The Top 5 Moments in Tim Laudner's Career

Along with the three guests who will be interviewed during the party, there will be several others in attendance that you can meet and talk Twins with. All five of the Twins Daily owners will be there, along with frequent contributors Cody Christie, Jeremy Nygaard and AJ Pettersen. Some of the writers from Vikings Journal and Wild Xtra will also be there. There are still some tickets available for the Meltdown, so click here to secure yours today.

In anticipation of our time with Tim Laudner, here are five of the most memorable moments of his professional career. (Check out Nick’s look at Jacque Jones’ Top 5 Moments from yesterday)

5. Drafted by his hometown Minnesota Twins in 1979

Though he was born in Mason City, Iowa, Laudner went to high school at Park Center in Brooklyn Park, MN. Following a strong high school career, he was selected in the 33^rd round by the Cincinnati Reds. He didn’t sign, instead choosing to go to the University of Missouri. In 1979, he was the Twins' third-round pick. He signed and reported directly to Double-A Orlando.

That year, the Twins used the 11^th overall pick in the first round on a high school outfielder from Wisconsin named Kevin Brandt. Brandt played 45 games in Elizabethton in 1979. He played two games with the E-Twins in 1980, and that was it for his professional career.

With their 2^nd round pick, the Twins drafted Randy Bush out of the University of New Orleans. He debuted for the Twins in May of 1982 and remained with the organization until June of 1993.

Laudner was the first Park Center grad to be drafted in the major league draft. Thirteen years later, Pat Neshek was drafted by the Twins out of Butler University. There may only be two Park Center kids ever drafted, but both had long MLB careers and each included a trip to the All-Star game.

4. Monster 1981 Season

OK, it’s not really a moment, but it needs to be addressed. In 1981, Laudner spent the whole season in Orlando and had an incredible season. In 130 games, Laudner hit .284/.375/.628 (1.003) with 21 doubles and a tremendous 42 home runs.

It’s very possible that he would have been promoted to the Twins earlier, but baseball was in the midst of a strike through much of the season.

3. Big-Time, Big League Debut

After hitting those 42 home runs in Orlando, the Twins did promote Laudner to the big league club in late August. Manager Billy Gardner put him into the lineup on August 28, 1981. He was slotted into the eighth spot. He was also charged with catching right-handed veteran Fernando Arroyo against a strong Detroit Tigers lineup that included Alan Trammell, Lou Whitaker, Lance Parrish and Kirk Gibson. Arroyo threw 6.1 shutout innings, and veteran left-hander Jerry Koosman (another Minnesota native who was a key component of the Miracle Mets in 1969) finished out the shutout with 2.2 scoreless frames.

At the plate, Laudner took care of several “firsts” in his first game. His first at-bat came in the top of the third. He led off with a single to centerfield off Dave Rozema. Two innings later, he took his first walk. In the bottom of the 7^th inning, Laudner connected for the first home run of his career, a two-run blast off of Rozema. He made out in his final at-bat of the day, but ended the game by going 2-3 with a walk and a homer in his major league debut.

Fun Fact: The next day, Laudner hit his second big league home run (and 44^th homer of his 1981 season). It came against lefty Dan Schatzeder who was his teammate on the 1987 team.

2. 1988 All Star Game

The 1988 American League All-Star roster was very interesting, but particularly so to fans of the Minnesota Twins. A quick look at the starting lineup shows five Hall of Famers to go along with three guys associated with Tony LaRussa and the Oakland A’s. Paul Molitor, Dave Winfield and Terry Steinbach, all Minnesota natives, were in the starting lineup.

The Twins were very well represented at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. As a result of winning the 1987 World Series championship, Tom Kelly was the manager of the American League roster. He brought much of his coaching staff with him. Dick Such (pitching coach), Rich Stelmaszek (bullpen coach), Rick Renick (bench coach) and Wayne Terwilliger (first base coach) were on his staff. Frank Viola was named the starting pitcher for the game. Kelly also named Kirby Puckett, Gary Gaetti, Jeff Reardon and Tim Laudner.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLae8JoetqM

After famously hitting just .191 during the regular season during the championship 1987 season, Laudner had a much better season in 1988 and earned a spot on the team.

In the bottom of the 6^th inning, Laudner replaced pitcher Mark Gubicza in the lineup but Terry Steinbach at the catcher position. He came to bat with no one on and two outs in the top of the 7^th inning. Against Mark Davis of the Padres, a closer who went on to win the 1989 Cy Young Award in the NL, Laudner hit a double.

1. Game 2 of the 1987 World Series

The Twins won Games 1 and 2 of the 1987 World Series at the Metrodome. The Twins won Game 1 by a score of 10-1. They used a six-run fourth inning to take a 7-0 lead and won the game 8-4. Laudner played a big part in that game.

In that big fourth inning, Laudner stepped to the plate with the Twins leading 3-0 and runners on second and third. He singled to left field scoring Gary Gaetti from third base. Randy Bush was at second and was waved around third. There was a close play at the plate, but Twins fans old enough to remember 1987 will remember Randy Bush’s remarkable slide.

In the sixth inning, Laudner hit a solo home run to give the Twins an 8-1 lead.

Following the game, Laudner was interviewed on the field by Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson who was working for ABC Sports at that time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEDM8KSPafc

Laudner certainly had more great moments in baseball. He hit 77 home runs. Three times, he hit two home runs in a game. He hit a home run off of Roger Clemens, who should be a Hall of Famer. He hit homers against Hall of Famers Rollie Fingers and, another ’87 World Series teammate, Bert Blyleven.

If you would like to hear more about these moments from Laudner’s career and other stories from the Fox Sports North analyst, join us at Mason’s on Saturday night from 5-8. Get your tickets here.