(hmmm… might have to turn this concept into an OOTP tournament…)
One last set of offseason posts before we hop into the 2025 Twins campaign, and one that, as I typed the subhead, I began to think might be a future OOTP tournament.
In recent seasons, the Twins have had a string of exceptionally tall players. One point constantly made when Bailey Ober reached the majors was his six-foot-eight frame, a point made only seasons after fans went giddy over 6’10” Aaron Slegers.
So let’s take a look at the six tallest players, all 6’8” or over, who have suited up in Minnesota. (Note that this is MLB only, so the late minor leaguer Loek Van Mil, at 7’1”, only gets an honorable mention.)
Bailey Ober, SP
(2021-present)
The most recent and longest-tenured tall guy in Minnesota, Ober has become a rotation mainstay since his 2021 debut. Across the past two seasons, Ober has started 57 games to the tune of a 3.73 ERA and 3.88 FIP, with 337 strikeouts versus 72 walks. He’s in line to be the Twins’ #3 starter again this season behind Pablo López and Joe Ryan.
Trevor Megill, RP
(2022)
Megill only pitched one season in Minnesota, appearing in relief in 39 games in 2022. Alas, those 39 games resulted in a 4.80 ERA (though a 3.29 FIP) with a 1.489 WHIP. Megill pitched the next two seasons for Milwaukee with much better results (3.11 ERA, 2.69 FIP, 1.160 WHIP) and is still under contract with the Brewers.
Aaron Slegers, SP/RP
(2017-18)
Despite the hype, Slegers only pitched in eight games across his two seasons as a Twin, starting five. He transitioned to the bullpen across the next three seasons with the Rays and Angels, but a rough 2021 in Los Angeles (6.97 ERA, 5.62 FIP, 1.871 WHIP in 29 games) was his last season in the majors.
Alex Meyer, SP/RP
(2015-16)
Acquired by the Twins from the Nationals for Denard Span, the 6’9” Meyer only pitched in four games for the Twins with one start before being traded to the Angels (along with Ricky Nolasco for Alan Busenitz and Hector Santiago). For his new team, he started 18 games over the following month and full season before exiting the league after injuries cut his LA tenure short.
Jon Rauch, RP
(2009-10)
One of the two tallest players in MLB history (6’11”, along with the Giants’ Sean Hjelle, with a jersey on display at the Hall of Fame), Rauch was acquired by the Twins in 2009 and served as the team’s closer for the first half of 2010, setting a career high with 21 saves, before being replaced in that role by (shakes fist at heavens) Matt Capps. Overall, Rauch pitched in 71 games for Minnesota with a 2.82 ERA (3.06 FIP), spending his final three MLB seasons with (respectively) the Blue Jays, Mets, and Marlins.
Mike Smithson, SP
(1984-7)
The first six-foot-eighter to suit up in a Twins uniform, Smithson started for the team for four seasons, leading the American League in starts in his first two years in Minnesota (36 and 37, respectively). However, his ‘86 and ‘87 seasons saw a downturn in play, his ERA, FIP, and WHIP all rising, and he was left off the World Series roster.
That’s it for the tall fellas. Come back soon for the short gents.