All Twins team 1965-2017, position players

Image Courtesy of Bing

For a team that has had limited financial resources, the Minnesota Twins have had a surprisingly large amount of great players don their uniform. Here's a look at the all Twins team, 1965-2017.

Catcher: Joe Mauer I knew Maurer was a great, but I had forgotten just how great he was at his speak. Before being moved to first base to save his knees, Maurer was one of the best catchers in baseball. Joe had three batting titles to go with three gold gloves in his years behind the plate. Joe had a career year in 2009 when he led the AL in hitting with an average of .365., an OBP of .444, a slugging percentage of .587 and an OPS of1.031. He also won a gold glove that season and was the league MVP. That was also his biggest power year, with 28 home runs. Joe's WAR for the 2009 season was 7.8. Joe is a nice player as the Twins first baseman, but was a hall of fame caliber catcher during his best days behind the plate. Brian Harper gets some recognition for some nice work from 1988-1994. Brian sported a .306 batting average for those six seasons.

First base: Harmon Killebrew The Twins have had some very capable first basemen over the years. Justin Morneau and Kent Hrbek come to mind, but Harmon Killebrew has to have a spot on this team. While Harmon had some great seasons before1965, he also had some after then. Harmon led the AL in home runs six times and RBIs four times. Killebrew's defensive metrics weren't great, but at his peak he was good for a WAR of around 6. The fact that he spent 21 years with the Twins as a player is also amazing. Both Hrbek and Morneau were left handed hitters good for about 25 homers and 90 or so RBIs. Actually, Morneau had four seasons of 100+ RBIs.

Second base: Rod Carew Before going off to the Angels, Rod Carew had a magnificent run with the Twins. In 12 years with the Twins, Carew won 7 batting titles and put together an OBP of .393. Though not a home run hitter, Rod had 90 triples in his Twins days and had a slugging percentage of .448. Rod had four seasons with a WAR of 7 or more, maxing out at 9.7 in 1977. Currently Brian Dozier is a force to be reckoned with, providing power and good defense at the position. Dozier is sitting on 34 home runs in 2017 after hitting 42 in 2016. Dozier would be the team representative at second on a number of teams. He just can't leap frog Carew. Before moving on, Chuck Knoblauch had some nice seasons with the Twins before moving on to the Yankees and oblivion. While in Minnesota, Chuck put up an OPS of .807 and a WAR of 37.9. Very impressive for his 7 seasons with the Twins. From 1995-97 his WAR was 6.7-8.6-6.7. And then he went to the Yankees. 

Shortstop: Greg Gagne Greg wasn't spectacular, but was a steady player during his 10 years with the Twins. Greg's defensive WAR was very strong, peaking at 2.9 in 1990. Gagne was a little bit limited offensively, but his glove more than made up for it. Longtime Twins may remember Zolio Versalles who had a MVP season in leading the Twins to a world series appearance in 1965. Unfortunately, Zolio dropped off considerably after that. Roy Smalley had a decent run at short from 1979-81. He provided a little bit of power from the position. 

Third base: Gary Gaetti Gary provided a nice balance of good glove work and a potent bat in his 10 years with the Twins. Gary was a two time all star and won four gold gloves in his time in Minnesota. Twice Gaetti hit over 30 homers and had more than 100 RBIs. A few seasons after the departure of Gaetti, Corey Koskie had a nice run at third. Koskie also had a good glove at third to go with some power. His OPS for his 7 years with the Twins was a nice .825. Koskie was a nice player, but Gaetti gets this slot.

Left field: Cesar Tovar In his 8 years with the Twins, Cesar was a utility man of note. He spent some time in left field, so he gets the start here. Versatility isn't generally recognized in the teams I've put together, but the combination of Tovar's value and lack of other options nails down left field for him. Tovar had a WAR of 3.8 during his years with the Twins, so he was productive. Tovar led the AL in hits with 204 in 1971 and doubles and triples in 1970. This was the hardest pick for me to make on this team.

Center field: Kirby Puckett Kirby was one of the most dynamic players in Twins history. Kirby was a 10 time all star and won 6 gold gloves. In 12 seasons with the Twins, Puckett's WAR was 50.8. Kirby was a great player and was fun to watch. His short, squat body gave him an every-man appeal. Tori Hunter was also spectacular defensively in his years with the Twins but, while not bad with the stick, couldn't match Puckett's production.

Right field: Tony Oliva Tony was one of the best hitters baseball has seen in the last 60 years. Oliva was a left handed line drive hitter with power. He was also pretty good in right field until knee injuries reduced him to a designated hitter role. Oliva took the AL by storm in 1964, his first full season in the big leagues. Oliva led the league in hits with 217, batting average at .323 and doubles with 43. He also had 32 home runs. That wasn't a fluke. Oliva led the AL in hitting three times and in hits five times. He finished his career with an OPS of 830, but he played in an era when pitchers dominated. Tony had one season with a WAR of 7.o and another with a WAR of 6.8. Tom “Bruno” Brunansky had a nice run in right field for the Twins, but Oliva is the overwhelming choice.

Designated hitter: Paul Molitor While Molitor spent the bulk of his career with the Brewers, his last three seasons were spent as the Twins designated hitter. And he was very good. His batting average for those three seasons was .312 and he had 102 doubles in that time frame. He even had 38 stolen bases. In 1996, his first season with the Twins, he led the league in hits with a staggering 225. He also drove in 113 runs. Not bad for a guy who wasn't really a power hitter.

So, there's my Twins team. At least the position players. How does it compare to yours?