Since the Twins moved to Minnesota in 1961, they've retired nine numbers, including six players who are in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
The franchise doesn't have specific criteria for retired numbers, but it's clear from the eight numbers they've retired that only those who had a significant impact on the organization receive that honor.
B/T: R-R
BORN: June 29, 1936, Payette, ID
CAREER: A member of the Twins from their inaugural Minnesota season in 1961 who debuted with the Senators in 1954, Killebrew hit 573 career home runs, including 475 of them in his 14 seasons with the Twins, a club record that still stands. He ranks 12th on the all-time home run list and third in American League history. Killebrew also hit over 40 home runs on eight occasions and 30-or-more 10 times, while driving in 100-plus runs nine times.
Killebrew was the American League's Most Valuable Player in 1969, when he hit 49 home runs with 140 RBI and 145 walks, all team records that still stand. His number was formally retired by the Twins on May 4, 1975 and he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on January 10, 1984, the first Twin to receive that honor.
HOW OBTAINED: Signed as a free agent, June 21, 1954.
B/T: L-R
BORN: July 20, 1941, Pinar del Rio, Cuba
CAREER: "Tony-O" to those who followed his career as a Twins player and coach, was a man who seemed to excel in all aspects of the game. He could hit for power and average, run, field and throw, and his versatility made him one of the most feared hitters of his day.
Oliva collected 1,917 hits and retired with a .304 career average. He is the only player to win batting titles in his first two seasons and was the winner of three in his 15-year career. His prowess as a hitter was demonstrated in the fact that he led the league in hits five times, and his 220 career home runs rank fourth all-time among Twins. Oliva’s number was formally retired by the Twins on July 14, 1991 and he was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame on August 12, 2000. Oliva was also inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2022, after being elected by the Golden Days Era committee alongside his former teammate, Jim Kaat.
HOW OBTAINED: Signed as a free agent, July 24, 1961.
B/T: L-R
BORN: May 21, 1960, Minneapolis, MN
CAREER: Hrbek, who was the runner-up to Cal Ripken for American League Rookie of the Year in 1982, made his only All-Star appearance that season and led the Twins with 92 RBI, one of three rookies in club history to do so. He was most appreciated by his teammates and Twins fans for his upper-deck power and agility while manning first base. He is among club leaders in nearly every offensive category but may be best remembered for his Game 6 grand slam in the 1987 World Series or for his tag of Ron Gant in Game 2 of the 1991 World Series. The Bloomington, MN native, who grew up in the shadow of old Metropolitan Stadium, had his number 14 formally retired on August 13, 1995.
HOW OBTAINED: Twins' 17th-round draft choice in 1978.
B/T: R-R
BORN: October 1, 1945, Gatun, Panama Canal Zone
CAREER: Carew was a career .328 hitter in his 19 major league seasons and was the winner of seven American League batting titles, all during his twelve years with Minnesota. Carew hit .300 or better 15 consecutive seasons and finished his career with 3,053 hits, which places him 16th among the all-time hit leaders and makes him one of only 21 players to collect 3,000-or-more career hits.
Carew, who won his only American League Most Valuable Player award in 1977 when he finished with a .388 average, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on the first ballot, January 8, 1991. He had his number 29 retired on July 19, 1987.
HOW OBTAINED: Signed as a free agent, June 25, 1964.
B/T: R-R
BORN: March 14, 1961, Chicago, IL
CAREER:
Considered by most to be the greatest Twin ever, "Puck" was baseball's jewel for 12 incredible seasons. His story was about being a hero from day one when he became the ninth player in history to collect four hits in his first game, on May 8, 1984 at California. The dramatic entrance proved to be just the first of many heroic performances leading up to his shining moment on October 26, 1991, during Game 6 of the World Series versus Atlanta. He went 3-for-4, made a leaping catch off the plexiglass to rob Ron Gant of extra bases and became the ninth player to end a World Series game with a home run on the final pitch off Charlie Leibrandt in the 11th inning to force a seventh game.
The first-ballot Hall of Famer (inducted in 2001), 10-time All-Star, six-time Gold Glove Award winner and five-time Silver Slugger Award winner had his career cut short when he awoke with blurred vision caused by glaucoma on the morning of March 28, 1996. He was later forced to announce his retirement due to irreversible damage to the retina in his right eye on July 12, 1996. He retired as the Twins' all-time leader in hits (2,304), doubles (414), total bases (3,453), at-bats (7,244) and runs (1,071), and his nnumber 34 was formally retired by the Twins on May 25, 1997.
HOW OBTAINED: Twins' 1st-round draft choice in 1982.
B/T: R-R
BORN: April 6, 1951 in Zeist, Netherlands
CAREER: After breaking into the big leagues at the age of 19, Blyleven would go on to pitch 11 of his 22 major league seasons with the Twins (1970-76 and 1985-88). His knee-buckling curveball, competitive drive and his knack for being the clubhouse prankster are only a few reasons why Blyleven had a successful career. Blyleven was named the 1970 American League Rookie Pitcher of the Year and was selected to the American League All-Star Team in 1973 and 1985. He finished his Twins career with a record of 149-138 and a 3.28 ERA. His 2,035 strikeouts are the most in Twins history, while his 149 wins rank second.
The winner of two World Series Championships (1979 with Pittsburgh and 1987 with Minnesota), Blyleven ranks fifth on Major League Baseball’s all-time strikeouts list with 3,701. His number 28 was formally retired July 16, 2011, becoming the first Twins pitcher to have his number retired and he was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame in 2002. Blyleven was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY on July 24, 2011, becoming the first Hall of Famer born in the Netherlands.
HOW OBTAINED: Twins' 3rd-round draft choice in 1969.
B/T: L-L
BORN: August 15, 1950 in Graceville, MN
CAREER: ‘TK’ took over the managerial duties for the Twins on September 12, 1986. In his first full season (1987) as the skipper, he led the Twins to their first World Series Championship. He led the club to their second World Series victory in 1991, which marked the first time in major league history that a team went from last place one season to World Champions the next.
The 1991 American League Manager of the Year had a managerial record of 1140-1244, which places him first on Minnesota’s all-time list in wins and games managed. At the time of his retirement after the 2001 season, Kelly was the longest-tenured manager/coach in all major sports. His number 10 was formally retired September 8, 2012, becoming the first (and only, to date) Twins manager to receive the honor. Kelly was selected manager on the Twins 40th Season Anniversary All-Time Team in 2000 and was named one of the “50 Greatest Twins” in 2010.
HOW OBTAINED: Kelly was signed as a minor league free agent by the Twins in 1971
B/T: L-R
BORN: April 19, 1983, St. Paul, MN
CAREER: The hometown St. Paul kid and first overall pick in the 2001 First-Year Player Draft came out of Cretin Derham Hall High School and played for the team he watched growing up on the other side of the Mississippi River. Mauer played 15 seasons in a Twins uniform from 2004-18, joining Tony Oliva as the only players in club history to reach that particular feat. The 2009 American League Most Valuable Player was named to six AL All-Star teams, earned five Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger Awards, three Rawlings Gold Glove Awards and became the only American League catcher to ever win a batting title, doing so three different times in 2006, 2008 and 2009.
The former catcher turned first baseman ranks first on the Twins all-time list in doubles (428) and times on base (3,087); second in games (1,858), hits (2,123) and walks (939); fifth in RBI (923) and 12th in home runs (143). He was selected to the All-Metrodome team in 2009 and was named one of the "50 Greatest Twins" in 2010. Mauer was a finalist for the Roberto Clemente Award for Outstanding Community service four times in his career, along with countless charitable endeavors from Joe and his family. Mauer's number was formally retired on June 15, 2019.
HOW OBTAINED: Drafted in the 1st round (1st overall) in the 2001 MLB June Amateur Draft, on June 5, 2001.
B/T: L-L
BORN: November 7, 1938, Zeeland, MI
CAREER: Kaat went 283-237 (.544) with a 3.45 ERA (4530.1 IP, 1738 ER), 180 complete games, 31 shutouts, 17 saves, 1083 walks, 2461 strikeouts, a 1.26 WHIP and a .264 opponent batting average in 898 career games (625 starts) for Washington/Minnesota (1959-73), Chicago-AL (1973-75), Philadelphia (1976-79), New York-AL (1979-80) and St. Louis (1980-83). Kaat made his major league debut for the Washington Senators in 1959 and was a crucial part of the franchise’s starting rotation when it relocated to the Twin Cities in 1961. He won 10 or more games for the Twins in every season except for 1961, when he won nine, and is the club’s all-time leader in wins (189), games started (422) and innings pitched (2959.1), while ranking second in complete games (133), shutouts (23) and strikeouts (1824).
He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2022 after being voted in via the Golden Days Era Committee alongside former teammate Tony Oliva. Kaat pitched in four decades and is one of five pitchers in AL/NL history to pitch for 25 seasons, including 15 with the Senators/Twins. He won the first 12 of his 16 consecutive Gold Glove Awards with the Twins and started three games in the 1965 World Series. He was selected as the left-handed pitcher on the Twins 25th Anniversary Team in 1986 and 40th Anniversary All-Time Team in 2000, was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame in 2001 and named one of the 50 Greatest Twins in 2010. Kaat’s number was formally retired on July 16, 2022.
HOW OBTAINED: Signed as a minor league free agent by the Senators on June 17, 1957.
In 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first African American man to play in the Major Leagues.
Number retired throughout baseball in 1997.
Played for Brooklyn Dodgers from 1947-56.
From his Baseball of Fame Plaque: "Leading NL batter in 1949. Holds fielding mark for second baseman playing in 150 or more games with .992. Led NL in stolen bases in 1947 and 1949. Most Valuable Player in 1949. Lifetime batting average .311. Joint record holder for most double plays by second baseman, 137 in 1951. Led second baseman in double plays 1949-50-51-52."
