On the back side of the Minnesota Twins' 2002 pocket schedules is a form for ordering season tickets.

"Get 'em while they last," reads the slogan, courageously.

Of course, when the Twins' perpetually beleaguered marketing department came up with that angle, it was banking on the building momentum from the 2001 season. Thanks to a nucleus of young players that was the talk of baseball for the first half of the 2001 season, the Twins enjoyed the second-largest attendance increase in the game last summer.

Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura is one of many politicians speaking out on the Twins behalf.(AP)

And, before Commissioner Bud Selig pointed his assault rifle at Minnesota and Montreal in Chicago a couple of weeks ago -- oh, wait a sec, forgive us, Selig still says no decisions have been made on which two clubs will be contracted -- the Twins were optimistic they would easily surpass the two million-attendance mark in 2002.

Now, with contraction being threatened and the prospect of even playing in 2002 uncertain at best, it is anything but business as usual for the Minnesota and Montreal franchises this Thanksgiving. The latest:

The Twins

A "Save the Twins" rally was held Sunday in a driving rainstorm across the street from the Metrodome. As an estimated crowd of between 2,000 and 3,000 gathered to show support and sign petitions -- organizers of the event hope to deliver petitions with 100,000 signatures supporting the Twins to Selig soon -- the dripping symbolism was perfect.

"We planned to be very aggressive this winter in our season-ticket campaign," said Dave St. Peter, senior vice-president for business affairs. "Half of our fan base can actually spell 'Mientkiewicz' now, and the other half is getting close on 'Pierzynski.'

"We've made progress. A year ago, half of them couldn't get the first four letters of 'Mientkiewicz.'"

Whether first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz or catcher A.J. Pierzynski ever suit up in Minnesota again, though, remains in question.

If "Contraction Carl" Pohlad, the Twins' miserly owner, does sell them down the river, though, it will be despite an extraordinary amount of integrity shown by those in the organization.

Within the past week, general manager Terry Ryan declined an invitation from Toronto to interview for the Blue Jays' GM job, and star pitcher Brad Radke notified the Twins he will forsake the "opt-out" clause in his contract that could have delivered him to free agency, so he could stay and see this thing through.

"I think Terry Ryan's decision to turn down the opportunity to interview sent a strong signal not only to the front office, but to our scouts and minor-league personnel," St. Peter said. "He continues to be an incredibly steady hand in the organization. He's a force of stability, and that's so coveted by everyone here because they're searching for stability."

For his part, the modest Ryan predictably downplayed his decision to stay.

"I appreciate their interest, but I'm staying here because we've got a club to run," Ryan said. "I've got a lot of responsibility to people who have stayed loyal through the tough years, and now I'm going to bail? ...

"I couldn't have lived with myself, thinking that I would be going up there for a job and people were still going to be here. I didn't feel right. The more I thought about it, it was an easy decision.

"Everybody wants to be wanted. I'm wanted here. (The Twins) were the first to give me a GM job. They stuck with me through some tough years here."

Although Ryan says the Twins are "trying to go about our business in a positive manner," some things are on hold as a concession to these uncertain times.

The search for a new manager, for example, is frozen. Ryan has pretty much finished the interview process, and if the Twins do play baseball in 2002, either Ron Gardenhire or Paul Molitor is expected to replace the retired Tom Kelly.

"We can move swiftly," Ryan said. "Hopefully, we'll have a team to manage."

The Twins also have suspended their season-ticket renewal process. They are selling season tickets to anyone who wants them -- and they have sold about three dozen or so season tickets to individuals wanting to show support since Black Tuesday in Chicago a couple of weeks ago. But they are not mailing out the forms.

"We feel awkward asking people to send in money for games that, quite candidly, we're not sure if they're going to be played," St. Peter said.

The Twins took a positive step in that direction Friday, when a county judge in Minneapolis issued a temporary injunction that forces the Twins to honor the final year of their Metrodome lease in 2002. Baseball and the Twins -- because of Pohlad -- are expected to appeal that ruling, but the timetable might delay the contraction issue long enough to force Selig to abandon the idea for 2002.

Meanwhile, Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura, long an opponent of using public money to build a new stadium, but also someone who can't resist a good fight, announced last week he intends to become more heavily involved in the contraction issue. While Ventura isn't expected to change his stadium views, he is expected to make the national television rounds blasting Selig and his minions.

Given Ventura's national popularity, there's a good chance he will sway public opinion even further away from Selig and his minions.

So it has come down to this for the Twins: Many in their front office are rooting heavily for two old nemeses, Ventura and Don Fehr, the head of the Major-League Players' Association.

"It's another strange chapter in Twins history," St. Peter said. "The uncertainty takes its toll. We had a chance going into this winter to build on our ticket base and build optimism going into next season.

"I still think the optimism will be there, but the uncertainty and damage that has been inflicted, it's going to take some time for us to get through this period and regain people's trust."

Said Ryan: "We've been very resilient up here. We've mended a lot of fences over the past five-to-seven years and, right now, we would like nothing more than to go and mend a few more.

"As long as we know we're going to operate next season, we'll take our chances that something good will come during the course of the season. It always goes back to the type of club you put on the field.

"A lot of things are in place that should bode well in the 2002 season. With all that's transpired, it's been difficult. The overall objective for all of us working for the Minnesota Twins is to have an organization to work for. Any of that other stuff, we can overcome. Most of our employees have been here a long time.

"We'll get over this, if they allow us to function."

The Expos

As feisty as the Twins and their local politicians have been regarding contraction, that's about how quiet it has been on the other side of the spectrum in Montreal.

"Within the city, a lot of people have a lot of different opinions," said P.J. Loyello, the Expos' director of media and community relations since 1995. "It's active.

"There hasn't been any driving political force like in Minnesota, but we have people interested. There is no champion of our cause, per se. It's a different climate, a different country, a different legal system."

Also unlike the Twins, the Expos are true free agents -- their lease with Olympic Stadium expired with the 2001 season, and they currently are negotiating a new one.

However, don't expect them to sign anything until given the green light from baseball -- if it ever comes. The Expos are still conducting business as usual on the baseball side, but their business side has come to a near standstill.

They are not selling 2002 tickets, and there is no 2002 schedule to be found.

"Right now, we're in an extended holding pattern," Loyello said. "We haven't even released our schedule for next year. If you don't have a schedule, you can't sell tickets."

David Sampson, the Expos' executive vice president, has put a hold on ticket sales because he doesn't want to mislead anybody.

Sampson also has put a hold on the club's search for a general manager. Larry Beinfest, who started the season as an assistant general manager, was named as the interim following GM Jim Beattie's resignation at the conclusion of the season.

The "interim" tag is still attached to his title.

"I have not discussed it with David Sampson," Beinfest said. "He asked me when Jim resigned to take over on an interim basis, and we have not talked about it any further."

Beinfest spent most of the past several days tuning up the Expos' 40-man roster, which was due Tuesday. He also convinced pitcher Joey Eischen to sign with the Expos as a six-year free agent.

But most minor-league free agents these days want nothing to do with either Montreal or Minnesota.

"Do they have questions regarding the club's status? Yes," Beinfest said. "When they ask, I can't answer their questions. I can't answer questions that I don't know the answers to."

It remains awfully quiet in Montreal -- as it has since the 1994-1995 players' strike wiped out what now appears to be the last ounces of remaining momentum from what once wasn't a bad baseball town.

"It's been rough, but it's been rough the last five years here," Felipe Alou told the San Francisco Chronicle shortly before being fired as the Expos' manager last summer. "This is nothing new. It's tiring to lose. You hate to see young guys here condemned to a losing situation.

"It hasn't been fun, and that's why so many people have left -- players, staff, front office -- for a better situation. ... Is there hope? I don't know. You keep reading negative things, and we've been living it for five years. It all gets worse when you hear about contraction or whatever."

While Pohlad apparently wants out as an owner in Minnesota, Jeffrey Loria, Montreal's owner, doesn't. That's why, if the Expos are contracted, baseball is said to be brokering possible deals that would involve Loria purchasing the Marlins and Florida owner John Henry then purchasing Anaheim from the Walt Disney Corp.

Of course, under Loria's ownership, the Expos were driven further into the ground when Loria refused to agree to terms on English-language broadcasting contracts. That appeared to further sap fan interest.

So, now, the Expos wait.

"We'll wait and see," Loyello said. "The Commissioner's Office hasn't pinpointed which teams so, obviously, the communication from that end has been nothing."

Meanwhile, while a couple of thousand folks showed up in the rain Sunday to rally support for the Twins, at least one person -- at least, we assume it was a person -- showed up near Olympic Stadium a couple of Sundays ago to rally support.

Remember the robot sporting an Expos' logo that showed up outside of the hotel in Chicago as the owners met a couple of weeks ago?

Well, the robot spent a couple of hours outside Olympic Stadium a couple of Sunday ago.

Did he draw a crowd?

"No, no one really knew about it," said an Expos' official.

Killing The Killer

It is beginning to look as if maybe Harmon Killebrew, a sweetheart of a man, is well on his way toward becoming an anachronism.

First of all, the slugger's nickname -- "The Killer" -- almost certainly wouldn't have flown in today's politically correct climate.

Second, he started his career with the Washington Senators, only to watch them close up shop and move to Minnesota.

Now, a proud member of the Hall of Fame with the Minnesota logo on his cap, Killebrew is facing the extinction of his last link to the majors.

"For me, the most challenging thing was probably trying to explain the notion of contraction to Harmon Killebrew," said Dave St. Peter, Minnesota's senior vice-president for business affairs. "When he understood it was geared toward the Minnesota Twins, I can tell you it didn't sit well with Harmon.

"He left Washington with the Senators and, now, at the end of the day, he's facing the possibility of being a Hall of Famer without a team."

Diamondbacks to the American League?

If Commissioner Bud Selig is able to push contraction through for 2001, it will only be after he also figures out another move, the likely one being moving Arizona from the NL West to the AL West.

The thinking is this: If Minnesota and Montreal go, that leaves odd-numbered teams in each league -- 15 in the NL, 13 in the AL. That means either there has to be an interleague game every day, or somebody has to move so there is an even number of teams in each league.

Moving Arizona into the AL was part of Selig's "Radical Realignment" plan a couple of years ago, and Diamondbacks' owner Jerry Colangelo is adamantly against the idea.

Because of that, and because of the influence Colangelo has, most people don't expect the Diamondbacks to move.

"My thoughts are that I don't think it will happen," said Arizona ace Randy Johnson, the 2001 NL Cy Young award winner. "Obviously, it's out of our control. The front office will take care of it.

"But I'd like to think we'll remain in the National League. If we move to the AL, who'd be the NL's defending champions?"

Remembering the high strike

It was going to become baseball's big thing in 2001, umpires finally giving pitchers the high strike.

Well, one power pitcher who can devour batters with the high strike says he never got the opportunity to use it as much as he would have liked.

"It wasn't even three weeks into the season that the high strike went right down the tubes," said Roger Clemens, the 2001 AL Cy Young award winner. "We as players pretty much knew it would go by the boards."