Ranking the Twins Veterans Most Likely to Be Let Go

The only one I’d really consider right now is Margot. I’d prefer to see Austin Martin getting a long run. He wasn’t spectacular but was holding his own and bringing something different to the lineup. Depending on how Topa looks over his next few appearances I would imagine that Jackson is actually more likely to be let go. The FO has a history of juggling relievers and hanging on to the veteran position players. The rest on the list will have much longer leashes for varying reasons.

The games I have watched, Margot's defense isn't even average. He doesn't catch balls that an average OF would catch.

I wouldn't do any of the main trades that were done or the signing of Santana those acquisitions held back our own players more worthy but the damage has been done and we are a weaker team because of it. Twins double down on their mistake so I expect they'll hang unto them as long as possible. 

We still have Martin so Margot is expendable but he's not going anywhere soon. In the beginning of the off-season we had Julien, Miranda & Kiriloff to play 1B a heck of a lot better options than Santana. But the Twins wanted Santana to be our every day 1Bman. Trading Polanco limited our options because basically Julien is stuck at 2B. Like Gallo, Santana isn't going anywhere. Jay Jackson, although has contributed, is the most likely to be let go because the Twin like to rotate arms & he's less flexible.

Castro & Farmer are valuable bench players that'll bounce back nicely now that Correa is back. They shouldn't be going anywhere.

After watching Pham play in Chicago this week,he would have been a better signing than Margot.

As much as I'd like to see a few of these guys gone, I bet they're here most, if not all season. It's just not this FO's style to dump players. 

32 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

I wouldn't do any of the main trades that were done or the signing of Santana those acquisitions held back our own players more worthy but the damage has been done and we are a weaker team because of it. Twins double down on their mistake so I expect they'll hang unto them as long as possible. 

We still have Martin so Margot is expendable but he's not going anywhere soon. In the beginning of the off-season we had Julien, Miranda & Kiriloff to play 1B a heck of a lot better options than Santana. But the Twins wanted Santana to be our every day 1Bman. Trading Polanco limited our options because basically Julien is stuck at 2B. Like Gallo, Santana isn't going anywhere. Jay Jackson, although has contributed, is the most likely to be let go because the Twin like to rotate arms & he's less flexible.

Castro & Farmer are valuable bench players that'll bounce back nicely now that Correa is back. They shouldn't be going anywhere.

 

I don't think I understand your comment that Julien is stuck on 2nd.  That's where he belongs, his fielding has improved and Polanco is on the downside of his career.

With only 13 position players it is hard to hide anyone. The FO has shown some aggressive moves with young players, demoting underperformers. They have not shown the willingness to part ways with veterans. I get that it can be a tough balancing act. Every game counts, let's get the best team out there. 

Based on their track record I would put Jackson as most likely with Margot second.

Austin Martin provides 10times more value than Margot. Send him out now and bring Martin back!

Very nice article.  I agree with your assessments. Although I lovevtge 10 game winning streak ( who wouldnt) I'm afraid it covered up some of the many flaws on this team.  It's one thing to beat up on the weak sisters of the poor, i.e. white sox and angels.  I'm hoping we hold our own against the Red Sox, Mariners, Blue Jay's, Yankees, and guardians we have in our next 5 series.  Go Twins.

lol Castro is one of the best players on the team since he joined and ZiPS currently projects him as a starting caliber player at multiple positions. He's much more likely to be extended than let go. 

Only Margot is currently a realistic possibility to move on from over the next several months. 

You didn't really specify the "when" part of letting a player go.  Is it now?  Some point in the season?  End of season?

The only player with any real risk here is Margot.  If Buxton goes down for an extended period of time, Margot is 100% safe.

The rest of this article is an exercise in wishful thinking.  Every player on that list has a history of performing better than they have.  There is no player in the minors to replace them with a high expectation they will perform better.  The Twins are obviously not going to increase payroll on a player from outside the organization.  What you see is what you get.

4 minutes ago, wabene said:

With only 13 position players it is hard to hide anyone. The FO has shown some aggressive moves with young players, demoting underperformers. They have not shown the willingness to part ways with veterans. I get that it can be a tough balancing act. Every game counts, let's get the best team out there. 

Based on their track record I would put Jackson as most likely with Margot second.

They also prioritize maintaining depth, especially early in the season. they're not going to be cutting veterans in April or May because then those players are gone. Younger players with options can be sent down and brought back. After the debacle of the 2022 season, where the team was in first place in the division in September and utterly collapsed and a major component of that collapse was the lack of depth to overcome injuries (we started an OF of Cave, Celestino, and Contreras in a key series against Cleveland!), this front office has made it a clear priority to have experienced MLB players on the roster and depth in the system to manage through that. 

While it was incredibly frustrating to see them stick with Gallo through the summer after he fell apart after a great first month, they also did the same with Kepler who was brutal in May and not much better until the later part of June...and Kepler was terrific in the second half of the season. So...how aggressive should they be in cutting the vets?

I like Martin, always have, but he didn't exactly wreck the league when he came up, and with Wallner flailing in AAA there's not a lot of depth behind him, especially not until someone like Emma gets moved up to AAA. With Brooks Lee dealing with an injury, that's cutting down the infield depth as well.

So I don't see any real likelihood of a veteran position player getting cut before midseason, absent a trade (which is also unlikely to happen before at least midseason).

It's really just the relievers who have to be concerned right now; Jackson is probably the most likely if anyone is in danger...and I don't think anyone really is. he's been fine, but not outstanding. He's been mostly in middle relief lower-leverage roles. He's the most fungible right now. Okert is a possibility, but he's pitched better than Thielbar so far and I don't see Thielbar going anywhere: he's been looking back to normal and has enough of a track record that he's going to earn some rope.

If Ballys stops making their payments to the Twins since Comcast took them off air, and the Twins need to pare payroll as a result, then the correct answer is whoever they can trade including Vazquez and Kepler added to the list too.  
 

based on performance it’s Margot.  
 

Jackson hasn’t pitched bad enough to be let go.  Everyone else has a value with the team.  

Farmer has hit 5 for his last 12 AB.  if he hits like normal the rest of the season (,250 Average) and ends up with 250 AB. his average will remain low all year and end up just over .200 but he will still be a useful player moving forward.  I am more disappointed that he wasn't considered good enough to play SS as I thought that was the main reason to keep him last winter.  

I don't think anybody will be leaving until after Royce comes back at least. And why deplenish the supply of bullpen arms. Keep as many as possible and mix and match as injuries and performance call for.