April 11, 1967: Rod Carew goes 2-for-4 in his major league debut, as Orioles beat Twins on Opening Day

“Opening Day. All you have to do is say the words and you feel the shutters thrown wide, the room air out, the light pour in. In baseball, no other day is so pure with possibility.” – Mary Schmich1

Hope is alive and optimism abounds on Opening Day. Talk of it being “our year” is perhaps more common than it should be. Entering the 1967 season, the Baltimore Orioles and Minnesota Twins had good reasons for optimism. The reigning World Series champion Orioles had swept the Los Angeles Dodgers the previous October.2 The Twins had finished second to the Orioles in ’66 and were one game shy of being the 1965 World Series champions.3

On April 11, 1967, Baltimore hosted Minnesota on a clear, chilly afternoon. The second largest Opening Day crowd in Memorial Stadium history, (39,812), was on hand.4 With hopefulness in the air, Twins third base coach Billy Martin predicted the Twins would not only win the opening game, but also capture the pennant.5

The game marked the major league debut of Minnesota’s Rod Carew. Born in Panama, then emigrated to Manhattan as a teen, the 21-year-old had completed only two years of Class A ball by 1967, but his solid spring training performance won a starting role at second base for the opener.6

His manager, Sam Mele, was less than optimistic. He recognized Carew as a player with a bright future but questioned if he was ready for “The Show” so soon. General manager and owner Calvin Griffith convinced Mele to start Carew on Opening Day and move César Tovar from second to center. “We want to find out fast about Carew,”7 Griffith said. “He can do it all … He could be the American League All-Star second baseman if he sets his mind to it.”8

The pitching matchup featured two left-handers, 24-year-old Dave McNally for Baltimore and Minnesota’s Jim Kaat, 28. McNally had finished the previous season with a 13-6 record and a 3.17 ERA. Kaat went 25-13 with a 2.75 ERA, leading the AL in wins, complete games (19), and innings pitched (304⅔). He also led the majors in games started (41).9

In the first inning, with two strikes,10 Tovar hit a leadoff double down the right-field line. The next batter, Rich Rollins, drove McNally’s pitch to deep left. It looked like a homer, but the wind held it up, and Curt Blefary, not known for his fielding,11 robbed Rollins with a catch above the wall. Thinking the ball was gone, Tovar had already rounded third,12 and Blefary’s throw to second doubled him up. “The catch was great but the throw was even better,” said Orioles manager Hank Bauer. “He just wheeled and threw a strike.”13

Instead of starting the game with a two-run deficit, the Orioles turned an unusual double play, resulting in two outs and empty bases – much to the delight of the hometown fans. Tony Oliva grounded to first baseman Boog Powell, who tossed the ball to McNally at the bag for the third out.

Kaat hit Blefary with a pitch to begin the bottom of the first.14 Next, Twins left fielder Bob Allison misjudged Luis Aparicio’s fly ball. It sailed over Allison’s head and the sprinting Blefary scored on the double.

Reigning AL Most Valuable Player Frank Robinson15 hit a hard groundball to second for Carew’s first defensive play. It went off Carew’s glove into right field for a single, scoring Aparicio. Later, Carew said he “should have fielded” the grounder.16 Brooks Robinson followed with a two-run homer that barely reached the left field stands, just inside the foul pole.17 Kaat got the next three outs, but the damage had been done right out of the gate as the Orioles moved ahead by four runs.

In the second inning, sixth-place hitter Carew stepped up for his first big-league plate appearance. With two outs and no runners on, he connected for a single to the left of second base. Carew was stranded at first as McNally struck out Earl Battey.

The left-handed hitting Carew remarked, “I wanted so much to start with a hit.”18

Coming off his seventh consecutive Gold Glove at third base in 1966, Brooks Robinson turned in stellar defensive plays for Baltimore, taking away three hits.19 In the second inning, he made a leaping catch of Harmon Killebrew’s20 smoking grounder and threw out the big first baseman. In the third, Robinson robbed Zoilo Versalles in the same fashion as the Killebrew play, and he stopped a hard shot from Tovar, while quickly turning a slick 5-4-3 double play.21

The Twins offense came to life in the fifth. Battey led off with a double. Versalles singled, advancing Battey to third. Pinch-hitting for Kaat, Andy Kosco singled, scoring Battey and moving Versalles to second. McNally got the next two outs, then Oliva put the Twins back in the game with a two-run double. After McNally walked Killebrew, he was relieved by righty Moe Drabowsky, who retired the Twins when Allison flied out. Baltimore 4, Minnesota 3.

Twins right-hander Jim Perry pitched the fifth and the start of the sixth. In the sixth, Powell led off with a double. Paul Blair hit a one-out double to right,22 scoring Powell. Andy Etchebarren singled, knocking in Blair for another run and a 6-3 Orioles lead. After Etchebarren’s hit, Perry was relieved by righty Ron Kline.

In the top of the eighth, Oliva led off with a single. Drabowsky secured the next two outs. Then, Carew dug-in for his fourth at-bat, following his second-inning single, a groundout to short in the fourth, and a strikeout in the sixth. Carew singled again, this time between third and short,23 moving Oliva to second. Drabowsky walked Battey, loading the bases. Bauer sent in reliever Stu Miller, a righty. Miller got out of the inning when Versalles grounded out.

In the ninth, Miller preserved Baltimore’s 6-3 victory and picked up a save with a one-two-three inning, retiring Russ Nixon, Tovar, and Rollins. Drabowsky was credited with the win and Kaat took the loss.24 The Twins outhit the Orioles, 9-7, but Baltimore prevailed in the same way they did for much of the prior season, with timely hitting, great defense, and an excellent bullpen.25

The Orioles had a disappointing year (76-85), finishing in sixth place, tied with the Washington Senators, in the 10-team AL. The Twins were in the thick of it to the end of the 1967 season, finishing 91-71, tied with the Detroit Tigers for second place – just one game behind the pennant winning Boston Red Sox.26

Carew had a successful debut game, and other than less-than-perfect fielding of a wicked grounder, he played capably at second base with nine chances, six putouts, and three assists. He went on to have an exceptional season. Carew made Griffith’s prognostication come true: He was the AL’s starting second baseman in the 1967 All-Star Game. He was also the AL Rookie of the Year, batting .292 with a 113 OPS+ over 137 games.27

With the Twins and the California Angels, Carew played in 19 big-league seasons and was an 18-time All-Star. He was the AL MVP in 1977, batting a career-high .388. Carew’s seven batting titles were the most in AL history besides Ty Cobb’s 12, and in 2016 the AL batting crown was renamed in his honor.28 Inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991, his career stats include 3,053 hits, 353 stolen bases, a WAR of 81.2, a .328 average, and an .822 OPS.

Carew’s 2020 autobiography was appropriately titled One Tough Out. He was a tenacious survivor not only at the plate, but in life as well, dealing with persistent abuse from his father during his childhood in Panama. In 1996, he lost his 18-year-old daughter, Michelle, to leukemia after a desperate, unsuccessful search for a marrow donor. In September 2015, Carew had a massive heart attack that required a six-hour surgery. His prognosis was poor, but 15 months later at age 71, he received a heart transplant. The donor was 29-year-old former NFL tight end Konrad Reuland, who had died from a brain aneurysm. It was believed to be the first time a pro athlete received the heart of another pro athlete.29 Remarkably, when Reuland was an 11-year-old, he met Carew while the baseball star was picking up his daughter from school.30

Carew consistently rose to the occasion as both ballplayer and human being. Widely recognized for his community and charitable work, he won the Roberto Clemente Award in 1977. Because of Carew’s efforts on behalf of the National Marrow Donor Program, the organization named their lifetime achievement award after Carew.31

Acknowledgments

This article was fact-checked by Mike Huber and copy-edited by Keith Thursby. The author thanks John Fredland, Gary Belleville, and Kurt Blumenau for their assistance.

Sources and Photo Credits

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Reference.com, Retrosheet.org, and SABR.org for general player, team, and season data.

The Carew baseball card image was downloaded from the Trading Card Database.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/BAL/BAL196704110.shtml

https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1967/B04110BAL1967.htm

Notes

1 “Mary Schmich Quotes,” azquotes.com, accessed December 29, 2025, https://www.azquotes.com/author/22036-Mary_Schmich.

Schmich won a Pulitzer Prize in 2012 as a Chicago Tribune columnist.

2 In the ’66 Series, the Orioles held the Dodgers to a total of two runs. Three of the four games were shutouts.

3 In the 1965 Series, Minnesota lost to the Dodgers four games to three.

4 Lou Hatter, “Drabowsky Gains Win in Relief,” Baltimore Sun, April 12, 1967: C1.

This was the second largest Opening Day crowd to date at Memorial Stadium. The Orioles inaugural Opening Day in 1954 was attended by 46,354. On the morning of the 1967 opening game, Baltimore hosted a parade to honor the ’66 World Series champions. Frank Robinson and other Orioles rode in convertible cars in front of a cheering crowd. Associated Press Photo, “Orioles Open New Season Same Old Way,” Cumberland (Maryland) Evening Times, April 12, 1967: 33.

5 Tom Briere, “Martin Picks Twins Today – And for Flag,” Minneapolis Tribune, April 11, 1967: 21.

6 Carew played in rookie leagues during 1964. In 1965 he was with Orlando of the Florida League, and in 1966 he played for Wilson (NC) in the Carolina League. Despite not having played at the Double-A or Triple-A levels, he was invited to the Twins’ spring training in 1967. His spring training stats over 23 games with the big club included a .242 batting average with 16 hits (six for extra bases, including a homer), nine RBIs, 10 walks, and four stolen bases. “Twins Spring Statistics,” Minneapolis Tribune, April 11, 1967: 22.

7 Max Nichols, “Twins Collecting Benefits From Relaxed Rich’s Bat,” The Sporting News, April 29, 1967: 13.

8 Max Nichols, “Rookie Rod Carew Stakes Out Claim to Twin Keystone,” The Sporting News, March 25, 1967: 27.

9 McNally had a 14-year major league career, retiring with a 3.24 ERA. He was a three-time All-Star who pitched in four World Series for Baltimore (1966, ’69, ’70, and ’71). Kaat played in 25 big-league seasons, winning 16 Gold Glove Awards; he finished with a 3.45 ERA. The three-time All-Star pitched in the ‘65 World Series for Minnesota and the ‘82 Series for the St. Louis Cardinals.

10 J. Suter Kegg, “Can’t Beat Oriole Start for Thrills,” Cumberland (Maryland) Evening Times, April 12, 1967: 33.

11 Blefary, the 1965 AL Rookie of the Year, was not recognized for his glove or soft hands. His nickname was “Clank” for the sound balls made when they hit his mitt.

12 Associated Press, “Pitching, Defense Fatal to Twins in Baltimore Opener,” Mitchell (South Dakota) Daily Republic, April 12, 1967: 17.

13 Gordon Beard (Associated Press), “Birds Top Twins, 6-3, in Opener,” Hagerstown (Maryland) Daily Mail, April 12, 1967: 24.

14 The original call from umpire Jim Honochick was a foul off the knob of Blefary’s bat, but after Blefary showed the ump a bruise and cut on his hand, he was awarded first base. Beard, “Birds Top Twins, 6-3, in Opener.”

15 Frank Robinson was the AL MVP the previous season, while winning a Triple Crown with a .316 average, 49 home runs, and 122 RBIs.

16 Associated Press, “Pitching, Defense Fatal to Twins in Baltimore Opener.”

17 Beard, “Birds Top Twins, 6-3, in Opener.” It was 309 feet down the left-field line at Memorial Stadium.

18 Bill Hengen, “Starting Career With Hit Settles Carew’s Nerves,” Minneapolis Star, April 12, 1967: 65.

19 Tom Briere, “Orioles Topple Twins in Debut,” Minneapolis Tribune, April 12, 1967: 23.

20 In 1967, Killebrew led the majors in home runs (44) and walks (131). He came in second in AL MVP voting.

21 J. Suter Kegg, “Can’t Beat Oriole Start for Thrills.”

22 “How Orioles Beat Twins,” Minneapolis Star, April 12, 1967: 72.

23 Sid Hartman, “Carew Gets 2 Hits After Tip From Mele,” Minneapolis Tribune, April 12, 1967: 24.

24 Drabowsky threw three innings, surrendering two hits and a walk; he had no earned runs. Kaat pitched four innings while giving up four hits and one walk; he had four earned runs – all due to the first four Orioles batters he faced. Orioles starter McNally went 4⅔ innings and yielded seven hits, two walks and three earned runs.

25 Joe Gergen, “Robinson’s Bat, Great Relief Jobs Net 6-3 Win,” Cumberland (Maryland) Evening Times, (United Press International), April 12, 1967: 33. The ‘66 Orioles had a formidable offense. They were first in the AL in runs per game, hits, doubles, total bases, slugging percentage and OPS. They were also second in home runs, just four shy of the Detroit Tigers’ 179.

27 The NL Rookie of the Year in ’67 was right-handed pitcher Tom Seaver of the New York Mets. Seaver received 11 of 20 votes, while Carew got 19 of 20 of the AL votes. Coincidentally, on August 4, 1985, Carew got his 3,000th hit in Anaheim and Seaver earned his 300th win in New York.

28 Concurrently, the NL Batting Championship Award was named for another great hitter, Tony Gwynn. He had 20 years in the majors, all with the San Diego Padres, while winning eight NL batting crowns.

29 Gary Waleik, “MLB Legend Rod Carew and the Former NFL Pro Who Gave Him a New Heart,” WBUR – Boston / wbur.org, September 28, 2018, https://www.wbur.org/onlyagame/2018/09/28/rod-carew-konrad-reuland-heart-assists.

30 “Rod Carew,” BR Bullpen – baseballreference.com, accessed December 2, 2025, https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Rod_Carew. Carew also received a kidney from Reuland during the heart transplant operation. Reuland was a very sports-minded kid. At the time Carew and school-age Reuland met, Reuland’s favorite pro athlete was Carew. After the transplant, Carew did not know whose organs he had received and the Reuland family was unaware of who Konrad’s donated organs went to. Months later, they did find out, and the two families met. Reuland’s mother, Mary, was able to listen to her son’s heart beating in Carew’s chest. With the common bond of the organ donations, the Carew and Reuland families have become close. They live fairly close to one another.

31 “Rod Carew,” BR Bullpen – baseballreference.com. Carew has also done charitable work with youth in Southern California, with the American Heart Association, and he has hosted “Rod Carew’s Children’s Cancer Golf Classic” for decades. “Rod Carew: From Baseball Legend to Proud U.S. Citizen at 78,” americanosports.com, accessed January 7, 2026, https://www.americanosports.com/rod-carew-from-baseball-legend-to-proud-u-s-citizen-at-78/.