TCSquad

Or it's a slightly pulled hamstring and you have greatly over reacted.

The Carew trade was bad, but the Twins were somewhat stuck.  Carew wanted out, as Griffith was dismantling the team and refused to pay anyone in the early free agency era (see Hisle, Bostock, etc).  Of course, under these circumstances the Twins were going to be terrible anyway.  Had they not traded him Carew would almost certainly have left as a free agent.  It hurt emotionally to lose Carew, but the late Griffith/Met Stadium era was going to be hopeless regardless simply due to the owner's refusal to recognize the reality of rising player salaries in the new free agent era.
Now, Tom Brunansky for Tommy Herr... oof, it still hurts decades later.  That trade was totally unnecessary and self-inflicted.  The Twins were coming off of their 1987 title, and *thought* that Tommy Herr would thrive on the MetroDome's turf.  They made the trade in late April, and it disrupted team chemistry very badly.  Turned out that Tommy Herr HATED leaving St Louis (where he was a fan favorite) to play in Minnesota, and his performance reflected that.  Bruno had also been a fan favorite at Minnesota, and his leadership, bat, and glove was sorely missed.  The Twins sort of seemed to be in a collective funk all year, in part because Herr was brought in to replace the popular (but offensively subpar) Steve Lombardozzi.  They finished a very distant 2nd place.
Herr was essentially done as a productive player (note: don't trade a 27 year old outfielder entering his prime for a 33 year old middle infielder).  The Twins flipped Herr the next spring for an even more past-his-prime Shane Rawley and went into full tailspin mode in '89.  Rawley went 5-12 with an awful ERA and retired following the season.  
I'm sure from a perspective of lost WAR there were worse trades, but the '88 Twins were potentially primed for another playoff run.  This trade derailed them.

May I add a couple? Both from 1991:
- Mike Pagliarulo, Game 3 of the 1991 ALCS. Extra-innings to lead the Twins to a road victory over the Toronto Blue Jays, and retake the series lead 2-1.
- Scott Leius, Game 2 of the 1991 World Series. First at-bat of the bottom of the 8th inning, tie game, pitcher's duel between Kevin Tapini and Tom Glavine. Glavine only gave up four hits all game; and the 4th was a game-winning homerun to the light-hitting Leius. 
Someone else mentioned Orlanda Cabrera's homerun from Game 163; a great inclusion. If the list was a Top 10, I think they'd be on there (nestled between a could of Killebrew's, I'm certain.)

May I add a couple? Both from 1991:
- Mike Pagliarulo, Game 3 of the 1991 ALCS. Extra-innings to lead the Twins to a road victory over the Toronto Blue Jays, and retake the series lead 2-1.
- Scott Leius, Game 2 of the 1991 World Series. First at-bat of the bottom of the 8th inning, tie game, pitcher's duel between Kevin Tapini and Tom Glavine. Glavine only gave up four hits all game; and the 4th was a game-winning homerun to the light-hitting Leius. 
Someone else mentioned Orlanda Cabrera's homerun from Game 163; a great inclusion. If the list was a Top 10, I think they'd be on there (nestled between a could of Killebrew's, I'm certain.)

2. Don Baylor,Kent Hrbek--October 24th, 1987.
 
 

Amazing comment and great memory! I thought about putting Cabreras HR from game 163 in there as an HM candidate but these were more important. But I could be talked out of the Dozier one. 

Anything that shuts up the Hawk deserves mega-bonus points!

Harmon's homer just before the All-Star break was a real changing of the guard. Another regular season homer to consider was Thome's blast against a White Sox lefty during the first year at Target Field. Harrelson's wordless response is pure gold.

Terrific post.  I have no argument, but oldtimers (even more “oldtimer” that me) talk about a mid season home run that Harmon Killebrew hit against the Yankees in 1965.  It meant that the 1965 team was for real.  And besides, you do want to include a Killer home run on this list.  

I’ll take a 15-13/16-12 start to season! This years team is much better as they can beat the Yankees and Astros. Best part is we get them out of way in April. Division will be war as all the teams are tough. I really think twins can/will win dive this year. It’s huge season for Rocco as he needs division title in final year of contract. I’m super pumped and excited for season to start!!!! Let’s go twins!!!

Like they say BB games are won or lost in the mind. With that said we'll have to practice not to get psyched out when playing NYY & HOU. Then maybe we can win around half those games. We have a great team no reason not to.

Larnach is more than just a fringe guy. He was a top 100 prospect for a couple years after being chosen #20 overall in the 2018 draft. His numbers might be fringe now but he's a young guy who lost a key year of development to covid and then had the last two torn up by injury. We can still expect him to develop more given his shortened seasons since 2019. Last spring he was hitting .299/.375/.515 at the end of May when he got hurt, which is a sign that he's probably going to hit better than a utility infielder.

A great article! Very detailed and in depth! Couldn't agree more. I'm a believer in Jeffer's potential and don't think we've seen the best of him yet. I think a lot of people sell him short on his defense and handling of the staff, and don't realize he's as young as he is, and still only has a little over 500 ML AB.
Boy, if AK could just get healthy and stay that way, what a difference he could make!
I would have made your post "6" instead of 4.
Larnach could also be a major difference maker. He's solid enough in the OF, should get better in time, and has a tremendous arm. We've seen flashes of what his bat might bring.
And I think a lot of people forget about and undersell on Ober. While his IP were regulated in 2021, with just cause, he looked really good and finished strong. He was good to great in 2022 when healthy. Will he always have injury concerns? Or did all the changes and improvements he made in 2021 just get temporarily messed up due to non monitored offseason workouts and a short ST? I believe he's a solid mid rotation starter if he can just take the mound a good 26-28 turns.