Trygve's Twins

We hope Trygve Olson won't mind if we share his version of the 2006 Minnesota Twins with the rest of the world.

Meet the Twins
John Lamb, The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead

The Minnesota Twins have made it back to the postseason despite a miserable start to the year. The Twinkies have been on a roll since the beginning of summer, but there are still some late arrivals jumping on the bandwagon. If you’re a Johan-come-lately to the Twin Cities’ Cinderella story, here’s what you need to know about your new favorite baseball team. And if you have to ask who Johan is, here’s a hint – ask a real fan who should win the AL Cy Young Award.

1- Former Twins pitcher Bert Blyleven was known to give up some bombs in his day, but the color commentator was really working blue when he dropped two expletives during a live broadcast in early September. The slips earned “Blurt” a five-game suspension from the broadcast booth.

2- Joe Mauer is not only handy with a stick, leading the batting race for months, the St. Paul native is also stylish behind the plate. Peaking out from under his catcher’s helmet are the most buzzed-about sideburns since Luke Perry left “Beverly Hills 90210.”

3- Outfielder Michael Cuddyer came up through the Twins farm system, but when he puts his finger to the side of his nose, he’s not giving it a farmer’s blow. The cleanup hitter is sniffing out a run for his scrappy team.

4- The Twins close out the regular season today against the Chicago White Sox. Maybe by now ChiSox manager Ozzie Guillen knows the name of the Twins third baseman, but in an August interview he called Nick Punto, “Joe ‘Ty Cobb’ Punto.” That was praise enough, but the Twins really embraced the Wizard of Ozz’s reference to the tenacious small-ball players like Punto, outfielder Jason Tyner, second baseman Luis Castillo and shortstop Jason Bartlett as “little piranhas.”

5- If you’re watching or listening to a game at the dome and a certain rookie pitcher is on the mound, chances are the fans aren’t yelling “Boo!” but rather “Boof!” for the righty, Boof Bonser.