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Greatest Minnesota Twins Second Baseman: Lombardozzi vs Teufel

By Michael McKee

Aug 27, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; New York Mets second baseman Daniel Murphy (28) celebrates with third base coach Tim Teufel (18) after hitting a 2 run double during the thirteenth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. The Mets defeated the Phillies, 9-5 in 13 innings. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 27, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; New York Mets second baseman Daniel Murphy (28) celebrates with third base coach Tim Teufel (18) after hitting a 2 run double during the thirteenth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. The Mets defeated the Phillies, 9-5 in 13 innings. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-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 Carew and Allen in the first match up. You can still vote in that poll.

Match up 2: Steve Lombardozzi Sr vs Tim Teufel

Lombardozzi was drafted in 1981 by the Twins. He made his debut in 1985. For the next three seasons he was the Twins primary second baseman. In total he played 4 season in Minnesota. He was traded to the Astros and suited up in his last MLB game in 1990.

Lombardozzi was known much more for his glove than for his bat. As a Twin he had a just .652 OPS but posted a 3.6 dWAR and 22 total zone fielding runs above average. In total he was worth 4 bWAR. Lombardozzi is fondly remembered for the key role he played in the Twins’ first World Series title.

Teufel was drafted by the Twins in 1980 and made his debut with them in 1983. He played parts of three season in Minnesota. Two were spent as the Twins primary second baseman. He was traded to the Mets for a package that included Billy Beane. With the Padres in 1993, he played his last MLB game.

His best season as a Twin came in 1984. He posted a .749 OPS and 3.8 bWAR. Offence was Teufel’s stronger suit but he held his own defensively. As a Twin he had a .751 OPS and put up 1.1 dWAR. He was worth 5.5 bWAR over 1230 plate appearances in Minnesota.

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

Next: Byung-ho Park Press Conference

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

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