Recapping The Recaps: Looking Back At The Top-10 Moments & More

There were obviously some great moments prior to when I started the recaps, probably the most memorable for me was Joe Mauer’s first career walkoff homer to beat the Red Sox in early May.

JUNE

6 | Seattle 12, Twins 3: Santiago Still Struggling, Dozier Still Slugging

7 | Seattle 6, Twins 5: Kintzler Can’t Close it Out, Zunino Blasts Walk-Off HR

8 | Twins 2, Seattle 1: Pitching, Defense and a Castro Blast

9 | Twins 4, San Francisco 0: Superman Santana

10 | Twins 3, San Francisco 2: Dozier, Vargas Power Twins Behind Solid Start From Berrios

11 | Giants 13, Twins 8: Bullpen Vets Lead Twins To Loss

12 | Mariners 14, Twins 3: Mejia Crushed, Gimenez Pitches Again

13 | Twins 20, Mariners 7: Twins Set Franchise Record With 28 Hits

14 | Mariners 6, Twins 4: Buxton’s Big Night

15 | Twins 6, Mariners 2: Berrios Cruises, Gimenez Bruises

16 | Cleveland 8, Twins 1: AL Central Lead Dwindles

17 | Recap: Doubleheader Sweep Puts Cleveland Atop Division

18 | Cleveland 5, Twins 2: Encarnaci-Owned

19 | OFF

20 | Twins 9, White Sox 7: Vargas Hits One To Venus

21 | Twins 4, White Sox 2: The Machine Set To Attack Mode

22 | White Sox 9, Twins 0: Another Gimenez Game

23 | Twins 5, Cleveland 0: Mejia Battles Through, Hildenberger Debuts

24 | Twins 4, Cleveland 2: Skeleton Crew Beats Kluber, Allen

25 | Twins 4, Cleveland 0: What a Difference a Week Makes

26 | Red Sox 4, Twins 1: Sale Outduels Berrios

27 | Twins 2, Red Sox 9: Rain, Defense Put Damper On Soggy Night (by Seth Stohs)

28 | Twins 4, Red Sox 1: Mejia Shines, Kepler Powers Twins To Fenway Win (by Seth Stohs)

29 | Red Sox 6, Twins 3: Series of Unfortunate Events

30 | Royals 8, Twins 1: Another Fielding Blunder Leads to Another Ugly Inning

JULY

1 | Recap: Sano Homers Twice, Jorge Impresses as Twins Split

2 | Royals 6, Twins 2: Behind Santiago, Road Trip Ends in Disappointment

3 | Twins 9, Angels 5: Mejia, Mauer, Max Lead Twins to Victory

4 | Twins 5, Angels 4: Buxton Busts Out as Gibson Glides

5 | Angels 2, Twins 1: Angels Steal a Victory, Spoil Santana’s CG

6 | Twins 6, Orioles 4: Twins Use Big Inning To Top Orioles (by Seth Stohs)

7 | Twins 9, Orioles 6: Twins Rally Back From 6-Run Deficit

8 | Orioles 5, Twins 1: Sano Homers, Twins Leave 11 Men On Base

9 | Orioles 11, Twins 5: Granite’s Great Catch Highlights Final Game of First Half

10 | OFF

11 | OFF

12 | OFF

13 | OFF

14 | Astros 10, Twins 5: Berrios Bombs

15 | Twins 4, Astros 2: Reliable Rogers Escapes Bases-Loaded Jam

16 | Astros 5, Twins 3: Defensive Shortcomings Spoil Solid Start From Gibson

17 | Twins 4, Yankees 2: Pitching, Defense, Timely Hitting Lead to Victory

18 | Yankees 6, Twins 3: Bartolopalooza Ends in Defeat

19 | Twins 6, Yankees 1: Berrios, Sano Lift Twins to Series Victory

20 | OFF

21 | Tigers 6, Twins 3: Bad Santana

22 | Twins 6, Tigers 5: Twins Hold Off Tigers

23 | DET 9, MIN 6: Twins Drop to Third in Division, 2.5 Games Back

24 | LAD 6, MIN 4: Rogers Gives Up Bellinger Blast, Blows Lead

25 | Twins 2, Dodgers 6: Twins Fall Below .500 (by Seth Stohs)

26 | LAD 6, MIN 5: Uff Da

27 | OFF

28 | Twins 6, A's 3: Garcia Wins First (Last?) Twins Start (by Seth Stohs)

29 | OAK 5, MIN 4: Rogers Gives Up Walk-Off HR

30 | OAK 6, MIN 5: Deja Vu

31 | OFF

AUGUST

1 | SDP 3, MIN 0: Don’t Need a Closer if You Can’t Score

2 | MIN 5, SDP 2: Don’t Need a Closer When You’ve Got Erv

3 | TEX 4, MIN 1: Twins Muster Just 3 Hits in Loss

4 | MIN 8, TEX 4: Colon Pitches a Complete Game (Yes, Really)

5 | TEX 4, MIN 1: Twins Struggle to Score Without Sano, Mauer

6 | MIN 6, TEX 5: Belisle Earns First Post-Kintzler Save

7 | MIN 5, MIL 4: Rosario Scores Go-Ahead Run on Balk, Polanco Collects 4 Hits

8 | MIN 11, MIL 4: Twins Slug 5 Home Runs

9 | MIN 4, MIL 0: Big Sexy With 7 Scoreless Lifts Twins Back to .500

10 | MIN 7, MIL 2: 5 Alive!

11 | MIN 9, DET 4: WE COMIN’!!!

12 | DET 12, MIN 11: Twins Lose Crazy Game On Walk-Off HR

13 | MIN 6, DET 4: Twins Match 2016 Win Total With 46 Games Left to Play

14 | OFF

15 | CLE 8, MIN 1: Salazar Dominates, Cleveland Hits 5 HRs

16 | POSTPONED

17 | Recap: Slegers Shines in Debut, Twins Split Doubleheader

18 | MIN 10, ARI 3: Buxton Inside-the-Parker Highlights 6 HR Game for Twins

19 | MIN 5, ARI 0: Berri-0s

20 | MIN 12, ARI 5: Twins Sweep Arizona, Have Won 11 of Last 14

21 | Recap: Polanco Homers Twice as Twins Split Doubleheader

22 | MIN 4, CWS 1: Gibson Great, Twins Hit 3 More Homers

23 | CWS 4, MIN 3: Twins Bullpen Blows Lead

24 | CWS 5, MIN 1: Twins Drop Ugly Game, Series to White Sox

25 | MIN 6, TOR 1: Buxton, Bartolo Get Twins Back to Winning Ways

26 | TOR 10, MIN 9: Sloppy 8th Inning Costs Twins in Comeback Effort

27 | MIN 7, TOR 2: Buxton Hits 3 Homers, Twins Win Series at Toronto

28 | OFF

29 | MIN 6, CHW 4: Polanco Does it All

30 | MIN 11, CHW 1: Rosario Hits 2 HRs, Buxton Exits With Injury

31 | MIN 5, CHW 4: Twins Win on Walk-Off HBP

SEPTEMBER

1 | KC 7, MIN 6: Oh, So Close

2 | MIN 17, KC 0: What Negative Run Differential?

3 | KC 5, MIN 4: What Even Is A Swing, Anyway?

4 | TB 11, MIN 4: Bullpen Lets Game Get Out Of Hand

5 | TB 2, MIN 1: Too Little, Too Late

6 | MIN 10, TB 6: Twins Prevail Thanks to Big Error

7 | MIN 4, KC 2: Comeback Complete

8 | MIN 8, KC 5: Rosario Drives in 4, Hildenberger Holds it Together

9 | KC 5, MIN 2: Molitor Pushes All the Wrong Buttons in Loss

10 | KC 11, MIN 3: Big Dud from Big Sexy & Co.

11 | OFF

12 | MIN 16, SDP 0: Twins Hit 7 HRs, Set New Record

13 | MIN 3, SDP 1: Rosario Hits Walk-Off HR in 10th Inning

14 | MIN 3, TOR 2: Buxton Blasts Walk-Off HR

15 | TOR 4, MIN 3: Pressley Fails To Pounce, Is Victim Of A Bad Bounce

16 | TOR 7, MIN 2: Pub Crawlers Have Best Night Ever Despite Twins Loss

17 | MIN 13, TOR 7: Mauer Grand Slam Among 4 Twins Homers In Comeback Victory

18 | NYY 2, MIN 1: Garcia, Yankees Bullpen Dominate Twins

19 | NYY 5, MIN 2: Tough Night For Berrios, Twins

20 | NYY 11, MIN 3: Twins Crumble At Yankee Stadium (Again)

21 | MIN 12, DET 1: Once Again, The Twins Bounce Back

22 | MIN 7, DET 3: Gibson, Offense Keep Rolling

23 | MIN 10, DET 4: Twins Blow Out Tigers Bullpen

24 | MIN 10, DET 4: Deja Vu All Over Again

25 | OFF

26 | MIN 8, CLE 6: Twins Use Team Record 10 Pitchers In Victory

27 | CLE 4, MIN 2: Twins Lose, Clinch Postseason Berth Anyway

28 | CLE 5, MIN 2: Ervin Caps Banner Year With 5 Shutout Innings

29 | MIN 6, DET 3: Dozier, Escobar Lead Offense To Victory

30 | DET 3, MIN 2: Twins Lose In Romine Sideshow Game

OCTOBER

1 | MIN 5, DET 1: Behind Castro, Colon Twins Cap Off Regular Season With Victory

2 | OFF

3 | NYY 8, MIN 4: It’s Over

And that does it. You’ll have to let me know what your personal favorites were.

I jumped headfirst into these recaps, but from the get-go I was as skeptical as anyone about my ability to keep up. This was a challenge of mental endurance more than anything. I had the time, it was all about staying motivated. These recaps are really fun, but nobody wants to eat their favorite meal every night for dinner.

Seth Stohs chipped in on a handful of nights between June and July, but I did 101 of these things. This is significant for me because I started writing in 2004 and up until this point the only thing that was consistent about the effort in my writing was that it was inconsistent. I could never see anything through to the finish. This was tough to do night in and night out for this long and I’m damn proud to have made it to the finish line. It probably looks super tacky for me to be patting myself on the back like this, but I don’t even care.

I’d like to thank some people. First and foremost, I want to thank my wife and our one-year-old daughter. They’re the best. I want to thank Seth for the opportunity and all the founders/contributors/moderators/community members who built this place up so I could just waltz in five years later and write on the best Twins destination on the Internet. The real strength of these recaps is they’re sort of a collage, so I want to make sure to thank all the places that made these possible: FOX Sports North, Fangraphs, Baseball-Reference, Baseball Savant, Brooks Baseball, the Twins and all the beat writers.

I also want to thank everybody who read these things. You folks helped point out errors, suggested new ideas and added tons of interesting insights in the comments section. Honestly, I couldn’t have kept going without you. The bottom line was always to make these recaps valuable to the reader. I sincerely hope they contributed to your enjoyment of the 2017 season.