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Day Two of the 2023 MLB Winter Meetings has passed, and it's fair to say the hot stove is on FIRE! Arson Judge--Wait, no, sorry, I was reciting the script from 2022; my apologies.
Day Two of the 2023 MLB Winter Meetings has come and gone, and the hot stove is, well, freezing. Though the sport is at a standstill as the biggest domino (Shohei Ohtani) has yet to fall, news has slowly trickled out of baseball's biggest offseason event. Let's take a look at a few things that are going on.
Twins Interested in a St. Louis Cardinals Outfielder?
The St. Louis Cardinals, who recently signed AL Cy Young Award runner-up Sonny Gray, have a surplus of MLB-caliber outfield talent. The group includes Tyler O'Neill, Lars Nootbaar, Tommy Edman, Jordan Walker, and Dylan Carlson.
Although depth like that is an excellent problem for the organization to have, Katie Woo of The Athletic is reporting that the Cardinals' plan is to use Nootbaar in left field, Edman in center, and Walker in right, with Carlson being the fourth outfielder for the upcoming season. In this scenario, the odd man out would be the 28-year-old O'Neill.
During the 2023 MLB Trade Deadline, the Twins were reportedly interested in trading for the right-handed-hitting O'Neill. Could that interest still be there? When we asked John Bonnes's Magic 8 Ball, it responded, "Signs point to Yes."
Central Division Teams Make Significant Coaching Decisions
News broke around midday Monday that the Detroit Tigers and manager AJ Hinch have agreed to a "long-term" extension. Though the term and average annual value of Hinch's contract are unknown, those who follow the Twins should get used to seeing Hinch's face for years to come.
The Tigers are on the rise, and though long stretches of ineffectiveness early in each of the last two seasons have torpedoed their hopes quickly, the up-and-coming Hinch-led team could pose the greatest threat to the Twins' AL Central supremacy as soon as this season.
Shifting attention to the NL Central, it was announced that former Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina has agreed to join the team in an unspecified coaching role. It is safe to assume he will be tasked with coaching the Cardinals' catchers, notably Willson Contreras, in some capacity, but his role beyond that is unknown. The team wanted Molina as their bench coach for next year, earlier in the offseason, but he turned that opportunity down.
The Cardinals' intention with Molina could be for the St. Louis legend to be a potential successor to current manager Oli Marmol if things don't work out again in 2024, but to suggest that is pure speculation. Nonetheless, monitoring Molina's future role with the Cardinals will be interesting.
KBO Postings and Yoshinobu Yamamoto's Market
Outfielder Jung Hoo Lee and closer Woo Suk Go were officially posted by their respective KBO teams on Monday. Though the Twins will likely show no interest in Go, a closer, the organization may express interest in the 25-year-old former KBO MVP outfielder Lee.
Lee, who is a natural center fielder, has already drawn interest from teams who are willing to spend, like the New York Mets, San Francisco Giants, and San Diego Padres, so if a bidding war for his services arises, the cost-cutting Twins will likely end up a mere afterthought. With players coming over from foreign leagues, though, markets sometimes fail to materialize to the expected extent, so keep an eye on this.
Speaking of cost-cutting, the dream of the Twins landing the NPB icon Yamamoto can officially be laid to rest.
At the beginning of the offseason, Yamamoto, 25, was expected to sign a seven- or eight-year deal worth roughly $200 million. Those expectations, according to Bowden, have since been blown out of the water, as Yamamoto appears poised to become the first starting pitcher to sign a deal worth $300 million in total value since Gerrit Cole signed a nine-year, $324-million pact with the New York Yankees after the 2019 season.
Noteworthy teams interested in signing Yamamoto include the Yankees, Mets, Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, and Chicago Cubs. Unsurprisingly, Yamamoto will likely end up with one of six big-market teams. Which one will it be? The answer might come down to which is willing to open their pocketbook the most.
Twins Minor League Notes:
- Andrew Bechtold, a two-way player who spent his 2023 season in the Twins minor-league system, signed a MiLB deal with the Blue Jays as a pitcher.
- Twins minor leaguer Regi Grace was named the team's Minor League Players Union Representative for the coming year. The growth and development of the union for minor leaguers continues apace.
Should the Twins trade for O'Neill? Was it wise of the Tigers to extend Hinch? What do you think Molina's role will be with the Cardinals? Will Yamamoto sign for $300 million? The table is set. Comment below.
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