{image1} It's not too far out of the realm of imagination to think Doug Melvin will be watching with an astute eye as the Brewers take on the Twins this weekend at the Metrodome.

It's been no secret since day one that Milwaukee's General Manager has looked at the border rival as a model while he rebuilds a franchise that hasn't had a reason to look at the standings since 1992.

For a small-market team, there's no other way to do it. If you need proof, just look at the standings: the Twins have won three consecutive American League Central Division Championships in a row, all with a payroll in the $40-50 million range.

The Brewers are creeping toward that level, but at a pace that is driving its hungry fans insane.

So let's take a closer look.

From 1999-2001, the Twins ranked at or near the bottom in terms of team payroll. In 1999 and 2000, Minnesota paid its players a shade over $32 million ... combined.

How did they turn things around? They relied on their kids.

The Twins, knowing they would never be able to win the bidding wars with baseball's big dogs, wisely opted to stick their limited revenues into development and scouting.

One of the best player evaluation units in baseball has helped produce home-grown talent like Torii Hunter, Jaque Jones, Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau. Departed players like Christan Guzman, Doug Mientkiewitz, and Matt Lawton also thrived in the Twins' farm system before being used in trades that brought in more young players and kept the cycle going.

That's where Melvin finds himself today, as the franchise he has been charged with resurrecting continues to take baby steps.

He's turned one man's junk into another's fortune. Victor Santos, Derrick Turnbow and Doug Davis were all reclamation projects that have paid some pretty big dividends for the Brewers.

Scott Podsednik and Danny Kolb were also pulled from the scrap heap by Melvin, and eventually led to more prospects - and a legitimate offensive threat (all struggles aside).

Sure, Brewers fans have heard this song and dance before. It's the same refrain with a different melody that has been playing since 1992.

But this time, it's actually being done right.

For years, the Brewers' philosophy was to sign whatever aging, once-productive veteran that was available via either a inflated contract (Sean Berry, Ben McDonald, Marquis Grissom, and Jeffery Hammonds spring to mind) or by trading away legitimate future stars for guys with questionable credentials (So long to Fernando Vina, Jeff Cirillo, and so on; hello Glendon Rusch, Juan Acevedo, etc).

The Brewers are doing now what they should have done in 1994.

The team was near death after the Molitor-Bosio-Seitzer-Fletcher departures following the 1992 season. Then-GM Sal Bando tried to make things work the next season by bringing in guys like Tom Brunansky and Kevin Reimer, but it didn't work.

The plug should have been pulled the very next season, and the rebuilding should have begun. Instead, management tried to convince fans that Jody Reed and Brian Harper would provide a boost to the offense that would get the team out of the cellar.

That, and the strike, further hindered the Brewers' cause.

Bando could have gotten on the right foot in 1995. Out went Harper and Reed, in comes Joe Oliver. Again, no dice.

All that time, the scouting department was bringing in guys like Chad Green, Antone Williamson, and Ken Felder.

Things were supposed to change when Dean Taylor took charge. The team continued to struggle, but the farm started to prosper with the addition of Dave Krynzel, Mike Jones and some guy named Sheets.

Brewer fans are angry, and rightfully so. While the current record doesn't reflect it, there is marked improvement.

Unfortunately, most of the improvement cannot be seen with the naked eye, at least not quite yet.

Since Miller Park opened, and the team has continued to lose, Milwaukeeans have clamored that they were swindled by the Selig family.

The stadium, they were told, would make the team competitive again. Yet, the losing continues.

But what can't be seen is that the stadium IS putting a winning team on the field.

Revenues are up, and income from revenue sharing has helped the franchise get on the right track. While that money wasn't spent on signing guys like Carlos Beltran or David Wells, it was spent on upgrading the minor league operation and the development staff.

The money has been spent on guys like Rickie Weeks, who was signed to a major league contract right after he was drafted. The money has gone towards signing bonuses for guys like JJ Hardy - who is just starting to come into his own - as well as last year's first round selection Mark Rogers.

Krynzel, Jones, Prince Fielder and Anthony Gwynn, Jr. are where a lot of that money has gone. The problem isn't that the Brewers keep rebuilding, it's just that until Melvin and manager Ned Yost came in, nobody's ever bothered to do it the right way. Melvin has a model to follow, and unlike his predecessors, he has an owner in Mark Attanasio that has the financial wherewithal to finance it.

And for Brewers fans, just like the late 1990s, when Twins fans were sick of losing and anxiously awaiting the arrival of guys like Guzman, Hunter, Jones, and Koskie . . . good things will come to those who wait.