Minnesota Twins Daily Morning Dip: Contraction averted
Minnesota Twins Daily Dip, February 4th, 2018
Welcome to the February 4th edition of the Daily Dip, your daily piece of news and notes here on Puckett’s Pond, offseason edition. You’ll find the most recent news of the Minnesota Twins organization, stories from around the game, and links to any information you may want to know about the Minnesota Twins or baseball as we work our way through the hot stove season!
Minnesota Twins Organizational Scores
Australian Baseball League Update
Brisbane’s games against Melbourne have been cancelled due to weather this weekend.
Caribbean Series Update
The Caribbean Series is played each year with the winning team from each of the Venezuelan, Dominican, Puerto Rican, and Mexican Winter Leagues in a five-team tournament with Cuba participating as well.
Venezuela defeated the Dominican Republic 15-4. Willians Astudillo played left field for Venezuela, going 3-5 with a double and a pair of RBI.
Player Stats (just in the Caribbean Series, not the entire winter):
Willians Astudillo, 9 PA, .333/.333/.444, R, 2B, 2 RBI
Minnesota Twins news and notes
Rodney out to prove age doesn’t matter
In an interview with MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger, Fernando Rodney discussed his work to get himself ready for each season and his desire to continue being successful into his 40s.
More from Puckett's Pond
- Minnesota Twins: 2022 Year in Review for Twins Baseball
- Minnesota Twins: Making the Case for the Current 2023 Rotation
- Minnesota Twins: Does the MLB or the Twins have a Spending Problem?
- Minnesota Twins: 2 Possible Free Agent Reunions for 2023
- Minnesota Twins: Holiday Wish List for the rest of the Offseason
Notes from around baseball
- The best players in the World Series
- Teams that could jump from under .500 to the playoffs
- Will the Astros repeat?
- Top 10 1B, SP right now
- Scherzer and daughter have matching PJs
- Trout arrives at Super Bowl
- The best pitchers live on the edge
- Cuba still rich in talent
- Pence has added pizza to the menu at his cafe
- Inciarte shagging balls behind his back
- Cashman’s 20 years with the Yankees in review
- Where should Red Sox look beyond JD?
- Rays host coaches clinic
Next: Would Dozier extension be wise?
One Last Thing
On this day in 2002, the Minnesota Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of an injunction that forced the Minnesota Twins to fulfill their lease with the Metrodome. This required the Twins to play in the facility, legally ending MLB’s option to contract the team.
It ended an offseason of turmoil that cost the Twins their most successful manager right as the organization was on the cusp of another competitive cycle. Tom Kelly resigned in the 2001-2002 offseason, primarily due to the threat of contraction and uncertain future of the club.
The club would hire Ron Gardenhire on January 4th, 2002 and go on to win 94 games and reach the ALCS in 2002.