Baseball lovers say any time you go to a ballpark you may see something unique.
You also might wind up with your first cases of ballpark-induced saddle sores, dehydration, cased-meat addiction, sunburn and night sweats all in one game, while watching Joe Mauer do something he had never done in his 14 big-league seasons.
Try this sentence on for size: Joe Mauer made his first out of the game in the bottom of the 15th inning, 6 hours, 23 minutes after the first pitch.
The Twins lost 8-6 in 15 innings to Tampa Bay on Sunday, in the second-longest game in team history, even as Mauer produced the most statistically efficient game of a career that once had him headed for the Hall of Fame.
Mauer had never done this before. Not when he roomed with Justin Morneau. Not when he was winning three batting titles or an MVP award, or battling alleged bilateral leg weakness, or turning into one of baseball's most overpaid players.
Sunday, Mauer reached base in his first seven plate appearances. He would strike out in the 15th inning to ruin the hitters' version of a perfect game.
He finished 4-for-5 with three walks. With Miguel Sano again out of the lineup, Mauer batted in his old No. 3 spot and hit a tying home run in the seventh. He hit two singles and a double and drew three walks, one of which was intentional.
Mauer and Rod Carew are the only Twins ever to reach base seven times in one game. "I felt good today," Mauer said. "I wish the outcome would have been a little different. I had some good at-bats."