Twins – Page 174 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

A.P., Whalen Lead State-Ties to ESPYS

Posted on July 8, 2013July 9, 2013 by David Shama

Vikings and other notes:

Minnesota sports fans can consider themselves stakeholders in voting for the 2013 Excellence in Sports Yearly Awards (ESPYS) winners. The ESPN sponsored awards program will accept votes from fans until 8 p.m. on July 17 in 35 categories including three in which Adrian Peterson is a nominee.

The Vikings’ superstar runner, who almost broke the NFL record last season for most rushing yards in a single season, is a candidate for Male Athlete of the Year. His competition is baseball’s Miguel Cabrera, basketball’s LeBron James and Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps. Peterson is also in the running for Best NFL Player along with Calvin Johnson, Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers and J.J. Watt. In the Best Comeback category Peterson’s rivals are Manning and Buster Posey and Mariano Rivera from baseball.

Former Gopher and Hutchinson High School star Lindsay Whalen, now with the Lynx, is one of five candidates for WNBA Player of the Year. The others are Tamika Catchings, Tina Charles, Angel McCoughtry and Candace Parker.

Hermantown native Drew LeBlanc, who won the 2013 Hobey Baker Award playing for St. Cloud State, is a candidate for Best Male College Athlete along with wrestling’s Kyle Dake, basketball’s Trey Burke and football’s Johnny Manziel.

Ben Revere, traded by the Twins during the last offseason, is a nominee in the Best Play category for his famous diving catch made this spring for the Phillies against the Reds in Cincinnati.

Peterson was voted the NFL’s best player in results announced earlier this summer on the NFL Network. He is the first non-quarterback to be ranked No. 1 in voting by league players to determine the NFL’s top 100. Other Vikings on the list are defensive end Jared Allen at No. 60 and linebacker Chad Greenway, No. 70.

Peterson, who had a bad allergic reaction to shrimp last summer during training camp, now carries “two EpiPens with him at all times should he have another attack,” according to a June 24 story by Profootballtalk.nbcsports.com. EpiPens are used to treat severe allergic reactions.

It’s hardly an NFL secret the Vikings need considerable improvement in their vertical passing game to have a better offense in 2013 than in 2012. Wide receivers coach George Stewart told Sports Headliners the team has the “weapons” to create more long pass plays. “We have some young men that are capable of being very successful,” Stewart said.

Stewart’s personnel includes Steven Burton, Greg Childs, Greg Jennings, Cordarrelle Patterson, Jerome Simpson, Joe Webb and Jarius Wright. Stewart, who has been with the Vikings since 2007, offered comments about each of the following receivers:

Stewart said Burton has impressed with his work ethic. “Steven Burton is a young man that has earned his way on our football team. He’s working hard every day. He’s better than what a lot of people give him credit for and he will help us down the road.”

Childs is trying to recover from two knee injuries last year and hopes to eventually resume his NFL career. “He is a very inspirational young man to work as hard as he works.”

Jennings, who joined the Vikings this offseason after being a major contributor with the Packers for years, was praised by Stewart for his professionalism and football IQ. “He brings a wealth of knowledge. Excellent player.”

Patterson, a 2013 No. 1 draft choice, is 22 years old but has played only one season of major college football. “He’s exceptionally gifted and will help this football team this year.”

Stewart said Simpson was slowed by a foot injury last season but he has the speed to impress Vikings fans. “He’s a young man, if he’s healthy (he) will help us in the vertical game, but (he) also has been a good leader.”

Webb, the former quarterback trying to transition into a wide receiver, has drawn a lot of media attention this offseason. “His work is still in front of him but he’s working every day to get better.”

Wright starts his second NFL season in 2013 and is a willing student with talent. “Jarius Wright is a consummate pro in everything you ask him to do. Extremely athletic, extremely gifted, great hands…he’s a pro.”

Gophers freshman football players are on campus. Soon after their arrival Gophers coach Jerry Kill and his wife Rebecca visited players in their dorm rooms to make them feel welcome at Minnesota.

Rick Beeson and Dean Johnson, the new chair and vice chair of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents, are both Gophers fans. Regent Dave Larson is also a major supporter of Gophers athletics.

Seven former Twins were selected on Saturday for the MLB All-Star Game on July 16 in New York: Jesse Crain (injured), Michael Cuddyer, Carlos Gomez, J. J. Hardy, Torii Hunter, Joe Nathan and David Ortiz. The present Twins major league roster has no personnel that came here in return for those seven players.

The MIAC website has moved to a new URL, MIACathletics.com. The site offers an updated appearance and several new features.

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Football Mags Buoy a Soggy Outlook

Posted on June 26, 2013June 26, 2013 by David Shama

If we’re to have a stretch of wonderful weather this year it’s going to be from now until sometime into September. A sci-fi like soggy spring has sometimes put me in a foul mood but the anticipation of summer and activities associated with cheery days has brought relief (I think). Today I offer details about pleasurable pastimes that have made summers obliterate memories of ugly winters and springs.

For openers, I’ve always been excited about perusing summer newsstands looking for college football magazines. Who would think a lifelong Gophers fan could find comfort this month looking at magazine covers featuring Iowa’s Mark Weisman or Wisconsin’s Chris Borland? Unexpected therapy to be sure! But ever since I was a kid the arrival of college football magazines at the local drugstore was an event not to be missed.

Honestly, working my way through 150 magazine pages covering every college program from Arizona to Yale has always been as exciting to me as eyeballing large packages under a Christmas tree. I can’t even explain the enthusiasm—not even to this day when my passion to read the predictions about the Big Ten and the rest of the country jump-start my adrenaline in anticipation of another college football season.

Unlike the days of my youth, there’s no waiting until August for the magazines to arrive in stores. I purchased and read a couple of the football annuals a few weeks ago—devouring them both in one night, not only reading predictions but articles on All-Americans, coaches on the hot seat and high school news.

Your average Minnesotan couldn’t even tell you who the likely starters are for the Gophers this fall. I can plug you in on why Mississippi is one of the hottest programs in the country. If you can’t talk Ole Miss football, better get down to the drugstore.

The neighborhood pharmacy was where I bought my baseball cards years ago. I remember going to the drugstore three or four times per week hoping to buy a packet with cards I didn’t already own. The excitement of finding a Mickey Mantle or Willie Mays was a rush, and so too was popping a slab of ultra sugary bubble gum in my mouth. Wow. Sucking up all that flavor was the best 30 seconds of the day.

I still have most of my baseball cards. Yeah, some were lost and others sort of foolishly destroyed by clipping them between the spokes of my bicycle tires to make noise that for some reason we thought was cool. But I have an album filled with old cards and even a few in a bank safe deposit box. To this day I never sort through those cards without enjoying them and the memories associated with the players.

Baseball had much to do with making my summers magical. I often joined friends on a school playground where we played “Tennis League.” All we needed were three players, a bat and tennis ball. The object of the game was to see who could hit the most home runs over a not too distant chain-link fence. As one ball after another disappeared over the fence, we placed another notch on the brick exterior of the schoolhouse.

If not playing “Tennis League,” I might be in the backyard with a golf driver, tee and wiffleball. This wasn’t the start of my golf career but instead a fantasy exercise where a ball that travelled over the house was a home run, or a ball that hit high up on the stucco was a double or triple.

At night the Twins were on TV and I also followed other major league games on the radio. Listening to games from the West Coast had a special appeal. A game between the Giants and Braves from San Francisco meant you were up late, perhaps later than allowed but it was sweet hearing the midnight action on the radio while crickets chirped outside the house and the warm breeze of a summer night filled my bedroom.

The All-Star Game was never to be missed, not with a chance to see all my heroes in one setting. There was even a stretch when MLB played two All-Star Games each summer and the parade of stars was another occasion for my Dad and I to argue over who was baseball’s best player.

Dad couldn’t have liked Ted Williams more if Teddy Ballgame had been a relative. Dad said Teddy was the greatest hitter of all-time and I also know my argumentative father liked the combative demeanor of Williams. Dad insisted that not only were Williams’ numbers among the best ever but he also never failed to mention that the Boston Red Sox legend missed several seasons to serve his country during World War II and the Korean War. “He didn’t play for five years when he would have been in his prime years,” Dad said.

I didn’t care. At the time I had other heroes, but years later my suppressed affection for Williams came bubbling to the top. It was 1999 and a debilitated Williams was in a wheelchair at Fenway Park for the All-Star game. Tears came to my eyes, the only time I ever cried over a ballplayer.

You won’t be surprised to know I no longer play “Tennis League” or hit wiffleballs off the exterior of the house. But summer would never be the same to me without a tennis racquet in hand or a golf club.

The many joys of summer have long included a visit from my buddy Myron. We started playing tennis together during our college years and although he’s lived in Michigan for decades, many summers we competed on the court. There’s a trophy that was established years ago as a reward to the winner of our (sometimes) annual rivalry. Funny how he initiated the trophy just about the time he started defeating me all the time.

Got to give Myron credit, though, for a few years ago coming up with a new trophy to acknowledge our golf rivalry. That one is mine so far but I would rather not detail how infrequently we’ve played together and how little time Myron has invested in improving his game.

Long ago I recognized Myron was a better athlete than me. That’s one reason I wanted him on my side when we played two-on-two summer basketball games on campus at the U where there was this small outdoor court with an eight-foot basket at one end and a seven-foot basket at the other. Those days were the only times I ever dunked, although the best part of my game was jump shots coming off screens set by Myron. On defense we might win a close game because of Myron’s shot blocking. I called him the “white Bill Russell.” I dreamed he might label me a “young Jerry West.”

Didn’t happen.

That’s one of only a handful of disappointing summer memories from an otherwise abundant collection of awesome moments. Let’s get some sunshine and make memories.

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U Looks at Sand Volleyball Program

Posted on June 21, 2013June 22, 2013 by David Shama

The Gophers are showing interest in possibly adding sand volleyball to the roster of intercollegiate sports. “We’ve just had general discussions with the administration,” Gophers indoor volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon told Sports Headliners yesterday.

Although it is an Olympic sport, only 34 American colleges have “verified their commitment” to sand volleyball, according to Collegesand.org. The website said 40 programs are necessary to make sand volleyball a “championship sport.” The NCAA has given the activity emerging sport status.

Nebraska started a sand volleyball program this year and is the only Big Ten school competing in the sport. The Huskers’ schedule was limited to the month of March and included only road matches with opponents such as Florida State, Pepperdine and UCLA.

Nebraska, like Minnesota, has a winning tradition and strong fan support in women’s indoor volleyball. The Huskers and Gophers tied for second place in volleyball in the Big Ten last year with 15-5 records. Nebraska averaged 4,287 fans per home match, second best in the nation. The Gophers, who nearly qualified for the NCAA Final Four Tournament, averaged a national third best 3,316 fans at home.

Various factors about college sand volleyball are likely of interest to Gophers athletic department leaders as they contemplate bringing the sport to campus. To field a team the Gophers could use some of the same players from the indoor team that competes in the fall. College sand volleyball requires more minimal personnel with two players from each side competing against one another (indoor volleyball uses six players per side on the court).

Having a sand volleyball team might mean a recruiting advantage for the Gophers because they could offer competitive playing time to players beyond the indoor volleyball schedule. That factor would be particularly helpful while recruiting in a state like California where so many teenagers play sand volleyball.

At Nebraska indoor coach John Cook is also coaching the sand volleyball team. The Gophers’ sand volleyball coach would almost certainly be McCutcheon, a former men’s and women’s Olympic coach and a world renowned volleyball authority.

The athletic department is in the process of developing a master plan for athletic facilities and the review could include a potential outdoor sand volleyball court. That wouldn’t be a costly expense and fits into the economy of the sport involving scholarships, coaching and a limited schedule.

Sand volleyball here might eventually have revenue producing potential if late spring matches were offered. The indoor Gophers volleyball team with its average of 3,316 drew more fans than women’s basketball, 3,277.

While nothing is for sure yet about the future of sand volleyball at Minnesota, McCutheon sounded optimistic about how it could fit in here. “I think it could be very successful given that it’s such a strong sport in the state,” McCutcheon said.

The athletic department presently has 25 intercollegiate sports. Like other schools the Gophers are mandated by federal law to provide equal opportunities for men and women. The addition of sand volleyball would add to the list of women’s offerings at Minnesota that now includes basketball, cross country, golf, gymnastics, hockey, rowing, softball, soccer, swimming-diving, tennis, track and field, and indoor volleyball.

Worth Noting

East Ridge High School center J.C. Hassenauer, who has verbally committed to Alabama, can become the second Minnesota native ever to play football for the Crimson Tide, according to an Internet story Tuesday by Andrew Gribble on Al.com. Guard William Buckler from St. Paul played for Alabama in the 1920s.

Mark Dienhart, the former Gophers athletic director and more recently executive vice president and chief operating officer for St. Thomas, will now lead Best Buy founder Richard Schulze’s family foundation starting in July.

Former Gophers ticket manager Tom Swain and his wife Arlene had their 66^th wedding anniversary on Wednesday.

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier after being asked about starting third-year quarterback Christian Ponder’s accuracy: “I think he’s much better. He’s worked his tail off trying to improve his accuracy. Our coaches have put him through a bunch of different drills and through his hard work I think he’s improved in that area. Now we’ve got some things we’ve got to get done in training camp, but he’s put in the work to improve and we are seeing it.”

Ex-Vikings quarterback Fran Tarkenton is 6-foot and played at about 190 pounds. In the June 17 issue of Sports Illustrated Tarkenton recalled trying to block 6-5, 272-pound Hall of Fame defensive end Deacon Jones who was built like concrete and passed away earlier this month. “He just broke up laughing,” Tarkenton told the magazine.

The Minnesota High School All-Star Football Game will be played Saturday, June 30 at Husky Stadium in St. Cloud. This coming Sunday 93 players and 16 coaches report to training camp at St. John’s University in Collegeville.

The Timberwolves and the city of Minneapolis hope to soon finalize a $100 million deal to renovate Target Center. Both parties will be involved with financing on the project to further modernize the arena that opened in 1990. The original cost of the building was $104 million.

Look for the Timberwolves to build a new practice facility at a site to be determined. The project would include naming rights. The team now practices at Target Center.

In its mock draft NBAdraftnet.net predicts the Wolves will choose shooting guards Kentavious Coldwell-Pope and Ricardo Ledo with their No. 9 and 26 first round picks in next week’s NBA draft. Former Gophers forwards Trevor Mbakwe and Rodney Williams will be selected on the second round, with Mbawke going to the Grizzlies at No. 41 and Williams to the Suns at No. 57.

The Wolves host a workout session for potential NBA draft choices at Target Center today and among the players will be former Gophers center Colton Iverson who finished his college career at Colorado State. NBAdraft.net predicts Iverson will be drafted by the Magic at No. 51 in the second round.

TV commentator Bert Blyleven, who was born in the Netherlands, joking on Wednesday night’s Twins-White Sox game: “Not Dutch. Not much.”

Joe Mauer had his ninth three-hit game this season against the White Sox in the Twins’ 8-4 win yesterday at Target Field. Mauer is batting .424 in eight games against the White Sox this year.

The No. 4 best workplace among Minnesota large companies is the Minnesota Twins, according to a special section in last Sunday’s Star Tribune.

Gophers women’s basketball coach Pam Borton announced that Rachel Banham, one of the two top sophomore scorers in the NCAA last season with a 20.7 average, had successful patellar tendonitis surgery.

Cynopsis.com reported on Wednesday that last Monday’s Bruins-Blackhawks game was the most watched NHL game ever on the NBC Sports Network and had the most viewers of any Stanley Cup Finals game on cable TV in 11 years.

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