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The Twins Almanac

A blog by Matt Johnson in Twins Daily

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About this blog

The history of the Minnesota Twins, one day at a time. Also sharing the stories of the major leaguers who grew up in Minnesota.

Entries in this blog

The Eddie Rosario Almanac

Now that the Eddie Rosario Experience is almost certainly over, let's take a look back at some of his contributions to Twins history. This is just what appears in my Twins Almanac spreadsheet. Please contribute your own Eddie trivia, fun facts, or cool stories in the comments section. And if you're into this kind of stuff, follow me on Twitter at @TwinsAlmanac.   May 6, 2015 Major League Debut   Leading off the bottom of the third against Oakland's Scott Kazmir, the 23-year-old Puerto Rico na

The Twin Almanac for Dec 29–Jan 4

December 29 Happy Birthday, Jim Brower   Happy 47th birthday to 1991 Minnetonka graduate and Golden Gophers all-time great Jim Brower (1994 Dave Winfield Pitcher of the Year Award winner).   He spent parts of nine seasons in the majors with Cleveland, the Reds, Expos, Giants, Atlanta, the Orioles, Padres, and Yankees.   He led the majors with 89 appearances with the Giants in 2004. (Bonus Fact: 2008 Chaska graduate Brad Hand led the majors with 82 appearances with San Diego in 2016).   Decemb

Happy Birthday, Jim Perry

It’s the birthday of Twins all-time great Jim Perry, born in Williamston, North Carolina in 1935.   Perry came up with the Cleveland ballclub in 1959 at the age of 23, finishing runner-up to Washington’s Bob Allison in American League Rookie of the Year balloting. His sophomore season he tied with Baltimore’s Chuck Estrada for the AL lead with 18 wins. He made his first All-Star team in 1961.   The Twins acquired Perry from Cleveland on May 2, 1963 for Jack Kralick, who had pitched the first no-

The Twins Almanac for May 23-26

May 23, 1991 Kirby Puckett Has Second 6-Hit Game   Kirby Puckett collected six hits for the second time in his career, going 6-for-7 with five singles and a triple, scoring two runs in an eleven-inning loss to Texas at the Metrodome. His sixth hit, a single, came in the eleventh inning. The game was tied 5-5 entering the eleventh, but the Rangers were able to score five off of Steve Bedrosian. Kent Hrbek drove in Shane Mack in the bottom of the inning, but the Rangers hung on to win 10-6. Ther

The Twins Almanac for May 23

May 22 Happy 77th Birthday, Mick Tingelhoff   It's the birthday of longtime Vikings center (1962-'78) and 2015 Hall of Fame inductee Mick Tingelhoff, born in Lexington, Nebraska in 1940.     May 22 Happy 74th Birthday, Tommy John   It's the birthday of 26-year major league pitcher and 1994 Minnesota Twins broadcaster Tommy John, born in Terre Haute, Indiana in 1943. Consider this: with 21 major league seasons under his belt, LaTroy Hawkins is only the fourth-longest-tenured pitche

The Twins Almanac: Weekend Edition

May 20, 1970 Carew Hits for First Cycle in Twins History   Rod Carew hit for the first cycle in Twins history in a 10-5 win in Kansas City. He completed the cycle with an eighth-inning triple, driving in Cesar Tovar. Carew was 4-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored on the day. After Carew’s triple, St. Cloud Cathedral High School graduate and future-Twin Tom Burgmeier came in to finish the game for KC.   Ten Twins have hit for the cycle: Carew (1970), Cesar Tovar (‘72), Larry Hisle (‘76), Ly

The Twins Almanac for May 18-19

May 18, 1969 Rod Carew Steals Second, Third, and Home   With the Billy Martin-managed Twins trailing 2-0 in Detroit, Cesar Tovar led off the bottom of third with a single off of Mickey Lolich. Then, with Rod Carew at the plate, Tovar was balked to second and stole third. Perhaps distracted by Tovar, Lolich walked Carew. Then, with Harmon Killebrew at the plate, the Twins executed a double steal, with Carew swiping second as Tovar stole home. With Killebrew still at bat, Carew stole third and h

The Twins Almanac for May 17

May 17, 1963 Allison Has Twins' First 3-HR Game   Bob Allison became the first Minnesota Twin to hit three home runs in a game in an 11-4 Twins win in Cleveland. He was 3-for-5 on the day with six RBI. His batting average at the end of the day was .330. He would finish his All-Star ‘63 season with a .271 AVG, 35 HRs, and 91 RBI.   Harmon Killebrew and Zoilo Versalles also hit home runs in the game. Pitcher Jim Perry, who had played for Cleveland the previous season, was 2-for-3 with a walk and

The Twins Almanac for May 16

May 16 Happy 62nd Birthday, Jack Morris   It’s the birthday of 1973 Highland Park High School graduate Jack Morris, born in St. Paul in 1951. Morris was selected in the Fifth Round of the '76 Draft out of Brigham Young. The Tigers had drafted Alan Trammell in the 2nd Round, and Lou Whitaker in the 5th Round a year earlier. All three would make their major league debuts in 1977, with Trammell and Whitaker debuting in the same game. Morris was the Tigers’ Opening Day starter in 1980, beginning a

The Twins Almanac for May 15

May 15 Happy 36th Birthday, Justin Morneau!   It’s the birthday of 2006 American League Most Valuable Player Justin Morneau, born in New Westminster, British Columbia in 1981. The Twins drafted the 6’4” Canadian in the 3rd round in 1999, behind B.J. Garbe and Rob Bowen, neither of whom made it to the majors. Morneau hit cleanup in his MLB debut on June 10, 2003, hitting a two-strike line drive single to center in his first at-bat, and going 2-for-4 on the day. He hit 19 home runs in just 74 ma

The Twins Almanac: Weekend Edition

May 13, 1989 Kirby Puckett Hits Four Doubles   Kirby Puckett hit a team record four doubles as the Twins beat the Blue Jays 10-8 at the Metrodome. Kirby, who was 4-for-5 with three RBI and a run scored, hit two doubles each off of 7x All-Star Dave Stieb and '87 AL saves leader Tom Henke.     May 13, 2009 Crede Hits Walk-Off Grand Slam   Down 7-9 to Detroit in the eighth with Mike Redmond on first, Jason Kubel, pinch-hitting for Carlos Gomez, hit a game-tying home run. The teams we

The Twins Almanac for May 9-12

May 9, 1877 Lew Drill Born in Browerville, MN   It’s the birthdate of former major leaguer Lew Drill, born in Browerville, Minnesota in 1877. Drill graduated from Hamline in 1897, and received a law degree from Georgetown, from where the catcher was signed by the Washington Senators in 1902. Drill played 293 major league games over four seasons for the Senators, Orioles, and Tigers. He would later serve as United States district attorney for Minnesota in the late 1920s and early ‘30s. Lew Dril

The Twins Almanac for May 8

May 8, 1967 Rookie Carew Has Twins' First 5-Hit Game   Rookie Rod Carew became the first Twin to collect five hits in a single game in a 7-4 Twins loss to the Senators at home in Bloomington. Rodney was 5-for-5 on the day with a double, an RBI, and run scored. The Twins had 11 hits in total, but no other Twin had more than one.   Kirby Puckett set a new Twins record by going 6-for-6 with two home runs and two doubles in a 10-6 Twins win in Milwaukee on August 30th, 1987. Puckett had gone 4-

The Twins Almanac for May 7

May 7, 1965 Twins Commit Seven Errors   The Twins committed seven errors in a 13-5 loss to the White Sox on their home turf in Bloomington. Shortstop Zoilo Versalles and third baseman Rich Rollins each committed two errors, while Harmon Killebrew, Earl Battey and St. Paul native Jerry Kindall added one each. Every infielder plus the catcher committed an error. Despite the seven errors, Twins pitching still gave up 10 earned runs. Nimrod, MN native Dick Stigman started the game for the Twins

The Twins Almanac for April 30-May 6

April 30, 1961 Killebrew’s First HR as a Twin   Trailing the White Sox 5-2 in the bottom of the 11th in Bloomington, Harmon Killebrew hit his first home run in a Twins uniform. The White Sox held on to win 5-3 with Bob Shaw pitching all 11 innings.   All told Harmon Killebrew would hit 573 home runs, fifth-most in baseball history at the time he retired, and still 11th all-time as of 2016. He hit 84 home runs as a member of the Washington Senators, 475 in a Twins uniform, and 14 as a Kansas Ci

The Twins Almanac for April 23-29

April 23, 1961 Pitcher Kralick Delivers Twins' Only RBI   In the final game of the Twins' first ever home series, Jack Kralick pitched a complete game, four-hit shutout in a 1-0 Twins win versus the expansion Senators. Kralick's bat provided the Twins' only run, driving in Billy Gardner with a fifth-inning single. With the win the Twins improved to 7-2 on the season.   April 23, 1980 Landreaux Begins Record Hit Streak   Ken Landreaux began a 31-game hitting streak by breaking up Angel pitch

The Twins Almanac for April 16-22

April 16, 1961 First Grand Slam in Twins History   Bob Allison hit the first grand slam in Twins history in the top of the first in the first game of a doubleheader in Baltimore. The Orioles’ Chuck Estrada, who had tied for the league lead with 18 wins the previous season and would win 15 in 1961, walked three straight to start the game, filling the bases for the cleanup hitter Allison. After giving up a double to Jim Lemon, Estrada was pulled having given up four runs without recording an out

The Twins Almanac for April 9-15

April 9, 2000 Twins & Royals Go Back-to-Back-to-Back   Already up 6-0 entering the top of the sixth in Kansas City, Corey Koskie leads the inning off with a base hit. Ron Coomer, Jacque Jones and Matt LeCroy then proceed to hit three consecutive home runs on four total pitches. Coomer homers again in the seventh, again with Koskie on base.   Eric Milton retires the first 20 batters in order and has a 2-hit shutout going into the 8th. After retiring the first two batters, including former T

The Twins Almanac for April 2-8

April 2, 1962 Twins Trade Ramos For Stigman   It what is commonly considered the first major trade in Twins history, Minnesota trades Pedro Ramos for Nimrod native, 1954 Sebeka High School graduate, and 1960 All-Star Dick Stigman.   Pedro Ramos started the first regular season game in Twins history, pitching a complete game three-hit shutout vs. Whitey Ford at Yankee Stadium on April 11, 1961.   He was involved in an interesting piece of Twins history on May 12, 1961 as he and Angels pitcher E

Twins Almanac for March 26-April 1

March 26, 1989 Twins Trade Atherton for Castillo   The Twins trade pitcher Keith Atherton to the Cleveland ballclub for outfielder Carmelo Castillo.   Atherton’s name is attached to one of the more dubious records in team history as one of the record five Twins pitchers to work the eighth inning in a 14-8 loss to Toronto at the Metrodome.   Atherton made 59 relief appearances for the 1987 World Series Champion Twins. He faced two batters in Game 4 of the ‘87 ALCS, and made two appearances in t

The Twins Almanac for March 19-25

March 19   Nothing happened today, except for the births of Paul Powell in San Angelo, Texas in 1948, and Tim Corcoran in Glendale, California in 1953. The two hit a combined .171 in 42 total games as Twins.   Powell went 5-for-31 as a Twins rookie in 1971. Corcoran, who played parts of nine season in the majors, went 9-for-51 for the Twins in 1981.     March 20 Happy 27th Birthday to Brad Hand   It’s the birthday of 2008 Chaska High School graduate and current Padres pitcher Brad Hand.

The Twins Almanac for March 12-18

March 12, 2006 Kirby Puckett Memorial Service   15,000 fans, family, and friends including Cal Ripken Jr., Dave Winfield, Kent Hrbek, Harmon Killebrew, Dan Gladden, Al Newman, Gardy, TK and more pay tribute to Kirby Puckett in a moving memorial service at the Metrodome. Mudcat Grant sang “What a Wonderful World.”     March 12, 2014 Sano Goes Under the Knife   Mets team physician Dr. David Altchek performs Tommy John surgery on 20-year-old Twins prospect Miguel Sano at the Hospital for S

The Twins Almanac for March 5-11

March 5 Happy 60th Birthday to Jerry Ujdur   It's the birthday 1975 Hermantown High School graduate Jerry Ujdur. Jerry made the Hermantown varsity team as an 8th grader. In ‘75 he met Dick Siebert halfway in Hinckley to audition for the legendary Gophers coach. He would win 27 games as a Gopher, second only to his teammate, Minnetonka High School grad Steve Comer's 30 wins. Ujdur appeared in 49 games, starting 37 for Detroit from 1980 to '83, winning 10 games for the Tigers in ‘82. He would pi

The Twins Almanac for Feb 26-Mar 4

February 26, 1933 Johnny Blanchard Born in Minneapolis   It’s the birthdate of probably the most famous backup catcher in baseball history, Johnny Blanchard, born 85 years ago in the Mini Apple. Blanchard attended Minneapolis’s De LaSalle and Central High Schools, playing football, basketball, and baseball. He played one game for the New York Yankees late in the 1955 season, and would not play in the majors again until 1958, making a career of backing up Yogi Berra and Elston Howard. He would

The Twins Almanac for February 19-25

Here is the Twins Almanac for the week of February 19-25. Four Minnesotan major leaguers were born in this week in history: "Home Run" Joe Marshall, Charley Walters, Dave Maurer and Dana Kiecker. Dick Siebert, one of the most important figures in the history of baseball in our great state, was born in Fall River, Massachusetts this week in 1912. And the Twins traded for two members of their first World Series Championship team this week in 1985 and '87.   February 19, 1876 “Home Run” Joe Mars

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