September 30

Gabby Street (1882)

Nap Rucker (1884)

Bobby Williams (1895)

Johnny Allen (1904)

Robin Roberts (1926)

Johnny Podres (1932)

Craig Kusick (1948)

Dave Magadan (1962)

Yorkis Perez (1967)

Jose Lima (1972)

Carlos Guillen (1975)

Seth Smith (1982)

Kenley Jansen (1987)

Gabby Street was a light-hitting catcher who played in parts of eight major leagues seasons, mostly for the Washington Senators. He was Walter Johnson's primary catcher. He later did some managing and broadcasting. He is best remembered as the first man to catch a baseball dropped from the top of the Washington Monument.

Five players born on this day made their major league debut in 2019:  Jesus Luzardo, Travis Demeritte, Trent Thornton, Jack Mayfield, and Brian Moran.  I don't know that that's a record, but I don't know that it isn't, either.

Left-hander John Joseph Podres did not play for the Twins, but served as their pitching coach from 1981-1985. Born and raised in Witherbee, New York, he signed with Brooklyn as a free agent in 1951. He had a tremendous season for Hazard in the Class D Mountain States League that year, going 21-9, 1.66 with a WHIP of 1.12. He went to AAA in 1952, then made his major league debut in 1953. Still very young, Podres struggled some, but was kept in the majors for three years and spent much of that time in the starting rotation. He came up big for the Dodgers in the 1955 World Series, going 2-0 with an ERA of 1.00 and pitching a shutout in game seven, which earned him the first World Series MVP award. After missing 1956 to military service, he came back in 1957 to have what was probably his best major league season. He was only 12-9, but he led the league in ERA (2.66), shutouts (6) and WHIP (1.08). He moved to Los Angeles with the team in 1958 and remained a rotation starter for the Dodgers through 1963. His best year is often thought to be 1961, but other than his won-lost record (18-5), he was not particularly better that year than any other. He missed most of 1964 with an injury, but came back to have a solid year in 1965. He was traded to Detroit early in 1966 and had a couple of solid seasons for them working mostly out of the bullpen. He was released in 1967 and was out of baseball in 1968, but in 1969 Podres attempted a comeback with, fittingly enough, the Padres. He had a mediocre season for San Diego, and then his playing career was over for good. He went into coaching after that; he was the pitching coach for the Twins from 1981-1985 and also was the pitching coach for San Diego (1973), Boston (1980), and Philadelphia (1991-1996). After his retirement he lived in Queensbury, New York. His career numbers are 148-116, 3.68, 1.32 WHIP. He made three all-star teams (1958, 1960, 1962) and finished fourteenth in MVP voting in 1961. He was inducted into the Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 2002. Johnny Podres passed away on January 13, 2008 in Glens Falls, New York.

First baseman Craig Robert Kusick played for the Twins from 1973-1979. He was born in Milwaukee, attended the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse, and was signed by the Twins as a free agent in 1970. An outfielder early in his minor-league career, Kusick was moved to first base in 1972. He hit well at every minor-league stop. In 1973, he hit .305 with 27 homers for AAA Tacoma, a season which earned him a September call-up to the Twins. He was off to a hot start in Tacoma in 1974 when he was called up to the Twins in early June. Kusick was the regular first baseman for the Twins the rest of the season, but batted only .239 with 8 home runs. He was reduced to part-time status in 1975, spending two months back at AAA. In 1976, the Twins moved Rod Carew to first base, and Kusick became a part-time DH. He shared the DH spot with Tony Oliva in 1976 and with Glenn Adams and Rich Chiles in 1977. He was consistent in those years, at least, hitting in the .250s with 11 and 12 home runs, respectively. He fell apart in 1978, however, batting only .173. He was used mostly as a pinch-hitter in 1979, and did not do badly in that role, but was sold to Toronto in July. Kusick was released by the Blue Jays after the season, and signed with the Padres organization. He had a strong year in 1980 for AAA Hawaii, but was not given another chance in the majors. He split 1981 between Hawaii and AAA Evansville in the Detroit organization, but was out of baseball after that. As a Twin, Kusick hit .236/.343/.392, with 44 homers in 1184 at-bats. He tied a major league record when he was hit by a pitch three times in one game in August of 1975. He returned to Minnesota after his retirement, coaching baseball at Rosemount High School from 1983-2004. Kusick’s son, Craig Kusick, Jr., won the Melberger Award as the nation’s top Division III football player, and later played four seasons in the Arena League. Craig Kusick passed away from leukemia on September 27, 2006.

Left-hander Yorkis Miguel Vargas Perez did not play for the Twins but was in their minor league system for a few years. Born and raised in Bajos de Haina, Dominican Republic, he signed with Minnesota as a free agent in 1983 at age 15. He made a few appearances at Elizabethton over the next few years, but was apparently in the Dominican Summer League most of that time. He reached Class A in 1986 and struggled, but he was still only eighteen years old. In February of 1987, Perez was traded to Montreal with Al Cardwood, Neal Heaton, and Jeff Reed for Tom Nieto and Jeff Reardon. His results were up and down for the next few years in the minors, but he was always pretty young for his league, reaching AA at age 19. The Expos were not impressed, though, and released him after the 1990 season. He signed with Atlanta, and in 1991 he seemed to have a breakthrough, going 12-3, 3.79 at AAA Richmond, although with a WHIP of 1.42. The Braves weren’t overly impressed either, and traded him to the Cubs in late September, in time for him to make his major league debut for Chicago that season. He went 1-0, 2.08, 0.92 WHIP in 4.1 innings, but the Cubs released him that December. No one signed him that winter, and it appeared that his career might be over at age 23. He went to Japan for 1992, signed with Seattle in late August, was released again in January without actually pitching for the Mariners, and went to Montreal as a free agent in 1993. He pitched fairly well out of the bullpen, in a year split between AA and AAA, but was allowed to become a free agent after the season and signed with Florida. He finally got a chance for a major league career with the Marlins, spending one full season and two nearly-full seasons in the majors. He had a good year in 1994, a mediocre one in 1995, and a bad one in 1996, after which he was traded to Atlanta. He did not make the Braves in 1997, instead being placed on waivers and selected by the Mets. Most of 1997 was spent in the minors; he again became a free agent after the season and moved on to Philadelphia. He was with the Phillies for two years and pitched pretty well as a LOOGY. Perez was traded to Houston in late March of 2000, got off to a poor start, and was released in July. He did not give up, signing with the Dodgers for 2001, getting released in April, pitching in Mexico that season, signing with Arizona for 2002, getting released again in late March, and signing with Baltimore. By late June he had battled his way back to the majors and again did well as a LOOGY. It was his last hurrah, however, as the Orioles released him after the season and his playing career came to an end. He played for eleven different organizations, six major league teams, and in Mexico and Japan, but pieced together a pretty decent career: 14-15, 4.44, 1.41 WHIP in 282 innings over 337 games. He is a cousin to Melido, Pascual, and Carlos Perez. His mother and sister passed away in a plane crash in 2001. His son, Leurys Vargas, was a first baseman who spent three seasons in rookie ball for the Mariners. Yorkis Perez was living in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic at last report.

September 29

Dave Orr (1859)

Gus Weyhing (1866)

Harry Steinfeldt (1877)

Paul Giel (1932)

Mike McCormick (1938)

Rich Reese (1941)

Steve Busby (1949)

John McLaren (1951)

Warren Cromartie (1953)

Byron McLaughlin (1955)

Tim Flannery (1957)

Craig Lefferts (1957)

Rob Deer (1960)

Derek Parks (1968)

Jake Westbrook (1977)

Heath Bell (1977)

Joe Thurston (1979)

Jake Reed (1992)

Tyler Mahle (1994)

Dave Orr is considered the greatest nineteenth century slugger of all.  His career was cut short when he suffered a stroke in 1890 at the age of 31.

Outfielder Warren Cromartie was drafted by the Twins in the third round of the January Secondary draft in 1972, but did not sign.

Right-hander Paul Robert Giel was one of the original Minnesota Twins, appearing in 12 games for them in 1961. Born and raised in Winona, Minnesota, he attended the University of Minnesota and signed with the New York Giants as a “bonus baby” free agent in 1954. That status required him to remain in the majors for two years. He hardly played in the first year, but in the second he did not do too badly, going 4-4, 3.39 in 82.1 innings. He then spent two years in the military, returning to baseball in 1958. He made five AAA starts, then came up to the majors in early June. He did not pitch particularly well, however, and was placed on waivers in April of 1959. Pittsburgh claimed him, but after four bad outings sent him back to AAA, where he remained the rest of the season. He was a seldom used long reliever in 1960, doing a little better but still not all that well, and was again sent back to AAA at mid-season. He was sold to Minnesota in February of 1961 and began the year with the Twins. He appeared in 12 games, pitching well in four of them and decently in four more. In the remaining four, however, he allowed 19 runs (17 earned) on 14 hits and 5 walks in 3.1 innings. In June, he was essentially traded for himself: he was traded to Kansas City on June 1 with a player to be named later and Reno Bertoia for Bill Tuttle and a player to be named later. After one disastrous outing for Kansas City, he was chosen as the player to be named later and sent back to Minnesota (the Twins sent cash to complete their end of the trade). He does not appear to have pitched any more, however; his record as a Twin was 1-0, 9.78, 2.12 WHIP in 19.1 innings. He was probably better in football than he was in baseball: a two-time All American, he was the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy in 1953 and is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame. He later served as the athletic director at the University of Minnesota. Paul Giel passed away in Minneapolis on May 22, 2002 while in his car after attending a Twins game.

First baseman Richard Benjamin Reese played for the Twins from 1964-1973. He was born in Leipsic, Ohio, went to high school in Deshler, Ohio, and was signed by the Tigers as a free agent in 1962. In November of that year he was drafted by the Twins in the first-year draft. He had a good year with Class A Bismarck-Mandan in 1963, and another one with Class A Wilson in 1964, getting a September call-up in the latter season. Reese began 1965 with the Twins, but was used exclusively as a pinch-hitter/defensive replacement. He was sent back to AA Charlotte in mid-May after appearing in only 14 games and getting only 7 at-bats. The inactivity apparently hurt him, as he never did get things going that year, batting only .226. He bounced back in Denver the next year, hitting over a hundred points higher, and by 1967, he was in the big-leagues to stay. He still struggled to find playing time, however, as he was blocked at first base by some guy named Killebrew. In 1968, however, Harmon missed significant playing time with injuries, and Reese had his chance. He hit .259, which is better than it may sound: the batting champion only hit .301 that year. It was good enough to convince new manager Billy Martin to move Killebrew to third base in 1969, and play Reese at first. The move paid off, as Reese had his best year in the majors. He batted .322 with 16 homers and got a ninth-place vote in the MVP balloting. Reese came back to earth in 1970, however, and in 1971 slumped to .219. He was reduced to a part-time player in 1972, but his batting did not improve. Reese was purchased by the Tigers that November, but could not regain his form. Released by Detroit in August of 1973, the Twins re-signed him, but he was released after the season and his career was over. Long-time Twins fans may remember a grand slam Reese hit in 1969 off Dave McNally, ending McNally’s 17-game winning streak.  He is tied for the record for most pinch-hit grand slams with three. As a Twin, Rich Reese hit .260/.318/.393 with 50 homers in 1918 at-bats. After his retirement, Reese went to work for James B. Beam Distilling Company, serving as company president from 1997-2006, when he retired to live in Scottsdale, Arizona. His daughter, Kristine, is a teaching professional at the Vision 54 golf school in Phoenix.

Right-hander Byron Scott McLaughlin did not play for the Twins, but was in spring training with them in 1981. He was born in Van Nuys, California, went to high school in Santa Monica, California, and signed with Montreal as a free agent in 1973. He apparently was in extended spring training or something, but was released in June of 1974 without appearing in a minor league game. He was out of baseball the rest of that year, but signed with Baltimore for 1975, He struggled in a year split between rookie ball and Class A and was released in March of 1976. He had an outstanding 1976 in the independent Gulf States League, going 10-4, 3.05 in 15 games, and signed with Seattle in January of 1977. He was loaned to the Mexican League that season, but returned to make one appearance for the Mariners in September. He was in the majors most of 1978, making 17 starts. 1979 was his first full year in the majors and it was his best year, as he went 7-7, 4.22 with 14 saves over 123.2 innings. In 1980 he slumped to a 6.85 ERA and a 1.92 WHIP in 90.2 innings, and in December he was traded to Minnesota for Willie Norwood. He failed to make the staff, which on the 1981 Twins took some doing, and went back to Mexico. The Angels purchased him in August of 1982, and he made it back to the majors in early June of 1983. He was a long reliever and spot starter the rest of the season, going 2-4, 5.17 in 55.2 innings. His playing career ended after that. While in Mexico, he apparently made some interesting connections, because after his playing career ended he made a deal with some Korean companies to manufacture cheap counterfeit sneakers for the Mexican market. He eventually pled guilty to money laundering, but fled the country before sentencing and was reported living near Cannes.  More recently he has been reported to have gone back to Mexico in the Tijuana area, but this is unclear.

Catcher Derek Gavin Parks played for the Twins from 1992-1994. He was born in Covina, California and was drafted by Minnesota with the tenth pick of the 1986 draft. He hit 24 home runs for Class A Kenosha in 1987 and was considered a top catching prospect. Injuries and poor batting limited his playing time the next three seasons. Finally, in 1992, he got healthy again and batted .245 with 12 home runs for AAA Portland. He got a September call-up that year, and when he hit .311 with 17 homers for Portland in 1993, he appeared to be on his way. It did not work out that way. Parks spent all of 1994 with the Twins, but couldn’t beat out Matt Walbeck. He played in only 31 games, hitting .191 in only 89 at-bats. The Twins apparently soured on him quickly, as they let him go after the season. No one picked him up, and Derek Parks’ playing career was over.  For his career, Derek Parks hit .200/.258/.378 in 115 at-bats, all with Minnesota.  He is the father-in-law of Dodgers pitcher Joe Kelly.  No other information about Derek Parks’ life after he was an active player was readily available.

Infielder Joseph William Thurston did not play for the Twins but was in AAA for them in 2012.  He was born in Fairfield, California, went to high school in Vallejo, California, attended Sacramento City College, and was drafted by the Dodgers in the fourth round in 1999.  He was decent, but not much more than that, in his early minor league career, but had a strong year in AAA in 2002 and got a September call-up.  He got September call-ups in 2003 and 2004 as well, but could not get more than that other than a few weeks in May in 2004.  He was traded to the Yankees in late July of 2005 and then became a baseball nomad.  He was with the Phillies in 2006, signed with Washington for 2007, was released late in spring training, went back to the Phillies, signed with Boston for 2008, went to the Cardinals in 2009, to Atlanta for 2010, and to Florida for 2011.  He signed with Houston for 2012, got released late in spring training, signed with Philadelphia, was released in late April, and signed with Minnesota on April 25, 2012.  He spent most of that time in AAA, getting brief shots in the majors in 2006, 2008 and 2011.  The one time he got extended big league time was 2009, his only full season in the majors.  He appeared in 124 games that season, half of them as a defensive replacement, and hit .225.  The Twins sent him to Rochester in 2012, where he went 4-for-43 and was released again after about three weeks.  His story was far from over, though.  He played in the Atlantic League and in Mexico in 2013, signed with Milwaukee for 2014, was again released late in spring training, played in the Mexican League, played winter ball, and signed with Boston for 2015.  He did not make the team, however, and became a coach for the Red Sox' AA affiliate, the Portland Sea Dogs.  He coached for Billings in the Cincinnati system in 2016 and then moved on to the Seattle chain, serving as the batting coach of the Modesto Nuts in 2017-2018 and of the Everett Aqua Sox in 2019.  He was the major league team's first base coach in 2020 and was the batting coach of the Arkansas Travelers in 2021.  He moved on to the Philadelphia organization in 2022, and has been the batting coach for the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs the last three seasons.

Right-handed reliever Jacob Hubert Reed did not play for the Twins, but was in their farm system from 2014-2019.  He was born in Tucson, went to high school in La Mesa, California, attended the University of Oregon, and was drafted by Minnesota in the fifth round in 2014.  He pitched quite well in the minors, struggling when promoted to AA in 2015 but pitching very well in AAA.  In 2018 he posted a 1.89 ERA with a 1.15 WHIP and 50 strikeouts in 47.2 innings, and appeared more than ready for the majors.  In 2019, however, he went backward, putting up an ERA of 5.76 and a WHIP of 1.47.  He struck out more batters and didn't walk any more, but simply gave up a lot more hits.  One wonders if, having pitched very well in the minors but not getting a call-up, he was simply trying to do too much.  Or, perhaps, he had an injury.  At any rate, he did not play in 2020, became a free agent, and signed with the Angels for 2021.  He pitched poorly in AAA and was released in early June, signing with the Dodgers a couple days later.  He did well in AAA for them and also did well in two weeks in the majors in July, but was still waived and was claimed by Tampa Bay.  After six good appearances in AAA he was waived again and was claimed by the Mets in early August.  He did well in four major league appearances for them.  He started 2022 in AAA with the Mets, was called up for fie appearances, was put on waivers in mid-July, was claimed by the Dodgers, pitched very well in AAA, posted a 1.93 ERA for them in five appearances, was waived again in early September, and was claimed by Baltimore.  He was waived again in October, claimed by Boston, waived again in November, and was claimed by the Dodgers again.  He had a poor year in AAA in 2023 and made on very bad appearance in the majors in April.  He became a free agent after the season and his playing career came to an end.  His wife, Janie Takeda-Reed, played softball for the United States in the 2020 Olympics.  He and his wife own The Clubhouse, "San Diego's premier sports training facility."

Right-handed starter Tyler Fermin Mahle played for the Twins in 2022-2023.  He was born in Newport Beach, California, went to high school in Westminster, California, and was drafted by Cincinnati in the seventh round in 2013.  He pitched well in the low minors, but struggled when promoted to AA in 2016,  In 2017, however, he pitched very well in AA, continued to pitch well in AAA, and made his major league debut in late August of that year.  He was in the Reds rotation in 2018 and 2019, but did not pitch particularly well in either season.  He did well in the shortened 2020 season, however, and proved he could do it over a full season in 2021.  He was not doing as well, but was still having a fairly solid season, in 2022 when he was traded to the Twins for Spencer Steer, Steve Hajjar, and Christian Encarnacion-Strand.  It was a lot to give up for him, but was thought to be worth it if Mahle could lead the Twins to the division title.  Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way.  He made three starts for the Twins, went on the injured list, made one more start, and went back on the injured list, where he remained the rest of the season.  He came back in 2023 and pitched well in five starts in April, but then went back on the injured list, where he remained the rest of the season.  He signed with Texas for 2024 and remained unable to pitch for most of the season, making three starts in August.  As a Twin, he was 2-3, 3.64, 1.05 WHIP in 42 innings (nine starts).  He turns thirty today.  He's been a good pitcher when healthy, but the last time he was healthy was 2021.  If he can get healthy, he was probably sign with someone for 2025.

September 28

Lou Bierbauer (1865)

Wilbur Good (1885)

Jack Fournier (1889)

Whitey Witt (1895)

Al Evans (1916)

Dick Gernert (1928)

Grant Jackson (1942)

Pete Filson (1958)

Jerry Layne (1958)

Todd Worrell (1959)

Ed Vosberg (1961)

Charlie Kerfeld (1963)

Matt Vasgersian (1967)

Mike DeJean (1970)

Ryan Zimmerman (1984)

Nick Greenwood (1987)

Eddie Rosario (1991)

Manuel Margot (1994)

Jerry Layne has been a major league umpire since 1989.

Matt Vasgersian has been a major league baseball broadcaster since 1997.

Left-hander William Peter Filson played for the Twins from 1982-1986. He was born in Darby, Pennsylvania, attended Temple University, and was drafted by the Yankees in the ninth round in 1979. He pitched very well in the low minors, going 17-3 with a 1.89 ERA in a 1981 season split between Class A Fort Lauderdale and AA Nashville. In May of 1982, Filson was traded to the Twins with Larry Milbourne and John Pacella for Roger Erickson and Butch Wynegar. Filson was immediately placed in the Twins’ starting rotation, but after getting knocked around a few times was first sent to the bullpen and then to AAA Toledo. He had a mediocre year in Toledo. We’re talking about the early ’80s Twins, however, when having a mediocre year in AAA was good enough to get you on the big club. Sure enough, in 1983, Filson was on the big club. He stayed there the next three years, and actually pitched fairly well. He had ERAs from 3.4 to 4.1, and WHIPs consistenly around 1.3. Filson was used mostly in relief in those years, making an occasional spot start. In 1986, however, he got off to a poor start and spent most of the year in AAA. In September, he was traded to the White Sox for Kurt Walker, and was sent to the Yankees the following January. Filson had a fine 1987 at AAA Columbus, and finished the year with the Yankees, doing well in seven appearances. Unfortunately, he tore his rotator cuff, and missed all of 1988. Filson became a free agent after the season, and signed at the end of May, 1989 with Kansas City. He had a very good year with AAA Omaha in 1990, and made it back to the big leagues for a month and a half after a two-and-a-half year absence. He did not pitch well for the Royals, however. Filson was released after the 1990 season, and his career came to an end. He became a coach after his playing days, and has served as the pitching coach of the North Shore Spirit and the Newark Bears. As a Twin, Pete Filson pitched 323 innings in 130 games, 24 of them starts. He was 14-13 with an ERA of 3.98 and a WHIP of 1.36. At last report, he was an instructor at AFC Baseball, which is part of AFC Fitness of Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania.

Left-hander Nicholas Richard Greenwood did not play for the Twins, but was in their farm system in 2016.  He was born in Farmington, Connecticut, attended the University of Rhode Island, and was drafted by San Diego in the fourteenth round in 2009.  He was traded to St. Louis at the July trade deadline in 2010 in a three-team trade that included Corey Kluber and Jake Westbrook.  He had both started and relieved for the Padres, but went to the bullpen full time with St. Louis.  He reached AAA in 2012 but didn't do much there until 2014, when he got off to an excellent start and was promoted to the majors for most of the season.  He pitched in long relief (or at least what passes for long relief these days) and had an up-and-down year, mixing excellent appearances with very bad ones.  He went back to starting in 2015 and did poorly, despite which he made one appearance with the Cardinals in July.  He became a free agent after the season and signed with the Cubs, but was released during spring training.  He began 2016 with independent New Britain, but signed with the Twins in early May.  He made five starts in AA and eleven starts (sixteen appearances) in AAA and did well.  He signed with the Twins for 2017, but was injured and released on May 10 without playing for them.  He went back to independent New Britain and made fifteen starts for them, but did not pitch very well. He played a few games of winter ball after that, but then his playing career came to an end.  At last report, Nick Greenwood was a pitching coach for Wesleyan University of Middletown, Connecticut.  He was also a substitute teacher for the Cromwell school district in Cromwell, Connecticut.

Oufielder Eddie Manuel Rosario played for the Twins from 2015-2020.  Born and raised in Guayama, Puerto Rico, he was drafted by Minnesota in the fourth round in 2010.  He hit well throughout the low minors but did not do as well when he reached AA in 2013.  He had a poor year in AA in 2014, although he was still only 22.  He hit very well in the Arizona Fall League after that season, though, and started 2015 in AAA.  He didn't have a particularly strong April there, but was still called up to the majors in early May and stayed the rest of the season, hitting double digits in doubles, triples and homers while leading the league in triples.  He also showed a good arm in the outfield.  He got off to a slow start in 2016 and went to the minors for a month and a half in mid-May.  Some were already starting to write him off, but he came back to have a solid second half of the season.  He had his best season in 2017, batting .292/.332/.516 with 27 home runs, but his next three seasons were not far off.  As a Twin, he batted .277/.310/.478.  He was a free agent after the 2020 season and signed with Cleveland for 2021.  He had a down year there, especially in the power department, and was traded to Atlanta at the July deadline.  He rebounded and then some after the trade, posting an OPS of .903 and having an outstanding post-season, including being the MVP of the NLCS.  He could not carry it over to 2022, however, and is batting just 212 with an OPS of .587.  He rebounded again in 2023, batting .258 with an OPS of 768.  He signed with Washington for 2024, was released in July, signed with Atlanta, was released in August, signed with the Mets, and was released again.  He did not hit in any of those places.  He turns thirty-three today.  He's bounced back unexpectedly a couple of times, so we won't say he couldn't do it again, but it seems more likely that his playing career is over.

Outfielder Manuel Margot played for the Twins in 2024.  He was born in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic, and signed with Boston as a free agent in 2011.  He was never a great batter in the minors, although he did have some decent seasons.  His best offensive season was 2014, when he was still in Class A.  He was traded to San Diego after the 2015 season as part of a trade that brought Craig Kimbrel to Boston.  He made his major league debut in September of 2016 and came to the major to stay, other than some injury rehabs, in 2017.  He was their regular center fielder through 2019.  He had a decent season in 2017, batting .263 with an OPS of .721, but declined over the next two years and was traded to Tampa Bay in February of 2020.  He was a utility outfielder for the Rays, spending significant time at all three outfield positions.  He was okay in that role, posting some decent batting averages but with little power.  He spent four seasons with the Rays and was traded to the Dodgers in December of 2023 as part of the Tyler Glasnow traded.  He did not play for the Dodgers, and instead was traded to the Twins in February of 2024 with Rayne Doncon for Noah Miller.  He again saw time at all three outfield positions, batting .237/.290/.336 at this writing.  One must, of course, mention his pinch-hitting stats:  At this writing he is 0-for-30 with five walks, for a line of .000/.143/.000.  He had batted .213 as a pinch-hitter before the 2024 season.  He turns thirty today.  The chances are he'll sign with somebody for 2025, but I wouldn't bet on it being the Twins.

September 27

Jelly Gardner (1895)

Whit Wyatt (1907)

Dick Hall (1930)

Dave Wickersham (1935)

Gary Sutherland (1944)

Mike Schmidt (1949)

Bob Veselic (1955)

Don Schulze (1962)

Todd Blyleven (1972)

Vicente Padilla (1977)

Jon Rauch (1978)

Jon Garland (1979)

Matt Shoemaker (1986)

Simeon Woods Richardson (2000)

Todd Blyleven is, as you probably know, the son of Bert Blyleven. He pitched in the minor leagues for seven years, getting as high as AA, then was a scout for eight years.

Right-hander Robert Mitchell Veselic played for the Twins in 1980 and 1981. He was born in Pittsburgh, attended high school in Walnut, California, and was drafted by the Twins in 1976 with the ninth pick in the draft. A starting pitcher for his entire minor-league career, he came through the minors a level at a time, posting ERAs in the low-to-mid threes for Class A Visalia (1978), Class AA Orlando (1979), and Class AAA Toledo (1980). He won 18 games with Visalia. Twice he pitched over 200 innings in a minor-league season, and two other times he pitched over 170 innings. For comparison, the International League leader in innings pitched in 2010 had 165. Veselic earned September callups in both 1980 and 1981, and did fairly well. In six appearances, all in relief, he pitched 26.2 innings and went 1-1 with an ERA of 3.38, although with a WHIP of 1.43. He averaged over four innings per relief appearance, which says something both about him and about the Twins’ pitching staff at the time. Veselic had a poor year in Toledo in 1982, and was traded to Houston in January of 1983 for Rick Lysander. He again had a poor year for AAA Tucson, and his playing career came to an end after the 1983 season, although he did play in the Senior Professional Baseball Association in 1990. Sadly, Bob Veselic passed away from cancer on December 26, 1995 at the age of 40.

Right-hander Donald Arthur Schulze did not play for the Twins, but went to spring training with them in 1988. Born and raised in Roselle, Illinois, he was drafted by the Cubs with the eleventh pick of the 1980 draft. He had two solid years in class A, then skipped AA and went to AAA in 1983. He did not pitch all that well there, but still got a September call-up and made three starts for the Cubs that season. He was back in AAA in 1984, making one start for the Cubs in late May, when he was traded to Cleveland in mid-June in a multi-player deal that included, among others, Joe Carter, Mel Hall, future Twin George Frazier, and Rick Sutcliffe. He went back and forth between Cleveland and AAA Maine through 1986, although he spent nearly all of 1986 in Cleveland. He began 1987 back in AAA, then was traded to the Mets in mid-May. He went 11-1 in 15 starts at AAA Tidewater and also spent about three weeks in the majors. He became a free agent after the season and signed with Minnesota for 1988, but was traded to Detroit in late March for Karl Best. Schulze had a very good year in AAA for the Tigers, but did not get a call-up and signed with the Yankees after the season. He made two starts for the Yankees in 1989, then was traded to San Diego that included ex-Twin Freddie Toliver, future Twin Mike Pagliarulo, and Walt Terrell. He was with the Padres for two months but was seldom used, logging only 24.1 innings. San Diego released him after the season and he headed to Japan, where he pitched through 1992. He returned to the U. S. in 1993 and pitched in AAA for the Orioles, but had a mediocre year and his playing career came to an end. He was out of baseball for a while, but returned in 2006 as a coach. He has coached in the minors for Oakland since then, and is currently the pitching coach of the Lansing Lugnuts.

Right-handed reliever Jon Erich Rauch is tall and has a tattoo on his neck. Rauch played for the Twins from late August of 2009 through 2010. He was born in Louisville, Kentucky, went to high school in Oldham County, Kentucky, attended Morehead State University, and was drafted by the White Sox in the third round in 1999. A starting pitcher in the minors, he had a strong year in Class A and AA in 2000. Rauch was injured for much of 2001, making only six starts for AAA Charlotte. He made the White Sox at the start of 2002, but was returned to the minors after making only eight appearances, six of them starts. Rauch had a couple of decent but unspectacular years in Charlotte in 2002-03. He made two starts for the White Sox in 2004 before being traded to Montreal in July. He became a relief pitcher for the Expos/Nationals, and had some fine seasons with them, appearing in over 80 games in 2006 and again in 2007. He was having another good year with the Nationals in 2008 when he was traded to Arizona in July. He pitched poorly for the Diamondbacks in 2008, but was doing better in 2009 when the Twins acquired him on August 28 for Kevin Mulvey. He pitched well for them the rest of the season, and when Joe Nathan was injured Rauch became the Twins’ closer at the start of 2010. He did well in the beginning, but hit a rough patch in July and was replaced as closer by Matt Capps. He returned to a set-up role and overall did well in 2010.  As a Twin, he was 8-2, 21 saves, 2.82 ERA, 1.28 WHIP in 76 appearances (73.1 innings).  He was a free agent after the 2010 season and signed with Toronto, where he did not do as well in a 2011 season marred by injury.  A free agent again after that season, he signed with the Mets, for whom he pitched very well in 2012.  A free agent after the season, he signed with Miami for 2013 but pitched poorly in fifteen games and was released in late May.  He signed with Baltimore on June 1 and made ten appearances with AAA Norfolk.  He did all right there, but was still released at the end of June.  He signed with Kansas City for 2014 but was released again in late March, bringing his playing career to an end.  Rauch is the tallest man to appear in a major league game, and is also the tallest man to hit a home run, off Roger Clemens on August 13, 2004.  Jon Rauch was the owner of Bullpen Garage, a custom off-road shop specializing in Jeeps and Ford Raptors, in the Tucson area from 2015-2022.  He is currently a project manager and office manager for Sun Valley Construction, also in the Tucson area.

Right-hander David Matthew Shoemaker was with the Twins for about four months in 2021.  He was born in Wyandotte, Michigan, went to high school in Trenton, Michigan, attended Eastern Michigan University, and was signed by the Angels as a free agent in 2008.  He did well in the lower minors but struggled in AAA for a few years, which may have had something to do with the fact that the Angels' AAA team was in Salt Lake City at the time.  The Angels saw something in him, despite his poor AAA numbers.  They brought him up for a late-season start in 2013, started him in the majors in 2014, and after about a month back in AAA brought him to the majors to stay in mid-May.  He had a tremendous season when he came back, going 16-4, 3.04.  He was never able to match that, but he was an average major league pitcher from 2015-2017.  He started having injury problems in 2017, however, and made only eighteen major league starts combined from 2018-2020.  After the 2018 season he was a free agent and signed with Toronto, for whom he pitched in 2019-2020.  He wasn't bad when he could pitch, he just couldn't pitch very often.  He signed with Minnesota for 2021 and, to be honest, was awful.  There were a few good starts mixed in, but his final line was 3-8, 8.06.  The Twins released him in early August.  He signed with the Giants and did not particularly well in AAA.  He was a free agent after the season and signed with Yomiuri in Japan for 2022.  He had a decent season there, but that brought his playing career to an end.  No information about what Matt Shoemaker has done since then was readily available.

Right-hander Simeon Woods Richardson made one appearance for the Twins in 2022 and another in 2023.  Born and raised in Sugar Land, Texas, he was drafted by the Mets in the second round in 2018.  A starter throughout his minor league career, he was having a mediocre year in Class A in 2019 (as an eighteen-year-old) when he was traded to Toronto in late July in a deal involving Marcus Stroman.  He pitched much better in six high-A starts for the Blue Jays that season, missed the COVID year of 2020,   He had a poor year in AA in 2021, although he was still only twenty, and was again traded in late July.  This time he was sent to Minnesota along with Austin Martin for Jose Berrios.  He did not do well in AA for the Twins in 2021 either, but he had a fine 2022.  He pitched well in fifteen AA starts, did even better in seven AAA starts, and made his major league debut at the end of the season, giving up three runs (two earned) in five innings.  In 2023, however, he got off to a horrible start in St. Paul.  His numbers for the first half of the season were 0-5, 7.47, 1.87 WHIP.  He must have figured something out, though, because in the second half he went 7-1, 3.11, 1.23 WHIP.  He made one appearance for the Twins in 2023, allowing five runs in 4.2 innings.  He began 2024 in St. Paul, but after three starts there, injuries in Minnesota cause him to be called up to the majors.  He's done okay there, going 5-5, 4.17, 1.29 WHIP.  He turns twenty-four today.  Time will tell, but there's every reason to hope Simone Woods Richardson will be a solid major league pitcher.

September 26

Gus Schmelz (1850)

Bob Coleman (1890)

Bobby Shantz (1925)

Mel McGaha (1926)

Dave Duncan (1945)

Jim Gideon (1953)

Rich Gedman (1959)

Steve Buechele (1961)

Dave Martinez (1964)

Brian Shouse (1968)

Brian Looney (1969)

Sean Doolittle (1986)

Chris Archer (1988)

Jordan Luplow (1993)

Gus Schmelz managed several teams in the late 19th century.  He is one of the few who became a manager without having played professionally.

Bob Coleman managed in the minor leagues for thirty-five years.  He had the most wins as a minor league manager when he retired, 2,496, a mark since passed by Stan Wasiak.

Former Knicks player Mel McGaha was the manager of the Kansas City Athletics from 1964-1965.

Right-hander James Leslie Gideon did not play for the Twins, but he was in their minor league system for a few years. He was born in Taylor, Texas, went to high school in Bellaire, Texas, and attended the University of Texas. He was then drafted by Texas in the first round of the 1975 draft. He had two starts in rookie ball, where he pitched sixteen innings and allowed just three hits and no runs. He then was jumped to AAA, where he did not pitch well. Despite that, he was brought to the majors for one start in mid-September. He lasted 5.2 innings, giving up six runs (five earned) on seven hits and five walks. He started 1976 in AAA for Texas but was traded to Minnesota on June 1 along with Mike Cubbage, Bill Singer, and Roy Smalley for Bert Blyleven and Danny Thompson. He had a poor year in 1976 and then started to suffer injuries. He pitched badly in 1977, missed all of 1978, and was able to pitch only 43 innings of AA in 1979. The Twins released him after that season. He tried to make a comeback with the Rangers in 1982, but did not do well in AA and his playing career ended. The one start he made in September of 1975 turned out to be his only major league appearance. Still, he did get one, which is one more than most of us get.  He was inducted into the University of Texas Hall of Fame in 1992 and into the National College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2020. Jim Gideon was an employee benefits broker at William Gammon Benefits and then with Higginbotham Associates, both in Austin, Texas, until his retirement.

Left-hander Brian James Looney did not pitch for the Twins, but he was in their minor league system in 1997. He was born in New Haven, Connecticut, went to high school in Cheshire, Connecticut, attended Boston University, and was drafted by Montreal in the tenth round in 1991. Most of his first two years in the minors were spent in Class A, where he pitched very well. He made eight starts in AA in 1993, then was jumped to the majors for a September call-up, pitching six innings over three games. He had a fair-to-middling year in AAA in 1994, making one big league appearance in early June. The Expos then apparently gave up on him, sending him to Boston after the 1994 season “as part of a conditional deal”. He pitched decently, but no more in AAA for the Red Sox for two years, but pitched poorly in three appearances in the majors in 1995. After the 1996 season, Boston sent him to Minnesota as the player to be named later for Pat Mahomes. He was apparently injured part of the 1997 season, as he made only 17 relief appearances and pitched a total of 24.2 innings for AAA Salt Lake. He did well in the innings he pitched, but was let go after the season. He then bounced around the minors for several more years, but never made it back to the big leagues. He was in AAA with the Yankees in 1998, with Detroit and Philadelphia in 1999, with Florida and Cleveland in 2000, was back in the Yankees’ system in 2001, was with Pittsburgh and Baltimore in 2002, and with Colorado in 2003. He then pitched in the Atlantic League through 2005. It is unclear where he went after that, but he pitched in Italy in 2008.  At last report, Brian Looney was the owner of Hamden Yards, a baseball instructional facility in Hamden, Connecticut.

Right-handed starter Christopher Alan Archer pitched for the Twins in 2022.  He was born in Raleigh, North Carolina, went to high school in Clayton, North Carolina, and was drafted by Cleveland in the fifth round in 2006.  He did not do much in the low minors, but he did strike out quite a few guys, so the Cubs traded for him before the 2009 season.  He was much better for them, reaching AA in 2010 at the still young age of twenty-one.  The Cubs then traded him to Tampa Bay before the 2011 season in a multi-player deal that included, among others, ex-Twins Sam Fuld and Matt Garza.  He reached the majors in 2012 and came up to stay in 2013.  He had some fine years for the Rays, finishing third in Rookie of the Year voting in 2013, making the all-star team in 2015 and 2017 (leading the league in starts both years), and finishing fifth in Cy Young voting in 2015.  He also led the league in losses in 2016, but he had an ERA of 4.02, a FIP of 3.81, and a WHIP of 1.24, indicating that he was mostly the victim of bad luck.  2017, however, was the last really good year he had.  He wasn't terrible in 2018, but was traded at the July deadline for Tyler Glasnow, Austin Meadows, and a player to be named later who turned out to be Shane Baz.  That was quite a win for the Rays, although it clearly wasn't Archer's fault.  2018 is when he started having injuries that have plagued him the rest of his career to this point.  He was okay the rest of 2018, had a down year in 2019, did not play in 2020, and became a free agent.  The Rays signed him back for 2021, but could not work any magic with him and he became a free agent again after the season.  The Twins signed him for 2022, and he went 2-8, but with an ERA of 4.56 and a WHIP of 1.32 in twenty-five starts.  The downside, of course, is that he pitched only 102.2 innings in those starts, which is barely over four innings per start.  He became a free agent again after the season and went unsigned, so his playing career is presumably over.  At last report, Chris Archer was an assistant in baseball operations for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Outfielder/first baseman Jordan Thomas Luplow played for the Twins for the last two months of 2023.  He was born in Visalia, California, went to high school in Clovis, California, attended Cal State--Fresno, and was drafted by Pittsburgh in the third round in 2014.  He took a while to get going, spending three years at various levels of Class A, but took off in 2017, starting at AA, moving up to AAA, and making his major league debut in late July of that year.  He didn't hit, however, and so started 2018 back in AAA.  He again got called up in July, and he again didn't hit.  He was traded to Cleveland after the season.  He spent most of the season in the majors and had his first good year, batting .276 with fifteen homers and an OPS of .923 as a part-time player.  He went back not hitting in the COVID year of 2020, and when he did not hit again in the first part of 2021 he was traded to Tampa Bay.  He was okay as a part-time player for the Rays but was traded to Arizona after the season.  He again did not hit and became a free agent after the 2022 season.  He signed with Atlanta for 2023, was waived in early April and claimed by Toronto, was waived again in early August and claimed by Minnesota.  As a Twin, he batted .206/.315/.349, numbers which are in line with his career numbers.  A free agent again after the season, he signed with Atlanta, was released in spring training, and signed with Philadelphia.  He spent the 2024 season in AAA, where he was okay but nothing special.  He turns thirty-one today.  In the old days, when teams carried five or six outfielders, he might have had a role on a major league squad.  Today, however, it appears that Jordan Luplow's playing career is probably about over.

September 25

Pat Malone (1902)

Phil Rizzuto (1917)

Johnny Sain (1917)

Sal Butera (1952)

Glenn Hubbard (1957)

Geno Petralli (1959)

Oscar Munoz (1969)

David Weathers (1969)

Tony Womack (1969)

Wil Nieves (1977)

Joel Pineiro (1978)

Rocco Baldelli (1981)

Vance Worley (1987)

Ben Rortvedt (1997)

Right-hander John Franklin Sain did not play for the Twins, but was their pitching coach from 1965-1966. He was born in Havana, Arkansas and signed with Detroit as a free agent in 1936. He was in Class D for four seasons, the best of which was the last when he went 18-10, 3.27 in 1939. He was let go after that season and signed with the Boston Braves. They sent him to Class A for two seasons, then brought him to the majors in 1942. He was fairly mediocre that year, pitching mostly out of the bullpen, then missed the next two years due to military service. When he came back in 1946 he was a starter, and a great one. He won twenty games four of the next five years, had over twenty complete games in four of the next five years, and averaged over 273 innings in those five years. He was famously part of the 1948 pennant winning Braves whose rotation was “Spahn and Sain, then pray for rain,” although their third and fourth starters, Bill Voiselle and Vern Bickford, don’t appear to have been all that bad. That 1948 season, in which he pitched a league-leading 314.2 innings, appears to have taken something out of him, because even though he won twenty games again in 1950 he was never the same pitcher. He was traded to the Yankees late in 1951 and did have some good years with them, years in which his innings were limited by pitching in as a reliever part of the time. In 1954 he was used exclusively in relief as their closer, although the term was not in use at the time. He pitched 77 innings in 45 games, posted an ERA of 3.16 and a WHIP of 1.05, and led the league with 22 saves. That was his last good year, however; when he got off to a poor start in 1955 he was traded to the Kansas City Athletics and was released in mid-July, ending his playing career. After his career he became a pitching coach for Kansas City (1959), the Yankees (1961-1963), Minnesota (1965-1966), Detroit (1967-1969), the White Sox (1971-1975), and Atlanta (1977, 1985-1986). He was known for emphasizing throwing and de-emphasizing conditioning exercises such as running, saying “You don’t run the ball over the plate. If running did it, they’d recruit pitchers off track teams.” His pitchers loved him, and were often successful under him, but he frequently clashed with managers, which is why he moved around a lot. In 1985, he was on the same coaching staff as Leo Mazzone, who later became a renowned pitching coach in his own right. Johnny Sain passed away on November 7, 2006 in Downers Grove, Illinois, and was buried in his home town of Havana, Arkansas.

Catcher Salvatore Philip Butera played for the Twins from 1980-1982 and again in 1987. He was born in Richmond Hill, New York and was signed by the Twins as a free agent in 1972. He was never a strong hitter in the minors, and spent nearly four years in AAA. He had a good year in 1979, however, hitting .297 at AAA Toledo, and made it to the big leagues with the Twins the next year. Butera was a backup catcher for the Twins from 1980-82, hitting for a fair average, drawing a decent number of walks, and providing no power whatsoever. Near the end of 1983 spring training, the Twins traded Butera to Detroit for Stine Poole and cash. He was in AAA Evansville for most of 1983. He again batted .297 at AAA, but got only five at bats with Detroit. Released after the season, he signed with Montreal. With AAA Indianapolis most of 1984, Butera won the backup catcher job with the Expos in 1985. He batted only .200, however, and was traded to Cincinnati after the season in a multi-player swap. Butera was the Reds’ reserve catcher for 1986 and early 1987, but was released in May. The Twins re-signed him three days later. Butera batted only .171 for the Twins in 1987, but went 2-for-3 in the ALCS and got a World Series ring. Released by the Twins in March of 1988, he signed with Toronto, which is where he finished his career in 1989. He also played for the Orlando Juice in the short-lived Senior Professional Baseball Association. As a Twin, Sal Butera had 489 at-bats spread over four seasons. He batted .233/.303/.274, hitting one home run (off Dave Schmidt) and driving in 40 runs.  He is a member of the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame. He has done some minor-league managing and scouting, and was the bullpen coach for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1998. Sal Butera is currently a scout for Toronto. His son, Drew Butera, played for the Twins from 2010-2013.

Right-hander Juan Oscar Munoz appeared in ten games for the Twins in 1995. He was born in Hialeah, Florida, went to the University of Miami, and was drafted in the fifth round by Cleveland in 1990. Munoz was in the Cleveland organization for two seasons, pitching well at Class A, but not as well for AA Canton-Akron as a 21-year-old. In late March of 1992, Munoz was traded along with Curtis Leskanic to the Twins for Paul Sorrento. He had a good year for AA Nashville in 1993, but that was pretty much where he topped out. He had high ERAs with AAA Salt Lake in 1994 and 1995, but he had winning records, and it was a hitters’ league, so the Twins called him up for the last two months of 1995. He appeared in ten games for the Twins, making three starts. He again had a winning record, going 2-1, but had a 5.60 ERA in 35.1 innings with a 1.61 WHIP. The Twins put Munoz on waivers after the 1995 season, and he was taken by Baltimore. He was in AAA Rochester all of 1996, never making it back to the big leagues, and his playing career ended after that season. He managed Class A Bakersfield in 2003.  At last report, Oscar Munoz was the president of REO Workforce, Inc. and was living in Miami.

Outfielder Rocco Dan Baldelli did not play for the Twins but has been their manager since 2019.  He was born in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, went to high school in Warwick, Rhode Island, and was drafted by Tampa Bay with the sixth pick of the first round in 2000.  He started slowly in the minors, but his career took off in 2002, when he went from Class A to AAA.  He began 2003 as the Devil Rays' starting center fielder and finished third in Rookie of the Year voting,  He remained the starting center fielder in 2004.  In both years he put up solid batting averages, but did not walk much and had only moderate power.  His playing career went downhill from there, due mostly to his physical condition.  He missed 2005 with a shoulder injury which required Tommy John surgery.  He came back in June of 2006 and had the best year of his career, batting .302 with an OPS of .871.  Still just twenty-four, it was thought that big things were ahead.  Instead, he suffered a debilitating illness which was eventually determined to be channelopathy.  He was able to play in just 63 games for the Rays over the next two seasons.  A free agent, he signed with Boston for 2009 but again could play in just 62 games.  He signed back with the Rays for 2010, but played in just ten games before finally having to accept the fact that his physical condition would not allow him to continue as an active player.  His career numbers are .278/.323/.433 in 2065 plate appearances.  He worked for the Rays in scouting and player development from 2011-2014, was a coach for them from 2015-2018, and became the manager of the Twins in 2019.  His team won the division that year and he was named American League Manager of the Year, the youngest man ever to win the award.  His team won the division again in 2020, but had a poor season in 2021, finishing last.  In 2022 they held first place in a weak division for much of the season, but collapsed down the stretch.  In 2023, again in a weak division, the Twins won going away when the rest of the teams in the division traded many of their good players at the deadline.  In 2024, in a stronger division, the Twins again collapsed down the stretch.  Time will tell, but one assumes Rocco Baldelli will remain the Twins' manager in 2025.

Right-hander Vance Richard Worley pitched for the Twins in 2013.  Born and raised in Sacramento, he attended Cal State--Long Beach and was drafted by Philadelphia in 2008.  He did very well in Class A that season, struggled some when promoted to AA in 2009, but did better when he repeated AA in 2010.  He made his major league debut that year, making one start in late July and then getting a September callup, and did quite well.  He started 2011 in AAA but spent most of the season with the Phillies and had an outstanding year, going 11-3, 3.01, 1.23 WHIP with 8.1 strikeouts per nine innings.  He finished third in Rookie of the Year voting, behind Craig Kimbrel and Freddie Freeman.  He was not nearly as good in 2012, but still wasn't awful, going 6-9, 4.20, but with an alarming 1.51 WHIP.  In December of 2012, the Phillies traded him to Minnesota with Trevor May for Ben Revere.  Worley was placed in the Twins starting rotation at the start of the year and was dreadful, going 1-5, 7.22 with a WHIP of 1.99.  Sent to AAA in late May, he did somewhat better, but still not very well, going a deceiving 6-3, 3.88 with a WHIP of 1.41 in nine starts before being shut down due to injury.  The Twins sold him to Pittsburgh in March of 2014.  He started in AAA but came up to the majors in mid-June, was placed in the starting rotation, and pitched very well, once again looking like the pitcher who impressed people with Philadelphia in 2011.  He started 2015 in the Pirates' rotation but was moved to the bullpen in mid-May.  He has did a good job for Pittsburgh in long relief, but was waived after the season and selected by Baltimore.  Used mostly out of the bullpen, he again did a solid job in 2016.  A free agent after the season, he signed with Washington for 2017 but was released in late March.  He signed with Miami a few days later and was sent to AAA, where he was used as a starter.  After eight starts, which were not all that good, he came up to the Marlins in late May.  Used both as a starter and in relief, he did not get much accomplished in either role.  He signed with Cincinnati for 2018, was released in early April, was signed by the Mets, and was released again in late June after four poor starts in AAA, although it appears that he may have been pitching through an injury.  He did not pitch in 2019.  He signed with Somerset of the Atlantic League for 2020, but the Atlantic League did not play in 2020.  There was a rumor in August of 2020 that the Phillies would sign him, but it appears that nothing came of it.  He started 2021 with Kane County in the American Association and did well enough for the Mets to sign him and send him to AAA.  Unfortunately, it did not go well for him there.  He was back with Kane County in 2022 and did not pitch very well there, either.  A year ago, we said, "it appears likely that it's time for Vance Worley to decide what he wants to do in the next phase of his life."  He apparently agreed, and became the pitching coach Penn State Abington in 2023.

Catcher Benjamin Thomas Rortvedt came up to the Twins in 2021.  He was born in Madison, Wisconsin, went to high school in Verona, Wisconsin, and was drafted by Minnesota in the second round in 2016.  He progressed about a level a season, reaching in rookie ball in 2016, in low A in 2017, in high-A in 2018, and in AA in 2019.  He has never hit much--his highest batting average is .262 in a 2018 season split between low-A and high-A.  His highest OPS is .713 in a 2019 season split between high-A and AA.  He has split 2021 between AAA and the majors, coming up due to injuries to Mitch Garver.  He continued to not hit, batting .169/.229/.281 in 89 at-bats.  The Twins traded him with Josh Donaldson and Isiah Kiner-Falefa to the Yankees for Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela before the 2022 season.  He was at AAA all season and again didn't hit, although he also dealt with some injuries.  He split 2023 between AAA and the majors, actually hitting well in AAA but not in the big leagues. He is reputed to be an excellent defender.  A year ago, we said, "If he can just get his average in vicinity of the Mendoza line, it's possible that Ben Rortvedt could be around for quite a while."  Well, he got it above the Mendoza line in 2024, and had his first full season in the majors as a part-time catcher for Tampa Bay.  So again, if he can just contribute a little on offense, we could see Ben Rortvedt in a big-league uniform for several years.

September 24

Mike Gonzalez (1890)

Tommie Dukes (1906)

Dixie Walker (1910)

Clyde Vollmer (1921)

George Banks (1938)

Chuck Nieson (1942)

Norm Angelini (1947)

Eric Soderholm (1948)

Hubie Brooks (1956)

Jim Acker (1958)

Rafael Palmeiro (1964)

Scott Leius (1965)

Bernard Gilkey (1966)

Kevin Millar (1971)

John McDonald (1974)

Levale Speigner (1980)

Hunter Strickland (1988)

Outfielder/third baseman George Edward Banks played for the Twins from 1962-1964. He was born in Pacolet Mills, South Carolina, and was signed by the Yankees as a free agent in 1957. He showed substantial power in the low minors, hitting 56 homers in 1960-61, but could not get above Class A with the Yankees organization. After the 1961 season, Banks was chosen by the Twins in the Rule 5 draft. Given his lack of experience at high levels, he did well for the Twins in limited duty in 1962: .252/.372/.408 in 103 at-bats. That was to be the most he would ever play in the majors, however. He had a good year for AAA Dallas/Ft. Worth in 1963, playing briefly with the Twins that year. In 1964, he got off to a poor start for AAA Atlanta, and was traded in June to Cleveland along with Lee Stange for Mudcat Grant. He continued to slug the ball at AAA, but got only brief major league appearances with the Indians through 1966. The Indians let him go after 1966, and he spent a year each in the California and Philadelphia organizations, but never made it back to the majors. George Banks hit 223 minor-league home runs in 11 seasons, but only 9 in the big leagues in 221 at-bats. As a Twin, he hit .211/.327/.377 with 7 home runs and 23 RBIs in 175 at-bats. George Banks passed away on March 1, 1985.

Right-hander Charles Bassett Nieson made two appearances for the Twins in 1964. He was born in Hanford, California, attended Cal State—Fresno, and was signed by the Twins as a free agent in 1962. He did not have a lot of luck in the minors, going 6-12 in 1963 and 4-17 in 1964 despite ERAs around 4.00, which was not that bad even in the 1960s. The Twins gave him a September call-up in 1964, and he pitched two innings over two games, giving up one run. That was to be his only time in the majors: his lifetime ERA is 4.50, with the run he gave up coming on a homer by Frank Malzone. Nieson remained in the Twins organization for a few more years, having fair-to-poor results for AAA Denver in 1965-66. He had good years for AA Charlotte from 1967-69, but again did poorly when promoted to Denver in 1968. 1969 was his last season in organized baseball. At last report, Chuck Nieson was living in Clinton, Minnesota, where he enjoys fishing and was the Big Stone Walleye champion in 2010.

Third baseman Eric Thane Soderholm played for the Twins from 1971-1975. He was born in Cortland, New York, went to high school in Miami, and was chosen by the Twins with the first pick of the secondary phase of the 1968 January draft. Initially a shortstop, he began playing some third base in 1970 and was moved there permanently in 1971. A low average slugger who drew a good number of walks in the minors, Soderholm reached the Twins in 1971 after a good year with AAA Portland. He stayed in the majors in 1972, but hit only .188, and was returned to Portland for most of 1973. He won the third base job in 1974 and had two seasons as a regular for the Twins. He was a solid contributor in those two seasons, batting around .280 with a total of 21 homers and 35 doubles. He injured his knee in 1975, and missed all of 1976, becoming a free agent after that season. Signed by the White Sox, he was a productive player for them as well, winning comeback player of the year in 1977. He hit 51 homers and drove in 168 runs for the White Sox over 2 1/2 seasons. Soderholm was traded to the Rangers in June of 1979. He finished the season with them, and signed with the Yankees for 1980. He did well for the Yankees when he was able to play, but suffered injuries there as well, and 1980 would be his last season. He was invited to spring training with the Cubs in 1982, but decided that his knees could no longer handle the strain of playing. As a Twin, he hit .257/.336/.389 in 1,345 at-bats. After his playing career ended, Soderholm did some scouting for the Cubs for a couple of years, and then went into business for himself. He opened a youth baseball camp as well as a ticket agency. At last report, Eric Soderholm owned the SoderWorld Wellness Center and Academy of Willowbrook, Illinois, with his wife, his daughter, Misty, and his son, Chad.

Infielder Scott Thomas Leius played for the Twins from 1990-1995. He was born in Yonkers, New York, and was drafted out of Concordia College by the Twins in the 13th round in 1986. He did not hit well in the minors with the exception of 1989, when he batted .303 with 22 doubles for AA Orlando. Despite hitting only .229 the next year for AAA Portland, Leius got a September callup in 1990 and was in the majors to stay in 1991. He batted .286 as a platoon third baseman (with Mike Pagliarulo) that year, and was a solid contributor to the Twins’ world championship team. He would never hit that well again, however. Given an expanded role with the 1992 team, he went down to .249. Leius was hurt for most of the 1993 season. He came back to hit in the .240s again in 1994 and 1995 as a semi-regular, and became a free agent after the season. Free agency did not treat Leius well. He suffered a variety of injuries, and never stayed in the majors for a full season again. Leius was in the Cleveland organization in 1996, with the White Sox system in 1997, and in the Kansas City organization in 1998. He played 37 games with the Royals in an injury-filled 1999, and called it a career after that. As a Twin, Scott Leius hit .252/.316/.353 in 1,373 at-bats. He played well in his one World Series, hitting .357 with a home run that was the game-winning run in game 2. A good defensive player, he finished second in gold glove balloting in 1994. He did some coaching for the Royals, and at last report was a senior client executive for Sirius, a CDW Company, in the Twin Cities area.

Right-hander Jimmy Levale Speigner did not play for the Twins, but was in their minor league system. Born and raised in Thomasville, Georgia, he went to Auburn and was drafted in the 14th round by Minnesota in 2003. He pitched well in the low minors in 2003 and 2004. He did not do as well in 2005 as a starter in AA New Britain, but did much better as a reliever for the Rock Cats in 2006. He pitched poorly in a couple of brief stints at AAA Rochester, however, and when the Twins left him off the forty-man roster, he was chosen by Washington in the rule 5 draft after the 2006 season. Speigner struggled in the majors in 2007, with the exception of one game in June. The Nationals worked out a trade with the Twins for Darnell McDonald, and sent him to the minors. Speigner had a good year in the minors in 2008, but again failed a brief trial in the big leagues. Levale Speigner spent 2009 in the Florida Marlins organization, pitching well in a season split between AA and AAA. A free agent after the season, he moved on to the Seattle organization. He had a rather mediocre year out of the bullpen for AAA Tacoma. He did not sign with anyone for 2011; rather, he became an insurance agent and at last report was a registered representative for American Global Wealth Management in Opelika, Alabama, which is where ex-Twin Roy Lee Jackson is from. 

September 23

Heinie Wagner (1880)

Lefty Stewart (1900)

Jim Rooker (1942)

Woody Woodward (1942)

Dennis Lamp (1952)

Jim Morrison (1952)

Tony Fossas (1957)

Jim Winn (1959)

Pete Harnisch (1966)

Jeff Cirillo (1969)

Brent Abernathy (1977)

Mike Gosling (1980)

Matt Kemp (1984)

Joba Chamberlain (1985)

Trevor May (1989)

Left-hander Tony Fossas was drafted by the Twins in the ninth round in 1978, but did not sign.

Right-hander James Francis Winn made nine appearances for the Twins in 1988. He was born in Stockton, California, attended John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas (the only major leaguer ever to come from that school), and was drafted by Pittsburgh in the first round of the 1981. He did not have eye-popping numbers in the low minors, and struggled with injuries most of his career, never logging as many as 70 innings in a minor-league season. Winn made the Pirates in 1983 on the strength of an excellent spring training. He did not last long that year, pitching only eleven innings before being sent to AAA Hawaii. He became a relief pitcher in 1983, and did well then and in 1984 in Hawaii, getting another brief callup with Pittsburgh in the latter season. Winn was with the Pirates almost all of 1985 and all of 1986, with fair-to-middling results. He was traded to the White Sox just before the 1987 season and spent all year in Chicago, pitching similarly for them. Released by the White Sox near the end of 1988 spring training, he was signed by the Twins and sent to AAA Portland, where he pitched well enough to get called up to Minnesota. Winn pitched in nine games for the Twins that year, mostly in mop-up relief. He was 1-0 that year, but with an ERA of 6.00 and a WHIP of 2.05 in 21 innings. If he was left-handed, he probably would have gotten another chance somewhere, but he was a righty, and his playing career was over after 1988. At last report, Jim Winn was working in sales for Conco Companies in the Springfield, Missouri area.

Third baseman Jeffrey Howard Cirillo played for the Twins for about four months in 2007. He was born in Pasadena, California, went to high school in Burbank, California, went to USC, and was drafted by Milwaukee in the 11th round in 1991. He hit well at every stop in the minors, made his major league debut in 1994, and was in the big leagues to stay as of 1995. Cirillo was with the Brewers through 1999. He made the all-star team, batted over .320 three times, and hit double-digit home runs four times in that period. In December of 1999, Cirillo was traded to Colorado in a three-team trade that also involved Oakland. He continued to hit well, averaging .320 in two years with the Rockies and hitting 28 home runs. Traded to Seattle in December of 2001, Cirillo went into a decline. He batted only .234 with 8 homers in two years with the Mariners, had an injury-plagued season in 2004 with San Diego, and it appeared that his career might be coming to an end. Given a last chance back with Milwaukee. however, Cirillo rebounded. He averaged over .300 as a part-time player for the Brewers in 2005-06. Signed by the Twins as a free agent in 2007, he batted .261/.327/.386 in 153 at-bats with two home runs. Cirillo was placed on waivers in August, and was selected by the Diamondbacks, where he finished his career. A good defender, he is tied for the major league record in consecutive errorless games at third base with 99. He did some television for the Brewers in 2008, and was a scout for the Angels as well as coaching at Bellevue High School in Washington. He is also part-owner of the Walla Walla Sweets and the Yakima Valley Pippens, teams which plays in the West Coast League, a summer collegiate wood bat league.  He was going to manage the Sweets in 2020, but the League season was cancelled.  He was going to manage them in 2021, but stepped aside to take care of his wife, who was very seriously injured in an auto accident.  His son, Connor, was an infielder at USC.  At last report, Jeff Cirillo was living in Medina, Washington and was a scout for the Seattle Mariners.

Second baseman Michael Brent Abernathy played in twenty-four games for the Twins in 2005. Born and raised in Atlanta, he was drafted by Toronto in the second round in 1986. He was a high-average hitter with decent doubles power in the minors, although he did hit 13 homers for AA Knoxville in 1999. In July of 2000, Abernathy was traded to Tampa Bay for Mark Guthrie and Steve Trachsel. He played in the 2000 Olympics. Abernathy came up to the Devil Rays in late June of 2001 and was the regular second baseman most of the rest of the year. He was the regular again in 2002, but hit only .242. In April of 2003, Abernathy was placed on waivers and chosen by Kansas City. He spent the rest of his career bouncing from one team to another, coming to the Twins in 2005 after stints with the Detroit and Cleveland organizations. He batted .326 in Rochester that year, but only .239 in 67 at-bats with the Twins, with one home run and six RBIs. That was to be Abernathy’s last shot at the big leagues. After the 2005 season, he logged time in the Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Washington organizations, and also played for the Long Island Ducks in 2008. Abernathy always hit for a good average in the minors, but was never able to translate that into major league success. Brent Abernathy did some coaching with USA baseball as well as some high school teams.  At last report, he was the managing partner of Integrity Marketing Group in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.

Left-hander Michael Frederick Gosling never actually played with the Twins, but was in their minor league system for two months in 2009. He was born in Madison, Wisconsin and went to high school in Salt Lake City, where he once struck out six batters in an inning (two passed balls and a throwing error on a dropped third strike). He was drafted by the Twins in the fourteenth round in 1998, but went to Stanford instead. He was then drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the second round in 2001. Gosling pitched well for AA El Paso in 2002. He did not pitch so well for AAA Tucson, posting ERAs above 5.5 in three consecutive seasons, 2003-05. He suffered a torn labrum and torn rotator cuff in 2003. He was given chances in the big leagues in 2004-05 and actually did a little better there than in the minors, although not enough better to indicate any substantive improvement. The Reds picked him up on waivers in February of 2006. Gosling seemed to finally take a moderate step forward in 2007, as he had a good year at AAA Louisville. It did not result in success in the majors, however: in 23 games and 33 innings with Cincinnati, he posted a 4.91 ERA and a WHIP of 2.12. Gosling was placed on waivers again after the 2007 season, and was selected by Toronto. He had a decent year at AAA Syracuse in 2008, but was not called up to the majors. Allowed to become a free agent, he was signed by the Twins in January of 2009 and sent to AAA Rochester, where he vultured seven wins despite not pitching all that well. Part way into the season, Gosling exercised an out clause in his contract and was given his release. He then signed with Cleveland. The Indians sent him to AAA Columbus, where he continued to not pitch very well. Despite that, he spent about two months in the majors, pitching 25 innings with no record, a 5.04 ERA, and a 1.64 WHIP. He returned to Columbus at the start of the 2010 season and pitched well, posting an ERA of 2.96 in 27.1 innings, but apparently saw the writing on the wall and retired on May 17. After his baseball career ended, Mike Gosling entered law school and at last report was an attorney with Glaser Weil in Encinitas, California.

Right-hander Trevor Joseph May pitched for the Twins from 2014-2020.  He was born in Longview, Washington, went to high school in Kelso, Washington, and was drafted by Philadelphia in the fourth round in 2008.  He did well in low A in 2009 and continued to do well there in 2010, went to high A for half of 2010 and all of 2011, and reached AA in 2012.  He struck out a lot of batters everywhere he went, but he had a poor year overall in AA at age 22 and was traded to Minnesota after the season along with Vance Worley for Ben Revere.  He didn't do all that well in New Britain in 2013, but when promoted to Rochester in 2014 he got much better, going 8-6, 2.84, 1.16 WHIP.  One of the things that has improved is his control, going from 4.7 walks per nine innings in 2012 to 4.0 in 2013 to 3.6 in Rochester in 2014.  His strikeouts went down some but were at a high rate of 8.6 per nine innings in Rochester.  He was promoted to Minnesota in early August of 2014, and to say that it did not go well would be an understatement.  He started 2015 in the Twins rotation but even though he didn't pitch badly there he was moved to the bullpen in early July.  He pitched very well there and was a valuable contributor to the Twins' run at a playoff spot.  Promised a chance to start in the off-season, he made three starts in spring training and was then sent to the bullpen.  He had a poor year there, probably because he was pitching with a broken bone in his back.  He was told to prepare to be a starter again in the 2016-17 off-season, but he missed the entire 2017 season with a torn ligament in his arm.  He came back in late July of 2018 and pitched pretty well in relief, convincing the Twins the bullpen was where he belonged.  He was very good in 2019 and still pretty good, though not quite as good, in 2020.  He struck out more and walked fewer, but gave up more hits and especially more home runs.  He became a free agent after the 2020 season and signed with the Mets.  He had a solid season in 2021 but struggled in 2022.  A free agent after the season, he signed with Oakland for 2023, for whom he was been the closer and was okay, not great but not terrible.  Again a free agent after the season, he chose to retire from playing baseball.  He is currently involved in various podcasts as well as gaming ventures.