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Monday, February 18
 
Players seriously hurt after SUV rolls over

Associated Press

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Two players in the Minnesota Twins' minor-league system on their way to spring training were seriously injured in a one-car rollover crash early Monday in Tennessee, team officials said.

Josh Johnson, a catcher with the Twins' rookie level team in the Gulf Coast League last season, and Jeff Randazzo, a left-handed pitcher for the Class A Quad City River Bandits last year, were being treated in the intensive care unit of Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Monday afternoon, hospital officials said. The accident occurred around 2 a.m. just north of Chattanooga.

The accident, in which the car rolled over, occurred around 2 a.m.

Randazzo suffered several injuries, including a fractured sternum and a collapsed lung, which was repaired through surgery. Johnson was driving, no alcohol was involved and both players were wearing seat belts, said Lanning Tucker, a trainer for the Gulf Coast League Twins, who was relaying information provided to him by the hospital.

The extent of Johnson's injuries wasn't known, but Tucker said they were less serious than Randazzo's.

Johnson, 19, was a 25th-round draft choice of the Twins last summer out of Ridgway High School in Pennsylvania. He hit .141 in 24 games last season for the Fort Myers-based Gulf Coast League team under manager Al Newman, who is now Minnesota's third base coach.

Randazzo, 20, a native of Broomall, Pa., was selected in the fourth round by the Twins in 1999. He went 9-3 with a 4.62 ERA for the River Bandits in 18 starts last season.

The Twins' major league pitchers and catchers had their first official workout Monday. Minor leaguers aren't scheduled to report until March 8, but there are many early arrivals annually.

Three days ago, San Diego Padres outfielder Mike Darr and another passenger were killed in a one-car accident in Arizona near the team's spring-training camp.

Jayson Stark, a senior writer for ESPN.com, contributed to this report.






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