Twins – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Best of Gurus See Eight Wins for Vikings 2026 Season

Posted on July 1, 2026July 1, 2026 by David Shama

Enjoy a Wednesday notes column.

Get used to the number 8, Vikings fans.

A search of the most authoritative annual prognosticators of NFL team records turns up a lot of eights for the 2026 Vikings season. Here’s a sample of the usually most accurate swamis.

NFL Network analytics expert Cynthia Frelund: 8.7 wins.

Public analytical database Nfelo: 8.5 wins.

FanDuel Sportsbook: 8.5 wins.

ESPN’s Football Power Index: 8 wins.

Sports Headliners: 10 wins.

Why 10?

To make you feel better.

There was an Arizona Cardinals airplane parked at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport last Wednesday. Perhaps it was in town relative to Minneapolis-born and raised Larry Fitzgerald Jr. being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame next month.

Fitzgerald was a Vikings ball boy in his youth and idolized Randy Moss who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2018. Fitzgerald played his entire 17-year NFL career with the Cardinals where his pass catching skills ranked with the best in NFL history.

Bill Guerin, named NHL General Manger of the Year last week, is believed to earn “north” of $2 million with the Wild. NHL GM jobs don’t pay the kind of money their NBA counterparts make. The Timberwolves’ Tim Connelly reportedly makes $8 million annually.

Guerin was hired in August of 2018, and his work has helped create a Stanley Cup contender. A former NHL player, he prioritizes communications.

Wild GM Bill Guerin — Guerin photo by Marshall Tanick

“…Because I feel now, like more than ever, the coach, the general manager we’re not so much in a position to say, do this, do that. It’s how can we help you get better? What can we do for you to help you carry out our game plan? We’re here for them,” he told Sports Headliners last year.

The annual Big Ten Football Media Days will be held July 28-30 in Chicago and televised by the Big Ten Network. The Golden Gophers will be one of the programs focused on July 29 at the Hilton Hotel. The three-day event allows media members to meet with coaches and student-athletes prior to the season.

Minnesota opens its season September 3 at home against Eastern Illinois. Peacock will televise the 7 p.m. kickoff nonconference game.

Sources disagree on who is the tallest goalie ever to play in the NHL, referring to 6-7 or 6-8 goalies. Either way the Wild has a solid entry in the competition with 2026 fifth round draft choice Filip Ruzicka from Trinec, Czechia. He is listed at 6-8 and 229 pounds and will certainly be noticed if he ever plays in the NHL.

“Filip is an extra-large goalie with athletic abilities,” said Wild goaltending coach Frederic Chabot in a club statement. “He has good hands for a guy that big and had a nice progression last season after taking over the No. 1 job in Brandon (Wheat Kings of the WHL).”

Before last night’s game against the Astros, the Twins had played 26 games in June. Their slugging percentage of .476 ranked second-best in baseball to the Rockies at .492. The Twins had homered in all but four of their last 23 games since June 4, hitting 42. Since that date, Minnesota ranked second in homers, trailing the Athletics (43), going into last evening.

Last Sunday at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine Golf Club, South Korea’s Hae Ran Ryu took home $1,950,00 for winning her first major title. Scottie Scheffler, the men’s No. 1 in the world, will try to win $1,584,000 at the 3M Tournament July 23-26 at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine.

The Lynx announced today star forward Napheesa Collier, after undergoing surgeries on both her right and left ankles during the offseason, has returned to team practice and continues to progress as expected.

Medical research confirms spectators watching events like the emotion-stoked World Cup experience cardiovascular issues and even deadly heart attacks.

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LaMelo Ball’s Injury History Casts Shadow on Wolves Trade

Posted on June 25, 2026June 25, 2026 by David Shama

High risk and high reward.

That’s the only way to look at the Timberwolves acquisition of All-Star guard LaMelo Ball in a trade that sends fan favorite and forward Naz Reid to the Hornets.

Wolves’ front office leader Tim Connelly has been searching for a quality point guard to lead his team and take the playmaking burden off superstar Anthony Edwards. Ball is a spectacular playmaker that can have teammates and fans marveling at his showmanship performances.

The concern is availability. Since being drafted by the Hornets in 2020 (he went No. 3 overall and Edwards No. 1), he has missed a lot of games. Last season he played a near career high of 72 out of 82 games but previous seasons the totals were: 47, 22, 36 , 75 and 51.

Ankle injuries have been troublesome. That’s a worrisome history for a 24-year-old, with logic suggesting lower body injuries can become more frequent and last longer as an athlete ages.

Connelly is banking on Ball continuing the trend of the 2025-2026 season. Playing most of the season, he averaged 20.2 points per game and 7.1 assists. The 6-7 veteran also averaged nearly 5 rebounds per game.

The acquisition of Ball gives the Wolves an athletic and young starting core, other than 7-1 center Rudy Gobert who turns 34 tomorrow. Guard Ayo Dosunmu and forward Jaden McDaniels, ages 24 and 25 respectively, would be part of the starting five if Minnesota were to play a game today. Edwards, one of the league’s top players, is also 24.

As the roster is constructed now, Connelly is taking the risk that by trading two power forwards this month in Reid and Julius Randle, the Wolves will still have enough size to rebound and defend effectively. Right now McDaniels, listed at 6-9 and 185 pounds, looks like the new power forward while the 6-4 Edwards may slide into the small forward position.

Anthony Edwards, Timberwolves player — Anthony Edwards photo courtesy of Minnesota Timberwolves

A basketball insider told Sports Headliners he didn’t think the transition would be a problem for Edwards and that he can benefit from the presence of an elite point guard. “No question he’s the guy that stirs the drink for them,” he said speaking anonymously.

The source faulted the Wolves for not playing hard enough and lacking togetherness in the playoffs last spring as they won an opening series but then lost to the Spurs in the next round. “They had to make some (personnel) moves,” he said.

With Connelly in power there could be other transactions coming. He showed from his first months on the job in 2022 a willingness to make bold moves when he made the blockbuster trade bringing Gobert to Minneapolis while sending a boatload of players and draft choices to the Jazz.

Worth Noting

Ari Peterson, the basketball player who is transferring from Minnetonka High School to a national prep power in New York, has the admiration of former Skippers coach Brian Cosgriff who raves about her athleticism. Peterson, the daughter of Vikings legend Adrian Peterson, will be a junior next school year at Long Island Lutheran in Brookville.

The school plays a national schedule and produces McDonald’s All-Americans. Peterson may flourish in her new home, but she will face challenges. “I am a little nervous for her because I hope she goes on to do great things,” said Cosgriff who coached Peterson as a ninth grader. “It’s risky to some degree, in my opinion. …”

Maddyn Greenway, daughter of former Viking linebacker Chad Greenway, recently was named the 2025-2026 MaxPreps Female National Athlete of the Year. At Providence Academy she won 13 state titles in three sports including basketball and this fall will be at Kentucky on a basketball scholarship.

Cosgriff, retired from coaching after winning eight girls basketball state championships at Hopkins and Minnetonka, knew Greenway as a seventh grader at Providence Academy where he was a teacher. He said she could have been a “great receiver” in football. “I had her in gym class and when we played football, she was the best player out there, boys or girls.”

Congratulations to Mr. Baseball and Ms. Softball Award winners Connor Finn, the left-handed pitcher from Mahtomedi High School (committed to Texas Tech University) and Avery Muellner, the right-handed pitcher and first baseman from Forest Lake High School (committed to the University of St. Thomas). They were honored after the Minnesota Twins Community Fund and Minnesota All Sports Alliance had announced 16 finalists for the awards earlier in the month.

Fox 9 sports reporter and anchor Dawn Mitchell will have a feature on Minnesota sports icon Dick Jonckowski starting at 10:30 p.m. on July 3.

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Minnesota Twins Just Keep on With Surprising Good Vibes

Posted on June 21, 2026July 8, 2026 by David Shama

There’s an unexpected positive vibe around the Twins so far this season. At least there is in my head and that of acquaintances.

After the roster shuffling and gaffes of ownership in recent years, the bar for expectations was admittedly low going into the season. This spring the Twins are flirting with a .500 record and Wild Card spot in the playoffs.

Gasp.

With questions about the talent on the roster and unknowns concerning new coaches and manager Derek Shelton, it was easy to be pessimistic about the Twins last winter. The starting pitching has been surprisingly good and so, too, has the run scoring. The defense has been solid and sometimes spectacular. The preseason woebegone bullpen has been just that, but occasionally something better.

Check your pulse if you are not more interested in the Twins after last night’s 16-8 rout of the Diamondbacks in Phoenix. Byron Buxton hit a grand slam in a 10-run fifth inning and he’s now tied with Yordan Alvarez of the Astros for the American League lead in home runs with 24. Minnesota, 37-41 this season, has won seven of its last 10 games.

Shelton and staff have impressed. There’s emphasis on fundamentals and execution. It’s an exaggeration but it seems like the Twins have laid down more successful bunts in 78 games than they did in seven years under previous bench boss Rocco Baldelli.

Kudos to Shelton and the coaches including hitting coach Keith Beauregard for reviving the offense from last season. Only the Yankees with 388 runs scored have touched home plate more times than the Twins (384) among American League teams.

Pitching coach Pete Maki and assistant Luis Ramirez deserve kudos, too. Starters like Joe Ryan, Taj Bradley, Bailey Ober and Zebby Matthews can deliver outstanding performances. Reliever Yoendrys Gomez has been a surprise in the bullpen, stingy with runs, and he leads the team with six saves.

Buxton, 32, is having a career season with home runs and remains a superb centerfielder. Another outfielder, Trevor Larnach, has been hot at the plate—and often the third outfielder is utility journeyman Kody Clemens who has sharpened his stick enough to hit third in the lineup.

Royce Lewis, the man of many stances, has returned from exile in St. Paul to make enough contact with the ball to raise his batting average to .200 and match his 200 pound frame. He may also have found a home at first base while valued young performers Luke Keaschall and Brooks Lee play at second and third base respectively.

Then there are google guys, players you didn’t know about but are contributors to the spring vibe. Shortstops Tristan Gray and Ryan Kreidler have had their moments as have catchers Victor Caratini and Alex Jackson.

The Twins are playing without one of their key starters and veterans in catcher Ryan Jeffers. The injured Jeffers, along with Ryan and Buxton, are drawing trade speculation as the MLB August 3 Trade Deadline approaches.

Such rumors are partially fueled by ownership which has been unwilling in the past to pay pricy veterans. Burned by the past gaffes, fans are reluctant to embrace the Twins now. Parting ways with the team’s best veterans will only deepen the “wound.”

And oh, if the front office hadn’t traded away North St. Paul’s Louie Varland last season! He has 15 saves, with a 0.86 ERA for the Blue Jays. If he had remained a Twin, the club would likely have four or more wins.

Worth Noting

Murray’s restaurant owner Tim Murray, who has visited all the MLB stadiums, now gets his baseball travel fix going with friends every other year to World Series games. His favorite parks are Fenway, Wrigley and PNC. (Murray’s is a longtime advertiser of this space.)

Hats off to former Golden Gophers athletics director Joel Maturi and wife Lois for their volunteer role in hosting a hugely successful open house last week at Second Harvest Heartland in Brooklyn Park. Maturi is a board member for the food bank which is the second largest of its kind in the nation. Timberwolves coach Chris Finch is also on the board.

Spanish playmaking guard Sergio de Larrea is the most speculated pick by the Wolves at No. 28 in the first round of Tuesday’s NBA Draft, per AI.

Don’t be surprised if Wolves assistant coach Michah Nori is the new head coach of the NBA Trail Blazers.

With a corporate naming rights deal, Williams Arena is now The Barn by Blue Cross and Blue Shield. No word I am aware of as to how or if the University of Minnesota will preserve the name of Dr. Henry Williams, the longtime namesake of the arena.

Williams coached Minnesota football from 1900-1921 and has the best football winning percentage in school history. He was 136-33-11 (.786) as coach of the Gophers, and his team won or shared eight conference titles.

Former Gopher football great Bobby Bell — Bobby Bell

Bobby Bell turned 86 last week. He terrified opposing offenses as a defensive tackle for Gophers teams from 1960-1962 that won a national championship and Rose Bowl. He should be on a short list of Gopher football legends deserving statues at Huntington Bank Stadium.

The football Gophers figure to have at least a couple thousand fans in Seattle for their September 26 game against Washington. A friend is asking if anyone knows of people selling individual boat tickets for “sail-gating” on that Saturday. Anyone who has a connection can email ds@shamasportsheadliners.com.

My late father was in the Army during World War II. He was stationed in Panama and liked to quip: “The enemy never took the Panama Canal.”

Happy Father’s Day!

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