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2024 – The Twins shut out the struggling Chicago White Sox at Target Field by a score of 7-0, recording their first shutout of the season, first night game win and third win at Target Field of 2024. Chris Paddack (1-1) was the starter and winner, pitching 7 shutout innings with six hits allowed, no walks and 10 strikeouts — one short of his career high. It marked Paddack’s first big league win as a starter since May 2, 2022 at Baltimore. The offense tied their season high with 11 hits, three coming from Edouard Julien, who hit a double and his team-leading fifth home run. Max Kepler returned from the IL and went 2-for-4 with a double and three RBI. The Twins hosted their first ever Bark at the Park day allowing owners to bring their dogs. A ticket for the dog went for $42 and the human ticket went for $34, but you got a free water bottle. Is that crazy or what? Box Score
In some sad off the field news: Al Shaver, the play-by-play announcer of the Minnesota North Stars for over 20 years, has died at 96 years old in Vancouver Island, British Columbia. For 26 years, Shaver was the radio play-by-play broadcaster for the North Stars. When the team moved to Dallas in 1993, Shaver chose to stay in Minnesota. Shaver then called games for the University of Minnesota men’s hockey for three seasons until his retirement in 1996. Shaver was on the Twins’ WCCO radio broadcast team in 1970 with Herb Carneal, Ray Christensen and Halsey Hall.
2023 – NOT KUHL, TWINS LOSE GAME TWO TO NATS: The Twins lost to Chad Kuhl and the Nationals by a score of 10-4, securing a series defeat, their third this season and first at home. Pablo López (1-2) was the starter and loser, allowing five runs on eight hits in 4 innings pitched. Simeon Woods Richardson made his second career appearance and 2023 debut with 4.2 innings of relief, throwing 97 pitches.. It was the most pitches thrown by a Twins reliever since Andrew Albers threw 108 pitches in 6 innings in the second game of a doubleheader on August 11, 2016 against Houston. The offense ha nine hits as Carlos Correa reached four times, going 3-for-4 with a walk. Byron Buxton added a home run, his third of the season. Temperature at first pitch was 35 degrees and the reported attendance was 23,045. The game went on for 3 hours and 9 minutes. Box Score
2022 – The Minnesota Twins needed a win like this. The Twins beat the Chicago White Sox at Target Field by a score of 2-1, giving Minnesota its first win this season when trailing after seven innings (1-7). The Twins scored two runs on one play that including throwing errors from Tim Anderson and José Abreu. Bailey Ober was the starter but did not factor into the decision, allowing one run on five hits and six strikeouts in 5 innings pitched. The bullpen of Griffin Jax, Tyler Duffey (1-2) and Emilio Pagán came through combining for 4 scoreless innings with one hit allowed and five strikeouts as Pagán earned his second save (2nd straight game). The offense recorded five hits with Trevor Larnach getting two of them. Box Score
2021 – No game today as the Twins have a scheduled day off. The Twins returned from the West Coast with a 6-11 record, mentally drained from an 0-4 road trip that had three COVID-19-caused off days.
2020 – The Twins would have been home today playing the Seattle Mariners, but we all know the season thus far has been postponed due to COVID-19. Counting today it means we have missed 25 games so far.
2019 – The Twins win their fourth in a row when they stop off at Houston Minute Maid Park and beat the Astros 9-5. Jake Odorizzi who has had bad weather in pretty much each of his previous starts goes 5.2 innings allowing 8 hits but just two runs and gets his second win of the season. Twins hitters leading the attack were Jorge Polanco with four hits including a home run and a double, four RBI and two runs scored and Jason Castro hit a home run also, his first this year which matched his total for all of 2018 but to be fair he was injured most of last season appearing in only 19 games. Box Score
2018 – The Twins lose to the Tampa Bay Rays, 6-8 thanks to a walk-off two-run homer by ex-Twin Carlos Gomez in the ninth off Addison Reed. It was the Twins fifth game of the season that ended via walk-off, having won two of those five and suffered the loss in three. The Twins lost all three games of the series and have lost three in a row. Brian Dozier extended his hitting streak to 23 games dating back to last September 22. Phil Hughes was the Twins starter and loser. Box Score
2015 – All the scoring in the top of the first – the Twins scored three runs in the first inning at Kauffman Stadium and that was the extent of the scoring in their 3-0 victory over the Royals. The Twins out hit the Royals 10 to 6 and Mike Pelfrey pitched 7 shutout innings for the win. It was the first major-league game this season in which neither team scored after the top of the first inning–there were five last year–and it was the Twins’ first win in a game of that kind since July 1994, when an RBI ground out by Kirby Puckett in the opening frame held up in a 1-0 decision over the Rangers in Arlington. Box Score
2013 – No game today, the Twins game against the Miami Marlins at Target Field was snowed out and will be played as part of doubleheader tomorrow. The latest springtime snowstorm to batter the Twin Cities ended up dropping about 4 inches of snow at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Including the latest 4 inches of accumulation, the Twin Cities’ total snowfall for the season stands at about 67 inches, or about 14 inches above average.
2011 – No game today. The Twins game at Target Field against the Cleveland Indians was rained out and rebooked as part of a doubleheader on July 18.
1988 – The Indians jump on the Twins for six runs before the Twins even bat and hold on for a 11-6 win in the Metrodome. It obviously was not one of Bert Blylevens best games as he gave up 9 hits including a grand slam home run to Cory Snyder and 7 earned runs in 4.2 innings. He didn’t walk a batter but hit four Indian batters, Julio Franco, Ron Kittle, Brook Jacoby and Andy Allanson. Later in the game Joe Carter also hits a grand slam home run off Keith Atherton. Gene Larkin who was the DH on this day had a home run and a double and knocked in 3 runs but it was not enough. This is the second time in Twins history that they have given up two bases loaded home runs in the same game. Box Score
After the game, in a real stunner, the Cardinals trade veteran second baseman Tom Herr to the Twins for outfielder Tom Brunansky. This will go down in Twins lore as one of the Twins worst ever trades.
1980 – After opening the 1980 season with 12 road games and a 5-7 record the Twins play their home opener in front of 36,268 fans and a game time temperature of 89 degrees. Twins pitcher Geoff Zahn gets a complete game 8-1 win as Hosken Powell, Ron Jackson and Roy Smalley hit home runs. Box Score
1976 – No game today, scheduled day off. Actually the Twins have three days off in a row in what is described as a scheduling oddity, no other reason provided.
1974 – No game today, scheduled day off.
1972 – The Minnesota Twins Home Opener against the Oakland A’s at Metropolitan Stadium was snowed out and that game was rescheduled for September 11 as part of a DH. The Home Opener will hopefully be played tomorrow. The clipping below about what owner Calvin Griffith is thinking about if tomorrow’s game is postponed is interesting too.
1971 – No game today, scheduled day off.
1970 – The Twins win their fourth in a row and eighth in ten starts this season when the beat the visiting Chicago White Sox 3-1 in a game shortened by rain to five innings. The game was tied 1-1 with two out in the bottom of the fifth with Leo Cardenas on second base when Cesar Tovar connected for a home run off Sox starter Joe Horlen putting the Twins up 3-1. Rod Carew then doubled but Horlen retired Tony Oliva to end the inning. Right after that lightning and rain stopped the contest. The Sox almost took a 2-1 lead in the top of the inning but catcher Ed Herrmann came steaming around third base on a Walt Williams single but slipped on some newly laid turf and fell flat on his face but managed to scramble back to third but Williams thought that Herrmann would score score and was a dead duck trying to get back to second and the Twins escaped knotted at 1-1. After an hour and nine minute rain delay the game was called and the Twins were winners. Twins starter Luis Tiant (2-0) went the five innings allowing just four hits and got the win and Horlen (1-2) pitched a “complete” game too and took the loss. Tovar who was 2-3 with the games only home run had 2 RBI and also scored twice. Only 3,248 baseball fans attended the game at the Met and the game officially was over after 1 hour and 10 minutes of play. Albeit the game lasted just five innings, it remains the shortest game in Twins history. Box Score
1969 – The Twins seven game winning streak comes to an abrupt end at Met Stadium when a 22-year old rookie Rollie Fingers shuts down the Twins bats and pitches a 5-hit shutout to win his first big league game as the A’s beat the first place Twins 7-0. It was Fingers second appearance of the season, he had pitched in relief ten days earlier and it was his first big league start. This is one of just 37 starts the future Hall of Famer would make in his 944 game big league career. According to the Star Tribune, Fingers threw 110 pitches. Leo Cardenas was the only Twins hitter to get two hits. Twins starter Tommy Hall who had pitched a complete game shutout in his last start didn’t get out of the third inning and took the loss. Rookie manager Billy Martin was ejected by rookie umpire Larry Barnett just prior to the fourth inning, Martin’s first as a manager. Box Score
1965 – The Twins pounded the Yankees at Yankee Stadium for the second day in a row. Today the score was 8-2 behind a complete game from Twins starter and winner Jim Kaat (2-0) who broke a personal nine-game losing streak against the Yankees with a five-hitter allowing one earned run. The Twins had three more home runs, two from Tony Oliva (3) and an inside the park home run by Zoilo Versalles (1) in the ninth inning. The Twins out hit New York 12-5. Al Downing was the Yankee starter and loser leaving after allowing 3 run on 4 hits in 1.2 innings. Having swept the two-game series the Twins are now off to Detroit to face the Tigers. Box Score
1964 – The Twins play their Home Opener a day later than planned due to rain and win the game 7-6 over the visiting Washington Senators. Jim Kaat started for the Twins but didn’t get out of the first inning after allowing four runs, three earned on 3 hits and 2 walks while retiring just two batters. The Twins came back with a sole home run by Tony Oliva (2) in the bottom of the inning and Rich Rollins (1) added a three-run blast in the bottom of the second inning and it was a whole new ballgame. Don Mincher (1) added a home run later in the game. The Twins winning run scored in the bottom of the eighth inning on a passed ball. Jim Perry pitched five solid innings of relief but all he got for his effort was a pat on the butt. Bill Pleis (2-0) blew the save but picked up the win and Jim Roland (2) got the save. The Twins are now 5-2 on the young season. Box Score
1961 – The Washington Senators and the Twins are tied 4-4 after 9 innings at Met Stadium. The Twins hold the Senators scoreless in the top of the tenth and in the bottom of the inning the Twins load the bases with one out and Zoilo Versalles hits a Sac fly to center off Senators pitcher Dave Sisler to score Earl Battey and the Twins have their first ever walk-off win. Twins starter Pedro Ramos (2-0) went 8 innings striking out 7, allowed 4 run and got a ND for his effort. Don Mincher hits the games only home run and Twins reliever Bill Pleis ups his record to 2-0. St. Paul Mayor George Vavoulis throw out the games first pitch. Box Score
