2001 Minnesota Twins season

2001 Minnesota Twins
Major League affiliations
Location
Other information
Owner(s) Carl Pohlad
General manager(s) Terry Ryan
Manager(s) Tom Kelly
Local television KMSP-TV
Midwest Sports Channel
(Bert Blyleven, Dick Bremer)
Local radio 830 WCCO AM
(Herb Carneal, John Gordon, Dan Gladden)
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The 2001 Minnesota Twins marked the beginning of the Twins’ ascendancy in the American League Central Division. After finishing the 2000 season last in the division with a disappointing 69-93 record, the 2001 team rebounded to finish 85-77, good enough for second place in the division. The six-year run of winning seasons that followed is the longest such stretch in franchise history. In his last year as manager, Tom Kelly continued the development of a core of young players who would win their division the following year.

Third baseman Corey Koskie hit 26 home runs and stole 27 bases, the only Twins player to steal at least 25 bases and hit 25 home runs in the same season.

Regular season

Offense

The team had consistent starters, many of whom performed well. First baseman Doug Mientkiewicz, who had a disappointing 1999 season and spent most of 2000 in the minors, had what seemed to be a breakout year, hitting .306 with 14 home runs and 74 RBI. Second baseman Luis Rivas appeared to be on the verge of breaking out as well, hitting .266 but stealing a team-leading 31 bases. Shortstop Cristian Guzmán built on his solid 2000 season by batting .302, stealing 25 bases, and once again leading the major leagues in triples with 14. His numbers were solid enough to earn him his first and only all-star berth. Third baseman Corey Koskie had his best year, hitting .276, with 26 home runs and 103 RBI. Amazingly, he also stole 27 bases. A. J. Pierzynski had a solid year for a catcher, batting .289 with 7 home runs. The "Soul Patrol" outfield of Jacque Jones in left, Torii Hunter in center, and Matt Lawton in right continued to impress, although Lawton was traded midway through the season. The biggest offensive question mark was the designated hitter position, with David Ortiz spending much of the year injured—as was often the case during his Twins tenure. He started only 78 games as the DH, with Chad Allen starting 22 and Brian Buchanan 19.

Team Leaders
Statistic Player Quantity
HR Torii Hunter 27
RBI Corey Koskie 103
BA Doug Mientkiewicz .306
Runs Corey Koskie 100

Pitching

Brad Radke, Eric Milton, and Joe Mays capably filled the first three spots in the starting rotation throughout the year, with Milton and Mays earning all-star berths for their efforts. The final two spots were question marks, with Kyle Lohse making 16 uninspired starts, and J. C. Romero eleven. (The team had still not figured out that Romero was better suited to the bullpen.) Because of the weak back end of the rotation, the team traded Lawton for pitcher Rick Reed midway through the year. Reed did not quite meet expectations, going 4-6 with a 5.19 ERA in twelve starts.

The bullpen was in flux. LaTroy Hawkins struggled as the team's closer, leading to Eddie Guardado earning 12 saves. Guardado, Jack Cressend, Todd Jones, and Mark Redman had serviceable years, but Bob Wells, Héctor Carrasco, and Juan Rincón did not.

Team Leaders
Statistic Player Quantity
ERA Joe Mays 3.16
Wins Joe Mays 17
Saves LaTroy Hawkins 28
Strikeouts Eric Milton 157

Defense

Like most of Tom Kelly's teams, the defense was exceptional. It was anchored by Mientkiewicz, who earned a Gold Glove award for his efforts. Rivas and Guzman were an impressive double-play combination, while Koskie improved defensively. After a season of uncertainty behind the plate in 2000, Pierzynski solidified the catcher position, backed up by Tom Prince. The speedy "Soul Patrol" outfield of Jones, Hunter, and Lawton was fun to watch. Lawton's departure left a void that Brian Buchanan would attempt to fill. However, as the team fell out of contention, he would give way to the platoon of Bobby Kielty and Dustan Mohr, known by fans collectively as "Dusty Kielmohr."

Season standings

AL Central W L Pct. GB Home Road
Cleveland Indians 91 71 0.562 — 44–36 47–35
Minnesota Twins 85 77 0.525 6 47–34 38–43
Chicago White Sox 83 79 0.512 8 46–35 37–44
Detroit Tigers 66 96 0.407 25 37–44 29–52
Kansas City Royals 65 97 0.401 26 35–46 30–51

Record vs. opponents

2001 American League Records

Sources:
Team ANA BAL BOS CWS CLE DET KC MIN NYY OAK SEA TB TEX TOR NL 
Anaheim — 4–5 4–3 6–3 5–4 5–4 5–4 3–6 4–3 6–14 4–15 7–2 7–12 5–4 10–8
Baltimore 5–4 — 9–10 3–4 1–5 4–2 5–2 3–3 5–13 2–7 1–8 10–9 2–7 7–12 6–12
Boston 3–4 10–9 — 3–3 3–6 4–5 3–3 3–3 5–13 4–5 3–6 14–5 5–2 12–7 10–8
Chicago 3–6 4–3 3–3 — 10–9 13–6 14–5 5–14 1–5 1–8 2–7 5–2 7–2 3–3 12–6
Cleveland 4–5 5–1 6–3 9–10 — 13–6 11–8 14–5 4–5 4–3 2–5 5–1 5–4 2–4 7–11
Detroit 4–5 2–4 5–4 6–13 6–13 — 8–11 4–15 4–5 1–6 2–5 4–2 8–1 2–4 10–8
Kansas City 4–5 2–5 3–3 5–14 8–11 11–8 — 6–13 0–6 3–6 3–6 4–2 4–5 4–3 8–10
Minnesota 6–3 3–3 3–3 14–5 5–14 15–4 13–6 — 4–2 5–4 1–8 1–6 4–5 2–5 9–9
New York 3–4 13–5 13–5 5–1 5–4 5–4 6–0 2–4 — 3–6 3–6 13–6 3–4 11–8 10–8
Oakland 14–6 7–2 5–4 8–1 3–4 6–1 6–3 4–5 6–3 — 9–10 7–2 9–10 6–3 12–6
Seattle 15–4 8–1 6–3 7–2 5–2 5–2 6–3 8–1 6–3 10–9 — 7–2 15–5 6–3 12–6
Tampa Bay 2–7 9–10 5–14 2–5 1–5 2–4 2–4 6–1 6–13 2–7 2–7 — 4–5 9–10 10–8
Texas 12–7 7–2 2–5 2–7 4–5 1–8 5–4 5–4 4–3 10–9 5–15 5–4 — 3–6 8–10
Toronto 4–5 12–7 7–12 3–3 4–2 4–2 3–4 5–2 8–11 3–6 3–6 10–9 6–3 — 8–10

Roster

2001 Minnesota Twins
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

 Outfielders Manager

Coaches

Notable transactions

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Player G IP W L ERA SO

Other pitchers

Player G IP W L ERA SO

Relief pitchers

Player G W L SV ERA SO

Other post-season awards

Farm system

Level Team League Manager
AAA Edmonton Trappers Pacific Coast League John Russell
AA New Britain Rock Cats Eastern League Stan Cliburn
A Fort Myers Miracle Florida State League Jose Marzan
A Quad Cities River Bandits Midwest League Jeff Carter
Rookie Elizabethton Twins Appalachian League Rudy Hernández
Rookie GCL Twins Gulf Coast League Al Newman

LEAGUE CO-CHAMPIONS: New Britain[6][7]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/o/oquismi01.shtml
  2. ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/k/knighbr01.shtml
  3. ↑ Quinton McCracken Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
  4. ↑ Todd Jones Statistics Archived 2010-07-03 at WebCite Baseball-Reference.com
  5. ↑ Matt Lawton Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
  6. ↑ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007
  7. ↑ Baseball America 2002 Annual Directory
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