ANAHEIM — Rod Carew put on a Twins uniform again Thursday, and No. 29 brought more than a little history into Angel Stadium before Minnesota’s series opener against the Angels.
The Hall of Famer spent the afternoon around the club, visiting players in the batting cage and joining the pregame meetings. For a roster full of players who know Carew’s numbers from record books, the chance to talk baseball with him in person carried a different weight.
Quick facts
- Carew wore his Twins uniform before Thursday’s game at Angel Stadium.
- His No. 29 has been retired by both Minnesota and the Angels.
- Carew was an 18-time All-Star, won seven AL batting titles and finished with a .328 career average and 3,053 hits.
- He spent 12 seasons with Minnesota and seven with the Angels.
- Carew collected his 3,000th hit on Aug. 4, 1985, against the Twins.
Carew’s career joins the two clubs in a way few players can. He broke in with Minnesota, earned the 1967 American League Rookie of the Year Award and captured the 1977 AL MVP Award before finishing his playing days in Anaheim.
His seven batting crowns and Hall of Fame plaque tell the broad story, but his visit offered a more immediate lesson. Manager Derek Shelton said Carew’s place around the club helps younger players understand the game’s past and the standard established by the franchise’s greats.
Shelton first got to know Carew while serving as Minnesota’s bench coach in 2018. The manager said it still means plenty to call a childhood idol a friend, and he welcomed Carew’s baseball opinions as much as his presence.
“You’re talking about one of the greatest players in this organization,” Shelton said. “Nobody else is going to wear 29. He is an 18-time All-Star, a Hall of Famer, and he loves the game. I love that he has thoughts about the game.”
Carew’s public visits have become less common in recent years. One notable appearance came at the Field of Dreams Game in Dyersville, Iowa, where he joined Joe Mauer, Bert Blyleven and Paul Molitor among Minnesota’s former stars.
Thursday was a closer-to-the-clubhouse kind of day. Reliever Taylor Rogers remembered the Twins’ work with Carew’s Heart of 29 cardiovascular health initiative, and also recalled one Spring Training lesson that stuck with him.
“One of my first Spring Trainings, he taught all the pitchers to bunt,” Rogers said. “You’re learning how to bunt from maybe the best bunter ever. That’s pretty special.”
Rogers joked that he has not yet had to test those skills in a game, but said any advice from Carew is worth taking. He also said it was especially good to see the 80-year-old Carew doing well.
Catcher Ryan Jeffers saw the visit as a rare opening to listen rather than speak. A Hall of Famer with Carew’s résumé does not often walk through a current clubhouse, and Jeffers said players try to find a quiet moment to ask questions.
“You want to pick his brain and hear him talk baseball,” Jeffers said. “It’s a really cool experience.”
For one afternoon in Anaheim, the Twins had a link to their deepest history in uniform, moving from the cage to the meeting room and reminding the current club what No. 29 still means.
