As a Team Baseball Card collector, I have become more and more dependant on the internet as my sole means to research and purchase the cards for my collection. If you're a collector of cards in general, there are thousands of sites you can visit to find card checklists, star rookie cards, vintage cards, complete sets, etc. But if you are a Team Set collector the resources are far more scarce. I have found it very difficult over the years to try and narrow down something I thought would be very easy. Needless to say, there aren't any sites (that I know of) dedicated to collecting Minnesota Twins Baseball Cards....until now!
This is a site dedicated to the Minnesota Twins and to the hobby of collecting all things related to the Twins, their players and their organization. They all meet here in a living, breathing document that serves as a all-in-one resource for card collectors and as a historical tribute to the team we have followed from their inaugural season in 1961...to their AL pennant in 1965...to the hardships of the 70's and early 80's...to the World Series triumphs in 1987 and 1991...through to the present day team that frustrates and excites us all on a daily basis.
What started as one person's quest to catalog his Twins collection (Topps only), has grown beyond what anyone could ever have imagined. The site is no longer "my" collection, but instead, it is a conglomeration of many collections from many collectors. I have been smart enough (or fortunate enough) to surround myself with a volunteer staff that have worked tirelessly to make this site what it is...the best damn team collector site anywhere. In addition to their hard work and their vast collections, the site has also been helped by numerous contributors. Well over 1000 images have come from avid Twins collectors just like you. It's with all this help that TwinsCards.com has enjoyed incredible success in only its first year of existence. Please see below to learn a little about the TwinsCards.com staff.
TwinsCards.com Starters
I am please to introduce the TwinsCards.com Starting Lineup. These are the guys & gals that make this site tick. The majority of what you see on the site comes from there personal collections and they have collectively spent 100's of hours checklisting, cataloging, uploading, proofing and re-proofing everything they load to the site. Without their help, the site would only be a shell of its current form. Without further adieu...the TwinsCards.com Starting Lineup...
Blake Meyer - Site Owner
Without boring you all to death, here's the condensed version...single Dad, three kids, live overseas, collect baseball cards, spend too much time in front of a computer (both at home and at work). Love being a Dad (my real full-time job), love my kids more than life itself, like (not love) living overseas and enjoy collecting anything Twins related.
I have the same story as millions of kids growing up in the 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's. I collected all kinds of cards, paid no attention to their condition or value and then got rid of them when I discovered more interesting things to do with my time. I got rid of my collection in 1983 and started back up again in 2000.
Pre-1983 was all about baseball. I had a very large collection of baseball memorabilia that my Dad and I had collected over the years...10,000 plus cards, autographs, game used bats, pins, buttons, etc...anything baseball. During those years, we lived in St. Petersburgh, Florida and needless to say, Spring Training was my "Nirvana". Besides access to hundreds of players, I occasionally got to do cool things like being bat-boy for an Old-Timers game at old Al Lang Stadium, or talk to retired players that lived in the area.
Post-2000 has been mostly about the Twins. I have managed to finish my "Topps Complete Set" collection from 1975-present, but my main focus has been on Twins' cards and Twins' memorabilia. My pride and joy is my on-going quest to collect every single Topps, Regular Issue card between 1961-present that depicts a Twins' player. Along the way, I've stumbled into this quest called TwinsCards and it has morphed into a site beyond my wildest dreams.
The greatest thing of all is that I get to share this experience with my kids and everyday I get to re-live my childhood, card-by-card.
Mr. H is the webmaster of TwinsCards.com. Although his first profession is Spanish Teacher, he designs websites professionally. Mr. H collected baseball cards as a boy in the mid 1990s, but only for a short time. Now, surfing TwinsCards.com has replaced the joy he once found in opening wax packs. Mr. H isn't alone in his plight, as he makes the skeleton, and the staff at TwinsCards.com fills in the missing guts. Mr. H fills his spare time with his other hobbies, which include helping people with special needs, bicycling, and home computer repair. Mr. H is always searching for new ideas, so don't hesitate to contact him if you think you've got the next TwinsCards.com.
I tell people I'm the second most famous person born in Graceville, Minnesota, former Twin Tom Kelly being the first. I attended my first Twins game in 1971 at the age of 9 and fell in love. I still remember how green the grass was and the sound and smell of the ballpark. My Dad took me down by the dugout with a baseball and I got autographs from Rod Carew, Leo Cardenas, and several others. A guy came by in a suit and Dad said I should ask him for an autogrtaph, but I was scared. Turned out it was Sandy Koufax doing TV. We attended a few games a year throughout my childhood, but most of my love of the Twins came from listening to the games on the radio. I can still hear Halsey Hall and Herb Carneal describe the games.
I got my first signed baseball card in 1985 when I moved to St. Paul. I was a regular at the Dome for many years and went to all the home playoff and World Series games in 1987 and 1991. What a thrill to see the Twins win the World Series! My autograph collection continues to grow and has been helped tremendously through my friendships with guys from the site like Pat, Joel, and Loren. The collection you see here represents about a fifth of my total autograph collection that includes non-Twins, football, basketball, and hockey.
Thanks to all Staff member at Twinscards.com for the help they've given me in my collection and their friendship.
I first began to come down with the collecting/Twins bug as a 9-year old in 1961, the Twins' first year in Minnesota. In 1962 I went to my first game at the Met, it happened to be a sunny August Sunday afternoon when Jack Kralick tossed a no-hitter vs. the Kansas City A's, and I was hooked.
I was buying baseball cards like most every 10-year old boy, and I developed an early interest in the 4x5 photos and postcards some players, and the Twins front office, would send out in response to fan mail. You'll see many of those photos I got in 1962 here in our "Photos" section if you take a look. Many still have tape stains on the back from hanging on my bedroom wall 30+ years ago. My interest in Twins photos, and autographs, was born.
There were lean years along the way, when baseball took a backseat to music and girls, college and cars, but though my interest waned at times, it always came back like a loyal old friend. There were periods where I wanted to collect EVERYTHING -- every baseball card, postcards, autographs, every piece of Twins memorabilia produced. That grew to be impossible and frustrating, and frustratingly expensive and time-consuming.
Eventually I've settled into some of my basic Twins interests -- autographed postcards and cards from 1961 - 1991, all the basic Twins publications, pocket schedules from the first 30 years, all the Twins postcard issues, and of course my first love, the team-issue 4x5 photos. Something about them caught my fancy in 1962, and it's never let go.
I was born and raised in LeSueur, Minnesota, went on to college at the Twin Cities U campus, graduated from Mankato State in 1975, and have lived in the Twin Cities ever since, working in the computer field for state government. So I guess I'm truly a lifelong Minnesotan. And I'm glad we have the Twins here to make our winters a bit shorter and fill our summers with entertainment.
I've been in and out of "organized" collecting since the mid-1970s and have made many friends through the hobby throughout the years, all of whom I'm most grateful for.
Other interests for me include fantasy baseball, slo-pitch softball, and my current golden retriever, Molly. She's working at teaching me what's really important in life.
I very much appreciate this opportunity, through TwinsCards.com, to share my collection with anyone with enough interest to take a look, to share what I've learned through the years, and hopefully to expand my knowledge of Twins collecting.
A fan of baseball, in general, and the Twins and Cubs, in particular, I've collected baseball cards, since an early age. Took a special interest in the Twins team issued 4x5 photos, because nobody seemed to know much about them. Discovered that Pat Bones (King of the 4x5s), had started checklisting them, but hadn't gotten past the 1970s. I picked up, where he left off, and now he says that I am "The King".
Developed an interest in the black and white 8x10 issues, and checklisting them just seemed like the thing to do. Have had lots of help from many good friends, in this continuing journey. I'm looking forward to more fun with old friends, and making new ones along the way.
While playing in the Scarville, Iowa, slow pitch softball league, I tied a record held by many old ballplayers, by being 38 years old, for three consecutive seasons. I've never been late for spring training, due to visa problems, (although Mastercard is another story), and, to date, have never failed a steroid test. The league folded up, many years ago, but I never retired, so I'm officially listed as a free agent. Now, if I could just get a tryout........
Joel "Minnesota Twinkie" Thingvall is older than the Minnesota Twins franchise. A lifelong Minnesotan, he's listened to Twins games on WCCO since year '61 and attended too many live contests to recall. His love of baseball culminated in three Little League seasons where he patrolled right field and went a sparkling 1 (a bunt) for 41. He still proudly owns his Maury Wills H&B Louisville Slugger bat! Joel still gets joy out of the pursuit of autographs and the opportunity it brings to meet players young and old. Twinscards.com has allowed him to share his obsession with the greater Minnesota Twins community (see "Autographs" and "Rosters" to view his signature passion).
I guess I was born a tomboy, up on a farm outside Floodwood, Minnesota,
the youngest of 10 kids. My next oldest sibling--my brother,
Alvin--taught me to play baseball when
I was two years old. I was 5 years old when the Twins played their first game in Minnesota. Avin and I acted
out the Twins games in the side yard--huge radio blaring from the
house--using a stump and a couple of rocks for bases. Since Alvin was
older he got to be Harmon Killebrew, so I settled for Bob Allison. When
the Twins were in the World Series--the fall of '65--I was in the 5th
grade. I still have the 10-transistor radio (a Westinghouse--birthday
gift from Alvin) that I used to listen to the games. My 5th grade
teacher, Mrs. Osterman, thought I was a real troublemaker, and watched
me like a hawk, but she didn't detect the thin white cord that traveled
from the radio in my desk, under my shirt and up my neck, under my hair
to my ear. I went on to become a baseball trivia expert--the boys in my
accelerated math class in Jr. High would try to stump me. (I still
think Maury Wills holds the stolen base record for a year with 104...).
Now I'm a mom of 3 kids--okay, they're pretty much grown
up--and I'm proud to say that they are baseball fans. Twins fans, of
course. I have season tickets and take pictures at the games. The cards
I collected with my brother in the '60s have gone the way of my Barbies
and Beatles 45s (I mean, I think my mom threw them out) so I've started
a new collection and am content to spend hours and hours scanning them
for TwinsCards.com!
Scot Johnson - Lead Blogger
Scot Johnson has enjoyed baseball all of his life. He spent his early years in the shadow of the Houston Astrodome cheering on Jose Cruz, Nolan Ryan, and the rest of the orange and yellow stripe-clad Astros. From there, his family moved him to another domed stadium market where he became a Twins fan.
Scot started his own blog, Coffeyville Whirlwind, in 2005 when he had a lot of time on his hands. With a recent addition to his family, he no longer has that spare time, but remains committed to telling the story of the Twins? franchise.
When he?s not blogging or feeding a baby in the middle of the night, Scot enjoys following politics, cooking, and playing with his Miniature Schnauzer Otis.
TwinsCards.com Bench
The Contributors
Besides a fantastic staff, TwinsCards also relies heavily on contributions from site visitors to help fill in the holes. To date, contributions from other than staff number over 700. These include entire sets, set fillers, photos and publications. To show our gratitude to those who take the time to help the site out, TwinsCards.com has established its MVP Contributor program. I will do my best to acknowledge all the contributors in this section. In addition to your name being listed here, those who contribute more than 50 images will get to add a small 3-5 line bio. Those who contribute more than 100 images will be considered MVP Contributors and will get your very own Twins fantasy card (image only) with your picture on it. Your card will be displayed along with your name and bio.
<50 images = Name displayed here
50-100 images = Name and short Bio
>100 images = Fantasy card and Bio
MVP Contributor (>100 Contributions)
Ken Hondl - Ken has a very large Kirby Puckett collection and has been kind enough to contribute many Kirby cards and scores of publications.
MVP Contributor(>100 Contributions)
Randy Fredrickson- Randy was very instrumental in compiling our incredible collection of Twins Photos
Contributors (50-100 Contributions)
Chuck Bosshardt
Tim Stransky
Jason Deyo
Mike Kolstad
List still being compiled
Contributors (<50 Contributions)
Brad Nelson
List still being compiled
Sponsors
MN Twins
Books
TwinsCards.com is not affiliated with or endorsed by Major League Baseball (MLB), the Major League Players Association (MLBPA) or the Minnesota Twins Baseball Club. Images are the property of their respective owners and copyright of their respective manufacturers. They are presented here for entertainment and informational purposes only. MNWebPros.com
As a Team Baseball Card collector, I have become more and more dependant on the internet as my sole means to research and purchase the cards for my collection. If you're a collector of cards in general, there are thousands of sites you can visit to find card checklists, star rookie cards, vintage cards, complete sets, etc. But if you are a Team Set collector the resources are far more scarce. I have found it very difficult over the years to try and narrow down something I thought would be very easy. Needless to say, there aren't any sites (that I know of) dedicated to collecting Minnesota Twins Baseball Cards....until now!
enough (or fortunate enough) to surround myself with a volunteer staff that have worked tirelessly to make this site what it is...the best damn team collector site anywhere. In addition to their hard work and their vast collections, the site has also been helped by numerous contributors. Well over 1000 images have come from avid Twins collectors just like you. It's with all this help that TwinsCards.com has enjoyed incredible success in only its first year of existence. Please see below to learn a little about the TwinsCards.com staff.
Mr. H is the webmaster of TwinsCards.com. Although his first profession is Spanish Teacher, he designs websites professionally. Mr. H collected baseball cards as a boy in the mid 1990s, but only for a short time. Now, surfing TwinsCards.com has replaced the joy he once found in opening wax packs. Mr. H isn't alone in his plight, as he makes the skeleton, and the staff at TwinsCards.com fills in the missing guts. Mr. H fills his spare time with his other hobbies, which include helping people with special needs, bicycling, and home computer repair. Mr. H is always searching for new ideas, so don't hesitate to contact him if you think you've got the next TwinsCards.com. 
I tell people I'm the second most famous person born in Graceville, Minnesota, former Twin Tom Kelly being the first. I attended my first Twins game in 1971 at the age of 9 and fell in love. I still remember how green the grass was and the sound and smell of the ballpark. My Dad took me down by the dugout with a baseball and I got autographs from Rod Carew, Leo Cardenas, and several others. A guy came by in a suit and Dad said I should ask him for an autogrtaph, but I was scared. Turned out it was Sandy Koufax doing TV. We attended a few games a year throughout my childhood, but most of my love of the Twins came from listening to the games on the radio. I can still hear Halsey Hall and Herb Carneal describe the games. 
I first began to come down with the collecting/Twins bug as a 9-year old in 1961, the Twins' first year in Minnesota. In 1962 I went to my first game at the Met, it happened to be a sunny August Sunday afternoon when Jack Kralick tossed a no-hitter vs. the Kansas City A's, and I was hooked.
A fan of baseball, in general, and the Twins and Cubs, in particular, I've collected baseball cards, since an early age. Took a special interest in the Twins team issued 4x5 photos, because nobody seemed to know much about them. Discovered that Pat Bones (King of the 4x5s), had started checklisting them, but hadn't gotten past the 1970s. I picked up, where he left off, and now he says that I am "The King". 
Scot Johnson has enjoyed baseball all of his life. He spent his early years in the shadow of the Houston Astrodome cheering on Jose Cruz, Nolan Ryan, and the rest of the orange and yellow stripe-clad Astros. From there, his family moved him to another domed stadium market where he became a Twins fan.
Ken Hondl - Ken has a very large Kirby Puckett collection and has been kind enough to contribute many Kirby cards and scores of publications.
