A GLORIOUS OPENING DAY

TWINS OPEN NEW BALLPARK WITH WIN

The Minnesota Twins take pride in details. From the minor leagues on up, they implore their players to execute fundamentals. For a team that for years had one of baseball’s lowest payrolls, and was nearly contracted out of existence, the approach was a matter of survival. Now the Twins have a payroll approaching $100 million, a franchise catcher under control for eight more seasons and, at last, an outdoor ballpark that reflects the sensibilities of the organization. From the limestone on the dugout roof to the gate handles shaped like the state of Minnesota to the scoreboard that updates the pitcher’s walks plus hits per inning pitched after every play, Target Field fits their character. “You almost have to pinch yourself,” said Commissioner Bud Selig, who lobbied public officials for years on the Twins’ behalf. “Hard to believe.” Even the weather cooperated. Catcher Joe Mauer, a St. Paul native, was sometimes snowed out for April games in high school. But on Monday, it was 65 degrees at game time, and none of the starting players wore long sleeves. “It’s not going to be like this every April,” said Mauer, who drove in two runs in the Twins’ 5-2 victory over the Boston Red Sox. “But we’ll worry about all that when it is cold.” Monday was a day to celebrate, not to fret about the retractable roof that was missing from the ballpark’s $545 million budget, of which the Twins paid $195 million. There was not much ambience under the Teflon roof of the Metrodome, where the Twins moved in 1982. Folded-up football seats formed the center-field backdrop there. Here, there are evergreen trees. “Minnesota in the summer is the most beautiful place in the world,” said Frank Viola, the former pitcher and the most valuable player of the 1987 World Series. “Why do I want to go inside when it’s 80 degrees, just perfect, to watch baseball? But that said, it was such an advantage that we all looked forward to it.” Roy Smalley, a former infielder, said the predictability of the schedule greatly helped the 1987 Twins; because they were short on pitching, Smalley said, the Twins would have faded if bad weather had forced a slew of late-season doubleheaders. The Twins found that again in 1991, when they repeated their feat from 1987 by winning all four World Series home games. In recent seasons, the Twins developed a reputation for small ball, and their leadoff hitter, Denard Span, conceded he would miss chopping singles off the artificial turf. But Span also said the Twins would count the days until they could play outside on real grass, and he lamented that their whirlpool seated only one player at a time. The Red Sox’ David Ortiz, a former Twin, said the Metrodome felt like a prison when the weather was nice. Outfielder Michael Cuddyer said half the clubhouse power outlets were dead. “There was one little community cellphone charger,” Cuddyer said. “Now you have one at your own locker.” Sometimes, Cuddyer said, it was hard to find motivation for batting practice. Now, he said, the players cannot wait to hit. Their power will be recognized on the 48-foot-high logo above center field; every time a Twin player homers, the Minneapolis and St. Paul characters will share a neon handshake. (Alas, they missed their cue after Jason Kubel’s blast in the seventh inning Monday.) “From the scoreboards to the lights to the way they used the limestone, it’s gorgeous,” Cuddyer said. Navigating right field could be a challenge for Cuddyer. A section of seats juts out above the warning track, with a limestone exterior that will cause tricky caroms. Below the limestone, Cuddyer said, the wall has a wood surface, and below that, padding. Between Target Field and the Target Center, where the N.B.A.’s Timberwolves play, is an outdoor plaza with a statue of Kirby Puckett near the kettle-corn stand. Pennants for each season in club history, listing everyone who played for the Twins that year, line the fencing nearby. Four hours before Carl Pavano’s first pitch Monday, a fan from Houston named Justin Alberts snapped a photograph of the 1987 pennant. Alberts, who grew up in St. Paul, wore a powder blue Puckett jersey and was tickled just to look around. “We’ve only been here for 10 minutes, and it’s just spectacular,” he said. “Having a great open space like this to look inside, it’s just stunning. Getting back to outdoor baseball here is really special.” Other fans seem to agree. The Twins sold 24,500 season tickets before capping their allotment, and over all, they have sold 2.65 million tickets for this season. It is safe to say that the upper-deck seats in right field will not be covered by a giant canvas, as they were at the Metrodome. “Twenty games for $200?” Viola said, citing the lowest-priced season ticket, in the third deck down the right-field line. “Try finding a price like that in New York. It’s crazy.” Viola was one of dozens of former Twins on hand Monday, including Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Tony Oliva and Kent Hrbek, whose uniform numbers represent four of the five gates to the ballpark. The other gate is No. 34, after Puckett, who died in 2006. His son, Kirby Jr., helped unveil his statue Monday. “I believe my man Kirby’s going to come back to life,” Ortiz said, a thought that did not seem so outrageous on a day to dream. (NY Times) In other news, the Padres defeated Atlanta with a record-setting 17-2 home opener at PETCO Park in San Diego.