
Twins debut new foods, self-checkout stands for 2025
Pickle pizza and pork butt platters are among the new concessions debuting at Target Field for Thursday's Twins home opener.
The big picture: The Twins rolled out about 21 new food and drink options at a media preview on Tuesday.
Kyle's thought bubble: My favorite was the Truly On Deck restaurant's grilled Spam sandwich with bacon and onions.
The Minnesota-native meat could prove divisive with fans. Try it once!
Plus: The new Kramarczuk's sausage — a "Cherry Bomb," with dried fruit and a nice kick — also ranked high for me.
They're selling it on an epic six-sausage sampler flight.
The intrigue: Fans will be able to ring up their own food orders at new self-checkout kiosks in sections 105 and 109 — historically one of the ballpark's busiest concession areas, the team said.
Stunning stat: The new kiosks could speed up checkout for ballpark essentials — brats, fries, cheese curds and drinks — by as much as 40%, Delaware North manager Pete Spike told Axios.
The stands expand on a concept previously only used at Target Field for beverage sales.
Here are some of the other new food options debuting at Target Field this year:
🐷 Vinai's fried pork: Chef Yia Vang 's crispy pork butt tossed in sweet and sour sauce with cabbage slaw, cucumbers and pickled carrots. Section 223
🧇 Chicken & waffles: Official Fried Chicken is adding a platter with mini waffles and tenders smothered in hot honey. It also unveiled a new fried chicken-bacon-ranch sandwich. Section 134
🗡️ A "Steak Machete": An 18-inch-long steak quesadilla at the Taco Libre stand, which also sells steak bowls. Section 103
🍗 Toki Doki: The Eat Street burger joint is serving wings with both a dry rub and a homemade, gluten-free gochujang sauce. Hrbek's Bar
🧋 Boba tea: Niko Niko 's signature milk tea, a Hawaiian fruit tea and a strawberry lemon spritz. Section 107
🥒 Pickle pizza: A Pizza Lucé concept with mozzarella, sliced pickles and a dill garnish. Section 223
🌮 Walleye tacos: Branded by Lord Fletcher's and tossed in tequila lime slaw. Gate 34
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New York Times
43 minutes ago
- New York Times
Twins mailbag: Royce Lewis options, All-Star cases and the Jorge Alcala dilemma
My last mailbag column was written two days before the Minnesota Twins started a 13-game winning streak, so the vibes have shifted considerably. At the time, the Twins were playing a nightmarish series in Cleveland, with a 13-17 record that soon became 13-20. Since then, the Twins have an MLB-best 21-8 record, turning their season around so much, so quickly that they would be hosting a first-round series if the playoffs started now. Advertisement Of course, the playoffs don't start now. There are still 100 games to play and nothing figures to come easy for the Twins, who are expected to be without No. 1 starter Pablo López for eight to 12 weeks because of a shoulder injury. It's a big blow to a starting rotation that has been the team's biggest strength. Let's open the mailbag and see what's on your minds about a second-place team that currently holds the American League's top wild-card spot. Note: Submitted questions have been edited for clarity and length. Will the Twins consider sending Royce Lewis down to the minors? Is that something they could even do? — Jack K. To answer your second question first: Lewis has two minor-league options remaining and has accrued less than five years of MLB service time, so the Twins could send him down if they choose. As for whether they'd actually take that drastic route? Maybe. I wrote a lengthy story Friday detailing Lewis' prolonged struggles, so I won't rehash all of it. But for most 26-year-olds, batting .174 over 65 games spanning two seasons leads to a Triple-A demotion. The Twins have already moved Lewis to the bottom of the lineup and pinch hit for him. What else is left? There's perhaps an argument to be made that Lewis isn't a typical 26-year-old, but the Twins have sent down other prominent players in recent years, including Miguel Sanó, Alex Kirilloff, Trevor Larnach, Edouard Julien and Jose Miranda. Heck, last year they demoted Matt Wallner after 25 at-bats. It's a last resort, certainly, and one Lewis and the Twins would like to avoid if at all possible. But he needs to improve soon because the current situation is hurting the Twins' inconsistent lineup, and it's getting harder and harder to see how it's doing Lewis any favors. Another factor is Triple-A St. Paul's lack of appealing call-up choices. Luke Keaschall, Emmanuel Rodriguez and Austin Martin are hurt. Miranda and Julien have struggled since their April demotions. And the Saints' highest OPS marks belong to Carson McCusker and Mickey Gasper. But big picture, identifying the correct path for getting Lewis back on track is a lot more important than who would replace him on the roster. For now, at least, it looks like the Twins will let him try to hit his way out of it. When Royce smiles, we smile! — Minnesota Twins (@Twins) June 4, 2025 Assuming no more injuries, where does Keaschall fit when he comes off the injured list at the end of the month? — Kent M. 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Crawford just took a piece out of the scoreboard with this go-ahead home run 🤯 — MLB (@MLB) June 1, 2025 What is the long-term plan for the Twins at first base? — Will H. Lots of MLB teams, including the Twins, often lack a long-term plan at first base for the same reason there typically aren't many top-100 first base prospects: Good hitters wind up at first base after moving there from other positions that proved too challenging defensively. There are plenty of exceptions, of course, but first base is more commonly a destination than a starting point. In fact, the most-used Twins first basemen of the past 20 years — Justin Morneau, Joe Mauer, Sanó, Michael Cuddyer and Carlos Santana — all moved there from other positions. 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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Twins begin 3-game series at home against the Blue Jays
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Associated Press
4 hours ago
- Associated Press
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