Target Field, the home ballpark of the Minnesota Twins, was recently named the first professional sports facility to attain the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Silver Certification. The award for the operation and maintenance of the facility came less than two years after Target Field was named the Greenest Ballpark in America by the USGBC.

"The Minnesota Twins organization believes our future success - both on and off the field - is built on a business model that embraces operational efficiency, environmental stewardship and social responsibility," said Dave St. Peter, president of the Twins. "We’re proud to have earned LEED certification for the operation of our facility and will continue to seek ways to improve the sustainability of Target Field."

One of the ways the baseball facility is practicing energy efficiency and green energy use is through a custom-designed rain water recycling system, which captured, purified and reused more than 686,000 gallons of rain water in 2011.

While the Twins have shown excellence in green energy use, the Washington Nationals are working to get back on top of the list of baseball teams practicing renewable energy, reported Greater Greater Washington.

The blog said the Nationals can improve energy efficiency at their home field by adding a solar array, tearing down parking garages and encouraging fans to reduce the amount of trash they generate.