2000 Minnesota Twins Season
The 2000 Minnesota Twins was the last Twins team in a consecutive string record of eight losing seasons. The team finished with a 69–93 record, with weak hitting but slightly better pitching. One would not have suspected that this team, led by Manager Tom Kelly, would contain the nucleus of Ron Gardenhire's team that will reach the postseason only two years later. Offseason * December 13, 1999: Under the Rule 5 draft, the Twins send minor leaguer Jared Camp and cash to the Florida Marlins in exchange for future Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana. *January 4: Signed catcher Marcus Jensen as a free agent. Jensen was granted free agency on October 2. *January 27: Signed Butch Huskey as a free agent. On July 15, the team traded Huskey to the Colorado Rockies for Todd Sears and cash. Regular season * Tampa Bay's Gerald Williams homered on the first pitch thrown in the Metrodome this year. Minnesota's Matt Lawton homered on the Dome's final pitch this year. *On April 9, a ma ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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American League Central
The American League Central is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was formed in the realignment of 1994 by moving three teams from the American League West and two teams from the American League East. Its teams are all located in the Midwestern United States. Along with the National League East, the AL Central is one of two divisions in the Major Leagues in which all of its members have won a World Series title. In fact, each team has captured at least two World Series championships. The Kansas City Royals were the most recent team from the division to win the World Series. Division membership Current members *Chicago White Sox – Founding member; formerly of the AL West *Cleveland Guardians – Founding member; formerly of the AL East; known as the Cleveland Indians until 2021 *Detroit Tigers – Joined in 1998; formerly of the AL East *Kansas City Royals – Founding member; formerly of the AL West *Minnesota Twins – Founding member; formerly of the A ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Florida Marlins
The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franchise began play as an expansion team in the 1993 season as the Florida Marlins. The Marlins originally played home games at Joe Robbie Stadium, which they shared with the National Football League (NFL)'s Miami Dolphins. In 2012, the team moved to LoanDepot Park (then known as Marlins Park), their first exclusive home and the first to be designed as a baseball park. As part of an agreement with park owner Miami-Dade County to use the stadium, the franchise also changed their name to the Miami Marlins prior to the 2012 season. The Marlins have qualified for the postseason only three times, but won the World Series during their first two runs in 1997 and 2003. All three of their playoff appearances came as wild card teams, making them on ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expansion franchise in 1969, and has played in four World Series, winning in 1985 and 2015, and losing in 1980 and 2014. Outside of a dominant 10 year stretch between 1976 to 1985, and a brief, albeit dominant resurgence from 2014 to 2015, the Royals have been one of the worst franchises in baseball, missing the playoffs 34 of the previous 36 years. The name "Royals" pays homage to the American Royal, a livestock show, horse show, rodeo, and championship barbecue competition held annually in Kansas City since 1899, as well as the identical names of two former Negro league baseball teams that played in the first half of the 20th century. (One a semi-pro team based in Kansas City in the 1910s and 1920s that toured the Midwest and a California ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Matthew LeCroy
Matthew Hanks LeCroy (born December 13, 1975) is an American former professional baseball catcher, first baseman, and designated hitter and current manager for the Rochester Red Wings. During his time in Major League Baseball (MLB), LeCroy had the distinction of being the active player with the most plate appearances without a stolen base in his career. Career LeCroy is a 1994 graduate of Belton-Honea Path High School in Honea Path, South Carolina and attended Clemson University to pursue a degree in elementary education. While at Clemson, he was named to the 1996 U.S. Olympic Baseball Team and helped the team to a bronze medal after losing to both Cuba (gold medal) and Japan (silver medal) before defeating Nicaragua in the bronze medal game. In 1997, he was drafted as a catcher in the first round (50th overall) of the Major League Baseball Draft by the Minnesota Twins. Although challenged defensively behind the plate, averaging double-digit passed balls while throwing out less t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jacque Jones
Jacque Dewayne Jones (born April 25, 1975) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder for the Minnesota Twins, Chicago Cubs, Detroit Tigers and Florida Marlins. He also coached for the Washington Nationals. Early life He graduated from San Diego High School in 1993, and the University of Southern California, where he had a stellar career. In , he was a first team all-American outfielder for the Trojans. In , he was a member of the US Olympic Baseball team. In 1993, he was named player of the year in the SCL with, .332 batting average, 33 home runs, and 124 RBI. Professional career Minnesota Twins Jacque was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the second round of the amateur draft. He played three seasons in the minor leagues, and was brought up to the majors in . He started off in center field, but moved to left to accommodate Torii Hunter. Between -, he batted over .300, and went to the playoffs with the Twins. The Twins outfield was one of the fastest in baseball in , boast ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ron Coomer
Ronald Bryan Coomer (born November 18, 1966), nicknamed "Coom Dawg", is a former first baseman and third baseman in Major League Baseball and the current color analyst and play-by-play broadcaster for the Chicago Cubs radio on WSCR 670 AM. Coomer had a nine-year major league career from to playing for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs, and Los Angeles Dodgers. He was elected to the American League All-Star team in 1999 while with the Twins. During his baseball career he opened up a baseball facility in Orland Park, Illinois, called C.F. Swingtown Baseball Academy, which is no longer owned by Coomer. Baseball career Coomer was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 14th round of the 1987 amateur draft. After one season, he was released by the A's. He was signed by the Chicago White Sox on March 18, 1991. In 1993, he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Isidro Márquez. After two seasons in the minors, Coomer was traded to the Minnesota Twins with Greg Hans ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Matt Lawton
Matthew Lawton, Jr. (born November 30, 1971) is an American former professional baseball player whose career spanned 15 seasons, including 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Lawton, an outfielder, made his major league debut September 5, 1995, with the Minnesota Twins, who signed him four years prior. He also played in the majors with the New York Mets (2001), the Cleveland Indians (2002–04), the Pittsburgh Pirates (2005), the Chicago Cubs (2005), the New York Yankees (2005), and the Seattle Mariners (2006). Over his major league career, Lawton compiled a .267 batting average with 1,273 hits, 267 doubles, 17 triples, 138 home runs, 631 runs batted in (RBIs), 165 stolen bases, and 681 walks in 1,334 games played. Lawton was drafted by the Twins during the 1991 MLB draft out of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. A season later, he made his professional debut in the minor leagues with the Gulf Coast League Twins. He also played in the minors with the Fort Wayne Wiz ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gerald Williams (baseball)
Gerald Floyd Williams (August 10, 1966 – February 8, 2022) was an American professional baseball outfielder who played in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees, Milwaukee Brewers, Atlanta Braves, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, and New York Mets from 1992 to 2005. Professional career Draft and minor leagues The New York Yankees selected Williams in the 14th round, with the 366th overall selection, of the 1987 Major League Baseball draft out of Grambling State University. In 1988, in the New York–Penn League for Oneonta, he batted .365/.447/.504 with two home runs in 115 at bats. He was then promoted to High-A ball where he hit .210 in the next two seasons. Playing in a league that is notoriously tough for hitters (Florida State League) he hit .289/.344/.461. Mid-season, he was sent up to AA and the Eastern League. There, he batted .250/.328/.435. Combined, he hit .265 with 140 hits, 20 home runs, 101 runs batted in (RBIs), and 37 stolen bases. For 1992, he hit .285/.334/.4 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tampa Bay Devil Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home venue has been Tropicana Field. Following nearly three decades of unsuccessfully trying to gain an expansion franchise or enticing existing teams to relocate to the Tampa Bay area, an ownership group led by Vince Naimoli was approved on March 9, 1995. The team began play as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 1998 Major League Baseball season. The team's first decade of play was marked by futility; they finished in last place in the AL East in all but the 2004 season, when they finished second to last. Following the 2007 season, Stuart Sternberg, who had purchased controlling interest in the team from Vince Naimoli two years earlier, changed the team's name from "Devil Rays" to "Rays", now meaning both a manta ray and a ray of sunshine; a mant ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Todd Sears
Todd Andrew Sears (born October 23, 1975) is an American former professional baseball first baseman for the Minnesota Twins and San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball. Amateur career Sears attended the University of Nebraska, and in 1996 he played collegiate summer baseball with the Falmouth Commodores of the Cape Cod Baseball League. He earned third-team All-America honors from the NCBWA and first-team All-Big 12 honors in 1997, batting .421 with 17 homers and 79 RBIs in 62 games. He was selected in the 3rd round of the 1997 Major League Baseball Draft by the Colorado Rockies. Professional career Todd Sears spent parts of two seasons in the MLB, splitting time between the Minnesota Twins and San Diego Padres. He was called up by Minnesota on Sept. 17, 2002, hitting .333 with two doubles and three runs scored in seven contests. Sears began the 2003 season with Minnesota before being dealt to the San Diego Padres in September. He appeared in 33 games, batting .247 with two ho ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Field, which is located in the Lower Downtown area of Denver. It is owned by the Monfort brothers and managed by Bud Black. The Rockies began as an expansion team for the 1993 season and played their home games for their first two seasons at Mile High Stadium. Since 1995, they have played at Coors Field, which has earned a reputation as a hitter's park. The Rockies have qualified for the postseason five times, each time as a Wild Card winner. In 2007, the team earned its first (and only) NL pennant after winning 14 of their final 15 games in the regular season to secure a Wild Card position, capping the streak off with a 13-inning 9-8 victory against the San Diego Padres in the tiebreaker game affectionately known as "Game 163" by Rocki ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Butch Huskey
Robert Leon "Butch" Huskey (born November 10, 1971), is an American former professional baseball player who played in the major leagues primarily as an outfielder in 1993 and from 1995 to 2000. Early life Huskey was raised in Lawton, Oklahoma along with five brothers and three sisters. Because of his proximity to the Oklahoma City 89ers, he grew up a Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers fan. Huskey attended Eisenhower High School (Lawton, Oklahoma), Eisenhower High School in Lawton where he played high school football, football and was an All-State tight end. He was offered a scholarship to play college football for Oklahoma Sooners football, Oklahoma. 1989–1993 Huskey was drafted by the New York Mets in the seventh round of the 1989 Major League Baseball Draft as a third baseman. That year he was awarded the Doubleday Award for the Rookie level Gulf Coast Mets in Sarasota, Florida. Huskey posted a batting average of .263, with six home runs, 34 runs batted in, and four stol ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |