The Twins Finally Picked a Lane

[rv78]

1. Getting rid of the most expensive, overpaid, over-rated player (Correa) was the best move Falvey made in his entire tenure with this team. Even if it was to correct the mistake of signing him in the first place. I never understood how you can make a known cheater and a player with an average bat be your team leader and expect the rest of the team to look up to him as an example to follow. I wouldn't doubt with him now gone the rest of the team will play better. They definitely can't play any worse. 

2. Has the selloff made the smartest guy in the room (Falvey) smarter or was it a display of desperation and acknowledgement of failure? Either way he should not be in charge going forward regardless of who he got in return for the players traded away. 1 playoff series win in the time he's been here is total failure. 

3. Choosing to partially dismantle a club that had high expectations without trying a new Manager first, when that club has failed season after season, is another failure. If they truely were a team built to be a perrenial contender, the players weren't the problem. This clearly indicates that Falvey and Rocco are together as one. Rocco should have been gone a long time ago.

[TwinsDr2021]

32 minutes ago, Major League Ready said:

Complete rebuild.  No, they need to rebuild their BP.  The starting pitching is incredibly deep with Lopez / Ryan / Ober / Matthews / Bradley / Festa / Abel and SWR already at the ML level and Rojas / Morris / Prelipp / Culpepper and Raya not far off

Remind me again what positions there are not huge questions marks at? 1B? yup, 2nd, yup, SS, yup, 3rd, kind of, and all three outfield spots (when Buxton isn't healthy) and this isn't a complete rebuild? Sure there are a few pieces here already, maybe (Lewis, Lee, Buxton, Jeffers, Wallner) but there are why more questions marks in the 13 active roster spots then not. 

As for the pitchers you listed there, you have three Ryan, Lopez and Ober. (2 of three aren't pitching) and couple of shown some promising moments (Matthew, Bradley, Festa, SWR) and the rest of just prospects and beside Prelipp not super highly though to prospects (kind of like any other pitching prospects for the last X amount of years) 

So maybe you are correct it isn't a complete rebuild but it sure is a complete where need to figure most of hte roster out still type of thing.  

[Dman]

59 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

I disagree that they picked a lane. You don't bring James Outman back if you've fully picked the rebuild lane. You don't. It's not even an option. You pick any random prospect over James freaking Outman. A 28-year-old failed prospect. That is not picking the rebuild lane. 

The Twins blew up their pen. The one part of the team we already know they won't invest in and believe they can build overnight from any castoff or failed starter. They didn't touch any controllable starting pitching or position player that didn't save them $70 million. 

I think they very much remained in both lanes and it's why I absolutely hated yesterday. The return in the trades matters in this discussion. They got 28- and 25-year-old players and 16- and 18-year-old players. That isn't picking a lane. That isn't picking a target window for contention, that's trying to win now and later.

Maybe they truly pick a lane this offseason by trading Lopez, Ryan, and Ober, but they didn't pick that lane yesterday. Blowing up the most fungible part of your roster that you never invest in anyways isn't tearing down your roster or rebuilding. It's not picking a lane. They held their most valuable pieces that would truly jumpstart a rebuild. The Nats didn't hold Juan Soto when they started their rebuild. The Twins held Joe Ryan. Until they trade their starting pitching they haven't picked a lane.

Totally agree with you as usual.  

LA had to be thanking their lucky stars the Twins were there to help give them another nice bullpen arm for nothing.  There was talk they might have to DFA Outman next year to make room for the Rule V adds.  I get Stewarts arm is a problem too, but I can't help but feel this FO got played on that deal.  How is Outman that much better than Keirsey right now? And does that mean they just DFA Keirsey because they don't need two of these guys on the roster. 

Yeah Outman has been great at AAA, but do they really think he going to turn things around like 2023? He has a 40% K rate at the MLB level this year.  I'd like to see the plan to overcome that. They better be right about turning him around or they wasted a good asset for nothing.  Because I'd rather have Stewart than that.  I'd rather have two lottery tickets than that.

I still can't help thinking Tampa outsmarted the Twins as well.  Granted Bradley is a starter, but barely a 5th starter type at this point.  What are the odds the Twins are better at fixing him than Tampa who fixes just about everyone?  Probably pretty low.  In the meantime they'll probably take Jax a guy who misses tons of bats turn him into a starter and then flip him for a larger return. We'll see what happens but I can't help but feel we were the patsy's once again.

Then there is the Varland trade.  Why trade a super successful reliever with 5 years of control left?  Teams just don't do that without getting a haul and while the Twins got some decent prospects back why headline the deal around a left handed hitting outfielder? Something you have an excess of already and your two highest prospects in your system are left handed outfielder's?  It almost seems like gross incompetence. The thing is they weren't forced to do that deal they had tow pre arb years left and he could have been traded later.  This is the deal they couldn't pass up?

If there is a plan I can't decipher it.  Maybe that's because their plan is just that good.  Or maybe they just decided to collect assets and deal with things over the offseason.  We all get trading pen arms, but get value back or things you need back especially when you hold all the cards with years of control.

Maybe all these deals will work out and I'll look like an idiot, but odds are they have wasted a lot of value for nothing.

[TopGunn#22]

I like others agree that Twins ownership & leadership really DIDN'T pick a lane.  Some of what they did yesterday made sense.  Some of it made no sense at all.  I've often complained that I felt the Twins Front Office NEVER had a plan when it came to the off season.  They were exclusively "reactive" to the moves of other teams, often letting talent that would have been a good fit with their team slip away until there was nothing to do but dumpster dive.

I was on board with many of the early moves, but share the sentiment that the returns were consistently LESS than what I expected for players we had that teams (supposedly)  desperately wanted.  Specifically, Duran, Castro, Coulombe and Bader.  

The trades of Jax and Varland were shocking to me.  At that point, I felt we had moved enough "dead wood" but still had the rotation strength, bullpen (anchored by Jax and Varland) and with Keaschall, E-Rod, Jenkins, Culpepper and Gonzalez possibly arriving in the future, a lineup with at least some potential.  The rotation was relatively intact and Lopez and Ober were soon returning.  

We've now traded 44% of our starting lineup, none of whom I'm sorry to see go (Correa, Castro, Bader, France).  These guys were either FA at the end of the season or were major disappointments (Correa).  But aside from about $20-$25 million in payroll flexibility for 2026 I'm not sure how much firepower we added to the lineup with Rodon and Outman.  If Rodon and Outman were specific targets, why wasn't Larnach or Wallner included in a trade to bring back something we need.  We don't really need MORE LH hitting OF's.  That's NOT having a plan.   

We've traded 50% of our bullpen.  All of them key pieces.  The only BP arm we've retained that has shown any talent is Cole Sands.  Was Taj Bradley for Jax a smart trade?  Bradley is just 24 but he's practically a clone of SWR, who I think is better suited to be a long reliver.   Couldn't we have gotten Shane Baz instead for a heavily desired piece like Jax?   I know bullpens are very unpredictable and fungible.  But what we had and what we have left now is utter decimation.  That's not a plan.  It's unforgiveable.  

This was not picking a lane.  This reeks of yet another instance in which Falvey had a lot of conversations with people but made panicked, hurried and reactive decisions as the trade deadline came to a close.  This appeared to me to be a guy who doesn't think he will have a job once the new ownership takes over.  Almost nothing Falvey did would improve the team now or in 2026.  Were the players he acquired particular targets of his?  Or were they who he grudgingly accepted as other GM's wore him down.  Do any of us think, after seeing what we got back in return for what we purged, that Falvey was the one in control of negotiations?  

In the end, we have an ownership family who is detested by the fan base.  A GM who never really showed me he had a plan or even a short term & long term strategy or who was too restrained by miserly ownership to ever do what needed to be done.  And a manager who was too attached to "analytics" and as a result, didn't seem to have the innate sense to "manage" a baseball game. 

It was a team that was poorly constructed season after season and was reactive, not proactive.  How else do you explain acquiring a couple more LH hitting OF when you already have an overabundance of LH hitting OF on the major league roster and as top prospects soon to debut in the major leagues?

The Vikings and Gopher football seasons can't come fast enough.  In the end, we saw an ownership group, GM and manager who just seemed to throw their hands up and say "Enough !  We're outta here!

[P Meyer]

2 hours ago, TL said:

While I agree with the sentiment that this was in part due to future payroll, it was also a recognition that there was something about this team not adding up (the “vibes”). The sum of the parts was greater than the whole and instead of running it back and hoping for better results they are resetting. 

The Varland deal is the biggest head-scratcher. He seemed to settle in well to the bullpen but I wonder if the history of him resisting that move played a part in trading him now. I also wonder what was going on with Jax given the scene from the other day.

Beyond that I’m fine with the value received for Duran, and with Stewart’s injury history I understand the desire to cash in now - though the return is questionable. Moving Correa frees payroll and enables Lee to get a real shot at short, with Culpepper and Houston lurking if he doesn’t come through. And moving the impending free agents had to be done.

So at the end of the day I’m fine with the moves, but like everyone I question the returns. I wonder where our farm system will be ranked overall after yesterday. 

IMO, Varland was traded because it was the only way they could get rid of France.

[twinzcynic]

19 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

This is exactly what I too have been saying since the Twins lost to Houston in 2023. 

Nothing positive can happen until everything at the top changes.

This is precisely why I didn't love beating the Blue Jays that year. I knew we were so far from competing against the actual good teams, but winning one 3-game series delayed the strip down by a year and a half.

[tony&rodney]

5 minutes ago, rv78 said:

1. Getting rid of the most expensive, overpaid, over-rated player (Correa) was the best move Falvey made in his entire tenure with this team. Even if it was to correct the mistake of signing him in the first place. I never understood how you can make a known cheater and a player with an average bat be your team leader and expect the rest of the team to look up to him as an example to follow. I wouldn't doubt with him now gone the rest of the team will play better. They definitely can't play any worse. 

2. Has the selloff made the smartest guy in the room (Falvey) smarter or was it a display of desperation and acknowledgement of failure? Either way he should not be in charge going forward regardless of who he got in return for the players traded away. 1 playoff series win in the time he's been here is total failure. 

3. Choosing to partially dismantle a club that had high expectations without trying a new Manager first, when that club has failed season after season, is another failure. If they truely were a team built to be a perrenial contender, the players weren't the problem. This clearly indicates that Falvey and Rocco are together as one. Rocco should have been gone a long time ago.

1. If you get rid of all cheaters, it leaves a retired Joe Mauer. The money isn't being re-distributed. I'm fine with Correa back to Houston. He needed to move to third base and the Twins weren't doing that. It is a good move for all. Things can and will get much worse. We can only hope the trades this winter bring in position player talent.

2. 9 years is enough. Falvey needs to go. 

3. This was a total miss. Managers are fired because you can't fire the team, supposedly. Baldelli is still here because Falvey fired the team. Given a midnight deadline, there would have been 5 more players traded. The players were done with Rocco so Falvey got rid of the players. Unique in baseball history perhaps.

[farmerguychris]

2 hours ago, ChermesZ said:

Will any good fans want to participate in this too? No stadium give-away can cover this stench.

You're right - why would anyone pay any money to see what remains of the  Twins?  

I'll watch a little on TV just to see who's called up, but I guess its time for football.

[jkcarew]

I wanted them to tear it down to the studs, and that’s pretty much what they did. Wish it had been done by an administration with an actual plan other than just saving money. But, IMO, it’s still better than doing nothing for the umteenth consecutive year.

[sweetmusicviola16]

22 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

Twins have been in limbo & confusion for so many years because Falvey & Co. are incompetent & have no idea how to manage a team. They have picked a lane, but it's going in the wrong direction on a one-way lane, leading to an accident. The solution isn't taking a distinct lane; it's taking the steering wheel out of their hands.

 

One short series PO win in 9 seasons. That is failure. A coupled of other PO appearances. One convincing season, 2019, in all of this. That is failure. Unwatchable baseball from a listless team much of the time. That is failure. Yet here they are still in control of the front office. Ready to bring us more failure. The Catching situation is a great example. Vazquez will be gone soon, at the most by the end of the season. That will leave Jeffers for 2026. We will once again be relying on a catcher who should only be a part timer. Right now no tandem is even in tow with him. Oh but now we have Jimenez and Tait. So what? They are 3 years at best away from helping this team. This is failure.

[chpettit19]

3 minutes ago, Major League Ready said:

Absolutely agree that if it's a typical full rebuild they should trade all three.  I think this situation is unique because of the pending sale.  They could trade one of the big three, get an impact prospect back plus a couple others, and remain competitive given their pitching depth. 

If you break it down by SP / RP / INF / OF they only gutted the BP.  The only position player of note to get traded is Correa which is not that big a deal given his current level of play.  We won't lose that much going with Lee and I see that as a net positive once Culpper is here.  Correa is aging out a SS before our eyes.  Culpepper was going to take over anyway.  What were we going to do with Correa.  Lewis looks like the better choice at 3B at the moment.  I realize his rebound is recent but I would take Lewis and the extra money invested elsewhere over Correa.  Keaschall takes over 2B.  That's a net gain.  Now, find a 1B and you have a better infield than we have seen lately with the risk of an albatross contract. 

How about the OF?  Buxton has not slowed down a bit.  We still have Larnach and Wallner but we have several upgrade options no more than a year off if they are really that good.  I believe Buxton and Jenkins are two-thirds of the equation by this time next year.  Between Rodriguez / Gonzalez / Outman / Roden and Martin our OF is upgraded considerably over the present.

It makes no sense to keep all three but I see them working hard to remain competitive while they remake this team.  I think one or maybe two of Pablo / Ryan / Ober get traded this off-season.  I could see one going in the off-season and another at the deadline next year as they reconfigure the starting rotation around Matthews / Bradley / Abel / Rojas / Festa / Prelipp.  I am not sure about SWR.  They also have higher end pitching prospects like Soto / Hill / Quick and a couple others who look to have high ceilings.  

Where does that leave us?  I completely agree with you but think it plays out more slowly than trading all three of this winer.

Yeah, that comment was a follow-up after the other poster responded to my first comment disagreeing with the premise of this article. I don't think the Twins picked a lane. I don't think they're rebuilding. I think they're trying to win "now" (not this year, obviously) and in the future. I think the article is 100% wrong. I think the Twins are trying to have their cake and eat it, too. The idea behind trading all 3 of them was that if they were truly rebuilding, as the article argues, then that's what they'd do. But they aren't. So, I don't think they will.

I fully agree with your assessment of what they did to the team yesterday and I also see them working hard to remain competitive while they remake the team. It's what I hate about yesterday. I hate Outman being here. I hate that return. It's awful and pointless (unless you trade Larnach and/or Wallner). I hate getting returns ranging from 16 to 28 years old. That's not picking a lane. I wish they would've picked a lane. I wish they'd pick one this offseason. But they didn't, and I don't think they will. And I think it's going to lead to more mediocre at best teams. 

I do think there's risk in not trading all 3 of the starters this offseason, though. You keep the wrong guy and he blows an elbow and you're getting nothing for him (a comp pick, maybe). 2026 is lost. I mean, there's surprise teams every year and maybe it's the Twins next year, but the Twins are all about the numbers and the odds, and the odds are they're not winning next year. So, then you're playing for a 1-year window with whichever starter(s) you kept. If you're doing ok (.500ish ball, 1 game back of the wild card at the deadline let's say) that year are you trading them and blowing up fan relations AGAIN? Are you ok with just getting a comp pick for them instead of the multiple top 100 prospects you can get for them this offseason? That's the decision.

What's the realistic outlook for this team in 2026 and 2027 and what are you willing to lose each of those 3 guys for? Either way, I think this article is 100% wrong. I think it couldn't be more wrong if it tried. They didn't pick a lane at all. They're still trying to win now and later. We'll see how it turns out.

[USAFChief]

16 minutes ago, P Meyer said:

IMO, Varland was traded because it was the only way they could get rid of France.

France could simply be released. There was no need to "get rid" of France by attaching him to someone. 

They didn't save much money, roughly $100k. He was making slightly above the MLB minimum and his replacement on the 25 man will make almost as much. 

[mnfireman]

Looking at future payroll commitments on Baseball Reference, I don't think the fire sale is done and the team may be in this lane for awhile. Keep in mind that only Buxton and Lopez have guaranteed contracts in '26 and '27 and only Buxton in '28.

2026 - $96.2 MM ($97.2 MM if Topa's option is exercised). This includes estimated arb cases, room to add FA's but....

2027 - $172.4 MM. Ober, Ryan, Larnach, and Lewis third trip through arbitration (Lewis also gets a fourth trip). Bunch of others reach arbitration for the first time, the low salaries get considerably higher. Several players will probably be DFA'd

2028 - $193 MM. Roster full of arbitration eligible players including Lewis's fourth trip. 

I think there will be several off-season trades to get '27 & '28 payroll under control, not to mention several fringe/role player's being DFA'd.

[P Meyer]

1 hour ago, Original_JB said:

Sure they picked a lane, it's to completely cut costs to the bone and have no long term obligations on the books for the lockout that will happen after next year. Which also makes me wonder if there even really is a potential buyer in the wings.

I agree that the impending sale of the team has been grossly exaggerated. The Twins went from a mid market to a bottom market team because the owners fell that fewer financial obligations will matter more in the negotiations than attendance and record.

[Nshore]

Falvey:  "Settle down.  There are greater baseball minds at work here.  You couldn't possibly understand".

[P Meyer]

10 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

France could simply be released. There was no need to "get rid" of France by attaching him to someone. 

They didn't save much money, roughly $100k. He was making slightly above the MLB minimum and his replacement on the 25 man will make almost as much. 

You might be correct but I think it is more likely that owners who are penny pinching were more concerned with saving any money possible than you are. Also my personal speculation is that ownership was not going to pay any player to go away after they had to eat a chunk on the Correa deal.

[LastOnePicked]

2 hours ago, NYCTK said:

But with 26 a chance to develop them, and early 27 a chance to really set the future up, this team can compete in 2027. 

What substances are floating around in this wildfire smoke that would provoke this kind of delusion?

That's just fun snark. No offense intended. Be great if you're right. Can't see it myself.

[Steve Lein]

Yeah... This was a "vision" in so far as the Pohlad's told the Front Office to save them every single penny they possibly could.

I agree with selling a lot of what they did, including Correa... But this was not just selling. This was dropping off all the stuff you didn't have room for at the local Goodwill.

[NYCTK]

17 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

There is zero chance the Twins are winning in 2027. None. Particularly after Lopez and probably Ryan are dealt this winter. 

I know you like to play the  contrarian but this just makes you look foolish.

None more foolish than the idea quality bullpen are just waiting out there any time you need one.

Well there was zero chance they were winning in 2026 either way, and I think they stand a much better chance of winning in 2027 now. 

And how much worse do you expect the bullpen to be than the approximate 20-25th best bullpen they've been over the last couple seasons? With all those great arms, why weren't they any good? 

[Bodie]

2 hours ago, Ex-Iowegian said:

Hitting Ctrl-Alt-Del could be considered ‘picking a lane’ too, I guess.
From a fan perspective, this is egregiously bad. No matter how it gets spun by the current FO. 
Feels more like a can just got kicked down the road so the team could be sold. 

Disagree, from a fan perspective. 

We didn't even have the storied Cubs' "there is always next year" thing going on!  This was a disaster roster with 5 DHs starting the season as position players.  On a team that uses the DH spot as a rest day for "regulars".

This was post-Carew 1970s bad Twins baseball.  And played with no desire, heart or effort. 

I'll miss Bader.  I'll likely curse like a drunken syphililtic sailor the next time a save is blown on a 91mph fastball.  I'll likely regret not having ______ next year as he "finally figures it all out".

But, I will carry not one good and lasting memory of the last 18 months of Twins baseball.

Blow it up, burn it down, pour it in the Mississippi, just don't try and trot out this old, injury riddled, bad defensive, underperforming roster and tell us you are happy, Derrick Favey!

[Nashvilletwin]

Just spitballing here - I’m wondering if the potential lockout in ‘27 (mostly over salary cap issues) played a role in this carnage.   Hmmm.  Prepping for a new era in ‘28, perhaps?  Clearly the Tins would be worth more if a hard cap were in place.

[Mike Sixel]

2 hours ago, chpettit19 said:

I disagree that they picked a lane. You don't bring James Outman back if you've fully picked the rebuild lane. You don't. It's not even an option. You pick any random prospect over James freaking Outman. A 28-year-old failed prospect. That is not picking the rebuild lane. 

The Twins blew up their pen. The one part of the team we already know they won't invest in and believe they can build overnight from any castoff or failed starter. They didn't touch any controllable starting pitching or position player that didn't save them $70 million. 

I think they very much remained in both lanes and it's why I absolutely hated yesterday. The return in the trades matters in this discussion. They got 28- and 25-year-old players and 16- and 18-year-old players. That isn't picking a lane. That isn't picking a target window for contention, that's trying to win now and later.

Maybe they truly pick a lane this offseason by trading Lopez, Ryan, and Ober, but they didn't pick that lane yesterday. Blowing up the most fungible part of your roster that you never invest in anyways isn't tearing down your roster or rebuilding. It's not picking a lane. They held their most valuable pieces that would truly jumpstart a rebuild. The Nats didn't hold Juan Soto when they started their rebuild. The Twins held Joe Ryan. Until they trade their starting pitching they haven't picked a lane.

Saved me the time of typing. 

[Major League Ready]

3 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

Yeah, that comment was a follow-up after the other poster responded to my first comment disagreeing with the premise of this article. I don't think the Twins picked a lane. I don't think they're rebuilding. I think they're trying to win "now" (not this year, obviously) and in the future. I think the article is 100% wrong. I think the Twins are trying to have their cake and eat it, too. The idea behind trading all 3 of them was that if they were truly rebuilding, as the article argues, then that's what they'd do. But they aren't. So, I don't think they will.

I fully agree with your assessment of what they did to the team yesterday and I also see them working hard to remain competitive while they remake the team. It's what I hate about yesterday. I hate Outman being here. I hate that return. It's awful and pointless (unless you trade Larnach and/or Wallner). I hate getting returns ranging from 16 to 28 years old. That's not picking a lane. I wish they would've picked a lane. I wish they'd pick one this offseason. But they didn't, and I don't think they will. And I think it's going to lead to more mediocre at best teams. 

I do think there's risk in not trading all 3 of the starters this offseason, though. You keep the wrong guy and he blows an elbow and you're getting nothing for him (a comp pick, maybe). 2026 is lost. I mean, there's surprise teams every year and maybe it's the Twins next year, but the Twins are all about the numbers and the odds, and the odds are they're not winning next year. So, then you're playing for a 1-year window with whichever starter(s) you kept. If you're doing ok (.500ish ball, 1 game back of the wild card at the deadline let's say) that year are you trading them and blowing up fan relations AGAIN? Are you ok with just getting a comp pick for them instead of the multiple top 100 prospects you can get for them this offseason? That's the decision.

What's the realistic outlook for this team in 2026 and 2027 and what are you willing to lose each of those 3 guys for? Either way, I think this article is 100% wrong. I think it couldn't be more wrong if it tried. They didn't pick a lane at all. They're still trying to win now and later. We'll see how it turns out.

I was anxiously awaiting the details of the Stewart trade.  There were several possible scenarios I had concocted in my head.  Outman was not one of them so I was quite disappointed.  Obviously, our FO believes he can be the player that produced almost 4 WAR in his first season.  I sure hope they are right.  The silver lining is I am not at all worried about our OF.  Buck sure looks like he has a few good years left in him.  I want to believe Wallner can be a 900 OPS guy and Jenkins will be here soon enough.  Between GG / Rodriguez / Martin / Outman and Roden, we should be able to put together a very good OF by this time next year.

[chpettit19]

1 minute ago, Mike Sixel said:

Saved me the time of typing. 

Always happy to help!

[GNess]

The FO assembled the team they just dismantled. If it is some sort of admission of failure there needs to be accountability for said failure. That falls primarily on the FO. They shouldn't get a "do-over" opportunity. It should also be mentioned that some of the trades made such as dealing away Varland seem to contradict a reset mode by surrendering a young,, quality RP who they could control through 2030 apparently - so even young talent was sacrificed by this reckless tear it all down approach.

Picked a lane? The Twins just went off the road and into a ditch filled with unproven, inexperienced players to run out there for the foreseeable future. Sad.

 

[NYCTK]

5 minutes ago, LastOnePicked said:

What substances are floating around in this wildfire smoke that would provoke this kind of delusion?

That's just fun snark. No offense intended. Be great if you're right. Can't see it myself.

The way I see it, this team wasn't competing in 2026 regardless. This team was so poorly constructed that any idea that they could be a contender this year was always delusional. They started the season with Mickey Gasper and DaShawn Keirsey on the 26 man roster. 

Now, they at least recognize their short comings and are actually trying to build towards something as opposed to just standing pat and crossing their fingers. 

Will they succeed? Probably not. Anything short of a pennant is a failure in my mind. Long-term speaking. Seasons like the Twins 2023 are great, fun seasons. But that's not the end goal. 

 

[LastOnePicked]

1 hour ago, Nshore said:

Outman is a very unfortunate name for a baseball player.  But maybe he's the new face of the franchise.

I know there's still a Blewett out there. Go get him. One can only hope they can find guys named Poppout, Bust and Hazbin, too. Get to know 'em!

[Cory Engelhardt]

39 minutes ago, P Meyer said:

IMO, Varland was traded because it was the only way they could get rid of France.

They could have just dfa'd him. 

[sweetmusicviola16]

As for the Correa discussion, who actually thinks that the money saved will be reinvested in better players? I don't. That's not how this team works. New owner? Where are they? They don't even exist at this point. Pohlad is the owner and they will not reinvest that money. They are licking their wounds over the 30 some mil they will pay out for nothing.

[NYCTK]

23 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

France could simply be released. There was no need to "get rid" of France by attaching him to someone. 

They didn't save much money, roughly $100k. He was making slightly above the MLB minimum and his replacement on the 25 man will make almost as much. 

Yeah, France actually has a little bit of value to the Blue Jays. Their roster is really thin offensively and a veteran bat, albeit a weak one, provides SOME value to them.