Report Card for Beermen

by Fergus McGee
Minneapolis Star Tribune
October 29, 2026

Well, it wasn’t a good year for the Minneapolis Beermen and their fans.  After twenty odd years out of the playoffs, the fans have enjoyed being back in the playoff picture in 2024 and 2025.  They expected to be there in 2026.  But sub-par play in April, May, and July doomed them to second place in the division with too few wins to challenge for a wild card berth.  Let’s grade the players on their performances in 2026:

First Base:
Chris Downing: B+. Ironman played every game, splitting time between first and the DH slot.  Hit a very respectable .296 with 20 home runs and 88 knocked in, but he lacks defensive skills
Henry Bailey: B+.  Hit .296 after his call-up after mid-season and was in the lineup at first everyday down the stretch when the team played better.

Second Base:
Tyler Funk: C. He played about as expected with a .238 average.  He’s solid defensively and stole 29 bases.
Felipe Perez: F. Failed to hit and ended up back in AAA.  He hasn’t met limited potential.

Shortstop:
Ed Gutierrez: B+. Team leader and two-time Aaron award winner had respectable but not spectacular year.  More will be expected now that he signed a five year contract for mega bucks.
Sam Miller: C+. Retread hit .240 and provided solid defensive infield backup. Did well considering low expectations.

Third Base:
Jose Flores: D-. Once considered a budding superstar, he hit only .206 with 10 home runs and lost his starting job down the stretch.  His career seems in jeopardy unless he turns it around next year.
Steve Connell: B. Despite fine minor league stats, no one expected much after he made his debut mid-year, but he won the starting job in August and hit .281.  Still must prove he is a long-range solution.

Outfield:
Sang Higgins: A. After a miserable debut in Minneapolis in 2025, he turned it around with a .300 year that included 110 RBIs.  Alas, he is headed for free agency to seek $26+ million a year.
Earl Wynkoop: B+. 22 homers and 66 stolen bases highlighted his .277 season which saw him play 160 games.  Led off most of the year but would be better in the middle of the order if a lead-off hitter can be found.
Gerry Hoffman: B-. Improved over the prior year and contributed 30 home runs, but more is expected of him, especially next year with Higgins gone.
Brent Bullock: D. Part timer hit only .221 in his rookie campaign and needs to step it up dramatically to win a starting job.
Mark Morrison: D+.  Fell off significantly after a fine rookie campaign.  He must rebound from the sophomore jinx to stay on the team.

Catcher:
Roberto Cruz: C. After a blazing start, he leveled off and ended up hitting .238 in his first year in Minneapolis and lost the stating job in August.  Might be relegated to backup role or dealt.
Dan Robinson: B+.  Rookie started slowly but improved on a daily basis and was the started by year end.  Much is expected next year.

Rotation:
Rick Morales: A+. Won 20 games for the first time, sported a nifty 2.71 ERA, and struck out over 250 batters.  He is clearly the ace of the staff at age 27.
Jose Egozcue: A. 17-13, 3.66.  Six complete games and two shutouts.  He’s very reliable.
Tony De la Cruz: B. 11-10 mark belies his effectiveness.  3.05 ERA.  Has the potential at age 22 to become a star.
Julio Contreras: B-.  Usually dependable starter but his ERA shot up to 4.77 by year end.  He is showing signs of slipping although he’s only 28.
Paul Gilmore: B-. Rookie looked good at times but was not consistent.  He needs to become more dependable to assure a starting role.
Shayne Canfield: D. He missed the last third of the season to injury.  He definitely lost effectiveness after winning 34 games in the prior two years and has been released.

Bullpen:
Adamar Lagario: A. Closer got the job done with another 30+ saves and a fine ERA.  A rock in the pen with 115 saves in three years, already number three on all-time Beerman list and he’s only 23 years old.
Daniel Robertson: C. Dependable starter over the past three seasons, moved to the pen when he started to loss effectiveness.  Performed OK but wasn’t happy.  Outrageous salary demands insure hi ticket to free agency.
Alonso Ramirez: B. He usually gets the job done in middle relief.  At age 26, he should be around for a long time.
Alberto Gonzalez: B. He had a very consistent year in mainly used as the set-up man for Lagario but he wants to be the closer and that won’t happen.
Jim Girouard: C-. He didn’t live up to his prior two years’ potential and saw limited action, but he doesn’t complain.
Antonio Alvarado: B+. 36-year-old just keeps rolling along.  Very effective the past two seasons with WHIP less than 1.00.
James Stanley: C. Improving 24-year-old looked OK in September cup of coffee in the bigs.  Probably will be a Beerman next year.
Randall Dow: C-. Drafted ahead of Stanley, his star has faded a bit and he pitched only 14 innings, but it’s too soon to give up on him.

Financials:
A.  Team has totally turned around the financial outlook in the past four years and outlook is rosy:

o  Regular season attendance progression (in millions): 2.3, 3.0, 3.2, 3.4
o  Player salary budget progression (in millions): $69.7, $66.4, $71.8, $78.4 ($84.6 next year)
o  Cash on hand progression (in millions): $1.6, $20.2, $29.7, $37.3 ($37.4 next year)