One More Year of Living Room Baseball

The Minnesota Twins came off a season when a coin flip cost them the American League Central division title. This year, their final season in that glorified living room known as the Metrodome, they won't need to choose heads or tails because they won't be anywhere near a title.

Owner Carl Pohlad may no longer be with us, but his surviving family members are continuing the fine Minnesota pro sports tradition of getting by with the least expensive talent available. The most significant off-season acquisition--okay, the only one--the Twins made was for third baseman Joe Crede, a free agent from the Chicago White Sox. He fills a need, if nothing else.

Question marks are everywhere on this team. The pitching staff is Scott Baker (who will start the season on the disabled list), Francisco Liriano, and cross your fingers until you get to Joe Nathan. And what about Joe Mauer? Officially, he has a back problem that will keep him out of the lineup for the first few weeks of the season. Unofficially, there might be more to his back than the team is letting on. Didn't he have some kind of kidney surgery recently?

The Twins were really, really fortunate to take advantage of a bad division to come within a playoff game of the champion White Sox. This year, the AL Central's much better (or so we've heard), and chances are real good the Twins will get lost in the shuffle. How does fourth place sound?

Elsewhere in baseball, it's all about New York. The Yankees and Mets have new stadiums. The Steinbrenner family built a nearly-exact replica of the Yankee Stadium they left behind. Nearly, that is, except for the luxury seating and the price tag. The Mets built one meant to evoke the glory days of the Brooklyn Dodgers and Ebbets Field. But recent events have turned it into a monument to greed at taxpayer expense. So why is it still called Citi Field?

While every other team tightens their belts, the Yankees continue to spend tons of money on free agents. CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixeira are the latest in the team's never-endi ng quest to purchase a championship. Alex Rodriguez, another well-known and well-paid Yankee, is conveniently out of sight at the moment, tending to his surgically-repaired hip while dodging further questions about dating Madonna or his alleged use of steroids.

When October comes, here's who we think will make the playoffs.

American League East Boston Red Sox, Central Chicago White Sox, West Los Angeles Angels, Wild Card New York Yankees.

National League East Philadelphia Phillies, Central Chicago Cubs, West Los Angeles Dodgers, Wild Card New York Mets.