July 6

Roy Hartzell (1881)
Steve O'Neill (1891)
Dale Ford (1942)
Jason Thompson (1954)
Willie Randolph (1954)
Lance Johnson (1963)
Omar Olivares (1967)
Greg Norton (1972)
Michael Ryan (1977)

Outfielder Michael Ryan played for the Twins for parts of the seasons from 2002-2005.  Born and raised in Indiana, Pennsylvania, he was drafted by Minnesota in the fifth round in 1996.  Originally a third baseman, he shifted to second base in 1999 and to the outfield in 2000.  He had some good seasons in the minors; not eye-popping, but generally solid across the board, with good batting averages, a good number of walks, and moderate power.  In 2002, however, he suddenly hit 31 homers, well above his previous career high of 18.  That got him a September call-up, in which he went 1-for-11.  He had a down year at Rochester in 2003, but was still called up in early August and went on a tear.  He started most of the games down the stretch and hit .393/.441/.754 in 61 at-bats.  He started 2004 with the Twins as a reserve outfielder, but was sent down in mid-June when he hit only .239.  He continued to struggle at Rochester, hitting only .211.  He got things going again in 2005 and was promoted again in early June, but again did not do well as a reserve, hitting only .231.  The Twins allowed Ryan to become a free agent after the 2005 season, and Ryan started moving around.  He was in AAA for the Braves in 2006 and for the Pirates in 2007, started 2008 in the independent Atlantic League, signed with the Marlins in late July and finished the year at AAA for them, and remained with them at AAA for 2009.  He did not do so well the first couple of those years, but hit quite well in AAA for the Marlins, although not well enough to get back to the big leagues.  A free agent after the 2009 campaign, he signed with the Angels, and after a five year absence made it back to the majors for about six weeks in 2010 as a reserve outfielder, spending the rest of the season at AAA.  He became a free agent after the season and played for Caracas in the Venezuelan Winter League, but did not sign with anyone for 2011.  He did not give up, though, playing winter ball again and then signing with Pittsburgh for 2012.  milb.com lists him as being on the active roster of AAA Indianapolis, but he does not appear to have played in 2012.  The way this biography closed last year remains true today.  It's still possible that Michael Ryan may get another chance, but it's also possible that it's time for him to get on with his life.