JoeCool

Sadly this needed to happen but also even more so with Pagan. He had some fantastic years for the Twins, but this season we could not count on consistency with him. I hope he gets picked up by someone and turns it around,

I am ok with the front office philosophy from this past offseason in comparison to what we were getting before. They avoided the burden of large unproductive contracts hurting the franchise for years. If Buxton performs he gets paid. If not he gets paid less. Correa at a short term deal was also very smart. He is a fantastic player but not really worth $35 million. For 1 to 3 years that is not as bad as 10 years and no production at the end. They have some good pieces to build around and have payroll flexibility to get more if needed. I for one would be really excited if we went all in on some mid level prospects to get a rental like Devers from Boston. Contreras also would be fun to see as a Twin. With pitching we have some prospect nice starters we can convert to relievers in the short term. I would love to see us use these assets on the bullpen and get one more starter but I think separate of Pablo Lopez there really is nothing worth going after with higher end prospects. If we bring in Hendrix from the Cubs, Lopez from the Fish and got some more consistent bats in Devers and Contreras for the middle of the lineup. We are formidable. If Buxton or correa are injured they both can help carry the lineup. If they are all healthy at playoff time we should end the postseason drought for winless games. I like throwing in some minor league starters with electric stuff as relievers.

Kepler is a safer option to trade in my opinion. He is under a team friendly contract, a better defender than Kiriloff, but I will take Kiriloff’s bat over Kepler any day and if we can net a starter with lesser prospects that can be a #1 or #2 guy like Montas or Syndigard I would do it in a heartbeat. i still would be all for us going in on an elite bat as well. We have such a streaky lineup and placing a Devers in the middle of it makes us a much stronger contender. If we could offload Urshela and get the Red Sox to take on some other prospects like a Spencer Steer, and even sadly an Austin Martin, SWR I think he would be a big piece of the equation for the stretch run. Miranda or Arraez can slide over to 3rd and move Devers over to the 1st base side. The lineup would become very dangerous with a more consistent hitter in the middle of it.

Everyone talks of pitching which is needed, but I think we also need to think of more consistent hitting as well. To make a run in the playoffs we do need more than what we have right now. A few pieces added makes us dangerous. Boston is on the fringe of dealing Devers. He is a horrible defender at 3rd, but would be a massive upgrade if moved to 1st base and is a pending free agent. If we sent Spencer Steer, Gio Urshela, Miguel Sano and even a Max Kepler; the Red Sox would get some value with upside from Steer, a serviceable replacement at 3rd and a team friendly corner outfielder. Sano brings them a wildcard but his swing plays well with the green monster if he can connect. ? The Twins get an elite bat that could be extended as a long term solution at 1st base and we would have the capital to do this if Correa walks. If we lose Devers in the off-season, we still freed up enough salary from offloading Urshela, Sano, and Kepler to go after some decent free agents and we would be a more attractive teams with the success we stand to gain from Devers for landing potential free agents. This solves some of the 40 man logjam issues of the upcoming off-season and Kepler would probably be a tough loss, because he can play CF (when Buxton gets hurt) and is a fantastic defender, but with Urshela not being a force to depend on in the playoffs, Sano being inconsistent, and Kepler being solid but too streaky at the plate. Arraez could go to 3rd base and continue being a spark plug for the offense with slightly less than average defense (same as Urshela). Kiriloff could move to the outfield to backfill Kepler with serviceable defense and a more consistent bat, and Miranda can get a lot more playing time as a super utility player. I still am all for going in on two upgrades for the rotation like Montas and perhaps Martin Perez. I like going after sleepers for relief pitching like Matt Moore from Texas and Daniel Bard from Colorado. We should not be afraid to trade Austin Martin, SWR, Jordan B, Blaine Enlow or a few other prospects to get this done. We will lose Correa most likely this off-season. These kinds of moves actually give us a chance against the Yankees. If the team can stay healthy, but we do need another elite bat like Devers to make a run against teams with elite pitching.

i don’t think we should trade Correa and hopefully we catch lightning in a bottle for the playoffs. An extension is also very risky given his age and also his production is very solid, but could you imagine having over $30 million per season locked up if he declines like some of the other notable long term deals that sunk many teams? Think of Chris Davis, Miguel Cabrera, and the list goes on. Even look at the monster contracts handed out to Corey Seager or Javier Baez. The math seems very risky. The Twins made a very smart deal for Correa and his production is palatable for his short term and high annual value deal, but if it were greater than 5 years it could limit this team once his production drops off and it is likely. Imagine the Angels with their buyer’s remorse for Albert Pujols? I think we roll the dice and if he walks we can still find a decent replacement and go after pitching with the $35 million he would have commanded.

We need to make some moves. I would be all for making Ober a temporary reliever and stretching him back out as a starter if one of the other options fail. Winder also seems to be the real deal for a rotation spot as well. Honestly though. I really wish we would go after Frankie Montas and David Bednar. Both can help us remove our playoff losing streak curse. Correa might be gone next year. Outside of the dominance of the Yankees, the AL is wide open this year and I think having another top of the rotation starter with our lineup would help us compete against the Gerrit Coles and Justin Verlanders. Our lineup is a bit streaky but I think we have the right pieces to compete with Buxton, Correa, Arraez, at its core. Palanco should heat up a bit as the season moves on and I like what we are seeing with Kiriloff and Miranda. Can they stay healthy is the question and will we go after the few more pieces? Maybe a few upgrades to the bench strength would be in order as well. We are in a window. Let’s fly through it and go all in.

I think we stash him at AAA with a long rehab assignment to get him up to game speed. i think we hang onto him and see if we can work out the kinks in his game. I feel the same frustration, but when he is hot, he is extremely dangerous to have in the lineup. Imagine if we catch lightning in a bottle with him around playoff time? He has more upside than Garlick, Ursula, or Miranda. The latter two have more versatility, but how will they perform against some of the top aces in baseball? If he gets hot at the right time in the playoffs he can be a difference maker. We need another good starter and some relievers. Nobody will give that up for Sano. Let’s hope for lightning in a bottle and limit his exposure without the lightning.

Good Article. I think the trade was a good one overall. Berrios I really liked a lot and was a solid mid rotation starter, but never matched up well against the Gerrit Cole, Clayton Kershaw, CC Sabathia (back in the day), or name your other ace. Neither prospect we received in return is a sure thing, but I think Austin Martin will figure things out and if not a star, will be a good contributor and that kid does has very good speed and base stealing skills with a good eye at the plate. He has already swiped over 20 bases and the twins need that at the MLB level and a true lead off hitter who can disrupt a pitcher’s focus. If he becomes an outfield version of Christian Guzman or even Ben Revere with slightly better base stealing skills, I am happy with this. I think SWR is intriguing as well. Pitchers just are a dime a dozen with prospects. Some you think will break out into greatness and fizzle. I sense this prospect will contribute at the MLB level as either a serviceable starter or perhaps great reliever. The best part is the money we did not spend on Berrios bought the FO room to work with rather than a ton of dead money spent on underperformance. We got very smart high annual value deals with both Buxton and Correa without sinking the budget If either does not pan out. Imagine if the Twins signed Trevor Story, Corey Seager, or Robbie Ray to long term deals? Flexibility is there and the Twins are in an enviable place.