1984 Minnesota Twins season
| 1984 Minnesota Twins | |
|---|---|
| 81-81, second in the AL Western Division | |
| Major League affiliations | |
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| Location | |
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| Other information | |
| Owner(s) | Calvin Griffith (majority owner, with Thelma Griffith Haynes) |
| General manager(s) | Calvin Griffith |
| Manager(s) | Billy Gardner |
| Local television |
KMSP-TV (Bob Kurtz, Ted Robinson) Spectrum (Harmon Killebrew, Dick Bremer) |
| Local radio |
830 WCCO AM (Herb Carneal, Joe Angel) |
| < Previous season Next season > | |
The 1984 Minnesota Twins season was a season in American baseball. The team finished with a record of 81-81, second in the American League West.
1,598,692 fans attended Twins games, a Twins attendance record, but still the fifth-lowest total in the American League. Towards the end of the season, Calvin Griffith sold the club to local investor Carl Pohlad.
Offseason
- October 1983: Jeff Little was released by the Twins.[1]
- December 7, 1983: Gary Ward and Sam Sorce (minors) were traded by the Twins to the Texas Rangers for John Butcher and Mike Smithson.[2]
- January 17, 1984: Mark Grace was drafted by the Twins in the 15th round of the 1984 Major League Baseball draft, but did not sign.[3]
Regular season
- May 4 - Oakland's Dave Kingman popped up in the fourth inning. The ball found a drainage hole in the Metrodome's roof and never returned to the playing surface. Kingman was awarded a ground-rule double. In the ninth, he hit another ball out—but this one was just into the seats.
- May 8 – Kirby Puckett got four hits in his major league debut, at Anaheim Stadium.
- June 29 – Andre David made his major league debut and started in right field for the Twins. In his first at bat in the second inning, he homered off Detroit Tigers pitcher Jack Morris to become the fourth Twin to homer in his first-ever at bat. David joined Rick Renick (1968), Dave McKay (1975) and Gary Gaetti (1981); three of the four were against Detroit pitching. In 2015, Eddie Rosario joins the list when he homers on the very first pitch he sees in the majors.
- Only one Twins player made the All-Star Game, catcher Dave Engle.
- September 28 – The Twins suffered their biggest blown lead for a loss in team history. Leading Cleveland 10-0 in the third inning, and 10-2 in the sixth, they lost the 9-inning game 11-10. In the ninth, relievers Ron Davis and Ed Hodge loaded the bases. Hodge allowed a walk-off single.
Offense
Kent Hrbek hit .311 with 27 HR and 107 RBI. Tom Brunansky hit 32 HR and 85 RBI. Leadoff batter Kirby Puckett hit .296 and scored 63 runs. Gary Gaetti hit 5 HR and 65 RBI.
Pitching
Starter Frank Viola was 18-12. Reliever Ron Davis had 29 saves. He also blew 14 saves, to tie a major league record set in 1976 and tied two other times. Mike Smithson allowed 35 homers, the most in the majors.
Defense
Gary Gaetti led the major league playing in 162 games. His 334 assists led all of baseball this season. Outfield teammates Kirby Puckett (center) and Tom Brunansky (right) also led the major leagues in assists.
Season standings
| AL West | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Royals | 84 | 78 | 0.519 | — | 44–37 | 40–41 |
| California Angels | 81 | 81 | 0.500 | 3 | 37–44 | 44–37 |
| Minnesota Twins | 81 | 81 | 0.500 | 3 | 47–34 | 34–47 |
| Oakland Athletics | 77 | 85 | 0.475 | 7 | 44–37 | 33–48 |
| Chicago White Sox | 74 | 88 | 0.457 | 10 | 43–38 | 31–50 |
| Seattle Mariners | 74 | 88 | 0.457 | 10 | 42–39 | 32–49 |
| Texas Rangers | 69 | 92 | 0.429 | 14½ | 34–46 | 35–46 |
Record vs. opponents
1984 American League Records Sources: | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | BAL | BOS | CAL | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIL | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TEX | TOR |
| Baltimore | — | 6–7 | 8–4 | 7–5 | 7–6 | 7–6 | 5–7 | 7–6 | 5–7 | 5–8 | 6–6 | 9–3 | 9–3 | 4–9 |
| Boston | 7–6 | — | 9–3 | 7–5 | 10–3 | 7–6 | 3–9 | 9–4 | 6–6 | 7–6 | 7–5 | 4–8 | 5–7 | 5–8 |
| California | 4–8 | 3–9 | — | 8–5 | 8–4 | 4–8 | 6–7 | 8–4 | 4–9 | 8–4 | 7–6 | 9–4 | 5–8 | 7–5 |
| Chicago | 5–7 | 5–7 | 5–8 | — | 8–4 | 4–8 | 5–8 | 7–5 | 8–5 | 7–5 | 6–7 | 5–8 | 5–8 | 4–8 |
| Cleveland | 6–7 | 3–10 | 4–8 | 4–8 | — | 4–9 | 6–6 | 9–4 | 7–5 | 2–11 | 7–5 | 8–4 | 9–3 | 6–7–1 |
| Detroit | 6–7 | 6–7 | 8–4 | 8–4 | 9–4 | — | 7–5 | 11–2 | 9–3 | 7–6 | 9–3 | 6–6 | 10–2 | 8–5 |
| Kansas City | 7–5 | 9–3 | 7–6 | 8–5 | 6–6 | 5–7 | — | 6–6 | 6–7 | 5–7 | 5–8 | 9–4 | 6–7 | 5–7 |
| Milwaukee | 6–7 | 4–9 | 4–8 | 5–7 | 4–9 | 2–11 | 6–6 | — | 5–7 | 6–7 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 10–3 |
| Minnesota | 7–5 | 6–6 | 9–4 | 5–8 | 5–7 | 3–9 | 7–6 | 7–5 | — | 8–4 | 8–5 | 7–6 | 8–5 | 1–11 |
| New York | 8–5 | 6–7 | 4–8 | 5–7 | 11–2 | 6–7 | 7–5 | 7–6 | 4–8 | — | 8–4 | 7–5 | 6–6 | 8–5 |
| Oakland | 6–6 | 5–7 | 6–7 | 7–6 | 5–7 | 3–9 | 8–5 | 8–4 | 5–8 | 4–8 | — | 8–5 | 8–5 | 4–8 |
| Seattle | 3–9 | 8–4 | 4–9 | 8–5 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 4–9 | 6–6 | 6–7 | 5–7 | 5–8 | — | 10–3 | 5–7 |
| Texas | 3–9 | 7–5 | 8–5 | 8–5 | 3–9 | 2–10 | 7–6 | 6–5 | 5–8 | 6–6 | 5–8 | 3–10 | — | 6–6 |
| Toronto | 9–4 | 8–5 | 5–7 | 8–4 | 7–6–1 | 5–8 | 7–5 | 3–10 | 11–1 | 5–8 | 8–4 | 7–5 | 6–6 | — |
Notable transactions
- June 4, 1984: Jay Bell was drafted by the Twins in the 1st round (8th pick) of the 1984 Major League Baseball draft. Jay Bell signed on June 11, 1984.[4]
Roster
| 1984 Minnesota Twins | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
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Catchers
Infielders
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Outfielders
Other batters
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Manager
Coaches
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Player stats
| = Indicates team leader |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Engle, DaveDave Engle | 109 | 391 | 104 | .266 | 4 | 38 |
| 1B | Hrbek, KentKent Hrbek | 149 | 559 | 174 | .311 | 27 | 107 |
| 3B | Gaetti, GaryGary Gaetti | 162 | 588 | 154 | .262 | 5 | 65 |
| SS | Jiménez, HoustonHouston Jiménez | 108 | 298 | 60 | .201 | 0 | 19 |
| CF | Puckett, KirbyKirby Puckett | 128 | 557 | 165 | .296 | 0 | 31 |
| RF | Brunansky, TomTom Brunansky | 155 | 567 | 144 | .254 | 32 | 85 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Faedo, LennyLenny Faedo | 16 | 52 | 13 | .250 | 1 | 6 |
| Hart, MikeMike Hart | 13 | 29 | 5 | .172 | 0 | 5 |
Pitching
Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Viola, FrankFrank Viola | 35 | 257.2 | 18 | 12 | 3.21 | 149 |
| Smithson, MikeMike Smithson | 36 | 252 | 15 | 13 | 3.68 | 144 |
| Butcher, JohnJohn Butcher | 34 | 225 | 13 | 11 | 3.44 | 83 |
Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Williams, AlbertAlbert Williams | 17 | 68.2 | 3 | 5 | 5.77 | 22 |
Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Davis, RonRon Davis | 64 | 7 | 11 | 29 | 4.55 | 74 |
| Lysander, RickRick Lysander | 36 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3.49 | 22 |
| O'Connor, JackJack O'Connor | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.93 | 0 |
Awards and honors
- Dave Engle, reserve
Farm system
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Elizabethton
Notes
- ↑ Jeff Little at Baseball Reference
- ↑ John Butcher at Baseball Reference
- ↑ Mark Grace at Baseball Reference
- ↑ Jay Bell at Baseball Reference
References
- Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (1997). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (2nd ed.). Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America. ISBN 978-0-9637189-8-3.