March 20

Bill Cammeyer (1821)

Mike Griffin (1865)

Joe McGinnity (1871)

Bob Connery (1880)

Walter Schmidt (1887)

Amanda Clement (1888)

Vern Kennedy (1907)

Clyde Shoun (1912)

Hank Izquierdo (1931)

George Altman (1933)

Pat Corrales (1941)

Rick Langford (1952)

Steve McCatty (1954)

Paul Mirabella (1954)

Si-jin Kim (1958)

Chris Hoiles (1965)

Manny Alexander (1971)

Brad Hand (1990)

Taj Bradley (2001)

Bill Cammeyer was involved in the early days of professional baseball.  He is credited as a pioneer who put a fence around his ballpark so he could charge admission.  He built a clubhouse, graded the diamond, created a very primitive set of stands for fans, and put a saloon inside the fence.

Bob Connery is the scout credited with discovering Rogers Hornsby and Tony Lazzeri.

Amanda Clement, born in Hudson, South Dakota, was the first woman to be paid to umpire a baseball game.  She umpired games in the Dakotas, Minnesota, Iowa, and Nebraska.  She umpired regularly from 1904-1910 and on an occasional basis into the 1920s.

Paul Mirabella was drafted by Minnesota in the sixteenth round in 1975, but did not sign.

Si-Jin Kim was a top pitcher in the first decade of Korean professional baseball.

Catcher Enrique Roberto (Valdes) "Hank" Izquierdo was a reserve catcher for the Twins for two months in 1967.  Born and raised in Matanzas, Cuba, he started playing in organized baseball in 1951.  He spent three years playing for the Galveston White Caps, and independent team in the Class B Gulf Coast League.  He went to independent Winston-Salem in 1954 before going to the Cleveland organization with Class B Keokuk in 1955.  He hit .302 that year, his fifth in Class B, and also played at least one game at each position that season.  When he moved higher, unfortunately, his hitting ability could not keep up.  Minor league transaction records from the 1950s are not good, but Izquierdo moved to the Baltimore organization sometime in 1956 and to the Cincinnati organization in 1957.  He spent five years in AAA for Cincinnati, playing in Havana and Jersey City.  He hit .190 in 998 at-bats over that five-year period.  He retired after the 1961 season to become the bullpen coach for Cleveland, but in 1963, he made a comeback with the Twins' organization.  He hit .297 playing in Class A at age 32.  He spent the next two years at AA before once again reaching AAA at age 35 in 1966.  He was hitting .300 in 1967 at AAA Denver and then, at age 36, Hank Izquierdo made his major league debut.  Used as a reserve, he went 7-for-26 with two doubles and two RBIs in the major leagues.  Izquierdo moved to the Houston organization, playing in AAA through 1969.  After the 1968 season, he was driving a taxi in Miami during the off-season and was shot in the stomach during a robbery, nearly dying.  His playing career ended in 1969 when he got into a fight with Ted Simmons in a AAA game and swung a bat at him, fortunately missing.  He managed in the Mexican League for several years and was a scout for the Twins from 1978-87.  He also scouted for the Cubs in 1988.  Hank Izquierdo passed away in West Palm Beach, Florida, on August 1, 2015.

Right-hander Taj Ali Bradley came to the Twins at the trade deadline in 2025.  He was born in Los Angeles, attended high school in Stone Mountain, Georgia, and was drafted by Tampa Bay in the fifth round in 2018.  He spent two years in rookie ball, then missed the 2020 COVID season.  He pitched very well in 2021 in Class A and high-A, did very well in AA in 2022, and was solid when promoted to AAA for twelve starts that year.  He was in the majors for most of 2023 but struggled quite a bit, and was no better when sent back to AAA for ten starts.  He was substantially better in 2024--not great, but certainly not bad, either.  2025 was similar--not terrible, but not really good, either--when he was traded to Minnesota at the deadline for Griffin Jax.  He made three starts in AAA and six for the Twins, pitching well in two of them and okay in one more.  He turns twenty-five today.  His top ten similarity scores through age twenty-four include Roy Halliday, but they also include Willie Fraser and Felipe Lira, so who knows how good he'll be.  But the Twins will give him every chance to prove he can be a major league pitcher.

March 19

Bill Wambsganss (1894)

Gee Walker (1908)

Robert Gaston (1910)

Bob Davids (1926)

Richie Ashburn (1927)

Al Solerno (1931)

Paul Ray Powell (1948)

Tim Corcoran (1953)

Mike Norris (1955)

Ivan Calderon (1962)

Jason LaRue (1974)

David Ross (1977)

Clayton Kershaw (1988)

Bob Davids was one of the founders of the Society for American Baseball Research.

Al Solerno was an American League umpire from 1961-1968.  His firing was one of the things that led to the formation of the first umpires union.

Outfielder Paul Ray Powell was with the Twins for about six weeks in 1971.  He was born in San Angelo, Texas and attended Arizona State.  He played both baseball and football at ASU, playing as a defensive back and as a place kicker (in 1968, he led the NCAA in scoring by kick).  He was chosen by Minnesota with the seventh pick of the 1969 draft.  He hit .291 in AAA Evansville in 1970 and started 1971 as a reserve outfielder on the big club.  He appeared in twenty games, making six starts, seven appearances as a pinch runner, two appearances as a pinch hitter, and was used as a defensive replacement five times.  He went 5-for-31 with one home run and was sent to the minors.  He had a poor year in AAA and after the season was traded to the Dodgers for Bobby Darwin.  Powell bounced back to hit .301 in AAA Albuquerque in 1972, and started 1973 with the Dodgers.  He didn't last long, however, playing in only two games and getting only one at-bat before being sent back to AAA.  Powell was in Albuquerque through 1975, getting ten more big league at bats in his last season.  His career came to an end after the 1975 season.  After leaving baseball, Paul Ray Powell entered the real estate business, and appears to have been rather successful.  At last report, he was living in the Phoenix area and was a real estate broker with Selna & Associates in Cornville, Arizona.  He had his number retired by Arizona State.

First baseman/outfielder Timothy Michael Corcoran played for the Twins for a month in 1981.  Born in Glendale, California, he attended Cal State--Los Angeles and signed with Detroit as a free agent in 1974.  He hit for a high average throughout the minors, hitting over .300 three times in four years.  He made his big-league debut in mid-May of 1977 as a reserve outfielder and continued to hit well, posting a .282 average in 103 at-bats.  1978 was Corcoran's first full year in the majors, as he platooned with John Wockenfuss in right field.  He hit for a decent average, but for no power whatsoever, and after getting off to a slow start in 1979, he was back at AAA.  He hit .338 there, which got him another shot at the majors in 1980.  He got another full year in the big leagues as a reserve first baseman/corner outfielder and did pretty well, hitting .288 with an OPS of .784 in 153 at-bats.  He was back in AAA in 1981 until he was traded to the Twins in September as the player to be named later in a deal that sent Ron Jackson to Detroit.  Corcoran played for the Twins the rest of the 1981 season, platooning at first base with Mickey Hatcher.  He hit .176/.259/.235 in 51 at-bats and was released prior to the 1982 campaign.  He signed with Philadelphia and again hit very well in AAA, averaging .300 over the next two years.  This got him two years in the majors with the Phillies as a reserve first baseman and outfielder.  He hit .341 in 208 at-bats in 1984, but hit .214 in 182 at-bats in 1985.  He was released after the season, signed with the Mets for 1986, got seven at-bats, and was released in June.  He was back in the minors with the Phillies in both 1987 and 1988, and then his playing career came to an end.  He was inducted into the Cal State--L. A. Hall of Fame in 1985.  At last report, Tim Corcoran was a scout for the Los Angeles Angels and works with the Angels Elite program.

March 18

Nixey Callahan (1874)
Johnny Cooney (1901)
Al Benton (1911)
Hiram Bithorn (1916)
Elbie Fletcher (1916)
Eddie Lake (1916)
Bob Broeg (1918)
Hal White (1919)
George Plimpton (1927)
Charley Pride (1938)
Pat Jarvis (1941)
Dwayne Murphy (1955)
Geronimo Berroa (1965)
Corky Miller (1976)
Tomo Ohka (1976)
Scott Podsednik (1976)
Fernando Rodney (1977)
Leury Garcia (1991)
J. T. Realmuto (1991)
Darren McCaughan (1996)
Chris Vallimont (1997)
Emmanuel Clase (1998)

Hiram Bithorn was the first Puerto Rican to play in the major leagues, making his first appearance for the Cubs in 1942.

Sportswriter Bob Broeg covered the St. Louis Cardinals for forty years and was on the Hall of Fame Board of Directors for twenty-eight years.

Author George Plimpton introduced the world to Sidd Finch in 1985.

Country singer Charley Pride pitched in the minor leagues for parts of three seasons from 1953-1960. He also played in the Negro Leagues for a couple of seasons as those leagues were nearing the end of their existence.

One of the finest fourth-string catchers in the history of baseball, Abraham Philip "Corky" Miller played for the Twins at the beginning of 2005. Born and raised in Yucaipa, California, he attended the University of Nevada--Reno and was signed by Cincinnati as a free agent in 1998. He had an excellent year in 2001 split between AA and AAA, hitting .309 with 16 home runs in 314 at-bats. That got him a September call-up, and was the first of ten consecutive years in which Miller played at least part of the season in both the majors and the minors. The most playing time Miller got in a major league season came in 2002, when he played in 39 games and had 114 at-bats for Cincinnati. He was placed on waivers after the 2004 season and was claimed by Minnesota. He started 2005 with the Twins and played in five games, getting twelve at-bats. As a Twin, Corky Miller hit .000/.000/.000. Sent to AAA at the end of April, he hit .229 there and became a free agent after the season. He started 2006 with Seattle, was released in mid-April, and finished the campaign with the Red Sox, for whom he went 0-for-4 (for the three-year period from 2004 through 2006, Miller's major league average was .018 (1-for-55)). He was with Atlanta for 2007 and 2008, signed with the White Sox for 2009, and was traded to Cincinnati in late June. He remained there for 2010, splitting the season between AAA and the majors, and actually had one of his better seasons, hitting .243/.282/.392 in 74 major league at-bats. He could not sustain his success in 2011, hitting .200 (although with an OBP of .348) in 145 at-bats for AAA Louisville. He bounced back in 2012 for Louisville, hitting .235 with an OBP of .386. He split 2013 between Louisville and the Reds, spending nearly half the season in Cincinnati and improbably hitting .257 with an OPS of .766. Okay, it was thirty-five at-bats, but still. In eleven partial seasons in the majors, Miller hit under .200 six times and under .100 four times. His career major league numbers were .193/.277/.306 in 539 at-bats. He spent 2014 in the Cincinnati organization as well, spending the season in Louisville. That brought his playing career to an end. Corky Miller was a coach in the Cincinnati organization with the Class A Dayton Dragons from 2015-16, was the roving catching instructor with the Reds in 2017, and was their catching coordinator in 2018-2019. He managed the Joliet Slammers in 2020, but went back to the Reds as their minor league catching instructor in 2021-2022.  At last report, he was an instructor with Chicago Elite Baseball.

Right-handed reliever Fernando Rodney was with the Twins for about four months in 2018. He was born in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, went to high school in San Pedro de Macoris, and signed with Detroit as a free agent in November of 1997. He was a reliever for almost his entire career, with the notable exception of ten starts in 2000 and ten more in 2001. He reached AA in 2001, got to AAA in 2002, and made his major league debut in May of 2002. It took him a while to get established--he split 2002 and 2003 between AAA and the majors, missed all of 2004, and finally came up to stay in 2005. He got a handful of saves with the Tigers, but Todd Jones was their closer through most of his stay with the team. Finally, in 2009, Rodney became the closer and got 37 saves, although his ERA was 4.40 and his WHIP was 1.47. He became a free agent after the 2009 season and signed with the Angels, who moved him into a setup role, although he again got a handful of saves. He signed with Tampa Bay as a free agent for 2012 and finally became a full-time closer. He had a tremendous season, saving 48 games while posting an ERA of 0.60 and a WHIP of 0.78. He allowed five earned runs in 74.2 innings. He made his first all-star team that year, finished third in Cy Young voting, and was thirteenth in MVP voting. He's obviously never matched that season, but he was a solid closer for the Rays in 2013 and for Seattle in 2014. Since then, he has pitched quite well at times and quite badly at other times. He was having a bad year with the Mariners in 2015 but pitched very well in September for the Cubs, to whom Seattle traded him. He signed with San Diego for 2016 and pitched very well for them, too, but then struggled when he was traded to Miami at the end of June. He signed with Arizona for 2017, then signed with Minnesota for 2018, and while he wasn't Mariano Rivera he mostly got the job done, going 3-2, 3.09 with twenty-five saves. The Twins traded him to Oakland in early August for Dakota Chalmers. He was used in a set-up role with the Athletics and was not particularly good, going 1-1, 3.92 with a 1.60 WHIP. He started 2019 with Oakland, but did not do very well and was released in late May. He signed with Washington a week later and did much better, making a solid contribution to the Nationals' bullpen. He signed with Houston in late July of 2020, but did not appear in the majors and was released in early September. He pitched for Tijuana in the Mexican League in 2021-2022 and pitched very well.  He had a poor year in the Mexican League in 2023, but again pitched in winter ball and did fairly well.  He did not pitch in 2024, but pitched for the Hamilton Cardinals of the Intercounty Baseball League in Canada in 2025 and it would not surprise us if he returned there in 2026.  He turns forty-nine today, and apparently is going to pitch as long as someone, somewhere, will let him pitch.

Right-hander Darren Scott McCaughan appeared in three games for the Twins in 2025.  He was born in Long Beach, California, went to high school in Los Alamitos, California, attended Cal State--Long Beach, and was drafted by Seattle in the twelfth round in 2017.  He had a tremendous college career, going 23-5, 2.31, 0.89 WHIP.  He pitched very well in high-A in 2018 and acquitted himself well in two AAA starts that season.  He pitched well in AA in 2019, but this time struggled in nine AAA starts.  He missed the 2020 COVID season and spent most of 2021 in AAA, making two major league appearances.  He was in AAA for all of 2022 and almost all of 2023, getting three more games in the big leagues.  He did not pitch well in any of those AAA seasons and was sold to Miami for 2024.  He split 2024 between AAA and the big leagues and also between Miami and Cleveland, who claimed him off waivers in early July.  He did not pitch well in any of those spots.  A free agent after the season, he signed with Minnesota for 2025.  He started the season with the Twins and actually pitched pretty well in three games, but was sent to AAA and reverted to form.  A free agent after the season, he signed with Cincinnati for 2026.  As a Twin, he was 0-0, 1.69, 1.13 WHIP in 5.1 innings.  In his career, however, he's 0-0, 6.02, 1.57 WHIP in 61.1 innings, and in AAA he's 31-40, 5.14, 1.31 WHIP in 643 innings.  There's obviously something about him that teams like, but he turns thirty today and has yet to have sustained success in AAA, much less in the majors.  But he's obviously a nice guy, and we wish him well.

Right-hander Chris Ryan Vallimont did not play for the Twins, but was in their minor league system from 2019-2022.  Born and raised in Erie, Pennsylvania, he attended Mercyhurst University in Erie (one of five major leaguers to have attended there), and was drafted by Miami in the fifth round in 2018.  He was a starter in the minors and continued to start for most of his minor league career.  He reached high-A in 2019 and made six solid starts for Jupiter before being traded to the Twins with Sergio Romo for Lewin Diaz.  He made four very good starts for Fort Myers in 2019, missed the 2020 COVID season, and spent almost all of 2021 in AA Wichita, where he pitched poorly in twenty-one starts.  He made six poor starts in Wichita in 2022, after which the Twins put him on waivers.  He was claimed by Baltimore in late May, made three excellent starts for AA Bowie, then spent the rest of the season in AAA.  He did not pitch well there in either 2022 or 2023.  Even so, he made what is so far his lone major league appearance on July 3, 2023, giving up no runs on one hit and striking out one in two-thirds of an inning.  He was sold to Cleveland three days later and spent the rest of the season back in AAA.  He became a free agent after the season and went unsigned until May, when the Dodgers signed him.  He pitched poorly in AAA for two months, was released, and finished the season with York in the Atlantic League, for whom he pitched well.  He did not, however, pitch well either for York on in the Mexican League in 2025.  He turns twenty-nine today and has no record of success above high-A.  He may get another shot in independent ball, or he may decide it's time to move on with his life.  But he did get to the majors, if only for one game, and most of us wish we could say that.  We wish him well.

March 17

Fred Pfeffer (1860)

Oscar Stanage (1883)

Joe Fitzgerald (1897)

Charlie Root (1899)

Sammy Baugh (1914)

Hank Sauer (1917)

Pete Reiser (1919)

Jimmie Hall (1938)

Vic Voltaggio (1941)

Cito Gaston (1944)

Kurt Russell (1951)

Tim Lollar (1956)

Frank Wren (1958)

Danny Ainge (1959)

John Smiley (1965)

Dan Masteller (1968)

Bill Mueller (1971)

Raul Chavez (1973)

Scott Downs (1976)

Robb Quinlan (1977)

Chris Davis (1986)

Juan Lagares (1989)

Jean Segura (1990)

Joe Fitzgerald had a long association with the Minnesota/Washington franchise, serving as bullpen catcher from 1945-1947, coach from 1948-1956, and scout from 1957 until he passed away in 1967.

Hall of Fame quarterback Sammy Baugh was an infielder in the minors for St. Louis in 1938, batting .200 in the American Association and the International League.

Vic Voltaggio was an American League umpire from 1997-1996.

Actor Kurt Russell spent three years in the low minors (1971-1973), batting .292 in 356 at-bats.

Frank Wren has been the general manager of the Baltimore Orioles and the Atlanta Braves.

NBA star Danny Ainge was a third baseman for Toronto from 1979-1981.

Outfielder Jimmie Randolph Hall played for the Twins from 1963-1966.  He was born in Mount Holly, North Carolina and went to high school in Belmont, North Carolina.  He then was signed by Washington as a free agent in 1956.  He hit .385 his first year at Class D Superior, but then had some less impressive years.  He really struggled upon reaching AAA, batting only .227  there in 1960.  He then apparently suffered from injuries, as he totalled only 141 minor league at-bats in 1961-1962.  The Twins saw something in him, though, because in 1963 he became a regular outfielder for the Twins.  Hall started mostly in center field, although he would often be shifted to left late in games to replace Harmon Killebrew there, with Lenny Green taking over in center.  He hit .260 with an amazing 33 home runs (his highest home run total in the minors had been 17 in 1958), setting a rookie record for homers and finishing third in Rookie of the Year voting behind Gary Peters and Pete Ward.  He made the all-star team the next two years and finished 13th in MVP voting in 1965.  He hit in the .280s with a home run total in the twenties both years.  He played full-time in center field both of those years.  In 1966, the acquisition of Ted Uhlaender moved Hall to left.  The move did not go well, as Hall dropped to .239, although he again hit twenty home runs.  After the season, Hall was traded to California with Pete Cimino and Don Mincher for Dean Chance and a player to be named later (Jackie Hernandez).  He was the regular right fielder for the Angels in 1967, hitting .249 with sixteen homers, which in 1967 was not as bad as it might sound today.  It still wasn't good enough, however;  Hall became a part-time player, was traded to Cleveland in June of 1968, moved on to the Yankees in April of 1969, to the Cubs in September, to Atlanta in June of 1970, and was released after the 1970 season.  He hit for neither power nor average in any of those years.  Hall played at AAA for San Diego in 1971, then ended his playing career.  As a Twin, Jimmie Hall hit .269/.334/.481 with 98 home runs in four seasons.  Some sources attribute his drop-off to a time when he was hit in the head with a pitch, but this happened in 1964 and he had a fine season in 1965, so it seems unlikely.  After his playing career ended, Hall moved back to Mount Holly, North Carolina, where he was still living at last report.  He is a member of the Gaston County (NC) Sports Hall of Fame.

Left-hander John Patrick Smiley pitched for the Twins in 1992.  He was born in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania and went to high school in Graterford, Pennsylvania.  He was drafted by Pittsburgh in the twelfth round in 1983.  He struggled early in his minor league career and was moved to the bullpen in 1986.  He had a very good year in relief, posting an ERA of 3.10 and a WHIP of 1.16 in 90 innings in Class A.  That got him a September call-up, and the next year he stayed in the majors, never going back to AA or AAA.  Smiley was used in relief in 1987 and did not do a whole lot, but he joined the starting rotation in 1988 and stayed in a major league rotation for ten years.  He was in the Pirates' rotation through 1991.  His last year with Pittsburgh was his best, as Smiley went 20-8, 3.08 in 207.2 innings.  He made his first all-star appearance that year, finished third in Cy Young voting, and was fourteenth in MVP balloting.  In March of 1992, Smiley was traded to the Twins for Midre Cummings and Denny Neagle.  He had an excellent year for the Twins, going 16-9, 3.21 with a 1.12 WHIP and setting a career high with 241 innings.  He became a free agent after the season and signed with Cincinnati.  Smiley struggled in 1993, dealing with both injuries and ineffectiveness.  He bounced back in 1994 and had three consecutive years with ERAs under four and WHIPs under 1.30.  He made the all-star team for the second time in 1995  He had a poor year in 1997, and an injury shortly after his mid-season trade to Cleveland led Smiley to retire after the 1997 season.  John Smiley was never a superstar, but he was a solid rotation starter for several years.  At last report, he was living in Trappe, Pennsylvania.

First baseman/outfielder Dan Patrick Masteller was with the Twins for a little over half of the 1995 season.  He was born in Toledo, attended Michigan State, and was drafted by Minnesota in the eleventh round in 1989.  He did not show much power in the minors, but hit over .300 for three consecutive years, most of which were in AAA Salt Lake.  He was in the third of those years when he was brought up to Minnesota in late June of 1995.  The left- handed hitter was used almost exclusively against right-handed pitching, sharing first base with Scott Stahoviak and also playing a little corner outfield.  Masteller played in 71 games that season, getting 198 at-bats.  He hit .237/.303/.343 with three homers and 21 RBIs.  Released after the season, he was signed by Montreal and again hit for a high average in AA, but apparently no one was impressed; he was let go in mid-season and finished the year in the independent North Atlantic League.  1996 was to be Masteller's last season in organized baseball.  At last report, Dan Masteller was a managing director and co-chairman of the board of directors of the Charles Schwab Corporation and was living in Akron, Ohio.

Left-hander Scott Jeremy Downs did not play for the Twins, but was in their farm system briefly in 1999.  Born and raised in Louisville, he attended the University of Kentucky and was drafted by the Cubs in the third round in 1997.  He pitched pretty well in their system for two seasons, but in November of 1998 he was the player to be named later in the deal that sent Mike Morgan to the Cubs.  He pitched 19.2 innings in New Britain and 9.2 innings in Ft. Myers, doing poorly for the former and well for the latter, when he was sent back to the Cubs on May 21 of 1999 along with Rick Aguilera for Kyle Lohse and Jason Ryan.  He made the Cubs starting rotation at the start of the 2000 season, but did not do well and was traded to Montreal at the July trading deadline for Rondell White.  He made one start for the Expos and then went down with an injury, missing the entire 2001 season.  He spent most of the next three years in the minors, making one major league start in 2003 and 12 in 2004.  After that season, he was released by the then Washington franchise and signed with Toronto.  He started the season in the minors but made it back to the big leagues for good in mid-May of 2005 and began a transition to the bullpen.  He began pitching better immediately, and started pitching really well as a LOOGY in 2007.   He was a free agent after the 2010 season, signed with the Angels, and continued to pitch well.  He stayed with the Angels until late July of 2013, when he was traded to Atlanta.  His numbers with the Braves were not particularly good, but as often happens with a LOOGY, a few bad outings make his performance look worse than it was.  He started 2014 with the White Sox, but the bad outings became more common and he was released at mid-season.  He signed with Kansas City a few days later and pitched much better the rest of the way.  He signed with Cleveland for 2015 but was released at the end of spring training and his playing career came to an end.  It was a pretty good career, though, especially when you consider that he really didn't put things together until he was thirty-one.  At last report, Scott Downs was living in Lexington, Kentucky and was the baseball coach of Lexington Catholic High School.

March 16

Bud Fowler (1847)

Blondie Purcell (1854)

Jerry Denny (1859)

Patsy Donovan (1865)

Jake Flowers (1902)

Buddy Myer (1904)

Lloyd Waner (1906)

Ken O'Dea (1913)

Tom Gorman (1919)

Clint Courtney (1927)

Hobie Landrith (1930)

Don Blasingame (1932)

Rick Reichardt (1943)

Rick Renick (1944)

Charles Hudson (1959)

Fieldin Culbreth (1963)

Abraham Nunez (1976)

Curtis Granderson (1981)

Stephen Drew (1983)

Brandon League (1983)

Mickey Storey (1986)

Vladimir Guerrero (1999)

Bud Fowler was the first African-American to play professional baseball, playing in the minors in 1878 and from 1884-1894.

Tom Gorman was a National League umpire from 1951-1977.  His son Brian was a major league umpire from 1991-2021.

Fieldin Culbreth was a major league umpire since 1993-2021.  His full name is Fieldin Henry Culbreth III.

Mickey Storey was drafted by Minnesota in the 22nd round in 2007, but did not sign.

Infielder/outfielder Warren Richard Renick played for the Twins from 1968-1972.  Born and raised in London, Ohio, he attended Ohio State and was signed by Minnesota as a free agent in 1965.  Renick did not show a whole lot of promise in the minors, although he did hit 20 homers at Class A Wilson in 1967.  He was hitting .247 with ten homers at AAA Denver in 1968 when he was called up in mid-July to try to fill a void at shortstop.  Renick held the starting shortstop job for about a month, but when he hit no better than the others the Twins had tried he went to the bench.  Renick stuck in the majors, though, staying with Minnesota for the next four full seasons.  He was used primarily at third base and left field the rest of his time in the big leagues.  Renick never got 200 at-bats in a season, never batted higher than .245, and never hit more than seven home runs in a season.  After the 1972 season, Renick played six years at AAA, four with the Twins and two in the Montreal organization.  As a Twin, Rick Renick hit .221/.302/.373 in 553 at-bats over 276 games.  For his last five seasons at AAA, Renick was a player-coach.  His playing career ended after the 1978 season, and he became a coach for Kansas City from 1979-1981.  He managed in AA for Montreal from 1982-1984, and then became a major league coach for the Expos from 1985-1986.  Renick was a coach for the Twins from 1987-1990, then managed at AAA for the White Sox from 1991-1996.  Renick coached in the majors for Pittsburgh from 1997-2000, for the Expos in 2001, and for Florida in 2002.  Rick Renick was lived in retirement in Sarasota, Florida until his passing on January 31, 2026.  His son, Josh, played in the minor leagues from 2001 through 2007, spending 2001-2003 in the Twins organization.

March 15

Arlie "The Freshest Man on Earth" Latham (1860)

Doc Casey (1870)

Ralph Miller (1873)

Fred Lieb (1888)

Rosy Ryan (1898)

Sid Hartman (1920)

Bob Locker (1938)

Wayne Granger (1944)

Bobby Bonds (1946)

Jim Kern (1949)

Steve Stroughter (1952)

Mickey Hatcher (1955)

Harold Baines (1959)

Mike Pagliarulo (1960)

Kim Batiste (1968)

Robert Fick (1974)

Vladimir Nunez (1975)

Dan Perkins (1975)

Kevin Youkilis (1979)

Jon Jay (1985)

Nick Ahmed (1990)

Max Stassi (1991)

Michael Fulmer (1993)

Sean Poppen (1994)

Ralph Miller was the first major league player to live to be a hundred years old.

Fred Lieb was a sportswriter who covered baseball for seventy years.

Sid Hartman was a sportswriter/broadcaster/sports executive who was involved in Minnesota sports for most of the time that there have been Minnesota sports.

Right-handed reliever Wayne Allan Granger was co-closer with Dave LaRoche in 1972.  He was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, went to high school in Huntington, Massachusetts, and then attended Springfield College, the same school attended by ex-Twin Glenn Adams.  Granger signed with St. Louis as a free agent in 1965.  He was a starter that year, but shifted to the bullpen in 1966.  He pitched quite well in the minors, reaching AAA in 1967.  In 1968, after posting a 2.16 ERA and a 0.76 WHIP in 25 AAA innings, Granger made his big league debut in early June.  He pitched very well the rest of the season, going 4-2, 2.25 with four saves in 44 innings.  He was traded to Cincinnati after the season and did very well there for three years.  He led the league in saves with 35 in 1970 and led the league in appearances in 1969 and 1971.  He twice received consideration for the MVP award and finished eighth in Cy Young voting in 1970.  After the 1971 season, Granger was traded to Minnesota for Tom Hall.  He continued to pitch very well, going 4-6, 3.01 with 19 saves and a 1.24 WHIP for the Twins in 1972.  After the season, though, Granger was on the move again, traded to St. Louis for John Cumberland and Larry Hisle.  After that, he seemed to kind of hit the wall, and while he had a couple more decent years, he was never a top reliever again.  Granger did not pitch particularly well for the Cardinals and was traded to the Yankees in August of 1973.  The Yankees released him in late March of 1974 and Granger signed with the White Sox.  He spent much of 1974 at AAA, and did not do well in the majors when he did pitch there.  Released after the season, Granger signed with Houston for 1975 and was decent, but no more.  He was released after the season and signed with Montreal for 1976.  He was with the Expos for the first half of the season and was okay, but not very good, and was sent to the minors.  The Expos released him in February of 1977, he signed with Atlanta, and was released again in March.  Granger pitched in Mexico in 1977, apparently did not play in 1978, and then tried to come back with Montreal in 1979 but was ineffective in AAA, ending his playing career.  Wayne Granger was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds' Hall of Fame in 1982 and was inducted into the Western Massachusetts Baseball Hall of Fame in 2016.  After leaving baseball, he worked for a sporting goods company, then at a boat dealership, and then started a billiard business that lasted for fourteen years, until his retirement.  Wayne Granger passed away in Oviedo, Florida on February 25, 2026 at age eighty-one.

Outfielder Stephen Lewis Stroughter did not play for the Twins, but was in their minor league system for a couple of months in 1981.  Born and raised in Visalia, California, he attended the College of the Sequoias and was drafted by San Francisco with the sixth pick of the 1971 June Secondary draft.  He hit pretty well in the minors but his power was inconsistent at first, plus he struck out a lot, so he did not get to AA until 1974 and did not leave Class A behind for good until after the 1975 season.  After that season, when he hit .301 with 15 homers for Fresno at age 23, he was sold to California.  He had two fine years at AA El Paso and then went to AAA Salt Lake City, where he hit .325/.419/.535 in 1978.  Not only did that not earn him a call-up to the majors, Stroughter was released at the end of spring training in 1979.  He was out of baseball until the middle of June, when Seattle signed him.  He had a couple of solid years at AAA Spokane in 1979 and 1980, but was traded to Minnesota after the 1980 season for Mike Bacsik.  In 82 at-bats at Toledo, he hit .247/.317/.411 and then was sold back to Seattle at the end of May.  He finished the season in Spokane, then finally made his major league debut at the start of the 1982 season.  He was used almost exclusively as a bench player, getting only 40 at-bats by May 19.  He did not impress in those at-bats and was sent back to AAA Salt Lake City.  He was back with the Mariners for the month of July, but got only seven more at bats, hitting .170/.235/.255 for the season.  Those would be his career major league numbers; he was in AAA for Toronto and in Japan in 1983, and then his playing career ended.  He appears to have been limited defensively, but he hit .303/.377/.503 in 1,818 AAA at-bats.  Much of that was in the Pacific Coast League, but it’s still hard to think he couldn’t have helped somebody if he’d been given the chance.  After baseball, Steve Stroughter returned to Visalia, where he was an “independent entertainment professional.”  Steve Stroughter passed away on March 6, 2018 in Fresno, California.

Outfielder/first baseman/third baseman Mickey Vaughn Hatcher played for the Twins from 1981-1986.  Hatcher was born in Cleveland, but went to high school in Mesa, Arizona and attended the University of Oklahoma, where he also played football.  He was drafted by the Dodgers in the fifth round in 1977.  He hit very well in the minors--his career minor league batting average is .339 in 1,403 at-bats.  He split 1979 and 1980 between AAA and the majors, but his minor league success did not immediately translate to the majors, as he hit only .243 in 177 at-bats.  In late March of 1981, Hatcher was traded to Minnesota with Kelly Snider and Matt Reeves for Ken Landreaux.  While he only had one season in which he played in over 120 games (1984), Hatcher was a semi-regular, at least, in his six years with the Twins.  He was generally used in the outfield, playing mostly in center in 1981, splitting time in the two corner outfield positions in 1982, playing mostly in right in 1983, and moving to left for 1984-1986.  He topped .300 in consecutive years, 1983-1984.  As a Twin, he hit .284/.315/.383 in 2,366 at-bats (672 games).  Despite hitting .278 in 1986, Hatcher was released by the Twins in March of 1987.  He signed with the Dodgers and played for them for four years as a reserve.  He continued to hit for a high average in his first three years, but in the fourth year he dropped to .212.  He played briefly for AAA Albuquerque in 1991, and then his playing career came to an end.  Hatcher remained in baseball, coaching for the Texas Rangers in 1993 and 1994, managing and coaching in the minors, and coaching for the Dodgers in 1998.  He became the batting coach of the Angels in 2000, a job he held until mid-May of 2012, when he reportedly clashed with Albert Pujols.  He was with the Dodgers as a special assistant to the general manager for the rest of that season, but was not retained for 2013.  At last report, Mickey Hatcher was still living in the Los Angeles area and was doing involved in public relations for the Angels.  He has been a part of the Twins Fantasy Camp in recent years.

Third baseman Michael Timothy Pagliarulo played for the Twins in the early 1990s.  Born in Medford, Massachusetts, he attended the University of Miami and then was drafted by the Yankees in the sixth round in 1981.  His batting averages in the minors were nothing special, but he hit for power (41 homers from 1982-1983) and drew a high number of walks.  He was actually having a poor year in AAA Columbus in 1984 when he was brought up to the majors in early July to replace Toby Harrah.  He remained the Yankees' third baseman through June of 1989.  He never hit for average, but he hit 105 home runs in a Yankee uniform.  When Pagliarulo hit in the .230s, his power numbers made him acceptable to the Yankees, but in 1988 both his power and his average dropped, and the next year he was traded to San Diego.  His power never did come back, but he was able to raise his batting average, hitting .254 as the mostly-regular third baseman for the Padres in 1990.  He became a free agent after the season and signed with Minnesota.  Platooned with Scott Leius in 1991, Pagliarulo hit .279 for the World Champion Twins.  He missed much of 1992 with injury, but came back in 1993 and was hitting .292 in late August when he was traded to Baltimore for a player to be named later (Erik Schullstrom).  He finished the year at .303.  As a Twin, Mike Pagilarulo hit .272/.317/.376 in 723 at-bats (246 games).  He was a free agent in 1994 and played in Japan.  He came back in 1995 as a platoon third baseman for Texas, but hit only .232, and his playing career came to an end.  Mike Pagliarulo was the owner of the website dugoutcentral.com.  He then became a principal in an international sports consulting company called The Baseline Group as well as the founder of a nonprofit corporation called the Baseball Institute of Development, which collaborates with leading experts from various fields of sports and medicine to provide qualified resources and develop solutions to advance athletic performance knowledge.  One of the officers of the Baseball Institute of Development is Dan Gladden.  In 2013 Pagliarulo became the batting coach for Indianapolis in the Pittsburgh organization, but he was replaced after the 2014 season by ex-Twin Butch Wynegar.  In 2017 he replaced Barry Bonds as the batting coach of the Miami Marlins.  He was let go by the team in April of 2019 because the team was not hitting.  At last report, he was the owner of Universal Sports Analytics and is involved with Italian-American Baseball Foundation.  He is also on the advisory board of America's Adopt a Soldier. Pagliarulo’s son, also named Mike, played baseball for Dartmouth College.

Right-hander Daniel Lee Perkins was with the Twins for much of 1999.  A native of Miami, Perkins was drafted by Minnesota in the second round in 1993.  His minor league numbers are not particularly impressive:  a career ERA of 4.98 and a career WHIP of 1.50.  He did have an excellent year at Ft. Myers in 1996, going 13-7, 2.96 with a 1.19 WHIP in 136 innings.  Perkins reach AAA late in 1998 and got attention by going 5-0 in seven starts; however, his ERA was 4.82 and his WHIP 1.46, leading one to believe he benefited from good run support.  Still, he began 1999 in the Twins' bullpen, and became a member of the starting rotation for most of May and June.  In all, he made twelve starts and seventeen relief appearances, going 1-7, 6.54 with a 1.85 WHIP.  He was relatively effective as a reliever, with a 3.55 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP, but was disastrous as a starter.  Oddly, he was much more effective against lefties:  right-handers hit him at a .363/.419/.606 clip that year.  1999 would be Perkins' only year in the majors; after an awful 2000 at AAA Salt Lake the Twins let him go.  He signed with Cleveland, but made only one start at AA Akron before ending his career.  After leaving baseball he attended Miami Dade College and Florida International University.  He then became a chef, working for a restaurant in Miami, owning a restaurant in Orlando, and then becoming a food service director for Aramark in Winter Garden, Florida.  We don't know how many major league ballplayers have become chefs after their playing careers ended, but we're guessing it's a pretty small number.

Right-hander Michael Joseph Fulmer was with the Twins for two months in 2022.  He was born in Oklahoma City, went to high school in Edmond, Oklahoma, and was drafted by the Mets in the first round with the fourth pick in 2011.  He pitched well for the Mets in the minors, reaching AA in 2015 at age twenty-two, and was having a fine year there when he was traded to Detroit at the July deadline.  He began 2016 in AAA, but after just three starts was promoted to the majors, where he stayed other than a couple of rehab assignments.  He was rookie of the year in 2016, when he went 11-7, 3.06, 1.12 WHIP in 26 starts.  He made the all-star team in 2017, but struggled in 2018 and missed all of 2019 due to Tommy John surgery.  He was not good in the COVID year of 2020, but came back strong when moved to the bullpen in 2021, going 5-6, 2.97, 1.28 WHIP.  His strikeout rate went way up--he had only struck out around seven per nine as a starter, but fanned 9.4 per nine as a reliever that year.  He was having another solid year for the Tigers in 2022 when he was traded to Minnesota in early August for Sawyer Gipson-Long.  In twenty-six appearances (24.1 innings) Fulmer went 2-2, 3.70, but with a WHIP of 1.56 and allowing 11.1 hits per nine innings.  He became a free agent after the season and signed with the Cubs. He was nothing special, but was a useful pitcher for them in 2023.  A free agent again, he signed with Boston for 2024 but missed the entire season due to injury.  He was released in April of 2025, signed two days later with the Cubs, was released at the end of June, signed three days later with Kansas City, was released in mid-August, and signed three days later with Seattle.  Most of his 2025 was spent in AAA, but he did appear in two games for the Cubs and one for Boston.  He signed with San Francisco for 2026.  He turns thirty-three today.  We wish him well.

Right-hander Sean Russell Poppen appeared in ten games for the Twins from 2019-2020.  He was born in Chesapeake, Virginia, attended Harvard, and was drafted by the Twins in the 19th round in 2016.  His minor league numbers are certainly respectable, though hardly eye-poppin'.  He reached Class A in 2016, high-A in 2017, AA in 2018, and AAA in 2019.  In 12 games (9 starts) in Rochester in 2019, he went 5-1, 3.84, 1.31 WHIP.  He was called up briefly twice in 2019, appearing in one game in mid-June and three games in late July.  He appeared in six games for the Twins in 2020.   His totals as a Twin are 0-0, 4.70, 1.75 WHIP with 19 strikeouts in 16 innings.  The Twins put him on waivers after the 2020 season and he signed with Pittsburgh.  The Pirates sold him to Tampa Bay in mid-May of 2021 and the Rays waived him in early August.  He was claimed by Arizona.  He made twenty-four appearances in the majors that season, twenty of them with the Diamondbacks, and was not particularly good. in 2022, however, he made the Arizona team out of spring training and pitched well for them, going 1-2, 3.91 in twenty-six appearances.  Diamondbacks management was apparently not particularly impressed, though, because he was sent down after a couple of mediocre outings in early July and didn't come back until the last week of the season.  He signed with San Diego for 2023 and had a poor year in AAA.  He signed with Seattle for 2024, but was released in April and spent the summer pitching poorly for Gastonia in the Atlantic League.  He signed with the Angels in late April of 2025, but pitched poorly in AA and was released in early August, finishing the season in the Mexican League.  He did pitch well there, although in just three games.  He turns thirty-two today and has a lifetime major league ERA of 5.08 with a WHIP of 1.59.  His AAA ERA is 4.42 with a WHIP of 1.47.  We have no reason to root against him, but unless he develops a new pitch or something there's no reason to think he's going to make it back to the major leagues, and he may not even make it back to the Mexican League.

March 14

Candy Nelson (1849)

Bill Holbert (1855)

Marty McManus (1900)

Jack Rothrock (1905)

Santos Amaro (1908)

Bill Hoskins (1914)

Ron Law (1946)

Dave McKay (1950)

Butch Wynegar (1956)

Steve Lake (1957)

Jerry Willard (1960)

Kirby Puckett (1960)

Kevin Brown (1965)

Brent Gates (1970)

Matt Kata (1978)

Bobby Jenks (1981)

Marwin Gonzalez (1989)

Santos Amaro is the father of Ruben Amaro Sr. and the grandfather of Ruben Amaro Jr.  He was a star player in Cuba and in Mexico and is a member of the Salon de la Fama.

Matt Kata was drafted by Minnesota in the twentieth round in 1996, but did not sign.

Right-hander Ronald David Law did not pitch for the Twins, but was in AAA for them in 1972.  He was born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada and was signed by the Cubs as a free agent in 1964 at age eighteen.  He pitched quite well in the low minors and didn't do badly for a twenty-year-old in AA in 1966.  For some reason he spent a lot of 1967 back in Class A, although he pitched well there and again in AA when finally moved back there.  He again was made to repeat A and AA in 1968 and this time, possibly bored by it, did not do as well.  Cleveland chose him in the minor league draft after the 1968 season.  He pitched well in AA for them and came up to the majors for the second half of the season.  He did not do well, going 3-4, 4.99 with one save.  Part of the problem may have been that he had a reverse split, doing much better against left-handed batters than right-handers.  Also, he was still only twenty-three.  That was to be his only time in the majors, though.  He was traded to Washington after the 1969 campaign.  He did decently for AAA Denver for a couple of seasons but never made it back to the majors.  Sometime during the 1972 season he found his way from Denver to Tacoma in the Twins' system.  He appeared in eleven games for them, ten of them starts, and went 3-4, 3.84, 1.31 WHIP.  That brought his playing career to an end.  Ron Law passed away on July 5, 1994, at the young age of forty-eight.

Infielder David Lawrence McKay played for the Twins in 1975 and 1976.  He was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, attended Creighton University, and signed with the Twins as a free agent in 1971.  He was never much of a hitter; his best year in the minors was 1974 in AA Orlando when he hit .278, significantly above his career minor league average of .245.  Despite that, the Twins brought him up in late August of 1975 and made him their regular third baseman the rest of the season, replacing the injured Eric Soderholm.  He began 1976 as the regular third baseman as well, but predictably failed to hit and lost the job to Mike Cubbage.  McKay was sent to the minors in late June and was left unprotected in the expansion draft after the season, being selected by Toronto.  As a Twin, he hit .228/.281/.281 in 263 at-bats.  McKay was a utility player for the Blue Jays in 1977, hit .197, and in 1978 was made the regular second baseman.  He hit .238, but was still the regular second baseman at the start of 1979, finally losing the job to Danny Ainge in late May and going back to the minors.  He was released after the season and signed with Oakland for 1980.  Moved back into a utility role, he actually did a decent job for a couple of years for the Athletics, hitting .244 and .263 in 1980 and 1981.  In 1982, however, he fell to .198, and after spending 1983 in AAA his career came to an end.  After that, he became a coach for Oakland from 1984 through 1995.  He then followed Tony LaRussa to St. Louis, where he was a coach through 2011.  When LaRussa retired, however, McKay moved on.  He was the first base coach for the Chicago Cubs in 2012-2013 and has been the first base coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks since 2014.  Dave McKay was elected to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2001.  His son, Cody McKay, was a catcher who got 77 at-bats in the major leagues, three with Oakland in 2002, 74 with St. Louis in 2004.

Switch-hitting catcher Harold Delano “Butch” Wynegar was the Twins' catcher from 1976 through 1982.  A native of York, Pennsylvania, Wynegar was drafted by Minnesota in the second round in 1974.  He had two excellent years in the low minors.  After hitting .314 with 19 homers in Class A Reno in 1975, Wynegar was jumped to the big leagues and made the Twins' regular catcher in 1976.  He had a good year for a twenty-year-old, hitting .260 with ten homers, making the all-star team, finishing second to Mark Fidrych for Rookie of the Year, and getting a tenth-place vote for MVP.  He had a nearly identical season in 1977 and made the all-star team again.  Given his age, Wynegar was considered a coming star, but it turned out that this was about as good as he got.  He remained the Twins' starting catcher until mid-May of 1982, although he was injured much of 1981.  As a Twin, Butch Wynegar hit .254/.340/.342 in 2,746 at-bats (794 games).  He was off to a poor start in 1982 when he was traded to the Yankees along with Roger Erickson for Pete Filson, Larry Milbourne, John Pacella, and cash.  He shared the catching position with Rick Cerone, playing mostly against left-handers, and had a couple of fine years, batting over .290 in his first two seasons as a Yankee.  He then began a slow slide, and after hitting only .206 in 1986, Wynegar was traded to the Angels.  He was a backup catcher for California for two seasons, ending his playing career after the 1988 campaign. Wynegar remained in baseball, becoming a minor league manager and coach in the Baltimore and Texas systems before becoming the batting coach for the Milwaukee Brewers in 2003.  In 2006, he became the batting coach for the Yankees' AAA team, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, a job he held through 2014.  He moved on to the Pittsburgh organization in the 2015 season.  He was the batting coach for AAA Indianapolis from 2015-2017 and was the batting coach for Class A Bradenton from 2018-2019.  He then was co-host of a podcast, Low&Away Baseball, but that seems to have ended in 2023.  Thus, no information about what Butch Wynegar is doing now was readily available.

Hall of Fame outfielder Kirby Puckett was a Twin for his entire major league career, 1984-1995.  Born and raised in Chicago, Puckett attended Bradley University and was chosen by the Twins with the third pick of the 1982 January draft.  He hit .382 in rookie-level Elizabethton in 1982, .314 at Class A Visalia in 1983, and was hitting .263 in AAA Toledo in 1984 when he was called up to Minnesota on May 8.  He was immediately installed as the starting center fielder, got four hits in his first game, and never went to the minors again.  He hit .296 in his first season, finishing third in Rookie of the Year voting behind Alvin Davis and Mark Langston.  Puckett hit no homers in 1984 and only four in 1985, but jumped to 31 in 1986; that would be his career high, but he remained a power threat the rest of his career.  He was the Twins regular center fielder until 1994, when he moved to right with first Alex Cole and then Rich Becker taking over in center.  Puckett's best season was probably 1988, when he hit .356 with 24 homers and led the league in both hits and total bases.  For his career, Puckett hit .318/.360/.477 with 207 homers and 134 stolen bases in 7,244 at-bats (1,783 games in twelve seasons).  He received MVP consideration nine times, finishing in the top seven seven times and in the top three three times.  Puckett made the all-star team ten times, won six gold gloves, and won six silver slugger awards.  He led the league in at-bats twice, in hits four times, in RBIs once, in batting average once, and in total bases twice.  He played in the World Series twice, hitting a home run in 1991 which some people may remember.  Shortly before the 1996 season started, he woke up to find that he could not see out of his right eye.  He was diagnosed with glaucoma, and his playing career was suddenly over.  Kirby Puckett was elected to the Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 2001.  In 2002, Puckett was charged with fifth-degree sexual criminal conduct and fifth-degree assault, charges for which he was found not guilty.  He moved to Scottsdale, Arizona in 2003.  Kirby Puckett passed away in Scottsdale on March 6, 2006, one day after suffering a stroke.

Infielder Brent Robert Gates played for Minnesota for two years in the late 1990s.  He was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, attended high school in Grandville, Michigan, and then went to the University of Minnesota.  He was drafted by Oakland in the first round in 1991.  He hit quite well in the minors; Gates hit .321 in Class A Modesto in 1992 and was hitting .337 in 102 at-bats split between AA and AAA in 1993 when he was called up to the majors in May.  He was the Athletics regular second baseman that year and hit .290, finishing sixth for Rookie of the Year.  He was having a similar year in 1994 when he was injured in mid-July.  He missed the rest of the season and never was as good again.  He got the second base job back in 1995 but hit only .254.  He was the starter at second in 1996 when he suffered another season-ending injury, this time in mid-June.  The Athletics released him in March of 1997.  He signed with Seattle and was a utility player for the Mariners that year.  A free agent after the season, Gates came to Minnesota.  He shared third base with Ron Coomer in 1998 (Coomer would replace Orlando Merced at first when Gates played) and backed up Todd Walker at second in 1999.  As a Twin, Brent Gates hit .252/.326/.330 in 639 at-bats (217 games).  On occasion, the stadium organist would play the Christian hymn "Lift Up Your Heads, Ye Mighty Gates" as his walk-up music.  He managed in Class A in 2001, then left baseball.  Brent Gates currently owns the Gates Insurance Agency in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  He was also the baseball coach of Grand Rapids Christian High School from 2008-13, reaching the state championship in each of his last three seasons and winning the last two of them, and returned to that job from 2020-2022.  He became an assistant coach with Davenport University in 2023.  He was inducted into the Grand Rapids Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.

Utility player Marwin Javier Gonzalez played for the Twins from 2019-2020.  He was born in Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela and signed with the Cubs as an amateur free agent in November of 2005.  He was in the minor leagues for the Cubs through 2011, reaching AA in 2010 and AAA in 2011.  He initially played third base, moved to middle infield in 2008, and added outfield to his resume in 2009.  He was generally young for his league and so struggled at the plate, but hit well in 2011 as a twenty-two-year-old splitting his season between AA and AAA.  He was left unprotected by the Cubs after the season and was claimed by Boston.  He never played with the Red Sox, however, as he was traded to Houston that same day.  He was a part-time player there for his first couple of seasons and didn't hit much.  He improved in 2014, when at age twenty-five he became more-or-less a league average batter.  That's what he has remained with the exception of 2017, when he batted .303/.377/.530 with 23 home runs.  He became a "regular" player, although at a variety of positions, in 2016.  He became a free agent after the 2018 season and signed with Minnesota.  He started the 2019 season at third base due to an injury to Miguel Sano, but once again played a variety of positions when Sano returned.  2020 was similar--he played a lot of third when Josh Donaldson was out, and played a variety of positions otherwise.  He was decent at the plate in 2019, but had a poor year in 2020.  A free agent after the season, he signed with Boston for 2021.  He did little for them, was released in mid-August, signed with Houston, and did little for them the rest of the season.  He signed with the Yankees for 2022, and again did little.  He became a free agent after the season and signed with the Orix Buffaloes, for whom he did not hit much, either.  He played in thirty-games for Orix in 2024, did little again, and retired after the season.  It wasn't a bad career, though--he played in eleven seasons, batted .252, and had an OPS of .709.  That's not great, but not bad for a guy who could play any position but catcher.  As a Twin he batted .248/.311/.387 in 662 plate appearances (167 games).  No information about what Marwin Gonzalez is doing now was readily available.