# 1996 Minnesota Twins season

The 1996 Minnesota Twins season was the 36th season for the Minnesota Twins franchise in the Twin Cities of Minnesota, their 15th season at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome and the 96th overall in the American League.
Prior to spring training, the Twins were projected to be a contending team. The team's chances significantly worsened on March 28, 1996. Kirby Puckett, the team's franchise player, had been tattooing the Grapefruit League (spring training) for a .360 average, but that morning woke up without vision in his right eye. He was eventually diagnosed with glaucoma. Several surgeries over the next few months could not restore vision in the eye. Puckett announced his retirement from baseball on July 12. After beginning the season under the melancholy cloud of the Puckett situation, Manager Tom Kelly's team finished the year with a 78-84 record, which put it in fourth place in the American League Central.

## Offseason

* October 9: Luis Rivas was signed as an amateur free agent by the Twins.
* December 5: Paul Molitor was signed as a free agent by the Twins.
* January 29: Signed Roberto Kelly as a free agent.

## Regular season

* On April 24, the Twins crushed the Detroit Tigers 24-11. The total of runs—both the Twins' 24 and the game's total of 35—were new highs in Twins history for a nine-inning game.
* Only second baseman Chuck Knoblauch was selected from the Twins for the All-Star Game at Veteran's Stadium in Philadelphia. Entering in the eighth inning as a reserve, he singled. His was just one of seven American League hits in the National League's 6-0 victory.
* On July 25 at the Metrodome, seven Twins hit eight doubles to set a new mark. The Twins drubbed the Boston Red Sox 16-6.
* By season's end, several other offensive records had been set: Chuck Knoblauch scored 140 times, besting Rod Carew's previous club high of 128. Chip Hale had nineteen pinch hits on the year. New season highs were set for most runs scored (877) and most runs allowed (900). In addition, new club season highs were set in most hits (1663), most RBI (812), most doubles (332) and highest team batting average (.288).

### Offense

Individual players on the team did excel. Paul Molitor had a standout year in his first year with his hometown team, playing as the regular designated hitter and winning a Silver Slugger Award at that position. He played in all but one game and hit .341 with 113 RBI and a league-best 225 hits. On September 16 in Kansas City, he collected his 3,000th hit, a triple off of José Rosado. He is the only player to obtain his 3,000th hit via a triple. Along with Molitor, Chuck Knoblauch also hit .341. Among the hits were 35 doubles. He also stole 45 bases. Marty Cordova had a respectable year, driving in 111 runs.
Team Leaders :
| Statistic | Player | Quantity |
| HR | Marty Cordova | 16 |
| RBI | Paul Molitor | 113 |
| BA | Paul Molitor and Chuck Knoblauch | .341 |
| Runs | Chuck Knoblauch | 140 |

### Pitching

The pitching did not match the offense. Brad Radke, Frank Rodriguez, and Rich Robertson (the three R's) all spent the whole season in the starting rotation and had losing records. The team's experiment moving Rick Aguilera from the closer's role to the starting rotation was not a successful one, as he started only 19 games. Scott Aldred also started 17 games for the team. Radke had the lowest ERA among the starters at 4.46. The rest were over five. Dave Stevens got the most saves at 11, but he was not an effective closer. Mike Trombley and Dan Naulty had effective seasons out of the bullpen, but nobody else had an ERA under five. Epitomizing the pitching woes, Mike Milchin had an ERA of 8.31 but the team still let him pitch in 26 games.
Team Leaders :
| Statistic | Player | Quantity |
| ERA | Brad Radke | 4.46 |
| Wins | Frank Rodriguez | 13 |
| Saves | Dave Stevens | 11 |
| Strikeouts | Brad Radke | 148 |

### Defense

The only truly regular starters in the field were Knoblauch at second base, Pat Meares at shortstop, and Cordova in left field. In a less-than-encouraging sign for the team's postseason prospects, Scott Stahoviak saw a majority of the time at first base. Dave Hollins played 116 games at third, with Jeff Reboulet and Todd Walker also seeing time. Greg Myers and Matt Walbeck platooned at catcher. Rich Becker had the unenviable task of replacing Puckett in center field and played 121 games there. Right field was a mish-mash, with Matt Lawton playing 60 games at the position, Roberto Kelly 54, Denny Hocking 33, and Ron Coomer 23.

### Season standings

vteAL Central :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| Cleveland Indians | 99 | 62 | .615 | — | 51‍–‍29 | 48‍–‍33 |
| Chicago White Sox | 85 | 77 | .525 | 14½ | 44‍–‍37 | 41‍–‍40 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 80 | 82 | .494 | 19½ | 38‍–‍43 | 42‍–‍39 |
| Minnesota Twins | 78 | 84 | .481 | 21½ | 39‍–‍43 | 39‍–‍41 |
| Kansas City Royals | 75 | 86 | .466 | 24 | 37‍–‍43 | 38‍–‍43 |

### Record vs. opponents

1996 American League recordvte Sources: :
| Team | BAL | BOS | CAL | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIL | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TEX | TOR |
| Baltimore | — | 7–6 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 5–7 | 11–2 | 9–3 | 9–3 | 7–5 | 3–10 | 9–4 | 7–5 | 3–10–1 | 8–5 |
| Boston | 6–7 | — | 8–4 | 6–6 | 1–11 | 12–1 | 3–9 | 7–5 | 6–6 | 7–6 | 8–5 | 7–6 | 6–6 | 8–5 |
| California | 6–6 | 4–8 | — | 6–6 | 4–9 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 7–5 | 4–8 | 7–6 | 6–7 | 5–8 | 4–9 | 7–5 |
| Chicago | 8–4 | 6–6 | 6–6 | — | 5–8 | 10–3 | 7–6 | 6–7 | 6–7 | 6–7 | 5–7 | 5–7 | 8–4 | 7–5 |
| Cleveland | 7–5 | 11–1 | 9–4 | 8–5 | — | 12–0 | 7–6 | 7–6 | 10–3 | 3–9 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 4–8 | 7–5 |
| Detroit | 2–11 | 1–12 | 6–6 | 3–10 | 0–12 | — | 6–6 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 5–8 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 4–9 | 6–7 |
| Kansas City | 3–9 | 9–3 | 8–4 | 6–7 | 6–7 | 6–6 | — | 4–9 | 6–7 | 4–8 | 5–7 | 7–5 | 6–6 | 5–8 |
| Milwaukee | 3–9 | 5–7 | 5–7 | 7–6 | 6–7 | 8–4 | 9–4 | — | 9–4 | 6–6 | 7–5 | 4–9 | 6–7 | 5–7 |
| Minnesota | 5–7 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 7–6 | 3–10 | 6–6 | 7–6 | 4–9 | — | 5–7 | 6–7 | 6–6 | 7–5 | 8–5 |
| New York | 10–3 | 6–7 | 6–7 | 7–6 | 9–3 | 8–5 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 7–5 | — | 9–3 | 3–9 | 5–7 | 8–5 |
| Oakland | 4–9 | 5–8 | 7–6 | 7–5 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 7–6 | 3–9 | — | 8–5 | 7–6 | 4–8 |
| Seattle | 5–7 | 6–7 | 8–5 | 7–5 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 9–4 | 6–6 | 9–3 | 5–8 | — | 10–3 | 5–7 |
| Texas | 10–3–1 | 6–6 | 9–4 | 4–8 | 8–4 | 9–4 | 6–6 | 7–6 | 5–7 | 7–5 | 6–7 | 3–10 | — | 10–2 |
| Toronto | 5–8 | 5–8 | 5–7 | 5–7 | 5–7 | 7–6 | 8–5 | 7–5 | 5–8 | 5–8 | 8–4 | 7–5 | 2–10 | — |

### Game log

1996 Game Log: 78–84 (Home: 39–43; Away: 39–41) :
April: 13–12 (Home: 8–7; Away: 5–5)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
1April 1Tigers8–6Radke (1–0)LiraStevens (1)30,1851–0
2April 2Tigers6–10SodowskyRobertson (0–1)—20,1641–1
3April 3Tigers16–7Mahomes (1–0)Aldred—12,2562–1
4April 5Orioles1–2MerckerGuardado (0–1)Myers22,7442–2
5April 6Orioles8–3Radke (2–0)Haynes—22,3343–2
6April 7Orioles2–4MussinaRobertson (0–2)Myers14,5803–3
7April 9@ Red Sox1–9GordonRodriguez (0–1)—30,8433–4
8April 11@ Red Sox6–5Radke (3–0)ClemensStevens (2)15,5944–4
9April 12@ Orioles2–3MussinaRobertson (0–3)—42,6024–5
10April 13@ Orioles6–7BenitezMahomes (1–1)—42,6444–6
11April 14@ Orioles4–1Rodriguez (1–1)HaynesStevens (3)42,6605–6
12April 16Indians2–7HershiserRadke (3–1)—13,1035–7
13April 17Indians9–8Hansell (1–0)ShueyStevens (4)11,2766–7
14April 19Yankees7–1Rodriguez (2–1)Gooden—20,2797–7
15April 20Yankees6–7WickmanGuardado (0–2)Wetteland24,5867–8
16April 21Yankees5–9RogersRadke (3–2)—20,1157–9
17April 22Red Sox1–4SeleRobertson (0–4)Slocumb11,3407–10
18April 23Red Sox8–6Naulty (1–0)HudsonStevens (5)11,5338–10
19April 24@ Tigers24–11Bennett (1–0)Veres—12,1899–10
20April 25@ Tigers11–1Hawkins (1–0)AldredHansell (1)11,80410–10
21April 26@ Yankees4–5RiveraRadke (3–3)Wetteland14,45010–11
22April 27@ Yankees8–6 (10)Bennett (2–0)Wickman—20,02511–11
23April 28@ Yankees3–6RiveraRodriguez (2–2)Wetteland24,79311–12
24April 29Royals11–6Hansell (2–0)ClarkBennett (1)10,23712–12
25April 30Royals16–7Naulty (2–0)Magnante—10,50313–12 :
May: 10–16 (Home: 4–6; Away: 6–10)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
26May 1Royals6–5 (10)Stevens (1–0)Montgomery—11,97514–12
27May 3@ Angels1–4FinleyRobertson (0–5)Percival24,50514–13
28May 4@ Angels2–5GrimsleyRodriguez (2–3)—29,26414–14
29May 5@ Angels1–5BoskieHawkins (1–1)—35,54114–15
30May 6@ Mariners4–5WellsRadke (3–4)Charlton32,20314–16
31May 7@ Mariners2–0Parra (1–0)WolcottStevens (6)15,62615–16
32May 8@ Mariners7–5 (10)Guardado (1–2)WellsStevens (7)22,17516–16
33May 10@ Athletics5–15WojciechowskiRodriguez (2–4)—8,27816–17
34May 11@ Athletics5–12PrietoRadke (3–5)—15,79116–18
35May 12@ Athletics3–8WengertParra (1–1)—13,43016–19
36May 14Blue Jays2–4HansonRobertson (0–6)Timlin13,48316–20
37May 15Blue Jays2–1Rodriguez (3–4)Hentgen—11,79317–20
38May 16Blue Jays4–1Radke (4–5)QuantrillStevens (8)13,53818–20
39May 17Brewers1–12KarlParra (1–2)—26,73318–21
40May 18Brewers3–7MirandaMahomes (1–2)Fetters30,59318–22
41May 19Brewers2–4SparksRobertson (0–7)Fetters24,41118–23
42May 20Brewers2–3BonesRodriguez (3–5)Fetters13,37618–24
43May 21Rangers4–3Milchin (1–0)Henneman—12,32319–24
44May 22Rangers5–6PavlikParra (1–3)Henneman17,95519–25
45May 23@ Blue Jays4–5 (10)JanzenMilchin (1–1)—31,16319–26
46May 24@ Blue Jays4–0Robertson (1–7)Hanson—33,14120–26
47May 25@ Blue Jays6–4 (10)Guardado (2–2)CastilloStevens (9)34,11821–26
48May 26@ Blue Jays9–3Naulty (3–0)Bohanon—30,17022–26
49May 28@ Brewers3–7KarlMahomes (1–3)Garcia10,11722–27
50May 29@ Brewers8–7 (12)Hansell (3–0)Lloyd—14,32423–27
51May 31@ Rangers2–7HillRodriguez (3–6)—32,86123–28 :
June: 15–13 (Home: 9–8; Away: 6–5)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
52June 1@ Rangers9–5Milchin (2–1)Henneman—43,41324–28
53June 2@ Rangers6–5Guardado (3–2)Russell—33,80925–28
54June 3Angels9–3Trombley (1–0)Finley—10,58926–28
55June 4Angels5–3Rodriguez (4–6)GrimsleyGuardado (1)10,89927–28
56June 5Angels14–3Aldred (1–0)LangstonHansell (2)10,63928–28
57June 7Athletics4–6ReyesRadke (4–6)Corsi14,99928–29
58June 8Athletics4–2Robertson (2–7)WojciechowskiGuardado (2)—29–29
59June 8Athletics7–13WasdinMahomes (1–4)—22,16429–30
60June 9Athletics5–3Rodriguez (5–6)Wengert—13,29130–30
61June 10Mariners13–6Aldred (2–0)WagnerTrombley (1)17,13431–30
62June 11Mariners8–18WellsAguilera (0–1)Hurtado14,39531–31
63June 12Mariners3–5WolcottRadke (4–7)Charlton15,83031–32
64June 14Tigers4–5GohrRobertson (2–8)Olson22,83131–33
65June 15Tigers4–6OlivaresRodriguez (5–7)Olson17,09931–34
66June 16Tigers4–1Aguilera (1–1)LiraHansell (3)20,64132–34
67June 17@ Yankees6–3Aldred (3–0)MendozaNaulty (1)16,18933–34
68June 18@ Yankees0–2RogersRadke (4–8)Wetteland17,59333–35
69June 20@ Tigers7–3Rodriguez (6–7)Olivares—8,31034–35
70June 21@ Tigers0–2LiraAguilera (1–2)—13,12734–36
71June 22@ Tigers0–6WilliamsAldred (3–1)—14,50634–37
72June 23@ Tigers8–10UrbaniRadke (4–9)—13,99434–38
73June 24Yankees3–0Robertson (3–8)Pettitte—20,48835–38
74June 25Yankees6–1Rodriguez (7–7)Boehringer——36–38
75June 25Yankees2–6MendozaSerafini (0–1)—16,64136–39
76June 26Yankees1–2PolleyGuardado (3–3)Wetteland19,11636–40
77June 28@ Royals2–6AppierRadke (4–10)—21,51536–41
78June 29@ Royals12–7Trombley (2–0)Linton—23,23237–41
79June 30@ Royals5–2Rodriguez (8–7)GubiczaStevens (10)28,24638–41 :
July: 13–14 (Home: 7–10; Away: 6–4)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
80July 1@ White Sox10–7Aguilera (2–2)Sirotka—19,21139–41
81July 2@ White Sox4–7FernandezAldred (3–2)Hernandez18,35739–42
82July 3@ White Sox6–5Radke (5–10)AndujarStevens (11)26,11340–42
83July 4Royals3–5LintonRobertson (3–9)Montgomery37,29540–43
84July 5Royals9–8Guardado (4–3)Montgomery—18,46541–43
85July 6Royals5–8HaneyAguilera (2–3)Montgomery18,69941–44
86July 7Royals2–8BelcherAldred (3–3)—14,25141–45
87July 11Indians7–11McDowellRadke (5–11)—16,43841–46
88July 12Indians5–7MesaStevens (1–1)Shuey18,24641–47
89July 13Indians11–19OgeaAguilera (2–4)—31,55241–48
90July 14Indians5–4Guardado (5–3)Plunk—25,31242–48
91July 15White Sox16–5Aldred (4–3)McCaskill—13,63643–48
92July 16White Sox2–11AlvarezRadke (5–12)—18,50243–49
93July 17White Sox4–3Trombley (3–0)Simas—20,75544–49
94July 18@ Indians4–5GravesGuardado (5–4)—40,93444–50
95July 19@ Indians3–2Rodriguez (9–7)NagyNaulty (2)42,37345–50
96July 20@ Indians5–6 (11)ShueyStevens (1–2)—43,43345–51
97July 21@ Indians5–7McDowellRadke (5–13)Shuey42,34145–52
98July 22@ Orioles9–5Robertson (4–9)HaynesTrombley (2)42,12946–52
99July 23@ Orioles3–2Aguilera (3–4)WellsNaulty (3)42,00647–52
100July 24@ Orioles11–4Rodriguez (10–7)Erickson—46,18148–52
101July 25Red Sox16–6Parra (2–3)Wakefield—13,92449–52
102July 26Red Sox5–1Radke (6–13)Clemens—17,76850–52
103July 27Red Sox5–9GordonNaulty (3–1)—22,12850–53
104July 28Red Sox9–8Aguilera (4–4)SeleNaulty (4)17,44851–53
105July 30Orioles4–16CoppingerRodriguez (10–8)—16,70851–54
106July 31Orioles3–9MussinaTrombley (3–1)—15,89751–55 :
August: 16–14 (Home: 5–6; Away: 11–8)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
107August 1Orioles2–4WellsRobertson (4–10)Myers20,37951–56
108August 2@ Red Sox10–11BrandenburgNaulty (3–2)—28,04151–57
109August 3@ Red Sox3–6SeleRodriguez (10–9)Hudson19,86051–58
110August 3@ Red Sox6–0Aldred (5–3)Suppan—29,13552–58
111August 4@ Red Sox6–13EshelmanKlingenbeck (0–1)—29,93952–59
112August 6@ Angels4–1Radke (7–13)SpringerGuardado (3)20,05853–59
113August 7@ Angels4–0Robertson (5–10)Finley—18,61154–59
114August 8@ Angels13–5Aguilera (5–4)Boskie—21,28355–59
115August 9@ Mariners6–5Parra (3–3)WolcottRodriguez (1)25,13056–59
116August 10@ Mariners10–4Klingenbeck (1–1)Hitchcock—34,38157–59
117August 11@ Mariners6–3Radke (8–13)WellsRodriguez (2)36,11458–59
118August 12@ Athletics1–11PrietoRobertson (5–11)—10,07158–60
119August 13@ Athletics6–2Aguilera (6–4)Wengert—11,15659–60
120August 14@ Athletics13–7Rodriguez (11–9)Telgheder—12,72960–60
121August 16Blue Jays5–4 (10)Parra (4–3)Quantrill—19,83861–60
122August 17Blue Jays11–1Robertson (6–11)Hanson—20,35462–60
123August 18Blue Jays2–6HentgenAguilera (6–5)—18,01062–61
124August 19Brewers1–6D'AmicoRodriguez (11–10)—21,87962–62
125August 20Brewers12–7Parra (5–3)Bones—14,63063–62
126August 21Brewers7–10JonesStevens (1–3)Fetters15,88563–63
127August 22Rangers2–11HillRobertson (6–12)—17,34263–64
128August 23Rangers9–2Aguilera (7–5)Oliver—16,16664–64
129August 24Rangers6–5Rodriguez (12–10)PavlikTrombley (3)16,64865–64
130August 25Rangers2–13WittMiller (0–1)—14,81865–65
131August 26@ Blue Jays3–5GuzmanRadke (8–14)Timlin31,13465–66
132August 27@ Blue Jays6–4 (11)Trombley (4–1)Quantrill—30,03366–66
133August 28@ Blue Jays1–6HentgenAguilera (7–6)—30,10666–67
134August 29@ Brewers6–1Rodriguez (13–10)Karl—14,92267–67
135August 30@ Brewers4–5 (12)WickmanParra (5–4)—17,44467–68
136August 31@ Brewers2–3JonesRobertson (6–13)Fetters20,18767–69 :
September: 11–15 (Home: 6–6; Away: 5–9)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
137September 1@ Brewers6–2Aldred (6–3)Van Egmond—17,07468–69
138September 2@ Rangers6–4Aguilera (8–6)HillGuardado (4)24,78669–69
139September 3@ Rangers7–9WittRodriguez (13–11)Henneman28,40169–70
140September 4@ Rangers7–6Robertson (7–13)HerediaTrombley (4)29,74470–70
141September 6Angels6–2Radke (9–14)Finley—13,00671–70
142September 7Angels6–3Stevens (2–3)BoskieTrombley (5)51,01172–70
143September 8Angels2–4AbbottRodriguez (13–12)Percival14,37872–71
144September 10Athletics0–7TelghederRobertson (7–14)—9,67672–72
145September 11Athletics7–2Radke (10–14)Adams—9,49373–72
146September 12Athletics4–3 (12)Stevens (3–3)Mohler—9,71274–72
147September 13Mariners7–13WellsMiller (0–2)—15,51074–73
148September 14Mariners3–5 (10)AyalaGuardado (5–5)Charlton18,00274–74
149September 15Mariners0–7TorresRobertson (7–15)—25,14274–75
150September 16@ Royals5–6RosadoRadke (10–15)Bluma16,84374–76
151September 17@ Royals2–4HaneyAldred (6–4)Bluma11,80974–77
152September 18@ Royals7–4Miller (1–2)Belcher—11,58875–77
153September 19@ White Sox3–8SirotkaRodriguez (13–13)Castillo14,25375–78
154September 20@ White Sox3–7TapaniRobertson (7–16)—15,67375–79
155September 21@ White Sox4–3Radke (11–15)AlvarezTrombley (6)18,86676–79
156September 22@ White Sox1–5FernandezAldred (6–5)—20,11176–80
157September 23@ Indians6–7GravesParra (5–5)Mesa42,29976–81
158September 24@ Indians5–7OgeaRodriguez (13–14)Mesa42,27276–82
159September 25@ Indians3–6NagyRobertson (7–17)—42,46976–83
160September 27White Sox2–4FernandezRadke (11–16)Hernandez13,05876–84
161September 28White Sox7–6Trombley (5–1)Castillo—34,00877–84
162September 29White Sox5–4 (10)Guardado (6–5)Hernandez—13,30678–84 :
Legend:        = Win        = Loss Bold = Twins team member :

### Detailed records

American League :
| Opponent | W | L | WP | RS | RA |
| AL East |||||||
| Baltimore Orioles | 5 | 7 | 0.417 | 55 | 60 |
| Boston Red Sox | 6 | 6 | 0.500 | 76 | 78 |
| Detroit Tigers | 6 | 6 | 0.500 | 92 | 68 |
| New York Yankees | 5 | 7 | 0.417 | 51 | 48 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 8 | 5 | 0.615 | 59 | 44 |
| Total | 30 | 31 | 0.492 | 333 | 298 |
| AL Central |||||||
| Chicago White Sox | 7 | 6 | 0.538 | 67 | 75 |
| Cleveland Indians | 3 | 10 | 0.231 | 70 | 96 |
| Kansas City Royals | 7 | 6 | 0.538 | 85 | 76 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 4 | 9 | 0.308 | 57 | 74 |
| Minnesota Twins | | | | | |
| Total | 21 | 31 | 0.404 | 279 | 321 |
| AL West |||||||
| California Angels | 8 | 4 | 0.667 | 67 | 38 |
| Oakland Athletics | 6 | 7 | 0.462 | 64 | 91 |
| Seattle Mariners | 6 | 6 | 0.500 | 69 | 76 |
| Texas Rangers | 7 | 5 | 0.583 | 65 | 76 |
| Total | 27 | 22 | 0.551 | 265 | 281 |
| Season Total | 78 | 84 | 0.481 | 877 | 900 |
| Month | Games | Won | Lost | Win % | RS | RA |
| April | 25 | 13 | 12 | 0.520 | 175 | 141 |
| May | 26 | 10 | 16 | 0.385 | 97 | 138 |
| June | 28 | 15 | 13 | 0.536 | 151 | 134 |
| July | 27 | 13 | 14 | 0.481 | 171 | 188 |
| August | 30 | 16 | 14 | 0.533 | 169 | 161 |
| September | 26 | 11 | 15 | 0.423 | 114 | 138 |
| Total | 162 | 78 | 84 | 0.481 | 877 | 900 |
| | Games | Won | Lost | Win % | RS | RA |
| Home | 82 | 39 | 43 | 0.476 | 452 | 483 |
| Away | 80 | 39 | 41 | 0.488 | 425 | 417 |
| Total | 162 | 78 | 84 | 0.481 | 877 | 900 |

### Notable Transactions

* May 28: Selected Scott Aldred off waivers from the Detroit Tigers.
* June 4: In the 1996 amateur draft, the Twins drafted future major leaguers such as Jacque Jones (2nd round), Chad Allen (4th round), and Chad Moeller (7th round). The Twins botched the signing of first baseman Travis Lee, whom they signed in the first round with the second overall pick. Lee exploited a never-before used clause that allows a draft pick to become a free agent if a team doesn't make an offer within 15 days of the draft. After the Twins failed to do this, Lee left for the Arizona Diamondbacks, who gave him a $10 million signing bonus. The Twins had the last laugh, however, as Lee has proven to be a below-average hitter who has bounced from team to team.
* August 29: Traded Dave Hollins to the Seattle Mariners for a player to be named later. On September 30, the Mariners sent David Ortiz to the Twins to complete the trade.
* September 13, 1996: David Ortiz was sent by the Seattle Mariners to the Minnesota Twins to complete an earlier deal made on August 29, 1996. The Seattle Mariners sent a player to be named later to the Minnesota Twins for Dave Hollins.

## Player stats
### Batting
#### Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| C | Greg Myers | 97 | 329 | 94 | .286 | 6 | 47 |
| 1B | Scott Stahoviak | 130 | 405 | 115 | .284 | 13 | 61 |
| 2B | Chuck Knoblauch | 153 | 578 | 197 | .341 | 13 | 72 |
| SS | Pat Meares | 152 | 517 | 138 | .267 | 8 | 67 |
| 3B | Dave Hollins | 121 | 422 | 102 | .242 | 13 | 53 |
| LF | Marty Cordova | 145 | 569 | 176 | .309 | 16 | 111 |
| CF | Rich Becker | 148 | 525 | 153 | .291 | 12 | 71 |
| RF | Matt Lawton | 79 | 252 | 65 | .258 | 6 | 42 |
| DH | Paul Molitor | 161 | 660 | 225 | .341 | 9 | 113 |

#### Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| Roberto Kelly | 98 | 322 | 104 | .323 | 6 | 47 |
| Jeff Reboulet | 107 | 234 | 52 | .222 | 0 | 23 |
| Ron Coomer | 95 | 233 | 69 | .296 | 12 | 41 |
| Matt Walbeck | 63 | 215 | 48 | .223 | 2 | 24 |
| Denny Hocking | 49 | 127 | 25 | .197 | 1 | 10 |
| Chip Hale | 85 | 87 | 24 | .276 | 1 | 16 |
| Todd Walker | 25 | 82 | 21 | .256 | 0 | 6 |
| Mike Durant | 40 | 81 | 17 | .210 | 0 | 5 |
| Brent Brede | 10 | 20 | 6 | .300 | 0 | 2 |
| Brian Raabe | 7 | 9 | 2 | .222 | 0 | 1 |
| Tom Quinlan | 4 | 6 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |

### Pitching
#### Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| Brad Radke | 35 | 232.0 | 11 | 16 | 4.46 | 148 |
| Frank Rodriguez | 38 | 206.2 | 13 | 14 | 5.05 | 110 |
| Rich Robertson | 36 | 186.1 | 7 | 17 | 5.12 | 114 |
| Scott Aldred | 25 | 122.0 | 6 | 5 | 5.09 | 75 |
| Rick Aguilera | 19 | 111.1 | 8 | 6 | 5.42 | 83 |
| Travis Miller | 7 | 26.1 | 1 | 2 | 9.23 | 15 |
| LaTroy Hawkins | 7 | 26.1 | 1 | 1 | 8.20 | 24 |
| Dan Serafini | 1 | 4.1 | 0 | 1 | 10.38 | 1 |

#### Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| José Parra | 27 | 70.0 | 5 | 5 | 6.04 | 50 |
| Pat Mahomes | 20 | 45.0 | 1 | 4 | 7.20 | 30 |
| Scott Klingenbeck | 10 | 28.2 | 1 | 1 | 7.85 | 15 |

#### Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
| Dave Stevens | 49 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 4.66 | 29 |
| Eddie Guardado | 83 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 5.25 | 74 |
| Greg Hansell | 50 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 5.69 | 46 |
| Dan Naulty | 49 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3.79 | 56 |
| Mike Trombley | 43 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 3.01 | 57 |
| Mike Milchin | 26 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8.31 | 19 |
| Erik Bennett | 24 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7.90 | 13 |

## Miscellaneous

* The lone representative of the Twins in the All-Star Game was second baseman Chuck Knoblauch.
* The highest paid Twin in 1996 was Chuck Knoblauch at $4,670,000; followed by Rick Aguilera at $3,500,000.

## Other post-season awards

* Calvin R. Griffith Award (Most Valuable Twin) – Chuck Knoblauch
* Joseph W. Haynes Award (Twins Pitcher of the Year) – Frank Rodriguez
* Bill Boni Award (Twins Outstanding Rookie) – Ron Coomer
* Charles O. Johnson Award (Most Improved Twin) – Rich Becker
* Dick Siebert Award (Upper Midwest Player of the Year) – Paul Molitor
** The above awards are voted on by the Twin Cities chapter of the BBWAA
* Carl R. Pohlad Award (Outstanding Community Service) – Paul Molitor
* Sherry Robertson Award (Twins Outstanding Farm System Player) – Todd Walker
Outfielder Kirby Puckett won the Roberto Clemente Award, given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and the individual's contribution to his team", as voted on by baseball fans and members of the media.

## Farm system

| Level | Team | League | Manager |
| AAA | Salt Lake Buzz | Pacific Coast League | Phil Roof |
| AA | Hardware City Rock Cats | Eastern League | Al Newman |
| A | Fort Myers Miracle | Florida State League | John Russell |
| A | Fort Wayne Wizards | Midwest League | Dan Rohn |
| Rookie | Elizabethton Twins | Appalachian League | Jose Marzan |
| Rookie | GCL Twins | Gulf Coast League | Mike Boulanger |