George Frazier's last season as a big-league pitcher was in 1987, as an oft-used reliever for the Twins' World Series champions. He died on Sunday at age 68.
From the late George Frazier to Byron Buxton, Louie Varland and Edouard Julien, Reusse writes Twins
Twins topics covered by Patrick Reusse: Frazier's ignominious World Series record, whining about Buxton in center field, Julien's need for defensive improvement and the poor decision to send Varland to St. Paul.
June 21, 2023 at 1:04PM
He was a character and carved out a long career as an analyst on Colorado Rockies' telecasts. And everyone who knew George realized he loved his cigarettes.
George's most-famous moments in the big leagues might have been in 1981, when he was a solid pitcher in the Yankees' bullpen. He wound up taking three losses as a reliever in New York's six-game loss to the Dodgers in the World Series.
That was more fate than incompetence, but poor George. Dozens of us covering that World Series for newspapers used a variety of the same line:
"George Frazier became the only pitcher to lose three games in a World Series that wasn't trying to …'
That reference being to Lefty Williams, a Chicago White Sox pitcher who was part of the Black Sox Scandal and lost three games in 1919 World Series — a best-of-nine — won five games to three by the Cincinnati Reds.
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Finally we have the answer.
I've only seen a copy of Rocco Baldelli's long explanation of the Byron Buxton predicament before Tuesday night's game at Target Field, but the Twins manager made it completely clear that the constant bleating from team followers and a share of the local media about the need for Buxton to return to center field should come to an end.
The fact that it should doesn't mean it will, since beating dead horses is a long tradition among us sports reporters and also fans — so, just know you're wasting your breath and typed comments on an issue Buxton's vulnerable skeleton and joints already have decided.
Buxton's chronic right knee problem — and other issues with that leg — means that when able to play (which has been a good share of the time in 2023), he will be the Twins' designated hitter.
And with 5 ½ more years remaining on a $100 million contract, and with zero possibility of moving him in a trade even if he would be willing to accept (the contract has a full no-trade clause), he will be filling that valuable spot in the lineup for the foreseeable future.
Good. We have that straight now, so you can stop whining.
You're not going to, of course, but you can.
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The unfortunate news on Buxton's no-center field future also creates this problem: It blocks two younger hitters, Edouard Julien and Jose Miranda, both 24, from getting significant duty at their best location in the batting order: DH.
Julien has outstanding potential to be a full-time leadoff hitter — he can hit and he can walk — but for now he's a serious liability in the field at second base. And Miranda, an asset at the plate for the Twins in 2022, seems to be getting his hitting act back together lately in St. Paul.
Miranda played much first base for the Twins last season, and he was given a run as a regular third baseman to start this season. My opinion has been that his fielding limitations at third eventually had a negative impact on him at the plate.
A mind is a terrible thing to have cluttered when you're trying to handle the talent and the variety of pitchers that big-league hitters face in the 2020s.
Julien will keep playing second as long as Jorge Polanco is out the lineup — and it sounds like that will be for quite some time. Too bad for Jorge, because the switch-hitter was a warrior about staying in the lineup until the knee injury became intolerable in 2022, and now it's a bad hamstring that he severely reinjured trying to be safe at first base earlier this month.
The solution offered here a while back for Julien was to do what another Canadian infielder with fielding flaws did to turn it around completely:
Corey Koskie spent a winter here taking an enormous number of ground balls from Ron Gardenhire (then a Twins coach) indoors at the University of Minnesota and Corey became an exceptional third baseman.
Gardy's busy being a grandpa now and might not be available, but his son Toby is managing the St. Paul Saints and has a full commitment to assisting those trying to succeed with the big-league Twins.
Take a few thousand grounders this winter, Edouard. It would help.
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Louie Varland was sent back to St. Paul after three shaky starts. Kenta Maeda is going to try it again as the Twins' fifth starter this weekend. Maeda was throwing balloons in his four starts in April, so the optimism for him is restrained, to say the most.
Either way on Maeda, the decision on Varland is asinine, in my opinion. Why waste innings in St. Paul that could be used with the Twins? This is a highly-competitive athlete — a wrestling star at North St. Paul — and he could be serving as a Twins' long reliever in their thin bullpen until the inevitable return to the rotation (somebody will miss a few starts).
"We have to keep him stretched out'' is such a nonsensical theory of today's thinking.
Baseball had long relievers/spot starters for decades — check out Jim Perry's pre-Cy Young career with the Twins — and Varland's a guy who would give a team 80-plus pitches any time it asked.
Twins shortstop Carlos Correa is arguably their best player and easily their most expensive one. He’s frequently injured and a payroll-strapped team is up for sale. It feels like the Twins can’t afford to keep Correa, but the same is true of losing him.
