Minnesota Twins unveil 2014 All-Star Game logo

By foxsports
Published

MINNEAPOLIS -- Now that the 2013 All-Star Game is in the rearview mirror, the Minnesota Twins are on the clock as the next host.
Tuesday, the Twins unveiled the official logo for the 2014 All-Star Game, which will take place July 15, 2014 at Target Field in downtown Minneapolis. The logo includes a silhouette of Target Field, with the downtown skyline in the background. The skyline is tan, which symbolizes the limestone used in the construction of Target Field.
Several former and current Twins All-Stars were on hand for the unveiling. Catcher Joe Mauer and closer Glen Perkins -- who represented Minnesota at this year's All-Star Game -- as well as first baseman Justin Morneau helped reveal the logo.
"We are very honored to be hosting the 2014 All-Star Game," said Jim Pohlad, Twins owner and CEO. "But it's really not about the Twins. It's about Major League Baseball and baseball fans, the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Target Field, Hennepin County, the Twin Cities metropolitan area and the state of Minnesota. I can assure you that the Twins organization can do all we can to make all those groups proud at the 2014 All-Star Game."
Former Twins All-Stars Tom Brunansky, Tony Oliva, Tim Laudner and Ron Coomer were also in attendance. Major League Baseball Executive Vice President for Business Tim Brosnan was in town to represent MLB and Commissioner Bud Selig's office.
The 2014 All-Star Game will mark the third time the event has been in Minnesota. The first was in 1965 at Metropolitan Stadium, and it was back 20 years later at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in 1985.
The Twins are hoping the newest installment of the All-Star Game in Minnesota will be the best yet -- and one that showcases the team's ballpark, which was built in 2010.
"When they set out to build this ballpark, they didn't say, 'We're going to build a good ballpark,'" said Minneapolis mayor R.T. Rybak. "They didn't say, 'We're going to build a great ballpark.' They said, 'We're going to build the best ballpark, and it's going to be something that people around the world would say is the best baseball experience anywhere you could possibly find, and they did that."
The All-Star Game is the culmination of a week-long event that will be an economic boom for the Twin Cities during that time. Target Field will also play host to the MLB Futures Game, as well as the home run derby. Throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul, other All-Star events will run throughout the week, allowing fans who can't make it to the game to still be able to get the All-Star experience.
Unlike some other major league stadiums, Target Field has the benefit of being situated in an urban, downtown location. Morneau, who took part in four All-Star Games, thinks that will help the atmosphere of the entire week.
"When everything's close together, I think it allows the fans to be close together," Morneau said. "They get to experience it a lot more. You get to see guys in and around the city. Everything's kind of in one place."
Mauer played in his sixth All-Star Game earlier this month. He's hoping he'll be on the American League roster next year to be able to play in front of his hometown fans.
"You're never guaranteed to go to an All-Star Game, so I've always went in with the mentality of I'm going to enjoy this one as much as I can," Mauer said. "If it were to happen for me and my teammates next year, it's an unbelievable experience. To be at home would really mean a lot."
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