Author: David Shama

The New York Yankees and Chinese government have agreed to work together to develop baseball in the Communist country of over 1 billion people.   The Yankees will be sending personnel to China to instruct players and plan to open academies there, according to a recent article in USA Today. 

Twins executive Bill Smith, who oversees the club’s baseball academies in Venezuela and the Dominican Republic, said Minnesota presently has no plans to copy the Yankees plan, although the team has been and remains interested in talent from Asia.  “Howard Norsetter is our international coordinator,” Smith said. “I know Howard has made some inroads all across Asia.” 

Smith said baseball is “growing all across the world” and the Twins, for example, signed an outfielder (Wang-Wei Lin) this winter from Taiwan who will report soon to the club’s minor league camp.  Norsetter has been working for the Twins since the late 1980s when he began scouting in Australia.  His scouting territory has even included Canada where he found Corey Koskie and Justin Morneau. 

Jake Mauer said his son Joe has been working out in Florida and preparing for spring training.  One of baseball’s most eligible bachelors, Joe doesn’t have a steady girl friend, according to his dad. 

Twins president Dave St. Peter said the public’s “expectations are high” for the coming season.  The excitement includes anticipation of another division title and more star power among players than fans have known in the recent past.  St. Peter estimated last week that about 35,000 tickets have already been sold for the Twins’ home opener on Monday, April against Baltimore. 

According to the Twins web site, three new Hormel bobblehead doll giveaways are planned for the 2007 season: Joe Mauer batting title bobblehead (Saturday, June 9), Justin Morneau MVP bobblehead (Friday, July 20) and a Michael Cuddyer bobblehead (Saturday, September 15).

Mauer has signed a few four year contract but Morneau is signed only for this season.  General manager Terry Ryan has said at least twice on talk radio this week that he is willing to reopen discussions to sign Morneau to a multi-year contract.

Former University of Minnesota men’s tennis coach David Geatz has moved to Hong Kong.  “I am running the Hong Kong Country Club tennis program,” Geatz wrote via e-mail earlier this week.  “Hong Kong is an amazing place and I love it.  I also plan on traveling all over Asia to check out Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, etc.  The country club I work at is probably the nicest in Asia. …The program is very active with a lot of good players and I hope to develop the next Hong Kong Davis Cup team from our juniors.” 

Timberwolves president Chris Wright told Sports Headliners that Sunday’s sellout crowd at Target Center for the Wolves-Celtics game was the franchise’s fourth of the season, compared to just one last season.  The Wolves set a franchise record for group tickets at one game with 6,300 and Wright said 157 stand room only tickets were sold.  Impressive for a team that had lost six consecutive games, hasn’t made the playoffs since 2004 and was playing against the Celtics, losers of 17 straight. 

Wright said the Wolves sold 7,000 season tickets for the 2006-2007 season.  The first season in Target Center Center, 1990-91, the total was about 16,000. 

Clint Brewster is the only Gopher included in ESPN’s top 150 recruits (ranked No. 45).  ESPN.com reports the Denver quarterback’s offers included Illinois, Tennessee and South Carolina. 

The Indianapolis Star Web site reported last week that wide receiver Tray Herndon from Jacksonville had been expected to sign with Indiana but instead chose the Gophers.  Herndon was named to the Florida Class 2A all-state team. 

The Vikings are looking for season ticket buyers.  Two-thirds of all 2007 Vikings season ticket locations will have the same or lower price than 2006, with virtually all remaining locations increasing by about 2% to 4.5%, according to team management.  There will be 11 pricing options on season tickets, three more than last year.  Prices (including admissions tax) range from $99 (limited view) to $1,160.00. 

Over 4,000 upper level seats will be priced at $196.10 per seat for the season.   “We are excited about creating a wider variety of choices for our fans,” said Steve LaCroix, vice president of sales and marketing for the team. “Our $196.10 season ticket will be one of the lowest-priced season tickets in the NFL.”

Canterbury Park will open its 2007 live racing schedule on Saturday, May 5.  That’s the same date as the Kentucky Derby and local race fans will be drawn to the Shakopee facility by that event, too.  Total purse money for the 68-day meet will exceed $10.3 million.

Hennepin County Commissioner Mike Opat told Sports Headliners the county will decide “within a month” whether to proceed with condemnation or pursue another site for the new Twins baseball stadium. The land owners of the eight acre proposed stadium site near Target Center will not tell the county how much money they want for the site, according to Opat. 

The site has been appraised at about $13 million and the tax valuation is $8 million, Opat said.  He and Hennepin County Board Chairman Randy Johnson say they are frustrated with efforts to obtain a specific price from the owners.  Opat said the county never expected the land acquisition to be so “difficult” and it may make more sense to look for another site rather than invest time and money in condemnation proceedings. 

Opat described the possibility of searching for a new site as “exciting.”  He said possible sites could include the city impound lot and suburban locations such as Crystal and Eden Prairie.  

The upside of a new location would be a larger site than the current location.  Opat said HOK Sport, the project architectural firm, prefers to work with a 40, 50 or 100 acre site. 

Opat made it clear the county will consider another stadium site and the facility doesn’t have to be located within the city limits of Minneapolis.  Part of the stadium financing will come from dedicating .15% of the county sales tax to the project.   

The ballpark is targeted to open in 2010.  Not only is the stadium construction a major task, but so, too, is the adjacent infrastructure such as bridges, plazas and railroad tracks.

The site near Target Center has been hailed for its access to light rail and roads.  The proposed stadium will offer a view of the downtown skyline and its adjacency to the city’s bars and restaurants are considered a plus for fans attending games.