 The Twins celebrate after winning the game 6–5. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | October 6, 2009 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| City | Minneapolis, Minnesota | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Umpires | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 54,088 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Television | TBS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| TV announcers | Chip Caray and Ron Darling | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Radio | ESPN WXYT (DET) KSTP (MIN) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Radio announcers | ESPN: Dan Shulman and Dave Campbell WXYT: Dan Dickerson and Jim Price KSTP: John Gordon and Dan Gladden | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 2009 American League Central tie-breaker game was a one-game extension to Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2009 regular season, played between the Detroit Tigers and Minnesota Twins to determine the champion of the American League's (AL) Central Division. It was played at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on October 6, 2009. The Twins won the game 6–5 in a thrilling 12-inning battle, and advanced to the 2009 AL Division Series where they were swept by the New York Yankees; the Tigers failed to qualify for the postseason.
A tie-breaker was necessary after both teams finished the season with identical win–loss records of 86–76. Due to a rules changes prior to the 2009 season, the Twins were awarded home-field advantage by winning the regular season series 11–7 against the Tigers.[1][2][3][4][5] It was the third tie-breaker played in MLB from 2007 to 2009. It was also the second consecutive tiebreaker for the AL Central title after 2008, when the Chicago White Sox defeated the Twins to win the division. The Twins became the only MLB team to contest tie-breaker games of any sort (divisional and/or wild card) in consecutive seasons. The tie-breaker counted as the 163rd regular season game played by both teams and all events in the game were added to regular season statistics. This was the Twins' final regular season game at the Metrodome as the team moved to Target Field for the 2010 season. The tie-breaker was later named the Best Regular-Season Game of the Decade by Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "Twins pound Royals 13-4 to force one-game playoff with Tigers". New York Daily News. Associated Press. October 4, 2009. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ Bagnato, Andrew (January 15, 2009). "Baseball owners eliminate tiebreaker coin flips". San Diego Union-Tribune. The Associated Press. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ Staff, NESN (October 6, 2009). "Tigers, Torrid Twins to Tangle in Do-Or-Die Central Tiebreaker". NESN.com. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ Krawczynski, Jon. "Twins back for AL Central tiebreaker". Canton Repository. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ Shpigel, Ben. "BASEBALL ROUNDUP; Postseason Games Will Go To Completion, Rule Says". New York Times. Retrieved October 9, 2023.