In 1961, the Washington Senators loaded up their Chevy C/K’s, drove west and settled in Minnesota. Since then, the Twins have been fortunate to field some of the best baseball players of all time. MVPs, CY Young winners, Gold Glovers and Hall of Famers have called Minnesota their home.

Twins’ all-time leaders in OPS with runners in scoring position:
.966 Harmon Killebrew
.936 Joe Mauer
.884 Rod Carew
.879 Kirby Puckett

— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) April 27, 2016

Have you ever wondered what it would be like having Kent Hrbek on deck while Harmon Killebrew is in the batter’s box? Or having Kirby Puckett throw a guy out at home with Joe Mauer applying the tag? This is always a fun game to play at the house, your local bar or at Target Field. Who would be on the Twins’ “All-Franchise Team.”

Depending on who you’re talking to, you’ll either agree, argue or combine your favorite Twins players in a fantasy lineup that would only happen in a video game. I’ve done it and I’m here to help you settle a few of those debates.

First, let me set a few ground rules. You can only choose Minnesota Twins players who spent a good chunk of their career playing in the land of 10,000 lakes. Yes, one or two players may have had a rough year where they had a slump or missed part of the season due to injury. Sorry Washington Senators fans, Twins players only.

After pondering about all of the great Twins players, I decided that this would be the perfect Minnesota Twins 25 man roster.

Pitching

SP Johan Santana        RP Eddie Guardado 
SP Bert Blyleven*        RP Glen Perkins
SP Camilo Pascual       RP Carl Willis
SP Jim Kaat                  RP Matt Guerrier
SP Jim Perry                 CL Rick Aguilera
SP Dave Boswell          CL Joe Nathan

This pitching staff would be a very tough one to score on.. especially in a seven game series. 

Now onto the sluggers and fielders.

Here’s how I would hand in the lineup card. 

1. Rod Carew* – 2B
2. Tony Oliva * – RF 
3. Kirby Puckett * – CF
4. Harmon Killebrew* – DH
5. Kent Hrbek * – 1B
6. Bob Allison – LF
7. Joe Mauer* – C
8. Gary Gaetti – 3B
9. Zoilo Versalles – SS 

Bench

Torii Hunter – OF
Justin Morneau – 1B
Brian Dozier – IF
Earl Battey – C
Tom Kelly* – Manager

Honorable Mentions

Michael Cuddyer – IF/OF
Brad Radke – P
Brian Harper – C
Greg Gagne – IF 

*Jersey number retired by the Twins

Yours is going to look different than mine, I get it. That’s what makes the conversation fun. Leave a comment or tweet me. Who would you swap out? Next time you’re watching a Twins game, current or classic, ask a friend or family member who they would have on the Twins All-Time roster. You’ll already be a step ahead of them, if it turns into an argument. 

Tweet me your thoughts @SkolMemes

Gene LaVoy | Minnesota Sports Fan

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Talk about an emotional rollercoaster, am I right? With all due respect, Valleyfair has nothing on the ups-and-downs associated with this bizarre “Circle Me Bert” situation.

In similar fashion to many of today’s news-related whirlwinds, the reports regarding the demise of Bert Blyleven’s on-air shtick began with a Tweet:

Just informed by FSN that there will be no more “Circle Me Bert” and Minnesota Lottery winners for this coming season. I want to thank all the fans that made signs over the past 15+ seasons. Doesn’t mean you can’t still bring signs! Go Twins ?⚾

— Bert Blyleven (@BertBlyleven28) March 27, 2018

Once the Hall of Famer released the above information, initial indications were that the fan-favorite tradition was as good as gone. That bombshell, to say the least, was a tough pill to swallow. While many Minnesotans reacted in anger, I went straight to the grieving process:

“You are hereby circled.” pic.twitter.com/nGzAyVo9c4

— Johnny Minnesota (@TheJohnnyMN) March 28, 2018

During said process, I came across the origins of the “Circle Me Bert” phenomenon. According to Blyleven, the long tenured gesture dates back to the 2002 season. That’s when his employer, Fox Sports North (“FSN“), first armed the former big leaguer with a Telestrator. From there, with a “heavy-set individual” as his motivation, Bert went ahead and circled the big fella:

Previously, this article mentioned that many Minnesotan’s (for sure those Detroit Lakes’ Natives) reacted to Blyleven’s Tweet with anger. As for all of those individuals; you are hereby circled appreciated. In the midst of the aggressive (mostly passive) kick-back, FSN released this game-changing information:

“Circle Me Bert” started as an organic on-air element and is not going away. It will continue in its original form. @BertBlyleven28 will continue to circle fans on TV. The “Winners Circle” concept by @MNLottery – separate from “Circle Me Bert”- is evolving to include more fans.

— FOX Sports North (@fsnorth) March 28, 2018

Bada-bing, bada-boom. Like they say, legends never die.

First of all, f*ck yes! Who cares that it will no longer be linked to the “Winners Circle?” The important thing is that “Circle Me Bert” is back, baby! On the surface, this looked like a fan-ignited resurgence, that’s not the case. While all of the backlash appears to have generated a quicker response, APPARENTLY, the confusing scenario was a “misunderstanding.“

I misunderstood, Circle ⭕ Me Bert on @fsnorth is NOT going away. The @mnlottery Winner’s Circle element is changing to include even more fans. ?⚾⭕

— Bert Blyleven (@BertBlyleven28) March 28, 2018

Okay. I’m still not sold that this wasn’t one big publicity stunt (stay woke), but whatever. With confirmation that “Circle Me Bert” isn’t going anywhere, my conspiracy theory is irrelevant. Rather than stir that pot, let’s just assume this was all an accident. I mean, it wouldn’t be the network’s first mistake:

FSN is probably just relieved that there were no f bombs involved pic.twitter.com/hXIiPJjMrk

— Johnny Minnesota (@TheJohnnyMN) March 28, 2018

Johnny Minnesota @TheJohnnyMN
Minnesota Sports Fan MinnesotaSportsFan.com