Twins can't help but feel nostalgia for Dome

Jeff Wheeler, Star Tribune

Justin Morneau scooped up a baggie full of dirt from first base long after the Metrodome emptied out after the Twins final game of their season Sunday night.

Sure the place was not the best, but a lot of good baseball was played there.

By LA VELLE E. NEAL III, Star Tribune

Last update: October 12, 2009 - 10:14 PM

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First baseman Justin Morneau sat on a table in the middle of the Twins clubhouse after the season ended Sunday and looked around.

"I thought I wasn't going to miss this place," he said. "But this was home. My first game in the majors. My first hit."

Many Twins players said goodbye to the Metrodome on Sunday night and Monday morning as they prepared for the offseason and next season's move to Target Field. Several scooped up handfuls of dirt after Sunday's loss to the Yankees. Matt Tolbert even had his bag of dirt from third base authenticated.

Twins catcher Joe Mauer was driving home from Sunday's game, still disappointed by the loss, when Morneau called him from the field and asked if he wanted dirt from home plate.

"I wasn't really planning on that," Mauer said.

Twins players have long marveled at how loud the Dome got when full but disliked a lot of things behind the scenes. "I'm not going to miss this clubhouse," Michael Cuddyer said.

"I'm not going to miss those 44 steps," Rick Stelmaszek, the bullpen coach for all 28 of the Twins' seasons at the Dome, said of the trek from the field to the clubhouse level.

The Twins couldn't resist one last romp on the field Monday. A touch football game broke out in left field that included Nick Punto, Jason Kubel, Matt Guerrier and some clubhouse attendants. Mauer played quarterback for both teams and, while barely moving on his sore right hip, slung spirals all over the outfield.

Message from the top

The clubhouse was closed longer than the maximum 10 minutes following Sunday's game. But no one was going to tell owner Jim Pohlad he was on the clock.

Pohlad addressed the team in the moments following the loss to the Yankees, thanking the players for their efforts.

"He was extremely proud," Cuddyer said. "The fans, the city, the state. He said he knows it's disappointing and it's hard right now. He just wanted to relay the fact that he was extremely proud of this team."

Crede visits

Third baseman Joe Crede made a surprise return to the Metrodome on Sunday and was included in pregame introductions. He said his back, which was operated on last month, is doing much better.

"I can stretch out my hamstring now," he said. "I couldn't do that before."

Crede, 31, batted .225 with 15 homers and 48 RBI in 90 games before his back wouldn't allow him to play any more. He made around $4 million after earning some appearance-based incentives on top of his $2.5 million base salary.

Crede is interested in returning. He's one of five Twins eligible for free agency, along with Mike Redmond and midseason acquisitions Orlando Cabrera, Carl Pavano and Ron Mahay.

Etc.

• The Dome was a construction zone Monday, as workers filled in the cut-outs around first, second and third base at the request of the Vikings, who want to get rid of the seams. Dirt will remain around home plate and the pitchers mound so the Gophers can play baseball there next year.

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