January 25

Danny Richardson (1863)

Les Nunamaker (1889)

Kenichi Zenimura (1900)

Ernie Harwell (1918)

Bill Lucas (1936)

Jake O’Donnell (1939)

Wally Bunker (1945)

Vern Ruhle (1951)

Kerry Taylor (1971)

Dan Serafini (1974)

Kenichi Zenimura was a long-time player and manager in Japan as well as an ambassador of the game of baseball.  He helped organize Babe Ruth's tour of Japan in 1934 and is known as the Father of Japanese Baseball.

Ernie Harwell was a major league baseball broadcaster from 1948-1991 and 1993-2002, mostly for the Detroit Tigers.

Bill Lucas was the first African-American general manager, holding the position for the Atlanta Braves from 1976-1979.

Better known as an NBA referee, Jake O’Donnell was an American League umpire from 1969-1972.  He is the only person to have officiated both an NBA all-star game and a major league baseball all-star game.

Right-hander Kerry Thomas Taylor did not play for Minnesota, but he was in their organization at the beginning of his career.  He was born in Bemidji, Minnesota and went to high school in Roseau, Minnesota.  The Twins signed him as a free agent in 1989.  He pitched two years in rookie ball and two years in Class A, and did not do too badly.  The Twins did not place him on the forty-man roster, however, and he was selected by San Diego.  The Padres kept him in the majors all of 1993, giving him seven starts and 29 relief appearances, and he did about as well as you'd expect a 22-year-old who'd never pitched above Class A to do, which is to say not very well.  He went down to AAA in 1994, making one emergency start for San Diego, and did not do very well there, either.  He was doing better in 1995, but was hurt in his eighth start, missing the rest of that season and all of 1996 with Tommy John surgery.  He tried to come back, pitching at AAA for the Padres in 1997 and Detroit in 1998, in independent ball in 1999, and at AAA for the Blue Jays in 2000.  He actually had a pretty good year at Syracuse in 2000, but by then he was 29 years old and was no longer considered a prospect, so his career ended.  It appears that he then went back to school, attending North Dakota State, and at last report he was the Western Operations Manager for Heartland AgSystems, Inc. in Hutchinson, Minnesota.

Left-hander Daniel Joseph Serafini pitched for Minnesota from 1996-1998.  Born in San Francisco, he attended high school in San Mateo, California, and was drafted by the Twins in the first round in 1992.  He was a starter in his minor league career.  Serafini pitched well in the low minors, but struggled upon his promotion to AAA, not posting an ERA under 4.90 there until 1998, when he pitched well for two months.  Despite that, he made brief appearances in Minnesota in 1996 (one emergency start) and 1997 (six games, in which he actually did fairly well).  The pitching-poor Twins called him up in early June of 1998.  Serafini was mostly used in the bullpen, although he was in the starting rotation for about a month.  He was not terribly effective in either role, and at the end of spring training of 1999 he was sold to the Cubs.  As a Twin, Dan Serafini was 9-6, 5.88 in 105.2 innings.  He did no better as a Cub, and was traded after the 1999 season to San Diego.  In June of 2000 the Padres traded him to Pittsburgh, where he pitched well in AAA but no better in the majors.  2001 was quite a year:  Serafini was released by Pittsburgh, San Francisco, and the Mets, finishing the year at AAA with Milwaukee.  He signed with Anaheim in November, but was released again before the 2002 season started.  Serafini was out of baseball in 2002, but signed with St. Louis in November.  He certainly hung in there--released by the Cardinals in April of 2003, he went to Mexico, and then signed with Cincinnati in August, getting a little over a month in the majors.  Serafini was a free agent after the 2003 season, but he kept plugging away, going to Japan and helping his team win a championship in 2005.  He came back to the United States in 2007 and signed with Colorado, appearing in three more major league games for the Rockies.  After that season, Serafini was found to have tested positive for performance enhancing drugs, and was suspended for fifty games.  He pitched in Mexico for several years after that, closing out his playing career with four games early in the 2013 season in 2013.  Serafini was the owner of the Oak Tavern in Sparks, Nevada, which was featured in an episode of the television program "Bar Rescue" in 2015.  It appears, however, that the bar was not rescued and is now closed.  No information about what Dan Serafini is up to now was readily available.

January 24

Dave Brain (1879)

Pinch Thomas (1888)

Cliff Heathcote (1898)

Flint Rhem (1901)

Jean Yawkey (1909)

Johnny Dickshot (1910)

Ray Kelly (1914)

Jack Brickhouse (1916)

Walter Haas (1916)

Dick Stigman (1936)

Sandy Valdespino (1939)

Jumbo Ozaki (1947)

Tim Stoddard (1953)

Atlee Hammaker (1958)

Neil Allen (1958)

Rob Dibble (1964)

Scott Kazmir (1984)

Tyler Flowers (1986)

Franklin Morales (1986)

Jose Quintana (1989)

Jean Yawkey was the wife of Tom Yawkey and was owner of the Boston Red Sox from 1978 until her death in 1992.

Ray Kelly was a baseball writer in Philadelphia for fifty years.

Jack Brickhouse was a broadcaster for the Chicago Cubs from 1948-1981.

Walter Haas was the owner of the Oakland Athletics from 1980 until his death in 1995.

Better known as a professional golfer, Jumbo Ozaki played professional baseball in Japan for three seasons, pitching for two seasons and playing outfield for one.

Right-hander Richard Lewis Stigman pitched for Minnesota for four years, 1962-1965.  A native of Nimrod, Minnesota, he attended high school in Sebeka, Minnesota and signed with Cleveland as a free agent in 1954.  Stigman was in Class D for three years.  The first two were pretty awful, but in 1956 he went 17-9 with a 1.44 ERA in 213 innings for Class D Vidalia.  That earned him a promotion to AA, where he pitched well for two years.  He was decent in AAA in 1959 (in one game he pitched 10 2/3 hitless innings) and made the Indians out of spring training in 1960, not returning to the minors until his major league career was over.  Stigman got off to a good start in 1960, even making the all-star team as a rookie, but faded badly in the second half.  He missed the first two months of 1961, and did not pitch very well when he was available.  On April 2, 1962, Stigman was traded to Minnesota with Vic Power for Pedro Ramos.  He started 1962 in the bullpen, pitched well there, and was moved into the starting rotation in mid-July.  He continued to pitch well, leading the league in winning percentage that year.  He was in the rotation for two more years, pitching a total of 431 innings in those two years and still pitching quite well.  In spring training of 1965, he lost his spot in the starting rotation to Jim Perry and moved back to the bullpen.  He was decent, but no more, and on April 6, 1966 Stigman was traded with a player to be named later (Jose Calero) to Boston for Russ Nixon and Chuck Schilling.  The Red Sox put him in their rotation, but after seven mostly mediocre starts moved him to the bullpen, where he finished out the year.  Stigman was traded to Cincinnati in the off-season and was in AAA for 1967, where he was adequate but nothing more.  He finished the year in the Philadelphia organization, and then his playing career ended.  As a Twin, Dick Stigman was 37-37, 3.69 in 138 games, 85 of them starts.  He had a WHIP of 1.24 and an ERA+ of 101.  In 1965-66, Stigman set a record for making ten consecutive starts without a decision, a record which has since been tied but not broken.  After leaving baseball, he went into business in the Twin Cities area.  At last report, Dick Stigman was living in Burnsville and making occasional appearances at baseball-related events, including the Twins' Fantasy Camp.  A city park in Nimrod has been named in his honor.

Hilario (Borroto) "Sandy" Valdespino was a left-handed hitting outfielder who played for Minnesota from 1965-1967.  Born in San Jose De Las Lajas, Cuba, he signed with Washington as a free agent in 1957.  He was nicknamed "Sandy" by a minor league manager who thought he resembled Sandy Amaros.  Valdespino produced rather pedestrian numbers for several years, but then started to figure some things out, hitting .284 for AAA Dallas-Ft. Worth in 1963 and jumping to .337 with 16 homers for AAA Atlanta in 1964.  In 1965 Valdespino played his first full season in the majors, being used primarily as a pinch-hitter and occasional outfielder--his first 13 appearances in the big leagues were as a pinch-hitter.  He was an odd choice for the role, as he was a small man with little power.  He hit .261 that year, and did start two games of the World Series, hitting a key double in game one.  He was used in a similar role in 1966, but did not hit and was sent back to the minors in late June.  He once again hit very well in AAA and was called back to the Twins in September.  Valdespino was once again with Minnesota for a full season in 1967, but did not get any more chances to play, and did not hit well in the chances he got.  That off-season he was left off the forty-man roster and was chosen by Atlanta in the Rule 5 draft.  Apparently something was worked out, because in late June he was sent back to AAA after hitting .233 as a pinch-hitter and reserve outfielder for the Braves.  He was traded to Houston in December of 1968, traded to Seattle in August of 1969, and was sold to Kansas City in July of 1970.  Much of that time was spent in the minors, although he did log some major league time with each of those teams.  He remained in the Royals' organization through 1972, and then his playing career came to an end.  As a Twin, Sandy Valdespino hit .220/.269/.284 in 450 at-bats.  He did some coaching in the minors before leaving baseball.  At last report, Sandy Valdespino was living in Albany, Georgia.

Right-hander Neil Patrick Allen was the Twins' pitching coach from 2015-2017.  Born and raised in Kansas City, he was drafted by the Mets in the eleventh round in 1976.  He was a starter throughout his minor league career and did pretty well, although he stumbled when promoted to AAA in mid-1978.  Despite that, he made the Mets as a reliever at the start of 1979.  He became the Mets closer in 1980 and did pretty well, although he never racked up big save totals.  He had a poor start in 1983, lost the closer role to Jesse Orosco, and was traded to St. Louis in mid-June.  He never closed again, but went on to pitch several more years.  He pitched well through 1984, but did not do well in 1985 and was sold to the Yankees in mid-July.  He pitched well for them the rest of the year, but was a free agent after the season and signed with the White Sox.  He started the season in the bullpen but moved into the rotation in May and did well but got hurt in late July.  He came back to the rotation in 1987 but could not duplicate his success and was released in late August, signing with the Yankees in September.  He went back to the bullpen and was a good pitcher again, staying through the 1988 season.  He was a free agent after the season and signed with Cleveland but made only three appearances with them, spending most of the year in AAA.  That brought his playing career to an end, but he stayed in the game as a pitching coach.  He was in the minors through 2014 with the exception of 2005, when he was the bullpen coach for the Yankees.  He became the Twins' pitching coach in 2015 and held that position through 2017, being let go after the season.  No information about what Neil Allen has done since then was readily available.

January 23

Ben Shibe (1838)

Red Donahue (1873)

Bobby Burke (1907)

Randy Gumpert (1918)

Chico Carrasquel (1926)

Frank Sullivan (1930)

Joe Amalfitano (1934)

Don Nottebart (1936)

Paul Ratliff (1944)

Kurt Bevacqua (1947)

Charlie Spikes (1951)

Alan Embree (1970)

Mark Wohlers (1970)

Erubiel Durazo (1974)

Brandon Duckworth (1976)

Juan Rincon (1979)

Jeff Samardzija (1985)

Ben Shibe was the owner of the Philadelphia Athletics from 1901 until his death in 1922.  Shibe Park was named in his honor.

Right-hander Franklin Leal Sullivan came to Minnesota in 1962 and stayed the next year.  He was at the end of a pretty fair career.  A tall man (6'7"), he was born in Hollywood and attended high school in Burbank, California.  Sullivan then signed with Boston as a free agent in 1948.  He was up and down in his early minor-league career:  a strong 1949 campaign in Class C San Jose was sandwiched by poor years in 1948 and 1950.  He then lost two years to the Korean War (where he was awarded a combat infantry badge), returning in 1953.  He had a big year for Class A Albany in 1953, mostly in the bullpen, and made his big league debut at the end of July for the Red Sox.  The next year, Sullivan moved into the Boston rotation and stayed there for several years.  His best year was probably 1955, when he led the league with 18 victories and 260 innings pitched, made his first all-star team, and received minor consideration for Most Valuable Player.  Sullivan also made the all-star team in 1956, and had another strong season in 1957, when he posted the lowest ERA of his career, 2.73, the lowest WHIP of his career, 1.06, and led the league in fewest walks per nine innings at 1.8.  He slumped in 1960, losing 16 games and posting an ERA of 5.10, was traded to Philadelphia after the season.  He got off to a decent start with the Phillies, but then declined, and was released in July of 1962.  The Twins picked him up the same day and he pitched fairly well out of the bullpen the rest of the season, pitching 33.1 innings with an ERA of 3.24.  In 1963, however, Sullivan got off to a poor start and was released in June, ending his playing career.  As a Twin, Frank Sullivan was 4-2, 3.86 in 44.1 innings.  For his career, however, he won 97 games with a 3.60 ERA, pitched 73 complete games, and had 15 shutouts.  For good measure, he also had 18 saves.  After his playing career ended, Sullivan got more serious about golf, eventually becoming a golf pro in Hawaii, where he was still living at last report.  Frank Sullivan was elected to the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2008.  In September of that year, he published a book, "Life Is More Than Nine Innings," in which he told stories about his playing career.  He passed away on January 19, 2016.

Catcher Paul Hawthorne Ratliff played in parts of three seasons for Minnesota, playing for them in 1963 and again from 1970-1971.  He was born in San Diego, went to high school in Pasadena, and signed with the Twins as a free agent in 1962.  Ratliff never hit much in the minors, but made his debut for the Twins in 1963 at age 19, presumably due to injuries to other catchers.  He was with Minnesota for a little over a month, predictably did not hit, and was sent back to the minors.  It would be seven years before he came back to the big leagues.  In 1969, he had a pretty good year as a 25-year-old in AA Charlotte, hitting .302 with 11 homers.  That got him a spot as a reserve catcher for the Twins in 1970, backing up George Mitterwald.  In 149 at-bats, he had easily the best year of his major league career, hitting .268 with five homers.  He started 1971 as the Twins' backup catcher again, but was seldom used, hitting .159 in only 44 at-bats when he was traded to Milwaukee in early July for Phil Roof.  He finished the season with the Brewers and started 1972 there, but continued not hitting and was traded to California in July.  Ratliff finished the season with the Angels' AAA team, and then ended his playing career.  There are more people in this world named "Paul Ratliff" than one might think; no further information about our Paul Ratliff was readily available.

First baseman/designated hitter Erubiel (Cardenas) Durazo did not play for Minnesota, but he was in their organization for about three weeks in 2006.  Born in Hermosillo, Mexico, he attended high school in Monterey.  He spent some time in the Mexican League, and then became a member of the Arizona organization in 1999.  He tore up the minors, hitting over .400 in 344 at-bats split between AA and AAA.  Durazo came up to the Diamondbacks in late July and became their regular first baseman almost immediately, hitting .329 the rest of the season.  He never hit that well again for Arizona, but consistently hit in the .260s as a platoon first baseman from 2000-2002, sharing time first with Greg Colbrunn and then with Mark Grace.  After the 2002 season, Durazo was traded to Oakland as part of a four-team deal.  The Athletics made him a regular, and while he was fairly good in 2003, he had his best year in 2004.  He hit .321 with 22 homers and an OPS of .919, getting minor consideration for Most Valuable Player.  Unfortunately, it was the last good year he would have.  Durazo got off to a poor start in 2005, was injured in late May, missed the rest of the season, and has not played in the majors since.  He became a free agent after the season and started bouncing around, signing with Texas in February of 2006, getting released near the end of spring training, re-signing with Texas just after the season started, getting released again in mid-May, signing with the Yankees, and getting released again in early July.  He signed with Minnesota on July 14 and was sent to Rochester.  He played in 17 games for the Red Wings, batting .264 with a homer and 12 walks in 65 plate appearances.  What the Twins were expecting is unclear, but they apparently weren't impressed, because they released him on August 5.  He signed with Oakland in the offseason, but was released at the end of spring training of 2007.  He signed with the Yankees in July, but was released after the season.  He spent a few season playing in Mexico and then his playing career ended.  At last report, Erubiel Durazo was living in Chandler, Arizona and was a special advisor for the Arizona Diamondbacks to help with the team's outreach to Mexico.

Right-handed reliever Juan Manuel Rincon pitched for the Twins for most of the past decade.  He was born in Maracaibo, Venezuela, attended high school there, and signed as a free agent with Minnesota in 1996.  Rincon was a starter for almost all of his minor league career.  He did well in the minors, but advanced slowly, perhaps due to his young age.  Rincon did not reach AA until 2000.  He had a good year in New Britain in 2001 and was brought up to Minnesota briefly, pitching in four games in June.  He was having a poor year in 2002 in AAA Edmonton when he was brought up to the Twins in late June.  Used sparingly, Rincon did not pitch very well in Minnesota that year either.  In 2003, however, Rincon made the team out of spring training and pitched substantially better.  It was the first of four consecutive years in which he was a valuable member of the Twins' bullpen.  Over that period, he was 25-19, 2.93 with a WHIP of 1.22.  It should be noted that he was suspended for ten days in 2005 for using performance enhancing drugs.  He stumbled badly in 2007, and was pitching no better in 2008 when Minnesota released him in June.  He signed with Cleveland for the rest of the season, but continued to struggle.  He signed with Detroit for 2009, was released in May, and finished the season with Colorado, spending time in the minors in both 2008 and 2009.  He was in the minors for most of 2010 and pitched poorly, although he still made two appearances in the majors.  He signed with the Dodgers in 2011, was released, and spent the summer pitching for Bridgeport in the Atlantic League.  He signed with the Angels for 2012 and did fairly well in 26 innings in AAA, but was released on June 1 and went back to Bridgeport for the rest of the season.  He was again in the Atlantic League in 2013-14 and pitched pretty well there, but apparently retired after that season.  As a Twin, Juan Rincon was 30-26, 3.29 with an ERA+ of 121 in 386 games and 441 innings.  At last report, he was a consultant with PriveJets, a company which serves the travel needs of professional athletes.

January 22

Ira Thomas (1881)

Amos Strunk (1889)

Art Ehlers (1897)

Prince Oana (1910)

Chris Pelekoudas (1918)

Dave Leonhard (1941)

Senichi Hoshino (1947)

Mike Caldwell (1949)

Leon Roberts (1951)

Jeff Treadway (1963)

Jimmy Anderson (1976)

Chone Figgins (1978)

Carlos Ruiz (1979)

Ubaldo Jimenez (1984)

Art Ehlers did not play in the majors, but he spent his life in baseball.  He owned several minor league teams at various times and was the general manager of the Philadelphia Athletics and the Baltimore Orioles.  He also was a longtime scout for the Orioles.

Prince Oana played in the minors for twenty-three years, batting .304.  He also had a pitching record of 80-54.

Chris Pelekoudas was a National League umpire from 1960-1975.  He is best remembered for his run-ins with Gaylord Perry over the latter's use of illegal substances on the baseball.

Senichi Hoshino is a long-time player, manager, and executive in Japanese baseball.

Left-hander James Drew Anderson did not play for the Twins, but was in their minor league system for two months in 2005.  He was born in Portsmouth, Virginia, went to high school in Chesapeake, Virginia, and was drafted by Pittsburgh in the ninth round in 1994.  He progressed slowly through the minors, seeming to struggle when first promoted to a higher level but doing better his second time around.  He went 11-2, 3.84 with AAA Nashville in 1999, although with a WHIP of 1.45.  He came up to the majors briefly in early July, then came back in early August, staying for the rest of the season.  He did decently enough in limited duty, going 2-1, 3.99, 1.40 WHIP in 29.1 innings.  He spent most of 2000 and all of 2001-2002 in the Pirates rotation despite going 22-41, 5.24, 1.57 WHIP.  He was remarkably consistent, at least:  his ERAs ranged only from 5.10 to 5.44, and his WHIP varied only from 1.53 to 1.64.  Pittsburgh finally gave up on him after the 2002 season and he signed with Cincinnati.  He was no better there, was released on July 1, signed with San Francisco, and was released again in mid-August.  He signed with the Cubs for 2004, was traded to Boston on July 2, was released a month later, and finished the season in AAA with the Cubs again.  He was still with the Cubs at the beginning of 2005, but was released in mid-April and signed with Minnesota.  He was in AAA for two months and didn’t do too badly there, going 4-4, 2.90 in 62 innings, although with a WHIP of 1.52.  The Twins released Anderson in mid-June and he went to AAA with Tampa Bay, was released after about two months there, and finished out the season in the Houston organization.  He started 2006 in AAA with Florida, went 2-3, 5.77 in 43.2 innings, and his playing career was over.  At last report, Jimmy Anderson was a coach for the Mid-Atlantic Pirates, a youth baseball program based in Chesapeake, Virginia.

January 21

Mike Tiernan (1867)

Lew Fonseca (1899)

Sam Mele (1922)

Danny O'Connell (1927)

Johnny Oates (1946)

Bill Stein (1947)

Mike Krukow (1952)

Dave Smith (1955)

Mike Smithson (1955)

Jose Uribe (1959)

Andy Hawkins (1960)

Darryl Motley (1960)

Chris Hammond (1966)

Tom Urbani (1968)

Rusty Greer (1969)

Jason Ryan (1976)

Brandon Crawford (1987)

Tom Urbani was drafted by Minnesota in the twenty-ninth round in 1989, but did not sign.

The nephew of infielder Tony Cuccinello, Sabath Anthony "Sam" Mele was the second manager of the Minnesota Twins.  Born in Astoria, New York, he was listed for most of his career as having been born in 1923, a fib he attributed to his uncle Tony, who advised him to cheat a year on his age in order to have a longer career.  Mele attended high school in Queens and then went to New York University.  He then entered the Navy.  He was signed by Boston as a free agent in 1946.  After a big year in Class A Scranton, Mele made the Red Sox out of spring training in 1947, eventually becoming a regular outfielder, playing all over the outfield but mostly in right.  He batted .302 that year, the only year he would hit .300.  The next year, Mele clashed with manager Joe McCarthy, who insisted that he change his batting stance, a change Mele blamed for the fact that his average declined.  He fell to part-time status and was traded to Washington in June of 1949.  He had a couple of solid years in Washington, batting .274 and leading the league in doubles in 1951.  In May of 1952, Mele was traded again, this time to the White Sox.  He hit .274 for them in 1953, but was traded again after the season, this time to Baltimore.  He got off to a poor start with the Orioles, was placed on waivers in July, and was claimed by Boston.  He hit .318 for the Red Sox for the rest of 1954, but slumped in 1955 and was on the move again, sold to Cincinnati.  He was released by the Reds after the season, played for Cleveland in 1956, and was released again in mid-April of 1957.  Mele played for the White Sox' AAA team in 1957 and part of 1958, moving on to Kansas City's AAA team for the rest of 1958 before bringing his playing career to a close.  He then became a coach for Washington, coming to Minnesota with the team in 1961.  He took over from Cookie Lavagetto as manager in June.  He remained the Twins' manager into 1967, winning the American League pennant in 1965.  He was replaced as manager by Cal Ermer fifty games into the 1967 season.  Mele never managed again, but was immediately hired as an instructor and scout for the Red Sox, for whom he worked for the next 25 years.  Sam Mele passed away on May 1, 2017 at his home in Quincy, Massachusetts.

Tall (6'8") right-hander Billy Mike Smithson pitched for Minnesota from 1984-1987.  Born in Centerville, Tennessee, he attended the University of Tennessee and was drafted by Boston in the fifth round in 1976.  He struggled for two years in AA, and was converted to relieving in 1979.  He had an excellent year in AAA in 1980, and did well there again in 1981, but was traded to Texas just before the 1982 season.  The Rangers switched Smithson back to starting, and he had a decent year in AAA other than showing a tendency to give up home runs.  He got a September call-up that year and was with Texas all of the 1983 season.  He had a pretty good year for the Rangers, but was traded to Minnesota that offseason along with John Butcher for Sam Sorce and Gary Ward.  He spent most of the next four years in the Twins rotation.  Smithson started out pretty well, going 15-13 with a 3.68 ERA in 252 innings in 1984.  Unfortunately, he got a little worse every year.  He was still decent in 1985, and again pitched over 250 innings, but he had a poor 1986, and in 1987 he was sent to the minors at the end of July and left off the post-season roster.  The Twins released Smithson after the season, and he signed with Boston.  He played for the Red Sox for two more years, doing some starting and some relieving, but never had a good year for them.  He retired after the 1989 season.  As a Twin, Mike Smithson was 47-48, 4.46 in 128 games, 126 of them starts.  He had 26 complete games and five shutouts, pitching 816 innings.  He was named to the University of Tennessee's all-century team and is a member of the school's Hall of Fame.  At last report, Mike Smithson was the athletic director of Hickman County High School in his home town of Centerville, Tennessee, where the baseball field has been named after him.

Right-hander Jason Paul Ryan appeared in 24 games for Minnesota from 1999-2000.  A native of Long Branch, New Jersey, he attended high school in Sommerville, New Jersey and was drafted by the Cubs in the ninth round in 1994.  Ryan was up and down in the minors, pitching well in 1994 and 1995, but not very well in his second year at advanced Class A in 1996.  He had two more down years in advanced A and AA, but got off to a tremendous start in 1999, going 5-0, 1.41 in seven starts at AA West Tennessee.  At that point, Ryan was traded to the Twins with Kyle Lohse for Rick Aguilera and Scott Downs.  He did not pitch nearly as well at either AA New Britain or AAA Salt Lake, but was brought up to the Twins in late August anyway, going 1-4 in eight starts.  He had a better year in Salt Lake in 2000 and came back up to the Twins in late June.  His numbers that year are not as bad as they appear--over half his earned runs were given up in three outings--but they are not all that good, either.  He was released after the season, and never pitched in the majors again.  He kept trying for some time, though.  He pitched in AAA for Pittsburgh and the Dodgers in 2001, played independent ball in 2002, was in AAA with St. Louis in 2003, and split 2004 between the AAA teams of the Cardinals and Royals.  He actually had a very good year in 2003, going 8-6, 2.70 with a 1.27 WHIP, but it apparently not good enough to impress anyone who mattered.  No information about what Jason Ryan has done since his playing career ended was readily available.  However, his nephew, Ryder Ryan, is a pitcher in the Rangers organization, playing for AAA Round Rock in 2021.

January 20

Everett Mills (1845)

C. I. Taylor (1875)

William Eckert (1909)

Jimmy Outlaw (1913)

Joe Dobson (1917)

Gene Stephens (1933)

Camilo Pascual (1934)

Dave Boswell (1945)

Cecil Espy (1963)

Ozzie Guillen (1964)

Kevin Maas (1965)

Marvin Benard (1970)

Brian Giles (1971)

David Eckstein (1975)

Matt Albers (1983)

Geovany Soto (1983)

Everett Mills holds the record for most at-bats in a season without drawing a walk (342).

 C . I. Taylor founded the first African-American professional baseball team, the Birmingham Giants, in 1904.

General William Eckert was the commissioner of baseball from 1965-1968,

Marvin Benard played in the major leagues for nine years and could never get announcers to stop calling him "Marvin Bernard".

Right-hander Camilo Alberto Pascual, known for his outstanding curveball, was the ace of the early Twins' rotation, pitching for them from their inception through 1966.  Born in Havana, Cuba, he was signed by Washington as a free agent in 1951.  He had fine years in Class B in 1952 and 1953, which was apparently all the Griffith organization needed to see, because he began 1954 in the majors and never went back.  He was in the bullpen for most of 1954 and 1955, although he did make some starts both years.  Pascual became a rotation starter in 1956 and remained one through 1969.  Given his youth, he understandably struggled in his early years, not posting an ERA below four until 1958.  Once he figured things out, though, he really figured them out.  He led the league in strikeouts per nine innings in 1958 and in complete games and shutouts in 1959.  Pascual received some minor consideration for the MVP award in 1959 and made his first all-star team that year.  He also made the all-star team in 1960.  His combined ERA from 1958-1960 was 2.90.  He came to Minnesota with the team in 1961 and had the best years of his career.  Pascual made the all-star team in 1961, 1962, and 1964; was in the top fifteen in MVP voting in 1962 and 1963;  led the league in strikeouts three years in a row (1961-1963); led in shutouts in 1961 and 1962; led in complete games in 1962 and 1963; and won over 20 games in 1962 and 1963.  Pascual continued to pitch well in 1965, although he had numerous no-decisions and also missed a little over a month with injuries.  He had a down year in 1966, however, and after the season was traded with Bernie Allen to Washington for Ron Kline.  He came back to have two of his finest years, with a combined ERA under three and a combined WHIP under 1.2.  He got off to a poor start in 1969, however, and was traded in early July to Cincinnati.  The Reds released him at the start of the 1970 season, and he was signed the same day by the Dodgers.  He was released in August, however, and was out of baseball until April of 1971, when Cleveland picked him up.  In late May, Pascual was sent to San Diego as part of a conditional deal--the Padres kept him for four days and sent him back to Cleveland.  Pascual was released in early June, and his career was over.  It was a pretty good career, though--174 victories, 2,167 strikeouts, and a career ERA of 3.63.  His combined record for the Washington/Minnesota franchise was 145-141, 3.66 in 432 games, 331 of them starts.  After his retirement, he was the Twins' pitching coach for three years (1978-1980).  At last report, Camilo Pascual was living in Miami and scouting for the Los Angeles Dodgers.  He was inducted into the Latino Baseball Hall of Fame in 2010 and the Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame in 2012.

Right-hander David Wilson Boswell had several fine years with Minnesota.  He was born in Baltimore and went to high school there.  Boswell then signed with Minnesota as a free agent in 1963.  He did not begin his professional career until 1964, and after a good year split between Class A and AA ended that season in the majors with a September call-up.  Although he was only 19, he was in the big leagues to stay.  In 1965, at age 20, Boswell began the year in the Minnesota bullpen, was placed in the rotation in mid-May, but was sent back to the bullpen in July despite not pitching badly as a starter.  The Twins had a hard rotation to break into:   Camilo Pascual, Jim Perry, Jim Kaat, and Mudcat Grant, plus Jim Merritt was there to make occasional starts as well.  In 1966, however, Boswell forced his way into the rotation, getting there in late May and staying there until the early August, when he was injured.  He was in the rotation until mid-1970 and had some very good years, consistently posting ERAs between 3.1 and 3.4.  While not necessarily his best year, his best numbers came in 1969, when Boswell won 20 games, made 38 starts, and pitched 256 innings.  1969 was also the year when Boswell had his famous fight with manager Billy Martin.  Those innings may have taken something out of him, though, because he hurt his shoulder during the ALCS and never had a good year again.  Boswell struggled through a series of poor starts in 1970 until he was finally placed on the disabled list at the end of July, staying there for the rest of the season.  Boswell was released at the end of 1971 spring training, went to Detroit (reuniting him with Martin), was released again at the end of May, was signed by Baltimore, and was released one more time before the 1972 season, finished as a player at age 27.  In his later years, Dave Boswell lived in Joppa, Maryland, helped at various fantasy camps, and enjoyed working in his garden.  Dave Boswell passed away in Joppa on June 11, 2012.

Left-handed first baseman/designated hitter Kevin Christian Maas was with Minnesota for about two months in 1995.  He was born in Castro Valley, California, attended the University of California, and was drafted by the Yankees in the 22nd round in 1986.  Maas hit pretty well throughout his minor league career, making his major league debut with the Yankees at the end of June of 1990.  He got off to a tremendous start, hitting 21 home runs in about four months and finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting to Sandy Alomar.  In 1991, his only year as a regular, he hit 23 homers, but batted only .220, although he had a .333 OBP.  He was reduced to part-time status in 1992 and 1993, going back to AAA in July of the latter year.  Maas was released by the Yankees in March of 1994, signed with San Diego, was released again in May, and finished the season with Cincinnati, although he was in the minors with all of those clubs.  Released again at the end of the season, Maas signed with Minnesota.  He played sparingly with the Twins:  in a little over two months, he appeared in 22 games, getting 64 at-bats.  He hit .193/.281/.316 with one home run, and was released in late June, his last appearance in the majors.  He continued playing for a couple more years, though.  Maas played for Columbus in the Yankees organization for the rest of 1995, went to the Brewers' AAA team in 1996 (playing briefly for Hanshin in Japan), and was in AAA for Houston and Cincinnati in 1997 before ending his playing career.  At last report, Kevin Maas was working as a vice president and financial consultant for Charles Schwab in his home town of Castro Valley, California.

January 19

Chick Gandil (1888)

Lee Head (1899)

Rip Radcliff (1906)

Chet Trail (1944)

Jon Matlack (1950)

Rich Gale (1954)

Brad Mills (1957)

Rick Adair (1958)

Chris Sabo (1962)

Jim Morris (1964)

Orlando Palmeiro (1969)

Jeff Juden (1971)

Phil Nevin (1971)

Chris Stynes (1973)

Amaury Telemaco (1974)

Byung-Hyun Kim (1979)

James Beresford (1989)

Nick Burdi (1993)

Lee Head played in the minors for twenty-one seasons.  He batted .304, but he was best known for his ability to avoid striking out.  In 1933 he struck out three times in 468 at-bats.  In 1935 he did even better, striking out once in 402 at-bats.

Chet Trail is the only player to have been on a World Series roster who never appeared in a major league game, regular season or post-season.  He is also the last man to make an out against Satchel Paige in an organized baseball game while playing in the Carolina League in 1966.  After baseball, he became a pastor and eventually a bishop in the Church of God in Christ.

Third baseman Brad Mills was drafted by Minnesota in the 16th round of the 1977 January draft, but did not sign.

Rick Adair was in baseball from 1979-2013.  Most recently, he was the pitching coach of the Baltimore Orioles.  He is the nephew of former Twins pitching coach Art Fowler.

One would not normally think of Phillip Joseph Nevin as a "utility player", but he played 483 major league games at third base, 249 at first, 128 in the outfield, and 109 behind the plate, plus another 119 at designated hitter.  He was with the Twins for the last month of the 2006 season.  Nevin was born in Fullerton, California, went to high school in Placentia, California, and then attended Cal State--Fullerton, where he was a teammate of Dan Naulty.  He was drafted by Houston with the first pick of the 1992 draft.  He played for the Olympic team that summer, so his professional career did not start until 1993.  Nevin began at AAA, was there for a little over two years, and made it to the majors in mid-June 0f 1995.  He did not hit, was sent back down after about a month, and then was traded to Houston after another month.  He got a September callup with Detroit, but was back in the minors in 1996, getting called up to the Tigers in August.  He finally spent a full season in the majors in 1997, but he was a part-time player and did not do a whole lot.  After the season, Nevin was traded to Anaheim.  Again a part-time player in 1998, Nevin continued to not do a whole lot.  Just before the 1999 season, he was traded to San Diego.  Finally given the chance to play every day, he blossomed.  In six and a half years as a Padre, he hit .288, twice hitting over .300, twice getting minor MVP consideration, and making the all-star team in 2001.  He was having a down year in 2005, and was 34 years old by then, so he was traded to Texas at the July deadline.  He did not hit as a Ranger, and in late May of 2006 he was on the move again, this time to the Cubs.  He was there for two months, and was traded to Minnesota at the end of August for a player to be named later (Adam Harben).  Nevin played in only 16 games for the Twins, getting 54 at-bats.  He hit .190/.340/.286 with one home run.  No one picked him up after the season, and his career was over.  Since then, Phil Nevin has done some work for the Padres' Radio Network and for ESPN.  He managed the Orange County Flyers of the Golden Baseball League in 2009.  In 2010 he managed the AA Erie Seawolves, from 2011-2013 he was manager of the AAA Toledo Mud Hens, and in 2014 he became the manager of the Reno Aces, which he did through 2016.  He was the third base coach for the San Francisco Giants in 2017 and was the third base coach for the New York Yankees from 2018-2021.  He will be the third base coach for the Los Angeles Angels in 2022.

Infielder James Richard Beresford played ten games for the Twins in 2016.  He was born in Mount Waverly, Australia, went to high school in Melbourne, and signed with the Twins as a free agent in 2005.  He posted good batting averages and decent on-base percentages throughout his minor league career, but had almost no power, hitting only four home runs in over a thousand minor league games.  He spent two years in rookie ball, two years in low-A, and one year in high-A, reaching AA in 2012, at which time he was sill only twenty-three.  He got to AAA in mid-2013 and stayed there until he got a September callup in 2016.  His AAA numbers were .286/.334/.342.  In his ten games with the Twins he hit .227/.261/.273.  He became a free agent after the 2016 season and did not sign with anyone, bringing his playing career to an end.  Had he come up when teams had smaller pitching staffs and more bench players, he might have been able to have a decent career as a utility infielder, but unfortunately for him, he didn't.  Still, he did get those ten games, and it's ten games more than I'll ever get.  At last report, James Beresford had returned to Australia

Right-hander Nicholas Edward Burdi did not play for the Twins, but was in their farm system from 2014-2017.  He was born in Hinsdale, Illinois, went to high school in Downers Grove, Illinois, attended the University of Louisville, and was drafted by Minnesota in the second round in 2014.  A reliever, he had huge strikeout numbers in the low minors--38 in 20.1 innings in 2014 and 83 in 63.2 innings in 2015.  He missed most of 2016 and 2017 due to elbow injuries.  Because of that, the Twins chose to put lesser but healthy pitchers on their forty-man roster and leave Burdi unprotected after the 2017 season.  He was chosen by Philadelphia, but was immediately traded to Pittsburgh for international slot money.  He again missed most of the season due to injury, pitching in a total of twelve games in 2018.  Two of them were in the majors in September.  He started the 2019 season with the Pirates, but pitched only eleven games in April before getting injured again.  2020 was the same story--this time he was able to appear in just three games before being injured.  He became a free agent after the season and signed with San Diego but was unable to pitch in 2021.  For his career he is 2-2, 9.49, 1.87 WHIP in sixteen games (12.1 innings).  He turns twenty-nine today and is still with the Padres.  What we've said for the last two years still applies.  If he could get and stay healthy, he might be able to have a decent major league career, but it's looking less and less likely that he'll be able to do that.