All Things Immaculate Grid-related (MLB, NBA, NFL)

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Twins Alert on the Grid. Andrew Morris who made his Target Field debut yesterday a memorable one, was my only New Player on local 9 line.

Welcome to The Show son.

Other new players are current Cubs import Shota Imanaga and Reds 2B Matt McLain. A little research during this past weekend's series paid a small dividend.

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Instead of New Player hunting on the Twins line, I thought it would be more fun to link Dave Boswell & Billy Martin again.

They had an ill fated night in Detroit. At 6 ft 3 and 185 lbs, Boswell had a sizeable reach/weight advantage over Martin, weighing in at 5 ft 11, 165 lbs soaking wet.

Boz never stood a chance.

twins-time.com

Billy in the bar, August 1969

As the baseball lockout rolls on, I guess it’s as good a time as any to revisit a classic Twins tale — when former Twins manager Billy Martin and pitcher Dave Boswell drained a few pops…
twins-time.com twins-time.com
 

Twins alert today, seems like they’ve been popping up more often lately. I reeled in two new names, Thomas Hatch and Dave Edwards. As for the 100 RBI’s, I believe I’ve used all the Twins on the list, so I bolstered Gaetti’s status in the Top 20.
 

coolhandgopher said:
Twins alert today, seems like they’ve been popping up more often lately. I reeled in two new names, Thomas Hatch and Dave Edwards. As for the 100 RBI’s, I believe I’ve used all the Twins on the list, so I bolstered Gaetti’s status in the Top 20.
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My only New Player was Zeke Bonura, as a Senator.

Confession, I looked at the Twins/Senators RBI list a few weeks ago to cherry pick for future reference thinking "Zeke" would be easy enough to recall. Looking today, plugging in "Zeke" there were 5 options. I could rule out the recent Spruill (2010s) and 2 from the 1890s. That left Bonura and Bella. I cheated and looked them up, figuring I was close enough.

Now I have Bella in my pocket for a Yankees/A's combo or corner OF.

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No other newbies. It's never a wrong day to plug in Bombo, even passing up my Ken Brett go to. I took a shot that Randy Bass was New, but no go. Same with my Royals & Padres OF options. Missed opportunity.
 
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The Twins latest reliever, Luis Garcia, who appeared on my radar from nowhere last night turns out is a IG All-Star. 39 years old, he's played for the Phillies, Angels, Rangers (of course), Cardinals, Padres, Red Sox, Dodgers, Nationals, Mets and Twins. You might want to seer this into your brain, because many more performances like last night, and I doubt he's long for the confines of Target Field.

Not much to write home re: stats, as he's always been a middling middle reliever, but he did have sub 3.00 ERA's for the Phils, Nationals, and Angels.
 

coolhandgopher said:
The Twins latest reliever, Luis Garcia, who appeared on my radar from nowhere last night turns out is a IG All-Star. 39 years old, he's played for the Phillies, Angels, Rangers (of course), Cardinals, Padres, Red Sox, Dodgers, Nationals, Mets and Twins. You might want to seer this into your brain, because many more performances like last night, and I doubt he's long for the confines of Target Field.

Not much to write home re: stats, as he's always been a middling middle reliever, but he did have sub 3.00 ERA's for the Phils, Nationals, and Angels.
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You spoke New Player Luis Garcia into existence.

Gracias! Mucho.

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Britt Burns also a newbie for me today. I probably should have known Boddicker was a repeat.
 


Twin Alert on the Grid. Appearance #104 the for Nellie. He is flanked New Players current Twin Ryan Kriedler and Jacque Jones.

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The 1981 Topps set is pretty lame, IMO. Inductive of that is also the card of Newbie Rick Miller. I'm sure I have several tucked away somewhere.

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Ope3 said:
Twin Alert on the Grid. Appearance #104 the for Nellie. He is flanked New Players current Twin Ryan Kriedler and Jacque Jones.

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The 1981 Topps set is pretty lame, IMO. Inductive of that is also the card of Newbie Rick Miller. I'm sure I have several tucked away somewhere.

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Aarrgh, Kreidler! I knew there was a Twins/Tigers connection recently, but I stopped processing after Caratini, Tristan Gray, Zak Kent, Luis Garcia. . .I was able to salvage the unique player category with the random memory of Sean "don't call me Dave, that's a different Tiger" Bergman who flailed away with the Twins at the tail end of his career.

Your words about the '81 Topps set hurt me deeply, Ope. However, I think that's because the '81s were my first set that I collected in earnest--the quarters were flying out of my pocket as quickly as possible the summer I turned 9. And I do think some of the Twins set for '81 were pretty sharp, as evidenced by this Pete Mackanin card. But yeah, I'm influenced by nostalgia, I've looked at a few more and they aren't great, although I'm a sucker for the cap in the corner. For me, this was the last aesthetically pleasing set for me after quite a great run-from the '73 to '81 set, I like them all, some more than others, but the run from '75 to '78 is my favorite stretch.

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coolhandgopher said:
Your words about the '81 Topps set hurt me deeply, Ope. However, I think that's because the '81s were my first set that I collected in earnest--the quarters were flying out of my pocket as quickly as possible the summer I turned 9. And I do think some of the Twins set for '81 were pretty sharp, as evidenced by this Pete Mackanin card. But yeah, I'm influenced by nostalgia, I've looked at a few more and they aren't great, although I'm a sucker for the cap in the corner. For me, this was the last aesthetically pleasing set for me after quite a great run-from the '73 to '81 set, I like them all, some more than others, but the run from '75 to '78 is my favorite stretch.

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I am not a fan of the generic/non-logo baseball caps in the corner.

1981 with the Strike going on that summer, our only MLB touchstone was Baseball Card collecting. Donruss and Fleer being introduced into the market really stretched my allowance and lawn mowing budget.
 

Ope3 said:
I am not a fan of the generic/non-logo baseball caps in the corner.

1981 with the Strike going on that summer, our only MLB touchstone was Baseball Card collecting. Donruss and Fleer being introduced into the market really stretched my allowance and lawn mowing budget.
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Those '81 Fleers were rough. Maybe the ugliest, most basic layout I've seen on a card. They came around with better sets shortly thereafter, thank goodness. I read awhile back that Donruss and Fleer only received licensing permission late in the process, hence the rushed quality of their original product.

Btw, I recently read the book, Split Season 1981 by Jeff Katz, there was a sale on Kindle (unfortunately, it seems to have spiked back up), but it was a pretty interesting read. My main takeaway--Bowie Kuhn and the owners were buffoons who got their asses handed to them. The strike and the subsequent split season were slapdash, ill-considered, and inchoate. They were shocked that the players were so cohesive and had no idea or plan on how to deal with that possibility. And, probably not much of a surprise, Calvin Griffith was a royal pain in the ass from pretty much every perspective.
 



coolhandgopher said:
Those '81 Fleers were rough. Maybe the ugliest, most basic layout I've seen on a card. They came around with better sets shortly thereafter, thank goodness. I read awhile back that Donruss and Fleer only received licensing permission late in the process, hence the rushed quality of their original product.

Btw, I recently read the book, Split Season 1981 by Jeff Katz, there was a sale on Kindle (unfortunately, it seems to have spiked back up), but it was a pretty interesting read. My main takeaway--Bowie Kuhn and the owners were buffoons who got their asses handed to them. The strike and the subsequent split season were slapdash, ill-considered, and inchoate. They were shocked that the players were so cohesive and had no idea or plan on how to deal with that possibility. And, probably not much of a surprise, Calvin Griffith was a royal pain in the ass from pretty much every perspective.
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1981 Cincinnati Reds had the Best Winning Percentage in the MLB. Failed to even QUALIFY for the Post-Season.

WTF?!?
 

Ken Brett once again can be used in any of the Team combos today.

Only New Player is Jim Tabor, Red Sox/100 RBI. Nickname: Rawhide.

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Tabor was a Minneapolis Miller in 1938. Any local Old Timer fans may recall the row that occurred that season. There was a game in which the hotshot 3B prospect got into it with another up and comer out in LF for not hustling on a few fly balls hit his way.

The gentleman at the Hot Corner was Tabor. The "loafer" in Left Field, Ted Williams.

It was one of several dramatic events in the life and times during the meteoric rise/fall in Tabor's career.

Jim Tabor – Society for American Baseball Research

sabr.org sabr.org
 

This is a category where I feel like I have used every player possible, but a new one enters the fray:
 

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Twins Alert on the Grid. Clean Sweep of New Players on the Twins Row including current journeyman Banda.

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It took a few months, but an Assist from Coolhand on Goryl, Twins skipper in between Mauch & Gardner.

Zimmerman is alphabetically last for anyone to appear in a Twins uniform.
 
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Three newbies on the Twins line for me also—I was surprised the fertile ground of Rich Hill hadn’t been tapped before.
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coolhandgopher said:
Three newbies on the Twins line for me also—I was surprised the fertile ground of Rich Hill hadn’t been tapped before.
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I'm always mildly surprised how Hill blows up efforts for Single Digit Rarity pursuits.

Too many Gridders are in on the Cheat Code aspect of the legendary Dick Mountain.
 


It's been a minute since the last Twins Grid Alert.

www.baseball-reference.com

Players by birthplace: Minnesota Baseball Stats and Info | Baseball-Reference.com

Players by birthplace: Minnesota Baseball Stats and Info
www.baseball-reference.com www.baseball-reference.com

The MLB Players born in Minnesota has yielded some low hanging fruit, as Tom Quinlan was added to my Newbie roster.

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Twins/Mets selection was triggered by some clickbait article I saw recently about his now infinitely more famous offspring shagging fly balls in Shea Stadium.

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Pat Mahomes "SR" is now New Player #1999 for me.
 
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Ope3 said:
Twins/Mets selection was triggered by some clickbait article I saw recently about his now infinitely more famous offspring shagging fly balls in Shea Stadium.

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Pat Mahomes "SR" is now New Player #1999 for me.
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FYI, that's former Met Pitcher Mike Hampton in the background. Photo courtesy AP.
 

It was Tom Quinlan appreciation day! Player #2515 on my board was Jorge Polanco, which was utterly surprising to me that I hadn’t used him before.
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My Newbie today happens to be Billy Pierce, who really had a standout MLB career mostly with the White Sox, accomplished enough to be in the Hall of Really Good. He does have his jersey #19 retired by the Sox and received consideration once by the HoF Veteran's Cmte.

A 7 Time All Star, racked up 211 Ws, a few 6+ WAR seasons, multiple ERAs sub-3.00 and 11 times had more than double digit wins which qualified him today with the White Sox. He also had 16 Ws for the Giants in 1962.

www.baseball-reference.com

Billy Pierce Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More | Baseball-Reference.com

Check out the latest Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More of Billy Pierce. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, draft status, bats, throws, school and more on Baseball-reference.com
www.baseball-reference.com www.baseball-reference.com

Pierce can thank Kevin Gausman of the Blue Jays for bringing him to my attention. Gausman registered his 2000 K just a week ago, which got me to look at this list:

www.baseball-reference.com

Career Leaders &amp Records for Strikeouts | Baseball-Reference.com

Career SO Leaders:1.Nolan Ryan+/5714/957, 2.Randy Johnson+/4875/691, 3.Roger Clemens/4672/213, 4.Steve Carlton+/4136/1881, 5.Bert Blyleven+/3701/514, 6.Tom Seaver+/3640/1552, 7.Don Sutton+/3574/1559, 8.<strong>Justin Verlander</strong>/3554/60, 9.Gaylord Perry+/3534/1220,
www.baseball-reference.com www.baseball-reference.com

I noticed Pierce was just 1 shy of the milestone, stuck and partying like it's 1999. I suppose it's cruel irony that he is my New Player 2000, but recognition none the less.

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Twins Alert on the Grid. Clean sweep of New Players on that line (only).

Hippo Vaughn is another Hall of Very Gooder as Career WAR of 47.2. Noticed he had a short stint with the Senators before he blew up with Cubs.

Brent Gates was brought back to mind being in the lineup for the David Wells Perfect Game. Actually thought he was a repeat.

Mike Poepping is another born in Minnesota MLBer (Little Falls).

Ken Harrelson is not a New Player, but I looked him up while watching the Twins game against the White Sox. I was surprised he never played for the South Siders.

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George Herman Ruth is welcomed to the 100 Player Club, posthumously.

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Gary Carter, on deck.
 

Twins on the grid, and I chose all newbies over all Dead Presidents (Ron Washington would have gotten me there, but I’ve used him previously).
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coolhandgopher said:
Twins on the grid, and I chose all newbies over all Dead Presidents (Ron Washington would have gotten me there, but I’ve used him previously).
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I could not resist going with a Bobo and a Klutz on the same board, both from the Senators era. While Newsom was not a Newbie, Clyde Klutz does fit the bill.

Also a New Player was Steven Okert which I referred to your "Where are they now" in the 2026 Twins Season thread.

Dave Smith <3.00 ERA for the Astros was also New. I have a ton of 80s baseball cards for that guy. Future reference note, also an All Star.

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While not new, we also matched on Vinny Castilla who I had not used until within a few weeks ago, My recent trip to Coors Field somehow he was presented on the scoreboard which prompted research. He checks a lot of boxes.
 







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