Twins CEO Jim Pohlad raised an interesting point Monday, when he suggested this team has yet to reach its peak.

"The core group of players are still very young, and we've got a lot of good years [coming]," he said. "So I think the future is very strong, and we will advance past the first round of the playoffs, into the World Series, into the White House."

Pohlad (photo right by Jerry Holt) was speaking to reporters in a conference room at Target Field, and on his way in, he'd seen a picture of his late father, Carl, meeting with President George H.W. Bush at the White House. Scott Erickson was among those in the background. It was right after the Twins won the 1991 World Series.

"I remember those days," Jim Pohlad said. "That was great."

So, are these Twins still that young? I know what Pohlad means. Joe Mauer won't turn 27 until April 19. Jason Kubel turns 28 on May 25. Justin Morneau turns 29 on May 15.

According to Baseball-Reference.com, the Twins had the third-youngest "Batting Age" in the American League last season, at 27.6 years. The site calculates each team's Batting Age, based on how old each player is and how many of the team's at-bats he gets. Each player's listed age for the season is his age as of July 1 of that year, I believe.

But as with most teams with a solid core, the Twins aren't getting any younger. Here are the ages that will be listed on the Twins' team page on Baseball-Reference.com this season:

LINEUP
C -- Joe Mauer 27
1B -- Justin Morneau 29
2B -- Orlando Hudson 32
SS -- J.J. Hardy 27
3B -- Brendan Harris 29
LF -- Delmon Young 24
CF -- Denard Span 26
RF -- Michael Cuddyer 31
DH -- Jason Kubel 28

OTHER BATTERS
DH -- Jim Thome 39
INF -- Nick Punto 32
C -- Jose Morales 27
3B -- Danny Valencia 25
INF -- Matt Tolbert 28

According to Baseball-Reference.com (I can't stress enough how wonderful this site is), the Twins had the fifth-youngest "Pitching Age" in the AL last season, at 27.9 years. Here's a look at the listed ages of their pitchers for 2010.

STARTERS
RH Carl Pavano 34
RH Nick Blackburn 28
RH Scott Baker 28
RH Kevin Slowey 26
LH Francisco Liriano 26
LH Brian Duensing 27
LH Glen Perkins 27

BULLPEN
RH Joe Nathan 35
RH Matt Guerrier 31
RH Jon Rauch 31
RH Jesse Crain 28
RH Pat Neshek 29
RH Clay Condrey 34
LH Jose Mijares 25

WHAT IT MEANS

I think the Twins need to view this as their year. Yes, it's part of a window that will look bigger if and when they get Mauer signed to a contract extension. But there are a whole new set of payroll concerns coming for 2011 and beyond, as I outlined in this story last month.

Besides Mauer, potential free agents after this season include Pavano, Thome and Hudson. It'll be up to the Twins to continue raising players from their farm system. Valencia's development at third base, for example, is pivotal, and it wouldn't hurt if 2009 first-round pick Kyle Gibson made a quick rise, giving the team a potential true No. 1 starter.