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Donovan Solano was a late addition to a Twins roster that has struggled against left-handed pitching for years. Being one of the most consistent hitters against lefties in the last few years, the hope was for Donnie Barrels to carry the short side of the platoon. At 36 years old, Sovano’s start to his Twins tenure may already be in danger of ending.
Through his first 55 plate appearances, Solano slashed .314/.364/.392, good for 11% above the league average hitter. In 32 plate appearances since, he’s slashing .107/.219/.143. Hitters go through cold streaks, but on the season as a whole, Solano has a .667 OPS. More worrisome, Solano is slashing .240/.240/.360 against left-handed pitching. He’s failing to a tremendous degree at the main job he was brought in to do.
Solano was also a plus defender in 2022 for Cincinnati at first base. After saving 5 runs defensively, he’s been worth -1 Defensive Run Saved in 2023 at first base, and another -1 at second. His fielding struggles have cost Twins pitchers at times this season to the extent that we may not see him at second base again, and even playing first has become anxiety-inducing.
At his age, it’s possible Solano is simply at the end of the line. The Twins were able to bring him in for $2m in the spring because of this possibility, and because of the small price tag, they shouldn’t be inclined to give him months of a sample size to show that his start is simply a fluke. They’ve sometimes made a habit of sticking with players too long because of their veteran status, and they’ve paid dearly for it. With the small role Solano plays and the small amount of money committed, it’s not worth waiting months to compile enough evidence that Solano just doesn’t have it anymore.
The Twins have no shortage of replacement options either. Though they don’t have another right-handed hitting first baseman, they don’t need one. Alex Kirilloff’s arrival has pushed Joey Gallo to the corner outfield, once again creating a surplus of left-handed hitting corner options between him, Max Kepler, and Nick Gordon . The Twins could stick to Gallo and Kirilloff as the everyday first basemen and call up Kyle Garlick to play the short-side platoon role. Unlike Solano, Garlick’s performance against southpaws can be considered all but guaranteed as long as he can stay healthy.
They could also use Solano’s 40-man spot to add a right-handed player with more versatility such as 27-year-old Michael Helman who’s been playing in St. Paul for a couple of weeks after returning from injury. Helman has played every outfield and infield position aside from first base so far in his brief time in Triple-A this season. Last year, between Wichita and St. Paul, he hit 20 homers and stole 40 bases, and sports a .273/.400/.606 line with 3 homers and 2 steals in his 9 games so far this year.
Helman likely wouldn’t be a regular at some of the more demanding positions such as shortstop or center, but his ability to play there in a pinch as well as his competence all across the rest of the diamond would certainly be a plus. His clear ability to steal bases would also add an element to the Twins lineup that they have very little of.
It’s unfortunate, but the Twins shouldn’t need to see much more from Solano to make a move. The offense is struggling mightily and is one of the worst in baseball against left-handed pitching, a job Solano was brought in to do. They have too many alternative options to let this go on for very long, as plan B or C is almost certain to be better than what they’ve gotten so far. Donovan Solano is running out of opportunity. It may even be too late. Do you agree?
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