The most devastating injuries in Minnesota sports history
The Minnesota Twins experienced pain on Friday when it was announced that Royce Lewis would undergo surgery for a partially torn ACL.
The injury is devastating for Twins fans after Lewis had appeared to rebound after tearing his ACL in the same knee in February 2021. Minnesota sports fans will tell you that this isn't anything new. Over the years, there have been numerous injuries to star players creating an encyclopedia of pain.
Kirby Puckett's eye (1995)
Puckett was the face of the Twins, helping Minnesota win two World Series championships and hitting one of the greatest home runs in the history of the sport. Even at age 36, Puckett was relied upon heading into the 1996 season to form a potent lineup including Paul Molitor, Chuck Knoblauch and reigning American League Rookie of the Year Marty Cordova.
Those plans changed when Dennis Martinez hit Puckett in the face with a pitch on Sept. 28, 1995. Puckett missed the remainder of the season with a broken jaw but the following March, he developed blurred vision in his right eye.
Puckett was later diagnosed with glaucoma and the condition forced him to retire. The 1996 Twins went on to finish ninth in runs scored (25th in ERA), but it's fair to wonder how much longer Puckett could have played had he not been injured.
Sam Cassell's hip (2004)
In 2004, the Minnesota Timberwolves were in the midst of their greatest season ever. After earning the only two playoff series victories in franchise history and watching Kevin Garnett win the MVP award, an NBA championship was a realistic possibility until Sam Cassell broke out the "Big Balls" dance.
Cassell's jumper in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals helped even the series with the Sacramento Kings, but while he was strutting around like Isuro Tanaka, he injured his hip.
Flip Saunders tried everything to overcome the injury -- including using Garnett at point guard during the Western Conference Finals -- but the Timberwolves went on to be eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers in six games and raised questions of what could have been.
Daunte Culpepper's knee (2005)
After years of being the place where quarterbacks went to die, the Minnesota Vikings appeared to have found a franchise quarterback in Culpepper. With a bazooka for an arm, the body of a tank and the mobility of a running back, Culpepper was set to become Minnesota's first long-term quarterback since Fran Tarkenton.
That season proved to be the peak of Culpepper's career, however, as he tore three ligaments in his knee during an October 2005 game against the Carolina Panthers.
Chris Gamble's hit opened a strange saga involving Brad Childress, e-mails and strip malls before Culpepper was traded to the Miami Dolphins. The Vikings would continue to shuffle quarterbacks until Kirk Cousins signed in 2018.
Francisco Liriano's elbow (2006)
The 2006 Twins were a special team that went from 12.5 games out of first place in late May to winning the AL Central on the final day of the regular season.
A big reason for the turnaround was the emergence of Liriano, who went 12-3 with a 2.16 ERA in 28 games. With Johan Santana at the top of the rotation, fans dreamed of a devastating 1-2 punch in October until Liriano tore his UCL in August.
Liriano was never the same pitcher. From 2008 until he was traded in 2012, the left-hander went 40-49 with a 4.75 ERA in 134 games (121 starts) for the Twins.
Minnesota went on to be swept by the Oakland Athletics in the 2006 ALDS and hasn't won a playoff game since.
Teddy Bridgewater's knee (2016)
Much like Culpepper, Bridgewater was on his way to becoming a franchise quarterback for the Vikings. With Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen waiting in the wings, Bridgewater was about to get the weapons he didn't have during his first two years in Minnesota and it could have paved the way for a breakout season.
Just days before the season began, however, Bridgewater suffered a gruesome non-contact injury in practice that tore all three ligaments in his knee and dislocated his kneecap. The surgeon who performed surgery on Bridgewater called the injury "similar to a war wound" and he would never start a game for the Vikings again.
The injury also set off a butterfly effect for the Vikings who traded their first-round pick in the 2017 draft for Sam Bradford. The Philadelphia Eagles would use that pick to select Derek Barnett, who strip-sacked Case Keenum in the 2017 NFC Championship Game and the Vikings went on to sign Cousins prior to the 2018 season.
Zach Parise's back (2016)
The 2016 Wild weren't a dominant team by any means, but they certainly would've had a better shot at taking down the No. 1 Dallas Stars in the first round of the playoffs had Parise been healthy. But the Wild star aggravated a back injury during the final days of the regular season (that later led to back surgery) and he missed the playoffs.
Minnesota lost the series in six games, though they did stage one of the great comebacks by rallying from a 4-0 deficit in the third period to tie the Stars in Game 6, only to lose 5-4.
Had Parise played the entire series healthy, the Wild definitely would've had a shot at upsetting the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference.
Royce Lewis' knee (2021)
It's hard to tell if this injury belongs on the list, but with how Lewis was playing, it could have a devastating effect on the Twins.
Lewis came into this season without playing an organized game in two years. In a small sample, Lewis showed no ill effects, hitting .300 with two home runs in 12 games with the Twins before getting hurt.
If there's a silver lining, Byron Buxton recovered after a string of injuries to become a superstar when on the field. At age 23, there's potential for a similar outcome for Lewis, but with him now out for at least the next year, the pressure is on Minnesota to find a way to re-sign Carlos Correa or find another new starting shortstop.
Note: Adrian Peterson's torn ACL in 2011 is a notable injury, but he bounced back with an MVP season in 2012, thus rendering it not devastating.
