The Minnesota Twins have fairly little representation in the Hall of Fame.
Since the team’s move to Minnesota in 1961, they have only had four players inducted into Cooperstown.
Their most notable players include Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew and Kirby Puckett.
"And we'll see you tomorrow night!"
On today's date in #MNTwins history, Kirby Puckett hit this BIG home run! pic.twitter.com/ayLyoAFwgs
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) October 26, 2020
Now, as the modern age of Twins players approach their Hall of Fame candidacies, there may be more players with a chance of being voted in.
Who are three players that should represent the Twins and be voted into the Hall of Fame.
1. Joe Mauer
At his best, Mauer was easily one of the better catchers in MLB history.
He also quickly established himself as the face of the Twins franchise and remained there throughout the 2000s.
Born and raised in Minnesota, he was a hometown hero for fans of the franchise.
Not many people get to play for their hometown team.
Joe Mauer did it for 15 years. #ThankYou7 pic.twitter.com/Im1SJoBqtX
— MLB (@MLB) November 10, 2018
On top of this, he was one of the most talented players to step on the field in recent history.
He was a blend of offense and defense that has been rarely seen from the position.
Over his 15-year career, Mauer established himself as the league’s best catcher.
He totaled 2,123 hits, 143 home runs and a career .306 batting average.
In 2009, Mauer handedly won the American League MVP award with 28 home runs, 96 RBI and a .365 average.
During the peak of his career, his WAR ranked 6th in the MLB.
This is especially significant as he got it done behind the plate, a position that typically isn’t known for its offense.
However, Mauer is hurt by his rapid drop-off due to injuries.
After the 2013 season, Mauer only hit above .300 once and experienced a stark dip in production.
Because of this, his case is hurt as he lags behind some other catchers statistically.
However, Mauer passed the Hall of Fame “eye test” during his career and deserves to make it in some day.
2. Joe Nathan
During his time with the Twins, Nathan established himself as one of the league’s best closers.
He consistently was among the top of the saves category, posting low ERAs alongside that.
From 2006-2008, he had ERAs well below two, saving over 35 games each year as well.
2006-07 Joe Nathan
132 games
140.0 IP
11-2
1.74 ERA
0.907 WHIP
11.1 K/9
73-for-79 savesThe #MNTwins closer was not named to the All-Star team in either season. pic.twitter.com/ijEmLZ1xvD
— Twins Gems (@TwinsGems) November 29, 2020
By the end of his career, he amassed a 2.87 career ERA with 377 saves and 976 strikeouts.
He ranks eighth on the all-time saves leaderboard.
On top of that, baseball historian and statistician Bill James ranked Nathan as the sixth best relief pitcher in MLB history.
This even puts him ahead of pitchers like Dennis Eckersley and Lee Smith.
While Nathan isn’t exactly a name that jumps off the page when talking about the Hall of Fame, he has a resumé that deserves some consideration.
3. Torii Hunter
Hunter is another former beloved Twin that has Hall of Fame merit.
He was an outfielder who played with reckless abandon and would go after any ball.
This helped him become one of the league’s best defensive outfielders ever, noted for his ability to scale the wall and rob home runs.
Torii Hunter's catch on Barry Bonds in the 2002 All Star game is legendary! 😯👏👏 pic.twitter.com/SlETiVa3vn
— Baseball Quotes (@BaseballQuotes1) May 26, 2020
Over his career, he won a total of nine Gold Gloves at the competitive centerfield position.
He was solid offensively as well.
In his 19-year career, Hunter had 2,452 hits, 353 home runs and a .277 batting average.
However, much of this came in an era where inflated offense decreases the “wow-factor” of his numbers.
His career WAR of 50.7 is also lower than that of other standout centerfielders, which doesn’t help his case.
Either way, Hunter put together a standout career that deserves some Hall of Fame consideration.
Each of these three players were critical members of the Twins during the 2000s.
They put together standout and solid careers that earn Hall of Fame merit.
In the coming years, they should represent the franchise in Cooperstown.
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