Nate Palmer

Thanks Matthew! I know this is a thought that has crossed my mind this offseason. I do wonder where exit velocity plays into bombas, the ball, and 2020. If it does mean anything that Cruz and Sano should be safe as the #2 and #3 in MLB last year. Although you go down that leaderboard a bit and begin to see some very non-homer type hitters so who knows.

Thanks! I hinted at but probably wasn't clear in addressing the dip in production. There were some injuries in there that seemed to coincide with the dip. That is certainly a question mark going into 2020. Was the drop in production all injury related or something else.

If you are worried about prospects and only spending money hope for them to go get Mitch Moreland. Please don't take this as my preferred option or best case scenario. But if Donaldson doesn't agree to Minnesota and the Twins are looking for an impact bat Bell can be that. I have no idea what the Pirates are looking for because in researching this I have seen the whole spectrum of suggestions. I would think they want talent. I think the Twins would need to be prepared to be offering at least a top-10 in the org plus some. And more if someone wants Archer or Kela included and a whole lot more for Marte. Trades are always tricky to predict though...

That is one stat that Cron is just ahead of Bell on. And in the top-4 of the league at that. Check the offensive numbers and Bell was in 2019 clearly a better player than Cron.

The hope still has to be the Minnesota Twins can sign Josh Donaldson. In the event that things go south there, the other Josh, Pirates first baseman Josh Bell could become a good target to acquire via trade.We are all still hoping that the Minnesota Twins reported four-year offer to Josh Donaldson wins out. In the event that the Twins once again strike out on a free agent the front office may look to turn to the trade market not only for pitching but offensive help as well. The Pittsburgh Pirates could theoretically help the Twins with both pitching and offense. For this space, we will look at their slugging first baseman who may slot well into an already dangerous Twins lineup. That slugger is 2019 All-Star Josh Bell who could be available as new GM Ben Cherington looks to jump start a flailing franchise. There are very few questions surrounding Bell’s bat. He is a switch hitter who hit .277/.367/.569 with a .936 OPS and 143 OPS+. In 2019 Bell found a new level to his hitting like many in 2019 and was able find that improvement as he increased his launch angle. Bell especially hit right-handers well slashing .297/.387/.615 and a 1.002 OPS. There is potentially room to question if Bell can repeat that performance or if some injuries mid-season could have some long term effects on the first baseman. What has been a bigger question surrounding Bell his whole professional baseball career is whether or not he defensively can be a positive with his glove for an MLB team. Traditional defensive metrics do not paint a great picture for Bell’s glove. In 2019 Bell had a -5 DRS, -7.5 UZR, and -16.4 UZR/150. While all of those numbers cause concern, especially when thinking of adding Bell to an already less than stellar infield defense, there is some good. Plenty of people who work with or watch Bell comment on his improvement as a defender and willingness to lunge after throws. Among those seeing improvement is his former manager Clint Hurdle. Alongside the eye test, Bell also ranked fourth in 2019 among first baseman in FanGraphs scoop stat. Placing him just behind former Twins first baseman C.J. Cron and in front of Braves Freddie Freeman. Especially with Jorge Polanco making throws from shortstop that scoop stat may be more important to the Twins infield defense than anything else. It also seems to make Bell more than just a bat for any team interested in trying to complete a trade for him. We truly don’t know if Cherington is interested in trading his first baseman, but he does want to rebuild the Pirates organization at all levels. Bell is a great way to acquire a haul of players and with Derek Shelton now managing the Pirates he may have some players he would advocate for Cherington to bring to Pittsburgh. Bell is not Donaldson. Bell’s defensive value is not anywhere near the same as Donaldson’s but their bats are comparable. Bell would be cheaper than Donaldson and his under team control until 2022 when he is set to become a free agent for the first time. Donaldson is clearly and no question the better player. Bell could become a nice pivot for an infield bat if the Twins offer to Donaldson doesn’t stand up to the others. And who knows, maybe the Twins could make it into a “blockbuster” trade and get the Pirates to include Chris Archer or Keone Kela in a deal. Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Not registered? Click here to create an account. To stay up to date, follow Twins Daily on Twitter and Facebook. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Hayes: Twins to Sign Rich Hill & Homer Bailey —Where Are We Now? (New Years Edition) — A Decade of Greener Grass Ahead for Twins Click here to view the article

I was actually looking at this trade in particular since Smeltzer has the most MLB experience of any of the guys so far. For a couple of months the Dodgers got Dozier who contributed a nice round 0.0 bWAR to be added to his 1.0 bWAR for the season. The Twins last season got 0.7 bWAR worth of production out of Smeltzer and he is still able to contribute to the team. Not sure if that is a huge victory, but that is a pretty smart move in my opinion.

In Part 3 of the look at Falvey and Levine Era trades we take a look at some emotionally charged trades from the summer of 2018. Looking back now, those trades may be exactly what the Twins needed to set themselves up to make a World Series-sized trade sometime soon.As we continue on with our series looking at the Derek Falvey and Thad Levine led front office and the trades they have made we will look not at a single one, but at a flurry of trades. That flurry came in the middle of the 2018 season when the Twins had a fire sale of veterans who were on expiring deals and stocked their farm system with prospects. As a fan, it was a tough series of trades as we saw several fan favorite players leave Minnesota. At the time it seemed like a pair of infielders, Brian Dozier and Eduardo Escobar, were the ones most deeply missed. Let’s recap quickly those trades that happened mid-2018. Eduardo Escobar to Dbacks for Ernie De La Trinidad, Jhoan Duran, and Gabriel MacielRyan Pressly to Astros for Gilberto Celestino and Jorge AlcalaZack Duke to Mariners for Ryan Costello and Chase De JongLance Lynn to Yankees for Luis Rijo and Tyler AustinBrian Dozier to Dodgers for Luke Raley, Logan Forsythe, Devin SmeltzerFernando Rodney to A’s for Dakota ChalmersBobby Wilson to Cubs for Chris Giminez and PTBNL or cashThe majority of these trades are “wins” simply because these guys were free agents to be and there weren’t plans on the Twins part to re-sign them. One we could say the Twins should have kept around may have been Escobar. My hunch is that Escobar was ready to be a starter. With Miguel Sano here that probably wasn’t happening that offseason. The Pressly trade is certainly up for debate. He certainly would have been nice to have around this past season. At the same time, as much of the conversation was centered on last week, it is hard to truly evaluate trades until these prospects get their chance to develop. That doesn’t erase the fact that before the Twins bullpen really took shape during the second half, Pressly was someone many of us were wishing was still around. Some of the players acquired have already exited the Twins organization for one reason or another. Some as veterans that were simply not needed any longer, and others as prospects that were allowed to go elsewhere. Below is a graph with those remaining sorted by Fangraphs recent ranking of the Twins organization. Download attachment: Screen Shot 2019-12-23 at 8.11.44 PM.png There was a whole lot of talent that was brought in in a short amount of time during that 2018 season. Some of these players the Twins are hoping to develop into the waves of players that sustain winning in the Twins Cities. I also fully believe these trades were made to set the front office up to make more trades. That becomes especially important now as the Twins have yet to fulfill their promise of impact pitching coming to help the 2020 Twins. These prospects make up one of the deepest group of prospects in MLB baseball and it is time to see which players can be used to acquire an arm to help next season's rotation. So while as a fan it was hard to say good-bye to so many of our favorite players in 2018 it was the right baseball move. Now if the Twins want to get to a World Series it is time to move some of those prospects to get players who are ready to take them there now. How do you feel about those 2018 trades after some time has passed? Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Not registered? Click here to create an account. To stay up to date, follow Twins Daily on Twitter and Facebook. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY —Ryu To Sign with Toronto. Now What? —The Royals Problem: Just How Much Are You Willing to Give Up to Win a World Series? —Two Lefty Starters the Twins Could Trade For Right Now Click here to view the article

Appreciate the words and your reading of the article. I do appreciate also the pointing out of the oversight on my part. Thanks!

The big difference here is that Schales is already out of the organization. My thought here is along the lines of "do you think the Cubs care that Gleyber Torres is a stud after trading him for Chapman?" The answer is really no or very little because Chapman helped them get a ring. So while Littell didn't get the Twins a ring, he helped move them forward to the playoffs. So if Ynoa has similar effectiveness to Littell this series of trades are good. If Ynoa becomes Chapman or Rivera then we will need to revisit this. Thanks for reading!

Since the eating of the contract wasn't listed in the official transaction I will admit to being wrong or overlooking that aspect of the second trade. Instead of accusing me of trying to re-write history I would appreciate a conversation or reminder of that aspect. A simple "Hey, don't forget that..." sort of thing. That is why I am here, for conversation about my favorite team. It honestly doesn't really change me evaluation of the trade but it is a noteworthy aspect to remember.

Derek Falvey and Thad Levine have made plenty of trades during their tenure of leading the Twins front office. The series of transactions surrounding Jaime Garcia in 2017 is one of the oddities of baseball history and is the focus of this look back at Falvey and Levine era trades.Last week we took a look at what may be the most successful trade, as of the moment, that the Derek Falvey and Thad Levine led front office has completed. This week we will take a look at not only their strangest sequence of transactions but one of the oddities in the history of baseball. On July 24, 2017, the Twins felt as they were enough in the race for the postseason that they needed to bolster their rotation. That led them to send Huascar Ynoa to the Atlanta Braves for Jaime Garcia, Anthony Recker, and cash. On July 28, 2017, Garcia would start for the Twins and go 6 2/3 innings, allowed three runs, three walks, and issued seven strikeouts and led the Twins to a win. All is good for Garcia in Minnesota right? All except that was the only game they won in the time he was a Minnesota Twin. The drop in the standings resulted in another trade of Garcia, this time to the New York Yankees from whom the Twins received Zack Littell and Dietrich Enns. For those playing along the Twins essentially traded Ynoa for Recker, Littell, Enns, and cash. Now Recker didn’t really ever do anything for the Twins. He played 19 games at Rochester and slashed .286/.333/.414 before being granted free agency at the end of the season. Enns was brought to the Twins with the likely hope that he would be an option for the back end of the rotation. After four innings in the majors in 2017, Enns spent 2018 in the organization but spent 2019 with the Padres. That leaves Littell as the only player standing from that package. It has been well noted throughout 2019 the breakout that Littell had after moving from starting to the bullpen. His 2.68 ERA over 37 innings was an effective part of the emergent Twins bullpen. That alone gives the weird events of the trade a positive mark. We won’t truly be able to evaluate this trade from a value standpoint for several years since Ynoa is still only 21-years-old and just made his major league debut this season (even if it was only four innings). One thing that seems evident is that the Braves have already decided that Ynoa isn’t going to be able to stick as a starter and has been moved to what appears to be a full-time relief role. Ynoa has the raw stuff with four pitches and good velocity that he very well could still develop into a weapon for the Braves out of their bullpen. As young as Ynoa is there is plenty of time for him to make all Twins fans wish he was in our team's pen at some point. Ultimately this trade receives an incomplete grade. I am inclined to think that unless Ynoa develops in the next Aroldis Chapman as a closer this is ultimately a good sequence of moves for the Twins. Littell was a valuable part of this year’s bullpen and without his contribution who knows if 101 wins would have become a reality. It may end up being a trade of immediate results for long term results. A trade-off contending teams need to do at times. What are your memories of the Garcia swaps? How do you feel about how it has all panned out two and a half years later? Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Not registered? Click here to create an account. To stay up to date, follow Twins Daily on Twitter and Facebook. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Report: Twins to Re-sign Reliever Sergio Romo — Can the Twins Fix Royce Lewis’s Swing? — Winter Meetings Bring a Dose of Cold Reality for Twins Click here to view the article

The hiring of Derek Falvey and Thad Levine by the Minnesota Twins marked a true change in the Twin Cities. Since their hiring they have made a number of critical hires and player moves. In this series we are going to look back at the significant trades this front office has made. First up, Jake Odorizzi.Jake Odorizzi recently committed to the Minnesota Twins for one more season by accepting the qualifying offer at the tune of $17.8 million dollars. It wasn’t all that long ago that the Twins went after Odorizzi. In the kick-off to a series looking back at some of the more significant trades of the Falvey and Levine era, here is a look back at that trade for the Twins right-hander. It may sound weird, but the night of the Odorizzi trade is one of those nights I will remember for a while. Twins fans had been charged up with the hopes that maybe the Twins would sign Yu Darvish and then it turned into hopes and dreams of acquiring Chris Archer. So when Darren Wolfson tweeted that something was going on between the Rays and Twins, everyone was on alert! Why it was big for me personally was because I was editing over at Puckett’s Pond where I had just recently said goodbye to a good friend and mentor and hello to a new member of the team. It felt like my first big chance to roll out some big Twins news as the site veteran. Personal stories aside, at the time and still today, it looks like an absolute steal that the Twins were able to acquire Odorizzi for shortstop prospect Jermaine Palacios. At the time Palacios was a top-20 Twins prospect but he was also behind the likes of Royce Lewis, Wander Javier, and Nick Gordon. While Palacios is still only 22-years-old, he hasn’t been higher than Double-A ball and only slashed .210/.275/.266 in 2019. While Odorizzi may have initially been acquired as a quick fix replacement to keep the Twins afloat after Ervin Santana went down with injury, he has proven to be a bit more and a crucial part to the Twins rotation. What is even more important is that the Twins front office got Odorizzi instead of Archer which looks very smart at this point. Download attachment: Screen Shot 2019-12-09 at 8.33.49 PM.png The above stats are from 2018 and 2019. As they show, Odorizzi has been better the past two years than Archer. In 2018, the two pitchers were relatively similar with Archer edging Odorizzi in stats like ERA and K/9 but Odorizzi had a better WAR of 1.5 to Archer’s 1.0. 2019 is where Odorizzi really pulled away from Archer as Odorizzi put in an All-Star worthy season. At the same time Archer was very disappointing and had a 5.19 ERA and 0.8 WAR. Not at all what the Pirates were hoping for when they traded some good and talented players to Tampa Bay for him. Speaking of talented players, because the Twins didn’t acquire Archer they were able to hold on to one key player that the Rays were interested in, Max Kepler. At the time many were speculating the Twins might have needed to package Kepler with either Stephen Gonsalves or Fernando Romero plus a few other prospects if they were to bring Archer to Minnesota. The acquisition of Odorizzi on its own looks like a huge win for Falvey and Levine. Adding in what could have been and the fact they hung on to the likes of Kepler makes it feel that much better. Now a deal for Archer may have never actually been on the table but at the time many of us wanted to make it. What are your thoughts on the Odorizzi trade? Has your opinion of it changed at all over the past two seasons? Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Not registered? Click here to create an account. To stay up to date, follow Twins Daily on Twitter and Facebook. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Big Mike Brings Upside to Bottom of Rotation — Alex Avila and the Frame Game — Choose Your Own Path: Three Ways for the Minnesota Twins to Use Their Remaining $35MM Click here to view the article

Thanks! That is very kind and means more than you know.

Almost included him. I am worried if he could be a starter for the Twins and then is redundant to have with Marwin and Ehire on the roster. Certainly still another solid option from the group today.

The Minnesota Twins made non-tender decisions on C.J. Cron and Trevor Hildenberger before Monday night's deadline making those two players available to other MLB teams to sign. Other teams made similar decisions which has added to the free agent market. Here are a few interesting names for the Twins.SP Aaron Sanchez Aaron Sanchez was a name linked to the Twins at the trade deadline but wound up with the Houston Astros instead. Sanchez has lacked consistency but shows enough flashes that makes him intriguing. This season between Toronto and Houston Sanchez compiled an unimpressive 5.89 ERA over 131 1/3 innings. Biggest issue with Sanchez is that his season ended after he neeed shoulder surgery and likely will delay the start to his 2020 season. Sanchez will certainly attract some suitors as someone will want to see if they can get something out of a starter who can throw in the mid-90s. RP Blake Treinen After being one of the most dominant relievers in 2018, all things fell apart for Treinen in 2019. The high velocity, sinker ball pitcher just was not able to produce at the same level of effectiveness. He is still only one year removed from a season in which he had a 0.78 ERA. He also went to college at South Dakota State so that is close to a homecoming, right? Treinen's former teammate, lefty Ryan Buchter could also be worth a look after turning in three straight seasons of sub-3.00 ERA. He doesn’t have high velocity but could be the lefty to pair with Taylor Rogers the Twins have been needing. OF Kevin Pillar Call it Byron Buxton insurance, a quality fourth outfielder to mix in, or even someone to have in the case of an Eddie Rosario trade, but Kevin Pillar could be a solid addition for the Twins. Pillar had long manned center field in Toronto until being moved to San Francisco at the beginning of 2019. There he was a centerpiece of the Giants offense with a .264/.293/.442 slash line and .735 OPS and 21 home runs. While DRS has shown a downturn in Pillar’s center field defense the past two seasons, he is still a capable defensive outfielder. Domingo Santana is another outfielder non-tendered who could provide a similar bat but not the same level of defense. SP Taijuan Walker and SP Jimmy Nelson Both of these pitchers have big red flags after some injury-plagued seasons. Walker had Tommy John and a shoulder injury. Nelson hasn’t quite recovered from a shoulder injury of his own that held him out of all of 2018 and he struggled to get back from in 2019. Both have shown some dominant flashes. Nelson especially looked like ace material before his injury. What names have caught your eye? Any of these names fit for a Twins team that is pushing to improve and make a push into the 2020 playoffs? Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Not registered? Click here to create an account. To stay up to date, follow Twins Daily on Twitter and Facebook. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — The Three Biggest What-Ifs from the 2019 Season — What the Early Twins Offseason Rumblings Tell Us — One of the Greatest Trades in Twins History Click here to view the article

Josh Donaldson has been filling up Minnesota Twins related rumors over the weekend. Should he be the only third baseman the Twins are kicking the tires on? Mike Moustakas might be a free agent worth getting to move a state westward for 2020.The Minnesota Twins will certainly be linked to a number of players over the next several weeks as the offseason is truly under way. This past weekend, Darren Wolfson of KSTP linked the Twins to free agent third baseman Josh Donaldson. This confirms to some extent the front office is willing to consider a position change for slugger Miguel Sano. After struggling through injury in previous seasons, Donaldson turned in a very good season at the age of 33 for the Atlanta Braves. His average was down from his 2015 MVP season, but he still slashed .259/.379/.521, a .900 OPS, and hit 37 home runs. Placing that right-handed power bat in the Twins lineup would certainly add to an already dangerous lineup. Is Donaldson the best option for the Twins if they choose to move Sano to first base? Another free agent the Twins could look at is the former Royals and Brewers infielder Mike Moustakas. When it comes to the bat, Moustakas isn’t too far behind Donaldson. He's also been both healthier and more consistent the past three years. Last season, Moustakas slashed .254/.329/.516 with an .845 OPS and 35 home runs. That followed 28 home runs in 2018 and 38 in 2017. Those offensive numbers would look good slotted into the Twins lineup, even if coming from the left side of the plate. Now the real reason Sano would be moved from third is to improve upon his -5 DRS performance in the hot corner. Considering his age and injury history, Donaldson performed very well defensively, turning in a +15 DRS this past season. Moustakas would bring the defense back to “not hurting” level as he had a 0 DRS in 2019 and a +2 in 2018. Donaldson is clearly the better third basemen based off of 2019 performances, but that also comes at a cost. The Offseason Handbook placed his contract at two years, $40 million while MLB Trade Rumors projects him for three years and $75 million. Meanwhile, the Handbook puts Moustakas at three years, $36 million and MLBTR two years, $20 million. That average annual salary difference is enough to allow the Twins to consider most or all of a contract for another pitcher. That is enough for me to consider Moustakas over Donaldson. I will admit that it isn’t as obvious a decision as I initially thought it might be, mainly due to Donaldson’s far superior defensive numbers. If their money comes in closer to each other, I certainly want Donaldson in those new Twins baby blues. If the Twins are moving Sano to first for 2020 who are you hoping the Twins add for third base? Is it one of these two? Let us know in the comments! Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Not registered? Click here to create an account. To stay up to date, follow Twins Daily on Twitter and Facebook. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Best Case Scenarios for New Twins 40-Man Additions — The C.J. Cron Conundrum — Do Any of These Underrated Free Agents Fit in Minnesota? Click here to view the article

The Minnesota Twins have had some pretty notable players take the field for them since the turn of the century. Joe Mauer, Torii Hunter, and Johan Santana just to name a few. A struggle for the Twins in that same time span has been to find consistency on the left side of their infield. That may finally be changing in 2020 with Miguel Sano and Jorge Polanco set to start the season on that left side once again.As has been noted many times over the years, outside of back-to-back years of Pedro Florimon (2013 and 2014) making the Opening Day lineup the Twins had a different player playing the position ever since Cristian Guzman left the team. Barring any injuries or suspensions, Jorge Polanco should start on Opening Day for the second consecutive season at shortstop for the Twins in 2020 and will have been the starter three out of the past four seasons. While third base has had a bit more consistency, it can certainly be argued the the performance level hasn’t been quite what it could or should be there either. Trevor Plouffe had some seasons of note while he held down the hot corner from 2013-2016, but it can be argued that the Twins haven’t had a real difference maker consistently at that position since Corey Koskie was playing. This coming season looks to be the first in a long time the Twins will look to return both starters at those two positions. Both of those players have the potential to be real difference makers on a competitive club. For nostalgia's sake, let's just remember some of the names that have seen some notable time at those positions for the Twins. Tsuyoshi Nishioka, Brian Buscher, Mike Lamb, Jamey Carroll, Tony Batista, Joe Crede, and we could keep going but I can hear the cringing as I type so I will stop there. The 2019 Polanco-Sano pairing could be the best performances from those two positions in a season since the 2001 Koskie-Guzman pairing both attracted MVP votes. There is no debate that offensively Polanco and Sano were as good a duo as any this century for the Twins. Polanco’s .295/356/.485, .841 OPS, and 22 home runs paired with Sano’s .247/.346/.576, .923 OPS, and 34 home runs is something that certainly raises the performance level of those positions. Positions that often were defense-first when Twins rosters of the past were assembled. Defense may be the one place where we can pick apart this duo in comparison to duos of the past. Now Polanco has done a lot to improve himself. Turning in a +1 DRS in 2019 at shortstop. It is Sano’s defense that is the biggest blemish of this tandem turning in a -5 DRS in 2019. That is why many of us will continue to wonder if or when the Twins will be forced to move Sano across the diamond to first base. For the time being his offensive production has continued to outpace any defensive liabilities, but when sporting World Series aspirations every little edge needs to be gained and defense at third could be one. Defensive change or not, we are witnessing something that we haven’t seen for some time. The floor for production of the 2020 left side of the infield is much higher than it has been in for most of the century. That raised level is just one of the many markers that show how far the Twins have come and forms part of the foundation that will allow the Twins to look at making some bigger moves this offseason. Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Not registered? Click here to create an account. To stay up to date, follow Twins Daily on Twitter and Facebook. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Who Could the Twins Trade this Offseason — Offseason Blueprint: Bet the Farm — Offseason Blueprint: Run It Back Click here to view the article

Thanks John! So on 1 can only speak for myself. Balazovic seems to have some perceived value and isn't Graterol. It seems Boston is going to ask for this offseason some manner of young, controllable pitching if they can get it. Every team will probably ask for Graterol so Balazovic seems like the natural pivot from there. I do see how it is strange based on the fact Balazovic's rise is similar to Graterol's in many ways and Graterol has been protected/coveted in a way that Balazovic isn't. On 3, Gray has simply been speculated on a ton. Not just this offseason but in others as well. Haven't seen anything publicly from the Rockies that he is available so I guess ultimately only they know if he is.