“People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.
Baseball Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby
As the Twins opened their 2018 home season, Minnesota fans were (like Rogers Hornby) still waiting for spring (weather), but they no longer were waiting for baseball. It was “Game On” versus the visiting Seattle Mariners.
Despite the wintry conditions (the photo is of my backyard on Twins’ Home Opening Day), it was – indeed – a beautiful day for a ball game. As is every day.
As I departed for the game – with about 8-inches of snow on my front lawn and my snow blower seemingly still warm from the most recent major snow storm (about 48 hours ago) – I was appropriately suited up for Minnesota baseball (Long Johns under jeans; a flannel shirt under both a hoodie AND a leather jacket; one pair of socks under another; plus snow boots, ear muffs and ski gloves).
Once in the ballpark, as I made my way to my seat in 35-degree weather, the “magic” started to happen. The grass was a bright emerald green (good work, grounds crew); the ball the starkest of whites; and, perhaps miraculously, the sun was shining out of a deep blue, relatively cloudless (and snowless) sky. The crowd – bundled in an array of colorful winter outerwear, huddled under blankets (many baseball-themed) and even, in some cases, snuggled in sleeping bags – buzzed happily in anticipation. There were also the other sounds of the game: the slap of ball against glove as players warmed up; the shouts of vendors (for everything from hot dogs and beer to hot chocolate and wild rice soup); upbeat music, interrupted by frequent welcoming announcements on the PA system; and, most important, fans talking BASEBALL. And let’s not forget the sweet and savory smells as you passed by the many food stands (for more on Twins newest food and beverage offerings, click here.) We were ready. Note: Since this is Minnesota, I need to add that there were – as always in wintry weather – a scattered few of Minnesota’s boldest (and coldest) fans – outfitted in shorts, tennis shoes and T-shirts.
The Home Opener is a special day, particularly in Minnesota. It’s a sign that we have survived the long, cold winter (even in years when it still seems to be hanging on). And, it’s a symbol of hope for a grand and sunny summer. Home Openers represent a day for optimism across the hardball landscape. As the season opens, every team can aspire to be a contender, every rookie is a potential “phenom,” every fading veteran can be viewed as a potential “Comeback Player of the Year,” and every new face in the lineup or on the bench a welcome addition to YOUR team.
THE EAGLE HAS LANDED
Okay, enough sentiment. How about the events of the day. I’ve often written on these pages that one of the greatest things about baseball is that, once in the ballpark, you can almost always see something you’ve never seen before. Well, that axiom was proven true even before yesterday’s game began.
As rap artist Dessa sang the national anthem, Challenger (an American Bald Eagle) was released from a perch in center field to soar majestically above the diamond while his handler waited on the pitcher’s mound. The “soaring” was perfectly majestic. The landing – not so much.
Mariners’ starting pitcher James Paxton was standing at attention in leftfield during the anthem, when Challenger decided to deviate from his expected route. The large, sharply beaked and taloned symbol of American might and democracy decided a more appropriate perch might be Paxton’s right shoulder. Paxton, by the way, handled the situation with courage and calm – as you can see in the video above.
Paxton, or perhaps Challenger, got a significant round of applause after the incident. For those of you who are interested, here are the most notable ovations of the afternoon.
TWINS 2018 HOME OPENER – MOST NOTABLE OVATIONS
– 90+-year-old World War II veteran Robert O’Connor, who raised the American flag during the Star Spangled Banner. (Note: O’Connor got a second ovation when he appeared on Kiss Cam later in the game.)
– The 2018 Olympic Gold Medal-winning US Men’s Curling Team, who rolled out the first pitch.
– Ichiro Suzuki, during the Mariners’ introductions.
– Twins’ players and staff during pre-game introductions – particularly manager Paul Molitor, coach Eddie Guardado and players Byron Buxton, Brian Dozier, Joe Mauer, and Miguel Sano.
– Former Twin (and AL MVP) Justin Morneau (when he appeared on the video board).
– Twins’ CF Byron Buxton after a leaping catch in deep right center in the fifth inning.
– Twins Miguel Sano, Mitch Garver and Eddie Rosario after their sixth-, seventh- and eighth-inning home runs.
– Twins’ 1B Joe Mauer and C Mitch Garver after Seattle 3B Kyle Seager grounded to Mauer with runners on first (Robinson Cano) and third (Jean Segura) and one out in the seventh inning (score tied 2-2). Mauer smartly fired home and Segura was trapped too far down the line. (Garver ran him down for the out.)
– Snow flakes, which began falling in the eighth (only after surviving the Metrodome would Minnesota fans applaud falling snow during a baseball game).
Miguel Sano … made up for a run-scoring error in the first innig with a game-tying homem run in the sixth.
Photo by Keith Allison 
So, what about the game itself? First, let me say, it was a good contest, in spite of the weather – which likely contributed to the three errors, wild pitch and passed ball. The Twins trailed 2-0 after the first inning, when the Mariners scored on a pair of singles and an error by Twins’ 3B Miguel Sano. The home team came back on a game-tying homer two-run homer by (Sano) in the sixth, took the lead on a Mitch Garver home in the seventh and added an insurance run on a Eddie Rosario dinger in the eighth.
SOMETHING OLD AND SOMETHING NEW
41-year-old Fernando Rodney, the Twins’”new” closer, picked up his first save of the season – the 301st of his career. In the process, he became the oldest player to record a save for the Twins.
As the game progressed, we saw a lot of what we will, apparently, be seeing across MLB this year. In the Twins’ Home Opener, we saw ten pitchers, 18 strikeouts and four of the six runs in the game scoring on home runs. It clearly looks like 2018 will be another hard-throwing/free swinging season – when we see plenty of pitchers and plenty of batters trotting back to the dugout after fanning or trotting around the bases after a long ball.
THE FIRST SEVEN DAYS OF THE 2018 MLB SEASON
In the first seven days of this season (through April 4), MLB teams played 86 games and hit 194 home runs. In addition, the first week of play saw 1,509 strikeouts. I did the math on those K’s. Over the course, of the week, that meant an average of 17 combined strikeouts every nine innings.
Opening Day (March 29) alone, in 13 games, fans witnessed 133 pitchers taking the mound, 264 strikeouts and 33 homeruns – with 42 percent of the day’s tallies scoring on the long ball. Math again – just over 10 pitchers, 20 strikeouts and 2 1/3 home runs per game.
AND THEY ARE OFF! SOME FIRST WEEK HOMER HIGHLGHTS
- On March 29, the Cubs’ Ian Happ hit the very first pitch of the 2018 season for a home run – and the new season was off and trotting.
- On March 29, White Sox DH Matt Davidson became just the fourth player in MLB history with a three-homer Opening Day game.
- On March 29 and 30, the Giants topped the Dodgers 1-0. In each game, Giants; 2B Joe Panik provided the sole run via the long ball – the first time in MLB history that a batter had – on two consecutive days – driven a game’s only run via the home run.
- On April 3, The Cardinals opened the game against the Brewers with back-to-back jacks (Dexter Fowler and Tommy Pham) on the game’s first three pitches. Then, with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Brewers (trailing 4-3) closed out the game with back-to-back home runs from Christian Yelich and Ryan Bruan. MLB.com reported it was the first time in MLB history a game opened and closed with back-to-back long balls.
- On April 3, in the Yankees’ home Opener, SS Didi Gregorius – appropriately batting cleanup – ripped a pair of homers and drove in eight runs (setting a new RBI record for a home opener.)
- On April 3, the Padres won their first game of the 2018 season (after four losses) behind a three-home run, five-RBI game from rookie 3B Christian Villaneuva.
GOING DEEP CAN BE HABIT FORMING
Through April 4, there had already been 14 multi-homer games: Who got ‘em? Here’s the list: Tim Anderson; Tyler Austin; Charlie Blackmon; Wellington Castillo; Matt Davidson; Paul DeJong; Brian Dozier; Edwin Encarnacion; Didi Gregorius; Bryce Harper; Justin Smoak; Giancarlo Stanton; Christian Villanueva.
MORE ON THE TWINS HOME OPENER
In the Twins’ opener, we saw some Twins-specific occurrences that we are likely to see plenty more of this season.
- A Miguel Sano home run – I expect we will see at least 30 of those this campaign if he stays healthy.
- Fernando Rodney putting a batter on (walk) and bringing the tying run to the plate before nailing down a save. (He has a reputation for outings that keep the manager and fans on edge – and, last season, had 39 saves, despite a 4.23 ERA.)
- A leaping catch in center field by Byron Buxton – last year’s Gold and Platinum Glover will continue to be a running highlight reel in the outfield.
- Newcomers Zach Duke, Addison Reed and Fernando Rodney in the late innings.
The Home Opener also included a handful of important (to me) firsts.
- The Twins’ first home win of 2018.
- Mitch Garver’s first MLB home run.
- My first completed scorecard.
- My first “old school” ballpark hot dog – a tepid offering, served up by an in-the-stands vendor.
- My first 6-4-3 double play of the season – a Twins’ twin-killing that snuffed a two-on, one-out Mariners’ threat in the fifth inning. (As regular readers of BBRT know, I love 6-4-3 and 4-6-3 double plays.)
And that, my friends, is the BBRT take on the Twins’ Home Opener.
Thanks for reading.
Coming Soon, BBRT’s Fifth Annual John Paciorek Award.
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Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.
