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We've traveled north to the beautiful twin cities to check out the Minnesota Twins. Hey, look at that, I bet that why they're called the Twins. Neat.

The Minnesota Twins

Last Season’s Result: 88-75, 2nd place in the AL Central.

Major Offseason Changes

• Added RP Luis Ayala (Signed from NY Mets)
• Added 3B Joe Crede (Signed from Chicago White Sox)
• Lost SS Adam Everett (Signed with Detroit)
• Lost RP Dennys Reyes (Signed with St. Louis)
• Lost RP Eddie Guardado (Signed with Texas)

Letter Grades

• Offseason Moves: C+ The Twins were mostly quiet this offseason, but did take a nice calculated risk on Joe Crede. The Twins were tied for first at the end of last year, so simply having Liriano for an entire season may be enough to put the Twins over the top.

• Rotation Grade: C The Twins rotation gets an A- when they’re at home, and a D when they go on the road. We’ll split the difference and call it a C. The Twins had the 2nd best home ERA in the AL, and the 3rd worst road ERA, a difference of 2 runs a game.


• Bullpen Grade: B- The Twins were among the better bullpen in 2008, headed as always by superstar closer Joe Nathan. The Twins swapped out Reyes for Ayala, but more or less return their 2008 squad.

• Lineup Grade: B If you asked the average fan to guess the three offenses in the AL in 2008, I doubt very much that they’d remember the Twins. In fact the Twins were the 3rd best offense in 2008, and they come back improved for 2009 with the addition of Joe Crede. Joe Mauer’s health may be the difference this year between a good and an elite unit.


Player most closely linked to team’s 2009 hopes: Joe Mauer. Three weeks ago I would have probably answered differently, but the increased concern over Mauer’s health can’t be ignored. Mauer lead the AL in batting in 2008, and is the difference maker for this team.

Biggest Breakout Star Potential: I wanted to say Denard Span would continue to build on a very solid debut season, but after the spring he struggled through I’m not sure. That leaves a handful of guys like Kubel, Gomez, and Young to pick from, none of whom I’m that big on.

Best Case Scenario: A healthy Twins team can definitely win this division by a handful of games.

Worst Case Scenario: Not getting enough pitching on the road again could lead to the Twins being in the bottom half of a very tight division.

Prediction for 2009: 86-76. 2nd place in the AL Central.

Local Thoughts

By: Nick Nelson of Nick & Nick's Twins blog, which you can find at www.TwinsFanatNicks.blogspot.com

• Letter Grade for Offseason Moves: I'd have to give the Twins' offseason moves a D. They just didn't do much. The late addition of Joe Crede may prove helpful, but of course the third baseman carries considerable injury concerns and even if healthy may not provide a significant upgrade over what the team was ready tol roll with at third base. The only other offseason addition that seems likely to make the big-league roster is Luis Ayala, but he is coming off a down year and is unlikely to give the bullpen a major boost.

• Most Essential: Without a question, it's Joe Mauer. The Twins' best player, Mauer has been unable to participate in baseball activities this spring due to back problems, and as I write this the extent of his injury is still unknown. I've heard whispers that he could be out until June or later. The Twins have a solid nucleus in place, but if they are forced to go without Mauer for a large portion of the season, they'll be in serious trouble.

• Breakout Potential: I've been pimping Jason Kubel to anyone who will listen. A former top prospect who was derailed by a knee injury in 2004, Kubel has been steadily improving over the past couple years and everything seems aligned for him to put up big numbers as the Twins' DH this season. He's having an outstanding spring.


• Prediction for 2009: Right now, I see the Twins finishing around 90-72 -- a couple games better than last year thanks to some internal improvements by a few players and no Livan Hernandezes or Mike Lambs to drag them down. I think the Indians had a better offseason and I view them as the division favorites by a couple games right now, but the AL Central is a wide open division and should be fun to follow this year.

Thanks again to Nick, see everbody tomorrow with the White Sox.