Outfielder Tony Oliva couldn't field when he arrived in America from Cuba. Not a lick. He won a Gold Glove for fielding and became a Hall of Famer.
Harmon Killebrew was a speedster when he signed a pro contract at 17, suffered leg injuries, and became a lethal, power hitting Hall of Famer.
Neighbors said Jim Kaat's love of baseball would not get him to the big leagues, because "Jimmy is so small." Kaat grew into a 6-foot-4 Hall of Fame pitcher who played 25 seasons.
He and Jim "Mudcat" Grant were the starting pitchers in half of the club's 162 games in 1965.
In Cool of the Evening: The 1965 Minnesota Twins members of the '65 American League champions unravel how a diverse group of ballplayers pulled together to win 102 games - a franchise record that still stands.
Despite injuries to stars Killebrew, Bob Allison, Earl Battey and Camilo Pascual, the Twins streaked to the American League pennant behind a different hero each day.
And behind Billy Martin.
In his first year as a coach, Martin stirred up the clubhouse, but coaxed Zoilo Versalles to the Most Valuable Player Award - the first won by a Latin American.
Author Jim Thielman covered the Minnesota Twins for 16 seasons.
"Longtime sports reporter Thielman brings skill, enthusiasm and a bat bag of luscious detail to his account of the 1965 season."
—Dave Wood, past vice president of The National Book Critics Circle and former Star Tribune book review editor