Twins reliever Pat Neshek updated the readers of his blog Monday with good news about his progress coming back from Tommy John surgery:

I’ve been throwing fastballs and change-ups at full speed off the mound and my arm feels better than it did before I went down during the season in 08. This week we start with sliders and I’m excited because that’s my pitch!

Following up, we sent an e-mail to see how it’s gone so far with the slider, and Neshek sent an enthusiastic response from Fort Myers, Fla.:

I had an excellent bullpen session [Thursday] throwing all three pitches. I’m throwing max effort right now and it feels great. I have about 3 weeks left then I’m technically done with rehab but I will stay down here and work out with [Twins strength and conditioning coach Perry Castellano] all winter.

[Twins rehab coordinator] Lanning Tucker and Perry noticed my arm slot was a little higher…kind of like how I was in 2006 and 07…in 08 my arm got tired and my shoulder would slope down and that’s pretty much what caused my injury.

Being on top a little more is making my slider run a lot. Also we didn’t have a radar gun out but today it felt like I was throwing harder than the start of the 08 season. I’m pretty excited this was a great day mentally.

That should be encouraging news for the Twins, especially considering Neshek posted a 2.19 ERA in 2006 and a 2.94 ERA in 2007 before posting a 4.73 ERA in an injury-shortened 2008.

By Feb. 21, when Twins pitchers and catchers report to Fort Myers, Neshek will be 15 months removed from the reconstructive elbow surgery, and it sounds like he’ll be at full strength.

It’s always tough when the World Series ends, knowing there won’t be another meaningful major league game for five months. The Twins open April 5, in Anaheim, Calif., against the Angels, and then open Target Field on April 12 against the Red Sox. Twins pitchers and catchers report to spring training on Feb. 21, and we’ll be there as the anticipation builds in Fort Myers.

But what now?

Well, the clock already is ticking for the Twins. They have five days to decide whether to pick up Michael Cuddyer’s $10.5 million option for 2011, or pay him a $1 million buyout. Either way, Cuddyer is coming back next season, but it’ll be interesting to see how that plays out.

Teams also have a 15-day exclusive negotiating window with their own free agents. For the Twins, that involves Orlando Cabrera, Joe Crede, Ron Mahay, Carl Pavano and Mike Redmond.

The annual General Manager meetings begin on Monday in Chicago, and that’s usually a breeding ground for trade rumors, etc. We’ll be keeping up with all of this, though it’s worth discussing a few ground rules.

On Tuesday, when the St. Petersburg Times reported that the Rays were close to dealing 2B Akinori Iwamura, Internet speculation spread that Aki was coming to the Twins, who had cut Brian Buscher from the 40-man roster earlier in the day.

As the Iwamura-to-Minnesota speculation spread, we checked into it and were told it wasn’t the Twins. I got a tip that it would be Pittsburgh, but it wasn’t from a Rays source or a Pirates source, so I refrained from blogging it or Tweeting it until I had something firm.

Hopefully, our readers will appreciate those standards in what figures to be a newsy offseason for the Twins. In the Twitter age, speculation spreads like wildfire. If you see something, and you haven’t read it here, please pass along the tip via e-mail (jchristensen@startribune.com), send an @reply on Twitter (@JoeCStrib), or comment below. But we’ll use our judgement on what and when to publish, filtering the information as best we can.

So sit back and enjoy the offseason. The on-field games might be finished, but the off-field stuff is just beginning.

The Twins have cut infielder Brian Buscher from their 40-man roster, outrighting him to Class AAA Rochester. He can become a minor-league free agent 16 days after the World Series.

Buscher, 28, batted .235 with two home runs and 12 RBI in 61 games for the Twins this season, posting a .360 on-base percentage and a .316 slugging percentage.

The Twins did not have Buscher on their original 25-man playoff roster, though he did replace Matt Tolbert after Tolbert suffered a strained oblique muscle.

Joe Mauer’s offseason hardware collection continued Thursday, as he was voted American League Player of the Year by his peers in the Major League Baseball Players Association.

Mauer, 26, is strong candidate for AL MVP honors. That award will be announced Nov. 23 by the Baseball Writers Association of America. This is Mauer’s first Player of the Year selection by the MLBPA.

Albert Pujols took home NL Player of the Year honors for the seventh time.

A few quick notes on World Series eve:

(*) The Twins drafted Gophers WR Eric Decker in the 27th round this year but no longer have his rights. The deadline to sign him was Aug. 17, and Decker had committed to playing football. Now, Decker is out for the season and might need surgery to repair a sprained foot. Though Decker hadn’t planned to play baseball for the Gophers next spring, the Twins or one of the other 29 MLB clubs could still draft him, hoping he reconsiders a baseball career.

(*) The Astros and Indians reportedly both made managerial offers to Manny Acta on Saturday, and he chose the Indians, who offered a third year guaranteed, while the Astros offered two years with an option. This makes it look like the Astros had to settle for Red Sox bench coach Brad Mills. But I think both of these hires are solid.

I first met Acta in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic during the 2004 Caribbean Series. I was covering the Orioles, and they had just signed Miguel Tejada, who was playing for Acta on the Dominican squad along with David Ortiz. It always stuck with me, how much passion Acta, Tejada and Ortiz showed in winning that tournament.

Acta received good reviews during his first year managing the Nationals, in 2007, when they went 73-89. Some questioned Acta’s passion before the Nationals fired him this year, after a 26-61 start, but the team’s talent was so thin, it was a hard situation to assess. I felt he deserved another chance somewhere else.

I don’t know Mills personally, but I’ve heard terrific things from people in the game I really respect. My hunch is both of these managers will help steer their clubs in the right direction.

(*) I don’t remember the last time I got a World Series prediction right, but I am looking forward to this Yankees/Phillies matchup and believe it has promise for a long, captivating series. I’d like the Phillies’ chances more if they were starting LHPs Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels in the first two games at Yankee Stadium. Manager Charlie Manuel’s decision to start Pedro Martinez over Hamels in Game 2 is an easy first guess, but Manuel knows this situation far better than me, and it would be great theater to see Pedro prove him right Thursday (weather permitting).

The Yankees have looked unstoppable this month, but all the numbers change to zero again. This is A-Rod’s first Fall Classic, so no matter what kind of zone he’s been in, he has to prove himself yet again. The bullpen edge seems to favor the Yankees, especially with Mariano. Then again, Brad Lidge said he’s finally feeling healthy again for the Phillies, and that can make all the difference.

Almost all my instincts tell me to pick the Yankees in 5, but I’m taking the Phillies in 6.