"Twins closer Joe Nathan will arrive at spring training Tuesday with even more confidence that his recovery from Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery last year has gone well.

The righthander took the mound Sunday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium at the University of Tennessee for his final bullpen session before camp and was surprised by what he learned from it.

"They didn't tell me before or during, it came after," Nathan said over the telephone from Knoxville. "They said they had a gun on me and I was like, 'Really?' "

According to the radar gun, Nathan threw 88 to 89 miles per hour consistently, hitting 91 three times. It's not clear if the radar gun the Volunteers use is the same as the one used in the majors, but even if it's off 2 to 3 mph, it still isn't far off from how fast Nathan has thrown in the past."