In Ryan We Trust by David Jensen

With the dawning of a new baseball season, hope stretches out before us like a boundless highway. Even fans in Pittsburgh and Kansas City are lining up for post-season priority. Now that the regular season is upon us, it draws to a close one of the best parts of the game, the hot stove; where GMs wheel, deal, and out-maneuver their colleagues, then must wait months or several seasons to see how they did. Some moves are heralded as boons for the franchise. The Red Sox signing Daisuke Matsuzaka, or the Twins signing Luis Castillo bring optimism and joy. Others bring a mix of relief and apprehension. (See everything the Cubs did the last two winters.) Then there are those that make grown men cry. (Gil Meche is getting how much?)
How did the Twins do this year? We said goodbye to Ruben Sierra, Shannon Stewart, Phil Nevin, and J.D. "The Real Deal" Durbin. As usual, they did very little in the free agent market. The biggest signing would be that of Brewers cast-off Jeff Cirillo to a 1 year, $1.5 million contract with an incentives package. Sydney Ponson signed a minor league deal. Also signed to a minor league contract was former Twin Matthew LeCroy. LeCroy was with the Washington Senators* last year only to make Frank Robinson cry for the only time in his life.
Led by the genius Terry Ryan, the Twins made most of their signings within the organization. Nick Punto, Juan Rincon, and Lew Ford were signed to short term deals. Reigning AL MVP Justin Morneau was rewarded with $4.5 million for 2007. The biggest winner was Joe Mauer, who will get $33 million over the next four years, keeping him behind the plate until the new stadium opens.** And predictably, an arbitrator sided with Kyle Lohse. Will all this be enough to win the toughest division in baseball? Only if Johan decides money won't buy him happiness.

*In this blog, The Washington Nationals will be known as the Senators because the Senators who moved to Minnesota in 1961 were actually called the Nationals, but everyone called them the Senators.

**They ain't gettin no stadium!