25 Minnesota Twins Drafts in 25 Days: 1990

The 1989 draft produced one of the biggest names of the Twins' last quarter-century, in Chuck Knoblauch.  How could the 1990 draft compete with that?  Well, maybe the Twins didn't want that!  Perhaps they didn't care about the 1990 draft after the success of the 1989 draft.  Yeah.  So, here's some stuff about this "nothing to prove" draft from 1990.

1st Round Picks

The Twins had two this year!  They had a second first rounder as compensation for losing Jeff Reardon in free agency.  Twice as nice!  Well.  The Twins drafted Todd Ritchie and Midre Cummings.  Yep.  Ah, but don't worry, the Twins had two second round picks in 1990 as well.  They also got a second-round pick for losing Reardon.  Wow, Jeff Reardon is the gift that keeps on giving.  The Twins used their seconds on Jayhawk Owens and Ron Caridad.  Let's just move on.

Ah, but what if? 

What if the Twins had drafted a post?  Could the post have fared better?  More seriously, Mike Mussina went 24th overall, some twelve picks past Ritchie.  The Twins wanted a right-handed starter, but they got the wrong one.  Luckily, no one has ever heard of Mike Mussina.  Wait.

Best Player Drafted

The Twins drafted "Everyday" Eddie Guardado in the 21st round.  Guardado was both effective and popular.  Those are not words one would use to describe Todd Ritchie, or Jayhawk Owens for that matter.  Guardado went on to have a very long and fun career. 

Worst Player to Reach MLB

The Twins drafted Brent Brede in the 5th round.  He posted a robust -1.7 WAR in about 170 games.  This draft is depressing.

The One Who Got Away

No one.  The Twins didn't even draft and not sign a good player this year.  No one.

Best Name

Chris Gump in the 47th round.  Little known fact - Forrest Gump's cousin. 

Fun Facts

•  It wasn't all bad.  The Twins did draft Rich Becker and Pat Meares in 1990.  We've heard of them.
• In fact, the Twins' first five picks had a lower combined career WAR than Becker.
• 3rd Round pick Jamie Ogden went to White Bear Lake High School.  This means that Ogden was a Bear and might explain his lack of big league success.  He was a bear.  Bears have massive paws and cannot hold balls and bats.
• Todd Ritchie somehow won 43 career games.
• The Twins also had a second third round pick, as compensation for losing Wally Backman.  Apparently in the 90s, teams were compensated for losing Wally Backmans.  Seriously.

All those drafted who made it to the Bigs

Eddie Guardado, Damian Miller, Rich Becker, Todd Ritchie, Pat Meares, Midre Cummings, Jayhawk Owens, Brian Raabe, James Mouton, Jeff Granger, and Brent Brede.

One Sentence Summary

The Twins won the World Series one  year later, and that was fun.