Spring Throws a by Jason Schoonover ’09 design by Darin Jones ’97
Spring training canceled. Major League Baseball season suspended. But in the face of uncertainty and challenge, one alumnus is using his passion for data—and skills he honed at Bethel—to keep the Minnesota Twins ready for baseball’s return. On opening day this spring, baseball stadiums across America—including Target Field, home of the Minnesota Twins—sat empty. Players shared stories online with the hashtag #OpeningDayAtHome. Fans watched replays of their favorite games from the isolation of their homes, sheltering in place in response to the coronavirus pandemic. After an offseason of promise and hope for the Minnesota Twins, Major League Baseball canceled spring training in mid-March and postponed the start of the season in response to COVID-19. Baseball, like countless areas of everyday life, came to an unexpected and abrupt halt. But Twins President Dave St. Peter was already planning for the future. “Baseball will return,” he told reporters. “Our job is to be ready for that.” Jeremy Raadt ’04 is one of the leaders tasked with ensuring the Twins are ready when baseball returns. As director of baseball systems, he leads a team that creates software and programs to track statistics and data to improve the Twins. When priorities shifted from preparing for opening day to adjusting to remote work, he and 26
Summer 2020
