Center Field is the Most Important Position to the Twins' Past, Present, and Future

[Cody Christie]

Some of the biggest legends in Minnesota Twins history have roamed center field, one of baseball’s most important positions. Where has the team been, where are they currently, and what does the future hold for center field in Minnesota?

Image courtesy of William Parmeter, Marilyn Indah and Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

The Twins have a center field lineage that stretches throughout most of the team’s history in Minnesota. Some of the biggest personalities in team history, like Kirby Puckett, Torii Hunter, and Byron Buxton, have won Gold Gloves in center field. This trio is tied to specific generations of Twins fans, and there are center field prospects nearing Target Field, as well. The position has changed throughout baseball history, and the future outlook is intriguing.

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Recently, Twins Daily launched the Minnesota Twins Players Project. What is the Players Project? It's a community-driven, wiki-style project focusing on Twins players of all stripes. It's open to all Twins Daily users, and we've had contributions of current players, past players, and players who never made the major leagues but played in the Twins farm system. Some of the players from this story have already been added to the project, and you can add others.

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MLB.com’s Cole Jacobson examined the landscape of center fielders at the big-league level. Annually, the site ranks every position in baseball, and center field came in ninth place because of the gap between the old guard (Mike Trout, Andrew McCutchen) and the rising young stars (Julio Rodríguez, Michael Harris II, Jackson Chourio). Let’s look back at the past, present, and future of center field for the Minnesota Twins. 

Past: The Legacy of Kirby Puckett, Torii Hunter, and Others
For many Twins fans, Puckett is among a small group of players who are the best in franchise history. He was the heart and soul of the team’s two championship teams, and his signature moments (the catch and home run) in Game 6 of the 1991 World Series are iconic. His career was cut short due to retina damage in his right eye. The baseball writers elected him to the Hall of Fame on the first ballot, and every future center fielder will be compared to his legacy.

After some dark days in the shadow of Puckett's injury, Hunter ushered in a new era of Twins baseball in the early 2000s. There was discussion about contracting the Twins or moving the team to North Carolina. Instead, Hunter and a young core helped the Twins win the AL Central four times in five years. In recent years, Hunter has managed to remain on the Hall of Fame ballot due to his Jekyll-and-Hyde career. Overall, he fits into the category of good but not great players in MLB history, so he will likely need to wait for the Eras Committee ballot before having a chance at Cooperstown.

Besides Puckett and Hunter, plenty of other famous names throughout Twins history saw time in center field. Jimmie Hall and César Tovar made multiple Opening Day starts after the team moved to Bloomington in the 1960s. Lyman Bostock was a rising star in the Twins organization in the 1970s, before tragically losing his life due to gun violence. Minnesota also focused on drafting athletic high-school outfielders, leading the team to top prospects like Denard Span, Ben Revere, and Aaron Hicks. Center field has been critical to the team’s success through multiple generations.

Present: Hop on the Buck Truck
Byron Buxton had enormous pressure placed on him from his amateur days to being selected by the Twins as the number two overall pick in the 2012 MLB Draft. He was considered baseball’s top prospect throughout his minor-league career, because he seemed to be a five-tool talent waiting to explode. Buxton has shown flashes of that talent at the big-league level, but injuries have marred his career. One play this week might have announced that he is finally healthy for the first time in a long while. Fans will still be trepidatious whenever he dives for a ball or slides into a base. When healthy, he is among baseball’s best players, and has still found ways to provide tremendous value despite missing significant time. 

Future: Top Twins Prospects Tied to Center Field
Minnesota selected Walker Jenkins as the fifth overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, and he was immediately considered one of baseball’s best prospects. Some evaluators believe his size will push him to a corner outfield spot as he matures. However, the Twins will give him and his athleticism every opportunity to stick in center field. Expectations were high for him entering the 2024 season, but he is currently on the injured list with a left hamstring strain. In recent years, many of the team’s top prospects have struggled to stay healthy, a trend the Twins hope Jenkins can avoid. 

Emmanuel Rodríguez, Twins Daily’s number three prospect, is playing this year at Double-A, so he is much closer to being in the big leagues than Jenkins. Last season, he posted an .863 OPS with Cedar Rapids while helping them win the Midwest League Championship. Other high-ranking prospects like Austin Martin, Brandon Winokur, and Yasser Mercedes have a chance to fit into the team’s long-term plans in center field. 

Center field is the most important position in Twins history. The team’s past, present, and future are irrevocably tied to one of baseball’s most important positions. While baseball is seeing a decline in center field performance, Minnesota hopes to buck the trend.

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Which future player will see the most time in center field? What do you remember most about the team’s previous center fielders? Leave a comment and start the discussion.

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[wsnydes]

Fun article!

The best Twins squads, certainly in my lifetime, have always had a strong presence from CF, so I can't argue with anything here.

Considering that, it's probably not a big surprise that my favorite all-time Twins are center fielders.  

[Doctor Gast]

One thing that have stuck out in my mind is how Kirby Puckett mentored Tori Hunter. I have my doubts on how much a prospect learns from coaches & that they learn so much more by being tutored by a greatly experienced veteran at their position.  Puckett started a tradition of mentoring Hunter, Hunter to Span, Span to Revere. That tradition was broken when the Twins traded both Span & Revere at the same time. figuring that maybe Hick was so good that he didn't need mentoring. That broke the tradition & Hicks could have benefited from being mentored.

Buxton has so much natural talent, I don't know how much he can teach younger players. I'm sure there's something. I don't see any stand-out defensive CF that comes close to Buck. I see both E Rodriguez & Jenkins not sticking at CF, I hope they won't be our best defensive options there.

SS & catching are both very important positions. IMO Correa's value isn't only what he produces on the field which is remarkable but also what he mentors to the younger players in his experience.

[Rod Carews Birthday]

I have always enjoyed watching the centerfielders for the Twins.  As the article states, there have been several excellent ones in team history.  The athleticism needed to play the position at a high level is always exciting, even in the cases of players who never became big stars or whose time in the position on the Twins was short, like Denard Span, Danny Ford, or Lyman Bostock.  If the centerfielder can hit a little (or a lot!) that's a big bonus and turns players into legends. 

[RpR]

I wandered into Statcast yesterday and was just a bit surprised to see just how good Taylor was in Center Field , at that; a few years back, in one category Taylor and Margot were numbers 1 and 2 in that category.

Too bad Taylor is gone but an outfield of Taylor, Buxton and Kepler : Left, Center, Right -- would be about as good as it gets.

[Battle ur tail off]

Loved watching Puck, Tori, and Buck play there. Also was fun to watch MAT out there last year. 

I agree, CF is one of, if not THE most important defensive positions on the diamond. Hoping Byron can stay healthy all year, even though I have my doubts, he is a real stud out there. 

[Brandon]

Don't forget the legend of Rich Becker.  He had a 92 run season in 96 with 31 2Bs and 12 HRs and 19 SBs.  not too shaby.

[Eris]

This is a more complete list from Fangraphs. Includes the Senators. 
 

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders/major-league?stats=bat&lg=all&qual=y&type=8&season=2024&month=0&season1=1871&ind=0&rost=0&players=0&team=8&pos=cf

[IndianaTwin]

In terms of the TWINS’ center field legacy, Bostock had already been traded to the Angels and played nearly a full season for them before he was killed. The article seems to imply that he was still with the Twins. 

[mikelink45]

Of all of them, Cesar Tovar was my favorite - he did everything with spirit.  Jimmie Hall was a comet - amazing then flaming out.  Lenny Green was our first and seldom gets mentioned.  In 1962 he had 3.1 WAR.

Shane Mack and Dan Ford also did well for us. 

It is interesting to see fangraphs going back to our Senator roots and listing Sam Rice first.  He is a HOF player with 50.7 WAR.  Clyde Milan is second from the Senator days with only Rice and Puckett ahead of him. 

[jkcarew]

On 4/12/2024 at 9:46 AM, RpR said:

I wandered into Statcast yesterday and was just a bit surprised to see just how good Taylor was in Center Field , at that; a few years back, in one category Taylor and Margot were numbers 1 and 2 in that category.

Too bad Taylor is gone but an outfield of Taylor, Buxton and Kepler : Left, Center, Right -- would be about as good as it gets.

Or…close to as bad as it gets…depending on which half inning it is.

[jkcarew]

Jim Eisenreich was among the most overall talented CF the Twins ever had. Horrible break for the Twins that he couldn’t play, but ended up having a nice career much later after the Tourette’s was under control.

[DocBauer]

While he wasn't a superstar like Puckett, or the kind of really, really good player Hunter was, or as dynamic as Buxton is/can be, I was a big fan of Denard Span. He was never a star, but he was a really good, well rounded player for a long time in the League.

Buxton, with reasonable health, has some potentially fine years ahead of him. I'm certainly not going to bury him! But I do often wonder who's next?

IF he can HIT at the ML level and provide enough pop/power to keep pitchers and defenses honest, to go along with his OB and contact ability, I see Martin playing a fair amount of CF. I think he can be a really nice ballplayer, but I don’t believe timing would see him as the heir to the position.

Could Emma stick there? If he fills out any more...and he doesn't need to...he might lose a little speed and better in a corner spot. Maybe the couple years younger Jenkins? He might grow and fill out a little more as well...though I'm not sure he needs to either...but taller and longer, he might carry more muscle better and keep his speed.

He's more than a couple years away, but could Winokur be the dark horse candidate to be the "next" good/great CF option? And speaking of dark horses, is Ft Myers' Byron Chourio maybe the best pure CF in the system for that spot in a few years?

Unlike the hit and miss history of SS in Twins history, CF has generally been filled pretty well over the decades. The future doesn't look too bad either.