Media – Page 25 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Twins Not Parting Ways with Rocco

Posted on October 3, 2021 by David Shama

The Minnesota Twins end their regular season today with a series finale in Kansas City against the Royals. This could be the most disappointing year in franchise history dating back to 1961. Before the season started internal and external expectations were that the club would contend for an American League championship, not finish 17 or 18 games under .500.

Media speculation has manager Rocco Baldelli on the “hot seat.” His name is on the list of managers that could be fired soon but team president Dave St. Peter told Sports Headliners it’s not going to happen.

“We believe in Rocco,” St. Peter said. “We think he’s part of the solution. He’s certainly not the problem in our mind.”

Baldelli had no managerial experience when he took over the Twins for the 2019 season. His first club won the AL Central with a 101-61 record, the second most in franchise history. During a pandemic shortened 2020, the Twins were 36-24 and again led the division standings. This year’s team has underwhelmed with inconsistent pitching and injuries to key positional players.

St. Peter believes Baldelli, 40, is a better manager today because of what he has experienced the last three seasons. “Think about what he’s faced as a manager. He’s had 100 win teams. He’s had to deal with a world-wide pandemic. He’s had to deal with social justice issues. He’s had to deal with the loss of a bench coach (the late Mike Bell). He’s dealt with probably every injury you could ever imagine from all of his star players.

“And now he’s dealt with a really challenging season. A season where we’ve failed to meet expectations. Those things and 100 other things are going to help shape you as a leader, and Rocco Baldelli is still on the opening chapters of his managerial career. So there is no doubt in my mind his best managing is ahead of him.”

St. Peter doesn’t expect any major changes in the baseball front office. That includes the return of top executives Derek Falvey and Thad Levine. “Yeah, 100 percent (both return). I expect both of them to be part of our franchise for a long, long time.”

Dave St. Peter (photo courtesy of Minnesota Twins)

The team president believes 2022 will be a “retool,” not a rebuild for the club. Much of the focus, of course, will be improving the pitching staff. He’s encouraged by the work of the bullpen over the last two months, labeling it as one of the best in MLB during that period. The starting staff will receive particular offseason scrutiny with the club looking for pitching help within the organization and outside of it through potential trades and free agent signings.

St. Peter predicted predicts young starters from within the organization are likely to join the Twins as the 2022 season develops. “That really excites me because that’s really the ticket to sustained success,” he said.

Worth Noting

The Golden Gophers earned some redemption yesterday with a 20-13 win over Purdue and moved their season record to 3-2. Minnesota players and coaches had spent last week trying to explain their stunning 14-10 loss to lowly Bowling Green at home September 25. Gopher defensive end Boye Mafe said this before going to Purdue: “…If we want to do what we want to do with the season, we have to really show up and really actually execute.”

The offense, led by quarterback Tanner Morgan, was much better yesterday than the week before. Morgan was the target of much criticism passing for 59 yards on five of 13 completions against BG. “Being the quarterback of the Minnesota Golden Gophers is something that I truly cherish, but at the end of the day that’s not my identity. My identity is who I am, as a child of God, and when you remember that I think it makes things a lot easier personally. But people have a right to be angry. That’s part of college football. …”

True freshman Joe Alt, from Totino-Grace and North Oaks, was on the field at left tackle for Notre Dame yesterday during the home loss to Cincinnati.

Short list: Twins slugger Miguel Sano has 30 home runs this season and he hit 34 in 2019. He is one of only seven Twins ever to hit 30 or more in multiple seasons, joining Harmon Killebrew, Bob Allison, Tom Brunansky, Brian Dozier, Gary Gaetti and Justin Morneau.

Byron Buxton has stolen 71 bases in 81 career attempts, a percentage of .876. That’s second best in MLB history (minimum 80 attempts). Alexi Casilla, with the Twins and Baltimore Orioles, is the leader with a percentage of .879.

It was 40 years ago last Thursday (September 30, 1981) the Twins played their final game at Met Stadium, moving into the Metrodome in 1982.

Minnesota native and baseball hall of famer Dave Winfield is 70 today.

A Minnesota Timberwolves source said former coach Ryan Saunders hasn’t decided on his next career opportunity. He and wife Hayley have two children under three and continue to live in the Minneapolis area.

“The Huddle” with Mike Max and Pete Najarian debuts next Sunday from 10 a.m. to noon on WCCO Radio. The show fills the time slot of “The Sports Huddle” show that hasn’t aired for about 18 months.

As of late last week, the Minnesota Wild had sold more than 1,200 Winter Classic jerseys since announcing them about a month ago. The jerseys honor the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, and the 2022 Winter Classic that will be at Target Field.

Bally Sports North will televise the Timberwolves preseason game against the New Orleans Pelicans Monday night from Target Center, with Bally Sports using its app to stream the Wild’s preseason game against the Colorado Avalanche from Xcel Energy Center on the same evening.

Kevin Harlan, the former radio voice of the Timberwolves, does the play-by-play for CBS on its TV coverage of today’s Minnesota Vikings-Cleveland Browns game.

Zero. In Minnesota’s win last Sunday the Viking defense held the Seattle Seahawks scoreless in the second half for the first time since the Tampa Bay Bucs did so in November of 2016.

Rookie left tackle Christian Darrisaw, who has yet to play for the 1-2 Vikings, perhaps could make his debut today if the game is one-sided. He was a full participant in practice last week after being sidelined with a groin issue.

The United States Hockey League had a record 375 NHL scouts and D-1 coaches at its recent Fall Classic Showcase held near Pittsburgh. Representatives of the Minnesota Wild, Golden Gophers, St. Thomas, and other Minnesota schools were in attendance. The USHL’s new president and commissioner is St. Paul native Billy Robertson.

Chris Meidt, president and CEO of Minnesota-based North Risk Partners, is the former quarterbacks coach of the Washington Redskins and ex-head coach at St. Olaf. As a Minneota High School quarterback in the 1980s he threw over 100 career touchdown passes for a then national prep record and was featured in Sports Illustrated’s “Faces in the Crowd.”

A pair of senior MIAC quarterbacks, Bethel’s Jaran Roste, and Chris Backes from Saint John’s, are semifinalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy. The award recognizes an individual as the best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance, and exemplary leadership.

The program time to honor Minnesota prep football coaching legend Ron Stolski next Saturday has been changed from 4 p.m. to 2:45 p.m. The event will be at the Northern Pacific Center in Brainerd.

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Upbeat Ticket Sales for Gopher Football

Posted on August 29, 2021 by David Shama

A sellout crowd of 50,805 is anticipated at Huntington Bank Stadium for Thursday night’s season opening game against No. 4 ranked Ohio State. That information and more on Golden Gophers football ticket sales was provided recently by the University of Minnesota at the request of Sports Headliners.

Unlike past home openers, free tickets aren’t being given to first-year students to bolster attendance. Instead, a discounted ticket for all first and second-year students was offered for Thursday night’s game. However, free tickets are being offered to those students for the September 11 Miami (Ohio) game.

With season ticket sales on the rise and many single game buyers paying over $100 for a ticket, the September 2 game will be a much needed financial boost for the athletic department. The Gophers’ stadium, like others in college football, hasn’t hosted fans since 2019 because of the pandemic. The financial deficit in the U athletic department during the 2020-2021 school year is reportedly over $21 million. The department will borrow money from the central administration to cover the loss.

As of August 24 of this year 24,047 public season tickets had been sold. This total represents 7,383 accounts and doesn’t include student tickets.

In 2019 the public season tickets total was 21,664, with 6,605 accounts. The most public season tickets sold since the football program moved back to campus was 34,130 in the opening year of 2009.

As of August 24, 6,523 football student season tickets were sold. This compares with 3,388 in 2019.

The most student season tickets sold since the return to campus is 10,248 in 2009.

Increased interest in Gophers football isn’t surprising. Coach P.J. Fleck’s team is expected to contend for the Big Ten’s West Division championship. The home schedule includes marquee games with traditional power Ohio State (Buckeyes haven’t been to Minneapolis since 2014) and border rival Wisconsin. Although the Gophers were 3-4 during the chaotic pandemic year of 2020, they were 11-2 the season prior and ranked among the better teams in the country.

Worth Noting

Michael Hsu, the former University of Minnesota regent, is developing a nationwide advocacy organization for the rights of college basketball players. He is also an advisory board member of the newly formed College Football Players Association.

In a Name, Image and Likeness deal involving a Gopher athlete, quarterback Tanner Morgan will provide free autographs from 7 to 8 p.m. at Fan HQ Ridgedale on Monday, September 20.

Minnesota Twins radio voice Cory Provus will call college football games for FS1 and BTN. Others with Minnesota connections who will have various roles with BTN football are James Laurinaitis, Annie Sabo and Brock Vereen.

In their final preseason game Friday night the Minnesota Vikings saw the 2021 gold standard in NFL head coaches, Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs. Others considered top 10 head coaches include the Green Bay Packers’ Matt LaFleur and former Vikings offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski who leads the Cleveland Browns.

VSA Auction items for bid through September 2 include a 1974 Minnesota Vikings NFC Championship player ring. The current high bid is $14,000.

The Miami Marlins, whose top prospects include former Gopher pitcher Max Meyer, have the No. 3 farm system, per MLB.com. The Twins rank No. 15 among the list of 30 organizations, with the Baltimore Orioles No. 1.

The Twins, headed for their worst season record since 59-102 in 2016, have only four pitchers (Jorge Alcala, Alex Colome, Tyler Duffey, Caleb Thielbar) on their active pitching roster who were with the club on opening day.

The Gopher baseball team’s fall schedule opens September 7 and ends October 2. Included are intra-squad scrimmages, and home games against St. Thomas (Sept. 17), Concordia, St. Paul (Sept. 24) and the alumni (Oct. 2).

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Intriguing If WR Wright Subs for U

Posted on August 17, 2021August 18, 2021 by David Shama

Chris Autman-Bell, counted on this fall to be the Golden Gophers’ No. 1 receiver, is sidelined with an undisclosed injury, but possibly a high ankle sprain. The injury happened in practice last week and speculation has been Autman-Bell could miss the September 2 opening game against Ohio State. Head coach P.J. Fleck said after practice last night Autman-Bell’s injury is “week-to-week” and predicted a “legitimate chance” he could compete against the Buckeyes.

Autman-Bell, a senior, has played in 33 games during his Minnesota career, with 78 receptions for 1,250 yards and six touchdowns. That’s a lot of experience for the talented wide receiver who makes difficult catches and has the skills to be an NFL prospect.

If Autman-Bell can’t play against top five tanked Ohio State, who gets his assignment? It could be a group approach and several receivers had a lot of reps in practice yesterday. None seem more intriguing than Dylan Wright who showed his speed and pass catching skills Monday.

“He consistently makes huge plays,” Fleck said. “He’s just gotta be able to have the detailed part of the game continue to be ironed out.”

Wright, 6-3 and 215, is a redshirt sophomore and new to the roster after transferring from Texas A&M where he played in a total of eight games in 2019 and 2020. Fleck didn’t offer more explanation on how Wright needs to continue improvement.

Ryan Burns, the 247Sports Gopher football authority, sees more “immediate upside” in Wright than other potential subs for Autman-Bell.

“He’s the most athletic receiver on the roster,” Burns told Sports Headliners in regard to Wright. “His straight line speed, he can take the top off the defense. He knows how to go up and get a football.”

247Sports ranked the Dallas native the No. 12 wide receiver prospect in the country coming out of high school after his 2018 senior season. Wright was also named an Under Armor All-American.

Worth Noting

Matthew Trickett, the Kent State transfer, made 11 of 14 field goal attempts late at Monday’s practice, according to Daniel House of Gophers Guru. Trickett could be a lock to win the kicking job. True freshman quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis, from Antioch, Illinois, threw some of the best spirals at practice.

Burns tracks Gophers and Big Ten recruiting. In Minnesota’s 2021 recruiting class five of the 18 players are from Illinois but for 2022 none of the 13 verbal commits are from that state, per 247Sports. New University of Illinois coach Bret Bielema has vowed to make in-state talent a top priority.

Burns said restrictions caused by the pandemic limited Minnesota’s recruiting in Illinois for its 2022 class. The Gophers did hold a camp in the state but chose not to offer anyone a scholarship. “I don’t think Minnesota is scared of Bret Bielema when they recruit the state of Illinois,” Burns said.

The Gophers will again wear a helmet sticker honoring the late Sid Hartman. The legendary media figure died during the 2020 season and in late October the Gophers began wearing a remembrance sticker on the back of their helmets.

There was expectation Minnesota Wild forward Kevin Fiala, who last season led the team in game-winning goals (5), shots on goal (162), power-play points (14) and takeaways (41), might earn $6 million on his next contract but the NHL club announced a one-year $5.1 million deal yesterday. He also ranked second in scoring with 40 points, 20 goals and 20 assists.

No word from St. Thomas on what radio station will carry Tommies football and who the on-air talent will be in its first season of Division I FCS.

The Minnesota Twins’ 2022 season schedule has a quirk with the club starting play with a split doubleheader in Detroit after the MLB All-Star break. Other clubs will play Friday, July 22 but because of a concert at Comerica Park that week the Twins and Tigers will have two games Saturday, July 23.

Every year the Twins ask schedule makers to start them on the road and for 2022 they had extra incentive not to be at home and conflict with the women’s NCAA Final Four basketball games at Target Center, April 1 and 3. The Twins open the 2022 season March 31 in Chicago against the White Sox, then go to Cleveland before playing the home opener April 7 with Seattle.

All MLB teams must at least occasionally begin their seasons at home. “We think that an extra week of Mother Nature warming in April is to our benefit, to our fans benefit and our players benefit,” said Twins president Dave St. Peter.

St. Peter told Sports Headliners former Twins first baseman Justin Morneau is a hit providing color analysis on TV games and that his work draws comparisons to Tony Romo of CBS football. “We think he is a rising star,” St. Peter said.

Tommy Davis, a freshman guard on the Golden Gophers’ 1982 Big Ten championship team who finished his career as Minnesota’s fourth all-time leading scorer, will be inducted into the M Club Hall of Fame September 10. A long range shooter, Davis set a Big Ten record making 15 of 16 field goal attempts in a game at Indiana.

Davis, a Maryland native, was hotly recruited out of high school. Gophers coach Jim Dutcher was looking for an edge and asked Walter Mondale, a Minnesota native and then vice president of the United States, to help. Tommy’s dad received a surprise call one day at work, Dutcher told Sports Headliners. Someone in the office informed Mr. Davis that the vice president was on the line. “The vice president of what?” the unknowing Mr. Davis asked.

Giovanni Jenkins is the new athletic director at Washburn High School in Minneapolis.

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