Twins notes: Pascual, Hrbek, Pavano, Span

Checking in after the team's annual media luncheon.

January 27, 2012 at 8:19PM

Here's some quick notes off today's Twins media luncheon:

* Camilo Pascual has been elected to the Twins Hall of Fame, team president Dave St. Peter announced.

* Also, the Twins plan to unveil another statue this year at Target Field, this one of Kent Hrbek. It will be outside Gate 14.

* St. Peter said there are no plans to change the batter's eye at Target Field this year -- in other words, the trees aren't coming back -- but he said the team will continue to discuss ways to make that big black wall look better.

* Manager Ron Gardenhire confirmed that Carl Pavano will be the Opening Day starter, on April 6 at Baltimore, with Scott Baker slated for the home opener, April 9 against Albert Pujols and the Angels.

* Denard Span said he feels the best he's felt, physically, in two years. He wants to play center field but is open to moving to a corner if that's best for the team. But to hear Gardenhire talk, this won't be an issue.

"[Span's] going to lead off and be my center fielder," Gardenhire said. "That's my expectations. If somebody were to tell me that he's not able to do that, then we'd have to ad lib. But if Denard comes in healthy, then he's my center fielder, there's no questions to me about that."

about the writer

about the writer

Joe Christensen

Sports team leader

Joe Christensen, a Minnesota Star Tribune sports team leader, graduated from the University of Minnesota and spent 15 years covering Major League Baseball, including stops at the Riverside Press-Enterprise and Baltimore Sun. He joined the Minnesota Star Tribune in 2005 and spent four years covering Gophers football.

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