Twins – Page 162 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Jones Works on Gaining U Admission

Posted on June 18, 2014June 18, 2014 by David Shama

Jeff Jones is focusing on earning admission to the University of Minnesota by attending Minneapolis Public Schools summer classes, and recently took the ACT test for a fourth time hoping to improve his score.

A source told Sports Headliners Jones is working to raise his overall high school GPA and hopes that improvement along with a higher ACT score will allow him to gain admission to Minnesota and join the Gophers in time for August workouts and preparation for the 2014 season. Jones took the ACT test last Saturday and the results are expected later this month.

A combination of ACT result and GPA determines admission at Minnesota and other colleges. Jones signed a letter of intent last February to become a scholarship player for the Gophers but has known for awhile he faced academic challenges.

Jones is the only Rivals.com four-star recruit in the Gophers’ 2014 recruiting class. He drew national attention in the prestigious Under Armour All-America Game in Florida last January, gaining 72 yards and being named Team Nitro MVP.

Other members of the freshman class have started summer school classes at Minnesota and are becoming acclimated to the football program through conditioning and on the field drills. This is Gophers coach Jerry Kill’s fourth freshman group at Minnesota and potentially the best. The coaches have been impressed with the physical size of the players and wait with optimism to see what the freshmen can do during the coming months.

Preseason college football publications rank Jones as Minnesota’s top recruit. Lindy’s Sports rates Jones the No. 10 incoming freshman in the Big Ten Conference but many other Gophers newcomers are intriguing too. Kill and his staff have developed a reputation for identifying talent that is better than advertised.

That intriguing group could include tight end Gaelin Elmore, wide receiver Melvin Holland Jr., center Connor Mayes, quarterback Dimonic Roden–McKinzy and defensive lineman Andrew Stelter. Lindy’s identifies wide receiver Isaiah Gentry as its “sleeper” among the Minnesota freshmen. “Isaiah Gentry out of Cincinnati Moeller was one of the most overlooked players in the Buckeye State, and Minnesota is getting a steal in the speedy 6-4, 185-pound pass catcher,” the magazine wrote.

Worth Noting

The Gophers players and coaches received their Texas Bowl rings on Monday. Minnesota lost to Syracuse in the Houston-based game last December.

Prior Lake linebacker Blake Weber, who was the South Suburban Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2013, has decided to play football at Rochester Community and Technical College.

Gophers football coach Jerry Kill said on WCCO Radio’s “Sports Huddle” program on Sunday that earlier this month the great grandson of the legendary Bronko Nagurski attended Kill’s camp. Nagurski is one of five former Gophers to have his jersey number (72) retired.

Dr. John Baumgartner, who passed away last week, was an outstanding Gophers football player who lettered four times, from 1951-54.

That was Minneapolis entrepreneur, best-selling business author, motivational speaker and former Gophers golfer Harvey Mackay sitting with wife Carol Ann near courtside at Sunday’s Game Five in San Antonio when the Spurs defeated the Heat to win the NBA championship. Carol Ann gave her husband the trip as a Father’s Day present.

“I go almost every year to a finals game,” Mackay said. “This was the loudest arena I’ve ever been in.”

Mackay said he didn’t meet one San Antonio native who wasn’t aware of Sunday’s game. “What was normally a 15 minute drive from our hotel to the arena took two hours. We got out and walked the last five blocks.”

It will be interesting to see how Flip Saunders fills in his Timberwolves coaching staff after already naming Sidney Lowe and Sam Mitchell assistants. Saunders’ son Ryan, with a reputation for statistical analysis expertise, has NBA coaching experience with the Wizards and seems likely sooner or later to join the Timberwolves organization. Don Zierden, a Minnesota native, was an assistant to Flip Saunders with the Timberwolves, Pistons and Wizards in the past, and is still with the Wizards. Former NBA head coach and assistant Eric Musselman is close to Saunders and resigned earlier this season from Arizona State.

Xavier Thames, a 6-3 senior guard from San Diego State, is a player to follow in next week’s NBA Draft. Thames isn’t a “brand name” but he impressed with his shooting at the NBA Combine last month. It would be ironic if the Spurs drafted Thames since their NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard is from San Diego State and was also underrated coming out of college.

The June 18 issue of Sports Illustrated refers to Nick Gordon, who the Twins selected No. 5 overall in baseball’s amateur draft this month, as the “best high school shortstop in America.” The Gordon article includes praise from former Reds shortstop great Barry Larkin. “The kid fields with the best angles of any young shortstop I’ve ever seen,” Larkin said of Gordon who was the first infielder taken in the draft.

The same issue includes a story about the infamous O.J. Simpson whose wife Nicole was murdered 20 years ago this month. Simpson later dated Nicole look-a-like Christie Prody, a Minnesota native who the magazine reported is serving time in a Minnesota prison “after a conviction for stealing prescription painkillers from an elderly couple.” Simpson is incarcerated in Nevada from a 2008 conviction on charges that included kidnapping.

Twins first baseman Joe Mauer went 18 games without an RBI before driving in the team’s lone run in a 2-1 loss last night to the Red Sox. The face of the franchise, Mauer is hitting .258 with 16 RBI and two home runs this season. Not surprisingly, he isn’t among the top five fan vote recipients for starting American League first baseman in the 2014 All-Star Game in Minneapolis.

StubHub.com is listing tickets starting at $13.77, $170.30 and $331.45 for the All-Star Futures Game, Home Run Derby and All-Star Game in Minneapolis. Top price listed for the July15 All-Star Game is $11,002.00.

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St. Peter: Twins Built Better Than 2013

Posted on May 21, 2014March 15, 2023 by David Shama

Nobody is predicting the Twins will win the American League Central or even secure a wildcard position in the playoffs, but after about two months the home team certainly looks better than last year’s club that finished with a 66-96 record.

“I certainly believe so,” Twins president Dave St. Peter told Sports Headliners.

The Twins are 22-21 after last night’s interleague win over the Padres in San Diego. On this date a year ago the Twins were 18-25, and seven games out of first place.

The 2014 Twins, although six games behind the division-leading Tigers, and are in second place and have won three consecutive series. One was against the Tigers in Detroit, with the other two in Minneapolis facing the 2013 World Series champion Red Sox and also the Mariners.

The Twins have managed to play around .500 baseball despite a difficult early season schedule. Injuries to outfielders Oswaldo Arcia and Josh Willingham, and first baseman Joe Mauer have been a challenge, too.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that we believe this baseball team is built to be better than what we’ve been in the last three years,” St. Peter said. “That isn’t saying much because we haven’t been very good. We need to get better.”

The team’s last three regular season records were 66-96 twice and 63-99. Coming out of spring training there was hope but no assurance this season would be better. The starting pitching was a concern and fans had minimal optimism about run production.

St. Peter said the team’s bullpen has often been “very good” this spring while the ongoing effort is to restore “credibility” among the starting pitchers who must show more consistency. The offense has been much better than expected with the Twins fifth in American League runs scored. “We’ve got a lot of work to do, but, nonetheless, we’ve been encouraged by a variety of different developments,” St. Peter said.

Ask St. Peter about early season Twins MVP’s and he mentions closer Glen Perkins, new starter Phil Hughes, new catcher Kurt Suzuki, third baseman Trevor Plouffe and second baseman Brian Dozier who has been statistically more impressive than anyone on the roster. Dozier, in his third season with the Twins, is tied for fourth in AL home runs, third in stolen bases and first in runs scored.

St. Peter has praise, too, for manager Ron Gardenhire and the coaching staff. “I think our manager and coaching staff have always done a great job here. Again, long way (for the team) to go.

“They (the staff) certainly should get credit for the continued evolution of some of our core players. Guys that maybe people had questions about. Whether it be a Plouffe, or a Dozier, or some of our bullpen guys, or what have you. There’s no doubt that the collective coaching staff deserves some credit and ultimately Ron Gardenhire is the leader of that group.”

The Twins made a habit of being blown out of games by the mid-innings last season. This year has been different and the team has not only stayed in games but rallied from behind, or overcome tie scores. “As we get into the heart of the season I’d like to think we’re in a position here where we not only can surprise some people but ultimately hopefully we can contend (for the playoffs),” St. Peter said.

The Twins haven’t been a contender since 2010 when they won their second consecutive AL Central title. The 2014 club still has most of its season ahead and has much to prove. “We’ve got a lot of work to do, but, nonetheless, we’ve been encouraged by a variety of different developments,” St. Peter said.

Worth Noting

Each major league baseball team is guaranteed a roster spot for one player in the All-Star game. The 2014 game is in Minneapolis but nothing in the MLB rules guarantees extra roster spots for the host club. Closer Glen Perkins, an All-Star last season, and second baseman Brian Dozier are leading Twins candidates to participate in the game but first baseman Joe Mauer, who has only six extra base hits and is hitting .282, needs to pick up his production pronto before All-Star rosters are finalized in early July. Mauer has played in six All-Star games and his reported $23 million salary is among the highest in baseball.

St. Peter said Mauer is healthy now and mentioned other Twins All-Star candidates include catcher Kurt Suzuki and starting pitcher Phil Hughes. “We’ll have at least one All-Star and the play on the field will dictate whether we have more than one,” St. Peter said.

The fourth seeded Gophers baseball team plays its opening Big Ten Tournament game tonight in Omaha starting at 9 p.m. against fifth seeded Michigan. Gophers right-handed senior pitcher Alec Crawford from Wilton, Iowa was voted All-Big Ten Third Team by the conference coaches. Catcher Austin Athmann from Cold Spring was a unanimous All-Big Ten Freshman Team choice. Big Ten honors were announced yesterday.

For the first time in MIAC history one school has teams in both the NCAA Division III softball and baseball national tournaments in the same season. The St. Thomas softball team, 42-7, plays its opening game Thursday against Salisbury (Md.) in the eight-team, double-elimination tournament in Tyler, Texas. The Tommies have earned their fifth trip to nationals in 13 seasons but first since 2006.

The St. Thomas baseball team, 37-7, opens play Friday at 10 a.m. against defending champion Linfield (Ore.) in the eight-team, double-elimination tournament in Appleton, Wis. This is the Tommies’ fifth trip to nationals in the last 16 years and second in three seasons.

Gophers basketball coach Richard Pitino has been on the job for about 14 months and has yet to gain a recruiting commitment from a big name Minnesota high school recruit, but that’s likely to change with his 2015 class. Look for top 100 recruits Jarvis Johnson from DeLaSalle and Alex Illikainen from Grand Rapids to listen hard to Pitino, with either or both likely to become Gophers. Pitino probably realizes the chances of chasing Big Ten titles without one or two star contributors from Minnesota high schools are minimal.

Gophers football coach Jerry Kill, when asked on WCCO Radio last Sunday morning about redshirt freshmen who could contribute to the team’s success next fall mentioned running back Berkley Edwards, 6-foot-10 tight end Nate Wozniak and linebackers Ray Dixon and De’Niro Laster.

There’s probably more willingness among NFL owners than ever before to consider northern cities as Super Bowl sites. It’s not a trend but northern Super Bowls are more common than years ago. The 2014 game was in New Jersey and because the next three Super Bowls will be played in warm weather cities, Minneapolis likely benefitted in winning the 2018 game in a vote of league owners yesterday.

Pete Prisco from Cbssports.com posted his post-NFL Draft power rankings last Thursday and listed the Vikings at No. 27 among 30 teams. “It’s all about the quarterback position for the Vikings,” wrote Prisco who ranks the three other NFC North Division teams ahead of Minnesota.

Prisco has the Packers No. 8, Bears No. 12 and Lions No. 22. The Super Bowl champion Seahawks are his No. 1 team.

Dennis Schapiro, who died last week in Minneapolis at age 67, was a terrific editor and friend of mine. Condolences to Schapiro’s family including uncle Sid Hartman.

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Wilfs Don’t Know GM’s Draft Favorite

Posted on May 6, 2014May 6, 2014 by David Shama

Rick Spielman knows who the Vikings’ likely first round pick will be on Thursday night in the NFL Draft but no one else in the organization does yet.

At a news conference to discuss the draft this afternoon the Vikings general manager said he knows who he favors with the No. 8 selection but not even the owners know his preference yet. The final decision on that player will be Spielman’s.

On Thursday night what communication will there be with owners Zygi and Mark Wilf? Spielman answered the Wilfs will sit next to him that evening and be told prior to the selection. They are already aware of draft options.

Spielman accepts his leadership role and the accountability that comes with this week’s three day, seven round draft. He also accepts responsibility for drafting controversial quarterback Christian Ponder at No. 12 during the first round of the 2011 draft.

“I take full responsibility for Christian Ponder. Is he a bust? Or is he not a bust?”

Spielman said he wouldn’t consider trading Ponder during the 2014 draft because the former Florida State star is along with Matt Cassel one of only two quarterbacks on the roster. “But Christian is still a very young quarterback,” Spielman said. “He showed flashes but he just hasn’t been as consistent as you wanted yet.”

Spielman gave every indication the Vikings will draft at least one quarterback before the draft ends on Saturday. But, of course, he offered no clues who the Vikings will choose at No. 8. “You guys (the media) are missing some names on our spot (in mock drafts) at eight,” he said.

The Vikings could move down in the first round, trading their No.8 for multiple draft positions in the early rounds. Spielman said he’s already received calls from teams interested in acquiring the Vikings second and fourth round picks. “Everybody is just starting to lineup their dance partners.”

Spielman has shown a willingness not only to be accountable but aggressive in the draft. He believes taking risks is mandatory in the process to improve a team. Part of his preparation and for those who work with him is spending hours anticipating different draft board scenarios. “You’ve already kind of experienced the worst thing that can happen to you on draft day and how you would react,” Spielman said.

There are plenty of variables throughout the three days including who other teams will choose and trades that will shake-up the best of plans. It sounds like this is to Spielman’s liking.

“I love to be active on draft day.”

Worth Noting

ESPN and the NFL Network will both televise the NFL Draft Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The first round will be Thursday starting at 7 p.m. Minneapolis time. Rounds two and three are Friday beginning at 6 p.m. Saturday’s draft starts at 11 a.m. and consists of rounds four through seven.

NFL Network will offer a record 51 live hours of draft coverage starting Thursday, according to a story yesterday on Cynopsis.com. Programming will include reports from a minimum of 15 team “War Rooms.”

At noon today StubHub.com listed 515 tickets, starting at $103.65, being available for tonight’s 8 p.m. game between the Wild and Blackhawks at Xcel Energy Center.

The Wild, trailing 2-0 in the series, practiced this morning. The starting time for game four on Friday night at Xcel Energy Center will be8:30 p.m.

Sportsmedianews.com reported yesterday that last Friday night’s telecast of the Wild-Blackhawks game had an 11.1 household rating in the Minneapolis area, best ever in this market for the Wild on NBCSN. Sunday’s game had a 12.8 rating here, the best ever in Minneapolis for the Wild on NBC, according to the website.

Seldom has a potential Wild off-season acquisition been more anticipated than Thomas Vanek signing with Minnesota. The Wild need an upgrade in goal scoring but Vanek turns 31 in January. He has three goals and two assists in six playoff games for the Canadiens this spring, the kind of production the Wild could use. However, given a choice including payroll considerations, the Wild might be better off spending money on a quality goalie.

Kyle Gibson, the Twins starting pitcher with the best ERA, has already won more games than last year as a rookie. Gibson, who joined the Twins on June 29 last year, was 2-4 with a 6.53 ERA in 2013. This season he is 3-2 with a 3.50 ERA.

Last night Gibson pitched seven innings while giving up only two hits and no runs in a 10 inning 1-0 win against the Indians. Twins starters have only allowed six earned runs in their last five games and Minnesota has won three consecutive games.

Second baseman Brian Dozier, who was hitless last night, has hit safely in 19 of his last 23 games. Close observers have to wonder how much longer the Twins will have Dozier, who leads the team in home runs with eight, batting leadoff.

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