Twins Almanac: Rod Carew Jersey Day, 1977

[Matt Johnson]

“Rod Carew Jersey Day” on June 26, 1977 is one of the most noteworthy regular season games in Twins history. Carew himself set a team single-game record for runs scored that afternoon, while famously raising his batting average above .400. A seldom-remembered right fielder set the team single-game RBI record. And a young man who later became a prolific baseball history writer and Twins official scorer climbed the right-field foul pole!

Image courtesy of © Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

On a sweltering summer afternoon, the only sellout crowd of the season packed Met Stadium for "Rod Carew Jersey Day," and Rodney certainly rose to the occasion, going 4-for-5 with a home run, raising his average to .403 to the elation of the capacity, sun-soaked crowd. Carew also knocked in six runs and scored a team record five runs in the 19-12 win over the White Sox. Carew finished the season batting an incredible .388 and was named the American League's Most Valuable Player. 

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Tim Teufel (9/16/83), Paul Molitor (4/24/96), and Luis Rivas (6/4/02) have since tied the team single-game runs scored record.

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Right fielder Glenn Adams, meanwhile, set a team record with eight runs batted in. He had six RBI after just two innings, on a two-run double and grand slam. He went 4-for-5 altogether, adding an RBI single and sac fly. (Adams drove-in Carew three times in the game.)

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Randy Bush tied Adams' team record with eight RBI in Texas on May 20, 1989. Whereas Adams had six of his RBI in the first two innings, Bush collected six RBI in the final two innings, with three-run homers in the eighth and ninth.

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The "Rod Carew Jersey Day" game is famous for another reason. Current Twins official scorer and award-winning baseball history writer Stew Thornley climbed the right-field foul pole!

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One final note on the Carew game: 1969 St. Paul Murray graduate Tom Johnson entered the game with one out in the top of the third and pitched the remainder of the game (6.2) innings to earn the win in relief. 

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Johnson was stellar out of the bullpen throughout the 1977 season, earning 16 wins (all in relief) and 15 saves. Those 16 wins were ninth-most in the American League, and 15 saves were seventh-most. I wonder how many guys have finished top-10 in both wins and saves in the same season.

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[Rod Carews Birthday]

Great article!  Twelve year old me was absolutely thrilled that day.  I remember listening to it on the radio and being really, really excited about it!

[jkcarew]

As a huge Carew fan, I remember this like it was yesterday. Made the 500-mile round trip to see the following game (planned a week prior). He went 1-3 with a ground ball single and got pulled late with the game lost.

I’ve spent the last 47 years of my life wishing we would have planned the trip for one day earlier.

[Karbo]

35 minutes ago, Rod Carews Birthday said:

Great article!  Twelve year old me was absolutely thrilled that day.  I remember listening to it on the radio and being really, really excited about it!

I went to that game. Sir Rodney was so good.

[Riverbrian]

47 minutes ago, Rod Carews Birthday said:

Great article!  Twelve year old me was absolutely thrilled that day.  I remember listening to it on the radio and being really, really excited about it!

Twelve year old me wasn't at that game but I can tell you that Rod Carew was my hero and still my favorite Twin ever.

In 1977 I spent almost the entire baseball season trying to copy Rod Carew's batting stance.

It was my only bad year at the plate and I do blame Rod for this. 

 

 

[Rod Carews Birthday]

36 minutes ago, Karbo said:

I went to that game. Sir Rodney was so good.

You have no idea how jealous I am right now!  He was indeed a great one, and we have the same October 1 birthday.  Have you read One Tough Out?  It’s excellent.  

[twinstalker]

It was an incredible day, and I ended up spending three hours inside listening to the radio instead of enjoying the outdoor pool 90 feet away.

[Matt Johnson]

6 hours ago, Rod Carews Birthday said:

Great article!  Twelve year old me was absolutely thrilled that day.  I remember listening to it on the radio and being really, really excited about it!

I wasn't born yet, but sounds like the offense was firing on all cylinders to that point during the 1977 season.

 

[Matt Johnson]

2 hours ago, twinstalker said:

It was an incredible day, and I ended up spending three hours inside listening to the radio instead of enjoying the outdoor pool 90 feet away.

All these years later, I promise more people are still talking about that game than that pool :)

[Karbo]

5 hours ago, Rod Carews Birthday said:

You have no idea how jealous I am right now!  He was indeed a great one, and we have the same October 1 birthday.  Have you read One Tough Out?  It’s excellent.  

No I haven't yet. I found out My sister has the Jersey from that night somewhere sh says. She got both of them from my folks when they passed. My brother got one also. Can't wait til she finds them again.

[Rod Carews Birthday]

22 minutes ago, Matt Johnson said:

I wasn't born yet, but sounds like the offense was firing on all cylinders to that point during the 1977 season.

 

If only they could have pitched.  

[gil4]

6 hours ago, jkcarew said:

As a huge Carew fan, I remember this like it was yesterday. Made the 500-mile round trip to see the following game (planned a week prior). He went 1-3 with a ground ball single and got pulled late with the game lost.

I’ve spent the last 47 years of my life wishing we would have planned the trip for one day earlier.

I also went to just one twins game that year. Carew also hit a HR in that game, but it was more memorable for Dave Goltz throwing a 1-hit shutout against a strong Red Sox team.  

[IndianaTwin]

7 hours ago, Rod Carews Birthday said:

Great article!  Twelve year old me was absolutely thrilled that day.  I remember listening to it on the radio and being really, really excited about it!

Eleven-year-old me was in the right field bleachers. 

The actual crowd was at least two less than announced. My brother-in-law wanted a jersey of his own, so he bought two extra tickets. We went in with the extra tickets, got the shirt, exited and reentered with our actual seats, getting a second shirt. 

My first game at the Met had been the previous day, when the crowd got on Adams for being a little lackadaisical going for a ball, so he was still getting some grief when he came up and hit a grand slam on Sunday.

Steve Stone was the pitcher for Chicago, so the game occasionally comes up on broadcasts that he’s doing.

A few years ago at Twins Fest, Carew was part of a panel, aand I was able to ask him about the day. He spoke for several minutes, naming it his most memorable day as a Twin and talking about how much the fan reaction meant to him. He received several extended standing ovations over the course of the day.

That day remains the most memorable game I’ve ever been to and ranks alongside Game 6 and Game 7 as the three biggest moments of my Twins fandom.

 

 

[IndianaTwin]

Also, with the picture at the top, let’s also not forget the great Butch Wynegar pictured in the background. Another favorite of mine. 

[twinstalker]

2 hours ago, Rod Carews Birthday said:

If only they could have pitched.  

They definitely pitched to contact.

[Matt Johnson]

10 hours ago, twinstalker said:

They definitely pitched to contact.

Wouldn't want the defense to get bored. 

[Matt Johnson]

12 hours ago, IndianaTwin said:

Also, with the picture at the top, let’s also not forget the great Butch Wynegar pictured in the background. Another favorite of mine. 

1976 All-Star Game

[darwin22]

12 hours ago, IndianaTwin said:

Eleven-year-old me was in the right field bleachers. 

The actual crowd was at least two less than announced. My brother-in-law wanted a jersey of his own, so he bought two extra tickets. We went in with the extra tickets, got the shirt, exited and reentered with our actual seats, getting a second shirt. 

My first game at the Met had been the previous day, when the crowd got on Adams for being a little lackadaisical going for a ball, so he was still getting some grief when he came up and hit a grand slam on Sunday.

Steve Stone was the pitcher for Chicago, so the game occasionally comes up on broadcasts that he’s doing.

A few years ago at Twins Fest, Carew was part of a panel, aand I was able to ask him about the day. He spoke for several minutes, naming it his most memorable day as a Twin and talking about how much the fan reaction meant to him. He received several extended standing ovations over the course of the day.

That day remains the most memorable game I’ve ever been to and ranks alongside Game 6 and Game 7 as the three biggest moments of my Twins fandom.

 

 

Very interesting recollection of that day as I also (12 at the time) was at the game with my 2 brothers and my dad.

Having attended several Twins games as a youth---we lived in northeast Iowa---this game stands out as the BEST GAME I ever attended at Metropolitan Stadium.  Not only was the Met filled to capacity it was an electric atmosphere with the Twins playing well battling for 1st place. Our seats were along the 1B line in the 2nd deck.

Not sure how long I held onto the replica Rod Carew jersey, but it was at the top of my list of possessions for years to come.  

Only thing in error in this write up---was that the fan who delayed the game did so climbing up the LEFT FIELD foul pole---not the one in RF.  My 12 year old mind remembers the game was delayed for at least 10 minutes as Thornley (who later became a SABR member) kept security at bay scrambling further up the pole as security tried to coax him down.  I'm guessing significant consumption of Grain Belt, Ice cold Oly or Hamms played a contributing factor in Thornley's actions.

A final memory was staying (our tradition) at the Howard Johnson's--a stone's throw from the Met along Cedar Avenue.  For a young kid, an indoor swimming pool COMBINED with a putting green made for a great time.  

[IndianaTwin]

4 hours ago, darwin22 said:

Very interesting recollection of that day as I also (12 at the time) was at the game with my 2 brothers and my dad.

Having attended several Twins games as a youth---we lived in northeast Iowa---this game stands out as the BEST GAME I ever attended at Metropolitan Stadium.  Not only was the Met filled to capacity it was an electric atmosphere with the Twins playing well battling for 1st place. Our seats were along the 1B line in the 2nd deck.

Not sure how long I held onto the replica Rod Carew jersey, but it was at the top of my list of possessions for years to come.  

Only thing in error in this write up---was that the fan who delayed the game did so climbing up the LEFT FIELD foul pole---not the one in RF.  My 12 year old mind remembers the game was delayed for at least 10 minutes as Thornley (who later became a SABR member) kept security at bay scrambling further up the pole as security tried to coax him down.  I'm guessing significant consumption of Grain Belt, Ice cold Oly or Hamms played a contributing factor in Thornley's actions.

A final memory was staying (our tradition) at the Howard Johnson's--a stone's throw from the Met along Cedar Avenue.  For a young kid, an indoor swimming pool COMBINED with a putting green made for a great time.  

I was in the lower deck, but further down the right field line. With having grown up near Iowa City, perhaps we passed each other, either at the game or on the road! And yes, I had the shirt for a long time. As recently as a few years ago, my brother-in-law still had his.

This weekend was my only trip to the Met. That it was only my third MLB game ever had me not realizing how electric the atmosphere was, but it certainly made an impression on me.

Oops. I didn't catch that the OP said right field. Agreed -- Stew climbed the left field pole as the caption says. In fact, the picture was probably taken from about my angle.  

My hotel memory from the weekend is a little different and more traumatic. We stayed in a suite, so I slept in the couch in one room. When I went to the bathroom, I walked into the bedroom my sister and brother-in-law were in, oblivious to the thought of knocking first. As an impressionable kid, I was appalled to see them in the same single bed. I later did the math and, as it turns out, my first niece was born nine months to the day later.

They claim nothing happened that night, but that's my story and I'm sticking to it.