In addition to losing Crain, the Twins lost Matt Guerrier to the Dodgers, Brian Fuentes to the Athletics, and Jon Rauch to the blue Jays. Additionally, their former all star closer Joe Nathan is coming back after missing all of last season following Tommy John surgery. Also, a week into spring training Twins all star first baseman Justin Morneau had yet to play and there was no time table for his return as he continues to deal with a concussion he suffered mid way through last season. With the subtractions and uncertainty of key Twins, it seems that the Sox have overtaken Minnesota as they, along with the Detroit Tigers, battle for the division.

Granted, Ohman certainly isn’t god-awful against lefties-his 3.84 career FIP vs. LH tells us that. And saying he’s superfluous to the roster is a bit of an overstatement; I’d rather have him on the roster than Williams or, say, Anthony Carter. A mediocre right-handed free agent reliever may have been a better addition to the team, but hey, if Will Ohman is the most questionable move Kenny Williams made this offseason.I’d say that’s a pretty good offseason.

Zach Miner, who will get the ball for the hometown team Monday, went 2-1 against Chicago in 2008, posting a 3.94 ERA in five appearances against the Sox.

With postseason hopes hanging on every pitch, Danks delivered with a masterful, eight-inning shutout performance in which he allowed just two hits, three walks, and struck out four. He struck out AL batting champ Joe Mauer twice. He held Carlos Gomez and Denard Span, who came up so big for the Twins last week in Minneapolis, hitless. Possible AL MVP Justin Morneau? Not a chance. He went 0-3 against Danks, who looked unhittable for much of the game.

Lewis returns this year and will get the start against the Chicago sale jerseys on Friday afternoon. Game time is 1:05 p.m. at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.

When Thome left to go to the rival Twins prior to the 2010 season, General Manager Kenny Williams and Manager Ozzie Guillen decided to use the designated hitter slot as a way to get bench players at bats. Many different players hit in the designated hitter slot for Guillen last season but without the power production they were used to.

To that point, Detroit’s own trio of relievers have equaled the task, as Ryan Perry, Fernando Rodney, and Bobby Seay have also gone 7.1 innings without yielding a run.

Two encouraging offensive showings immediately carried over to Monday’s game. Gordon Beckham got going early with a two-run line drive homer, his third of the season, to left in the second inning off Angels starter Ervin Santana. Carlos Quentin continued the barrage with his second double of the night and fifteenth of the season in the fifth. This one would score Alexei Ramirez and make the score 4-0. Manager Mike Scioscia left Santana in for one too many batters as Ramirez would strike again planting one in the seats on a first pitch fastball making the score 5-0 in the seventh. The Angels call to the pen would only benefit the Sox as Quentin hit a three-run homer to dead center on a hanging breaker making the score 8-0, which is where it would stay.

Post game — Thank you to all who kept checking back here for updates during the game. As i said, this is also Spring Training for me and i ran into some glitches posting from the park. I was able to utilize Twitter and Facebook and will continue to do so and figure out a way to get to post here.

American League Rookie of the Year – sale jerseys, Chicago White Sox. Let me introduce you to the left-handed version of Daniel Bard. The White Sox 2010 first-round draft pick is 6-foot-6 (but only 180 pounds) and possesses a 99 mph fastball. There was talk of him potentially replacing the departed Bobby Jenks (and current Red Sox) as closer for the White Sox. Manager Ozzie Guillen decided to go with veteran Matt Thornton instead. But the 34-year-old Thornton has struggled with injuries in the past and will be asked to be a full-time closer for the first time in his career. If Thornton gets injured or struggles, watch for Sale to step in.

However, Owens didn’t show that ability to get on base in his 2007 stint in the majors (.324 OBP) and in 2008 in the minors (.346 OPB). Castillo’s OBPs in the minors: .371, .419, .411, .425, .403, .471. While it’s tough to expect anyone to match up to those gaudy numbers, the fact that Owens’ career OBP numbers in the minors (.365, .393, .333, .361, .348) struggle to come at least close to those numbers with consistency should have been a red flag for the organization.

And for the most bullpen stability, a team needs an anchor in the closer role — and Oakland has that in Andrew Bailey. In his second major-league season, Bailey posted a 1.47 ERA with 25 saves. But he only pitched in 47 games, missing time with injuries — and that threw the whole bullpen out of whack at times.

National League MVP – Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado Rockies. This may come as a shock to people who always look at St. Louis Cardinals Albert Pujols as the automatic preseason pick for MVP. But anyone in the know understands the greatness of this hidden gem in the mountains of Colorado. The 25-year-old Gonzalez will be a legitimate threat to win the Triple Crown over the next few seasons. Last year, he hit 34 home runs with 117 RBIs and a .336 average. Throw in 111 runs scored and 26 stolen bases, as well as being a plus defensive outfielder, and you have the most well-rounded player in all of baseball.

After Brett Gardner was called out on strikes to start the inning, The Yankees rattled off five straight hits, including a double by Robinson Cano and RBI singles by Alfonso Soriano and Curtis Granderson that tied the game at four. Two batters later, Nunez cleared the bases with a shot down the left field line, bringing Granderson and Alex Rodriguez home and giving the Yankees a 6-4 victory.

24. Minnesota Twins – The big question in Minnesota is if Ron Gardenhire will keep his job. It’s unlikely the Twins will show much improvement for another couple of years.

Pierre keyed a 3-run second for Chicago by driving in two with a single.Ramierez followed with an RBI double for a 5-1 edge on the final day of the season.

Texas will try and snap a two-game losing streak after getting hammered 10-0 by the sale jerseys on Sunday as a 115 road favorite. Its lead over the Angels in the AL West is down to just four games as the back-to-back losses to Chicago dropped the Rangers to 73-55 on the year. They are 34-32 on the road and 39-23 at home.

18. Toronto Blue Jays – The blue Jays plan to give it another run with all of the veterans they acquired last offseason, but what other choice do they really have?

When Thome left to go to the rival Twins prior to the 2010 season, General Manager Kenny Williams and Manager Ozzie Guillen decided to use the designated hitter slot as a way to get bench players at bats. Many different players hit in the designated hitter slot for Guillen last season but without the power production they were used to.

Adam Dunn, Gordon Beckham, Brent Morel or Mark Teahen, and Alex Rios were thought to be the guys that would put the southsiders among the best in the American league.

Seeing as both starters have had relative success against either club, it wouldn’t be surprising to the series decided by the bullpen- which on paper Chicago decidedly has the upper hand.

Pitching came along for the Sox but despite injuries to Jake Peavy and John Danks, they rank 11th in the majors in quality starts and walks and hits per innings pitched and 12th in ERA.

Runners can register in advance for or at the race for . Fundraising is encouraged but not required. Prizes for the top fundraisers include sale jerseys ticket vouchers, autographed baseballs and the chance to walk on the field before game on August 17 for a photo with a current player.

However, the magic or talent has not been the same in 2013. The White Sox are currently at the bottom of the division and not many things are going right. Jake Peavy is injured again, Sale is struggling, and Paul Konerko could be finally showing his age. Then, there is Adam Dunn, with a batting average that is lower than some co-ed league bowling scores.

And for the most bullpen stability, a team needs an anchor in the closer role — and Oakland has that in Andrew Bailey. In his second major-league season, Bailey posted a 1.47 ERA with 25 saves. But he only pitched in 47 games, missing time with injuries — and that threw the whole bullpen out of whack at times.

With a roster spot open, the Sox then called up outfielder Alejandro De Aza. He had an immediate impact with the Sox. In his first at bat of the season, De Aza hit a two-run homerun as the White Sox defeated the Tigers 2-1. John Danks struck out 10 in picking up his 4th win of the season and Santos got his 21st save. With the win, the Sox moved to 51-52, 1 1/2 games behind the Cleveland Indians and just 3 1/2 behind the Tigers. The Sox now get a day off in preparation for their big weekend series against the A.L. East leading Boston Red Sox. Gavin Floyd (8-9) will face Tim Wakefield (6-3).

McCray, 25, may not have been on the Sox radar at the beginning of the season, but he is off to a 4-1 start with a 2.30 ERA and 1.024 WHIP. He was originally drafted in the 34th round by the “Devil” Rays in 2006 out of high school, in the 50th a year later by the Cardinals and ultimately signed with Chicago when he was taken in the 16th in 2010 from the University of Tennessee.

Granted, Ohman certainly isn’t god-awful against lefties-his 3.84 career FIP vs. LH tells us that. And saying he’s superfluous to the roster is a bit of an overstatement; I’d rather have him on the roster than Williams or, say, Anthony Carter. A mediocre right-handed free agent reliever may have been a better addition to the team, but hey, if Will Ohman is the most questionable move Kenny Williams made this offseason.I’d say that’s a pretty good offseason.

Another guy on the 40-man, another guy without minor league success. The 25-year-old Jones posted a 4.17 FIP in high-A Winston-Salem in 2010. Like the last few pitchers listed, he’s on the 40-man, so I’ll say he gets a shot, but don’t expect him to be much of a factor in this race.