Wed 22 May 2013
Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN – Following today’s 8-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves, the Minnesota Twins announced that they have optioned right-handed pitcher Vance Worley to Triple-A Rochester. The Twins will make a corresponding roster move at a later date.
Worley made 10 starts for the Twins this season after being acquired from Philadelphia on December 6, 2012.
Mon 20 May 2013
Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN - The Minnesota Twins announced today that they have recalled left-handed pitcher Caleb Thielbar from Triple-A Rochester. The Randolph, Minn. native made 17 relief appearances for the Red Wings posting a 3.76 ERA (26.1 IP, 11 ER) with 34 strikeouts while allowing just eight walks. Thielbar, 26, was signed by the Twins as a minor league free agent on August 18, 2011.
To make room for Thielbar on the 25-man roster, the Twins optioned left-handed pitcher Pedro Hernandez to Triple-A Rochester. Hernandez made eight appearances (six starts) for the Twins this season.
Thielbar will join the team tonight in Atlanta and wear uniform number 56.
Mon 20 May 2013
The Minnesota men’s basketball program announced today that Malik Smith has signed a tender to play for the Gophers. Smith will be eligible immediately pending an NCAA waiver based on a possible APR induced post-season ban at Florida International University, his previous school.Smith joins previously signed guards Deandre Mathieu and Daquan McNeil as part of head coach Richard Pitino’s inaugural recruiting class at Minnesota.
“I was a pleasure to coach Malik last season at FIU and I am excited that he has decided to join the Golden Gopher program,” said head coach Richard Pitino. “His knowledge of our program on and off the court will be invaluable as we start to integrate our system here at Minnesota.”
Smith comes to the University of Minnesota after playing his junior season for Coach Pitino at FIU. He started 31 of 32 games for the Golden Panthers and was named Third Team All-Sun Belt Conference after averaging 14.1 points and 2.7 rebounds per game. His 451 points scored last season are the eighth-most in the history of Florida International basketball.
Smith set an FIU record for three-point field goals made in a single season with 96 treys and ranked number one in the conference and 16th nationally with an average of 3.0 three-pointers made per game. He set the Sun Belt Conference Tournament record with 15 total three-pointers made, including an 8-for-10 game in the opening round against Arkansas-Little Rock.
Prior to his junior season at FIU, Smith played his sophomore season at Jacksonville College and his freshman season at South Plains College. He averaged 15.0 points, 4.0 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game at Jacksonville, earning all-region and all-conference honors. Smith played 27 games as a freshman and averaged 5.0 points per game.
Smith, a native of Boston, Mass., led the State of Massachusetts in scoring as a senior while at Madison Park High School in Boston with an average of 26.6 points per game. He went on to play one season at Notre Dame Prep, where he averaged 16.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game.
Wed 15 May 2013
“Joe Coleman has made the decision to leave the Golden Gopher basketball program. We wish him the very best in the future,” said Pitino. “We appreciate the contributions he has given the program the last two years.”
Coleman played in 72 career games in Maroon and Gold, including all 34 games last season. He contributed career-highs in multiple categories as a sophomore, including points (8.7 ppg), rebounds (3.6 rpg), assists (1.5 apg), steals (1.1 spg) and minutes played (26.3 mpg). He will leave the program with career averages of 7.2 points and 3.3 rebounds.
Tue 14 May 2013
SAINT PAUL/MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The National Hockey League (NHL) today announced that Minnesota Wild goaltender Josh Harding has been named a finalist for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. The trophy is presented annually to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey. Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins) and Adam McQuaid (Boston Bruins) were also named finalists.
Harding, 28 (6/18/84), went 1-1-0 with a 3.24 goals-against average (GAA), a .863 save percentage (SV%) and one shutout in five regular season games with Minnesota this year and 1-4 with a 2.94 GAA and a .911 SV% in five playoff starts for the Wild. He stopped all 24 shots faced in his first start this season in a 1-0 victory against the Dallas Stars on Jan. 20. Harding was placed on Injured Reserved Feb. 12 and missed 33 games with the Wild as he battles multiple sclerosis, which was diagnosed last fall. He was assigned to the Houston Aeros (AHL) on a conditioning assignment April 16 and went 1-1-0, stopping 56-of-61 shots for a 3.00 GAA and .918 SV% in two starts and helped Houston clinch a spot in the Calder Cup playoffs before being recalled by Minnesota on April 22.
Harding went 13-12-4 with a 2.62 GAA, a .917 SV% and two shutouts in 34 appearances (30 starts) in 2011-12 after missing the 2010-11 season with a knee injury suffered Sept. 24, 2010, at St. Louis. The 6-foot-1, 199-pound native of Regina, Sask., has appeared in 122 games (98 starts) with Minnesota in parts of seven NHL seasons, going 42-52-8 with a 2.66 GAA, a .915 SV% and seven shutouts. He was selected by the Wild in the second-round (No. 38 overall) of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft.
Members of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association (PHWA) submitted ballots for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy at the conclusion of the regular season, with the top three vote-getters designated as finalists. The Twin Cities chapter of the PHWA nominated Harding this year. Last year’s winner was Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty. The NHL Writers’ Association first presented the trophy in 1968 to commemorate the late Bill Masterton, who played for the Minnesota North Stars and exhibited to a high degree the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey. Masterton died on Jan. 15, 1968 as a result of head injuries suffered during a game.
The winner will be announced during the 2013 Stanley Cup Final, with more detail on format to be released at a later date. This marks the first time a member of the Wild has been named a finalist for this award. Wild defenseman Ryan Suter was named a finalist for the James Norris Memorial Trophy on May 7.
