Even if Justin Morneau reverts to becoming a superstar slugger in the next four months it seems unlikely he will finish his career with the Twins. The club could even reach agreement with Morneau and another team to send the 32-year-old first baseman elsewhere this summer before the major league trading deadline.
Morneau, who reportedly can’t be traded without his approval, hit .324 with 31 home runs and 130 RBI in 2006 when he was the American League’s MVP. Since 2010 his rough times have included a concussion, troublesome back and wrist surgery. In 2010 he played in 81 games and then 69 the next season. After hitting .227 with four home runs in 2011, Morneau had a comeback performance last season although his numbers —.267 average, 19 home runs and 77 RBI — weren’t like his best years.
This season Morneau is hitting .291 but has only two home runs. His decline in power isn’t acceptable for a player who is finishing an $80 million deal this season, signed in 2008. Neither is his frequent absence from the lineup during the course of his six-year contract.
Morneau is a terrific teammate. He bleeds Twins colors and no doubt wants to play his entire big league career with this organization. Despite the loyalty, it’s rational to wonder whether Morneau really would accept a huge slash in compensation on his next contract with the Twins. Another big league club might offer more than what the Twins are willing to pay — whatever that figure is — and if the rival team just happens to have World Series potential that could entice Morneau elsewhere.
The Twins aren’t going to the World Series anytime soon and Morneau would like to be a world champion. The Twins also aren’t growing their payroll, reducing it about $18 million in 2013 and $13 million in 2012, according to the website Baseballprospectus.com that also lists individual compensation for players.
The Twins ownership wants a winning team but also is interested in the financial bottom line. Average home attendance in 2013 could be down for a fourth consecutive season. The organization’s marketing approach now is to emphasize entertainment more than winning. The front office knows the club performance has to be much better than the two consecutive last place Central Division finishes of 2011 and 2012 but is counting on rebuilding with minor league hotshots, not aging veterans like Morneau.
Among those hot prospects is 6-3, 220-pound Miguel Sano who struggles as a third baseman. He could be the Twins’ first baseman within a couple of seasons. And the truth is the organization is deep in potential first basemen including Chris Parmelee who mostly plays right field now.
Joe Mauer, 30, can play first base and is going to be catching fewer games in the future while needing some place else to play other than designated hitter. Ryan Doumit can also play first base and is a versatile player. Doumit is also a catcher and outfielder, and at 32 the same age as Morneau. He reportedly earns $3.5 million per season and has a contract that goes through next year.
Doumit is a better value to the Twins than Morneau. So too is 34-year-old outfielder Josh Willingham who reportedly earns $7 million per season through next year. On a power-poor roster, Willingham is a savior for the Twins, a real slugger who led the team in home runs with 35 last season and is tops this season with 10. He is another player with better value than Morneau.
Right now Morneau doesn’t have much negotiating leverage when it comes to a future contract with any team. Even if he soon shows the plate production of the old Morneau he’s probably too expensive for the Twins and their vision for the future. If Morneau approaches his production of last season, the Twins might offer $7 million for two years but that is a big cut in compensation — especially if another club is willing to boost his wallet and ego by offering more. Don’t count on the Twins sending a lot of money his way.
Worth Noting
The Twins will see their former center fielder, Denard Span, starting on Friday in Washington. Traded during the last off-season, Span is hitting .264 with no home runs and 15 RBI. Pitching prospect Alex Meyer who the Twins acquired in the trade is 3-3 with a 3.69 ERA for Double-A New Britain. He has struck out 73 batters in 61 innings.
The Twins won’t see Washington’s 21-year-old outfielder and phenom Bryce Harper who is on the 15-day disabled list. The second-year slugger has 12 home runs in 44 games.
Span’s successor in center field for the Twins, Aaron Hicks, leads American League rookies in runs (24), home runs (six) and RBI (19) despite having only a .175 batting average. He has sometimes been spectacular in the field.
Not only is Bud Grant on ESPN’s list of the 20 greatest NFL coaches of all-time but three others with Minnesota connections are included. At No. 20 is Tony Dungy who played quarterback for the Gophers and later was the Vikings’ defensive coordinator. Mike Shanahan, a former Gophers offensive coordinator, is No. 19 while Minneapolis North High School alum Sid Gillman is No. 18. Grant is No. 15 on a list that is still counting down the final seven names. A group of voters including Chris Berman, John Clayton, Mike Ditka, Herm Edwards, Mike Golic, Bill Polian and Rick Reilly cast ballots to determine the top 20 coaches in recognition of the late Vince Lombardi’s 100th birthday.
Vikings wide receivers coach George Stewart on whether the team’s offense changes now that game-breaker Percy Harvin plays for the Seahawks: “I don’t think we change at all. Percy (was) a great talent here. We have guys. …We have a bigger athlete (than Percy) in Cordarrelle Patterson that can do the same kind of things. So I think we’ll be the same. We have some different wrinkles that we had a chance to evaluate during the course of the offseason so we’re not going to change much. We’re going to be a good football team, running the football obviously, and when it comes to the passing game I think we have a chance to excel in that area as well.”
The 2013 Sporting News College Football Preview, on newsstands now, predicts the Gophers will finish fifth in the Legends Division, one spot ahead of Iowa. The magazine projects the Gophers playing in the Heart of Dallas Bowl.
Former Gophers defensive coordinators now at other schools are David Gibbs at Houston, Greg Hudson at Purdue, Ted Roof at Georgia Tech and Everett Withers at Ohio State.
Rodney Williams, unlikely to make an NBA roster this fall, should consider the Harlem Globetrotters among his future options. The former Gopher not only has the athleticism and dunking ability to entertain crowds but also a pleasing personality and engaging smile.
Don Berry, who has won the Tapemark Charity Pro-Am a record six times, tees off at 1:10 p.m. Friday and 7:50 a.m. on Saturday at Southview Country Club. The men’s event begins Friday while the women’s event started yesterday. More at www.tapemarkgolf.org.
Radio personality Dark Star, who died June 1 of last year, has a race named after him now—the $50,000 Dark Star Cup at Canterbury Park this Saturday. Star was a former horse racing handicapper for the Star Tribune and Pioneer Press. He was a major promoter of Canterbury Park and is a member of the track’s Hall of Fame.