Tombstone
Born: Affiliation change from Lynchburg White Sox
Affiliation Change: 1975 (Lynchburg Rangers)
First Game: April 17, 1970 (L 6-3 vs. Alamance Senators)
Last Game: August 29, 1974 (L 4-2 vs. Salem Pirates)
Carolina League Championships: None
Stadium
Ownership
Owner: Lynchburg Baseball Corporation (Calvin Falwell, et al.)
Major League Affiliation: Minnesota Twins
Attendance
Background
The Lynchburg Twins were part of the procession of Carolina League ball clubs that have made their home in the central Virginia city since the mid-1960’s. The Twins followed the Lynchburg White Sox and preceded the Rangers, Mets, Red Sox and Hill Cats.
Like most of those other clubs, the L-Twins were operated by Lynchburg Baseball Corporation, a group of community stockholders headed by Calvin Falwell. Falwell was a cousin of the conservative evangelical leader Jerry Falwell.
Notable Players
The most accomplished player to come out of Lynchburg during the Twins era was pitcher Dave Goltz, who won 7 games for Lynchburg in the summer of 1971. Goltz went on to win 113 games in a 12-year Major League career, including a 20-win season for parent club Minnesota in 1977.
Slugger Randy Bass belted 30 home runs and drove in 112 for Lynchburg during the summer of 1974. Though his Major League career fizzled, Bass went on to become a massive star in Japan in the 1980’s, winning back-to-back Triple Crowns in the Japanese Central League in 1985 and 1986
Steve Braun (Lynchburg ’70), Sal Butera (Lynchburg ’74) and Dave McKay (Lynchburg ’72-’73) also went on to lengthy journeymen Major League careers.
Trivia
Pitcher Dave Goltz (Lynchburg ’71) was a Vietnam veteran who served as a helicopter mechanic before beginning his baseball career.
Jim Hughes threw a 7-inning perfect game for the L-Twins during a doubleheader against the Rocky Mount Leafs on July 30, 1972. Hughes later won 16 games as a rookie for Minnesota in 1975 before arm problems short-circuited his promising career.
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