Recruiting – Page 49 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Who Is Minnesota Twins MVP So Far?

Posted on August 4, 2019August 4, 2019 by David Shama

Enjoy a Sunday notes column starting with the AL Central Division leading Minnesota Twins and a couple of interesting questions about the club.

The Twins are among the surprise teams in baseball and one of the biggest success stories. As of early August, who is the club’s MVP?

Talk about a question with no consensus answer. A Sports Headliners baseball source said shortstop Jorge Polanco and right fielder Max Kepler are deserving of co-MVP recognition. Another authority chose Kepler, then hesitated when reminded about the contributions of staff ace Jose Berrios and bullpen savior Taylor Rogers.

Polanco, Kepler, Berrios and Rogers. Who to choose? “You could make a case for all four being deserving,” a source said.

But wait.

The sources referenced here were contacted a few days ago, prior to DH Nelson Cruz making baseball history. Last night he hit three home runs in Minnesota’s Target Field victory over the Royals—becoming the third man in MLB history to have two three home run games within a 10-day period. The 39-year-old, who four times this season has driven in five runs or more, is now tied for the club lead in home runs with 30. A clubhouse leader, he has to be in the forefront of any MVP discussion.

Polanco has been hitting over .300 most of the season, has solidified the team’s up the middle defense and played for the American League in last month’s All-Star Game. Kepler, with critics wondering if he was a bust last year, has experienced a career season leading the Twins in RBI with 76 and is tied with Cruz in home runs at 30, while not only playing outstanding defense in right field but being available to sub in center.

Berrios has won 10 games with a 2.80 ERA that ranks among the best in the majors. Rogers has saved 16 games and his effective work at the end of games has helped balance off a bullpen with shaky middle innings performers. “He’s been fabulous,” a source said.

There are other names worth considering for MVP, too, regardless of whether balloting was inside or outside the clubhouse. Left fielder Eddie Rosario has just four fewer RBI than Kepler and is a fan favorite. Pitcher Jake Odorizzi, who has dropped off in performance after a lights out start to the season, still leads the team in wins with 12, a total among the best in baseball.

And here is the other question for the day: in a playoff series, who should be Minnesota’s third starter after Berrios and Odorizzi? A couple of sources didn’t recommend Kyle Gibson who has won 11 games, the second most on the starting staff.

“I am not a big Gibson fan,” a source said. “He is almost afraid to throw the ball over the plate. He is a picker, and throws too many pitches. Every time he pitches I get nervous.”

Martin Perez and Michael Pineda received more support as the third starter in a playoff series. Perez is 8-4 and Pineda 7-5 on a starting staff Twins fans hoped the front office would bolster before the July 31 trade deadline. With Berrios and Odorizzi, Gibson and Pineda all being right-handers, the left-hand throwing Perez could be the choice as the third starter in a playoff series. However, he needs to improve his work having allowed eight home runs in his last four starts, after giving up seven in his first 18 appearances of the season.

Reliever Sam Dyson, acquired from the Giants last Thursday at the trade deadline, has allowed six earned runs in two-thirds of an inning and has an ERA of 81.00 in two games. It was announced this morning the Twins have placed him on the 10-day Injured List because of bicep tendinitis in his right arm.

Former Twins closer Joe Nathan and club president Jerry Bell are inducted into the team’s Hall of Fame this weekend. Overdue for inclusion, too, is the late Halsey Hall, the former Twins broadcaster and master storyteller who delighted radio and TV audiences in the early years of the franchise.

Possible names under consideration for the Minnesota Wild general manager’s job: Chris Drury, Ron Hextall, Dean Lombardi, Tom Fitzgerald and Bill Zito.

Mike Modano, hired earlier this year as an executive advisor for the Wild focusing on business operations, probably isn’t interested in the GM job because it’s so time consuming.

Quoting Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer on a fan he encountered at Canterbury Park: “…A guy says, ‘If you win the Super Bowl, we’re going to elect you governor.’ I said, ‘I don’t want to be governor, that’s the last thing I want to do.’ “

The Vikings, who along with other NFL teams opened training camp late last month, have until August 31 to reduce their rosters to 53 players each.

The first of three Golden Gophers football practices open to the public was yesterday. The other two are August 9 (4:30 p.m.) and August 16 (4:15 p.m.)—with both on the outdoor fields at the Athletes Village.

The Big Ten Network will report on all 14 Big Ten Conference training camps, including Minnesota’s August 16.

Among the early leaders to win the Gophers’ placekicking job is sophomore Brock Walker from Sioux Falls. Coach P.J. Fleck said on WCCO Radio’s Sports Huddle a week ago that Walker, who was an All-State defensive back and 4.0 student at Washington High School, had an impressive offseason.

Those anxious for the start of college football can get an “early fix” watching Villanova and Colgate August 24 on the CBS Sports Network. The Gophers have one of the earlier starts in college football, hosting South Dakota State August 29. FS1 will televise the game.

It will be interesting to see if the basketball Gophers offer a scholarship to 2020 Rochester Mayo shooting guard Mason Madsen. Rivals.com reported last Thursday Madsen has offers from Cal Poly, Colorado State, Furman, Green Bay, Northern Iowa, South Dakota, Southern Illinois and William & Mary. Rivals also reported Iowa, Northwestern and Wisconsin have expressed interest in Mason whose twin brother Gabe Madsen is on the Mayo team coached by their father, Luke Madsen.

Gabe, also a shooting guard, is the more highly recruited of the twins, with offers that include Iowa, Green Bay, Marquette, Minnesota and Northern Iowa, per Rivals. Will the Gophers eventually be interested in offering scholarships to both players?

With the state financial crisis in Alaska, it’s still not known if the men’s college hockey teams from Anchorage and Fairbanks will be competing next season. Bill Robertson, men’s commissioner of the 10-member Twin Cities-based WCHA, is waiting word on both programs, while making contingency league schedules for 10, 9 and 8 teams.

The National Sports Center in Blaine generated more than $89 million in visitor economic impact from July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2019, according to an annual report from NSC.

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U Football Hopes to Land ‘Big Fish’

Posted on July 28, 2019July 28, 2019 by David Shama

The Golden Gophers have 22 verbal commitments for their 2020 football recruiting class, per 247Sports, but local authority Ryan Burns told Sports Headliners Minnesota is still shopping and he expects the final scholarships awarded could total 25 next year.

Burns, who owns and writes for Gopherillustrated.com, said there are a couple of prep players Minnesota is targeting including four-star recruit Kaden Johnson, the 6-4 outstanding linebacker from Minneapolis. “He’s the big fish out there right now,” Burns said. “He is waiting on something. The question is what is that something.

“He is not in a hurry to make a decision, even though Minnesota and Wisconsin are getting up there in spots (scholarships still available). And I know that the Gophers are going to wait until National Scholarship Day and hold a scholarship for him.”

National Signing Day for high school players is December 18, and another state player Burns said the Gophers are waiting on is, Danny Striggow, a three-star 6-4 defensive end from Long Lake who he thinks is trying to decide between Minnesota and Iowa. “He is going to be making a decision here, I believe, in August,” Burns said about Striggow who is a state champion wrestler.

Head coach P.J. Fleck and his assistants have two four-star commits among their 22 verbals. Daniel Jackson is a 5-foot-11 wide receiver from the Kansas City area, while running back Ky Thomas from Topeka, Kansas is also 5-11.

The Gophers are gambling more on Jackson than on the average recruit. “He was the most dynamic player in Kansas as a sophomore for his class, and in the first game of the year last year, he tore his ACL,” Burns said.

Jackson’s school, Bishop Miege, has won five consecutive state championships. His coach, Jon Holmes, believes in a Jackson comeback. “He knows what Daniel is rated and he’s told me as recently as a couple of weeks ago he still thinks he’s undervalued and underrated,” Burns said.

Several years ago the Gophers recruited a potentially great running back in Washburn’s Jeff Jones, who was named the state’s Mr. Football in 2013. Jones hardly played for Minnesota because of off-field issues but the 185-pound Thomas reminds Burns of Jones.

“I think he has got the best side to side (running) ability we’ve seen in a Gopher running back since Jeff Jones,” Burns said. “That shouldn’t be taken lightly considering Minnesota has had some really good ones including two on campus right now in Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks. He just knows how to make people miss in a phone booth.”

There are always three-star recruits who during their senior seasons can push for and achieve four-star rankings. Included in that group is Anoka linebacker Cody Lindenberg, a player Burns described as ideal in size at 6-2, 210 with exceptional athleticism and “technically sound” in his game. “All he’s gotta do is put that together on a senior tape and I think Minnesota is going to be getting a steal with him,” Burns said about the Gopher verbal commit.

Minnesota has three verbal commitments per 247Sports for the class of 2021 including a big name in 6-foot-4, four-star quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis from Illinois. Burns said Kaliakmanis turned down offers from Iowa, Iowa State, Syracuse, Tennessee and Virginia Tech. “That’s about as high profile as it gets,” Burns said.

Burns believes Kaliakmanis has the physical skills to attract recruiters and then said: ““But I think what (offensive coordinator) Kirk Ciarrocca values in him so much is the way he’s able to process a defense, especially for a young kid at his age. We’re talking about a 16-year-old kid right now that put up some pretty good numbers at Antioch High Scholl in Illinois. You watch the tape, he (Kaliakmanis) knows what he’s looking at when he is staring at a defense.”

Why Minnesota? Burns said Kaliakmanis liked what the Gophers are developing on the field but there is more. He is attracted by the total culture of the Fleck regime including the relationships with teammates and outside community service activities, Burns explained.

With two freshmen and two sophomore quarterbacks on scholarship already, and Kaliakmanis in waiting, the 2020 class doesn’t have a commitment from another quarterback. Instead Fleck is placing an emphasis on other positions including offensive and defensive linemen, with verbal commits from three on each side of the ball.

Two offensive linemen Burns rates highly are Aireontae Ersery from Kansas City and Casey Collier from Texas. “Two guys that have a lot of athleticism, have a lot of length, and they’re both legitimate 6-foot-5- plus,” he said.

Ali Saad is a defensive lineman Burns believes could make an early impact in his Gopher career, despite his youth. “He is only 16 right now, and that being said he looks like a 22-year old grown man,” Burns said of the 6-4, 250 pound prep from Dearborn, Michigan.

Defensive line recruit Gage Keys is the kind of athlete who looks impressive even in street clothes. “I just think that athletically he’s as good looking (athletically) as you’re going to get,” Burns said of the Ohio prep. “He was a basketball player for the first three years. He finally this offseason said, ‘I am going to fully dedicate myself to football,’ and now he is 250 pounds already and he looks very, very special.”

It appears Fleck and his staff are jumping in early on the trend to look for international players. Sophomore offensive tackle Daniel Faalele, 6-8, 400 pounds, is from Australia by way of IMG Academy in Florida and showed so much potential last season he could be a star soon. The 2020 class has verbal commitments from cornerback Richard Agyekum of the Netherlands and defensive lineman Melle Kreuder of Germany.

Burns expects the number of international players recruited in the Big Ten and elsewhere in college football to continue increasing. “It’s a different, evolving world where last year I think maybe there were one or two Big Ten kids that came from international (places),” he said. “Well, now it’s going to be five, six or seven. Just kind of the way things are evolving across college football.”

The 6-foot-3 Kreuder is 21 years old, with a maturity that within a few years will distinguish him from his teammates and Big Ten peers. “…I would much rather have a 25-year-old defensive end…going against Iowa than I would a 17 year old,” Burns said.

The 2020 recruiting class is ranked No. 27 in the nation by 247Sports. Part of the reason for the high ranking is Minnesota has more players verbally committed than a lot programs, and so the Gophers final rank after National Signing Day is likely to be in the 30’s where Fleck’s two previous classes landed.

What does Burns think of the 2020 recruiting class? “I think it’s pretty good for a team that hasn’t really showed that they can win consistently yet. Where year one it was a struggle with P.J. trying to implement his system, five wins. Last year great September, terrible October, (and) really good late October, November, December.

“Now if Minnesota can show consistently on the field—and show that they can win seven, eight, nine games this year—yes, this is going to help with their 2020 class, but what it is really going to help is that 2021 class. …”

In Fleck’s first season of 2017, Minnesota was 2-7 in the Big Ten and 5-7 overall. Last year the records changed to 3-6 and 7-6, including three impressive wins in the last four games.

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Wolves Rosas Watch Offers Intrigue

Posted on June 6, 2019June 6, 2019 by David Shama

It’s going to be an interesting June and summer observing new Timberwolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas.

Rosas is on record about being aggressive and creative in running the Minnesota NBA franchise that has one playoff appearance since 2004. “One thing I’ll bring from Houston is we’re going to question the norm with everything that we do,” Rosas said at his news conference last month.

By reputation and appearance, Rosas is a confident and determined leader. “He thinks he is the smartest guy in the room,” said an NBA source who asked that his name not be used.

Northing wrong with being the “brightest bulb” in the organization, but that indicates Rosas is likely to have his imprint all over a franchise which again missed the playoffs in 2019. The source mentioned above and others believe Rosas, the former Houston Rockets vice president now in his first all-powerful assignment leading an NBA club, will be giving strong direction to everyone with the Wolves including 33-year-old head coach Ryan Saunders. It’s expected Rosas will have plenty to say about who are Saunders’ assistant coaches with vacancies already in place.

The Wolves have an NBA All-Star for the next 10 years in 23-year-old versatile center Karl-Anthony-Towns who impacts games at both ends of the floor. Despite a heavy payroll expected to pinch NBA salary cap restrictions, the rest of the team’s roster is nothing special and includes liabilities.

Rosas has personnel work to do starting with the June 20 NBA Draft where, other than center, the Wolves can benefit from selecting potential contributors in the first and second rounds. Rosas is known for his analytics background and maybe that experience will help him identify undervalued talent when the Wolves draft at No. 11 and No. 43 in the first and second rounds respectively.

Rosas’ expected aggressive style may result in draft night trades that could see his club changing positions in the selection process. Also, trades involving existing NBA players seem more than a possibility as the weeks progress from summer toward fall. It’s certainly plausible the club wants to move mediocre veterans Jeff Teague and Gorgui Dieng, who are among the more expensive players on the payroll.

After Towns, the Wolves have the most contract money tied up in 24-year-old Andrew Wiggins who was the first player chosen in the 2014 NBA Draft. Wiggins has been mostly disappointing during his Wolves career but the trade market might be too limited and club officials still too intrigued by his potential for Minnesota to give up on him this summer.

A smart move by coaches could be to give Wiggins a long look in training camp and early in the season at shooting guard. He has often been a small forward in his Wolves career but at 6-foot-8 and with superb athleticism, he might effectively exploit smaller defenders at shooting guard. The NBA mantra is take advantage of individual mismatches and the Wolves could be sitting on an opportunity with Wiggins who also needs to become more aggressive on the floor.

Almost six years ago the Dallas Mavericks hired Rosas as their general manager, reporting to the team’s head of basketball operations and owner. A few months later Rosas went back to the Rockets for reasons that are mostly unknown other than reportedly having differences with the Mavericks top decision makers.

This time there is no one above Rosas in the basketball department. Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, one of the real gentlemen in the NBA, is most likely an easier guy to work for than flamboyant Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. Still, the brief 2013 tenure of Rosas in Dallas just adds a bit of intrigue to the Rosas watch in Minneapolis this summer.

Worth Noting

A CBSsports.com article yesterday said an “advanced computer model” forecasts “under 9 wins” for the Vikings next season. The offensive line is seen as a major liability.

Timberwolves reserve forward Anthony Tolliver will be inducted into the Creighton University Athletics Hall of Fame August 24 in Omaha.

Mark Lundgren, the former Golden Valley football coach, remembers attending college at UMD when the Green Bay Packers trained there. After practice a crowd of young fans were waiting for the Packers players, hoping for autographs. Lundgren said a couple of the pricier Packers avoided the kids but not classy quarterback Bart Starr who spent about two hours greeting them and giving autographs. Starr, who died last month, was a hero’s hero—a great player, a better person.

University of Minnesota athletics director Mark Coyle, speaking at a Gopher fan event this week, said his program is No. 6 in the current Directors’ Cup standings that each academic year ranks the top performing NCAA sports programs across the country.

Talking at the same event, basketball coach Richard Pitino said the Gophers program hasn’t had a player drafted by the NBA since 2004. “We don’t want to be known for those records,” Pitino said.

Pitino is optimistic about his incoming recruiting class and said it’s been ranked as high as fourth best in the Big Ten. Among those getting attention is Isaiah Ihnen from Germany who is ranked a top 100 player. “I think if Isaiah were in the States he would probably be more like a top 50 recruit,” Pitino said. “That’s how talented he is.”

The Gophers have one more scholarship available for next season and speculation is it could go to North Texas transfer Ryan Woolridge, a guard who as a junior averaged 11.7 points, six rebounds and five assists last season. He would be expected to provide immediate impact next fall.

Paul Bunyan’s Axe was on display at the fan event held at the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum in Chaska. The Gopher football team defeated Wisconsin to win the rivalry trophy last fall for the first time since 2003. It was also Minnesota’s first victory in Madison since 1994.

The Badgers have been among the elite programs in the Big Ten for years and when Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck spoke to the crowd at the Arboretum he made a bold statement about the surprise win in Madison. “Because that game, in my opinion, set the entire tone for the next two, three decades of Gopher football,” said the 38-year-old coach whose team beat the Badgers 37-15 and then defeated Georgia Tech 34-10 in the Quick Lane Bowl.

Fleck has verbal commitments for future recruiting classes that he referenced in front of the fans including the 2021 group that lists 247Sports four-star quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis from Illinois. That three-man 2021 class has been ranked so far as No. 4 in the nation by 247Sports.

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