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Twins & Cleveland All about Close

Posted on August 7, 2019August 7, 2019 by David Shama

A Wednesday notes column:

Football is in the news but the sports focus in this town starting Thursday night and continuing through Sunday afternoon will be the Minnesota Twins-Cleveland Indians four-game series at Target Field. The Twins lead the AL Central Division by 3.5 games over the second place Indians in a tight race to determine the champion by season’s end in late September.

“It’s going to be a battle,” Twins president Dave St. Peter told Sports Headliners yesterday as he looked forward to the upcoming series. “Every game is going to be close. It’s probably going to come down to the final innings one way or another. Little things are going to make huge differences in terms of a team making mistakes and (the) other team capitalizing on those mistakes.”

In nine previous games between Cleveland and Minnesota, six have been decided by one or two runs. The Twins have won five of the nine games spread over three series, two in Cleveland and one in Minneapolis.

There are 10 games yet to be played between the two teams before the regular season ends, with seven of them scheduled at Target Field. The Twins, 70-43 overall this season, are 35-21 on the road, and 35-22 at home. The Indians are 66-46 overall, with records of 36-24 and 30-22 at home and away respectively.

It’s accepted doctrine playing at home is advantageous. Players sleep in their own beds, prepare for games in familiar routines, and know the quirks and nuances of the home ballpark. There is also the energy of the home crowd. “Our fans can play a huge role in what happens here down the stretch,” St. Peter said.

Thursday night’s game is expected to have attendance of over 30,000, with tickets also remaining for the final three games of the series, but St. Peter said Friday, Saturday and Sunday could sell out.

A Twins sweep will send Indians fans buying up Maalox in large quantities. If Cleveland wins all four games it’s problematic for the Twins but probably won’t boost Maalox sales here like in Ohio. “If there is a sweep either way, it puts a team in a hole,” St. Peter said. “I tend to think of it both ways.”

Twins center fielder Max Kepler had one hit in his first 19 at bats against the Indians this season. Since then he is 9 of 19 with five home runs and eight RBI. Those five home runs came in consecutive at-bats during June and July games against now departed Indians starter Trevor Bauer.

St. Peter talking about recently acquired reliever Sam Dyson who is on the Injured List after just two games with Minnesota: “We expect he is going to contribute mightily to the Twins.”

Ken Novak, going into his 31st season at Hopkins as boys basketball coach, is wowed by Paige Bueckers, the first-team prep All-American on the Royals girls team. “She is the only girl I’ve ever seen that I think could play for a good boys’ team,” Novak told Sports Headliners.

He likens Bueckers, the dynamic point guard who will be a senior this coming school year, to the legendary Pete Maravich who played flamboyantly with jaw-dropping ball handling and passing skills. Novak said Bueckers combines so many fundamental basketball skills with a “flair” for the game. She has verbally committed to Connecticut for college.

Novak has his own star in 6-5 senior shooting guard Kerwin Walton, the only returning starter for the Royals. “He is one of the best I’ve coached,” said Novak, who has sent a long list of players to college programs including former Golden Gophers shooting guard Blake Hoffarber.

The legacy coach believes the 6-5 Walton compares favorably to Hoffarber as two of the better players he has coached. “He will be a great college player,” Novak said about Walton. “You don’t get recruited by Kansas (and) Arizona, those caliber schools, and not be really good. I think there is no doubt he is just going to get better.”

Walton, who averaged about 18 points per game last season for Hopkins and is having a high profile summer playing more amateur basketball, holds scholarship offers from 21 schools including Arizona, Kansas, Minnesota, Texas, West Virginia and Virginia Tech, per Rivals.com. But Novak said his star guard isn’t favoring any particular school including Minnesota. “He knows the coaches (at Minnesota) well, and he really likes them,” Novak said.

Walton has made improvements of late and more are expected, partially because of a work ethic that includes practicing four or more hours per day. “He really works at it (getting better),” Novak said.

Novak’s father, 90-year-old Ken Sr., expects to return as one of the Hopkins boys assistant coaches next season.

Eric Morken, writing yesterday for Echopress.com, reported Alexandria’s Treyton Thompson will transfer for next season to an Indiana prep school. A class of 2021 recruiting target, the Gophers have offered a scholarship.

It was 50 years ago this summer that Noel Jenke, one of the Golden Gophers’ best athletes ever, made his professional baseball debut as an outfielder with AAA Louisville. Jenke had hit .402 in the spring of 1969 playing in his first and only season for the Gophers. The Boston Red Sox were eager to sign him and Jenke, who represented himself, knew he had leverage in the negotiations because the NFL’s Vikings and NHL Blackhawks wanted him, too.

Now retired from corporate security work and living in suburban Milwaukee, Jenke never revealed the bonus amount the Red Sox gave him and he still won’t. “It was more than the Red Sox wanted to pay me,” he told Sports Headliners. “It was one of the highest bonuses paid in the MLB draft that year, if not the highest.”

Jenke’s negotiating leverage paid off after the Red Sox initially offered $50,000. Following his contract signing the team also gave him a Chevy Impala. Jenke, who negotiated the deal surrounded by “three piece suits,” was glad he remembered the advice of a tax attorney who told him, “It’s just as easy to ask for $100,000, as it is $25,000.”

An Owatonna, Minnesota native, Jenke only played one season of baseball at Minnesota because football coach Murray Warmath insisted he be available for spring practices. As a college baseball senior, with his football eligibility expired, Jenke became an All-American but as a professional never made it to the big leagues and ended up playing five seasons in the NFL with the Vikings, Falcons and Packers. He won seven letters at Minnesota, with three each in football and hockey, and one in baseball.

As with other sports, analytics has become important in the MLS including with the Minnesota United. CEO Chris Wright told Sports Headliners there are “global data and analytics companies” that provide details on every pro soccer player in the world who is a member of a club registered through FIFA.

Wright can call up information on thousands of players based on a description of what he is looking for. He and those who work for the United can also identify a specific player they are scouting to learn more about him via analytics.

Wright said his club also employs “two and a half full-timers” as scouts, while also having about 30 part-timers who take a look at players for the United.

Bloomington, Minnesota native Steve Rushin, a former National Sportswriter of the Year, speaks to the Twin Cities Dunkers group August 20.

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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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Lynx’s Reeve May Draw NBA Interest

Posted on July 25, 2019July 25, 2019 by David Shama

The hiring of a female head coach in the NBA has gone from possible to likely in recent years.

In 2014 Becky Hammon became the first full-time paid assistant female coach in the league when she joined the Spurs staff. During the last few months there has been a trend in hiring females with the 76ers, Cavs, Celtics and Kings placing women on their staffs. There are now nine female assistants in the NBA.

Major League Baseball, the NBA, NFL and NHL have no female head coaches, but the NBA has been a pioneer in its hiring of women as assistants and referees. Is the league ready for its first female head coach?

“Well, I think as a league we’ve been about as flexible as any league, and so probably if it’s going to be done, it’s probably going to happen in the NBA,” said Glen Taylor who owns both the NBA Timberwolves and WNBA Lynx.

The NBA has long been known for its diversity and openness to change. NBA commissioner Adam Silver is an advocate for more females in his league. He wants about half “of new officials (referees) entering the league” to be women, per a May 9 story on Nba.com from the Associated Press. Speaking at an event in Washington, D.C., Silver also said: “There’s no reason why women shouldn’t be coaching men’s basketball.”

Taylor told Sports Headliners the first female to become a head coach in the NBA will face “a lot of pressure,” but he thinks it’s just a matter of when—not if—that a woman is leading a club in the league. That person might be promoted from an assistant’s position in the NBA, but certainly Cheryl’s Reeve’s resume could some day put her in the conversation for a head job in the league, or perhaps a No. 1 assistant’s role.

Reeve, 52, is both the Lynx’s general manager and head coach. She is also an assistant coach on the USA Women’s National team that will compete in the 2020 Olympic Games. Since becoming head coach of the Lynx in 2010, she has coached Minnesota to four WNBA titles. Taylor has consistently been impressed with her work. “I am a great fan of her,” he said.

Going into this season Reeve worked with a reshuffled roster including the absence of star players Lindsay Whalen (retired) and Maya Moore (sabbatical for 2019). Yet the Lynx has surprised followers by being a competitive team. Although on a losing streak recently, the club has a 10-10 record is and only 3.5 games out of first place in the WNBA Western Conference.

“I just gotta admire her, how she has changed her defensive strategy and offensive strategy to fit the new players,” Taylor said last week. “It’s been just terrific.”

Worth Noting

The Twins, who hold a two game lead in the American League Central Division over Cleveland, will see the Indians in Minneapolis for a four-game series starting August 8. Prior to that series the Twins will compete against three teams playing less than .500 baseball (White Sox, 45-54; Marlins, 38-62; Royals, 39-64), plus the National League East Division leading Braves, 60-43. The Indians, though, will have a more difficult schedule facing three of four opponents who are at or above .500, including the AL West Division leading Astros, 66-38.

The Twins and Indians will also play two series in September, one in Minneapolis and the other in Cleveland. This season the Twins are 5-4 against the Indians.

Aaron Hicks, the Yankees outfielder who the Twins gave up on and traded to New York, beat Minnesota with a two-run home run on Tuesday night and is hitting .329 in his last 19 games. In that stretch he has seven home runs, 16 RBI and 16 runs scored.

The Twins, who lost two out of three to the Yankees this week in their series at Target Field, attracted a sellout crowd last night of 40,127. It was the club’s eighth sellout of the season.

The Vikings, valued at $2.4 billion, rank No. 35 on the Forbes list released this week of the 50 most valuable sports franchises in the world. The NFL Cowboys ranked No. 1 at $5 billion, with MLB’s Yankees second at $4.6 billion.

Sports Illustrated ranks Golden Gophers senior wide receiver Tyler Johnson No. 62 among its top 100 college football players going into the 2019 season.

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