Minnesota Twins Thankfully Thought Twice About Signing "Pudge"

Is Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez about to become a Minnesota Twin?

Say it ain't so, Bill Smith.

But that's the rumor that started circulating Friday in Twins territory, courtesy of SI.com's Jon Heyman. Minnesota was reported to be among a select few teams that expressed an interest in signing the former 1999 American League MVP.

Smith seemingly put the rumor to bed Saturday evening, according to Patrick Reusse of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Whew!

That's one free-agent sweepstakes the Twins can afford to pass up.

With Rodriguez, "former" is the operative word.

Rodriguez, like Pedro Martinez, is an aging superstar whose best days are behind him. In 2008, Rodriguez hit for a .276 average with seven home runs and 35 runs batted in for the Detroit Tigers and the New York Yankees.

His statistics are more than a little deceiving. After he joined the Yankees as a replacement for the injured Jorge Posada, Rodriguez mysteriously went belly-up in the batter's box, hitting just .219 in 96 plate appearances with just (Yikes!) two home runs and three runs batted in.

Rodriguez's late-season hitting outage could be an aberration. Consider this, though: Rodriguez's home-run production has consistently trended downward each year since 2002. This should serve as a clear sign to potential suitors that Rodriguez, 37, has lost some pop in his bat.

If the Twins are seriously in the market for Rodriguez, it's a clear sign that the prognosis for Joe Mauer is darker than we've been led to believe—and that the Twins' front office is shifting into crisis mode at the prospect of Mauer's prolonged absence from the starting lineup.

At this stage of his career, Mike Redmond, 37,  is a backup, pure and simple. The Twins' best catching prospect, Wilson Ramos, 21, has impressed plenty of observers this spring.

Manager Ron Gardenhire believes he has the tools to be a Major League starter, but Ramos probably needs more seasoning.

If Mauer does miss a rash of games, the answer at catcher is likely to be found in Jose Morales, a converted infielder who has shown that he can at least hit at the Triple A level. (Despite an ankle injury that ultimately led him to cry "No mas," Morales still hit .315 in 2008 for Rochester.)

One can't make a case for signing Rodriguez for the role of designated hitter, either. Minnesota has a stable of big sticks, including Jason Kubel, Michael Cuddyer and Delmon Young who will likely share that role this season.

The only scenario that makes sense for the Twins would be to sign Rodriguez as insurance in the stretch drive for a pennant. And with opening days 22 days away, that's a stretch indeed.