Skip to content
View in the app

A better way to browse. Learn more.
Twins Daily

A full-screen app on your home screen with push notifications, badges and more.

To install this app on iOS and iPadOS
  1. Tap the Share icon in Safari
  2. Scroll the menu and tap Add to Home Screen.
  3. Tap Add in the top-right corner.
To install this app on Android
  1. Tap the 3-dot menu (⋮) in the top-right corner of the browser.
  2. Tap Add to Home screen or Install app.
  3. Confirm by tapping Install.

Blogs

mikelink45's Blog

The Best Third Baseman in Minnesota Twins History

Our best third baseman is another challenge. This completes the infield reviews it is not an easy task to find the best. I might choose Harmon for both first and third and he played so long that he has as many games at both positions as the others that he is competing with.     In 1961 Bill Tuttle played 3B 85 games and batted 5th behind Zoilo. He played one more full time year at 3B before leaving MLB. Bill suffered from cancer that was the result of chewing tobacco and from his playing days un
80MPH Changeup

A Final Plea For The Signing Of Craig Kimbrel

This time of the year is always exciting as a baseball fan, the start of spring training brings an undeniable energy that rejuvenates every single fanbase across the country, yes, even Mariners fans. But the last two offseasons now have brought the droning, political, and monotonous free agency cycle bleeding into the beginning of spring training. Whether it be the owners becoming greedy and selfish in their wealth, the front offices becoming wiser in how money is allocated in free agent deals,
Off The Baggy

Next Man Up on the Bump

Right now, the Minnesota Twins have a tentative five-man starting rotation penciled in for 2019. Martin Perez was signed as a free agent to round out the group, and Michael Pineda will pitch for the first time in a Twins uniform. No matter how set the plan may be today however, there’s no denying a wrench will soon be thrown into it. How things are handled from there are worth speculating about.   The reality for the Twins is that they’ve burned through pitchers in recent seasons. Both in the ro
mikelink45's Blog

The best SS in Twins history?

The best Shortstop in Twins history This is a challenging position. No HOF candidates.     The first year of the Twins Zoilo Vesalles was the dominate Shortstop – 129 games. Jose Valivielso backed him up. Versalles was in 160 games in 1962, 159 – 1963, 160 – 1964, 160 in the World Series year of 1965 when he was the MVP of the league, he dropped to 135 with Cesar Tovar behind him in 1966, 159 in 1967. After developing a Hemotoma on his back, a lifelong condition, his average dropped and he was
The Always Fashionable; Uncle Charlie

Rapid Fire Hot Takes on the Kepler-Polanco Extensions, and Stagnant Relief Pitcher Market

My Theoretical Mindset during the week; The status quo surrounding the Twins all offseason was their stubbornness and inability to commit to any outside assets (in free agency or on the trade block), yet until recently did the Twins finally break that narrative. But… they were in-house pieces. By committing to two sprightly and talented yet unproven stars, have they overplayed their hand on their future plans?   The Twins right now are waltzing into what I would define as, a free-agency sweet sp
mikelink45's Blog

Two sport stars - more than Kyler Murray

Kyler Murray has set the internet buzzing with his two-sport potential. The A’s hope he chooses baseball, the NFL wants him for football. So it got me thinking about baseball players and their second sports. According to Wiki there are 70 Athletes who played in both MLB and NFL.     Bo Jackson was the second Heisman Trophy winner to play in both – Vic Janowicz was the first with the Pirates and the Red Sox!   Deion Sanders is in the NFL HOF, if he had stayed with baseball maybe he could ha
Brazilian Twins Territory

The Twins first baseman decision is not a no-brainer

We never expect players signings not to work - but some of them just don’t. Last year was a lesson for Twins fans in that sense, with big splashes like Lance Lynn, Logan Morrison and Addison Reed underperforming. A lot of people would include Jake Odorizzi in that category too. So, in a way, sometimes is wise to lower expectations about new players, in order to be pleasantly surprised down the road.   Long time club hero Joe Mauer officially announced his retirement from baseball on Nov. 9th, at
mikelink45's Blog

Our fantasy rotation

Eno Sarris’ top 175 pitchers for the 2019 fantasy baseball season The Twins top five according to Sarris all make it in the top 175!     Berrios 18 Above Strasburg, Corbin, Price, Wheeler, Morton and Greinke   Kyle Gibson 60 Above Matz, Woodruff, Lucchesi, Quintana   Odorizzi 69 Above Jimmy Nelson   Pineda 71 Above Stroman, Gonzales, Smith and Gray   Fernando Romero 135 Above Valdez, Cease, Gohara, Williams, Lynn     Take all those positions and average them out and our rotation comes o
mikelink45's Blog

Bowdens top 100

Bowden top 100 and TD top 20 The TD list and the Bowden rankings   Once again I am interested in the ratings of Bowden just to give us a national perspective. This is not about right or wrong. I cannot judge any of them, but I do enjoy the ratings:     20. Jose Miranda, 2B/3B 19. Jorge Alcala, RHP 18. LaMonte Wade, OF 17. Zack Littell, RHP 16. Gilberto Celestino, OF 15. Yunior Severino, 2B 14. Ben Rortvedt, C 13. Ryan Jeffers, C 12. Stephen Gonsalves, LHP 11. Nick Gordon, SS 177 10. Akil Baddoo,
mikelink45's Blog

The Twins best second baseman.

The Twins Best Second basemen The second base slot has changed dramatically in this era. With all the strikeouts and flyballs there are fewer double plays, fewer ground balls, and if there is the shift complicates who is where. But I will not emphasize those changes, I just want to look at the names and skills of the people who players second in our history.     Billy Martin – that controversial manager (Twins and Yankees) that succeeded everywhere but off the field. The original Spark plug play
mikelink45's Blog

Comparing ratings - Bowden and TD

Jim Bowden is releasing his top 200 on the Athletic. I am comparing where he ranks our players in order, since he has the entire MLB our numbers will not conform to his ranks, but will the sequence of ranking conform to our numbers? In the second 200 he has our number seven Jhoan Duran ranked 181. #11 Nick Gordon - Bowden has at 177. At 170, obviously above the last two is Jordan Balazovic. Why isn't he on our list? Bowden has Lewis Thorpe at 162 we have him at #8. Bowden had none of the Twins i
Off The Baggy

Twins Opening Day Roster Projection 1.0

Down in sunny Fort Myers, Florida the Minnesota Twins pitchers and catchers have officially reported, and practice is underway. With many position players either already in camp, or soon to join them, real game action is not far off. Attempting to decipher how Rocco Baldelli will shape his first major league roster should be a fun exercise and doing a first projection before we see anything take shape is plenty exciting.   In past seasons there was some level of continuity with how Paul Molitor
mikelink45's Blog

The best First Baseman in Twins history

Best First Baseman in Twins history? This is really tough because 1B seems to be the plug and play position. Can’t run – 1B, no room at DH – 1B. Need a rest 1B. So for the most part slow, lumbering, powerful describes the position, but then there are the exceptions like Keith Hernandez who set the bar for the leagues and Joe Mauer who set the fielding bar for the Twins. But note – Hernandez might have been a fielding whiz, but 1B fielding does not get you into the HOF. So how to analyze 1B? To b
80MPH Changeup

The Twins and Their Brothers In Arms (or xwOBA)

I sit here on the Wednesday of February the 13th, the same day that pitchers and catchers have reported for the Twins, pretty much stuck in my dorm as the classes on my campus were canceled for the 3rd straight day due to snow. At this point, I actually want to go to class because there is something inside me that craves work of some sort and the amount of MLB The Show and Grand Theft Auto that I have played over the last few days would make any sane human nauseous. The solution, of course, is t
Twins fan in Texas

Repost from Feb 2016. “4 things that need to happen for twins to win World Series in next 5 years

So I posted this 3 years ago almost to the day. It’s funny to look at some of these theses names and see how wrong I was. But also how some remain true. Still waiting on Buck and Sano to figure it out. Man was I wrong about the bullpen as None of the arms I listed made it except for Rogers. I think we may have a few of the secondary stars in Rosario, Polanco and Kepler. I think Berrios is a 2 and Gibson is a solid 3. Still need another # 2 caliber pitcher ( please be Graterol or Romero) or Ber
mikelink45's Blog

The best catcher in Twins history

I have been following ESPN’s look at positions and comparing the position’s historically by statistics and currently by ranking the players and putting them in tiers. So of course, since I have been watching the Twins since their Minnesota debut I thought we should do the same things. Like ESPN I will start with the Catchers.     Earl Battey was our first catcher and in many ways was under rated. He was our catcher for 8 of his 13 years in the big leagues – starting with the White Sox and ending
What you know about that blog

2019 Minnesota Twins TV Broadcast Team

The Minnesota Twins announced the TV broadcast team for 2019. Overall, there weren't too many surprises. Bremer, Bert Blyleven, Jack Morris (who will split time between Detroit and Minnesota's broadcasts in 2019), Justin Morneau, Latroy Hawkins, and Roy Smalley are all returning in 2019. However, there is one change. Torii Hunter will not return in 2019. Replacing him will be former Twins and Yankees broadcaster and former Twin Jim Kaat. Kaat has recently called Thursday night baseball on MLB N
Supfin99's Blog

Should the Twins be favored to win the Central right now?

Everyone assumes the Indians are a slam dunk to win the division again this year. But should they be runaway favorite? Looking at their roster I see a couple of huge advantages. The rotation might be the deepest in baseball, accumulating 5 plus War form 3 starters, 4 guys were above 3.9 WAR, which is where the top Twins starter, Berriios, resides. Their 5 started accounted for just over 20 WAR last season. The Indians also have the best left side of the infield in baseball with Lindor and Ramire
Off The Baggy

Sano Turning an Important Corner

Miguel Sano enters the 2019 Major League Baseball season as one half of the Minnesota Twins largest question mark. The front office has tied the upcoming schedule to the production of both Sano and Byron Buxton. Needing to rebound from his worst year as a professional, it seems that an important development has taken place for the former top prospect. Commitment and accountability appear evident in a new report, and that’s always been the biggest question for the Dominican Native.   Recently the
Off The Baggy

Buxton Ready for a Big Breakthrough

It was a simpler time, and it wasn’t long ago. The 2017 Minnesota Twins finished with 85 wins and ended their season with a Wild Card loss to the New York Yankees. Although the success didn’t carry over to 2018, their centerfielder was chief among the reasons that squad was competitive. Byron Buxton won a Gold Glove, was named the Defensive Player of the Year, and finished 18th in American League MVP voting. How crazy is it to think we could see that again?   Back in 2017, the former first round
The Always Fashionable; Uncle Charlie

The Good, The Bad, and How To Fix It on Martin Perez

If you don’t already know the Minnesota twins inked the former Ranger southpaw, and well seasoned veteran Martin Perez to a short 1 year compact, to what seems to be a lackluster effort to “fortify the rotation.”   Now we can interpret this transaction whatever way we deem to be fit, but the Twins projected rotation lines up as….     Middling at best.With the likes of two potentially elite pitchers Dallas Keuchel and Craig Kimbrel standing pat for a desirable bidder, this has caught the chagri
Supfin99's Blog

Salary, Salary and Salary

I just read the article on here about punting the 2019 season. I don’t understand this narrative and get so frustrated by it. Money is not a cure all when it comes to building a team. I say this knowing I wrote an article a month ago where I discussed my frustration that the Twins didn’t spend more in the mid 2000’s to augment the team. But the difference was then you had guys like Mauer, Moreau, Hunter, Cuddyer. Santana and Nathan in their prime and they were among the best at their positions
Off The Baggy

Is the Twins Narrative Really “Punting on 2019?”

For weeks we’ve seen news outlets and beat writers suggest that the Twins have instructed them the focus for 2019 has been in seeing what Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano bring to the table. In a sport with a 25-man roster, the front office has trotted out a narrative that suggests the year ahead rests solely on the shoulders of a once promising duo. The reality in all of this is that same suggestion could be turned in to Minnesota punting on the season ahead, and the constructs of that suggestion r

Account

Navigation

Search

Search

Configure browser push notifications
Chrome (Android)
  1. Tap the lock icon next to the address bar.
  2. Tap Permissions → Notifications.
  3. Adjust your preference.
Chrome (Desktop)
  1. Click the padlock icon in the address bar.
  2. Select Site settings.
  3. Find Notifications and adjust your preference.