1991 Minnesota Twins season

1991 Minnesota Twins
1991 Minnesota Twins
World Series Champions; American League Champions; American League West Champions
League	American League
Division	West
Ballpark	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
City	Minneapolis
Record	95–67 (.586)
Divisional place	1st
Owners	Carl Pohlad
General managers	Andy MacPhail
Managers	Tom Kelly
Television	WCCO-TV; KITN; Midwest Sports Channel ; (Jim Kaat, Ted Robinson, Dick Bremer)
Radio	830 WCCO AM ; (Herb Carneal, John Gordon)

The 1991 Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball (MLB) won the World Series, the second time the Twins had won the World Series since moving to Minnesota in 1961. At the beginning of June in the 1991 regular season, the Twins had an MLB-leading 15-game win streak, which remains a club record. On June 17, 1991, the streak came to an end at the hands of the Baltimore Orioles (as seen in the movie A Few Good Men) but not before the Twins moved from fifth place to first, a lead they would not relinquish while finishing 95–67, first in the AL West. The Twins' winning streak of 1991 falls just seven games short of the all-time American League (AL) record of 22 consecutive regular season wins set by the Cleveland Indians in 2017.

The Twins' division title was an unprecedented turnaround. In 1990, the team finished last in the division with a 74-88 record. They were the first team to go from a last-place finish to a World Series championship. They and the Atlanta Braves of the same season were the first teams to go from last place to a pennant. The Twins defeated the Braves in seven games in a Series which has been considered one of the best to have ever been played.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]

There was a considerable reshaping of the team in January and February, beginning when third baseman Gary Gaetti left as a free agent on January 25 and signed with the California Angels. Less than 12 hours after Gaetti's departure, the Twins signed free agent Mike Pagliarulo from the New York Yankees as a new third baseman. Two more key free agent signings followed with designated hitter Chili Davis on January 30 and St. Paul native Jack Morris on February 5.^[5] The July 1989 blockbuster trade that sent 1988 AL Cy Young Award winner Frank Viola to the New York Mets in exchange for relief pitchers Rick Aguilera and David West and starter Kevin Tapani proved to be pivotal to the 1991 season. There were only seven players still on the roster from the 1987 World Championship team, none of them pitchers: Randy Bush, Greg Gagne, Dan Gladden, Kent Hrbek, Gene Larkin, Al Newman, and future Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett.^[6] Into this framework, young stars were blended successfully, including Scott Leius to platoon with Pagliarulo at third, Shane Mack in right field, Scott Erickson, a 20-game winner with a 12-game winning streak,^[7] and A.L. Rookie of the Year second baseman Chuck Knoblauch.

2,293,842 fans attended Twins games, the eighth highest total in the American League.

^ Murphy, Brian (April 2001). "Twins' 'Overachiever' Kirby Puckett Gets Call to Glory". Baseball Digest. It was his play in Game 6 of the '91 Series against Atlanta that cemented his legacy in Twin Cities sports history. After robbing the Braves' Ron Gant of a home run in the field, Puckett hit an 11th-inning homer off Charlie Leibrandt to force a seventh game that the Twins eventually won in what some baseball historians consider the greatest World Series ever.
^ Hurst, Matt (October 28, 2011). "World Series 2011: The 5 Best Fall Classic Game 6's Ever". Bleacher Report. Retrieved October 21, 2012. The 1991 World Series is easily the best World Series ever played, with three games being won in the final at-bat and four coming down to the final pitch. Kirby Puckett's heroics in Game 6 allowed the Twins to stay alive and eventually win Game 7.
^ Yellon, Al (October 28, 2011). "The Top 10 World Series Games, Including (Of Course) 2011 Game 6". Baseball Nation. Archived from the original on January 20, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2012. No. 10: 1991 World Series, Game 6: This is the game where Jack Buck exclaimed "And we'll see you tomorrow night!" In addition to Puckett's extra-inning heroics, the Twins' bullpen held the Braves scoreless for the last four innings of the game, allowing just three singles, two of which were erased by double plays.
^ Yellon, Al (October 28, 2011). "The Top 10 World Series Games, Including (Of Course) 2011 Game 6". Baseball Nation. Archived from the original on January 20, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2012. No. 6: 1991 World Series, Game 7: The Senators franchise moved to Minnesota in 1961; 30 years later, the team played two of the most excruciatingly exciting World Series games on consecutive nights. It's the only Series I'm honoring here with a pair of games. This one featured a 10-inning shutout thrown by Minnesota's Jack Morris while the Twins were leaving 12 men on base, finally scoring the game-winner on Gene Larkin's bases-loaded single with one out in the bottom of the 10th.
^ Kelly, Tom; Robinson, Ted (1992). Season of Dreams: The Minnesota Twins' Drive to the 1991 World Championship. Voyageur Pr. pp. 22–26. ISBN 978-0-89658-209-5.
^ Kelly, Tom; Robinson, Ted (1992). Season of Dreams: The Minnesota Twins' Drive to the 1991 World Championship. Voyageur Pr. pp. 121–158. ISBN 978-0-89658-209-5.
^ Kelly, Tom; Robinson, Ted (1992). Season of Dreams: The Minnesota Twins' Drive to the 1991 World Championship. Voyageur Pr. p. 93. ISBN 978-0-89658-209-5.

[1] Murphy, Brian (April 2001). "Twins' 'Overachiever' Kirby Puckett Gets Call to Glory". Baseball Digest. It was his play in Game 6 of the '91 Series against Atlanta that cemented his legacy in Twin Cities sports history. After robbing the Braves' Ron Gant of a home run in the field, Puckett hit an 11th-inning homer off Charlie Leibrandt to force a seventh game that the Twins eventually won in what some baseball historians consider the greatest World Series ever.

[2] Hurst, Matt (October 28, 2011). "World Series 2011: The 5 Best Fall Classic Game 6's Ever". Bleacher Report. Retrieved October 21, 2012. The 1991 World Series is easily the best World Series ever played, with three games being won in the final at-bat and four coming down to the final pitch. Kirby Puckett's heroics in Game 6 allowed the Twins to stay alive and eventually win Game 7.

[3] Yellon, Al (October 28, 2011). "The Top 10 World Series Games, Including (Of Course) 2011 Game 6". Baseball Nation. Archived from the original on January 20, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2012. No. 10: 1991 World Series, Game 6: This is the game where Jack Buck exclaimed "And we'll see you tomorrow night!" In addition to Puckett's extra-inning heroics, the Twins' bullpen held the Braves scoreless for the last four innings of the game, allowing just three singles, two of which were erased by double plays.

[4] Yellon, Al (October 28, 2011). "The Top 10 World Series Games, Including (Of Course) 2011 Game 6". Baseball Nation. Archived from the original on January 20, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2012. No. 6: 1991 World Series, Game 7: The Senators franchise moved to Minnesota in 1961; 30 years later, the team played two of the most excruciatingly exciting World Series games on consecutive nights. It's the only Series I'm honoring here with a pair of games. This one featured a 10-inning shutout thrown by Minnesota's Jack Morris while the Twins were leaving 12 men on base, finally scoring the game-winner on Gene Larkin's bases-loaded single with one out in the bottom of the 10th.

[5] Kelly, Tom; Robinson, Ted (1992). Season of Dreams: The Minnesota Twins' Drive to the 1991 World Championship. Voyageur Pr. pp. 22–26. ISBN 978-0-89658-209-5.

[6] Kelly, Tom; Robinson, Ted (1992). Season of Dreams: The Minnesota Twins' Drive to the 1991 World Championship. Voyageur Pr. pp. 121–158. ISBN 978-0-89658-209-5.

[7] Kelly, Tom; Robinson, Ted (1992). Season of Dreams: The Minnesota Twins' Drive to the 1991 World Championship. Voyageur Pr. p. 93. ISBN 978-0-89658-209-5.

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