With TwinsFest behind me, I feel the anticipation of Twins Spring Training creating a big knot in my stomach. It's not necessarily a bad knot, but I am definitely feeling anxious as we roll out of the winter rumors and into spring announcements and try-outs.
One of the topics weighing heavily on my mind is definitely the pitching staff of the Minnesota Twins. Now, I know we have one of the best pitchers in baseball with Santana, but I feel like the "Ace" is all we've got. The Twins starting rotation is faced with plenty of big scary question marks. With Radke retired and Liriano out hurt, the Twins need to find some "innings-eaters," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "Some pitchers to help fill the void left by Radke and Liriano." So far, the the Twins have signed former Orioles star Sidney Ponson to a Minor League deal and veteran Ramon Ortiz to a one-year deal and an opportunity to take one of the top spots in the rotation. Now, I am not a pitching expert, but I am not ready to put my faith into this Ortiz character. It's been a rough past two years in the National League for Ortiz, who has gone 20-27 with a 5.47 ERA - ouch, that's not necessarily a King to go with our Ace. I am not convinced that Ponson is any better, he is definitely a long shot. I think Twins pitching coach, Rick Anderson, is definitely going to have his work cut out for him!
Besides those two, Anderson will have to continue to work on Carlos Silva and Boof Bonser.
It was a difficult '06 season for Silva, who struggled to find his sinker and couldn't be the consistent arm the club needed him to be. For Boof, '06 was a season filled with a lot of ups and downs. He tried to make his mark in the big leagues, but it was a roller-coaster ride that finished on a high note. Boof was my fantasy pick last year and he proved to be a pretty solid guy - I hope this season is a more smooth ride, though!
Ron Gardenhire knows that pitching is going to be a challenge for the Twins this year. I hope Gardy takes the pitching voids seriously, because it's hard to win the baseball poker game when you only have one Ace...
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