Is There Still Room For a Right-Handed Outfielder After the Carlos Santana Signing?

[Greggory Masterson]

In the wake of the Jorge Polanco trade, the Twins have cash to spend. Some of that has been directed toward the newest Twin, Carlos Santana, but is there room for another addition?

 

The offseason is almost complete, but the Twins are just getting started. On Friday night, they filled the gap left by Jorge Polanco’s departure with a veteran slugging first baseman and designated hitter in Carlos Santana. The signing seemingly allows the Twins to feel comfortable with quality bats and flexibility at every spot in the lineup.

So, what’s next? Santana’s signing was for slightly less than the money the Jorge Polanco trade saved, so they, at least, still have a little bit more cash than they did last week. Although the Twins appear to have a full roster, with a solid lineup and quality projected bench of Willi Castro, Kyle Farmer, Christian Vazquez, and Nick Gordon, there’s still room to improve if the Twins choose to do so.

Santana solved the most significant hole in the roster, but as a first baseman or designated hitter, his presence doesn’t help at every position. One of the more significant areas for improvement is now in the outfield (as long as we’re ignoring the potential for a substantial rotation upgrade). Although the Twins have three quality outfielders in Byron Buxton, Max Kepler, and Matt Wallner, their depth is a bit more suspect—which is vital for a team counting on Buxton.

At present, Castro and Gordon are the first line of defense in the outfield, with Trevor Larnach and potentially Austin Martin at Triple-A in waiting. Alex Kirilloff could also play a corner when necessary. It’s a motley crew, and it’s redundant.

Castro, Gordon, Larnach, and Kirilloff all hit righties better than lefties. Castro and Gordon are super-utility players, and Martin could also be in the same role by midseason. Gordon, specifically, is coming off a disaster of a year following his popup breakout season in 2022. Everyone’s favorite hype man is in a position to get squeezed out.

If Gordon does find himself waived or traded (as he has no options remaining) or if another outfielder is moved separately, there would be room to bring in a right-handed outfielder. The fit would be great, as a right-handed outfielder could serve as the top backup—allowing Castro to be utilized as an in-game substitution weapon more frequently. A right-handed outfielder can also serve as a platoon corner outfield bat alongside Castro against left-handed pitching, as Kepler and Wallner are lefties. If that player can play somewhat regularly against righties, then all the better.

Who are the options for such a role? Trades are always a possibility, but they’re even more difficult to project than free agents, so let’s stick with free agency.

The most obvious answer may be a reunion with Michael A. Taylor, coming off a year as the Twins' de facto center fielder, in which he hit 20 home runs and played stellar defense. If the Twins were to reunite with Taylor, he could easily be a platoon bat against lefties and start frequently in center field as needed.

His return made less sense before Santana’s arrival, as he wouldn’t help the team nearly as much offensively and was not a candidate to fill a DH role. However, as a high-usage fourth outfielder, he would fit great into the current roster and provide functional utility on several fronts. Despite his below-average overall offensive numbers in 2023, he still had a .914 OPS against lefties, and the glove plays no matter who’s pitching.

Furthermore, Taylor’s presence would allow the Twins to selectively rest Byron Buxton and do what they can to keep him as healthy as possible through 2024. No remaining free agent outfielders, short of Cody Bellinger, can provide that to the Twins.

Taylor could be more interested in a proper everyday job. Beyond that, many have projected him to command a salary of around $9M, and his two comparable center fielders in this free agent class—Kevin Kiermaier and Harrison Bader—each signed for $10.5M in the past months. Still, this reunion makes more sense today than it did at this time yesterday.

There are other options out there that may also make sense. Adam Duvall and Tommy Pham can both play center field (Duvall better than Pham) and would be complimentary everyday-worthy bats with the ability to play both corners. In contrast to Taylor, Duvall and Pham would provide more consistent thump and compete for DH action alongside Santana.

Both Duvall and Pham were also projected to earn approximately $9M, but given that they’re still on the market in February, that price has likely come down (which may be true for Taylor as well). However, they both make a bit less sense after the Santana signing, as there’s less opportunity to get their bats in the lineup more regularly, but we’ll see if that comes to fruition.

Randal Grichuk and Robbie Grossman are lesser options in this vein who probably shouldn’t play any center field (and honestly, Grossman may be a DH-only very soon). Both would cost less than Santana did (Grossman might even be a spring training invite candidate), so if the Twins are genuinely strapped for cash but desperate to bring someone in, their options are slightly better than whoever the 2024 Kyle Garlick equivalent may be.

If the club were looking to bring in an outfielder with more utility, Whit Merrifield or Enrique Hernandez would add even more flexibility with their abilities to play on the dirt. However, the fit doesn't seem to be there with Farmer still on the team and Castro already in a super-utility role.

The Twins have room to make one more move, and they still have some team needs they could reinforce. The good news is that some decent options remain. 

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So, should the Twins try to bring in one more righty after the Santana deal? If so, who would you prefer it be?

 

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[jorgenswest]

I they they are already relying on too many aging players that they will be reluctant to release if they drop in performance. I don’t think they should add a short side platoon outfielder in the decline phase of their career.

A trade of Larnach or Gordon to a team with a similarly aged right handed batting outfielder that has yet to establish themselves would be my preference. Jake Meyers? Jo Adell?

Short of that I would turn to Martin first and then look at DFAs.

[DocBauer]

Payroll should be sitting around $120-123M right now as it was listed around $155-118M after the Polanco deal and the $ coming back.

There is roster room, and I'd like to think financial room, for a Taylor 1yr deal/reunion, or grab a more powerful bat like Duvall or Pham. It would push the Twins to $130M-ish. That should be affordable from just about every opinion/speculation I've heard/read.

Do they look harder at CF in Taylor? Or more power and offense from someone like Duvall or Pham?

Soler might be too expensive, even if he has to settle for 2yrs and $26 instead of the 3yrs and $45M he reportedly wanted or was expected to sign for.

Almost exactly 2 weeks until ST starts and these guys...and others...are still sitting and waiting. So patience might just let the Twins add that last/extra bat while still keeping the payroll in that $130M ish range.

[Jocko87]

I still want the hear Farmer working in the outfield in spring training.  Probably not much time out there in the short term as the second base platoon but when Lee comes into the picture that flexibility will be nice. 

[stringer bell]

17 minutes ago, Jocko87 said:

I still want the hear Farmer working in the outfield in spring training.  Probably not much time out there in the short term as the second base platoon but when Lee comes into the picture that flexibility will be nice. 

Nah. Farmer's not that good of a hitter to play a corner OF, even against left handed pitching. He's decent at second and third, but his range at short is suspect. I would think range in the outfield would be a real issue.

[Joe A. Preusser]

I think the RH bat is done.  Having another 1B puts Kirrilof in the mix for some outfield innings.  Unless Kep goes in a trade I don't believe we will add another OF.  

I do think we trade for a nice pitcher though.  

[tony&rodney]

The Polanco dough was slated for Santana. 

Santana, Vazquez, Farmer are on the team. Gordon is out of options. 

Trades are still possible, salary for salary. 

[Jocko87]

17 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

Nah. Farmer's not that good of a hitter to play a corner OF, even against left handed pitching. He's decent at second and third, but his range at short is suspect. I would think range in the outfield would be a real issue.

He was down a bit last year but still career .825 OPS against lefties.  The defense is good enough for 30 spot starts in left against lefties.  He's going to catch what he gets to, be in the right place and throw to the correct base.  They will have to keep him around as everyone's backup but he's to good a bat to just sit and wait.  

I still think Miranda can play good enough defense in left if he's hitting.  Play deep, get it back in.  We would all stomach Soler out there but he would hit much higher than the cut off line.  It's the one position where defense is meh. 

[chpettit19]

No available RH OF bat outside of Jorge Soler raises the ceiling on this team. They have enough floor. It's time to start adding ceiling, and none of the retread mid- to upper-30s vets are doing that. If they're not going to sign or trade for legitimate ceiling raising talent it's time to just let the kids play.

[Mike Sixel]

2 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

No available RH OF bat outside of Jorge Soler raises the ceiling on this team. They have enough floor. It's time to start adding ceiling, and none of the retread mid- to upper-30s vets are doing that. If they're not going to sign or trade for legitimate ceiling raising talent it's time to just let the kids play.

This. 

[RpR]

42 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

No available RH OF bat outside of Jorge Soler raises the ceiling on this team. They have enough floor. It's time to start adding ceiling, and none of the retread mid- to upper-30s vets are doing that. If they're not going to sign or trade for legitimate ceiling raising talent it's time to just let the kids play.

Let them play in the minors until they show they belong in the Big Show.

Spring Training may weed out some vets or rookies.

[Otwins]

The question I have is if the court approves the television broadcast rights agreement next Friday will the team have additional money to spend. Seems like they should. I would go for Taylor. Centerfield insurance and hits lefties. 

[RpR]

49 minutes ago, Jocko87 said:

I still think Miranda can play good enough defense in left if he's hitting.  Play deep, get it back in.

Let us see, he is not good at First, he is not good at Third, so let us see if he is not good in the Outfield, Brilliant.

[jmlease1]

The only way to make room is if they're better than Nick Gordon. I don't see the Twins dropping Farmer, so the last man on the 26-man for position players is Gordon. I'm ok with that but I don't see the Twins getting rid of Gordon for nothing unless they get a heck of a deal on the RH OF...

[KBJ1]

Castro makes Gordon redundant. Wallner makes Kepler redundant.

We missed the boat on a RH 5 tool LF in Gurriel. An aging Santana is wishful thinking as a platoon at 1B.

Waste of money when our real need is a LF right hand bat.

No to Taylor. Austin Martin is ready and I think will be our leadoff hitter by mid-season when Buxton goes down.

 

[SaberNerd]

I think there is definitely still room.  Gordon is a decent player, with Kepler, Wallner (and Larnach) all being lefties, I'd much rather have a 4th OF that can help mitigate that.  And Gordon is 28, so he likely isn't getting much better than he already is.  Martin is the only prospect who seems like an option this year, and I'd like to see him do better at AAA before having him be a significant piece.

MAT would give us Buxton insurance.  Pham would be a significant upgrade over Wallner/Kepler vs LHP.  Grichuk would be cheap, even if he is only viable as a platoon RF/LF.  Could also get someone via trade, which shouldn't be that expensive in $ or in prospects.

[chpettit19]

1 hour ago, RpR said:

Let them play in the minors until they show they belong in the Big Show.

Spring Training may weed out some vets or rookies.

I didn't suggest giving any rookies opening day jobs. The 26 man is full with 0 rookies on it. My point is that if you're going to add outside talent make it be clearly above average talent, not guys who's most likely best outcome is being a league average guy. The Twins have enough of those. Adding more doesn't improve this team.

[Fatbat]

Austin Martin is a better option than any FA. 

[Jocko87]

2 hours ago, RpR said:

Let us see, he is not good at First, he is not good at Third, so let us see if he is not good in the Outfield, Brilliant.

What about what I said that made you think we were going to see him play good defense?  I said exactly the opposite but don't let that stop you.  

We know he's not going to be good with the glove anywhere, might as well put him in the least impactful spot. 

[Greggory Masterson]

58 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

I didn't suggest giving any rookies opening day jobs. The 26 man is full with 0 rookies on it. My point is that if you're going to add outside talent make it be clearly above average talent, not guys who's most likely best outcome is being a league average guy. The Twins have enough of those. Adding more doesn't improve this team.

This is true, but why not find a right-handed version of Nick Gordon the outfielder, rather than starting the season with Nick Gordon the lefty who doesn’t have functional utility on this team? A lateral move would be welcome.

[GKuehl]

I would be surprised if we couldn't get back a mid-level prospect in a Nick Gordon trade, especially from a team like the A's or Royals who could use an everyday utility player (with 4 years of team control). Gordon is still young and talented enough to figure things out, but I don't think that's likely to be as a member of the Minnesota Twins. 

Trade Gordon for a Darren Bowen-level, C+/B- prospect and reallocate Gordon's roster spot to a RH-OFer who fits the roster better than Gordon as a LHH.  

[RpR]

33 minutes ago, Jocko87 said:

What about what I said that made you think we were going to see him play good defense?  I said exactly the opposite but don't let that stop you.  

We know he's not going to be good with the glove anywhere, might as well put him in the least impactful spot. 

Yeah , AAA.

[chpettit19]

24 minutes ago, Greggory Masterson said:

This is true, but why not find a right-handed version of Nick Gordon the outfielder, rather than starting the season with Nick Gordon the lefty who doesn’t have functional utility on this team? A lateral move would be welcome.

Isn't Castro that guy? I mean there's no harm in that, but I don't see it making this team any better. Buxton, Kepler, Correa, and Lewis have everyday jobs locked down. Wallner, Julien, and Kirilloff are starting against all the righties. Farmer, Santana, and Castro are starting against all the lefties. Jeffers and Vazquez are splitting duties behind the plate. At least that's how I'd read it right now.

That means they have 8 lineup spots locked in vs righties, and 8 lineup spots locked in vs lefties. If they're equally talented why does it matter if it's Gordon or right handed hitter X? I think the real argument would simply be that you want the best CF replacement you can get. No matter which side of the plate they hit from. I'd say Buxton insurance is the biggest need and it's just a matter of deciding if you like Gordon or someone outside the org better for that.

C: Jeffers 55-60%, Vazquez 40-45%
1B: Kirilloff vs righties, Santana vs lefties
2B: Julien vs righties, Farmer vs lefties
3B: Lewis
SS: Correa
LF: Wallner vs righties, Castro vs lefties
CF: Buxton as much as he can, Gordon (for now) when Buxton can't go
RF: Kepler
DH: Rotating

I don't see a huge difference in having a RH bat instead of Gordon, unless you think Castro is a clear upgrade as the Buxton insurance in CF and you just want another RH bat for LF with Wallner.

[Major League Ready]

23 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

Isn't Castro that guy? I mean there's no harm in that, but I don't see it making this team any better. Buxton, Kepler, Correa, and Lewis have everyday jobs locked down. Wallner, Julien, and Kirilloff are starting against all the righties. Farmer, Santana, and Castro are starting against all the lefties. Jeffers and Vazquez are splitting duties behind the plate. At least that's how I'd read it right now.

I don't think so.  Castro has a career wRC+ of 91 vs both LHP and RHP and only 82 vs last year.  His break-out with the bat last year was hitting left handed.  (121 wRC+)  I hope they can find a way to get Soler.

[chpettit19]

11 minutes ago, Major League Ready said:

I don't think so.  Castro has a career wRC+ of 91 vs both LHP and RHP and only 82 vs last year.  His break-out with the bat last year was hitting left handed.  (121 wRC+)  I hope they can find a way to get Soler.

Then Castro is in the same boat as Gordon because neither is taking ABs away from any of the everyday lefties in the lineup. 

I don't think they have any major moves left because I don't think they're looking to spend anymore money. But, yes, Soler would be a ceiling raiser and that I'd be on board with. Bringing in any of these other mid- to upper-30s guys doesn't interest me at all. They have the floor set and they don't need to add more to it. They don't need to add another $5-10 mil veteran they won't move on from in the name of "depth" even if they're terrible all year. Farmer and Santana are enough. If they're going to spend 15-20 on Soler, great, but I don't think that's a realistic option.

[Major League Ready]

1 hour ago, chpettit19 said:

Then Castro is in the same boat as Gordon because neither is taking ABs away from any of the everyday lefties in the lineup. 

I don't think they have any major moves left because I don't think they're looking to spend anymore money. But, yes, Soler would be a ceiling raiser and that I'd be on board with. Bringing in any of these other mid- to upper-30s guys doesn't interest me at all. They have the floor set and they don't need to add more to it. They don't need to add another $5-10 mil veteran they won't move on from in the name of "depth" even if they're terrible all year. Farmer and Santana are enough. If they're going to spend 15-20 on Soler, great, but I don't think that's a realistic option.

Does Soler not having signed yet make you wonder if his price might not be quite as high as expected.  He is probably seen as a DH with no defense value, right?  Who knows but the fact he has not signed yet makes one wonder.  I don't see him as anywhere near a $20M/year guy but I am not the guy writing the checks.  Seems possible his market drop to 3/39 but I could be in LF.  (see what I did there)

[chpettit19]

51 minutes ago, Major League Ready said:

Does Soler not having signed yet make you wonder if his price might not be quite as high as expected.  He is probably seen as a DH with no defense value, right?  Who knows but the fact he has not signed yet makes one wonder.  I don't see him as anywhere near a $20M/year guy but I am not the guy writing the checks.  Seems possible his market drop to 3/39 but I could be in LF.  (see what I did there)

I'd guess Snell, Montgomery, Bellinger, and Soler are hoping the finalization of the Bally bankruptcy stuff opens their markets a little more. I would be a little surprised if the Twins handed out any multi-year deals this offseason, unless it's an internal extension. I think on a 1 year deal it'll take 15-20 to sign Soler (he turned down his up to 13 mil option so going to need more than that), but 3/39-45 sounds about right for a multi-year deal for him. I'm just not sold the Twins have even 15 more to spend this offseason or that they'll do multi-year deals so I'm not sold they could get Soler. I'd think if he were a possibility they wouldn't have signed Santana. But I'd be very happy to be surprised.

[Major League Ready]

14 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

I'd guess Snell, Montgomery, Bellinger, and Soler are hoping the finalization of the Bally bankruptcy stuff opens their markets a little more. I would be a little surprised if the Twins handed out any multi-year deals this offseason, unless it's an internal extension. I think on a 1 year deal it'll take 15-20 to sign Soler (he turned down his up to 13 mil option so going to need more than that), but 3/39-45 sounds about right for a multi-year deal for him. I'm just not sold the Twins have even 15 more to spend this offseason or that they'll do multi-year deals so I'm not sold they could get Soler. I'd think if he were a possibility they wouldn't have signed Santana. But I'd be very happy to be surprised.

You are probably right about only wanting one-year contracts which explains these moves.  They will probably have close to $30M in increases next year between Lopez, Paddack, and arbitration increases.  However, they have 28.625M coming off next year between Kepler / Farmer / Thielbar and DeSclafani.  It seems like they could make it work if they thought he was a difference maker.

[Paul D]

The answer has to be yes.  Gordon provided versatility in 2022 and Castro in 2023, but you don't need both of them in 2024.  There are 4 bench position players on most teams.  You should have a 2nd catcher, an infielder who can play multiple positions, an outfielder who can play multiple positions (especially CF), and a guy who can come off the bench and hit.  If Gordon and Castro are on the team you don't have the hitter sitting on the bench. 

I'd love to have Duvall to fill that spot.

[Jocko87]

9 hours ago, chpettit19 said:

No available RH OF bat outside of Jorge Soler raises the ceiling on this team. They have enough floor. It's time to start adding ceiling, and none of the retread mid- to upper-30s vets are doing that. If they're not going to sign or trade for legitimate ceiling raising talent it's time to just let the kids play.

They are already in a spot where they probably need to do something with Gordon so they have some of the flexibility they love so much.  Part of signing another bat is the 26 man spot that puts a real crimp on how that can rotate the kids through.

If you are going to kill a spot that can be rotated with options, it has to be a Soler or better to make the jam worth it.