Which Players Could Make Marlins-Twins Trade Rumors Come to Fruition Again?

The trade deadline is roughly seven weeks away, and although the Twins have been up and down this year, they’re in position to fight for a Wild Card berth in the American League, at a minimum. As such, they may be buyers. It’s worth looking around the league to get familiar with some players who might become Twins by August. Let’s dive into Miami’s roster and see if there’s anything there.

Miami is currently 23-43, and far out of contention. They’ve already shipped off Luis Arráez to San Diego, and we’ve already had a story on Jesús Luzardo at Twins Daily. What else might the Twins be able to salvage off this sinking Miami ship?

Other Starters
Derek Falvey has shown a preference for acquiring starting pitchers via trade who have more than one year of team control (Jake Odorizzi, Kenta Maeda, Sonny Gray, Tyler Mahle, Pablo Lopez), despite breaking that rule on a couple of occasions (Jaime García, Anthony DeSclafani). Given that a deadline deal would probably be for a mid-rotation starter or better, it’d be safe to assume that the Twins would be looking for a starter with multiple years of control, if they are shopping. Miami has a few.

Trevor Rogers
Rogers is a left-handed, 26-year-old 2021 All-Star, under team control through 2026—two and a half years. He utilizes a fastball-changeup-sinker-slider mix. The bad news is that he hasn’t been good since 2021, and currently has a 5.68 ERA. His underlying metrics don’t look good, either, as he isn’t striking many opponents out, and he’s surrendering too many walks.

He also missed most of last year with a lat tear. Twins fans, stop me if you’ve heard this before, but if the Twins can get him back to his 2021 form, he can be a weapon for them in the playoff rotation, with two more years of control. He’s also only making $1.5 million this season, which would make ownership happy. If he’s available, the price might be something like a small package centered around Gabriel González or Tanner Schobel.

Braxton Garrett
Garrett is also a 26-year-old lefty with a low salary (currently making the minimum), off to a slow start. However, he’s under team control through 2028, and he had a very good 2023, with a 3.66 ERA (126 ERA+) and 3.68 FIP in 160 innings. Repeating that performance would entrench him in the top half of the Twins rotation this season.

Garrett started this season late, as he’s been dealing with shoulder soreness, which should be something to keep an eye on. If you’re interested in his services, maybe search his name over the next month to monitor the shoulder. He also had Tommy John surgery in 2017 and missed time with a 2022 oblique injury, so (as with every pitcher) there’s some risk that he won't really hold up until 2028. The Twins are aware of that, but between the team control and 2023 performance, the Marlins would probably be seeking a package that starts with Brooks Lee and also includes at least one player from the González-to-Marco Raya range.

Other names to be aware of include Edward Cabrera, yet another 26-year-old. The righty is currently on the IL with a shoulder impingement and has lost a lot of time to injury since his 2021 debut, but he’s flashed the potential to be a solid starter when healthy. Ryan Weathers has been their top starter this season, but has a ton of team control left (driving up his price) and little success outside of his first 12 starts this season. Both of them would probably command a prospect package somewhere between those commanded for Rogers and Garrett.

Relievers
A majority of Falvey’s deadline acquisitions have been relievers (Jorge López, Michael Fulmer, Sergio Romo, Sam Dyson, Gabriel Moya), so it wouldn’t be surprising if there was a trade for a bullpen arm on the horizon. He’s also been open to trading for closers and quality middle relievers. Whom do the Marlins have?

Miami has a few solid relievers who likely wouldn’t crack the late-inning group for the Twins of Jhoan Durán, Griffin Jax, and Brock Stewart. The Marlins closer, Tanner Scott, is solid but not great, with a 1.50 ERA but a 3.97 FIP. Last year, his ERA and FIP matched better, at 2.31 and 2.17, respectively, and he could probably slot into a sixth- or seventh-inning role in the playoffs. He’s also on an expiring contract, lowering his value to a prospect in the 8-20 range like José Salas. However, the Twins have been reluctant to expend much in return for a one-year return (though the exception has been relievers like Fulmer and Romo).

As for multi-year options, lefties Andrew Nardi and A.J. Puk still have several years of team control left. Nardi, age 25, is likely the more costly player, with four more years after 2024, but he may be a better option this season than the Twins have in Caleb Thielbar, Steven Okert, and Kody Funderburk. Puk is a few years older and only has two years of control after 2024. He’s struggled mightily this year, but if he straightens out over the next two months to where he was in 2022 and 2023, he could also be a reliable lefty—either a low-end number one or high-end number two in a playoff pen.

The Marlins also have righty relievers like Huascar Brazoban, Declan Cronin, or old friend Calvin Faucher, who might be competent regular-season arms, but it would be hard to put money on them in the middle innings of a playoff game. Instead, many prefer those innings go to internal players like Jorge Alcalá, but if there was a rash of bullpen injuries, sure, maybe.

Hitters
Right now, it seems like the Twins could use a competent bat to shore up first base, left field, or designated hitter. They have internal options to fill those spots (e.g., Trevor Larnach, José Miranda, Carlos Santana), but bringing in a more proven bat would definitely calm some nerves.

Unfortunately, the Marlins don’t have many of those, with only Jazz Chisholm Jr., Otto Lopez, and Josh Bell hitting at an above-average clip this season. Chisholm likely isn’t going anywhere, and Lopez has 103 career plate appearances. However, if you want a name to watch:

Josh Bell
Like the old gray mare, Bell ain’t what he used to be. The former All-Star is a few years removed from his last very good season in Washington. He was an average hitter last season—about on par with Santana this season—and he’s dropped off a bit more in 2024 (101 OPS+). However, if he gets it going and can get himself up to something around a 110 OPS+ and (or?) the Twins see a tweak he could make, he could solidify the power positions that have been so unstable. You can decide for yourself how likely that is. Oh, they’d also probably need to pick up some salary.

The Marlins don’t have anyone who will turn the Twins' season around, but they do have some players with the potential to be contributors on a good team in the right roles. If the Twins are looking more to conserve resources and improve around the margins, they could get together with the Marlins, as they have done a number of times in the past few years.

Do any of these options entice you?