Neal: Look for spring training to reveal the wonders of warmth and the strength of the Twins' pitching staff

The transition from the sounds of snowblowers and ice scrapers to the sounds of a baseball slamming into a catcher’s mitt is one like no other.

It means baseball season is approaching. And baseball means spring. And spring means no more snowblowers and ice scrapers for a while. In theory.

As soon as that Lombardi Trophy is handed to the winner of the Super Bowl each year, we all know spring training is only a couple of weeks away. We already know things are sunny and green down there as colleague Phil Miller posted a picture of the view from the Hammond Stadium press box.

Twins pitchers and catchers reported to Fort Myers, Fla., this week, and their first workout is Thursday. Once their official bullpen sessions commence, baseballs will be popping into gloves once again.

Over the next several weeks, we will see the reasons why pitching should be the strongest part of the 2025 Twins. And they must show it if the team is going to move on from the 12-27 finish that led to an 82-80 2024 season and no postseason.

The Twins' pitchers begin spring training entirely capable of being the backbone of a team that can return to the playoffs.

The starting rotation suffered a year ago when Joe Ryan and Chris Paddack went out because of injuries and Louie Varland struggled to the point where he was sent down. The Twins weren’t in position to absorb three losses; few rotations are. But the Twins spent the second half of the season introducing David Festa and Zebby Matthews to major league hitters.

Ryan, who suffered a teres major strain behind his pitching shoulder, is completely healthy. And history suggests the unusual injury won’t affect him long-term. That gives the Twins an above-average threesome at the front of their rotation:

Simeon Woods-Richardson was 5-5 last season with a 4.17 ERA, which was not bad considering he was pressed into service early. He should break camp with the team.

Paddack is a wild card after a forearm strain limited him to 17 starts. But the experience Festa and Matthews gained last season should serve them well, if they are needed. Varland still wants to prove he’s a starter and not a reliever.

Righthanders Marco Raya, Andrew Morris and Cory Lewis — all among the Twins' top 15 prospects — will be at Class AAA St. Paul if the Twins have to dip that far for help. Morris was a subject of trade discussions before last year’s deadline.

The Twins' starting rotation is easily one of the top 10 in baseball — ESPN ranked it seventh — and it returns pitchers who made 160 of 162 starts last season.

FanGraphs had the Twins bullpen ranked fourth in WAR last season. And that was with Brock Stewart missing most of 2024 and Justin Topa missing all but the final week of the regular season because of injuries. And with Jhoan Duran’s fastball being a mile per hour or two off.

Griffin Jax was one of the best setup men in baseball last season. Cole Sands is on the Jax development path. Jorge Alcala is inconsistent, but the arm remains live. Having Stewart and Topa healthy elevates the relief corps a little more. The Twins brought back old friend Danny Coulombe earlier this month to be the primary lefthanded reliever after two good seasons with Baltimore.

Prediction: The Twins will have to deal for more lefty relief help.

Despite the need for another lefthanded reliever, this is a strong group that can be even stronger if manager Rocco Baldelli doesn’t have to pull his young starters in the fourth inning, which he was forced to do frequently during the second-half swoon.

With health, the Twins have one of the best top-to-bottom staffs in the game. As workouts begin on sun-drenched fields in Florida — this scribe will be there next month to provide weather updates — they must realize they need to be on point.

While the offense needs a healthy Byron Buxton, Carlos Correa and Royce Lewis, pitching is what this club will do best.