Twins Waste No Time Offering Derek Falvey His Favorite Players Back

There are certain relationships in baseball that never truly go away. A former executive can leave an organization. A player can fall out of favor. An entire fan base can move on. But apparently, Jeremy Zoll was not going to let Derek Falvey get too far down the hallway at Citi Field before reminding him about some of his favorite Twins.

According to sources, Zoll immediately called Falvey after the Mets hired him and presented a trade proposal. Royce Lewis. Trevor Larnach. Matt Wallner. All three players have experienced varying degrees of uncertainty in Minnesota. All three have also shown enough talent to make another organization believe there is something worth unlocking.

And if there is one thing Falvey knows, it is these players.

“Jeremy called me pretty quickly,” Falvey said. “I didn't even have my Mets email set up yet. I thought it was David Stearns calling me about onboarding.”

Instead, it was Zoll.

“Derek,” Zoll allegedly said, “how do you feel about bringing a few old friends to New York?”

One Man's Trash...

To be clear, calling these three players “trash” would be wildly unfair. Lewis has tremendous upside, even if his career has taken a series of frustrating turns. Larnach has shown stretches of being a legitimate middle-of-the-order bat. Wallner has demonstrated the kind of power that makes you wonder why every team doesn't simply give him 600 plate appearances and see what happens.

That last part is particularly important. Because what better place to rediscover your confidence than New York? Nothing says “career reset” quite like joining a Mets organization that has spent the last several years providing baseball fans with an annual reminder that having the highest payroll does not necessarily guarantee having the highest win total.

Falvey, naturally, sees the opportunity.

“I know those guys,” the fictional Falvey said. “I know what they can do. I know what they can't do. I know what their strengths are. I know what their weaknesses are. And I know exactly how many times each of them has made me think, 'We should probably give him another chance.'”

The Mets' Side of the Deal

The Mets, meanwhile, apparently have no idea what they are getting themselves into. But that has never stopped them before. One Mets executive was reportedly intrigued by the package.

“We asked Derek if he had any players he really believed in,” the anonymous Mets executive said. “He gave us three names. We asked if they were available. He said, 'Well, technically.' So here we are.”

There is also the matter of cost. The Twins would presumably want something in return, although sources could not confirm whether the Mets would be sending prospects, cash considerations, a player to be named later, or a strongly worded letter explaining why New York should not have to pay for the players.

One Mets source suggested the front office was comfortable with the risk.

“We've had worse ideas,” the source said.

When asked for an example, the source declined to comment.

A Fresh Start for Everyone

There is something poetic about the potential reunion. Falvey gets three players he knows. Lewis gets a new organization. Larnach gets a new organization. Wallner gets a new organization. And the Twins get to see whether their former president of baseball operations can somehow make all three players productive somewhere else.

That final part is perhaps the most important. Because if Lewis goes to New York and becomes an All-Star, Larnach settles into the middle of the order,  and Wallner becomes a 40-homer cult hero, Twins fans will have approximately 11 minutes before someone asks why Minnesota didn't simply keep all three.

If they struggle, meanwhile, Minnesota will have successfully traded three players nobody wanted for the privilege of watching Falvey struggle with three players everybody once wanted. That's the beauty of baseball. Nobody is ever actually wrong. They just haven't waited long enough.

As for Zoll, he apparently remains confident the deal makes sense.

“I think Derek would appreciate what we're doing here,” Zoll said. “We're giving him three players he knows, three players he believes in and three players he can now be blamed for.”

The Mets are reportedly still reviewing the paperwork. Mostly because nobody in New York can figure out whether Minnesota actually included Wallner's bat or simply the rights to discuss how good he could be. There is also some disagreement over whether Lewis, Larnach and Wallner are being acquired as players or as part of a larger Derek Falvey nostalgia package.

Either way, the Mets are excited. After all, if there is one thing New York has proven over the years, it is that nothing fixes a roster quite like acquiring a few talented players who just need a change of scenery.

And if that doesn't work? Well, there is always next July. At which point Zoll can call Falvey again.

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