I had to write an essay for an internship program and couldn't resist the opportunity to write about Jim Thome, who in one season with the Twins quickly became one of my all-time favorites for both his abilities at the plate and his demeanor in the clubhouse. I didn't end up getting the internship but the essay still came in handy this morning when I found out Thome had been resigned with the Twins to a 1 year, $3 million deal (plus incentives, of course). Couldn't be happier to see him back in a Twins jersey as he chases 600.
Leading off for the White Sox in the top of the ninth inning, Alexei Ramirez jumped on the second pitch from reliever Matt Capps and blasted a game-tying homerun over the flowerbeds lining the low left wall of Target Field. With Minnesota leading the AL Central by only three games, Twins fan held their breath as the top of the line-up stepped to the plate and failed to score a game-ending run in the bottom of the ninth. The top of the tenth didn’t play out any better for the Twins who gave up a run off a single from the game-changer Ramirez, leaving the Sox up 6-5 in the midst of a heated division race. A quick visit from Gardy and in came lefty Ron Mahay, trotting up from the bullpen in center field to replace Jon Rauch and get Minnesota out of the inning, nearly unscathed.
What happened next can simply be described as fitting. After Delmon Young led off with a grounder up the middle to Alex Rios, all of Target Field climbed to its feet as the Twins’ designated hitter Jim Thome slowly approached home plate. Becoming a free agent after four seasons with the White Sox, the Twins had been quick to rope in the veteran slugger, signing him to a one-year $1.5 million deal that would bring him to Minneapolis to help break in the new ballpark. So far, the acquisition had worked in the Twins’ favor. He had quickly become a favorite in his new clubhouse, boasting 16 homeruns and a .265 average leading into the three game series with Chicago and if there was any player the team and fans wanted at the plate in this situation, it was Thome. With his teammates nearly spilling out of the dugout—readying for a possible celebration—Thome took a hard swing at the first pitch from reliever Matt Thornton. The crowd lulled as he repositioned himself in the box, the quiet anticipation hanging in the thick mid-August air.
The fans weren’t forced to wait long. Thome connected on the next pitch, a fastball, sending it soaring towards the high right field wall. Thornton didn’t even have to look. It was gone. As Thome touched first, his 17th homerun of the season landed past the right field bleachers sending the stadium into an uproar. He had just recorded his 581st career homerun, giving the Twins an encouraging four game lead while notching the first-ever walk-off at Target Field. Throwing his helmet into the air as he rounded third, he jogged slowly towards home plate where his teammates were waiting. Those unfamiliar with the teams’ history would have thought the Twins had just won the World Series. The rest of us knew differently, understood what had just happened in one single swing.
The headline in Chicago would later read, The White Sox Stunned by Ex-Teammate. That was true. Thome had just led his former rival to a 7-6 victory with a 445-foot two-run homer in extra innings. It was the way fans hoped all games would end, with pure exhilaration, the kind of buzz that turned wavering fans into lifelong baseball devotees. But emotions aside, Thome had just done his job—coming through in a clutch situation when the team needed him. That’s how I look at my role as a sportswriter, knowing that at any moment I could be called into the game and expected to deliver. My first at-bat in the majors came on Sept. 21 when I found myself in the Herb Carneal Press Box high above Target Field, covering the game for KFAN Sports Radio AM 1130. I had been an intern for less than three weeks and had been asked to get post-game sound the producers could use for the next day’s shows.
It seemed simple enough. The Twins were trailing the Indians 4 to 2 after the bottom of the sixth and even though their magic number to clinch the AL Central was only at one, no one was expecting a champagne celebration after the game. But of course—in true rookie fashion—my first major league appearance couldn’t just be an easy single. The Twins scored four runs in the eighth inning to grab a 6-4 victory and as the team waited for the Oakland-Chicago finish, I carefully wrapped myself in plastic garbage bags and waited patiently outside the clubhouse to do interviews. Oakland ended up routing the Sox 7-2, leaving the Twins to douse their brand-new clubhouse with champagne as their grabbed their sixth American League Central division title.
And I was there, interviewing Michael Cuddyer, Joe Nathan, Gardy, Young, and my favorite designated hitter Jim. Somehow my first call-up to the big leagues had become a grand slam situation, the start to career that I'm hopeful will continue to grow day-by-day. Since then, I’ve covered the dismissals of two Minnesota head coaches, the arrival and departure of a very colorful wide receiver, and a nationally-ranked volleyball team that has overcome a season of adversity to grab a top-10 ranking in the NCAA tournament. I’ve covered over ten different athletic organizations in the last three months, something that has forced me to be on my game at any given moment. It’s this independence, this sense of responsibility that I hope will continue to push my career in the big leagues. Because—like a veteran designated hitter—I know I can deliver every time I’m at the plate.
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