Music and Baseball

Ever wonder what that music is blaring out of the speakers as your favorite Twins player makes their way to the batter’s box or pitching mound? Well, wonder no more. Thanks to the state of the art sound system in place at Target Field (well, at least it seems state of the art compared to the one at the Dome), the days of trying to decipher these snippets of music are gone.

I have to admit, that in previous seasons if a player had a walk up song that sounded familiar but I couldn’t figure out what the song was it would drive me crazy until I searched the internet or iTunes and found it. One vivid example of this, was Matt Tolbert’s song during the 2008 & 2009 seasons. I knew this song was extremely familiar every time I heard it, but could never put my finger on what the title or artist was. Do you know how annoying it is not be able to figure that out? I knew it was from the mid 90’s and had a gut feeling that the artist was either the Cranberries or the Cardigans. I searched iTunes a few times listening to the most popular songs by these two artists. Every trip to the Dome I tried my hardest to listen to the song and try to catch a little of the lyrics, hoping I could Google the lyrics and find them. After several search attempts I finally found Matt Tolbert’s walk up song. If case you are wondering, its Zombie by the Cranberries.

Ok, now without further delay here is the 2010 Minnesota Twins walk up music. Remember, this is what the players have chosen at the start of the season. Some players change their selection half way through the season, when they hit a slump or just to because they find a different song. The list below was compiled using information found on the Fox Sports Net website. Don't forget to check out the links to the YouTube videos of these songs.

Denard Span

Jay-Z – A Star is Born

Orlando Hudson

Young Jeezy – Big Dog

Shawty Lo – Feels Good

Usher – Daddy’s Home

Yo Gotti – Easy Yo Gotti – Everybody Quiet

Joe Mauer

T.I. – What You Know

Justin Morneau

AC/DC – Rock and Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution

Michael Cuddyer

Thousand Foot Krutch – Fire It Up

Blake Shelton – Hillbilly Bone

Goodie Mob – Cutty Buddy

Jason Kubel

Powerman 5000 – Super Villain

Delmon Young

Lil Wayne – I’m Raw

Lil Wayne - Show Me My Opponent

JJ Hardy

Zac Brown Band – Chicken Fried

Nick Punto

Jake Owen – Eight Second Ride

Benassi Bros – I love my Sex

Brendan Harris

Kid Rock – Bawitaba

Jim Thome

300 Soundtrack – Returns A King

300 Soundtrack – Fever Dream　

Drew Butera

Black Eyed Peas - Imma Be　

Jon Rauch

Metallica – Wherever I May Roam

Joe Nathan

Steal Dragon - Stand Up and Shout

Kevin Slowey

Slow Ride – Foghat

Thank You, Mr. Robinson

Anyone who’s taken a United States history class while growing up knows, Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball when he made his major league debut as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. To those who have followed baseball in the decades since Mr. Robinson’s historic day, know that he is more than just the first African American to play Major League Baseball in the modern era, he is also credited with opening the door to give us the game of baseball as we know and love it today.

It’s true someone else would’ve eventually broken the color barrier in Major League Baseball, but if Mr. Robinson didn't make his debut that April day, the events that transpired over the next 63 years quite, possibly would have given us a different game today. Today's players have all pointed to Jackie Robinson as inspiration for playing the game.

Just take the 2010 Twins for example, we probably wouldn’t be able to watch Denard Span, Delmon Young or Orlando Hudson. From previous Twins teams that means no Torii Hunter, Jacque Jones, Shannon Stewart, Rod Carew or Kirby Puckett. The game as a whole may have never known the talents of Mr. Cub Ernie Banks, Mr. October Reggie Jackson, Hank Aaron, Curtis Granderson, Manny Ramirez, Mike Cameron, BJ Upton or Ryan Howard to name a few. Not to mention, players from Latin American countries like Johan Santana, David Ortiz, Sammy Sosa or Tony Oliva.

Its been sixty three years since Mr. Robinson broke baseball's color barrier and African American players only made up between 9 and 10 percent of the players on this season's Opening Day rosters. That's down from 27 percent in 1975. But could you imagine today's game without these players?

Here Comes The Sun

Thanks to Betsy and her tweeting to the world that she found tickets to the home opener last week, I was able to do the same. Unlike Betsy and Katie, I was able to find two seats together and my sister and I sat in section 102, row 16. Our seats were great and we had an amazing view of the whole park. Like everyone else I scrutinized the weather more than I’d care to admit in the days and hours leading up to the game. I was fully prepared for rain, but immensely relieved when it became obvious the rain wasn’t going to be making an appearance at the game and blue skies and sunshine showed up in the second inning.

The opening ceremony was beautifully done and truly a celebration of the Twins and Twins Territory. Honoring local soldiers who have lost their lives while serving in Iraq & Afghanistan, the American flag was raised by the lone surviving soldier of a Humve attack in Iraq last year, followed by a moment of silence to honor the three soldiers from Minnesota who’ve lost their lives in Iraq over the last two weeks. The National Anthem was sung by members of the Twin Cities Gospel Choir, followed by a F-16 flyover by the 148th Fighter Wing of the Minnesota Air National Guard. The ceremonial first pitch balls were delivered to the pitching mound by Twins greats Kent Hrbek, Rod Carew, Tony Oliva, Harmon Killebrew and the late Kirby Puckett was represented by his son Kirby Puckett Jr. The ceremonial first pitches were thrown by members of the Hennepin County Ballpark Commission and Mortensen Construction, all who worked on the design and construction of Target Field. The only change to the opening ceremony I would’ve made is to get someone higher profile to sing the National Anthem, of course this person would have connections to Minnesota. I personal would like to see Minnesota natives and Broadway stars Laura Osnes or Christopher Sieber sing the National Anthem.

In past seasons I’d have the same thing at every Twins game… a Dome Dog. This season I’ve decided to be adventurous and sample all the food Target Field has to offer. At the exhibition game I attended I sampled the Jumbo Dog (the replacement for the Dome Dog) and actually prefer the taste of this hot dog over the Dome Dog. During the opener my sister and I split the Nachos Grande from Senor Smoke’s before the game and a basket of chicken fingers and french fries during the 6th inning. I thought the prices were reasonable for ballpark food, the nachos were $8.50 and the chicken fingers and fries basket was $7. Both items had more than enough food to feed two people.

I’ve been a baseball fan my entire life and a Twins fan since my first game in May 2003. The Twins have given me a lot to be proud of over the last seven years at the Dome; four AL Central Division Championships, two MVPs, a CY Young Winner, numerous Gold Glove Winners, a three time AL Batting Champion and countless games and memories that I’ll never forget. With all the excitement that has surrounded the opening of Target Field, it’s evident that Twins baseball is back where it belongs… under blue skies, sunshine and star filled nights. After Monday’s historic home opener at Target Field, I’ve never been prouder to call the Twins my team and to proclaim myself as a member of Twins Territory.