Trading Trevor Larnach Just Makes Too Much Sense

[dxpavelka]

Add Gonzalez to your list of five names and add Wallner to the Larnach column.

 

[dxpavelka]

26 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

Trades require a second team - the article I am looking for is - who do other teams want from the Twins.

as we saw last year, if you make someone available, someone will take them.  Worst case scenario, attach him to Jeffers.  Even as well as he is playing he does you little good if he's in the way of Rodriguez, Jenkins, Fedko, Gonzalez, Mendez, maybe even Rhoden and (gulp) Sabato.

[dxpavelka]

12 hours ago, Czelgert said:

I’ll be the voice of dissent here.  Larnach is one of the more professional hitters this team has, which is why he’s often elevated to the 1 hole.  His upside is limited, but this organization sorely needs professional players to provide stability and model behaviors for its younger players.  I’d argue the lack of solid veterans is one of the reasons for so many prospect flameouts at the big league level.  Buxton is nice, but he can’t carry the whole load.  This team has turned into a revolving door and develops very little as result.  
 

Larnach is likely worth a contract of $8Mish a year.  Big whoop.  His trade value can’t be much higher than a couple of C level prospects when judged against what the Twins acquired last year for players like Varland.  Trading him for that kind of haul isn’t worth the squeeze.  

His presence will keep those younger players in St. Paul or on the bench.  He's a former 1st round draft pick out of college who has been in the big leagues for six years and never hit 20 home runs or driven in more than 60 runs.  I would say he's NOT the model I'd want for younger players.

[stringer bell]

22 hours ago, karcherd said:

Until there is someone ready to replace him, why do you trade Larnach other than for the sake of trading him.  And what will you get for him a player from A ball.   What value does he really have.  Same with Clemens and Bell, they have no value around the league.  Yes they have had hot streaks but have also had really cold streaks, you don't think the rest of the league sees this.  There was only one Falvey who would get fooled by a hot streak and he isn't in the league as a decision maker currently.

There is some value there for all of the players mentioned, but not enough to really change the trajectory of this or next season IMHO. There is certainly a replacement waiting in AAA for Larnach--Alan Roden--who is a better runner and fielder and would profile to be Trev's equal (at least) with the bat. 

I hesitate to use the word "logjam", but Wallner, Mendez, Rodriguez, Jenkins and Roden is a lot of corner outfielder with all but Gonzalez hitting left handed. 

[JD-TWINS]

22 hours ago, Patzky said:

Without the firesale you'd be looking at a SP rotation of.. Joe, Prielipp, Paredes, Zebby, maybe Rojas at this point. Not sure about your assessment.

Rojas is an asset received in “the fire sale”. …… Where was Louie at age 23? He was in the minors trying to develop a 2nd pitch. He’s 28 now and until his age 27 season, he had some pretty rough years.

I’m not sure about the assessment either!

As of this a.m., Abel is having elbow surgery (ouch!). However, many here are clamoring for Roden (remember, Fedko tore up ASA as well) & Rojas certainly has enough talent to be very valuable as he matures……Varland pieces from last July. Does Taj Bradley count or is he not included in the assessment above because he’s had success?

Morris would probably be the 5th starter if Rojas didn’t come over in trade.

Never thought I’d miss Bailey Ober & David Festa soooo much!

[JD-TWINS]

Keep inexpensive 29 year olds that have finally reached their potential ……. probable .260 BA - .350 OBP - .410 Slug ……. and trade some “prospects” that other teams can hope to develop ……. for players that CAN play.

Larnach was where Jenkins - Rodriguez - Roden are ……. he was highly touted out of Oregon! He’s paying off now and people want to trade him so one of the 3 guys that are repeatedly hurt can come up & shine …… oh yea, MAYBE shine or fail? …….nobody here has a crystal ball on how Roden & Rodriguez or Mendez will play, if healthy, at MLB level! …… organization shouldn’t trade a known performer for AAA unknowns “just to see what they can do”. They keep the known and develop the “maybe’s” parallel, until they know.

Fedko & Martin ……. even Clemens are all players that could/should be displaced by young talent in OF……before Larnach.

IMO, with Bell gone, Larnach is the obvious DH for ‘27 v. RH pitching……occasionally in OF if he fits strategically.

[Patzky]

16 minutes ago, JD-TWINS said:

Rojas is an asset received in “the fire sale”. …… Where was Louie at age 23? He was in the minors trying to develop a 2nd pitch. He’s 28 now and until his age 27 season, he had some pretty rough years.

I’m not sure about the assessment either!

As of this a.m., Abel is having elbow surgery (ouch!). However, many here are clamoring for Roden (remember, Fedko tore up ASA as well) & Rojas certainly has enough talent to be very valuable as he matures……Varland pieces from last July. Does Taj Bradley count or is he not included in the assessment above because he’s had success?

Morris would probably be the 5th starter if Rojas didn’t come over in trade.

Never thought I’d miss Bailey Ober & David Festa soooo much!

Ober 'should' be back this summer. Festa.. man I don't know if he is just going to Kirill Off and away. If Abel can come back in, say September.. does it even make sense to do that, or let him continue to heal? That's a long time to be away. And will 2027 even happen in March or May or at all? If we start in May Abel and Pablo should be a go. 

[JD-TWINS]

23 hours ago, Sampson5 said:

Honestly I'd be crazy not to trade him to create a spot for one of the outfielders at some point here you want wallner and one of the others up here easy way to do it is trading larnach I've always assumed fedko was a placeholder until roden or a prospect was ready and with how well larnach is playing you could actually get a solid return hope he continues to thrive until the deadline to maximize his value 

WHY would anyone want to see Matt Wallner up???

Why is giving someone else a chance more important than trying to win or playing guys that DO get the job done?

What’s “a solid return” that will create more WAR over next 2-3 years than a platooned Larnach? In ‘27 he should be penciled in as a 15-20 time starter in OF and 100 games at DH. That’s 120 starts v. RH pitching (70-75% of pitchers).

There’s no downside. There’s no “blocking others”. Keeping a known bat makes sense.

[Patzky]

19 hours ago, shimrod said:

That would be me. God help me. 

God bless you 

[jorgenswest]

On 6/24/2026 at 8:50 AM, Mike Sixel said:

Taj?

Yes, trade Larnach. It's 100 percent what Milwaukee and Tampa would do. 

I would trade Larnach also but I don’t think it has been the Brewers model. I don’t see Brewer trades (checked back to 2021) of position players in their last few years of service time.

The Rays traded Arozarena and received two prospects two years ago. Brody Hopkins was a 45+ at the time and has been in a few recent top 100. He is struggling with command this year in his first shot in AAA. They recently moved him to the bullpen. Aiden Smith was a 40 in A ball at the time. He is currently struggling in high A. Arozarena had a much longer track record of success going into that trade at age 29 but maybe the Twins can get something for that will eventually help. I wouldn’t trade him for much less than the Rays received for Arozarena. 

 

 

[mickster]

On 6/24/2026 at 10:23 AM, MMBoys93 said:

Because you get trade value for Clemens at the deadline. With Culpepper on the IL he’s not coming up anytime soon. They’ll need someone to replace Clemens who can play the infield with Kreidler starting every day. It’s not cause I want Arcia, but in the infield there’s no other option. They need a backup who can play SS, Gray is obviously not that and the ship has sailed on Lee getting any time there 

Clemens stays...............Culpepper can wait until Sept or 2027.  Gray will be just fine

[DJL44]

1 hour ago, JD-TWINS said:

WHY would anyone want to see Matt Wallner up???

Why is giving someone else a chance more important than trying to win or playing guys that DO get the job done?

What’s “a solid return” that will create more WAR over next 2-3 years than a platooned Larnach? In ‘27 he should be penciled in as a 15-20 time starter in OF and 100 games at DH. That’s 120 starts v. RH pitching (70-75% of pitchers).

There’s no downside. There’s no “blocking others”. Keeping a known bat makes sense.

There is no reason this team should hang on to expensive veteran role players to try to eke out 78 wins instead of finishing with 75 wins. There is no AL Central 3rd place pennant to hang in the rafters.

If you want to acquire a free agent as good as Larnach this offseason it will cost about the same as he is expected to cost in arbitration.

[Major League Ready]

On 6/24/2026 at 9:39 AM, LA Vikes Fan said:

You all make valid points, but I think you’re missing an important part of the analysis – what do we get in return and how does this go down in the clubhouse. We have a number of players that we hope will want to stay with the Twins long-term. We can’t make trades that show we are giving up on the season again and expect these guys to want to stick around when they get the chance to leave. We cannot trade Larnach for prospects or frankly anybody that doesn’t immediately join the major league roster and make a contribution. If we do, the clubhouse is going to see it as a vote of no confidence and it’s likely we will collapse again. Nobody wants to be on that team long-term.

So while I get the arguments for trading Larnach and think they have some validity, I only do it if we can get quality major league help back. The perfect trade, of course, would be Larnach for a quality relief pitcher with closing experience, even if we have to throw in a mid-level prospect to make that happen. Bottom line, unless we’re getting a guy who is immediately on the 26 man roster and either playing regularly or making a real contribution in the bullpen, I say you wait till the off-season to trade him.

Cleveland, Tampa, and Milwaukee would not hesitate for 10 seconds to trade Larnach.   Those organizations don't manage their assets to produce perennial mediocrity.   

[stringer bell]

It all really depends on whether the front office wants to pursue making the playoffs this season. The negatives are well documented--bad defense and poor bullpen--and it is unknown if ownership will spend more money. I suspect the team will flounder enough to justify selling. I keep seeing a club ready to fall into the abyss and then extricating themselves. I wonder how many down cycles ownership will see before they see no hope.

It is admirable to believe in the players they have. They've played hard on the whole and have stayed in the race despite a number of injuries and disappointments. They've been helped by the mediocrity of the American League where a .500 record could be a ticket to the playoffs.

My opinion is that the weaknesses are too much. What is best is to cash in Larnach, Jeffers and Ryan, and perhaps veterans like Bell.

[RpR]

3 hours ago, Major League Ready said:

Cleveland, Tampa, and Milwaukee would not hesitate for 10 seconds to trade Larnach.   Those organizations don't manage their assets to produce perennial mediocrity.   

Then why does Cleveland have 4 player batting below the Mendoza line?

[Vanimal46]

34 minutes ago, RpR said:

Then why does Cleveland have 4 player batting below the Mendoza line?

Pretty sure you know the definition of pinch runner in that box score? 

[RpR]

Just now, Vanimal46 said:

Pretty sure you know the definition of pinch runner in that box score? 

They are still on the team, not traded, or are you saying trade Larnach for a pinch-runner?

[Vanimal46]

50 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

It all really depends on whether the front office wants to pursue making the playoffs this season. The negatives are well documented--bad defense and poor bullpen--and it is unknown if ownership will spend more money. I suspect the team will flounder enough to justify selling. I keep seeing a club ready to fall into the abyss and then extricating themselves. I wonder how many down cycles ownership will see before they see no hope.

It is admirable to believe in the players they have. They've played hard on the whole and have stayed in the race despite a number of injuries and disappointments. They've been helped by the mediocrity of the American League where a .500 record could be a ticket to the playoffs.

My opinion is that the weaknesses are too much. What is best is to cash in Larnach, Jeffers and Ryan, and perhaps veterans like Bell.

April 22nd was the last time the Twins were .500 with a 12-12 record. The day before was the last time the Twins were above .500. They haven’t stayed in any race beyond the fantasy of being an optimistic fan. 

[Vanimal46]

 Next weekend is the 4th of July. 2+ months with a losing record. Come on folks. 

[Vanimal46]

31 minutes ago, RpR said:

They are still on the team, not traded, or are you saying trade Larnach for a pinch-runner?

They just might be on the team because Jose Ramirez, 24 year old Angel Martinez, and 24 year old Chase DeLaughter are on the IL… All batting above the Mendoza line.

Can you ever post in good faith? 

[Mike Sixel]

29 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

They just might be on the team because Jose Ramirez, 24 year old Angel Martinez, and 24 year old Chase DeLaughter are on the IL… All batting above the Mendoza line.

Can you ever post in good faith? 

Sometimes to ignore button is your friend. 

[Major League Ready]

9 hours ago, RpR said:

Then why does Cleveland have 4 player batting below the Mendoza line?

I made a statement about success over the past 20 years and your response is anecdotal evidence from one game.  Cleveland has had eight 90 win seasons in the past 20 years.  Tampa has nine.  The Twins have 3.  I am not sure if you are unaware of the roster management / trading practices of these teams or simply ignore how they operate because you don't like the implications.   Either way, I just don't think we should ignore how successful teams operate.  I especially don't believe we should follow practices that are basically the opposite of what has made these teams successful.

[RpR]

13 hours ago, Vanimal46 said:

They just might be on the team because Jose Ramirez, 24 year old Angel Martinez, and 24 year old Chase DeLaughter are on the IL… All batting above the Mendoza line.

Can you ever post in good faith? 

They might-- hmmm, well, that is just another version of -- IF.

YOU are the one who made an absolute statement about other teams, back it up with facts.

[RpR]

4 hours ago, Major League Ready said:

I made a statement about success over the past 20 years and your response is anecdotal evidence from one game.  Cleveland has had eight 90 win seasons in the past 20 years.  Tampa has nine.  The Twins have 3.  I am not sure if you are unaware of the roster management / trading practices of these teams or simply ignore how they operate because you don't like the implications.   Either way, I just don't think we should ignore how successful teams operate.  I especially don't believe we should follow practices that are basically the opposite of what has made these teams successful.

Unless you are in Cleveland's business workings, giving an absolute statement of what they will or will not do is as real or accurate as fantasy baseball.

You have your opinions, fine,  but do not present it as fact.

[TheLeviathan]

17 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

Sometimes to ignore button is your friend. 

At some point, if most of a forum has you on ignore, it may be time for it to go past everyone having to select that function.

[Major League Ready]

18 hours ago, RpR said:

Unless you are in Cleveland's business workings, giving an absolute statement of what they will or will not do is as real or accurate as fantasy baseball.

You have your opinions, fine,  but do not present it as fact.

You are right.  In my opinion, Cleveland would trade Larnach in a heartbeat.  I would point out however that the difference between your opinion in mine is based on what they have actually done.  That's factual.

[Twodogs]

I agree with the fact that the Twins should look to move Larnach and Bell.  But no one wanted Bell last season so that kinda shows what he is worth.  I mean maybe the Twins can get their soda machines filled for next year or something with Bell.  Larnach is not really worth much overall either.  I dont see anyone seriously knocking down the Twins door for Trevor, even though he is having an impressive season this year.  Also, if the Twins do manage to offload those two I don't see anything coming back that will make a difference from taking the twins from a below .500 mediocre team to a 90 - 100 win team.  Those guys just dont have a lot of value.  Now they might be able to get a decent piece or two for Joe Ryan, but thats not really why im on here right now bringing this up.  Im noticing a giant logjam in the OF on the Twins and in AAA.  I mean Buxton isn't going anywhere for a few years.  It looks like Austin Martin has carved himself a spot for a couple of seasons.  Now they have Keaschall running around in the OF.  The Twins still have Walner, Fedko, Gonzalez, Rhoden, Rodriguez, Mendez, Jenkins and with Larnach that's 11 OFers that are all already MLB players or are ready to be MLB players.  Again don't get me wrong, i think Larnach needs to be shopped, but im also thinking the Twins could really actually get something valuable for the up and coming guys?  I mean shop Jenkins, Rodriguez, Gonzalez and try to off load Walner and Larnach.  If the Twins can get something really good and younger for one or two of those young guys, I mean they still have perceived value, Larnach has known value and with some moves like that the Twins could ready themselves for a breakout 2 or 3 years from now. 

 

What the Twins seem really good at doing is allowing talent to stagnate in the minors while picking up guys like Bell and Wagaman in every off-season.  Its like they are trying so hard to not get some of these guys clocks started early that once they finally get a shot their time has run out.  Like I said, we know Buxton, Martin, and now Keashall will probably be around for at least 2 more years, the Twins need 2 or 3 good OFers to provide depth, but they don't need 11 of them.  They don't need to sign any more below average veterans either.  I mean if they sign a difference maker thats different, but no more Wagamans etc.....  they have too many high and getting old AAA prospects.  They probably need to trade some of those guys for younger A or AA prospects that will be ready when someone like Buck is near the end??  I know people are going to start twitching because i said trade the young guys like Jenkins, people will be like he was our #1 draft pick, and I'm saying that's exactly why he has a lot of value attached to his name, or one of the other guys like him, Rodriguez, etc.....  I'm hoping the twins could get multiple prospects for guys like that and load up to explode onto the scene in 2 - 3 years.  I just feel like only trading a guy like Larnach will accrue another nobody that will clog up the system?  I guess we will see.  Hopefully the Twins can keep winning series for now.

[stringer bell]

Whatever value Larnach has is at its peak right now. He is hitting better than he ever has before and unless there is another gear there, this is the best he ever is going to be. He doesn't add value on the bases or in the field, but he is playable in left field. 

The recurring question is whether to settle for perhaps slightly above average or roll the dice with someone with considerably more upside.

Josh Bell is also what he is. He's a switch-hitting DH who can only play first base who has consistently logged above-average hitting numbers while providing virtually no value on the bases or in the field. It is nice to have a constant presence in the middle of the order and according to the broadcasters he is a good clubhouse presence, but he won't be around next year and the Twins have a lot of candidates to be the DH.