For the `65 Twins, the biggest year belonged to Jim (Mudcat) Grant, a pitcher who was solid for most of his 14-season career and sensational in that glorious Minnesota summer.
The Twins had a pair of 91-win seasons and finished second and third in the 10-team American League in 1962 and 1963. They then fell back to 79-83 in 1964, tied for sixth and 20 games behind the New York Yankees.
This was the fifth straight pennant for the Yankees, although a seven-game loss to St. Louis left them at 2-3 in those World Series.
And then came 1965: Mudcat Grant had the season of his life to lead the starting rotation, shortstop Zoilo Versalles and right fielder Tony Oliva were the AL s two best players that summer, and the Twins were 20-plus games over .500 and the aged Yankees were in unfamiliar under-.500 territory.
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