The Bomba Squad name came from inside the clubhouse as the Minnesota Twins continued to send balls over outfield walls all over the country in 2019. Eddie Rosario coined the term, and it caught the attention of the higher-ups. Team president Dave St. Peter, communications director Dustin Morse, and Joe Pohlad, the executive vice president of brand strategy and growth, used the name to capitalize on the new audience at the ballpark.
“You’ve got to be flexible,” Pohlad said. “You’ve got to be nimble. And it’s a little bit of leading and reacting. The Bomba Squad was perfect. It came from the clubhouse, and then we just feed it here and there and find those key places. We try to react.”
It was a perfect name for the team that rejuvenated a fanbase dragged down by years of losing. Unfortunately, it became the moniker for the two teams that followed the 2019 group. The Bomba Squad was fun, and who didn’t want the offensive explosion to continue? Home runs are exciting, and the Twins needed to build off of the first true playoff team since Target Field opened in 2010.
In the pandemic season, the Twins went 36-24, but the Houston Astros swept them out of the playoffs. Rosario left in arbitration in 2021, and Rocco Baldelli suffered his first losing season as a manager. As a result, Minnesota revamped its roster in the offseason. They signed Carlos Correa, traded Taylor Rogers, and overhauled their rotation.
Derek Falvey and Thad Levine have oriented the team around Byron Buxton, Correa, and their first wave of prospects. There are still members of that 2019 team who make up the core – Jorge Polanco, Max Kepler, and Tyler Duffey – but these Twins are no longer the Bombas. They’re finally Falvey and Levine’s team. A winning group with its own identity.
“We’ve won games in different ways,” said Baldelli. “We went through a little streak where we were hitting balls out of the ballpark. We’ve had to play – call it whatever you want – but some smaller baseball. We’ve just found ways to win games.”
The Twins started the year 4-8. But they are winning at a .733 clip since then, tied with the New York Yankees for the highest win percentage after the first 12 games. The pitching picked up the hitters when they slumped in the colder weather. Then the lineup hit home runs for a while, but they’ve also won playing small ball. They’re bunting and hitting bombs. Shoving and raking. Ultimately, they’re finding ways to win where last year’s team found ways to lose.
“We have a very solid, confident resting place in our clubhouse,” said Baldelli.
“I really haven’t seen much different when we were playing in the first week of the season and struggling to win some games at that point, to what we’ve been doing now. Yeah, it’s more enjoyable to win, but the way we’ve been operating hasn’t changed one bit, and I think we have a group that can carry that on for the season.”
Torii Hunter introduced dance parties to the 83-win team in 2015, Minnesota’s first winning season since 2010. In 2019, the Twins had bombas, sirens, and Let’s Go Crazy. This year’s group has a gong, a goat, and wagers on pop flies.
“I think the creativity level is high,” says Baldelli. “I hope it continues to be forever because I think that’s one thing that makes baseball special. It’s the close-knit part of what we do and how we operate.”
They’re a team that Falvey and Levine threw together, and now they’re vibing. The Twins have a combination of the core guys from 2019, the first wave of this regime’s prospects, and veterans from outside the organization. The mix has worked. They’re on a 100-win pace and are taking early command of the AL Central.
“It’s bringing in different perspectives, but all here for the same reasons,” says Baldelli.
“When you start acquiring guys, and your phone starts blowing up, and you can’t even get back to everyone because they’re telling you that’s the right guy, that’s the guy you want on your team.”
I don’t know what to call this team. But once they establish a moniker, it will be something that comes from the clubhouse. One that had hurried introductions but seems to be establishing meaningful relationships and a winning culture.
