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Greatest Minnesota Twins First Baseman Round One: Don Mincher vs Doug Mientkiewicz

By Michael McKee

May 11, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Detail of the pink cleat of Minnesota Twins second baseman Brian Dozier (2) during the game against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
May 11, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Detail of the pink cleat of Minnesota Twins second baseman Brian Dozier (2) during the game against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Puckett’s Pond faces off two notable Minnesota Twins players and you decide which one was greater

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Puckett’s Pond is enlisting your help in deciding who the greatest Minnesota Twins in history are at each position. Eventually we’ll square off each position against the others and wind up with the greatest Minnesota Twin, as selected by you. The first position we’ll be selecting is catcher. We’ll only be counting literal Minnesota Twins and not the pre-1961 Washington franchises. Players also will need 700 PAs as a Twin to qualify. We ask you to consider the player based solely on his time as a Twin and at the position specified.

We’ve faced off Rich Reese and Ron Jackson in our first match up to determine the greatest Twins first baseman. You can still vote in that match up. Reese is currently in the lead. The second match up is between Don Mincher and Doug Mientkiewicz.

Don Mincher was acquired by the Twins/Senators from the White Sox along with Earl Battey and $150,000 in exchange for Roy Sievers. Mincher made his MLB debut with the Senators in 1960 and of course moved to Minnesota in 1961. He played 6 seasons as a Twin. Three were spent largely as a back up and three in a more full time role. He slashed .244/.341/.483 as a Twin and put up a 9.8 fWAR mark. He was a solid fielder with 29 total zone fielding runs above average and posted a -1.4 dWAR in Minnesota.  Prior to the 1967 season, he was traded as part of a package to the Angels in exchange for Dean Chance. Mincher played his last game in 1972 and passed away in 2012.

Doug Mientkiewicz was drafted by the Twins and made his debut with them in 1998. He’d spend parts of seven seasons in Minnesota. His best season came in 2003 when he posted a .843 OPS and a 4.2 bWAR. Over 2505 plate appearances as a Twins he slashed .275/.367/.408 and had a -2.3 dWAR. He put up a 6.6 fWAR in Minnesota. Doug was traded to the Red Sox in 2004 for their World Series run (in which he made some key plays) and played his last game in 2009. Doug is currently the manager of the Twins’ AA affiliate.

Who was the greater Twins first baseman? Have your say:

Next: Daily News: Interest in Will Smith?

Feel free to leave your reasoning in the comments. Check back here for the rest of the match ups in round one and to see who moves on.

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