Minnesota Twins: 10 Reasons They Aren't in Rebuilding Mode Just Yet

It's hard to believe, but two years ago the Twins were one of the best teams in baseball. In 2010, the Twins had 94 wins in their first season at Target Field and then sputtered against the rival New York Yankees in the Division Series. Then 2011 happened. Everything fell apart and the team that won 94 games the year before lost 99 games the next year, giving them the second-worst record in the league.

Looking into 2012 it's hard to be optimistic about the ballclub, but the Twins still have a window of opportunity here. You can see that the Twins aren't giving up and they're not rebuilding..yet.

Mauer and Morneau’s Presence

If the Twins were in a true rebuilding mode they would have moved some pieces by now. Big pieces. The fact that both Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer are still on the roster points towards a non-rebuilding phase. A lot of the Twins payroll is tied up in these two players and surely they'd want to move them to get more salary flexibility if they were revamping the system.

Sure, Mauer and Morneau are always hurt and may never get back to their respective MVP levels, but if the Twins were starting from scratch they wouldn't be here. 

The Pursuit of Cuddyer

The Twins have plenty of outfielders: Denard Span, Ben Revere, Jason Repko, Rene Tosoni, Joe Benson, Brian Dinkleman and Trevor Plouffe. All of these players could claim one of the three starter spots on the major league roster, but the Twins are still in hot pursuit of Michael Cuddyer.

Reports say the Twins are offering Cuddyer $25 million over three years, showing that the Twins think they can still be competitive. If the Twins didn't think that winning was possible they’d let a young, less expensive guy take over in right field.

Ryan Doumit’s Utility

The three best players on the Twins are Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau and, assuming he re-signs, Michael Cuddyer. They play catcher, first base and right field respectively. This offseason the Twins signed a utility catcher by the name of Ryan Doumit who can also play first and right.

This move wouldn't have been made if the Twins were in rebuilding mode. Doumit serves as a second DH of sorts; his presence will help keep the three stars healthy. If two of the three stars need a break, one can DH and Doumit can fill in for the other. 

Signed a Closer

One cog in the well-oiled machine that is a playoff team is a good, reliable closer. The Twins at least think they have one. On Monday the team signed Matt Capps to a one-year deal worth $4.75 million with a club option for 2013 worth $6 million.

Capps stunk last year, having arguably his worst year at the Major League level, sporting a 4.25 ERA and only 15 saves. The Twins must think he's worth something and that he'll shore up the bullpen, because, like Capps or hate him, the Twins wouldn't have signed a closer if they didn't think they had a shot.

Kevin Slowey Trade

Slowey is young and has a lot of potential, but he didn't want to be on the Twins and the organization obliged and sent him to Colorado during the Winter Meetings.

Slowey had been a downer in the clubhouse ever since he didn't get a starting gig out of Spring Training and then never adjusted or really accepted his bullpen job. When Slowey did get to start at the end of the year he went 0-6, forcing the Twins to sell Slowey and his potential very low.

If this was a rebuilding phase the Twins wouldn't have traded such a young player away with little in return. If the Twins were rebuilding, Slowey would probably be in the starting rotation for the Twins this year. 

Carroll Shores Up Short

Tsuyoshi Nishioka stunk last year and Trevor Plouffe couldn't throw the ball from short to first base. So the Twins went ahead and signed the reliable 37-year-old Jamey Carroll to fill the hole at shortstop.

If the Twins were rebuilding they wouldn't have paid $2 million dollars for a 37-year-old shortstop. Instead the Twins would have tried to develop Nishioka or Plouffe, or given the nod to Double-A standout Brian Dozier, who tore up the fall leagues this year.

Third Base Is Safe

Ever since Corey Koskie left town, the Twins have had a revolving door at the hot corner. The likes of Tony Batista, Mike Lamb and Joe Crede have all tried to take the job, but nobody finally stuck until Danny Valencia. The problem is that it seems Ron Gardenhire isn't the biggest Danny Valenica fan in the world.

Instead of moving Valencia, the Twins have decided to stick with Valencia instead of possibly going back to the never-ending revolving door. If the Twins were rebuilding, many would be gone, especially the ones that management doesn't exactly care for.

Gardenhire Is Still Here

In a true rebuilding of a team, everybody is gone, and that includes the manager, especially after a 99-loss season. Granted, the Twins don’t usually fire anybody (only Tom Kelly and Ron Gardenhire have managed the team since 1987), but this year they put the hammer down on Bill Smith.

As long as Gardenhire is the manager of the Twins, they won’t be in rebuilding mode.

You Can Still See 2010

The gang’s all here…mostly. If you disregard the mass exodus of the bullpen—Brian Fuentes, Jesses Crain, Matt Guerrier and Jon Rauch—mostly everyone is still here.

That shows that there is some sort of confidence in the players that they can get back to that level of play. Delmon Young, Orlando Hudson and Jim Thome are gone, but still remaining is the likes of Mauer, Morneau, Denard Span, Danny Valencia and Carl Pavano. 

Terry Ryan Took over

It’s easy to find your manager and it’s easy to find someone you think willl do a good job in his place, but it’s hard to find someone you know will do a good job. The Twins did that, though, by bringing back Terry Ryan as General Manager after they fired Ryan’s successor/predecessor Bill Smith.

If the Pohalds thought the Twins would need to rebuild, they would have gone with someone new and molded them during a rough patch of years. With Ryan at the helm it sets the Twins up for a quick recovery and possibly a competitive year in 2012.