This year everything has gone wrong for the Twins and it was inevitable that Jim Thome would be traded. It makes sense that he should return to where it all started 20 seasons ago when he made his major league debut on September 4th, 1991. Thome has hit 335 of his 602 home runs while wearing a Cleveland uniform.
In less than two seasons with Minnesota, Thome hit 37 home runs, more than any other player on the Twins roster over that time. In 2010 he led the team with 25 home runs, averaging a home run every 11.04 at bats when the Twins won 94 games and their sixth AL Central division title since 2002 when Ron Gardenhire took over as manager.
I started thinking about some of the players the Twins had signed in the twilight of their career. Many of them were brought in because they were a low-cost option at the time, having made their mark on baseball with another team.
There have been several players who signed with the Twins later in their career and achieved a significant milestone.
Some of these players made quite an impact and helped the Twins achieve great things, while others were a veteran presence on some young teams trying to find their identity.
I poured over the Twins rosters since they started play in 1961, looking for players who joined the team later in their career.
Here are the top 20. The criteria included their impact on the Twins, their performance while in Minnesota and their career success.
The players ranked from No. 12 through No. 20 are all pretty much interchangeable. Once we get to those players that helped the Twins between 1987 and 1991, it gets interesting.