FORT MYERS, FLA. – The question asked by La Velle Neal, Minnesota's senior baseball beat writer, to a colleague who was in the crowd for the Twins' first game at Met Stadium (April 21, 1961) was this:
"Is Willians Astudillo the No. 1 all-time folk hero compared to limited résumé in franchise history?"
The answer is, "Yes." Based on former baseball boss Terry Ryan's 2-to-8 (best) scale for assessing talent, here were the other top candidates when making the Astudillo assessment.
2. Rick (Hollywood) Sofield, OF, 1979-81: Handsome, glib, flashy, he quickly earned "Hollywood" nickname. Fast start when still a rookie in 1980. Then, pitchers discovered he couldn't get to a good fastball in upper half of zone.
3. Charlie (Cornbread) Manuel, OF, 1969-72: Part of manager Billy Martin's three-player platoon with Bob Allison and Graig Nettles in left as rookie. We loved his West Virginia drawl, even though not quite sure what language he was speaking.
4. Junior Ortiz, C, 1990-91: Junior came here at 29. Tales of him as a character spread and fans embraced Junior as a worthy backup to Brian Harper.
5. Eddie Bane, P, 1973, 1975-76: Twins created Eddie's popularity by starting the little lefty right out of Arizona State and drawing a crowd of 45,890 on July 4, 1973. We always rooted for Eddie, even as his attempts at deception couldn't hide his lack of a fastball.
6. Lew Ford, OF, 2002-07: Before he became a presence in the lineup, fans already had adopted Ford for the opportunity to holler "Looooo" in unison and hear it reverberate around Dome. Still a player (and hitting coach) at 43 for Long Island Ducks in Atlantic League.
