Eric Blonigen

Personally, medium leverage. He has an inflated ERA but that’s likely due to having really low strand rate. He’s got good stuff, but he’s walked too many guys this season. If he can get that under control, he’s set.

Out of curiosity, is it the term you disagree with? Or the application of it as a catch-all to describe someone’s skill level or trustworthiness? Or do you think the bullpen hierarchy is fluid to the point that it’s not useful to categorize relievers? Referring to a pitcher as a low-leverage guy in my mind is a widely-accepted shorthand for someone that doesn’t possess the skill set, mindset, track record, or health to be a late-and-close pitcher. I’m interested in your take on it though.

Huh. Interesting. He’s been brutal this year, but his peripherals are a bit better (still below league average though). I imagine they will see if they can fix something mechanically or work on pitch mix. I’ll put him in the low-leverage option mix for now but maybe we will be surprised.

Derek Falvey was hired, in part, for his expertise in building a pitching staff. Several years in, there have been a number of success stories. However, in a season in which your fourth, fifth, and sixth starters and three of your top five bullpen arms are knocked out of the equation in relatively short order, your developmental bona fides are put to the test. What options are available to Falvey on the farm, should the team need more arms? Image courtesy of © Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports The 2024 season has not played out as expected from a roster standpoint. Louie Varland, Chris Paddack, and Anthony DeSclafani were expected to fill the fourth and fifth starter's roles. Injuries and ineffectiveness have thwarted those plans, which has led to the first layer of depth being called up to the big-league club. Simeon Woods Richardson and David Festa are now key components to the Twins’ success. In the bullpen, the team was counting on Justin Topa and Daniel Duarte as dependable medium-leverage arms. Topa has yet to throw a pitch for the parent club, and Duarte underwent elbow surgery in May. Jhoan Durán and Brock Stewart have both spent time on the shelf, and even when nominally healthy, each has looked more vulnerable than in the past. Caleb Thielbar has been largely ineffective. Those factors have forced some creativity to build out the bullpen. Who’s left on the farm to answer the call, should more guys get injured? Let’s take a look at some pitching options. As the Twins have a bit of a 40-man crunch, let’s start with the players who are on the 40-man roster, but not on the active roster or the IL. Pitchers Matt Canterino Brent Headrick Ronny Henriquez Josh Winder Louie Varland This group is going to be the majority of the injury-replacement talent pool for the Twins this season. The Twins are famous for not wanting to lose assets unnecessarily, so if they don’t have to make 40-man moves, they probably won’t. There are also several players currently on the injured list who could return at some point this season. These guys could also be the next man up in some cases. On the MLB Injured List Brock Stewart - 15-day IL Kody Funderburk - 15-day IL Chris Paddack - 15-day IL This group comprises high-upside arms who have already made important contributions to the team's success in the last season and a half, but their returns are not guaranteed. Funderburk is rehabbing an oblique strain and is a late-season candidate to return. He has shown inconsistent promise throughout his Twins tenure. Stewart is dominant, when healthy. He received an MRI and is awaiting results on his injured shoulder. Rocco Baldelli said he’s not “committing to Stewart’s season being over”, which can’t be a good sign. Chris Paddack “expects to pitch again in 2024,” but has no ETA, and at this time of year, that means that his expectations might go unrealized. He's owed $7.5 million next season, and has been very good when fully healthy. With the Twins' payroll constraints, Paddack either needs to be reliable and healthy, or not be on their books. There are no certainties with any of these pitchers, but the team will be better for each that is able to return. Other Steven Okert (Bereavement list) Now that we have established the 40-man and injured list options for activation, let’s look at the current depth chart at the major-league level and the possibilities for next man up at each position. Starting Pitching Current: Pablo López, Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober, Simeon Woods Richardson, David Festa Next up: Zebby Matthews, Randy Dobnak The prospect vs the feel-good return: Matthews has as much helium as any pitcher in the Twins organization. Starting the year at Cedar Rapids, he now has two starts under his belt with the Saints. The first was great. The second… was not great. He’s known for his excellent control, and his velo has ticked up into plus-plus territory. A legitimate, consensus top-100 prospect, Matthews is an organizational success story. Drafted in the eighth round of the 2022 Draft, he fits the Falvey mold of drafting tall college starters from small schools, then working on biomechanics to improve their stuff. Matthews now touches 99 MPH on his heater, and has playoff-caliber starter upside. While he will benefit from more seasoning in the minors, the Twins could choose to start his clock early in a pinch, as his stuff/command combination is drool-worthy. On the other hand, Randy Dobnak has faced a lengthy attempt to return to the majors after twice requiring pulley surgery on his finger. His stuff is… fine. His command is… so-so. His facial hair is fierce, he’s (probably) a really good driver, and you have to root for a guy with a story like his. Supposed to be a really good dude, too. The most likely scenario here would be that, in the event of an injury to an established starter, Dobnak would take over the fifth starter spot--unless the Twins decide that every win counts. Then, perhaps, they could convince themselves to cut bait with a marginal pitcher on the 40-man in favor of adding Matthews. High-Leverage Relief Pitchers Current: Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, Jorge Alcalá Next up: Louie Varland, then…let's get weird Last season, when Varland moved to the bullpen, his stuff played up, and he was dominant for an inning at a time. Because he has been ineffective as a starter this season, it may be time to consider converting him to relief work permanently. Festa and Matthews have passed him on the depth chart, and if Varland has the ability to be a late-inning reliever, he could be a difference-maker for the club as they seek to lock down a playoff spot. Beyond him, there aren’t great high-leverage options in the system, unless the front office wanted to get very aggressive with a rehabbing Matt Canterino or Connor Prielipp--which seems unlikely, given their health concerns and relative inexperience as pros. Medium-Leverage Relief Pitchers Current: Cole Sands, Trevor Richards Next up: Justin Topa, then…Matt Bowman? Luckily, Topa is nearly ready to return, assuming he doesn’t experience any setbacks on his rehab assignment. While he doesn’t have a lengthy track record at the major-league level, he was lights-out for the Mariners last season. The hope is he can pitch at the same level for the Twins upon his return. Whether or not this is likely remains to be seen, but he is the best option for a medium-leverage arm at this point. After him, the Twins could look to add Saints pitchers to the 40-man, such as Matt Bowman. Bowman is 33, and the definition of a journeyman. He’s pitched in 196 games across six different organizations, and has amassed just 0.4 career fWAR. However, his time with the Saints this season has been great. In 13 appearances (yes, small sample size), Bowman has a WHIP under 1.00 and is striking out over 10 batters per nine innings pitched. Could he give 15 good innings down the stretch if pressed into duty? Maybe. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that, though. Low-Leverage Relief Pitchers Current: Steven Okert, Caleb Thielbar, Randy Dobnak Next up: Ronny Henriquez, Josh Winder, Brent Headrick All three of these next guys up are just guys. All have had multiple chances to stick at the big-league level, and all have failed to impress. Collectively, they have a career fWAR of 0.0 across 55 appearances with the Twins. At this point, they could eat low-leverage innings, but it would be unwise to count on them for anything more than that. I’m not going to list any additional low-leverage options, as my assumption is the Twins won’t burn a 40-man spot on a replacement-level, low-leverage relief pitcher. Overall, the Twins have graduated several top pitching prospects this season. That has impacted the number of good pitchers in the upper minors to call upon as injury replacements. Because of this, it's more important than ever that the Twins can stay healthy down the stretch; there just aren't guys beating down the door to the majors. What do you think? Would these be the next guys up in the event of more injuries? How would you feel about these options, should the unforeseen occur? Are there other players you would call up if you were in the front office? Comment below to start the discussion! View full article

It's good that the Twins have a deep farm system, because they are graduating top prospects at an unsustainable rate. Due to injuries and ineffectiveness, the Twins have needed to call up multiple players on an earlier timeline than desired. Who's left to rely upon, should the injury bug bite again? Image courtesy of © Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports The 2024 season has not played out as expected. Headed into the season, players like Edouard Julien, Alex Kirilloff, and Kyle Farmer were all expected to play key roles, but all three have been injured, ineffective, or both. This has led to the team's first layer of depth being called up to the big-league club, and José Miranda, Trevor Larnach, Brooks Lee, and Austin Martin have all been key components to the Twins’ success. Let’s take a position-by-position at the remaining depth options. As the Twins have a bit of a 40-man crunch, let’s start with the players who are currently not on the active roster, or on the IL. Catchers Jair Camargo Infielders Edouard Julien Yunior Severino Outfielders Emmanuel Rodríguez (on the minor-league IL, with no ETA on a return) This group is going to be the majority of the injury-replacement talent pool this season. The Twins are famous for not wanting to lose assets unnecessarily, so if they don’t have to make 40-man moves, they likely won’t. There are also several players currently on the injured list who could return at some point this season. These guys could also be the next man up in some cases. On the MLB Injured List Kyle Farmer - 10-day IL Carlos Correa - 10-day IL Alex Kirilloff - 60-day IL This list is a mixed bag. Carlos Correa is likely not more than a couple of weeks from returning, assuming he doesn’t experience a setback as he attempts to rehab from plantar fasciitis. Kyle Farmer could return when there’s a need, although there hasn’t been a status update since Jul. 12. Alex Kirilloff has no ETA. With all that in mind, for the purposes of this activity, I will assume that Correa and Farmer will return in August, and Kirilloff will not. Now that we have established the 40-man and injured list options for activation, let’s look at the current depth chart at the major-league level, and weigh the possibilities for next man up at each position. Catcher Current: Christian Vázquez, Ryan Jeffers Next up: Jair Camargo Camargo is likely to hit like Vázquez, with the defense of Jeffers. His scouting report suggests career backup as his realistic upside. Ricardo Olivar and Alex Isola both have more potential, but are not on the 40-man and are also in the lower minors. With that in mind, Camargo is likely the backup we would see this season, should one of the starting tandem be injured. The team has to hope their extremely equitable timeshare continues to keep both backstops healthier than most catchers. First Base Current: Carlos Santana, José Miranda Next up: Yunior Severino, Edouard Julien Julien has looked overmatched with the Twins this season, and to a lesser extent, even with the Saints. Because of this, the Twins might be inclined to give Severino a cup of coffee. He's had an interesting journey to the big leagues. Originally signed by the Braves in the 2016-2017 international signing period, that team then lost him as a penalty for skirting international signing bonus rules. The Twins signed him, and he has slowly worked his way up. Once upon a time, he was a speedy shortstop, but he's now a slugging, defensively-limited infielder. He strikes out a ton, but he would likely hold down first base as a slightly above-replacement player. Second Base Current: Willi Castro Next up: Brooks Lee, Edouard Julien, Kylw Farmer Once Correa is ready to return, Castro will be able to return to his super-utility status. Lee would be the natural backup, with Julien set to return if needed. This is an easy position to cover with the Twins' depth and positional flexibility. Shortstop Current: Brooks Lee Next up: Carlos Correa when ready to return, then Diego A. Castillo This one is cheating a little bit. With Correa progressing to sprints and (hopefully) ready to return by mid-month, we’ll say he’s the backup at shortstop. That will likely push Lee back to the Saints until he’s needed again, and can receive everyday playing time. For additional middle infield depth, the Twins would likely look back to Diego A Castillo due to recent familiarity. The Twins traded for Castillo from the Orioles in April, and he has spent the majority of the season with the Saints. Castillo was fine in limited action with the Twins earlier this season, hitting to a 183 OPS+ (in six at-bats). Overall, the journeyman has played in just over a half-season collectively with the Pirates, Diamondbacks, and Twins and has been worth -0.5 fWAR across his big league career. He’s been better in the minors, but would likely be another replacement-level player for the Twins. Third Base Current: Royce Lewis, José Miranda Next up: Brooks Lee, then maybe Diego A. Castillo? Given Lewis’s lengthy injury history and impact when healthy, the Twins’ third base depth is of particular importance. Lee has the defensive profile to be well above average at the hot corner, but he does not bring the same hitting prowess as Lewis. Miranda can play some third, albeit not well. Castro can play there in a pinch, assuming he isn’t needed elsewhere. If the Twins have to tap into depth, the likely candidate would be Castillo. Outfield Were the Twins to need an additional outfielder (beyond those who can play in the grass as a secondary position), they would likely need to remove one of Brent Headrick, Ronny Henriquez, or Josh Winder from the 40-man roster. In that event, the move could be to call up DaShawn Keirsey, Jr. The Twins' 4th-round pick in 2018, Keirsey is a fourth outfielder type. As a 27-year-old at St Paul, he’s hit to the tune of an .816 OPS with a bit of pop. Speed is part of his game, as he’s stolen 24 bags in 31 tries. He strikes out more than 25% of the time at Triple-A, though, and his big-league numbers would likely look similar to Austin Martin with a little more power. The Twins would probably like to avoid adding Keirsey to the 40-man, as it would cost them two players - whoever they had to DFA in favor of Keirsey, and then Keirsey himself in the offseason, at the latest. Left Field Current: Matt Wallner, Trevor Larnach, Austin Martin, Willi Castro Next up: Trevor Larnach, then DaShawn Kiersey Center Field Current: Byron Buxton, Austin Martin, Willi Castro Next up: Willi Castro, Austin Martin, then DaShawn Kiersey Right Field Current: Max Kepler, Austin Martin, Willi Castro Next up: Matt Wallner, then DaShawn Kiersey DH Current: José Miranda, and anyone with a platoon advantage that benefits from a partial day off from fielding Next up: The Twins would likely continue to mix and match and not promote a player to DH, unless Severino went on a tear of epic proportions. Utility infielder Current: Willi Castro Next up: Kyle Farmer when he's ready to return, then Luke Keaschall Farmer is fine as a righty in the lineup situationally. He’s a clubhouse leader, progenitor of the home run sausage, and a thoroughly mediocre hitter and fielder. The Twins will play him as they pay him, unless the situation becomes truly dire. In that case, they could look at Luke Keaschall, another prospect with some serious helium. Keaschall is a consensus top-100 prospect, able to play multiple infield positions, and he’s more than holding his own at Wichita, posting an OPS greater than .800 as a middle infielder. It appears his future is bright, and if his clock starts sooner than expected, it may work out. But, the preference would be to discuss a callup a year from now if things break right for the team. Utility Outfielder Current: Manuel Margot, Austin Martin Next up: DaShawn Keirsey, Jr. Overall, the Twins have graduated several top prospects this season. That has impacted the number of good hitters in the upper minors upon whom to call as injury replacements. Because of this, it's more important than ever that they stay healthy down the stretch, as there just aren't guys beating down the door to the majors. Luckily, the value they place on roster flexibility ensures that it's relatively unlikely the team should need additional call-ups among hitters this season. What do you think? Would these be the next guys up in the event of more injuries? How would you feel about these options, should the unforeseen occur? Are there other minor-league options you would feel better about? Comment below to start the discussion! View full article

Personally, I think it’s almost a certainty that Varland is better than Thielbar, Okert, and Richards. Sands has been really good this year, but I think Varland would likely be slightly better. I would probably have him on a level with Alcala based on his performance last season out of the pen.

Good call. You are totally correct.

Following an off-day in which both the Guardians and Royals won, and a trade deadline where the Twins failed to address their needs, one could argue that they are no better than third in the AL Central, The Twins hold the third Wild Cart spot by just two games over the Red Sox, with the vastly-improved Mariners on their heels. With this precarious position in mind, there are four keys to holding onto the final playoff spot down the stretch. Image courtesy of David Berding/Getty Images Fangraphs currently has the Twins playoff odds at 80.6%. They are tied with Cleveland with the third-highest chances of any team in the American League to win the World Series. Those odds are better than what it feels like to many fans, considering the Twins complete inactivity at the trade deadline. Savvy moves were made by their competitors. Finally, the fact remains that the Twins just haven’t been able to pick up ground on the Guardians or Royals over the past couple months despite generally good play. If the Twins hope to play meaningful games in October, they will need four things to break their way: health of the team, starting pitching staying consistent, head-to-head matchups against the Guardians and Royals, and one of Jhoan Duran or Brock Stewart to return to peak form. Let’s dig into each of these needs. Health The Twins have no shortage of players who have been snakebit throughout their careers. In the past four seasons, Royce Lewis has suffered two torn ACLs and four separate soft tissue injuries that caused him to lose time. Byron Buxton has played more than 100 games exactly once in his 10-year career (although he is on track to well-exceed that mark this season). Carlos Correa has been shelved for the past three weeks while dealing with his second bout of plantar fasciitis. And Jose Miranda, after losing most of the 2023 season to a shoulder injury and the resulting ineffectiveness that went along with that, has spent time on the IL and returned, only to be hit in the head by a pitch almost immediately. These are just the injuries dealt to our keystone hitters. Take into account role players like Anthony DeSclafani and Daniel Duarte who won’t throw a pitch for the Twins this season, Kyle Farmer dealing with a season-long injury, and Alex Kirilloff seeking a second opinion on his back injury, and it’s clear that the Twins can’t withstand many more injuries as the ready-now depth is all playing for the parent club already. Starting pitching In October, should the Twins make it there, they will need three playoff-caliber starters. They (likely) have them in Pablo Lopez, Joe Ryan, and Bailey Ober. However, to MAKE it to October, they will also need strong production out of their other starters while their top-three continue to pitch well. Currently, the Twins are relying on two rookies, Simeon Woods Richardson and David Festa, with Zebby Matthews waiting in the wings. That’s threading a needle and hoping against regression. Throughout the 2024 season, Twins fans have watched a few storylines play out among the starting pitchers. Pablo Lopez had a rough first half, but is rounding into form. He has been dominant over his past seven starts but will need to be consistent every fifth day. The key appears to be execution of his sweeper. Joe Ryan has a track record of starting a season strong, then fading down the stretch. He has been much more consistent than in years past, but has two months to go. Can he keep it up without wearing down? Bailey Ober has historically been treated with kid gloves due to his injury history. This season has been a different story. Outside his games against the Royals, Ober has been consistent and great. Nick Nelson has a great writeup of Ober's changes here. Per The Athletic's Aaron Gleeman, Ober has the second-best career ERA of any Twins starting pitcher going back to 1980, behind Johan Santana. As Ober approaches his career-high in innings, will he be able to keep it up? If so, he might be special. Most evaluators have Simeon Woods Richardson as having a back-of-the-rotation arm upside. However, through his first 18 starts, he has put up a 3.74 with a 4.33 xFIP. That’s still solid for a #4 or good #5 starter, but the team might need more than that from him. Will he regress, or can he give the Twins eight more good starts? David Festa began the season as the likely #8 starter. He has been thrust into duty earlier than expected due to injuries to DeSclafani and Paddack, and due to Louis Varland’s ineffectiveness this season. Festa began his major-league career with two terrible starts and was sent down, but has looked much better in his second stint with the big league club. Can the Slim Reaper continue to develop in real-time? If not, is Zebby ready? The Twins had better hope the starting pitching staff can keep it up. Head to head games against the Guardians and RoyalsAt the trade deadline, both the Guardians and the Royals did what their fan bases expected - they made moves to improve their rosters, with the intention of making deep playoff runs. The Twins, famously, did nothing. That fact puts the Twins at a disadvantage compared to their AL Central foes. Over the past two months, the Twins place in the AL Central standings has been static, despite playing good baseball over that stretch, and winning nine of their past ten series’. Twins fans have been waiting for the Guardians or Royals to falter, but they haven’t. Now, the competition will be fiercer as both teams are better than they were a week ago. Over the final 45 games of the season, we play the Guardians eight times and the Royals six times. While these games will be hard-fought (maybe don’t start Ober against the Royals?), our path to the playoffs becomes much more straightforward if we can play .600 baseball or better against both of them. Playing .750 would be better. Is that realistic? Duran OR Stewart returning to peak form A good, playoff-caliber team needs at least two shutdown options at the back of the bullpen. This allows for moderating workloads and protecting a late lead in a must-win game. So far this season, Griffin Jax has been our only consistent back-of-the-bullpen pitcher. To make it to October, the Twins will need one of Jhoan Duran or Brock Stewart to return to their peak form. In 2024, Jhoan Duran’s stuff is clearly diminished, and his pitches have all lost significant velocity compared to career norms. Is this tied to the injury he suffered prior to spring training? Is it due to a mechanical issue? Is this a case of one of the best relievers in baseball burning bright and declining early? Hopefully the Twins training staff has a sense of which of these is the root cause, and has an idea of how to help. Brock Stewart has dealt with injuries all throughout his career, and that trend has continued as he's on the shelf with a shoulder strain. When healthy, he has some of the most dominant stuff in our system. Can he get healthy down the stretch? If either pitcher returns to form, with Jorge Alcala, (hopefully) Justin Topa, and Cole Sands behind them in setup roles, the bullpen should be playoff-caliber. If neither pitcher can elevate once again, then our best option may be to reintroduce Louie Varland to the bullpen and hope for the best. What do you think? Are the Twins likely to achieve most or all of these keys? Will this be enough? Comment below to start the discussion! View full article

Walker JenkinsBrooks LeeEmmanuel RodriguezZebby MatthewsDavid FestaLuke KeaschallMarco RayaCharlee SotoKaelen CulpepperGabriel GonzalezAndrew MorrisTanner SchobelConnor PrielippKala'i RosarioCJ CulpepperBrandon WinokurKyle DeBargeDasan HillMatt CanterinoYasser Mercedes

I would assume they would be close to the favorites, maybe a half-step behind the Yankees in the AL. Baseball trade values, for what it’s worth, thinks this would be the price for two full seasons of Skubal, plus the remainder of this season for Skubal and Scott. Would you do that? Could work out great, or we could regret that for a decade. It would give us a very strong three year window.

Spot on. There is next to no need for depth signings in the offseason. Use the money for impact.

Correct. We don’t want to trade prospects for mediocre players. If we are trading guys of value they have to go towards players that CLEARLY make the team better. A frontline starter. A bullpen ace. A monster bat that would be an every-day DH. Our farm system has the young core under team control and the depth to withstand some losses. But, we have limited roster sizes. Will a Luke Keaschall or an Andrew Morris or a Gabby Gonzalez be able to break through? If not, then let’s move them for someone who pushes other guys down the depth chart.

Not any more. Even the Guardians made a mode. Lane Thomas isn’t QUITE a difference maker, but he definitely upgrades their team.

Exactly this. Crochet, Skubal, Gausman (maybe) are available. One of them would slot In the top of the rotation and from there it’s just going on a run in October. We have the lineup for it. We would have the rotation for it. Get a reliever and we are there. 21 hours to make it happen.

22 hours left. The Royals, Guardians, Yankees, Mariners, and now (likely) Astros have strengthened their teams today. Still waiting…

For many fans, the 2024 trade deadline serves as an inflection point for their Twins fandom. What happens over the next 36 hours—whether the Pohlads allow for spending at the deadline—could either bring them back into the fold, or push them further away, potentially past the point of no return. Image courtesy of © Matt Blewett-USA TODAY Sports Any longtime fan of the Twins has heard multiple variations of “cheap Pohlads” hundreds of times, often with good reason. For decades, the Twins were known throughout baseball as misers. Former GM Terry Ryan took pride in not spending his entire budget each offseason. The Twins constantly referred to themselves as a small-market team, despite being in a firmly mid-size media market. By the way, the Pohlads are roughly baseball’s 10th-richest owners. For a while, ownership appeared to be turning the corner, getting payroll to a league-average level, making surprisingly aggressive free-agent signings for guys like Carlos Correa, Nelson Cruz, and Josh Donaldson, and signing Byron Buxton and Pablo López to long-term extensions. These decisions bought a measure of trust and goodwill from the fans, because they seemed like down payments on long-term growth toward the middle of the league in payroll. However, at the onset of this past offseason, they went on record saying they needed to “right-size” payroll, and that they had been “losing money,” despite the team value skyrocketing as an asset. They proceeded to trim $30 million in payroll compared to 2023, and hinted that further future cuts are likely. The Twins began the 2024 season with the 20th-highest payroll, despite being the 15th-largest media market. The lowly Royals, with the 34th-largest media market in the U.S. at their disposal, are 16th in payroll and are planning on spending at the deadline. Naturally, on the heels of a division-winning season in which the Twins broke their playoff losing streak, this infuriated fans, and rightfully so. Likewise, the Twins' (supposed) commitment to making it easier for fans to watch games, then re-upping with Bally, turned some fans away. The Bally/Comcast disagreement leading to most local fans being unable to watch games through cable providers this season has led many nearly to a breaking point. Not making significant signings or trades this offseason, other than offloading a beloved veteran in Jorge Polanco, disgusted still others. While the purpose of any business is to make money, fans are not stockholders, and it’s a mistake for ownership to treat them as such. Fans attend, watch (hah), or listen to games night after night because they care. Because they believe. Because they want to be a part of something wonderful. Baseball exists for the fans. If the fans believe that ownership doesn’t care about them (or about fielding a team that can win the World Series), then why should they care about the team? Why not watch the Olympics instead? Why not go to a Loons game? At this point, it’s unclear that ownership cares. Instead, they reference declining attendance as a reason for declining payroll, putting the blame on the fans. That is a shortsighted mistake. Over the past few days, we have seen the Yankees, Mariners, Red Sox, and Orioles all make moves to improve their playoff odds. The Royals, Astros, and Rangers are all publicly linked to big-name players. The Twins haven’t been publicly linked to anyone. Nobody. Any savvy business owner is well-served by considering not just the short-term profit-and-loss statement, but also the long-term outlook and health of their organization. Ownership has demonstrated this understanding in the past, when they were one of the first teams in 2020 to announce they were keeping all staff hired and paid. They have also made significant investments into player amenities, offering daycare services to players’ families and ensuring that free agents will want to sign here. Remember the Nelson Cruz nap room? The time is now to continue to invest in the long-term health of the franchise, by proving to fans that winning and the fan experience are as important as the bottom line of the balance sheet. Make the trades that allow for keeping pace with the Yankees, Orioles, Mariners, Astros, Guardians, Royals, and Rangers. Get the frontline starter and setup-caliber lefty that will push the team over the hump. Show the fans that the goal is playing meaningful games deep into October. Fail to do so, and the Pohlads are setting the stage for fan apathy, further declines in attendance, and a long-term shrinking of the fan base. This type of payroll constraint can create a vicious cycle that will disenchant fans for years to come. You have to turn the boat around, Joe. You're turning from what looks like tough weather toward a fatal iceberg. Be bold, and brave the stormy seas. It's not too late for that, but you have little time left to change course. Otherwise, you'll sink this ship in cold, calm water, with the masses who stand ready to help out of range and losing interest. What do you think? Will a lack of trade at the deadline push you further away as a fan? Or do you think the Pohlads will approve the payroll to swing for the fences? Comment below! View full article

I would say Canterino will stay on the 40-man for at least another season. With his arm, he would likely be a setup-caliber guy, if not better. From a stuff standpoint, he's one of the best pitchers we have in the entire system. Camargo is also a lock to stay on the 40-man for another season, or until one of the guys in the lower minors is ready. The front office won't just DFA Margot or Farmer, those guys will likely either be traded or their contracts will expire at the end of the season. Headrick is on the 60-day IL, and isn't taking a 40-man spot currently (although would be a DFA candidate when he returns). Winder can also likely be DFAd with little risk. I wouldn't be shocked if Thielbar or Okert were DFAd at the deadline if we need the roster spots.

As it’s written, the CBT disbursal must be used to improve the product on the field. Theoretically, whatever the Twins are given will go towards trade salary. Maybe they could argue that beefing up the analytics staff even further would also improve the on-field product, but my sense is they are already near the front of the pack there. So, I would imagine they are getting at least $5mil and potentially as much as $10mil and that should go directly towards a trade.

Well, depending on the caliber of player, those nine starts could be the difference between making a deep playoff run and missing the playoffs entirely. But, I agree. I would advocate for a frontline pitcher with another year of control as well. That would set the team up incredibly well for next year before having to make some tough decisions in 2026 from a payroll standpoint.

According to Baseball Trade Values (in as much as they are accurate) Snell has essentially even surplus value to his contract. That said, I would imagine the starting ask would involve one of our top 3-4 prospects. We might be able to talk them down to two of Keaschall, Festa, and Matthews and a lottery ticket or two. The price would hurt, I have to imagine.

That would be a big splash, for sure. He does have a $30M player option for next year, with $15M deferred to 2027. I can't imagine the Twins taking that on with their payroll (in)flexibility. Then again, I didn't think the Twins would sign Donaldson or Correa, and here we are. He is only owed about $5M the rest of the season so it's not completely out of the question.