Another day, another comeback win for Twins

You might have been forgiven if you gave up on the Twins on Friday night. They were down 6-3 to a strong Milwaukee team. Twins starter Nick Blackburn wasn't great -- he was chased early.

The Twins had to win in a way they're not used to -- hitting homers. Joe Mauer's power in the eighth inning, only his third of the year, was the decisive blow in the 7-6 Twins win. It was the third Twins' homer of the game -- Alexi Casilla and Jason Kubel went deep as well.

Blackburn didn't pitch well, but the Twins' bullpen sure did. Brian Bass, Matt Guerrier and of course Joe Nathan pitched runless ball over four and two-thirds innings. This is the timeless Twins formula of all their great teams, including the 1987 and 1991 teams that won the World Series: Great bullpen, timely hitting, a couple of guys at the top of the rotation who could dominate. (And, yes, some great fielding, which so far hasn't appeared.)

Actually, I'm not at all sure about these Twins despite the great win streak. Let me tell you why:

* The wins have all been against the National League, which just isn't very good. The Nationals and Padres are poor teams, at least so far, though the Diamondbacks and Brewers have shown indications that they could be good.

* There really isn't a No. 1 Twins pitcher, as there was on the old 1987 (Frank Viola) and 1991 (Jack Morris) teams. Of course, in the past few years it was Johan Santana.

And, let's face it, the timely hitting is against less-than great teams. Will Morneau, Mauer, Kubel and Cuddyer pose the power threat that Gaetti, Puckett, Hrbek and Brunansky did?

The Twins can't depend on being great hitting when runners are in scoring position. They must hit homers at some point during the season. They've done it during their winning streak.

But, I ask again, who's the No. 1 pitcher? It used to be Livan Hernandez, but he's slipped a bit.  After him, they Twins have four solid young pitchers ... but who's the top guy?

I think it could be Scott Baker. He has the best ERA of the starters, at 3.57. He has good stuff, everyone says. He has some experience now. He has to step up.

So do the Twins' power hitters. Morneau's having a good year. Mauer's showing some power. The bullpen's been great lately. Kubel's been doing well lately, and Brian Buscher's been a young stud.

Joe Nathan's as good as any of the great Twins closers of the past, that's for certain. He racked up his 22nd save in 24 chances on Friday. He's the best out there.

As for the Brewers, it was a tough loss. They had a good chance to gain on the Cubs -- who were blown out by the White Sox -- but were unable to do so.

Scott McClung had a great game against the Twins a while back, but this time he wasn't very good. He gave up five earned runs in four and two-thirds innings, and the bullpen gave up two more runs.

Bullpens. Hardly anyone has a good one. Just about every major-league team is looking for that extra guy in the pen.

Well, guess what. The Twins, as always, have a terrific bullpen. Few teams can match it.

The Twins have some good young ballplayers, as they did in 1987 and 1991. No one knew who Kirby Puckett was, or Tom Brunansky, or Gary Gaetti. back in the day.

The Twins' scouts should get some kind of bonus for all the fine work they've done. Where do they find all these great players? They don't have a huge budget, that's for sure. Every year they find terrific pitchers and some pretty good hitters despite the great disadvantage of competing against teams with huge salaries.

Many pundits have noted that the Twins' trades this year didn't net them that much. They lost Johan Santana, Torii Hunter and Matt Garza, and they gained Carlos Gomez (good so far), Delmon Young (jury's still out), Brendan Harris (decent), Mike Lamb (bust), Adam Everett (bust) and Livan Hernandez (pretty good at a low price).

But, you see, it's all about your farm teams and the guys you brought in from earlier trades. Alexi Casilla, who came to the team last year in the much-reviled Luis Castillo trade, has been great. Brian Buscher is hitting just under .400.

Don't order those Series tickets yet. But let's not be cynical either.

The Brewers have a tough task ahead -- the Cubs are a daunting adversary. If I were them, I'd get more pitching. But what do I know?