Twins Almanac: Snowstorms, Home Run Milestones, & WWII Veterans

April 13, 1858
Birthdate of Bill Barnes

Centerfielder Bill Barnes was born in Shakopee on this date in 1858. He and teammates Joe Werrick and Lou Galvin became the first Minnesota natives to play Major League Baseball when St. Paul joined the Union Association as a replacement team for the final nine games of the 1884 season. Even though the Union Association only existed for one season, MLB officially recognized it as a “major league.” 

St. Paul played all nine of their Union Association games on the road, so even though Minnesota technically had a major league baseball team in 1884, no major league games were actually played on Minnesota soil.  

April 13, 1945
Minnesotan Major Leaguer Heroic in WWII

Minneapolis native and 1949 White Sox catcher Don Wheeler was decorated with a Bronze Star on this date in 1945 for his heroic achievement in the vicinity of Lowenstein, Germany.

Quote

Leading his squad forward in an advance, Sergeant Wheeler observed hostile activity on a ridge which was his objective. Aware that a frontal assault might result in severe casualties, he ordered his men to take cover while he advanced along to a vantage point from which he directed mortar fire upon the opposing forces. He then summoned his men forward and led them in an attack in which six hostile riflemen were captured and the position secured without casualty to his squad.

Following his nine-year professional career, Wheeler remained active in Minneapolis sports. At various times, he threw batting practice for the Millers, umpired Gophers games, was a penalty timekeeper for the North Stars, and worked the sidelines at Vikings games. 

April 13, 1962
Home Opener Snowed Out

In just the second year of Major League Baseball in Minnesota, the Twins’ home opener versus the Los Angeles Angels was canceled due to six inches of snow.

April 13, 1968
Perry Pitches Shutout, Hits Homer

Jim Perry had a heckuva game on this date in 1968, pitching a four-hit shutout and hitting a ninth-inning homer in a 6-0 Twins win at Yankee Stadium.

The only other player in Twins history to homer while pitching a shutout is Jim Kaat, who did so on July 24, 1963, and October 1, 1970.

April 13, 1985
Davis Gives Up Walk-Off Grand Slam

Trying to protect a 7-4 lead with the bases loaded and two out in the bottom of the ninth, Twins closer Ron Davis gave up a walk-off grand slam to Mariners left fielder Phil Bradley. It was the first walk-off grand slam surrendered in team history.

Davis, of course, was coming off a 1984 season in which he tied the MLB record with 14 blown saves.

In Davis’s defense, Hall of Famers Rollie Fingers (1976) and Bruce Sutter (1978) had previously blown 14 saves in a season, but nobody has done it again since Davis. 

April 13, 1987
Puckett Homers in Fourth-Straight

Kirby Puckett homered in his fourth straight game on this date in 1987.

The team record for consecutive games with a home run is five, by Harmon Killebrew on two separate occasions in 1970, rookie Marty Cordova in 1995, Brian Dozier in 2016, and Nelson Cruz in 2019.

Cordova tied the record in just his 23rd major league game. Dozier and Cruz hit three home runs in a single game during their five-game home run streaks. 

April 13, 1991
Winfield Has Historic Game versus Twins

Angels right fielder Dave Winfield went 5-for-6 with three home runs (in his first three at-bats), a double, six RBI, and four runs scored in a 15-9 win at the Metrodome.

Winfield was lifted for a pinch runner after collecting his fifth hit in the top of the ninth. I wonder if he received an ovation from the Metrodome fans.

Also Noteworthy: Winfield hit his 400th home run at the Metrodome in August 1991. Guess Winny knew 1991 would be a big season in Minnesota history, and he wanted to be part of it. 

New Angels third baseman Gary Gaetti went 4-for-6 with a double. Overall, he went 7-for-14 (.500) with five RBI in his first series as a visitor at the Metrodome. 

Winfield’s 15 total bases are the most ever in a major league game played in Minnesota (Met Stadium, the Dome, or Target Field).

Fifteen total bases is tied for the most by a player born in Minnesota with Clearbrook native Wes Westrum, who went 4-for-4 with three home runs and a triple at the Polo Grounds on June 24, 1950.

The Twins record is 14 by Kirby Puckett in Milwaukee on August 30, 1987.

April 13–15, 2018
April Snowstorm

The largest April snowstorm in Twin Cities history (14.9″) forced the postponement of the final three games of a four-game series versus the White Sox.

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