The Twins have signed 26-year old righty starter/reliever Daryl Thompson to a minor league deal. Thompson pitched in 1 game (0 starts) for the Reds last year and he was 0-1 with a 15.00 ERA and a 3.67 WHIP. He also pitched in 26 games (24 starts) in AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 4-8 with 1 save, a 4.26 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. Thompson has now pitched in 4 games (3 starts) in his first two years in the majors and he is 0-3 with a 8.31 ERA and a 2.19 WHIP.

The Twins shouldn’t overpay to bring back Jason Kubel or Michael Cuddyer. Instead, I have figured out the three guys the Twins should sign in free agency who would really give them a nice boost and here they are:

1. Carlos Beltran - Carlos Beltran would allow the Twins to bat Joe Mauer #2 in the batting order, which is where he should be batting in the lineup. Beltran is a much better hitter than Michael Cuddyer, so I would roll the dice on him.

2. Heath Bell - The bullpen really hurt the Twins last year. So they should sign closer Heath Bell to close out games.

3. Joel Peralta - The Twins also need a good set-up man. With that in mind, Joel Peralta is the perfect fit as he pounds the strike zone aggressively.

The Twins have signed 32-year old righty reliever Jason Bulger to a minor league deal. Bulger pitched in 5 games (0 starts) for the Angels last year and he was 0-1 with a 0.96 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP. He has now pitched in 125 games (0 starts) in his first 7 years in the majors and he is 7-2 with 1 save, a 4.33 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. Bulger will have a good shot of making the Twins’ bullpen next spring.

The Minnesota Twins have signed 30-year old switch-hitting C/1B/RF Ryan Doumit to a 1-year, $3 million dollar deal plus incentives. Doumit played in 77 games for the Pirates last year and he was 66 for 218 (.303 avg, .830 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 8 homers and 30 RBIs. He has now played in 611 games in his first 7 years in the majors and he is 534 for 1,967 (.271 avg, .777 OPS) with 234 runs scored, 67 homers, 266 RBIs and 10 stolen bases. Doumit is a perfect fit for the Twins as he can backup brittle Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau, while starting at DH, because he’s a pretty solid hitter.

The Twins have signed 26-year old righty swinging outfielder Wilkin Ramirez to a minor league deal. Ramirez played in 20 games for the Braves last year and he was 6 for 26 (.231 avg, .641 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 0 homers and 2 RBIs. He also played in 81 games in AAA-ball last year for the Braves and he was 77 for 288 (.267 avg, .766 OPS) with 40 runs scored, 11 homers, 36 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. Ramirez has now played in 35 games in his first two years in the majors and he is 10 for 37 (.270 avg, .808 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 1 homer and 5 RBIs. Ramirez will get a shot to win a roster spot for the Twins next spring.