Minnesota Twins

BaseCast: Winter Wonderland

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By Andrew Johnson 2/05/2010 6:00 PM ET

It's a baseball podcast. The math is easy, right? BaseCast.

Spring training is just around the corner, but there are still plenty of loose ends to tie up.

On this edition, FanHouse's Ed Price joins me to discuss Justin Verlander's new extension, Joe Mauer's pursuit of his own, the growing signs that the Padres will trade Adrian Gonzalez and much more.

Listen in below.

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By Pat Lackey 2/04/2010 7:47 PM ET

Orlando Hudson is nearing a contract with the Minnesota Twins, reports indicate. The deal would be for one year and worth $5 million. Several other teams were interested in Hudson's services, but the Twins offered a deal that was both close to what he made with the Los Angeles Dodgers (after incentives he made around $7 million last year) and a chance to contend, which was apparently more than any other team had to offer.

Hudson shores up the one big remaining hole in Minnesota's lineup, as he'll take over the starting job at second base from Nick Punto. With the Dodgers last year, Hudson hit .283/.357/.417 with nine homers while Punto hit .228/.337/.284. Punto has 12 career home runs. Hudson may have slumped down the stretch with the Dodgers last year and lost his starting job to Ronnie Belliard, but he still represents an upgrade at the plate over Punto.

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By Matt Snyder 2/04/2010 4:00 PM ET

From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday.

While they have a pretty solid franchise in place and several other stars (including former MVP Justin Morneau), Joe Mauer is the Minnesota Twins. He was born in St. Paul, Minn. His senior year, he was selected by USA Today as the National Player of the Year in both baseball and football for Cretin-Derham Hall High School (St. Paul), in addition to being an All-State basketball player. Then, in the 2001 MLB draft, Mauer was picked first overall by his hometown Twins over more ballyhooed prospects Mark Prior and Mark Teixeira.

It didn't take long for Mauer to reach the majors. He hit .308 in 2004 as a 21-year-old rookie. Since then, he's made three All-Star appearances and won two Gold Gloves and three Silver Sluggers all while racking up a .327 career batting average and .408 on-base percentage. He can run, handle the pitching staff and has added power to his repertoire. In 2009, he won his first AL MVP. And he's still only 26.

Simply put, Minnesota's favorite son is well on his way to a Hall of Fame career. What a shame it would be if he played part of it away from the Twin Cities, a possibility with free agency on the horizon. He's only under contract through 2010 and if the Twins can't lock him up long term before he hits the open market, they'll likely be buried in the bidding process by the Yankees or another large-market team.

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By Tom Fornelli 2/01/2010 5:09 PM ET

The Internet was set ablaze on Monday afternoon with rumors that the Minnesota Twins had come to a preliminary agreement on a 10-year contract extension with Joe Mauer, but like a lot of things in life, just because you read it on the Internet doesn't make it true.

A major league source told FanHouse's Ed Price that the club is "pecking away" at an extension, and the feeling within the organization is that a deal will get done eventually, "but [it] will be a battle."

However, any reports of a preliminary agreement are premature.

While no deal has been struck between Mauer and the Twins, that doesn't mean both sides aren't optimistic that something will get done soon.

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By Pat Lackey 1/26/2010 10:12 PM ET

Jim Thome agreed Tuesday to a one-year deal with the Minnesota Twins. It's a deal worth $1.5 million, plus incentives ($750,000, based on plate appearances). That means that Thome can return to full-time duty as a DH after his sojourn to the NL left him as a pinch-hitter at the end of 2009.

Before his trade to the Dodgers, Thome hit .249/.372/.493 with 23 homers in 107 games with the Twins' division rival the White Sox. With his .881 OPS against lefties, he's certainly still a useful player. The question is whether or not he's useful to the Twins. Jason Kubel is also a lefty and had a breakout year in 2009, hitting 28 homers with a .907 OPS. If this trade is going to cost anyone playing time, it's likely going to be disappointing outfielder Delmon Young.

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By Tom Fornelli 1/22/2010 6:09 PM ET

It's the end of January and Jim Thome is one of many veteran free agents who still find themselves unemployed. Earlier this week Thome expressed his interest in returning to the Chicago White Sox, but it doesn't look like that interest is reciprocal, so if Thome is going to hit the 36 homers he still needs to reach 600 in his career, he'll have to look elsewhere.

So if Thome can't return to the White Sox, why not sign with one of their division rivals?

That seems to be a very real possibility as the word out of Minnesota is that the Twins are thinking of adding the left-handed masher to their roster.

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By John Hickey 1/18/2010 4:45 PM ET

All that you read about Jarrod Washburn turning down the Minnesota Twins' contract offer last week didn't quite tell the whole story.

Washburn told FanHouse Monday that he continues to weigh his options. And the 35-year-old left-handed starter said that an ESPN report that he was close to rejoining the Seattle Mariners caught him off guard.

"I don't know where that came from,'' Washburn said from his home in northern Wisconsin where the temperature reached a balmy 34 degrees Monday. "There's nothing close as far as I know.''

Washburn, who is represented by Scott Boras, reportedly turned down the Twins' offer of a one-year, $5 million contract. But it's Washburn's view that while he didn't say yes, he didn't say no, either.

"We haven't made a decision,'' he said. "Hopefully we'll get to a point where we can make one."

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By Jeff Fletcher 12/18/2009 9:00 AM ET

I voted for Bert Blyleven. It's not easy for me to write those words, because they carry an admission that the first three times I filled out a Hall of Fame ballot, I may have been wrong. Of course, I may be wrong this time, too. That's why having a Hall of Fame ballot is an honor that includes a special kind of headache.

The first time I got one, I eagerly pulled it from its envelope the moment it arrived, but now I stare at the familiar yellow envelope for three weeks before I even begin to consider what I'm going to do.

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By Frankie Piliere 12/14/2009 6:30 PM ET

Some teams can do business and survive without a productive farm system. But when small-market clubs are without one, that's when you see many years of futility. Many use their inability to compete for high-priced players as a crutch. The Minnesota Twins, on the other hand, quietly fill holes on their roster through player development.

The Twins do not have a farm system loaded with elite talent, but what they do have is depth. It's been that way for awhile now, and that's why some of their big-league talent sneaks up on us. Fortunately for Minnesota fans, there is even more talent ready to contribute in the pipelines.

Here's some of the talent toward which Twins general manager Bill Smith, pictured right, can look.

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By Matt Snyder 12/10/2009 2:30 PM ET

INDIANAPOLIS -- Not sure if you heard, but there was a trade involving an AL Central team at the annual Winter Meetings. The Tigers teamed up with the Yankees and Diamondbacks to form a three-team, seven-player blockbuster trade. It was easily the biggest news of the meetings and the rest of the division was relatively quiet.

The Royals released Mike Jacobs, closing the chapter on the embarrassing trade they made for him last winter (sending the Marlins their present closer, Leo Nunez) and were tied to free-agent catcher Jason Kendall (though nothing has come through just yet). Though manager Manny Acta said the Indians are open to bringing in a first baseman, it's been reported they don't have any money to spend. The White Sox were tied to several players, but nothing ever came of that, aside from extending the contract of someone they already controlled (Mark Teahen). The Twins sent Boof Bonser to the Red Sox for a player to be named and Carl Pavano accepted arbitration.

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