The Twins vs. the AL Central: Division of power

It’s evident in the standings. There are no hapless bottom feeders now.

It’s evident in the playoffs. Since 2005, four AL Central teams have reached the postseason: a World Series winner (the 2005 White Sox), a World Series loser (the 2006 Tigers), a team that made a first-round exit (the 2006 Twins) and a team that blew a 3-1 lead in the AL Championship Series (the 2007 Indians).

But to really understand how tough this division has become, just follow the money.

The Twins had the AL Central’s richest payroll in 2003, at $56 million, when they won the second of three consecutive division titles.

Those were the days.

The other teams were pinching pennies or beginning rebuilding projects.

The Tigers lost 119 games, the Indians 94.

The Twins hovered below .500 before rallying to overtake the Royals and White Sox, finishing 90-72.

Five years later, the Twins have a $61 million payroll, second lowest in the division, ahead only of Kansas City. The Tigers dwarf them now, at $134 million. The White Sox are at $118 million. And the defending division champions from Cleveland are at $80 million.

Payroll isn’t the only deciding factor, of course. When the Twins won their last division title, in 2006, their payroll was $40 million less than Chicago’s.

But now, at a time when the Twins have decreased payroll — from $71 million last season — all four of their division rivals have increased theirs.

The Tigers went on an offseason trading spree, adding Jacque Jones, Edgar Renteria, Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis, raising their payroll by almost $40 million in the process.

Those were the kinds of moves people expect from the Red Sox, Yankees, Mets, Angels or Dodgers — superpowers from the East or West, not the Central.

“Earlier in this decade, the AL Central was a weak division,” Twins General Manager Bill Smith said. “Not any more. It’s tougher. Everybody’s better in this division, and nothing is going to get handed to you. I think these teams are going to be competitive for years to come.”

Tracing the changes

Talent tends to come in waves for baseball organizations, and the Twins caught a good one at just the right time, leading to their run of division titles from 2002 to 2004.

Back then, the AL Central was in flux.

Cleveland won six division titles in seven years, from 1995 to 2001, but its own talent wave started petering, prompting the Indians to rebuild.

A key turning point came when Cleveland GM Mark Shapiro traded Bartolo Colon to Montreal in a six-player deal that brought Cliff Lee, Brandon Phillips and Grady Sizemore.

It was an unpopular move in Cleveland, but Shapiro knew it was one the organization had to make.

At the time, the Tigers were starting their own metamorphosis.

For years, owner Mike Ilitch had let them tread water with middling payrolls. But their turning point came when he hired GM Dave Dombrowski in 2001.

Dombrowski showed a willingness to take his lumps while the team developed its young pitching, thus the Tigers’ 43-119 season in 2003.

But that offseason, the Tigers signed free-agent catcher Ivan Rodriguez to a four-year, $40 million contract — a move that signaled Detroit’s seriousness.

As the Twins cruised to another division title in 2004, Cleveland and Detroit both made quiet improvement.

Cleveland seemed poised to return to the playoffs in 2005, but the White Sox sneaked up on everyone that year, winning their first World Series since 1917.

The Indians went 93-69. The White Sox went 99-63.

Ninety-three victories would have won the division in 2003 and 2004, but not that year, and not in any year since.

“It’s still painful for me to reflect upon that,” Shapiro said. “In this market, 93 wins is an accomplishment that is difficult to waste without a postseason opportunity. But that reality speaks to the strength of this division and what it takes to win in it.”

The AL Central has been a four-team squabble ever since. Now, even the Royals look like a team to watch.

“Kansas City’s going to surprise some people,” Twins first baseman Justin Morneau said. “They were starting to play well in the second half last year. They have some good players over there, and they keep adding a veteran here, a veteran there to help those guys.”

Twins forge ahead

As the AL Central fortified itself, the Twins proved they could continue competing in 2006, when they finished 96-66, clipping the Tigers by one game for the division title.

Last year, the Twins, Tigers and White Sox all fell short, as Cleveland raced to the top.

Detroit and Chicago responded with daring offseason moves, pushing their payrolls even higher.

The Twins sensed the end of a wave coming. With the upper levels of their farm system void of major league-ready position players, they started regrouping.

They let Torii Hunter and Carlos Silva leave via free agency. They traded for 22-year-old outfielder Delmon Young, and they traded Johan Santana to the Mets for four unproven prospects.

Now, few are picking the Twins to finish any higher than fourth.

“We’re not conceding anything,” Smith said. “Yeah, Detroit’s got a monster lineup. Cleveland’s got talented players across the board. But, you’ve still got to play the games on the field.”

Inside the Twins clubhouse, the most tenured players still exude a quiet confidence. They shrug at the low expectations and hint that they might be getting overlooked again.

“I think it’s a good position,” right fielder Michael Cuddyer said. “Look at the last six years: The four years we won the division were the years we weren’t picked to do anything. The two years we didn’t [win the division], we were expected to be good and didn’t fulfill those expectations.

“This allows us to sneak up on people.”

The Twins might have let good players go for cost-saving purposes, but they spent money to lock up Morneau, Cuddyer and closer Joe Nathan to multiyear deals. In fact, counting the full signing bonuses for Morneau and Cuddyer, the Twins actually will spend $68 million this year.

“A lot of people have forgotten that we’ve got an MVP on our team [Morneau],” Cuddyer said, “a batting champion on our team [Joe Mauer], a guy who scored and drove in 100 in the same season [Cuddyer].

“We’ve got balance. We’ve got a guy who was second in the Rookie of the Year voting and drove in 90-plus runs [Young]. We’ve got a guy who has hit 29 homers before and drove in 90 [Craig Monroe]. We’ve got the pieces there. It’s just a matter of performing.”

If things work according to plan, the Twins will be enjoying another wave, just as the competition in the division lets up again.

The White Sox are getting old and creaky. The Indians probably will lose ace lefthander C.C. Sabathia to free agency this fall. The Tigers, another veteran-laden team, traded away several top prospects in their trading spree, stripping their farm system.

If the Twins can keep growing, they might be division favorites again when they head into their new ballpark, in 2010.

Smith, of course, dismisses the term rebuilding.

“You want to be as good as you can every year,” he said. “We are not giving in for 2008. I know our manager and our coaches will make our players well-prepared. We’ll play hard every day. We always have, and we’ve got a lot of ability on this team. We’re excited to get to Opening Day and start playing, start competing.”