Minnesota Twins: Who should be next Twins Hall of Fame inductee?
The Minnesota Twins announced their Hall of Fame class for 2018 on Friday, and MLB announces their Hall of Fame class today. In that spirit,
who should be in the 2019 Twins Hall of Fame class?
The Minnesota Twins announced the 2018 Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame class on Friday. As we prepare for MLB’s announcement of those inducted into Cooperstown in 2018, let’s look ahead to those who could be in the 2019 Twins HOF class.
Twins HOF background
The Twins Hall of Fame inducted its first class with a six-person group in 2000. That first induction class recognized the players whose uniforms hang from the rafters (or used to in the Metrodome) in Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Tony Oliva, Kent Hrbek, and Kirby Puckett. Former owner Calvin Griffith was the sixth member of that inaugural class.
Since then, the Twins HOF has inducted 24 players, management, broadcasters, and other persons close to the team. Johan Santana will become the 31st member of the Twins Hall of Fame in August.
The breakdown of Twins HOF (including Santana):
- 21 players
- 3 broadcasters
- 6 ownership/management/front office/coaching
Among those 21 players, here’s how their eras breakdown:
- 8 played primarily in the 1960s
- 2 played primarily in the 1970s
- 5 played primarily in the 1980s
- 2 played primarily in the 1990s
- 4 played primarily in the 2000s
We will break down a number of possible candidates, beginning with players from the 1960s-1980s, then players in the 1990s, players from the 2000s-2010s, manager/coach possibilities, and then other Twins employees/front office members/broadcasters that should be considered. We’ll start with the group that is covered best in the Hall of Fame currently, the 1960s-1980s.
Next: 1960s-1980s
1990s
The 1987 World Series brought a new generation of Minnesota Twins fans, but the 1991 World Series championship team did have a host of new players that were not part of the 1987 team and had some impressive resumes with the team beyond just that 1991 season.
Brian Harper
A veteran catcher who had played in every season since 1981 but never had more than 140 plate appearances, Harper found a starting job when he came to the Twins in 1988. In his first full season as a starter, he hit .325 in 126 games.
Harper would end up being a consummate .300 hitter without a lot of home run power, but plenty of doubles power for his 6 seasons with the Twins.
In his 6 years, he hit .306/.342/.431 with 156 doubles and 48 home runs, all among the top numbers for catchers in Twins history.
Chuck Knoblauch
A rookie on the 1991 team (that won Rookie of the Year), Knoblauch was a spark plug at the top of the lineup with the Twins for 7 seasons before he was traded away to the New York Yankees, his trade return helping to fuel the team’s return to competitiveness in the early 2000s.
Knoblauch developed into one of the truly elite players in the entire game with the Twins, making 4 All-Star games, receiving MVP votes in three seasons, winning a Silver Slugger, and winning a Gold Glove.
Over his 7 seasons with the Twins, Knoblauch hit .304/.391/.416 with 210 doubles, 51 triples, 43 home runs, and 276 stolen bases, many of which are among the leaders in team history.
Shane Mack
Mack was a Rule 5 selection by the Twins before the 1990 season, and he immediately showed that to be one of the best Rule 5 selections in team history (and there have been some tremendous ones) by hitting .326/.392/.460 in 125 games.
In 1991, Mack was actually the Twins position player on the championship team with the highest bWAR on the season, though his best season was 1992, when he hit .315/.394/.467 with 31 doubles, 6 triples, 16 home runs, and 26 steals.
Mack left for Japan in the midst of the 1994 strike, and that likely ended a promising career as he was in his mid-30s before he returned to MLB in 1997 with Boston.
In his 5 years with the Twins, he hit .309/.375/.479 with 67 home runs and 71 stolen bases.
Kevin Tapani
The Minnesota Twins acquired Tapani in the deal that sent ace Frank Viola to the New York Mets. After a solid 1990 season in the rotation, Tapani established himself by having the best bWAR on the entire 1991 team with a 16-9 season over 244 innings with a 2.99 ERA.
That would be Tap’s best season with the Twins, but he was still a consistent quality starter that gave innings each time out until the Twins traded him to the Dodgers in 1995.
Over 7 seasons with the Twins, Tapani won 75 games with a 4.06 ERA over 1,171 1/3 innings.
Now let’s check out the players from the 2000s…
Next: 2000s-2010s
2000s-2010s
After a rough end to the 1990s, the team bounced back to competitiveness in the early 2000s, winning multiple division titles. While some of the players are just starting to retire, they’re certainly worth honoring as they do retire.
Corey Koskie
A Canadian with a goalie’s mentality at third base, Koskie came up with the Twins in the 1998 season after being a 26th round draft pick in 1994 out of college.
Koskie brought a blend of power and speed along with gritty defense and an arm that was inconsistent at times, but could rifle the ball across the diamond, bringing memories of Gary Gaetti to mind in Twins fans with his hard-nosed play on both sides of the ball, though he was a much better athlete than Gaetti was.
Over 7 seasons with the Twins, Koskie hit .280/.373/.463 with 101 home runs and 66 stolen bases.
Joe Mauer
The only truly active player mentioned here, Mauer has definitely cemented his place already in the team’s honor roll, while some other players could be on their way soon.
The St. Paul native was the #1 overall selection in 2001 and made his way to the major leagues in 2004. Mauer had his biggest season in 2009, winning the MVP as he led the league in batting average, on base, AND slugging, pounding out 28 home runs.
Mauer’s accomplishment list is incredible, with 6 All-Star games, 5 Silver Sluggers, 3 Gold Gloves, and 3 batting titles. He has transitioned from catcher to first base, and he is in the last year of his contract in 2018.
If he returns to the Twins to finish his career after 2018, he would have a chance to be the Twins leader in an incredible amount of categories by the time he retires.
Justin Morneau
Morneau was one of two we’ll mention here that has officially announced his retirement this offseason, and he certainly was one of the keys to the Twins success in the latter half of the 2000s.
Morneau was the impetus to trading away fan favorite Doug Mientkiewicz, and he quickly showed he was worth that move, hitting 19 home runs in just half a season after Douggie Baseball was traded away.
Morneau would go on to have 3 30 home run seasons in his Twins career, winning the 2006 MVP and finishing as the runner-up in the 2008 MVP voting while being selected for 4 All Star games.
He finished with a .278/.347/.485 line over 11 seasons with the Twins, hitting 221 home runs.
Joe Nathan
Nathan retired in 2017, which makes him a natural selection for the 2019 Hall, though he’s not the only former Twin who did that, which could make a crowded ballot.
The Twins acquired Nathan from the San Francisco Giants when they traded A.J. Pierzynski out west to give Joe Mauer the full time job behind the plate. Nathan exploded on the scene in Minnesota, saving 44 games in his first season in 2004, with a 1.62 ERA and 89 strikeouts over 72 1/3 innings.
He would be essentially the only reliever in the era to challenge Mariano Rivera‘s dominance as the best reliever in the game.
Nathan left the Twins after 2011 season as the all-time saves leader with the Twins. Over 7 season with the Twins, he saved 260 games with a 2.16 ERA, striking out 561 hitters over 463 1/3 innings.
Glen Perkins
Originally a Stillwater graduate, Perkins was the Twins’ 1st round selection in 2004 out of the University of Minnesota. The former Gopher worked his way to the big league club for a pair of late season auditions before spending most of the 2008 season in the rotation.
Perkins would move to the bullpen and return to the Twins in 2011, taking over as one of the few left-handed closers in the league in 2012. He finished his Twins career with 120 saves and a 3.88 ERA over 624 1/3 innings. He made 3 All-Star games.
On Wednesday, to address rumors that he would be retiring that had leaked out, Perkins tweeted this:
Let me address the 🐘 in the room. I won’t be playing baseball anymore. I’ll spend my time brewing beer, smoking meat woodworking and hanging with my family. Or, the same things I have been doing just without the baseball part.
— Glen Perkins (@glenperkins) January 24, 2018
Good luck to you, Perk, in retirement!
Now, to the management who deserve consideration…
Next: Coaches/Managers
Coaches and Managers
The Minnesota Twins have had some of the youngest managers in the history of the game. The team has built up tremendous loyalty with its coaching staffs and managers over the years, having many coaches stay on through multiple managers.
Ron Gardenhire
A long-time coach with the Minnesota Twins, Gardenhire took over the reins for the Twins in 2002. Gardenhire had a .507 winning percentage as a manager from 2002 to 2014.
Gardenhire was the AL Manager of the Year Award in 2010 and he finished as the runner-up for the award five other times and third one time as well. He won 6 American League Central division championships over his career.
Only Gardenhire and Tom Kelly have eclipsed 1,000 wins as a manager for the Minnesota Twins.
Rick Stelmaszek
Sadly, in 2017, the Minnesota Twins organization lost Rick Stelmaszek as he passed away November 6th. He spent 32 seasons with the Twins organization as a coach.
Stelly’s 32 seasons with the club are the third-most consecutive seasons served with one organization as a coach, and is the most seasons served as a coach in the organization’s history. He served under 5 different managers.
Stelly’s passing led to this tremendous tweet from Glen Perkins:
My Grandpa taught me to throw lefty. Todd Oakes taught me how to be a man. Stelly taught me how to be a pro. Cancer took all 3. FU Cancer.
— Glen Perkins (@glenperkins) November 7, 2017
Wayne Terwilliger
A WWII veteran that played 9 seasons in the major leagues, Wayne Terwilliger was a veteran coach by the time he joined manager Ray Miller‘s staff in 1986. He was the first-base coach for the Minnesota Twins from 1986-1994, striking a notable image at the first base bag in that time.
Terwilliger stayed in the Twins Cities area, managing the St. Paul Saints from 1995-2002. He’s still kicking at 92 years young!
Next: Team Staff
Front Office staff and other Twins staff
Sadly, 2017 reminded the team that waiting to honor those who may not have direct on field responsibilities could mean that those persons are not able to be honored while alive as two of the best people in the organization were lost in 2017. They’re among the four we’ll look at here.
Dick Bremer
Originally from Minnesota, Bremer graduated from St. Cloud State University in 1978. He broadcast his first Minnesota Twins game in 1983, and has been broadcasting the team ever since.
Bremer was honored in 2013 with induction to the Minnesota Broadcasting Hall of Fame, and he would be a more-than-worthy selection for the Twins Hall of Fame as well.
Peg Imhoff
Known well by any member of the media that covered the Minnesota Twins, Margaret “Peg” Imhoff had the title as Press Box Ambassador, hired as the first in the position when the team was still at Metropolitan Stadium, and continuing to the Metrodome and Target Field.
She was known around the league for the way she treated everyone that covered games in Minnesota. She was 79 years old.
Terry Ryan
Terry Ryan was hired as the Minnesota Twins scouting director in 1986, moving his way up to Andy MacPhail’s right hand man until MacPhail left in 1994, when Ryan was chosen to take his place.
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Ryan was put into the position of having to trade off a number of veterans in 1995 and botched the signing of top draft pick Travis Lee in 1996, putting him on the bad side of Minnesota Twins fans early in his career.
However, Ryan unloaded more veterans over the next couple of seasons and got very good returns to build the teams that would eventually return the Twins to competitiveness in 2002.
Ryan stepped down after 2007, but he did return for the 2012 season as GM before being fired in 2016 with 17 1/2 seasons as the Minnesota Twins’ general manager.
Jim Wiesner
On May 30th of 2017, the Twins organization lost Jim Wiesner who had been employed by the Minnesota Twins for 37 years as the clubhouse attendant and equipment manager. Wiesner absolutely loved the game and was a bright spot in the clubhouse for many years.
Next: Is a Dozier extension wise?
Certainly, the Minnesota Twins will not have to worry about years without any players elected, as they had in 2014 and 2015. It will be interesting to see who follows Johan Santana’s 2018 class in the 2019 class!