Terrific post.  I have no argument, but oldtimers (even more “oldtimer” that me) talk about a mid season home run that Harmon Killebrew hit against the Yankees in 1965.  It meant that the 1965 team was for real.  And besides, you do want to include a Killer home run on this list.  

Harmon's homer just before the All-Star break was a real changing of the guard. Another regular season homer to consider was Thome's blast against a White Sox lefty during the first year at Target Field. Harrelson's wordless response is pure gold.

I thought about making an HM section and adding in the 1965 and Jim Thome flagpole shots. Too many to choose from! Thanks for reading!

1 hour ago, Longdistancetwins said:

Terrific post.  I have no argument, but oldtimers (even more “oldtimer” that me) talk about a mid season home run that Harmon Killebrew hit against the Yankees in 1965.  It meant that the 1965 team was for real.  And besides, you do want to include a Killer home run on this list.  

There were many many Harmon HRs that should've made the list. 

Terrific post.  I like, how with any baseball list, it leads the reader to take pause and reflect.  While not everyone may agree on the top 6, 10, or whatever the number may be, it is the journey the reflection has taken you on that makes the trip worthwhile.

5 hours ago, nclahammer said:

Terrific post.  I like, how with any baseball list, it leads the reader to take pause and reflect.  While not everyone may agree on the top 6, 10, or whatever the number may be, it is the journey the reflection has taken you on that makes the trip worthwhile.

Tha k you Neil, glad you realize that it was supposed to make the reader stop and pause. Was also important to me to list WHY they were on the list. 

Great list!

1 hour ago, rwilfong86 said:

Great list!

Thank you Raymond!

9 hours ago, Devlin Clark said:

Thank you Raymond!

No problem, I didn't know you were on here!

3 hours ago, rwilfong86 said:

No problem, I didn't know you were on here!

Just started writing for TD in the last week. Just my other articles as I have an article up about my interview with Matt Lawton!

On 3/31/2023 at 6:46 PM, stringer bell said:

Harmon's homer just before the All-Star break was a real changing of the guard. Another regular season homer to consider was Thome's blast against a White Sox lefty during the first year at Target Field. Harrelson's wordless response is pure gold.

Anything that shuts up the Hawk deserves mega-bonus points!

Great topic - no argument on any of these because other than Puckett’s, they are all subjective. The problem I have is that it says, since the inception of the Twins in 1961, but then reads like somebody that started watching the Twins in 1981.

Obviously, there are a number of dramatic home runs over 60 years of baseball but 2 in 2002 & 2 in 1987 seem to be linked to personal fandom at that time.

Maybe should read “my 6 favorite Twin’s homers”? Maybe that’s assumed?

Keep on writing!

50 minutes ago, Bodie said:

Anything that shuts up the Hawk deserves mega-bonus points!

I was at that Thome flagpole HR game and my gf at the time was bored and made us leave early. I heard the roar of what happened on the Metro Transit. It was also my birthday. 

12 minutes ago, JD-TWINS said:

Great topic - no argument on any of these because other than Puckett’s, they are all subjective. The problem I have is that it says, since the inception of the Twins in 1961, but then reads like somebody that started watching the Twins in 1981.

Obviously, there are a number of dramatic home runs over 60 years of baseball but 2 in 2002 & 2 in 1987 seem to be linked to personal fandom at that time.

Maybe should read “my 6 favorite Twin’s homers”? Maybe that’s assumed?

Keep on writing!

JD,

Thanks for your feedback! I definitely appreciate it. I took into account some HRs from the 1965 WS, some from the 69 season, and even Harmons 500th HR, but when I thought about it in terms of what it meant to not only the team in that moment, but also fans, I could bump any of these. If I did bump one, it would be the Dozier. That was more fun that anything, but it was also one of the biggest bc it capped off the biggest comeback in Target Field history (to that point). Thanks for reading and for the feedback!

I think this is a fine list. The Hrbek & Puckett HRs are deeply ingrained in my Twins memory. I'll admit, I'd sorta forgotten about the Baylor one because the Hrbek blast was just so awesome.

As an honorable mention I want to name the Cuddyer/Morneau back-to-back jacks in the playoffs from the aughts (definitely not "important" enough to make the list, since we lost that game) because that was a) as loud as I'd ever gotten to experience the Metrodome, and b) it's the only time I've made a called shot. Turned to my pal after the first one and screamed, "He's going to hit one out, we're going back-to-back" (had to scream, because it was ear-bleeding loud in there) and then we all went mad as another one sailed into the seat. 

I'm still kinda mad at Torii for diving after that stupid single.

5 hours ago, jmlease1 said:

I think this is a fine list. The Hrbek & Puckett HRs are deeply ingrained in my Twins memory. I'll admit, I'd sorta forgotten about the Baylor one because the Hrbek blast was just so awesome.

As an honorable mention I want to name the Cuddyer/Morneau back-to-back jacks in the playoffs from the aughts (definitely not "important" enough to make the list, since we lost that game) because that was a) as loud as I'd ever gotten to experience the Metrodome, and b) it's the only time I've made a called shot. Turned to my pal after the first one and screamed, "He's going to hit one out, we're going back-to-back" (had to scream, because it was ear-bleeding loud in there) and then we all went mad as another one sailed into the seat. 

I'm still kinda mad at Torii for diving after that stupid single.

Amazing comment and great memory! I thought about putting Cabreras HR from game 163 in there as an HM candidate but these were more important. But I could be talked out of the Dozier one. 

On 3/31/2023 at 6:04 PM, Longdistancetwins said:

Terrific post.  I have no argument, but oldtimers (even more “oldtimer” that me) talk about a mid season home run that Harmon Killebrew hit against the Yankees in 1965.  It meant that the 1965 team was for real.  And besides, you do want to include a Killer home run on this list.  

Bingo.

It was a walk-off against the Yankees in the last game before the all-star break and moved the Twins into first place...which they never relinquished for their first pennant in Minnesota. Then, for good measure, the All-star game was at the Met that year...and he hit another in that game. There has never been anyone in Minnesota sports history that was as big as Killebrew was at that time. The Yankees were totally dominant up to that point, and nationally the Twins were nothing but "the old Senators". (Yankees had won the previous 5 AL pennants and something ridiculous like 12 of the last 15.)

1. Pucket

2. Baylor

3. Killebrew

6 minutes ago, jkcarew said:

Bingo.

It was a walk-off in the last game before the all-star break and moved the Twins into first place...which they never relinquished for their first pennant in Minnesota. Then, for good measure, the All-star game was at the Met that year...and he hit another in that game. There has never been anyone in Minnesota sports history that was as big as Killebrew was at that time. The Yankees we totally dominant at that point...had won the previous 5 AL pennants and something ridiculous like 12 of the last 15.

1. Pucket

2. Baylor

3. Killebrew

Absolutely can't disagree with you on that one! However, it was a regular season HR and although there's 2 of those on this list, I think the Hrbek GS in the Series was bigger. That said, I would replace the Dozier HR with the Killebrew one if I re do the list in the future. 

19 minutes ago, Devlin Clark said:

Absolutely can't disagree with you on that one! However, it was a regular season HR and although there's 2 of those on this list, I think the Hrbek GS in the Series was bigger. That said, I would replace the Dozier HR with the Killebrew one if I re do the list in the future. 

Context...for the first almost ten seasons of the Twins existence, there was no 'playoff'...and no divisions..you either finished the regular season with the best record in the league, or you went home. Big regular season home runs hit in that era automatically had WAY more significance than a 'similar' regular season HR hit today.

More context...Hrbek came to the plate with the Twins leading 6-5. St. Louis never scored another run. Dramatic? Absolutely. As meaningful to the franchises history as Killebrew's? No. (And Baylor came up with the Twins behind by two runs...and having lost the previous 3 games...that hit was the game-winning RBI, and turned the entire momentum of that series back into the Twins favor.)

Can’t argue too much, but this is my personal memory:  I was working here in New York on the Saturday of the 1987 Game Six.  It was late afternoon, and I ran out after work to a Manhattan bar to watch the rest of the game.  Herbie’s GS literally took my breath away; all I could finally say to the strangers sitting next to me was, “That is the best thing I ever saw.  Ever.” (I must have sounded tipsy to them!).  I mean, Herbie was the home grown talent.

With the game over, I walked up Broadway the couple of miles to my apartment, giddy all the way.  I was listening to commentary on a radio ear-set, and heard Jim Kaat say that the grand slam was the greatest moment in Twins history.  And I thought, “Who would know better than Kitty?  He’d been there for every other great moment [so far].”  

2. Don Baylor,Kent Hrbek--October 24th, 1987.
 

Great post!  Just a heads up, you're missing the link to AJ's homerun.  It's currently the link to Dozier's homerun.

I would add Rich Reese and his pinch hit HR against Dave McNally in early August of 1969 to snap McNally's 16 game winning streak.  The Twins of 1969 & 1970 were a darn good baseball team, just not better than the Orioles.   

Fun post...really a hair splitting topic.  Not easy to all agree on the Top 6.  Awesome memories to re-watch.  Good stuff!

Memories of The Puck, after his passing:

http://thenightwriterblog.com/2006/03/07/rounding-third-and-heading-for-home-its-a-brown-eyed-handsome-man/