Fringe players

Several position players seem to be vying for that last spot on the Twins Roster, including:

• Randy Ruiz. A career .300 hitter in nine minor league seasons, Ruiz hasn't yet made it to the majors. He's batting .455 with two home runs this spring. His problem: He virtually only plays 1B and the OF. The Twins have a pretty good 1B in Justin Morneau, who's signed to a 6-year, $80 million contract and they have a glut of outfielders. Thirty-year-old Ruiz just isn't going to make it unless it is as a reserve. Just one more note on Ruiz: He has been the most PRODUCTIVE Twins player this spring; scoring 9 runs and getting 7 RBIs (16 total, -2 for his 2 hrs, makes 14 runs produced). Michael Cuddyer is next at 10. Ruiz is leading the Twins in both RBIs and runs scored this spring.

• Garrett Jones, an outfielder who is out of options, is batting .217 with one homer this spring. A real long shot to make it.

• Jason Pridie, one of the three who was trying for the every day CF position, still might make it there, despite Manager Ron Gardenhire saying that he would prefer either Carlos Gomez or Denard Span for the spot. Pridie is hitting at .280 this spring, higher than either Span (.227) or Gomez (.148). If Pridie doesn't make it as the every day CF, he could be the 25th man on the roster, but more likely would head to AAA.

• Brian Buscher started out this spring on fire, but has cooled off. His average has dipped to .190. It's looking like he'll start out at AAA, but he will likely get called up at some point this season.

• Chris Basak, a journeyman minor leaguer, is hitting .286 this spring with a .412 on base percentage. He has played mostly in the infield in the minor leagues, but the Twins have him listed as an outfielder. He has an outside chance to make the team.

• 3B Matt Macri, Howie Clark and Tommy Watkins look like they are also headed for the minors. Perennial Minor League OF Jon Knott is also headed that way.

• 2B Alexi Casilla is hitting .250, but he has a .423 OBP this spring. He has six walks and five hits, all singles. He might make that 25th spot as a reserve.

• IF Matt Tolbert is hitting .286; he can play 2B, 3B and SS, and also has an outside shot at making the team as the 25th player.

Two other notes about this spring's hitters:

- Nick Punto is not even close to the Mendoza line. He's hitting only .118 this spring. Prediction: Although he is signed through 2008, the Twins may cut him loose before the season starts if he doesn't start hitting soon. Good fielding only takes you so far. In that case, Tolbert or Casilla could benefit if Punto is released.

- The Twins' .400+ hitters right now are Ruiz, OF Craig Monroe, CA Joe Mauer and 3B Mike Lamb. Ruiz, Monroe and OF Jon Knott have each hit two homers to lead the club.