European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 20, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 26 the stars and stripes tuesday october 20.19b7 old pro Blyleven wins with Grace by Jim Don achy Minneapolis a in an Era of the met radome. Homer hankies and an Csc Iling new Genera Tion of Minnesota players Bert Blyn Cven Isalin tothe twins Pas. Blyn Cven pitched a six Hitler Over seven innings As the twins heat is. Louis 8-4 in game 2 of he world Serin to Lake a 2-0 Lead to Butch stadium in the Best of so Van series. Blyn Cven was a member of Minnesota s 1970 Ameri can league West Champion and won a game for Pitts Burgh in he 1979 world series when the pirates beat Baltimore in seven games. Now the Winner of 244 games with 3,286 career strikeouts the 36-year-old Blyleven said there was a time when he did t know if he could pitch in the big leagues. Really did t think i was Good enough until 1 signed a major league contract and found out thai major league players Are basically the same As anybody else he said i was always pulling them on such a High Pedestal. 1 thought when they threw a baseball it was 10-15 Mph faster than i could throw them. When i was 18 and Goilo my first Spring training i found that Jim Perry and Jim Kant had the same that i had an the same goals. And i thought maybe if i worked hard enough maybe i could be like them one sunday night Blyleven did Kant and Perry one Sci tar. It was great to win a world series game in a twins uniform Blyleven said after throwing 91 pitches 64 of them strike and striking out eight cardinals. While Blyleven has lost a Little off his fas Ball his location is belter he did a Good Job twins manager Tom Kelly said. He kept his Chan cup Down. Bert was fighting a twins from Page 21 line. Puckett ended he surge by ground ing Oul 10 third. One night earlier the twins had scored seven runs in the fourth inning four on Clad Dan s grand slam. St. Louis scored in the fifth capitalizing on an infrequent twins lapse. Terry pc Teton singled and Ford hit what should have been a double play Ball to second where Steve Lombardozzi bobbled it and settled for an Oul at first. Pena bounced out Lothard scoring Pendl Clon from third. After Caiman looked Al a third strike to end the inning St. Louis manager Hilcy he nog complained to place Umpire Lee Weycer about Blyleven s stretch move. Three More night games if needed Are scheduled in St. Louis tuesday wednes Day and thursday nights. If the series returns to the Micro dome he is nth game will be played saturday afternoon. Frat we car 1 Cairl. Homer put twins ahead Tim a Aidner. Homer put it away Griffith revels in reversals of image and the fortunes of his former team by Mike Nadel Minneapolis a forty year Sago even four years ago who would have Iho Ughi that Calvin Griffith would be one of baseball s leading Goodwill ambassadors not me said Griffith who is having the Lime of his life watching the Minnesota twins in the world series. People always thought of me As a la will ambassador. Sometimes 1 even believed Griffith owned the original washing ton senators and in 1961, moved the franchise id Minnesota. Many years later speaking before a group of rotarians Griffith joked thai he had moved the earn because there were fewer Blacks in Minnesota than in Washington . A comment thai continues to haunt him. A Goodwill ambassador As twins owner Griffith feuded with his players publicly. He fired managers. He had an adversarial relationship wit the Media. A Goodwill ambassador and worst of All. When the free Agency Era began and the twins started losing their Best players to other teams and when Griffith talked about Selling the team to people who wanted to move it to Lorida he became a villain to the fans. A Goodwill ambassador thai s u Hai i am now Griffith said. I Don t own the team anymore. Let theother Guys have All the pressures and the on sept. 7, 1984. In a ceremony at Home plate in the Micro dome Griffith signed the papers that turned the learn Over to Minneapolis banker Carl Pohlad. The night that we signed the papers i was so filled with a motion Ana indecision. Did i a the right thing said Griffith who was the last of a Breed a baseball owner whose Only source of in come was his Leam. But i saw the handwriting on the Wall. I could t compete anymore. 1 could t pay the salaries. When i had to borrow to pay salaries i knew it was Lime to get and in Only three years. Griffith has gone from being Minnesota s growling grizzly to the hug Gable Teddy Bear of the twin cities. Griffith. 75, has no official title wit the twins. But he maintains an office in the metro s executive Section an has the use of one of the prime executive suites during games. His half Brothers Billy and Jimmy Robertson who once had leading executive roles with the club also can come and go As they please As condition of Griffith s Sale agreement with Pohlad. I get Here when i want in the mom ing usually and i read my mail and make some phone Calls said Grill ill who has a Small bed in his office in Cashee needs to Lake a Nap. Ill hang around then go o games at night. They Don t ask me Cor my opinion much. " twins executive vice president Andy Macphail asked me about a player once but 1 think he had his mind makeup already. I Don t miss it. Though. This is the Good in 1965, Griffith s twins went to the world series losing in seven games tothe los Angeles dodgers. The excitement was overwhelming because it was something this area never expected he said. We had Only been Here five years. We had the Opportunity to Host he All Star game thai year too and with the world series it was some thing special for baseball in Minnesota he said today s baseball fan is More High Lech More prone to respond to gimmicks the Homer Hanky for exam plead is less of a hard Core fan. Thai s natural though because base Ball is More High Lech Griffith said. I Hope the computers work Oul for them he said. But a computer can lie to you. A computer can t measure Matu Rithor used More old fashioned methods when he rebuilt the twins Dur ing the Early 1980s. His lop prospects Gary Gaetti. Kent Hrbek Tom Brunansky Frank Viola and Kirby Puckett form the nucleus of Minnesota s current world series Leam. I m Happy to see the boys com through Griffith said. It s a great feel ing for me especially after All the criticism i took for pulling All the Young players on the fiend perhaps is year be fore they were ready and kiting them play. I was the one who said we had logo with youth and 1 Vas criticized for it. But these talented players. And now they be gelled and they re Ameri can league champions. It s one of the most satisfying things i be been a pan of in All my years in cold and that s Why i took him Oul after seven innings. Sometimes when he gets his change up High they la hotline Blyleven says the metronome gives the twins i hedge. When you put screaming people in Here it s he said. The Best thing to do is just Noti hink Blyn Cven likes to do his thinking off the Field. My wife Pally and four children Are healthy. And sometimes when everything is going Good you can look Back and say if we can maybe help somebody in a Hospital somewhere smile we can do that. We re winners now and everybody relates to a win Ner. And when you re on top if you can go out and show people we Are like them. We can help to make their in game 2 of the world series Blyleven did a lol to make the Day for Minnesota fans. Cards trying to regroup for comeback Minneapolis a the St. Louis cardinals Are reduced to looking to their own past failure in search of Hope for this world series. In the 85 world series we won the first two games from Kansas City an wound up getting beat Pitcher Danny Cox said. Whal does that Tell you whal that tells you is that the Cardi nals lost again sunday night this time 8 4, and Trail the Minnesota twins 2-0 As the series moves 10 St. Louis for game 3tuesday night. Cox was the loser lasting just / innings. You kind of look at it and say hey they re getting the big knocks when they re counting " con said. You got to give credit to them. We just have to Goback Home and get ourselves the cardinals had not Given up eight or More runs in consecutive defeats since losing to the giants 10-7 and 10-6 may4-5. We be been Down before. We be had our backs against the Wall said cur Ford who had to of the cardinals nine hits in game 2. In s been happening All year like this. These Guys have been through in. They know whal icy have to do to Bounce one thing thai would help is to eliminate the fourth inning when the twins have scored 1j of their 18 runs. Someone said you take away the two fourth innings the last two nights and you Gol two different games Cox said. Thai s just the Way it goes. I think in three games we won in the playoffs we scored All our runs in the sixth inning. It s just something that he said it happened to him because of two pitches. Kent hrs Csc singled for the twins second hit in the fourth an Randy Bush doubled on an 0-2 count. Hrbcek s Ball could have been a Dou ble play if it had been a couple of inches closer 10 second base Cox said. I made a bad pitch to Bush. I wish i had to but i did. It Cost me. In s some thing 1 won t forget fora for All their troubles Here the Cardi nals now have to Hope for a return trip to the metro . I think we be started to play a Little bit better in this Ballpark said second baseman Tommy heir. We be got o beat them at Home in order to prove it. If we can come Back up3-2 in games we feel we can win first though they will have to win at Home. Right now just need to get some thing started. There can be no laying Back Center fielder Willie Mcgee Saidt it s time for us to go out and Start play ing our game. We played Ihei is twins the last two nights. Now it s Lime to
