| 1998 Minnesota Twins | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| League | American League | |||
| Division | Central | |||
| Ballpark | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | |||
| City | Minneapolis | |||
| Record | 70–92 (.432) | |||
| Divisional place | 4th | |||
| Owners | Carl Pohlad | |||
| General managers | Terry Ryan | |||
| Managers | Tom Kelly | |||
| Television | KMSP-TV Midwest Sports Channel (Bert Blyleven,Dick Bremer,Ryan Lefebvre) | |||
| Radio | 830 WCCO AM (Herb Carneal,John Gordon,Ryan Lefebvre) | |||
| ||||
The1998 Minnesota Twins seasonwas the 38th season for theMinnesota Twins franchise in theTwin Cities ofMinnesota, their 17th season atHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome and the 98th overall in theAmerican League.
The team finished with a 70–92 record, with subpar batting and pitching. The season was not without its bright spots, as individual players had solid seasons andHall of Famedesignated hitterPaul Molitor announced his retirement at the end of the season.Tom Kelly's team had plenty of lowlights, most notablyDavid Wells'perfect game against the team on May 17 atYankee Stadium.
In 1998, Twins fans witnessed the emergence ofMatt Lawton andTodd Walker as major league hitters. The team believed Walker would be able to fill the void left after the trade ofChuck Knoblauch, who had been traded to theNew York Yankees on February 6. Fans also saw the merciful end to the Twins'Scott Stahoviak era.Otis Nixon had a surprising year for a 39-year-old, hitting .297 and stealing 37 bases (leading the team). Molitor's hitting continued its gradual decline from his stellar 1996 campaign, with his average down to .281 and RBIs down to 69. These numbers were still competent and he was able to retire while playing solid baseball.
| Statistic | Player | Quantity |
|---|---|---|
| HR | Matt Lawton | 21 |
| RBI | Matt Lawton | 77 |
| BA | Todd Walker | .316 |
| Runs | Matt Lawton | 91 |
Bob Tewksbury was the opening day starter for the Twins, the last opening day starter not namedBrad Radke until 2006. Tewksbury, Radke,LaTroy Hawkins, and rookieEric Milton (acquired in the Knoblauch trade) were in the rotation for most of the year.Mike Morgan andFrank Rodriguez also started 17 and 11 games, respectively. While Morgan had an impressive year for a forty-year-old journeyman before being traded in August, Rodriguez's season was a major disappointment. In his last year for the Twins, Rodriguez went 4–6 with an ERA of 6.56. This could not have been what the team had in mind when it acquired him forRick Aguilera in 1995.
Subsequent to that trade, the Twins reacquired Aguilera, and he served as the teams' closer in 1998, earning a respectable 38 saves. Also in the bullpen,Eddie Guardado,Mike Trombley,Héctor Carrasco, andGreg Swindell had competent seasons.
| Statistic | Player | Quantity |
|---|---|---|
| ERA | Brad Radke | 4.30 |
| Wins | Brad Radke | 12 |
| Saves | Rick Aguilera | 38 |
| Strikeouts | Brad Radke | 146 |
In his penultimate year as a major league catcher, Minnesota nativeTerry Steinbach, then 36, had a mediocre season, withJavier Valentín as his backup.David Ortiz was projected as the starting first baseman, but was hampered by injuries.Orlando Merced, Molitor, and Stahoviak saw time at the position in Ortiz's absence. Walker played second, whileRon Coomer saw a majority of the time at third.Pat Meares was the starting shortstop, but was unceremoniously dumped by the team following the season. The outfield consisted of a decliningMarty Cordova, Nixon, and Lawton.
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Indians | 89 | 73 | .549 | — | 46–35 | 43–38 |
| Chicago White Sox | 80 | 82 | .494 | 9 | 44–37 | 36–45 |
| Kansas City Royals | 72 | 89 | .447 | 16½ | 29–51 | 43–38 |
| Minnesota Twins | 70 | 92 | .432 | 19 | 35–46 | 35–46 |
| Detroit Tigers | 65 | 97 | .401 | 24 | 32–49 | 33–48 |
| Team | ANA | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TB | TEX | TOR | NL | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anaheim | — | 5–6 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 10–6 | ||
| Baltimore | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 2–9 | 5–6 | 10–1 | 5–6 | 7–3 | 3–9 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 5–11 | ||
| Boston | 5–6 | 6–6 | — | 5–6 | 8–3 | 5–5 | 8–3 | 5–6 | 5–7 | 9–2 | 7–4 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–7 | ||
| Chicago | 6–5 | 9–2 | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 4–6–1 | 7–9 | ||
| Cleveland | 7–4 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 6–6 | — | 9–3 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 9–2 | 7–3 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 10–6 | ||
| Detroit | 3–8 | 1–10 | 5–5 | 6–6 | 3–9 | — | 6–6 | 8–4 | 3–8 | 7–4 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 7–9 | ||
| Kansas City | 5–6 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–8 | 4–8 | 6–6 | — | 7–5 | 0–10 | 7–4 | 4–6 | 8–3 | 3–8 | 6–5 | 9–7 | ||
| Minnesota | 5–6 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 5–7 | — | 4–7 | 4–7 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 4–7 | 7–9 | ||
| New York | 5–6 | 9–3 | 7–5 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 10–0 | 7–4 | — | 8–3 | 8–3 | 11–1 | 8–3 | 6–6 | 13–3 | ||
| Oakland | 7–5 | 3–8 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 3–8 | — | 5–7 | 5–6 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 8–8 | ||
| Seattle | 3–9 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 2–9 | 8–3 | 6–4 | 9–2 | 3–8 | 7–5 | — | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 7–9 | ||
| Tampa Bay | 5–6 | 7–5 | 3–9 | 6–5 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–7 | 1–11 | 6–5 | 5–6 | — | 4–7 | 5–7 | 5–11 | ||
| Texas | 7–5 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 6–6 | 7–5 | 7–4 | — | 7–4 | 8–8 | ||
| Toronto | 7–4 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 6–4–1 | 4–7 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 7–4 | 6–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 7–5 | 4–7 | — | 9–7 | ||
| 1998 Minnesota Twins | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
| Pitchers | Catchers Infielders | Outfielders | Manager Coaches
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Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average; Slg. =Slugging average; SB = Stolen bases
| Pos | Player | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | Avg. | Slg. | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Terry Steinbach | 124 | 422 | 45 | 102 | 14 | 54 | .242 | .410 | 0 |
| 1B | David Ortiz | 86 | 278 | 47 | 77 | 9 | 46 | .277 | .446 | 1 |
| 2B | Todd Walker | 143 | 528 | 85 | 167 | 12 | 62 | .316 | .473 | 19 |
| 3B | Ron Coomer | 137 | 529 | 54 | 146 | 15 | 72 | .276 | .406 | 2 |
| SS | Pat Meares | 149 | 543 | 56 | 141 | 9 | 70 | .260 | .368 | 7 |
| LF | Marty Cordova | 119 | 438 | 52 | 111 | 10 | 69 | .253 | .377 | 3 |
| CF | Otis Nixon | 110 | 448 | 71 | 133 | 1 | 20 | .297 | .344 | 37 |
| RF | Matt Lawton | 152 | 557 | 91 | 155 | 21 | 77 | .278 | .478 | 16 |
| DH | Paul Molitor | 126 | 502 | 75 | 141 | 4 | 69 | .281 | .382 | 9 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brent Gates | 107 | 333 | 83 | .249 | 3 | 42 |
| Alex Ochoa | 94 | 249 | 64 | .257 | 2 | 25 |
| Orlando Merced | 63 | 204 | 59 | .289 | 5 | 33 |
| Denny Hocking | 110 | 198 | 40 | .202 | 3 | 15 |
| Javier Valentín | 55 | 162 | 32 | .198 | 3 | 18 |
| Chris Latham | 34 | 94 | 15 | .160 | 1 | 5 |
| Jon Shave | 19 | 40 | 10 | .250 | 1 | 5 |
| Corey Koskie | 11 | 29 | 4 | .138 | 1 | 2 |
| Doug Mientkiewicz | 8 | 25 | 5 | .200 | 0 | 2 |
| Scott Stahoviak | 9 | 19 | 2 | .105 | 1 | 1 |
| Torii Hunter | 6 | 17 | 4 | .235 | 0 | 2 |
| A. J. Pierzynski | 7 | 10 | 3 | .300 | 0 | 1 |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brad Radke | 32 | 213.2 | 12 | 14 | 4.30 | 146 |
| LaTroy Hawkins | 33 | 190.1 | 7 | 14 | 5.25 | 105 |
| Eric Milton | 32 | 172.1 | 8 | 14 | 5.64 | 107 |
| Bob Tewksbury | 26 | 148.1 | 7 | 13 | 4.79 | 60 |
| Mike Morgan | 18 | 98.0 | 4 | 2 | 3.49 | 50 |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Serafini | 28 | 75.0 | 7 | 4 | 6.48 | 46 |
| Frank Rodriguez | 20 | 70.0 | 4 | 6 | 6.56 | 62 |
| Benj Sampson | 5 | 17.1 | 1 | 0 | 1.56 | 50 |
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rick Aguilera | 68 | 4 | 9 | 38 | 4.24 | 57 |
| Eddie Guardado | 79 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4.52 | 53 |
| Mike Trombley | 77 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 3.63 | 89 |
| Héctor Carrasco | 63 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 4.38 | 46 |
| Greg Swindell | 52 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3.66 | 45 |
| Dan Naulty | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4.94 | 15 |
| Todd Ritchie | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.63 | 21 |
| Travis Miller | 14 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3.86 | 23 |
| Travis Baptist | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5.67 | 11 |