Twins' wins should keep on coming

For the second straight offseason, the Twins will try to solve a vexing jigsaw puzzle. Their free agents include righthander Brad Radke, third baseman Corey Koskie and shortstop Cristian Guzman. Three other arbitration-eligible players, right fielder Jacque Jones, second baseman Luis Rivas and lefthanded reliever J.C. Romero, probably won't be back.

The infield is especially tricky. A friend of Radke's says the pitcher might leave if the Twins go with two questionable defenders, Justin Morneau and Michael Cuddyer, at first base and second base. Radke's agent, Ron Simon, says, "We've never talked about that."

The Twins were wise to decline Guzman's $5.25 million option, considering his career on-base percentage is only .303. But if they fail to resign him for a lower salary, they could be left with Jason Bartlett, another youngster whose offense is ahead of his defense, at short.

The oft-injured Koskie, 31, hit 25 homers in 422 at-bats but hasn't played more than 140 games in a season since 2001. Cuddyer could replace Koskie if he doesn't replace Rivas at second. Three other farm system products--outfielder Jason Kubel and pitchers J.D. Durbin and Jesse Crain--also figure to be in the mix.

The Twins' first priority should be Radke, a pillar of their rotation. They shouldn't overpay for Koskie or Guzman. Nor should they package youngsters--say, outfielder Lew Ford and reliever Grant Balfour--for an expensive ace or slugger.

They have depth in their system. Once again, they'll find a way.

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