January 23, 2010 – The home run, the long ball, the big blast, or whatever you want to call it is fun to watch and it can put runs on the score board in a hurry. The home run is loved by most baseball fans (pitchers excluded of course) but it does not guarantee a winning season. The 1965 Twins hit 150, the 1987 Twins hit 196 and the 1991 Twins hit 140 home runs and all three teams played in a World Series. The Twins big slugger as we all know was Harmon Killebrew who hit 49 out of the park in 1964 and again in 1969. Matter of fact, the Killer holds the top nine Twins home run seasons, Bob Allison joins him in the top ten with 35 in 1963. The Twins least productive season from a home run perspective was the strike shortened season of 1981 when the Twins hit only 47 long balls in 109 games and Roy Smalley was the team leader with a total of 7. Their lowest full season home run output was 81 in 1976 when they finished third with an 85-77 record and Disco Danny Ford hit 20 round trippers.
Twins top 10 home run teams
| Year | Home Runs | Record | Finish | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1963 | 225 | 91-70 | 3 |
| 2 | 1964 | 221 | 79-83 | 6 |
| 3 | 1986 | 196 | 71-91 | 6 |
| 4 | 1987 | 196 | 85-77 | 1 |
| 5 | 2004 | 191 | 92-70 | 1 |
| 6 | 1962 | 185 | 91-71 | 2 |
| 7 | 2009 | 172 | 87-76 | 1 |
| 8 | 1961 | 167 | 70-90 | 7 |
| 9 | 2002 | 167 | 94-67 | 1 |
| 10 | 2001 | 164 | 85-77 | 2 |
The Senators top home run teams never even got a sniff of the top spot in their league as their top 10 home run teams never finished better than in fifth place. Their pennant winning teams of 1924, 1925, and 1933 hit 22, 56, and 60 home runs respectively. The Senators top sluggers were none other than the Twins big bopper, Harmon Killebrew who hit 42 as a Senator in 1959 and Roy Sievers who hit 42 out of the park for the 1957 Senators and hit 39 more in 1958.
Senators top 10 home run teams
| Year | Home Runs | Record | Finish | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1959 | 163 | 63-91 | 8 |
| 2 | 1960 | 147 | 73-81 | 5 |
| 3 | 1958 | 121 | 61-93 | 8 |
| 4 | 1956 | 112 | 59-95 | 7 |
| 5 | 1957 | 111 | 55-99 | 8 |
| 6 | 1938 | 85 | 75-76 | 5 |
| 7 | 1949 | 81 | 50-104 | 8 |
| 8 | 1954 | 81 | 66-88 | 6 |
| 9 | 1955 | 80 | 53-101 | 8 |
| 10 | 1950 | 76 | 67-87 | 5 |