MINNEAPOLIS - Playoff baseball games are intense, dramatic and filled with energy and emotion.

Brad Radke, the Minnesota Twins' starting pitcher for Game 1 of their AL divisional series at Oakland on Tuesday, shows all the emotion of a man collecting coins at an interstate toll booth.

"It's just like a regular start," Radke said with his typical nonchalance.

But it isn't.

This is the Twins' first playoff game since they won Game 7 of the 1991 World Series, when Radke - who turns 30 on Oct. 27, the day of Game 7 of this year's World Series - had just finished his rookie season.

The consensus among Minnesota fans and media seemed to be that Rick Reed, whose 15 wins were a team high, was the best pick to start Tuesday and Radke - who's always pitched better at the Metrodome than on the road - fit better for Game 3.

But manager Ron Gardenhire didn't see it that way. Radke is his ace.

"We think he'll be very good," Gardenhire said. "He's a warrior. As (owner Carl) Pohlad says, 'Get him through the first inning and we'll be fine.'"

For the first six years of his career, Radke was one of few reliable arms in the rotation for some pretty bad teams.

Recovering from a pulled groin that cost him 2 1/2 months of the season, Radke finished 9-5 with a 4.72 ERA this season - his first without double-digit victories. All-Star Game appearances by Joe Mays and Eric Milton last year, the emergence of Kyle Lohse and Johan Santana this year and the steadiness of Reed all made Radke sort of a forgotten man.

But not to his teammates.

"Radke has always been our ace," said center fielder Torii Hunter. "He's got the mentality. You've got to give him the opportunity to go out in Game 1. I think he'll do a pretty good job."

In spring training 2000, most believed the Twins would trade Radke before signing him to a long-term contract. Radke wasn't so sure he wanted to return, unless he could be convinced the team was committed to winning.

But the two sides agreed on a four-year extension worth $36 million in July 2000, and the next year Minnesota returned to respectability.

Now, the Twins are in the playoffs.

"It was bound to happen," Radke said. "It was just a matter of time for the young guys to step up. A few years ago we thought we had a lot of talent on this club. It's a good feeling - playing for this team is a lot of fun."

Closer Eddie Guardado and infielder Denny Hocking are the only ones who've been with the Twins longer.

"I'm happy for him," catcher A.J. Pierzynski said. "He deserves it. He's been here the longest and put in the time. I think it's the right choice."

Radke's arm is probably stronger at this point in the season than usual because of the chunk of time he missed early in the summer. But that's not much of an advantage in the playoffs.

"Doesn't matter if you're tired or not," he said. "Your adrenaline is going to take over."

Radke has adrenaline?

"It's in there," he said with a sly smile. "Somewhere. I know where it is.

"I get worked up a little bit sometimes, but for the most part it's always been the same. It doesn't do you any good to get mad all the time. At times, it's good to leash it out a little bit. For the most part, it doesn't help."

There's no question about Radke's competitiveness, though.

"He just doesn't show it," Pierzynski said. "You have to be in the dugout. He just doesn't show his emotion on his sleeve. That's the way he is."

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Dave Campbell can be reached at dcampbell(at)ap.org