tony&rodney

Yandy Diaz, Royce Lewis, Jose Miranda, Edouard Julien, Trevor Larnach, Matt Wallner, Ryan Jeffers, and Luis Campusano can all hit if they are healthy and on their game. It is a ton of offense. Falvey, and most of Twins Daily, love an offense first roster. However, that is a significant number of DH's for one team to carry. They would all need to OPS near .900 to cover for their stationary poses on defense. The bench looks fair though. Maybe Castro, Rosario, and Pham still are prime utility players. I can see that. The Twins dealt a promising pitcher, Chase Petty, for Sonny Gray. I'm not sure why guys like Adrian Bohorquez and Eduardo Beltre or more gets moved for Yandy Diaz? Interesting to read these guesses at roster builds. We are all just thrashing in the winter winds looking for a recipe that brings success to Target Field.

Hard to understand what you are doing if you are not specific with the trades. For example - did you trade Walker Jenkins for someone?

23 years of control versus 2 years and with a team in the division makes this a tough trade. The White Sox would probably want Jenkins or EmRod instead of three pitchers. The Sox have some pretty good pitching prospects and young guys who were in MLB last summer. I, too, like Emmanuel on the MLB roster.

Agree. Is it possible to move Dobnak via the international bonus money? Personally, I keep the guy unless something easy pops up, which is tough to imagine right now.

Interesting trades. I like #1-4 and #7. I would think they are possible too, which may not be the case in some of the roster guesses. I can see Goldschmidt at 1B. My only question with your team is using both Larnach and Wallner in the outfield and having Lewis at 2B. All three could certainly play those positions, but I think they would need to OPS over .900 to make up for the missed plays. I would choose one to hold down a spot. However, Twins Daily agrees with you. Good job on this roster.

Thanks. I agree the Twins are unlikely to invest in both Lopez and Alcantara, but they can if they want to win. Do you believe Miami see promise in the bodies going their way? If I'm the Marlins GM, I see a stronger future with Soto and the others. Perhaps ask for Kaelen Culpepper or Yasser Mercedes. Falvey needs to try something. Every single time I put the current team together I see another ground ball roll through the infield or a fly ball evade our left fielders. I like see everyone's ideas though.

Yah, seems like Teel might be off limits .... unless ..... Pablo Lopez for Kyle Teel? The Red Sox won't get a better pitcher for the next three years at his price. Or maybe the Twins push for Quero and roll with their catchers now until Quero proves himself ready? My original thought is to push hard to trade for both Teel and Quero.

Focus is to improve the defense. A deal to acquire a catcher must be accomplished before either Vazquez or Jeffers are moved. I list a trade of Brooks Lee for Jeferson Quero below but that can easily be reversed, putting Lee at 3B and Lawler at AAA. Although most are skittish about whether EmRod is ready, he is a now or never talent; play him or trade him. I also am thinking that Luke Keaschall is close to ready despite his short time as a pro. Trades: 1.) Brooks Lee to Milwaukee for catcher Jeferson Quero, should help both teams. 2.) Jose Miranda, Charlee Soto, Chris Paddack, Billy Amick, and Gabriel Gonzalez to Miami for starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara. Marlins get 2 players to for now and 3 for the future. Miami may choose any one of Miranda, Julien, Larnach, or Martin. I wrote down Miranda because he has the highest value for the Marlins. 3.) Jhoan Duran, Justin Topa, and Kyle DeFarge to Arizona for Jordan Lawler, a gamble for both teams. 4.) Simeon Woods Richardson and Willi Castro to Boston for catcher Kyle Teel. 5.) Christian Vazquez plus $3.75 in international bonus money to San Diego for a PTBNL. Potentially, Dobnak can be traded in a similar type of move. The tool does not allow us to delete Dobnak's salary. I'm above budget. 6.) Sign FA infielder Jose Iglesias for 1/$4M. C: Ryan Jeffers ($4.70M) 1B: Royce Lewis ($2.30M) 2B: Jose Iglesias ($4.00M) 3B: Jordan Lawler ($0.76M) SS: Carlos Correa ($37.33M) LF: Emmanuel Rodriguez ($0.76M) CF: Byron Buxton ($15.15M) RF: Matt Wallner ($0.78M) DH: Trevor Larnach ($2.10M) 4th OF: DaShawn Keirsey Jr. ($0.76M) Utility: Edouard Julien ($0.77M) Utility: Austin Martin ($0.76M) Backup C: Kyle Teel ($0.76M) NA: Kyle Farmer buyout ($0.25M) SP1: Pablo Lopez ($21.75M) SP2: Joe Ryan ($3.80M) SP3: Bailey Ober ($4.30M) SP4: Sandy Alcantara ($17.33M) SP5: David Festa ($0.77M) RP: Griffin Jax ($2.60M) RP: Jorge Alcala ($1.50M) RP: Cole Sands ($0.78M) RP: Brock Stewart ($0.80M) RP: Cole Sands ($0.80M) RP: Louie Varland ($0.78M) RP: Brent Headrick ($0.76M) RP: Michael Tonkin ($1.55M) NA: Jay Jackson buyout ($0.20M) Payroll is 0.85% under budget

I believe you are correct. My own shabby first attempt at a roster forgot to add him and I actually meant to include him but just absent-mindedly put two LH relievers down. Tonkin goes on the next form.

Curious if you read anything that suggests that Arizona would trade Moreno or that Seattle would trade Robles? The D-backs are fighting money woes, which means taking on Lopez seems iffy. Seattle dumped Topa already for obvious reasons, health. I'm also wondering why the Mariners want a DH? The plans written this offseason face stiff challenges. I still cannot figure out 2B, but would move Lewis to 1B in hopes he can pick it up adequately. I like your plan ideas but cannot imagine those trades going through or that the Twins can continue to roll with poor infield defense.

The problem for this roster is similar to many, poor defense at 5 positions with maybe one plus and two average defenders. No player to back up Correa might be a disaster. A ground ball pitcher with that infield won't make it to June. To be fair, everyone who believes that catching the ball is remotely important is struggling to put together a roster. The payroll is less of a problem than finding infielders and outfielders to turn routine plays into outs. Those who are hoping that the situation miraculously changes using the current roster are finding increasingly creative means to justify their stances, which is natural and understandable. The future is unknown and rolling back a largely similar roster faces long odds versus improved AL Central foes. Nevertheless, as Twins fans, we pick our team to win the World Series in 2025.

Enjoyed watching his plate appearances last summer. There is talent there. The size creates a few challenges but the next two years should answer the questions. Winokur is a player worth tuning in to watch whenever his teams play. In my opinion, there was sufficient progress last summer and the comparison to Elly isn't as wild as it first seems. For those who have only read about Winokur, you can catch his games via milb.com. It is well worth it. I thought Winokur was among the top five position players worth watching last summer. The players I most often sought out were: Emmanuel Rodriguez, Walker Jenkins, Carson McCusker, Luke Keaschall, and Brandon Winokur.

The idea of trading international bonus money is interesting, especially as a way to move two guys who have some, but limited, value to the 2025 Twins. While I'm of the belief that the Twins need to keep several million for signing a number of players, there are bound to be a few teams very interested in accumulating the pool numbers. San Diego seems like an obvious choice. Reducing Vazquez and Dobnak may be possible in this manner.

This iteration of the roster makes the team more defensively oriented with speed and a youth focus. I really wish that Royce Lewis could play 3B or 2B, but I haven't seen any evidence of that yet. Perhaps I reconsider and retrench with another guess that uses Lewis elsewhere. I put Eeles at 2B as a hope because I'm not sold on the other options but trade #4b gives me a defender there. Although most are skittish about whether EmRod is ready, he is a now or never talent; play him or trade him. I also am thinking that Luke Keaschall is close to ready despite his short time as a pro. The payroll is nearly $20 million higher than my first roster, which can essentially be accomplished by subbing in trade #4b for #4a. Potentially, the Twins could trade either Vazquez or Jeffers to reduce payroll costs. Trades: #1 Brooks Lee to Milwaukee for catcher Jeferson Quero (should help both teams); #2 Jose Miranda, Charlee Soto, Chris Paddack, Billy Amick, and Gabriel Gonzalez to Miami for starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara (Marlins get players to play now and for future); #3 Jhoan Duran, Justin Topa, and Kyle DeFarge to Arizona for Jordan Lawler (a gamble); #4a Simeon Woods Richardson and Willi Castro to Boston for catcher Kyle Teel; or #4b Pablo Lopez and Willi Castro to Boston for Kyle Teel and Ceddanne Rafaela. (Boston should like trade #4a because they still can sign another SP. Perhaps Vazquez goes too plus $5M). People who are afraid of too many rookies will dislike this roster, but the Twins have a pile of near rookies (less than 600 PA) already and the new guys above are better defensively. SS, CF, catching future, and starting pitching are covered. The challenge we face is in guessing whether another team will accept a trade. I really like some ideas that have been promoted but many seemed too much in favor of the Twins. I'm trying to fit Royce Lewis at 2B or 3B, in a different grouping. C: Ryan Jeffers ($4.70M) 1B: Royce Lewis ($2.30M) 2B: Payton Eeles ($0.76M) 3B: Jordan Lawler ($0.76M) SS: Carlos Correa ($37.33M) LF: Emmanuel Rodriguez ($0.76M) CF: Byron Buxton ($15.15M) RF: Matt Wallner ($0.78M) DH: Trevor Larnach ($2.10M) 4th OF: DaShawn Keirsey Jr. ($0.76M) Utility: Edouard Julien ($0.78M) Utility: Austin Martin ($0.76M) Backup C: Christian Vazquez ($10.00M) NA: Kyle Farmer buyout ($0.25M) SP1: Pablo Lopez ($21.75M) SP2: Joe Ryan ($3.80M) SP3: Bailey Ober ($4.30M) SP4: Sandy Alcantara ($17.25M) SP5: David Festa ($0.77M) RP: Griffin Jax ($2.60M) RP: Jorge Alcala ($1.50M) RP: Cole Sands ($0.78M) RP: Brock Stewart ($0.80M) RP: Louie Varland ($0.78M) RP: Ronnie Henriquez ($0.76M) RP: Brent Headrick ($0.76M) RP: Kody Funderburk ($0.76M) NA: Jay Jackson buyout ($0.20M) Payroll is 2.99% over budget

Moves can be made, this we know. However, before the Twins trade either of Jeffers or Vazquez another catcher must already be in place. It is worth noting that catcher is a tough spot to fill and the Twins have skated by the last two years with fair results and good health from their catchers. While Vazquez may not be easy to move in a transaction, there would be significant interest in Jeffers from a number of teams.

Mayer has some skills and has status as a top twenty prospect, but he is not a target or a match for an arm like Pablo Lopez. Mayer is Brooks Lee with less experience with Mayer having a better shot at sticking at shortstop. However, the Twins have a shortstop and don't need to consider any trades for utility players.

Ryan is really good and inexpensive. The Twins could demand (and receive) a prospect like Kyle Teel. There may be more efficient ways to acquire talent though.

Teams move a guy to the rotation because of a need. I sense a lack of confidence among a number of people on Twin Daily in the starting pitching. Pablo Lopez, Bailey Ober, Joe Ryan, David Festa, Simeon Woods Richardson as a top five with Zebby Matthews, Andrew Morris, and Marco Raya working in AAA to prove their worth until needed/called upon seems like a solid collection. Moving Jax to the rotation might make sense if the Twins trade a starting pitcher. Jax may prefer to start and this may boost his value to teams who are looking at acquiring him in a trade. As is, Jax would not slot in to the current rotation options, certainly not above the top five or six. The Twins need to be focused on adding several position players. As of today, only three spots in the field are spoken for (SS, CF, RF) with a collection of DH's to distribute around the remaining positions. The largest gain to the pitching staff, by far, would be to improve the defense behind the guys on the mound.

The Twins seem pretty settled with their starting pitching. There are some who have been somewhat dismissive of Simeon Woods Richardson and David Festa, and even more so for Zebby Matthews. Put just a couple of fair defenders in front of these guys and watch them flourish. Jax might be a candidate for starting but the Twins should value ($) him as a pen arm. I'm not too keen on this plan.

Last offseason Ober was predicted to be a reach for 150 innings. Despite being pulled early a couple of times, Bailey finished with 178 and 2/3 innings pitched, 24th in all of MLB. Additionally, Ober finished 5th in WHIP and #8 in BA against him. Ober had a fantastic year, is getting better, and has the easy delivery to deliver around 200 high quality IP per season. The price for Ober should be high, higher than Crochet of the CWS. Consider how Seattle values their pitchers.

I'm eager to see how Gonzalez has improved to show promise in 2025. The hitting was not such a problem last year but his defense was lower than late career Josh Willingham or Delmon Young. I don't believe Gabriel has any trade value but he is young and can turn it around with improved play in 2025.

Not a bad trade if the Twins are at all interested in upgrading the defense. How would a Duran, Topa, and Mercedes for Jordan Lawler look for you?

Mayer struggles with off speed pitches and while he is a top prospect he is also slow. The Twins need to improve in that area. Try to interest Arizona in Duran, Topa, Castro, plus $4M or perhaps Yasser Mercedes for Jordan Lawler. If Falvey talks with Boston his target is Kyle Teel.

Any trade or transaction has to be toward making the 2025 team better, potentially. A big question is certainly debatable - Do pitchers have more value than position players? How does a relief pitcher fit into an equation versus a starting pitcher? A couple of people have rejected the idea of receiving prospects in any trade. There are prospects that are questionable and there are more solid inexperienced players. How much separation, really, is there from Twins with barely a years worth of games or less and prospects? It feels like all of Miranda, Julien, Lee, Lewis, Wallner, Keirsey Jr., and Martin are not too far from rookie or prospect status. Vazquez, Jeffers, Correa, Buxton, Larnach, and Castro are beyond the previous group, veterans. Is it unreasonable to think that prospects such as Jeferson Quero, Kyle Teel, Dalton Rushing, Jordan Lawler or a few others are not that much different than our shaky young guys? It sure feels like 2025 might be a time for the Twins to find a few athletes that they believe in. Playing only in a platoon doesn't seem like a genuine belief in the player. I would think the right moves can improve the team. While I don't see a good trade using Griffin Jax, that is more because of my preference for keeping him. A trade of Jax for Teel (mentioned above in the comments) plus a low lottery player seems beneficial to both teams, which is probably why that deal doesn't work. I like to hear what ideas people have for improving the team for 2025. I do not agree that rolling it back is a plan. I do accept that many folks truly believe in the current roster, as it is.

Both Emmanuel Rodriguez and Luke Keaschall may hit their way into the lineup. I'm quite curious to see what Payton Eeles shows in Spring Training. He isn't too young to throw to the wolves and his numbers from last summer are intriguing. Perhaps there is some attention paid to earning jobs. The Twins have experience at C, SS, CF, and DH. That is it. The players who show should get the opportunity.