Minnesota Twins outfieldMinnesota Twins outfielder Michael Cuddyer was in Bismarck as part of the Twins Caravan on Jan. 17, and he sounded awfully optimistic when talking about the team's prospects for 2008.

Sorry Twins fans, but I wondered why.

I mean, the Twins were coming off a 79-83 2007 campaign, and had some issues at the time of the caravan.

For starters, they were wondering what in the world to do with ace Johan Santana, who would become a free agent after the 2008 season. It was likely that the Twins would unload the two-time Cy Young Award winner before spring training because they wouldn't be able to afford to sign him in the open market.

A star pitcher from 2006, Francisco Liriano, was recovering from elbow surgery and was still a big question mark for 2008.

The Twins also had lost all-star outfielder Torii Hunter and a mostly reliable starting pitcher, Carlos Silva, to free agency.

Minnesota had been somewhat active in the off-season, but none of the players it picked up made fans want to cheer.

Meanwhile, the defending American League Central Division champion Cleveland Indians remained intact, and were expected to repeat. Two other AL Central teams, Detroit and Chicago, had been busy in the offseason loading up their arsenals, which were already fully loaded.

I figured the Twins would struggle and finish fourth in the division, especially if Santana and Liriano weren't in the picture.

But Cuddyer had other thoughts.

"I think we're going to surprise people," I remember him saying.

Surprise people? Even without Santana, Liriano, or Hunter? And in the loaded AL Central?

"We have confidence in the people we have. … This team is going in the right direction," Cuddyer said.

It was Cuddyer's job to be optimistic on the caravan. You don't send someone hundreds of miles through North Dakota in January to tell people, "Hey we might stink in 2008, but watch us anyway."

But by golly, Cuddyer was right. Maybe he was just trying to sugar-coat things last winter, but he was right. The Twins are surprising people in 2008.

Me included.

No, they didn't keep Santana. They sent him to one of the few teams that could afford him, the New York Mets. No, Liriano isn't back to his 2006 self. He's nowhere near it. And no, there were no eye-popping, jaw-dropping acquisitions.

Yet here we are in mid-August with a little more than a month to go in the regular season and the Twins are in serious contention for a division title or at least a spot in the postseason.

The Twins are 70-54 and trail the White Sox by only a game in the AL Central. They have the fifth-highest win total in the AL, and are tied for the seventh-highest in the majors. With 38 games remaining, they're just nine wins away from matching last year's total.

Surprise, surprise.

So how are they doing it? Not with the long ball (only 87 home runs) or with a big-name or two on the starting rotation. Their batting order includes all-stars Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer, and they're doing well. And Delmon Young - who was acquired in a trade with Tampa Bay - and Jason Kubel have been solid at the plate. But other than that, there isn't much punch. Plus, Cuddyer - a player the Twins were counting on to have a big year in 2008 - has been hampered by injuries.

Even so, players like light-hitting Carlos Gomez, Brendan Harris, Mike Lamb, Adam Everett and Nick Punto, Brian Buscher, and rookie Denard Span have given the Twins just what they needed at the right times.

The starting pitching, meanwhile, has been strong with Glen Perkins, Kevin Slowey, Nick Blackburn and Scott Baker - not exactly household names outside of Twins territory.

The bullpen has been good. Suspect at times, but good. And closer Joe Nathan has been lights out from the start.

All in all, this team has been finding ways to get it done.

It's pretty amazing, this low-market team playing as well as it is. And it's playing much better than most of the big spenders out there. I love it. It speaks volumes about the Twins' front office, not to mention the managerial skills of Ron Gardenhire. When Gardenhire was hired after his predecessor Tom Kelly retired after the 2001 season, I really didn't expect much. However, the Twins could very well win their fifth division title in the seven years Gardenhire has been at the helm. Few teams have enjoyed as much success in this decade.

And to think the commish of baseball, Bud Selig, wanted to throw this franchise out awhile back.

(Michael Weber is a Tribune sportswriter)