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Ringolsby: When playoffs begin, they can get wild

Published November 17, 2006 at midnight

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NAPLES, Fla. - The Minnesota Twins have won four division titles in the past five years. They haven't made it to the World Series, however, since 1991. They haven't even gotten out of the first round of the playoffs, other than 2002.

A wild-card team, however, has advanced to the World Series each of the past five seasons, and three times a wild card has won the championship - Boston in 2004, Florida in 2003 and Anaheim in 2002, when the Angels knocked off National League wild card San Francisco in seven games. Detroit (2006) and Houston (2005) were World Series losers.

Twins general manager Terry Ryan, however, isn't complaining.

The media have made an issue out of the need to create a more challenging postseason test for wild cards, contending division champions should have a definite October edge, but the topic was only an afterthought for the game's general managers during their annual November confab this week.

"Once you get in, I don't think it matters how you got there," Ryan said. "You shouldn't treat the wild- card team any different. Most times, the wild card has a better record than some of the other teams."

This year was one of those times. Detroit, which lost to St. Louis in the World Series, was the AL wild card, winning 95 regular-season games, one fewer than AL Central champion Minnesota. Of the seven other postseason teams, only the Twins, Yankees and Mets, with 97 wins apiece, won more games than the Tigers.

"That's part of why we added the wild card, so a deserving team didn't get left out," Ryan said.

The final push for the wild card did, after all, come after the 1993 season, when the San Francisco Giants won 103 games but finished second in the NL West, one game behind Atlanta.

"Usually, the team that gets hottest wins," Ryan said. "Look at this year."

St. Louis won 83 regular-season games, second fewest for a postseason participant, but wound up the champion.

There have been 24 wild-card teams in the 12 years the wild card has been a part of the postseason. Eight have advanced to the World Series and four have won the championship. Florida became the first wild card to claim a championship when it beat Cleveland in 1997.

Only twice has a wild card failed to advance past the first round. In the inaugural wild-card season, the Yankees were knocked off in five games by Seattle and the Rockies lost to Atlanta in four games in an NL Division Series. In 1998, the Cubs were swept by Atlanta and Boston lost in four games to Cleveland.

The only other times a wild card was swept was the Dodgers in three games by Atlanta in 1996 and by the Mets this season.

Overheard

• Outfielder J.D. Drew, who opted out of the remaining three years and $33 million on his Dodgers contract, is expected to sign a two-year, $30 million deal with Boston.

• San Diego is making a serious run at free-agent outfielder Barry Bonds, but club officials are convinced Bonds eventually will return to San Francisco, comparing it with right-hander Trevor Hoffman last year when Hoffman flirted with the Indians before re-signing with the Padres.

• San Francisco is believed to have made three-year, $30 million offers to center fielders Juan Pierre and Gary Matthews Jr. with the idea that whoever says yes first gets the deal.

It's a fact

Masanori Murakami became the first Japanese-born and raised player to appear in the majors when he was called up by the Giants at age 20 in September 1964.

He also pitched for the Giants in 1965, then returned to Japan as part of a settlement over a disagreement between the Giants and the Nankai Hawks about which team held his rights.

He was 5-1 with nine saves and a 3.43 ERA in 54 games. There was not another Japanese major leaguer until Hideo Nomo broke in with the Dodgers in 1995.

Got a question? E-mail it to

ringolsbyt@RockyMountainNews. com.

Two cents' worth

One year ago, the Twins had the best offer for free agent Frank Thomas. Thomas, however, wanted nothing to do with the Twins, saying he was concerned about the artificial surface at the Metrodome causing problems with his feet. So he signed with Oakland, revived his career, and now appears headed to Toronto. Hasn't anybody told Thomas the Rogers Centre has the same type of ersatz grass as the Metrodome?

MILE-HIGH WATCH

• Shortstop Troy Tulowitzki was voted the No. 1 prospect of the Arizona Fall League in Baseball America's survey of managers and scouts.

"(Tulowitzki) showed why he should be the Rockies' everyday shortstop next season," the publication said. "After spending the bulk of the regular season as Tulsa's leadoff man where he worked to tone down his aggressiveness, Tulowitzki does a better job of working deeper counts and picking out pitches he can drive.

"He sprays line drives to all fields with above-average bat speed and enough raw power to hit 25-30 homers annually in Colorado. A premiere defender at short, Tulowitzki has the range, hands and 'plus' arm strength to lock up the position long term in 2007."

First baseman Joe Koshansky was ranked No. 13.

• Rockies bench coach Jamie Quirk, who was a finalist for the Oakland managerial job, turned down an offer to become the Athletics' bench coach, opting to stay in Colorado for now.

He also is high on the list of new San Diego manager Bud Black to be the Padres bench coach. Quirk and Black are close friends, dating to their playing days in Kansas City.

Former Denver Zephyrs manager Tony Muser, bench coach in San Diego the past four years, was the only member of former manager Bruce Bochy's staff who wasn't retained by the Padres, giving Black one coach to hire.

• Right-handed pitcher Scott Elarton isn't expected to be ready to pitch for Kansas City until June. Signed to a two-year contract a year ago, the Lamar native underwent season-ending shoulder surgery in August to repair a torn right labrum.

• Former Rockies third-base coach Sandy Alomar Jr., bench coach for the Mets the past two seasons, could move back to third base at Shea Stadium. Mets third-base coach Manny Acta was hired as manager in Washington.