Twins, Vikings will have to spend

It's an interesting coincidence that both the Vikings and the Twins will go into the 2011 seasons with as many or more free agents than either team has had in the past.

Rob Brzezinski, the vice president of football operations, does the negotiating for the Vikings. Assistant General Manager Rob Antony has the same job for the Twins. They are going to face very difficult tasks in keeping key players without raising the payrolls too much.

It might be important for both teams to win this year, because both could face rebuilding situations next year after losing key players.

The Twins will not only have several free agents, but they will have also eight players eligible for arbitration. And all are likely to get big raises.

The Twins' free agents are second baseman Orlando Hudson; designated hitter Jim Thome; and pitchers Jesse Crain, Matt Guerrier, Jon Rauch, Ron Mahay and Carl Pavano.

Pavano has a 15-9 record and a 3.56 ERA, and Crain is the ace in the bullpen with 1-0 record and a 2.70 ERA. They will be pursued by a lot of clubs. So will Guerrier, who has an impressive 3.30 ERA.

I doubt whether Rauch or Mahay will return. Hudson probably will not be re-signed and Alexi Casilla likely will take over at second.

As for Thome, the Twins would love to have him back.

The Twins' arbitration hearings or settlements could result in bigger raises than the free agents get.

The arbitration list includes starting pitchers Francisco Liriano and Kevin Slowey, shortstop J.J. Hardy and outfielder Delmon Young.

Slowey is one of the lowest-paid pitchers on the staff at $470,000 while Liriano, at $1.6 million, is sure to get an arbitration raise.

Young, who is having a banner year, is being paid $2.6 million and will get a big raise.

Other players eligible for arbitration include outfielder Jason Repko and relief pitcher Matt Capps.

Outfielder Jason Kubel is drawing $4.1 million, and the Twins have an option for next year. Infielder Nick Punto, who is being paid $4 million this year, also has a club option for next year.

So a Twins payroll that is $90 million plus is sure to go up. The Twins did exercise the 2011 option on Michael Cuddyer, who will go from $9.146 million to $11 million next year.

And don't forget Joe Mauer starts drawing his big salary of $23 million per year starting next season.

So get ready to lose some players from this year's roster. The Twins, despite making a lot more money at Target Field, can't pay them all.

Vikings have problems The Vikings have 17 players who will become free agents after this season.

This list includes key players such as defensive linemen Pat Williams, Ray Edwards and Fred Evans; quarterbacks Tarvaris Jackson and Brett Favre; linebackers Chad Greenway and Ben Leber, wide receiver Sidney Rice and kicker Ryan Longwell.

Other free agents who give the team depth include offensive lineman Ryan Cook, receivers Greg Lewis and Javon Walker, defensive lineman Jayme Mitchell, defensive back Lito Sheppard and tight end Garrett Mills.

The Vikings also have three restricted free agents in linebacker Erin Henderson, safety Hussein Abdullah and return man Darius Reynaud.

So, like the Twins, the Vikings will have to sign some key players -- especially Greenway, Leber, Edwards, Jackson and Longwell.

Favre is sure to retire, and Williams probably will, too.

Of course, without a collective bargaining agreement there might be an NFL lockout next season, which throws everything into chaos.

Big demand for tickets Before Favre returned, the Vikings' season-ticket renewal was 94 percent, highest in nine years. Director of ticketing and hospitality Phil Huebner reports that hits on the team's website were 300 percent higher in the two days after Favre returned.

The Vikings sold 6,000 new season tickets this season.

There are fewer than 1,000 tickets left for the preseason games Saturday with Seattle and next Thursday with Denver, meaning both will be televised. The Packers game Nov. 21 is the only game that is completely sold out during the regular season.

Very few tickets remain for the Dallas, Detroit, Miami and Chicago games.

Jottings • Gophers athletic director Joel Maturi, who attended a meeting in Chicago of Big Ten athletic directors to work on the new six-team football divisions, said it is going be two to four more weeks before anything is completed. Keeping old rivalries together is the biggest issue.

• Former Gophers receiver Eric Decker had a big night for the Broncos on Saturday in a 25-20 preseason loss to the Lions. He caught five passes for 66 yards.

• NBADraft.com predicts that Rodney Williams of the Gophers will play well enough next season that he will be drafted 10th in the first round.

• Gophers guard Devoe Joseph continues to have problems with a quad muscle he injured while trying out the Canadian national team.

• The Seahawks play here Saturday with several local players on the roster, including ex-Gophers lineman Ben Hamilton, and tight ends John Carlson of Litchfield and former Gopher Nick Tow-Arnett.

Hamilton is injured and won't play. Jedd Fisch, the Gophers offensive coordinator last season, is quarterbacks coach for Seattle coach Pete Carroll.

• Kevin Love had a stellar performance in Team USA's 87-59 victory over Greece on Wednesday in Athens. The Timberwolf power forward, who was named to the team's final roster for the FIBA World Basketball Championships on Tuesday, had eight points and a team high 13 rebounds in the exhibition win.

• Former Gophers safety Tyrone Carter has signed with the Redskins as an unrestricted free agent after spending the past six seasons with the Steelers. Carter had a solid year for the Steelers in 2009 with 61 tackles, two interceptions, including one for a touchdown, and one forced fumble.

• Rivals.com released their list of the top 100 players in the 2012 recruiting class. The only Minnesotan on the list is Siyani Chambers, a 5-11 point guard for Hopkins, who also plays with the Howard Pulley Panthers' AAU team. Chambers is ranked 81st overall and as the 15th best point guard in the 2012 class.

• The Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL have named St. Cloud State assistant Eric Rud their head coach. Rud, an Inver Grove Heights native, spent five years with St. Cloud State. Green Bay won the USHL regular season and playoff titles last season.

Sid Hartman can be heard weekdays on WCCO AM-830 at 6:40, 7:40 and 8:40 a.m. • shartman@startribune.com