The 24 best players in Minnesota Twins history

The best player by WAR in the history of the Minnesota Twins franchise is right-hander Walter Johnson, who never actually pitched in Minnesota. The Humboldt, KS native starred for this organization when they were still located in D.C. and known as the Washington Senators, and in his prime there was not a better pitcher in the American League. In 21 seasons with the Senators Johnson earned an outrageous 417 victories, while pitching to a otherworldly 2.17 ERA. He won five ERA titles, won the pitching Triple Crown three times, was named the MVP of the American League in both 1913 and 1924,and led the league in strikeouts 12 times. Johnson hurled 531 complete games during his career--including a Major League record 110 shutouts, and helped the Senators win the World Series in 1924. He was easily elected to the Hall of Fame in 1936, but doesn't have his number retired in Minnesota as the Twins have not done a great job honoring their Washington history. 

Left-handed swinging Rod Carew spent the first 12 seasons of his 19-year Major League career in Minnesota and put together a resume that makes him easily the most accomplished Minnesota Twin ever. In 1,635 games with the organization, Carew slashed .334/.393/.448 with 469 extra-base hits, 733 RBI, and 271 stolen bases. He represented the Twins in the all-star game in all 12 of his years with the club, led the league in hits three times, and won an unbelievable seven batting titles. Carew was the AL Rookie of the Year in 1967, the AL MVP in 1977, and was consistently a nightmare for opposing pitchers for the entirety of his career. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1991, four years after Minnesota officially took his number 29 out of circulation. 

Right-handed swinging Harmon Killebrew is still to this day considered one of the absolute best power hitters in the history of the game, and for two decades the Twins organization was lucky to call him one of their own. The Payette, ID native began his career with the Washington Senators in 1954 and moved with the franchise to Minnesota in '61, and just continually mashed baseballs everywhere he went. In 2,329 games with the franchise, Killebrew slashed .258/.378/.514 with 559 home runs, 1,540 RBI, and 277 doubles. He led the American League in homers an astounding six times and drove in more runs than anybody else on three occasions. He was named MVP of the AL in '69, represented the team in 13 all-star game contests, and had his number 3 retired by the Twins in May 1975. Cooperstown came calling nine years later. 

The Twins selected local kid Joe Mauer first overall in the 2001 draft, and in short order he'd become one of the most accomplished players in club history. During his prime Mauer was easily the best catcher in baseball, and Minnesota was thrilled to have him in their uniform for the entirety of his 15-year Major League career. In 1,858 big league games Mauer slashed .306/.388/.439 with 501 extra-base hits and 923 RBI. He was named the MVP of the American League in 2009, won three batting titles, earned entry to six all-star games, won three Gold Gloves, and took home three Silver Sluggers. He doubled more than 30 times in eight seasons, led the league in OBP twice, and OPS once. To this day Mauer is considered royalty in Minnesota, and the team understandably retired his number 7 in 2019. 

Outfielder Sam Rice starred for the Washington Senators for nearly two decades, and for most of his career, the left-handed hitter was one of the most productive offensive players in the American League. In just over 2,300 games with Washington, Rice slashed a phenomenal .323/.375/.429 with 695 extra-base hits, 1,044 RBI, and 346 stolen bases. He led the Majors in hits twice, triples once and steals once, and finished 4th in the MVP voting in 1926. Most importantly, Rice was a critical piece of the Senators World Series winning team in 1924 and was voted into the Hall of Fame by the Veteran's Committee in 1963. 

Phoenix, AZ native Kirby Puckett spent his entire career with the Twins and was an absolutely beloved figure in the Twin Cities. In 12 Major League seasons the fun-loving Puckett slashed .318/.360/.477 with 207 home runs, 1,085 RBI, 414 doubles, 57 triples, and 134 stolen bases. He represented Minnesota in 10 all-star games, won six Gold Gloves, six Silver Sluggers, and was the American League batting champion in 1989. Puckett led the AL in hits four times, drove in over 100 runs three times, and accumulated more total bases than anyone else twice. Most importantly, he was one of the primary reasons the Twins won the World Series in both 1987 and 1991 and he was voted into the Hall of Fame in 2001. Minnesota retired his number 34 in '97. 

Right-hander Bert Blyleven pitched in the big leagues for 22 years, and exactly half of those were spent in Minnesota across two different tours. In 348 outings for the Twins Blyleven was generally exceptional, winning 149 games and pitching to a 3.28 ERA with a 1.18 WHIP across 2,566.2 innings. He represented the Twins in a pair of all-star games, led the league in shutouts in '73 and innings in '86, and was a critical component on Minnesota's World Series winning team in 1987. Blyleven was voted into the Hall of Fame in 2011, and the Twins retired his number 28 the same year. 

Brooklyn, NY native Joe Judge played the first 18 seasons of his career in D.C. with the Senators, and provided Washington with a steady and consistent presence at first base for a long time. In 2,084 games with the franchise Judge slashed .299/.379/.423 with 71 homers, 1,001 RBI, 421 doubles, 157 triples, and 210 stolen bases. He was not the quintessential power-hitting first baseman you think of today, but he did many little things to help his team win day in and day out. Judge finished in the top 10 of the American League MVP voting twice, and most importantly, was a fixture at position number three on your scorecard when the Senators defeated the Giants in the 1924 World Series. 

Righty Brad Radke spent the entirety of his 12-year career in Minnesota, and while he wasn't flashy, he did give the Twins a reliable middle-of-the-rotation starter who consistently took the ball every 5th day. In 377 starts in a Minnesota uniform the Eau Claire, WI native went 148-139 with a 4.22 lifetime ERA in 2,451 innings. He was an all-star just once, in 1998, but made over 28 starts for the Twins in 11 of his 12 seasons, and hurled over 200 innings nine times. That type of consistent workhorse will always have a role on a big league pitching staff, and to the Twins Radke's value far exceeded his stat line. 

Outfielder Goose Goslin played his first ten seasons with the Senators, left the team in 1931, and then twice came back for single-season cameos with the organization before he retired. In 1,361 total games with the club Goslin slashed an impressive .323/.386/.502 with 127 home runs, 932 RBI, 289 doubles, 125 triples, and 117 stolen bases. He won the batting title in 1928, led the league with 129 RBI in 1924, and twice paced the American League in triples. Goslin helped the Senators win the World Series in 1924, and was voted into the Hall of Fame by the Veteran's Committee in 1968. 

Cuban-born outfielder Tony Oliva debuted for the Twins in 1962 and would go on to spend all of his illustrious career in the Twin Cities. Oliva had cups of coffee in both '62 and '63 but his true rookie season was the 1964 campaign, and it became evident rather quickly Minnesota had a star on its hands. In his first full season Oliva won the batting title by hitting .323, crushed 32 homers and drove in 94 runs, while also leading the American League with 43 doubles. He was easily named the AL Rookie of the Year and his career was off and running. In the 1,676 total games he played for the Twins, Oliva slashed .304/.353/.476 with 220 home runs, 947 RBI, and 329 doubles. He'd go on to win two more batting titles after his rookie season, he led the American League in hits five times, doubles four times, and slugging percentage once. Oliva was an all-star in eight consecutive years from '64-'71, earned a Gold Glove award in 1966, and was understandably enshrined in Cooperstown in 2022. The Twins retired his number 6 in 1991. 

Save for a year and a half hiatus in Boston early in his career, infielder Buddy Myer spent all of his playing days in D.C. with the Senators and was a scrappy player that did a lot to help Washington compete. In 1,643 games with the organization, he slashed .303/.393/.408 with 553 extra-base hits, 757 RBI, and 118 stolen bases. Myer represented the Senators in two all-star contests, won a batting title in 1935, and led the American League with 30 steals in 1928. 

Left-handed hitter Clyde Milan played all 1,982 of his Major League games in a Senators uniform and for a over a decade and a half gave Washington a reliable everyday presence in center field. In his 16-year career Milan slashed .285/.353/.353 with 362 extra-base hits, 617 RBI, and a franchise record 495 stolen bases. He led the Majors in steals in both 1912 and 1913, and finished in the top 10 of the AL MVP voting three times. 

First baseman Kent Hrbek was selected by the Twins in the 17th round of the 1978 draft, and it's safe to say he would go on to become one of the biggest late round success stories in Twins history. Hrbek played his entire 15-year career in Minnesota, slashing .282/.367/.481 with 293 homers, 1,086 RBI, and 312 doubles. He crushed over 20 homers in a season 10 times, drove in more than 90 runs on five separate occasions, and even finished 2nd in the AL's MVP voting in 1984. Hrbek was an all-star in '82, and most importantly helped Minnesota win the World Series in both 1987 and 1991. The Twins retired his number 14 in 1995. 

Chuck Knoblauch burst on the big-league scene in 1991 and emphatically introduced himself to the sport's highest level by slashing .281/.351/.350 with 50 RBI and 25 steals to ultimately take home the AL Rookie of the Year award. The gritty second baseman would go on to play the first seven seasons of his career with the Twins and put together quite a strong resume in a relatively short amount of time. In 1,013 games with the team, he slashed .304/.391/.416 with 304 extra-base hits, 391 RBI, and 276 stolen bases. He wore a Minnesota hat in four all-star games, led the league in doubles in '94 and triples in '96, and even won a Gold Glove award in '97. Most notably, in his rookie season Knoblauch played an important role on a Twins team that would ultimately defeat the Braves in the World Series. 

Shortstop Joe Cronin played seven seasons in D.C. with the Senators and was a valuable contributor on several strong Washington teams. In 940 games with the organization, the San Francisco, CA native slashed .304/.387/.455 with 51 home runs, 673 RBI, 242 doubles, 72 triples, and 56 stolen bases. He led the American League in doubles in 1933 and triples in 1932, and even finished 2nd in the AL MVP voting in '33. Cronin was elected to two all-star teams as a member of the Senators and was voted into the Hall of Fame in 1956. 

Left-hander Johan Santana spent his first eight Major League seasons with the Twins and while his peak was relatively short-lived, in his prime there simply was not a better starting pitcher in baseball. During his time in Minnesota Santana won 93 games with a 3.22 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 1,308.2 innings. He earned two ERA titles, led the league in strikeouts for three consecutive years from '04-'06, and posted the best WHIP in the AL four times. Santana represented the Twins in three all-star games, took home a Gold Glove, and most importantly won the Cy Young award in both 2004 and 2006. Minnesota fans were crushed when the team traded him to the Mets in a blockbuster deal prior to '08, and to this day he still remains a fan favorite in the Twin Cities. 

Right-hander Camilo Pascual debuted for the Washington Senators as a 20-year-old rookie back in 1954 and wound up spending the first 13 seasons of his career with the organization and moved with the team to Minnesota in 1961. In 432 outings (331 of which were starts), Pascual went 145-141 with a 3.66 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. He punched out 1,885 hitters in 2,465 innings and actually led the American League in strikeouts for three consecutive years from '61-'63. Pascual also led the AL in both complete games and shutouts three different times, and contributed over 200 innings in five different seasons. He was selected to seven all-star teams while with this organization, and for a long time was one of the more underrated starting pitchers on the junior circuit. 

Left-hander Jim Kaat eventually developed into one of the very best starting pitchers in baseball, and the first 15 seasons of his illustrious career were spent with the Twins organization. In 484 games with the club Kaat earned 190 victories and pitched to a 3.34 ERA across 3,014.1 innings, while striking out 1,851 hitters and hurling 133 complete games. A renowned athlete, Kaat won 12 Gold Glove awards while with the Twins and represented the team in two all-star games. Most importantly for his legacy, thanks to the Golden Days Era Committee he was ushered into the Hall of Fame in 2022. The Twins retired his number 36 the same year. 

Right-handed swinging Bob Allison spent his entire career with the Twins franchise, beginning it in D.C. in 1958 and then moving with the club to Minnesota three years later. In 1,541 total games with the organization Allison slashed .255/.358/.471 with 256 home runs, 796 RBI, 216 doubles, 53 triples, and 84 stolen bases. He was named the American League Rookie of the Year in 1959--a campaign in which he crushed 30 homers and led the AL in triples, represented the club in three all-star games, and drove in over 100 runs in both '61 and '62. 

Versatile Cecil Travis played all 12 of his Major League seasons in Washington with the Senators, with a three-year military hiatus in the middle included. In 1,328 career games the left-handed hitter slashed .314/.370/.416 with 370 extra-base hits, 657 RBI, and 23 stolen bases. Travis was an all-star in '38, '40 and '41, led the Majors in hits in 1941, and finished in the top 10 of the AL MVP voting twice. 

Buddy Lewis' career was slightly fragmented, as he missed time while serving in the army and later sat out all of the 1948 campaign. In the 11 seasons he did play with the Senators, though, Lewis was a consistent contributor, slashing .297/.368/.420 with 71 homers and 607 RBI. He added 249 doubles, 93 triples, and 83 stolen bases, and represented Washington in the 1938 and 1947 Midsummer Classics. 

Righty Jim Perry came to Minnesota in a trade with Cleveland in May of 1963, and in the decade he spent with the Twins he was consistently one of the best starting pitchers in the American League. In 376 outings with Minnesota Perry won 128 games and posted a 3.15 ERA with a 1.19 WHIP. He struck out 1,025 hitters in 1,883.1 innings, fired 61 complete games, and even logged 17 shutouts. Perry represented the Twins in two all-star games, led the league in wins and starts once, and most impressively was named the AL Cy Young award winner in 1970. 

Infielder Ossie Bluege played his entire 18-season career in D.C. with the Senators and was a gritty, versatile player who did a lot of little things to help Washington win. In 1,867 games with the club the Chicago, IL native slashed .272/.352/.356 with 386 extra-base hits, 848 RBI, and 140 stolen bases. Bluege qualified for his only all-star team in 1935, and earned a World Series ring with the Senators in 1924.