Torii Hunter Continues To Climb List Of All-Time Great Twins

Let’s start by pointing out that there is a Big 6 atop the Minnesota Twins offensive record book due to them being on a Twins roster for many, many years and accumulating a lot of statistics. Obviously they accumulated those stats and all that playing time by being great players for a very long time in a Twins uniform. Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Kirby Puckett, Kent Hrbek, Tony Oliva and Joe Mauer are the top six hitters in Minnesota Twins history.

However, Torii Hunter is among a group that would be in the second tier and as this season continues he will likely find himself at the top of that list. If he comes back to the Twins in 2016, which I believe becomes more and more likely as he continues an impressive 2015 season, he could move into that upper group.

If we take a look at where Hunter ranks among hitters in the 55-year history of the Minnesota Twins, it is clear that he has not just been a very good player, but he has been a Twins Great.

• Games Played: 1,322 – This season, Hunter has surpassed Bob Allison and Justin Morneau into eighth place. He should pass Gary Gaetti by the end of the season.
  
• Runs Scored: 719 – He has passed Chuck Knoblauch to move into seventh place.
  
• RBI: 765 – He has passed Rod Carew and Gary Gaetti to move into sixth place.
  
• Hits: 1,303 – He passed Gary Gaetti to move into eighth place on the list. He is 15 hits behind Justin Morneau.
  
• Total Bases: 2,253 – He passed Gary Gaetti to move into eighth place, and there is a chance he could catch Justin Morneau.
  
• Doubles: 274 – He is currently in seventh place, 15 doubles behind Justin Morneau.
  
• Home Runs: 208 – After passing Gary Gaetti earlier this season, Hunter passed Kirby Puckett over the weekend to move in to sixth place on the Twins list. He is three homers behind Bob Allison. He is 12 homers behind Tony Oliva, and he is 13 homers behind Justin Morneau. So, if he were to end the 2015 season with 30 home runs, he would be third on the all-time Minnesota Twins home runs list. He is not likely to catch Harmon Killebrew’s 475 Minnesota Twins home runs.
  
• Stolen Bases: 127 – He is in fifth place, seven behind Kirby Puckett. (Note – he is one for three in stolen base attempts so far this year.)
  
• Strikeouts: 933 – He will likely pass Kirby Puckett’s 965 strikeouts to move into second place in Twins history. He won’t catch Harmon Killebrew.
  
• Grand Slams: 9 – One more grand slam and he will tie Harmon Killebrew for the Twins record.
  

Add in his defense and he moves up to the top of the second tier, probably the sixth-best offensive player in Minnesota Twins history. His seven Gold Gloves are second in Twins history behind Jim Kaat’s 11. Kirby Puckett won six with the Twins. Hunter represented the Minnesota Twins in two All Star games.

It would be very interesting to know what kind of statistics Hunter would have been able to put up had he remained in the Twins organization instead of spending the past seven years in Anaheim and Detroit. How far up the list would he be?

So where would Torii Hunter rank to you among the Top 10 Twins position players since the organization moved to Minnesota in 1961?

The Top Six: Harmon Killebrew, Kirby Puckett, Rod Carew, Kent Hrbek, Joe Mauer, Tony Oliva

The Next Five: Torii Hunter, Justin Morneau, Gary Gaetti, Bob Allison, Chuck Knoblauch.

One could make an argument that we are able to watch two of the top seven or eight position players in the 55-year history of the Twins in Minnesota on a nightly basis.

Please use the comments below to rank the Top 10 Twins position players in Twins history in your opinion, and then discuss with others.