Jesse Crain

Let's face it: The AL Central is the Minnesota Twins' division to lose, and they did just about everything they could to lose it in the last month or so before the All-Star break. The starting pitching was atrocious and the offense faltered. 

So what should the Twins do? With Mauer and every starting pitcher besides Pavano underperforming, it's looking pretty rough. I've got a few ideas to entertain:

Trade for Dan Haren or Ted Lilly

In a pitchers duel, it doesn't take much to shift the balance of the game. For the Minnesota Twins Friday night against the Tampa Bay Rays, two key base hits provided a lead that they would refuse to relinquish.

Minnesota's Scott Baker managed to scatter several hits from the potent Ray's offense with minimal damage on the scoreboard. Working an effective slider and a fastball with plenty of bite, Baker managed to keep the Rays at bay, with the exception of a run scored on a ground-rule double in the first inning.

After getting swept by the Milwaukee Brewers, the Twins have definitely hit the lowest point of their season. The pitching was awful, and the offense matched that effort.

Again, Nick Blackburn couldn't get out of the third inning, and the offense couldn't muster a single run.

The Twins rewarded Blackburn with a four-year, $14 million contract that includes an $8 million option for 2014 in March of 2010.