Tuesday March 9

Tuesday March 9, 2004

TWINS THOUGHTS

FORMER TWINS

BLOG SPOTTING

Comparing the Twins Playoff Teams

I was 12 years old when the Twins won their first World Series Championship in 1987. I was 16 when they went from worst to first and beat the Atlanta Braves in the 1991 World Series. I am frequently trying to compare the current two-time defending American League Central Division Champion teams to those ’87 and ’91 teams. So, I figured I would take it another step and compare those four teams to three others. The Twins lost in the World Series to the Dodgers in 1965. The Twins then lost to the Baltimore Orioles in 1969 and 1970.

So, what I’m going to do is a comparison of the seven Twins playoff teams. I don’t have the time to compare the entire rosters, so to be concise, I looked up Box Scores and statistics from each playoff series at Retrosheet. I came up with the primary starting lineups for the teams, in the playoffs. That probably isn’t fair. In 1965, Jimmie Hall was one of the Twins best hitters. However, in the playoffs, Joe Nossek got most of the starts in centerfield. So, my analysis is based on the stats of Nossek, who was not as good a hitter. Also, I will be looking at their regular season stats. I realize that those numbers don’t matter in the least in the playoffs. Guys like Steve Lombardozzi and Dan Gladden can be as likely a playoff hero as Harmon Killebrew or Kirby Puckett.

What I am going to do is look position-by-position at the starters for each team. I will have them ranked from 1-7. The rankings are loosely based on Win Shares. However, I also made some executive decisions if the Win Shares were the same or close. Remember that Win Shares also factor in defensive performance, which explains how Leo Cardenas ranked so well. For the pitchers, the Twins have always thrown just three starters in the playoffs, except in 2002 when they went with four. I'd love to hear lots of feedback on this topic. I'm sure everyone has their opinions on these former Twins teams. I would like to hear/learn more about those early teams. So, if you have any information or comments, please e-mail me.

So, let’s get started and see how it goes. Let’s start behind the plate with the catchers:

THE CATCHERS

	Player	G	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	2B	HR	RBI	WS
2003	AJ Pierzynski	137	487	0.312	0.360	0.464	35	11	74	22
1965	Earl Battey	131	394	0.297	0.375	0.409	22	6	60	22
2002	AJ Pierzynski	130	440	0.300	0.334	0.439	31	6	49	17
1991	Brian Harper	123	441	0.311	0.336	0.447	28	10	69	15
1970	George Mitterwald	117	369	0.222	0.291	0.388	12	15	46	13
1969	Johnny Roseboro	115	361	0.263	0.333	0.321	12	3	32	10
1987	Tim Laudner	113	288	0.191	0.252	0.389	7	16	43	4

I remember the nickname for Tim Laudner in 1987 was “Buck-Ninety” because of his average. Pretty appropriate! I think that AJ Pierzynski has been very good the last couple of seasons, despite his lack of walks. Speaking of lack of walks, I always remember Brian Harper being a great hitter (and an absolutely horrendous defensive catcher), but he really didn’t walk much either. After Earl Battey retired in 1967, Johnny Roseboro came over from the Dodgers with Bob Miller and Ron Perranoski in exchange for Mudcat Grant and Zoilo Versalles. He was released right after the 1969 season ended.

THE FIRST BASEMEN

	Player	G	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	2B	HR	RBI	WS
1987	Kent Hrbek	143	477	0.285	0.389	0.545	20	34	90	25
2003	Doug Mientkiewicz	142	487	0.300	0.393	0.450	38	11	65	20
1991	Kent Hrbek	132	462	0.284	0.373	0.461	20	20	89	19
1969	Rich Reese	132	419	0.322	0.362	0.513	24	16	69	17
1965	Don Mincher	128	346	0.251	0.344	0.509	17	22	65	17
2002	Doug Mientkiewicz	143	467	0.261	0.365	0.392	29	10	64	17
1970	Rich Reese	153	501	0.261	0.332	0.371	15	10	56	14

Yeah, Kent Hrbek was really pretty good. Decent average, pretty good middle-of-the-order power, consistent. Consistent is not the word to describe the 2002 and 2003 seasons of Doug Mientkiewicz, I guess! But I think the same can be said about Rich Reese from 1969 to 1970. Of course, some of Doug’s “Wins” are based on his defense (and all those doubles!). Don Mincher was the Twins primary first baseman in 1965, although as you can see, he didn’t play ever day either, but he did put up very solid homer numbers!

THE SECOND BASEMEN

	Player	G	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	2B	HR	RBI	WS
1969	Rod Carew	123	458	0.332	0.386	0.467	30	8	56	21
1991	Chuck Knoblauch	151	565	0.281	0.351	0.350	24	1	50	20
1987	Steve Lombardozzi	136	432	0.238	0.298	0.352	19	8	38	10
2003	Luis Rivas	135	475	0.259	0.308	0.381	16	8	43	6
2002	Luis Rivas	93	316	0.256	0.305	0.392	23	4	35	6
1970	Danny Thompson	96	302	0.219	0.234	0.248	9	0	22	3
1965	Frank Quilici	56	149	0.208	0.280	0.255	5	0	7	2

Rod Carew was really good, but must have had a couple of injury-plagued seasons. In 1969, he hit well, but missed almost 40 games. Then in 1970, he played in just 51 games (and, of course, hit .366). He only pinch hit (0-2) in the ’70 playoffs. Of course, that is why the weak-hitting Danny Thompson played so much. Similarly, Jerry Kindall played more games during the regular season at 2B in 1965, but Frank Quilici ended up playing in the playoffs more. Chuck Knoblauch had a pretty solid rookie year, didn’t he? Those 25 stolen bases were good too, and he was actually a very good defensive player back then, just two years out of Texas A&M. And, Steve Lombardozzi wasn’t completely terrible! OK, he wasn’t good. Thompson and Quilici even made Luis Rivas look good. Again, “Good” isn’t the appropriate word, just a relative term.

THE THIRD BASEMEN

	Player	G	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	2B	HR	RBI	WS
1969	Harmon Killebrew	162	555	0.276	0.427	0.584	20	49	140	34
1970	Harmon Killebrew	157	527	0.277	0.411	0.546	20	41	113	30
2003	Corey Koskie	131	469	0.292	0.393	0.452	29	14	69	21
1965	Harmon Killebrew	113	401	0.269	0.384	0.501	16	25	75	22
1987	Gary Gaetti	154	584	0.257	0.303	0.485	36	31	109	17
2002	Corey Koskie	140	490	0.267	0.368	0.447	37	15	69	19
1991	Mike Pagliarulo	121	365	0.279	0.322	0.384	20	6	36	9

Apparently that Harmon Killebrew guy was pretty good, huh? Just look at those numbers in 1969 and 1970! His batting average was not real high, but he walked a lot and had a great slugging percentage! And, despite all of his injuries in 2003, Corey Koskie had a very solid year. If only he could stay healthy for a full season! Gary Gaetti had a few really solid seasons and won a couple of Gold Gloves too. Twins fans all remember that Mike Pagliarulo platooned with Scott Leius and each contributed mightily to the 1991 championship, but “Pags” got the majority of the starts in the regular season.

THE SHORTSTOPS

	Player	G	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	2B	HR	RBI	WS
1965	Zoilo Versailles	160	666	0.273	0.319	0.462	45	19	77	32
1969	Leo Cardenas	160	578	0.280	0.353	0.388	24	10	70	23
1970	Leo Cardenas	160	588	0.247	0.300	0.374	34	11	65	19
1987	Greg Gagne	137	437	0.265	0.310	0.430	28	10	40	18
2002	Cristian Guzman	148	623	0.273	0.292	0.385	31	9	59	13
2003	Cristian Guzman	143	534	0.268	0.311	0.365	15	3	53	13
1991	Greg Gagne	139	408	0.265	0.310	0.395	23	8	42	12

Zoilo Versalles won the 1965 American League MVP award. He had a really great season. Believe me, if it happened now, SABRmetricians would probably take issue with that decision. He also added 12 triples to the above numbers. As I mentioned above, it was interesting to me to see Leo Cardenas’s Win Shares so high; he must have been a good defensive shortstop! But, he put up solid numbers, especially in 1969. Greg Gagne and Cristian Guzman are very comparable, and not just from the numbers. Both are incredibly gifted, quick, athletic shortstops. Neither is a good base stealer. Neither had a lot of defensive range, but made the plays that they did get to. It is interesting to see how similar their numbers were.

THE LEFTFIELDERS

	Player	G	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	2B	HR	RBI	WS
2002	Jacque Jones	149	577	0.300	0.341	0.511	37	27	85	25
2003	Shannon Stewart	136	573	0.307	0.364	0.459	44	13	73	19
1965	Bob Allison	135	438	0.233	0.342	0.445	14	23	78	22
1970	Brant Alyea	94	258	0.291	0.366	0.531	12	16	61	12
1969	Ted Uhlaender	152	554	0.273	0.328	0.356	18	8	62	14
1987	Dan Gladden	121	438	0.249	0.312	0.361	21	8	38	9
1991	Dan Gladden	126	461	0.247	0.306	0.356	14	6	52	7

I always remember Dan Gladden as being pretty good! I guess the numbers don’t really verify that, do they? Ted Uhlaender was a solid starter for the 1969 season, but Brant Alyea got most of the playing time late in the 1970 season. Bob Allison had higher Win Shares in 1965 than Shannon Stewart last year. However, I couldn’t discount the discrepancy in batting average. Allison had more home runs, but then look at the doubles and that is why Shannon Stewart is ranked ahead of him. And, everyone wonders why I am so high on Jacque Jones and want him to be able to stay healthy in 2004. Just look at his numbers in 2002! The doubles, the homers, the defense. He can be so good!

THE CENTERFIELDERS

	Player	G	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	2B	HR	RBI	WS
1987	Kirby Puckett	157	624	0.332	0.367	0.534	32	28	99	29
1970	Cesar Tovar	161	650	0.300	0.356	0.442	36	10	54	28
2002	Torii Hunter	148	561	0.289	0.334	0.524	37	29	94	21
1991	Kirby Puckett	152	611	0.319	0.352	0.460	29	15	89	21
1969	Cesar Tovar	158	535	0.288	0.342	0.415	25	11	52	19
2003	Torii Hunter	154	581	0.250	0.312	0.451	31	26	102	16
1965	Joe Nossek	87	170	0.218	0.250	0.306	9	2	16	2

Kirby Puckett was always my favorite player. Looking at his numbers though, it puts into perspective how much bigger the offensive numbers are now than just 12-15 years ago. Torii Hunter was also really good in 2002 and took a big step backward in 2003, but his defense keeps his Win Shares up fairly high. It’s fun to actually look at the Cesar Tovar numbers and see how good he really was. Usually, when I think of Tovar or have been told things about him, it is because of the game that he played in all nine positions. It is interesting to see that he was a very strong performer on some very strong Twins teams! And again, Jimmie Hall had a great offensive 1965, a season that would rank third on this list, but Joe Nossek got the call in the playoffs.

THE RIGHTFIELDERS

	Player	G	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	2B	HR	RBI	WS
1965	Tony Oliva	149	576	0.321	0.378	0.491	40	16	98	33
1970	Tony Oliva	157	628	0.325	0.364	0.514	36	23	107	30
1969	Tony Oliva	153	637	0.309	0.355	0.496	39	24	101	25
1991	Shane Mack	143	442	0.310	0.363	0.529	27	18	74	20
1987	Tom Brunansky	155	532	0.259	0.352	0.489	22	32	85	20
2003	Jacque Jones	136	517	0.304	0.333	0.464	33	16	69	14
2002	Dustan Mohr	120	383	0.269	0.325	0.433	23	12	45	11

Tony Oliva should be in the Hall of Fame. No, not just from these seasons, but for his whole career. Another guy who wouldn’t take a walk, Oliva could flat-out hit and had a rocket for an arm. Of course, he retired before I was born. Shane Mack was a flop until he came to Minnesota and became a very important piece of the 1991 Twins team. Tom Brunansky for Tom Herr will forever go down as the worst Twins trade. Bruno struck out a lot and didn’t hit for average, but he was a decent outfielder and a good power source. Jacque Jones actually didn’t play a lot of right field last year until the playoffs because he was the left fielder until Shannon Stewart arrived. So, his numbers are a result of his injuries. Dusty Kielmohr (Dustan Mohr/Bobby Kielty) was the Twins rightfielder in 2002. Michael Cuddyer came up late in the season and earned the starting job in the playoffs, but defensive struggles pushed Mohr back into the lineup. He produced decent numbers.

THE DESIGNATED HITTERS

	Player	G	AB	BA	OBP	SLG	2B	HR	RBI	WS
1965	Jimmie Hall	148	522	0.285	0.347	0.464	25	20	86	26
1991	Chili Davis	153	534	0.277	0.385	0.507	34	29	93	22
2003	Matthew Lecroy	107	345	0.287	0.342	0.490	19	17	64	12
2002	David Ortiz	125	412	0.272	0.339	0.500	32	20	75	11
1987	Randy Bush	122	293	0.253	0.349	0.413	10	11	46	9
1970	Jim Holt	142	319	0.266	0.300	0.342	9	3	40	7
1969	Graig Nettles	96	225	0.222	0.319	0.373	9	7	26	5

Because the DH wasn’t even around until 1974, the first three Twins playoff teams had no DH. I went with their top pinch hitter in the playoffs instead. Jimmie Hall had a really solid 1965 season. Joe Nossek must have been a great defensive outfielder to keep him off the bench that World Series. After struggling with the Angels in 1990, Chili Davis came to the Twins and revitalized his career with one of his best seasons ever! Matthew Lecroy quietly had 17 home runs last year. His playing time was inconsistent, and he is really bad wherever he tries to play defensively, but he can hit. David Ortiz could always hit, he just couldn’t stay healthy. Randy Bush was named to the Twins 40^th Anniversary Team as a pinch hitter. In 1987, he was the team’s primary DH too. He always put up good numbers. For 1969 and 1970, I just chose the best hitter that wasn’t a starter, and neither really was great. Jim Holt was normally an outfielder/1B. Graig Nettles was a 24 year old rookie looking for at bats, and now he is helping Alex Rodriguez learn to play third base.

THE STARTING PITCHERS

		Pitcher	W	L	S	ERA	IP	WHIP	SO	K/9	WS
1987	SP1	Frank Viola	17	10	0	2.90	251.7	1.18	197	7.0	24
1970	SP1	Jim Perry	24	12	0	3.04	278.7	1.13	168	5.4	21
1969	SP1	Jim Perry	20	6	0	2.82	261.7	1.18	153	5.3	20
1991	SP2	Kevin Tapani	16	9	0	2.99	244.0	1.09	135	5.0	21
1991	SP1	Jack Morris	18	12	0	3.43	246.7	1.29	163	5.9	18
1987	SP2	Bert Blyleven	15	12	0	4.01	267.0	1.31	196	6.6	18
1991	SP3	Scott Erickson	20	8	0	3.18	204.0	1.27	108	4.8	18
1965	SP2	Jim Kaat	18	11	0	2.83	264.3	1.25	154	5.2	17
1965	SP1	Mudcat Grant	21	7	0	3.30	270.3	1.16	142	4.7	17
2003	SP2	Johan Santana	12	3	0	3.07	158.3	1.10	169	9.6	16
1969	SP2	Dave Boswell	20	12	0	3.23	256.3	1.22	190	6.7	16
1970	SP3	Tom Hall	11	6	4	2.55	151.3	1.04	184	10.9	14
2002	SP2	Rick Reed	15	7	0	3.78	188.0	1.16	121	5.8	14
1970	SP2	Jim Kaat	14	10	0	3.56	230.3	1.31	120	4.7	12
2003	SP1	Brad Radke	14	10	0	4.49	212.3	1.27	120	5.1	12
2003	SP3	Kyle Lohse	14	11	0	4.61	201.0	1.27	130	5.8	11
1965