La Velle E. Neal III of the Star Tribune says the Minnesota Twins are prioritizing their needs for the July 31 deadline. He says the team could use improvement in starting pitching, third base and relief pitching. Here’s Neal’s breakdown:

Starting pitching:

The Twins need a front-end starter. Two candidates the Twins could go after include the Astros Roy Oswalt and the Mariners Cliff Lee. Neal wonders if catching prospect Wilson Ramos would be good enough for Lee in a trade.

Other trade candidates includes Oakland’s Ben Sheets, Texas’ Rich Harden and Arizona’s Dan Haren.

Third base:

Mike Lowell of the Boston Red Sox is a possibility for the Twins, but his lack of playing time shows in his stats – .215 batting average with 2 home runs. Neal says the Twins have had interest in Lowell, but nothing has gotten serious lately.

Relief pitching:

Minnesota’s bullpen has proven to be extremely effective this season despite the loss of All Star closer Joe Nathan. Neal wondering if the Twins will engage Oakland for Michael Wuertz. If the team needs to add to the bullpen down the stretch, they may have to give up reliever prospects such as Kyle Waldrop or closer Anthony Slama.