Rawlings Target Field Inaugural Baseball Released
Last year saw the Minnesota Twins final season at the HHH Metrodome, a great season for the club in which it captured the 2009 American League Central Division pennant. The construction of a new baseball field for the Twins meant two things for official game ball collectors, the potential for a Twins final season and inaugural season commemorative ball.
Rawlings Target Field Inaugural Season Baseballs
Some collectors knew these balls would be produced several years ago, most likely when Minnesota public officials and the Twins organization announced plans for a new stadium. The final season of Major League Baseball at the dome was commemorated at every game with the HHH Metrodome Final Season commemorative baseball.
As anticipated, the follow-up ball had to be made for the new field: Introducing the Rawlings Target Field Inaugural Season game ball.
The Twins organization confirmed in late 2009 that a game ball with a logo to commemorate the Twins new home would in fact be used. We didn’t know for sure what it would look like. But that also was revealed, whether intentionally or not, when the Twins organization released artwork for the Target Field Inaugural Season commemorative logo and patch, which will be worn on primary home uniforms throughout the season.
Just like with the Yankees and eventually the Mets 2009 new stadium inaugural season balls, the artwork used to create the sleeve patches would be the inspiration, if not the mirror image of the commemorative mark for the baseballs.
What’s interesting here is that the Twins had an opportunity to take another approach. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the Minnesota Twins arrival to the big leagues, or, if you prefer, it’s the team’s 50th season in Major League Baseball. That would allow the Twins to commemorate both significant events with one design.
Target Field Inaugural Season Logo
If we had it our way at Big League Baseballs, we’d say why not make two commemorative baseballs, recognizing each milestone? In fact, knowing the obsessed memorabilia collectors in us all, we’d produce a Target Field inaugural game ball, plus the inaugural season and 50th anniversary ball.
But as we’ve learned, producing a commemorative game ball is very costly to Major League Baseball, and the number of baseballs that need to be made, used and sold to make this cost-effective is apparently too overwhelming. So we’re happy to see all the new special event balls coming out season after season, and we’re excited about this new release, the first regular season special event ball for 2010.
And how about the design itself? The HHH Metrodome ball featured a very prominent dome image paying homage to the old stadium. This new mark is also a great design that highlights the city’s skyline in the background and a prominent piece of the Target Field’s architecture in the foreground. Note the difference between the ball’s commemorative logo and the general logo used on the uniform’s sleeve patch. Official Baseball’s cannot use any corporate trademarks or names, resulting in the absence of Target’s “Bullseye” symbol and name on the ball.
These baseballs should be available for retail by mid-March. BigLeagueBaseballs.com will continue to update collectors about additional releases for the 2010 season, but at this point nothing else is guaranteed beyond the annual All-Star event baseballs, and possibly the MLB 2010 Opening Day ball.
From Major League Baseball’s website (November 16, 2009) – Plans for the new uniforms and logos include:
- Inaugural Season Logo – Will be featured on the official commemorative baseballs and bases to be used during all Twins home games as well as on the team’s home uniforms and caps throughout the 2010 season.
- Primary Logo – The team will have a new logo incorporating the new “Twins” script and the words “Minnesota Twins Baseball Club”.
- 50th Season Logo – Will be displayed on 2010 road jerseys and on the home throwback jersey.
- Primary Home Uniform – The “Twins” script has been slightly altered and updated for 2010 and beyond.
- Secondary Throwback Uniform – Twins players will wear a circa 1961 throwback uniform on Opening Day as well as every home Saturday during the 2010 season. The uniforms are modeled after the wool version worn during the team’s first season in Minnesota.
- Primary Road Uniform – Twins players will wear new solid gray road uniforms (no pinstripes) in 2010 featuring a “Minnesota” script inspired by the team’s original “Minnesota” script found on the players jackets from 1961-1986.
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[...] Minnesota Twins are already getting commemorative game balls to use for the entire 2010 season, the Target Field Inaugural Season Game Balls. But this season is also the team’s 50th Anniversary in Minnesota (it relocated from [...]