Minnesota Twins: Ranking the Top 10 Teams in Franchise History
Honorable Mentions
1969 Twins (97-65): In 1969, the Twins finished with fourth-best record in club history, Harmon Killebrew won MVP and sent four players to the All-Star Game. In the end, however, it wouldn’t matter, as the team was stamped out in the first round of the playoffs in three straight games by the Baltimore Orioles.
2004 Twins (92-70): This team, also known as the last Twins team to win a playoff game, featured Johan Santana in the middle of his prime. Santana won the Cy Young and had arguably the best season of his career, finishing within one win of the Pitching Triple Crown and 6th in MVP voting. The team eventually lost in the American League Division Series to the Yankees in 4 games.
2010 Twins (94-68): Coming off of Joe Mauer‘s MVP season, the Twins were considered favorites to win the World Series. Those dreams were never realized and though Ron Gardenhire won Manager of the Year and the Twins featured two all-stars, the team was swept out of the playoffs by the Yankees once again.
10. 2002 Minnesota Twins (94-67):
Coming into the 2002 season, it was uncertain if there would even be baseball in Minnesota. With the team stuck in the Metrodome and no solution for a new ballpark in place, the team was rumored to be put up for contraction by owner Carl Pohlad. Those plans never came to fruition and after a 16-game improvement the season before, this team had high aspirations.
The team, fronted by All-Stars Torii Hunter, Eddie Guardado, and A.J. Pierzynski ran through a weak American League Central, but Jacque Jones may have been the real team MVP, batting .300 and hitting 27 home runs.
Once they made the playoffs, the team beat the 103-win ‘Moneyball’ Oakland Athletics in the ALDS, marking the first (and only) series win of the decade. The Twins then ran into the red-hot and eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Angels where their lack of pitching was exposed. Minnesota lost in five games, ending their season and keeping them at #10 on the list.
9. 1970 Minnesota Twins (98-64)
The 1970 Twins, similar to the 1969 team, were attempting to break through an era dominated by the Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, and Oakland Athletics. Those three teams made the World Series a combined nine times from 1969-1979, making it nearly impossible to capture the American League pennant.
The team was still very talented, however, and cruised into the playoffs behind Cy Young Winner Jim Perry and 3 other All-Stars (Perry, Rod Carew, and Tony Oliva), finishing with the third-best record in team history.
The team was best known for its’ dominant rotation, featuring Perry, Jim Kaat, and future Hall-of-Famer Bert Blyleven, but had capable hitters as well, with Oliva, Cesar Tovar, and an aging Harmon Killebrew leading a solid offense.
Because this was the 70’s however, the team once again faltered in the playoffs, getting swept by the Orioles in the first round, just as the 1969 team had the year prior. The failure to put together a solid postseason holds this team back in the rankings.
8. 2006 Minnesota Twins (96-67)
The 2006 Twins team had the best pitcher and hitter in the MLB, with Justin Morneau taking home MVP and Johan Santana winning Cy Young the pitching triple crown in the American League. In addition to the two top players in the league, the roster had three All-Stars: Santana, Francisco Liriano, and Joe Mauer.
Morneau, Liriano, and Santana all had the best seasons of their career, combining for a 16.5 WAR. Mauer was once again the best catcher in the league and Joe Nathan went 7-0 with 36 saves. The team looked absolutely dominant all season and edged out a 95-win Tigers team (that would go on to the World Series) to steal the division.
This star-studded team looked like a trendy World Series pick when the playoffs arrived, but wilted in the ALDS and were swept by the Oakland Athletics. The loss to the A’s team was really disheartening, and the Twins would miss the playoffs the next two seasons. Despite being more talented than some of the other teams ahead of them, this team’s playoff failure keeps them lower in the rankings.
7. 2019 Minnesota Twins (83-52)
This year’s Twins team has dominated opponents through most of the year, powering its’ way to the MLB home run record, with nine players likely to finish with 20 or more home runs (the team already has the record of eight players). Brilliant signings such as Nelson Cruz and Marwin Gonzalez gave the team depth and the roster looks built for October.
The team’s starting pitching and bullpen have been good, but not great, so this team isn’t perfect. Watching the major development of players like Max Kepler, Jorge Polanco, Miguel Sano, and Mitch Garver is fun, but how will they do under the bright lights of the playoffs? Will we see ace Berrios and star Odorizzi and Pineda? Or will we see the versions that look like fourth starters?
With so many questions remaining for this year’s team, it’s very hard to properly grade them. The final rank for the 2019 Minnesota Twins will be determined by its postseason play, but for now, the Bomba Squad is well on its way to being one of the all-time franchise greats, as well as one of the most fun teams in recent memory.
6. 1933 Washington Senators (99-53)
The first Senators team on the list, from way back in 1933 (prior to their move to Minnesota) won 99 games and the American League pennant. The team, led by All-Stars Joe Cronin (player-manager) and General Crowder dominated the AL en route to their first pennant in eight years.
The team had a strong team up and down the order, with Heinie Manush and Joe Kuhel each having great years, hitting over .320. Those two players led the squad that had the best team batting average (.287) and scored the third-most runs in all of baseball (793). Their pitching was below average, however, sporting a 4.35 ERA.
The Senators won eight more games than any other team in baseball, but that wouldn’t matter in the World Series, as the team lost to the New York Giants in five games. The Giants’ star aces; Carl “King” Hubbell and Hal “Prince” Schumacher pitched a combined 36 innings (75% of the innings pitched!) and Washington’s lineup was embarrassed on the biggest stage.
Their regular-season performance and a team featuring a couple of Hall of Famers are the only reason they are here. They were great all year, finally ending the stranglehold of the AL by the Yankees and Athletics, but failed to win when it mattered most, forcing them down to sixth on the list.
5. 1987 Minnesota Twins (85-77)
What? The Twins’ title-winning team is only #5?? It’s true. The Twins team that was pure magic in the postseason would have been in third place in almost any other division. The group had an OK regular season because they were just an OK team. The roster was filled with good, but not great players who played really well together at the right time.
Outside of Kirby Puckett, Frank Viola, and Kent Hrbek, no player on the team had all that great of a season, and only Puckett made the All-Star team. Viola was dominant, going 17-10, Hrbek had the second-best season of his career and Kirby was Kirby, hitting .332 and 28 homers. No other Twin had a batting average over .275 (Tom Brunansky and Gary Gaetti combined for 63 home runs, which deserves mention).
That being said, nothing can ever take away the run that brought Minnesota its first professional title. The team was deeper than any other team in the league, with almost every single player on the roster making key contributions. With a seven-game series to rival any in recent memory, the team won a hard-fought game seven to make every Minnesotan jump for joy, and that alone brings this group up to No. 5.
4. 1924 Washington Senators (92-62)
The 1924 Senators won the first pennant in franchise history behind Hall-of-Famers Walter Johnson (considered one of the best pitchers in baseball history), Sam Rice, and a young Goose Gosselin. Johnson won his second MVP and the Pitching Triple Crown, Rice hit .334, and Gosselin hit .344 and had 129 runs batted in (second in the MLB).
This team may not have had an elite record (there wouldn’t be a pennant winner with fewer wins until 1940), but they rode Johnson (also known as the “Big Train”) whenever they could, as the 36-year-old started a league-high 38 games. He went 23-7 and recorded six shoutouts (best in the MLB).
Johnson finished off a dramatic World Series against the New York Giants with the last four innings in the 12 inning Game Seven. The drama-filled win in game seven, the longest in baseball history, gave the franchise their only title in Washington.
This team had the more Hall of Fame players than any other in franchise history, as well as a championship attached to its name, but the second-worst record out of all the teams on this list holds them out of the top three slots.
3. 1925 Washington Senators (96-55)
In 1925, the Senators were fresh off a World Series and brought back the same roster, this time featuring Roger Peckinpaugh as MVP. They were a little deeper this time around, getting much more support from everyone outside of the Big Four of Johnson, Rice, Gosselin, and Peckinpaugh.
The team steamrolled through the AL to a second straight pennant with a roster that included four starters that hit over .310, and all eight hitters hit over .285. Pitching wasn’t a problem for the team either, as the Senators finished second in ERA (3.70) and fourth in strikeouts (463).
The squad built a 3-1 lead in the World Series with Johnson pitching brilliantly in Games 1 and 4, but the team would miss chance after miss chance in the next three games. The season’s MVP, Peckinpaugh struggled throughout, committing a Series record EIGHT errors. The field was a soggy, and fog-filled mess, which didn’t help either.
Eventually, the Senators blew TWO separate four-run leads in the dramatic Game Seven and manager Bucky Harris was famously blamed for the loss as he started Walter Johnson for the third time in the series, and the Big Train struggled mightily. The team hurt themselves time and time again, and their lack of a title forces them down to #3.
2. 1965 Minnesota Twins (102-60)
The Twins team with the best record in franchise history had the most talent up and down the roster of any team in the league. Led by MVP Zoilo Versailles and six All-Stars (Versailles, Harmon Killebrew, Earl Battey, Mudcat Grant, Jimmy Hall, and Tony Oliva), the team crushed the rest of the AL all season.
The Twins had a very strong lineup for the time period, finishing fourth in batting average and second in home runs. The star power of the Twins’ big names helped get a lot more fans interested in the team, which had only been in Minnesota for four years. The starting pitchers for the squad were fantastic, as Grant, Jim Kaat, Jim Perry, and Camilo Pascual all won over 60% of their games and had ERAs under 3.35.
When the World Series arrived, the Twins had the misfortune of lining up against the Sandy Koufax-led Los Angeles Dodgers. The Twins fought hard, pushing the series to seven games, but Koufax pitched a nine-inning shutout, and the Twins lost 2-0.
The team may have lost the World Series, but it won more games than any other in team history, hosted an All-Star Game that featured six Twins, took Sandy Koufax and the Dodgers to seven games and endeared Minnesota fans to the franchise. Still, it wasn’t enough to land the #1 spot.
1. 1991 Minnesota Twins (95-67)
The 1991 Twins were the clear choice for the greatest in franchise history. The team featured Rookie of the Year Chuck Knoblauch, Manager of the Year Tom Kelly, and three All-Stars in Jack Morris, Rick Aguilera, and Kirby Puckett. The team won more games than anyone else in the AL because they were legitimately better than everyone else.
The hitters were dominant. Kent Hrbek hit 20 home runs, Brian Harper hit .311, Knoblauch stole 25 bases, Chili Davis hit 29 homers, Shane Mack hit .310, and Kirby was Kirby hitting .319 with 89 RBIs. The team was deep too, with Gene Larkin, Randy Bush, and Greg Gagne all offering key contributions.
The pitching was even better. Morris went 18-12 with a 3.43 ERA, Kevin Tapani was 16-9 with a 2.99 ERA, and Scott Erickson was 20-8 with a 3.18 ERA, creating a three-headed monster that ate opposing batters alive. Aguilera had a 2.35 ERA and 42 saves and was baseball’s top closer, with Carl Willis and his 2.63 ERA serving as an elite set-up man. The team was unstoppable.
Minnesota stomped the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALCS, winning 4-1. After that came arguably the greatest World Series of all time. The Twins jumped out to a 2-0 series lead before dropping the next three. In Game 6, Minnesota and the Atlanta Braves went ten and a half innings before Kirby Puckett hit the most important home run in team history.
Jack Buck’s legendary call in Game 6 of the 1991 World Series still gives most Minnesota fans goosebumps. Jack Morris went on to pitch a ten-inning complete-game shutout in Game 7 and Gene Larkin walked it off to give the Twins the greatest moment in team history and earn their spot as the greatest team in franchise history.
Next. 5 questions for the Twins heading into September. dark
No other team had a better combination of a great regular season, elite players (including two Hall of Famers in Puckett and Morris), meaningful playoff baseball, and a title to boot. The 1991 Twins made Twins fans feel good and were fun to watch, making them the #1 team in Twins history.