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Plain and simple, third baseman Corey Koskie was overmatched when he was called up to the majors in September 1998. Though he had a .301 average at Triple A Salt Lake City that year, he hit only .138 with the Twins, striking out 10 times in 29 at bats. Things were dramatically better last season, when Koskie led Minnesota with a .310 average. Desperate for deep threats, the Twins could still use a little more power from the 6'3", 217-pound Koskie , who hit II dingers last season. They will definitely get better glovework from him; this winter Koskie spent time in Minneapolis working on his less-than-graceful defense with infield coach Ron Gardenhire . The 26-year-old Canadian improved enough to win the Twins' every-day job at the hot corner. Says teammate Ron Coomer , who will be Koskie 's backup this year. "He's worked as hard as anybody to get better."