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Brian Raabe dug into the batter’s box on a Sunday afternoon in September at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. And while the 1995 Twins were out of playoff contention the moment couldn’t have been more significant for Raabe. The 5’9 New Ulm, Minnesota native was making his Major League debut for his home state team. Raabe had been preparing for this moment his entire life. A scrappy and consistent hitter, the second baseman had been an All-American for the Minnesota Golden Gophers with talent that earned him a 41st round pick from the Minnesota Twins in the 1990 MLB draft. After consecutive years of batting north of the .300 mark in the minors, Raabe received the late season call-up that every boy dreams of. Perhaps the most special essence of the moment? The catcher squatting behind Raabe was fellow Gophers standout and New Ulm native Terry Steinbach. "How the heck does that happen?" Raabe popped out and the Oakland Athletics went on to defeat the Twins 4-1. But for the small town Minnesota kid, a lifelong goal shaped by hard work, mentors, and a dream had come to fruition. The Mecca of Minnesota Baseball Like most small town kids, Brian Raabe grew up playing a variety of sports. And while he was talented at many, baseball stuck. “Most kids could hit a ball off a tee when they were a few years old. My dad was able to flip it to me and I could hit it,” Brian recalled. Brian wasn’t the only baseball player on the block in New Ulm. Despite being a town of roughly 10,000, the south-central Minnesota community has groomed some of the finest baseball players in the state’s history, many of whom were Raabe’s role models growing up. Players like Tim, Tom, and Terry Steinbach, Doug Palmer, and Jeff Schugel influenced Raabe’s love of the game from a young age. “Those guys were older than me but young enough where I would get to know them and watch them play,” Raabe said. “They played at Johnson Park for years and years and I ended up getting to be bat boys for them a few times." In a small community of baseball excellence with unique talent, the game wasn’t just a hobby for Raabe, it was a way of life. “There weren’t many lakes in the area so if it was a nice night you’d go and watch a baseball game,” Raabe said. “Instead of playing on the hill I was one of those kids who watched the game, asked my dad questions, and was mesmerized by it.” Raabe’s growing love of the game was rooted in the strong baseball culture that New Ulm had cultivated. Talented players like the Steinbach’s and legendary high school coach Jim Senske paved a mindset for Brian that ‘making it’ wasn’t a million dollar dream, it was a reality. “I was able to say, ‘if they can do it, why can’t I?,’” Raabe said. A Jack of all Trades Now 53, Raabe serves as the baseball coach at Bethel University in Arden Hills, Minnesota. Despite putting up incredible minor league numbers, his career in the MLB was limited to three seasons and a total of 33 at bats between time in Minnesota, Seattle and Colorado. Don’t let that fool you on how Raabe reflects on his career. “I have no hard feelings at all, I’m a coach, I understand it,” Raabe said. “That’s life.” Yet instead of bitterness and remorse Raabe is filled with emotions of thankfulness, joy, and gratitude. Through his nine years in professional baseball Raabe got to check a wealth of opportunities off the board that most players only dream of, a list that speaks for itself. Played with Paul Molitor when he got his 3,000th hit Was on the team when Kirby Puckett played his final baseball game Was Derek Jeter’s double play partner in the Arizona Fall League Played against (and almost homered over) Michael Jordan Was on the 1997 Mariners with Alex Rodriguez, Randy Johnson, and MVP Ken Griffey Jr. Played alongside 2020 Hall of Famers Larry Walker and Derek Jeter A pretty damn impressive list. After the 1999 season with the Yankees’ AAA affiliate Columbus Clippers, Raabe had a decision to make. The Bronx Bombers had offered Raabe a healthy contract to continue in the organization following the season. Brian had a more important contract on his mind back at home, one that was worth more than money; his daughter Brianna and son Zachary, both young kids. “I had a son and daughter that were playing sports and were young and I wanted to be around them,” Raabe said. “I decided that I wanted to be a dad and if I had to do it 100 times again I’d do it the same way.” Brian’s decision to leave professional baseball wasn’t easy, but it was far from a goodbye to the sport that had gifted him some of his greatest memories. As his kids began to grow so did Brian’s coaching background, coaching both Zach and Brianna in their respective sports. Similar to his dad, Zach took a love of America’s Pastime at a young age. As Zach grew in knowledge and skill, Brian helped mentor his son by coaching the game that he loved; something that benefited Brian as a parent and coach. “ (After professional baseball) I went in a different direction, still in baseball, but coaching youth, then high school and now college baseball. It was well worth it,” Brian said. Dream Weaver Brian Raabe’s son Zach is now the starting second baseman for the Gophers and one of the most talented collegiate players in the country, following in his dad’s footsteps. Dad Brian is just across the Mississippi, a short drive away from Siebert Field to watch Zach play. In the meantime he’s turned Bethel into a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) powerhouse, propelling the Royals to a 2018 MIAC title. And while Raabe's time in professional baseball is in the rearview mirror, he will never forget the memories that evolved from a childhood dream. “My goal was to play college baseball at the University of Minnesota and my dream was to get drafted by the Minnesota Twins and that came true,” Raabe said. “I got to play with some great players, the best part to me? It all started in New Ulm, Minnesota.” -
The squads started their day with their morning routine. They get to the field around 9:30 to stretch. Then there is baserunning, throwing, ground balls, fly balls, PFPs, pickoff plays, situational plays, all the stuff from a normal baseball practice. They had lunch, but at noon, Work Group 4 (the guys who will most likely be sticking in Ft. Myers for Extended Spring Training) took on Bethel University. The Minnesota college in St. Paul has played five games previously in Florida the last few days and will play a few more. But, it’s a good challenge for both teams. The head coach of the Bethel team is New Ulm native, former Gopher, and former Minnesota Twins player Brian Raabe. For his team, it is an opportunity to play against some really good, talented players. However that talent is very raw, and they have only been practicing officially for the last four or five days together. As the game was starting, Tom Kelly walked slowly across the field, fungo in tow, and watched the first inning while talking to Raabe. I noted several times that even as pitches were being made, his back was to the batter, and they were standing outside the dugout. For the young Twins players, it’s a chance to play a team of 19-22 year olds who have been practicing for at least six weeks together. It’s also playing against someone other than yourselves. The EST Twins scored four runs over the last couple of innings to take a 7-4 win, but again, that is the least important part of the game. As has been mentioned many times, Tom Kelly and his fungo love to teach the fundamentals of the game. After catching up with Raabe, Kelly took 2015 draft pick Kolton Kendrick to a side field and worked with him on some things around first base. I looked back 45 minutes later… still instructing… Awhile later, Kendrick got into the game at first base… and Kelly was right there with him. That’s not an unusual happening at Twins minor league camp. When Kelly comes down from the big league side, he’s got his fungo and he takes time with players whenever he sees a coachable moment. At 1:00, Work Group 1 - which is currently comprised of players who will start 2016 in AAA or AA but will change as players move down from big league camp - played Work Group 2 (comprised of AA and Hi-A players) on the next field. The next field pitted Work Group 3 (comprised of Hi-A and Low-A players) against Work Group 4 (Low-A and some Extended Spring players). A lot of pitchers threw between the two games. Most worked just one inning, but three guys who will be starters also pitched. Stephen Gonsalves, Randy LeBlanc and David Hurlbut all threw 60 pitches, getting through four innings. Someone with direct knowledge told me that the starters will throw 60 pitches this time out. In their next outing, they’ll try to get to 75 pitches. Then 95 pitches. Then they’ll drop back to 75 pitches and be ready to roll for Opening Day. From watching Gonsalves, it is clear that adding a slider this offseason could be great for him. It can be death to left-handed hitters. It’s interesting as the Twins pitchers are just completing their third time through the spring rotation. They were to get 60 pitches in. In their fourth start, the goal will be 75 pitches. So, minor league starters aren’t given a lot of time to build arm strength. There were a couple of scary moments on the day. Early in one game, Levi Michael lined a ball right back at David Hurlbut. The left hander was fortunately able to get his glove up just in time and was unscathed. Infielder Tanner Vavra was facing Alex Wimmers later in the game. A pitch got away from Wimmers and hit Vavra right in the helmet. Vavra went down, but as people were trying to help him, he jumped up. He went to first base under his own power. He soon came out of the game and had to go through concussion protocols. Fortunately, he is all right and the tests came back fine. The next batter, Logan Wade, crushed a pitch well beyond the right field fence. Mike Berardino had the nugget on Twitter on Sunday about Levi Michael giving up left-handed hitting. He will only bat right-handed at this point. That’s what he did on Monday. Some Other Notes I chatted with Niko Goodrum for a little while before lunch. He definitely looks bigger and stronger. I asked him about Elite Metro Sports and Cages. It is a place in his home town of Fayetteville, Georgia. Goodrum wanted a way to give back in his community and thought that having a training facility for youth in his city was a good idea. He told me that he really didn’t have anything like that when he was growing up. Throughout the offseason, Niko worked with hundreds of kids of all ages in the cages, but also on all aspects of the game. They held several clinics. His uncles Donell and Otis Nixon came and helped at some base stealing clinics as well. His cousin, a third former big leaguer in the family, also has been a big influence on Goodrum. Niko said that he just really enjoys working with the kids. To be a good teacher, it helps to be a good learner. Here Goodrum is taking some instruction from former big leaguer (and GCL hitting coach) Javier Valentin. I chatted with Lewis Thorpe a little bit before lunch as well. He had thrown a bullpen that morning and said it felt really good. He feels like he is back to normal but he knows they will be patient with him in his return. It’s clear that he’s been working hard this spring. He has lost a lot of weight that had been gained throughout the injury. He expects that he’ll start throwing more and getting into a routine before joining a team later this spring. They’ll build up his in-game pitch count in the same way that others do in spring training, but just at a little slower pace. While Thorpe has lost some weight, there are a few guys who gained weight. We’ve already discussed that Nick Gordon has added 15 pounds in the offseason. In chatting with Mike Radcliff, he noted that it’s almost even more. He had been sick and lost a bit of weight so the fact that he’s gained 14 is encouraging. Ryan Walker missed time early last season with an injury. The gifted-defensive middle infielder has always been skinny and has tried to add weight. However, he often loses some during the season. He came to Twins spring training last year at about 170 pounds but by the end of the season, he was at closer to 160 pounds. He worked really hard in the offseason and is now sitting between 180 and 185 pounds and hopes to maintain it through the season. He may start the season in Chattanooga, but could return to Ft. Myers for some of the season depending upon the rosters above. The 12 players that were sent down from big league camp did not participate in the games on Monday. 40-man roster guys actually have the right to take a couple of days off after the are optioned. My guess is that they will be at practice today. Teams can expect non-roster guys to go straight to minor league camp. My guess is that the Twins (Terry Ryan) encouraged them to take Monday off. The Twins big league club has their one scheduled day off of the spring. They’re there for six to seven weeks officially and get just one day off, so I’m sure they’ll enjoy it. Not me though. I’ll be again spending the day at minor league camp. I did take about 400 pictures yesterday. We’ll see how many turned out. I’ll take more today and get to editing tonight. Again pictures taken here in Ft. Myers will be used throughout the season in Minor League reports. Some of them will be posted to the Twins Daily Facebook Page, the Twins Daily Twitter account, and I’ll also post some on my Twitter account. So, click those links, follow us on Twitter and “Like” us on Facebook. -
FORT MYERS, Fla. - On Monday, the Minnesota Twins sent a team across the state to Jupiter to take on the St. Louis Cardinals. Before they left, Paul Molitor and Terry Ryan informed more players that they were heading to minor league camp. It was pretty quiet by Hammond Stadium, but things are really cranking up on the minor league side of the complex. Minor league action is in full form. Today, I wanted to post a bunch of minor league notes from the day.The squads started their day with their morning routine. They get to the field around 9:30 to stretch. Then there is baserunning, throwing, ground balls, fly balls, PFPs, pickoff plays, situational plays, all the stuff from a normal baseball practice. They had lunch, but at noon, Work Group 4 (the guys who will most likely be sticking in Ft. Myers for Extended Spring Training) took on Bethel University. The Minnesota college in St. Paul has played five games previously in Florida the last few days and will play a few more. But, it’s a good challenge for both teams. The head coach of the Bethel team is New Ulm native, former Gopher, and former Minnesota Twins player Brian Raabe. For his team, it is an opportunity to play against some really good, talented players. However that talent is very raw, and they have only been practicing officially for the last four or five days together. As the game was starting, Tom Kelly walked slowly across the field, fungo in tow, and watched the first inning while talking to Raabe. I noted several times that even as pitches were being made, his back was to the batter, and they were standing outside the dugout. For the young Twins players, it’s a chance to play a team of 19-22 year olds who have been practicing for at least six weeks together. It’s also playing against someone other than yourselves. The EST Twins scored four runs over the last couple of innings to take a 7-4 win, but again, that is the least important part of the game. As has been mentioned many times, Tom Kelly and his fungo love to teach the fundamentals of the game. After catching up with Raabe, Kelly took 2015 draft pick Kolton Kendrick to a side field and worked with him on some things around first base. I looked back 45 minutes later… still instructing… Awhile later, Kendrick got into the game at first base… and Kelly was right there with him. That’s not an unusual happening at Twins minor league camp. When Kelly comes down from the big league side, he’s got his fungo and he takes time with players whenever he sees a coachable moment. At 1:00, Work Group 1 - which is currently comprised of players who will start 2016 in AAA or AA but will change as players move down from big league camp - played Work Group 2 (comprised of AA and Hi-A players) on the next field. The next field pitted Work Group 3 (comprised of Hi-A and Low-A players) against Work Group 4 (Low-A and some Extended Spring players). A lot of pitchers threw between the two games. Most worked just one inning, but three guys who will be starters also pitched. Stephen Gonsalves, Randy LeBlanc and David Hurlbut all threw 60 pitches, getting through four innings. Someone with direct knowledge told me that the starters will throw 60 pitches this time out. In their next outing, they’ll try to get to 75 pitches. Then 95 pitches. Then they’ll drop back to 75 pitches and be ready to roll for Opening Day. From watching Gonsalves, it is clear that adding a slider this offseason could be great for him. It can be death to left-handed hitters. It’s interesting as the Twins pitchers are just completing their third time through the spring rotation. They were to get 60 pitches in. In their fourth start, the goal will be 75 pitches. So, minor league starters aren’t given a lot of time to build arm strength. There were a couple of scary moments on the day. Early in one game, Levi Michael lined a ball right back at David Hurlbut. The left hander was fortunately able to get his glove up just in time and was unscathed. Infielder Tanner Vavra was facing Alex Wimmers later in the game. A pitch got away from Wimmers and hit Vavra right in the helmet. Vavra went down, but as people were trying to help him, he jumped up. He went to first base under his own power. He soon came out of the game and had to go through concussion protocols. Fortunately, he is all right and the tests came back fine. The next batter, Logan Wade, crushed a pitch well beyond the right field fence. Mike Berardino had the nugget on Twitter on Sunday about Levi Michael giving up left-handed hitting. He will only bat right-handed at this point. That’s what he did on Monday. Some Other Notes I chatted with Niko Goodrum for a little while before lunch. He definitely looks bigger and stronger. I asked him about Elite Metro Sports and Cages. It is a place in his home town of Fayetteville, Georgia. Goodrum wanted a way to give back in his community and thought that having a training facility for youth in his city was a good idea. He told me that he really didn’t have anything like that when he was growing up. Throughout the offseason, Niko worked with hundreds of kids of all ages in the cages, but also on all aspects of the game. They held several clinics. His uncles Donell and Otis Nixon came and helped at some base stealing clinics as well. His cousin, a third former big leaguer in the family, also has been a big influence on Goodrum. Niko said that he just really enjoys working with the kids. To be a good teacher, it helps to be a good learner. Here Goodrum is taking some instruction from former big leaguer (and GCL hitting coach) Javier Valentin. I chatted with Lewis Thorpe a little bit before lunch as well. He had thrown a bullpen that morning and said it felt really good. He feels like he is back to normal but he knows they will be patient with him in his return. It’s clear that he’s been working hard this spring. He has lost a lot of weight that had been gained throughout the injury. He expects that he’ll start throwing more and getting into a routine before joining a team later this spring. They’ll build up his in-game pitch count in the same way that others do in spring training, but just at a little slower pace. While Thorpe has lost some weight, there are a few guys who gained weight. We’ve already discussed that Nick Gordon has added 15 pounds in the offseason. In chatting with Mike Radcliff, he noted that it’s almost even more. He had been sick and lost a bit of weight so the fact that he’s gained 14 is encouraging. Ryan Walker missed time early last season with an injury. The gifted-defensive middle infielder has always been skinny and has tried to add weight. However, he often loses some during the season. He came to Twins spring training last year at about 170 pounds but by the end of the season, he was at closer to 160 pounds. He worked really hard in the offseason and is now sitting between 180 and 185 pounds and hopes to maintain it through the season. He may start the season in Chattanooga, but could return to Ft. Myers for some of the season depending upon the rosters above. The 12 players that were sent down from big league camp did not participate in the games on Monday. 40-man roster guys actually have the right to take a couple of days off after the are optioned. My guess is that they will be at practice today. Teams can expect non-roster guys to go straight to minor league camp. My guess is that the Twins (Terry Ryan) encouraged them to take Monday off. The Twins big league club has their one scheduled day off of the spring. They’re there for six to seven weeks officially and get just one day off, so I’m sure they’ll enjoy it. Not me though. I’ll be again spending the day at minor league camp. I did take about 400 pictures yesterday. We’ll see how many turned out. I’ll take more today and get to editing tonight. Again pictures taken here in Ft. Myers will be used throughout the season in Minor League reports. Some of them will be posted to the Twins Daily Facebook Page, the Twins Daily Twitter account, and I’ll also post some on my Twitter account. So, click those links, follow us on Twitter and “Like” us on Facebook. Click here to view the article
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