Minnesota Twins

Contributor: Dan Carey, mvn.com/mlb-twins and mvn.com/mma

2007 Record: 79-83

2007 Summary: The Twins had their worst year under Manager Ron Gardenhire as they finished below .500 for the first time under Gardenhire. Like likes of Nick Punto, Michael Cuddyer, Joe Mauer, and Justin Morneau had regressions in performance after break out years in 2006. These key players having down years lead to a poor offensive showing in 2007.

While some in the lineup regressed, pitcher Scott Baker seemingly found his stride as he broke through in the second half of the season even almost throwing a perfect game. While Baker found his stride, Johan Santana had an "off-year" in '07 which would turn out to be his last season as a Twin. Santana barley finished above .500 as he seemingly packed it in the second half of the season.

Joining Baker in the breakout year department was reliever Pat Neshek. Neshek had a great 2007 as he fooled hitters with his awkward delivery. Even though Neshek had a great season, even he wore down during the last quarter of the season with the rest of the 2007 Twins.

2008 Key Additions: LF Delmon Young, 3B Mike Lamb, RHP Livan Hernandez, 2B Brandon Harris, SS Adam Everett, CF Carlos Gomez, CF Jason Pridie

2008 Key Losses: LHP Johan Santana, CF Torii Hunter, SS Jason Bartlett, RHP Matt Garza, RHP Carlos Silva

2008 Twins Starting Lineup:
1. Carlos Gomez CF
2. Joe Mauer C
3. Michael Cuddyer RF
4. Justin Morneau 1B
5. Delmon Young LF
6. Jason Kubel DH
7. Mike Lamb 3B
8. Brendan Harris 2B
9. Adam Everett SS

2008 Twins Starting Rotation: Livan Hernandez, Boof Bonser, Scott Baker, Francisco Liriano, Nick Blackburn

2008 Twins Closer: Joe Nathan

2008 MVP: Delmon Young- Entering his first year in a Twins uniform, Young should be on the verge of a breakout season and be a great compliment to Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer.

The Twins will be successful if: The rotation pitches half way decent. With the loss of superstar Johan Santana and innings eater Carlos Silva, the Twins are going to have to dig into the fountain of youth and rely on young pitchers Boof Bonser, Scott Baker, and either Nick Blackburn or Kevin Slowey for the number five spot. The Twins must also rely heavily on Francisco Liriano who in returning after a season on the shelf due to Tommy John surgery. The Twins don't need Liriano to pitch like he did in 2006 but rather need to him pitch consistently.

2008 Season Prediction: The Twins are expected to not be in contention for the first time since 2002 as 2008 will be the first year of a "rebuilding" period. While the offense may be better than 2007, the rotation is the question for 2008. The Twins will be able to score a good amount of runs but will lose a lot of high scoring games due to the rotation. Expect the Twins to compete for a good amount of the season but end up in third behind the Cleveland Indians and Detroit Tigers.

Standings Prediction:
1. Cleveland Indians
2. Detroit Tigers
3. Minnesota Twins
4. Chicago White Sox
5. Kansas City Royals