Twins have amazed without Morneau

It's amazing what the Twins have been able to do without the services of closer Joe Nathan for the entire season and first baseman Justin Morneau for nearly two months.

The Twins are firmly in first place and on pace to win 94 games after beating AL West-leading Texas 12-4 Saturday at Target Field. But they have done so all year without Nathan, who had Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery in the spring, and since July 7 they have been without Morneau, who was having another MVP-caliber season until he suffered a concussion in Toronto.

"That's two very big, talented people," Gardenhire said Saturday. "It's hard to win without them. It just means a lot of other guys have stepped up. You take away two big players like that away from our team and it's never going to be easy. It just says a lot about the guys in the clubhouse."

They have had many other key players spend time on the disabled list this season besides Nathan and Morneau, both of whom were named to the 50 Greatest Twins team honored this weekend. But it's been really impressive what they have done without Morneau, who not only is one of the game's great hitters but also an excellent fielder.

In 2009, Morneau played in 117 of the first 118 games and the team went 56-62. He missed a week in August and the team went 5-1 without him. He came back and played in 18 more games before being shut down for the whole season on Sept. 12. The Twins were 9-9 in those 18 games.

After Morneau was removed from the lineup for good because of a stress fracture in his back, the team went 17-4 and won the AL Central. Overall in the 2009 regular season, the Twins were 65-70 when Morneau played and 22-6 when he didn't.

Morneau played in 81 games with the Twins this year before suffering the concussion July 7. The Twins lost that game to fall to 45-39, a .536 winning percentage. Since then, they have gone 34-18 (.654).

Both last year and this year, Michael Cuddyer has moved to first base in place of Morneau, and the Twins certainly couldn't afford to lose him too.

But look at a game like Saturday, where little-used Matt Tolbert drove in five runs, and you understand how the Twins get by. "We said we had a little more depth in spring training, and we added some people," Gardenhire said. "There are a lot of guys who know how to win."

Maybe their success without Morneau has something to do with Gardenhire knowing how to manage a little, too.

Bringing up Revere Asked about bringing up 2007 first-round draft choice Ben Revere from Class AA New Britain, Gardenhire said: "In 1991, we brought up Jarvis Brown. He was a young kid who had speed and was an extra outfielder. This is kind of just like that. We are bringing a very talented young man up here to help us out off the bench. He has speed and is an extra outfielder."

Gardenhire said he liked what he saw of Revere in March. "He was really good in spring training," Gardenhire said. "He was all over the place, putting good swings out there. I liked him immediately. How could you not like him?"

Dominated game Some of the Gophers football critics will say that the team didn't beat anyone in winning at Middle Tennessee State on Thursday. To me, the score of 24-17 didn't mean as much as the fact that the Gophers had possession of the ball for 45 minutes, 34 seconds compared to 14:26 for a pretty good opponent playing at home.

And for a Gophers team that has had trouble running the ball, they outrushed the Blue Raiders 281-146, with Duane Bennett chalking up 187 yards. When the game was on the line, the Gophers controlled the ball for the last 12:19.

So you have to point to some good things for the Gophers in their opener.

Jottings • Carl Pavano had lost his previous three starts, but he got little run support in his past two. The ace righthander got backed up with 12 runs Saturday to improve to 16-10.

• The biggest surprise in the first two Gophers men's basketball exhibitions in British Columbia has been the play of freshman Mo Walker, a 6-10, 289-pound forward who had a double-double in both games.

• Tyrone Carter, the former Gophers star defensive back, was released by the Washington Redskins on Saturday. Carter has had a great run in the NFL, beginning with three years with the Vikings before winning two Super Bowls with Pittsburgh.

• The Vikings cut all four former Gophers they had on their roster Saturday: kicker Rhys Lloyd, receiver Logan Payne, cornerback Marcus Sherels and linebacker Nate Triplett. Other former Gophers cut Saturday included defensive end Darrell Reid by Denver, cornerback Traye Simmons by San Diego and tight end Nick Tow-Arnett by Seattle.

• Tyler Lehmann, who won two state wrestling titles at Apple Valley before transferring to West Fargo, N.D., has decided not to compete for the Gophers. He is living and training the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

• Former Cretin-Derham Hall standout Seantrel Henderson played between 12 and 14 snaps in Miami's 45-0 victory over Florida A&M, Hurricanes coach Randy Shannon told the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Henderson is listed third on Miami's depth chart at tackle and played all of his snaps in the fourth quarter. ... Fellow Cretin product Michael Floyd had five receptions for 82 yards in Notre Dame's 23-12 victory over Purdue. ... Former Breck standout Bryce McNeal had two receptions for 34 yards in Clemson's 35-10 victory over North Texas. ... Former Eden Prairie defensive tackle Willie Mobley, a transfer from Ohio State, played his first game with Arizona on Friday in a 41-2 victory over Toledo. ... DeLaSalle's Alexander Robinson ran for 97 yards and two TDs in Iowa State's 27-10 victory over Northern Illinois on Thursday.