Best Twins player born in my home state, Jason Kubel.  Pretty sure my dad said he works with a relative of Jason's I think.

Best player from Minnesota that no one knows: Wes Westrum.

My grandfather, who I'll politely call "old school" in his race relations, surprised me when he said Satchell Paige was the greatest player he ever saw.

 

Best Twins player born in my home state, Jason Kubel.  Pretty sure my dad said he works with a relative of Jason's I think.

 

Interesting that Kubel's not even a top 5 SD-born MLB player, though.

 

Sparky Anderson

Floyd Bannister

Dave Collins

Sean Doolittle

Mark Ellis

Keith Foulke

Terry Francona

 

and don't forget Terry Forster!

Catcher for the Chamberlain Mallards, college football player and catcher for the Mets - John Stearns.  I was a batboy for the Mallards in my youth....

 

Interesting that Kubel's not even a top 5 SD-born MLB player, though.

 

Sparky Anderson

Floyd Bannister

Dave Collins

Sean Doolittle

Mark Ellis

Keith Foulke

Terry Francona

 

and don't forget Terry Forster!

Don't ruin the thread. It's one player per post.

 

Speaking of Chamberlin, I will go with Joba Chamberlin, who I apparently played against back in 7th grade in Nebraska.

One of my all-time favorite players- Justin Morneau!

Another worthless piece traded by the Yankees to the Twins: Larry Milbourne.

#6 on the HR list with 630, and the batting stance I copied playing backyard baseball as a kid... " The Kid" Ken Griffey Jr.

The only major league pitcher I know of with a career ERA of infinity:  Fred Bruckbauer of Sleepy Eye.

All nine positions in one game...Cesar Tovar.

 

Best thread ever, by the way.

 

The only major league pitcher I know of with a career ERA of infinity:  Fred Bruckbauer of Sleepy Eye.

I probably should have got this one, given that I'm from Sleepy Eye.

 

I'll go from Fred Bruckbauer to another Fred who I always thought was great:

 

Fred Lynn

On to Twin Minnesota natives: Dick Stigman from Nimrod, Minnesota.

Bill Freehan came to town in 1968 to show us kids how to be a catcher. So I became my team's catcher on the spot.

Jerry Kindall, another 60s Twin and Minnesota native.

iron range import and one-inning wonder moonlight graham.

Michael Restovich of Rochester. Outstanding athlete who never mastered the curve ball, kinda reminds me of Joe Benson.

 

Best player from Minnesota that no one knows: Wes Westrum.

 

Have you been to the Wes Westrum Museum in Clearbrook? 

 

I'll go a little further north, and just west of my home, and go with Roseau's Kerry Taylor. 

Can't believe no one said it yet … my favorite as a kid … Harmon Killebrew.

John Smith. First baseman for the Red Sox in 1931. Because, John.

Classy Dodger catcher- Roy Campanella

Edited July 18, 201511 yr by curt1965

The guy I had the most baseball cards for when I was a young fella:  Felix Mantilla.

 

Don't ruin the thread. It's one player per post.

 

Speaking of Chamberlin, I will go with Joba Chamberlin, who I apparently played against back in 7th grade in Nebraska.

 

And that somehow "ruined" the thread? C'mon now...

My hometown's greatest ball player, and still the only clean player to hit more than 60 HR in a season, Roger Maris.

The best player from my hometown ended up playing for the White Sox - Brook Fordyce.  He was by far the best prep hitter I had seen until this year - a kid named Corey Zangari from Midwest City, OK.  (Also drafted by the White Sox - 6th round)  Serious power potential.

The only MLB pitcher from my hometown was Pete Walker, now the Blue Jays pitching coach.  I would have guessed he would have been the third-best pitcher in his family, but it's always hard to tell with pitchers. 

I'll go with Jerry Terrell as a hometown ballplayer. Not quite from my hometown, but close enough.

 

Classy Dodger catcher- Roy Campanella

 

 

Classy Twins catcher- Earl Battey

Former Twin, former Gopher two-sport star and AD, Paul Giel of Winona.

The guy I thought was going to be the greatest thing ever- Bernardo Brito!