MINNEAPOLIS — No player will wear No. 28 again for the Minnesota Twins.

Prior to Saturday’s game against the Royals, the Twins retired Bert Blyleven’s uniform No. 28, eight days before his induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Blyleven joined fellow Twins greats Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Tony Oliva, Kent Hrbek and Kirby Puckett as the only six Minnesota players to have their numbers retired. Blyleven’s No. 28 was placed between Jackie Robinson’s No. 42 and Kirby Puckett’s No. 34.

“Target Field’s going to be here a long time,” Blyleven said Friday on a conference call. “Somewhere down the line, 50 years from now when I’m gone, some young kid will go to the ballpark and say, ‘Who was No. 28?’

“Hopefully their father or grandfather will explain who I was and what I did. It becomes almost unbelievable.”

The ceremony was emceed by Twins announcers Dick Bremer and John Gordon and included appearances by Carew, Oliva and Hrbek. Each of the three received a standing ovation from the crowd as he walked out from left field.

Blyleven followed those three, jogging out to huge ovation from the fans on Bert Blyleven Day at Target Field. Gordon introduced Blyleven as the “greatest right-handed pitcher in Twins history.”

A special presentation was made by The Netherlands, which gave Blyleven a special pair of Size 13 wooden shoes to commemorate his being the first Dutch-born player inducted into the Hall of Fame.

The ceremony also featured a video tribute as well as special presentations by Twins ownership and current team members.

Former Twins manager Tom Kelly brought out a brand new set of Callaway golf clubs along with a custom Hall of Fame bag given to Blyleven — an avid golfer — by the Twins front office.

Each member of the current ballclub followed manager Ron Gardenhire onto the field to present Blyleven with a signed replica of the No. 28 that will hang in his honor at Target Field.

“I think that’s a number that could have been retired a long time ago,” said lefty reliever Glen Perkins, a Minnesota native. “I think he should’ve been in the Hall of Fame a long time ago. It’s well-deserved.”

Said right fielder Michael Cuddyer: “It’s been a long time coming, and he deserves this as much as anybody does. He definitely, 100 percent deserves that recognition and that honor.”

Blyleven was joined on the field during the ceremony by his wife, Gayle, and a number of other family members. His children also took part in the ceremony as they unveiled the No. 28 on the left-field façade.

Special No. 28 logos honoring Blyleven were placed on the field behind the pitcher’s mound and along the foul lines for Saturday’s game.

Blyleven also threw out a ceremonial first pitch to former Twins catcher George Mitterwald, his first battery mate in the Major Leagues.

“Twenty-two years I played the greatest game in the world,” said Blyleven during his speech, “and I still miss it.”

Jordan Schelling is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.