T w i n s 5 CONTENTS CHAPTERS Ball up North 6 Into the Dome 15 The Twin Titles 22 Contenders Again 33 Fantastic Finishes 41 AROUND THE HORN Millers and Saints 12 Dome-Field Advantage 20 The Wonders of a Game 7 24 Triple the Fun Twice 31 Contraction Distraction 38 The Piranhas 43 ALL-TIME TWINS P Bert Blyleven 8 C Joe Mauer 13 1B Kent Hrbek 14 2B Rod Carew 18 3B Harmon Killebrew 23 SS Zoilo Versalles 28 LF Bob Allison 30 CF Kirby Puckett 35 RF Tony Oliva 39 M Tom Kelly 40 Index 48
6 T w i n s BALL UP NORTH he Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St Paul would be one city but for the mighty Mississippi River that divides them That dividing line does however mark a difference in style as well as city limits Minneapolis is modern and ever-changing while St Paul is older and more mature Even the local architecture helps define the cities contrasting personalities as Minneapolis’s buildings tend to be sleek and sided by an abundance of glass while St Paul’s are often block-shaped and stony One thing the Twin Cities have always had in common though is a passion for baseball Local teams named the Minneapolis Millers and St Paul Saints emerged way back in the 1870s In 1961 Major League Baseball finally made its way to Minnesota when a team founded in 1901 in Washington D C and known as the Senators was relocated to the Twin Cities and renamed the Minnesota Twins The Senators-turned-Twins came to the Midwest with a story that revolved largely around one of the greatest pitchers in baseball history Walter Johnson a sidearming right-hander led the American League T
With its framed view of the Minneapolis skyline Target Field earned accolades as one of baseball’s most beautiful parks when it opened in 2010
