On April 11, 1961, the Minnesota Twins played their first game ever, beating the reigning American League champion New York Yankees 6-0 in front of an announced Yankee Stadium crowd of 14,607 that included Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio.
The game was scoreless through six innings.
Bob Allison led off the Twins’ seventh with a home run down the left field line for the first run of the game.
Before the inning was over, Earl Battey doubled, Reno Bertoia walked, and Ramos helped his own cause with a single to score both runners and Minnesota had a 3-0 lead.
In the bottom of the inning, Ramos retired the Yankees in order, sitting down Roger Maris, former Austin Packers star Bill “Moose” Skowron, and Tony Kubek.
Allison then led off the eighth inning with a single and he would later score on a Bertoia home run to make it 5-0. The Twins tacked on one final run in the ninth on a sacrifice fly by Harmon Killebrew that scored Zoilo Versalles, who had singled and then stole both second and third.
Ramos completed the three-hit shutout in the bottom of the ninth, retiring Hector Lopez, Yogi Berra, and Mickey Mantle on fly balls.
After the great start to the season, Minnesota would struggle.
Cookie Lavagetto was the Twins first manager. With the team struggling at 19–30 on June 6, he took a leave of absence with Sam Mele filling in and going 2-5.
Mele formally succeeded Lavagetto on June 23, and Minnesota moved up two places in the standings under Mele, going 45-49 and finishing seventh.
Mele would manage the Twins until midway through the 1967 season, winning the American League pennant in 1965 and losing the World Series in seven games to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Yankees finished with a record of 109–53, eight games ahead of the Detroit Tigers. New York won the World Series in five games over the Cincinnati Reds.
The 1961 season is best known for the home run chase between Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle. Maris would beat Babe Ruth's single-season record by hitting 61.
Here’s his 61st home run as called by Red Barber and Mel Allen on WPIX-TV.
On that date
No. 1 TV show: Gunsmoke, CBS
No. 1 Movie: Exodus
No. 1 song: Blue Moon, The Marcels
No. 1 book: The Last of the Just, André Schwarz-Bart
Governor of Minnesota: Elmer Andersen
U.S. President: John F. Kennedy
Significant news story: The trial of Nazi Adolf Eichmann began in Jerusalem. Eichmann, accused of more than six million murders, was found guilty on Aug. 14, and hanged on May 31, 1962.
We are the champions
Here are the reigning champions in each sport on April 11, 1961.
NFL: Philadelphia Eagles
AFL: Houston Oilers
World Series: Pittsburgh Pirates
NBA: Boston Celtics (completed a 4-1 win over the St. Louis Hawks on the same day)
NHL: Montreal Canadiens (The Chicago Black Hawks completed a 4-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings for the 1961 Stanley Cup on April 16)
College football: Minnesota
College basketball: Cincinnati
Masters: Gary Player (won a rain delayed Masters on the same day)
Daytona 500: Marvin Panch
Indy 500: Jim Rathmann