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Twins Success All About the System

Posted on October 7, 2009February 7, 2012 by David Shama

The superstitious will demand that when the Twins move their locker room and offices from the Metrodome to Target Field they must take along the water coolers.  The less informed may believe the organization’s winning ways and stubborn will not to give up can be attributed to the water consumed by the front office, manager, coaches and players.  In fact, the franchise has a system worthy of study at the University of Minnesota business school, if not Harvard.

After yesterday’s incredible 12 inning tie-breaking win over Detroit, the Twins have now won five Central Division championships in the last eight years.  To win the latest title the team had to come back from three games behind the Tigers with four to play on the regular season schedule.

The never-give-up franchise serves up comebacks with the best organizations in baseball.  The Twins spent much of 2009 playing less than .500 baseball, but yesterday finished 87 and 76, winning 17 of their last 21 games.  They followed the blueprint of comebacks in other seasons when the team started slow including in 2003 when the Twins went 47-31 to win the Central after having a 43-41 record in mid-July.

Characteristics that define winning organizations in business are visible with the Twins.  Among those characteristics is a confidence that the franchise knows how to win.

Manager Ron Gardenhire and his staff didn’t panic this season when the pitching staff was imploding because of injuries and poor performance.  They didn’t stop teaching players and doing the best they could when problems were also evident at third base, second base and left field.

Pitching coach Rick Anderson rebuilt a staff during the season, offering suggestions and encouragement to some guys not even on the roster at the All-Star break.  In the last days of the season the pitching responded remarkably, both among the starters (only two of five remained from the early season rotation) and bullpen.

Gardenhire tightened the defense in September, putting Matt Tolbert at third and Nick Punto at second. That’s the Twins way.  Emphasize pitching, defense and always fundamentals in every aspect of baseball.  And team play.  One guy goes down, another has an opportunity.

Michael Cuddyer moved from right field to first base and went nuts at the plate hitting eight of his 32 home runs and producing 24 of his 92 RBIs in the final weeks of the season.  Left fielder Delmon Young emerged as an unlikely hero producing 15 hits in his last 42 at bats including three home runs and 15 RBI.

Substitutes were dramatic in yesterday’s win.  Center fielder Carlos Gomez, who scored the winning run in the 6-5 victory, had a .143 batting average during limited play in September.  Second baseman Alexi Casilla, who drove in the winning run, hadn’t played since September 29.

A successful organization must be able to evaluate talent, and the team’s front office including general manager Billy Smith deserves credit for a farm system that produced in-season acquisitions like left handed starter Brian Duensing and catcher Jose Morales, plus acquired talent from other major league clubs.   While a lot of fans were feeling sorry for themselves when the team acquired shortstop Orlando Cabrera in late July, he was a big reason why the Twins were so good late in the season.  Front office evaluators brought in additional contributors from other teams in relief pitchers Jon Rauch and Ron Mahay.

Over the years has the organization made personnel mistakes?  Moved too slowly to retain players or trade for others?  Sure, but this organization has shown a skill for identifying and developing players.  For example, Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Denard Span, and Cuddyer were all draft choices.

The Twins operate within a system of loyalty and stability.  The front office people are usually promoted from within.  The players are nurtured and groomed to not only help the franchise win, but also to enhance their careers (encouraged, for example, to learn how to play multiple positions).  Patience is usually extended to all concerned.

All of this and more has created an environment that gives the organization the best chance to win.  It is classic business management.

Now the Twins must target another 2009 miracle, beat the Yankees in the playoffs.  The Yankees had baseball’s best regular season record and have a home field advantage.  They must drink some pretty good water, too.

Comments Welcome

Worth Noting

Posted on October 7, 2009February 7, 2012 by David Shama

Baseball analyst Harold Reynolds said on the MLB Network that the Metrodome is the best home field advantage in sports.

Justin Morneau said on KSTP Radio earlier this week he will work on persuading his buddy, Joe Mauer, to encourage him to sign a new contract that will keep the Twins’ catcher with the organization.  Mauer officially won his American League third batting title yesterday, finishing with a .365 average.  He is now tied for second with Tony Oliva among Twins who have the most AL batting titles.  Rod Carew won seven titles while playing for the Twins.

Brett Favre hasn’t been entertaining while just playing football this fall.  His TV commercial for Sears is worth watching, too.  https://video.google.com/videosearch?hl=en&q=brett+favre+sears+commercial+youtube&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=9THKSunVL5GsNvCWrIMM&sa=X&oi=video_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1#

Adrian Peterson told Dan Patrick in the September 28 issue of Sports Illustrated that he’s had a 2010 Super Bowl on his mind for awhile now.  “Yeah, I expected to be in the Super Bowl even before Brett came here.  We’ve got all the tools in the toolbox to be able to put this run together.”

Vikings vice president of player personnel Rick Spielman talking to Sports Headliners about Gopher senior wide receiver Eric Decker: “Very good football player.  Sure handed guy.  Does a good job of finding the open seams in the zone.  He’s a heck of a college football player, and I know that he’s going to get his opportunity in the NFL.  A lot of teams will surely be looking at him.”

Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez almost resurrected Badger football from the dead starting in 1990 when he was coach.  Alvarez led the Badgers to three Rose Bowls wins and national prominence while changing fan apathy into passion.  Alvarez, who was in Minneapolis last Saturday to watch Wisconsin win its sixth straight over the Gophers, was asked how he made the turn around in Madison.

“I had a good staff that could recruit,” Alvarez said.  “We were able to get good players in there.  I kept stability on my staff and my administration let me coach.  Then it’s just hard work and being sound, and having a plan that could work.

“I devised a plan with the type of kids that we could recruit.  Big linemen (and) physical type of play.  We’re not going to go out and get great skill guys.  We don’t have access to them.

“I figured out a way to win and sold everybody on it, and everybody bought in.”

ESPN analyst Bob Griese, who was also in Minneapolis for the Gophers-Badgers game, said he stays in contact with his former broadcast partner Keith Jackson, now retired and considered by many the greatest college football play-by-play man of all time.  Griese said Jackson told him he doesn’t care to attend games anymore.

Both the Vikings and Gophers have had offensive line breakdowns on pass protection this season but blame for the linemen isn’t always deserved.  Backs that don’t block on-rushing tacklers, or quarterbacks who hold the ball too long can also factor in.

Comments Welcome

Notes Plus

Posted on October 7, 2009February 7, 2012 by David Shama

The Wild ranked ninth best among 30 NHL teams in composite scores by ESPN The Magazine as part of its NHL preview issue of October 5.  Using a one (desperate) thru 10 (dominant) scale, the magazine gave the Wild a three for face-offs, six for shootouts, three for injury, seven for defense, eight for goaltending, five for power play, nine for penalty killing, two for scoring, two for five-on-five play, and five for intangibles. Overall rating: 4.7.

Ali Lucia, Gopher hockey Don Lucia’s daughter, is a Fox news anchor in Rochester, Minnesota.

The Gophers basketball team opens practice on Friday, October 16 with Tubby’s Tipoff at Williams Arena.  The public is invited to watch coach Tubby Smith’s team starting at 7:30 p.m.

Single game tickets for Gophers basketball went on sale Monday.  Season tickets are also available.  A Gophers spokesman emailed that 98 percent of season tickets have been renewed.  A public season ticket total of about 9,500 is expected.

The Wolves will be on local TV twice during the preseason with the first telecast on October 14 from Chicago and the second in Detroit October 22.

The new Minnesota Blizzards American Basketball Association franchise has scheduled a player tryout from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday at Bloomington Kennedy High School.  The Blizzards plan to begin play in the ABA in 2010.

Wayzata High School football coach Brad Anderson and Buffalo coach Gerald Rohl won their 100th career games earlier this season and now have 101 and 102 wins respectively.  Terry Ogorek, Kittson County Central coach, earned career win 200 recently and now has 203 victories.

The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame named Saint John’s senior defensive back Dominic Haik and Gustavus senior defensive back T.J. Ridley as two of 154 semifinalists for the 2009 William V. Campbell Trophy (formerly known as the Draddy Trophy).  Haik, from Minneapolis, is a political science major (pre-law emphasis) with a 3.75 grade-point average.  He is a three-year starter at cornerback for the Johnnies.  Ridley, from Edina, is a 2008 CoSIDA Academic All-American and a biology, pre-medicine major with a 3.95 grade point average.

Minnesota State Mankato is ranked No. 7 nationally in the Division II football coaches’ poll and is 6-0 for the first time since 1926.

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