MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL, MN – The Minnesota Twins have announced plans for Opening Day, scheduled for 3:10 pm on Monday, April 3 versus the division rival Kansas City Royals at Target Field. Limited seating remains available for the season opening contest using MLB.com’s Ballpark app, at twinsbaseball.com, by calling 612-33 TWINS (612-338-9467) or 800-33-TWINS (800-338-9467), or in person at the Target Field Box Office.
The Twins Opening Day plans feature a variety of honors and festivities, highlighted by the following:
·Ceremonial First Pitch – Legendary former Twins coach Rick Stelmaszek will be on hand to throw the ceremonial first pitch. Beloved by multiple generations of Twins managers, fellow coaches, players, staff and fans, “Stelly” spent 32 consecutive seasons (1982-2012) on the Twins coaching staff, making him the longest-tenured coach in club history. In the history of the game there are only two coaches with longer tenures with one team. Stelmaszek’s first pitch will be caught by Eddie Guardado.
·National Anthem – Dessa, a nationally-recognized performer and Minnesota native, will sing the National Anthem accompanied by a brass quintet from the Grammy Award-winningMinnesota Orchestra. Dessa is a rapper, singer, essayist, and proud member of the Minneapolis Doomtree collective. In 2016, she toured Australia and Europe; contributed a track to The Hamilton Mixtape (which reached #1 on the Billboard charts), and partnered with Izzy’s Ice Cream to launch a flavor called Dessa’s Existential Crunch. She’s currently working on a book-length collection of literary essays.
·Landa–Ventura Tributes – The annual Opening Day Memoriam will include special tributes to Minnesota Twins pitcher Yorman Landa and Kansas City Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura– both of whom were tragically killed in off-season automobile accidents. The Twins will wear special Opening Day uniform patches honoring Landa while the Royals will be wearing a season-long patch in honor of Ventura.
The first 30,000 fans in attendance will receive a blue Twins long sleeve hooded tee (adult size M/XL) presented by your local Northland Ford dealers. Fans are encouraged to arrive early with Target Field gates opening at 1 pm (2 hours before first pitch).
As is customary with Opening Day, the Twins are planning a day-long celebration to commemorate the start of a new season. A complete rundown of Opening Day events and activities is detailed below:
Monday, April 3 – Twins vs. Royals
·6 to 9 am – Breakfast on the Plaza – Fans are invited to drive down 7th Street (adjacent to the Majestic Twins Clubhouse Store) and grab a free ballpark breakfast. Free food and beverages will also be available to bikers and pedestrians on the 7th Street side of Target Plaza.
·12 Noon to 2:15 pm – DJ Advance will perform on the balcony overlooking Target Plaza.
·1:00 pm – Gates open – Twins legends and select alumni from the 1987 World Championship team – celebrating the 30th anniversary of the club’s first World Series victory – will assist in officially opening the ballpark gates.
·The National Anthem will be performed by Dessa in collaboration with a Brass Quintet from the Grammy Award-winning Minnesota Orchestra. The musicians who will be performing the National Anthem are: Manny Laureano, trumpet; Lynn Erickson, trumpet; Michael Gast, horn; R. Douglas Wright, trombone; and Steven Campbell, tuba.
· The ceremonial first pitch will be thrown by longtime Twins bullpen coach Rick Stelmaszek.
· A flyover will feature four F-16s from the Duluth-based 148th Fighter Wing of theMinnesota Air National Guard.
On-field pregame ceremony will include, in this order:
·Both teams will be introduced along the foul lines.
·A giant American flag will be unfurled by Twins Season Ticket Holders.
·Raptor Center Eagles Pi and Max will be at home plate.
·WWII Veteran Henry “Hank” Langevin, 94, will raise the American Flag. Hank was born in St. Paul in 1922 and enlisted in the Army in 1941. He trained for two years to be a paratrooper and later trained as a glider. He fought in the Battle of Sicily and the Battle of the Bulge. He was later sent to Germany and freed Jewish prisoners from concentration camps.
·Barb Sykora will raise the Hennepin County flag. Sykora served on the Minnesota Ballpark Authority from 2006 through 2016. Sykora also served in the Minnesota House of Representatives for many years and played an important leadership role in helping ensure passage of the Twins-Hennepin County ballpark legislation which would ultimately result in the construction and opening of Target Field.
·The late Twins Hall of Famer Tom Mee’s son, John Mee, will raise the Twins Territory flag.
In-game elements include:
·“God Bless America” will be performed by SGT Signe Mundfrom of the 34th Infantry Division Band.
·The late Twins Hall of Famer Tom Mee’s four sons, John, Joe, Tim and Tom Jr., will be singing“Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during the seventh inning stretch.
Tickets Available
Season, group and single-game tickets for the remainder of the 2017 season at Target Field are available via MLB.com’s Ballpark app, at twinsbaseball.com, by calling 612-33-TWINS (612-338-9467) or 800-33-TWINS (800-338-9467), or in-person at the Target Field Ticket Office.
Caps On Initiative
We're encouraging everyone to put their #CapsOn for Opening Day and post to social media to show their support of the Minnesota Twins. You'll see staff, players, fans, politicians and even celebrities around the country wearing their favorite cap on April 3 to celebrate the start of the season.