1988 Minnesota Twins season


The 1988 Minnesota Twins finished at 91–71, second in the AL West. 3,030,672 fans attended Twins games, at the time, establishing a new major league record. Pitcher Allan Anderson had his most successful season in 1988, winning the American League ERA title at 2.45 and compiling a record of 16-9 in 30 starts.

Offseason

Five Twins made the All-Star Game,
third baseman Gary Gaetti, outfielder Kirby Puckett, catcher Tim Laudner, starting pitcher Frank Viola, and relief pitcher Jeff Reardon.
On September 16, Puckett got his 1000th hit, becoming just the fifth major leaguer to achieve that total before completing his fifth year.
On September 17, reliever Reardon collected his 40th save of the season. With 41 saves as a 1985 Montreal Expo, he became the only major league player to reach 40 saves in each league.
Frank Viola became the first Twins player since Jim Perry in 1970 to win the AL Cy Young Award.

Offense

hit.356 with 24 HR, drove in 121 runs and scored 109.
Puckett led the AL with 234 hits, 163 singles, and 358 total bases. Puckett's 234 hits were the most by a right-handed batter since Joe Medwick had 237 hits in 1937.
Kent Hrbek hit.312 with 25 HR and 76 RBI.
Gary Gaetti hit.301 with 28 HR and 88 RBI.
StatisticPlayerQuantity
HRGary Gaetti28
RBIKirby Puckett121
BAKirby Puckett.356
RunsKirby Puckett109

Pitching

The Twins had two solid starting pitchers: Frank Viola,
and Allan Anderson. Frank Viola led the AL with 24 wins. Allan Anderson led the AL with a 2.45 ERA. Reliever Jeff Reardon had 42 saves. Bert Blyleven led the AL with 17 losses, 125 earned runs allowed, and 16 hit batsmen.
StatisticPlayerQuantity
ERAAllan Anderson2.45*
WinsFrank Viola24*
SavesJeff Reardon42
StrikeoutsFrank Viola193

Defense

Third baseman Gary Gaetti and center fielder Kirby Puckett each won their third Gold Glove Award.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Roster

Notable transactions

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
PosPlayerGABHAvg.HRRBI
C11737594.2511354
3B133468141.3012888
CF158657234.35624121

Other batters

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Other pitchers

Relief pitchers

Awards and honors

All-Star Game