Best of the Twins

In the veritable orgy of sports replays on TV lately, the Minnesota Twins 1987 and 1991 World Series championships have stood out. They were the best show ever in Minnesota sports at the time, and they're the best show ever in Minnesota sports today. Watching the series got me thinking about the Twins history and the many players who have worn a Twins uniform. Specifically, I got to wondering, did the 1987 and 1991 world champions have the best players? Well, yeah, they had Kirby Puckett and Gary Gaetti and Frank Viola and Jack Morris, the MVPs of the 2 ALCS and World Series. So, yeah, of course. But, how do the rest of those World Series rosters stack up? Well, here's my cut at it.

First String

1. Rod Carew, 2B

Carew was a Twins' regular from 1967 to 1978 but missed most of 1970 with an injury, for a total of 11 years (8 at 2B and 3 at 1B) and 1,635 games as a Twin. His average production for each 162 games as a Twin was 7 HR-72 RBI-.334. He was the AL MVP in 1977 with the 2nd highest BA of the past 62 years at .388. He led the league in BA 7 times, hits 3 times, and more stuff.

2. Kirby Puckett, CF

Puckett was a Twins regular from 1984 to 1995 for a total of 12 years (10 in CF and 2 in RF) and 1,783 games as a Twin. His average season (162 games) was 19-99-.318. His best 2 seasons came in the 2 seasons after the 2 world titles. In 1988 he was 24-121-.356, but only finished #3 in the MVP race, and in 1992 he was 19-110-.329, and was #2 in the MVP voting. He led the league in hits 4 times, total bases twice, RBI and batting (in 1989 at .339). His catch and HR in Game 6 in 1991 were the greatest Twins moments ever, well, along with Jack Morris' 10 inning shutout.

3. Joe Mauer, C

Mauer was a Twins regular at catcher from 2005 to 2010 and in 2012 and 2013, and at 1B from 2014 to 2018, for a total of 13 years and 1,858 games, 2nd most in Twins history. His average (162 games) was 12-80-.306. His best year was 2009 when he was AL MVP at 28-96-.365 while winning the Gold Glove at catcher. WAR says that Carew's big year was the best ever by a Twin but I dunno about that. It's hard not to like Kirby's best years and it's really hard not to like Joe's 2009 season.

4. Tony Oliva, RF

Tony O was a Twins regular in RF from 1964 to 1971 and at DH in 1974 and 1975, for a total of 10 years (as a regular) and 1,676 games. His average season (162 games) was 21-91-.304. His best year's were 1965 and 1970 when he finished 2nd in the MVP voting each year at 16-98-.321 and 23-107-.325.

5. Harmon Killebrew, DH

There are a lot of ways to argue that Harmon is the best Twin ever. He was regular at 1B (1961, 1968-69 and 1971-72), in LF in 1962-64, and at 3B (1966, 1969-70), and one as DH, for a total of 12 years and a team record of 1,969 games. He was MVP as a 3B in 1969 at 49-140-.271. His average season (162 games) was 39-109-.256.

6. Kent Hrbek, 1B

Kent holds the team record for most years as a regular at one position (13 years at 1B) and he's tied with Mauer for the most years as a regular. People like to complain about his conditioning but he never missed a season and played in 1,747 games, 3rd best ever. His average season (162 games) was 27-101-.282. His best season was 1984 when he finished 2nd in the MVP voting at 27-107-.311. And he was probably the best defensive 1B the Twins have ever had. His play in picking Ron Gant off 1B in Game 6 in 1991 was a great great moment.

7. Bob Allison, LF

This was probably the toughest pick, but who was better? Maybe Torii Hunter, but he never played LF. Anyway, Allison was a regular in RF 1961-63, 1B in 1964, and LF in 1965, 1967-69, for a total of 8 years and 1,236 games. His average season (162 games) was 28-84-.255, almost identical to Gary Gaetti's in a much tougher hitting environment. His best year was 1963 at 35-91-.271. I guess I coulda put Torii in CF, Kirby in RF, Tony O at the DH, and Killebrew in LF. But that's also a lot of guys playing out of position.

8. Gary Gaetti, 3B

Gaetti was the Twins 3B from 1982 to 1990, for a total of 9 years and 1,361 games. It's weird not seeing him in the 1991 lineup. His average year (162 games) was 24-90-.256, and his best year was 1987 at 31-109-.257 and he was the ALCS MVP.

9. Roy Smalley, SS

OK, this was the toughest pick. I mean, Zoilo Versalles was MVP of the 1965 AL champs, and Greg Gagne is one of the most valuable fielding SS in the history of the world. But Smalley was no slouch. He was the regular SS from 1976 to 1981 and the DH from 1985 to 1987, though he did not play in the post-season. He had to have been hurt, and he never played major league ball again. He played in 1,148 games as a Twin. His average year was 16-68-.257 and his best year was 1979 at 24-95-.271.

Starting Pitchers

Jim Kaat Kaat was a Twins regular for 11 years and 471 games, going an average of 16-13, 3.34. He  was the AL Pitcher of the Year in 1966 at 25-13, 2.75 but couldn't get a vote in the Cy Young because there was just one award for both leagues and Koufax blew everybody away.

Bert Blyleven Circle Me Bert pitched for the Twins for 9 years in 2 separate stints from 1970 to 1975 and 1986 to 1988 so of course he helped 'em win that 1987 championship, going 3-1 in the post-season. He pitched 348 games for the Twins, 3rd among starters after Kaat and Radke. His average season was 17-16, 3.28. His best year was 1973 at 20-17, 2.52.

Frank Viola Frankie was the MVP of the 1987 season, and pitched 7 years (1983-89) for a total of 260 games. His average season was 17-14, 3.86. His best was the Cy Young year in 1989 at 24-7, 2.64, probably the best season a Twins starter has ever had. Of course, Frankie was also the MVP of that 1991 team because we got Aguilera and Tapani for him when he demanded a trade to someplace that suited his ego better.

Camilo Pascual Not as tough a choice as you young folks might think. I mean, first, people loved him. And, second, lots of smart guys said he had the best curve ball in the league. He only pitched 5 years as a regular for the Twins for a total of 184 games, but his average season was 19-12, 3.66. His best season was 1963 at 21-9, 2.46. Believe me, at his best (I mean, not just one game), he might have been the best pitcher the Twins ever had. (For one game, sure, give me Jack Morris.)

Relief Pitchers

Rick Aguilera A couple of easy picks. Aguilera was the closer 1991-95 and 1997-98 and a starter in 1996 for a total of 490 games, 2nd only to Steady Eddie Guardado. His average season was 3-4, 3.50 with 21 saves. His best was 1991 at 4-5, 2.35 with 42 saves.

Joe Nathan Nathan was the closer for 6 years (2004-2009) and pitched 460 games. His average season was 2-1, 2.16 with 23 saves, better than Aggie. His best was 2004 at 1-2, 1.62 with 44 saves. I like that Aggie threw a couple more years for the Twins and helped win it all in '91.

So that's my top 15. Here then are the next 60 or so.

	2nd Team	3rd Team	4th Team	5th Team
Catcher	Earl Battey	Butch Wynegar	Brian Harper	A.J. Pierzynski
1st Base	Justin Morneau	Michael Cuddyer	Vic Power	Doug Mientkiewicz
2nd Base	Chuck Knoblauch	Brian Dozier	Bernie Allen	Luis Rivas
Shortstop	Greg Gagne	Christian Guzman	Jorge Polanco	Pat Meares
3rd Base	Corey Koskie	Rich Rollins	John Castino	Steve Braun
Left Field	Jacque Jones	Dan Gladden	Marty Cordova	Larry Hisle
Center Field	Torii Hunter	Jimmie Hall	Lyman Bostock	Ken Landreaux
Right Field	Cesar Tovar	Tom Brunansky	Matt Lawton	Bobby Darwin
Designated Hitter	Zoilo Versalles	Shane Mack	Don Mincher	Jason Kubel
Starting Pitchers	Johan Santana Brad Radke Jim Perry Dave Goltz	Scott Erickson Mudcat Grant Dave Boswell Scott Baker	Eric Milton Jerry Koosman Kyle Lohse Allan Anderson	Geoff Zahn Ray Corbin Jose Berrios Carlos Silva
Relief Pitchers	Eddie Guardado Bill Campbell	Glen Perkins Ron Perranoski	Mike Marshall Doug Corbett	Juan Rincon Brian Duensing Tom Burgmeier

Some highlights.

I could see a preference for Morneau over Hrbek, but in the end I like the 450 extra games and 2 world titles for Hrbie.

I could see putting Knoblauch at 2nd and figuring out how to keep Carew and Killebrew both on the field but as in the idea of getting Torii Hunter on the 1st team, it just means getting too many guys out of position.

As I said, I could see either Versalles or Gagne at short ahead of Smalley. That's a tough call.

Further down the list, I could argue Wynegar and Harper. I could argue Castino and Rollins. I could argue that Larry Hisle is too low and Kenny Landreaux is too high, though neither was a Twin for that long. Maybe Kubel is too low? Nah. And, I know what some of you are gonna say, and if you're gonna say that Bruno is too low, you'd be wrong. And as much as I loved watching Dan Gladden, the fact is he might be a little too high.

And, keep in mind that these rankings are heavily weighted based on how long somebody played for the Twins. If it was just pure ability, Lyman Bostock would be on the 2nd team, not ahead of Torii, but I'd have to find a spot for him. Hisle was that good, too. And Brian Dozier might be a little low.

Among the pitchers, I could easily see Santana on the 1st string, though he too was not a Twin for very long. I mean, what next? David Ortiz? And, don't forget that Jack Morris only pitched for the Twins for one year. Pretty good year, yeah, but still. The starting pitching really flattens out pretty quick, while there were some good relievers who didn't make the cut--Mike Marshall, Jeff Reardon, Juan Berenguer, even Mike Trombley (365 games #8 all-time but Rincon was a lot better).

Finally, you'll notice only two current Twins on the list--Jorge Polanco at #4 and Juan Berrios at #5. There's a bunch of guys who are coming up to where they could be pounding on the door. They need to stay healthy, get another year or two. And, if they never get out there in 2020, do you give a guy credit because it's not his fault? Stay tuned. The lower reaches of this list could change a lot in the next one-and-a-half to 2 years.