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The Twins announce their team Hall of Fame inductees each year at the beginning of TwinsFest, 2017 was no different. Today is was announced that Michael Cuddyer and Andy MacPhail will be entering the shrine next summer.
The induction ceremonies themselves will be held at Target Field over the weekend of Friday, August 18th to Sunday, August 20th.
Michael Cuddyer spent 11 different season with the Twins, and was elected as a sort of pitty All-Star in 2011 because the whole team kind of sucked. Cuddy hit .272 with 141 home runs, 606 runs and 580 RBI in his time with the Twins, and appears on several career top ten lists for the team, usually in the 9th or 10th spot.
You probably never heard this before, but Cuddyer also does magic tricks.
Cuddyer took to Twitter to express his excitement over the honor.
Truly honored to be inducted into the @Twins HOF along with Andy Macphail! No way 140 characters is enough to express my emotions!
— Michael Cuddyer (@mcuddy23) January 27, 2017
The second inductee, Andy MacPhail, is a front office guy. He currently works for the Phillies, but he spent ten years in the Twins front office, and is credited with building the Twins’ only two championship Teams (1987 and 1991, but you should know that already). I’m a little surprised he wasn’t already in the Twins Hall of Fame.
Super beat writer Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press spoke to MacPhail, who doesn’t have Twitter, by phone.
Andy MacPhail: "My time in Minneapolis was a special chapter in my life. I started my family there. Got married there. Lifelong friendships"
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) January 27, 2017
MacPhail: "Tom Kelly will always have a special place in my heart. That's something I had to campaign for."
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) January 27, 2017
MacPhail: "It's a special organization. I know it's going through a tough time now. It won't last. They will turn things around."
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) January 27, 2017
MacPhail: "I look back on this sometimes and I still wonder to this day why the Pohlad family took a chance on me."
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) January 27, 2017
One Twitter user was quick to answer that last one.
@MikeBerardino I would say it is probably a cost motivated decision.
— Ben (@BS33171) January 27, 2017
Runners up in voting for player inductees were Danny Gladden followed by Cesar Tovar, and on the non-players side, Rick Stelmaszek followed by Jerry Bell.