MIXED RESULTS

The Twins went 66-96 in Terry Ryan's first year back as general manager. Here are three of his moves that worked and three that fizzled:

THREE BEST MOVES

1 Signed left fielder Josh Willingham to a three-year, $21 million deal. At age 33, Willingham had a career year, batting .260 with 35 home runs and 110 RBI.

2 Signed catcher Ryan Doumit to a one-year, $3 million deal. Watching another career season (.275 BA, 18 HR, 75 RBI), the Twins were so impressed, they signed him to a two-year, $7 million extension.

3 Signed relievers Jared Burton and Casey Fien to minor-league deals. Acquired for peanuts, these two helped transform one of baseball's worst bullpens.

THREE WORST MOVES

1 Signed Jason Marquis to a one-year, $3 million deal. Marquis went 2-4 with an 8.47 ERA in seven starts before getting released and correcting his flaws in San Diego.

2 Signed Joel Zumaya to a one-year, $850,000 deal. It was a gamble from the start, and sure enough, Zumaya blew out his elbow a few pitches into his first hard throwing session in late February.

3 Promoted infielder Tsuyoshi Nishioka to the majors in August. Nishioka looked competent in Class AAA but infuriated Twins fans with an impossibly bad series in Cleveland and was released on Sept. 28.

LOOKING AHEAD BIGGEST OFFSEASON PRIORITY IS TO IMPROVE THE STARTING ROTATION, WHICH LAST SEASON RANKED LAST IN THE AL WITH A 5.40 ERA. RIGHT NOW, THE ONLY CERTAINTY IN THE ROTATION IS LEFTY SCOTT DIAMOND.

JOE CHRISTENSEN