Nick Nelson

Here in the Twin Cities, there's about a foot of fresh snow on the ground. Fortunately, the Twins won't be trying to open their season here for a few more days. However, it's also a rainy day in Cleveland, calling into question whether the Twins and Indians will get in their first matchup of the season at Progressive Field. Either way, you can come escape from all the harsh realities of early April weather and join me for a live interactive chat here at 2:00 PM today (Friday). [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] If there's a game going on, I'll offer insights and observations to those who are stuck at work and can't watch. Otherwise it will simply be an open conversation about the opening week. Share thoughts, ask questions or vent frustrations. Whatever your flavor, please join us!

We know about the negative trends: three straight years of losing, a spring marked by consistently low offensive output and several veterans whose numbers have been on the decline. Those trends are no fun to think about, especially here in a young season that remains full of possibilities despite some discouraging early signs. Today, let's focus on some positive trends that emerged last year and will hopefully serve as precursors of things to come. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Nolasco's Nifty Second Half Run After being traded from the cellar-dwelling Marlins to the contending Dodgers last summer, Ricky Nolasco went on quite the run. In his first 12 starts with LA, Nolasco went 8-1 with a 2.07 ERA and 62/17 K/BB ratio in 74 innings while holding opponents to a .213 average. He turned in a few clunkers in the final weeks of the season, taking some luster out of his second-half numbers, but the impressive stretch was a reminder that Nolasco can dominate when he's locked in. His overall results last season (best since 2008) certainly seem to bode well, even if his first start for the Twins left a bit to be desired. Colabello's Improved Discipline During his initial exposure to major-league pitching, Chris Colabello looked pretty overwhelmed. Understandably, he seemed rattled early on, posting an atrocious 18-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 55 plate appearances through the end of July. Yikes. The International League MVP made some impressive adjustments at the plate, striking out 40 times against 19 walks in 126 plate appearances from the start of August through the end of the year. Nothing great, but a huge step forward. He continued to control the strike zone well this spring, with 10 strikeouts and eight walks. We know that when Colabello hits the ball he can generate some legit power (that was on display Monday when he drove a double deep to right in the ninth inning) but keeping his K/BB ratio in check will be vital to his success at the plate. Jerry Lai, USA TODAY Sports Escobar's Awakening Serving as a backup infielder for the Twins in the first half last year, Eduardo Escobar was simply brutal at the plate. When he was sent down in mid-July, his batting line was an anemic .214/.268/.328. The demotion to Rochester proved to be just what Escobar needed to jolt his slumbering lumber. In 43 games at Triple-A, he hit .307/.380/.500 with 22 extra-base hits and 17 walks. Very nice all-around production for the 24-year-old. He returned to the Twins as a September call-up and batted .324 the rest of the way. Escobar has never hit much in the past, so it's tough to put too much stock in the strong second-half performance, but he's seen by many as a late bloomer and if he can develop into a remotely effective offensive threat off the bench (or as a replacement for a scuffling infield bat) it would be a big boost for this club. Swarzak Settling In After spending his first few seasons as a swingman and long reliever, Anthony Swarzak transitioned to a full-time relief role last year, and over the course of the season he was given more and more opportunities to pitch in shorter late-game situations. He figures to see more of those chances this year, with Sam Deduno presumably taking over the primary right-handed long man role. That's good news, because Swarzak thrived in full-time relief duty, posting career bests in ERA (2.91), WHIP (1.16), BB/9 (2.1) and K/9 (6.5). He was especially effective in the latter part of the season, putting up a 2.70 ERA while holding opponents to a .603 OPS in the final three months. Pelfrey's Progression Many people are down on Mike Pelfrey due to his overall production in 2013, which certainly wasn't good, but I'm actually feeling confident in his ability to rebound and give the Twins a solid season. He made a too rapid return from Tommy John surgery last spring and it showed in the early months, but in the second half of the campaign he was downright respectable, with a 4.39 ERA and .730 opponents' OPS from July through September. Those are perfectly adequate numbers for a back-end starter making $6 million, and of course, now that he has gone through a normal offseason of rest and preparation, it's possible we haven't seen his best.

For three straight years, the refrain for hopeful Twins fans has been the same: Keep waiting, help is on the way. That can be difficult to accept, especially when few signs of progress are evident on the field. The Twins lost 99 games in 2011, and they've lost 96 in each season since. It wouldn't be too surprising if they lost 90-plus again this year. So why watch? Fortunately, you don't have to look far to find reasons. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Letting The Kids Play First and foremost, that help we were talking about earlier? It's arriving. Aaron Hicks and Oswaldo Arcia are both slated as regulars from the get-go, and Kyle Gibson is in the rotation. Josmil Pinto should appear in the lineup several times per week. These are some of the premier talents the farm system has produced, and they will now have an opportunity to significantly impact outcomes for the major-league club right from the start. More importantly, Alex Meyer and Byron Buxton are not far behind. Meyer will start the year in Triple-A and Buxton -- who rocketed through two levels last year -- will get a late start in Double-A. Either player is a credible candidate for a first-half call-up, offering contingencies that have never been available to the Twins in the past. It's not often that an organization has the best position player prospect in the game and one of the best pitching prospects, both simultaneously on the verge of reaching the majors. These are the things you should embrace if you're having a hard time getting excited about the group that is set to kick off the season at 3:10 on Monday afternoon. Admittedly, that group faces some daunting question marks. Where Are The Runs? Will Jason Kubel and Josh Willingham bounce back from rough years and hit again in the middle of the order? Will Aaron Hicks and Oswaldo Arcia make the adjustments necessary to excel? Will Trevor Plouffe's power return while Brian Dozier's stays? Will Joe Mauer's production improve with a move away from catcher? And can this mishmash bench provide any punch? All these players have shown an ability to perform in the past, so in a way you can see why the Twins are pinning hope on them. For a realist, though, it's difficult to believe that enough of those scenarios will play out the right way for the team to compete, especially after a spring that sent pretty much all the wrong signals. Rotation Rebuilt It will be a shame if the Twins can't score enough, because the pitching staff is finally looking respectable. Minnesota enters the season with a rotation that carries a decent track record and solid upside. It seems unlikely that the team will fly through arms as rapidly as in the past few years, and even if that's the case there is now a level of depth that simply hasn't been available before. At the very least, having starters that don't routinely dig early five-run holes should make the games much more watchable, and if needs should become evident, there are prospects coming and there is a lot of money available to spend. So help is on the way. Unfortunately, it might not be here as immediately as we'd like. The Transition Continues Miguel Sano's Tommy John development was a devastating blow that sadly reflects the present status of the Minnesota Twins -- amazing things are coming, with the potential to fundamentally change a losing culture, but we're just going to have to wait a little bit longer as the goalposts keep inching backward. This year, players currently on the roster and ones that will join along the way have an opportunity to accelerate that timeline, providing a much-needed jolt to a snakebitten franchise that sorely needs one.

Somewhere on the horizon, an end is in sight; a merciful conclusion to this horrendous chapter for the Minnesota Twins that has been characterized by losses piling up while mind-boggling injuries have plagued every level of the organization and interest has steadily declined in a team that should be enjoying its renaissance with a beautiful new outdoor ballpark. The Twins keep pointing to a day where their heralded prospects will arrive to usher in a renewed era of competitive baseball, and where the front office will have plenty of money to aggressively supplement and support this talented young core. The problem is that, as we keep inching forward, that day seems to continually move further down the line. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] And in the meantime, being a Twins fan just hasn't been very much fun. Now we've reached a point where, even with the season opener just days away, there's less buzz and enthusiasm for local baseball than I can ever remember. Tickets sales are stagnant. Team officials are publicly calling out hitters for uninspiring spring performances. And we're seeing threads pop up here like this one, wondering whether the worst is yet to come for a club that has taken some pretty brutal lumps over the last three years. The negativity that is gripping a sizable portion of the readership has led to some of those inane arguments about what it means to be a "real fan." Here's the truth: There are "real fans" who are trying to look on the bright side, acknowledging the drawbacks of the roster but electing to focus on the legitimate reasons to hope that this club will take steps forward this season and prove to be solidly on the right track. There are also "real fans" who are frustrated and demoralized after three years of unprecedented losing, and by a constant barrage of organizational setbacks, and by ongoing decision-making that can often be described as questionable at best. I place myself in the first group, mostly for the sake of my sanity, but can't find it in myself to denigrate the second. Despite the upgrades to the pitching staff, the Twins were passive in adding to the offense during the offseason, bringing in only a catcher who doesn't hit, a utility candidate who sat out last season and an aging designated hitter coming off the worst year of his career. Twelve months ago, my concern was that while the Twins had made personnel changes on the starting staff -- subbing out Scott Baker, Carl Pavano and Francisco Liriano for Vance Worley, Kevin Correia and Mike Pelfrey -- it wasn't clear that they'd implemented a significant talent upgrade (health issues aside). This year the same rings true for the offense. Justin Morneau and Ryan Doumit are gone while Jason Kubel and Kurt Suzuki are in, with Joe Mauer shifting to first base full-time. It's tough to be convinced that the Twins have truly improved their lineup on paper, so they're counting on things breaking right and guys bouncing back from bad years. We all saw how that worked out with the rotation in 2013. The most frightening part of it all is the lack of fallback options. There's finally a little depth in the starting corps but few strong contingency options on the other side. If either Brian Dozier or Trevor Plouffe fails to deliver or suffers a major injury, there's no appealing option to step in as an impact starter. If Josmil Pinto doesn't hit, good luck getting any offense from behind the plate. If Josh Willingham's knee acts up or Oswaldo Arcia gets caught in another prolonged mental slump, you're potentially looking at Alex Presley as a regular in a corner spot. Ultimately this team's hopes reside with the top-tier prospects, and even in that department the news is surprisingly discouraging considering that the season hasn't even started. The Big Three already are dealing with various question marks -- Miguel Sano is gone for the year following Tommy John surgery, Alex Meyer is trying to bounce back after losing a third of his '13 season due to shoulder soreness and Byron Buxton is expected to open on the disabled list with a sprained wrist that keeps bothering him, despite repeated insistence from everyone involved that it's no big deal. All that in addition to the uncertain status of No. 5 prospect Eddie Rosario, who will miss the first 50 games of this season after a drug suspension and still hasn't shown up in Twins camp due to what are only being classified as "personal reasons." When beaten Twins fans can't even look to the stacked farm for relief from the bleak realities, you know things are bad. There's still plenty of talent there but with each setback the distance to the goalpost grows, and the team's underwhelming efforts to field a playoff-caliber team in the intermediate make cheering for this club all the more maddening. Maybe worse than maddening. Maybe just flat-out uninteresting.

Tix For Tots is a great organization with a mission to provide tickets to sporting events, concerts, theater performances and more for kids who can learn and be inspired by these experiences. On Thursday, April 3rd, from 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM, Tix For Tots will be holding its 3rd Annual Minnesota Twins Season Kick-Off Event at Target Field's Metropolitan Club. A featured panel will include former Twins great Jack Morris, Twins EVP of Business Development Laura Day, and (last and least) yours truly. Entry is $50, and proceeds will go to an amazing cause. Tickets are going fast, but you can procure yours here. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] In addition to an audience Q&A session with panelists, the event will feature appetizers, wine, a silent auction and more. This a cool opportunity for baseball fans to whet their appetite for a fresh season, and to visit Target Field before the first game is played there. Jack Morris will deliver expert insight as a radio analyst and former player. Laura Day will give a glimpse of the business side of baseball. And I'll field questions about the nature of independent coverage and what we can expect to see from the local nine in this coming season. Please consider joining us next Thursday. It's going to be a really great event, and you'll be helping kids who may not have otherwise had a chance to experience the magic of baseball. Ain't that what it's all about? Click here to find more details and register before it's too late.

With Vance Worley outrighted and Kyle Gibson seemingly in line to claim the fifth spot in the rotation, the Minnesota Twins' roster is beginning to come into focus. Based on recent developments, rumblings around camp and general deduction, here's a final stab at projecting the 25 men who will head north in a week when the Twins head to Chicago to open their 2014 season. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] As always, names in red are the players who should be considered locks (barring injury) while the names in black are less certain. Catchers (3): Kurt Suzuki, Josmil Pinto, Chris Herrmann I'm not sure this is how it's going to come together, but it is looking like Pinto will make the roster because the Twins need his bat. If Ron Gardenhire elects to plug Pinto in at DH frequently against lefties -- which I think is a good idea -- he'll probably want Hermmann on the roster. Herrmann also provides additional outfield depth, and has performed well this spring. Infielders (5): Joe Mauer, Brian Dozier, Trevor Plouffe, Pedro Florimon, Eduardo Escobar I think Gardenhire would like to have Chris Colabello on the team, but it's going to be tough to fit him along with a third catcher. That might ultimately be one of the tougher choices the manager has to make. As for Jason Bartlett, it's clear that Gardy wants to keep him but I can't see any way to rationalize a no-hit utility man on the roster in addition to the backup infielder Escobar. Outfielders (5): Josh Willingham, Aaron Hicks, Oswaldo Arcia, Jason Kubel, Alex Presley Chris Parmelee is the victim of a roster squeeze, and could be lost because he's out of options. It simply doesn't make sense to carry both Kubel and Parmelee, and all indications are that Kubel is in. Starting Pitchers (5): Ricky Nolasco, Phil Hughes, Kevin Correia, Mike Pelfrey, Kyle Gibson Samuel Deduno is headed to the bullpen, and the final spot in the rotation will go to either Gibson or Scott Diamond. Several signs are pointing to Gibson as the winner in that competition, although the club might not make an official decision until after both hurlers make their final spring appearances on Tuesday. Bullpen (7): Glen Perkins, Jared Burton, Casey Fien, Brian Duensing, Anthony Swarzak, Samuel Deduno, Scott Diamond It sounds like Deduno is basically a lock to head to the bullpen, and he'll take on a middle reliever role while Swarzak slides into the later innings. The Twins don't want to risk losing Diamond for nothing, so if he's not the starter they'll probably keep him as a long reliever unless they can swing a trade. Assistant general manager Rob Antony noted on Friday that he doesn't see Diamond as a situational reliever because he isn't especially good against lefties. Michael Tonkin and Caleb Thielbar are the unlucky victims of circumstance here. Both are good enough, and have pitched well enough this spring, to be viewed as bullpen fixtures, but the Twins don't lose risking them by sending them to Triple-A. It will be nice to have these kind of reinforcements available in Rochester.

Another day, another (meaningless) spring loss. After falling to Masahiro Tanaka and the Yankees 5-4 on Saturday, the Twins are now 0-5 since I arrived in Ft. Myers on Monday, but fortunately the games don't start counting for another week. Dig into the bullet points below for notes on the Asian import, Kevin Correia's second-to-last spring start, an emerging option for the second spot in the lineup, and more. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] * The stadium and press box were both packed on Saturday afternoon with Tanaka and the Yankees visiting Hammond. The Japanese phenom tossed 5 2/3 innings for New York, allowing three runs on five hits while fanning six and walking one. "Fun to watch," Gardenhire said of Tanaka. "The ball had a lot of movement." Gardy complimented Tanaka's famed splitter and commented that his changeup (or "whatever that thing is") was diving down hard. "Looks like he's going to be a good one." * We had a chance to see the review system in action when New York manager Joe Girardi challenged a call that had Aaron Hicks sliding safely into second by maneuvering around a tag. After another look, the call was reversed. Girardi spent about a minute in discussions with the second base umpire before requesting a replay, but once the review process went into effect it was very fast. Forty-four seconds was all it took to get the call right. * Kevin Correia had a decent outing, as he became the first Twins pitcher to complete six innings in a Grapefruit League start. He held a Yankees lineup that included no starters outside of Brett Gardner scoreless outside of a rocky fourth in which four runs crossed. Of note: Correia has faced 50 batters this spring and struck out two. * Kurt Suzuki batted in the two-hole Saturday, marking the second straight time Gardenhire has placed the catcher there with his 'A' lineup. Nothing is set in stone, but prepare yourself to see a guy with a .282 on-base percentage over the last two years near the top of the order when the season starts. "I've got no problem with it," the manager said of batting Suzuki second. "I'm not going to sit here and tell you my lineup right now but I'm taking looks at all kinds of things… I don't think it's a bad fit." On the plus side, Suzuki doesn't strike out much -- only 11 percent of the time last year, which might be a reason Gardenhire is trying him there -- but if he hits anything like he has over the past few seasons he's a brutal choice for one of the most important spots in the lineup. * Pedro Florimon had a tough game. He failed to secure a couple ground balls that hit his glove (though neither was ruled an error) and struck out in all three of his trips to the plate, dropping his average to .091. "He wasn't getting his front foot down which is a bad sign for him," said Gardenhire. "It looked like he was really late on all the pitches." Nevertheless, one thing I've come to realize down here is that Florimon has a tight grip on the shortstop job. There's no competition for the position despite his late start to the spring, and right now Gardenhire is simply focused on getting him as much playing time as possible before the season gets underway. "We're working on trying to get him going here." * Today was my last at the ballpark, as I'll be flying back to Minnesota tomorrow. I've had a blast down here. It's been fun to put the journalist hat back on and brush up on some skills I haven't used much since college. Everyone here has been first-rate. Huge thanks to Twins staffers and fellow media folks who have all been very friendly and helpful. I'll be putting together a final roster projection either tonight or tomorrow morning, and then on Monday Parker (who was dubbed by Rob Antony as our "closer") will be arriving to bring us down the home stretch.

First, the most important news: Twins GM Terry Ryan was in the building today, the first time he's been present at Hammond all spring after being diagnosed with cancer in the offseason. Ryan was in good spirits during a 15-minute session with reporters, stating that he's "feeling pretty damn good right now." Ryan, who is only in town for a day and a half, said that he's been going to radiation five days a week, and that he will continue to do so for the next five weeks.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] For at least the first part of April, he will only be attending Twins home games. He expressed confidence that once he's past the radiation period he'll be ready to return in a full capacity. "I'm optimistic that things are heading in the right direction, there's no doubt about that," Ryan said. It was an extremely eventful day at the ballpark, so let's dive in to some notes: * Ron Gardenhire was unhappy with what he considered premature reports that the team has settled on Kyle Gibson as the fifth starter, insisting that no final decision has been made. Gardenhire and assistant general manager Rob Antony emphasized that Scott Diamond -- who will piggyback on Gibson's next start on Tuesday -- is still in the mix to round out the rotation. Antony did acknowledge that Samuel Deduno is likely headed for the bullpen. * Gardy on Vance Worley, who cleared waivers Friday and was outrighted to Triple-A Rochester: "He had a decent angle going here. As I told him the other day when I saw him in the bullpen, every pitch looks the same. I can't tell the difference between his fastball, his slider and his curveball -- they're all hard. When you do that, guys are on that." * The Twins fell to the Mets 9-1 on Friday, the second lopsided loss this week here at Hammond. On Tuesday it was 2013 Opening Day starter Worley who put the Twins in an early hole, and Friday it was 2014 Opening Day starter Ricky Nolasco. Nolasco's first inning was about as bad as could be. The right-hander yielded seven runs on six hits -- three doubles, a triple, a homer and a single -- while also hitting a batter and uncorking a wild pitch. Despite the awful results, Nolasco was relatively upbeat following the outing. "First inning was pretty terrible. I think I could've done better if I told them what was coming," he joked. "It's just spring training, whatever. You just bounce back. I thought I finished pretty decent the next two innings." That he did. Nolasco didn't allow a run or a hit in the second and third, although he did issue a couple walks. By all accounts he looked solid in his first three outings, in which he allowed only four runs in 11 innings, so I'm inclined to not put a ton of stock into this one. Still, he'll probably want to get back on track in his final Grapefruit start next week to gain a little steam before he opens the season for the Twins on March 31st. * Nolasco worked with catcher Josmil Pinto for the first time on Friday. He insisted that working with the young backstop had nothing to do with his struggles. "He did fine," said Nolasco. "He has nothing to do with the way I throw the ball." "He did a good job of trying to motivate me and get me back in there." * Pinto had another nice game offensively. He went 1-for-3 but one of his outs was a laser beam hit directly at the first baseman. You like to see that from a right-handed hitter; Pinto continues to impress with his ability to go the other way. "Pinto's doing just fine, doing everything we're asking," Ron Gardenhire said. "He works very hard. He's paying attention and studying the game pretty damn hard. He's a strong kid." * One day after Aaron Hicks went 4-for-4 in Port Charlotte to raise his spring average to .375, Alex Presley started in center field and finished 0-for-3, dropping his average to .147. He did have a walk and a stolen base, but he's been unable to get his bat going. We all know that decisions shouldn't be made solely on the basis of spring training stats, but Hicks is plainly the superior talent and he's backing it up. * Michael Tonkin is the best relief prospect in the organization, and he was outstanding once again while handling the sixth and seventh innings. Flashing a fastball that registered at 94-95 MPH, Tonkin induced plenty of weak contact while holding the Mets off the board. In 8 1/3 innings this spring, Tonkin has allowed only three hits and no runs. He deserves a spot in the Minnesota bullpen but I suspect that, if indeed Gibson is tabbed as fifth starter, the Twins will try and stick both Deduno and Diamond in the bullpen, leaving no room. If Tonkin opens in Rochester, he'll almost surely be the first righty reliever called up when a need arises. And he might immediately become the best one on the club. * It's going to be a zoo here at Hammond Stadium tomorrow, when Masahiro Tanaka and the Yankees roll through. Terry Ryan will be in attendance and said he's excited to see Tanaka pitch for the first time. As has been the case all month, Twins Daily will have all the action covered.

At the outset of camp, it appeared that Kyle Gibson had a very slim chance of claiming a spot in the Twins rotation. He struggled mightily in his major-league debut last year and, unlike his competition for the fifth starter spot, there was no outside urgency to keep him on the 25-man roster. Nevertheless, La Velle E. Neal III is reporting that the Twins have decided on Gibson as their fifth starter. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] This may come as a shock to some, because it isn't exactly business as usual for the Twins, who typically go out of their way to protect assets, but they've said all along that they wanted to bring the best pitcher north and that's what they're doing. Options and such aside, Gibson is the most talented of the pool. There have been several signs that this move was coming. I remarked last night that among the contenders to round out the rotation, Gibson was the only one who has completed five innings in a start. Earlier this morning, the Twins announced the pitchers that were lined up to start the next five Grapefruit games; Gibson was one of them, while Scott Diamond and Samuel Deduno were not. And then of course there was that smart guy Glen Perkins, who told me in the clubhouse on Tuesday not to sleep on Gibson in this race. According to Neal, Deduno will open the season in the Twins' bullpen, while Diamond's fate is unclear at this point.

"You want to work on your weaknesses, but you can't forget to work on your strengths." Wise words from Trevor Plouffe, and ones that can be forgotten amidst all the spring talk of ironing out wrinkles and fixing flaws. Plouffe knows the weaknesses that he needs to work on, but he's not forgetting about the strengths that have made him the Twins' principal third baseman for two years running. And the greatest of those strengths is… well, strength. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] He's a well-built specimen at 6'2" with muscular arms that become much more noticeable when he's standing by the batting practice shell in a spandex shirt. His cannon arm kept him at shortstop throughout the minors and is the main reason the Twins still believe in him at third base despite frequent frustrations with his reactions and footwork. His powerful bat famously helped him produce 18 homers over a 39-game stretch in the summer of 2012. That's a strength that the Twins would really like to see shine through this year, because there are serious questions about where the right-handed power in this lineup is going to come from. Josh Willingham is trying to bounce back from a tough knee injury at age 35, and I've heard multiple people down here comment that he's really looking his age. Aaron Hicks and Josmil Pinto have the potential to provide punch from the right side, but both are mostly unproven. It's Plouffe that looks to be the most reliable source of righty power. But how to recapture the magic that led to that crazy homer binge two years ago? "I just think that sometimes you go through streaks like that," he says. "Obviously everyone would like to prolong those and get in those as much as possible." "But the big thing for me is just pitch recognition, getting the pitch in my zone. That's something that comes with a good base and a good foundation so that's what we're working on here, getting myself in a good position to see the ball and be able to turn on the ball and also take it the other way." Of course, it's going to help if he can improve his overall game, so that's also been a focus for the 27-year-old. He's excited to have Paul Molitor added to the coaching staff and says he's making the most of that opportunity. "Coming in this spring I knew I needed to get in here and work with Molitor, because he's a guy that you can pick his brain and learn a lot of different things." Plouffe has been attacking some particular areas of his fielding game and feels good about where he's at. "Specifically I guess just angles at third base, pre-pitch setup that gets you in a good position to move. I think I've made some big strides there." The Twins are hoping so, because their best fallback plan at the hot corner is no longer in the mix. Miguel Sano is gone all year, and his presence in the stands on a minor-league field the other day with a giant cast on his right arm served as a sobering reminder of that. Does the delayed arrival of the elite power-hitting prospect, whose immense strength overshadows even Plouffe's, serve to relieve some pressure for the incumbent? He says no. "I don't think there was ever really any pressure," Plouffe opines. "I'm going to prepare the same way. I'm not wanting him to be injured, I'm wanting him to do well and come help our team out." That's not going to happen this year anymore, so it falls on Plouffe to hold down the position, and to infuse this shaky lineup with some badly needed pop. So far this spring, he's hitting just .229/.325/.257, but he's also an example of how the statistics down here can be deceiving. I've seen him hit into several unlucky outs in the games I've watched, including Thursday night when two well struck liners to straightaway center ended up in the fielder's mitt. On the bright side, he has drawn five walks in 40 plate appearances, suggesting some improvement in another area of weakness. Last year Plouffe walked only 34 times in 522 trips for a 6.5 percent rate that was nearly identical to, for example, notorious hacker Carlos Gomez. Improved patience will certainly help Plouffe round out his offensive game and get him back to seeing the pitches that he can drive over the wall, allowing his greatest strength to carry him once again.

The Twins made the short trip up to Port Charlotte Thursday night to take on the Rays. Scott Diamond, making his case for the fifth spot in the rotation, faced the same team that effectively knocked Vance Worley out of the running two nights earlier. The Twins fell 5-4, their third loss in three tries since I arrived in Florida on Monday. There were a few interesting tidbits to be gleaned from the contest so let's dive in. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] * Diamond looked quite good through the first four innings. He was attacking the lower part of the zone and inducing tons of ground balls -- exactly what the Twins are looking for from him. Then, in the fifth, he lost his command, walking three batters to load the bases before Ron Gardenhire removed him with one out. Brian Duensing entered in relief and allowed all three runs to score, inflating Diamond's spring ERA to 5.79. Was stamina the issue? That would be troubling. Between Diamond, Worley, Samuel Deduno and Kyle Gibson, only Gibson has completed five innings in a spring start. We're 10 days away from the season opener. * Tropicana Field, the Rays' regular-season home, is widely viewed as one of the worst stadiums in the majors, but I found no reason to complain about their spring training venue. Charlotte Sports Park is a small but charming facility, offering intimate views from all around the field. Following the walkway beyond the outfield walls, you can look over the railing on one side for a close view of the bullpens, and on the other side to find a nice scenic pond. The park also hosts the organization's High-A affiliate and is less than an hour and a half away from Tampa. Pretty cool setup for Rays fans. * The Twins offense looked stagnant again on Thursday, failing to score for the first seven innings before finally breaking out with a few RBI singles against Jake Odorizzi in the eighth and ninth. It was the third straight day we've seen the Minnesota lineup struggle to put anything together. Gardenhire seems exasperated. Although the ride to Port Charlotte isn't a long one (certainly compared to Jupiter) it's rare to see a manager take so many projected regulars on a bus trip. He's playing around with his lineup and in this game he tried out Kurt Suzuki in the No. 2 spot. That's an uninspired choice (Suzuki has a .282 OBP over the last two years) but it's not like Gardy has a lot of options at this point. * One bright spot in the game offensively was Aaron Hicks, who went 4-for-4. In his first at-bat he cranked a liner over Desmond Jennings' head in center and would have had a double if he hadn't slipped rounding first. In his next at-bat he got his double, sending a one-hopper over the wall down the left field line. Both knocks came from the right side, where his swing has always looked quite a bit better. He did add two more singles from the left side. Hicks is now hitting .375 this spring, so based on performance he's blowing away Alex Presley (.161). Of course, Hicks also hit .370 last spring. One approach that Gardenhire might consider in center, early on, is a timeshare of sorts. Give Hicks all the starts against lefties while getting Presley into the lineup frequently versus righties, against whom he's much stronger. As the season progresses, and Hicks (hopefully) hits and gains confidence, transition him more and more into a full-time role.

The vibe down here in Ft. Myers is that the pitching will definitely improve this year. Although Vance Worley's ugly outing on Tuesday may still be fresh in your mind, various coaches and media types have commented on how sharp guys like Phil Hughes, Mike Pelfrey and Ricky Nolasco have looked. Kyle Gibson and Samuel Deduno have both been cruising. There's less confidence that this club is going to score enough runs. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Last year, the Twins tallied 614 runs to rank 13th in the American League. While they made large investments in the pitching staff during the offseason, their moves to address the offense amounted to getting rid of Justin Morneau ad Ryan Doumit -- who ranked second and third on the team in homers with 17 and 14 -- and bringing in a few rebound candidates on minor-league deals, along with light-hitting catcher Kurt Suzuki. Losing the possibility of a midseason impact from Miguel Sano hurts. In order to field a decent lineup, the Twins are counting on several players to either bounce back from down years (Josh Willingham, Jason Kubel, Aaron Hicks) or take the next step (Trevor Plouffe, Oswaldo Arcia, Josmil Pinto). That's not necessarily a reliable recipe for success. So let's get creative and take a look at some things the Twins could do to boost their offensive potential. Dozier Back to Short? It's been discussed before but can't be ignored. Brian Dozier played shortstop almost exclusively while coming up through the minors, and after a brief stint there in the majors in 2012, he was moved over to second base, where he has excelled. Yet, the Twins have some second basemen coming up through the minors who can hit. Eddie Rosario will be back from his suspension in a couple months, and Jorge Polanco figures to start this season in High-A. At shortstop, there's less to be enthused about going forward. Projected starter Pedro Florimon is essentially a lock to turn in an OPS around .600, and despite all the spring hype surrounding Danny Santana, he has a .712 career OPS in the minors and is erratic defensively. How nice would it be to slide Dozier -- who led the club in homers with 18 last year -- over to short, and finally have an offensive threat at the position for the first time since J.J. Hardy's departure? I asked Dozier about that possibility on Wednesday, and he insisted he's "extremely comfortable at second." However, he didn't say he'd rule out such an idea. "Obviously if they (Gardenhire and Terry Ryan) came to me and wanted me to play another position I'd be all ears," he said. "But for now I'm strictly second." Clearly Dozier would be a defensive downgrade from Florimon, and until Rosario is ready there's not even an obvious replacement available at second base. But it's a lot easier to find guys who can hit there than at shortstop, and from my view Dozier didn't look terrible defensively at short when he first came up. Ultimately, the Twins might have to make some hard choices and figure out what they're willing to sacrifice to improve the offense. Utilizing Pinto Initially my thought was that if Josmil Pinto wasn't going to be the regular starter at catcher, the Twins would be best served sending him to Triple-A so he can get regular at-bats. Now, I'm starting to think that they'd be better off keeping him in the majors and finding a way to get his potent bat into the lineup as much as possible. The best approach might be having Pinto start at catcher a couple times a week -- something like a 40/60 time share with Kurt Suzuki -- and having him fill in at DH against righties. This would help out with another key objective: Shielding Kubel From Lefties Asked about how he's felt facing lefties this spring, Jason Kubel said it's "coming along." But you can't ignore the numbers; the 31-year-old has had a rough go against southpaws over the course of his career and it's been especially bad lately. The Twins will be best off maximizing Kubel's greatest strength -- hitting righties -- and minimizing his greatest weakness. Whether that means platooning him with Pinto or someone like Chris Colabello, it'd be nice to see Gardenhire find a workable solution. Finding a Backup Infielder With a Stick After starting his spring with a mind-boggling 0-for-26 slump, Jason Bartlett finally got his first hit on Wednesday. Clearly the veteran's inability to so much as sneak a grounder through the infield or drop in a bloop single over so many plate appearances was a bit of a fluke, but there's not much reason to believe his offensive struggles in general have been a mirage. This is a guy who sat out last year after hitting .241/.310/.317 from 2010 through 2012. I didn't really expect the Twins to make any big offensive additions during the offseason but was disappointed that they didn't add an established bat to the infield mix. There will surely be some intriguing names hitting the waiver wire here as spring training winds down, and it won't be hard to find a guy with more punch than Bartlett. As things stand, the Twins are heavily relying on Dozier and Plouffe to provide production in the infield, and if one should fail or get injured, there's not much to fall back on. Signing Kendrys Morales Over the last two seasons, Morales has hit 45 homers and driven in 153 runs. Willingham is the only player on the Twins roster who can match either of those numbers, and it's solely because of his big 2012 campaign. I'm not convinced that Morales is worth giving up a draft pick to sign, but he's still sitting in free agency and would probably come pretty cheap. What are your ideas to deliver a jolt to this lineup? Share in the comments section.

* The Twins' lineup on Tuesday looked an awful lot like one we might see in the regular season, and that makes sense since we're less than two weeks from Opening Day and everyone was rested following a rainout on Monday. I asked Ron Gardenhire after the game if we should make anything out of Alex Presley's presence in center field with this group of potential regulars. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] "Gotta play everybody," he said, downplaying any significance. "Gotta see how they do against lefties, that's why he was out there tonight." From my view, Aaron Hicks should still be viewed as the favorite to win the job, especially since Darin Mastroianni isn't a factor and Wilkin Ramirez is less-than-ideal as the sole CF backup. But keep in mind that Hicks missed time with an injury this spring and hasn't yet shown that he can dominate Triple-A pitching. I know a lot of fans scoff at the notion of Presley in the lineup to start the season, but he's proven to be a decent hitter in the majors. Just because he's not the most exciting choice doesn't make him the wrong choice, at least not initially. Remember: even if Hicks starts in Rochester, he's only a phone call away. * For what it's worth, Rob Antony offered up a pretty frank assessment of the battle between Hicks and Presley for the center field job: "Hicks hasn’t been anything special this spring. Neither has Presley. There’s your center field battle." * Rather than follow Gardenhire and Co. on the three-hour trip to Jupiter, I stayed back in Ft. Myers today to chat with some of the remaining players and watch Mike Pelfrey, Glen Perkins and Jared Burton throw on the minor-league side. They all looked fine. * Also in the stands for the Single-A game that featured Burton and Perkins was a familiar smiling face. Miguel Sano, exactly one week removed from his Tommy John surgery, was shouting encouragement in Spanish and joking with friends. As you can see, he's sporting a massive cast on his right arm: * You can see some more newly uploaded photos from around the complex over at the Twins Daily Facebook page. Make sure to give us a "Like" to follow all the action! * In Jupiter, Kyle Gibson started against the Cardinals and was outstanding, allowing just one run on a solo homer over 4 1/3 innings. He struck out four and walked none, inducing seven ground ball outs. Samuel Deduno came on in the sixth and cruised through two innings before running into some trouble in the eighth, when he allowed a couple runs on two doubles and two walks. His ERA this spring still sits at 2.19. Deduno still hasn't made a start or pitched more than three innings in an outing this spring, so it seems like he's destined for the bullpen. Based on performance, and talent, Gibson should probably be the leading contender in the battle for the fifth rotation spot, but I still have a hard time seeing it. The Twins simply don't have much to lose by sending him to Rochester for a few weeks. That said, Scott Diamond has to be feeling a little pressure as he prepares to take the mound against the Rays in Port Charlotte tomorrow night.

It was only a minor-league start against Single-A hitters, but still the reviews of Phil Hughes on Tuesday were glowing. "I thought he looked really good, really sharp," said assistant GM Rob Antony. "Hughesy threw the [expletive] out of the ball," said Ron Gardenhire. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] There's a palpable buzz surrounding Hughes this spring. If you ask anyone who's been down here for positive signs they've seen in a camp that has featured its fair share of negative ones, the newly acquired free agent is sure to be among the first names mentioned. Sure, Hughes has put up good numbers -- he tossed six scoreless frames Tuesday and has allowed just one earned run in 8 2/3 innings over three Grapefruit League starts -- but what matters is how he's looked while putting up those numbers. And by all accounts he has looked great. The velocity on the fastball is there. The curveball is moving well and hitting its spots. Opposing hitters are walking away shaking their heads. "He hides the ball well and can move it all over the place with a really nice, sharp breaking ball," Gardenhire said. Although Ricky Nolasco was the banner signing of the offseason, Hughes was the one that stood out most to me. When you can get a 27-year-old former top prospect with major-league success in his track record on a three-year deal at a relatively modest salary, it's a coup even if he's coming off a down season. While Nolasco, at 31, is at an age where decline could soon become a factor, Hughes is in the midst of what is considered his physical prime. He's only 16 months older than Kyle Gibson, and the hope is that those two can become mainstays in a rebuilt rotation that might finally experience some year-to-year stability. The Twins also hope that Hughes can be part of the pitching staff's transition away from absurdly heavy contact tendencies. Last year Twins starters struck out only 12.4 percent of opposing batters. That's the lowest number for any MLB team since 2006 and it left the club with almost no chance of success in run prevention. Over the last four seasons, Hughes has struck out 19 percent of the batters he's faced. You can tell by watching him that he attacks and looks for the punch-out, especially with two strikes. While his K-rates are about average by MLB standards, he should help the Twins move the needle solidly in the right direction. It's been said before, but the move out of New York -- away from hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium and the power-packed AL East -- figures to benefit Hughes immensely. He's the kind of high-upside free agent play I've long yearned to see from the Twins. Will it work out? Impossible to say at this point. But the signs are very positive.