A not so sweet season has left the local boys of summer and their fans with a dugout full of questions for next year.  Although the Minnesota Twins have won three straight, they recently ended a six game losing streak.  They have lost 10 of their last 15 games.  A year ago the Twins were more than 20 games over .500 and on their way to the Central Division championship.  Today they are one game under .500 and 13 games out of first place.

Injuries and disappointing performances have taken the Twins from the major league feel good comeback story of 2006 to a 2007 season that has frustrated management, players and fans.  General manager Terry Ryan isn’t accepting interviews from the media until the season is over but he and others in the organization can anticipate a lot of questions during the off-season.  Here are 10 on our list:

How is the team’s locker room chemistry? The players have loved each other’s company in the past but frustration and criticism can hurt relationships.  It’s always a plus to have camaraderie with fellow employees in the workplace. 

Have the players lost confidence in management’s ability or willingness to add and keep quality players on the roster? The Twins not only didn’t add veteran impact players before or during the season but star second baseman Luis Castillo was traded away during the chase for the Central Division title and the move reportedly shook up some players.

Will management ask ownership for a larger payroll than in the past?  On the contractual list of important need-to-sign players, only Joe Mauer got locked in long term so far this year.  What’s to become of Torii Hunter, Johan Santana, Justin Morneau, Joe Nathan and Michael Cuddyer? 

Do the above mentioned players want to remain Twins?  Nobody is staying here just to play in the new ballpark if there’s a lot more money and possibly a better team to join elsewhere.

Can Mauer find answers to his health problems?  He’s extraordinarily gifted and valuable, but injuries have lessened his playing time in two of his four major league seasons.

Will the Twins solve their power hitting needs at designated hitter, third base and left field?  The Twins probably will look within for some answers.  Jason Kubel is hitting .382 with 10 RBI in his last 10 games and might be the regular left fielder next season.

Can Alexi Casilla, 23, be a major league second baseman by next season?  He’s made mental errors and hasn’t been ready for the job given to him after Castillo was traded to the Mets.

How effectively can promising young starting pitchers Francisco Liriano, Matt Garza, Kevin Slowey and Scott Baker contribute next season?  It’s easy to be all over the board in answering this one.  These guys have talent but there are plenty of ifs based on inconsistent past performance and whether Liriano can recover from elbow surgery. 

If the Twins lose Hunter to free agency and don’t make any significant changes to the roster, can they expect to be in the Central Division race next season?  Better luck with injuries would certainly help and so too would the emergence of the young pitchers to give the Twins one of baseball’s best starting staffs (assuming Santana is still here).  Needed, too, would be near career years for Mauer, Morneau, Cuddyer, Kubel and Jason Bartlett.

Fans have been excited about the Twins in recent years but how will they respond in ticket buying next season? The new ballpark, opening in 2010, helps build and cushion season ticket sales but overall fans are looking for answers.

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Peter King of Sports Illustrated ranked the NFL’s top 500 players before the season started.  Colt quarterback Peyton Manning was first and Kevin Williams of the Vikings No. 14.  Minneapolis native Larry Fitzgerald, wide receiver with the Cardinals, ranked No. 58.  Former Gopher running backs Laurence Maroney and Marion Barber III ranked 115 and 260.  Former Vikings Randy Moss and Daunte Culpepper were 246 and 306, while Viking quarterback Tarvaris Jackson ranked 321.

Tied at five: Combining pre-season and one regular season game the Vikings defense and offense have each scored five touchdowns.

The Vikings have dominated their series with the Lions and have a couple of streaks going into Sunday’s 3:05 p.m. game in Detroit.  The Vikings are 60-29-2 all-time against Detroit and have won 10 straight, the longest winning streak by an NFL team against an opponent. The Vikings are 5-0 in Ford Field, the Lions new home stadium since 2002.

Lions offensive coordinator and former Ram coach Mike Martz was an assistant coach for head coach Joe Salem with the Gophers in 1982.

Current and former Vikings will attend the annual Taste of the NFL Celebrity Dinner from 6 to 9 p.m. on Monday, October 1 at Winter Park (Field House).  The public can enjoy food from 20 area restaurants and sample quality wines. Tickets are $160 per person or a table for 10 is $1,500.  Ticket information: 612-338-4537 or www.tasteofthenfl.org. Net proceeds benefit Hunger Solutions Minnesota through the Viking Childrens Fund.

The Minnesota Wild will host a State of Hockey Celebration in the Rotunda at the Mall of America from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday. The event commemorates the start of the hockey season and various attractions will include interactive games. Marian Gaborik and Mark Parrish are scheduled for an appearance from to 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. and will model a new team jersey.

Single game Minnesota Wild tickets go on sale Saturday.  Tickets are available in all price categories.  Tickets can be purchased at the Xcel Energy Center box office starting at 9 a.m. or at Ticketmaster locations beginning at noon.

Gustavus Adolphus junior wide receiver Chad Arlt, Saint John’s senior running back Aaron Blackmore, Bethel sophomore cornerback Tim Cornish and St. Olaf  sophomore defensive back Carson Jones have been named MIAC football players of the week.  Achievements included Arlt catching a school record 15 passes that resulted in 221 yards (Gustavus record 228).

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If Tarvaris Jackson’s role is not to mess up (and it is), then the Vikings second year quarterback did okay in the third regular season start of his NFL career yesterday at the Metrodome as the Vikings offense produced one touchdown and the defense two in a 24-3 opening day win over Atlanta.  The test may become more challenging next Sunday when the 24-year-old Jackson starts his second career regular season road game when the Vikings play in Detroit’s Ford Field.

The game will be the Lions’ home opener. Detroit probably will be performing with confidence after defeating Oakland 36-21.  Playing in a loud dome like Ford Field will test Jackson’s composure.  In the Vikings-Atlanta game the crowd seemed to bother the Falcons who had consecutive false starts in the second half.  In the first half Falcon quarterback Joey Harrington apparently called a timeout because of crowd noise.

“It was loud out there and you really can’t hear anything,” said Roddy White, Falcons wide receiver. “You gotta learn to deal with it. … Probably the loudest stadium I’ve ever been in so far.”

Jackson completed 13 of 23 passes, including a 60 yard swing pass that went for a touchdown to rookie running back Adrian Peterson.  Jackson threw one interception, made a second half scramble for a first down and looked composed.  He over threw some receivers, used mostly short and intermediate passes, and was careful not to run when he shouldn’t. Former Viking Mike Morris, now a KFAN Radio personality, said Jackson’s performance didn’t surprise him.

“He’s still over throwing that long ball,” Morris told Sports Headliners.  “He missed Sidney Rice, led him out of bounds over near the Falcon bench. Troy Williamson, over threw him. He was open over on the Viking bench.  Some of the intermediate stuff was good to see, but he’s got to sharpen up. …”

Morris said Jackson is “struggling with his defensive reads.”  He described Jackson’s passes as “too flat, too hard and needs to put some arc on the ball,” and give receivers more opportunity to get under the ball.

Falcon cornerback DeAngelo Hall said Jackson is a “hell of an athlete” and liked the Viking quarterback’s performance. “Well, I think it was good,” Hall said.  “They didn’t ask him to do too much. They were able to run the ball pretty much at will. I think Chester Taylor going out (with an injury) kind of hurt us a little bit.  Adrian Peterson is a bigger style of back and just was able to run the ball and deliver the blow all day.” 

What does Morris think about Jackson playing in Detroit? “Well, no. 1 it’s the first away game for him to get under his belt,” Morris answered. “He’s going to have to pick it up.  He’s going to have to work on a lot of different things. He had two or three passes (today) that he threw where they shouldn’t have gone, almost picked off. …”

Will Jackson be nervous next Sunday? “Oh, yeah, absolutely,” Morris said  “That’s what makes it work, though.  Fear and desire are two sides of the same coin.  They really are.”

If it’s comforting, at least Jackson can know Ford Field isn’t as noisy as the Metrodome, according to White.  “I’ve played in Ford Field but it wasn’t as loud as this right here,” White said.

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