Opening Day Celebration of Dick Bremer, the Twins Greatest Ambassador

Let’s start this with a little bit of trivia, courtesy of Dick Bremer himself. Over his 40 seasons of calling play-by-play for Twins games, he worked with five Hall of Famers (so far!). Can you name all five of them? (Answers below).

During the offseason, we learned that Dick Bremer’s time as the Twins play-by-play voice on TV was over. Cory Provus would be taking over that role after more than a decade in the Twins radio booth. 

Twins President Dave St. Peter began a small ceremony by welcoming Bremer and his family; his wife, daughter Hannah and son Erik. 

“The Twins organization feels incredibly grateful for Dick. For not just what he did in the television booth, calling action night after night, day after day, but for the way he handled things out of the booth as an ambassador for this franchise. It’s hard to imagine there’s any broadcaster we have had that worked more tirelessly on behalf of the organization to preach the gospel of Twins baseball than Dick Bremer. And for that today we are really thrilled to have the opportunity to pay tribute and to honor him.”

This offseason was the first that Bremer did not participate in the Twins winter caravan. He kept busy, to be sure. He had previously been the host of the Twins Diamond Awards. Instead of hosting the great event this year, he was honored with the Herb Carneal Lifetime Achievement Award. 

In my opinion, Bremer’s biggest strength as the play-by-play voice on TV was his ability to work with his color analyst. There is no bigger Twins fan. Bremer knows the history of the Twins. He understands the changes that have happened in the game. He understands game situations. But what he did was let the analyst play the role of “star.” Bremer set up his analysts very well and let them share their insights from their time on the field. 

As our trivia question says, Bremer worked with five Hall of Famers, He is arguably Tommy John’s biggest supporter for Hall of Fame consideration. He has worked with All Stars and many great players. In a small media scrum after the formal ceremony, he said “I’ll take that team of players that I was blessed to work with. I’ll take on the Rangers. I’ll beat the Yankees.” 

One of those players that he worked with the past couple of years is former AL MVP Justin Morneau. The powerful Canadian has become a very good, trusted analyst with the help of Bremer. Morneau held back tears as he spoke of and to Bremer during the ceremony. “You taught us what it meant to love our jobs, to take pride in doing our jobs, to be neutral but understand that we are all fans of the Twins. I don’t know if there is any bigger fan in Twins Territory than you.” 

It was at that time the St. Peter and Morneau unveiled  a gift for his years of service and gnarly 5,000 games called. The Twins also made a contribution in Bremer’s name to “Dumont Baseball.” Finally, they announced that the TV booth would now be called the Dick Bremer Television Booth. 

Bremer then stood in front of the small crowd of TV cameras and media. His voice cracked as he said, “I really appreciate that gesture. To have that carry my name means an awful lot.” 

While you can see and hear how much he enjoyed calling the game. It is when he talks about his family that you realize how fortunate he realizes he is. His wife was there, as was his daughter Hannah. It was also great to see his son Erik was able to be there. 

Erik Bremer is carving his own path in the play-by-play world. He is the voice of the Pensacola Ice Flyers in the winter months, and he is in his third season as the voice of the Pensacola Blue Wahoos of the Southern League. In college he worked games in the Cape Cod League. In 2017, he worked for the Biloxi Shuckers (AA). In 2018, he called games for Triple-A Colorado Springs. In 2019, he was out east with High-A Potomac. After the lost Covid season, he spent the 2021 season with Fredericksburg. He also spent a couple of winters calling Brisbane Bandits games in the Australian Baseball League. 

I joked with him about being allowed time off to come to this event. He said he wasn’t going to miss it. He also noted that he had a 5:00 am flight on Friday morning to get back to Pensacola for their Friday night Opening Day game. 

Since the announcement that his dad would no longer call Twins games on TV, he has been given example after example by fans and media types of what his dad meant. 

He said, “It’s affirming what I think most of us have known all along; the unique and special connection he has with the fans and this community and to baseball fans in the upper Midwest.” 

Are their characteristics of his dad’s broadcast style or personality that he has tried to emulate in his own career? “I grew up listening to him. So I think on a subconscious level I take a little bit after his style. But I think more than anything, his ability to meet the moment without making it about himself is something I’ve really admired and I’ve tried to carry forward. Serving the audience and serving the team above yourself is the way to find a long career in this industry. That he has been able to do this for 40 years with the same team speaks to his ability to do that.” 

Of course, Erik Bremer has a unique perspective on Dick Bremer. As his son, he gets to see him at home. 

However, Erik noted, “His on-air style is so welcoming and warm, and so natural. I can speak with authority on this. He is the same person off the air as he is on the air.”

Interviewer (me) rudely cuts in, asking, “Same voice and everything?”

And Erik smiles and continues, “Same voice and everything. The fact that he is so authentic… I think that is something that viewers sensed over the years. They got a sense that they knew him. If you’re not yourself on the air, eventually people are going to find out. So, the fact that he remained himself, resolute in that while still adapting to the changing times is something I really admire about him.” 

I think that rings true, especially if you’ve been near him during a winter caravan stop in a small town. People believe they know Dick Bremer because he has been a consistent, soothing voice that they can rely on. 

Another one of those great players that Bremer called a partner (among other things) is Bert Blyleven. Bremer noted that the Hall of Fame pitcher and World Series champion sent him a text message early Thursday that just said, “Congratulations, and don’t bounce it.” 

Bremer told media members after the ceremony that he will continue to be active with the Twins, though he doesn’t know just how much time he’ll be at the ballpark. 

He said it will depend on weather, and if a golf course beckons. He joked, “ I’ve been told that it’s possible in Minnesota without having to drill a hole first.” 

Bremer has not had a chance to do a lot of summer fishing over the years and looks forward to that. However, he also broke the news that he will be returning to the diamond, playing Senior Baseball League games on Wednesdays, and double-headers on Sunday afternoons. 

He says that most great players he worked with, like Killebrew, Blyleven and most recently Morneau had great playing careers and then great broadcasting careers. “I’m going to try to do it in reverse. I did my 40 years broadcasting, and now my goal is to be the oldest American League rookie of the year, at 68.” 

When he said he might pitch, a writer came back with “Then you can become the first broadcaster in history to have worked with Tommy John and then had the Tommy John surgery.” 

Ah, retirement goals. 

Which brings us back to Twins Opening Day. Bremer was honored pregame with a nice video on the huge screens of the stadium. He was then set to make the first pitch. With his family, and over 35,000 people watching, Bremer walked to the mound. Then to the surprise of many, Joe Mauer made his way to home plate. Bremer’s first pitch would be caught by Hall of Famer Joe Mauer. And with all the hoopla, and all the emotion of the day, Bremer stepped toward home and launched his pitch. I believe it was a sinker. I mean, gravity pushed it down as it made its way to the plate. It was a very borderline strike, but most important, Mauer caught it. Bremer did not bounce it. 

The Twins lost the game 4-2, and it’s very much possible that the highlight of Opening Day might have been that first pitch. Dick Bremer didn’t bounce it. 

Join me in a left-hand toast to Dick Bremer.

Trivia Answer: I dropped several names and clues throughout the article, but Dick Bremer worked with five Hall of Famers. He worked with Harmon Killebrew, Bert Blyleven, Jack Morris, Paul Molitor, and Jim Kaat.