Media – Page 36 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Looking for Twins TV Return in July

Posted on May 5, 2020May 5, 2020 by David Shama

Word is Major League Baseball will start the 2020 season in July. Sports Headliners was told by an authoritative source his understanding is an abbreviated schedule will be played with initially no fans in ballparks. If more control of the COVID-19 epidemic happens, fans could slowly be allowed into stadiums as the season develops.

To deal most effectively with the virus, it’s predicted MLB will be reorganized into three 10-team divisions representing the east, central and west regions of the country. Travel would be minimized with teams playing games only within their division. To start with, and perhaps continuing indefinitely, games could be played only at sites in Florida, Texas and Arizona.

MLB owners and players have yet to agree with a 2020 schedule plan. With the necessity to get a plan in place soon, the pressure is on for an agreement this month. Presuming agreement is reached, that would allow enough time for three or four weeks of training prior to an early July start of the schedule.

It makes sense that one of the details the two sides could agree on is an unprecedented expanded roster size. If illness or injury hit a team particularly hard, where does management source players without a deep roster? Usually when there is a roster need, MLB teams turn to their farm systems for help but at this time it’s uncertain what the status of minor league baseball is for 2020.

With so much pent up enthusiasm for baseball from the fans, TV viewership could be record setting in July both regionally and nationally. In a reorganized geographical central division, Twins fans wouldn’t see baseball’s best player, Mike Trout of the Angels. Nor would they watch the Twins against the Yankees and Red Sox, two blueblood clubs that have been coming to Minneapolis since 1961. But a division home in the midwest would have Minnesota playing American League traditional rivals in the Indians, Royals, Tigers and White Sox. Intriguing opponents from the National League in the Twins’ new division could include the Brewers, Cardinals and Cubs.

The Twins are expected to have one of baseball’s better teams and could be in some sort of revised playoff system that leads to a World Series winner in November. In these weird times, how strange would it be to play the Fall Classic in an empty stadium?

Worth Noting

MLB players are usually paid over a 162-game season, but would earn prorated amounts during the course of an abbreviated 2020 year.

Look for the NFL to announce its 2020 schedule within days. Each team will play the usual 16 regular season games, with no games outside the United States. Four games in London and one in Mexico City had previously been planned.

Among the familiar events of spring in recent years is Bud Grant’s garage sale from his Bloomington home. Well, the legendary former Vikings coach, who turns 93 later this month, is secluded at his Wisconsin cabin, and there won’t be a sale this year. In the past the sales have been promoted as the final one, but son Mike Grant has a wait and see approach. “Never say never on these garage sales,” Mike said.

As head coach of the Eden Prairie football team, Mike will have Justice Sullivan as one of his captains this fall. Sullivan, who projects as a college linebacker, lived in Iowa until a couple of years ago and has verbally committed to the University of Iowa as a four-star recruit. Grant said Sullivan could play inside or outside linebacker like Carter Coughlin, the former Eagle who was one of the Gophers’ best defenders at the end position last season.

“Outstanding young man, and good student, great kid,” Grant said of Sullivan, whose dad Jake Sullivan played collegiate basketball at Iowa State.

During this period of public health uncertainty, NBA owners, including the Timberwolves Glen Taylor, have been told to refer media requests to the league office.

Despite the coronavirus epidemic, metro golf courses are busy. An avid player told Sports Headliners public courses are only taking reservations about a week out.

More outdoor activity starts Saturday with the fishing season opening for a number of popular species including northern pike and trout. To many Minnesotans, though, it’s the “Walleye Opener.” Media reports say license sales are brisk.

It just might be that two of the finalists for commissioner of the new Central Collegiate Hockey Association are names with ties to the University of Minnesota. The new leader of the CCHA is expected to be announced soon and be in place by July 1.

The 2020 Minnesota Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame honorees in the High School Division are Walter Hunting, Duluth Denfeld; Jeff Mumm, Thief River Falls; Mike Quist, Gaylord; and Karl Urbaniak, Mabel-Canton. Also joining the Hall of Fame from the Citation Division is Mike Turner of Varsity Photos.

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‘The Last Dance’ & Minnesota Connections

Posted on April 30, 2020April 30, 2020 by David Shama

For me there is a Minnesota connection to the story of the 1997-1998 Chicago Bulls team that is back in the news because of the “The Last Dance” series on ESPN that began April 19 with the first of 10 episodes.

So far the series portrays general manager Jerry Krause as the organization’s bad guy for telling the public before the season that Phil Jackson would be out as coach by the spring of 1998, and for taking a miserly stance on compensation for gifted forward Scottie Pippen. Indeed, Krause was a character. I learned that first-hand in the late 1980s when playing the lead role in arranging an exhibition game at Met Center with the Bulls featuring a young Michael Jordan who Larry Bird had already described as “god” in sneakers.

Krause was aloof that long ago night and certainly didn’t win any personality competitions. Near tipoff time in the basement of the Met he made it known the Bulls wouldn’t be taking the floor without a check for their exhibition game guarantee. The demand to show him the money first was unexpected because the Met was accustomed to settling with promoters after the event, but we paid up and the game went on as scheduled.

Not many viewers of “The Last Dance” know Krause’s early background. H was a part-time sportswriter for the Peoria Journal Star while in college at Bradley. Later he became both a pro basketball and baseball scout including for the MLB Chicago White Sox owned by Jerry Reinsdorf. In 1985 he became general manager of the Bulls, convincing Reinsdorf, who owned both Chicago teams, that he could excel in leading the NBA franchise that had never won a championship.

Krause, who died in 2017, was the team’s GM until 2003, playing a major role in the Bulls winning six NBA titles. A short roly-poly man who loved eating doughnuts and was disparagingly nicknamed “Crumbs,” Krause proved more than capable of the faith Reinsdorf placed in him. It was Krause at the top of the organizational pyramid who dealt with Jordan’s considerable talents and ego, and had to put the right supporting cast around him. The biggest piece Krause ever added was discovering Pippen at a small school, a prospect few knew about, but a player who developed into a superstar to complement Jordan. Jackson was a minor league basketball coach until Krause saw his potential and made him an assistant with the Bulls and later head coach.

While Krause receives criticism for some foolish decisions in banishing Jackson and not paying Pippen what he deserved, it seems the role of Reinsdorf is forgotten. Why was the owner silent when it seemed Krause went off the rails?

The fourth episode in the series shown last Sunday referenced assistant general manager Jim Stack. Later general manager of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Stack persuaded Krause to acquire bad boy Dennis Rodman. Krause listened and brought the erratic Rodman to Chicago where his rebounding and defense were the final piece needed for NBA titles in 1996, 1997 and 1998.

Rodman created another Minnesota link in a game against the Timberwolves at Target Center after he fell out of bounds near the baseline. A camera was pointed toward Rodman and he wasn’t pleased (to say the least)—and then he kicked the cameraman in the groin.

So far during “The Last Dance” series there has been no mention of the bad boy’s deed.

Worth Noting

Eric Musselman, who some Gophers fans wanted as head basketball coach a year ago, has the No. 6 ranked national recruiting class for 2020, according to 247Sports. Musselman, whose dad Bill Musselman coached the Gophers in the 1970s, finished his first season at Arkansas this winter after turning Nevada into a top 20 program.

Michigan, at No. 9, is the highest ranked Big Ten school in the rankings that with recruiting all but done at most schools won’t change much between now and next fall. Illinois is No. 14 nationally, and No. 2 in the Big Ten, Indiana No. 23 and No. 3, and Wisconsin is No. 24 and No. 4. The Wisconsin class includes two incoming freshmen from Minnesota, four-star Ben Carlson and three-star Steven Crowl.

The Gophers chose to scholarship just two freshmen for their 2020 class, Jamal Mashburn Jr. and Martice Mitchell. Both are four-star players, per 247, with the website ranking Minnesota’s recruiting class No. 59 in the nation and No. 8 in the Big Ten. Since becoming Minnesota’s head coach in 2014, Richard Pitino has struggled to land players from the state, with Amir Coffey and Daniel Oturu the only local four-star players to become Gophers.

Before the NFL Draft last week it looked like safety Antoine Winfield Jr. and tight end Thaddeus Moss could become part of a small group of sons of famous pro football dads that were selected in the same draft. Didn’t happen, though, because while the Gophers’ Winfield was chosen by Tampa Bay in the second round, LSU’s Moss wasn’t selected in the draft’s seven rounds and has signed with Washington as a free agent. Moss is the son of former Viking great Randy Moss.

After the draft, Betonline.ag made odds this week that seven other teams are more likely to win the NFC championship than the Vikings. The Saints, 49ers, Bucs, Cowboys, Eagles, Seahawks and Packers are all ahead of the Vikings.

The Ravens and 12 other teams had more favorable odds than the Vikings to win the 2021 Super Bowl.

The CORES meeting for Thursday, May 14 at the Bloomington Event Center, featuring Gophers athletic director Mark Coyle, has been cancelled. More information about CORES is available by contacting Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net. (CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans).

It was 64 years ago last Friday that the American Association’s Minneapolis Millers opened the corn field-turned into a ballpark, Metropolitan Stadium. The facility was similar to Milwaukee’s County Stadium and was built to lure a MLB team to the area. The Washington Senators arrived after the 1960 AL season and became the Twins. Metropolitan Stadium cost less than $10 million to build and was financed through revenue bonds issued by Minneapolis, Bloomington and Richfield.

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Changes Coming in Sports World

Posted on April 3, 2020April 3, 2020 by David Shama

The Minnesota Twins’ 2020 home opener was to have been played yesterday at Target Field against the Oakland A’s. Of course, it wasn’t and schedules for athletics on every level have come to a halt because of the coronavirus and all its implications. What can we anticipate in the months ahead?

There is speculation the Twins and their Major League brethren will start the 2020 season in July. However, there is no certainty on a timeline, nor is there as to whether teams will play in empty stadiums without fans. There is so much frustration among the public from the absence of live televised sports, the return of MLB or other sports will prompt a ratings bonanza.

An explosion in TV viewership will be fueled even more if sports like baseball become (for awhile at least) “studio television.” Geez, will they even use a soundtrack with crowd noise including a few “Bronx cheers”?

When crowds are invited back into stadiums and arenas, what will that look like? Imagine fans crowding the gates again at Target Field or U.S. Bank Stadium to watch the Vikings? Could the new norm be to herd fans into smaller groups and then allow them through security?

Even if the choice is there, who is going to attend games later this year or next year? A good guess is older fans will be reluctant to fill seats until the all-safe message rolls out regarding the coronavirus including a vaccine. The most gung-ho demographic figures to be teens and young adults. After all, part of their DNA screams, “We are invincible!”

Patrick Klinger is the former vice president of marketing for the Twins and still lives in the Twin Cities where he is president of Agile Marketing Partners. During his many years with the Twins, Klinger was known for his innovative promotions, events and marketing that enhanced the fan experience at the Metrodome and Target Field.

Klinger is an optimist, but also a realist who understands the sports and entertainment public. He believes when American sports resume there will be a great appreciation for the impact they have on our lives. He shared several other thoughts about what could lie ahead in the American sports environment in an email yesterday. The email was edited for publication below:

“I believe there will be a contingent of fans reluctant to go back into arenas, ballparks and stadiums (where strangers sit shoulder to shoulder) until there’s a vaccine for COVID-19, or an assurance that the crisis has completely passed. We’ve learned that ‘social distancing’ is the key to containing the spread of viruses. Sports attendance is unlikely to snap right back. However, I do believe it WILL come back in full force in time.

“I’m sure teams, leagues and venues are considering how to ensure fans are safe and comfortable when they return. Will a fan still be able (or want) to get a hot dog passed from a vendor through the hands of six strangers before it lands with the customer? Will concession stands still be manned by volunteers or part-timers with no professional experience with food service? If so, will they be required to wear masks?

“Will venues be completely wiped down with anti-bacterial solution following every game, a special challenge for MLB with its long homestands? Will additional hand washing stations and/or hand sanitizer be placed throughout the venues? There is also the need to keep high-priced players safe in the close confines of locker rooms and dugouts where sweat and spit is ubiquitous.

“We’ll likely think twice before high-fiving the person next to us after a home run, touchdown or game winning basket or goal. Just another way sports may look and feel different when the games begin again.”

Worth Noting

The opening pitch for yesterday’s Twins’ home opener was supposed to be 3:10 p.m. The temperature at that time was 60 degrees, with overcast skies, per AccuWeather. The coldest temp ever for a Twins opener was 33 degrees at Metropolitan Stadium April 14, 1962.

Viking wide receiver Adam Thielen’s foundation is partnering with KFAN and iHeart Radio Minneapolis to host the Thielen Foundation MN COVID-19 Relief Radiothon April 9. Programming throughout the day will feature Thielen on-air from his home with call-ins by Minnesota athletes, coaches, team executives and community leaders. Campaign donations will be equally divided between four charities and applied to their most urgent COVID-19 needs. The foundation has already committed $100,000 to organizations in need during the state’s crisis.

Former Golden Gophers head football coach Tim Brewster, long known as a top recruiter, will have an impact on the University of Florida’s success where he joined the Gators’ staff of assistants in February. Brewster left North Carolina for Florida, and the Tar Heels are No. 4 in the 247Sports recruiting rankings for the class of 2021. The Gators are No. 3.

The Gophers are No. 20 in the rankings.

State of Minnesota college hockey fans have reason to follow the April 10 announcements of the Hobey Baker and Mike Richter awards. Hibbing’s Scott Perunovich, a junior defenseman from UMD, is one of three finalists for the Hobey Baker Award recognizing the nation’s top college player. Minnesota State’s Dryden McKay, an Illinois native, is one of the five finalists for the Mike Richter Award given to college hockey’s top goalie.

I tweeted this “gem” on Wednesday: “Anyone remember in 1998 when on April Fools’ Day Burger King introduced ‘left-handed whoppers?’ ” (Sure hope nobody tried to order a “lefty” at BK drive-thru this week).

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