Twins closer-extraordinaire Joe Nathan has been diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament. No, that doesn't sound good at all. So what happens now?

At this point, Nathan's going to give the swelling around his elbow two weeks to subside before attempting to throw. It's possible that surgery won't be necessary, but the fact that he's going to meet with Dr. James "Tommy John" Andrews to discuss his options is quite ominous.

After the 2009 season, Nathan admitted that he had pitched most of the year with discomfort in his elbow, and proceeded to go under the knife in October to have two bone chips removed from the elbow. I suppose we'll know in the next few weeks, if not the next few days, whether his current injury is related to last year's.

Nathan is coming off a career-high 47-save campaign in which he posted a 2.10 ERA and 0.93 WHIP while striking out 89 in 68.2 IP, and leaves a gaping hole at the top of the Twins bullpen. Who will be charged with filling the giant-sized shoes Nathan leaves behind? Well, there are a couple options.

Jon Rauch picked up 17 saves in 22 tries for the Nationals in 2008 before getting shipped to the Diamondbacks, who employed him as a setup man for Brandon Lyon. Arizona shipped him to Minnesota in late August (for Kevin Mulvey) and he pitched quite well for the Twins; in 15.2 IP, he tallied 14 Ks with an ERA of 1.72 and a WHIP of 1.21. His 26 saves are the most among the remaining members of the bullpen, but they come with 18 blown saves, including the only two opportunities he got with Minnesota last season. His strand rate (72.9%) and HR rate (1.05 per 9 IP) are just average, which for a late-inning reliever is sub-par.

Matt Guerrier has led the team in holds each of the last two seasons, but hasn't had much success when given the occasional save opp (as a 4-for-14 record indicates). His career strand rate (79.4%) is much higher than Rauch's and more indicative of a successful reliever (Nathan's is 79.9%), but he doesn't bring much in the way of strikeouts to the table, with a career rate of 6.01 K/9.

Those two have been widely mentioned as front-runners for the position, but there are two other options.

Jose Mijares is a 25-year-old southpaw who throws mid-90s heat and has a double-digit K/9 ceiling. Pitching for High-A, Double-A and Triple-A in 2006 and 2007, Mijares never got his BB/9 under 5.00, but he stormed to the big leagues in 2008 after posting a walk rate of 2.70 in 36.2 minor league innings.

Last year he racked up 27 holds for the Twins (six behind Guerrier) with 55 Ks, a 2.34 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. The 2.34 ERA is likely unsustainable, as his strand rate was a lofty 89.9%, but his 8.03 K/9, 3.36 BB/9 and a normal BABIP suggest his sub-1.20 WHIP is repeatable. His 10.83 K/9 in 200+ minor league innings suggest that his WHIP could be in for further improvement as he matures.

And then there's Pat Neshek. Neshek was one of those Marmolian relievers who you'd consider owning even though he wasn't getting any saves because he gave you solid ratios and more than a K-per-inning. He's coming back from his own Tommy John surgery and has already seen live batters this spring. A solid couple weeks here and he could find himself in the mix of things down the road.

I mentioned these pitchers starting with the most likely to get the job, Rauch. His career 59% save percentage doesn't bode well for his ability to hold on to the role, so don't invest too heavily in his services and be prepared to jump on Guerrier or Mijares. I think Mijares has the best shot at holding on to the job, but he has to be given the chance first. Neshek will be eased back into a regular use pattern and shouldn't be a candidate for the job until we reach the summer months, if need be.

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