Turn Back the Clock to 1951

Last Saturday, Target Field was brought back in time to the year 1951 as part of a celebration of the local American Association’s professional baseball team, the Minneapolis Millers. The Millers played baseball in Minneapolis from 1884 to 1960 and saw many famous players put on a Miller uniform during that time including Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, and Willie Mays. This Turn Back the Clock game was a really fun way to celebrate some of the baseball heritage that exists in Minneapolis and I have to say the uniforms also looked fantastic.

When it comes to the look of baseball uniforms I really enjoy some of the older styles: the striping around the collar line down the front of the jersey, the high socks, and the slightly baggy pants that were common during the so-called “golden age of baseball” during the 1940’s, 50’s, and 60’s. The Miller uniforms worn by the Twins really looked great I thought and the team really went all out to accommodate the look. The Twins even had new batting helmets using the Miller logo to complete the uniform. Even more surprising was seeing Joe Mauer wear the high, striped socks. When I played baseball when I was younger I always wore knee-high socks, so it was fun seeing Joe do it too even if it was just one game.

What also helped make the game more fun was a 6:10pm game time start, which means a nice evening light that covered a good portion of the infield for the first few innings. There is about an hour long time frame where the light filters through the canopy of Target Field over the infield, but during the summer it usually happens between 5:30 and 7PM. Since most games start at 7PM it means this light is already into the outfield by the time the game starts. Since Saturday’s game started at 6PM it meant there were some nice light and shadows to work with, which is rare for Twins games.

The Kansas City Royals also donned uniforms from the 1951 American Association Kansas City Blues team. Since the Royals were on the road it meant their Blues uniforms were a little more drab and less flattering compared to the Twins off-white Miller uniforms.

I had a lot of fun shooting the Twins and Royals playing in these unique uniforms during the nice evening light. These unique games and opportunities really make photographing baseball a lot of fun. I had been looking forward to this game since before the season started and it didn’t disappoint. I hope the Twins do more games like this in the future and hopefully I can get the chance to photograph them as well.