Did you know?

• In addition to heavily scouting Australia, the Minnesota Twins also have the biggest presence of any team in Europe, so it was no surprise when they landed Max Kepler-Rozycki for $800,000, the largest bonus ever given to a European.
• That Max Kepler-Rozycki is the son of two members of the German Ballet?
• Joe Benson was committed to play running back for Purdue before he signed with the Twins?
• Fort Myers has had more World Series-winning franchises train in it than any other city either in Florida or Arizona, Five franchises have won it all after training in Fort Myers in the spring: Athletics, Pirates, Royals, Twins, and Red Sox.
• Target Field’s footprint is only 8.5 acres large, the smallest in major league baseball but it covers a total of 10.5 acres when looked at from above because portions of it extend over surrounding roadways.
• That the Twins charge $10 for parking for a spring training game at Hammond Stadium? The Twins are tied with the Yankees, Phillies, and Rays for the highest parking rates while all the other teams in Florida range from free to $9.
• The pen Joe Mauer used to sign his eight-year, $184 million contract belongs to Joel Lepel, the minor league field coordinator for the Minnesota Twins. Lepel was born and raised in Plato, Minn., and has worked for the Twins for 23 years, mostly as a scout. All of the amateur players he has signed, including Mauer, have used the same pen.
• That one time Twins player Andy Kosco replaced Mickey Mantle at 1B in Mick’s final game on September 28, 1968.
• Former Twins catcher Earl Battey who was not known for his speed was a star basketball player in high school and was offered a contract to play for the Harlem Globetrotters but he decided to play pro baseball instead.
• Former Twins infielder and now the Texas Rangers manager Ron Washington replaced Cal Ripken as the Orioles shortstop in the eighth inning of a Sept 14, 1987 game ending Cal Ripken’s record consecutive-innings streak of 8,243, spanning 904 games.