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.

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!

Finally we have a update to post here at TwinsHomePlate.Com! The Minnesota Twins announced on Thursday that they have given mangaer Ron Gardenhire a two year extension that should keep him in a Twins uniform through the 2011 season.

Gardenhire has a 622-512 record as Twins manager and almost managed the team back into the playoffs in 08 despite falling one game short.

Great idea by the management to give Gardenhire the extension, now they just need to make a trade or two so we have some more Twins talk here on the blog!

Twins Blog

Starting pitcher Joe Nathan just got a huge pay raise from the Minnesota Twins.  The Twins and Nathan have agreed on a new four year contract with a club option for a fifth year that will pay Nathan $47 million dollars.  If Nathan stays with the Twins for the entire contract he would be in his upper thirties and I don’t know if he would be worth that kind of money at that age.

Nathan gets $11.25 million in each of the next four seasons, starting with 2008, and the Twins have a $12.5 million option for 2012 with a $2 million buyout.  The price of the option can rise to $14 million, going up by $500,000 each for 55 games finished in 2010, 55 games finished in 2011 and 110 games finished in 2010 and 2011 combined. Also, Nathan said the deal contains a limited no-trade clause.

What do you think Twins fans? Is that too much money for Nathan right now?  He probably would have cost a lot more after K-Rod signs during next offseason and sky rockets the price of good closers.

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The Minnesota Twins lost a starting pitcher when they traded Johan Santana to the New York Mets, but now they have signed Livan Hernandez to fill a spot in the starting rotation.

Hernandez and the Twins have agreed on a one year contract that will pay Hernandez between $5 and $7 million dollars.  That is quite a bit of money for Hernandez who hasn’t quite been the pitcher he once was when he was younger.

In 2007 Hernandez while pitching with the Arizona Diamondbacks went 11-11 with a 4.93 ERA.  He did pitch 204 innings and gave up 247 hits, 116 runs, 34 homeruns, walking 79, and striking out 90 batters.

What do you think Twins fans?  Do you like the fact that the Twins ownership will pay Hernandez between $5 and $7 million dollars?  They over payed if you ask me.

Twins Blog

Johan Santana has been traded to the New York Mets as long as he agrees to a contract extention within the next 72 hours.  The Mets will send outfielder Carlos Gomez and pitchers Phil Humber, Deolis Guerra and Kevin Mulvey to the Twins.

As a Twins fan, would you rather have dealth with the Red Sox or Yankees over the Mets?  One good thing sending Johan to the Mets is that he won’t have to face the Twins like he would have had to do with the Red Sox or Yankees.

Twins Blog

The Minnesota Twins had a busy day on Thursday as they signed six players to one year contracts.  Matt Guerrier, Bobby Korecky,  Jose Mijares, Matt Macri, Matt Tolbert, Jason Pridie and Denard Span were all signed.

The biggest signing was Guerrier who was signed for $950,000.

Twins Blog

Good news Twins fans!  The Twins have signed Justin Morneau and Jason Kubel to one year contracts.  While they have Morneau locked up through the 2010 season, they re-signed him to avoid salary arbitration.

Morneau will earn $7.4 million while Kubel will earn $1.3 million.  Gotta lock up the young talent if you want to compete for years to come.  Good job Twins management!

Twins Blog

Welcome to TwinsHomePlate, a brand new Minnesota Twins Baseball Blog!  We might be new, but are going to your one stop for everything Minnesota Twins!  We will have daily write ups about the game the Twins just played, Twins rumors and transactions, and even give you some great hints and getting great Twins tickets and merchandise!

Right now we could all say that the Twins are in the middle of the pack of the American League Central Division.  They are stuck behind the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians right now.  A lot will depend if they Twins end up trading Johan Santana to the Yankees or Red Sox.  If the move doesn’t happen, you have got to hope they will resign Santana long term.  I have a feeling Santana will be headed to free agency though, and the Twins won’t get anything back in return.

One thing here at TwinsHomePlate that we are hoping all you Twins fans will do is leave comments and take part in our Twins discussions.  No matter if you agree or disagree, let your opinion be head here at TwinsHomePlate!