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Neither of the 1969 or 1970 teams?

This could just as well be called the best teams in Twins history. 1967 and 1969 weren't on this list and (IMHO) should have been. 1987 is probably not even in the top 10. I'll go like this: 5. Tie: 1991 and 2019 (Big-time cop-out on my part not to choose one.) 4. 1967 3. 1969 2. 2006 1. 1965

10 cent beer night was always an interesting Wikipedia read, along with disco demolition night and in general Ty Cobb's page. Plenty of crazy stuff. Because he grew up in Germany, although not Bavaria the team could maybe jokingly throw out a Max Kepler Lederhosen night. Maybe a commercial for it with Max showing up at the ballpark wearing Lederhosen like that's his everyday dress. I guess I kind of miss those old Twins commercials that had a little goofiness to them.

I created a custom Minnesota Twins hat with instant Joe Mauer sideburns fattache don the sides for Halloween one day, and sent a picture to the Minnesota Twins and pitched it as a possible SGA. That was a few years ago, nothing yet.

Whether signing baseball cards, inking checks, or simply checking in to a stadium, baseball players are constantly writing their name. Anyone even remotely connected to Twins Territory knows how important Harmon Killebrew thought legibility was, but who are some of the best to follow suit?I don’t think it’s burying the lede here to note that Harmon Killebrew’s signature is going to be number one on this list. He’s got some of the greatest penmanship we’ve seen in any era, and it was a craft he took great pride in. You’ll often hear stories from more recent players where they’ll quip about the times Harmon noted they needed to clean up their signature. Given the recent explosion of the trading card collecting hobby it seemed only fitting to explore the guys that have followed his advice best. Surprisingly, there’s more than a few modern candidates on this list. Without further ado, let’s get into it: 5. Paul Molitor After playing 15 years in Milwaukee for the Brewers, Molitor ended his Hall of Fame career with the hometown team. The St. Paul native was well past his prime when he joined the Twins, but Molitor still put up an .858 OPS at age-39. There was no shortage of autograph requests given the local fanfare, and those continued when he became manager, and eventually Manager of the Year, following his playing days. Download attachment: Molitor.jpg The signature is a compressed one, and the letters are all tight together, but getting every character is something rarely seen today. 4. Bert Blyleven This is a weird case in which the signature is awesome, but it’s one that typically comes with caveats. Blyleven is also a Hall of Famer and played 11 of his 22 big league seasons in Minnesota. He is still connected to the team as a broadcaster, and while his capacity is slowly being phased out, it will never not be true that he was among the best to put on the uniform. Download attachment: Bert.jpg Much like Harmon’s style, Blyleven makes sure to get out his full name fully and visibly when signing. For collectors he’ll generally ink his name in undesirable places or attempt to devalue whatever he is signing for the fear of secondary market flipping. At any rate, the signature itself is a gorgeous one. 3. Torii Hunter As the first modern day inclusion on this list Torii Hunter represents a guy bound by principles. He has often talked about things gleaned from his time listening to Harmon, and he too represents that type of retired veteran constantly passing information down. Hunter played the role of mentor and leader on multiple teams, and it’s not hard to see why doing things the right way would be of importance to him. Download attachment: thumb.jpg Hunter’s autograph is loopier and more cartoonish than the previous two entries, but it’s plenty obvious who the inscription belongs to when reading it. Often accompanied by his number, Torii takes any piece of memorabilia up a notch by putting his name on it. 2. Michael Cuddyer One of my favorite autographs in all of baseball, Cuddyer combines principles from the three players before him. He was a Twins for 11 of his 15 Major League seasons and there was never a time in which he wasn’t fighting to cement his place as a regular. Often seen as the utility player that could contribute everywhere, Cuddyer went about all of his processes the right way. Download attachment: cuddyer.jpg Without sounding too sappy Cuddyer’s signature has an elegance to it. As a fan of photography, often taking pictures at away ballparks, maybe there was even an artistic tie to the swoops of his pen. Each time his name came out though, it looked as good as the last. 1. Harmon Killebrew As I said when starting this off, it’s pretty impossible to look at any group of people under this subject and not determine Harmon as the gold standard. Playing 21 of his 22 illustrious seasons with the Minnesota franchise (after relocating from Washington seven seasons in) the Killer racked up accolades like no one’s business. An inner circle Hall of Famer doesn’t need to bother themselves with signature requests, but Killebrew took it upon himself to treat each as if it were his last. Download attachment: harmon-killebrew-single-signed-baseball-2288.jpg There will never be a time that the importance Killebrew placed on a well-respected signature isn’t a story that’s shared fondly among Twins fans. Although it doesn’t resonate with every future player, it’s great to see the trickle-down effect and know that his presence remains even though he has left us. Who's missing that you would add to this list? MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email Click here to view the article

According to historian Jim Leeke, author of “From the Dugouts to the Trenches: Baseball During the Great War,” approximately 38 percent of active Major League players went on to serve, and eight current or former players were either killed in action or died of illness during the war. - library of Congress blog Teams played short handed, players paid a price for their heroism. The great Christy Mathewson did not get to action on the front - the war ended - but he was exposed to mustard gas in training and it was the cause of his early death. In WWII the leagues were short of players and scrambled for players to fill the rosters regardless of talent. 500 served, two died, and the record book was changed in many ways https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/26/sports/baseball/remembering-the-major-leaguers-who-died-in-world-war-ii.html Yogi Berra was at Omaha Beach, Wilhelm and Spahn at the Battle of the Bulge, and Bob Feller lost four prime years. Put those years on their resume and they become even more immortal in the baseball world. In Korea Whitey Ford, Willie Mays, and Don Newcombe served and Ted Williams flew 39 combat missions - how many hits and home runs is that worth? Players served in Vietnam War and have been part of every conflict. We do not have a baseball game to attend this year, but lets remember these men along with out relatives and neighbors on memorial day.

5. 2006 4. 1969 3. 1967 2. 2019 1. 1965 The Twins won the pennant in 1965, and took the National League's best team to a seventh games in the series. This was in an era when the National League was clearly the superior league. Watch the 1965 All-Star Game and compare those line-ups. Hard keeping 1970, 2010 and 2009 off the board

Nicely done - the late 1960's were the best from many standpoints - pitching and hitting, but of course you did not have playoffs.

Like your selections, 1965 Twins could`ve & should`ve won (my favorite Twin Tony Oliva & 2nd favorite pitcher Camilo Pasqual)! If FO hadn`t let Ortiz go for nothing & some bad trades the 2006 Twins could`ve gone all the way ( favorite all time pitcher Yohan & Hunter was great)!

the last expansion draft this was the rule for prospects All Players in an organization are eligible to be drafted, except those with no prior major league experience who have less than three years service if signed at age 19 or older or have less than four years of service if signed at age 18 or younger. \After this off season Kiriloff, Lewis, Larnach and Balazovic would all have to be protected or risk losing. Duran could also be lost If it is like the last draft the team protects 3 players after the first and second rounds. Upside may be a better thing to protect than average players. There is no need to initially protect Maeda initially under those rules. It might be doubtful if you would need to protect Pineda as they would only be getting one year of service or hoping like crazy he could be trade bait.

A number of years ago Reusse somewhat seriously proposed "Baseball Only Night". The only things allowed on the scoreboard would be balls, strikes, outs and the line score. I suppose you could display who is batting, who is pitching, and minimal statistics such as pitch count or the BA of the batter but no photos or videos. The only advertising would be the permanent billboards. The only audio would be organ music, announcements of lineups at the beginning of the game, who is batting, and lineup changes. And I think fireworks after a home run would be acceptable. The breaks between half-innings would NOT be exempt from these constraints. As for me, even though this will never happen I would certainly want to attend on such a night.

Hyperbolic is in the eyes of the beholder. The I'm Smarter Than the FO Clique is as delusional as ever.

2015 called, they want their "X Weird Tricks" trope back.

I'd be down for another disco demolition night. Maybe pair it with a 10 cent beer night and let things get really fun

I've got a bunch here from the mid 70s: https://photos.smugmug.com/1970s/1974/i-68wqHK8/1/ff71cc0d/O/1974%20Twins%20Autographs.jpg Check out Jerry Terrell for neatness. Backstory: Was with my family in Baltimore 1974 (I was 12) and the Twins were staying in our hotel. Got all of these there. Of everybody I approached, Larry Hisle was the only dick who refused to sign.

Pretty sure each on the list had that conversation with Harmon. I have heard a few stories from people who have had personal interactions with Harmon, and he was an amazing man that understood the importance of the fans. He would stand outside and sign for every fan that waited for him. When he was asked, why he would be willing to do that, he response was if they are willing to wait it is the least I can do. Without the fans I would be farming. That is also why he wanted to make sure they could read it, because for him it was just a few seconds of his life, but for the fan it could mean a lifetime of memories to say that is his signature, and everyone could look at it and know. Personally, I wish more players would think about Harmon and his wisdom. Too many players feel entitled to play a game for insane amounts of money that fans pay hard earned money to watch. If fans did not pay, players would have to find another job. Players like Blake Snell get to me because they act like this is their birth right to play for millions and fans should be grateful they are willing to entertain us. When really, the players should be grateful we are willing to pay them.

It was tough to lose to CLE & split against KC but we should make up some ground the next few days. It was tough to lose Rosario but Cave & Rooker are filling in very nicely, hopefully they continue & Snell & Wood would turn around

I mean, investment "experts" thought the market was over valued historically BEFORE 20 million people lost their jobs.....so I am unsure what to think at this point.

If anyone is still listening..... I had purchased the SOM Hall of Fame board game when I visited Cooperstown in 2015 with my daughter. I made up a few teams and played a few basic games, but then put it away. Since my Sunday afternoons this spring are not spent drinking beer in the back yard while cooking something on the grill listening to Cory and Danny (or toddling down to Target Field to drink beer and eat a hot dog while watching Our Favorite Team in person), I went ahead and purchased the SOM 2019 card set. I have been having a lot of fun playing....all by myself. Please understand, I am not a baseball geek, just a fan. The lineups I have put together for a few games have been, well, interesting. To someone who knows the game better than me there is probably another word for what I've constructed - laughable. Anyway. I'm looking for someone or some people to play the SOM board game virtually or socially distanced. (I have the digital version of SOM. Don't really care for it.) What I am really looking for is someone who knows the game well who would play and, rather than make it a big competition, make it a session about strategy. I want to understand the game, meaning baseball, more deeply.