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It’s no secret that the Twins offense has been on life support recently. The lineup took another hit Friday night, when Royce Lewis pulled up lame running to first. With the pitching regressing and two of their top six starters out for at least the next several weeks, the Twins simply must do something to ensure they are playing competitive baseball on a nightly basis. The fact that Jonah Bride, Kody Clemens, and DaShawn Keirsey Jr. are all on the Twins roster says it all: internal reinforcements are not on the way.
Matthew Taylor broke down the hitters’ struggles and advocated for calling up Mickey Gasper. This community wasn’t a fan of that, and I get it: he has struggled during limited action in the majors. Here’s the thing, though: the cupboards are bare when it comes to impact hitting, as most promising options (such as Luke Keaschall and Emmanuel Rodriguez) are on the shelf with injuries, and won’t be realistic options in the short term. Edouard Julien and Jose Miranda continue to languish in St. Paul, where they have continued to struggle at the plate even in a hitting-friendly league. The Twins don’t seem interested in giving Carson McCusker a legitimate shot at regular playing time. With that in mind, Gasper is probably the best internal option.
So, the offense can really only be bolstered by trade. While it’s still a few weeks early for the sort of significant swaps the Twins may need, the Red Sox's surprising trade of Rafael Devers to the Giants has broken the seal. Matthew Lenz did a nice job breaking down some potential targets, so I will explore which trade assets could bring a slugger back.
The Top Prospects
Despite graduating a number of top prospects over the past season, the Twins' farm system is still stocked with high-end talent, featuring Walker Jenkins, Rodriguez, and Kaelen Culpepper all on Keith Law’s top-50 list. Connor Prielipp just missed the cutoff, and Keaschall is a top-100 guy. Now, the Twins probably aren’t going to trade the injured guys, as their market would almost certainly be depressed, but Culpepper and Prielipp could be real options.
Culpepper has seen his prospect status rise tremendously, based on his defense being better than expected. The Twins' first-round pick in 2024, he’s about ready for a promotion to Double-A Wichita. On pace for a 25-homer, 40-steal season, he’s shown a well-rounded approach that could get him to the majors late next season, if he continues to thrive in the high minors. He could be the headliner in a deal for a legit hitter.
Prielipp has been a bit of an enigma. Limited to 21 total games since being drafted in 2022, he’s got elite swing-and-miss stuff. Both his walk and strikeout rates portend a bright future. The question, really, is whether he will stay healthy enough to be a starter. The Twins have limited his pitch count as he has worked to recover from arm injuries. His worst-case scenario is becoming a back-of-the-bullpen weapon, but he could also be at least a mid-rotation starter if health allows it. It’s tough to project how other teams might see his value, but at least some teams may see him as a prize.
The Intriguing Fast Risers
Guys like Dasan Hill or Kyle DeBarge could be intriguing secondary pieces for a selling team, depending on what they might prioritize. Hill, a lefty starting pitcher, boasts great stuff, and the Twins have (as usual) found ways to increase his velocity. Through nine starts with Fort Myers in 2025, he has struck out nearly 15 guys per nine innings and has a shiny 1.65 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. He’s about due for a callup to High-A Cedar Rapids, and it wouldn’t be shocking if he’s a top-100 guy headed into 2026. Selling teams could dream on the possibility of an elite lefty fronting their rotation a few years from now. Jamie Cameron did a nice writeup of him if you want to learn more.
DeBarge, the Twins' compensatory pick for losing Sonny Gray, was picked in the 2024 draft. He’s a middle infielder who plays a decent shortstop, but can also play second or third. He does a bit of everything, having stolen 35 bags, walked 45 times, and added 21 extra-base hits through his first 57 games of the 2025 season with Cedar Rapids. A year from now, he could be knocking on the door of the bigs and projects to be at least a utility infielder, with the possibility of being a good regular. Here’s Jamie’s writeup on DeBarge.
The Major-Leaguers
On the major-league side of things, they could also look at shopping Jhoan Duran or Griffin Jax. This would be a bit counterproductive, as moving either would undoubtedly make the back of the bullpen weaker. But, both guys would have significant trade value, and would be appealing to other buying teams, which could broaden the trade market. So, it’s possible some sort of challenge trade could come to fruition, with a team that has a blocked top hitting prospect, or a surplus of hitting in general. It’s also quite likely the Twins front office is cash-strapped, so trading away at least a bit of 2025 salary may be necessary. It’s also probable the Twins would need a selling team to absorb the salaries of any hitters coming the Twins' way.
The key, whichever option the Twins may choose, is to move quickly to add a piece that can prevent the 2025 season from repeating the freefall of 2024.
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