FORT MYERS, FLA. – Glen Perkins was recruited by the Gophers to make a celebrity appearance in the Citrus Bowl parade in Orlando. On game day, Perkins found himself in a parking lot behind the stadium and next to the still-standing grandstand of Tinker Field.
"That place must have been a dump,'' Perkins said during a conversation last week.
My first visit to Tinker Field for Twins spring training was in 1974 as a beat writer in St. Paul. Tinker was a subpar facility by the standard of that time and, by 1990, it was a bona fide dump.
The Twins departed for Fort Myers after that season, making this the 25th year of spending spring training in southwest Florida. By coincidence, the Twins will mark this silver anniversary by unveiling the final results of a $48.5 million upgrade of the facility — complete with a corporate sponsor in CenturyLink.
The main ballpark, Hammond Stadium, now has a spacious entrance behind home plate, and a wide passageway for ticket-holders to move behind the grandstand. There are more restrooms and concession areas and a large team merchandise area. Throw in the boardwalk that debuted last spring and circles the stadium, and it's no longer a facility with crowds of 8,000 trying to fit into an infrastructure built for 2,000.
Across the way, there's now a first-class dormitory to house a good share of the minor leaguers. There's an upgrade in the minor league workout areas and clubhouse, and another "back field'' — the fifth full field — for players at all levels of the organization.
In retrospect, training a big-league club at Tinker Field stands as preposterous. There was the main field, and there was a small field behind the right field line called "Iwo,'' in honor of the rocks that U.S. heroes had to climb over to take Iwo Jima during World War II.
Minor leaguers were housed three hours away in Melbourne. There was no subtlety in this nickname: It was called "The Rock,'' in honor of the field conditions.
Fort Myers was a remote location for playing an exhibition schedule — only the Texas Rangers were nearby in 1991 — but now more than ever, it was a fantastic move for the Twins.
Plus Three from Patrick
Great moments at Tinker Field:
• Manager Billy Gardner making a Baron-style claw gesture to the press box every time spring phenom Tom Klawitter got an out.
• Russ the Ornery Cook cursing loudly at players convinced by Bert Blyleven to ask for a piece of Russ' "famous'' pie.
• Ray Corbin giving up a home run to Mike Schmidt that landed on a distant road and bounced into a lake 600 feet away, causing Muscovy ducks to scurry.
