

Batting stars:  Don Mincher was 2-for-5 with two home runs, his fifth and sixth.  Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-5 with two doubles.  Sandy Valdespino was 1-for-5 with a walk, a stolen base (his sixth) and a run.

Pitching stars:  Jim Kaat pitched 4.2 innings, giving up two runs on five hits and two walks with two strikeouts.  Al Worthington struck out two in 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk.  Bill Pleis pitched two perfect innings with one strikeout.

Opposition stars:  Diego Segui struck out six in five innings, allowing two runs on four hits and three walks.  Jim Landis was 2-for-5 with a double, scoring once and driving in one.  John Wyatt struck out three in two perfect innings.

The game:  Mincher homered in the fourth to put the Twins up 1-0, but Ed Charles had an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth to tie it.  Tony Oliva singled in a run in the fifth, but again the Athletics got the run right back in the bottom of the fifth, this time on a Landis single.  The Twins put the go-ahead run into scoring position in both the sixth and the ninth, but there was no more scoring until the eleventh, when Mincher led off the inning with his second home run.  The Twins could have scored more, but left the bases loaded.  In the bottom of the eleventh Ken Harrelson singled, was bunted to second, and took third on a ground out, but Dick Stigman came in to retire Dick Green on a fly out to end the game.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 0-for-6.  Oliva was 1-for-5 with an RBI and a stolen base, his seventh.  Jimmie Hall was 0-for-3.

Record:  The win made the Twins 45-28 and moved them up into a tie for first place with Cleveland, who had lost 8-4 to Baltimore.

Notes:  Sam Mele seemed to not know what he wanted to do with the lineup when Bob Allison did not start.  He again batted Hall fourth but this time put Mincher fifth, with Killebrew dropping to the sixth spot.  Hall's 0-for-3 dropped his average to .316 and he was pinch-hit for by Joe Nossek in the eighth.  Kaat led the league in games started with 42 but seemed to get a lot of quick hooks.  In this one, he was pulled with two on and two out in the fifth inning of a 2-2 game.  He still pitched 264 innings, though, so it's probably a good thing he was pulled early a number of times.

Keeping Track

1965 Rewind: Game Seventy-two

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MINNESOTA 3, KANSAS CITY 1 IN KANSAS CITY

Date:  Friday, July 2.

Batting stars:  Tony Oliva was 1-for-4 with a double, scoring once and driving in two.  Earl Battey was 3-for-4 with a double.  Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-4 with an RBI.

Pitching star:  Mudcat Grant pitched a complete game, giving up one run on five hits and no walks with three strikeouts.

Opposition stars:  Ken Harrelson was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI.  Wayne Causey was 2-for-4 with a run.  Jesse Hickman retired all four batters he faced, striking out one.

The game:  An error, a single, and a ground out put the Twins up 1-0 in the top of the first, but Harrelson singled in a run in the bottom of the first to tie it 1-1.  There was no more scoring until the sixth, when Oliva delivered a two-out run-scoring double and Killebrew followed with an RBI single.  The Athletics did not get a man into scoring position after the fourth.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 0-for-4 with a run.  Joe Nossek was 1-for-5.  Jimmie Hall was 1-for-4, dropping his average to .320.

Record:  The Twins went to 44-28, second in the American League, a game behind Cleveland.

Notes:  Battey made a strong return to the starting lineup after missing about ten days.  Bob Allison returned to the lineup as well, going 1-for-4.  With the additions, the Twins went back to their regular lineup, with Killebrew batting fourth, Allison fifth, and Hall sixth.