Greatest Minnesota Twins Shortstop Polls: Smalley vs Cardenas
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 faced off Guzman vs Escobar in the first match up. You can still vote in that poll.
Matchup #2: Roy Smalley vs Leo Cardenas
Smalley was drafted in 1974 by the Texas Rangers. He made his debut the next year. Part way through the 1976 season, he was traded to the Twins as part of a package for Bert Blyleven. Smalley would spend 10 seasons (2 stints) in Minnesota. His best season in the uniform came in 1978 when he posted a .796 OPS and a 5.9 WAR. He played his last MLB game with Minnesota in 1987.
Smalley was above average offensively (especially for a shortstop) and solid defensively. He leads all qualifying Twins’ shortstops in home runs. He didn’t have much speed on the base paths. Smalley slashed .262/.350/.401, was worth 21.6 defensive runs above average and posted a 20.9 WAR over 4676 plate appearances as a Twin.
Cardenas was signed as an amateur free agent in 1956. He made his debut with the Cincinnati Reds in 1960. Prior to the 1969 season, he was traded to the Twins for Jim Merritt. Cardenas would spend three seasons in Minnesota. His best came in 1969 with a .741 OPS and a 5.1 WAR. Cardenas played his last MLB game in 1976 with the Rangers.
Cardenas had a solid bat for a shortstop but it was his glove that really shone. He displayed some pop and ran rarely. Cardenas had a .719 OPS, posted 54.7 defensive runs above average and put up 10.9 WAR over 1938 plate appearances as a Twin.
Who was the greater Twins shortstop? Have your say:
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.