The Great Hambino

I know right? No respect these days For some reason, I can't find the word "bullpen" anywhere in the letter. Even used CTRL-F. Something must be wrong with my computer

When the Duran trade was announced, I was a little underwhelmed by the return. It turned out to be my favorite trade they made. That's disconcerting

Here's the email I - and I'm sure others here - received from Falvey today. I'm interested in everyone's thoughts. Dear Hambino, This week, we made a clear and deliberate decision to strengthen the next chapter of championship-caliber baseball for the Minnesota Twins. We didn’t make surface moves. We acted with purpose. That meant adding players who can help now, deepening our talent pipeline for 2026 and beyond, and reinforcing the foundation for long-term success. This wasn’t about patchwork or small adjustments. It was about holding ourselves to the standard we expect. The season so far hasn’t met that mark. We knew it was time to respond. We’ve bolstered our pitching. We added arms ready to contribute now, along with others on the cusp of breaking through. The rotation has gained depth, and the minor league system behind it has become even more robust, with emerging talent pushing the group forward. On the position player side, we brought in impact potential. Players with the tools to grow into everyday contributors and raise the overall ceiling of the roster. The foundation is getting stronger, and we believe the next wave is starting to take shape. We know moves like this spark reactions. That’s natural. It reflects how much you care. That’s why we’re positioning the Twins to compete at a higher level, not just in the short term, but in a way that can endure the ups and downs of a long season. That’s the kind of team you deserve. The mission hasn’t changed. We’re here to build a team that can win a World Series. This is the next push. Thank you for your support. It's your passion that drives us every day. Derek Falvey

I was not a fan of the Outman acquisition. But if he has any value, it’s as short-term Buxton insurance in center. I read that he’s reporting to AAA. If they’re not going to use him now, then what was the point of picking him up?

The feelings about today are about the returns in trade as much as the players going out the door. Stewart given away for nothing Varland moved while still pre-arb Jax and Duran (especially Jax) dealt for underwhelming returns given the leverage the Twins had in the reliever market Tagging France to the Varland trade, reducing the return in the process, all for a pittance of cash savings The acquisition of another 37 LH hitting outfielders that can't hit A tear down was justified. It could have easily happened without any of the above happening.

I can't. I like dark humor and hate myself

Has any team ever even done just the second part?

That's what I'm afraid of: the desperation with which they cleared not just current money, but future money (including potential arb raises) makes me think the Pohlads might not be as close to out the door as we'd like to think

I'm trying to devils-advocate a reason why Varland needed to be traded, and I can't come up with anything. He's closer to the kind of player you acquire in a fire sale, not sell. He's pre-arb next year! The Stewart trade was weird. This one is just sad

Is there a certain level of payroll you have to maintain to receive revenue sharing? If so, that can be the only reason I can think of that Pablo will still be a Twin come 2026 spring training

If he did, it would be for 3 independent league parks and another LH hitting outfielder that can't hit

The return on Brock Stewart suddenly seems a little less interesting

Holy hell MLB network is saying Correa deal is a go

Oh good, I was worried they didn't have enough replacement-level LH outfielders I hope there's more to it

Funny - I just got an email invite to a season ticket holder MyTwins Member happy hour They've already moved on to the free booze part of the sales pitch

He was crappy with the Mets last year, which is likely when most of them last saw him play. I can understand the sentiment

I'm trying to tell myself to wait until next spring to judge how they've positioned themselves for a rebuild. Lopez and Ober in particular make more sense to move in the offseason than right now

What's going to become of his denim hat?

Bingo In a theoretical vacuum on paper, the value is roughly equal. But the Phillies were desperate for a high-end reliever and should've paid a premium. The Twins had no urgency to move Duran (both in the micro with 24 hours left til the deadline and in the macro with 2+ years of control and no apparent need to kick off a fire sale), and therefore should've been receiving a premium. Neither happened. Plus, I'm not convinced trade grades fully take into consideration the distance from the majors in prospect values. That discounts the value of a return.

I don't know if I'd say the risks are the exact same. A SS has more places to go on the defensive spectrum than a catcher. And I'd say that's not a bad slash for a guy who was literally the youngest player at his level, at least at one point earlier in the year. We probably already knew this, but the A's really look to serve no purpose other than round out the schedule for their opponents until they move to Vegas. Might as well move Rooker too

Interesting to see how this ends up comparing to the Duran trade. Miller has two more years of control than Duran, and the package is headlined by an even younger, even more highly touted position player at high A coming to the A's than what the Twins are getting. Obviously need to see how the pitching lines up

I really don't love the process or timing of the trade that led to someone as far away as Tait being the headliner for Duran, but I hope we remember that that's not Tait's fault. In a vacuum, I like a lot about what I'm hearing about him. Quality catcher depth is something that needed improvement throughout the system, especially since they seem to shy away from catcher in the draft and haven't been producing much of anything by way of international free agency. Again, I really don't love that Duran was the cost of improving that depth at this level of the system, but also again, that's not on Tait. I hope we don't saddle him with that burden during what's surely going to be nonlinear development up the org ladder

If this were Goodfellas, the wild card series was the Lufthansa heist. Today, we're finding Duran in a frozen meat truck

And even if they did have to trade him, why take less than your price before the deadline date? You had another 24 hours. A lot of desperation can set in, especially as other relievers come off the board. This feels like Falvey lost a staring contest. And that’s with me liking what I hear about the catcher

No one cares about the San Diego Giants