to August 20. His 12 wins in relief led the majors. The Giants won the National League West by 15 games and drew the Florida Marlins, the National League's wild card winner, in the NLDS. Nathan was hit hard in that series, blowing his only save opportunity in Game 2. His team fared no better, as they won Game 1 behind Jason Schmidt's complete game shutout before dropping the next three. Minnesota Twins (2004–2011) 2004 Nathan was traded to the Minnesota Twins on November 16, 2003 along with pitchers Boof Bonser and Francisco Liriano for catcher A. J. Pierzynski and cash. The Twins decided to make Nathan their closer starting in 2004, risky move considering that Nathan had notched only one save in six opportunities as a Giant, but he won the job over J. C. Romero and Jesse Crain in spring training. He was signed to a three-year deal on March 4, 2004 and agreed to an incentive-laden contract with a base salary of $440,000. He started off the season strong, allowing no runs in 20 appearances and earning 14 saves from April 15 to June 4. He was named AL Co-Player of the Week starting on May 10 with four saves in four innings and four appearances, facing the minimum number of batters each time. His credentials for the first half of the season, 23 saves in 24 opportunities with a 1.19 ERA in 26 appearances, earned him his first All-Star appearance in the 2004 MLB All-Star Game. He was the only Twin on the squad and pitched a perfect seventh inning, getting Bobby Abreu to strike out, Mike Lowell to fly out and Miguel Cabrera to strike out. His numbers were impressive through the rest of the season, allowing no runs between June 9 and August 18, and between August 25 and September 16. Nathan finished the season 1–2 with 44 saves in 47 opportunities and an ERA of 1.62 in 73 relief appearances. The Twins won the AL Central and faced the New York Yankees in the ALDS. Nathan picked up his first postseason save in Game 1, but blew his second opportunity in Game 2 as the Twins went on to lose the ensuing three games. His outstanding season earned him MVP and Cy Young votes, finishing fourth for Cy Young and 12th for MVP. His first child, a son named Cole, was born on