Twins Fans: You’re Gonna Get Amed Rosario and You’re Gonna Like It

[Greggory Masterson]

It doesn’t matter what offseason additions you circled in the Sears catalog. When you wake up on Christmas morning, this former top-10 prospect will be under that tree.

Image courtesy of © Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

After a baseball executive has been around a while, observant fans can see a move coming from a mile away. With Derek Falvey in 2025, it’s almost too obvious that Amed Rosario will be a Twin.

Rosario is a 29-year-old right-handed utility player who spent last season with the Rays, Dodgers, and Reds. A key piece in the trade that brought Francisco Lindor to New York, Rosario enjoyed a couple of quality years in Cleveland as the team’s starting shortstop, before playing his way out of their plans in 2023.

Now, coming off an up-and-down year across three teams and projected to make modest money, he’s everything the Twins want and need. Let’s see if you see what I see.

First, Rosario is right-handed. In recent years, Twins teams have had benches almost exclusively built out of righties and switch hitters. You may have heard this before, but the club likes to platoon, so stocking the bench with potential platoon partners to their left-handed starters comes naturally. Rosario, specifically, has been a slightly below-average hitter for his career, but he’s always hit well against lefties—about 20% above league average since 2017.

I’m going to use the phrase “whether you like it or not” a few times here, so forgive me.

Whether you like it or not, Rocco Baldelli is going to platoon. Right now, the Twins’ two starting corner outfielders—Matt Wallner and Trevor Larnach—are left-handed, and potential (maybe, who knows?) second baseman or designated hitter Edouard Julien is, too. They’re going to look to pair at least one or two of those guys with a platoon partner, and a team can do a lot worse than Rosario’s 125 OPS+ against lefties.

“But Gregg,” I hear you say at your screen, “Rosario is a shortstop. You said that 217 words ago! He can’t platoon with the outfielders.” Oh, Rosario can do more than that.

He’s technically played everywhere except catcher and first base, with at least 14 appearances at second, third, shortstop, and right field in 2024. He’s not going to be a center fielder, and he’s looked iffy in the outfield, but he’s plenty athletic, and whether you like it or not, it’s not hard to imagine that the Twins could believe they could make him play passable defense.

They did something similar with Willi Castro, though Castro looked better out there before coming to Minnesota. He’s almost a diet Castro in terms of his positional flexibility, though he probably won’t match Castro’s performance at any single position, except maybe second base. If the Twins had a second Willi Castro or a Willi Castro Lite to replace Castro in the event of an offseason trade or an injury that forces Castro into a consistent starting spot, you know he’d be playing everywhere.

There have been some complaints that the Twins focus too much on finding utility players like Rosario, but whether you like it or not, it’s kinda their type. He can play just about anywhere you need him to, and the Twins love to find a need. There will be playing time to go around, with questions about the health of Carlos Correa and Royce Lewis, as well as the lack of a firm answer at second base.

One of the downsides of Castro taking a more pronounced role was losing his skills as a pinch-runner and base stealer. Castro rarely came off the bench in 2024, so there’s certainly a role there for Rosario, who is a career 75% base stealer and has a faster sprint speed than Castro or Austin Martin (who is another contender for such a role). Rosario’s 29 ft/s sprint speed would have been the fastest on the team in 2024 outside of Byron Buxton.

Digging a bit deeper, Rosario has a batting profile that echoes several of the Twins' recent offseason moves. Despite a reputation for only valuing “all-or-nothing power hitters” that we can probably at least in part blame Joey Gallo for, many of their recent veteran additions have been quite the opposite. Manuel Margot, Carlos Santana, and Donovan Solano, for example, have each been lauded for their abilities to put the bat on the ball.

In many of these cases, it seems that the Twins have tried to take players with bat-to-ball skills and add power to their profiles. By their estimation (seemingly), it’s harder to coach bat-to-ball than consistent damage on contact.

Rosario’s key offensive trait is his ability to put wood on the ball and not strike out. It’s not to quite the extent we’ve seen with the players mentioned above, but it’s undoubtedly his deal. He swings at everything and usually makes contact, sporting a batting average of .273 for his career and .280 last season. Whether you like it or not, the Twins appear to think that they can take a guy like that and up his power.

Rosario can make really hard contact, but it’s supremely sporadic, and if the Twins think they can unlock a little bit more of that, the puzzle pieces keep falling into place. Rosario will likely come at a low cost—under $3 million this year by most estimates, fitting nicely into the Twins’ inactive offseason. He can play everywhere, platoon, pinch-run off the bench, and maybe even be “fixed” at the plate.

Doesn’t this sound like the dream addition for Derek Falvey and Rocco Baldelli?

I’m not sure if I’ve talked myself into Amed Rosario: 2025 Twin or if I’ve just become resigned to the fact that he’s already a Twin. It just makes too much sense.

View full article

[Cory Engelhardt]

I like it when threats sound enjoyable. :) I appreciate your writing. Thanks!

[Mark G]

Ba humbug!

[dxpavelka]

"Rosario is a shortstop"  That's funny stuff.  Like the Twins have ever shied away from putting a guy with absolutely NO business in the outfield in the outfield. 

As far as Rosario being diet Castro, it's worth remembering that that was pretty much the expectation of Castro when we first signed him.

[Riverbrian]

Exactly the type of player I expect the Twins to target this off-season.

And I'm willing to place a bet right now: If the Twins sign him for his ability to hit left handers and this is why he will be signed. 

He will face more right handers than left handers. Any takers? 

Career .669 OPS against Right Handed Pitchers. .657 against righties last year. 

 

[Whitey333]

Who cares anymore??  The Twins are at their lowest point at least in terms of fan interest in the Falvey years.  It's always the same:  wait to maybe sign a bargain basement player.  Tell us how great the prospects are and dump as much hype and hope on us gullable fans.  Whereas Falvey says everything is in place and our young players are great it's more likely the Twins finish 4th in the division again and fans stay away in droves.

[killertwinfan]

So we are down grading from Castro to this dude and we are going to like it?  BTW, current salary projection is $136m and our cap is $130 so we are dumping before we are adding. 

[AlGoreRythm]

13 minutes ago, Whitey333 said:

Who cares anymore?? 

You do, whether you like it or not.

You wouldn't be wasting time posting and reading stories here if you didn't care.

[Hubie29]

19 minutes ago, Whitey333 said:

Who cares anymore??  The Twins are at their lowest point at least in terms of fan interest in the Falvey years.  It's always the same:  wait to maybe sign a bargain basement player.  Tell us how great the prospects are and dump as much hype and hope on us gullable fans.  Whereas Falvey says everything is in place and our young players are great it's more likely the Twins finish 4th in the division again and fans stay away in droves.

And don't forget the most important; we have the BEST bullpen in baseball!  And so much starting pitching our rotation would make the '66 Dodgers blush!

[DJL44]

39 minutes ago, Riverbrian said:

Career .669 OPS against Right Handed Pitchers. .657 against righties last year. 

If he can play good defense a .670 OPS vs RHP is perfectly acceptable for your utility player.

[Patzky]

47 minutes ago, AlGoreRythm said:

You do, whether you like it or not.

You wouldn't be wasting time posting and reading stories here if you didn't care.

A nicer way to say 'yet here you are' lol.. 

[Doctor Gast]

I hope you aren't advocating replacing Castro for Rosario by trading Castro. Looking through Baldelli's eyes, I see the logic in. Another player IMO who could fit even better is Romy Gonzales (BOS)

Split	G	GS	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB	ROE	BAbip	tOPS+	sOPS+
vs RHP	46		86	83	9	18	3	1	0	13	5	1	1	22	.217	.221	.277	.498	23	2	0	0	2	0	1	.286	39	40
vs LHP	74		130	116	16	35	7	0	6	16	6	2	11	36	.302	.362	.517	.879	60	3	1	0	2	0	2	.382	142	146

He's also very good at PH 

.286

.372

.571

.944

 He has a solid glove & played all over the INF last offseason & can play all over the OF but is projected to play very little in '25 mainly 1B, 3B & cOF. If we have to have a platoon in the OF & 1 INF platoon on the roster. IMO it makes more sense for 1 guy, not 2. He also only has a 1.5 surplus trade value & 4yrs. of control. Wouldn't doubt he has options.

[awmonahan]

Great analysis, with a sense if humor. If this is the off-season's greatest threat, I'll be ok. 

[TopGunn#22]

I have mentioned two players that I thought would be good options for the Twins in the event that we package Willi Castro in a trade to someone like the Dodgers in an attempt to acquire a young catcher who is ready for the majors in 2025 (from the Dodgers, someone like Dalton Rushing or Diego Cartaya).  

Those two players are Amed Rosario and Jose Iglesias.   Rosario is 29 years old and has the ability to play some OF, primarily LF in addition to being able to play all 3 IF positions except 1B.  He also has good speed and makes consistent contact without striking out a lot.  Those are all qualities the Twins could benefit from when considering the current makeup of their roster.  

Iglesias is 34 years old and is clearly the better IF defender without the ability to play OF.  Iglesias has decent speed, just not "Rosario" speed."  He won't steal bases like Rosario, but won't clog them up as a station to station baserunner either.  Iglesias is also a great contact hitter who doesn't strike out much but and has "doubles" power and that's about it.  The Twins aren't teaching him to hit with more power.  At 34 years old, he is what he is.  But he brings excellent defense to SS, 2B & 3B no matter what.  If our options for 2B fall flat in their faces, Iglesias would at least bring great defense to the position as a bridge starter until Lee, Julien or others show they're ready.  Spotrac puts Iglesias at a $1.5-$2.0 million dollar salary.

You could make a case that if Castro were traded the Twins could sign BOTH of these guys though I think that's highly unlikely.  I prefer Iglesias for the defensive upgrade at SS/2B/3B.  Especially of Correa were to miss extended time with any type of injury.  But if the Twins signed either Rosario or Iglesias I think it would be a solid baseball move.  

[Otaknam]

So will they keep Castro too if they sign Rosario, with two position flexible players? Or is the plan to let Castro go to save $3 million? Another more likely and plausible option for the cheapskate Twins is to save the $3-6 million they would pay for Castro or Rosario and just hope that Austin Martin gets better, or that Hellman earns his way to  utility role, saving $5+ million. 

[Blyleven2011]

The falvey  take ...

At the start of the off season,  falvey emphasized that we have to be creative ...

, Falvey has now swung from we have to be creative  to a wait and see approach  now that the winter meetings are over  ...

Will falvey ever keep to his word ...

[tony&rodney]

Rosario? Sure, he is better than the others on the list.

[old nurse]

May the Twins continue to ignore the suggestions and prognostications of the fan bloggers in this scenario. 

[NYCTK]

2 minutes ago, old nurse said:

May the Twins continue to ignore the suggestions and prognostications of the fan bloggers in this scenario. 

I agree. But we also don't have to pretend the people doing the work in the Twins Organization are good at it either. 

 

[Doctor Gast]

1 hour ago, Blyleven2011 said:

The falvey  take ...

At the start of the off season,  falvey emphasized that we have to be creative ...

, Falvey has now swung from we have to be creative  to a wait and see approach  now that the winter meetings are over  ...

Will falvey ever keep to his word ...

Friend, Falvey's idea of being creative is putting everybody up for sale then sit back & wait. We'll get crappy deals for players we need to move & any good player they might offer a trade that looks good on paper but in reality, isn't. Then with the savings go out & get a Margot or Gallo. I know it doesn't make sense & that it's an oxymoron but that's how he thinks.

[LambchoP]

We can't even afford Rosario lol. Twins will do nothing but sign minor league deals, stating our "wealth" of young talent as the reason for not doing anything. They will run out the same exact team that collapsed at a historic level and finished in 4rth place. But oh, we're planning on competing so make sure to watch and come to the games.....sad state of the team these days. Do we have new owners yet?

[farmerguychris]

Sounds good if you can convince him to play for free

[Unwinder]

16 minutes ago, Blyleven2011 said:

The falvey  take ...

At the start of the off season,  falvey emphasized that we have to be creative ...

, Falvey has now swung from we have to be creative  to a wait and see approach  now that the winter meetings are over  ...

Will falvey ever keep to his word ...

I'm not defending a "wait and see" approach, but how does "be creative" imply making moves earlier in the offseason? Where's the lie here?

I see "be creative" as a euphemism for "make some controversial trades," which was always going to mean waiting for the trade market to heat up after free agency dies down.

[old nurse]

16 minutes ago, NYCTK said:

I agree. But we also don't have to pretend the people doing the work in the Twins Organization are good at it either. 

 

Like every other club they have made moves that worked out well and others that have not.  Who is pretending the Twins are good at it?  Under Baldelli they have a .525 win %. Not great, not bad. 

[Riverbrian]

52 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

If he can play good defense a .670 OPS vs RHP is perfectly acceptable for your utility player.

You can call him utility if you'd like. He's a guy who can play multiple positions however... injuries will require much more from him and everyone should know this by now.

Yet, year after year most are content looking for below average players to burn roster spots.

Burning roster spots on players who are perfectly acceptable as long as they don't play that much is a big problem because he will play a lot. 

Correa had 319 AB's last year

Buxton had 355 AB's last year

Lewis had 292 AB's last year 

That will add up to a lot of Rosario playing time. 

I have no interest in 29 year old specialists who are destined to be asked to produce more than they are capable of producing due to injuries suffered by others. I have no interest in specialists who just have to be replaced by the next version of this type of player next year.

After 942 Games and 3,713 Plate Appearances. It's pretty established that he is a below average player. He's been placed on waivers in his career because he had established himself as a below average player.   

I'm sick of players who bring a low bar to clear and then watch others be prevented from attempting to clear that low bar. 

 

 

 

 

[nicksaviking]

1 hour ago, DJL44 said:

If he can play good defense a .670 OPS vs RHP is perfectly acceptable for your utility player.

Right, but every time the Twins sign a 'utility player', he ends up playing 130 games. So not exactly a utility player.

Hard pass for me.

[Greggory Masterson]

2 hours ago, AlGoreRythm said:

You do, whether you like it or not.

Hey wait a minute that's my line!

[DJL44]

21 minutes ago, Riverbrian said:

You can call him utility if you'd like. He's a guy who can play multiple positions however... injuries will require much more from him and everyone should know this by now.

Yet, year after year most are content looking for below average players to burn roster spots.

I have no interest in 29 year old specialists who are destined to be asked to produce more than they are capable of producing due to injuries suffered by others. I have no interest in specialists who just have to be replaced by the next version of this type of player next year.

After 942 Games and 3,713 Plate Appearances. It's pretty established that he is a below average player. He's been placed on waivers in his career because he had established himself as a below average player.   

I'm sick of players who bring a low bar to clear and then watch others be prevented from attempting to clear that low bar. 

Beats using not-ready-for-primetime rookies. If he can actually play defense, then he's a generalist, not a specialist. That's a 4-tool player (field, run, throw, hit for average).

I'm not sure who was prevented from playing last season. Pretty much every rookie who truly performed in AAA got a shot. Some who were only okay in AAA got a shot.

[NYCTK]

45 minutes ago, Unwinder said:

I'm not defending a "wait and see" approach, but how does "be creative" imply making moves earlier in the offseason? Where's the lie here?

I see "be creative" as a euphemism for "make some controversial trades," which was always going to mean waiting for the trade market to heat up after free agency dies down.

Cleveland just traded their starting second baseman. And the turned around and traded someone they had just got in return. 

Chicago just traded their ace. 

There's no FA window and Trade window. There's the offseason. 

[1985Fan]

This is correct; he’s exactly the type of player Falvey will sign and Baldelli will play every day. I can’t agree when you have Lee that can play all IF positions except 1B. They have Miranda that can fill in at 1B and 3B also. Go get a RH outfielder instead that has demonstrated good-great defense. They already have Kiersey. If they don’t like him and the cheap players they have, why not trade them if there isn’t a path to MLB roster? It’s exasperating to watch bench players play everyday. Julien is not an option for any position, including DH. Please trade or release him to clear roster space ASAP.