December 31

King Kelly (1857)
Tom Connolly (1870)
Bobby Byrne (1884)
Syl Johnson (1900)
Tommy Byrne (1919)
Guy LaValliere (1931)
Alfredo Meli (1944)
Joe Simpson (1951)
Jim Tracy (1955)
Rick Aguilera (1961)
Esteban Loiaza (1971)
Brian Moehler (1971)
Julio DePaula (1982)

It does not appear that Bobby Byrne and Tommy Byrne are related. Minor league catcher Guy LaValliere is the father of major league catcher Mike LaValliere.

Nobody ever makes a fuss about the last baby of the old year.

Right-hander Richard Warren Aguilera was with the Twins for at least part of 11 seasons. He was born in San Gabriel, California and went to high school in West Covina, California. He then attended Brigham Young University and was drafted by the Mets in the third round in 1983. A starter in the minors, he pitched quite well for a little over two seasons, getting called up to the Mets in June of 1985. Placed in the starting rotation, he again did quite well, and did well again in 1986, his first full season in the majors. The Mets had a pretty strong rotation then; even though Aguilera was doing fine, he was always considered the fifth starter, and when he stumbled a little at the start of 1987 he was sent back to the minors for a couple of months. Aguilera was injured much of 1988. In 1989, he was shifted to the bullpen, where he was having a very good year when he was traded to Minnesota at the end of July along with Tim Drummond, Kevin Tapani, David West, and a player to be named later (Jack Savage) for Frank Viola. Aguilera was placed in the rotation for the rest of 1989 and, once again, pitched very well. In 1990, however, he became the Twins' closer, a job he held (with an interruption) through May of 1999. He took to the job immediately, making the all-star team three consecutive years (1991-1993) and receiving MVP consideration in 1991. In July of 1995, with the Twins out of playoff contention, Aguilera was traded to Boston for Frankie Rodriguez and a player to be named later (J. J. Johnson). He was a free agent after the season, and came back to Minnesota for 1996 with the promise that he would be allowed to start, something Aguilera had wanted to do again for some time. It did not go well--Aguilera was injured part of the season, did not pitch well when healthy, and his replacement as closer, Dave Stevens, was not up to the job. Aguilera went back to closing in 1997, and remained the Twins closer until May of 1999, when he was traded to the Cubs with Scott Downs for Kyle Lohse and Jason Ryan. He remained with the Cubs through 2000, then retired. As a Twin, Rick Aguilera was 40-47 with a 3.50 ERA and 254 saves.  He was the head baseball coach at Santa Fe Christian School in Solana Beach, California through 2008, when it appears he retired from that position.  He continued to live in Rancho Santa Fe., California at last report. Rick Aguilera was inducted into the Twins' Hall of Fame in 2008.

Right-hander Julio Cesar DePaula pitched in 16 games for Minnesota in 2007. Born in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, DePaula signed with the Twins as a free agent in 1999. He remained in the Dominican for a few years, not making his debut in the Gulf Coast League until 2002. He was converted to relief in 2003 and had a tremendous year for Elizabethton, when despite his experience he was still only twenty years old. He continued pitching well through the minors but was brought along slowly, not reaching AA until 2006 and not reaching AAA until 2007. He had a very good year for Rochester in 2007 and was with the Twins for about six weeks that season. In twenty innings, he was 0-1, 8.55. Those numbers look worse than they really were--they are skewed by three really bad outings in which he gave up 15 of his 19 earned runs. Back in Rochester in 2008, DePaula did not pitch well, and was let go after the season. He signed with Tampa Bay for 2009 and spent the entire season at AAA Durham. He was a minor-league free agent at the end of the season and went to Korea for 2010, where he did not pitch all that well.  He played briefly for independent St. Paul in 2011.  In 2012 he pitched for independent Bridgeport and for two teams in the Mexican League.  He is pitching in winter ball this off-season.  He’s 30 today, so time has probably run out on him, but you never know.  Teams are always looking for pitching.  Maybe Julio DePaula’s story can still have a happy ending.

December 30

Frank Torre (1931)
Sandy Koufax (1935)
Jose Morales (1944)
Tom Murphy (1945)
Travis Baptist (1971)
A. J. Pierzynski (1976)

Brad Voyles (1976)

Grant Balfour (1977)
Jim Hoey (1982)

The original Jose Morales, Jose Manuel Morales Hernandez was a designated hitter for the Twins from 1978-1980. He was born in Frederiksted in the Virgin Islands, one of eleven players from the Virgin Islands to make the major leagues. He signed with San Francisco as a free agent in 1963. It took Morales a long time to get a shot at the majors. First, he was in the Giants' system for five years, two in Class A and three in AA. There was a reason for that--he really didn't have a good year in AA until his last one, in 1968. That off-season, Oakland chose Morales in the minor-league draft. The Athletics moved him up to AAA, where he would stay for most of the next five years. He had a fine year in 1970 at AAA Iowa, hitting .306 with a .524 slugging percentage, but not only did he not get a September call-up, he was returned to AAA the next year. He had a down year in 1971, moved to the Mets' organization in 1972, and was back in AAA with Oakland in 1973. He hit .293 in 1972 and .355 in 1973, which finally got him a brief trial in the majors. Part of the problem was that he was without a defensive position--nominally a catcher, he was not considered good enough to play that position in the majors, and while he was a good batter, he lacked power, so teams were reluctant to make him a DH. He was sold to Montreal in in mid-September of 1973, and he was finally brought up to the big leagues to stay in mid-1974. Morales played for the Expos from 1975-1977 and was used primarily as a pinch-hitter, seeing only occasional duty in the field. He hit very well in that role his first two years, batting .308 in 321 at-bats. In 1977, however, he slumped to .203 in 74 at-bats, and was sold to Minnesota just before the 1978 season. Morales had three solid years for the Twins, hitting .297 with 12 homers and 101 RBIs in 674 at-bats. Morales became a free agent after the 1980 campaign and signed with Baltimore. He stayed with the Orioles for a little over a year, but was seldom used. In late April, 1982, he was traded to the Dodgers. He had two good years as a pinch-hitter, but then was released in June of 1984. Montreal signed him and sent him to AAA, but Morales was never brought back to the majors and retired after the season. After his playing career ended, Morales worked as a hitting coach for several years and was highly respected; however, he grew tired of the sometimes political nature of the job and retired. At last report, Jose Morales was living in the Orlando area.

Left-hander Travis Steven Baptist made 13 relief appearances for the Twins in 1998. He was born in Forest Grove, Oregon, attended high school in Hillsboro, Oregon, and was drafted by Toronto in the 45th round in 1990. A starter for most of his minor league career, he went through the Blue Jays' system at a rate of one level a year, reaching AAA in 1994. Then, however, he stalled, staying at AAA Syracuse for three mediocre seasons. He was chosen by Minnesota in the 1996 Rule 5 draft. Apparently, something was worked out with Toronto, because Baptist was in the minors in 1997. He had a very good year there, the first good year he'd had since 1992. He had another strong year at AAA Salt Lake in 1998, and made the majors for the last two months of the season. He pitched 27 innings for the Twins, going 0-1, 5.67 with a 1.67 WHIP. That was to be the high point of his career. Baptist got off to a poor start in 1999, went to the Boston organization, continued to pitch poorly, and was with the Pirates chain in 2000. In 2001 he went to the White Sox' system, and then pitched in independent leagues for two years before his career came to an end after the 2003 season. At last report, Travis Baptist was living in Jacksonville, Florida and doing color commentary on Jacksonville University baseball games.

Right-hander Bradley Roy Voyles did not play for the Twins, but he went to spring training with them in 2007. He was born in Green Bay, went to high school in Casco, Wisconsin, and attended Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee, one of four major league players to attend that school. He was drafted by Atlanta in the 45th round in 1998. A reliever from the beginning, he pitched very well in the minors. In late July of 2001 he was traded to Kansas City, and after 11 scoreless appearances in AA he got a September call-up. He pitched well in 9.1 innings, started 2002 in AAA, but was called back to the majors in late April. He spent about half the season there, but did not do well in 22 appearances. He also split 2003 between AAA and the majors, pitching pretty well in AAA but not so well in the big leagues. He made some starts that season and was a starter in 2004. He was not pitching fairly well, but was released in mid-June anyway. Voyles pitched in AAA for the Yankees in 2005. He made three solid starts in AAA for St. Louis in 2006, but was released again in late May. Out of baseball the rest of the season, Voyles signed with Minnesota in early January of 2007 but did not make the Twins and pitched for the New Jersey Jackals. He pitched in the Northern League and in the Mexican League in 2008, then his playing career was over. His major league number are 0-4, 6.45, 1.86 WHIP in 40 appearances (68.1 innings), which may not sound like much but is better than most 45th round draft choices do. Brad Voyles is currently an instructor at the Dave Griffin Baseball School of Griffith, Indiana, coaching youth  baseball.

Catcher Anthony John “A. J.” Pierzynski played for the Twins from 1998-2003 and was the Twins' regular catcher for the last three of those years. Born in Bridgehampton, New York, he attended high school in Orlando, Florida. Pierzynski was drafted in the third round in 1994 by Minnesota. He hit for a good average throughout the low minors, although with little power and few walks. He struggled somewhat in his first couple of tries at AAA, hitting in the .250s, but took a big step forward in 2000, hitting .335 in 155 at-bats at Salt Lake. Pierzynski received brief call-ups in 1998-2000, getting a total of 120 at-bats, but became the regular catcher for the Twins from 2001-2003. He did in the majors pretty much what he had done in the minors, although he did also hit a good number of doubles. As a Twin, Pierzynski hit .301/.341/.447 for an OPS+ of 105 and made the all-star team once, in 2002. After the 2003 season, he was traded to San Francisco for Boof Bonser, Francisco Liriano, and Joe Nathan. He played one lackluster season for the Giants and then was released, signing with the White Sox. He has been the starting catcher for Chicago ever since, making another all-star team in 2006, the same year he received a tenth-place vote for MVP. He also hit double-digit home runs for seven consecutive seasons from 2003-2009. In 2012, at age 35, he had what may have been the best offensive season of his career, setting career highs in home runs (27), slugging percentage (.501) and OPS (.827) while winning a Silver Slugger award.  A free agent after the season, he signed with Texas.  He turns 36 today, so it's reasonable to wonder how much longer he'll continue, but A. J. Pierzynski is slowing no signs of slowing down so far.

Right-hander Grant Robert Balfour began his career with the Twins. Born in Sydney, Australia, he attended high school in Glenwood, Australia, and then signed with Minnesota as a free agent. A starter early in his minor league career, he was shifted to the bullpen in 2000. It took him a bit to make the transition, but he had a fine year in 2001 with AA New Britain, making two appearances with Minnesota that season. He struggled initially on his promotion to AAA, but had a good year there in 2003 as a sometime starter, sometime reliever, and spent about two months in the majors. He was with the Twins all of 2004, but battled injuries and pitched only 39.1 innings. He would miss most of the next two years with various injuries. The Twins gave up on him after the 2005 season, and Balfour became a free agent. He signed with Cincinnati, but appeared in only nine minor league games. Milwaukee selected him off waivers after the season, but while he pitched very well in the Brewers' minor league system, he made only three relief appearances for Milwaukee before being traded to Tampa Bay in late July of 2007. Balfour had a tremendous season in relief for the Devil Rays in 2008; he did not repeat that in 2009 (although he was still decent), but had another strong campaign in 2010. A free agent after the season, he signed with Oakland and turned in two more very good seasons in 2011 and 2012.  He turns 35 today, but is showing no signs of slowing down.  With a workload of around 60-70 innings per season, there’s no apparent reason Grant Balfour cannot be a good relief pitcher for at least a few more years yet.

Right-hander James Urban Hoey appeared in twenty-six games for the Twins in 2011. He was born in Trenton, New Jersey, attended Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, and was drafted by Baltimore in the 13th round in 2003. He pitched well in rookie ball but then started to have injury problems, making only two appearances in 2004 and nine in 2005. He was a starter through 2004, then switched to relieving. He pitched very well in Class A in 2006, not as well in AA, but was promoted to Baltimore in late August, where he did not do well in twelve appearances. He made forty excellent minor league appearances in 2007, twenty in AA and twenty in AAA, and came up to the majors for about two months, where he again did not do well. He missed all of 2008 with injury and struggled in AA in 2009, but pitched quite well in a 2010 split between AA and AAA. After the season, he was traded to Minnesota along with Brett Jacobson for J. J. Hardy, Brendan Harris, and cash.  Hoey started 2011 with Minnesota but pitched poorly and was sent back to AAA in late June.  He had a couple of decent months in Rochester and got a September call-up, pitching somewhat better but not all that impressively.  The Twins placed him on waivers after the season and he was claimed by Toronto.  He had a poor year at AAA Las Vegas, became a free agent, and last week signed with Milwaukee for 2013.  Control had not been a particular problem for Hoey prior to his 2008 injury, but it has been since he came back. He turns 30 today, and one would suspect he’s running out chances.  If Jim Hoey is going to have a significant major league career, he’d better get it going this year.

December 29

Hank DeBerry (1894)
Bill Knickerbocker (1911)
Ted Del Guercio (1927)
Ken Rudolph (1946)
Jim Wilson (1960)
Devon White (1962)
Craig Grebeck (1964)
James Mouton (1968)
Tomas Perez (1973)
Richie Sexson (1974)
Emil Brown (1974)
Jaret Wright (1975)
Jack Wilson (1977)

Ted Del Guercio was part of the largest trade in baseball history. He was traded by the New York Yankees along with Don Larsen, Billy Hunter, Bob Turley, Kal Segrist, Bill Miller and Don Leppert to the Baltimore Orioles for Gene Woodling, Harry Byrd, Jim McDonald, Hal Smith, Gus Triandos, Willy Miranda, Mike Blyzka, Darrell Johnson, Jim Fridley and Dick Kryhoski in the off-season following the 1953 campaign. Del Guercio was the only person involved in the trade not to play in the majors.

James Mouton was drafted by Minnesota in the eighth round in 1990, but did not sign.

First baseman James George Wilson did not play for the Twins, but was in their minor league system for much of 1987. He was born in Corvallis, Oregon, went to Oregon State (where he lettered in baseball and football), and was drafted by Cleveland in the second round in 1982. He showed power throughout his minor league career, hitting 14 homers in Class A in 1982, 26 in AA in 1983, 15 in AAA in 1984, and 26 in AAA in 1985. He had good batting averages to go with those power numbers. He was a September call-up in 1985, going 5-for-14, and doubtless big things were expected. They didn’t happen. In 1986 Wilson slumped to only 9 homers and a .232 average in AAA Maine, and was released by the Indians after the season. Minnesota signed him in mid-May and sent him to Portland, where he hit .268 with 3 homers in just 157 at-bats. He signed with Seattle for 1988 and spent the year in AA. In 1989, however, he had a big year in AAA Calgary, hitting .314 with 26 homers and getting another September call-up. He went 0-for-8, however, and would never get another shot at the majors. He was in AAA with Montreal in 1990 and with San Francisco in 1991, hitting .300 with 21 homers in Phoenix. It did him no good; he was out of baseball in 1992, played briefly with Calgary in 1993, was with independent Winnipeg in 1994, and then his playing career was over. While his minor league records are incomplete, it appears that he struck out a lot, which may be why teams were reluctant to give him a shot. Still, he hit over 20 homers in four minor league seasons and over .300 in three minor league seasons; it seems like he deserved a chance to see what he could do at the major league level. After his playing days were over, Jim Wilson coached high school and American Legion baseball in Vancouver, Washington.  He now lives in Corvalli, Oregon, and is a broadcaster for Oregon State football.  He is a member of the Oregon State Sports Hall of Fame.

December 28

Ted Lyons (1900)
Tommy Bridges (1906)
Bill Lee (1946)
Aurelio Rodriguez (1947)
John Milner (1949)
Ray Knight (1952)
Zane Smith (1960)
Carl Willis (1960)
Benny Agbayani (1971)
Melvin Nieves (1971)
Einar Diaz (1972)
B. J. Ryan (1975)
Bill Hall (1979)

Right-hander Carl Blake Willis was a reliever for the Twins from 1991-1995. Born in Danville, Virginia, he attended Piedmont Academy in Providence, Virginia, and then went to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. He was drafted by Detroit in the 23rd round in 1983. A reliever from the start, he was in the Tigers' organization for almost two years, spending about a month with the big club in 1984 before being traded to Cincinnati on the first of September. He ended his 1984 season with the Reds and spent the next two years going back and forth between Cincinnati and AAA (he had been chosen by California in the 1985 Rule 5 draft, but was returned to the Reds before the season started). Stuck in AAA all of 1987, he had a decent year there, but was traded to the White Sox after the season. He had a mediocre season in AAA for Chicago in 1988 (getting about two weeks in the majors), and was unprotected again after the season. Willis was again selected by California, this time in the minor league draft. He again spent the whole year in AAA, making ten starts along with 26 relief appearances. A free agent after the season, Willis signed with Cleveland for 1990 and had a bad year in AAA. A free agent again after the season, it appeared his career might be over, but the Twins signed him and, after three good appearances in AAA Portland, brought him to the majors. Surprisingly, given his track record, Willis gave the Twins three solid seasons out of the bullpen. From 1991-1993, he was 18-6, 2.79 with a WHIP of 1.11. He had a poor year in 1994, and when he got off to a bad start in 1995, Willis was released. He was again signed by California a couple of months later, but he once again did not get out of AAA with the Angels, and his career ended after the season. As a Twin, Carl Willis was 20-10, 3.65 in 204 relief appearances, totalling 286.1 innings. After his playing days ended, Willis got into coaching, and was the pitching coach for the Cleveland Indians. Let go after the 2009 season, Carl Willis was named minor league pitching coordinator for the Seattle Mariners and became the major league team’s pitching coach in August, the position he currently holds.

Outfielder Melvin (Ramos) Nieves did not play for the Twins, but went to spring training with them in 1988. He was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, went to high school in Santa Rosa, Puerto Rico, and signed with Atlanta as a free agent in 1988. He did all right in the low minors, but really came on in 1992, hitting .287 with 26 homers in a year spent mostly in AA. He made his big league debut that year, reaching Atlanta as a September call-up. He was playing well in 1993 when he was traded to San Diego in a trade that sent Fred McGriff to the Braves. He got a September call-up again in 1993 was in San Diego for about three weeks in 1994, hitting .308 with 25 homers in AAA that year. His first full year in the majors was 1995, when he was a reserve outfielder. He hit 14 homers in 262 at-bats, but he batted only .205. In March of 1996 he was traded to Detroit, where he stayed for two seasons. He was a semi-regular right fielder there and showed some power, hitting 44 homers over two seasons, but batted just .238. He was traded to Cincinnati for 1998 and was there most of the season, but was used primarily as a pinch-hitter. He hit .252 with 2 homers in 119 at-bats, and that turned out to be his major league swan song. He did not know it at the time, of course, and kept playing for quite a while after that. The Twins signed him as a free agent, but sold him to the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks on March 20, 1999. He was in Japan through 2000, played briefly in AAA for the Rockies in 2001, went to Mexico for 2002, was in the Atlantic League in 2003, was out of baseball in 2004, came back in the Washington organization in 2005, went back to Mexico later in 2005 and in 2006, and played briefly in Mexico again in 2008. His brother, Wil Nieves, was a major league player, as was his uncle, ex-Twin Jose Morales. At last report, Melvin Nieves was living in Southern Pines, North Carolina.

December 27

Jim Tobin (1912)
Phil Gagliano (1941)
Roy White (1943)
Craig Reynolds (1952)
Jim Leyritz (1963)
Dean Palmer (1968)
Jeff D’Amico (1975)
Jason Repko (1980)
David Aardsma (1981)
Cole Hamels (1983)

Outfielder Jason Edward Repko was a reserve for the Twins in 2010. He was born in East Chicago, Indiana, went to high school in Richland, Washington, and was drafted in the first round by the Dodgers in 1999. He was up and down in the minors, but got it going in 2004 when he hit .303 with 13 homers in a year split between AA and AAA, actually hitting a little better in AAA that year. As a result, he spent almost all of 2005 and most of 2006 in the majors with the Dodgers. The latter was his best year in the majors so far, as he hit .254 with an OPS of .722 in 130 at-bats. He missed all of 2007 with an ankle injury and was back in the minors for most of 2008 and 2009. He hit well there, combining for an average of .281 and an OPS of .812, but got only cups of coffee in the majors, getting a total of 23 big league at bats. The Dodgers released him at the end of March of 2010, and he signed with the Twins a week later. He did fairly well in Rochester and came up to the Twins in late June. He got off to a hot start but then struggled, hitting just .171 after August 8. He was with Minnesota almost all of 2011 as a reserve outfielder but did nothing offensively.  He became a free agent after the season and has not signed with anyone at this writing.  As a Twin, Jason Repko has hit .227/.297/.315 in 260 at-bats.  Those numbers are pretty much in line with his career major league numbers. A year ago, we wrote, "He may sign a minor league contract somewhere, and may even make the majors again, but the chances of Jason Repko ever becoming a productive major league player appear to be slim."  Well, he did, he did, and he wasn't.  He signed with Boston, didn't do much in the minors, and went 1-for-11 in five games in the majors.  Repko turns 32 today, as is currently a free agent.  What we wrote last year continues to apply.

December 26

Morgan Bulkeley (1837)
Stu Miller (1927)
Al Jackson (1935)
Wayne Causey (1936)
Ray Sadecki (1940)
Carlton Fisk (1947)
Chris Chambliss (1948)
Dave Rader (1948)
Ozzie Smith (1954)
Mike Sodders (1958)
Storm Davis (1961)
Jeff King (1964)
Esteban Beltre (1967)
Omar Infante (1981)

Mike Sodders was a first-round draft choice for the Twins in 1981. A star third baseman at Arizona State, he never could adjust to wooden bats, never hit, and never made the major leagues.

Infielder Esteban Beltre did not play for the Twins, but he was in their farm system in 1998. Born and raised in San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic, he signed with Montreal as a free agent in 1984. He really showed nothing offensively for several years in the minors, but he was fast, athletic, and considered a good defender, and so got promoted up the ladder anyway. Despite never having hit more than .242 in any season, he was promoted to AAA in 1990. After he predictably hit .226 in Indianapolis, he became a free agent after the season. He signed with Milwaukee for 1991 but was traded to the White Sox in late May. He hit .271 in Vancouver and got a September call-up. He was in Chicago for over half the 1992 season as a reserve shortstop, but hit just .191 in 110 at-bats. Beltre was back in the minors for 1993 and was traded to Texas in late March of 1994. He was a reserve infielder for the Rangers in 1994 and 1995, his only two full seasons in the majors. He actually had a decent year in 1994, hitting .282 (although with no power and few walks). He slumped to .217 in 1995, though, and became a free agent after the season. He signed with Boston for 1996 but was released in mid-June, ending his major league career. He did not know that, of course, and kept trying to get back. He signed with Philadelphia in early August, was released three days later, and finished the season in AAA with Atlanta. He signed with Pittsburgh for 1997, was released in spring training, and was out of baseball that year, with exception of one appearance as a pitcher for the St. Paul Saints. The Twins signed him for 1998 and sent him to AAA Salt Lake. He was the regular shortstop for the Buzz, hitting .278/.327/.353. It wasn’t enough, and he was a free agent again after the season. He kept plugging away, moving to the Baltimore organization, back to the White Sox chain, and finally to the Arizona organization before ending his playing career after the 2000 season. Ironically, his last year was his best, as he topped .300 for the only time in his career, majors or minors. His lone major league homerun came in 1992, against Minnesota, in a wild game the White Sox won 19-11. At last report, Esteban Beltre was working for the Pittsburgh Pirates’ baseball academy in the Dominican Republic.

December 25

Pud Galvin (1856)
Joe Quinn (1864)
Barry McCormick (1874)
Walter Holke (1892)
Lloyd Brown (1904)
Ben Chapman (1908)
Jo-Jo Moore (1908)
Ned Garver (1925)
Nellie Fox (1927)
Gene Lamont (1946)
Manny Trillo (1950)
Luis Quintana (1951)
Jeff Little (1954)
Charlie Lea (1956)
Wallace Johnson (1956)
Rickey Henderson (1958)
Marty Pevey (1962)

There have been 23 major league players with the first name “Jesus”, including ex-Twins Jesus Vega and Jesus “Bombo” Rivera.  There have been no major league players with the last name “Christ.”  There have been thirteen players whose first name was “Christian” (honorable mention to Cristian Guzman), fifteen players whose middle name was “Christian” (including ex-Twins Marcus Jensen, David Lamb, and Kevin Maas), and two players whose last name was “Christian”.  We would be remiss if we did not also mention 1980s journeyman catcher Steve Christmas, as well as Matt Holliday.

We would like to wish everyone a very merry and blessed Christmas.

Left-hander Donald Jeffrey “Jeff” Little was with the Twins in the second half of the 1982 season. His father, Donald Little, was a minor league pitcher in the 1950s. Jeff Little was born in Fremont, Ohio, went to high school in Elmore, Ohio, and was drafted by San Francisco in the third round in 1973. A starting pitcher initially, he did well his first couple of years, but then seemed to top out at Class A. After some undistinguished years in AA and AAA, Little was released in April of 1980. He was quickly signed by St. Louis and was sent to AAA Springfield. Converted to relief, Little had another fairly undistinguished year, despite which he was given a September call-up. He was returned to Springfield for 1981 and did a little better, but not incredibly so, and after the season Little was traded to Minnesota for Mike Kinnunen. For some reason, or perhaps for no reason, Little had a tremendous first half in 1982, posting a 1.33 ERA in nine appearances at AA Orlando and a 1.76 ERA in 25 appearances with AAA Toledo. The pitching-poor Twins called him up to the majors at the beginning of July, and he didn't do too badly. In 36.1 innings spread over 33 appearances, Little was 2-0, 4.21, although with a 1.65 WHIP. Back in Toledo in 1983, Little's carriage turned back into a pumpkin--he had a 7.91 ERA and a 2.39 WHIP in 33 innings, and was released after the season. He signed with Pittsburgh and posted good numbers in ten outings at AA, but no one is impressed with a 29-year-old who's still in AA no matter how well he does there, and so his career ended after the season. No information about Jeff Little's current life was readily available.

Right-hander Charles William Lea came to Minnesota in 1988, at the end of his major league career. He was born in Orleans, France, one of eight major league players to be born in France. His family moved to Memphis, Tennessee when he was a few months old. He attended high school in Memphis and attended the University of Memphis. Lea was then drafted by Montreal in the tenth round in 1978. He got off to a tremendous start in 1980 for AA Memphis, going 9-0 in nine starts with seven complete games and an ERA of 0.84. He made two starts in Denver, working to a 1.50 ERA in 12 innings, and then was in the majors to stay. Lea was fairly average in his first couple of years in the majors, but was a solid starter from 1982-1984. He averaged over 200 innings per year in those three seasons with an ERA of exactly 3.00 and a WHIP of 1.20. He made the all-star team in 1984 for the only time in his career. Unfortunately, that was as good as it got for him. Lea missed the next two seasons due to a shoulder injury and was never the same again. He came back in 1987 and had a mediocre year in the minors, making one last start for the Expos in September. Minnesota signed him for 1988. He stayed with the Twins all year, and while he wasn't dreadful, he wasn't very good, either. As a Twin, Charlie Lea was 7-7 with a 4.85 ERA in 24 games, 23 of them starts. The Twins offered him the chance to pitch again in 1989, but he decided to call it a career. After his retirement, Lea returned to college, obtaining a degree in business administration from Memphis State. Charlie Lea was inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in 1999. He waa radio broadcaster for the Memphis Redbirds and coached youth baseball coach in Memphis.  Sadly, Charlie Lea passed away from a heart attack on November 11, 2011.

Catcher Marty Ashley Pevey did not play for the Twins, but was drafted by them. He was born in Savannah, Georgia and went to high school there. Pevey then attended Georgia Southern University and was drafted by Minnesota in the 19th round in 1982. The Twins sent him to Elizabethton, where he hit .284 with a .356 OBP in 91 plate appearances. The Twins apparently didn't think much of that, as they released him after the season. Pevey signed with St. Louis. He spent the next three years in Class A with the Cardinals, despite the fact that he compiled a .304 batting average in those years. Finally promoted to AA in 1986, he hit .326 in 172 at-bats for Arkansas. He struggled at AAA, however, and was traded to Montreal after the 1987 season. He put in a couple of mediocre seasons at AAA with the Expos, spending about six weeks in the majors in 1989. Pevey missed all of 1990 with an injury, and though he played several more years, he never made it back to the majors. He was in the Blue Jays' organization in 1991, in the Tigers' system in 1992 and 1993, went back to the Blue Jays' system in 1994, and split 1995 between the Detroit and Seattle chains before ending his playing career. Pevey immediately was hired by Toronto as a minor league manager. Later, he was the Blue Jays' first base coach, a job he held until June of 2008, when he was let go along with manager John Gibbons. He managed the Peoria Chiefs in 2009, then became the catching coordinator for the Chicago Cubs, and in 2013 will manage AAA Iowa in the Cubs organization. Marty Pevey was inducted into the Effingham County Sports Hall of Fame in 2005.

December 24

Henry Mathewson (1886)
Chico Garcia (1924)
Frank Taveras (1949)
John D'Acquisto (1951)
Tim Drummond (1964)
Mo Sanford (1966)
Kevin Millwood (1974)
Jamey Wright (1974)

Henry Mathewson is the younger brother of Christy Mathewson.

Right-hander Timothy Darnell Drummond was with the Twins from 1989-1990. Born in LaPlata, Maryland, he was drafted by Pittsburgh in the twelfth round in 1983. Drummond was in the Pirates' system for five years, the first three as a starter, the last two as a reliever. His numbers in both roles were decent, but not particularly impressive. He did get a September call-up in 1987, pitching six innings for the Pirates. In March of 1988, Drummond was traded to the Mets. The change seemed to help him, or maybe it was just maturity and experience. In any event, he did better at AAA Tidewater, although his numbers were still not eye-popping. At the end of July, 1989, Drummond was traded to Minnesota with Rick Aguilera, Kevin Tapani, David West, and a player to be named later (Jack Savage) for Frank Viola. He did well in ten outings for Portland, came to Minnesota at the end of August, and made the Twins out of spring training in 1990. It was his first full season in the majors. He made 39 appearances, four of them starts, and went 3-5 with a 4.35 ERA. Unfortunately, it was also his last full season in the majors, and in fact was his season in the majors at all. Drummond was back in Portland in 1991, went to the Baltimore and Cincinnati organizations for 1992, and then his playing career was over. As a Twin, Tim Drummond was 3-5, 4.28 with a WHIP of 1.53 in 43 games, four of them starts. At last report, Tim Drummond was the sports League Director for Charles County, Maryland and located in LaPlata. 

Right-hander Meredith Leroy "Mo" Sanford was with the Twins for about six weeks in 1995. A big man (6'6", 220), Sanford was born in Americus, Georgia, attended high school in Starkville, Mississippi and then went to the University of Alabama. He was drafted by Cincinnati in the 32nd round in 1988. He pitched quite well in his first four years in the minors, and did okay in five starts with the Reds in August of 1991, posting a 3.86 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP in 28 innings. He had a poor year for AAA Nashville in 1992, however, and was left off the Reds' forty-man roster. Colorado selected him in the Rule 5 draft. Some arrangement must have been worked out with Cincinnati, because Sanford started the season at AAA Colorado Springs, not coming up to the Rockies until the end of July. He did not have a very good year with either team, and became a free agent after the season. The Twins signed him and sent him to AAA Salt Lake for 1994, where he had another poor year. He wasn't pitching any better at the start of 1995, but the Twins brought him up to the majors at the end of April. Sanford made 11 relief appearances for Minnesota, pitching 18.2 innings, and did about what they should have expected: no record, a 5.30 ERA, and a 1.71 WHIP. The Twins let him go, and he went on to Texas for 1996. He did better in AAA for the Rangers, but not well enough to convince them to give him another shot at the majors. Sanford kept trying, pitching in Taiwan in 1997, in Mexico in 1998, and for independent teams in the United States in 1999 and 2000 before ending his playing career. Mo Sanford was an assistant to the general manager for the Kansas City Royals. At last report, he was living in Cincinnati and was an instructor for SWOBAT, a baseball instructional and training facility in West Chester, Ohio.

December 23

Mike Grady (1869)
Sam Leever (1871)
Tommy Thomas (1899)
Jerry Koosman (1942)
Dave May (1943)
Raul Cano (1945)
Jerry Manuel (1953)
Keith Comstock (1955)
Tim Leary (1958)
Frank Eufemia (1959)
Rick White (1968)
Brad Lidge (1976)
Jesus Colome (1977)
Victor Martinez (1978)
Hanley Ramirez (1983)

Left-hander Jerome Martin Koosman pitched for the Twins from 1979-1981, winning twenty games for them in 1979. He was born in Appleton, Minnesota, and attended high school in Morris, Minnesota. He attended the University of Minnesota—Morris and the North Dakota State College of Science, then was signed by the Mets as a free agent in 1964. Koosman struggled his first couple of years, but had a terrific year in 1966 at Class A Auburn. He jumped straight from Class A to the majors in 1967, but was not ready yet and was sent back to AAA in mid-May. He pitched very well at AAA Jacksonville, was back in New York in September, and never went to the minors again. Koosman was a member of the Mets' rotation for eleven consecutive years, posting an ERA just over three and averaging over 220 innings per season. He was second to Johnny Bench in Rookie of the Year balloting in 1968, when he won 19 games and had an ERA just over two. He made the all-star team in 1968 and 1969, got consideration for the MVP award three times, and was second in Cy Young voting (to Randy Jones) in 1976. In 1977-78, Koosman managed to go 11-35 despite an ERA of 3.62 a WHIP of 1.26. He also led the league in strikeouts per nine innings in 1977. After the 1978 season, he was traded to Minnesota for Greg Field and a player to be named later, which turned out to be Jesse Orosco. Finally given a little run support again, Koosman won 36 games over the next two seasons, twenty of them in 1979. At the end of August, 1981, he was traded to the White Sox for Ivan Mesa, Ronnie Perry, "not the" Randy Johnson, and cash. He pitched well for Chicago for the rest of 1981 and in 1982, but slipped a little in 1983 at age 40, although he still won 11 games and had a WHIP of 1.35. The White Sox sent Koosman to Philadelphia, where he pitched the final two seasons of his career before retiring at age 42. As a Twin, Jerry Koosman was 39-35 with a 3.77 ERA in 94 games, 83 of them starts. After retiring, he was a minor league pitching coach in the Mets' organization for a time. He was inducted into the Mets' Hall of Fame in 1989. Sadly, he pled guilty to income tax evasion in May of 2009. He was sentenced in September and served a six-month prison sentence, from which he was released in June of 2010. At last report, Jerry Koosman was living in the Twin Cities area and was working for Mesa Technologies, which provides information technology services to businesses.

Left-hander Keith Comstock began his major league career with the Twins in 1984. Born in San Francisco, Comstock was drafted by California in the fifth round in 1976. He struggled early in his minor league career, and was released by the Angels after a poor 1979 season at AA El Paso. Oakland signed him and kept him at AA West Haven for three years. He pitched pretty well there, but the Athletics clearly had no plans for him, and sold him to Detroit after the 1982 campaign. The Tigers also placed him in AA, and he had a fine year there, going 12-3 with a 3.21 ERA. All it got Comstock was his release. The Twins picked him up and started him in the big leagues in 1984, but sent him to AAA after only four relief appearances, in which he pitched 6.1 innings and gave up six runs. He had another excellent minor league season, going 12-6 with a 2.79 ERA, but again he only got a release out of it. Deciding he was never going to get a chance in the majors, Comstock went to Japan for two years. He came back to the United States in 1987, splitting the next three years between AAA and the majors. He was with the Giants at the start of 1987, went to San Diego in July, stayed there until his release in June of 1989, and then went to Seattle. In 1990, Comstock got his only full season in the majors and he made the most of it: in 60 relief appearances, he was 7-4 with a 2.89 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. As always, the excellent season did him no good. He spent almost the entire 1991 season at AAA, making only one appearance in the majors. That appearance would be his last, as his playing career ended after that season. He then went into coaching, and managed in the Giants' minor-league system from 1998-2001. Keith Comstock is currently the rehabilitation coordinator for the Texas Rangers.

Right-hander Frank Anthony Eufemia played his only major league season with the Twins in 1985. Born in the Bronx, he attended Ramapo College of New Jersey, one of two major league players that school has produced (the other is Mark Leiter). Eufemia was drafted by the Twins in the 18th round in 1982. A reliever throughout his career, Eufemia moved up the Twins farm system at a good pace and, after posting a 1.49 ERA in AAA Toledo in 36.1 innings, he was promoted to the majors in mid-May of 1985. He had a good season: in 61.2 innings spread over 39 games, Eufemia went 4-2 with a 3.79 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. That was as good as it would get, however, and after a poor 1986 season in Toledo, Eufemia was out of organized baseball at age 26. He tried to come back with the Mets, pitching for AAA Tidewater in 1992. His numbers weren't bad, but they led him nowhere. Eufemia was one of the replacement players during the 1995 players' strike. He also pitched for New Jersey in the independent Northeast League in 1998; then his playing career ended for good. One wonders if he might have pitched in Japan or someplace at least part of that time, but this could not be confirmed. Frank Eufemia currently teaches physical education at Pascack Hills High School in Montvale, New Jersey.  He also works for the Joe Wladyka Baseball Camp in New Jersey, which was rated one of the nation's top five instructional camps by Baseball America. He is a member of the Ramapo College Hall of Fame.

December 22

Connie Mack (1862)
Matty Alou (1938)
Elrod Hendricks (1940)
Steve Carlton (1944)
Hiroyuki Yamazaki (1946)
Charley Taylor (1947)
Steve Garvey (1948)
Tom Underwood (1953)
Ken Landreaux (1954)
Lonnie Smith (1955)
Glenn Wilson (1958)
George Wright (1958)
Andy Allanson (1961)
Mike Jackson (1964)

Steve Garvey was drafted by Minnesota in the third round in 1966, but did not sign.

Left-hander Steven Norman Carlton pitched for the Twins in 1987 and 1988.  He is a very deserving Hall of Famer, but there was little chance he would go in wearing a Twins hat.  He was born in Miami and attended North Miami High School.  Carlton was then signed as a free agent by St. Louis in 1963.  He pitched very well in the Cardinals system in 1963 and 1964.  He reached the majors for the first time in 1965, but pitched only 25 innings in 15 games.  He appears to have been injured that season, as he went two months in the middle of the season without pitching.  Even though he pitched well in limited duty, he was sent back to the minors for most of 1966, not getting back to St. Louis until the end of July.  In 1967, however, Carlton began the year as a rotation starter at the age of 22.  He would remain one for many years.  Carlton remained with the Cardinals through 1971, making the all-star team three times.  His best season as a Cardinal was 1969, when he went 17-11 with an ERA of 2.17.  He won 20 games for the first time in 1971.  In February of 1972, he was traded to Philadelphia for Rick Wise, and while Rick Wise was a fine pitcher, it's safe to say St. Louis came out on the short end of the trade.  Carlton was the ace of the Phillies rotation for the next thirteen years.  His best year in Philadelphia was probably his first one, when he went 27-10 with a 1.97 ERA, winning his first Cy Young award.  He had many other fine years as a Phillie:  he led the league in wins four times won twenty games five times, led the league in complete games three times (in his first eleven seasons in Philadelphia, he averaged sixteen complete games per season), led the league in innings and strikeouts five times, won the Cy Young award four times and was in the top four two other times, finished in the top five in MVP voting three times, in the top ten two more times, and in the top fifteen once more, and made seven all-star teams.  Just for good measure, he also won a Gold Glove.  He was still pitching well in 1985, at age 40:  he had an ERA of just 3.33, but a record of 1-8 due to lack of run support, when he was injured in mid-June.  He never really came back from that.  After a poor start in 1986, the Phillies released Carlton in June.  He signed with the Giants in early July, but was released again in early August.  He finished out the season with the White Sox and actually pitched pretty well in ten starts, becoming a free agent after the season.  Carlton then went to Cleveland and was traded to Minnesota at the end of July, 1987 for Jeff Perry.  He made nine appearances as a Twin, seven of them starts, and went 1-5.  He began 1988 with Minnesota but pitched poorly in four outings and was released, ending his playing career.  As a Twin, Steve Carlton was 1-6 with an 8.54 ERA.  For his career, however, Carlton won 329 games, pitched 254 complete games, had an ERA of 3.22, and was an easy choice for the Hall of Fame.  Carlton is a private person, refusing to talk to the media for much of his career.  That privacy continues to this day.  Despite his fame, there is little information about his current life.  The biographies one finds all end with the close of his playing career.  Even his website does not give any details, other than providing a list of personal appearances, which are numerous.  One assumes he prefers it that way and these days, a celebrity who is not constantly seeking the spotlight seems rather refreshing.

Outfielder Kenneth Francis Landreaux played for the Twins in 1979 and 1980 and made his only all-star appearances as a member of the Minnesota Twins.  A cousin of Enos Cabell, Landreaux was born in Los Angeles and went to high school in Compton, California.  He then attended Arizona State and was drafted by the Angels with the sixth pick of the 1976 draft.  He never played lower than AA, hit .357 in a 1977 season split between AA and AAA, and was in the majors by the end of the season, never to return to the minors until the end of his career.  In his first full season, 1978, Landreaux was a reserve, used all over the outfield, and did not hit well, batting .223.  That off-season, he was traded to Minnesota with Dave Engle, Paul Hartzell, and Brad Havens for Rod Carew.  Landreaux responded to the trade with possibly his best season as a big leaguer:  he hit .305 with fifteen homers and twenty-seven doubles, putting together a 31-game hitting streak.  The next year, 1980, Landreaux made the all-star team for the only time in his career.  In March of 1981, he was traded again, going to the Dodgers for Kelly Snider, Matt Reeves, and Mickey Hatcher.  Landreaux would sepend the remainder of his major league career with Los Angeles.  He played well for the Dodgers for six years, never a star, but always a decent player.  In 1986, Landreaux missed a month due to injury.  The next year, he slumped to .203 and was reduced to part-time status.  He was done as a major league after that.  He played two more seasons at AAA, one with Baltimore and one with the Dodgers, but could not work his way back to the big leagues.  Landreaux retired after the 1989 season.  As a Twin, he hit .294/.341/.435 in two season.  Landreau has done some minor-league coaching, most recently with the Syracuse Sky Chiefs in 2001-2002.  At last report, Ken Landreaux was an instructor with the Urban Youth Academy in Compton, California.

Right-handed reliever Michael Ray Jackson came to Minnesota in 2002, near the ned of a long and fairly successful major league career.  A native of Houston, he attended high school there and was drafted by Philadelphia in the second round of the secondary phase of the January draft in 1984.  A starting pitcher his first two years in the minors, he switched to the bullpen in 1986 and took to it immediately.  Jackson posted a 2.18 ERA in a 1986 season split between AA and AAA, reacing the Phillies by mid-August.  He was with Philadelphia all of 1987 but struggled with his control.  That off-season, Jackson was traded to SEattle.  He was a valuable set-up man for the Mariners for four season, picking up a handful of saves each year.  His only bad year with Seattle was 1990, when control trouble again bothered him.  After the 1991 season, Jackson was traded to San Francisco, where he again served as a very good set-up man for three season, leading the league in appearances in 1993.  A free agent after the 1994 campaign, he went to Cincinnati for 1995, to Seattle for 1996, and then to Cleveland for 1997.  It was in Cleveland, at the age of 33, that Jackson got his first chance to be a closer.  He made the most of it, posting 40 saves with a 1.55 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP in 1998.  He had 39 saves in 1999, but was allowed to become a free agent after the season and went back to Philadelphia.  Jackson was injured for all of the 200 season, however, and was again a free agent after the season.  He went to Houston for 2001, where he returned to a set-up role.  Jackson became a free agent again after the season and signed with Minnesota for 2002.  He pitched quite well for the Twins, putting up a 3.27 ERA and a WHIP of 1.31 in 55 innings spread over 58 appearances.  After the season, Jackson once more became a free agnet, siging with Arizona, but was released at the end of spring training and did not play in 2003.  He made a comebakc with the White Sox in 2004 but did not pitch well and was released in early September, bringing an end to a playing career in which he appeared in over 1000 games.  It is difficult to find current information about him; an internet search reveals that he shares his name with a man who was apparently once a singer of some note.  At last report, our Mike Jackison was an instructor with Big League Baseball Academy of Tomball, Texas, but his name does not currently appear on that organization's website.  His son, also named Mike, pitched for Penn State.

December 21

Cy Williams (1887)
Josh Gibson (1911)
Bob Rush (1925)
Howie Reed (1936)
Paul Casanova (1941)
Elliott Maddox (1947)
Dave Kingman (1948)
Joaquin Andujar (1952)
Tom Henke (1957)
Roger McDowell (1960)
Andy Van Slyke (1960)
Dustin Hermanson (1972)
LaTroy Hawkins (1972)
D’Angelo Jimenez (1977)
Freddy Sanchez (1977)
Philip Humber (1982)

Right-hander LaTroy Hawkins was with Minnesota for the first nine years of his major league career, 1995-2003. He was born in Gary, Indiana and attended high school there. Hawkins was then drafted by the Twins in the seventh round in 1991. A starting pitcher throughout his minor league career, he did pretty well, getting brief trials with the Twins in 1995 and 1996. He began 1997 at AAA Salt Lake, and was not pitching that well, but he was 9-4, which was enough for the pitching-poor Twins to bring him up in mid-June and keep him in the starting rotation the rest of the season. He remained a rotation starter through 1999. As a starter, Hawkins was durable, and he was consistent: he posted an ERA well over five and a WHIP over 1.5 every season.  At that point, he didn't look like a good bet to still be in the majors in 2002, let alone 2012. Shifted to the bullpen in 2000, Hawkins became the Twins' closer toward the end of the season, a role he held until August, 2001. He did all right in the beginning, but less and less well as the 2001 season wore on, and eventually was placed in a set-up role. Hawkins thrived in that role, giving the Twins two solid seasons before becoming a free agent after the 2003 campaign. He became the Cubs' closer in June of 2004 and did not do that badly, but was once again a set-up man in 2005 and was traded to the Giants in late May. He moved on to Baltimore in 2006, to Colorado in 2007 (where he had a fine year as a setup man and helped the Rockies reach the World Series), to the Yankees at the start of 2008, and to Houston in late July of 2008. He stayed with the Astros for 2009, and then became a free agent. He signed with Milwaukee, but had a poor year in 2010; he was injured much of the season, and did not pitch well when he was able to pitch.  They gave him another shot in 2011 and he responded, going 3-1, 2.42, 1.24 WHIP in 48.1 innings.  A free agent again, he signed with the Angels and had another good year out of the bullpen. As a Twin, he was 44-57 with a 5.05 ERA, 44 saves, and a WHIP of 1.52. He is again a free agent.  He turns 40 today, so obviously each year he pitches could be his last, but there's no reason to think LaTroy Hawkins is done just yet.

Infielder D’Angelo Jimenez did not play for the Twins, but was in their minor league system for the second half of 2010. Born and raised in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, he was signed by the Yankees as a free agent in 1994. His early minor league numbers are decent, but not terribly impressive until you note that he was always young for his league, reaching AAA at age 20. He got noticed in 1999, though, hitting .327 with 15 homers in AAA Columbus and getting a September call-up. He was injured most of 2000, was back in AAA in 2001, and was traded in late June of that year to San Diego. He finished that season in the majors, hitting .276 in half a season as the Padres’ starting shortstop. He started 2002 in that same role, but was traded to the White Sox in mid-July. He won the White Sox’ second base job in 2003 but was again traded in mid-season, this time to Cincinnati. He started at second for the Reds for the rest of 2003 and all of 2004, hitting .270 in the latter season, He was still the Reds’ second baseman at the start of 2005, but when he hit only .229 he was sent to AAA in mid-May. That was the last time he would have a starting job in the majors. He signed with Texas for 2006, was released in mid-June, and finished the season with Oakland, spending most of the year in AAA. Released again after the season, he signed with Washington for 2007. Jimenez was in the majors most of the season as a utility infielder and did all right in that role, but was allowed to become a free agent after the season. That was his last time in the majors, at least so far. He moved on to the Cardinals’ organization for 2008, was in the Atlantic League and the Mexican League in 2009, and was playing in the Mexican League again in 2010 when the Twins signed him in late June. The Twins sent him to Rochester, where he hit .225/.300/.381 in 231 at-bats.  Back in the Mexican League again in 2011, he hit .320 in 147 at-bats.  In 2012 he played in three leagues, the Can-Am, the American Association, and the Mexican League, and hit a combined .296.  At age 35 he’s not going to be a regular anywhere, but if he was to get back to the majors as a reserve infielder, he probably wouldn’t be the worst one in the league.

Right-hander Philip Gregory Humber's career with Minnesota consisted of 13 games over two seasons. Born in Nacogdoches, Texas, he went to high school in Carthage, Texas, attended Rice University, and then was chosen by the Mets with the third pick of the 2004 draft after a stellar college career. He pitched poorly in 2005 and then was injured, requiring Tommy John surgery. He missed much of 2006 recovering from surgery, but he did well when healthy and got a September call-up to the Mets that year, throwing two scoreless innings. He had a decent but unspectacular year for AAA New Orleans in 2007, again getting a September call-up. In February of 2008, Humber was traded to the Twins with Deolis Guerra, Carlos Gomez, and Kevin Mulvey for Johan Santana. He had a mediocre year for AAA Rochester, again getting a September call-up. Humber began 2009 in Minnesota, had two good outings and two bad ones, and went back to Rochester. He did not do very well there, but was brought back in August, again having two good outings and two bad ones. As a Twin, Philip Humber had no record, a 6.10 ERA, and a 2.03 WHIP in 20.2 innings spread over 13 appearances.  Let go by the Twins after the 2009 season, Humber signed with Kansas City for 2010. He had a rather mundane season with AAA Omaha, getting back to the majors for the last two months of the season. The Royals placed him on waivers after the season, and he was selected by Oakland in December.  The Athletics waived him again a month later, and he was selected by the White Sox.  Surprisingly, at age 28 he seemed to put things together.  Not only did he get his first full season in the majors in 2011, he had a pretty good one, going 9-9, 3.75, 1.18 WHIP in 26 starts.  He was unable to repeat that success in 2012, however; despite a perfect game in April, he went 5-5, 6.44, 1.54 WHIP.  After the season he was waived by the White Sox and claimed by Houston.  He turns 30 today and is probably at a cross-road in his career.  If he's going to have a substantial career, he'd better do something this year.

December 20

Jack Manning (1853)
Harry Stovey (1856)
Jimmy Williams (1876)
Branch Rickey (1881)
Fred Merkle (1888)
Butch Henline (1894)
George Pipgras (1899)
Gabby Hartnett (1900)
Spud Davis (1904)
Eddie Leishman (1910)
Julio Becquer (1931)
Oscar Gamble (1949)
Cecil Cooper (1949)
Ken Bolek (1953)
Jose DeLeon (1960)
Augie Ojeda (1974)
Aubrey Huff (1976)
David De Jesus (1979)
David Wright (1982)

Left-handed first baseman Julio (Villegas) Becquer played briefly for the Twins in 1961 and 1963. Becquer was born in Havana and signed with Washington as a free agent in 1952. He hit fairly well throughout his minor league career, although he struggled at AAA in 1956. Becquer got a September call-up in 1955, but did not make the majors to stay until 1957. He was with Washington from 1957-1960, always in a reserve role; his highest at-bat total was 298 in 1960. He did not show a lot at the plate in the majors, although he was apparently a good fielder and good pinch-hitter. He was left unprotected in the 1960 expansion draft, and was selected by the Angels. He played in only 11 games for Los Angeles, was sold to Philadelphia in May, and three weeks later was sold to the Twins. Once again a reserve, Becquer got 84 at-bats in 57 games, hitting .238/.253/.476. Most of the rest of his career was spent in the Mexican League, although he played in 11 games for AAA Vancouver in 1962 and was used as a pinch-runner in one game for the Twins in September of 1963 so that he could qualify for a major league pension. His playing career ended in 1964. He remained in the Twin Cities area after his playing career ended, is alive and well, and appears at various Twins promotional events and at baseball instructional clinics, as well as the annual Twins' fantasy camp. From the most recent pictures that could be found, he appears to be in very good health. Julio Becquer was inducted into the Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997.

Infielder Octavio Augie Ojeda played for the Twins in 2004, a part of his surprisingly long major league career. He was born in Los Angeles, went to high school in Downey, California, attended the University of Tennessee, and was drafted by Baltimore in the 13th round in 1996. His best years in the minors were 1997, when he hit .344 for Class A Frederick, and 2000, when he hit .280 for AAA Iowa. After the 1999 season, Ojeda was traded to the Cubs. He made his major league debut in 2000, playing for Chicago for about two months. The next year, 2001, was his first full season in the majors: Ojeda hit .201, and it would be seven years before he got another full season in the bigs. He was in Iowa for most of 2002 and 2003, playing a total of 42 major league games in that span. A free agent after 2003, he signed with Minnesota, hit .245 in Rochester, and came up to the Twins in August of 2004. He actually did quite well for the Twins in limited play, hitting .339 with two home runs in 59 at-bats. He was back in the minors for all of the next two years, one with Rochester and one back in Iowa in the Cubs' chain. In 2007, Ojeda signed with Arizona. After hitting .323 there, he was brought up to Arizona in mid-June and stayed there through 2010. He was a decent utility infielder for the Diamondbacks, although certainly nothing spectacular. After a poor year in 2010, he was allowed to become a free agent.  He signed back with the Cubs, went to AAA, but did nothing there and was released in July, ending his playing career.  At last report, Augie Ojeda was living in Chandler, Arizona.

December 19

Ford Frick (1894)
Al Kaline (1934)
Tony Taylor (1935)
Walt Williams (1943)
Rob Gardner (1944)
Geoff Zahn (1945)
Kevin Stanfield (1955)
Stu Cliburn (1956)
Stan Cliburn (1956)
Tom Lawless (1956)
Clay Parker (1962)
Bill Wegman (1962)
Mike Fetters (1964)
Chito Martinez (1965)
Russell Branyan (1975)
Rafael Soriano (1979)

Clay Parker was drafted by Minnesota in the twenty-first round in 1984, but did not sign.

Left-hander Richard Frank "Rob" Gardner never pitched for the Twins, but started his professional career in their organization. Gardner was born in Binghamton, New York, and attended high school there.  Research did not indicate why he was called “Rob”; perhaps the story simply isn’t very interesting. He was signed by the Twins as a free agent in 1963. He had a fine year for Class A Orlando (pitching 241 innings as an 18-year-0ld), but after the season was selected by the Mets in the first-year player draft. He struggled in 1964, but had another very good season in 1965, earning a September call-up. He spent all of 1966 with the Mets, but did not do very well. Back in the minors at the start of 1967, Gardner was traded to the Cubs in June. He made 18 appearances with Chicago, five of them starts, and did not do too badly. Gardner was on the move again the next year, traded to Cleveland right before the 1968 season. He was in AAA Portland most of that season and at the start of the 1969 campaign before being traded again, this time going to the Yankees in June. Gardner was mostly at AAA Syracuse through the 1972 season, pitching fairly well there, but getting only brief shots at the majors in 1970 (1 game), 1971 (six games, four of them with Oakland, to whom he was traded in April before being traded back to the Yankees in May), and 1972 (a longer stint--20 games). Gardner was traded back to Oakland before the 1973 season and made three more appearances before being sent to Milwaukee. He was in 10 games for the Brewers before being sent back to Oakland again. That was to be his last time in the big leagues--he was in the Detroit organization in 1974, back in the Yankees organization in 1975, and then his career was over. He may not have had a great major league career, but at least he got to see a lot of the country.  Each of the times the Yankees traded him, it was for one of the Alou brothers. No current information about Rob Gardner was readily available.

For a player who didn't have a full year in the majors until he was in his thirties, left-hander Geoffrey Clayton Zahn had a pretty decent major league career. He was a member of the Twins from 1977-1980. Born in Baltimore, he attended high school in Toledo, Ohio and then went to the University of Michigan. He was drafted by the Dodgers in the fifth round of the secondary phase of the January draft in 1968. Zahn pitched well in the low minors, stumbled in his first couple of tries at AAA, but had a strong year for Albuquerque in 1973, earning a September call-up. He battled injuries in 1974 and 1975, making sporadic appearances for the Dodgers before being traded to the Cubs in May in a trade involving Burt Hooton. He was with the Cubs through the end of 1975 and in April of 1976, but then was sent back to the minors and was released after the season. The Twins took a chance on Zahn, signing him for the 1977 season, and the chance paid off. He became a big league rotation starter for the first time at age 31, and was a solid member of the Minnesota rotation for four years, winning twelve to fourteen games every year and averaging over 200 innings per season. He became a free agent after the 1980 campaign and joined the exodus out of Minnesota, signing with the Angels. He pitched even better in California, posting ERAs under four for three consecutive years, winning 18 games in 1982 (when he finished sixth in Cy Young voting), and leading the league in shutouts in 1984 while continuing to average around 200 innings per season. He was off to a strong start in April of 1985 when he was injured, and while he tried to come back in August, he was clearly not himself any more, and retired after the season. As a Twin, Geoff Zahn was 53-53 with a 3.90 ERA in 133 games, 126 of them starts. He won 111 games in his career, which is not bad for someone who had eight career wins when he turned 31. After his retirement, Zahn went into coaching, and was the head coach at the University of Michigan from 1996-2001. Today, Geoff Zahn tours the country as a Christian motivational speaker.

Left-hander Kevin Bruce Stanfield spent his entire major league career with the Twins. He was born in Huron, South Dakota, and was drafted by the Twins in the seventh round of the January draft in 1976. He did well in 1976, had a poor year for Class A Visalia in 1977, but bounced back for a good year at AAA Toledo in 1978. He did less well in repeating AAA in 1979, but was given a September call-up to the Twins that year. Stanfield pitched three innings over three games, giving up two runs on two hits for an ERA of 6.00. Oddly, that's where Kevin Stanfield's baseball story ends; he developed a sore arm over the off-season and never pitched again in either the majors or the minors. While there are still several families of Stanfields living in Huron, Kevin Stanfield was at last report living in San Bernardino, California.

Right-hander Stuart Walker Cliburn never played for the Twins, but has been a pitching coach in their minor league system for some time. He was born in Jackson, Mississippi, and attended high school there. He then went to Delta State University and was drafted by Pittsburgh in the fourth round in 1977. He pitched well in the low minors, but looked as he was going to top out at AA, as he struggled in various tries at the AAA level and was released just before the 1982 season. The Angels picked him up, though, and in 1984 he had a fine year in the Edmonton bullpen, getting a September call-up. He followed that up with a good year for the Angels in 1985, going 9-3 with six saves and a 2.09 ERA in 44 appearances. For reasons that are not clear, however, he spent the next two years at AAA. Cliburn finally got another shot at the big leagues in 1988, and did not pitch too badly, although not as well as in 1985. It again got him nowhere; he was in the Angels' minor league system for two more years, pitched in the Seniors league in 1990, and then his career was over. He immediately got into coaching, and has been a minor league pitching coach ever sins his playing days ended. Often, he has been the pitching coach for teams managed by his twin brother Stan. Stu Cliburn is currently the pitching coach for the New Britain Rock Cats.

Catcher Stanley Gene Cliburn never played for the Twins, but has managed in their minor league system. He was born in Jackson, Mississippi, and attended high school there. He was drafted by the California Angels in the fifth round in 1974. He hit over .300 in consecutive years of Class A (1976-1977), but stumbled when he was promoted higher. He hit only .238 in AAA in 1979 and was hitting .125 in 1980, but the Angels were apparently desperate for a backup catcher, because Cliburn was promoted to the majors in early May of 1980. He appeared in 54 games, garnering 56 at-bats and batting .179 with two home runs. He moved on to the Pittsburgh organization after that, spending two years in AA and three years in AAA from 1981-1985. He returned to the California organization for 1986, then was traded to the Braves system for 1987. That was his last season as a player, other than a stint in the Seniors League in 1989. He began his career as a minor league manager in 1988. Cliburn managed in the Pittsburgh and Texas organizations and in the independent Texas-Louisiana League before coming to the Twins in 2000. He has managed in Class A, AA, and AAA for the Twins, often with his brother Stu as the pitching coach.  Since 2011, Stan Cliburn has been the manager of the independent Sioux City Explorers.

Right-handed reliever Michael Lee Fetters appeared with the Twins briefly in 2003. Born in Van Nuys, California, he attended high school in Honolulu. Fetters then went to Pepperdine, and was drafted by the Angels in the first round in 1986. Fetters was a starting pitcher throughout his minor league career, but was never given a chance in a major league rotation, starting only six big league games. He got a September call-up in 1989, spent most of 1990 and 1991 in the big leagues, but did not really develop until he was traded to Milwaukee after the 1991 season. Fetters went 5-1 in 1992 with a 1.87 ERA and a 0.99 WHIP in 50 games. He never repeated that level of success, but he was a solid contributor to the Brewers' bullpen through 1997, spending three years (1994-1996) as the Milwaukee closer. After the season, he was traded to Oakland by way of Cleveland. Fetters struggled after leaving Milwaukee, and was on the move again in August, traded back to the Angels. He went to Baltimore for 1999 and to the Dodgers for 2000. In 2000, he had his first good season since 1997, going 6-2, 3.24 with a 1.20 WHIP. He could not sustain it, though, and at the end of July, 2001 he was traded to Pittsburgh. Fetters moved on to Arizona in July of 2002, became a free agent at the end of the season, and signed with Minnesota. Fetters appeared in five games in April, throwing six scoreless innings and giving up only two hits. Then, however, he got hurt, and was out the rest of the year. He went back to the Diamondbacks for 2004, but did not pitch well, and his career was over after the season. Mike Fetters is best remembered for the sudden jerk of his head toward home plate while in the stretch. Fetters is the cousin of opera baritone Steven Totter.  After his playing days ended, Fetters was a sports agent in Beverly Hills for a few years.  He is now a Special Assistant to the Executive Vice President and General Manager for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Outfielder Reyenaldo Ignacio “Chito” Martinez did not play for the Twins, but went to spring training with them in 1994. He was born in Belize, British Honduras (the first major league player born in Belize) and was drafted by Kansas City in the sixth round in 1984. It took him a while to develop power, as he hit no home runs in his first two minor league seasons. In 1986, however, he hit .304 with 11 homers for AA Memphis. His average fell off after that, but his power continued, as he hit over 20 homers in AAA in both 1989 and 1990. He did not get a call to the majors, however, and after the 1990 season he became a free agent. Baltimore signed him, and after an awesome half-season in Rochester (.322 average, 20 homers, 1.046 OPS in 211 at-bats) he got the call to the majors. He hit fairly well as a part-time outfielder for the Orioles through 1992, but after starting 1993 0-for-15 he was sent to the minors, never to return. A free agent after the season, he signed with Minnesota for 1994 but failed to make the team. He had a good year in AAA for the Yankees that year, moved on to the Colorado organization for 1995, and then his playing career was over. Chito Martinez is currently a territory representative for SimplexGrinnell, a company located in Memphis that designs, services, and installs fire protection systems throughout North America.

December 18

Ty Cobb (1886)

Dick Coffman (1906)

Gino Cimoli (1929)

Moose Skowron (1930)

Zoilo Versalles (1939)

Steve Hovley (1944)

Drew Coble (1947)

Roy Howell (1953)

Jim Clancy (1955)

Scott Bailes (1961)

Willie Blair (1965)

Joe Randa (1969)

Jose Rodriguez (1974)

Zoilo Casanova (Rodriguez) Versalles played for the Twins from their inception through 1967, and is still arguably the best shortstop the Twins have ever had. Born in Veldado, Cuba, he was signed by the Washington Senators prior to the 1958 season. He had three solid seasons in the minors, getting cups of coffee with Washington in both 1959 and 1960. Versalles came to Minnesota with the team in 1961 and became the team's regular shortstop that year at the age of 21. He remained in that position through 1967. He had some fine years with the Twins. He made the all-star team twice, in 1963 and 1965. He also won the Gold Glove in both of those years. He finished 21st in the MVP voting in 1962 and won the award in 1965. 1965 was probably his best season: Versalles hit .273 with 45 doubles, 12 triples, and 19 home runs. He led the league in runs, doubles, triples, and total bases in an era when .200-hitting shortstops could be major league regulars. Only 25, it looked like Versalles might be a star for a long time, but he never came close to repeating that season. By 1967, he had slumped to a .200 batting average, and after that season he and Mudcat Grant were traded to Los Angeles for Bob Miller, Ron Perranoski, and Johnny Roseboro. The next year, 1968, was Versalles' last as a major league regular, as he hit only .196. He was taken by San Diego in the expansion draft, but was traded to Cleveland before the 1969 season started. The Indians traded him to Washington in mid-July; he finished the season there, but was released just prior to the 1970 campaign. He played in the Mexican League for a year and a half, came back to Atlanta at the end of May in 1971, but was released again after the season. He played in Japan in 1972, and played briefly in the Kansas City organization in 1973. As a Twin, Zoilo Versalles hit .250/.296/.383, which, again, is better than it may sound when considered in context. Sadly, life after baseball was difficult for Versalles. His proficiency in English was limited, and he held a series of low-paying jobs. His health failed, and he eventually had to sell his awards. Zoilo Versalles passed away in Bloomington, Minnesota on June 9, 1995. He was posthumously inducted into the Twins' Hall of Fame in 2006.

Left-hander Jose Ilich (Jose) Rodriguez pitched in four games for Minnesota in 2002. He was born in Cayey, Puerto Rico, attended Florida International, and was drafted by St. Louis in the 24th round in 1997. A reliever throughout his career, Rodriguez started slowly in the minors. He had a good year in 2000, though, making the majors for about three weeks. He had another good year for AAA Memphis in 2001. In 2002, Rodriguez started in Memphis, came up to St. Louis for two games in early May, went back to Memphis, and was released in early June. A week later the Twins signed him and sent him to AAA Edmonton. He pitched 5.2 scoreless innings there and came up to Minnesota at the end of June. Rodriguez pitched 3.2 innings, giving up six runs on eight hits and four walks for an ERA of 14.73. He remained in the Twins' organization through the end of the year and was released, but then re-signed with Minnesota for 2003. He began the year in AAA Rochester, pitched poorly in 7.2 innings, and was released again in late April. Rodriguez moved on to the Montreal organization for the rest of 2003, went to the Baltimore system in 2004, was released in mid-July, hooked on with the Florida organization, and stayed there through 2005. Rodriguez was apparently out of baseball in 2006, made three appearances with independent Newark in 2007, and then signed a contract with the Indians organization for 2008. He was released again, and apparently went to Taiwan; at least there’s a 2008 Taiwan baseball card of him. As you might guess, there are lots of people named Jose Rodriguez in the world; one source indicates there are over two thousand just in the state of Florida.  No current information about “our” Jose Rodriguez was readily available.

December 17

Cy Falkenberg (1879)

Ray Jablonski (1926)

Cal Ripken (1935)

Jerry Adair (1936)

Leo Cardenas (1938)

Bob Ojeda (1957)

Marvell Wynne (1959)

Curtis Pride (1968)

Alex Cintron (1978)

Chase Utley (1978)

Shortstop Leonardo Lazaro (Alfonso) Cardenas was with the Twins from 1969-1971. Born in Matanzas, Cuba, Cardenas began his professional career in 1956 as a 17-year-old in the independent Arizona-Mexico League. He then went into the Cincinnati Reds' organization. He was in Class A Savannah for two years, then Class AAA Havana for a year and a half before getting called up to the majors in late July of 1960. He was installed as the starting shortstop at the age of 21, but did not hit and was reduced to part-time status. He started 1961 as the starter as well, but again went to the bench after a lack of offense. Given another chance at the starting job in late July, Cardenas went on a tear and ended the season hitting .308, the only year of his career he hit over .300. He remained Cincinnati's starting shortstop through the 1968 season. He hit .261 in his years with the Reds, which is much better than it sounds given the offensive context of his time, especially for a shortstop. He made the all-star team every year from 1964 through 1968 except for 1967, when he was injured part of the season. He also won a Gold Glove in 1965 and finished 21st in MVP voting. Cardenas also led the league in intentional walks in 1965 and 1966. After the 1968 season, Cardenas was traded to Minnesota for Jim Merritt. He gave the Twins three solid seasons, finishing 12th in MVP voting in 1969 and 21st in 1971, when he again made the all-star team. As a Twin, Cardenas hit .263/.325/.394 for an OPS+ of 98, and also provided fine defense. After the 1971 campaign, the Twins traded Cardenas to the Angels for Dave LaRoche. 1972 would be his last as a big league regular, as he hit just .223. Just before the 1973 season started, the Angels traded him to Cleveland, where he was used as a reserve. Cardenas moved on to Texas for 1974 and 1975, and then his career was over. At last report, Leo Cardenas was living in Cincinnati and making regular appearances at Reds promotional events.

December 16

Sammy Strang (1876)

Tony Kaufmann (1900)

Neil Chrisley (1931)

Adolfo Phillips (1941)

Mike Flanagan (1951)

Rick Sofield (1956)

Tom Gorman (1957)

Billy Ripken (1964)

Jeff Granger (1971)

Charles Gipson (1972)

Matt Kinney (1976)

The reason Neil Chrisley is listed is because his given name is Barbra O’Neil Chrisley. No explanation for this name is given, but it seems reasonable to assume that he’s the only man to play major league baseball whose first name was Barbra.

Jeff Granger was drafted by Minnesota in the fourteenth round in 1990, but did not sign.

Outfielder Richard Michael Sofield played for the Twins from 1979-1981. Born in Cheyenne, Wyoming, he attended high school in Morristown, New Jersey and was drafted by the Twins with the 13th pick in the 1975 draft, turning down a football scholarship at Michigan. He struggled early, but broke through in 1977, hitting .325 with 27 homers for Class A Visalia. Sofield never had a year like that again; his next highest minor-league average was .281 in 1978 with AA Orlando, and his next highest minor-league home run total was five. Still, he began 1979 as the Twins' starting right fielder. He did not keep the job--in mid-May he was hitting .241, had only one extra base hit, and was sent to AAA. He was called back in September, though, and hit .400 (14-f0r-35), which was enough for him to regain the starting right fielder job for the Twins in 1980. It was not only his only full year as a big-league regular, it was his only full year in the big leagues. He hit .247 with nine homers. He started 1981 in Minnesota, but did poorly and went back to Toledo, never to return. He began 1982 with Toledo, finished in Denver in the Texas system, and then was done, out of baseball at age 25. After leaving baseball, he enrolled at the University of South Carolina intending to play football, but was declared ineligible after it was revealed that he had briefly attended the University of Minnesota in 1975. He instead became an assistant baseball coach for South Carolina, was head coach at Utah from 1988-1994, and then went into coaching at the professional level with a variety of organizations. In 2007, Rick Sofield was hired as the first baseball coach of the University of South Carolina--Beaufort, a position he held through 2011.  He managed Class A West Virginia in the Pittsburgh organization in 2012 and was recently named as first-base coach for the Pirates for 2013.  He will also coach outfielders and baserunning.

Left-hander Thomas Patrick Gorman did not play for the Twins, but was in their farm system in 1987. He was born in Portland, Oregon, attended Gonzaga University, and was drafted by Montreal in the fourth round in 1980. Pitching mostly in relief, he was started in AA and had two fine seasons in Memphis, making his major league debut as a September call-up in 1981. He struggled in AAA in 1982 when he was converted to starting, and was traded to the Mets in mid-August. He righted himself in 1983, and after a strong start at Tidewater came up to the Mets in late June. He was excellent out of the Mets bullpen through 1984, but struggled in 1985 and was released at the end of 1986 spring training. Philadelphia signed him and he pitched very well in AAA Portland, but not so well when brought to the majors for a month. He was released again after the season and signed with San Diego for 1987, but when he continued to struggle he was traded to Minnesota in June for right-hander Dave Blakely. He did well in limited innings, going 1-4, 3.02, 1.39 WHIP in 44.2 innings. The Twins let him go after the season. He made one appearance in AAA with Oakland in 1988, then his playing career was over.  The third most famous Tom Gorman in baseball history (behind the former umpire and the 1950s relief pitcher), at last report this Tom Gorman was an instructor with Metro Baseball Academy in Clackamas, Oregon.

Right-handed pitcher Matthew John Kinney began his major-league career with the Twins, pitching for them in 2000 and 2002. He was born in Bangor, Maine, and went to high school there. He was drafted by Boston in the sixth round in 1995. He pitched well in the low minors, but was still in Class A on July 31, 1998 when he was traded to Minnesota with Joe Thomas and John Barnes for Orlando Merced and Greg Swindell. He flopped in a promotion to AA in 1999, but did better there in 2000. Kinney also pitched fairly well when promoted to AAA in 2000, and reached the Twins briefly that year, making eight starts at the end of the season. He had a bad year at AAA Edmonton in 2001, but was still placed in the starting rotation for a couple of months in the beginning of 2002. It did not go well, and it did not go well for him in the minors that year, either, although he appears to have been injured part of the year. That off-season, Kinney was traded with Javier Valentin to Milwaukee for Gerry Oakes and Matt Yeatman. He was in the Brewers rotation all of 2003 despite not pitching very well, was sent to the bullpen in 2004, continued to not pitch well, and was placed on waivers in August. Kansas City selected him, he finished out the year there, and then became a free agent. Kinney signed with San Francisco and was in the starting rotation for AAA Fresno for the next three years, getting a September call-up in 2005 but not in 2006 or 2007. He pitched in Japan in 2008, but came back to the United States in 2009, again with Fresno. He was injured much of 2010, making only seven appearances for Fresno. Near the end of the season, he received a fifty-game suspension for testing positive for adderall, an amphetamine. Kinney stated it was a drug he had taken since 2005 to treat his ADHD, but he had not filed the proper paperwork to get permission to use it in 2010. As a Twin, Matt Kinney was 4-9 with a 4.82 ERA in 22 games, 20 of them starts.  His playing career ended with the 2010 suspension.  At last report, Matt Kinney was an instructor for The Cages, a baseball training facility in Phoenix, along with fellow instructor and ex-Twin Chad Moeller.