They play good defense, their manager is cunning, they steal bases, move runners over, all of those types of things. It's a trite thing to say, but they never beat themselves if you know what I mean. The bullpen is very good, and they still have Tori Hunter and some young stars like Mauer, Morneau, etc. The big question is the rotation after Santana who is the best pitcher in the game right now. The injury to Liriano robs them of a potentially devastating 1-2 punch, and at present they're relying on kids and retreads to shore up the rotation, as zuchinibut mentioned. They have enough to potentially contend, but will have a hard time winning a tough division, and Detroit has to be the favorite. They tend to exceed expectations, and you can't count them out.

The Twins are always a good team it seems, but I don't see them making it this season. Their lineup is young and talented with Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau anchoring it. They don't have a lot of power, but they play well. They also still have maybe the best bullpen in the majors. However, their rotation looks pretty bleak after Johan Santana. The injury to Liriano and the retirement of Brad Radke leave them with little depth at the position. Boof Bonser is their #2 starter right now, and Sidney Ponson and Ramon Ortiz, era's of 6.25 and 5.57 respectively in 2006, are serious contenders to make the opening day club. While Santana is as good as gold for 20 wins and another Cy Young, there just simply isn't enough quality starting pitching on this team to get back to the playoffs in 2007.

They've been coming up just short of putting it all together the last few seasons, and look a touch stronger and matured this season.

Depth is something of an issue, but these guys have the tools to scare the hell out of anyone.