By: Aj Mansour | KFAN.com
@AjMansourKFAN

Minneapolis, MN - The Minnesota media had their first crack at the newly acquired Twins' outfielder Josh Willingham Friday morning. The Twins made the signing official Thursday announcing that the two sides had reached an agreement on a 3-year, $21 million contract.

Willingham said that there were four teams that he was truly considering during his free agency negotiations and that the Minnesota Twins and Cincinnati Reds came out as the front runners.

"One thing that I can say about the Twins is that they expressed interest from the time that they could have," Willingham shared this morning. "I felt wanted there. Feeling wanted was another big thing and I felt that the Twins really wanted me."

Willingham shared that he had contacted some associates of his that were familiar with the Minnesota Twins organization to get a feel for it. He poked and prodded them to get a real sense of the organization from the top to the bottom and the end result led him to sign on with the team.

"I talked with several other players that were familiar with the organization," Willingham said. "Everybody said great things about it from top to bottom. You look at the Twins organization as a whole and you think about them being a playoff contender over the last several years, last year obviously wasn’t the best year for them. Hopefully we can get back on track."

Twins general manager Terry Ryan also took part in the phone conversation this morning and said that he's not worried about Josh's numbers translating into Target Field, which has proved so far to be a pitcher's ballpark.

"I don't think there's any ballpark that Josh can't hit balls out of," Ryan said emphatically. "He's got power, he's got leverage in his swing...I think he'll be able to hit the ball over the fence...we think he's a smart hitter."

As the week continues, rumors of the Twins signing Josh Willingham and still retaining Michael Cuddyer are starting to die down. It appears as if the Colorado Rockies are currently the front runners and sources are saying that an agreement is in place with Colorado.

Terry Ryan went on to share how the approach over the past week was a delicate one as the team was attempting to obtain Willingham but also retain Cuddyer and Kubel.

"When you draft and sign players along the way, there's no secret that we tried to retain players here," Ryan said. "Ultimately it started to get to a point of no return. We didn't want to be left without and consequently this is a situation that seemed to be the right decision at the time."

Although Cuddyer may be close to signing with another team, he did say that chances of signing Cuddyer were "improbable but not impossible."

Josh Willingham spent last season with the Oakland Athletics and posted great power numbers. His statistical breakdown and a comparison between he and Cuddyer can be found by CLICKING HERE.

Aj Mansour covers Minnesota Sports for KFAN.com. Feel free to leave comments and questions on this post or others in the designated comment box below. For Twins updates and breaking Twins news, follow Aj on Twitter. @AjMansourKFAN.

*Photo - CBS Sports

The Minnesota Twins continue to insist that they are still in the conversation when it comes to signing free agent outfielder Michael Cuddyer to a contract. Lindsay Guentzel, a former member of the KFAN stable, has an inside track on what's going on inside the Cuddyer camp. Here's the latest...

12/15 12:13pm: Noon: Cuddyer coming to terms with the fact that the market won't support the 3 years/$30 million he was hoping for. Willingham was not signed to replace Cuddyer but to add power to a struggling lineup.

12/15 9:41am: Keep in mind Willingham is a true left fielder.... they need to replace young's bat and keep cuddyer's....

12/15 9:17am: Both Twins & Rockie have shown their hands to Cuddyer, it's in his hands now. 3 year/$26 million (possible jump to $28) looks to be best offer. It does not look like Reds & Ms are real players in this. Other things to consider:  Is $2 million worth leaving Minnesota? Any hard feelings over Minnesota's offer? Pay cut a year after being an All-Star? Which team gives him the best chance of getting a ring?

12/15 9:07am: Dust has settled this morning, Twins seem to be only team contending at this point -- although a 99 loss team doesn't seem to be the strongest of suitors.  That being said, Twins aren't going to wait much longer on Cuddyer because there are other areas that have taken a back seat during the last ten days.

CLICK HERE to read more from Lindsay at her blog!

Statistical Comparison

By: Aj Mansour | KFAN.com
@AjMansourKFAN

UPDATE: The deal is done. Twins have announced that they have signed Josh Willingham to a 3 year, $21 milllion deal.

Originally posted 12/14 7:13am
Sources are reporting that the Minnesota Twins and outfielder Josh Willingham have agreed to terms of a $21 million contract that will bring the 32 year old outfielder to Minnesota for the next 3 years. While the Twins will not confirm any of the reports, the deal is supposedly awaiting a physical for Willingham and one last push for Cuddyer.

Willingham, who most recently spent time in Oakland with the Athletics, is a career .262 hitter with an .836 career OPS. Having spent time with the Florida Marlins and Washington Nationals, the big hitting left fielder spent 2011 in Oakland where he had a career year.

Hitting 29 home runs and knocking in 98 RBI (both career highs), Willingham carried an athletics team that struggled to put runs on the board and runners on the base paths.

Willingham's addition to the Minnesota Twins would unofficially end the 11-year run that Michael Cuddyer spent roaming the outfield, infield and pitching mound in Minnesota. The Twins had reportedly offered Cuddyer a 3-year, $24 million contract but Cuddy appears to have opted to take his chances on the market and look for more money.

In 11 seasons with the Twins, Michael Cuddyer batted .272, hitting 141 home runs and racking up 580 RBI. As essential as Michael was to the on the field success of the Minnesota Twins throughout the 2000s, the biggest loss might be felt behind the scenes, in the locker room.

Always the consummate professional, Michael never scared away from talking to the press and never stood down from being a leader in the clubhouse. Whether the Twins were winning 96 games in 2006 or losing 99 in 2011, Cuddy always stood out among the crowd.

A favorite of both fans and the media, Michael's presence will be missed both in the Twins clubhouse and the state of Minnesota

While the situation surrounding Cuddyer's free agency has stolen most of the headlines in Minnesota, fellow free agent outfielder Jason Kubel remains on the open market. The addition of Willingham most likely means the end of Kubel's run in Minnesota as well. In 7 seasons with the Twins Kubel hit .271, with 104 home runs and 429 RBI.

Aj Mansour covers Minnesota Sports for KFAN.com. Feel free to leave comments and questions on this post or others in the designated comment box below. For Twins updates and breaking Twins news, follow Aj on Twitter. @AjMansourKFAN.