Joe Nathan
New Team: Texas Rangers
Joe Nathan is the Twins all-time saves leader and while he struggled to return to form after missing the 2010 season with injury, he was still one of the only solid bullpen options for the Twins last season. Nathan chose to go to Texas because he feels it provides him with best chance to win and he’s chasing that elusive World Series ring, seeing as it is the latter part of his career.

Michael Cuddyer
New Team: Colorado Rockies
Michael Cuddyer was the Twins only All-Star in 2012. He has been an important part of the Twins organization for the past ten years. Losing Cuddyer was definitely a blow to most Twins fans, but hope springs eternal. Cuddyer is on the back end of his career, being 32, and the Twins were unwilling to pay the $10.5 million dollars required to keep him.

Jason Kubel
New Team: Arizona Diamondbacks
Jason Kubel has been very important to the Twins in the past few years. While he’s provided some great moments over the last three years (Grand Slam off Rivera?), the Twins decided it was best to move on. The Arizona Diamondbacks liked what they saw and offered Kubel a two year, $15 million dollar contract for his services.

José Mijares
New Team: Kansas City Royals
Normally, José Mijares wouldn’t warrant a mention in a significant losses column, but Mijares had been a pretty good relief pitcher for the past three seasons. Mijares struggled a bit last season and the Twins decided to move on, so Mijares joined the Kansas City Royals. I was surprised the Twins were so quick to move on from Mijares considering how thin the bullpen was last year and with the loss of Nathan this year.

Jim Thome
New Team: Philadelphia Phillies
I know Jim Thome did not finish the season with the team, but he’s such a fan favorite an update should be included. Thome signed a one-year deal with the Phillies. Thome, like Nathan, is chasing a World Series ring. Thome is five home-runs away away from seventh on the all-time home-run list. If the Twins don’t happen to win the World Series this year, I’d love to see Thome get a ring. Thome is truly one of the greats.

Check back tomorrow to see how the Twins are planning on replacing the massive holes left by some of these guys. Check back often for everything Twins as the summer heats up.

So long, Cuddy! Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-US PRESSWIRE

#5- Cuddyer Plays His First All-Star Game, July 12th, 2011

The 2011 season was a rough one for the Twins and Cuddyer was the logical choice to represent the Twins in the All-Star Game. Cuddyer’s numbers weren’t very impressive, batting .298, with 13 home runs and 43 RBI’s, but Cuddyer had been a large part of the Twins organization for several years and it was nice to see that he was finally recognized with an All-Star game appearance. Cuddyer didn’t do anything special in the game, going 0-1, but Cuddyer finally got recognized as the All-Star he was.

#4- Cuddyer Pitches an Inning, July 25th 2011

The Twins were down 20-5 an average July game for a struggling team when Michael Cuddyer came out to pitch the eighth. Cuddyer gave up 2 hits, but no runs, in pitching a full inning. Cuddyer became the first Twins position player to pitch since John Moses did on July 31st, 1990. While insignificant at the time, it was an excellent display of the versatility of Michael Cuddyer. It also showed Cuddyer’s ambition to be a “team player” and his willingness to step up when the team needed him.

#3- Cuddyer Hits Two Home Runs in One Inning, August 23rd 2009

2009 was truly a wonderful year for the Twins, but on August 23rd, they found themselves 60-63. In a must-win game, the Twins were knotted with the Royals at one at the beginning of the seventh inning. Cuddyer led off the eighth inning with a solo home run that started off an eight-run seventh inning capped off by, you guessed it, another Cuddyer home run. Cuddyer became the fifty-third player to hit two round-trippers in an inning. Many viewed this game as the turning point of the season. The Twins finished the season on an impressive 27-13 forcing a one-game playoff.

#2- Cuddyer Hits for the Cycle, May 22nd 2009

Michael Cuddyer again accomplished a huge feat on May 22nd, 2009 when he hit for the cycle. Cuddyer started his assault early with a three-run home run in the bottom of the first. Cuddyer added a double in the third, a single in the fourth, and a triple in the sixth to complete the cycle. Cuddyer also added five RBI’s on the day. It was a magical moment in the start of a magical season, as Cuddyer added one of Major League Baseball’s 293 cycles.

#1- Cuddyer Comes Up Big in Game 163, October 6th 2009

The 2009 season came down to a one-game playoff against the Detroit Tigers. Michael Cuddyer only had one hit, but it was the biggest hit of the season. After nine innings wasn’t enough, Detroit was able to put one across in the top of the tenth, and the Twins had to save their season one last time. Cuddyer got the bottom of the tenth off to an excellent start with a triple. Two batters later he was knocked in by a Matt Tolbert single that continued the game. The Twins eventually walked off in the bottom of the eleventh.

 2011 is a dead horse by now, but I’m not done kicking it. I’ve already written thousands of words about it, so here’s a different approach, the story of the season as told by numbers.

0: Number of Twins wins in doubleheaders. They played four of them, and they lost all eight games.

.247: Twins team batting average. Surprisingly, there were actually three teams in the AL who were worse: Oakland (.244), Tampa (.244), and Seattle (.243).

.980: Team fielding percentage, nearly worst in the American League (Oakland was slightly worse at .979).

1: Number of no-hitters thrown by the Twins in 2011, which ties the franchise record.

3: Number of Twins who played 100 or more games. Only Ben Revere, Danny Valencia, and Michael Cuddyer reached this mark. 

3: Jersey number of the late, great Harmon Killebrew, which adorned the sleeves of every Twins player in memory of the legendary slugger.

 4.60: Twins team ERA. Only Baltimore (4.92) was worse among AL teams. (more…)