Nick Nelson

Many were frustrated when the Twins signed Kevin Correia to a multi-year contract in December of 2012. It wasn't the price -- $10 million over two years is a fair rate for a No. 5 starter. It was the fact that, after a 99-loss season in which the rotation was terrible, their biggest offseason signing was a No. 5 starter. To his credit, unlike so many free agents, Correia came as advertised, and maybe a little better. He's been completely healthy in his two seasons with the Twins and has posted a 4.40 ERA. While below average, that's not a terrible mark for the guy at the tail end of your rotation. Of course, Correia hasn't really functioned as the fifth starter. He's been the one stable yet mediocre piece in a starting corps that has been baseball's worst over the past two seasons. He has given the Twins innings, but that's about where his value ends. Or is it? WHY TRADE HIM Because, why not? There's some talk that the Twins need to make room for prospects like Trevor May and Alex Meyer, but I doubt finding space will be a problem whether or not Correia's here. Nevertheless, the Twins are basically out of contention and while Correia might be marginally better than the alternative who would fill his spot, such as Yohan Pino or Kris Johnson or Logan Darnell, the Twins gain more from looking at anyone with a potential future in Minnesota at this point. WHY KEEP HIM Because it's possible that nobody else wants him. Correia has a 4.76 ERA this year at a time where the league average is around 4.00. Teams at the top of their divisions will aim higher in searching for impact arms at the deadline. The type of club Correia might appeal to is one that is more on the fringe of the playoff picture and looking to simply add stability to the back end of its rotation without spending much. WHO NEEDS HIM It's tough to find competitive teams for whom Correia would provide a clear, meaningful upgrade. The Yankees could use some pitching help but Correia is not a fit in that park. You could maybe look at the Indians, who have been juggling young arms with varying success. There are a couple teams in the National League that could have some interest. But the bottom line is that the market will be thin, and it will be very much a "take what you can get" situation. SUMMARY If the Twins can receive anything of even modest value for the 33-year-old vet, they'd have to be pleased. I would expect nothing more than a low-upside mid-level prospect, but Terry Ryan has had a knack for fishing hidden gems out of other organizations in the past. It will be interesting to see if he can find a buyer within the next week.

Sponsored by Ticket King The forecast for the next few days calls for highs in the 80s and 90s, with a lot of sun. Hot days will give way to warm nights while sunlight glows well past suppertime.Sorry for waxing poetic, but… July in Minnesota. There's hardly anything better. Remember when going to catch a ballgame meant filing into a stuffy Dome and missing out on these glorious summer nights? It wasn't so long ago. Weeks like this are what Target Field was built for. There is an added level of baseball drama -- that being the team's desperate need to embark on a "miraculous run." Getting swept by the last-place Rays was a disastrous start to a crucially important homestand. Now, the reeling Twins need to damn near win out in the next two series to avoid being irrelevant at the trade deadline. Here's what Terry Ryan said at the start of the season: Unless they start winning fast, the Twins are going to fall short of that relatively modest goal. There's really no margin for error left after this past weekend. They're going to have their work cut out for them. Here Come the Indians This team is hot. Cleveland hasn't lost a series since June, and just took three of four from the Tigers in Detroit to move within 5 1/2 games of first place. The Indians' success has been driven, in large part, by intriguing young arms, and we'll see a few on display at Target Field this week. The Twins will counter with… well, that's not 100 percent clear. Let's take a look at the match-ups and see which game might be the best ticket during a hot summer week at Target Field. Monday, 7:10 PM: T.J. House vs. Kris Johnson Forecast: Mostly sunny, high of 93 The bad news is that Johnson hasn't looked very good in either of his two starts for the Twins; he failed to complete five innings in both. The good news is that the rookie House hasn't been great either -- especially on the road where he's 0-2 with a 4.79 ERA and 1.56 WHIP. If the Twins can get a decent outing from Johnson, who had a 2.75 ERA in Triple-A before being called up, they'll stand a good chance of coming away with a win in the series opener. Search for seats in the shade because the sun will likely be hot in the early innings. Tuesday, 7:10 PM: Danny Salazar vs. ??? Forecast: Partly cloudy, high of 84 Salazar has an electric arm, and he racks up tons of strikeouts but is susceptible to the long ball. He was sent to the minors in May with a 5.53 ERA, but he's making his return now after a strong run at Triple-A. If the Twins have announced anywhere who they plan to have starting on Tuesday night, I haven't seen it. It might be Yohan Pino, who's been decent enough in his last couple starts in the majors and is on track after pitching in Triple-A Thursday, but he issued seven walks in that outing. Yuck. Trevor May pitched on Saturday, so he'd be on short rest, but he was removed from that start after three innings and 47 pitches. Hmm... It would be something if May gets the nod. "No pressure kid, we just really, really need to win. Like, really bad." Wednesday, 12:10 PM: Trevor Bauer vs. Kyle Gibson Forecast: Partly cloudy, high of 80 This is the stand-out pitching match-up, from my view. Bauer is the uber-talented young right-hander that Cleveland acquired in the Shin-Soo Choo deal. He has looked good in 13 starts, turning in a 3.89 ERA and 75-to-28 K/BB ratio over 78 innings. Gibson has, of course, been very hot-and-cold, alternating between clunkers and gems. He has faced the Tribe twice this year and has allowed only one run total in 12 innings. This should be a good tilt on what figures to be a beautiful Wednesday afternoon, and is my choice for best ticket of the series, though you might need to play hooky from work to attend. If you want to cheer on the Twins and enjoy some great weather at Target Field, you'll have the opportunity to do so at a pretty reasonable price this week. Monday's game has plenty of tickets available for under 10 bucks. On Tuesday I see some tickets for $16 in the Home Run Porch, which might be a cool spot to sit with the homer-prone Salazar on the hill. And if you can make it out to the day game on Wednesday, there are some good deals available for lower-deck seats. All are an even better deal if you use the promo code DAILYDOUBLE, which will get you 10% off and supports Twins Daily. Whatever your needs, your local ticket broker, Ticket King, can help.

As the Twins put the All-Star Game behind them and gear up for the final 68 games on the schedule, they face much uncertainty. They're only six games below .500 -- a marked improvement from recent years -- and although they trail the Tigers by 10.5 games in the Central, they are within seven games of a wild-card spot. While it's nice to be in a spot where contention is a feasible scenario, we've got to keep in mind that the Twins are still behind seven other AL clubs in the wild-card race and -- more importantly -- they just aren't a great team. Not right now, anyway. As such, the focus needs to be on taking steps to build that great team for next year and beyond. This means auditioning young talents here in the final months, and making decisions on which current players are going to be a part of the long-term picture. Below, we'll take a look at the case for extending the contracts of four different players who deserve consideration for various reasons. KURT SUZUKI He represented the Twins at Tuesday's All-Star Game, and will almost certainly go down as one of the most successful free agent signings in franchise history. Should the Twins keep him around going forward? Why they should: Suzuki has been very solid offensively. He leads all AL catchers in batting average (.309) and on-base percentage (.365) and his impressive approach at the plate -- signified by a 25/23 K/BB ratio -- makes it easier to believe that his success is legit despite poor numbers over the past four years. Why they shouldn't: A 30-year-old who is enjoying a career season on a one-year deal is typically a guy you try to trade. His .760 OPS has been largely dependent on his ability to hit singles, and that skill hasn't always manifested in the past and probably won't going forward if his current .328 BABIP slinks back toward his career mark of .274. My Take: NO DEAL. I believe that the future of this team at catcher is Josmil Pinto. While Suzuki would be a nice backup to have around, I somehow doubt he'll be interested in being paid like one considering that he made the All-Star team as a starter this season. The Twins did very well to buy low on the backstop during the offseason, but it'd be a mistake to re-up now with his value (perhaps artificially) high. KENDRYS MORALES Morales' agent, Scott Boras, told ESPN 1500's Darren Wolfson this week that his client is open to a long-term deal with the Twins, which is unsurprising considering that Boras tried fruitlessly to score a multi-year contract for Morales during the offseason and won't have an easier time doing so this winter if his client's bat doesn't wake up. Why they should: Although Morales has gotten off to a slow start, with an ugly .582 OPS through 33 games, he has a long track record of hitting and would give the Twins a veteran building block in the lineup as they gradually add young talent around him. Plus, given his current situation and his probable aversion to another offseason of frustrating uncertainty, they could perhaps strike a pretty good bargain. Why they shouldn't: Morales is 31 and not in the greatest of shape. His bat looks slow right now, and it's hard to tell how much that's attributable to rust. Since Joe Mauer will be holding down first base for the foreseeable future, Morales would be essentially limited to designated hitter here, and that's a pretty easy spot to fill. My Take: DEAL. I'm probably in the minority on this but I trust Morales to return to his solid-hitting ways and I like the idea of having a proven veteran run producer (who happens to be Latin) at the heart of the order while young international players like Oswaldo Arcia, Miguel Sano, Kennys Vargas and Jorge Polanco try to find their way. I'd look into a two-year, $15 million extension, or something along those lines. JOSH WILLINGHAM The Twins got an excellent deal on Willingham when they originally signed him before the 2012 season, and his 57 homers since joining the club lead all Minnesota players. He's set to become a free agent after this year; can the Twins afford to lose his slugging skills? Why they should: Willingham's 2013 campaign was ruined by injury, but he has rebounded this season at age 35. Despite missing some time with a wrist injury and batting only .212, the outfielder is on track to finish with an above-average OPS for the eighth time in his nine big-league seasons. His eight homers rank second on the team even though he's been limited to 49 games. Why they shouldn't: Willingham was a slow mover when he got here and his foot speed has only declined due to age and knee problems. The Twins need to get faster in the outfield, and they're also pretty well stocked with outfield prospects. My Take: NO DEAL. Giving a multi-year contract to a guy on the wrong side of 35 is almost always a bad idea, and while he can still crush the ball Willingham has been showing his age in a variety of ways. BRIAN DOZIER Dozier enters the contract extension conversation for very different reasons than the three guys above, who are all on the verge of free agency. Dozier is under control through 2018, so a long-term deal is a matter of cost certainty and perhaps buying out a year or two of his free agency. Why they should: Dozier just keeps getting better, and at a rapid pace. In his breakout 2013 season, he hit 18 homers, stole 14 bases and drew 51 walks; this year, he has already matched or surpassed all of those totals at the All-Star break. He ranks fourth among AL second basemen in OPS (.777) despite a .242 batting average that has been suppressed by a .257 BABIP. The Twins could probably save themselves some money in the long run by getting a deal done very soon. Why they shouldn't: He's already become a great player, and it's just hard to imagine that he's going to be able to keep improving. At age 27, it seems fair to expect that this season and perhaps his next few will be his best, and the Twins have the luxury of getting those pretty cheaply. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to unnecessarily commit to paying him a huge salary in five years at this point, and as one of the best infielders in the game right now Dozier would have the right to command it. My Take: NO DEAL. I just don't see much urgency. I like the idea of Dozier being a lifelong Twin, because he's a hell of a player and also a very likable/marketable guy, but it seems more logical to approach a long-term deal once he has reached his arbitration years. That might cost the Twins a little more, but they won't likely be hurting for cash any time soon. What do you think? Would you extend any of these four? Are there other names (Trevor Plouffe, Kevin Correia, Casey Fien) that you would add to the conversation? Sound off the comments section.

As I write this, I'm feeling pretty giddy. I just got done watching Glen Perkins pitch to Kurt Suzuki in the ninth inning of the All-Star Game, closing out a victory for the American League in Derek Jeter's final hurrah. Admittedly I don't usually get too worked up about pageantry of the so-called Midsummer Classic, but with my lifelong city being showcased -- and with our site holding an event downtown -- I couldn't help but get drawn in this year. Boy, was I impressed. With the exception of some sourpusses who actually forced MLB to publicly apologize for having the gall to set off fireworks during an event that takes place here once every three decades, the city of Minneapolis had a good showing under the national spotlight. And so too, did the Minnesota Twins. The organization doesn't get credit for much these days -- the nature of three straight losing seasons and counting -- but these last few days have been a reminder that they've got some good people in place. Running a baseball club is about a lot more than trades and free agents, and the Twins excel in many of those less-publicized areas. Their world class ballpark, which was universally acclaimed by out-of-towners during the All-Star activities, is a shining example of that. There have been some pretty incendiary and harsh things written about the Twins in recent weeks, here and elsewhere -- what with the team in last place, Joe Mauer on the shelf during a miserable season and Ricky Nolasco thus far shaping up as an epic free agent bust. It reached a point here where a moderator had to preemptively warn people not to launch into negative tirades in the comments section of last week's post entitled "Happy Notes." Believe it or not, people in the front office do pay attention and notice this stuff. It's not lost on them that people are frustrated. They are frustrated too, trust me. I'm no evangelist for the group that's currently in place -- in fact, according to Twin Cities Business Magazine's Adam Platt, I'm "one of the team's sharper critics in the blogosphere" (really?) -- yet they've still been pretty nice to me, along with my colleagues at Twins Daily. The Twins are ahead of the national curve in terms of granting access to and accommodating independent digital media, recognizing the dedicated and adamant readership. Jack Goin, a prominent member of the baseball operations team and a guy with a voice in Terry Ryan's ear, has shown up at Twins Daily and engaged with readers on multiple occasions, most recently last week. They know that the readers here, and at other fan sites, are invested in the product. They do care what you think. I believe that's commendable. I'm all about accountability. I have no problem criticizing the team; I've done so plenty this year and you can believe it'll continue if things don't head in a positive direction in these final months. But I'm also about balance, and with all the vitriol that sometimes fills the comments section here and elsewhere, it seemed appropriate to dole out some healthy praise for the organization after doing a bang-up job hosting baseball's signature summer event. From the strong showings of three top Twins prospects in the Futures Game, to the majestic rainbow that made for an unbelievable view during Monday night's Home Run Derby, to Perkins and Suzuki closing out one of the chillier All-Star Games in memory (of course), the three-day gala could have hardly gone better if it were scripted. And although the game on Tuesday night was almost meaningless, it was pretty cool to see Target Field packed with riveted fans as Perk pulled off the flawless finish. When talking to FOX's Ken Rosenthal after the game, he compared it to a playoff atmosphere. Unfortunately, since his rise has coincided almost exactly with the team's fall, Perkins hasn't had a chance to pitch in a playoff game at Target Field. But with the team showing unprecedented aggressiveness on the market, and with the heralded wave of prospects finally reaching the high levels of the minors, perhaps that day isn't too far off. I just hope that, when Perkins slams the door shut on his first postseason game, folks around downtown don't complain about the celebratory fireworks.

Last year, when the Twins reached the All-Star break, they were 14 games below .500 and 12 games back in the AL Central. In 2012, they had entered the break at 13 games below .500, and 11 games back in the division. Against that backdrop, their present standing -- 44-50 and 10.5 games behind the first-place Tigers -- looks downright palatable. The Twins had firmly established their irrelevance by the end of July after crumbling around the break in each of the past two seasons, and a week ago it appeared that they were caught in the exact same downward spiral once again. Yet they rebounded to win five of their last six games and a soft schedule following the All-Star Game could help the team set itself up much more favorably as it enters the latter portion of this season. The Twins will open their unofficial second half with a 10-game homestand, in which they'll be facing teams that are all close to them in the W/L column. Two of those teams (Cleveland and Chicago) are just ahead of them in the Central, giving Minnesota a solid opportunity to escape last place. A good run here isn't going to suddenly put the Twins in position to surge and capture the division, and it probably won't bring them especially close to a wild-card spot, but that was never the realistic mission. The mission -- and likely the standard by which Ron Gardenhire, his staff and perhaps the front office will be chiefly evaluated -- is improvement. Here at the break, they have an improved record compared to the past couple years, but that's meaningless. What matters is how they finish. The complete shut-down in the final months has been a recurring theme over the past three seasons, and a heck of a frustrating one at that. Sure, the late-season losses have helped the Twins accumulate a lot of high draft picks, but ending each year on such a sour note, with few enduring positives to cling to, takes a toll on the fan base. The Twins are determined to avoid a repeat this year, and that's good to see. They've been more proactive with making moves, and they've been spending money (with varying results). To me, the increased efforts to hasten this stalled out rebuilding process are quite apparent. While that's all good to see, hopefully the Twins won't let their resolve to stay afloat and finish better cloud their priorities as the trade deadline approaches. There's really no question that this team needs to be a seller, but playing that role does not equate to waving a white flag. If the Twins are to shake their post-break demons and finish respectably for a change, it needs to be on the shoulders of players who are either young or under contract long-term. Even if the team can stay hot and approach .500 over the next couple weeks, you'd hope the big picture will remain clear, and that guys like Kurt Suzuki, Josh Willingham and Kevin Correia will still be made available, albeit for meager returns. Much like the exhibition that took place at Target Field on Sunday, the rest of the Twins' season is about the future. That doesn't mean it isn't about winning, but they need to find success that is driven by players like Josmil Pinto, Oswaldo Arcia and Trevor May, not aging veterans with expiring contracts. Need some pizza to munch on while watching Brian Dozier and Justin Morneau compete in tonight's Home Run Derby? Since the Twins closed out their first half with a win on Sunday, you can get half off your L or XL pizza from PapaJohns.com with the promo code 'TWINSWIN'!