Having studied the Twins’ plans for Target Plaza, I think it’s another sign this isn’t going to be another cookie-cutter ballpark. This will be the main gateway to the ballpark from downtown, not to mention an art spectacle, open to the public 24/7.

For inspiration, the Twins used San Diego’s center field knoll at Petco Park and San Francisco’s McCovey Cove. Minneapolis is pretty special, but no one is pretending to have the same scenery at Target Field that Giants fans have overlooking San Francisco Bay.

In fact, when you sit down the right field line at Target Field, the one object that will dominate your view — besides that lush, green playing field — is Parking Lot B. So what did the Twins do? They turned it into a piece of art.

One wall of the parking ramp – 285-feet wide, 60-feet tall — will be this gigantic wind veil, with thousands of aluminum pieces moving, creating an ever-changing image, illuminated with LED lights.

The artist is Ned Kahn, and to understand why the Twins are so excited, you should click on his web site. Twins officials went to Charlotte, N.C., to see a similar piece of Kahn’s work and were mesmerized.

Eventually, the Twins will unveil statues of their legendary players (Harmon, Tony, Carew, etc.)  along Target Plaza. There will be an over-sized cast-bronze glove for additional photo ops. Trees, shrubs and shade.

The cost for the entire plaza — split by the Twins and Target — will be close to $9 million. I told a Twins official they could sign Joe Crede for less than that. Yeah, he said, but this will last about 30 more years.

Quiet day on the Twins’ front, from what I could gather. Nothing new on the Joe Crede front. The Twins will need to cut someone from their 40-man roster to make room for reliever Luis Ayala, but they’ll wait until after Ayala passes his physical, upon reporting to camp.

An e-mail popped into my inbox tonight, and all I could see was the subject line, “Giants sign…” Alas, it was Ramon Ortiz. San Francisco signed the former Twins’ RHP to a minor-league deal.

Anyway, La Velle has arrived in Fort Myers and will be spearheading our coverage to open spring training. (La Velle said it was 78 degrees down there today and yes, he was rubbing it in.) Souhan will be down there next week for the start of camp, and Reusse has a stint in March planned, as well.

For now, I appreciate this extra time at home with Mrs. C and Baby Noe. I’ll head to Florida on March 2 and will still have five weeks of camp to cover before the season finally starts on April 6. (You can thank the WBC for the expanded spring format.)

As always, we are totally fired up to bring you the most comprehensive coverage possible, from the first moments with players arriving at their spring lockers … to the season’s final moment. Between now and March 2, I’ll be working on some projects but intend to weigh in here with analysis.

So thanks for reading, folks. Enjoy the season. It should be an interesting ride.

Your turn: Look into your crystal ball, and describe this season’s final moment for the Twins. Maybe it’s rookie Trevor Plouffe hitting a routine grounder to shortstop on Oct. 4 against Kansas City (the final play at the Metrodome). Maybe it’s a Jonathan Papelbon save-and-hug with Jason Varitek after another first-round playoff exit for the Twins, or perhaps Justin Morneau crushing one into the right-field upper deck to win Game 7 of the World Series?

Luis Ayala, who agreed to a one-year, $1.3 million deal with the Twins last Friday (pending a physical), plans to pitch for Mexico in the World Baseball Classic.

This is notable because Ayala hurt his elbow while pitching for Mexico in the 2006 WBC and underwent Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery.

With closer Joe Nathan (United States) reliever Jesse Crain (Canada) pitching in the WBC, the Twins will not stand in Ayala’s way. He’ll be part of a Mexican bullpen with Royals closer Joakim Soria and former Twins LHP Dennys Reyes.

Ayala will report to Fort Myers, Fla., with the rest of their pitchers on Sunday, and his deal should be finalized by next Monday.

(*) An item I wrote about Ty Wigginton’s contract expectations earlier this offseason had some wondering where I heard Joe Crede is looking for a $7 million base salary.

When Wigginton was first non-tendered, I wrote that the Twins believed he was looking for a bigger contract than the three-year, $17.5 million deal Casey Blake got from the Dodgers.

That looked silly when Wigginton agreed to a two-year, $6 million deal with Baltimore last week. Some wondered if the Twins had seriously misread the market.

In Wigginton’s case, the early indications were that he wanted a hefty, three-year deal. Granted, that was a starting point for negotiations, and he must have come way down. I think the sticker shock turned away the Twins, who weren’t overly interested anyway because of how they value defense.

As for the Crede tip, all I can say is it came from a person familiar with the negotiations.

Update: Some are wondering if the Giants are out of the running for Crede now that they’ve signed Rich Aurilia. The Aurilia deal was a minor-league deal, giving him no assurance that he’ll make the team. I was told today that the Giants could still sign Crede, but like the Twins, that’s only if his price comes down.

(*) Finally, I’m sure Tony Oliva will appreciate all of your well-wishes from today’s earlier post. The word from Miami is he’s feeling better. Let’s hope he’s feeling well enough to take his wonderful wife, Gordette, on that cruise.

Twins icon Tony Oliva is in a Florida hospital today, recovering from a blood infection, his wife, Gordette, told the Star Tribune.

Oliva, 70, ran a 103-degree fever Sunday, but at last check, his body temperature had lowered to 100.5, she said.

“He’s feeling better today,” she said. “He has a blood infection. But he’s more comfortable today. They’ve been giving him antibiotics.”

The Olivas flew to Miami on Saturday to visit family. They are scheduled to depart on a cruise next week before heading to spring training in Fort Myers, Fla., where Oliva serves as a hitting instructor.

The fever overcame Oliva on the flight from the Twin Cities to Miami, his wife said. Oliva, a three-time American League batting champion and 1964 Rookie of the Year, has had issues with staph infections in the past.

This time, he was admitted to the emergency room Saturday at Palmetto General Hospital in Hialeah, Fla.

“He’s going to be fine,” Gordette Oliva said, when reached on her cell phone at the hospital. “We just don’t know how long it’s going to take.”

Joe Crede is seeking a base salary of closer to $7 million than $5 million, which could decrease the likelihood that the free agent third baseman lands with the Twins, the Star Tribune has learned.

Crede made $5.1 million last season with the White Sox, and Twins officials have bristled at committing even $5 million to a player who was limited to 47 games and 97 games the past two seasons because of back injuries.

Yet the Twins are well under budget. After letting their payroll reach $74 million in 2007, their Opening Day, 25-man roster projection is at $60.15 million. That includes the $1.3 million they have agreed to pay righthanded reliever Luis Ayala, pending a physical.

Crede, 30, was an All-Star last season with the White Sox, batting .252 with 16 home runs and 59 RBI over the first half. The back injury limited him to one home run in 39 plate appearances after the All-Star break.

A first-time free agent, Crede is willing to settle for a one-year deal, but he’s not looking for a discounted base salary, and he’ll want incentives that will pay him with other elite third baseman if he stays on the field. Adrian Beltre will make $12 million this year, and Eric Chavez will make $11 million. Those could be reference points.

But Crede has proven to be an elite player — a dangerous righthanded hitter who plays top-notch defense — when he’s on the field. So most teams would welcome the incentive payments.

If $7 million guaranteed sounds steep for the Twins, consider that they offered Casey Blake a two-year, $14 million contract with an option for 2011 before he accepted his three-year, $17.5 million deal with the Dodgers.

One of Blake’s best attributes is his durability; he has averaged 598 plate appearances over the past six seasons. But he also is nearly five years older than Crede, who insists he has overcome his back issues.

Crede had a herniated disk in 2007, and the corrective surgery left him with a nerve impingement last season. He has since had minor surgery to remove that impingement, and agent Scott Boras said Crede will be as ready as any player when spring training begins.

The Twins want to continue monitoring Crede’s workouts, but there are indications that Boras is deeper into negotiations with other teams. A San Francisco television station has reported that Crede has a one-year offer from the Giants. No word yet on whether the Twins have made an official offer, but they have had continuing discussions with Boras.