The Twins Almanac (May 25)

[Matt Johnson]

The Twins Almanac for May 25 features Kirby Puckett, Lyman Bostock, Todd Walker, North St. Paul native Brent Killen, Rangers pinch hitter Bill Stein, and what was at one time the biggest shutout win in Twins history. 

Happy 54th birthday to North Saint Paul graduate Brent Killen. 

Killen was a power-hitting first baseman at the University of Florida and then played three seasons in the Tigers farm system (1992–94). 

Major Leaguers Don Arlich, Louie Varland, and Gus Varland were also North St. Paul Polars.

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Happy 51st birthday to former Twins first-round draft choice Todd Walker. 

In July 1998, he tied Tony Oliva and Mickey Hatcher‘s team record with nine-straight hits. 

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May 25, 1977
Center fielder Lyman Bostock tied the MLB outfielder record with 12 putouts in a 9-4 win in the second game of a doubleheader at Fenway on this date in 1977. (The Twins won the first game 13-5.)

Three Minnesota natives pitched for the Twins in the doubleheader. 1967 Rothsay graduate Dave Goltz was the winning pitcher in Game 1, with 1961 St. Cloud Cathedral grad Tom Burgmeier earning a 3 ⅔-innings save. 1969 St. Paul Murray grad Tom Johnson pitched the ninth inning of Game 2.

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May 25, 1981
The Rangers beat the Twins on Bill Stein’s seventh consecutive pinch hit on this date in 1981.

The Minnesota connections here are multi-layered. Stein’s seventh-straight pinch hit broke the American League record previously held by 1954 Edina-Morningside graduate Bob “Rocky” Johnson. And Randy Bush tied Stein’s new record with his seventh-straight pinch hit on August 19, 1991. 

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May 25, 1990
The Twins beat the Red Sox 16-0 at the Dome on this date in 1990. That was the biggest shutout victory in team history until they beat the Royals 17-0 at Target Field on September 2, 2017.

Pitcher Roy Smith authored the four-hit shoutout for Minnesota. 

Remarkably, the Twins scored all 16 runs without a home run. 

Kirby Puckett—the third batter of the game—hit a two-run triple, and Hrbek drove him in to make it 4-0 before the Red Sox got their first out. 

Just six days earlier (May 19), the Red Sox had pummeled the Twins 13-1 at Fenway, with Boston’s Tom Brunansky going 5-for-5 with two home runs, seven RBI, and three runs scored.

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May 25, 1997
Culminating a three-day celebration of his career, the Twins retired Kirby Puckett‘s number 34 before a dramatic 7-6, 10-inning victory over the Athletics on this date in 1997.

The Twins took a 6-4 lead into the ninth inning, but Rick Aguilera blew his fourth save of the season. He held the A’s scoreless in the 10th, however, and picked up the win when Rich Becker delivered a two-out walk-off single, driving in Matt Lawton (pinch running for Terry Steinbach).

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[theBOMisthebomb]

Oh wow, I remember being at that May 25, 1997 game. Thanks for stirring up the memory.