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Here's what Bert Blyleven said in his final Twins broadcast

The 69-year-old's 25-year career in the broadcast booth ended Wednesday night.

Joe Nelson

Here's what Bert Blyleven said in his final Twins broadcast
Here's what Bert Blyleven said in his final Twins broadcast /
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It's the end of an era for Twins baseball as Bert Blyleven bid farewell after 25 years in the broadcast booth Wednesday night. 

News of the Hall of Fame pitcher's final broadcast didn't break until just hours before the game, which Blyleven took in stride with his usual schtick, poking fun at the third-place Yankees, saying pitchers are the best athletes on the field, and joking that a White Sox reliever with his sleeve rolled up looked like it was missing a pack of cigarettes. 

"Vin Scully once told me to enjoy every broadcast, and for 25 years I've had the privilege of being part of the great Twins broadcast team. Tonight, sad to say this will be my last Twins broadcast," Blyleven said during the pregame show on FOX Sports North. 

"I want to thank Dave St. Peter, the Twins organization and especially you the fans for your support over the years. You are all herby circled. God bless you all and be safe, and now let's play some baseball."

Before the first pitch, with both teams standing along the first baseline, all of the players tipped their caps to Blyleven, who waved from the broadcast booth perched behind and above home plate. 

Blyleven's broadcast partner for all 25 years, Dick Bremer, gave his typical left-hand toast following a Twins victory to his longtime colleague and friend, saying, "Thanks for all the laughs and for ruining my sense of smell." 

"I am overwhelmed by all the texts and tweets I received before and during the game. Good Twins win! Thank you everyone for showing your love and support. Be safe and God Bless," Blyleven tweeted. 

The 69-year-old will transition to a special assistant role with the Twins, serving as a public personality for the franchise and working as an on-field instructor during spring training.

Blyleven was originally scheduled to work 30 games before the pandemic forced Major League Baseball to shorten the season to 60 games. The remaining Twins broadcasts will see Bremer in the booth with Justin Morneau, Roy Smalley and Jack Morris. 

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Joe Nelson
JOE NELSON

Title: Bring Me The Sports co-owner, editor Email: joe@bringmethenews.com Twitter: @JoeBMTN Education: Southwest Minnesota State University Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota Expertise: All things Minnesota sports Nelson has covered Minnesota sports for two decades, starting his media career in sports radio. He worked at small market Minnesota stations in Marshall and St. Cloud before joining one of the nation's highest-rated sports stations, KFAN-FM 100.3 in the Twin Cities. There, he was the producer of the top-rated mid-morning sports show with Minnesota Vikings announcer Paul Allen.  His radio experience helped blossom a career as a sports writer, joining Minneapolis-based Bring Me The News in 2011.  Nelson and Adam Uren became co-owners of Bring Me The News in 2018 and have since more than tripled the site's traffic and launched Bring Me The Sports in cooperation with the Sports Illustrated/FanNation umbrella. Nelson has covered the Super Bowl and numerous training camps, NFL combines, the MLB All-Star Game and Minnesota playoff games, in addition to the day-to-day happenings on and off the field of play.  Nelson also has extensive knowledge of non-sports subjects, including news and weather. He works closely with Bring Me The News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard to produce a bevy of weather and climate information for Minnesota readers.  Nelson helped launch and manage the Bring Me The News Radio Network, which provided more than 50 radio stations around Minnesota with daily news, sports and weather reports from 2011-17. 

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