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There's another Venezuelan pitcher the Twins put on the 40-player protected list: Oswaldo Sosa, 21 and righthanded, who was a combined 13-8 with a 2.60 ERA in two Class A stops. As with Pino, he's 5-0 this winter for Aragua.

There's the latest wave of Twins pitching prospects that will be on display this spring in Fort Myers, Fla. Matt Garza, Glen Perkins and Kevin Slowey all will be in double digits in starts for the Twins before the 2007 schedule ends.

There also will be a requirement for a pitcher from the next wave of prospects -- Sosa, Pino, Anthony Swarzak, Kyle Waldrop -- to emerge within a couple of years, if the Twins are to remain contenders in the post-Santana era.

Wouldn't it be curious if Johan's replacement turned out to be Yohan?

Patrick Reusse can be heard weekdays on AM-1500 KSTP at 6:45 and 7:45 a.m. and 4:40 p.m. • preusse@startribune.com