Twins World Series Champions Tom Kelly, Bert Blyleven to manage SiriusXM All-Star Futures teams
Former Minnesota Twins manager Tom Kelly, who guided the Club to its two World Series Championships in 1987 and 1991, will return to the dugout to manage the U.S. Team against the World Team, led by Hall of Famer and former Twins pitcher Bert Blyleven, in the 2014 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game on Sunday, July 13th at Target Field in Minnesota.
The SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game, which is now in its 16th year, features the top Minor League prospects competing in a nine-inning contest as part of Taco Bell All-Star Sunday. The U.S. Team leads the all-time series, 9-6. The game will begin at 4:00 p.m. (CT) / 5:00 p.m. (ET) and can be viewed live on MLB Network for the first time in addition to MLB.com.
SiriusXM, the Official Satellite Radio Partner of Major League Baseball, will provide live play-by-play coverage of the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game on MLB Network Radio (XM channel 89; Sirius channel 209) in addition to SiriusXM's other comprehensive live coverage from Minnesota. The game will also be available to SiriusXM subscribers on the SiriusXM Internet Radio App for smart phones and mobile devices and online at SiriusXM.com. Taco Bell All-Star Sunday is the first of three days of All-Star events at Target Field, culminating with the 85th All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 15th.
Tickets are available for purchase for the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game and Taco Bell All-Star Legends and Celebrity Softball Game by visiting www.allstargame.com, calling 1-888-326-3378 or visiting the Twins box office at Target Field.
Kelly, who led Minnesota from 1986-2001, ranks first in Club history with 1,140 victories and 2,384 games managed. In his first full season as manager in 1987, he piloted the Twins to their first World Series Championship, marking the first time in Major League history that a team went from last place in one season to World Champions the next. Kelly, who was named 1991 A.L. Manager of the Year after steering Minnesota to a second World Championship, was selected as the manager on the Twins 40th Season Anniversary All-Time Team in 2000. In addition to being the longest-tenured manager in Twins history, Kelly was the longest-tenured manager or coach among the four major North American sports at the time of his retirement after the 2001 season. In 2010, Tom was named one of the "50 Greatest Twins," and on September 8, 2012, the Twins formally retired his number 10, making Kelly the first Twins manager to have his number honored among the team's greats.
Blyleven, who was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2011, pitched 22 seasons in the Majors for the Twins (1970-76; 1985-88), Texas Rangers (1976-77), Pittsburgh Pirates (1978-80), Cleveland Indians (1981-85) and California Angels (1989-90; 1992). In 11 seasons with Minnesota, the 1970 A.L. Rookie of the Year went 149-138 with a 3.28 ERA and was a key part of the 1987 World Championship squad. His 2,035 strikeouts with the Twins are the most in Club history and his 149 wins rank second. The two-time All-Star (1973, 1985), who finished among the top five in Cy Young Award voting on three occasions, also helped the Pirates win a World Championship in 1979. Overall, Blyleven went 287-250 over 692 games during his career with a 3.31 ERA and 3,701 strikeouts, which rank fifth all-time in MLB history. The Netherlands native, who has been a television broadcaster for the Twins since 1996, had his number 28 retired in 2011, becoming the first pitcher in Twins history to achieve the feat. In addition, Bert was selected to the Twins 40th Anniversary All-Time Team in 2000, inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame in 2002, chosen to the All-Metrodome Team in 2009 and named one of the "50 Greatest Twins" in 2010.
The remainder of the coaching staffs, as well as rosters and umpires for the 2014 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game will be announced early in the summer.
The 2014 All-Star Game will be played at Target Field on Tuesday, July 15th. The 85th All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports; in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and RDS; and worldwide by partners in more than 200 countries via MLB International's independent world feed. ESPN Radio and ESPN Radio Deportes will provide exclusive national radio coverage of the All-Star Game. MLB Network, MLB.com and SiriusXM also will provide comprehensive All-Star Week coverage. For more information, please visit allstargame.com.