Minnesota Twins: The Top 5 Centerfielders in Franchise History
As the Minnesota Twins coming up on their 120th season, we look back at the five best centerfielders in franchise history.
The Minnesota Twins are one of the oldest franchises in baseball, dating back to 1901, when they were the league bottom-dweller known as the Washington Senators. Since that time, the team has won three championships, six pennants, and eleven division titles.
It has also suffered through seven 100+ loss seasons, fourteen playoff defeats, and have lost over 1100 games to the New York Yankees. The team has had some really good seasons, and some really bad seasons. Throughout it all, there have been some excellent players who have carried the team.
These excellent players deserve some recognition , so Puckett’s Pond will be putting together a list of the top players at each position to get ready for the top 50 players of all time. In order to make it on this list, players need to have played over 400 games, been excellent on offense and defense, and played an important role for the team.
The next position on the list is centerfield, featuring one of the top three Twins players in franchise history. This group is a little top heavy, but that top features some absolute stars, and if you’re looking for Byron buxton, he misses this list by seven games. As always, we’ll start with the honorable mentions.
Honorable Mentions
Minnesota Twins’ Jimmie Hall
Years with the Minnesota Twins: 1963-1966 (4 Seasons)
Key Stats with the Minnesota Twins: 573 G, 507 H, 282 R, 98 HR, 288 RBI, 23 SB, 191 BB, .269 BA, 14.8 WAR, 1.4 dWAR, One Top-25 MVP Finish, Two Time All-Star, 1965 AL Pennant
One of the members of the 1965 American League Pennant-winning team, Jimmie Hall is one of the few players on any of these lists to only play four seasons with the Twins. Hall was a very solid centerfielder, finishing with a 1.4 dWAR over four seasons, but his hitting was his strong suit.
Hall averaged a stat line of a .269 BA, 24 HR, and 72 RBI per season over his time with the Twins and earned a career WAR of 14.8. He was named an All-Star twice in four seasons, but he was traded away after falling off in the fourth season. Hall’s biggest struggle was his inability to hit lefties, leading to his trade and keeping him off this list.
Minnesota Twins’ Larry Hisle
Years with the Minnesota Twins: 1973-1977 (5 Seasons)
Key Stats with the Minnesota Twins: 662 G, 697 H, 369 R, 87 HR, 409 RBI, 92 SB, 251 BB, .286 BA, 17.2 WAR, -1.9 dWAR, One Top-25 MVP Finishes, One Time All-Star
Larry Hisle could be listed as either a left fielder or centerfielder for these lists, but he played a little more in centerfield so he lands here. Hisle was a tremendous hitter over his time with the Twins, hitting a solid .286 with 87 homers and 409 RBI.
Hisle was a very well-rounded player who helped the team stay competitive during a seventeen season playoff drought, playing in the all-star game once and compiling a 17.2 WAR throughout his career. His slightly below average defense is all that holds him off this list.
No. 5: Minnesota Twins’ Denard Span
Years with the Minnesota Twins: 2008-2012 (5 Seasons)
Key Stats with the Minnesota Twins: 589 G, 669 H, 360 R, 23 HR, 230 RBI, 90 SB, .284 BA, 17.2 WAR, 4.6 dWAR
As I said earlier, it’s a top-heavy group of centerfielders. Denard Span makes this list as the second-greatest defender at the centerfield position in Minnesota Twins history (Again, give Buxton seven more games). Span finished his time in Minnesota with a 4.6 dWAR, the twenty-fifth best number after only five seasons.
Defense wasn’t his only strong suit. Span also had tremendous speed, swiping ninety bags and scoring 360 runs while splitting leadoff duties with Ben Revere. Span hit the ball well too, earning a .284 batting average, a very solid number for a glove first outfielder.
Though he didn’t hit for a lot of power, he was a fan favorite during his short time with the team, as he was a lone bright spot on a team that lost 195 games over his last two seasons with the team. Twins fans needed someone to make the team worth watching, and Span was it.
Span finished his five seasons with the Twins with a WAR of 17.2, a very good mark for a five-year span. His excellent defense and lovable personality made him a fan favorite in Minnesota, and his trade away saddened many fans. However, all the value he provided earns him the fifth spot on this list.
No. 4: Minnesota Twins’ César Tovar
Years with the Minnesota Twins: 1965-1972 (8 Seasons)
Key Stats with the Minnesota Twins: 1090 G, 1164 H, 646 R, 38 HR, 319 RBI, 186 SB, 299 BB, .281 BA, 25.9 WAR, 3.3 dWAR, Five Top-25 MVP Finishes, 1965 Pennant
César Tovar was the greatest Swiss Army Knife player in Minnesota Twins history. Tovar could play every single position, and could play each one pretty well. In 1968, Tovar played all nine positions in one game, becoming only the second player in Major League baseball history to do so.
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He played primarily center field over his time in Minnesota and left town with a 3.3 dWAR showing his defensive strength. His 25.9 WAR (twenty-second in team history) and his five top-25 MVP finishes show how valuable he was to the team.
He was solid on offense too. Tovar wound up with a .281 batting average and earned 186 steals over his eight seasons, with the steals placing him seventh in team history. He often was the leadoff man for the team, helping him score 646 runs, twenty-fourth in team history.
Tovar’s top season came in 1970. He led the league in doubles, triples, while hitting .300 and stealing thirty bases. Tovar helped the team win the American League West in back-to-back years in 1969 and 1970 and helped the team win the 1965 American League pennant, so his value is to the franchise is huge.
No. 3: Washington Senators’ Clyde “Deerfoot” Milan
Years with the Washington Senators: 1907-1922 (16 Seasons)
Key Stats with the Washington Senators: 1982 G, 2100 H, 1004 R, 17 HR, 617 RBI, 495 SB, 685 BB, .285 BA, 40.0 WAR, -5.7 dWAR, Four Top-25 MVP Finishes
Many people have not heard of Clyde “Deerfoot” Milan, but it’s time people know. Deerfoot earned his nickname from his ability to run, and he showcased it better than anyone over his sixteen seasons in major league baseball, all with the Senators.
Milan stole 495 bases, most in team history by a whopping 149 steals. It places him fortieth in MLB history and he was in the top ten when he retired. He was renowned for getting on base and making pitchers pay with his speed.
Over his sixteen seasons he hit for .285 batting average and finished with 2,100 hits, fifth all time, and despite being the leadoff man almost every single year, Milan has tallied up a respectable 617 RBI and 685 walks, helping him build his 40.0 career WAR.
Deerfoot’s speed helped him reach 1004 runs as well, seventh in franchise history, but it didn’t help with his defense. Milan’s only negative while playing was that defense. He finished his career with a -5.7 dWAR and a .953 fielding percentage, which is a really poor grade for an outfielder.
The main reason Milan isn’t higher on this list is because his team never played very well. The Senators were the joke of the league, finishing seventeen games out of first place thirteen out of the sixteen seasons Milan was on the team, keeping Milan in third place on the list.
No. 2: Minnesota Twins’ Torii Hunter
Years with the Minnesota Twins: 1997-2007, 2015 (12 Seasons)
Key Stats with the Minnesota Twins: 1373 G, 1343 H, 739 R, 214 HR, 792 RBI, 128 SB, 354 BB, .268 BA, 26.4 WAR, 6.2 dWAR, Three Top-25 MVP Finishes, Two-Time All-Star, 7 Gold Gloves
Torii Hunter‘s stat line isn’t as good as Milan’s but his time in a Minnesota Twins uniform meant more than almost any other player. That isn’t to say that Hunter wasn’t an offensive star, because he absolutely was.
Hunter played 1,373 games and racked up 1,343 hits en route to a .268 batting average, solid numbers over twelve seasons. He could hit for power too hitting 214 homers put him in sixth place in franchise history and his 792 RBI rate him thirteenth.
When he retired from baseball in 2015 he had a 26.4 WAR, Three Top-25 MVP finishes, and two All-Star nods, and had helped the Twins reach the postseason four times with his stellar play. He grades out as the best defensive centerfielder in team history as well (give Buxton some time) with a dWAR of 6.2 and a stellar SEVEN Gold Glove awards.
Hunter’s best attribute wasn’t his defense, but what he meant to the fans. He was the superstar of the Twins when they needed a star most, when the team was facing the dreaded contraction. His return in 2015 was excellent as well, helping make a losing team watchable before he joined the front office.
Hunter helped the team come out of one of the worst periods in franchise history, and led the team with his winning smile. Torii Hunter is an essential piece of the Minnesota Twins, and one of the two players that define the Twins in the 2000s. This helps lift Hunter into the number two spot on this list.
No. 1: Minnesota Twins’ Kirby Puckett
Years with the Minnesota Twins: 1984-1995 (12 Seasons)
Key Stats with the Minnesota Twins: 1783 G, 2307 H, 1071 R, 207 HR, 1085 RBI, 134 SB, 450 BB, .318 BA, 51.1 WAR, Nine Top-25 MVP Finishes, Ten Time All-Star, Six Gold Gloves, Six Silver Slugger Awards, 1987 and 1991 World Series, Hall of Fame
Ignore the stats for a second. Kirby Puckett‘s value to the team alone; the memories he created for Twins’ fans, the moments that the Twins will never forget, and the incredible championships the team won. Puckett is by far the most valuable Twin of all time.
Now to those stats: Puckett played twelve seasons, but ran up the numbers over that time. Puckett was an expert at making contact, amassing 2,307 hits and a .318 BA, ranking second in hits and fifth in batting average.
He could hit for power too, mashing 207 homers (seventh in team history) and scored a lot as well, scoring 1071 runs (fourth) and knocking in 1085 RBI (third). To add to that, Puckett stole 134 bases (thirteenth), averaging ten a season, and earned six Gold Gloves for his phenomenal defense, all adding up to his career war of 51.1, fifth in team history (the top four played longer).
All told, in addition to those six Gold gloves, Puckett racked up a lot of a hardware. He finished in the Top-25 of MVP voting nine times (first in franchise history), played in ten All-Star Games (first), won six Silver Slugger awards (first), and won two World Series (tied for first) before becoming one of two players (along with Rod Carew) to become first ballot Hall of Fame members as a Twin.
Kirby Puckett, or Puck as he was affectionately known, set the bar for what it meant to be a Twins player, and no player (Joe Mauer has come the closest) has met that bar since. The Twins playoff hero is the No. 1 centerfielder in Minnesota Twins history. His career may have ended prematurely, but his memory will live on.
Here are a couple videos to remind you of the greatness of Kirby Puckett:
The Greatest Call in Team History:
"And we'll see you tomorrow night!" -Jack Buck 10/26/91 #OTD #MNTwins https://t.co/X14796W2Pv
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) October 26, 2018
The Legend of Kirby Puckett
Next. Minnesota Twins: The Top 5 Left Fielders in Franchise History. dark