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Minnesota Twins
Baseball History |
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| The Twins were
Anticipated and Welcomed in Minnesota when they arrived in 1961, and
they advanced to the World Series in 1965, Propelled by the exciting
play of superstar first baseman Harmon Killebrew. They were defeated
in the World Series by the Los Angeles Dodgers, but the championship
drive cemented the team's relationship with the people of Minnesota.
The team continued to put up winning records through 1971, but then
entered a decade-long slump. Through 1981, the team played its games
at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, a suburb south of the Twin
Cities. The Mall of America now occupies the spot where the "old
Met" stood. The 1982 season brought the team indoors, in the
Metrodome, which is in downtown Minneapolis near the Mississippi River.
After several losing seasons in the Dome, the arrival of 1980s superstars
Kent Hrbek and Kirby Puckett electrified the team and sent them to
two World Series in five years. The Twins defeated the St. Louis Cardinals
to win the 1987 World Series, then defeated the Atlanta Braves to
win the 1991 World Series. In both of these World Series, the home
team won each game, which had never occurred prior to 1987. All three
Series' were decided in seven games. In the following season the team
made a big Mistake when they traded their number one pitcher, Viola,
to the New York Mets on July 31, in exchange for five young pitchers.
Lacking pitching depth, the Twins had few alternatives other than
dealing Viola for what could turn out to be the nucleus of their pitching
staff for years to come. In the deal, the Twins acquired a proven,
28-year-old veteran, Rick Aguilera, heralded rookie southpaw David
West, considered to be the Mets' top prospect, rookie right-handers
Kevin Tapani, a starter, and relievers Tim Drummond and Jack Savage.
Currently the team is owned, as of 2004 by Minneapolis businessman
Carl Pohlad, the third owner of the club following Clark Griffith
and his son Calvin. The Twins and its famous or infamous domed ballpark
were featured in the 1994 motion picture "Little Big League."
The Twins are known as the "Twinkies" by their fans. The
home stadium of the team is Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. The Twins
were formerly known as the Kansas City Blues between 1894-1900, Washington
Senators between 1901-1960. The uniform colors for the Minnesota Twins
are, navy blue, red, and white. Two uniform designs: A light colored
uniform; white home, grey road and an alternative or "Sunday"
uniform; solid blue with red and white piping. The logo design for
the Twins is the word "TWINS" in red script. The entwined
letters "TC" (for Twin Cities) appear on the home uniform
hats, and a stylized "M" appears on the road uniform hats.
The word "MINNESOTA" appears on their road uniforms in red
block print. "TWINS" (home) and "MINNESOTA" (road)
are printed in white with red outlining on the "Sunday"
uniforms. |
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