Minnesota Twins Information
The Twins are back! Representing the twin cities of Minneapolis and St.Paul, The team stars are joined by shortstop Zoilo Varsalles and outfielder Tony Oliva, the Twins won it’s frist game 6-0 at Yankee stadium. Apparently this all star team has gone from viable into Champs in only a few years. They have dedicated their ’07 season to their late sportscaster Herb Carneal, who passed away just before opening day. He’d been the Twins announcer for 45 years. Despite their loss, the team remains a force to be reckoned with. After sweeping a July 6 doubleheader with the White Sox, their manager Ozzie Guillen commented, “The Twins are not piranhas no more. They are a shark attack now.”
The Minnesota Twins know how to win the big games, and the proof is
evidenced in their two World Series championship runs. In 1987,
the Twins defeated the St. Louis Cardinals four games to three,
and in 1991, they defeated the Braves by the same margin. The franchise
actually has three championships, with the third coming back in
1924 as the Washington Senators. The Metrodome hosted the latter
two championship games, but has also hosted a final four, a super
bowl, and an all-star game. The most notable features of the dome
are the “garbage bag” in right field and the turf of
the playing surface. The bag itself is a retractable curtain, but
it’s so loose, it looks like a humongous garbage bag. Until
the 2004 season, the turf in the Metrodome played incredibly fast,
with routine groundballs seemingly skipping by infielders. For
the 2004 season and beyond, the turf will remain, but in a different
style. The hope is that this new turf will slow the ball down to
resemble the type you’d see in a natural grass stadium. Ron
Gardenhire will step up as manager for his 3rd season. In his first
two seasons since replacing Tom Kelly, Gardenhire has compiled
a 206-153 regular season record, but is only 5-9 in the postseason.
Even though they play in the AL Central, the Twins are expected to continue their
trend of playing “small ball.” In 2003, the twins only hit 155 home
runs, not even one a game. Leading the way at the plate is Torii Hunter, a player
quite capable with a bat in his hands, but more recognized for what he can do
in the field. Hunter is seen almost nightly making an unbelievable play that
few else in the league can even think of. Jacque Jones and Corey Koskie are also
expected to contribute big numbers this season, following the loss of catcher
A.J. Pierzynski to the San Francisco Giants. Pierzynski was expendable following
the development of minor league all-star Joe Mauer. Mauer is only 21, but he
looks to be the cornerstone of the franchise for years to come.
Pitching will be rebuilt in the 2004 season following the losses of Eddie Guardado,
LaTroy Hawkins, and Kenny Rogers. Guardado is now the closer in Seattle, Hawkins
will see save opportunities in Chicago for the Cubs, and Rogers will lead the
staff in Texas. To compensate, the Twins will ask Johan Santana and Brad Radke
to go long innings to try and spare what’s left of the bullpen. J.C. Romero
is the star set-up man, and his job will be to get the ball to Joe Nathan, the
Twins new closer, who was acquired in the A.J. Pierzynski deal. In his previous
four major league seasons, Nathan has worked two years as a starter, one year
in long relief, and one year as a set-up man. He’ll be needed to close
out games if the Twins hope to have any chance to stick around in the competitive
AL Central.