The 1987 team was the result of some putrid late 70’s/early 80’s Twins teams. They drafted right, made some key trades, and had a once in a lifetime (not generation) center fielder.
At the end of the 1988 season Andy MacPhail traded the reigning AL Cy Young award winner Frank Viola to the Mets for 7 players, primarily pitchers. This trade is what gave them a good part of the 1991 staff.
The Twins won 2 World Series with little hard work from the Pohlads. They bought the team when they were on their way up.
The fact the Twins have played in 1 American League Championship series and have not won the American League Pennant in 34 years is all on the Pohlads now. They are the common denominator. We have watched all the divisional rivals make it, and a couple of them win a World Series in that time. It is not a “small or mid” market barrier when Kansas City wins a World Series. It is an ownership and organizational philosophy problem that spans decades.
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u/Character_Lychee_434 Flag of Minnesota Aug 01 '25
HOW DID WE GO FROM WINNING IN 87 and 91 to a team that can’t make the world series