TopGunn#22

I agree that this all comes down to opportunity and there are SO MANY factors swirling around the Twins that it's hard to get a handle on who will actually get that opportunity. There's flat out earning an opportunity. I would say Fedko EARNED it last year, but didn't get it for "strategic" reasons...which I must admit I just might agree with. So even if you earn it, you may not GET that opportunity. The guys listed could possibly be in the running, but not without the opportunity. If we make trades, which I expect we WILL, you could probably add another couple names to that list. One guy that is really intriguing for 2026 is Noah Cardenas. Everything I've heard and read about him is that he's a very good defensive catcher. Seeing his OPS from last year is very encouraging. Depending on what we do with trades, like getting a MLB ready young catcher, trading Jeffers, or signing him to an extension, Cardenas could very well be in the mix. Anytime you bring talent to an area of need, your chance for the "opportunity" RISES. One thing that should improve tremendously next season is Outfield Defense. You will most likely have very few innings played in the OF by Wallner and Larnach. Guys like Roden and Outman are MUCH better defenders than either. On the horizon there is Walker Jenkins and E-Rod. Both of them are far superior defenders than Wallner or Larnach. Martin also has the speed to get to balls Wallner and Larnach can't even reach in their dreams. Our Infield may still have some defensive challenges, but our OF defense is going to improve in leaps and bounds. That's at least a step in the right direction.

Well, if we're comparing relative values, the only metric that gives us a framework to refer to is Baseball Trade Values. BBTV has the following values on these players as of Monday: Wallner 22.5 Harry Ford 12.5 Kyle Teel 21.4. Edgar Quero 14.6. And for the heck of it, Bailey Ober 20.4. I don't know what the value is for the Brewers young catcher Jefferson Quero. E-Rod is 24.1 Mick Abel is 7.0 Kendry Rojas is 10.2. Wallner, Ober, Teel, Edgar Quero and Harry Ford are as up to date as of Monday. I haven't seen any of the others suggested in a trade for awhile.

This is kind of depressing. Can we just recruit Greg Gagne off of a Senior Softball roster somewhere? I'll bet he's the fastest guy on his team.

I'm intrigued by Caratini, but the cautionary post of jorgenswest gives me pause if he's THAT prone to SB's. Other than giving up SB's at an alarming rate he seems superior to Jeffers in most other catching metrics. They are certainly similar offensively, with Caratini having a pinch more power. I'm also NOT averse to considering signing Caratini EARLY this off season and then exploring trades involving Jeffers. The long term plan is eventually to have Tait and/or Jimenez reach the big league roster and be the answer. But in the short term, at least one more catcher is needed and if a productive trade involving Jeffers is made, we need at least one more catcher. I'd still like to aggressively pursue a trade for a young catcher who's stuck behind a solid or great major league catcher. The White Sox have TWO young catchers in Teel and Edgar Quero. The Brewers have Jefferson Quero stuck behind William Contreras. The Mariners have Cal Raleigh leaving Henry Ford blocked. These are targets that need to be pursued. These are young catchers either already in the major leagues, or VERY close to the majors. A Teel or a Quero (either one) could be the primary catcher NOW with Tait and Jimenez set to join in 2 years, maybe 3. This is where a pitcher like Ober or an OF like Wallner or even Jeffers himself, could be used in a trade to plug a massive hole for the Twins...a young catcher that can start in 2026 and for years to come.

As the previous posters have alluded to, there really isn't an easy answer to this question, especially when compared to a less analytical era when your best "pure" hitter was your #3. Oliva, Puckett, Mauer. Or in terms of other teams, Clemente, Mays, Aaron. It's more like chpettit19 put it. The goal should be to find 5 legitimate big league hitters to fill spots #1-#5. That said, I would certainly be in the camp of have Keaschall be my leadoff hitter for 2026 and dropping Buxton to #3. Now, that means they still need to have someone who could still be a solid #2 hitter. Royce Lewis is of course the most obvious hope for a #3 hitter for 2026. If he can ever come close to replicating what he did for a stretch in 2023, he's unquestionably our #3 or #4 hitter. But he has to be healthy and focused to have a chance. That brings us to the most obvious possibility: Walker Jenkins. And if, for the near future, you have some combination of Keaschall and Buxton hitting #1 & #2 then the next combination is something along the lines of Jenkins/Lewis in some kind of #3/#4 alignment. Guys like Larnach, Lee and Wallner will never be true #3 hitters in the classic concept of one. Not in their Wildest Dreams. And as Nick alluded to at the very end of his piece, if the Twins are fortunate enough to luck into the #1 overall pick and they take UCLA Shortstop Roch Cholowsky, they add another young guy that profiles as THAT kind of a hitter.

Count me as one of the many who were quite disappointed that the Twins went with the "easy" the "familiar" in hiring Shelton. But I really appreciate Matthew's article and it gives me a glimmer of hope. The Twins have all kinds of young hitters who either have shown flashes (Lewis, Keaschall) or just haven't seemed to ever really put it together at the major league level (Julien, Lee). I could mention several more in the "never really seemed" category, but I'll also add Trevor Larnach. Larnach was the biggest bat in a solid Oregon State lineup that won a College World Series. Throughout Oregon State's march to the NCAA title, Trevor Larnach always seemed to get the big hit that got the Beavers over the top. Yet even though Larnach showed a little improvement, he never has come close to being that #3, #4 or #5 hitter in the heart of the Twins lineup that many Twins fans expected when he was drafted in the first round. Some of that may have been Rocco's propensity for goofy, analytic driven batting orders. But much of it was because Larnach just wasn't ever that good or consistent of a hitter. So for the first time, I'm feeling a little more positive about what Shelton may bring. I give Matthew credit for that, because I didn't come to that place easily.

Along with Valenzuela, about 10-15 years before him, the Dodgers had a pretty solid relief pitcher named Jim Brewer, whose bread and butter was the screwball. Another pitch we just DON'T see much of anymore with all the emphasis on velocity is the knuckleball. Gosh, I remember guys like Hoyt Whilhelm pitching for what seemed like forever with the knuckleball as his primary pitch. Starting Pitchers like Wilbur Wood and Phil Niekro would throw over 300 innings in a season relying almost exclusively on the knuckleball. From 1971 thru 1975, Wood won 106 games and AVERAGED over 300 innings per season. In 1972, he threw 376.2 innings !!! In today's Major League Baseball, with hitters trained to be able to hit 100 mph fastballs, I think a pitcher that could command a knuckleball, could be even BETTER than Wilbur Wood was in that 5 year stretch in the 1970's. And you'll have to look up what Wilbur did in those 5-years to fully understand what I'm saying.

There is no question the Twins have an impressive stable of young, talented arms. Can the new coaching staff get these young starters to realize their potential? That's an unknown that we can all speculate on but none of us have the answer. Unless you're the Dodgers or a handful of other large-market teams who may have one or two questions about their lineup, rotation or bullpen, EVERYBODY has all sorts of questions heading into this off season. In the A.L. Central, no mountain should ever be considered too high. We are a LONG way past the days when the Guardian Indians, Tigers and White Sox could afford to have stacked lineups (ala the 2000-2015 time frame. And in that general time frame, the KC Royals went to back-to-back World Series and won one. Maybe the White Sox will someday get back to being the highest spending team in the division, but those days seem a long time away. I think the reality for the Twins is that they would never get reasonable value for Pablo in this current climate, and I think he will get back being healthy and Ace level. Ryan is solid, he was an All Star last year. But his value will never be higher and he will be in high demand this winter. The deepest position we have is SP. I see a trade. Ober is kind of a Wild Card. He still has solid value but there are some big questions. The Twins, and any pitching needy team will be closely monitoring how he looks. I'm in the camp that the best move for David Festa is an entire season of being a relief pitcher. There is PLENTY of depth with Matthews, SWR, Bradley and Abel. Give Festa a season in the pen and see how it goes. There is already a HUGE need in the pen. I'd treat him like Duran or Jax and see what kind of health and talent emerges. And never forget, I still carry a torch for that Unicorn of Unicorns for the Twins BP...MATT CANTERINO !! I will not give up hope. The Twins released him back in April, resigned him to a minor league contract with the Saints and just activated him off the "season ending injury list" on Thursday, 11/6. The Twins need a veteran Closer, but imagine if Festa and Canterino were able to stay healthy throughout 2026? Canterino has only pitched 85 innings in the minors since we drafted him out of Rice, but his career ERA is 1.44 and he's K'd 130 in those 85 innings. Everyone get your Rosaries out for Matt Canterino !!

Spot On sweetmusicviola16. A guy like Kreidler probably won't even be on the roster come spring training. But I also refuse to believe (until they clobber me over the head with it) that this team can't afford to spend just a little more than we expect. A salary structure of $100-$110 million should be a minimum expectation...IF the ownership and FO have ANY intention of fielding a team with the possibility of contention. It's not like we have to compete in the A.L. East or N.L. West. It's the doggone A.L. Central !! For EVERY team, certain things need to happen. At the top of the list is HEALTH. A healthy Byron Buxton is a REALLY good player. Keaschall & Lewis are key offensive contributors. Any "ready for MLB" talent we acquire in a Joe Ryan or any other trades needs to be as good, or better than expected. A couple of the young SP's take a big step forward. All of these things happening is unlikely. But if enough do, they mountain in the A.L. Central isn't prohibitively high that it can't be climbed. The Twins need to get out of the gate reasonably well and be "in the picture" or the Pohlad family is going to lose a TON of money in 2026 and Target Field will be a grave yard.

It's gotta be hard digging these kinds of players out of the woodwork, and I appreciate the effort. Of the 3, Tyler Kinney seems the most interesting to me. For a 2nd lefty out of the pen, I'd rather bring back Theilbar or Coulombe. This off season really underscores the panic of the FO at last season's trade deadline. I was all for trading Ty France for a bag of baseballs (I remember reading that he was a very "sub par" 1B prior to and just after we signed him) but the Varland trade irked me at the time and still does. Varland was a young, controllable arm that was just coming into his own and would have either been our Closer or primary Set-Up man. Having Varland in this bullpen would have made rebuilding it so much simpler. The prize was Roden, and I don't think our need for Roden was THAT great. So without someone like Varland available, I think the Twins need to sign a higher profile Closer who is looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2025. Ryan Helsley, Devin Williams, Kirby Yates...there are actually quite a few guys who either weren't effective, weren't used as Closers, lost the Closer job, were traded to a team to be a Set-Up man... Rather than give Shawn Armstrong $5-$6 million, why not just entice one of the pitchers I've mentioned above or someone with a similar profile with a 1-year $10 million dollar deal that can bring you a much higher prospect (or prospects) back than a Shawn Armstrong could. The Twins will have plenty of Tyler Kinney types vying for a role in the Twins 2026 bullpen. But they need a guy who's been an effective Closer in the past and just needs a chance to build that value back up. With a little luck, it works out, and David Festa emerges as a viable Closer Candidate and he can be auditioned as the guy who Closes in 2027. (provided we're playing baseball).

GREAT article Gregg !! A ray of SUNSHINE for what appears to be some dreary years ahead. There's always something to appreciate if you look hard enough for it. Sometimes, it's not really THAT hard.

"Caratini’s next contract could be the X-factor here. He just wrapped up a two-year deal with the Astros that paid him just over $12 million. But he’s also two years older now, and teams remain hesitant when it comes to giving out multi-year deals to backstops in their mid-30s. Could a one-year, incentive-laden contract with an option for a second season make sense for the Twins? Would Caratini accept it to come to a team that is coming off a 90-loss campaign?" I guess "Teams remain hesitant when it comes to offering multi year contracts to backstops in their mid 30's (I would add "who don't hit exceptionally well") EXCEPT THE TWINS---Christian Vasquez.

If the Twins were going to spend that kind of money on May why not just go out and get a Devin Williams or Ryan Helsley to anchor the bullpen? The need a CLOSER. They have plenty of young arms to give innings to, and I wouldn't want to have May as a closer. I think Hoskins is cooked. There are better options at 1B/DH. Tristian Casas or Yandy Diaz would be better upgrades that would require a trade. Diaz is older (33) and Casas is younger (26). I'd go for the younger guy as my 1st choice.

With the exception of David Festa (who I think can make a Griffin Jax like transition) I don't really want to see a young Twins SP moved to the bullpen. Matthews, Bradley, and Abel ALL need to stay as possible rotation pieces. Raya is a possible BP move. But I'd like to give Prielipp just a little more time to see if he can be a legit SP. (But I agree with the idea that he could be a really interesting "impact" BP arm). But no matter how they build this "new" bullpen, it is absolutely essential to spend a little money and bring in a veteran Closer looking to rebuild his value. The 2 best guys to consider in my opinion are Ryan Helsley and Devin Williams. Each has been an elite Closer, and each had a rough year in 2025. Helsley was actually pretty good for the Cardinals until he was traded to the Mets at the deadline to be the set up guy for Edwin Diaz. It flopped in spectacular fashion for the Mets, costing them a playoff spot. Closers need to CLOSE. Williams started off pretty well but ran into all sorts of problems trying to hold on to the Yankees Closer role. I just think he's much better than he was in 2025 and a trip back to the Midwest might be just what gets him back on track. Each of these guys may sign a contract with what appears to be a non-contender (like the Twins) with the opportunity to prove they can once again anchor a bullpen. The Twins should be willing to offer a $5-$7 million dollar deal for the opportunity to close games for them. It's more than the Twins are accustomed to spending on a Closer in the Falvey era, but there are several scenarios that could play out. 1. Vet Closer fails terribly and the Twins are left holding the bag. (I don't think this is likely). 2. Vet Closer does quite well and is top five in the A.L. in saves leading up to the All Star break. The Twins however are struggling to stay 10 games under .500 and sell Vet Closer off for a decent prospect (or 2). 3. Vet Closer is "Lights Out" and the Twins pitching is surprisingly pretty good. The lineup also sees some bounce back from key hitters like Lewis and Jeffers, and solid seasons from Buxton and Keaschall. Some kid named Jenkins also makes his debut and early returns look promising. The Twins are lurking about 5 games out for the Division lead, but in the mix for a Wild Card. Vet Closer can still be sold to the highest bidder, or offered an extension. But nothing will matter with rebuilding our BP unless we have a guy that wins the 9th inning. If the Twins don't have that guy, no matter what else happens, it will look like August and September blowing save opportunities right & left.

I would make a deal with the Red Sox for Tristan Casas. I can almost guarantee the Red Sox will go out and sign a high profile 1B in FA. They have a roster that is poised to win the A.L. East with the right moves made this off season and after a season ending injury suffered in early in the year, the Red Sox probably won't have the patience to wait for Casas. The Twins could look to get Casas in a larger deal as one of the pieces, or, make a smaller trade where the teams make a player-for-player deal. Maybe Cody Clemens as a Utility Player would interest the Red Sox. Maybe a middling minor league pitcher. The value for Casas has never been lower. He's 26 years old and has demonstrated he has Major League power.

GREAT comments Riverbrian !!! Bloom was brought in to clean up a "Win At All Costs" mess (which proved to be successful since the Red Sox DID win a World Series in 2018) and his first big deal was completely unpopular in trading Betts. But he's been able to super-charge the pipeline of talent to the major leagues for Boston and I think the Blue Jays and Red Sox are going to be forces to be reckoned with for "a while" in the A.L. East. It is time for Boston to contend "for real." Not just make the playoffs. They may need to replace Bregman at 3B, but if they do, they'll just plug in Marcelo Meyer and make a run at Pete Alonso or Naylor to play 1B and be better for it. This is why Casas seems like a good target for the Twins. He's not a Gold Glove candidate at 1B but at least he's a guy who primarily plays 1B, as opposed to guys like Miranda, Julien or even Cody Clemens. And he's got legit 30-HR power if he can stay healthy. tony&rodney: You're point about Soderstrom is well taken. The kid plays a Gold Glove caliber LF and is also above average at 1B. He'd be a perfect cleanup hitter and a clear defensive upgrade wherever the Twins would play him. And I agree with your idea that the A's have plenty of hitting, but that they need someone like a Joe Ryan at the top of their rotation to take a clear step forward toward contending in the A.L. West. Joe Ryan is a tremendous asset. He will never be more valuable than this off season, especially if the Twins can ignite a bidding war for him. A lot of this will be determined by a couple of other FA (or soon to be FA) pitchers on the market. This Twins FO should have clear goals and targets of the players they want to acquire and settle for nothing less. There is no pressure of a trade deadline to contend with. If teams won't meet the Twins demands (and they should be demands) the worst case scenario is that they keep Joe Ryan. I can certainly live with that. But with all the young arms the Twins need to give opportunities to, it certainly seems like a trade of Joe Ryan is highly likely.

The idea of Soderstrom from the A's is certainly worth having a conversation. I do think there are a LOT of teams that would have interest in Ryan and I think the slower pace of the off season as opposed to the chaos of the deadline works to the Twins benefit. I still think the Red Sox are a good candidate with a number of players that would work for the Twins. However, I think the conversation with the Red Sox Sox need to start with a Major League player, probably one of their FOUR outfielders. According to BBTV Anthony and Jarren Duran are the highest values. Duran is valued quite a bit higher than Ryan. Wilyer Abreu and Ceddane Rafael are each valued significantly below Ryan. But each of them won a Gold Glove last season. Abreu won his 2nd consecutive as a RF and Rafaela won his as a CF but he's also a pretty darn good SS. Which of those OF would the Red Sox be willing to part with? First off, Anthony is of the table, so the list shrinks to Duran, Abreu and Rafaela. Duran would be a great fit for the Twins because he'd be a defensive upgrade at either corner spot and a reliable backup option in CF for Buxton. He's also be a great top of the order catalyst with Luke Keaschall. But the Twins need more than one player and with Duran valued higher than Ryan would it need to be one-for-one? As good as Duran is, one-for one doesn't work for the Twins, they have more holes to fill. I'm not sure how the Red Sox value their own players, especially those OF. But a trade of Ryan 47 and Wallner 22.5 (Total: 69.5) for Duran, 73.1 Tolle 13.9 and Casas 0.0 (Total 87.0). The Red Sox need a proven, veteran SP. Wallner provides a DH/Power option. The Red Sox are probably going to add a FA 1B so Casas is expendable. They can afford to give up Tolle because they will have Ryan. Casas finally gives the Twins a young power hitting 1B they can build around. The Twins need to move Ryan to the highest bidder who has the right pieces. If they engage with multiple teams, an overbid should materialize. Tolle is just another young, talented arm that would challenge for a spot in the starting rotation. He may also provide the Twins some flexibility to consider trading more pitching for hitting and defense.

This was a quintessential move by the current ownership and FO of the Twins. Go with probably the least inspiring hire to the fan base because it's the most "comfortable" hire for the Pohlad's and Falvey. The hope of the fan base after secret investors pumped a pile of money into this team was that maybe they would have some input into creating a new philosophy and direction for this franchise. Because to us in the fanbase, the Twins play a rather boring brand of baseball and they lose a LOT of games. Before the Vikings brought Fran Tarkenton back, they won a lot of football games, but they won in boring fashion. They played great defense and were a dependable "3 yards and a cloud of dust" offense. But they lacked that special player at QB to get them to a Super Bowl. At least the Vikings were winners. The Twins, under the current regime are losers, and in an especially boring style. If the Twins get off to a rough start, they may very well fall short of 1-million fans for attendance. Derek Shelton represents too much of the "same" approach to inspire any confidence in the "brand" of baseball the Twins will play. Nothing Shelton accomplished in Pittsburg screamed "HIRE ME" to the rest of the baseball world. Did Shelton interview ANYWHERE else?? Whether it would have been Flaherty or even Vasquez, they at least would have offered a different style and some hope for change in the organization. Say what you will, but the collective "YAWN" on Twins Dailey about the Shelton hire speaks volumes about the fan base in general.

There is reason the Twins haven't considered Toby for the job. What has he done at St. Paul that jumps out? How many championships has he won? As much time as Wallner, Larnach, Julien, and Miranda spent there, how has he unlocked their true potential? How many "finished products" has he delivered to the big league ballclub? Once you've answered that question, you should then consider why hasn't ownership or Falvey contemplated finding a NEW manager at St. Paul? Gardenhire has been mediocre at best. But if there's one thing the Twins do extremely well, it's striving for mediocrity. Toby is PERFECT for the Twins in St. Paul. I read recently that the most likely candidate to eventually end up with the Twins managerial position is someone they are "familiar" with. That would leave Rowson and Shelton. I'm not enthused with either. We don't need "familiarity," rather, we need a different approach, a different philosophy. Some people made a good point that Rowson, with Ron Washington could be a good outcome. Yes, our hitting is a major disappointment. But I want a manager who's a MANAGER, not a hitting coach who needs a security blanket with his bench coach. With the exception of 2019, the Twins can't be the powerhouse Yankees. Power costs money in a normal baseball season and 2019 wasn't "normal." We need to be more Brewers than Yankees. I'd prefer a good manager and the hire of Nelson Cruz as hitting coach. Servais would be my 2nd choice. He's experienced and solid. I was also surprised that Vasquez didn't make their final 4. He should have replaced Shelton. My #1 choice would be Flaherty. He checks most of the boxes that I'd be looking for. But "Inside Sources" are saying it will most likely be someone the Pohlad's and Falvey are "familiar" with. That points to Rowson or Shelton and that knocks me over the head with pessimism. Once again, we all need to wonder what the expectations are of the mystery people who pumped about $400 million into this team. I just can't imagine they would part with $400 just to sit at the table and say, "by all means, just go with who you are "familiar" with, we LOVE this stay the course mentality and approach." The Twins are not going to get where we all hope they can with a safe, comfortable, "let's keep doing what we've been doing" strategy. "Familiarity" is not going to break this cycle of under-achievement."

I think I know what is written inside his helmet, tarheel, but it's just an educated guess...SWING...HARD...!!! I think just about every seasonal evaluation of Matt Wallner has been somewhat incomplete and subject to a small sample size. Whether it was health or ineffective play, Wallner has never spent a full season with the Twins, and his inability to hit LHP cuts into his AB's as well. But his power is prodigious and should be intriguing to a number of teams. I fantasize about trading him to the White Sox for one of their young Catchers. Someone else suggested trading him to the Pirates for a talented, young pitcher coming off a season ending arm injury (Jared Jones) who should be ready sometime in early-mid May. I like that trade as well. Because the Twins have Walker Jenkins, E-Rod, Alan Roden and Gabe Gonzales all on the cusp of debuting in the Major Leagues I view both Matt Wallner and Trevor Larnach as superfluous. They also have Austin Martin and even Winokur, not to mention whatever college OF bats they draft. The Twins have huge holes at C, 1B and bullpen. I'm fully in the camp of trading Wallner while his allure of BIG POWER can be cashed in on. I see more value in what Wallner can bring in a TRADE to the Twins.

This is a very valid question SteveLV. There is nothing that compels any of us to accept that BBTV is even in the ballpark in valuing players. In fact, I wouldn't be the least surprised if many teams had wildly different valuations on very high profile players. Another flaw in BBTV is that it overly values "prospects." If you are young and put together a good major league (or even a minor league) season, your value absolutely SKYROCKETS in BBTV. As soon as your salary starts to ascend, your value goes down...a LOT. It's how you can have a probable "back to back" Cy Young Award winner like Tarik Skubal with a value of 51.6. I'll bet Walker Jenkins has a higher value. The allure of BBTV is that they have a somewhat understandable formula and, it's basically all we've got. Otherwise, we're all just looking at the back of baseball cards and proposing trades that are ridiculous. With BBTV we can at least propose trades that are "mildly absurd." In my case, I don't pay the premium to propose the trades on the sight. But I love to go there and see what other people propose. From there I can see what various players are worth, like Joe Ryan at 47.0 and Nolan McLean at 21.6. I just like to dream up trades. It's kind of like a mental exercise. What would the Mets want? What do the Twins need? But I don't have the complete listing of players and values the Twins or Mets have, so what I'm proposing is limited by what players values I've seen. I am operating on limited information. That's why from time to time I'll throw out a request to Doc Gast to propose a trade. Because he pays for the right to see all the values and frequently posts trades on the site.

The current Baseball Trade Value for Joe Ryan is 47.0. That's down from an All Star break high of 73.0 The current value for Nolan McLean on BBTV is 21.6. The Mets pitching staff and their ages as of today: Senga 32, Holmes 32, Peterson 30, Manaea 33, McLean 24, Tong, 22 and Sproat 25. Tonga has a value of 12.6 and Peterson 7.0. Peterson is on the last year of his contract paying him $4.625 million, quite a bargain for how he's pitched and he's a FA in 2027. Maybe the Mets would try to extend him. The Mets don't have a SP under 30 other than their "prospects" McLean, Tong and Sproat. Ryan has the talent and the track record they can depend on NOW. McLean showed promise last season, but he's 24 years old. (he's not Doc Gooden or even Noah Syndergaard). His sample size is small. Yes, he's promising, but if the Twins insist on a package headlined by McLean the Mets would have to think long and hard. The Mets OF is old: Marte 37, Mullins 31, Nimmo 32, Soto 27, Tyrone Taylor 31. Marte is on his last legs. Why not offer the Mets Trevor Larnach (1.3 value) to play RF along with Ryan (47.0) and Andrew Morris (4.1) and Cody Clemens (4.5) Total: 56.9 for... McLean (21.6) Jett Williams (23.1) and Mark Vientos (11.7) 56.3.

Lots of interesting takes. None more insightful than bean5302. I have always complained that Twins Front Offices, whether it was the old Terry Ryan regime or the latest Twins executives, NEVER seemed to have a "Plan" going into the off season or the trade deadline. We always seemed RE-active rather than PRO-active We've heard from past and present FO's that there were no restrictions on the FO from making a trade to improve the team. Yet we as fans could see that to believe the "company line" was illogical. This lack of a clear plan left the Twins with some strange off season additions (Joey Gallo, Mike Shoemaker, the list is LONG) or deadline deals that had no impact or that were made just to say "see, we did something." This is the path of a FO that really doesn't have a plan. And the Pohlad family has never seemed to hold a FO accountable. This would be a large indicator of why their other business interests are not doing well. This is always why we feel the team is dumpster diving. You dumpster dive if you have no alternative. If you have enough money to go to McDonald's and buy a cheeseburger off the value menu, you don't dumpster dive. If you have enough money to go to Pittsburg Blue, you don't consider the value menu at McDonalds. The Front Offices of the Twins have repeatedly lied and the Pohlad family has repeatedly lied to Twins fans. There is no logical reason to trust them or trust they will make a deal for Ryan that would be beneficial. But even though they don't "HAVE" to trade Ryan they have a chance to make a deal to significantly improve the team. They should be trading from a position of strength with Joe Ryan. If they aren't getting what they want from a team, hang up the phone and move on. Bean5302 is correct, they should trade him in December either AT the Winter Meetings or shortly thereafter. The idea that we should not expect an accomplished, productive major league player as PART of the package is essential. Prospects will always be a part of a trade like this. But the Twins need to find a good, young major league hitter who is also a good defender to enhance their lineup. Someone who fits the profile of, but not necessarily "IS" Wilyer Abreu of the Red Sox. The Red Sox have too many OF. They can't play them all, even if they DH one of them. Abreu has won a Gold Glove. His career OPS is .791. He will turn 27 years old mid-2026 season. It isn't necessary to make the Ryan trade the 1st trade of this off season, but his trade should be the foundation for all the other moves the Twins make. Making a trade or 2 before trading Ryan reshapes who we might be interested in for other trades. It makes other deals possible. Note: Seth, I think you meant to type LOGAN Webb (SP Giants) not Brandon. And if you're going to mention Tong in the list of pitchers the Mets have, you certainly need to mention Nolan McLean. I imagine we will revisit this topic multiple times between now and the New Year.

I agree that every player on the Twins roster should be open to discussion with other teams regarding possible trades to reshape the roster and current talent distribution. But the "Sell High" and "Buy Low" mantra is a solid philosophy. I know I constantly bring up BBTV, even though I don't pay to have the privilege to post suggested trades, I like to see how players are valued. BBTV is the only kind of rating system available to fans like us. Lewis currently has a value of 11.0, which is kind of a neutral value primarily because he's not due to make any kind of salary for several years. There ARE guys who's current value as judged by BBTV is just too low to make a trade with any chance of decent value coming back. Pablo Lopez at 7.3 is a great example, and his $21 million dollar salary is very acceptable for what he could deliver. Guys like Julien or Miranda have such a low value that you'd question what, if any value you'd get back. A guy like Wallner at 22.5 could still bring something pretty darn good back. The glimpse of greatness that Lewis showed Twins fans tells ME that I wouldn't trade him this off season. With the exception of his hitting, EVERYTHING he did over the last 77 games he played was encouraging. His glove and range were noticeably better. He was actually able to RUN. He stole 11 bases in 12 attempts. You just don't do that if you have any doubt that your legs can do it. He finally just "played the game" without reservations in the back of his mind. In terms of possible outcomes for 2026, I was ENCOURAGED. His swing is still messed up, and that just reinforces my belief that hitting a baseball is HARD. And that hitting a baseball thrown by a Major League pitcher is REALLY HARD !! He will have a new manager and a new hitting coach (Nelson Cruz??) and the hope is that with a better approach he will stop being so pull happy and use the entire field. I hope the new hitting coach can convince him that he doesn't need to pull everything to hit the ball out of the park. We've been saying this for a couple year now on TD, but I think 2026 is truly a make or break year for Lewis. The 3B job is HIS. He's healthier going into this off season than he's been in years. He will have a new manager and hitting coach to work with. There is opportunity there if he seizes it. If I was a potential Twins manager candidate or batting coach candidate, I would have showed up to my first interview having studied Royce Lewis above ALL other Twins players. I would have a plan specifically for Royce Lewis detailing how I intend to turn this guy into the #3 or #4 hitter the Twins need him to be. While I'm excited to see Walker Jenkins in the near future, no player on the Twins other than Byron Buxton duplicating his 2025 season has the ability to affect the Twins more positively on the field than Royce Lewis. In the always winnable A.L. Central, Royce Lewis having a great season could put the Twins right back into the thick of contention. It's what we've ALL been hoping for, ever since that wonderful second half and post season of 2023.

Diaz is worth giving up some kind of talent in a trade for the following reasons: 1. Our hole at 1B/DH is so darn big. 2. The cost in talent in a trade would not be prohibitive. Diaz currently carries a 4.7 value in BBTV. That's like trading Andrew Morris (4.1) or Ricardo Olivar (4.9) or even Cody Clemens (4.5). The Twins can live with that, especially when you're talking about a hitter who posted a .300 average, 29 Doubles, 25 HR, 79 Runs, 83 RBI season with an OPS of .838 and an OPS+ of 136. Now, Diaz will be 35 years old in August of next year, and with the ascent of Jonathon Arranda, Diaz only had 36 starts at 1B last year, the rest were at DH. He's a decent/capable 1B, but nothing special. But his bat alone, whether for 1B, DH or both would be such an upgrade it would be worth the salary cost to the Twins. If I was staring at a 1B/DH problem like the Twins are, my plan would be to make a low level deal with the Rays for Diaz. I would then look to make a deal with the Red Sox and get 25 year old Tristan Casas as a throw in as part of the package coming back, (whether I'm trading Joe Ryan or Bailey Ober to them). Diaz and Casas provide the Twins with a RH and LH hitting option at 1B/DH and an older and younger option as well. There is no one in the Twins system who can provide an immediate option.