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At the end of last week, the three arbitration-eligible Twins (Trevor Plouffe, Brian Duensing, and Anthoney Swarzak) all agreed to one-year deals. While estimates wouldn't have been off by more than a few hundred thousand dollars, as of this weekend we're able to give you the most accurate projection that we have.
| Position | Player | Status | Salary |
| C | Josmil Pinto | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| 1B | Joe Mauer | Contract | $23.0 MM |
| 2B | Brian Dozier | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| 3B | Trevor Plouffe | Arb 1 | $2.35 MM |
| SS | Pedro Florimon | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| LF | Josh Willingham | Contract | $7.0 MM |
| CF | Alex Pressly | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| RF | Oswaldo Arca | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| DH | Jason Kubel * | Contract | $2.0 MM |
| Starting 9 Sub Total | $36.85 MM | ||
| C | Kurt Suzuki | Contract | $2.75 MM |
| OF | Chris Parmelee? | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| IF | Eduardo Escobar? | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| IF | Chris Colabello? | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| Bench Sub Total | $4.25 MM | ||
| SP | Ricky Nolasco | Contract | $12.0 MM |
| SP | Phil Hughes | Contract | $8.0 MM |
| SP | Mike Pelfrey | Contract | $5.5 MM |
| SP | Kevin Correia | Contract | $5.5 MM |
| SP | Deduno/Worley/Diamond | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| Rotation Sub Total | $31.5 MM | ||
| CL | Glen Perkins | Contract | $3.75 MM |
| SU | Jared Burton | Contract | $3.25 MM |
| SU | Casey Fien | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| LR | Anthony Swarzak | Arb 1 | $0.935 MM |
| MR | Brian Duensing | Arb 2 | $2.0 MM |
| MR | Ryan Pressly | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| MR | Tonkin/Thielbar | Pre-Arb | $0.5 MM |
| Bullpen Sub Total | $11.435 MM |
2014 Opening Day Payroll: $84,035,000 *
The asterisk means that this is somewhat the middle ground. Ask you'll note, we penciled in Kubel for the designated hitter spot in spite of the fact that he's not yet on the 40-man roster. It does not, however, include the extra $1 million he could make through incentives; nor does it include the extra money Swarzak could make for starting ten games.
Going by Cots Contracts, this number would be roughly $2 million more than 2013's Opening Day total, and as such would rank as the fourth-highest total in franchise history. The good news is that there is still room to add, should Terry Ryan and the Twins find the right fit, but at this point a major addition is starting to look highly unlikely - barring the proverbial unforeseen trade.
Including today, it's 28 days until pitchers and catchers report. For you, me, and Rogers Hornsby, that means just four more weeks of staring out the window and waiting for spring.
