Morneau honored to enter Twins Hall of Fame

A hockey player at heart in his teenage years, it’s fitting that Justin Morneau made his mark in Major League Baseball in the state of hockey.

"I came (to Minnesota) for a hockey tournament when I was 14 or 15 years old," Morneau said on Friday at Target Field, "We went and watched the game from left field in the dome. At that time, I thought I was still going to be a hockey player."

For a hockey player growing up in Canada, he turned into a pretty good big leaguer.

***CLICK VIDEO BOX TO HEAR FROM JUSTIN MORNEAU***

Morneau enters the Twins Hall of Fame on Saturday after a career that was highlighted by winning the 2006 American League Most Valuable Player Award. He played parts of 11 seasons with the Twins and made four MLB All-Star Games with the Twins.

"You just dream for one day in the big leagues and when you cap it off in the end with something like this, it’s almost surreal in a way," Morneau added.

221 of Morneau’s 247 career home runs came as a member of the Twins. He also played for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Colorado Rockies and Chicago White Sox. His best years were in Minnesota.

"In a Hall of Fame that includes Rod Carew, Bert Blyleven, Harmon Killebrew and Kirby Puckett," Morneau said. "If you go down the list of greatest Twins in history, to be amongst them is a very special, humbling honor."

Morneau will be formally inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame in a pregame ceremony before the Twins take on the Toronto Blue Jays Saturday at 6:00 p.m. at Target Field.