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Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 1961, Game Forty-five

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DETROIT 2, MINNESOTA 1 IN DETROIT

Date:  Saturday, June 3.

Batting star:  Zoilo Versalles was 2-for-4.

Pitching star:  Pedro Ramos pitched seven innings, giving up one run on four hits and five walks and striking out five.

Opposition stars:  Don Mossi pitched a complete game, giving up one run on seven hits and one walk and striking out four.  Rocky Colavito was 1-for-4 with a home run (his fourteenth), two walks, and two runs.

The game:  The Tigers put two on in the second and the Twins put two on in the third, but there was no score until the sixth.  Colavito drew a one-out walk and Norm Cash followed with a single-plus-error, putting men on second and third.  Steve Boros was intentionally walked, but Charlie Maxwell was accidentally walked, forcing in the first run of the game.

The Twins got a pair of two-out singles in the eighth, but could not get on the board.  Colavito homered leading off the bottom of the eighth to make it 2-0.  Bill Tuttle led off the ninth with a single and Jim Lemon drew a one-out walk.  A forceout put men on first and third with two down.  Bob Allison singled, making it 2-1 and putting the winning run on base, but Billy Martin hit into a forceout to end the game.

WP:  Mossi (6-0).  LP:  Ramos (3-6).  S:  None.

Notes:  Allison was at first base, with Harmon Killebrew at third.  Killebrew normally played first in 1961, and when he didn't Don Mincher was usually at first--Allison played the vast majority of his games in right field.  I don't know why the Twins went with this arrangement in this game.  Tuttle, who did most of the third basing, was in center field, a position normally manned by Lenny Green.  With Allison on first, Lemon moved from left to right and Green was in left.

When the bases were loaded with one out in the sixth, manager Cookie Lavagetto switched Green to right and Lemon to left.  After the walk forced in the run, he moved them back.  After Chico Fernandez fanned for the second out, he switched them around again.  I'm sure he had very good reasons for it.

Billy Gardner pinch-hit for Earl Battey in the ninth.  Jose Valdivielso pinch-ran for Lemon.  Jim Kaat pinch-ran for Gardner.

Killebrew was batting .328.  He would finish at .288.  Versalles was batting .316.  He would finish at .280.  Green was batting .305.  He would finish at .285.

We've been through the Twins 1961 stats at least a couple of times, so there's no need to repeat it.

This was Don Mossi's best year.  He went 15-7, 2.96 with a WHIP of 1.18.  He had 12 complete games.  He was better than I realized:  101-80, 3.43, 1.21 WHIP.  He appeared in 460 games, 165 of them starts.  He spent his first five years with Cleveland and the next five with Detroit, finishing up with a year in Chicago and one in Kansas City.

Charlie Maxwell had a pretty long career, too.  He first came to the big leagues in 1950 with Boston, but he never got a chance at regular play until mid-1955, when he was sold to Detroit.  He responded in 1956 with a tremendous season, batting .326/413/.534 and making the first of two all-star teams.  He was a regular through 1960, but he slumped to .237 that season and became a reserve in 1961.  He kept playing through 1964 and batted .264/.360/.451 for his career.  One wonders what he might have done if he'd gotten a chance to play regularly before he was 29.  yes, the Red Sox had Ted Williams and Dom DiMaggio at that time, but they were also giving regular play to people like Faye Throneberry and Tom Umphlett.  It might have been worth giving Maxwell a shot.

This was the seventh game of a thirteen-game losing streak for the Twins.  The also lost 18 of 19.  Six of the first seven losses were by two runs or one run.

Record:  The Twins were 19-26, in eighth place in the American League, 11 games behind Detroit.  They would finish 70-90, tied for seventh, 38 games behind New York.

The Tigers were 31-16, in first place in the American League, two games ahead of Cleveland.  They would finish 101-61, in second place, eight games behind New York.

Random record:  The Twins are 59-54 in Random Rewind games.

Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 2005, Game Thirty-seven

TORONTO 10, MINNESOTA 3 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Tuesday, May 17.

Batting stars:  Shannon Stewart was 2-for-4.  Luis Rivas was 2-for-4.  Torii Hunter was 1-for-2 with a two-run homer (his fifth) and two walks.  Justin Morneau was 1-for-4 with a home run (his seventh) and two runs.

Pitching stars:  None.

Opposition stars:  Reed Johnson was 3-for-4 with a double, a hit-by-pitch, and three runs.  Shea Hillenbrand was 3-for-5 with three RBIs.  Alex Rios was 3-for-5 with a double and two runs.  Vernon Wells was 2-for-5 with a home run (his sixth) and three RBIs.  Orlando Hudson was 1-for-4 with a two-run homer, his second.

The game:  Rios led off the game with a double and scored on Johnson's single.  Wells hit a two-run homer and it was 3-0 Blue Jays before the Twins even came to bat.  The Twins did very little on offense for the first three innings, but in the fourth Joe Mauer singled and Hunter hit a two-run homer to cut the lead to 3-2.

That was as good as it got for the Twins.  in the fifth Ken Huckaby walked, Johnson doubled, and Hillenbrand delivered a two-run single.  The Twins loaded the bases in the bottom of the fifth but did not score.  In the sixth Frank Menechino doubled and Hudson hit a two-run homer to make it 7-2 Toronto.

Morneau homered leading off the sixth for the Twins, but that was the end of the good news.  The Blue Jays opened the seventh with singles by Rios, Johnson, and Hillenbrand to make it 8-3.  In the ninth Johnson was hit by a pitch, Hillenbrand singled, Wells had an RBI single, and a pair of wild pitches brought home another run to make it 10-3.

WP:  Josh Towers (5-1).  LP:  Johan Santana (5-2).  S:  None.

Notes:  Luis Rivas was at second base.  He would eventually be replaced by Nick Punto as the starter.  Juan Castro was at short--he would eventually be replaced as the starter by Jason Bartlett.  Lewwwwww Ford was the DH--he and Matthew LeCroy shared the position, although LeCroy played there more often.

Terry Tiffee pinch-hit for Stewart in the ninth.

Morneau was batting .375--he would finish at .239.  Mauer was batting at .321--he would finish at .294.

We've been through the 2005 team's stats a few times recently, so there's no real need to repeat them here.  I'll just note that Morneau batted .439 in April and did not bat more than .237 in any other month.

Record:  The Twins were 21-16, in second place in the American League Central, 5.5 games behind Chicago.  They would finish 83-79, in third place, 16 games behind Chicago.

The Blue Jays were 21-18, in third place in the American League East, 4.5 games behind Baltimore.  They would finish 80-82, in third place, 15 games behind New York.

Random Record:  The Twins are 59-53 in Random Rewind games.

Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 1975, Game Sixty-nine

MINNESOTA 8, TEXAS 5 IN TEXAS (GAME 2 OF DOUBLEHEADER)

Date:  Friday, June 27.

Batting stars:  Dan Ford was 3-for-4 with a walk and three RBIs.  Jerry Terrell was 3-for-4 with two RBIs.  Lyman Bostock was 2-for-5 with two doubles and two runs.

Pitching star:  Vic Albury pitched 4.1 innings of relief, giving up an unearned run on one hit and no walks and striking out four.

Opposition star:  Roy Howell was 2-for-4 with two doubles and two runs.

The game:  The Twins took the lead in the first inning.  Bostock led off with a double, went to third on a pickoff error, and scored on a sacrifice fly to make it 1-0.  The Twins opened the second with two singles, but a strikeout/throwout double play took them out of the inning.  In the third, Glenn Borgmann led off with a triple and Bostock followed with a double.  Ford delivered a two-out single to put the Twins ahead 3-0.

The Rangers got on the board in the fourth when Cesar Tovar doubled and scored on a Mike Hargrove single.  Texas then took the lead in the fifth.  Tom Grieve led off with a single and scored from first on Howell's double.  Roy Smalley's RBI single tied it, and singles by Jim Sundberg and Mike Cubbage put the Rangers up 4-3.

The lead didn't survive the next half-inning, though.  Steve Braun walked, went to second on a ground out, and scored the tying run when Terrell singled.  Terrell went to second on the throw home, took third on a ground out, and scored on a wild pitch (Twins Baseball!) to give the Twins a 5-4 advantage.

Texas tied it in the seventh when Howell doubled and scored on an error.  It stayed 5-5 until the ninth.  With two out, Rod Carew walked, Steve Brye singled, and Eric Soderholm walked, loading the bases.  Ford then delivered a two-run single and Terrell had an RBI single to make the score 8-5.  The Rangers went down in order in the ninth, and in fact their last nine batters were retired.

WP:  Albury (5-4).  LP:  Jim Umbarger (4-4).  S:  None.

Notes:  Tom Kelly was at first base in place of John Briggs, who was out for a week or so.  Briggs had come over in a trade from Milwaukee a couple of weeks earlier.  Sadly, we did not hit the game in which Kelly hit his home run--he was 0-for-3.  He would go back to the minors about two weeks later.

Terrell was at third base in place of Soderholm.  Steve Braun, normally in left field, was the DH in place of Tony Oliva.  That moved Bostock from right to left and put Brye in right.

Soderholm pinch-hit for Braun in the seventh.  Danny Walton pinch-hit for Kelly in the eighth and stayed in the game at first base.  Luis Gomez came in for defense in the ninth, replacing Danny Thompson at short.

Carew was batting .369.  He would finish at .359.  Terrell was batting .327.  He would finish at .286.  Braun was batting .303.  He would finish at .302.  Larry Hisle would bat .314 in 255 at-bats.  The Twins batted .271, which was second in the league to Boston's .275.

Ford led the team with just 15 home runs.  Carew was right behind at 14 and Oliva was next with 13.  Soderholm, Braun, and Hisle each had 11.  The Twins hit 121 home runs, which was eighth in the league.  Cleveland led with 153.  California was last with only 55 home runs.

Bert Blyleven led the staff, going 15-10, 3.00.  Jim Hughes was 16-14, 3.82--Twins fans really thought he was going to be something.  Having him throw 250 innings with 12 complete games at age 23 might not have been such a bright idea.  Dave Goltz, who started this game, went 14-14, 3.67.  The fourth starter spot was split between Ray Corbin and Albury, neither of whom got much accomplished.  Tom Burgmeier and Bill Campbell handled closing chores, and while they did fine they didn't get much help.  The Twins' team ERA was 4.05, tenth in the league.  Baltimore led at 3.17.  The Twins were ninth in WHIP at 1.40.  Baltimore led there, too at 1.23.

As you probably noticed, there are players with connections to the Twins playing for Texas:  Cesar Tovar, Mike Cubbage, Roy Smalley, and Bill Hands, who started the game for the Rangers.

The Twins lost the first game of the doubleheader 2-0.  This was one of only two wins out of eleven games.

Record:  The Twins were 32-37, in fourth place in the American League West, 12.5 games behind Oakland.  They would finish 76-83, in fourth place, 20.5 games behind Oakland.

The Rangers were 35-38, in third place in the American League West, 11.5 games behind Oakland.  They would finish 79-83, in third place, 19 games behind Oakland.

Random record:  The Twins are 59-52 in Random Rewind games.

Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 2005, Game One Hundred Nine

MINNESOTA 12, BOSTON 0 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Friday, August 5.

Batting stars:  Jacque Jones was 3-for-4 with a two-run homer (his seventeenth), a walk, and two runs.  Matthew LeCroy was 3-for-4 with a double.  Joe Mauer was 3-for-5 with a double, three runs, and three RBIs.  Lewwwwww Ford was 3-for-5 with three runs.

Pitching stars:  Brad Radke struck out eight in seven shutout innings, giving up four hits and a walk.  Terry Mulholland struck out one in a perfect inning.  Matt Guerrier struck out two in a scoreless inning.

Opposition stars:  Johnny Damon was 1-for-3 with a triple.  Manny Delcarmen pitched 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up two hits and two walks and striking out one.

The game:  The Twins scored all of their runs in three innings.  In the first, Ford led off with a triple and scored on a ground out.  The next three batters, Mauer, LeCroy, and Jones, all singled to load the bases.  A two-base error then brought home all three runners and put the Twins up 4-0.

The Twins next scored in the fourth.  Michael Ryan reached on an error and Ford singled to put men on first and third.  Back-to-back doubles by Mauer and LeCroy plated three runs and made the score 7-0.

The Twins put on the exclamation point in the eighth.  Ford, Luis Rodriguez, and Mauer all singles to bring home one run.  Terry Tiffee hit a two-run double and Jones hit a two-run homer to make it 12-0.

The Red Sox' best chance to score was in the first inning, when Damon led off with a triple.  Three strikeouts took them out of the inning.  They got a pair of singles in the seventh and got nothing from them.

WP:  Radke (7-10).  LP:  Bronson Arroyo (9-7).  S:  None.

Notes:  Ryan was in left field in place of Shannon Stewart, who was given the day off.  Ford was in center in place of Torii Hunter, whose season had ended on July 29.

Tiffee pinch-ran for LeCroy in the seventh.  Rodriguez pinch-hit for Punto in the eighth and stayed in the game at second base.

The Twins did not have a .300 hitter unless you count Mike Redmond, who batted .311 in 148 at-bats.  Mauer led the regulars in batting at .294.  The Twins batted .259, which was next-to-last in the league.  Boston led the league at .281.

Jones led in home runs with 23, with Justin Morneau right behind at 22.  LeCroy hit 17 homers, Hunter 14, Michael Cuddyer 12 and Stewart 10.  The Twins hit 134 home runs, twelfth in the league.  Texas led with 260.

We went through the Twins 2005 pitching staff recently, and I have nothing to add to that.

This was only the Twins' second win in nine games.

Record:  The Twins were 56-53, in third place in the American League Central, 14.5 games behind Chicago.  They would finish 83-79, in third place, 16 games behind Chicago.

The Red Sox were 62-46, in first place in the American League East, 3.5 games ahead of New York.  They would finish 95-67, tied for first with New York in the American League East.  New York won the tiebreaker, so Boston was the wild card.

Random record:  The Twins are 58-52 in Random Rewind games.

 

Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 1987, Game Fifty-seven

MINNESOTA 5, KANSAS CITY 2 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Tuesday, June 9.

Batting stars:  Dan Gladden was 3-for-5 with two stolen bases, his tenth and eleventh.  Kirby Puckett was 2-for-4 with a double, scoring once and driving in one.  Tim Laudner was 1-for-4 with a two-run homer, his fifth.  Mark Davidson was 1-for-2 with a triple, two walks, and a stolen base (his sixth), scoring once.

Pitching stars:  Joe Niekro struck out six in 6.1 innings, giving up two runs (one earned) on nine hits and three walks.  Keith Atherton struck out four in 2.2 perfect innings.

Opposition stars:  Willie Wilson was 2-for-5 with a double and a stolen base (his fifteenth), driving in one.  Jaime Quirk was 2-for-4 with a double and a run.  Kevin Seitzer was 1-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base (his third), scoring once.

The game:  With one out in the first Seitzer walked and Danny Tartabull singled.  A passed ball moved the runners up and a ground out put the Royals up 1-0.  The Twins loaded the bases with two out in the first and had two on with two out in the second, but the score did not change.

It changed in the third.  Puckett led off with a double.  Gaetti singled to put men on first and third, Gene Larkin singled home the tying run, and a sacrifice fly made it 2-1 Twins.  The Twins had two on in the fourth and Kansas City had two on in the fifth, but it stayed 2-1.

Until the bottom of the fourth.  Tom Brunansky hit a one-out double and Laudner hit a two-out two-run homer to make it 4-1 Twins.  The Royals again put two on in the sixth, but did not score again until the seventh, when Quirk and Wilson hit back-to-back doubles to cut the margin to 4-2.  They had men on first and third with one out, but could do no more damage.

The Twins added a run in the eighth.  Davidson led off with a walk and Randy Bush and Gladden singled, loading the bases with none out.  A sacrifice fly was all they could get out of it, but it was enough.  Atherton retired the last eight Kansas City batters to preserve the victory.

WP:  Niekro (4-4).  LP:  Danny Jackson (2-8).  S:  Atherton (1).

Notes:  Al Newman started at shortstop in place of Greg Gagne and led off, with Gladden batting second.  Gene Larkin played first base in place of Kent Hrbek,  Davidson was in right field, with Tom Brunansky at DH and Roy Smalley out of the lineup.

This was Niekro's first start as a Twin.

Puckett raised his average to .319.  He would finish at .332    Larkin was batting .362.  He would finish at .266.

On the other end of the scale, Laudner was batting .163.  He would finish at .191.  Newman was batting .193.  He would finish at .221.  The Twins batted .261, tenth in the league.  Boston led at .278.

Kent Hrbek led in home runs with 34.  Brunansky was second at 32 and Gaetti was right behind at 31.  Puckett hit 28, Laudner 16, Bush 11, and Gagne 10.  The Twins hit 196 home runs, fifth in the league.  Detroit led with 225.

As you recall, the Twins rotation was Frank Viola (17-10, 2.90) and Bert Blyleven (15-12, 4.01) and not much else.  The rest of it was Les Straker (8-10, 4.37), Mike Smithson (4-7, 5.94), and Niekro (4-9, 6.26).  The bullpen wasn't much better.  The closer, Jeff Reardon, was 8-8, 4.48, although he had 31 saves.  The only reliever with a sub-four ERA was Juan Berenguer at 3.94.  The Twins were eleventh in ERA at 4.63, with Toronto leading at 3.74.  The Twins were tenth in WHIP at 1.42.  Toronto led there, too, at 1.30.

This was the fourth game of a seven-game winning streak for the Twins.  They would win ten of eleven.

Record:  The Twins were 31-26, in second place in the American League West, one percentage point behind Kansas City.  They would finish 85-77, in first place, two games ahead of Kansas City.

The Royals were 30-25, in first place in the American League West, one percentage point ahead of Minnesota.  They would finish 83-79, in second place, two games behind Minnesota.

Rewind record:  The Twins are 57-52 in Random Rewind games.

Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 1977, Game Ninety-eight

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MINNESOTA 2, OAKLAND 1 IN MINNESOTA (11 INNINGS)

Date:  Monday, July 25.

Batting stars:  Rod Carew was 2-for-5.  Mike Cubbage was 1-for-4 with a home run (his third) and a walk.

Pitching star:  Dave Goltz pitched a complete game, striking out fourteen.  He gave up one run on eight hits and a walk for a game score of 90.  I don't know what his pitch count was.

Opposition stars:  Rick Langford also pitched a complete game, although he only had to go ten innings.  He gave up two runs on seven hits and five walks and struck out eight.  Jeff Newman was 2-for-4.  Tony Armas was 2-for-4.  Sheldon Mallory was 2-for-5 with a double.

The game:  The Twins loaded the bases with one out in the first, but a pair of strikeouts ended the inning.  Cubbage led off the third with a home run, getting the Twins on the board with a 1-0 lead.  It stayed 1-0 until the fifth, when Newman singled, went to second on a ground out, and scored on Mallory's double.

It stayed 1-1 for quite a while.  The Twins put two on with one out in the sixth and got a man to second with one out in the seventh.  The Athletics put a man on second with two out in the eighth and with one out in the tenth.

Carew led off the eleventh with a single.  Lyman Bostock followed with a single, moving Carew to third.  Glenn Adams was walked, loading the bases.  Larry Hisle then singled to bring home the deciding run.

WP:  Goltz (12-6).  LP:  Langford (7-11).  S:  None.

Notes:  Hisle was in center field, with Bostock in left.  Hisle played 71 games in center and 63 in left.  Bostock played 90 games in center and 60 in left.  I'm sure Gene Mauch had some reason for deciding who would play where--the pitcher, the ballpark, how much the other team run, who knows?  But knowing Mauch, it was not just random.

Rich Chiles batted for Bobby Randall in the tenth.  Jerry Terrell went in to play second.

Carew was batting .386.  He would finish at .388.  Glenn Adams was batting .357.  He would finish at .338.  Bostock was batting .338.  He would finish at .336.  Hisle was batting .302.  He would finish at .302.  The Twins led the league in batting  at .282.

Hisle led the team with 28 home runs.  Carew and Bostock each hit 14.  Craig Kusick hit 12 homers, Dan Ford 11, and Butch Wynegar 10.  The Twins hit 123 home runs, eleventh in the league.  Boston led with 213.

Goltz was 20-11, 3.36.  It was the best year of his career.  He was the only starter who the Twins could rely on.  The others were Paul Thormodsgard (11-15, 4.62), Geoff Zahn, (12-14, 4.68), and Pete Redfern (6-9, 5.18).  The bullpen was nothing to shout about, either.  Closer Tom Johnson did well--16-7, 3.13.  The next lowest ERA was Ron Schueler at 4.41.  The Twins were twelfth in ERA at 4.36.  Kansas City led at 3.52.  They were eleventh in WHIP at 1.42.  Texas led there at 1.28.

This was one of 19 complete games for Goltz.  He pitched 303 innings.  He led the league in wins and starts and was sixth in Cy Young voting.

Record:  The Twins were 55-43, in third place in the American League West, five games behind Chicago.  They would finish 84-77, in fourth place, 17.5 games behind Kansas City.

The Athletics were 40-56, in seventh (last) place in the American League West, 19 games behind Chicago.  They would finish 63-98, in seventh place, 38.5 games behind Kansas City.

Random record:  The Twins are 56-52 in Random Rewind games.

Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 1970, Game One Hundred Thirty-three

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MILWAUKEE 8, MINNESOTA 3 IN MILWAUKEE

Date:  Thursday, September 3.

Batting stars:  Cesar Tovar was 3-for-4 with a triple.  Brant Alyea was 1-for-1 with a two-run homer, his twelfth.

Pitching stars:  None.

Opposition stars:  Roberto Pena was 3-for-4 with a home run (his third), a double, two runs, and three RBIs.  Mike Hegan was 2-for-2 with a double, a stolen base (his eighth), two walks, and three runs.  Dave May was 2-for-4.  Phil Roof was 1-for-2 with a three-run homer (his tenth) and two walks.  Marty Pattin pitched 7.1 innings, giving up three runs on seven hits and a walk and striking out three.

The game:  With one out in the second Hegan singled, Pena doubled, and Roof walked to load the bases,  Ted Kubiak singled in one run, but Twins starter Bill Zepp was able to get out of the inning with no further damage.  It stayed 1-0 through four.

In the fifth, however, the Brewers broke the game open.  Tommy Harper walked and was bunted to second.  May singled him in and went to second on the throw home.  A ground out gave the Twins hope of getting out of the inning.  Hegan was intentionally walked, but the strategy backfired as Pena had an RBI single and Roof hit a three-run homer, putting Milwaukee ahead 6-0.

The Twins tried to get back into it.  In the sixth, Tovar tripled and scored on a ground out to get the Twins on the board.  In the seventh Rich Reese singled and Alyea hit a two-out two-run homer to cut the margin to 6-3.  In the bottom of the seventh, however, Hegan hit a two-out double and Pena followed with a two-run homer to make it 8-3.  The Twins threatened in the eighth with a pair of one-out singles, but that was as much as they could do.

WP:  Pattin (11-11).  LP:  Zepp (7-4).  S:  None.

Notes:  Steve Brye started in left field in place of Alyea.  Other than that, it was the standard 1970 lineup.

The Twins made a double switch in the fifth.  I don't remember that happening before in a Random Rewind game, although it certainly may have.  Stan Williams came in to pitch and Jim Holt came in to play center, with Tovar moving from center to left and Brye coming out of the game.  The Twins used two pinch-hitters for pitchers, with Alyea batting in the seventh and Charlie Manuel in the ninth.

Tony Oliva was batting .311.  He would finish at .325, leading the team.  Tovar was batting .289 and would finish at .300.  Rod Carew batted .366 but he missed much of the season, getting just 191 at-bats.  The Twins batted .262, which was tied for first in the league with Boston.

Harmon Killebrew, of course, led the team in homers with 41.  Oliva hit 23.  Alyea had 16, George Mitterwald 15, Leo Cardenas 11, and Reese and Tovar 10 each.  The Twins hit 153 home runs, which was fifth in the league.  Boston led with 203.

Jim Perry was the ace of the staff, going 24-12, 3.04 in 40 starts with 13 complete games.  Jim Kaat was 14-10, 3.56 with 34 starts and 11 relief appearances, including one in this game.  Bert Blyleven, who came up in early June, went 10-9, 3.18.  Luis Tiant pitched well when he was able to pitch, going 7-3, 3.40 in 16 starts.  Ron Perranoski was the closer, going 7-8, 2.43 with 34 saves, but Stan Williams was probably the best reliever, going 10-1, 1.99 with 15 saves and a 1.03 WHIP.  Tom Hall had a fine year, going 11-6, 2.55 in 52 games (11 starts).  Zepp contributed as well, going 9-4, 3.22 in 43 games (20 starts).  The Twins were second in ERA with 3.23, with Baltimore leading at 3.15.  The Twins were fourth in WHIP at 1.25, with Baltimore also leading there at 1.21.

The Twins were in a stretch where they would win seven of eight and eleven of thirteen.  Unfortunately, random.org gave us the rare loss.

Record:  The Twins were 78-55, in first place in the American League West, three games ahead of California.  They would finish 98-64, in first place, nine games ahead of Oakland.

The Brewers were 51-85, in fifth place in the American League West, 28.5 games behind Minnesota.  They would finish 65-97, tied for fourth with Kansas City, 33 games behind Minnesota.  You may remember that the Brewers were in the West until 1972, when they moved to the East and the Texas Rangers, moved from Washington, went to the West.

Random Record:  The Twins are 55-52 in Random Rewind games.

Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 1968, Game One Hundred Fifty-four

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OAKLAND 7, MINNESOTA 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Friday, September 20.

Batting stars:  Johnny Roseboro was 2-for-4 with a home run, his eighth.  Graig Nettles was 2-for-4 with a double.  Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-4.

Pitching stars:  None.

Opposition stars:  Catfish Hunter pitched a complete game, giving up one run on eight hits and one walk and striking out four.  Reggie Jackson was 2-for-4 with a stolen base (his fourteenth), a walk, and two runs.  Dick Green was 2-for-4 with a stolen base, his third.  Danny Cater was 2-for-5 with a home run (his sixth), two runs, and two RBIs.

The game:  Bert Campaneris led off the game with a single and stole second.  Jackson walked, and the two pulled off a double steal, putting men on second and third with none out.  A ground out and a sacrifice fly gave the Athletics a 2-0 lead.

The Twins loaded the bases with two out in the first but did not score.  Roseboro homered leading off the second, however, cutting the lead in half at 2-1.  In the fourth Green singled, stole second, and scored on a Joe Keough single to put Oakland's lead back up to two at 3-1.

The Twins put men on second and third with one out in the fourth but did not score.  It stayed 3-1 until the seventh, when the Athletics put it out of reach.  Campaneris drew a one-out walk and went to second on a pickoff error.  Jackson's RBI single made it 4-1.  Back-to-back errors on shortstop Jackie Hernandez increased the lead to 5-1 with a man on second.  Green delivered a two-out RBI single to make it 6-1.

Cater homered in the ninth to round out the scoring.  The Twins did put men on first and second with none out in the bottom of the ninth, but again, nothing came of it.

WP:  Hunter (13-13).  LP:  Buzz Stephen (0-1).  S:  None.

Notes:  Bob Allison was at first base, with Killebrew manning third.  They each played those positions a fair amount in their careers, but not in 1968--Allison had only 17 games at first and Killebrew had just 11 at third.  I don't know why Cal Ermer chose to go with that arrangement here.

Rick Renick started the game at shortstop and was replaced by Hernandez at the start of the second inning.  Renick did not bat in the bottom of the first.  There was one ball hit to shortstop in the first--Renick made the play, but possibly injured himself somehow.  Or, perhaps he wasn't feeling well, tried to go, and just couldn't.  I don't know.

With Allison at first base, September call-up Graig Nettles was in left field.  Nettles began his professional career as a second baseman, then moved to third, but in the majors with the Twins he played more outfield than anything.  He eventually made himself into a fine defensive third baseman, but my understanding is that he was not good on defense early in his career, which is why he was put in the outfield.

With Killebrew at third, Cesar Tovar was put in center field, with Ted Uhlaender moved to the bench.  Pat Kelly was in right field in place of Tony Oliva, who missed the last month of the season.

It was a September game, and the Twins used most of the expanded roster.  Bruce Look pinch-hit for Hernandez in the seventh, Uhlaender then pinch-ran for Look, and Ron Clark came in to play shortstop.  Jim Holt pinch-hit for Kelly and stayed in the game in right field.  Jim Kaat pinch-ran for Killebrew in the eighth, with Frank Quilici going in to play third.  The Twins also used Rich Reese and Rich Rollins as pinch-hitters for pitchers.

Stephen actually pitched fairly well for six innings, but his final line was 6.1 innings, five runs (four earned), eight hits, and five walks with one strikeout.  It was his major league debut.  Five days later would be his major league swan song, as he appeared in just two big league games.  In the latter game he pitched five innings, giving up two runs on three hits and two walks and struck out three in getting the win.

The Twins stranded nine runners and were 0-for-9 with men in scoring position.

As far as the Twins' team batting and pitching stats in 1968, we've been through that a couple of times already and I really don't have anything to add.

This was one of only four losses the Twins had in their final fourteen games of 1968.

Record:  The Twins were 73-81, in seventh place in the American League, 27 games behind Detroit.  They would finish 79-83, in seventh place, 24 games behind Detroit.

The Athletics were 78-76, in sixth place in the American League, 22 games behind Detroit.  They would finish 82-80, in sixth place, 21 games behind Detroit.

Random Record:  The Twins are 55-51 in Random Rewind games.

Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 2005, Game Twenty-four

LOS ANGELES 2, MINNESOTA 1 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Sunday, May 1.

Batting star:  Shannon Stewart was 2-for-4 with a home run, his second.

PItching stars:  Johan Santana pitched eight innings, giving up two runs on two hits and two walks and striking out seven.  Juan Rincon pitched a perfect inning.

Opposition stars:  Bartolo Colon pitched 7.1 scoreless innings, giving up two hits and no walks and striking out seven.  Vladimir Guerrero was 1-for-4 with a home run, his sixth.  Jose Molina was 1-for-3 with a home run.

The game:  There were no hits on either side until the fourth, when Guerrero hit a two-out home run to give the Angels a 1-0 lead.  The Twins got their first hit in the fifth when Stewart led off with a single, but nothing came of it.  Molina led off the sixth with a home run to make it 2-0.

The Twins threatened in the eighth.  With one out, Jacque Jones singled, Michael Cuddyer singled, and pinch-hitter Joe Mauer walked, loading the bases.  PInch-hitter Matthew LeCroy hit into a double play, and the inning was over.  The Twins got on the board when Stewart led off the ninth with a home run, but the next three batters went out and the game was over.

WP:  Colon (4-2).  LP:  Santana (4-1).  S:  Francisco Rodriguez (6).

Notes:  Mike Redmond was behind the plate in place of Joe Mauer.

Luis Rivas was at second base.  He was still the regular second baseman at this point, but was about at the end of the run.  By the end of the season, Nick Punto would be the regular second baseman.

Juan Castro was at shortstop.  He did end up playing the most games there, 73, but by the end of the season would be replaced by Jason Bartlett.

Lewwwwww Ford was in right field, with Jones moving to DH.  LeCroy and Ford did most of the DHing in 2005, playing 63 and 44 games there, respectively.

Justin Morneau was batting .400.  He would finish at .239.  This was his first full season.  Jones was batting .352--he would finish at .249.  Mauer was batting .304--he would finish at .294, which led the team.  LeCroy was batting .302--he would finish at .260.  The Twins batted .259, which was next-to-last in the league.  Boston led at .281.

Jones led in home runs with 23, with Morneau right behind at 22.  LeCroy hit 17, Torii Hunter 14, Cuddyer 12, and Stewart 10.  The Twins hit 134 home runs, which was twelfth in the league.  Texas led with 260, well ahead of second-place New York at 229.

Santana was the clear ace of the staff, going 16-7, 2.87.  Carlos Silva was 9-8, 3.44--this was the year he walked an incredible 9 batters in 188.1 innings.  Two of the walks were intentional, so you could say he really only walked 7.  Brad Radke was 9-12, 4.04 and Kyle Lohse was 9-13, 4.18.  The weak link was Joe Mays, who was 6-10, 5.65.  The Twins kept him in the rotation until September, when he finally replaced by rookie Scott Baker.

The Twins had an excellent bullpen.  Joe Nathan was 7-4, 2.70, 43 saves.  The team's only other save went to Jesse Crain, who was 12-5, 2.71.  Juan Rincon was 6-6, 2.45 and J. C. Romero was 4-3, 3.47.  Matt Guerrier also contributed, going 0-3, 3.39.

The Twins were fifth in the league in ERA at 3.71.  Cleveland led at 3.61.  The Twins were second in WHIP at 1.23, just behind Cleveland's 1.22.

I wonder what the record is for most runs in a game where all the runs came by solo home runs.  I don't suppose this is all that close, but it would be interesting to know.

This loss snapped a five-game winning streak.  They would lose two more, then win the next four.

Record:  The Twins were 15-9, in second place in the American League Central, 2.5 games behind Chicago.  They would finish 83-79, in third place, 16 games behind Chicago.

The Angels were 14-11, in first place in the American League West, one game ahead of Oakland.  They would finish 95-67, in first place, seven games ahead of Oakland.

Rewind record:  The Twins are 55-50 in Random Rewind games.

Keeping Track

Random Rewind: 1993, Game One Hundred Fifty-one

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MINNESOTA 5, NEW YORK 4 IN NEW YORK

Date:  Tuesday, September 21.

Batting stars:  Pedro Munoz was 3-for-4 with two home runs (his eleventh and twelfth) and all five RBIs.  Brian Harper was 3-for-4.  Dave Winfield was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs.  Jeff Reboulet was 2-for-4.

Pitching stars:  Willie Banks struck out six in five innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on three hits and five walks.  Carl Willis struck out two in two perfect innings.

Opposition stars:  Danny Tartabull was 2-for-3 with a walk and a hit-by-pitch.  Bobby Munoz pitched 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out two.

The game:  Dion James hit a one-out double in the first, went to third on a ground ball, and scored on a wild pitch to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead.  It stayed 1-0 until the fourth.  With one out, Winfield and Harper singled and Munoz hit a three-run homer, putting the Twins in front 3-1.

The Yankees got one back in the bottom of the fourth when Mike Stanley walked, Bernie Williams singled, and Wade Boggs reached on an error.  It stayed 3-2 until the sixth, when Winfield doubled and Munoz delivered a two-out two-run homer to make it 5-2 Minnesota.

It couldn't come easy, of course.  New York cut the margin to 5-3 in the bottom of the sixth when Mike Gallego doubled and scored on a Jim Leyritz single.  It stayed 5-3 until the ninth.  Rick Aguilera retired the first two Yankees, but Tartabull singled, Matt Nokes singled, and Stanley hit an RBI single, cutting the margin to 5-4 with Williams coming up to bat.  But Williams grounded out to first, and the game was over.

WP:  Banks (10-11).  LP:  Jim Abbott (10-13).  S:  Aguilera (31).

Notes:  Terry Jorgensen was at first base in place of Kent Hrbek.  Jorgensen was primarily a third baseman--he played just nine games at first in this season, starting only three.  Jeff Reboulet was at third in place of Mike Pagliarulo.  Pags played 79 games at third, Jorgensen 45, and Reboulet 34.

David McCarty was in right field.  Kirby Puckett played the most games in right, 47 (compared to 95 in center).  Munoz played 41, McCarty 34, and Winfield 31.  Munoz was in left in this game, a place he played 64 games (tied with Shane Mack.  Mack played 67 games in center).

Harper was batting .305--he would finish at .304 and was the only .300 hitter on the team.  Puckett came close--he was at .293 and finished at .296,  The Twins batted .264, ninth in the league.  New York and Toronto led at .279.

Hrbek led the team with 25 home runs.  Puckett was second at 22 and Winfield followed at 21.  Munoz hit 13, Harper 12, and Mack 10.  The Twins hit 121 home runs, twelfth in the league.  Texas led at 181.

It was a hitters' year, but even allowing for that the Twins' rotation wasn't very good.  Kevin Tapani led in starts and went 12-15, 4.43.  Scott Erickson was 8-19, 5.19.  Banks led the starters in ERA, going 11-12, 4.04.  Jim Deshaies was 11-13, 4.41.  They never really found a fifth starter.  Rookie Eddie Guardado started 16 games and went 3-8, 6.18.  Mike Trombley made 10 starts and went 6-6, 4.88, stats which obviously include his relief appearances.  Aguilera was solid in the bullpen, posting 34 saves with an ERA of 3.11.  Willis was 3-0, 3.10 with 5 saves and Larry Casian was 5-3, 3.02.  The Twins were next-to-last in ERA at 4.71.  Chicago led at 3.70.  The Twins were twelfth in WHIP at 1.46.  Boston led with 1.33.

In winning this game, the Twins used probably their best starter (Banks) and their three best relievers (Casian, Willis, and Aguilera).  And they did manage to beat the Yankees, even if just barely.

This was the first game of a stretch in which the Twins would win eight out of nine.

Record:  The Twins were 63-88, in sixth place in the American League West, 22.5 games behind Chicago.  They would finish 71-91, tied for fifth place with California, 23 games behind Chicago.

The Yankees were 83-69, in second place in the American League East, 5 games behind Toronto.  They would finish 88-74, in second place, 7 games behind Toronto.

Random record:  The Twins are 55-49 in Random Rewind games.