Before each of the last five Minnesota Twins’ seasons, I have made a $20 bet with my eldest brother:  I would bet on the Twins winning the American League Central Division, he would bet not.  I could never understand why he would continually bet against the team he’d been rooting for his entire life.  And worst of all, he did it with a smirk.  It almost seemed like he was rooting against them.  His pessimism was the principle reason I would make this annual wager.

But I am now beginning to understand it.  This brother of mine is nearing 42 years of age.  He bared witness to two World Series Championships, ‘87 and ‘91, arguably two of the greatest World Series in the history of the game.  But he also struggled through the miserable abyss that defined the Minnesota Twins for nearly a decade after.  And that struggle seems to have overtaken any “half-glass full” optimism he may have had left.  

I have already placed my 2009 Central Division wager with my brother.  And with the roster that looks to take the Metrodome field on April 6th, I have never been more confident.

Joe Crede makes his Spring Training debut tomorrow.  Brian Buscher is taking that time to set the benchmark for the new third baseman’s production.

Buscher started at first base against the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday, perhaps giving him another avenue to make the roster.  At the plate, he went 2-for-2 with a two-run homerun.  He’s gone without a hit in only one plate appearance so far this spring.  With so much talk about pitchers being far ahead of hitters this time of year, Buscher seems locked in.  His replacement, AAA Rochester first baseman Brock Peterson, didn’t do too bad either with a grand slam in the eight inning.

I read reports when players were first arriving at camp that Buscher looked like he had hit the weight room hard during the offseason.  Early on, it seems like he has taken that motivation to a new level.  It’s understandable, considering he went from a platoon-but-promising role at third to quite possibly a full time starter at Rochester.  And let’s keep in mind, just as I’m sure Buscher has:  Rochester, New York can be just as cold as Minnesota during the early parts of spring.  And they don’t have a dome.  

For me, this just adds to the quality of the Crede signing.  The bench gets deeper and a determination to stay on that bench follows.

Go Twins!

And so it begins…

The Minnesota Twins kick off Spring Training tonight at 6:00 CDT and to the satisfaction of many, including myself, it will also be televised on the MLB network.  Glen Perkins will be on the mound and here’s a look at the good guys’ lineup:

1. Alexi Casilla, 2B  2. Nick Punto, SS  3. Justin Morneau, 1B  4. Michael Cuddyer, RF  5. Jason Kubel, DH  6. Delmon Young, LF  7. Brian Buscher, 3B  8. Mike Redmond, C  9. Jason Pridie, CF

They’ll have the pleasure of facing knuckleballer Tim Wakefield in their first game.  Not the best way to get your timing down as a hitter.

Aside from Perkins, we should see Joe Nathan, Jesse Crain, Ben Julienal, and Bobby Keppel pitch as well.

Third baseman Joe Crede will make his Spring Training debut on Friday as he eases in.  The much hyped acquisition has said he likes to take as many swings as possible during the spring, so hopefully once he gets started we’ll get to see exactly what we’ve got. 

Stay tuned for more after the matchup.

Go Twins!

Philip Humber, Denard Span, Jason Pridie, and Brian Buscher were all sent to Triple-A Rochester by the Minnesota Twins on Monday.  Humber was the guy with the best shot at making the big league team but he was beat out by Brian Bass.

We can expect to see these players later in the year more then likely.  Especially Humber who will work his way onto the big league roster at some point this season.

Twins Blog

News out of Twins spring training camp is that speedster Carlos Gomez will be the starting center fielder for the Minnesota Twins on openind day.  The Twins aren’t expecting much offensive production out of the youngster, but do hope that he can get on base and steal some bases and score some runs.

The Twins are also saying that it looks like Francisco Liriano will start the season at Triple-A.  Liriano needs to get some more innings in and show the team that he is definately back from Tommy John surgery.  Right now he isn’t 100%, and needs to build some strength and make sure his arm is all ok.

Twins Blog

After having some Visa problems, starting pitcher Francisco Liriano has arrived at Twins Spring Training.  He has already had a workout, and was clocked throwing in the mid 90’s.  Looks like Lirano will be ready to go, he just needs to get into game shape and I don’t see a problem with that happening.

Twins Blog