We have had a wonderful tradition of attending the Twins Home Opener for over 40 years!
In 1978, Tim and his buddies from Gustavus Adolphus College went to their first THO at old Metropolitan Stadium, Tim, Dave Moline, Roger Justin and Curt Scherer.
Many remember Bombo Rivera misplay in enter field at the Met on opening day.
In 1982, we attended the first game at the Metrodome. Known as the “Dome Opener”, our Dad Bob, Dave Moline and Tim behind 1st base and the 6’5”+ group of me, Curt Scherer, Kelly Bevens and Kelly’s dad in right field, near where Kent Hrbek’s home run landed – the first ever HR in the Metrodome. No air conditioning in the Metrodome when it first opened.
For many years, we enjoyed a pregame party at Vinny’s house along River Road.
The group grew to include our buddies from Fargo: Mark Plencner, Dave Gray, Steve Slabik, Wade Stubson, George Wagner and many others. Pretty amazing since Fargo is 250 miles from the Metrodome!
Pedro Munoz hit a home run into our section, but Mike Nolan dropped it. Kevin Kling climbed down the folded-up seats behind the baggie to retrieve it.
The Twins won the 1987 and 1991 World Series at the Metrodome. Both championship seasons started with a win on the home opener. We had a lot of fun at the Dome!
In 2010, the Twins moved into beautiful Target Field. We had two Home Openers that year. The Twins played two preseason games against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 2 and 3, as well as the traditional Home Opener beating the Boston Red Sox 5-2 on April 12. Our group were seated in the upper deck behind center field.
Weather is often a factor when playing baseball outside in April in Minnesota and it can disrupt the best laid plans. In 2022, we had a once in a lifetime opportunity to go to the Master Golf Championship, but the 4-day tournament overlapped with the Twins Home Opener. We decided to skip the first two days of the Masters to attend the THO. So, the plan was for me to fly from Fort Myers Florida on Wednesday, attend the Twins Home Opener on Thursday, four of us would fly from Minneapolis to Atlanta on Friday, drive to Augusta, Hilly and Kevin would attend the Masters on Saturday while Tim and I would attend the Masters on Sunday. We woke up on Thursday to cold and snow, so the Twins pushed the game to Friday. So we missed the Twins Home Opener, but still went to Lyon’s Pub to visit with friends. We had a nice conversation with the parents and brother of Seattle Mariners star, Adam Fraizer.
The Masters trip was a thrill, but disappointed to miss the Twins Home Opener.
Steve Pelton 