2003 Minnesota Twins season

MLB yearly infobox
name = Minnesota Twins
season = 2003
misc = AL Central Champions

current league = American League
y1 = 1901
division = Central Division
y2 = 1994
Uniform
ballpark = Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
y4 = 1982
city = Minneapolis
y5 = 1982
owners = Carl Pohlad
managers = Ron Gardenhire
television = KSTC-TV
FSN North
(Bert Blyleven, Dick Bremer)
radio = 830 WCCO AM
(Herb Carneal,John Gordon, Dan Gladden)|After winning the American League Central Division in 2002, the 2003 Minnesota Twins were looking to repeat division titles for the first time since 1969 and 1970. A spark for the team was the July trade of Bobby Kielty for Shannon Stewart. Stewart provided a veteran presence at the top of the lineup that the team had previously lacked. The team met its goal of reaching the playoffs, but once again fell short in the postseason. The Twins lost in four games to the New York Yankees during the AL Division Series. 2003 would be the last year several key players played with the team.

Offseason

*October 14, 2002: Casey Blake was released by the Twins. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/b/blakeca01.shtml Casey Blake page at Baseball Reference] ]
*October 21, 2002: José Rodríguez was released by the Twins. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/r/rodrijo04.shtml José Rodríguez page at Baseball Reference] ]
*November 15, 2002: Matt Kinney and Javier Valentín were traded by the Twins to the Milwaukee Brewers for minor leaguers Gerry Oakes and Matt Yeatman. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/k/kinnema01.shtml Matt Kinney page at Baseball Reference] ]
*November 22, 2002: Carlos Pulido was signed as a free agent by the Twins. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/p/pulidca01.shtml Carlos Pulido page at Baseball Reference] ]
*December 16, 2002: David Ortiz was released by the Twins. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/o/ortizda01.shtml David Ortiz page at Baseball Reference] ]

Regular season

Under second year manager Ron Gardenhire, The Twins did not look so good coming out of the gates going 12-14 in March and April. However, they picked it up by going 19-9 in May, improving their record to 31-23 (.574). After having another tough string of games during the middle of the season, the Twins were looking for a jump start. They got it when on July 16th they traded RF Bobby Kielty to Toronto for LF Shannon Stewart. Going into the final month of the season with a record of 71-65 it looked as though the Twins may not win the division, but they finished with a stellar September going 19-7; including an 11-game winning streak. They ended up with a 90-72 (.556) record which was good enough to win the mediocre AL Central.

*The lone representative of the Twins in the All-Star Game was closer Eddie Guardado.
*The highest paid Twin in 2003 was Brad Radke at $8,750,000; followed by Rick Reed at $8,000,000.
*Bob Allison and Bob Casey were inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame.

Offense

Catcher A.J. Pierzynski enjoyed his highest career batting average (.312) in his final year with the Twins. First baseman Doug Mientkiewicz rebounded from a poor 2002 season by hitting .300 -- although his power numbers (11 home runs) were low for his position. Luis Rivas cemented his reputation as a mediocre hitter, batting .259 with a .308 on base percentage. Corey Koskie saw his average go up to .292 after a dip in 2002. For the third time in four years, shortstop Cristian Guzman led the majors in triples, this year with 14. Jacque Jones and Torii Hunter were capable hitters in the outfield, with Jones batting .304 and Hunter driving in a career high 102 runs. Stewart hit .322 in 270 at bats for the team.

Postseason

The Twins unfortunately had to face the one team that always seems to beat them: the New York Yankees. The Yankees swept the 7-game regular season series, outscoring the Twins 49-13. Johan Santana and the Twins surprised the Yankees by taking Game One 3-1 at Yankee Stadium. But the Yankees would go on to win the series; winning the next three games 4-1, 3-1, and 8-1. The Yankees eventually lost to the Florida Marlins in the World Series.

See also 2003 American League Division Series.

Player stats

Batting

tarters by position

"Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting Average; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In"

Other pitchers

Relief pitchers

References

External links

* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/MIN/2003.shtml Player stats from www.baseball-reference.com]
* [http://baseball-almanac.com/teamstats/roster.php?y=2003&t=MIN Team info from www.baseball-almanac.com]
* [http://minnesota.twins.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/min/history/timeline5.jsp Twins history since 2000, from www.mlb.com]
* [http://shrpsports.com/mlb/stand/2003finaldiv.htm 2003 Standings] succession box
title = AL Central Championship Season
years = 2003
before =Chicago White Sox
2002
after = Minnesota Twins
2004