The Minnesota Twins should have one goal in mind this offseason: acquire pitching. As much pitching as they can find.

That’s not to say the Twins don’t have other warts. But after back-to-back seasons with win totals in the 60s, Minnesota isn’t going to turn its franchise around overnight. There needs to be a priority.

What do we know? Scott Diamond is coming back to provide what the Twins hope will be a steady option in the rotation. But beyond that, the starting staff gets pretty sketchy.

They probably won’t spend the big bucks it would take to get right-hander Zack Greinke in free agency, even though it’s been reported in the past that he would prefer to avoid large markets.

So their attention will likely turn to the trade market. And in order to get something, you have to give something up.

Denard Span is often discussed as a trade chip for the Minnesota Twins. Associated Press

The most talked about trade chip for the Twins is outfielder Denard Span, who seems somewhat expendable with the emergence of Ben Revere. Span has been a reliable on-base threat at the top of the batting order and provides a great glove in the outfield. His contract is reasonable, and all of those factors make him coveted (this FanGraphs piece goes into further detail).

Tampa Bay’s James Shields is one of the bigger names being thrown around in rumors in early November. It would take quite a bit more than just Span to get Shields. And do the Twins dare deal with the Rays after what happened in the Matt Garza-for-Delmon Young swap? It’s a dangerous game swapping with the best front office in baseball.

David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote on Twitter that he thinks it would make sense for the Braves to deal one of their young arms to the Twins for Span. The Braves could lose Michael Bourn in free agency.

“Anybody that’s got numbers [of starting pitchers] or anybody that’s got a possibility maybe of having a lot of depth, then more than likely we have talked to them,” Twins GM Terry Ryan told O’Brien, without naming specific teams. “They aren’t just going to distribute pitching to other clubs unless they can get something back that fills a need. Some way or another we kind of know who we match up with.”

The Braves have Tommy Hanson and prospects Randall Delgado and Julio Teheran competing for the fifth spot in their rotation next season.

While Span could get the Twins one solid starting option, there’s still massive holes in the rotation. And that’s what makes Ryan’s job a difficult one.

And that’s also why I’m quick to defend pitching coach Rick Anderson, who was spared while other coaches were let go this offseason. Who have the Twins given Anderson to work with in recent years? Besides Johan Santana and Francisco Liriano, how many starting options has Anderson had in the last 10 years who had good stuff? Not many. A lot of pitch-to-contact guys in an era dominated by power pitching.

Ryan has turned the Twins around once before at the beginning of this century. I’m starting to wonder if this turnaround won’t be more difficult to orchestrate.

An exciting afternoon of baseball – featuring the Oakland A’s improbable AL West title – was capped by a pretty dull night. The New York Yankees won the AL East, keeping the Baltimore Orioles in the AL wild card game.

When compared to last year’s final day of the season, this one couldn’t and didn’t measure up.

Even Miguel Cabrera‘s pursuit of the AL Triple Crown is lacking in drama. How did he become the first player in 45 years to win the batting average, homer and RBI titles, and accomplish it without even needing a big hit on the season’s final day?

There are some great arguments to be made for many of Major League Baseball’s regular-season awards (Can R.A. Dickey win the NL Cy Young?). But how about Cabrera vs. Mike Trout for the AL MVP award.

Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout shouldn’t be dismissed too quickly from the AL MVP race, even though Miguel Cabrera (not pictured) won the AL Triple Crown. Associated Press photo

Cabrera’s accomplishments seem to make it a foregone conclusion that he will win the  award. Heck, I was in the Trout MVP camp for most the year, but the Triple Crown has swayed me. How can a Triple Crown winner not be named MVP? And yes, I realize Ted Williams many decades ago didn’t win the MVP after a Triple Crown season. But that was then. Much has changed.

So what about Trout? He opened the year in the minor leagues and didn’t debut with the Los Angeles Angels this season until April 28. And since then, he has also done things that we have never seen before. Combine an average in the .320s with 30 homers and nearly 50 steals plus Gold Glove-caliber defense in the outfield, and you have the total package.

No player in history has ever had at least 30 homers, 45 steals and 125 runs in a season. That is, until Trout did it this year. Chris Dufresne of the Los Angeles Times argues that type of historic season is why Trout SHOULD be the MVP, not Cabrera. 

If you’re a sabermetric-type of fan, Trout blows Cabrera out of the water in WAR (wins above replacement). Trout leads all of baseball at 10.1, with Cabrera ranking sixth at 7.3.

Why is that? Because of defense. Cabrera ranks very poorly among MLB third basemen, though I think some credit should be given to Cabrera for attempting to make the difficult transition back to third base from first base. That’s not exactly a normal defensive progression as a player ages.

Trout, though, ranks among the best outfielders – according to FanGraphs – in all sorts of defensive metrics.

It’s a difficult decision. I just don’t think either player should be robbed of it. I imagine I’ll get lambasted in the comments section for saying it, but if there was ever a year to name co-MVPs, this is it. I know, I know. I’m taking the easy way out.

Both players did remarkable things on the diamond in 2012, and they should both be considered the AL’s best.

The Washington Nationals entered play on Monday with a 6.5-game lead in the NL East standings.

Come mid-September, they will likely start putting plans together to set their rotation favorably for the NL Division Series. And those plans won’t include their ace.

Nats manager Davey Johnson announced this past weekend that Stephen Strasburg will make just two more starts this season, with his final appearance on Sept. 12 against the New York Mets.

Johnson is following through on general manager Mike Rizzo‘s opinion that Strasburg pitch between 160 and 180 innings this season. It’s Strasburg’s first full season back after Tommy John surgery sidelined him for almost all of last season.

Strasburg has been nothing short of dominating, posting a 2.94 ERA in 156 1/3 innings, striking out 195. Opponents are hitting just .225 off of him.

The Nats are pitching deep like no other team in baseball. Their 477 runs allowed are by far the fewest given up in the NL. However, there really is no replacing a guy like Strasburg.

I’m left asking myself: How can this happen? As former NY Jets coach Herm Edwards reminded us so many years ago, you PLAY to WIN the GAME! Yet the Nats, by benching Strasburg for the postseason, seem content in just getting to the playoffs rather than trying to do something when they get there.

A playoff appearance alone would be considered a huge milestone for a franchise that hasn’t been to the postseason since 1981 when – as the Montreal Expos – they reached the NLCS.

But how many opportunities does a team get like this to win a World Series? And the Nats with their pitching would be among the favorites. No team would want to face a Strasburg-Jordan Zimmermann-Gio Gonzalez-Edwin Jackson staff.

I have no problem with the innings limit for Strasburg. There seems to be little evidence that an innings limit benefits his long-term health, but I realize that the environment in Major League Baseball thinks that it does, and Rizzo would be under intense scrutiny if something happened to Strasburg.

And Strasburg is a valuable investment that must be protected.

But the Nats seemed all season long to be ill-prepared for the innings limit, almost as if they just decided to hold firm on it two months ago.

You can’t shut Strasburg down now, then re-start him for the postseason. That seems like a terrible idea.

But why wasn’t his turn in the rotation being skipped in the early and middle parts of the season, allowing him to extend his season into October? That’s what I don’t understand.

It’s not like the Nats had a late-season rally to get into first place. They’ve been there almost all season. October baseball has been within reach for them since April, yet it’s like the organization itself never believed it was actually attainable until recently.

The Nationals have a chance to do something really special, and bring Washington its first World Series title since 1924. Those hopes take a hit without Strasburg, but it really should have never come to this.

The fourth and final stop on my vacation earlier this month may have provided the worst of the four ballparks, but it was the most exciting city of the group.

It’s hard to compare Toronto to an American city. In terms of population, I suppose it would most closely resemble Chicago. Myself and two friends from high school arrived in Toronto (via Pittsburgh) on Aug. 9 before leaving two days later.

Niagara Falls on the Ontario side.

Toronto really was awesome. Among the cities I’ve visited, I’d rank it with Boston and Seattle as my favorites. I’ve heard multiple people refer to Toronto as the “New York of Canada.” I’ve never been to New York, so I can’t say whether that nickname is justified or not.

But Toronto certainly was a lively city. The downtown area was bustling. It just seemed like there was an awful lot of young people in their 20s and 30s. And there was quite a bit of construction going on downtown for a major city. I got the feeling that it could be much larger – and more congested, I suppose – five years from now than it is today. Lot of big buildings going up.

Aside from a Yankees-Blue Jays game at Rogers Centre, we tried to do as much as we could during our two days in Canada. Before reaching Toronto, we checked out Niagara Falls on the Ontario side of the border. Quite a sight! I had never seen the Falls on either side before. Very impressive.

Tim Horton’s!

I was pretty stunned by the tourism mecca that is Niagara Falls too. We were there on a Thursday afternoon, and it was absolutely packed. The city is full of little shops and restaurants. We made the obligatory Tim Horton’s stop, and that place was an absolute zoo. But it lived up to the billing. How have donut combos not taken off in most of the States?

From there it was off to Toronto. My Forum Communications cohort Dom Izzomade a couple of great restaurant suggestions. We ate at Wayne Gretzky’s restaurant on that Thursday night, then went to East Side Mario’s (Italian food, obviously) on Friday afternoon before the Jays game. I give thumbs-up to both.

The Stanley Cup inside the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Aside from East Side Mario’s, much of Friday was spent within hockey’s hold on Toronto. We checked out the Hockey Hall of Fame in the morning. Had my photo taken with the Stanley Cup. A must.

During a dull moment that afternoon we walked to the site of the Maple Leaf Gardens, which has been converted into a shopping center. Not much to look at inside, but the exterior probably looks much as it did when the Leafs played in the historic ice arena.

I even stopped into the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation for those of you who didn’t grow up within an hour of Canada) to see if I could find any Don Cherry memorabilia. Had to settle for a “Hockey Night in Canada” T-shirt.

That night we saw the Yankees take care of business against a pretty depleted Jays squad. Having grown up going to games in the Metrodome, there was a sort of nostalgic feel to Rogers Centre. After all, I probably haven’t seen an indoor baseball game since the Twins’ final game at the Metrodome.

Inside the Rogers Centre for Yankees-Blue Jays.

And the Blue Jays were so good when I was growing up, I just naturally have a lot of memories watching Jays games on Canadian channels or when they were playing in the postseason.

But ultimately, Rogers Centre just doesn’t stack up with the modern ballparks of today. It’s enormous and doesn’t have a lot of frills to it. The team store was very large and had all kinds of Jays merchandise. I managed to avoid spending any loonies there, which was difficult since I really like the Jays retro-style logo this year.

The Jays game did mark the end of the trip. The next morning, we hopped into the car and headed back, stopping that night in Madison, Wis., before arriving in the Twin Cities the next day.

I’m either really focused or falling asleep. It’s been quite a trip.

But before I end this four-part blog series, I should point out two more things about our visit to Toronto.

First off, I had an easier time finding Labatt’s in the States than I did in Canada.

Secondly, Canadians have NOT forgotten about the Montreal Expos. I opted to wear an Expos jersey and hat in Toronto on that Friday both to the Hockey Hall and to the Jays game. And I must have gotten at least a half-dozen comments (all but one positive) from people on the streets. I even had someone say something in French to me. I should have said “merci” back.

And I was hardly alone. A few people were wearing Expos stuff at the Blue Jays game. And they’d look at you as if you were one of their own. Just hilarious! I went up the aisle in our section at one point to go to the bathroom, and another guy sitting in an aisle seat wearing an Expos T-shirt and hat gave me a head nod and lifted his beer bottle into the air.

Long live Les Expos!

So you think Target Field is pretty cool, huh? Imagine that park on riverfront property.

That’s why I named PNC Park the best of the 13 active ballparks 11 newer ballparks that I’ve been to. There are a lot of great stadiums that make the most of every square inch. But not many of them have the remarkable surroundings of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ stadium.

Honus Wagner statue outside the stadium behind home plate.

We went to PNC Park on the third leg of a vacation that myself and two friends from high school took a couple weeks ago, attending the Aug. 8 game between the Pirates and Arizona Diamondbacks.

It’s an amazing scene that unfolds with every step toward the stadium, as fans funnel to and from the park via the Roberto Clemente Bridge, which is closed to car traffic for games.  You can see right into the stadium from the bridge, with the river crossing directly behind the right-field wall.

Once you get across the bridge, there stands the statue of Clemente himself. At seemingly every gate, fans are greeted by a statue of a former Pirates great, whether it be Willie Stargell or Honus Wagner or Bill Mazeroski.

Yours truly with the Willie Stargell statue

My buddies and I walked inside the stadium and quickly made our ascent to the third level of the park behind home plate. And what a view for 300-level seating price! Our seats were in the 100 level behind the plate, but we had to go to the top to take a look. Completely worth it.

Bill Mazeroski statue next to a portion of the Forbes Field wall that Mazeroski hit his winning home run over in Game 7 of the 1960 World Series.

And the stadium is impressive even when you’re leaving. It’s really something to walk alongside all of those fans cross that river via the Clemente Bridge.

No stop to Pittsburgh would be complete without a meal at Primanti Bros., which is famous for its “Pittsburgher” sandwich loaded with steak, french fries and cole slaw piled in the sandwich. We stopped at Primanti Bros. for lunch. My meal at the game was the chicken nachos in Pop’s Plaza. I HIGHLY recommend them. A heckuva deal, and a nice change of pace from the usual bratwurst that I order at the ballpark.

As for the game, the Pirates hung on for a one-run victory. The real fireworks were provided by Arizona’s Chris Young and Justin Upton, who were ejected from the game after Young argued balls and strikes with the home-plate umpire.

View from our seats at PNC Park

The city of Pittsburgh was very sharp. I had read that the city had put a lot of work into revamping its downtown district. And it really showed.

The fourth and final stop on the tour would send us to Toronto with the knowledge that we had just completed a visit to one of baseball’s great venues. A must-see for the diehard baseball fan.

Leaving PNC Park across the Roberto Clemente Bridge.

In the new era of modern stadiums, Progressive Field in Cleveland was near the front of the line in terms of popularity.

There was a time in the mid-1990s when you couldn’t buy a seat at Progressive Field.

The second leg of this year’s ballpark tour took myself and a couple of friends to Cleveland. We attended the Twins-Indians game on Tuesday, Aug. 7, and there were plenty of good seats still available at first pitch. The announced attendance was around 14,000.

Progressive Field in Cleveland

Unlike Comerica Park – which had plenty to look at before entering the stadium – Progressive Field is pretty tame. A Bob Feller statue sits in front of entrance outside the stadium.

The highlight inside the stadium was Heritage Park, which pays tribute to past Indians greats. There is a giant wall in honor of Feller, plus plaques of former Cleveland stars like Shoeless Joe Jackson, Cy Young and Kenny Lofton among many others. Neat area for the baseball history buff.

And a former Twins great will be honored soon too. A wall near Heritage Park alerts fans that a statue of Jim Thome is coming soon.

We sat in right field for the game, opting to go the cheap route for once on the trip. They weren’t bad seats at all. We were right next to the Twins bullpen, so it was kind of cool to glance into there from time to time to see who was warming up.

Before the game, Twins bullpen coach Rick Stelmaszek actually climbed a ladder near the bullpen and sat a few rows in front of us and started talking to a family.

Like the previous Sunday’s game in Detroit, the game in Cleveland was pretty awesome. The Twins were down 5-1 in the seventh inning but scored three runs in the inning and another three in the ninth for a 7-5 victory. A ball rolled through Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis‘ legs in the seventh, which allowed two runs to score in that inning.

Indians fans weren’t in the mood for another collapse, with many having just witnessed one on TV two days earlier in Detroit. It was the 11th straight loss for Cleveland. That skid was snapped with a victory the following day.

In the immediate area outside the stadium, there wasn’t too much to do before or after the game. There’s a sports bar called Goodfeller’s (in honor of Feller). We walked a few blocks away from the stadium before the game and found a nice line of bars and shops for tourists like ourselves. I picked up a Municipal Stadium T-shirt that I couldn’t pass up.

Heritage Park with a wall letting fans know that a Jim Thome statue is coming soon.

We stopped by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame too before leaving for Pittsburgh. Lot of great music memorabilia. Kind of a bummer that you can’t take photos in there though.

Next stop, Pittsburgh.

As I mentioned yesterday, I wanted to break down my recent ballpark trip into four installments, with each post focused on one city and stadium.

Two friends of mine from high school and I arrived in Detroit on Aug. 4 and caught the Aug. 5 game between the Cleveland Indians and Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.

Approaching Comerica Park in Detroit.

Comerica Park was the first destination on the Detroit stop. The exterior of that stadium was as impressive as any ballpark that I’ve ever been to.

It was all about the details for me. I loved the little Tigers-style gargoyles that appeared on the outer walls of the park. And the giant tigers that sat in front of the park were really cool.

And the stadium, like many newer parks, does a great job of honoring its history. A statue of broadcasting legend Ernie Harwell, who passed away a few years ago, greets those entering the main entrance into the stadium.

Out in left field, statue of Tigers greats like Ty Cobb and Hank Greenberg are all in a row and are popular with tourists.

Statue of Ty Cobb next to those of other Tigers greats.

The interior of the stadium is nice, but big. I’m the type that prefers the right-on-top-of-the-action build of Target Field as opposed to the more spread-out Comerica Park. Others might favor Comerica though, and I wouldn’t blame for it.

And the game, of course, was outstanding, probably the best on the trip. The Tigers had a golden opportunity to win the game in the ninth inning but squandered it. Then in the 10th, Cleveland scored three runs to take the lead, only to have Detroit rally with five in the bottom half to win in walk-off fashion. Miguel Cabrera‘s two-run, game-winning homer capped a great afternoon of baseball.

A couple of restaurant/bar stops outside Comerica that seem to be popular are Hockeytown Cafe and a restaurant that is named for Chris Chelios. Went to Hockeytown Cafe after the game and will give it the seal of approval.

The game is under way at Comerica Park.

A walk through the streets of Detroit near the ballpark didn’t yield too much excitement. You didn’t have to go far to find boarded-up businesses. Really a shame to not see that area flourishing more than it was. The people of Detroit were very friendly throughout the trip.

We stopped at the Henry Ford Museum quickly on Monday, Aug. 6, before hitting the road again for Cleveland. The Ford Museum had a lot more to it than just cars. All sorts of American history chronicled within those walls. Definitely worth checking out. The best part of the museum for me: The Presidential vehicles housed there. Very cool!

Check back tomorrow for my Cleveland write-up.

Four ballparks in six days can sure take a lot out of you. But what an awesome trip.

I returned to Fargo on Tuesday and returned to work tonight after heading by car with a couple of friends from high school to Toronto. The trip included stops in Detroit, Cleveland and Pittsburgh.

The ballpark trips are nothing new for me. This marked the sixth straight year that I hit the road to see a new stadium. But four stadiums in one trip was a record for me. I’ve now been to 13 of Major League Baseball’s active parks.

Honus Wagner’s statue sits in front of PNC Park in Pittsburgh. Photo by Hayden Goethe / The Forum

There were some amazing games:

• Aug. 5, Comerica Park, Detroit: The Cleveland Indians score three runs in the 10th inning only to give up five runs to the Detroit Tigers in the bottom half of the inning. Miguel Cabrera‘s walk-off homer pushes Detroit to victory.
• Aug. 7, Progressive Field, Cleveland: The Twins score three runs in the seventh inning and three more in the ninth to rally for a 7-5 victory against the Indians.
• Aug. 8, PNC Park, Pittsburgh: Two Arizona Diamondbacks players get ejected as the Pittsburgh Pirates hold on for a one-run victory.
• Aug. 10, Rogers Centre, Toronto: The New York Yankees beat the Toronto Blue Jays 10-4. Kind of an ugly game, but it was a 3-2 game before the Yankees scored seven runs in the final two innings.

My plan is to write a blog for each city on the trip. Those will be posted in the coming days.

For now, I thought I would update my stadium rankings for the ballparks I’ve been to.

Here it goes:

1. Fenway Park, Boston. This is the perfect combination of great ballpark, great history and an awesome city to visit. Hope to get back to Fenway one day.

2. Wrigley Field, Chicago. Tough call between 1 and 2. Wrigley has pretty much all of the same qualities as Fenway. I don’t know why I like Fenway more. I just do.

3. PNC Park, Pittsburgh. This place was AMAZING! It’s like Target Field, but with riverfront property. Very modern design, but with the past in mind. And what a backdrop in center field. I’ll go into greater detail when I write my Pittsburgh post.

4. Target Field, Minneapolis. After years in the Metrodome, Twins fans deserve to be spoiled … by their ballpark anyway.

5. Busch Stadium, St. Louis. I don’t think this stadium gets enough credit. Really sharp-looking on the outside and inside. Kind of odd – for a newer park – that you can’t see the field from the concourse area.

6. Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City. The last thriving ballpark from the “cookie-cutter era” parks. The recent renovation looked great.

7. Safeco Field, Seattle. Another great new park. How can this be at 7?

8. Comerica Park, Detroit. See future post.

9. Coors Field, Denver.

10. Progressive Field, Cleveland. See future post.

11. Miller Park, Milwaukee.

12. U.S. Cellular Field, Chicago.

13. Rogers Centre, Toronto. See future post.