Jesse Crain

Earlier this week, Jesse Crain signed a three-year, $13 million contract with the Chicago White Sox.

As I mentioned in a previous article, the Twins are going to really need to bolster their bullpen in order to three-peat as Central Division champions.

But is losing Crain such a bad thing? Let's examine this question.

With all of the hoopla surrounding the Boston Red Sox (Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, Bobby Jenks), the Washington Nationals (Jayson Werth), the Philadelphia Phillies (Cliff Lee) and the Milwaukee Brewers (Zack Greinke), it seems that the Chicago White Sox have been dismissed as a contender for 2011.

According to MLB sources, the White Sox have agreed to a three-year deal with 29-year-old right-hander Jesse Crain.

Crain sported a 3.04 ERA and 1.18 WHIP, walking 27 and striking out 62 in 68 innings of setup duty for division rival Minnesota Twins last season.

In each of his last four seasons, Crain has increased the velocity of his fastball going from 93.9 miles per hour in 2007 to 94.1 in 2008, 94.3 in 2009 and a career-high of 94.8 in 2010.

After Carl Crawford's surprise signing by the Boston Red Sox, MLB's free agent pool is slowly starting to dwindle down.

Cliff Lee is still out there for the New York Yankees' or Texas Rangers' taking, but there aren't a whole lot of other marquee names left.

As for free agent relievers, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim—not to be confused with all of the other Los Angeles residing in MLB—scooped up Scott Downs, the Philadelphia Phillies re-signed Jose Contreras, Joaquin Benoit went to the Detriot Tigers, and the Bronx Bombers kept Mariano Rivera.

Baseball's winter meetings begin this week in Florida.

This can be a time when those hot stoves really get fired up.

Twins' General Manager Bill Smith has needs to be addressed as the team heads into its second season at Target Field.

No longer playing small-market ball, the team's payroll is projected to be around $102 to $120 million for the 2011 season.

If Minnesota is going to successfully defend the American League Central Title and make that step to the next level, then Smith will have to make some moves.

According to Jon Morosi of FOX Sports, the Blue Jays are believed to have interest in signing relievers Matt Guerrier and Jesse Crain.

Guerrier was not offered arbitration by the Twins, so he is now a free agent. In 2010, a campaign where he made $3.15 million, experts peg him to make no more than four to five million next season.

After the acquisition of closer Matt Capps, the Minnesota Twins had a consistent bullpen. Every reliever knew what his job was going to be. Every reliever had his inning.

It was organized. Peaceful.

Flash forward a month.

The Twins acquired two more relievers: Randy Flores off of waivers from the Colorado Rockies and Brian Fuentes via trade from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of California of the United States in North America.

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.