tony&rodney

That seems to be the consensus. The other shoe is that trading Lewis now is selling high. I'm not advocating any trade of Lewis but am interested in all ideas. Going further, i would hope the Twins throw around hundreds of scenarios and even look around various sites to gage whether there are any thoughts worth a consideration. Businesses need to be prepared for any and all eventualities.

Except the author did say more was needed. See my comment above, but keep in mind I'm not a fan of Abrams. Put in your ideas please.

My thoughts a year plus ago were that Luke looked much better in the outfield (watching games via milb.com) than he did in the infield. I don't object to having a fast aggressive left fielder, although we saw Austin Martin play very well once he was just stuck in the lineup. I object to the indecision and lack of forethought that accompanies how the Twins play around with their players. I mentioned signing Bo Bichette to a 9/$225M contract. This doable and he would be good at 1B or 2B. He also would give the Twins a reliable bat for the young players to feed off of on an every day basis. He also fits in the budget. I'm still hoping but the language that is used by Falvey indicates the current roster is pretty much set. Is the playing style set too?

Abrams is not loved in Washington, so they are listening. While I'm not too interested in Abrams, I don't think the idea is completely off the wall. Emmanuel Rodriguez, Bailey Ober, and Lewis or Marek Houston would almost certainly gain the Nationals attention. I like seeing the ideas. This is the offseason and we should be curious to read what others think. Go to a Red Sox or Mets site once or twice and read their suggestions to trade DFA material for Joe Ryan.

There are endless options. My frustration as a fan is that the Twins seem to get completely locked in on their own guys to the exclusion of the limitless options. Then as a predictable ending, the Twins add some tired vet at a bargain who is touted as a savior. It's not the vets fault and many have done pretty good. Problem is that "pretty good" seems to be the absolute best hope from the front office. We hear the Twins can have a payroll around $120M. It sits at $96M now. Luke is the new left fielder with Byron in CF and Walker in RF (he is ready). Wallner is the DH. Roden and Martin are in the OF. The new 2B is Bo Bichette on a 9/$225M contract with $7M deferred. Larnach is traded even though I think he has value. Emmanuel is traded for Jared Jones or Edward Cabrera or even Tre' Morgan. Ober is traded for Lawler. Three or four trades is not crazy or impossible. There are a multitude of possibilities but it requires proactive thinking and a willingness to act. The payroll budget is not an impediment. Roster construction needs to be a priority. You will know that if Outman is on the roster come April. FWIW, I like some things about Outman, but there isn't room on my roster for him.

Wife- "Why are you smiling?" This is what I do too. I hang in there and hope, hope, hope while I'm getting old, old, old.

Is anyone else excited to see Falvey use Luke Keaschall like Austin Martin, moving him back and forth between 2-4 positions? If Keaschall is used as an outfielder there must be plans to platoon the left-handed bats. Additionally, pushing Keaschall into the outfield pushes back the timeline for both of Emmanuel Rodriguez and Walker Jenkins. I'm not even sure how the conversations go in terms of player usage. Currently Martin, Roden, Buxton, Wallner, Outman, and Larnach are on the roster as outfielders. Numerous people on Twins Daily as well as others do not believe the Twins should call up Rodriguez or Jenkins even if they are ready. The majority of comments want those two in St. Paul until at least June. Oh, and Gabriel Gonzalez was very comfortable in AAA and can hit MLB pitching now too. Certainly roster construction has baffled this regime for 10 years. If the Twins really saw Luke Keaschall as a potentially fantastic outfielder, they should move him out there now. Luke is the permanent left fielder. Full stop. That seems ok. What about Larnach, Wallner, Roden, Outman, Jenkins, Rodriguez, and Gonzalez? At the very least, the Twins should be inquisitive about the value of these players to other teams. Would Miami trade Edward Cabrera for Emmanuel Rodriguez and Marek Houston? Would Pittsburgh trade Jared Jones for Matt Wallner or Emmanuel Rodriguez? Yah, roster construction. The other hand states that none of these players, especially Jenkins, Rodriguez, and Gonazalez have proven themselves. This is absolutely true. Byron Buxton and Ryan Jeffers are the only Twins position players to have proven anything. So that argument is a fail. The Twins need clarity on their path. What is it?

I sure hope the Twins aren't thinking of trading for Baltimore's excess too seriously. I could see an Ober for Mayo trade to clear a little bit of cash for the Twins and boost the Oriole's pitching staff. While I'm thinking the Twins need change and should be willing to take some gambles on a few trades or a big free agent signing, the extreme reticence of the Twins to engage in anything remotely risky or controversial shoves all blockbuster deals off the table. So we need to accept the Manuel Margot and Jorge Lopez type deals as a ceiling. Both of those guys were fine players at one time in my opinion, just not at the level I would seek. No, the Pete Alonso trade shouldn't impact the Twins.

Despite the disdain shown to him on this site, Tyler Fitzgerald is as good a value as any shortstop that can be signed. IKF isn't very good for the money. Bichette as a second baseman who plays shortstop in an emergency was a responsible choice by a few on this site. Keaschall can slide over to first base. Trading for Jordan Lawler to play SS and 2B is also a possibility. Of course, because these make sense, we know there is zero chance of a Bichette signing and ironically money isn't really a factor if the Twins can spend $115-125M on payroll.

Why does it seem absurd to believe the Twins will sign $13M worth of relief pitching? Duran, Jax, and Varland would have been less than that number and more effective. I could see a couple of $3M signings but will be quite surprised if the numbers go higher. So spend some money? Sure. Robert Suarez is older but still a fresh arm. Pete Fairbanks has been consistently solid. Caleb Thielbar and Danny Coulombe refuse to age. They could sign both Suarez and Fairbanks and one of the lefties for about $33M. That's a good plan, which is why it won't happen. Too much money? Move Larnach and Ober or trade Lopez. We can safely say there is zero chance of the Twins adding a strong relief pitcher. So the Twins are looking for a power bat as well. Will they give O'Hearn or Lowe the 3 year contracts for around $40 total (3/$39M) or wait until another team signs them and say we tried? Yandy Diaz could be traded for as could Brandon Lowe. If the Twins really wanted a first baseman they could press for Tre' Morgan from the Rays. Might be time for a poll on Twins Daily .... just for fun.

These are great teasers Jamie and as a big fan of the younger players I always appreciate your work on these articles. They are the best posts on Twins Daily. Skenes and Kade Anderson, among others, both pushed themsleves up the lists in their draft year. There can be surprises but Lebron, Burress, and Flukey do stick out at this time behind Cholowsky and Emerson. Thank you for the post.

In 2023 Lewis was one part of a tandem that showed promise. The other guy was actually, by a small measure, slightly better. Whatever happened to the love for Edouard Julien?

The lack of imagination and creativity within the front office seems extraordinary. Gallo, Margot .....

While I appreciate your larger point and agree (mostly) with your analysis above, it is worth noting that both Pittsburgh and West Sacramento should be better than the Twins in 2026. Change needs to happen.

What would you identify as the main problem currently?

True. However, if a team wants to be merely ok or around 75 wins with a budget for the 26 person roster of around $104M, that comes to $4M per player. That in turn means an organization better have a large number of prospects/minimum wage guys on the team to support a few "core" players. It's a bit like organizing a bookshelf or the kitchen cupboards.

Did you forget about the $1.33M owed to Carlos Correa each year as bonus money (Fangraphs) in addition to the $10M salary? Due diligence.

When I eff up badly, I just hope nobody knows. When I invest in something risky, I keep hoping it works out. Hubris. Royce Lewis could be a superstar. Yes he could. Whenever i think of Lewis I think of our government (or some person) blathering about the greatest country in the history of the world. Baseball has a trove of statistics and so do governments. "We are men of action. Lies does not become us." I'm hoping for the best ..... but I'm still hoping for change.

Inherited wealth is fun to play with, even if you lose it.

Do you think the current front office has what it takes to navigate a full rebuild?

Well, if many people see their dream team come true (which appears to be the case from the comments across multiple posts) the Twins won't suck and could even win 75 games in 2026 if everything goes well. Then, again from many comments, there will not be a 2027 season to end the suffering. This will be followed by a cap and floor CBA that makes the Twins generally on the same footing as the big boys similar to the NFL. At least that is what I'm reading almost every day. There are a number of people, not single digit percentages, that do not believe there will be a lockout or caps. However, that is all well in the future and not worth worrying about now that the team is set for 2026.

Is the roster set now?

FWIW, The Baltimore Orioles market size is considerably smaller than the Minnesota Twins market size.

Team USA will be Buxton's playoff experience.

The Twins want empty seats?