Rumor: In A Market With No Sellers, Twins May Trade Away MLB Players

[Brock Beauchamp]

Well, this is an interesting development. In Ken Rosenthal's latest roundup, he mentions the Twins have a roster crunch coming up when Jorge Polanco returns to the 26-man roster. This may lead the Minnesota front office to trade away at least one of their left-handed outfield bats, though it's hard to predict which one. Trevor Larnach was recently demoted to AAA St Paul while both Matt Wallner and Max Kepler are hitting quite well for an offense that has struggled to score runs in 2023.

That leaves Joey Gallo and it's hard to envision his trade return being significant, or even existing at all.

The most interesting development of this trade deadline is that it's... not really happening. Nobody is trading anyone. Sure, we've seen relievers move around and some complementary players be traded but none of the larger names have come off the board. That's because so few teams have dedicated to selling. The Angels took Ohtani off the market. The Cubs can't stop winning so it's becoming less likely they will trade either Marcus Stroman or Cody Bellinger.

As a result, teams are calling on the Twins starters, including Sonny Gray. And with a front office that somehow pivoted from Mitch Garver to Isiah Kiner-Falefa to Carlos Correa in the blink of an eye, we can't rule out this front office doing, well, pretty much anything if they think it improves the team.

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[Cory Engelhardt]

I'm just over here having some popcorn and waiting. Should be a fun weekend :)

[Dman]

If fans on TD can figure out the Twins have too many left handed corner bats it isn't too surprising other FO's know about that issue as well.  The Twins technically only need to move one right now and Gallo seems the logical choice even if it means DFA.

As discussed in another thread they could move Larnach and Gallo as they have Gordon coming back and they didn't really need Gallo to begin with.  

While I don't think it makes a ton of sense to move Gray I could see the Twins moving Maeda if the return was right and fill in Kuechel\Varland\Headrick type of deal but that seems like a long shot.

The Twins have some interesting rule V issues coming up with Martin, Camargo, Severino, Rosario, Rodriguez and maybe Grace and Funderburk.  Not sure what value those players have on the market but there likely isn't room to add them all after the season especially Severino.  

I think the Twins can make some moves just need the right deals to come together.  teams should know that even though Steer and CES were not top 100 prospects Minnesota knows how to develop well rounded bats. So maybe they can get more value than we think.

[ToddlerHarmon]

If Max Kepler has any trade value, do you trade him now?

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

I'm on the fence with Gray. He seems to have regressed over the course of the season and I trust him less than Lopez, Ryan, Ober and even Maeda. With that said, I trust Gray a lot more than any internal options to backfill his spot in the rotation and unless the Twins are brining back an established starting pitcher under team control beyond 2023, I don't see why they would make a trade. 

[Vanimal46]

I like this development. If there are that many buyers, then the Twins should zag the other direction. There is no other team to fear in the AL Central. 

I would call every team in the AL East and SEA/HOU/TX. See who is starving for pitching and willing to overpay for Gray or Maeda. 

[DJL44]

I know people are skeptical they can move Gallo but is there a better LH outfield bat on the market? All they will want in return is a decent reliever.

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

I could see some team liking the idea of Gallo enough to take a flier, but I would be surprised if that flier involved anything more than a AA lottery ticket, i.e., prospect.

[Muppet]

34 minutes ago, ToddlerHarmon said:

If Max Kepler has any trade value, do you trade him now?

The Kepler plan seems to be falling into place very nicely. See if he gets a hot streak, then trade him. His value right now is higher that it will ever be. Yes. I trade Kepler ASAP. 

[tony&rodney]

The Twins have players to trade if they can get a handle on the long term approach of the team. The pitching has been improved and part of that is due to trades. There may be another risky trade to make .... with Seattle. The Mariners need bats and have pitching. Conversations need to happen and sometimes an agreement evolves from having a seat at the table. Who would Seattle want in return for Logan Gilbert or George Kirby? The Twins could really move things around by both adding pitching and trading expiring contracts. I don't have any feel for what Falvey wants however. I think the Twins stand pat in the end.

I always feel it is a little futile, even somewhat cruel considering we are referring to upsetting people's lives, to suggest trades. It is a part of the game however. One thing to consider is that the Twins do have multiple players looking for an opportunity and some prospects at lower levels who may draw interest. The post features a photo of Sonny Gray. He, Maeda, Farmer(for utility), Gallo (power), Taylor (defense & speed), and others should be in conversations. I'm willing to see how the Twins do with what they have now but also do not expect any of those players to be on the 2024 roster. 

[rusty boots]

41 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

I like this development. If there are that many buyers, then the Twins should zag the other direction. There is no other team to fear in the AL Central. 

I would call every team in the AL East and SEA/HOU/TX. See who is starving for pitching and willing to overpay for Gray or Maeda. 

No one else to fear eh, we will see how this plays out 

[ToddlerHarmon]

15 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

Maeda, Farmer(for utility), Gallo (power), Taylor (defense & speed), and others should be in conversations

Farmer has an arbitration year left, IIRC. He will probably be on the team next year unless Brooks Lee arrives. Funny how that throwaway acquisition of Castro has made Farmer and Taylor expendable.

[CRF]

I'd honestly be surprised if they do much of anything. I think the FO is going to pretty much stand pat and ride out this season. As much as some of us would like him gone, I can see them keeping Gallo, not trading Kepler, Larnach, or Wallner...and maybe only adding another middling arm to the pen. If they add a righty bat, I have no idea who they'd be interested in, or go after. It just looks like nothing is going to happen. We'll know in a few days. 

[tony&rodney]

1 minute ago, ToddlerHarmon said:

Farmer has an arbitration year left, IIRC. He will probably be on the team next year unless Brooks Lee arrives. Funny how that throwaway acquisition of Castro has made Farmer and Taylor expendable.

Rambling. Farmer does have another year of control. The Twins should be looking to see what team is interested in Farmer though. Taylor is a better defender by quite a bit than Castro but your point is valid. Castro has real value to the Twins now and next year too. He is a little stretched as a regular. I think he would be best 4-5 times per week. While i did not think Brooks Lee would be in the picture until later in 2024, he has looked more in control of everything in the last month and i expect him to open next year with the Twins. Does this make Royce Lewis or Eddie Julien available? I don't know about that, but there may be a mutually beneficial market out there. I remain a big fan of Julien since last year. The return for either Kepler or Polanco versus their potential value in a Twins jersey doesn't seem to warrant a trade.

[Jocko87]

That feels like a good situation for the Twins. We are best off trimming from the 40 man somewhere and we have the product the market seems to be wanting. Win win. 

[chpettit19]

How well is Wallner regarded in Seattle? Is there a package to be built around him that brings back one of their young arms? Seattle has arms to move in return for a bat, but they'll want a controllable bat since their arms are controllable for years still. Can a package built around Wallner, and Polanco maybe, bring back Gilbert, Kirby, or Miller? I'd certainly be calling Seattle. I'd guess we can't meet their asking price, but it's worth a call.

[Brock Beauchamp]

1 hour ago, ToddlerHarmon said:

If Max Kepler has any trade value, do you trade him now?

Yes, please, but my borderline irrational dislike of Max Kepler is already well-document 'round these parts.

[Brock Beauchamp]

34 minutes ago, CRF said:

I'd honestly be surprised if they do much of anything. I think the FO is going to pretty much stand pat and ride out this season. As much as some of us would like him gone, I can see them keeping Gallo, not trading Kepler, Larnach, or Wallner...and maybe only adding another middling arm to the pen. If they add a righty bat, I have no idea who they'd be interested in, or go after. It just looks like nothing is going to happen. We'll know in a few days. 

If it was another front office, maybe. But have you known this front office to sit back and let it ride in the past few years? If anything, it feels like they sometimes make moves just for the sake of the action. 

[brockbesler]

Maybe Baltimore would be interested in Gray for Mountcastle. I know this doesn’t help the logjam of fielders, but maybe they would take Gallo if the Twins eat some of his salary. 

[AceWrigley]

I wouldn't be surprised to see a blockbuster trade, even Soto from San Diego. If teams aren't selling it makes our players that much more valuable and we have future roster crunches ahead. "Hold on to your butts".

[TwinsDr2021]

18 minutes ago, Brock Beauchamp said:

If it was another front office, maybe. But have you known this front office to sit back and let it ride in the past few years? If anything, it feels like they sometimes make moves just for the sake of the action. 

I would add if they stand pat and end up not winning the division, their job could/should be in jeopardy.

[cmoss84]

Keep Gray for this year. He turns into 1st rd pick. 

Trade any of Buxton (yes. I am aware he has a no trade clause), Polanco, Kepler, Gallo, Larnach, Kirillof or Maeda.

Trade Correa in off season. 

[AceWrigley]

1 minute ago, cmoss84 said:

Keep Gray for this year. He turns into 1st rd pick. 

Trade any of Buxton (yes. I am aware he has a no trade clause), Polanco, Kepler, Gallo, Larnach, Kirillof or Maeda.

Trade Correa in off season. 

We probably won't trade Correa and I'd keep Kiriloff.

[CRF]

29 minutes ago, Brock Beauchamp said:

If it was another front office, maybe. But have you known this front office to sit back and let it ride in the past few years? If anything, it feels like they sometimes make moves just for the sake of the action. 

I know what you're saying, Brock...and you're right. They've made a lot of moves the last few years, and at times it seems like they're making moves just to make moves. I'm probably wrong and they'll make a bunch of them by next week at the last minute. For some reason, I don't see it happening. I think this year might be different.  

[Squirrel]

This has me torn, actually. Kepler is hitting now so it makes him valuable to us for right now (imo, despite Brock's borderline irrational dislike.) But I don't want to move on from Wallner or Larnach, either. Gallo would be the one to move, but he won't bring back much at this point. So ... what to do? I think whatever they do might have me disappointed, especially if it doesn't work out. So maybe the best thing is to do nothing?

[cmoss84]

4 minutes ago, Squirrel said:

This has me torn, actually. Kepler is hitting now so it makes him valuable to us for right now (imo, despite Brock's borderline irrational dislike.) But I don't want to move on from Wallner or Larnach, either. Gallo would be the one to move, but he won't bring back much at this point. So ... what to do? I think whatever they do might have me disappointed, especially if it doesn't work out. So maybe the best thing is to do nothing?

Is this a roster that will make a push in the post season? If we get there...

We also have a roster crunch at multiple positions. We have prospect capital. In regards to making a big splash...if not now, when?

[stringer bell]

Here's my opinion(s): 1) Gallo would bring back nothing of value. The choice is whether to keep him on the team or DFA him. I say DFA. 2) Kepler has value, but he is probably worth more to the Twins than any other team, so he stays. The big question that will probably be determined by August and September production, is whether the Twins will pick up his option for 2024. 3) Wallner is less than a year younger than Larnach and has only 127 plate appearances in the majors, but he shows more upside (particularly power) than Larnach. 4) Larnach has nearly 700 major league plate appearances and has failed to establish himself as a major league regular. He's shown enough to interest other teams, particularly rebuilding teams, and is the logical choice to be traded for someone who can help the club this year. 

If I'm the Twins FO, I would DFA Gallo (swing and a miss on that signing), trade Larnach for the best relief pitcher or RH hitting outfielder they can find and put Byron Buxton on the IL.

[Dave Borton]

54 minutes ago, Brock Beauchamp said:

...But have you known this front office to sit back and let it ride in the past few years? If anything, it feels like they sometimes make moves just for the sake of the action. 

Just hope that Levine can get some kind of governor over Falvey when Falvey's impulsiveness kicks in and gives away a ton of prospects once again.

[Squirrel]

10 minutes ago, cmoss84 said:

Is this a roster that will make a push in the post season? If we get there...

We also have a roster crunch at multiple positions. We have prospect capital. In regards to making a big splash...if not now, when?

I think we have a playoff team. Yes, I know ... weak division, blah blah blah ... but I think we are playoff bound. And I think we have the pitching to win a few games. And if our offense keeps up, we have a team. Another reliable relief pitcher and a right-handed bat ... that's it. World Series bound? Doubtful. But, I think we have a playoff team. Dumping everyone now, as you suggested in an earlier post, I think would be very foolhardy. Trading away everyone to make a splash at one position ... nope. I don't know when, but not this year.

[tony&rodney]

1 hour ago, chpettit19 said:

How well is Wallner regarded in Seattle? Is there a package to be built around him that brings back one of their young arms? Seattle has arms to move in return for a bat, but they'll want a controllable bat since their arms are controllable for years still. Can a package built around Wallner, and Polanco maybe, bring back Gilbert, Kirby, or Miller? I'd certainly be calling Seattle. I'd guess we can't meet their asking price, but it's worth a call.

I believe that Seattle might be an interesting match. It really depends on how the Mariners view the Twins players. Any one of Gilbert, Kirby, or Miller would be massive additions and Brash is a guy who would really be a fine addition as well. 

Generally, my preference in position players includes guys who are smooth and athletic. Witness Tony Oliva and Rod Carew as opposed to Harmon Killebrew. although I always had great respect for HK and his value. Still, I see Julien and Wallner as players who possess some rare hitting talent and have room for improvement. I also believe that each can become average with the glove although they may never be aesthetic looking in the field. If the Twins believe in those two, there are others available to trade (Lewis, Larnach, more). 

I see San Diego and Seattle as possible positive partners for trades, but am still believing that the Twins will sit it out.