document_title: Great white shark

question_text: where are great white sharks found in the united states

text: Great white shark

text: Taxonomy

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text: The great white shark was one of the many amphibia originally described by Linnaeus in the landmark 1758 10th edition of his Systema Naturae,[19] its first scientific name, Squalus carcharias. Later, Sir Andrew Smith gave it Carcharodon as its generic name in 1833, and also in 1873. The generic name was identified with Linnaeus' specific name and the current scientific name, Carcharodon carcharias, was finalized. Carcharodon comes from the Ancient Greek words karcharos, which means sharp or jagged, and odous, which means tooth.[20]

text: Ancestry and fossil record

text: The earliest known fossils of the great white shark are about 16 million years old, during the mid-Miocene epoch.[1][irrelevant citation] However, the phylogeny of the great white is still in dispute. The original hypothesis for the great white's origins is that it shares a common ancestor with a prehistoric shark, such as the C. megalodon. C. megalodon had teeth that were superficially not too dissimilar with those of great white sharks, but its teeth were far larger. Although cartilaginous skeletons do not fossilize, C. megalodon is estimated to have been considerably larger than the great white shark, estimated at up to 17 m (56 ft) and 59,413 kg (130,983 lb).[21] Similarities among the physical remains and the extreme size of both the great white and C. megalodon led many scientists to believe these sharks were closely related, and the name Carcharodon megalodon was applied to the latter. However, a new hypothesis proposes that the C. megalodon and the great white are distant relatives (albeit sharing the family Lamnidae). The great white is also more closely related to an ancient mako shark, Isurus hastalis, than to the C. megalodon, a theory that seems to be supported with the discovery of a complete set of jaws with 222 teeth and 45 vertebrae of the extinct transitional species Carcharodon hubbelli in 1988 and published on 14 November 2012.[22] In addition, the new hypothesis assigns C. megalodon to the genus Carcharocles, which also comprises the other megatoothed sharks; Otodus obliquus is the ancient representative of the extinct Carcharocles lineage.[23]

text: Distribution and habitat

text: Great white sharks live in almost all coastal and offshore waters which have water temperature between 12 and 24 °C (54 and 75 °F), with greater concentrations in the United States (Northeast and California), South Africa, Japan, Oceania, Chile, and the Mediterranean including Sea of Marmara and Bosphorus.[24][25] One of the densest known populations is found around Dyer Island, South Africa.[26]

text: The great white is an epipelagic fish, observed mostly in the presence of rich game, such as fur seals (Arctocephalus ssp.), sea lions, cetaceans, other sharks, and large bony fish species. In the open ocean, it has been recorded at depths as great as 1,200 m (3,900 ft).[11] These findings challenge the traditional notion that the great white is a coastal species.[11]

text:
According to a recent study, California great whites have migrated to an area between Baja California Peninsula and Hawaii known as the White Shark Café to spend at least 100 days before migrating back to Baja. On the journey out, they swim slowly and dive down to around 900 m (3,000 ft). After they arrive, they change behavior and do short dives to about 300 m (980 ft) for up to ten minutes. Another white shark that was tagged off of the South African coast swam to the southern coast of Australia and back within the year. A similar study tracked a different great white shark from South Africa swimming to Australia's northwestern coast and back, a journey of 20,000 km (12,000 mi; 11,000 nmi) in under nine months.[27]
These observations argue against traditional theories that white sharks are coastal territorial predators, and open up the possibility of interaction between shark populations that were previously thought to have been discrete. The reasons for their migration and what they do at their destination is still unknown. Possibilities include seasonal feeding or mating.[28]

text: A 2018 study indicated that white sharks prefer to congregate deep in anticyclonic eddies in the North Atlantic Ocean. The sharks studied tended to favor the warm water eddies, spending the daytime hours at 450 meters and coming to the surface at night.[29]

text: Anatomy and appearance

text: The great white shark has a robust, large, conical snout. The upper and lower lobes on the tail fin are approximately the same size which is similar to some mackerel sharks. A great white displays countershading, by having a white underside and a grey dorsal area (sometimes in a brown or blue shade) that gives an overall mottled appearance. The coloration makes it difficult for prey to spot the shark because it breaks up the shark's outline when seen from the side. From above, the darker shade blends with the sea and from below it exposes a minimal silhouette against the sunlight. Leucism is extremely rare in this species, but has been documented in one great white shark (a pup that washed ashore in Australia and died).[30] Great white sharks, like many other sharks, have rows of serrated teeth behind the main ones, ready to replace any that break off. When the shark bites, it shakes its head side-to-side, helping the teeth saw off large chunks of flesh.[31] Great white sharks, like other mackerel sharks, have larger eyes than other shark species in proportion to their body size. The iris of the eye is a deep blue instead of black.[32]

text: Size

text: In great white sharks, sexual dimorphism is present, and females are generally larger than males. Male great whites on average measure 3.4 to 4.0 m (11 to 13 ft) long, while females at 4.6 to 4.9 m (15 to 16 ft).[6] Adults of this species weigh 522–771 kg (1,151–1,700 lb) on average,[34] however mature females can have an average mass of 680–1,110 kg (1,500–2,450 lb).[5] The largest females have been verified up to 6.1 m (20 ft) in length and an estimated 1,905 kg (4,200 lb) in weight,[3][4][5] perhaps up to 2,268 kg (5,000 lb).[35] The maximum size is subject to debate because some reports are rough estimations or speculations performed under questionable circumstances.[36] Among living cartilaginous fish, only the whale shark (Rhincodon typus), the basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus) and the giant manta ray (Manta birostris), in that order, are on average larger and heavier. These three species are generally quite docile in disposition and given to passively filter-feeding on very small organisms.[34] This makes the great white shark the largest extant macropredatory fish. Great white sharks are at around 1.2 m (3.9 ft) when born, and grow about 25 cm (9.8 in) each year.[37]

text: According to J. E. Randall, the largest white shark reliably measured was a 6.0 m (19.7 ft) individual reported from Ledge Point, Western Australia in 1987.[38] Another great white specimen of similar size has been verified by the Canadian Shark Research Center: A female caught by David McKendrick of Alberton, Prince Edward Island, in August 1988 in the Gulf of St. Lawrence off Prince Edward Island. This female great white was 6.1 m (20 ft) long.[5] However, there was a report considered reliable by some experts in the past, of a larger great white shark specimen from Cuba in 1945.[39][40][41][42] This specimen was 6.4 m (21 ft) long and had a body mass estimated at 3,324 kg (7,328 lb).[39][41] However, later studies also revealed that this particular specimen was actually around 4.9 m (16 ft) in length, a specimen in the average maximum size range.[5]

text: The largest great white recognized by the International Game Fish Association (IGFA) is one caught by Alf Dean in south Australian waters in 1959, weighing 1,208 kg (2,663 lb).[36] Several larger great whites caught by anglers have since been verified, but were later disallowed from formal recognition by IGFA monitors for rules violations.

text: Examples of large unconfirmed great whites

text: A number of very large unconfirmed great white shark specimens have been recorded.[43] For decades, many ichthyological works, as well as the Guinness Book of World Records, listed two great white sharks as the largest individuals: In the 1870s, a 10.9 m (36 ft) great white captured in southern Australian waters, near Port Fairy, and an 11.3 m (37 ft) shark trapped in a herring weir in New Brunswick, Canada, in the 1930s. However these measurements were not obtained in a rigorous, scientifically valid manner, and researchers have questioned the reliability of these measurements for a long time, noting they were much larger than any other accurately reported sighting. Later studies proved these doubts to be well founded. This New Brunswick shark may have been a misidentified basking shark, as the two have similar body shapes. The question of the Port Fairy shark was settled in the 1970s when J. E. Randall examined the shark's jaws and "found that the Port Fairy shark was of the order of 5.0 m (16.4 ft) in length and suggested that a mistake had been made in the original record, in 1870, of the shark's length".[38] These wrong measurements would make the alleged shark more than five times heavier than it really was.

text: While these measurements have not been confirmed, some great white sharks caught in modern times have been estimated to be more than 7 m (23 ft) long,[44] but these claims have received some criticism.[36][44] However, J. E. Randall believed that great white shark may have exceeded 6.1 m (20 ft) in length.[38] A great white shark was captured near Kangaroo Island in Australia on 1 April 1987. This shark was estimated to be more than 6.9 m (23 ft) long by Peter Resiley,[38][45] and has been designated as KANGA.[44] Another great white shark was caught in Malta by Alfredo Cutajar on 16 April 1987. This shark was also estimated to be around 7.13 m (23.4 ft) long by John Abela and has been designated as MALTA.[44] However, Cappo drew criticism because he used shark size estimation methods proposed by J. E. Randall to suggest that the KANGA specimen was 5.8–6.4 m (19–21 ft) long.[44] In a similar fashion, I. K. Fergusson also used shark size estimation methods proposed by J. E. Randall to suggest that the MALTA specimen was 5.3–5.7 m (17–19 ft) long.[44] However, photographic evidence suggested that these specimens were larger than the size estimations yielded through Randall's methods.[44] Thus, a team of scientists—H. F. Mollet, G. M. Cailliet, A. P. Klimley, D. A. Ebert, A. D. Testi, and L. J. V. Compagno—reviewed the cases of the KANGA and MALTA specimens in 1996 to resolve the dispute by conducting a comprehensive morphometric analysis of the remains of these sharks and re-examination of photographic evidence in an attempt to validate the original size estimations and their findings were consistent with them. The findings indicated that estimations by P. Resiley and J. Abela are reasonable and could not be ruled out.[44] A particularly large female great white nicknamed "Deep Blue", estimated measuring at 6.1 m (20 ft) was filmed off Guadalupe during shooting for the 2014 episode of Shark Week "Jaws Strikes Back". Deep Blue would also later gain significant attention when she was filmed interacting with researcher Mauricio Hoyas Pallida in a viral video that Mauricio posted on Facebook on 11 June 2015.[46] A particularly infamous great white shark, supposedly of record proportions, once patrolled the area that comprises False Bay, South Africa, was said to be well over 7 m (23 ft) during the early 1980s. This shark, known locally as the "Submarine", had a legendary reputation that was supposedly well founded. Though rumors have stated this shark was exaggerated in size or non-existent altogether, witness accounts by the then young Craig Anthony Ferreira, a notable shark expert in South Africa, and his father indicate an unusually large animal of considerable size and power (though it remains uncertain just how massive the shark was as it escaped capture each time it was hooked). Ferreira describes the four encounters with the giant shark he participated in with great detail in his book "Great White Sharks On Their Best Behavior".[47]

text: One contender in maximum size among the predatory sharks is the tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier). While tiger sharks which are typically both a few feet smaller and have a leaner, less heavy body structure than white sharks, have been confirmed to reach at least 5.5 m (18 ft) in the length, an unverified specimen was reported to have measured 7.4 m (24 ft) in length and weighed 3,110 kg (6,860 lb), more than two times heavier than the largest confirmed specimen at 1,524 kg (3,360 lb).[34][48][49] Some other macropredatory sharks such as the Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus) and the Pacific sleeper shark (S. pacificus) are also reported to rival these sharks in length (but probably weigh a bit less since they are more slender in build than a great white) in exceptional cases.[50][51] The question of maximum weight is complicated by the unresolved question of whether or not to include the shark's stomach contents when weighing the shark. With a single bite a great white can take in up to 14 kg (31 lb) of flesh, and can also consume several hundred kilograms of food.

text: Adaptations

text: Great white sharks, like all other sharks, have an extra sense given by the ampullae of Lorenzini which enables them to detect the electromagnetic field emitted by the movement of living animals. Great whites are so sensitive they can detect variations of half a billionth of a volt. At close range, this allows the shark to locate even immobile animals by detecting their heartbeat. Most fish have a less-developed but similar sense using their body's lateral line.[52]

text: To more successfully hunt fast and agile prey such as sea lions, the great white has adapted to maintain a body temperature warmer than the surrounding water. One of these adaptations is a "rete mirabile" (Latin for "wonderful net"). This close web-like structure of veins and arteries, located along each lateral side of the shark, conserves heat by warming the cooler arterial blood with the venous blood that has been warmed by the working muscles. This keeps certain parts of the body (particularly the stomach) at temperatures up to 14 °C (25 °F) [53] above that of the surrounding water, while the heart and gills remain at sea temperature. When conserving energy the core body temperature can drop to match the surroundings. A great white shark's success in raising its core temperature is an example of gigantothermy. Therefore, the great white shark can be considered an endothermic poikilotherm or mesotherm because its body temperature is not constant but is internally regulated.[31] Great whites also rely on the fat and oils stored within their livers for long-distance migrations across nutrient-poor areas of the oceans.[54] Studies by Stanford University and the Monterey Bay Aquarium published on 17 July 2013 revealed that in addition to controlling the sharks' buoyancy, the liver of great whites is essential in migration patterns. Sharks that sink faster during drift dives were revealed to use up their internal stores of energy quicker than those which sink in a dive at more leisurely rates.[55]

text: Bite force

text: A 2007 study from the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, used CT scans of a shark's skull and computer models to measure the shark's maximum bite force. The study reveals the forces and behaviors its skull is adapted to handle and resolves competing theories about its feeding behavior.[56] In 2008, a team of scientists led by Stephen Wroe conducted an experiment to determine the great white shark's jaw power and findings indicated that a specimen massing 3,324 kg (7,328 lb) could exert a bite force of 18,216 newtons (4,095 lbf).[41]

text: Ecology and behavior

text: This shark's behavior and social structure is not well understood. In South Africa, white sharks have a dominance hierarchy depending on the size, sex and squatter's rights: Females dominate males, larger sharks dominate smaller sharks, and residents dominate newcomers. When hunting, great whites tend to separate and resolve conflicts with rituals and displays. White sharks rarely resort to combat although some individuals have been found with bite marks that match those of other white sharks. This suggests that when a great white approaches too closely to another, they react with a warning bite. Another possibility is that white sharks bite to show their dominance.

text: The great white shark is one of only a few sharks known to regularly lift its head above the sea surface to gaze at other objects such as prey. This is known as spy-hopping. This behavior has also been seen in at least one group of blacktip reef sharks, but this might be learned from interaction with humans (it is theorized that the shark may also be able to smell better this way because smell travels through air faster than through water). White sharks are generally very curious animals, display intelligence and may also turn to socializing if the situation demands it. At Seal Island, white sharks have been observed arriving and departing in stable "clans" of two to six individuals on a yearly basis. Whether clan members are related is unknown but they get along peacefully enough. In fact, the social structure of a clan is probably most aptly compared to that of a wolf pack; in that each member has a clearly established rank and each clan has an alpha leader. When members of different clans meet, they establish social rank nonviolently through any of a variety of interactions.[57]

text: Diet

text: Great white sharks are carnivorous and prey upon fish (e.g. tuna, rays,[57] other sharks[57]), cetaceans (i.e., dolphins, porpoises, whales), pinnipeds (e.g. seals, fur seals,[57] and sea lions), sea turtles,[57] sea otters (Enhydra lutris) and seabirds.[58] Great whites have also been known to eat objects that they are unable to digest. Juvenile white sharks predominantly prey on fish, including other elasmobranchs, as their jaws are not strong enough to withstand the forces required to attack larger prey such as pinnipeds and cetaceans until they reach a length of 3 m (9.8 ft) or more, at which point their jaw cartilage mineralizes enough to withstand the impact of biting into larger prey species.[59] Upon approaching a length of nearly 4 m (13 ft), great white sharks begin to target predominately marine mammals for food, though individual sharks seem to specialize in different types of prey depending on their preferences.[60][61] They seem to be highly opportunistic.[62][63] These sharks prefer prey with a high content of energy-rich fat. Shark expert Peter Klimley used a rod-and-reel rig and trolled carcasses of a seal, a pig, and a sheep from his boat in the South Farallons. The sharks attacked all three baits but rejected the sheep carcass.[64]

text: Off California, sharks immobilize northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) with a large bite to the hindquarters (which is the main source of the seal's mobility) and wait for the seal to bleed to death. This technique is especially used on adult male elephant seals, which are typically larger than the shark, ranging between 1,500 and 2,000 kg (3,300 and 4,400 lb), and are potentially dangerous adversaries.[65][66] Most commonly though, juvenile elephant seals are the most frequently eaten at elephant seal colonies.[67] Prey is normally attacked sub-surface. Harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) are taken from the surface and dragged down until they stop struggling. They are then eaten near the bottom. California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) are ambushed from below and struck mid-body before being dragged and eaten.[68]

text: White sharks also attack dolphins and porpoises from above, behind or below to avoid being detected by their echolocation. Targeted species include dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus),[44] Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus),[44] bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops ssp.),[44][69] Humpback dolphins (Sousa ssp.),[69] harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena),[44] and Dall's porpoises (Phocoenoides dalli).[44] Groups of dolphins have occasionally been observed defending themselves from sharks with mobbing behaviour.[69] White shark predation on other species of small cetacean has also been observed. In August 1989, a 1.8 m (5.9 ft) juvenile male pygmy sperm whale (Kogia breviceps) was found stranded in central California with a bite mark on its caudal peduncle from a great white shark.[70] In addition, white sharks attack and prey upon beaked whales.[44][69] Cases where an adult Stejneger's beaked whale (Mesoplodon stejnegeri), with a mean mass of around 1,100 kg (2,400 lb),[71] and a juvenile Cuvier's beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris), an individual estimated at 3 m (9.8 ft), were hunted and killed by great white sharks have also been observed.[72] When hunting sea turtles, they appear to simply bite through the carapace around a flipper, immobilizing the turtle. The heaviest species of bony fish, the oceanic sunfish (Mola mola), has been found in great white shark stomachs.[62]

text: Off Seal Island, False Bay in South Africa, the sharks ambush brown fur seals (Arctocephalus pusillus) from below at high speeds, hitting the seal mid-body. They can  go so fast that they completely leave the water. The peak burst speed is estimated to be above 40 km/h (25 mph).[73] They have also been observed chasing prey after a missed attack. Prey is usually attacked at the surface.[74] Shark attacks most often occur in the morning, within 2 hours of sunrise, when visibility is poor. Their success rate is 55% in the first 2 hours, falling to 40% in late morning after which hunting stops.[57]

text: Whale carcasses comprise an important part of the diet of white sharks. However, this has rarely been observed due to whales dying in remote areas. It has been estimated that 30 kg (66 lb) of whale blubber could feed a 4.5 m (15 ft) white shark for 1.5 months. Detailed observations were made of four whale carcasses in False Bay between 2000 and 2010. Sharks were drawn to the carcass by chemical and odour detection, spread by strong winds. After initially feeding on the whale caudal peduncle and fluke, the sharks would investigate the carcass by slowly swimming around it and mouthing several parts before selecting a blubber-rich area. During feeding bouts of 15–20 seconds the sharks removed flesh with lateral headshakes, without the protective ocular rotation they employ when attacking live prey. The sharks were frequently observed regurgitating chunks of blubber and immediately returning to feed, possibly in order to replace low energy yield pieces with high energy yield pieces, using their teeth as mechanoreceptors to distinguish them. After feeding for several hours, the sharks appeared to become lethargic, no longer swimming to the surface; they were observed mouthing the carcass but apparently unable to bite hard enough to remove flesh, they would instead bounce off and slowly sink. Up to eight sharks were observed feeding simultaneously, bumping into each other without showing any signs of aggression; on one occasion a shark accidentally bit the head of a neighbouring shark, leaving two teeth embedded, but both continued to feed unperturbed. Smaller individuals hovered around the carcass eating chunks that drifted away. Unusually for the area, large numbers of sharks over five metres long were observed, suggesting that the largest sharks change their behaviour to search for whales as they lose the maneuverability required to hunt seals. The investigating team concluded that the importance of whale carcasses, particularly for the largest white sharks, has been underestimated.[75] In another documented incident, white sharks were observed scavenging on a whale carcass alongside tiger sharks.[76]

text: Stomach contents of great whites also indicates that whale sharks both juvenile and adult may also be included on the animal's menu, though whether this is active hunting or scavenging is not known at present.[77][78]

text: Reproduction

text: Great white sharks were previously thought to reach sexual maturity at around 15 years of age, but are now believed to take far longer; male great white sharks reach sexual maturity at age 26, while females take 33 years to reach sexual maturity.[9][79][80] Maximum life span was originally believed to be more than 30 years, but a study by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution placed it at upwards of 70 years. Examinations of vertebral growth ring count gave a maximum male age of 73 years and a maximum female age of 40 years for the specimens studied. The shark's late sexual maturity, low reproductive rate, long gestation period of 11 months and slow growth make it vulnerable to pressures such as overfishing and environmental change.[8]

text: Little is known about the great white shark's mating habits, and mating behavior has not yet been observed in this species. It is possible that whale carcasses are an important location for sexually mature sharks to meet for mating.[75] Birth has never been observed, but pregnant females have been examined. Great white sharks are ovoviviparous, which means eggs develop and hatch in the uterus and continue to develop until birth.[81] The great white has an 11-month gestation period. The shark pup's powerful jaws begin to develop in the first month. The unborn sharks participate in oophagy, in which they feed on ova produced by the mother. Delivery is in spring and summer.[82] The Northern Pacific population of great whites is suspected to breed off of the Sea of Cortez, as evidenced by local fisherman who have said to have caught them and evidenced by teeth found at dump sites for discarded parts from their catches.[citation needed]

text: Breaching behavior

text: A breach is the result of a high speed approach to the surface with the resulting momentum taking the shark partially or completely clear of the water. This is a hunting technique employed by great white sharks whilst hunting seals. This technique is often used on cape fur seals at Seal Island in False Bay, South Africa. Because the behavior is unpredictable, it is very hard to document. It was first photographed by Chris Fallows and Rob Lawrence who developed the technique of towing a slow-moving seal decoy to trick the sharks to breach.[83] Between April and September, scientists may observe around 600 breaches. The seals swim on the surface and the great white sharks launch their predatory attack from the deeper water below. They can reach speeds of up to 40 km/h (25 mph) and can at times launch themselves more than 3.0 m (10 ft) into the air. Just under half of observed breach attacks are successful.[84] In 2011, a 3 metres (9.8 ft) long shark jumped onto a seven-person research vessel off Seal Island in Mossel Bay. The crew were undertaking a population study using sardines as bait, and the incident was judged not to be an attack on the boat but an accident.[85]

text: Natural threats

text: Interspecific competition between the great white shark and the orca is probable in regions where dietary preferences of both species may overlap.[69] An incident was documented on 4 October 1997, in the Farallon Islands off California in the United States. An estimated 4.7–5.3 m (15–17 ft) female orca immobilized an estimated 3–4 m (9.8–13.1 ft) great white shark.[86] The orca held the shark upside down to induce tonic immobility and kept the shark still for fifteen minutes, causing it to suffocate. The orca then proceeded to eat the dead shark's liver.[69][86][87] It is believed that the scent of the slain shark's carcass caused all the great whites in the region to flee, forfeiting an opportunity for a great seasonal feed.[88] Another similar attack apparently occurred there in 2000, but its outcome is not clear.[89] After both attacks, the local population of about 100 great whites vanished.[87][89] Following the 2000 incident, a great white with a satellite tag was found to have immediately submerged to a depth of 500 m (1,600 ft) and swum to Hawaii.[89] In 2015, a pod of orcas was recorded to have killed a great white shark off South Australia.[90] In 2017, along the South African coast, four great whites were found washed ashore with their livers removed with what was described as "surgical precision". Local scientists claim that pods of orcas in the area were responsible for the attacks.[91]

text: Conservation status

text: It is unclear how much of a concurrent increase in fishing for great white sharks has caused the decline of great white shark populations from the 1970s to the present. No accurate global population numbers are available, but the great white shark is now considered vulnerable.[2] Sharks taken during the long interval between birth and sexual maturity never reproduce, making population recovery and growth difficult.

text: The IUCN notes that very little is known about the actual status of the great white shark, but as it appears uncommon compared to other widely distributed species, it is considered vulnerable.[2] It is included in Appendix II of CITES,[15] meaning that international trade in the species requires a permit.[92] As of March 2010, it has also been included in Annex I of the CMS Migratory Sharks MoU, which strives for increased international understanding and coordination for the protection of certain migratory sharks.[93] A February 2010 study by Barbara Block of Stanford University estimated the world population of great white sharks to be lower than 3,500 individuals, making the species more vulnerable to extinction than the tiger, whose population is in the same range.[94] According to another study from 2014 by George H. Burgess, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, there are about 2,000 great white sharks near the California coast, which is 10 times higher than the previous estimate of 219 by Barbara Block.[95][96]

text: Fishermen target many sharks for their jaws, teeth, and fins, and as game fish in general. The great white shark, however, is rarely an object of commercial fishing, although its flesh is considered valuable. If casually captured (it happens for example in some tonnare in the Mediterranean), it is misleadingly sold as smooth-hound shark.[97]

text: In Australia

text: The great white shark was declared Vulnerable by the Australian Government in 1999 because of significant population decline and is currently protected under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.[98] The causes of decline prior to protection included mortality from sport fishing harvests as well as being caught in beach protection netting.[99]

text: The national conservation status of the great white shark is reflected by all Australian states under their respective laws, granting the species full protection throughout Australia regardless of jurisdiction.[98] Many states had prohibited the killing or possession of great white sharks prior to national legislation coming into effect. The great white shark is further listed as Threatened in Victoria under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act, and as rare or likely to become extinct under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife Conservation Act in Western Australia.[98]

text: In 2002, the Australian government created the White Shark Recovery Plan, implementing government-mandated conservation research and monitoring for conservation in addition to federal protection and stronger regulation of shark-related trade and tourism activities.[99] An updated recovery plan was published in 2013 to review progress, research findings, and to implement further conservation actions.[16] A study in 2012 revealed that Australia's White Shark population was separated by Bass Strait into genetically distinct eastern and western populations, indicating a need for the development of regional conservation strategies.[100]

text: Presently, human-caused shark mortality is continuing, primarily from accidental and illegal catching in commercial and recreational fishing as well as from being caught in beach protection netting, and the populations of great white shark in Australia are yet to recover.[16]

text: The Australasian population of great white sharks is believed to be in excess of 8,000-10,000 individuals according to genetic research studies done by CSIRO, with an adult population estimated to be around 2,210 individuals in both Eastern and Western Australia. The annual survival rate for juveniles in these two separate populations was estimated in the same study to be close to 73 percent, while adult sharks had a 93 percent annual survival rate. Whether or not mortality rates in great white sharks have declined, or the population has increased as a result of the protection of this species in Australian waters is as yet unknown due to the slow growth rates of this species.[101]

text: In New Zealand

text: As of April 2007, great white sharks were fully protected within 370 km (230 mi) of New Zealand and additionally from fishing by New Zealand-flagged boats outside this range. The maximum penalty is a $250,000 fine and up to six months in prison.[102]

text: In North America

text: In 2013, great white sharks were added to California's Endangered Species Act. From data collected, the population of great whites in the North Pacific was estimated to be fewer than 340 individuals. Research also reveals these sharks are genetically distinct from other members of their species elsewhere in Africa, Australia, and the east coast of North America, having been isolated from other populations.[103]

text: A 2014 study estimated the population of great white sharks along the California coastline to be approximately 2,400.[104][105]

text: In 2015 Massachusetts banned catching, cage diving, feeding, towing decoys, or baiting and chumming for its significant and highly predictable migratory great white population without an appropriate research permit. The goal of these restrictions is to both protect the sharks and public health.[106]

text: Relationship with humans

text: Shark bite incidents

text: While the term "shark attack" is in common use for instances of humans being wounded by sharks, it has been suggested that this is based largely on the misconception that white sharks and other large predatory sharks (such as bull and tiger sharks) seek out humans as prey. A recent review recommends that only in the very rare instances where a shark clearly predated on a human should the bite incident be termed an "attack," which implies predation, and that otherwise it is more accurate to class bite incidents as "sighting", "encounter", "bite incident", or "fatal bite incident". Sightings do not include physical interaction, encounters include physical interaction without harm, shark bites include minor and major shark bite incidents, including those that do and do not require medical attention, and fatal shark bite incidents are those that result in death. The study suggests that only in a case where an expert validates the predatory intent of a shark would it be appropriate to term a bite incident an attack.[107]

text: Of all shark species, the great white shark is responsible for by far the largest number of recorded shark bite incidents on humans, with 272 documented unprovoked bite incidents on humans as of 2012.[18]

text: More than any documented bite incident, Peter Benchley's best-selling novel Jaws and the subsequent 1975 film adaptation directed by Steven Spielberg provided the great white shark with the image of being a "man eater" in the public mind.[108] While great white sharks have killed humans in at least 74 documented unprovoked bite incidents, they typically do not target them: for example, in the Mediterranean Sea there have been 31 confirmed bite incidents against humans in the last two centuries, most of which were non-fatal. Many of the incidents seemed to be "test-bites". Great white sharks also test-bite buoys, flotsam, and other unfamiliar objects, and they might grab a human or a surfboard to identify what it is.

text: Contrary to popular belief, great white sharks do not mistake humans for seals.[109] Many bite incidents occur in waters with low visibility or other situations which impair the shark's senses. The species appears to not like the taste of humans, or at least finds the taste unfamiliar. Further research shows that they can tell in one bite whether or not the object is worth predating upon. Humans, for the most part, are too bony for their liking. They much prefer a fat, protein-rich seal.[110]

text: Humans are not appropriate prey because the shark's digestion is too slow to cope with a human's high ratio of bone to muscle and fat. Accordingly, in most recorded shark bite incidents, great whites broke off contact after the first bite. Fatalities are usually caused by blood loss from the initial bite rather than from critical organ loss or from whole consumption. From 1990 to 2011 there have been a total of 139 unprovoked great white shark bite incidents, 29 fatal.[111]

text: However, some researchers have hypothesized that the reason the proportion of fatalities is low is not because sharks do not like human flesh, but because humans are often able to escape after the first bite. In the 1980s, John McCosker, Chair of Aquatic Biology at the California Academy of Sciences, noted that divers who dove solo and were bitten by great whites were generally at least partially consumed, while divers who followed the buddy system were generally rescued by their companion. McCosker and Timothy C. Tricas, an author and professor at the University of Hawaii, suggest that a standard pattern for great whites is to make an initial devastating attack and then wait for the prey to weaken before consuming the wounded animal. Humans' ability to move out of reach with the help of others, thus foiling the attack, is unusual for a great white's prey.[112]

text: In 2014 the state government of Western Australia led by Premier Colin Barnett implemented a policy of killing large sharks. The policy, colloquially referred to as the Western Australian shark cull, was intended to protect users of the marine environment from shark bite incidents, following the deaths of seven people on the Western Australian coastline in the years 2010–2013.[113] Baited drum lines were deployed near popular beaches using hooks designed to catch great white sharks, as well as bull and tiger sharks. Large sharks found hooked but still alive were shot and their bodies discarded at sea.[114] The government claimed they were not culling the sharks, but were using a "targeted, localised, hazard mitigation strategy".[115] Barnett described opposition as "ludicrous" and "extreme", and said that nothing could change his mind.[116] This policy was met with widespread condemnation from the scientific community, which showed that species responsible for bite incidents were notoriously hard to identify, that the drum lines failed to capture white sharks, as intended, and that the government also failed to show any correlation between their drum line policy and a decrease in shark bite incidents in the region.[117]

text: Attacks on boats

text: Great white sharks infrequently bite and sometimes even sink boats. Only five of the 108 authenticated unprovoked shark bite incidents reported from the Pacific Coast during the 20th century involved kayakers.[118] In a few cases they have bitten boats up to 10 m (33 ft) in length. They have bumped or knocked people overboard, usually biting the boat from the stern. In one case in 1936, a large shark leapt completely into the South African fishing boat Lucky Jim, knocking a crewman into the sea. Tricas and McCosker's underwater observations suggest that sharks are attracted to boats by the electrical fields they generate, which are picked up by the ampullae of Lorenzini and confuse the shark about whether or not wounded prey might be near-by.[119]

text: In captivity

text: Prior to August 1981, no great white shark in captivity lived longer than 11 days. In August 1981, a great white survived for 16 days at SeaWorld San Diego before being released.[120] The idea of containing a live great white at SeaWorld Orlando was used in the 1983 film Jaws 3-D.

text: Monterey Bay Aquarium first attempted to display a great white in 1984, but the shark died after 11 days because it did not eat.[121] In July 2003, Monterey researchers captured a small female and kept it in a large netted pen near Malibu for five days. They had the rare success of getting the shark to feed in captivity before its release.[122] Not until September 2004 was the aquarium able to place a great white on long-term exhibit. A young female, which was caught off the coast of Ventura, was kept in the aquarium's 3,800,000 l (1,000,000 US gal) Outer Bay exhibit for 198 days before she was released in March 2005. She was tracked for 30 days after release.[123] On the evening of 31 August 2006, the aquarium introduced a juvenile male caught outside Santa Monica Bay.[124] His first meal as a captive was a large salmon steak on 8 September 2006, and as of that date, he was estimated to be 1.72 m (68 in) in length and to weigh approximately 47 kg (104 lb). He was released on 16 January 2007, after 137 days in captivity.

text: Monterey Bay Aquarium housed a third great white, a juvenile male, for 162 days between 27 August 2007, and 5 February 2008. On arrival, he was 1.4 m (4.6 ft) long and weighed 30.6 kg (67 lb). He grew to 1.8 m (5.9 ft) and 64 kg (141 lb) before release. A juvenile female came to the Outer Bay Exhibit on 27 August 2008. While she did swim well, the shark fed only one time during her stay and was tagged and released on 7 September 2008. Another juvenile female was captured near Malibu on 12 August 2009, introduced to the Outer Bay exhibit on 26 August 2009, and was successfully released into the wild on 4 November 2009.[125] The Monterey Bay Aquarium added a 1.4 m (4.6 ft) long male into their redesigned "Open Sea" exhibit on 31 August 2011. The animal was captured in the waters off of Malibu.

text: One of the largest adult great whites ever exhibited was at Japan's Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium in 2016, where a 3.5 m (11 ft) male was exhibited for three days before dying.[126][127] Probably the most famous captive was a 2.4 m (7.9 ft) female named Sandy, which in August 1980 became the only great white to be housed at the California Academy of Sciences' Steinhart Aquarium in San Francisco, California. She was released because she would not eat and constantly bumped against the walls.[128]

text: Shark tourism

text: Cage diving is most common at sites where great whites are frequent including the coast of South Africa, the Neptune Islands in South Australia,[129] and Guadalupe Island in Baja California. The popularity of cage diving and swimming with sharks is at the focus of a booming tourist industry.[130][131] A common practice is to chum the water with pieces of fish to attract the sharks. These practices may make sharks more accustomed to people in their environment and to associate human activity with food; a potentially dangerous situation. By drawing bait on a wire towards the cage, tour operators lure the shark to the cage, possibly striking it, exacerbating this problem. Other operators draw the bait away from the cage, causing the shark to swim past the divers.

text: At present, hang baits are illegal off Isla Guadalupe and reputable dive operators do not use them. Operators in South Africa and Australia continue to use hang baits and pinniped decoys.[132] In South Australia, playing rock music recordings underwater, including the AC/DC album Back in Black has also been used experimentally to attract sharks.[133]

text: Companies object to being blamed for shark bite incidents, pointing out that lightning tends to strike humans more often than sharks bite humans.[134] Their position is that further research needs to be done before banning practices such as chumming, which may alter natural behavior.[135] One compromise is to only use chum in areas where whites actively patrol anyway, well away from human leisure areas. Also, responsible dive operators do not feed sharks. Only sharks that are willing to scavenge follow the chum trail and if they find no food at the end then the shark soon swims off and does not associate chum with a meal. It has been suggested that government licensing strategies may help enforce these responsible tourism.[132]

text: The shark tourist industry has some financial leverage in conserving this animal. A single set of great white jaws can fetch up to £20,000. That is a fraction of the tourism value of a live shark; tourism is a more sustainable economic activity than shark fishing. For example, the dive industry in Gansbaai, South Africa consists of six boat operators with each boat guiding 30 people each day. With fees between £50 and £150 per person, a single live shark that visits each boat can create anywhere between £9,000 and £27,000 of revenue daily.[136]

text:
Putting chum in the water

A great white shark approaches divers in a cage off Dyer Island, Western Cape, South Africa.

Play media

A great white shark approaches a cage


document_title: Federal Meat Inspection Act

question_text: who was put in charge of enforcing the meat inspection act

root

text: Federal Meat Inspection Act

text: Historical motivation for enactment[edit]

text: The original 1906 Act authorized the Secretary of Agriculture to inspect and condemn any meat product found unfit for human consumption.[1] Unlike previous laws ordering meat inspections, which were enforced to assure European nations from banning pork trade, this law was strongly motivated to protect the American diet. All labels on any type of food had to be accurate (although not all ingredients were provided on the label). Even though all harmful food was banned, many warnings were still provided on the container. The law was partly a response to the publication of Upton Sinclair's The Jungle, an exposé of the Chicago meat packing industry, as well as to other Progressive Era muckraking publications of the day.[2] While Sinclair's dramatized account was intended to bring attention to the terrible working conditions in Chicago, the public was more horrified by the prospect of bad meat.[3]

tag: p

text: The book's assertions were confirmed in the Neill-Reynolds report, commissioned by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906.[4] Roosevelt was suspicious of Sinclair's socialist attitude and conclusions in The Jungle, so he sent labor commissioner Charles P. Neill and social worker James Bronson Reynolds, men whose honesty and reliability he trusted, to Chicago to make surprise visits to meat packing facilities.

text: Despite betrayal of the secret to the meat packers, who worked three shifts a day for three weeks to thwart the inspection, Neill and Reynolds were still revolted by the conditions at the factories and at the lack of concern by plant managers (though neither had much experience in the field). Following their report, Roosevelt became a supporter of regulation of the meat packing industry, and, on June 30, signed the Meat Inspection Act of 1906.[5]

text: Provisions[edit]

text: The FMIA mandated the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspection of meat processing plants that conducted business across state lines.[6] The Pure Food and Drug Act, enacted on the same day in 1906, also gave the government broad jurisdiction over food in interstate commerce.[7]

text: The four primary requirements of the Meat Inspection Act of 1906 were:

text:
Mandatory inspection of livestock before slaughter (cattle, sheep, goats, equines, and swine);
Mandatory postmortem inspection of every carcass;
Sanitary standards established for slaughterhouses and meat processing plants; and
Authorized U.S. Department of Agriculture ongoing monitoring and inspection of slaughter and processing operations.

tag: ol

text: After 1906, many additional laws that further standardized the meat industry and its inspection were passed.

text: Preemption of state law[edit]

text: In 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in National Meat Assn. v. Harris, that the FMIA preempts a California law regulating the treatment of non-ambulatory livestock.[8]


document_title: Mountain Lake (Virginia)

question_text: where is the resort dirty dancing was filmed

text: Mountain Lake (Virginia)

text: The Lake[edit]

text: Mountain Lake typically covers about 50 acres (200,000 m2), and its level was largely constant at an elevation of 3,875 feet (1,181 m) during the 19th and 20th centuries. Since 2002 it has been subject to dry-season level drops of as much as 15 feet (4.6 m). The last such level fluctuations occurred between 1751 and 1804 as historical accounts give widely different accounts of the lake size.

text: The first known written evidence of the lake was by Christopher Gist of the Ohio Land Surveying Company, in 1751. It subsequently became known as Salt Pond.[citation needed]

text: Natural lakes are common well to the north, where the Appalachian Range was subject to geologically recent glacial activity. But the basis on which this lake—the only natural one in the southern Appalachians—exists has been the source of much speculation. Recent scientific studies indicate that an unusual combination of natural processes created the lake, which is maintained by a fissure at the bottom that provides an outlet for both sediment and water and prevents the lake from otherwise simply becoming a bog. Replenishment of the water lost depends on rain levels, and apparent washing-out of sediment from the fissured bedrock bottom is causing the unstable lake levels.

text: The lake is estimated to be about 6,000 years old, and geologists believe it must have been formed by rock slides and damming. Cold underground springs feed the lake and rarely allow the temperature to rise above 70 °F (21 °C) on the surface and 46 °F (8 °C) 50 feet (15 m) below the surface. Because of narrow channels and openings in the lake bottom, the level has a history of changing dramatically depending on the water flow through these channels. It is more than 100 feet (30 m) deep when full. Close to the lake is one of Virginia's few virgin forests, including a rare virgin spruce bog—Mann's Bog—with an unusual array of northern disjunct species. The lake drains into Little Stoney Creek, which passes over a spectacular waterfall known as The Cascades before reaching the New River.

text: During a severe cold wave in January 1985, Mountain Lake set the statewide record low for Virginia: −30 °F (−34 °C).[1]

text: Mountain Lake Hotel[edit]

text: Salt Pond had been frequented throughout the early part of the 19th century and prior, then in March, 1856, Henley Chapman incorporated the Mountain Lake Co. to provide accommodations and entertainment for its visitors. Soon afterward, a wooden hotel and a saw mill were built. Stagecoach travelers from Christiansburg, Virginia and Union, West Virginia were the primary customers in the days before the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad (a predecessor of the Norfolk and Western Railway) was built nearby in the late 1850s.

text: Following the Battle of Cloyd's Mountain in 1864, during the American Civil War (1861–1865), Union General George Crook marched his troops over to the present day town of Union, WV, via Salt Pond Mountain. Then, in 1869, following the Civil War, the hotel and its properties were sold to General and Mrs. Herman Haupt. Haupt had been head of the United States Military Railroad during the War. During their first year of ownership, though not operating publicly, the Haupts received compensation from some of their guests for the accommodations provided, prompting Giles County to require them to purchase a hotel license. Subsequently, they decided to re-open the hotel to the general public. Due to the resulting popularity of the hotel in this first season, several additions to the hotel were required to meet the increasing demand for more accommodations.

text: During the days of primary travel by railroad, guests of the resort exited the train at either Pembroke or Eggleston and were met by horse-drawn carriages, which transported them up the dirt Doe Creek Road to the resort. The current primary paved route up the Mountain, SR 700, was built later, over a different route than the old dirt road.[disputed  – discuss]

text: Giles County attorney Gordon Porterfield managed the property briefly before turning it over to his son Gilbert Porterfield, who managed the resort for 25 years. During Gilbert Porterfield's tenure managing the resort, its current reputation for fine cuisine was established. Also during this time, individuals were allowed to build their own cottages. They received a 15 year lease, after which the ownership of the cottages returned to the hotel. During their individual ownership, these guests also received discounts on their meals and maid service. Presently, most of the original cottage names that were established by the original owners/builders over 100 years ago are still in use.

text: In the 1930s, William Lewis Moody, Jr. of Galveston, Texas bought the hotel. In 1938, Moody replaced the wooden hotel with the current structure, built using stone native to the surrounding land. Moody's daughter, Mrs. Mary Moody Northen, owned the hotel until her death in 1986, following which the trustees of her estate established a foundation known as the Mary Moody Northen Endowment,[2] which presently maintains and operates the resort. The foundation was specifically established according to Mrs. Northen's final wishes to maintain the hotel and surrounding land as she had always known it, without overbuilding and, particularly, without significantly changing the resort or upsetting the delicate ecology of the beautiful surrounding land. For most of its life as a resort, Mountain Lake Hotel was open from late spring through early fall, however, shortly after the establishment of the trust, the resort began operating year-round. Currently, it is open from early May to late November and operated by 1859 Historic Hotels Inc., a hotel management company controlled by the Moody Foundation, an entity separate from the Mary Moody Northen Endowment.[3][4]

text: In past years, the lake levels have diminished due to a prolonged drought in Southwest Virginia and the geology that makes up the bottom of the lake.  In October 2008, the lake receded to a pond status.  During this time, the remains of Samuel Ira Felder were discovered in the bottom of the lake.  He drowned in July 1921 when he fell overboard while canoeing with friends.[5]

text: Filming Dirty Dancing[edit]

text: Mountain Lake Hotel was the site for much of the on-location filming of the 1987 hit movie Dirty Dancing which starred Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey.[6] The Stone Lodge stood in for "Kellerman's Resort", a fictional mountain retreat in the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. Like Kellerman's, the real Mountain Lake Hotel Resort also offers many indoor and outdoor activities for guests such as games like table tennis and billiards, water activities like paddle boating, canoeing, and fishing, and dry activities like mountain biking and hiking.

text: The other site was the 1927 Lake Lure Inn located in Lake Lure, North Carolina.

text: Mountain Lake Biological Station[edit]

text: In addition to the Mountain Lake Hotel resort complex, the Mountain Lake Biological Station (MLBS), a field research and teaching station of the Biology Department at the University of Virginia originally established in 1930 is located nearby. The research station is active year-round and houses researchers from all over the nation and also internationally. Mountain Lake Biological Station is a full-service residential field station located atop Salt Pond Mountain in the southern Appalachians of southwest Virginia. Programs include summer field courses, summer internships for undergraduates, numerous faculty-driven research projects, scientific meetings, outreach activities, and more. The station is also home to the annual Silene Census which occurs in late May/early June and surveys plants in the genus Silene along roadsides surrounding the station (see Psilons), a project that has been ongoing since 1988. MLBS was the summer home of American author Edna Henry Lee Turpin (1867–1952).

text: Mountain Lake Conservancy[edit]

text: The Mountain Lake Conservancy (formerly known as 'Wilderness Conservancy at Mountain Lake') is a non-profit organization founded to help manage and protect the 2,600 acres (11 km2) of Mountain Lake property around Mountain Lake Hotel, and to provide environmental and cultural education for the public. Since 2008, the Conservancy has begun to manage and develop recreational opportunities for hotel guests and the local community in line with its mission, vision and core values.


document_title: Minnesota Twins

question_text: when did the washington senators become the minnesota twins

text: Minnesota Twins

text: Team history[edit]

text: Washington Nationals/Senators: 1901–1960[edit]

text: The Washington Senators spent the first decade of their existence finishing near the bottom of the American League standings. Their fortunes began to improve with the arrival of 19-year-old pitcher, Walter Johnson, in 1907. Johnson blossomed in 1911 with 25 victories, although the Senators still finished the season in seventh place.[21] In 1912, the Senators improved dramatically, as their pitching staff led the league in team earned run average and in strikeouts. Johnson won 33 games while teammate Bob Groom added another 24 wins to help the Senators finish the season in second place.[22] The Senators continued to perform respectably in 1913 with Johnson posting a career-high 35 victories, as the team once again finished in second place.[23] The Senators then fell into another period of decline for the next decade. After a string of mediocre seasons, a rejuvenated Johnson rebounded in 1924 to win 23 games with the help of his catcher, Muddy Ruel, as the Senators won the American League pennant for the first time in the history of the franchise.[24]

text: The Senators faced John McGraw's heavily favored New York Giants in the 1924 World Series.[25] The two teams traded wins back and forth until the series reached the seventh and deciding game. The Senators trailed the Giants 3 to 1 in the eighth inning of Game 7, when Bucky Harris hit a routine ground ball to third which hit a pebble and took a bad hop over Giants third baseman Freddie Lindstrom. Two runners scored on the play, tying the score at three.[26] An aging Walter Johnson then came in to pitch the ninth inning, and held the Giants scoreless into extra innings. In the bottom of the twelfth inning with Ruel at bat, he hit a high, foul ball directly over home plate.[27] The Giants' catcher, Hank Gowdy, dropped his protective mask to field the ball but, failing to toss the mask aside, stumbled over it and dropped the ball, thus giving Ruel another chance to bat.[27] On the next pitch, Ruel hit a double and proceeded to score the winning run when Earl McNeely hit a ground ball that took another bad hop over Lindstrom's head.[26][27] This would mark the only World Series triumph for the franchise during their 60-year tenure in Washington.

text: The following season they repeated as American League champions but ultimately lost the 1925 World Series to the Pittsburgh Pirates. After Walter Johnson's retirement in 1927, he was hired as manager of the Senators. After enduring a few losing seasons, the team returned to contention in 1930. In 1933, Senators owner Clark Griffith returned to the formula that worked for him nine years prior: 26-year-old shortstop Joe Cronin became player-manager. The Senators posted a 99–53 record and cruised to the pennant seven games ahead of the New York Yankees, but in the 1933 World Series the Giants exacted their revenge winning in five games. Following the loss, the Senators sank all the way to seventh place in 1934 and attendance began to fall. Despite the return of Harris as manager from 1935–42 and again from 1950–54, Washington was mostly a losing ball club for the next 25 years contending for the pennant only during World War II. Washington came to be known as "first in war, first in peace, and last in the American League",[28] with their hard luck being crucial to the plot of the musical and film Damn Yankees. Cecil Travis, Buddy Myer (1935 A.L. batting champion), Roy Sievers, Mickey Vernon (batting champion in 1946 and 1953), and Eddie Yost were notable Senators players whose careers were spent in obscurity due to the team's lack of success.[29][30] In 1954, the Senators signed future Hall of Fame member Harmon Killebrew. By 1959 he was the Senators’ regular third baseman and led the league with 42 home runs earning him a starting spot on the American League All-Star team.

text: After Griffith's death in 1955, his nephew and adopted son Calvin took over the team presidency. Calvin sold Griffith Stadium to the city of Washington and leased it back leading to speculation that the team was planning to move as the Boston Braves, St. Louis Browns and Philadelphia Athletics had all done in the early 1950s. By 1957, after an early flirtation with San Francisco (where the New York Giants would eventually move after that season ended), Griffith began courting Minneapolis–St. Paul, a prolonged process that resulted in his rejecting the Twin Cities' first offer[31] before agreeing to relocate. The American League opposed the move at first, but in 1960 a deal was reached: The Senators would move and would be replaced with an expansion Senators team for 1961. Thus, the old Washington Senators became the Minnesota Twins.

text: Team nickname[edit]

text: The Washington franchise was known as both "Senators" and "Nationals" at various times, and sometimes at the same time. In 1905, the team changed its official name to the "Washington Nationals."[32] The name "Nationals" appeared on uniforms for only two seasons, and was then replaced with the "W" logo for the next 52 years. The media often shortened the nickname to "Nats." Many fans and newspapers (especially out-of-town papers) persisted in using the "Senators" nickname, because of potential confusion caused by an American League team using the "Nationals" name. Over time, "Nationals" faded as a nickname, and "Senators" became dominant. Baseball guides listed the club's nickname as "Nationals or Senators", acknowledging the dual-nickname situation.

text: The team name was officially changed to Washington Senators around the time of Clark Griffith's death. It was not until 1959 that the word "Senators" first appeared on team shirts. "Nats" continued to be used by space-saving headline writers, even for the 1961 expansion team, which was never officially known as "Nationals."

text: The current "Nationals" and "Nats" names were revived in 2005, when the Montreal Expos relocated to Washington to become the Nationals.

text: Minnesota Twins: 1961 to present[edit]

text: The name "Twins" was derived from the popular name of the region, the Twin Cities. The NBA's Minneapolis Lakers had re-located to Los Angeles in 1960 due to poor attendance which was believed to have been caused in part by the reluctance of fans in St. Paul to support the team.[33] Griffith was determined not to alienate fans in either city by naming the team after one city or the other, so his desire was to name the team the "Twin Cities Twins",[33] however MLB objected. Griffith therefore named the team the Minnesota Twins. However, the team was allowed to keep its original "TC" (for Twin Cities) insignia for its caps. The team's logo shows two men, one in a Minneapolis Millers uniform and one in a St. Paul Saints uniform, shaking hands across the Mississippi River within an outline of the state of Minnesota. The "TC" remained on the Twins' caps until 1987, when they adopted new uniforms. By this time, the team felt it was established enough to put an "M" on its cap without having St. Paul fans think it stood for Minneapolis. The "TC" logo was moved to a sleeve on the jerseys, and occasionally appeared as an alternate cap design.[34] Both the "TC" and "Minnie & Paul" logos remain the team's primary insignia. As of 2010, the "TC" logo has been reinstated on the cap as their logo.[35]

text: The Twins were eagerly greeted in Minnesota when they arrived in 1961. They brought a nucleus of talented players: Harmon Killebrew, Bob Allison, Camilo Pascual, Zoilo Versalles, Jim Kaat, Earl Battey, and Lenny Green. Tony Oliva, who would go on to win American League batting championships in 1964, 1965 and 1971, made his major league debut in 1962. That year, the Twins won 91 games, the most by the franchise since 1933. Behind Mudcat Grant's 21 victories, Versalles' A.L. MVP season and Oliva's batting title, the Twins won 102 games and the American League Pennant in 1965, but they were defeated in the World Series by the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven games (behind the Series MVP, Sandy Koufax, who compiled a 2–1 record, including winning the seventh game).[36]

text: Heading into the final weekend of the 1967 season, when Rod Carew was named the A.L. Rookie of the Year, the Twins, Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox, and Detroit Tigers all had a shot at clinching the American League championship. The Twins and the Red Sox started the weekend tied for 1st place and played against each other in Boston for the final three games of the season. The Red Sox won two out of the three games, seizing their first pennant since 1946 with a 92–70 record. The Twins and Tigers both finished one game back, with 91–71 records, while the White Sox finished three games back, at 89–73. In 1969, the new manager of the Twins, Billy Martin, pushed aggressive base running all-around, and Carew set the all-time Major League record by stealing home seven times in addition to winning the first of seven A.L. batting championships.[37] With Killebrew slugging 49 homers and winning the AL MVP Award, these 1969 Twins won the very first American League Western Division Championship, but they lost three straight games to the Baltimore Orioles, winners of 109 games, in the first American League Championship Series. The Orioles would go on to be upset by the New York Mets in the World Series. Martin was fired after the season, in part due to an August 1969 fight in Detroit with 20-game winner Dave Boswell and outfielder Bob Allison, in an alley outside the Lindell A.C. bar. Bill Rigney led the Twins to a repeat division title in 1970, behind the star pitching of Jim Perry (24-12), the A.L. Cy Young Award winner, while the Orioles again won the Eastern Division Championship behind the star pitching of Jim Palmer. Once again, the Orioles won the A.L. Championship Series in a three-game sweep,[38] and this time they would win the World Series.

text: After winning the division again in 1970, the team entered an eight-year dry spell, finishing around the .500 mark. Killebrew departed after 1974. Owner Calvin Griffith faced financial difficulty with the start of free agency, costing the Twins the services of Lyman Bostock and Larry Hisle, who left as free agents after the 1977 season, and Carew, who was traded after the 1978 season.[39] In 1975, Carew won his fourth consecutive AL batting title,[40] having already joined Ty Cobb as the only players to lead the major leagues in batting average for three consecutive seasons. In 1977, Carew batted .388, which was the highest in baseball since Boston's Ted Williams hit .406 in 1941; he won the 1977 AL MVP Award. He won another batting title in 1978, hitting .333.[40]

text: In 1982, the Twins moved into the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, which they shared with the Minnesota Vikings. After a 16-54 start, the Twins were on the verge on becoming the worst team in MLB history. They turned the season around somewhat, but still lost 102 games which is the second-worst record in Twins history (beaten only by the 2016 team, who lost 103 games), despite the .301 average, 23 homers and 92 RBI from rookie Kent Hrbek.[41] In 1984, Griffith sold the Twins to multi-billionaire banker/financier Carl Pohlad. The Metrodome hosted the 1985 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. After several losing seasons, the 1987 team, led by Hrbek, Gary Gaetti, Frank Viola (A.L. Cy Young winner in 1988), Bert Blyleven, Jeff Reardon, Tom Brunansky, Dan Gladden, and rising star Kirby Puckett, returned to the World Series after defeating the favored Detroit Tigers in the ALCS, 4 games to 1. Tom Kelly managed the Twins to World Series victories over the St. Louis Cardinals in 1987[42][43] and the Atlanta Braves in 1991.[44] The 1988 Twins were the first team in American League history to draw more than 3 million fans.[45] Twins' pitcher and Minnesota native Jack Morris was the star of the series in 1991, going 2–0 in his three starts with a 1.17 ERA.[46] 1991 also marked the first time that any team that finished in last place in their division would advance to the World Series the following season; both the Twins and the Braves did this in 1991.[47] Contributors to the 1991 Twins' improvement from 74 wins to 95 included Chuck Knoblauch, the A.L. Rookie of the Year; Scott Erickson, 20-game winner; new closer Rick Aguilera and new designated hitter Chili Davis.

text: The World Series in 1991 is regarded by many as one of the classics of all time. In this Series, four games were won during the teams' final at-bat, and three of these were in extra innings. The Atlanta Braves won all three of their games in Atlanta, and the Twins won all four of their games in Minnesota. The sixth game was a legendary one for Puckett, who tripled in a run, made a sensational leaping catch against the wall, and finally in the 11th inning hit the game-winning home run. The seventh game was tied 0–0 after the regulation nine innings, and marked only the second time that the seventh game of the World Series had ever gone into extra innings. The Twins won on a walk-off RBI single by Gene Larkin in the bottom of the 10th inning, after Morris had pitched ten shutout innings against the Braves.[48] The seventh game of the 1991 World Series is widely regarded as one of the greatest games in the history of professional baseball.[49][50][51]

text: After a winning season in 1992 but falling short of Oakland in the division, the Twins fell into a years-long stretch of mediocrity, posting a losing record each season for the next eight: 71–91 in 1993, 50–63 in 1994, 56–88 in 1995, 78–84 in 1996, 68–94 in 1997, 70–92 in 1998, 63–97 in 1999 and 69–93 in 2000. From 1994 to 1997, a long sequence of retirements and injuries hurt the team badly, and Tom Kelly spent the remainder of his managerial career attempting to rebuild the Twins. In 1997, owner Carl Pohlad almost sold the Twins to North Carolina businessman Don Beaver, who would have moved the team to the Piedmont Triad area.[52]

text: Puckett after the 1995 season was forced to retire at age 35 due to loss of vision in one eye from a central retinal vein occlusion.[53] The 1989 A.L. batting champion, he retired as the Twins' all-time leader in career hits, runs, doubles, and total bases. At the time of his retirement, his .318 career batting average was the highest by any right-handed American League batter since Joe DiMaggio. Puckett was the fourth baseball player during the 20th century to record 1,000 hits in his first five full calendar years in Major League Baseball, and was the second to record 2,000 hits during his first 10 full calendar years. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2001, his first year of eligibility.

text: The Twins dominated the Central Division in the first decade of the new century, winning the division in six of those ten years ('02, '03, '04, '06, '09 and '10), and nearly winning it in '08 as well. From 2001 to 2006, the Twins compiled the longest streak of consecutive winning seasons since moving to Minnesota.

text: Threatened with closure by league contraction,[54] the 2002 team battled back to reach the American League Championship Series before being eliminated 4–1 by that year's World Series champion Anaheim Angels. The Twins have not won a playoff series since the 2002 series against the Athletics, this despite the team winning several division championships in the decade.

text: In 2006, the Twins won the division on the last day of the regular season (the only day all season they held sole possession of first place) but lost to the Oakland Athletics in the ALDS. Ozzie Guillén coined a nickname for this squad, calling the Twins "little piranhas".[55] The Twins players embraced the label, and in response, the Twins Front office started a "Piranha Night", with piranha finger puppets given out to the first 10,000 fans. Scoreboard operators sometimes played an animated sequence of piranhas munching under that caption in situations where the Twins were scoring runs playing "small ball", and the stadium vendors sold T-shirts and hats advertising "The Little Piranhas".

text: The Twins also had the AL MVP in Justin Morneau,[56] the AL batting champion in Joe Mauer,[55] and the AL Cy Young Award winner in Johan Santana.[57]

text: In 2008, the Twins finished the regular season tied with the White Sox on top of the AL Central, forcing a one-game playoff in Chicago to determine the division champion.[58] The Twins lost that game and missed the playoffs. The game location was determined by rule of a coin flip that was conducted in mid-September. This rule was changed for the start of the 2009 season, making the site for any tiebreaker game to be determined by the winner of the regular season head-to-head record between the teams involved.[59]

text: After a year where the Twins played .500 baseball for most of the season, the team won 17 of their last 21 games to tie the Detroit Tigers for the lead in the Central Division.[60] The Twins were able to use the play-in game rule to their advantage when they won the AL Central at the end of the regular season by way of a 6–5 tiebreaker game that concluded with a 12th-inning walk-off hit by Alexi Casilla to right field, that scored Carlos Gómez.[61] However, they failed to advance to the American League Championship Series as they lost the American League Divisional Series in three straight games to the eventual World Series champion New York Yankees.[62] That year, Joe Mauer became only the second catcher in 33 years to win the AL MVP award.[63] Iván Rodríguez won for the Texas Rangers in 1999, previous to that, the last catcher to win an AL MVP was the New York Yankees Thurman Munson in 1976.[64]

text: In their inaugural season played at Target Field, the Twins finished the regular season with a record of 94-68, clinching the AL Central Division title for the 6th time in 9 years under manager Ron Gardenhire. New regular players included rookie Danny Valencia at third base, designated hitter Jim Thome,[65] closer Matt Capps,[66] infielder J. J. Hardy,[67] and infielder Orlando Hudson.[68] In relief pitching roles were late additions Brian Fuentes and Randy Flores. On July 7, the team suffered a major blow when Justin Morneau sustained a concussion, which knocked him out for the rest of the season. In the divisional series, the Twins lost to the Yankees in a three-game sweep for the second consecutive year.[69] Following the season, Ron Gardenhire received AL Manager of the Year honors after finishing as a runner up in several prior years.[70]

text: After repeating as AL Central champions in 2010, the Twins entered 2011 with no players on the disabled list, and the team seemed poised for another strong season. During the off-season, the team signed Japanese shortstop Tsuyoshi Nishioka to fill a hole in the middle infield, re-signed Jim Thome, who was in pursuit of career home run number 600, and also re-signed Carl Pavano. However, the season was largely derailed by an extensive list of injuries. Nishioka's broken leg in a collision at second base[71] led the way and was followed by DL stints from Kevin Slowey, Joe Mauer, Jason Repko, Thome, Delmon Young (two stints on the DL), José Mijares, Glen Perkins, Joe Nathan, Francisco Liriano, Jason Kubel, Denard Span (two stints), Justin Morneau, Scott Baker, and Alexi Casilla. The team's low point was arguably on May 1 when the team started 7 players who were batting below .235 in a game against Kansas City.[72] From that day forward, the Twins made a strong push to get as close as five games back of the division lead by the All-Star break. However, the team struggled down the stretch and fell back out of contention. The team failed to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2008 and experienced their first losing season in four years. Despite an AL-worst 63-99 record, the team drew over 3 million fans for the second consecutive year.[73]

text: Michael Cuddyer served as the Twins representative at the All-Star game, his first appearance.[74] Bert Blyleven's number was retired during the season and he was also inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame during the month of July.[75] On August 10, Nathan recorded his 255th save, passing Rick Aguilera for first place on the franchise's all-time saves list.[76] On August 15, Thome hit 599th and 600th home run at Comerica Park to become the eighth player in Major League history to hit 600 home runs, joining Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Ken Griffey, Jr., and Alex Rodriguez.[77]

text: The team started the 2012 season with a league worst 10-24 record.[78] In late May and early June, the team embarked on a hot streak, winning ten out of thirteen games.[79][80] By mid July, the team found themselves only 10 games out of the division lead.[81] On July 16, the Twins defeated the Baltimore Orioles 19-7, the most runs scored in the short history of Target Field.[82][83] By the end of August, the Twins were more than 20 games below .500, and last in the American League.[84] On August 29, it was announced that the Twins would host the 2014 All-Star Game.[85] In 2013, the Twins finished in 4th place in the AL Central, with a record of 66-96.[86] In 2014, the team finished with a 70-92 record, last in the division and accumulated the second fewest wins in the American League.[87] As a result, Ron Gardenhire was fired on September 29, 2014.[88] On November 3, 2014 Paul Molitor was announced by the team as the 13th manager in Twins history.

text: In 2015, the team had a winning season (83-79), following four consecutive seasons of 90 or more losses.

text: In 2016, the Minnesota Twins finished last in the AL Central, with a 59-103 record. Brian Dozier set his career high in home runs with 43, which was tied for second in baseball, and leading all 2nd basemen. Tyler Duffey led all Twins starters with 9 wins throughout the season, while fellow reliever Brandon Kintzler led the team with 17 saves. Rising stars Miguel Sano, Max Kepler, and Byron Buxton combined to have 263 total hits, 52 home runs, 167 RBIs, and a batting average of .232 throughout the season. The Twins signed star Korean slugger Byung Ho Park to a 4-year/$12 million contract, where he hit a .191 batting average, with 12 home runs, and 24 RBIs before being sent down to Rochester for the remainder of the season.[89]

text: Threatened contraction or relocation of the team[edit]

text: The quirks of the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, including the turf floor and the white roof, gave the Twins a significant home-field advantage that played into their winning the World Series in both 1987 and 1991, at least in the opinion of their opponents, as the Twins went 12–1 in postseason home games during those two seasons.[90] These were the first two World Series in professional baseball history in which a team won the championship by winning all four home games.[91] (The feat has since been repeated once, by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001.) Nevertheless, the Twins argued that the Metrodome was obsolete and that the lack of a dedicated baseball-only ballpark limited team revenue and made it difficult to sustain a top-notch, competitive team (the Twins had been sharing tenancy in stadiums with the NFL's Minnesota Vikings since 1961). The team was rumored to contemplate moving to such places as New Jersey, Las Vegas, Portland, Oregon, the Greensboro/Winston-Salem, North Carolina, area, and elsewhere in search of a more financially competitive market. In 2002, the team was nearly disbanded when Major League Baseball selected the Twins and the Montreal Expos (now the Washington Nationals franchise) for elimination due to their financial weakness relative to other franchises in the league. The impetus for league contraction diminished after a court decision forced the Twins to play out their lease on the Metrodome. However, Twins owner Carl Pohlad continued his efforts to relocate, pursuing litigation against the Metropolitan Stadium Commission and obtaining a state court ruling that his team was not obligated to play in the Metrodome after the 2006 season. This cleared the way for the Twins to either be relocated or disbanded prior to the 2007 season if a new deal was not reached.

text: Target Field[edit]

text: In response to the threatened loss of the Twins, the Minnesota private and public sector negotiated and approved a financing package for a replacement stadium— a baseball-only outdoor, natural turf ballpark in the Warehouse District of downtown Minneapolis— owned by a new entity known as the Minnesota Ballpark Authority.[92] Target Field was constructed at a cost of $544.4 million (including site acquisition and infrastructure), utilizing the proceeds of a $392 million public bond offering based on a 0.15% sales tax in Hennepin County and private financing of $185 million provided by the Pohlad family.[93][94] As part of the deal, the Twins also signed a 30-year lease of the new stadium, effectively guaranteeing the continuation of the team in Minnesota for a long time to come. Construction of the new field began in 2007, and was completed in December 2009, in time for the 2010 season. Commissioner Bud Selig, who earlier had threatened to disband the team, observed that without the new stadium the Twins could not have committed to sign their star player, catcher Joe Mauer, to an 8-year, $184 million contract extension. The first regular season game in Target Field was played against the Boston Red Sox on April 12, 2010, with Mauer driving in two runs and going 3-for-5 to help the Twins defeat the Red Sox, 5–2.[95]

text: On May 18, 2011, Target Field was named "The Best Place To Shop" by Street and Smith's SportsBusiness Journal at the magazine's 2011 Sports Business Awards Ceremony in New York City.[96] It was also named "The Best Sports Stadium in North America" by ESPN The Magazine in a ranking that included over 120 different stadiums, ballparks and arenas from around North America.[97]

text: In July, 2014, Target Field hosted the 85th Major League Baseball All-Star Game and the Home Run Derby.

text: Current roster[edit]

text:
Minnesota Twins roster

v
t
e

Active roster
Inactive roster
Coaches/Other

Pitchers

 9 Matt Belisle
17 José Berríos
62 Buddy Boshers
67 Alan Busenitz
40 Bartolo Colón
27 John Curtiss
56 Tyler Duffey
47 Dietrich Enns
35 Dillon Gee
44 Kyle Gibson
39 Trevor Hildenberger
76 Félix Jorge
49 Adalberto Mejía
58 Gabriel Moya
15 Glen Perkins
57 Ryan Pressly
55 Taylor Rogers
77 Fernando Romero
64 Randy Rosario
54 Ervin Santana
50 Aaron Slegers
59 Michael Tonkin
66 Nik Turley

Catchers

21 Jason Castro
43 Mitch Garver
38 Chris Gimenez

Infielders

16 Ehire Adrianza
 2 Brian Dozier
 5 Eduardo Escobar
 7 Joe Mauer
11 Jorge Polanco
22 Miguel Sanó
19 Kennys Vargas

Outfielders

25 Byron Buxton
23 Niko Goodrum
 8 Zack Granite
36 Robbie Grossman
26 Max Kepler
73 Daniel Palka
20 Eddie Rosario

Manager

 4 Paul Molitor

Coaches

75 Nate Dammann (bullpen catcher)
13 Gene Glynn (third base)
18 Eddie Guardado (bullpen)
63 Rudy Hernandez (assistant hitting)
31 Jeff Pickler (major league coach)
33 James Rowson (hitting)
37 Jeff Smith (first base)
46 Joe Vavra (bench)
-- vacant (pitching)

60-day disabled list

60 J. T. Chargois
45 Phil Hughes
65 Trevor May
61 Ryan O'Rourke
53 Hector Santiago

40 active, 0 inactive
 7- or 10-day disabled list
 Suspended list
# Personal leave
Roster and coaches updated October 9, 2017
Transactions • Depth chart
→ All MLB rosters

tag: table

text: Minnesota Twins all-time roster: A complete list of players who played in at least one game for the Twins franchise.

text: Minor league affiliates[edit]

text:
Level
Team
League
Location

AAA
Rochester Red Wings
International League
Rochester, New York

AA
Chattanooga Lookouts
Southern League
Chattanooga, Tennessee

Advanced A
Fort Myers Miracle
Florida State League
Fort Myers, Florida

A
Cedar Rapids Kernels
Midwest League
Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Rookie
Elizabethton Twins
Appalachian League
Elizabethton, Tennessee

GCL Twins
Gulf Coast League
Fort Myers, Florida

DSL Twins
Dominican Summer League
Dominican Republic

text: Achievements[edit]

text: Baseball Hall of Famers[edit]

text:
Minnesota Twins Hall of Famers

Affiliation according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

Washington Senators

Stan Coveleski
Joe Cronin
Ed Delahanty

Rick Ferrell
Lefty Gomez
Goose Goslin

Clark Griffith
Bucky Harris
Whitey Herzog
Walter Johnson

Heinie Manush
Sam Rice
Al Simmons

George Sisler
Tris Speaker
Early Wynn

Minnesota Twins

Bert Blyleven

Rod Carew
Steve Carlton

Harmon Killebrew

Paul Molitor
Kirby Puckett

Dave Winfield

Players and managers listed in bold are depicted on their Hall of Fame plaques wearing a Twins or Senators cap insignia.

text: Molitor and Winfield, St. Paul natives and University of Minnesota graduates,[98] came to the team late in their careers and were warmly received as "hometown heroes", but were elected to the Hall on the basis of their tenures with other teams. Both swatted their 3,000th hit with the Twins.[99][100]

text: Cronin, Goslin, Griffith, Harris, Johnson, Killebrew and Wynn are listed on the Washington Hall of Stars display at Nationals Park (previously they were listed at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium). So are Ossie Bluege, George Case, Joe Judge, George Selkirk, Roy Sievers, Cecil Travis, Mickey Vernon and Eddie Yost.[101]

text: Ford C. Frick Award recipients[edit]

text:
Minnesota Twins Ford C. Frick Award recipients

Affiliation according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

Herb Carneal

Russ Hodges

Arch McDonald

Chuck Thompson

Bob Wolff

Names in bold received the award based primarily on their work as broadcasters for the Twins or Senators.

text: Team captains[edit]

text: 3 Harmon Killebrew 1961–74

tag: ul

text: Twins Hall of Fame[edit]

text:
Key

Year
Year inducted

Bold
Member of the Baseball Hall of Fame

Member of the Baseball Hall of Fame as a Twin

Bold
Recipient of the Hall of Fame's Ford C. Frick Award

text:
Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame

Year
No.
Name
Position(s)
Tenure

2000
3
Harmon Killebrew
1B
1961–74

29
Rod Carew
2B
1967–78

6
Tony Oliva
RF/DH
1962–76

14
Kent Hrbek
1B
1981–94

34
Kirby Puckett
CF
1984–95

—
Calvin Griffith
President and Owner
1961–83

2001
—
Herb Carneal
Radio Broadcaster
1962–2007

36
Jim Kaat
P
1961–73

2002
28
Bert Blyleven
P
1970–76
1985–88

10
Tom Kelly
Manager
1986–2001

2003
4
Bob Allison
OF
1961–70

—
Bob Casey
Public Address Announcer
1961–2004

2004
10
Earl Battey
C
1961–67

2005
16
Frank Viola
P
1982–89

—
Carl Pohlad
Owner
1984–2009

2006
2
Zoilo Versalles
SS
1961–67

2007
8
Gary Gaetti
3B
1981–90

—
Jim Rantz
Director of Minor Leagues
1986–2012

2008
38
Rick Aguilera
P
1989–95
1996–99

2009[102]
22, 23, 59
Brad Radke
P
1995–2006

—
George Brophy
Front office executive
1961–85

2010[103]
7
Greg Gagne
SS
1983–92

2011[104]
31
Jim Perry
P
1963–72

2012[105]
17
Camilo Pascual
P
1961–66

2013[106]
18
Eddie Guardado
P
1993–2003, 2008

—
Tom Mee
Media Relations Director
1961-91

2016
—
John Gordon
Radio Broadcaster
1987-2011

48
Torii Hunter
CF/RF
1997–2007, 2015

2017
5
Michael Cuddyer
RF
2001–11

—
Andy MacPhail
General Manager
1985–94

text: Retired numbers[edit]

text: The Metrodome's upper deck in center and right fields was partly covered by a curtain containing banners of various titles won, and retired numbers. There was no acknowledgment of the Twins' prior championships in Washington and several Senator Hall of Famers, such as Walter Johnson, played in the days prior to numbers being used on uniforms. However Killebrew played seven seasons as a Senator, including two full seasons as a regular prior to the move to Minnesota in 1961.

text: Prior to the addition of the banners, the Twins acknowledged their retired numbers on the Metrodome's outfield fence. Harmon Killebrew's #3 was the first to be displayed, as it was the only one the team had retired when they moved in. It was joined by Rod Carew's #29 in 1987, Tony Oliva's #6 in 1991, Kent Hrbek's #14 in 1995, and Kirby Puckett's #34 in 1997 before the Twins began hanging the banners to reduce capacity. The championships, meanwhile were marked on the "Baggie" in right field.

text:
Harmon
Killebrew
LF-1B-3B
Retired
May 4, 1975

Tony
Oliva
RF-DH-Coach
Retired July 14, 1991

Tom
Kelly
Manager
Retired September 8, 2012

Kent
Hrbek
1B
Retired August 13, 1995

Bert
Blyleven
P
Retired July 16, 2011

Rod
Carew
1B-2B
Retired July 19, 1987

Kirby
Puckett
CF
Retired May 25, 1997

Jackie
Robinson
All MLB
Honored April 15, 1997

text: In the Metrodome, the numbers ran in that order from left to right. In Target Field, they run from right to left, presumably to allow space for additional numbers in the future. The retired numbers also serve as entry points at Target Field, The center field gate is Gate No. 3, honoring Killebrew, the left field gate is Gate No. 6, honoring Oliva, the home plate gate is Gate No. 14, for Hrbek, the right field gate serves as Gate No. 29, in tribute to Carew, and the plaza gate is known as Gate No. 34, honoring Puckett.

text: The numbers that have been retired hang within Target Field in front of the tower that serves as the Twins' executive offices in left field foul territory. The championships banners have been replaced by small pennants that fly on masts at the back of the left field upper deck. Those pennants, along with the flags flying in the plaza behind right field, serve as a visual cue for the players, suggesting the wind direction and speed.

text: Jackie Robinson's number, 42, was retired by Major League Baseball on April 15, 1997 and formally honored by the Twins on May 23, 1997.[107] Robinson's number was positioned to the left of the Twins numbers in both venues.

text:
Player
Jersey
Position
Date retired

Harmon Killebrew
3
LF-1B-3B: 1954–60 (WAS)
LF-1B-3B: 1961–74 (MIN)
May 4, 1975

Rod Carew
29
1B-2B: 1967–78 (MIN)
July 19, 1987

Tony Oliva
6
RF-DH: 1962–76 (MIN)
Coach: 1976–78 (MIN)
Coach: 1985–91 (MIN)
July 14, 1991

Kent Hrbek
14
1B: 1981–94 (MIN)
August 13, 1995

Jackie Robinson
42
Retired by MLB
April 15, 1997

Kirby Puckett
34
CF: 1984–95 (MIN)
May 25, 1997

Bert Blyleven
28
P: 1970–76 (MIN)
P: 1985–88 (MIN)
July 16, 2011

Tom Kelly
10
Manager: 1986–2001 (MIN)
September 8, 2012

text: Awards[edit]

text: Team records[edit]

text: Team seasons[edit]

text:
Year
Regular Season
Postseason
Result

Wins
Losses
Win %
Finish
Attendance
Attendance per Game
Record
Win %

2001
85
77
.525
2nd – AL Central
1,782,929
22,011
0–0
.000

2002
94
67
.584
1st – AL Central
1,924,473
23,906
4–6
.400
Won ALDS vs Oakland Athletics, 3–2
Lost ALCS to Anaheim Angels, 1–4

2003
90
72
.556
1st – AL Central
1,946,011
24,025
1–3
.250
Lost ALDS to New York Yankees, 1–3

2004
92
70
.568
1st – AL Central
1,911,490
23,599
1–3
.250
Lost ALDS to New York Yankees, 1–3

2005
83
79
.512
3rd – AL Central
2,034,243
25,114
0–0
.000

2006
96
66
.593
1st – AL Central
2,285,018
28,210
0–3
.000
Lost ALDS to Oakland Athletics, 0–3

2007
79
83
.488
3rd – AL Central
2,296,347
28,349
0–0
.000

2008
88
75
.540
2nd – AL Central
2,302,611
28,427
0–0
.000

2009
87
76
.534
1st – AL Central
2,416,237
29,466
0–3
.000
Lost ALDS to New York Yankees, 0–3

2010
94
68
.580
1st – AL Central
3,223,640
39,798
0–3
.000
Lost ALDS to New York Yankees, 0–3

2011
63
99
.389
5th – AL Central
3,168,107
39,112
0–0
.000

2012
66
96
.407
5th – AL Central
2,776,354
34,275
0–0
.000

2013
66
96
.407
4th – AL Central
2,477,644
30,588
0–0
.000

2014
70
92
.432
5th – AL Central
2,250,606
27,785
0–0
.000

2015
83
79
.521
2nd – AL Central
2,220,054
27,408
0–0
.000

2016
59
103
.364
5th – AL Central
1,963,912
24,246
0–0
.000

2017
85
77
.525
2nd – AL Central
2,051,279
25,641
0–1
.000
Lost AL Wild Card Game (Yankees)

Total as Twins
4501
4592
.495
 –
 –
 –
25–39
.391
2 World Series Championships

text: Radio and television[edit]

text: As of 2007, the Twins took the rights to the broadcasts in-house and created the Twins Radio Network (TRN). With that new network in place the Twins secured a new Metro Affiliate flagship radio station in KSTP. It replaced WCCO, which held broadcast rights for the Twins since the team moved to Minneapolis in 1961. For 2013, the Twins moved to FM radio on KTWN-FM 96.3 K-Twin, which is owned by the Pohlad family. The original radio voices of the Twins in 1961 were Ray Scott, Halsey Hall and Bob Wolff. After the first season, Herb Carneal replaced Wolff. Twins TV and radio broadcasts were originally sponsored by the Hamm's Brewing Company. In 2009, Treasure Island Resort & Casino became the first ever naming rights partner for the Twins Radio Network, making the commercial name of TRN the Treasure Island Baseball Network.[110]

text: Cory Provus is the current radio play by play announcer,[111] taking over in 2012 for longtime Twins voice John Gordon who retired following the 2011 season.[112] Former Twins OF Dan Gladden serves as color commentator.[113]

text: TRN broadcasts are originated from the studios at Minnesota News Network and Minnesota Farm Networks. Kris Atteberry hosts the pre-game show, the "Lineup Card" and the "Post-game Download" from those studios except when filling in for Provus or Gladden when they are on vacation.

text: On April 1, 2007, Herb Carneal, the radio voice of the Twins for all but one year of their existence, died at his home in Minnetonka, Minnesota after a long battle with a list of illnesses. Carneal is in the broadcasters wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame.[114]

text: The television rights are held by Fox Sports North[115] with Dick Bremer as the play-by-play announcer and former Twin, 2011 National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee,[116] Bert Blyleven as color analyst. They are sometimes joined by Ron Coomer, Roy Smalley and Jack Morris.[117]

text: Bob Casey was the Twins first public-address announcer starting in 1961 and continuing until his death in 2005. He was well known for his unique delivery and his signature announcements of "No smoking in the Metrodome, either go outside or quit!" (or "go back to Boston", etc.), "Batting 3rd, the center-fielder, No. 34, Kirby Puckett!!!" and asking fans not to 'throw anything or anybody' onto the field.[118]

text: Community activities[edit]

text: Minnesota Twins Community Fund – Play Ball! Minnesota[119]

text: Team and franchise traditions[edit]

text: Fans wave a Homer Hanky to rally the team during play-offs and other crucial games. The Homer Hanky was created by Terrie Robbins of the Star Tribune newspaper in the Twin Cities in 1987. It was her idea to originally give away 60,000 inaugural Homer Hankies. That year, over 2.3 million Homer Hankies were distributed.[120]

text: The party atmosphere of the Twins clubhouse after a win is well-known,[121] the team's players unwinding with loud rock music (usually the choice of the winning pitcher) and video games.[121]

text: The club has several hazing rituals, such as requiring the most junior relief pitcher on the team to carry water and snacks to the bullpen in a brightly colored small child's backpack (Barbie in 2005, SpongeBob SquarePants in 2006, Hello Kitty in 2007, Disney Princess and Tinkerbell in 2009, Chewbacca and Darth Vader in 2010),[121] and many of its players, both past and present, are notorious pranksters.[121] For example, Bert Blyleven earned the nickname "The Frying Dutchman" for his ability to pull the "hotfoot" – which entails crawling under the bench in the dugout and lighting a teammate's shoelaces on fire.[122][123]