FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The Twins aren’t here just to hit home runs. That’s really a side gig to the bigger-picture stuff -- aka, winning the 2020 World Series.

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The Twins aren’t here just to hit home runs. That’s really a side gig to the bigger-picture stuff -- aka, winning the 2020 World Series.

You know, come for the dingers and stay for the bullpen depth, improved rotation and quest to build on 101 regular-season wins and the franchise’s first American League Central title in nine years.

It’s just that the home runs are so much fun. The Twins hit more of them than any team in history. They changed games in an instant, helping transform a team that had won just 78 times in 2018.

As Twins ace José Berríos said, “You know, as a pitcher, if you can just keep the game close, we only need one swing.” He smiled and spoke for an entire clubhouse: “It’s just an exciting time to be part of this organization.”

In the year of the home run, the Twins (307) hit one more than the Yankees (306). The Astros (288) and Dodgers (279) were close behind, also breaking the previous MLB record of 267 by the 2018 Yankees.

Here’s the rub: The Twins might hit even more in 2020. To a '19 lineup in which five players hit at least 31 homers -- a Major League record -- Minnesota added free-agent third baseman Josh Donaldson , who clobbered 37 for Atlanta in '19. The other five Twins return: Nelson Cruz (41), Max Kepler (36), Miguel Sanó (34), Eddie Rosario (32) and Mitch Garver (31).

“Yeah, it seems like we’re better on paper than last year,” Cruz said. “For sure. Hopefully we can stay healthy and put the pieces together.”

So how did this happen? How did the Twins go from 166 home runs in 2018 -- 23rd in MLB -- to the all-time record?

First, they signed Cruz, who’d averaged 41 home runs -- most in the Majors -- the previous five seasons. And lots of the Twins' homegrown players -- Kepler, Sanó, Garver and Rosario -- simply got better and/or stayed healthy. Their home run totals more than doubled, from 64 in 2018 to 133 in '19.

Also, there’s the approach advocated by manager Rocco Baldelli and his coaching staff.

“Everybody really preached, 'Get a good pitch to hit and go attack it,'” Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said. “We weren't a team that was particularly passive.”

To put it simply: They stepped into the batter’s box ready to rip, and when a pitcher threw a get-ahead-in-the-count strike, the Twins were ready. They saw an average of 3.85 pitches per plate appearance, the fourth fewest in the Majors.

“They were allowed to just go attack the baseball,” Falvey said. “That sounds a little bit silly and cliche, but I think it actually manifested. Guys were really getting after early swings. And when they got a good pitch, they drove it out of the park.”

Baldelli resists taking too much of the credit, saying, “They were aggressive looking for a good pitch to hit, but, you know, they went out there and put the work in.

“I don't think any of our coaches will ever sit here and say we were successful because of this one particular thing. I don't think that's the way it works. We had such a strong group from top to bottom that I think it really forced some pitchers into some tough spots where there was really nowhere to go.”

When it rained, it poured. But it didn’t rain at the start. The Twins hit one home run in their first five games and seven in their first eight. And then…

“I think it was a doubleheader in Baltimore,” Garver said.

Actually, it was April 9 at Citi Field when the Twins hit six off the Mets. Eleven days later, they hit 11 in a doubleheader in Baltimore. They hit 10 in back-to-back games against the Orioles the weekend after that.

“We did not strike out a lot,” Garver said. “We put the ball in play. We made hard contact. I think everybody had career years as far as barrels. Obviously, the homers were a result of good swings, putting the ball in the air. It was a ton of fun. It started early. It was like, 'All right, this is ridiculous.' I think we kind of found out our identity early.”

Cruz led MLB in hard contact as measured by barrels per plate appearances, according to Statcast. Sanó, C.J. Cron and Garver were fourth, sixth and 10th. Sanó and Cruz were second and third in average exit velocity.

The Twins didn’t walk much (18th overall), but they didn’t strike out much either (25th overall). They simply made hard contact and got the ball in the air more consistently than anyone.

And that’s entertainment.

“Even when we’d bring up guys from the Minors, they’d do the same thing,” Cruz said. “It was a total team thing. Yeah, it was fun.”