Author: David Shama

Twins pitching coach Rick Anderson told Sports Headliners it’s “disappointing but I guess that’s the nature of the game” when asked recently about the Johan Santana situation.  If the long anticipated deal of trading Santana to another team happens, Anderson understands.  “I can’t see how you can pay one-third of the payroll for one player,” he said.

It’s a guess as to exactly how much money the two-time Cy Young award winner can command from a new team but it could be $25 million a year.  Santana, of course, is a free agent after this season and the Twins aren’t likely to pay that kind of money.  Speculation is the team’s payroll will be $70 to $80 million.

A trade means rebuilding the starting staff after losing the 28-year-old Santana, arguably baseball’s best pitcher, plus 2007 starter Carlos Silva who as a free agent has departed for Seattle.  Santana has won 70 games the last four seasons with an ERA under 3.00 in three of those years.

Anderson, regarded as a superb pitching coach, said with humor the situation in spring training without Santana could “test his patience” while searching through his options. He also said general manager Bill Smith told him that any Santana deal must include a starting pitcher coming here.

Anderson likes competition and figures to see plenty of it among his potential starters in spring training.  He talked about “relying on young kids” and “on the job training.”  In the mix will be 2006 sensation Francisco Liriano who rehabilitated  last season from elbow surgery but will have “no limitations” going into spring training, according to Anderson. The 24-year-old Liriano was 12-3 with a 2.16 ERA in 2006.

Boof Bonser was a starter last season, with an 8-12 record and 5.10 ERA. His conditioning was questioned but Anderson reported the 26-year-old has lost 20 pounds and “worked his tail off” to get in shape for the 2008 season.  The 6-foot-4 Bonser was listed at 260 pounds in last season’s Twins media guide.

Scott Baker, 26, and Kevin Slowey, 23, started games last season and were among the names mentioned by Anderson as possible starters in 2008.  He added that former Gopher pitcher Glen Perkins might figure in the competition for starting pitching, although his assignment was only in relief last season.

Anderson said the “strength” of the pitching staff is the bullpen.  He anticipates having closer Joe Nathan, who is a free agent after next season, with the Twins in 2008.  He said Nathan, one of baseball’s best relief pitchers, “makes the whole bullpen much better.”

Roy Terwilliger, Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission chair, told SportsHeadliners recently he expects a bill to be introduced in the 2009 legislature supporting a new stadium on the Metrodome site.  Terwilliger agrees with the consensus of various stadium leaders that a bill will not be created during the 2008 session because of other state priorities.

The projected cost of a retractable roof stadium is at least $954 million and delays in construction will escalate expenses.  Terwilliger said that if the project begins in 2010 it may be possible to build at that cost and open the stadium in 2012.  The facility will be home to the Minnesota Vikings and also many of the varied events hosted by the Metrodome over the years.

Support for community use is something Terwilliger has heard a lot abount on the commission’s “Listening Tour” that began earlier this year in places like Virginia, Rochester and Mankato.  The tour’s purpose is to inform community leaders and the public about the stadium issue and to gather opinions from all concerned.  In smaller communities people are accustomed to seeing their high school teams play at the dome and want the area to have a covered facility far into the future.

Terwilliger said people are learning on the tour that the new stadiums for the Gophers and Twins won’t be covered so a future Vikings facility offers the prospect of having a large multipurpose facility that can host high school and small college sports, plus a variety of for-profit entertainment and sports attractions regardless of weather.  There are no guarantees, though, such a facility will be approved by the legislature and the Vikings’ lease with the commission expires after the 2011 season.  Vikings owner Zygi Wilf is pushing hard for stadium action but isn’t threatening to move the team.

On the “Listening Tour” people ask about possible facility financing and Terwilliger said information is disseminated as to how other communities have funded stadiums.  He wouldn’t, however, speculate to Sports Headliners what the financing plan may ultimately be, saying it’s “too early” to comment.

Tour stops coming up this month will be in Moorhead, St. Cloud, Duluth, Marshall, Minneapolis and Woodbury.  So far the tour has been positive and beneficial, providing a forum to tell the story of the stadium situation and gather input from citizenry, according to the MSFC chair.  “It’s really been a good public education experience,” Terwilliger said.

Minnesota Wild vice president of communications and broadcasting Bill Robertson is intrigued about a possible outdoor NHL game in Minnesota, but made it clear nothing is formally being planned or negotiated now with the NHL or local organizations.  “Certainly we are exploring options and will look at that in the future,” he said. “The venue would need to be determined and we would work with the NHL on that project as well, but certainly it has peaked our interest. …”  The prospect of such a game here is enhanced by yesterday’s outdoor game in Buffalo between the Sabres and Pittsburgh, and also by the future availability of new outdoor stadiums for the Gophers and Twins.  Joel Maturi, Minnesota athletic director, told Sports Headliners via e-mail that his department will consider an outdoor game involving the Gophers and “would consider renting the stadium to the Wild if they are interested.”  Dave St. Peter, Twins president, said via e-mail that his organization would consider an outdoor hockey game but that the organization does need to be comfortable with placing a hockey rink on the baseball stadium’s natural grass surface.  The new Gopher stadium will have an artificial playing surface.

It will be awhile before the puzzlement ends over the four year, $48 million contract Seattle awarded to free agent Carlos Silva, the former Twins starter.  A Twins source, not pitching coach Rick Anderson, said it wasn’t even certain that Silva would make the team coming out of spring training earlier this year. Silva was 13-14 with a 4.19 ERA last season. The year before he was 11-15 with a 5.94 ERA, giving up 38 home runs in about 180 innings.

Attention Gopher basketball fans: hope you have access to the Big Ten Network.  The much anticipated conference opener with Michigan State at East Lansing on Saturday night is only available on the Big Ten Network.

Isaiah Dahlman, the former Minnesota Mr. Basketball, has played in eight games, starting none for Michigan State.  The 6-6 sophomore from Braham is averaging 1.3 points per game.  He started eight games last season and averaged 6.1 points.

Former Gophers basketball assistant coach Jesse Evans agreed to a somewhat puzzling leave of absence last week from his job as head coach at the University of San Francisco.  The cause isn’t clear and neither is his return.  Evans has had three consecutive losing seasons and his interim successor is legendary coach Eddie Sutton, although there’s speculation he may coach the Dons beyond this season.

The 12th annual Gatorade Timberwolves Shootout is Saturday at Target Center and will include over 20 players expected to play Division I basketball.  Players of note include Rivals.com No. 1 point guard Jrue Holiday from Campbell Hall High School (California), plus Demarcus Cousins of LeFlore High School (Alabama) and Joe Jackson from White Station High School (Tennessee). The event will feature five of Minnesota’s top boys teams, plus defending Class 4A girls state champion St. Paul Central, all playing against teams from various parts of the country. Tickets for all six games are available for $10 at the Target Center box office on Saturday.  A ticket purchase also includes a free ticket to a future Timberwolves game.

Longar Longar, the center from Rochester, scored 22 points for Oklahoma as the Sooners beat nationally ranked West Virginia in Morgantown last Saturday. The 6-11 senior averages 13.4 points per game.

Sporting goods retailers across the country sold more Boston Celtics logoed merchandise than any other NBA team during the four weeks leading up to December 23, according to a story on Espn.com.  Former Timberwolf Kevin Garnett’s No. 5 Boston jersey is one of the most popular in the NBA.

Greg Jones, from Cincinnati, was a favored recruit in 2006 when Glen Mason was coaching at Minnesota and he might have become a Gopher.  Instead, he’s at Michigan State where the linebacker led the Spartans in tackles during the season and made two freshman all-American teams, Rivals.com and Scout.com.