Twins fans hurting for real reason to panic

FORT MYERS, FLA. - There is no diplomatic way to put this, so I'll be blunt.

I'm standing in the sun, watching batting practice. You're in Minnesota, shoveling and freezing and cursing in breath that freezes in the air like a cartoon balloon.

I am talking with unconcerned baseball players and executives while you are stuck reading remote reports on a Twins clubhouse that, from afar, must sound like a combination of a UFC match and another "Saw" sequel.

I am not worried; you are probably thinking this might be time to sell your Twins tickets and become a fan of the Swarm.

I get the sense that Minnesotans are panicking about the Twins, while I don't think much has changed.

This might sound strange, for a newspaper columnist to tell people not to panic, but here you go:

Don't panic.

When I left the tundra for Florida less than two weeks ago, I thought the Twins' injuries would provide the biggest concerns of spring training, and that piecing together a double-play combination and bullpen were simply rites of passage for every latter-day Twins team.

Since then, injuries have kept the meat of the Twins lineup -- Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Delmon Young and Michael Cuddyer -- from appearing in a single spring training game.

Wednesday, Morneau returned from a trip to Pittsburgh to speak with a doctor about the concussion he suffered almost eight months ago, and said he is not yet cleared to play in games. On the other side of the clubhouse, Cuddyer sat by his locker a day after having a wart removed from his right foot, a procedure that could keep him out of the lineup another two weeks or more. Meanwhile, Mauer didn't practice because of his surgically repaired knee.

That all sounds frightening, unless you ignore the daunting headlines and recognize just how meaningless spring training is.

In modern baseball, where players train year-round and show up at camp as fit as they will be all season, spring training exists for two reasons:

2. To cautiously ease pitchers toward Opening Day. Hitters can get ready to face big-league pitching in about two weeks. Modern pitchers take longer.

Otherwise, spring training is nothing more than millionaire calisthenics. We spend a lot of time writing about spring training because there is a demand for coverage, but we're essentially breaking down batting practice.

From afar, Morneau's lingering concussion symptoms remain the biggest concern of camp, but I have been assured repeatedly that he will be ready for Opening Day. What I see from Morneau during practice and around the clubhouse leads me to believe those assessments. General Manager Bill Smith said he was "very optimistic."

The Twins are being cautious with Mauer, but Mauer does not seem concerned, and the last time he failed to make the Opening Day lineup, he won the MVP award.

Cuddyer will be out for two weeks, but he'll have plenty of time to get ready. Young should start playing in games soon, and he is noticeably bigger through the shoulders and arms, and seems primed to hit for power this year, one season after leading the Twins in RBI. Closer Joe Nathan is ahead of schedule in his return from Tommy John surgery.

Despite all of the injuries and Casilla's history of erratic play, I now rate the bullpen as this team's greatest concern.

I believe that Morneau, Mauer, Cuddyer, Young and Nathan will get better. I'm not so sure about Jim Hoey.