When the ALDS begins on Saturday, Minnesota Twins fans will be watching with the sort of excitement that hasn't been felt in years. The dreaded postseason curse is over, but the vibes are more immaculate than simply being happy that the team won a playoff game for the first time in 19 years.
Minnesota did three things in the AL Wild Card series: Ended the 18-game losing streak, won its first playoff series since 2002, and captured the attention of everyone in baseball. The twins didn't just end the streak, they looked really convincingly good while doing it.
Royce Lewis announced himself as a superstar on the rise with his performance, the pitching looked fantastic, and the defense was absolutely stout. Toronto scored just a single run over two games, and everything that usually worked against the Twins broke their way.
The reward is a date with the defending World Series champion Houston Astros, but unlike years past there isn't a sense of impending doom. Minnesota matches up well against Houston, and won the season series 4-2, but have their work cut out as a new chapter for the franchise begins.
MLB Playoffs: FOX announcing crew for Twins-Astros ALDS revealed
With the start of the ALDS right around the corner, the announcing crews for the ALDS and NLDS have been revealed by the respective networks airing the games. The Twins-Astros series will be on FS1 and FOX, along with the other ALDS matchup between Baltimore and Texas.
FOX's top announcing duo of Joe Davis and John Smoltz -- who will call the ALCS and World Series -- will head to Baltimore. Fans in Minnesota will hear Adam Amin and former Twins catcher A.J. Pierzynski on the call, along with Adam Wainwright who is making his debut in the booth in the ALDS.
- Twins vs. Astros: Adam Amin/A.J. Pierzynski/Adam Wainwright/Tom Verducci
- Orioles vs. Rangers: Joe Davis/John Smoltz/Ken Rosenthal
TBS will get the two NLDS matchups, and for those interested here are the announcing crews for those games:
- Braves vs. Phillies: Brian Anderson/Jeff Francoeur/Matt Winer
- Dodgers vs. Diamondbacks: Bob Costas/Ron Darling/Lauren Shehadi
When the NLCS rolls around, TBS will send its top pairing of Anderson and Francoeur out to wherever it takes place.