1988 Minnesota Twins
91-71, second in the AL Western Division
Major League affiliations
American League (since 1901)
Western Division (since 1969)
Location
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (since 1982)
Minneapolis, Minnesota (since 1961)
Other information
Owner(s)	Carl Pohlad
General manager(s)	Andy MacPhail
Manager(s)	Tom Kelly
Local television	KMSP-TV (Jim Kaat, Ted Robinson) Twinsvision (Dick Bremer, Harmon Killebrew)
Local radio	830 WCCO AM (Herb Carneal, John Gordon)
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The 1988 Minnesota Twins finished a 91-71, second in the AL West. 3,030,672 fans attended Twins games, at the time, establishing a new major league record. Pitcher Allan Anderson had his most successful season in 1988, winning the American League ERA title at 2.45 and compiling a record of 16-9 in 30 starts.

Offseason[edit]

• November 7, 1987: Eric Bullock was signed as a free agent by the Twins.^[1]
• December 21, 1987: Don Baylor was released by the Twins.^[2]
• December 21, 1987: Dan Schatzeder was released by the Twins.^[3]
• December 21, 1987: Mike Smithson was released by the Twins.^[4]
• January 1988: Vic Rodriguez was signed as a free agent by the Twins.^[5]
• January 4, 1988: Brian Harper was signed as a free agent by the Twins.^[6]
• March 18, 1988: Sal Butera was released by the Twins.^[7]
• March 24, 1988: Billy Beane was traded by the Twins to the Detroit Tigers for Balvino Gálvez.^[8]

Regular season[edit]

Five Twins made the All-Star Game, third baseman Gary Gaetti, outfielder Kirby Puckett, catcher Tim Laudner, starting pitcher Frank Viola, and relief pitcher Jeff Reardon.

Frank Viola became the first Twins since Jim Perry in 1970 to with the AL Cy Young Award.

Offense[edit]

Kirby Puckett hit .356 with 24 HR drove in 121 runs and scored 109. Puckett led the AL with 234 hits, 163 singles, and 358 total bases. Puckett’s 234 hits were the most by a right-handed batter since Joe Medwick had 237 hits in 1937.

Kent Hrbek hit .312 with 25 HR and 76 RBI. Gary Gaetti hit .301 with 28 HR and 88 RBI.

Team Leaders

Statistic	Player	Quantity
HR	Gary Gaetti	28
RBI	Kirby Puckett	121
BA	Kirby Puckett	.356
Runs	Kirby Puckett	109

Pitching[edit]

The Twins had two solid starting pitchers: Frank Viola (24-7), and Allan Anderson (16-9). Frank Viola led the AL with 24 wins. Allan Anderson led the AL with a 2.45 ERA. Reliever Jeff Reardon had 42 saves. Bert Blyleven (10-17, 5.43 ERA) led the AL with 17 losses, 125 earned runs allowed, and 16 hit batsmen.

Team Leaders

Statistic	Player	Quantity
ERA	Allan Anderson	2.45*
Wins	Frank Viola	24*
Saves	Jeff Reardon	42
Strikeouts	Frank Viola	193

*League leader

Defense[edit]

Third baseman Gary Gaetti and center fielder Kirby Puckett each won their third Gold Glove Award.

Season standings[edit]

AL West	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Oakland Athletics	104	58	0.642	—	54–27	50–31
Minnesota Twins	91	71	0.562	13	47–34	44–37
Kansas City Royals	84	77	0.522	19½	44–36	40–41
California Angels	75	87	0.463	29	35–46	40–41
Chicago White Sox	71	90	0.441	32½	40–41	31–49
Texas Rangers	70	91	0.435	33½	38–43	32–48
Seattle Mariners	68	93	0.422	35½	37–44	31–49

Record vs. opponents[edit]

1988 American League Records Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
Team	BAL	BOS	CAL	CWS	CLE	DET	KC	MIL	MIN	NYY	OAK	SEA	TEX	TOR
Baltimore	—	4–9	5–7	4–7	4–9	5–8	0–12	4–9	3–9	3–10	4–8	7–5	6–6	5–8
Boston	9–4	—	8–4	7–5	8–5	6–7	6–6	10–3	7–5	9–4	3–9	6–6	8–4	2–11
California	7–5	4–8	—	9–4	8–4	5–7	5–8	3–9	4–9	6–6	4–9	6–7	8–5	6–6
Chicago	7–4	5–7	4–9	—	3–9	3–9	7–6	6–6	4–9	3–9	5–8	9–4	8–5	7–5
Cleveland	9–4	5–8	4–8	9–3	—	4–9	6–6	9–4	5–7	6–7	4–8	5–7	6–6	6–7
Detroit	8–5	7–6	7–5	9–3	9–4	—	8–4	5–8	1–11	8–5	4–8	9–3	8–4	5–8
Kansas City	12–0	6–6	8–5	6–7	6–6	4–8	—	3–9	7–6	6–6	8–5	7–5	7–6	4–8
Milwaukee	9–4	3–10	9–3	6–6	4–9	8–5	9–3	—	7–5	6–7	3–9	8–4	8–4	7–6
Minnesota	9–3	5–7	9–4	9–4	7–5	11–1	6–7	5–7	—	3–9	5–8	8–5	7–6	7–5
New York	10–3	4–9	6–6	9–3	7–6	5–8	6–6	7–6	9–3	—	6–6	5–7	5–6	6–7
Oakland	8–4	9–3	9–4	8–5	8–4	8–4	5–8	9–3	8–5	6–6	—	9–4	8–5	9–3
Seattle	5–7	6–6	7–6	4–9	7–5	3–9	5–7	4–8	5–8	7–5	4–9	—	6–7	5–7
Texas	6–6	4–8	5–8	5–8	6–6	4–8	6–7	4–8	6–7	6–5	5–8	7–6	—	6–6
Toronto	8–5	11–2	6–6	5–7	7–6	8–5	8–4	6–7	5–7	7–6	3–9	7–5	6–6	—

Roster[edit]

1988 Minnesota Twins
Roster
Pitchers 49 Allan Anderson 22 Keith Atherton 40 Juan Berenguer 38 Karl Best 28 Bert Blyleven 38 Steve Carlton 46 Germán González 53 Charlie Lea 57 Tippy Martinez 20 Mike Mason 36 Joe Niekro 19 Mark Portugal 41 Jeff Reardon 31 Dan Schatzeder 23 Roy Smith 17 Les Straker 31 Freddie Toliver 16 Frank Viola 48 Jim Winn		Catchers 12 Brian Harper 15 Tim Laudner 39 Dwight Lowry 11 Tom Nieto Infielders 21 Doug Baker  8 Gary Gaetti  7 Greg Gagne 18,33 Tom Herr 14 Kent Hrbek  9 Gene Larkin  4 Steve Lombardozzi 26 Al Newman 18 Kelvin Torve		Outfielders 24 Tom Brunansky 36 Eric Bullock 25 Randy Bush 20 John Christensen 27 Mark Davidson  5 Jim Dwyer 32 Dan Gladden  1 John Moses 34 Kirby Puckett		Manager 10 Tom Kelly Coaches  6 Tony Oliva 44 Rick Renick 43 Rick Stelmaszek 42 Dick Such 45 Wayne Terwilliger

Notable transactions[edit]

• April 5, 1988: John Moses was signed as a free agent by the Twins.^[9]
• April 22, 1988: The Twins trade outfielder Tom Brunansky for Cardinals second baseman Tom Herr.<
• May 28, 1988: John Christensen was signed as a free agent by the Twins.^[10]
• June 27, 1988: Dan Schatzeder was signed as a free agent by the Twins.^[3]

Notable games[edit]

• September 17: Jeff Reardon becomes the first pitcher in baseball history to record 40 saves in both leagues in a 3-1 win versus the White Sox.^[11]

Player stats[edit]

Batting[edit]

Starters by position[edit]

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting Average; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In

Pos	Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
C	Laudner, TimTim Laudner	117	375	94	.251	13	54
3B	Gaetti, GaryGary Gaetti	133	468	141	.301	28	88
CF	Puckett, KirbyKirby Puckett	158	657	234	.356	24	121

Other batters[edit]

Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
Harper, BrianBrian Harper	60	166	49	.295	3	20
Christensen, JohnJohn Christensen	23	38	10	.263	0	5
Bullock, EricEric Bullock	16	17	5	.294	0	3

Pitching[edit]

Starting pitchers[edit]

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO

Other pitchers[edit]

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Smith, RoyRoy Smith	9	37	3	0	2.68	17

Relief pitchers[edit]

Player	G	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Schatzeder, DanDan Schatzeder	10	0	1	0	1.74	7

Awards and honors[edit]

• Gary Gaetti, Third Baseman, Gold Glove Award
• Kirby Puckett, Centerfield, Gold Glove Award
• Kirby Puckett – American League Leader At-Bats (657)
• Kirby Puckett – American League Leader Hits (234)
• Kirby Puckett – American League Leader Singles (163)
• Kirby Puckett – Major League Baseball Leader Total Bases (358)

All-Star Game

• Gary Gaetti, Third Base, Reserve
• Tim Laudner, Catcher, Reserve
• Kirby Puckett, Outfield, Reserve
• Jeff Reardon, Relief Pitcher, Reserve
• Frank Viola, Pitcher, Starter

Farm system[edit]

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Portland Beavers	Pacific Coast League	Jim Mahoney and Jim Shellenback
AA	Orlando Twins	Southern League	Duane Gustavson
A	Visalia Oaks	California League	Scott Ullger
A	Kenosha Twins	Midwest League	Ron Gardenhire
Rookie	Elizabethton Twins	Appalachian League	Ray Smith

^[12]

References[edit]

1. ^ Eric Bullock page at Baseball Reference
2. ^ Don Baylor page at Baseball Reference
3. ^ ^{a b} Dan Schatzeder page at Baseball Reference
4. ^ Mike Smithson page at Baseball Reference
5. ^ Vic Rodriguez page at Baseball Reference
6. ^ Brian Harper page at Baseball Reference
7. ^ Sal Butera page at Baseball Reference
8. ^ Billy Beane page at Baseball Reference
9. ^ John Moses page at Baseball Reference
10. ^ John Christensen page at Baseball Reference
11. ^ "Reardon reaches major milestone." Gainesville Sun. 1988 Sept 18.
12. ^ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 2nd and 3rd editions. Durham, N.C.: Baseball America, 1997 and 2007

External links[edit]

• Player stats from www.baseball-reference.com
• Team info from www.baseball-almanac.com

1988 MLB season by team AL East Baltimore Boston Cleveland Detroit Milwaukee New York Toronto AL West California Chicago Kansas City Minnesota Oakland Seattle Texas NL East Chicago Montréal New York Philadelphia Pittsburgh St. Louis NL West Atlanta Cincinnati Houston Los Angeles San Diego San Francisco 1988 All-Star Game 1988 World Series

Minnesota Twins Formerly the Washington Nationals and the Washington Senators Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota (Twin Cities) Franchise Franchise history in Washington Seasons Records No-hitters Players Managers Owners and executives Broadcasters First-round draft picks Opening Day starting pitchers Ballparks American League Park National Park Griffith Stadium Metropolitan Stadium Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Target Field Spring Training: Plant Field Tinker Field Hammond Stadium Culture Homer Hanky Little Big League Major League: Back to the Minors Continental League "The Piranhas" AL Central tie-breaker games 2008 2009 Damn Yankees musical film The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant Important figures Senators Hall of Famers Herb Carneal Goose Goslin Bucky Harris Walter Johnson Arch McDonald Sam Rice Wall of Fame members Rick Aguilera Bob Allison Earl Battey Bert Blyleven George Brophy Rod Carew Bob Casey Gary Gaetti Calvin Griffith Kent Hrbek Jim Kaat Tom Kelly Harmon Killebrew Tony Oliva Carl Pohlad Kirby Puckett Brad Radke Jim Rantz Zoilo Versalles Frank Viola World Series Championships (3) 1924 1987 1991 Pennants (6) American League: 1924 1925 1933 1965 1987 1991 Division titles (10) West 1969 1970 1987 1991 Central 2002 2003 2004 2006 2009 2010   Seasons (116) 1900s 1900 . 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910s 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920s 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930s 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940s 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950s 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960s 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970s 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980s 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990s 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000s 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010s 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016