Catching up with Twins Hall of Famer Torii Hunter

Twins Hall of Famer Torii Hunter has been dealing square on with the COVID-19 pandemic as a restaurant owner in the Dallas-area. We caught up with Hunter to talk about that, his growing relationship with top prospect Royce Lewis, and more.

***Click the video box on this page to watch the 5-Eyewitness News story we did on Hunter, plus to watch the full chat between our Darren ‘Doogie’ Wolfson and Hunter***

Hunter, 44, remains a special assistant with the Twins. He likes working with the young players in the system, and even went above-and-beyond with Lewis last winter. Lewis bought a condo near Hunter’s house and worked out with Hunter, former Twins pitcher Latroy Hawkins, and long-time big leaguer Matt Kemp.

Hunter, taken by the Twins with the No. 20 overall pick in the 1993 Draft, finished his 19-year career a .277/.331/.461 hitter with 2,272 hits, 353 homers, 195 stolen bases and 1,391 RBIs in 2,372 games. He played 12 seasons for the Twins, and was always a thrill in the clubhouse. In 2015, he brought in a smoke machine and after wins, the team had a dance partiy.

Hunter made it to the Majors in 1997 with the Twins, but didn’t establish himself as a regular until two years later. He had his breakout season in 2001, hitting 27 homers with 92 RBIs, while winning his first Gold Glove. He helped lead the Twins to the American League Championship Series in 2002 and was also an All-Star that year, well-known for when he robbed legendary Giant Barry Bonds of a homer at Miller Park in Milwaukee.