TWINS TRIVIA is hopefully a fun and informative site that will help you to better enjoy the Minnesota Twins and their wonderful history. “History never looks like history when you are living through it” – John Gardner, former Secretary of Health
The Minnesota Twins have had a number of work-horse starting pitchers over the years but Jim Kaat stands on the top of the hill with 2,959.1 inning logged. In his Twins career “Kitty” pitched in 468 games with 422 of them as a starter. Back then it was not unusual for starters to pitch in relief now and then as needed. Here is a look at a list of pitchers with 500 or more innings logged wearing a Twins uniform.
Now let’s take a look at the Senators/Twins franchise leaders in innings pitched and who else but Hall of Fame pitcher Walter Johnson would you expect to head this list? Over 5,900 innings, my goodness. Look at the rest of his numbers as compared to more modern pitchers.
That said how about taking a look across all of MLB and look at innings pitched over 1,000 and then we see a number of modern day pitchers with over 5,000 innings logged. I did not expect to find that to be the case.
There’s nothing quite like Opening Day in Major League Baseball. Before the first pitch is thrown, before the first bullpen meltdown, before the first “why is he bunting” moment… every team is tied for first place. Hope is undefeated, and so are the Minnesota Twins.
For one glorious morning, the standings are perfect. 0–0. Everyone’s equal. Everyone’s alive. Everyone’s dreaming. And for the Twins, that feeling travels with them this year — all the way to Baltimore.
A Fresh Start in Baltimore
The Twins will open their season on the road at Camden Yards, a ballpark that always seems to glow on Opening Day. The Orioles will have their crowd buzzing, the flags will be snapping in the breeze, and the Twins will step onto the field with the same clean slate as everyone else.
There’s something fitting about starting the year away from home. It sharpens the focus. It strips away distractions. It reminds a team that nothing is guaranteed and everything must be earned. And for Minnesota, it’s a chance to make an early statement.
New Faces, New Storylines, Same Beautiful Game
Every season brings a few new names to learn and a few familiar ones to watch closely. Maybe a rookie surprises. Maybe a veteran finds one more gear. Maybe someone becomes the unexpected hero of April. That’s the magic of this sport — you never know who will define the next six months.
For Twins fans, Opening Day is the moment when all the offseason debates fade away. Trades, signings, payroll talk, ownership chatter — none of it matters when the anthem ends and the starter toes the rubber. For a few hours, it’s just baseball again.
The Eternal Promise of 162 Games
Baseball is the only sport that gives you this much runway. 162 games. 162 chances to surprise, frustrate, delight, and occasionally confuse. And the Twins, for all their ups and downs, always find a way to make the journey interesting. Maybe this is the year the rotation clicks. Maybe the lineup stays healthy. Maybe the baseball gods smile on Minnesota for once. On Opening Day, all of that feels possible.
A Day for Joy, Not Judgment
There will be plenty of time for analysis, frustration, and second?guessing. That’s part of the fun, too. But not today.
Today is for:
Fresh scorecards
First hot dogs of the season
Kids skipping school
Adults pretending they’re not checking the game at work
The crack of the bat echoing through Camden Yards
The belief — however cautious — that this could be something special
Opening Day is baseball’s way of saying: “Let’s try this again. You never know what might happen.”
And for the Twins? Why Not Us
Every team starts in first place. Every fanbase starts with hope. Every season starts with a story waiting to be written. So here’s to the Minnesota Twins — undefeated, unburdened, and officially back.
I know this is not about the Minnesota Twins in any way, shape or form but if you or I can learn something about baseball history, that is a good thing.
The first three month of 2025 the Detroit Tigers got off to a 53-32 start but then in the back half of the season they played 34-43 baseball. From April 1 through September 27 they were in first place for all but two days, then they lost their final game of the season and finished in second place one game out of first behind the Cleveland Guardians. That isn’t going to happen again and the Tigers are going to be the American Leagues Central Division Champions with 91 wins.
The Kansas City Royals are going to get their starting pitching rolling again in 2026 and will give the Tigers a run for their money but in the end the Tigers with ace pitchers Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez will prevail and the Royals will finish second with a 86-76 record.
Home runs are always fun to see if your team hits them. How many times have you been to a ballgame where your favorite team has a player that hits two or more home runs in the same game. Not too often I bet. That thought crossed my my mind recently so I decided to look at up and see who the Senators/Twins franchise leaders were in multi (two or more) home run games in a single regular season and a career.
You think you know who it is? Take a guess on who it was and what year it happened before you look it up. From 1901-2025 the franchise leaders in multi home run regular season games in a single season can be found at: https://www.sports-reference.com/stathead/tiny/F8SHL
Who do you think is the Senators/Twins franchise career leader? That answer should not be that tough. From 1901-2025 the franchise leaders in multi home run regular season games in a franchise career can be found at: https://www.sports-reference.com/stathead/tiny/3DmpE
Today you get to look back to some March of 1963 Sporting News articles by Arno Goethel and Max Nichols. One of the articles is about Hall of Fame outfielder Pedro, or is it Tony Oliva? The other is about Rich Rollins whose first full season in the big leagues was 1962 when he made both American League All-Star teams as a starter and finished eighth in AL MVP voting. Yes, MLB played two All-Star Games per season for four years, from 1959 through 1962. Designed to increase player pension funds, these eight total games were played in different stadiums each year, ending after the 1962 season when owners agreed to a larger share of income from a single game.
Plus I will throw in a Lucky Strike ad for you as a bonus but you need to scroll down from the ad to see the Oliva article.
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A Durable Bullpen Workhorse Whose Lone Minnesota Season Still Resonates
Wayne Allan Granger, one of baseball’s earliest true relief specialists and a model of late 1960s durability, passed away on February 25, 2026, at age 81. A veteran of nine big-league seasons and 451 appearances, Granger pitched for seven organizations, but his single season with the Minnesota Twins remains a compelling chapter in both his career and the franchise’s early 1970s story.
Early Life and Rise to the Majors
Born March 15, 1944, in Springfield, Massachusetts, Granger grew up in the small town of Huntington, where he became a multi-sport standout and a dominant high-school pitcher. After attending Springfield College, he signed as a free agent with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1965 and converted to relief shortly afterward. His low three-quarters delivery and heavy sinker became his signature.
Granger broke into the majors in 1968 with St. Louis and quickly became one of the most heavily used relievers in baseball. His 1969 season with Cincinnati—90 appearances, setting a major-league record—cemented his reputation as a durable, trusted bullpen arm. He followed that with a league leading 35 saves in 1970, earning back-to-back Sporting News NL Fireman of the Year awards.
Minnesota Twins: A Promising Start and a Tumultuous Summer (1972)
The Twins acquired Granger from Cincinnati on December 3, 1971, sending left-hander Tom Hall to the Reds. Minnesota believed it was adding a proven late-inning stabilizer to pair with Dave LaRoche. For the first two months of 1972, Granger looked like the All-Star caliber reliever he had been in Cincinnati. He retired 19 of the first 22 left-handed batters he faced and posted a 0.85 ERA through the end of June, collecting five saves in his first seven appearances. His sinker was crisp, and his command sharp.
