Melissa

Thanks so much for this, Squirrel! Fun. Brings me back a bit to when my sister lived in Lakeland, FL, and we would visit in March for spring break. I’m a Twins fan, of course, but I love watching all sorts of baseball. Tigertown, with the Red Sox nearby in Winter Haven were our main spots to visit then (1980s & 1990s). Lakeland is stuck in the hot and humid middle of the state. Quite a ride from the Twins in Ft, Meyers, as Aaron G. and John B. complain about on their podcasts. Now my sister lives in Stuart, FL, in the vicinity (less than a one hour drive) mostly of NL teams like the Cardinals and Marlins in Jupiter, the Mets in Port St. Lucie, and both the Nationals and Astros in West Palm Beach.. Three years ago it was a thrill for me to watch Don Mattingly as manager of a (woeful) Marlins crew in their opening spring training game against a powerful Cardinals team. I’ve long admired Donnie Baseball, despite him playing for the hated Yankees.

Interesting article, Matt, with lots of depth. Thanks!

Billy Bruton! Yes, I was struggling to remember his name. Bruton was the second Braves player to live in my town of Mequon, after Mr. Aaron and his family broke that particular color barrier. The Aarons lived down the road from us, and Mrs. Barbara Aaron and my mom were friends. Gaile Aaron and I were classmates. It was both an “interesting” and an amazing time.

What a list! And thanks to Greggory for this story.

Apart from definitions, mention of Mathews brought back such good memories for me as young fan in Milwaukee: Eddie Mathews, Joe Alcock, Del Crandall, Warren Spahn, Lew Burdette, Felipe Alou … and of course the inestimable Henry Aaron!

I admit it can be fun to guess / figure out which Twin is shown in the photos st the top of TD news postings, but it frustrates me (and maybe others?) at least as much. Would it really be difficult to add labels? I note that each photo has a credit listed for its source. Sure, some players or coaches are easily recognizable, but others are not. It’s not so bad of course when the whole post is about Player X Y or Z, or usually when the uniform number is visible, but this longstanding lack of very relevant information puzzles me. Thanks for any consideration! I love the site.

Welcome to Twins Daily!

Welcome to Twins Daily!

Nice article! It seems that the team is emphasizing defense this year, so Solano’s versatility and skill with the glove fits that pattern. Defensive metrics for infielders have been all over the map in recent years with the proliferation of extreme shifts, so I see why you did the comparison with offensive stats. He’s also said to be a really fine teammate, not an irrelevant aspect.

Good to have all this in one place, but also sobering to see all the injuries stacked up.

Wow, that's kind of surprising! Wouldn't happen these days ... though maybe the word Cracker didn't yet carry the same connotations then, especially in the South?

Great analysis, Dr. Bauer!

Thanks, Greggory - fascinating stuff! Were University of Minnesota athletes called Golden Gophers at the time? I think so.

Do's tweet quotes Falvey as saying "there aren't any starters converting to short relief this spring (like Jax did this time last year)." The man speaks very precisely. I think he's definitely left open the scenario Blyleven2011 (hi Bert!) wants.

I don't know ... when I watch MLB caliber baseball players they are far from being semi-athletic. Things like golf, bowling, or god help us pickleball fit that dismissal ... but baseball? It's not beer-league slow-pitch softball out there, right?