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Some players leave an organization with fans hoping to see the player return at some point in their playing careers. Torii Hunter fit that mold for the Twins by playing seven years away from Minnesota before returning for his final season. Other players can leave on a sour note, and fans may hesitate to welcome them back into the fold. Each player below has a different skill set near the end of their career. Health has impacted all three former Twins in recent years, with two players failing to appear in a big-league game last season. Because of those concerns, none of the options would come at a significant cost, and there is potential to sign two of these players to minor league contracts. Here’s a rundown of the former Twins and what they have done in recent years. Jake Odorizzi, SP Odorizzi was last on the mound for the Twins during their playoff series versus the Houston Astros in 2020. In three years with the club, he posted a 107 ERA+ and was selected for the 2019 All-Star Game. Following the 2020 season, he signed a three-year, $29.5 million contract with the Astros. Houston kept him for a season and a half before dealing him to Atlanta. His stop in Atlanta was even shorter, as he was limited to 10 starts in a Braves uniform. Odorizzi spent the 2023 season in the Rangers organization but never appeared in a game. In April, he had an arthroscopic debridement procedure on his throwing shoulder. 2024 Twins Fit: The Twins love depth, especially starting pitching depth to begin the season. Odorizzi can likely be signed on a minor-league deal where he has to prove himself at Triple-A before getting an opportunity at the big-league level. Some of Odorizzi’s best seasons came in a Twins uniform, and he might want the opportunity to prove himself again on a team fighting for a division title. Aaron Hicks, OF Many viewed Hicks as the next great Twins center fielder, following a line from Kirby Puckett to Hunter. In three seasons with the Twins, he posted an 81 OPS+ before Minnesota traded him to the Yankees leading into the 2016 season. Hicks seemed to put it all together in New York with a 120 OPS+ from 2017-20, and the Yankees signed him to a 5-year, $49.43 million extension. His performance dropped off significantly over the last three seasons to the point where the Yankees released him with over $20 million left on his contract. He signed a veteran minimum contract with Baltimore and revitalized his career (127 OPS+ in 65 games) while helping the Orioles win the AL East. 2024 Twins Fit: It seems likely for the Orioles to want Hicks back after helping the team during the second half. He is a free agent, available to any team at age 34. In 2023, he posted a .970 OPS against left-handed pitching, one of the Twins’ biggest struggles. Would he like to continue his redemption story where it all started? Miguel Sano, 1B/DH Sano last played in the big leagues with the Twins in 2022 when he went 5-for-60 (.083 BA) with 25 strikeouts in 20 games. This past season, he held a showcase in February for interested teams, but it wasn’t clear that he was fully healthy. Sano remained unsigned and hasn’t had a professional at-bat since July 2022. He will likely need to sign a minor league deal with a spring training invite and earn a roster spot for next season. 2024 Twins Fit: The Twins currently have a giant question mark at first base for next season. Alex Kirilloff and Jose Miranda are recovering from shoulder injuries, and the club has hesitated to give Edouard Julien an extended look at first base. If healthy, Sano has shown the potential to be a right-handed power threat. However, there are probably too many bridges burned in Minnesota for a reunion to make sense for either side. Which player makes the most sense for next year’s roster? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

The Twins brought in Joey Gallo because he was available on a one-year deal and had some bounce-back potential. Minnesota also wanted to add depth at first base, and bench coach Jayce Tingler previously worked with Gallo and knew he could handle the position. Plenty of other left-handed hitters were on the Twins’ roster, but the front office felt like Gallo was a prime candidate to return to his previous form. Gallo’s early season performance pointed to him being back on track. During the season’s first month, he hit .236/.354/.709 (1.063) with three doubles, one triple, and seven home runs. His 22 strikeouts in 65 plate appearances were high, but he was hitting for plenty of power. The Twins were happy to take the good with the bad. Unfortunately, he’s been unable to sustain this early-season success while morphing into one of the league’s worst hitters. Since the calendar turned to May, Gallo has hit .161/.271/.361 (.632) with six doubles and 10 home runs in 65 games. He has struck out in 94 of his 180 at-bats during that stretch while being worth -1.08 WPA. His average exit velocity, hard hit %, and barrel % all rank in the 96th percentile or higher, with his BB% also being in the 90th percentile. The Twins would have gladly signed up for those numbers when agreeing to a deal with Gallo. Conversely, his contact has been few and far between, leading to terrible overall numbers. His xBA, K%, and Whiff% all rank in the 1st percentile. His xBA is 28 points lower than the next closest batter. Gallo has baseball’s worst Whiff%, and he’s among three players with a Whiff% higher than 40% (Jose Siri and Brent Rooker). There have been stretches where he bunched home runs in a week, but there have been long periods where he has been lost at the plate. Minnesota continues to use Gallo regularly, and he might get one final chance to prove he can provide value to the Twins. Gallo began the year as the Twins’ primary first baseman while. Alex Kirilloff was ramping up from off-season wrist surgery. At the end of July, the Twins placed Kirilloff on the 10-day injured list because of a right shoulder strain. It is incredibly disappointing since he was one of the team’s best offensive players last month. Minnesota also had an MRI earlier this week because his shoulder hadn’t improved as expected. The Twins might have wanted to part ways with Gallo, but now he will likely need to serve as the team’s primary first baseman during the season’s most critical games. Other power hitters have followed a similar path to Gallo, especially as baseball has evolved recently. Strikeout numbers continue to rise in the search for more power. Twins fans saw this with Miguel Sano near the end of his Twins tenure. Unfortunately, this all-or-nothing approach can decrease performance if the player isn’t drawing walks or making consistent contact. Gallo has likely been trying to adjust, but the results have failed to improve. After consecutive poor seasons, no team will give Gallo a long-term deal entering the 2024 season. He was likely hoping for a bounce-back year to secure a long-term deal. That contract is likely never going to happen for the 29-year-old. Even with a strong finish, he will likely need to sign a minor-league deal to prove he can be a big-league contributor. Can Gallo be a serviceable replacement for Kirilloff during the season’s final months? Leave a COMMENT and join the discussion.

Despite the Minnesota Twins posting a Major League Baseball record 307 home runs, they did not have a single participant in the Home Run Derby that year. Nelson Cruz, Max Kepler, Miguel Sano, Eddie Rosario, and Mitch Garver all blasted more than 30 homers individually, but none of them competed in the longball event held at the Guardians Progressive Field. Over the years, Minnesota has had their fair share of Home Run Derby participants. With the next iteration of the event on tap, here are the top five performances in franchise history. 5. Brian Dozier 2014 Once a failed shortstop for Minnesota, Dozier turned himself into among the best offensive second basemen in all of baseball. He found a way to yank pitches out to left field, and his home run numbers went through the roof. Despite missing the All-Star Game in 2014, Dozier was invited to participate in the Home Run Derby. He was a hometown contestant with the event held at Target Field, and despite just hitting two dingers, his appearance fueled excitement. Yoenis Cespedes ultimately won the event, but Dozier would go on to blast 42 home runs just two seasons later. 4. Miguel Sano 2017 As a first-time all-star, Sano took his talents to South Beach and appeared in the Home Run Derby following a 25 dinger season the year prior. Hometown favorite Giancarlo Stanton was expected to win, but Sano drew a favorable bracket matchup with the Kansas City Royals Mike Moustakas opposing him. After knocking off the Royals third basemen, he also bested future teammate Gary Sanchez to find himself in the finals against Yankees star Aaron Judge. Sano came up one longball short, but his showing was beyond impressive and highlighted a story of player that had been clamored for since being a teenager. 3. Joe Mauer 2009 Through his first 561 career games Mauer had just 44 homers to his credit. Having won two batting titles already, the Minnesota-native began flipping baseballs into the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome seats. He finished 2009 with an MVP award and 28 homers. Invited to the derby that year in St. Louis, Mauer’s five first-round dingers forced a swing off with Albert Pujols and Carlos Pena. He wound up netting no more and went home quietly, but his season ended with some better hardware. 2. Tom Brunansky 1985 Competing in the first-ever iteration of the Home Run Derby, Brunansky represented the Twins with the event held at the Metrodome. He was a first-time all-star and his 32 dingers the season before was a career high. Parameters were obviously be shifted as the event drew popularity, but in its introduction, Dave Parker won, sending just six longballs into the seats. Brunansky finished second with four to his credit. He tied with all-time greats such as Carlton Fisk, Dale Murphy, Eddie Murray, and Jim Rice. 1. Justin Morneau 2008 Forever known as the Josh Hamilton derby, Morneau wound up winning in New York. Widely regarded as one of the best contests of all time, Morneau made it through the first round with eight homers to his credit. After Hamilton’s 28 blast barrage, he couldn’t keep things going in the final round. Morneau launched five homers in the final round to take the crown. The field was an interesting one with only Morneau, Hamilton, and Lance Berkman as true sluggers. More pure power hitters like Ryan Braun, Dan Uggla, and Chase Utley also filled out the competition. Which is your favorite Twins Home Run Derby performance of all time?

Luis Arraez Crushing in Miami Obviously Twins fans seeing a lack of hits so far this season might feel frustrated to have loss Luis Arraez, even if Pablo Lopez has more than out performed his potential so far. And yet, few should be surprised to see Arraez back again at the top of the batting leaderboard. He is once again defying three true outcomes with a dominant slash line of .438/.493/.578. And despite being player rarely known for power, he has smashed a slew of extra base hits to make him in the Top 3 in OPS for qualified batters. Many of those came earlier this week when he hit the first ever cycle in Marlins history against the Philadelphia Phillies. So far, Arraez is actually increasing his plate discipline, swinging at 8% less pitches outside the zone. Not to mention, the drip has certainly improved. Archer and Pineda On the Cusp of Security While not every player will see their career develop as they should, the recent fights for minor league unionization is a reminder that every player deserve security when the day comes to hang up the glove and stow away the bat. Two former Twins pitchers are stuck on the cusp of that security: Chris Archer and Michael Pineda. Both remain unsigned after disappointing years (Pineda played with the Tigers with a 5.79 ERA), but only need a handful of days to ensure their ten year service. The difference of making it is huge—particularly guaranteed pension and retirement. Even for players who have invested their earnings intelligently, the ten year mark is also one of respect. Obviously this early in the season, most teams may be looking to win than make room on a roster, but hopefully some mid-season teams with some injuries may take a flyer on these guys and get them to their deserved career milestones. Sánchez A Likely Giant This Year Gary Sánchez remained something of an enigma in his one year with the Twins: though his defensive statistics notably improved during his year, full-time catching duties did little to suit him. More so, it became notable how effuse pitchers were in their praise for trade deadline replacement Sandy Leon, suggesting some animosity toward Sánchez's ability to call the game. The former Yankee-turned-Twin went unsigned all offseason where he played in the World Baseball Classic for the Dominican Republic. However, earlier this month he signed a minor league deal with the San Francisco Giants. Sánchez is still considered in ramp up mode to ensure he's in good shape, but it is more than likely he'll soon make an appearance. The Giants called up Austin Wynns as a back up after a the season-ending injury of Roberto Pérez while Joey Bart was on the IL. Bart is back now, but Wynns has taken a major league deal with the Dodgers, making Sanchez officially the #3 man after Bart and Blake Sabol. Talking to Susan Slusser for the San Francisco Chronicle, Sánchez explained his hopes for a bounce back. “I think what happens is that a lot of people tend to just remember what I’ve done in the past, and I do agree that I had issues defensively. “However, they don’t look at what I’ve done in the last couple of years.” Cave Adds to the Vibes Jake Cave accepted a minor-league deal last year with the Twins before becoming a key reinforcement for a sinking ship in the final months of the season. Cave still remained an underperformer, but became a particularly clutch hitter in the stretch. The center fielder remains one of the most essential defenders in the league, however, and quickly found a place on the World Series runner up Phillies. As has been well reported, the Phillies perhaps leaned too much into building their 2022 team through players best suited to the DH, and Cave (along with trade deadline pickup and designated Wet Guy Brandon Marsh) has fit snuggly into a platoon position. Cave's hitting has not exactly picked up—save for a surprising dinger off Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara—but Cave will likely continue to fit into a team built entirely on vibes. Sanó Still an Unknown Though his 2022 season did not go as planned, I doubt that even Twins fans expected that no team would take a look at signing former first baseman Miguel Sanó. The Twins made their parting when they opted for Sanó’s equivalent in Joey Gallo, but surely other teams could have used a strong bat with the kind of power he can deliver. Sanó has had an odd off season. He held a workout in February for teams though to little fanfare. More so, Sanó’s father was murdered in the Dominican Republic that same month, though the two were not close. Some have circulated that Sano might find a place on the Phillies given they are down both Rhys Hoskins and Derrick Hall.

For years, the Minnesota Twins operated as though Byron Buxton was a slap hitter with the ability to get on base only by putting the ball on the ground. Utilizing his otherworldly speed, it seemed the goal was to bunt or put the ball in play and then hope his quickness would translate to miscues by the defense. Since 2019, we have seen Buxton become among the best hitters in baseball. In maturing as a player, he retooled his swing and distanced himself from a process that left so many of his skills going to waste. From the Bomba Squad year up until last season, Buxton owned an .874 OPS which translated to a 136 OPS+. The only problem is that his on-base abilities have never taken off. For years it has seemed like Buxton was more of a gap and power hitter than he was truly a singles and stolen base guy. As much speed as he possesses, there is no denying that the thump brought by his bat can be powerful. On a per-162 game basis, Buxton’s home run numbers rival those of Aaron Judge and Mike Trout. With power traditionally comes strikeouts though, and while they represent an out just like any other, drawing walks to even things out is a must. When the Twins signed Joey Gallo this offseason the immediate sentiment was another Miguel Sano type player being brought into the fold. That’s not necessarily wrong in and of itself, but the reality is that Gallo has consistently produced strong on-base skills to go with his power. Sano only flashed that in small bursts, and had he been able to continue, there is less of a chance he’d be unemployed right now. Unfortunately for Buxton, he not only isn’t a great average hitter (which is fine), but he has failed to consistently deliver in the on-base category (which is not). Buxton’s slash line is so heavily skewed toward his slugging percentage that any time he goes through slumps the lack of production will be massively felt. He’s not quite a three true outcomes player, but he is much more closely tied than anyone with his abilities should be. In 2023 the Twins have seen Buxton strike out a league-high 25 times across just 16 games. He has drawn just six walks to offset that output. While Buxton was named an All-Star last year he struck out in a whopping 30.4% of his at bats. That’s just north of his career average, and has jumped all the way to 35.7% in the early going of 2023. With a process resulting in that much whiffing, it’s not surprising the contact isn’t ideal either. Buxton’s 23.7% hard hit rate is a career-low, and well off the 40% he has tallied each of the past two seasons. He is actually chasing similar to previous seasons at 32.7%, but any time he swings out of the zone it has resulted in just a 55.8% contact rate. There hasn’t been a substantial change in the way pitchers have attacked Buxton when he steps in this year either. He’s seeing a similar number of fastballs and offspeed offerings, but the usage of curveballs against him has doubled. That could be reflective of intention, or simply the repertoire carried by those arms he has faced. At any rate, strikeouts have long been an issue for Buxton, and maybe not stated to the degree of a Sano or current teammate Gallo. Both of those players have career OBP numbers north of .325. Since Buxton broke out in 2019, he has generated just a .316 OBP and he falls off a cliff entirely when the slugging output is not there. For 2023 Buxton has a paltry .300 OBP, and his .687 OPS makes him a 94 OPS+ hitter. That might be fine if he was also providing elite outfield defense. As a top-of-the-order designated hitter, it isn’t what the Twins can handle at all. This is still a relatively small sample size for 2023, but the trend is a concerning one that has gone on for years. Buxton needs to strike out less, or find a way to generate more walks. Being an all or nothing guy that misses time and doesn’t regularly play defense isn’t good for anyone involved.

In 2020, as we impatiently waited for the shortened season to start, we knew one thing about the Twins: they would crush left-handed pitchers. Any southpaw that had to negotiate a lineup filled with right-handed power like Nelson Cruz, Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano, Mitch Garver, and new addition Josh Donaldson would need to pack a lunch. We had seen it the year before, when the Twins as a team had posted an 872 OPS versus left-handers, the best mark in MLB. Then this happened: YEAR OPS RANK 2019 872 1 2020 658 27 2021 725 22 2022 701 20 Not only did they slide from first to 27th in 2020, but even when we got back to playing full seasons of baseball, they continued to languish in the lower third of the league. There have been two problems, one weird and one common. The weird first problem is that Twins’ right-hander batters didn’t crush left-handers the way we expected. Here are all the right-handed hitting and switch-hitting Twins who had at least 100 plate appearances versus southpaws over the last three years. Player OPS▼ Nelson Cruz 1.142 Carlos Correa 0.945 Byron Buxton 0.927 Josh Donaldson 0.912 Kyle Garlick 0.837 Jose Miranda 0.821 Ryan Jeffers 0.794 Gio Urshela 0.775 Mitch Garver 0.754 Jorge Polanco 0.734 Andrelton Simmons 0.635 Miguel Sanó 0.630 Gary Sanchez 0.554 Gilberto Celestino 0.533 Some of those names I mentioned earlier continued to mash, but Garver was suddenly human, and Sano batted like he went up their hitting left-handed. Even Gary Sanchez had problems with what should have been his bread and butter. I’ve also highlighted the players that are still with the organization this year. The only regular that isn’t in the top half of that list is Jorge Polanco, who is a switch-hitter, but hitting left-handed is his strong side of the plate. That could make him a candidate to sit versus left-handers, though there is no indication that is coming soon. Which brings us to the second problem. Most teams face the second problem: their left-handed batters just don’t hit left-handed pitchers very well. This is easily illustrated by taking a look at the two most potent left-handed bats in the lineup from 2020 through 2022, Luis Arraez and Max Kepler. Arraez, who was the AL Batting Champion last year, has hit just .256 versus left-handers over the last three years. Read that last sentence again. That's a stark discrepancy, but Kepler has been quite a bit worse. 420 MLB players have had at least 100 plate appearances versus left-handed pitchers over the last three years. Kepler’s 552 OPS (not a typo) ranks him 385th on that list. Yet the Twins have invested 301 plate appearances in that futility. It doesn’t look like they’ll be doing so this year, or at least not as often, because one of the themes of the offseason was gathering veteran right-handed bench bats. The offseason started with them trading for Kyle Farmer, and the offensive skill on which he has built his career is hitting left-handers hard. Over the last three years he has posted a 880 OPS against southpaws. The last move they made was signing infielder Donovan Solano to one-year deal. Solano has hit .313 versus left-handers over the last three years, posting a 815 OPS. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like either of those guys will play much in a corner outfield spot, and that’s where Kepler and left-handed hitting Joey Gallo play. Gallo has posted just a 664 OPS versus left-handers the last three years. That’s better than Kepler, but still provides an opportunity for an upgrade. Enter Michael A. Taylor , who the Twins acquired from the Royals late this offseason. Taylor is known more for his defense than his offense (career OPS of 677), but he has continued to do damage versus left-handers over the last three years, posting a 722 OPS. With their revamped bench, the Twins can trot out guys who can swing from the right side of the plate in eight of their nine spots in the lineup – and still have one extra guy on the bench. Plus they will likely have right-handed outfield thumper Kyle Garlick stowed away in AAA-St Paul in case of an emergency. The Twins haven’s said publicly that fortifying their lineup versus left-handed pitching was a priority this offseason, so maybe this wasn’t purposeful; maybe it was just fortunate. Whatever. Manager Rocco Baldelli appears to have the chess pieces to respond when a southpaw is on the mound, either as a reliever or a starter. Soon we’ll see if all that preparation fixes the three-year-old problem.

One year ago, the Twins began the 2022 season with high hopes of bouncing back from a terrible 2021 campaign. Minnesota added veteran pitchers like Chris Archer, Dylan Bundy, and Joe Smith to fill out the pitching staff. The team also cleared Josh Donaldson off their books by dealing him to the Yankees for Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela. As the 2023 season begins, all four players are still searching for big-league opportunities. Chris Archer, SP 2022 Stats: 25 G, 102 2/3 IP, 4.56 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 84 K, 48 BB, 85 ERA+ Minnesota signed Archer to a one-year, $3.5 million contract late last offseason after the end of the lockout. The hope was he would add depth to the rotation, but he was coming off two seasons where he had pitched limited innings. Before signing, Archer sent data to prospective teams to show he was ready for the season, and the Twins liked that he was close to ready to start the season. Minnesota hoped Archer could continue to build up his innings throughout the season, but that never came to fruition. He pitched five innings or fewer in every appearance. His name has recently been tied to the Toronto Blue Jays, but he had yet to sign when this story was written. Dylan Bundy, SP 2022 Stats: 29 G, 140 IP, 4.89 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 94 K, 28 BB, 79 ERA+ Minnesota had plenty of rotation spots to fill in 2022, and Bundy became the first veteran signing before the lockout. The Twins signed him to a one-year, $4 million option worth an extra $1 million when they bought out his club option this winter. Bundy’s 2022 performance was underwhelming, but he made the most starts on the Twins last season. The Twins needed someone to cover innings, and Bundy could take the ball every fifth day, even if the results were subpar. Like Archer, his name has been tied to the Blue Jays, but he has yet to sign a deal. Gary Sanchez, C 2022 Stats: 128 G, .205/.282/.377 (.659), 24 2B, 16 HR, 89 OPS+ After trading Mitch Garver, the Twins needed catching depth to pair with Ryan Jeffers. Sanchez took on a more full-time role when Jeffers suffered a fractured thumb. The Twins worked to improve Sanchez’s defense, and he saw marginal improvements. He played with the Dominican Republic during the World Baseball Classic and went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts and a walk. The 2019 season was the last time he had an above-average OPS+. Sanchez is one of few free-agent catchers remaining on the market, and Oakland or Boston might be a potential landing spot for the backstop. Miguel Sano, 1B/DH 2022 Stats: 20 G, .083/.211/.133 (.345), 1 HR, 3 OPS+ Sano’s Twins tenure ended on a sour note after missing time with a pair of right knee injuries. He didn’t appear in a game after July 29th. There were up and down moments throughout Sano’s professional career as he tried to live up to his billing as a top-100 prospect. He struck out 119 times or more in every full season and led baseball with 90 strikeouts in 2020. Sano had some highs with the Twins, including an All-Star Game appearance, four seasons with 25+ home runs, and a 116 OPS+ for his career. In early February, he held a workout for interested clubs but remains unsigned. When healthy, he will likely need to accept a minor league contract to prove he is 100% or head to a foreign league for the 2023 season. Will any of these four players return to the big leagues this season? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

For the Minnesota Twins, 2023 represents an opportunity to right the ship. Rocco Baldelli got off to a great start in his managerial career, but since the 2019 Bomba Squad, things haven’t been the same. Despite a postseason berth in 2020, the Twins have missed playoff baseball each of the past two years. This roster looks the part of being the best we’ve seen in some time, and the front office now wants to see it matter on the field. While we are still a bit away from seeing the Twins in game action, there is plenty to catch up on from the offseason. Who’s Out From the Opening Day roster last year, just 14 players currently remain in the system. Notably, starting catcher Gary Sanchez is gone, and so too are starting infielders Luis Arraez and Gio Urshela. Minnesota flipped the arbitration-eligible Urshela to the Los Angeles Angels for prospect Alejandro Hidalgo, while Arraez’s departure brought in Jorge Lopez (along with Jose Salas and Byron Chourio). The rotation will no longer see Dylan Bundy or Chris Archer among it, and longstanding organizational piece Miguel Sano remains unemployed at the moment. For Minnesota, this roster is one of renewed belief. Although Arraez was beloved by fans, his deal brought in much-needed pitching help. It will be weird to see Sano in a different uniform if and when he ever surfaces again, but not being in the organization has removed a vein for storylines. The rotation a season ago was largely pieced together, and with both departures for the Twins still being unemployed, it’s not shocking that the new group shows more promise. Who’s In Most importantly, Carlos Correa is back. Although it took some weird twists and turns to happen, Correa is with the organization at least for another six years, meaning that his deal lines up perfectly with Byron Buxton’s. A true superstar shortstop, Twins fans could watch C4 trend towards an eventual Hall of Fame enshrinement due to his exploits in the new Minnesota threads. The shortstop is also joined by a new backstop in Christian Vazquez. He is expected to start the bulk of Minnesota’s games, and will push Ryan Jeffers into more of a reserve role than he saw a season ago. The outfield grabbed an addition in Joey Gallo, and while he’ll need to bounce back from a down season with the Dodgers and Yankees, he adds defensive talent that could make Minnesota’s outfield the best in baseball. The rotation brings back Kenta Maeda at 100% after missing last season due to Tommy John surgery, and the aforementioned Lopez should be expected to contribute in a big way as well. The bullpen has largely gone unaddressed, but that could be an area Minnesota looks to tweak before Opening Day. Kyle Farmer was added as a fallback option, and now immediately slots in as a high-level utility player. What Are We Watching For This season is one for the youth. Jose Miranda is going to start at the hot corner and be expected to contribute immediately. Plenty of promise has followed Alex Kirilloff, and it’s up to his wrist as to whether he can be the regular at first base. Trevor Larnach has looked the part of a true impact bat, but injuries have kept him off the field. He was solid in left field last season, but will need to show he can remain healthy. That was the major downfall last year, health, and Nick Paparesta’s addition to the organization can hopefully make a quiet impact. Seeing the likes of Buxton, Tyler Mahle, Jeffers, Jorge Polanco, and any number of other players remain available should only enhance Minnesota’s chances. Which Twins player will breakout in 2023? We have seen Louie Varland win the Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year each of the past two seasons (2021, 2022). Royce Lewis made his big league debut in 2022 and should be back this summer. Simeon Woods Richardson showed up for one start at the end of the year as well. Does Austin Martin or Brooks Lee get the call? Maybe David Festa forces his way into big league action. Although the Twins may not have the top end talent of some other organizations, their prospect depth is plenty exciting. Many of Minnesota’s regulars will remain in camp with the organization. There are a few others that will play for their native countries in the World Baseball Classic this spring. Checking out a few of them in action during more meaningful games could give fans a glimpse of how ready they are for the regular season to start. With Cleveland having made just minor upgrades in Josh Bell and Mike Zunino, their top spot is ripe for the picking. Andrew Benintendi is a nice get for Chicago, but expecting Mike Clevinger to contribute there any time soon isn’t a good bet. The division is again right there for the taking, and it starts this week.

Obviously neither Kennys Vargas or Miguel Sano were ever going to become the next David Ortiz, but both were lazily compared at every juncture. As big-time sluggers that failed to realize much of their potential for Minnesota, it was low hanging fruit to bring up that suggestion. Their careers are not at all the same, and Sano’s tenure with the Twins only ended last season. Entering 2023 though, both find themselves at a crossroads. On Thursday, the Cincinnati Reds signed Vargas to a minor-league deal. He received an invitation to big-league Spring Training, and it’s the first step on his path toward a return to the big leagues. The former Minnesota prospect hasn’t played in the majors since 2017, and after a stop overseas, he has spent time in the Dominican, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. Playing 85 games last year in Mexico, Vargas put up gaudy numbers. His .324/.462/.566 slash line was punctuated with 17 home runs and 17 doubles. He played another 50 games during both the Venezuelan and Mexican winter leagues, in which he recorded 10 homers and a pair of triples. Vargas spent all of 2018 at Triple-A Rochester for Minnesota. He posted just a .752 OPS, and while the power numbers played he whiffed plenty. After being part of the 2014 Futures Game at Target Field alongside teammate Jose Berrios, Vargas never really produced more than an average big leaguer. His career 102 OPS+ was compiled across 236 games. That Futures Game also included Joey Gallo, Jorge Lopez, Michael A. Taylor, and Alex Meyer. It remains improbable that a 32-year-old Vargas is now the best version of himself, but the Reds should hardly have an impossible roster to crack. On the flip side, you have Sano, who was in the big leagues as recently as 2022. Unfortunately, he was so terrible that in just 29 games, Sano generated -0.9 fWAR. He tore his meniscus and tried to return later in the year, but the knee was not in playing shape and ultimately he was shut down. A source indicated that Sano may potentially need more time yet to recover from his injury and that a mid-season signing could be likely. He has been training down in Tampa, Florida this winter, and a workout is now on the horizon. Darren Wolfson reports that Sano will host scouts next week. It is somewhat shocking that Sano couldn’t find a deal for 2023 before the likes of Vargas, but that is solely a reflection of where his knee is physically. Sano may be looking for a guaranteed Major League deal as well, but even with a universal designated hitter, his health and production of late have not been good at all. Sano has shown an ability to hit at the Major League level, and he did own a 112 OPS+ in 2021. He was an All-Star back in 2017 and posted a 139 OPS+ along with 34 homers for the Bomba Squad in 2019. Despite racking up strikeouts in droves, his bugaboo has largely been facing velocity. Maybe a team believes in his plate discipline enough to give him a shot, but they’ll need to see a good showing next week. At the end of the day, neither slugger is or was ever going to come close to Ortiz. It is shocking to see Sano the one still out in the cold heading into 2023, but he also has a reputation that may precede him.

We rarely see players like Chris Davis, Khris Davis, or Chris Carter on the baseball diamond anymore. The Baltimore Orioles immediately looked questionable when giving Chris Davis a bloated deal as analytics began to weigh on-base percentages differently. Both Miguel Sano and Nelson Cruz have shown a better approach than some of the aforementioned names, but as each heads elsewhere you have to wonder what either have left. Recently the San Diego Padres signed Cruz for just $1 million. That is his lowest yearly salary since he was 29-years-old back in 2010. Expected to get plenty of designated hitter at bats for the Padres, there was very little evidence that the aging process had not have caught up to Cruz a season ago. Playing 124 games with the Washington Nationals, Cruz posted a paltry .651 OPS and 90 OPS+. His 148 OPS+ with the Twins in 2021 was all but gone, and he began a steep decline with the Tampa Bay Rays after he was traded midseason. Cruz still hit ten homers last year, but his .313 OBP was a far-cry from the .344 mark he has put up over the course of his career. Cruz rebounded from the .283 OBP he posted with the Rays in 55 games last year, but his slugging percentage dropping to .337 really limits what the potential upside is. Of course, the Padres aren’t making a significant financial commitment by any means, but Steamer projections have him tabbed for just 0.2 fWAR a .714 OPS and nine home runs. It’s hard to see how that type of output lasts in the lineup all year. Then there is Sano. Playing in only 20 games for Minnesota last year, he posted an unfathomably bad -0.9 fWAR. By the end of the season he was all but asked to leave the team, and there doesn’t appear to be a reunion tour coming. While Jeremy Nygaard wrote a great piece on Sano, it would be shocking to see Minnesota reopen that door. What I do think remains possible is that Sano finds himself still being a productive slugger. A season ago Sano was hurt. Injuring his meniscus and then having rehab go both slowly and poorly, he never worked himself back into shape. That has been part of the bugaboo his whole career, and tapping into a newfound work ethic probably isn’t something that a new team be able to rely upon. Sano at his baseline though can still get it done in stretches. During 2021, the Twins saw Sano post a 112 OPS+ and blast 30 home runs. His .819 OPS and 119 OPS+ excluding last year is a better offensive profile than Joey Gallo, and Sano has always shown a solid ability to draw walks and command the strike zone. He has rarely been a free-swinger, struggling more with whiffs on velocity than anything, and there has never been a doubt about his immense power. What should be notable here is that perception of personality matters. A 42-year-old Nelson Cruz is getting a chance because he brings a great clubhouse presence. The Padres can afford to jettison him if he is truly cooked. Miguel Sano is still looking for his next gig, and while it most likely will need to be a minor league deal, his suitors are not as plentiful given the track record he has accumulated. There is probably a path for Sano to have a better season than Cruz, and even by a substantial margin. The question is who will bite the bullet on allowing it to play out?

The Twins paid Miguel Sano over $9 million for only one home run among five hits in 60 at-bats in 2022. And then paid him another $3 million to simply go away. Much has been made of Sanó’s inability to stay healthy or in shape or, simply, not show up a few dozen pounds overweight. Everything above is completely true. So true, in fact, that even those who look for silver linings aren’t going to have much of an argument to make. But I still think the Twins should consider bringing him back into the fold. The expectations surrounding Sanó were sky-high well before he made his major-league debut as a 22-year-old in the summer of 2015. And despite striking out in over a third of his plate appearance, he still managed to hit 18 home runs in 80 games, reach base over 38% of the time and put up an OPS of .916. He rarely played in the field as he was coming off missing the 204 season because of Tommy John surgery, but the vision of being the third baseman of the future was still bright. Of course, we all know what happened the next year: someone got the wise idea that Miguel Sanó could be a right-fielder (while literally every not-as-smart person knew he couldn’t) and Sanó was back to playing third base exclusively by July 1. Getting jerked around caused him to struggle offensively, but still he managed 25 home runs and bounced back to be an All-Star in the 2017 season. The 2018 and 2020 seasons were both really bad, but sandwiched around a 34-home run year in 2019 where Sanó post a career-high .923 OPS. You could take the 2020 season for what it was - short with a lack of time to prepare - add it to the 30 home run season in 2021 and think maybe, just maybe, Miguel Sanó could get back on track in 2022. But that train derailed before even leaving the station. A torn meniscus on April 26 and more knee issues almost immediately after returning in July caused an abrupt end to a short, disappointing season. The Twins paid Sanó more than $34 million as a major leaguer and watched him strike out over 1000(!) times. And when his Twins career ended unceremoniously when they bought out his contract, many were happy to wipe their hands off him. And that’s fine. But as you look at the current construction of the Twins roster, you can’t help but wonder about the health and depth of first base. Luis Arraez - all 5’ 10” of him - is expected to be the Opening Day starter. Arreaz was fantastic in 2021 and led the league in hitting, but is not your prototypical first baseman… and he’s not exactly a model of healthy knees. Jose Miranda played a lot of first base last year… but with Gio Urshela getting traded, Miranda is the primary third baseman. Alex Kirilloff is a solution… if he recovers from having his arm shortened after battling wrist that cut short his last two seasons. Max Kepler and Joey Gallo are both options in the sense that they’re bigger targets, but neither has played a lot of first base recently. But that’s an easy fix. Tell ‘em Wash. And there’s where Sanó should enter the conversation. On a minor-league deal with an invitation to Spring Training. If he shows up overweight and out of shape, you can cut him. If he shows up a little overweight and in a shape other than completely round, you can send him to St. Paul to hit bombs and be a call away if the questionable depth fails in front of him. Miguel Sanó doesn’t have to be the #3 hitter. There doesn’t have to be the expectations of being an All-Star or hitting 30 home runs. But any gas that might still be in his almost-30-year-old tank sure beats the idea of rostering the likes of the Curtis Terrys, Roy Moraleses and Tim Beckhams of the world. It does for me anyway.

Miguel Sano has been a member of the Twins organization since he was a teenager. Minnesota declined his option earlier this week, meaning he will be a free agent for the first time in his career. Sano has been a polarizing figure throughout his Twins' tenure for various reasons. That being said, he is far from being the biggest disappointment of the last three decades. Over at Bring Me the News, the site attempted to rank the biggest disappointments since the Twins' last World Series title in 1991. For a franchise that has lost 18-straight playoff games, there is plenty of blame to go around. Failed top prospects made the list, like Tyler Jay, Kohl Stewart, and Adam Johnson, along with signings like Byung-Ho Park, Tsuyoshi Nishioka, and Josh Donaldson. Frustrations followed many of these players, but none of them had an impact quite like Miguel Sano. Sano dominated the minor leagues on the way to making his big-league debut. In 504 games in the minors, he posted a .938 OPS with some dominant home run totals. In 2011, he hit 20 home runs in 66 games for Elizabethton. Over the next two seasons, he averaged more than 30 homers per year as he climbed up to Double-A. All three national top-100 lists had him in their top-15 prospects entering the 2014 season, but he missed that entire season with Tommy John surgery. Expectations were high, and he began to fulfill those lofty projections in 2015. During his rookie season, Sano hit .269/.385/.530 (.916) with 17 doubles and 18 home runs in 80 games. At the season's end, he finished third in the AL Rookie of the Year voting behind Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor. Over the next two seasons, he settled into a big-league role by averaging 26 home runs per season with a 117 OPS+. Sano became a first-time All-Star in 2017 and finished runner-up in the Home Run Derby. It looked like a solid start to his career. Sano had up-and-down moments over the next five seasons. He hit 30 or more home runs in two seasons and had a 116 OPS+ for his career. Since the franchise moved to Minnesota, only Harmon Killebrew and Justin Morneau have a higher slugging percentage. His average exit velocity and max exit velocity routinely ranked among baseball's sixth percentile or higher. Few players in Twins history have slugged the ball like Sano. Fans are going to remember some of the lows throughout Sano's career. During the 2018 season, Sano struggled so much that the organization sent him to Fort Myers to rebuild his swing. If that wasn't the low point in his career, the 2022 season added to fan frustration. His final Twins season saw him go 5-for-60 (.083 BA) with 25 strikeouts. Recency bias means that his 2022 failures are the likely memory that will stick with fans long-term. Sano didn't develop into the next Miguel Cabrera, but that doesn't mean his Twins tenure was a total loss. Players of his skill set are limited in the value they can provide. He was never going to provide a lot of value on the defensive side of the ball, so he needed to be above average at the plate. His powerful swing produced mammoth home runs, and there were moments in nearly every season where he was the hottest-hitting bat in the Twins line-up. Did he fulfill his projections as one of baseball's top-10 prospects? No, but sustained success at the big-league level is challenging for many players. Sano still has a powerful swing that can help a team to win games, especially with the addition of the designated hitter in the National League. His career is far from over, and there have been far more disappointing players over the last three decades. Were you disappointed with Sano's Twins' tenure? Have other players been more disappointing over the last thirty years? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

Throughout his career, Miguel Sano has been a streaky hitter. There are times he looks lost at the plate and other times when he seems to be one of the game’s top power hitters. This streakiness can be frustrating for fans, but he has been an above-average hitter throughout his career with a 117 OPS+ and four seasons with 25 home runs or more. He strikes out a lot and doesn’t offer much defensively, but there’s no question that he is a good hitter when he is healthy. Something clearly wasn’t right with Sanó to start the 2022 campaign. In 17 games, he hit .093/.231/.148 (.379) with 21 strikeouts, and four of his five hits were singles. Typically, Sanó feasts on fastballs as he had a .653 slugging percentage versus that pitch in 2021. So far this season, pitchers were able to overpower Sanó with fastballs as he struck out nine times when facing that pitch. He provided negative value to the team, and his knee injury pushed him to the sidelines for multiple months. Near the end of June, Sanó began building up some of his baseball activities, which points to him being closer to a return. He has been completing running exercises and starting to hit, including live batting practice. His knee surgery took place on May 5; the typical recovery time is 4 to 8 weeks. It’s expected that he will need to make multiple rehab starts before rejoining the Twins roster, so that will give the club time to decide how he fits into the team’s plans. Even with Sanó’s looming return, there’s currently no clear path for him to have consistent playing time. Minnesota has been rotating through younger players at first base like Alex Kirilloff, Jose Miranda, and Luis Arreaz. All three of these players are part of the team’s long-term core, and it would be tough to justify taking playing time away from them. Obviously, poor play or another injury may play into the equation, but Sanó’s future with the club isn’t clear anymore. At the season’s end, the front office will need to decide whether to pick up Sanó’s $14 million team option or pay him a $2.75 million buyout. It seems unlikely for the team to exercise his option even if he returns to his former power-hitting ways. There will be other cheaper options for the team at first base, and Sanó may be looking for a new organization for the first time since he was a teenager. How do you think Sanó will fit back on the roster? Can he still provide value to the club? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

One theme from this grouping of lead stories from 2022 is power, home runs, and a lot of strikeouts. Again, we are counting down the Top 20 Twins Daily articles of 2022 by page views. The stories certainly created a lot of conversation, some good, some maybe less productive. Let's jump to the articles ranked #11 through #16.Jo #15 Minnesota Twins Sign Joey Gallo December 16 Theodore Tollefson Coming off news that the Twins had been outbid on Carlos Correa by the Giants, the Twins ended the week by agreeing to terms with former All Star outfielder Joey Gallo. Many, if not most, Twins fans were not happy about the decision to give Gallo $11 million after he hit just .163 in 2022. However, Gallo was an All Star as recently as 2021 with the Rangers, and he’s won multiple Gold Gloves as well. For a one-year, make-good type of deal, this makes a ton of sense. Where many fans question the decision is because the team already has several left-handed hitting outfielders at or near the big leagues. That includes Alex Kirilloff, Trevor Larnach, Nick Gordon, recently-DFAd Mark Contreras, and Max Kepler, who could soon be traded. However, with injuries, adding a guy with the type of potential that Gallo has might pay off. Or, it might not. #14 Hunter Renfroe Trade Target November 17 Cody Pirkl Twins Daily takes a lot of pride in being a great place for Twins content throughout the year, but especially during the offseason. Shortly after the conclusion of the World Series, the offseason begins and we all get a little excited about what our favorite team could do, or might do, or what we think they should do. That’s why an article like this can do well. It was known that the Brewers were likely to trade the slugging Hunter Renfroe, and the Twins were believed to be looking for a right-handed hitting corner outfielder to team with the young lefties. Logical, to be sure, but by Thanksgiving, Milwaukee traded him to the Angels for three pitchers. #13 Looking to Find a Diamond in the Rough, the Twins Have Claimed Jewell August 17 Seth Stohs What was your favorite Jake Jewell Twins memory? Well, he posted an ERA well over five in his nine games with the St. Paul Saints. That was it. The Twins were still in first place, but Cleveland and Chicago had cut their lead. The Twins needed pitching, so when the Cleveland Guardians DFAd Jewell, the Twins claimed the 29-year-old with 31 games pitched in the big leagues. Were Twins fans excited about this waiver claim, or did people just really like my creative, if not obvious, article title. #12 3 Twins Trade Targets to Watch May 22 Nash Walker Twins fans, ok, all fans, not only enjoy the offseason, but we really love the trade deadline. Before the end of May, Nash wrote an article looking at what the Twins' needs were at the deadline. What did he say that the Twins could use? Frontline Starter (they did trade for one of the top available starters, Tyler Mahle) High-Leverage Reliever (the Twins acquired Jorge Lopez who was probably the best reliever in baseball for the first half of the season.) Big Bat (the Twins traded Ian Hamilton to Cleveland for Sandy Leon, not exactly a big bat, but a big dude who was able to catch every other game while Ryan Jeffers was on the injured list. Now consider how this list compares to what the Twins needed to acquire going into the offseason. In fact, think about what the Twins still need as we approach the New Year. #11 Miguel Sano’s Looming Return July 2 Cody Christie It might be fair to say that Miguel Sano’s baseball career and his time with the Twins has been a roller coaster. Immensely talented, Sano’s career can be defined by home runs, strikeouts, an All Star appearance, and off-field issues. Despite some injuries, Sano did provide a lot of power to the Twins lineup at times, posting impressive hard-hit rates. Within a season, he could be streaky, and the streaks were extreme. He could carry a team for two months, and then he could look like he had never hit a baseball in his life for a month. His 2022 season began with a rough streak, and then he got injured and needed knee surgery. By July when he was approaching a return, Luis Arraez had taken over at first base, and Jose Miranda was coming off of a rookie of the month. How would Sano fit back into the lineup or even the roster? Stop by tomorrow as we look at at some of the Top 10 articles at Twins Daily in 2022. Previous Part 1: 16-20

It’s not always wise to judge fan morale from social media. If we did, though, it’d be easy to see that Twins Territory is unhappy with the current product. Why wouldn’t they be? The Twins haven’t won a playoff game since I was four years old. They haven’t won a playoff series since I was two. After a long and grueling rebuild post-2010, it looked as though the Twins were emerging from the pits. The 2019 team won 101 games behind – yes, Nelson Cruz – but also the core Twins fans had heard about for so long. Miguel Sanó was a monster in the second half, Max Kepler was Twins Daily’s team MVP, and Jorge Polanco was an All-Star. Byron Buxton and José Berrios also shined, furthering excitement for the future. To call the next page a letdown would be an understatement. The Twins won the Central again in the shortened 2020 season but once again bowed out early in a playoff sweep to the Astros. They haven’t recovered. In back-to-back seasons, the Twins have missed the playoffs and won less than 80 games. The picture of a treacherous 2021 is the faces of Alexander Colomé, J.A. Happ, Matt Shoemaker and Andrelton Simmons, all half measure additions who flopped beyond belief. It was similar in 2022, with Emilio Pagán, Joe Smith, Chris Archer and Dylan Bundy failing to make a positive impact. The short-term, marginal moves have exploded violently. It’s true that the Twins lost quite a few players to long-term injuries in both of those seasons. It’s also undeniable that the team’s rotation is the deepest it has been on paper under the Derek Falvey regime. The club does have some exciting young talent, including Jhoan Durán, José Miranda, Joe Ryan, Royce Lewis and a 25-year-old Luis Arraez. Brooks Lee is on his way and Louie Varland and Simeon Woods Richardson showed they are ready to help the cause. For all of those reasons, it’s imperative the Twins add impact talent this offseason. It’s time to find an identity and preferably one built around the star-studded pair of Carlos Correa and Byron Buxton. The Twins need winning ballplayers to lead the hopeful Buxton-Lewis-Lee-Miranda era. No more half measures. It’s difficult to feel much optimism about the oft-injured 2023 roster. It’s not hard to see it going well, though, if the team has a productive offseason and better health. The 2022 Twins, with Bundy and Archer stapled in the rotation, were tied for first place in the Central on September 4th. They led the division for much of the summer. This division is quite the opposite of intimidating, even with Cleveland’s special season and the addition of Josh Bell. The longer the Twins fail to win in the playoffs, the more fans doubt they ever will. It has to happen now. With Sonny Gray, Tyler Mahle and Kenta Maeda all entering free agency after the season, the Twins’ urgency to add long-term, impact solutions should be busting at the seams. The type of winter the Twins need requires them to get out of their comfort zone, both in ownership and in the front office. This is not a “desperate times call for desperate measures” situation but more of an opportunity to grow in the face of extreme uncertainty and doubt. The Twins need to fully commit to winning in 2023. No more half measures.

Over the past few seasons we have heard plenty about Royce Lewis, Trevor Larnach, Jose Miranda, and Alex Kirilloff. High-round picks and gaudy draft grades, each of them has developed plenty of fanfare while producing on the farm. Kirilloff was the first of the bunch to reach the big leagues, making his debut in 2020 during the postseason when Josh Donaldson left a void in Rocco Baldelli’s lineup. In the two full seasons since, Kirilloff has done, little playing just 104 games with a career .694 OPS. Is this the season that finally sees it come together? Last year Kirilloff began the season as Minnesota’s Opening Day left fielder. Miguel Sano was still on the roster and had yet to go through his handful of completely ineffective games. Kirilloff was going to figure prominently into the plans at first base, but there was no reason to limit his athleticism until absolutely necessary. We know now that Sano didn’t last long for the Twins in 2022, and Kirilloff spent almost half of his time in the big leagues last year playing first base. Like Sano however, Kirilloff saw his production tail off in dealing with a wrist injury and it was ultimately a combination of Miranda and Luis Arraez that needed to man an abandoned position. With the hope of health in the year ahead, Minnesota is counting on Kirilloff to be who he showed he was on the farm. After a nagging wrist injury sapped Kirilloff’s power in 2021 and caused him to play just 59 games for Minnesota, he underwent offseason surgery to address the problem. The slow start in 2022 eventually led to a demotion to Triple-A St. Paul in hopes of figuring out a way to play through the injury effectively. The former first round pick noted that he had to shut down his offseason program due to discomfort, and he truly never worked his way back to 100% coming into the year. That was a gut-punch knowing what Minnesota needed from him, and led to an entirely unsurprising result when he managed just 45 games in 2022. This offseason Kirilloff will again be coming back from surgery, but this time he’s had a bone in his wrist shaved down in hopes of alleviating pain and providing a more realistic path forward. In over 316 minor league games the former top prospect posted an .895 OPS. While that doesn’t directly correlate to Major League success, the hope has always been that the true production would be somewhat similar. Kirilloff was shut down earlier in 2022 and wound up having surgery in August. With more of a runway to work himself back into baseball activities, the hope would be that Minnesota returns 100% of the player that they counted on when calling him up for the 2020 postseason. Kirilloff too has to be hoping for an ability to regain the form that saw him as the darling of so many prospect lists. A year ago the Minnesota Twins experienced some of the most substantial stays on the injured list across all of baseball. With a new head athletic trainer in the fold, there has to have been some level of communication with expected producers even in the early stages of Nick Paparesta’s time with the club. Connecting with Kirilloff and making sure the plan for the offseason is going smoothly is a must. The Twins can’t get to Spring Training and have uncertainty, and it would be catastrophic to hear initial reports of a shutdown or lack of healing come the regular season for the second year in a row. Now 25-years-old, it’s not as though Kirilloff’s injury history is a death sentence, but it’s becoming increasingly necessary to see a substantial level of performance at the highest level. The Twins are counting on him in the season ahead, and you can bet he’s itching to prove he belongs as well.

Derek Falvey and Thad Levine signed Miguel Sano to a three-year extension worth $30 million right before the 2020 season. Sano was coming off a year as a key contributor to the Bomba Squad. He blasted a career-best 34 homers while playing 105 games. His .923 OPS was easily a career-high, and at 26 years old, he looked the part of a premier power hitter. From that point forward, Sano was basically league-average offensively. In 208 games with the Twins from 2020 on, he slashed .207/.295/.441 with 44 homers. Health was an issue, and there were plenty of periods where it looked unnecessary to have him on a big-league roster at all. The 20 games he played in 2022 accounted for a team-worst -0.9 fWAR, and only 20 players made appearances in the majors last season while being worse. Now a free agent for the first time in his career, a once highly-regarded prospect will see an expected amount of scrutiny on the open market. Not only does Sano need to prove he can still be an asset at the major-league level, but he’ll need to also show he’s healthy and worthy of a presence in a major-league clubhouse. The adoption of the designated hitter in the National League is a welcomed reality, and that gives Sano another 15 teams that realistically could use his services. He’s still relatively young, even if it shouldn’t be expected that he ages well. Sano can handle first base, although he’s a bit below average there. I don’t think any team will get Terry Ryan crazy and put him in the outfield, so his roster flexibility is largely limited. (That said, maybe at this stage in his career, Sano might actually try to become a decent outfielder...) Having been paid through his buyout and having made a decent amount on the extension, it would stand to reason that Sano could probably be had for peanuts. If he’s going to get a guaranteed major-league deal, which seems like somewhat of a longshot, a couple of million bucks should do the trick. He could also very likely be headed toward a minor-league deal with an invite to Spring Training. A team with nothing to lose and low expectations could be a good fit for Sano. Maybe Derek Shelton would welcome him to the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Miami Marlins could be a team to make use of him as a designated hitter, and he’d certainly feel at home in Florida. The Royals and Tigers have taken fliers on worse, but I’d bet they’ve seen enough over the years. Maybe Oakland tried to get something out of him, or the Rockies could be determined that the ball would fly at Coors Field. Seeing him go anywhere with real aspirations seems difficult. This is and never was going to be another David Ortiz scenario, no matter how many times it has been mentioned. Sano is not young, and there isn’t some key to unlocking a superstar. He’s a fine slugger that’s a known commodity, and the upside isn’t immense. It will be weird seeing him in another uniform for 2023, but here’s to hoping he makes the most of it.

Trey Mancini is just coming off the best feeling in the world of baseball: a World Series championship. At the beginning of the season, Mancini was with the Baltimore Orioles, the organization he had played for since they drafted him in 2013. The Orioles were just getting hot as Mancini's bat cooled off, but the Astros still saw something. The 30-year-old was part of a three-team trade that sent him from Baltimore to Houston. Mancini was hitting .268/.347/.404 with ten homers before the trade and was a "high-value" hitter, which would undoubtedly have helped in the postseason. Mancini came in as a veteran player at first base and helped alleviate some pressure from struggling first baseman Yuli Gurriel. He could also serve as a DH, and played 31 games in the corner outfield positions, but his bat was most attractive to the Astros. However, Mancini slumped in Houston, hitting .176/.258/.364, and struggled in the postseason. One could easily blame that on a major trade late in the season and after being with a club for six seasons, but he certainly did not produce like the Astros’ thought he would at the plate. However, he did play great defense, which helped secure game five of the World Series. He snagged a hit off Kyle Schwarber and got his first postseason hit in game six, which resulted in a run. He did both of these coming off the bench. He shared his frame of mind with Michael Shapiro of Chron in a post-game interview. “In a series of this magnitude, you can’t reflect on what’s going on. You have to look forward,” Mancini explained. “You gotta wash [your mistakes], go to the next day and be ready for your team.” The Twins can relate to late-season and postseason struggles. They started hot last season but faltered after the All-Star break, mainly due to injuries. Those injuries forced the organization to bring up many Triple-A players pushed to the big leagues potentially before they were ready, and those injuries leave a lot of question marks in exactly the positions where Mancini played. Twins players cycled through first base and designated hitter last year after Miguel Sano was injured. Luis Arraez will certainly play one of those spots after earning himself the American League batting title and contributing heavily to many of the Twins' wins. But even Arraez's time was limited due to injuries and pain, but still earned his first Silver Slugger Award. Meanwhile, the Twins' corner outfield positions are mostly manned by unproven younger players, many of whom have injury concerns, and almost all of whom hit left-handed. Mancini's veteran right-handed bat is a great compliment to those spots, too. So there are a lot of places where he would be a benefit to the squad. Plus, with Mancini's late-season fade, the Twins could likely offer him a short-term deal. Mancini would be a better overall player than the Twins' Kyle Garlick, who the Twins signed on November 15 to a one-year $750,000 deal to avoid arbitration. Garlick managed to have good numbers in 2022 despite being hurt throughout the season. Garlick has worked out well for the team, particularly his ability to get clutch hits off lefties, but his role has been limited, and he's had trouble staying healthy, too. Mancini's health is also a significant part of his story. After his breakthrough 2019 season, he missed the 2020 season with stage III colon cancer. His return earned him the 2021 AL Comeback Player of the Year award. 2022 was another step forward, and ended in a World Championship. Perhaps 2023 can, too? That would also be a good fit for Mancini and the Twins. What do you think? Do you like Mancini as a pickup for the Twins this offseason? Tell us in the comments below.

Miguel Sanó is one of the biggest young stars to ever come through the Minnesota Twins franchise – figuratively and literally. Both these qualities would ultimately come to play against him, in terms of expectation and perception. A Rising Prodigy His emergence as a youth in the Dominican Republic drew the attention of filmmakers, who produced a documentary detailing Sanó's courtship from major-league teams. Amid controversy swirling around his actual age, Minnesota was able to swoop in and sign him for a franchise-record $3.15 million bonus. From there, Sanó began a rapid pro ascent. The third baseman flashed his immense slugging prowess in the low minors and quickly established himself as a premier prospect, ranking #4 overall on MLB.com's rankings after 2013. Then, in spring of 2014, he tore the UCL in his right elbow, requiring Tommy John surgery and wiping out his age-21 season. It was sadly the beginning of a nonstop cycle of physical setbacks that would keep Sanó from ever settling into any sustained healthy groove in his career. He came back in 2015 and quickly reached the majors. He was as advertised, slashing .269/.385/.531 as a 22-year-old against major-league pitching. Sanó consistently worked counts and capitalized, looking every bit the part of a premier cleanup man for years to come. He finished third in AL Rookie of the Year voting behind Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor. From Odd Fit to All-Star The following year, Terry Ryan's effort to shoehorn both Sanó and Trevor Plouffe onto the roster led to the ill-advised experiment of shifting Sanó to right field. As a fast-growing hulk who seemed clearly destined to move down the defensive spectrum rather than up it, this assignment did not suit Sanó. He struggled in 2016, at the plate and in the field, contributing to an all-around total system failure that prompted Ryan's dismissal. In 2017, the Twins rebounded, and Sanó was a driving force. Posting a .902 OPS with 21 homers and 62 RBIs in the first half, he made the All-Star team and finished runner-up to Aaron Judge in the Home Run Derby. At age 24, Sanó was without question one of the true rising stars in Major League Baseball, his presence registering on the national scale. In all the talk of what a disappointment and bust he's been, people seem to forget this. For a while, it really was all coming together for him. And then... The Leg Injury About a month after his All-Star experience, Sanó suffered an injury that would permanently alter the course of his meteoric career. On August 18th, he fouled a ball hard into his left shin that did serious damage. Diagnosed as a stress reaction, it never really healed, and Sanó had a titanium rod inserted during the offseason, which prevented him from being able to condition and prepare as normal for the following year. This cascading series of events contributed to a completely disastrous 2018 campaign, during which Minnesota took the drastic step of demoting a broken Sanó from the majors to Single-A, merely so he could go to the team's facility in Fort Myers and try to physically get right. He finished the season with a .199 average and .679 OPS in 71 MLB games. Bomba Squad Revival In 2019, we got one last burst of brilliance from Sanó, but it was a worthy final glimpse, offering everything we hoped he could be. Following a late start due to an offseason incident, he stepped in as a spiritual leader of the Bomba Squad, launching 34 homers in 105 games en route to a .934 OPS. Reigniting his dominant offensive game, Sanó provided many of the season's most memorable highlights, including the grand slam in Cleveland that effectively sealed a division title. By this point, Sanó was a 26-year-old with 118 career home runs and a 122 OPS+, coming off a monster campaign and seemingly ready to enter into a prodigious slugging prime. The sky was the limit, and Minnesota's front office attempted to capitalize with a three-year extension. But from there, the sky started falling and it didn't stop. Miguel's Mighty Collapse It's easy to forget, but for most of the shortened 2020 season, Sanó actually looked the part. Through 42 games he was slashing .236/.321/.549 with 11 homers and 22 RBIs. Then he cratered in the final two weeks, going 4-for-42 with 22 strikeouts, and carried it over to the playoffs where he was 1-for-8. Sanó's offensive production was solid but unspectacular in 2021, where he slashed .223/.312/.466 with poor defensive ratings at first base to produce a modest 0.9 fWAR. Nearly his entire 2022 season was wiped out by a knee injury, and now, here we are. A Mixed, But Largely Misunderstood, Legacy No one can deny that by the end of his tenure in Minnesota, Sanó was of little use. Framing his legacy within that narrow scope, however, tells a very incomplete and misleading story. Yet many people are oddly obsessed with doing so and always have been. All the way back in 2017 I wrote about the implicit negativity bias that threatened to forever tarnish Sanó's perception in the eyes of fans. For whatever reason, there's always been a compulsion to myopically focus on the negatives of his game, even in the face of overwhelming positives and legitimately exhilarating moments on the field. Ax-grinding columnists and pandering media snobs have been relentless in hurling lopsided critiques at the slugger even during his best moments, playing off the most base tropes: that because he's big and strikes out a lot, he must therefore be lazy and bad. During his All-Star 2017, Jim Souhan penned a column for the Star Tribune titled "Pounds sneak up on injured Miguel Sano as Twins get back in race," directing blame for the stress reaction in his leg to his ... diet? At the beginning of Sanó's amazing 2019 season, a local outlet blasted out headlines about how Sanó was not "good at baseball," amidst an endless volley of derision, because – you guessed it – he was big and struck out a lot. As I wrote in 2017, "Sano's historic power is enabled by his size and strength, his ferocious cuts – the very same things criticized by anyone who's looking for a grievance to air." Would it have been nice if he remained a bit more svelte and made more contact? Sure, but Sanó is who he is and was always destined to be: a massive human being who swings obscenely hard and generates ridiculous power. By singling out the negative aspects of his size and swing, you miss out on the historically rare things they enabled him to do. Sanó ranks fifth among all Twins, ever, in slugging percentage. He has hit 162 career home runs before the age of 30. Over the course of his career, he has consistently hit the ball harder than almost anyone in the world. Just look at all the red in those max/average exit velocity columns, indicating he was at or near the top percentile of all MLB hitters: His tremendous raw power produced some of the most memorable moonshots of the Target Field era. He hit the longest measured home run in the ballpark's history, a 496-foot tank off the White Sox in September of 2019. He nearly matched that distance at Fenway in 2021, where his 495-foot nuke off Nick Pivetta became the longest home run hit by anyone all season. The man put forth some of the most dazzling power-hitting highlights Major League Baseball has ever seen, which makes the pervasive compulsion to diminish him especially weird to me. To be clear, Sanó also had some notable off-the-field issues, and was subject of multiple investigations. I don't begrudge anyone for disliking him based on these factors. In fact I can't say I care much for the person, based on all I know. But from a purely baseball vantage, the general conversation on Sanó has been extremely skewed, as any honest look at the facts and statistics will show. Was he a disappointment? Certainly fair to say, especially in light of the expectations set by his own talent and his excellent early MLB output. But to say he was a bust, or bad at baseball, or "never lived up to expectations," is out of touch with reality. Sanó was well on his way to fulfilling his promise, but in a twist uniquely on-brand for Minnesota sports, his ascent was halted and forever reversed just as he was rising to his peak. It's something to be lamented, not celebrated. Especially if the ending of this story follows script and he goes elsewhere to recapture his peak slugging form.

Eight Twins Players Become Free Agents The end of the World Series triggered the official commencement of the offseason, meaning that the following players automatically entered the free agent market: Michael Fulmer, RHP Gary Sánchez, C Sandy León, C Billy Hamilton, OF Aaron Sanchez, RHP Aside from Fulmer, a solid deadline pickup for the bullpen, and Sánchez, who ended up being the team's primary catcher, these are all random midseason veteran pickups who played roles for the team out of sheer desperation. No big losses, although Fulmer will be an interesting target to pursue. Elsewhere, Carlos Correa opted out of his contract as expected. He'll hit free agency once again in search of a monster deal eclipsing $300 million. I wrote about what it will take to re-sign him as part of a three-part "Future of Shortstop" chapter of the Offseason Handbook. Anyone with a Twins Daily account can download that chapter for free. Finally, there were three players whose team options the club elected to decline, all as expected: Miguel Sanó, 1B ($2.75M buyout) Dylan Bundy, RHP ($1M buyout) Chris Archer, RHP ($750K buyout) Bundy and Archer were underwhelming bargain-bin free agent signings for the back of the rotation. Sanó's legacy with the Twins is, of course, much more lengthy and complicated. Probably worthy of a deeper examination in time. But for now, what matters for now is the way it ended: with the Twins paying $2.75 million to be done with him. Twins Pick Up Sonny Gray's Option There was one team option that the Twins were more than happy to pick up: Gray will be back next year at a $12.7 million salary. This was a no-brainer and a big part of the reason Minnesota was willing to give up Chase Petty for the veteran right-hander. Gray currently projects as the standalone #1 starter on the 2023 staff. Improving upon that situation should be a top priority for the front office this winter. Will they make an offseason addition who surpasses the Sonny Gray Threshold? We explored free agents and trade targets who could provide a legitimate top-of-rotation upgrade in the Starting Pitchers chapter of the Offseason Handbook, available to Caretakers. 40-Man Roster Shuffling Clears Room In addition to letting several players loose into free agency, the Twins also cleared up some 40-man roster room through waivers and outrights. Here's a quick rundown to catch you up: LHP Danny Coulombe was outrighted from the 40-man roster and assigned to the Saints. So were LHP Devin Smeltzer and RHP Jhon Romero. C Caleb Hamilton was claimed off waivers by Boston. SS Jermaine Palacios was claimed off waivers by Detroit. OF Jake Cave was claimed off waivers by Baltimore. All of these many removals from the 40-man were offset by a litany of players being removed from the injured list at year's end, so the Twins end up with 37 players currently rostered as illustrated in the grid below. Highlighted in red are eight clear candidates for removal, via non-tender or waiving, so the Twins will have no trouble finding room for new additions. The deadline to make contract tender decisions on arbitration-eligible players falls on November 18th – next Thursday. On that date we'll learn whether we can lock in or remove a few of those red-shaded names above, including Gio Urshela, Kyle Garlick, Emilio Pagan and Cody Stashak. Internal Promotions Impact MLB Coaching Staff As a result of a series of internal personnel shifts announced by the team this past week, a new member has been added to the major-league coaching staff for 2023: Derek Shohon, who served as the hitting coach for Class-AA Wichita last year – overseeing the breakouts of prospects Matt Wallner and Edouard Julien, among others – will join the Twins as an assistant hitting coach alongside incumbents David Popkins and Rudy Hernandez. Some other moves of note: Drew MacPhail, son of former Twins GM Andy MacPhail, takes over as farm director. Alex Hassan, previously in that role, is now vice president of hitting development and procurement. Former run creation coordinator Frankie Padulo transitions into the assistant director of player development role formerly held by MacPhail. Brian Maloney was promoted to director of minor league and high performance operations, and Amanda Daley was promoted to director of player education. Roster and Payroll Projection: v1 Here's an overview of where the projected roster and payroll currently stand, under the assumption that Urshela and Garlick are tendered, and Pagan is not. (Far from guaranteed on any count.) The biggest existential priorities, as you can see, are finding a starting shortstop (and his backup), filling the catcher vacancy, and adding impact arms. They've got nearly $50 million to spend merely to get back to the 2022 payroll level, so needless to say there's a world of possibilities ahead. As a reminder, you can explore options at these key positions of need by downloading available chapters of the Offseason Handbook, and you can use our roster-building tool to forge your own Twins blueprint.

When Miguel Sano was signed out of the Dominican Republic as a teenager, he was so highly desired that a movie was made about the process. A physical specimen was so hotly contested that bone scans were necessary to determine his actual age prior to Major League Baseball allowing a signed contract. Prior to playing a single professional game, Sano was ranked as the 94th best prospect in baseball by Baseball America and the 35th best prospect by Baseball Prospectus. His status and hype only rose from there, and he ultimately topped out as the 4th best prospect in baseball according to MLB Pipeline. He wound up representing Minnesota in the 2013 Futures Game. Sano made his debut for Minnesota on July 2, 2015, going 1-for-4 against the Kansas City Royals. Crushing 18 homers and posting a .916 OPS, Sano wound up finishing third in the American League Rookie of the Year voting, trailing only (now teammate) Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor. The offensive production was good enough for a 149 OPS+ that season. The first of Sano’s rolling regressions then took place in 2016. While still above league average with a 108 OPS+, his 25 home runs came alongside the caveat of a gaudy 178 strikeouts. Walking 53 times his rookie season and striking out just 119 times, Sano added just a single additional walk despite the massive boost in whiffs. It was in this season that a poorly-constructed Twins club also put their hulking slugger in right field. That went as expected and was somewhere between comical and disastrous. Sano did become a first-time All-Star in 2017 and competed in the Home Run Derby. By this point, he had ballooned as a player and a personality. He was somewhat of a polarizing figure for Twins fans and deciding whether the juice was worth the squeeze had begun. In the years that followed, it became an annual tradition to suggest Sano was fat, lazy, or unathletic. The truth probably never lied solely on any of those terms, but there was something to be said for their application. Sano was available for just 71 games in 2018 and only 105 a year later. He did play 53 games in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, but his 90 strikeouts led the league. After his 2019 bounce-back, which included a .923 OPS, Derek Falvey and Thad Levine decided to opt for an extension rather than the annual arbitration process. Three years at $30 million was never going to break the bank, and if there was any upside to be had at all, he should blitz by the terms of the deal. Playing just above league-average the past two seasons, the 20-game sample in 2022 was the sad trombone to this whole story. 96% worse than the league average, Sano going out with a whimper couldn’t be more true. He looked most competent during a stretch at Triple-A St. Paul this season, but there was never a point in which that translated to Major League success. There’s zero chance the Twins are picking up a $14 million club option this offseason, so the $2.75 million buyout will be his last paycheck from the organization. At 29 years old, it would be shocking if this was the end of his career, but there’s no denying the two sides would be best to part ways. Sano has generated 8.4 fWAR for Minnesota during his time, and despite losing on his contract extension, the organization has received a financial surplus thanks to his earlier years. Sano’s 162 career homers rank 12th all-time for Minnesota, one behind Tom Brunansky. His 1,042 strikeouts are second in team history, behind only Harmon Killebrew, who played in over 1,600 more games. No matter how you feel about Sano at present, there’s a good chance you’ve felt differently about him at various points during his tenure with the Twins. From hyped prospect, to prized rookie, to All-Star, to wishing there was more, the cycle as a whole probably could’ve gone much better in the eyes of many. That said, there were some great moments as well, and the expectation or longevity might have always been acceptable in a vacuum. As Minnesota will do this offseason, it’s now time to bid Sano adieu. What were your favorite moments? Does his career or production here live up to what you expected?

Although Miguel Sano spent the maximum 20 days on the injured list, he played in just 12 games. The Twins curiously had part of his rehab assignment take place during the All-Star Break which ate up time that Sano could’ve gotten in at bats. Regardless, he performed extremely well on the farm, slashing .333/.422/.795 split across a few Complex League games and Triple-A. Relegated to the back-end of Minnesota’s lineup, Sano got in just six at-bats before returning to the injured list. Drawing two starts but playing just one complete game, it’s clear Rocco Baldelli sees the slugger as little more than a revolving piece at this point. Sano was hitless in his return to action and posted four strikeouts without generating a walk. There’s no denying that the front office took as much time as they could to look at options before activating Sano. It appeared a possible DFA was on the table, and that would’ve left the Twins on the hook for the remaining $7 million or so on his deal. In a perfect world, they’d find a trade partner to offload his remaining commitment, but there’s just little reason for anyone to pay for Minnesota’s anchor of an expense. So now it remains to be seen what an eventual timeline for a return to play looks like, but it’s hard not to imagine this being the end of the road. We’re into August and the 26-man roster needs to be best positioned for a Postseason run. Gilberto Celestino was optioned to make room for Sano initially, but it’s hard to argue he’s not of more value as a fourth outfielder. Even though Alex Kirilloff is hurt and that takes away an option at first base, the Twins have developed other depth there in the form of Jose Miranda and Luis Arraez. If the timeline is short, and it probably won’t be considering the previous handling of the same injury for Sano, a decision would need to be made as to how he factors back in. Another rehab stint could happen, but that would just be delaying the inevitable. If a return can happen in something like 10 days, Sano could find himself as an option given the health of the current roster. Even then, however, that DFA from before could again rear its head. Maybe Minnesota would rather not end this era of such a highly prized prospect on a whimper, but it didn’t seem to deter them before. Across 694 games with the Twins during his eight-year career in the big leagues, Sano has blasted 162 home runs. There’s been highs and lows, but I think it’s probably safe to assume this is where it ends. Should he not play another game in a Minnesota uniform, what would register as some of your favorite memories for the Dominican product that sparked an entire documentary and put the Twins farm system on the map?

Club options are one of the first decisions teams have to make in the offseason, and each team invariably has some easy and tough choices. The Twins have three contract options to consider, and they aren’t all straightforward decisions. Miguel Sano, 1B/DH Contract Option: $14 million, $3 million buyout Sano has been a member of the Twins organization since he was a teenager, but his time with the Twins is likely coming to an end. During his eight big-league seasons, Sano posted an OPS+ of 105 or higher in six campaigns. According to FanGraphs, he has been worth more than $14 million in three different seasons, but the 2019 campaign was his last season at that level or above. Over the last three seasons, he has combined to be worth $4.5 million, so it is a no-brainer for the Twins to pay the $3 million buyout. Minnesota can use a variety of younger and cheaper options at first base, which makes Sano even more expendable. Twins Likely Choice: Pay the Buyout Sonny Gray, SP Contract Option: $13.1 million, no buyout While Sano’s option is easy to decline, the Twins will have an easy decision to exercise Gray’s $13.1 million option if he continues to be healthy. In his first season in Minnesota, Gray has a 115 OPS+ with a 79 to 26 strikeout to walk ratio in 83 2/3 innings. The Twins have plenty of options for the 2023 rotation, but Gray should be penciled into the top of the team’s rotation. Minnesota was willing to part with Chase Petty, the team’s 2021 first-round pick because Gray came with multiple years of team control. Besides Gray’s option decision, it will be interesting to see if the team decides to engage him in extension talks to keep him in Minnesota beyond 2023. Twins Likely Choice: Exercise Option Dylan Bundy, SP Contract Option: $11 million, $1 million buyout Bundy’s contract option is the toughest of the three because of his improved performance in recent weeks. Minnesota was hoping Bundy would bounce back after a poor 2021 season, but that hasn’t been the case. His ERA+ is below average, and his fastball velocity is in the 7th percentile. Minnesota’s rotation is also reasonably complete, with Gray, Tyler Mahle, Joe Ryan, and Kenta Maeda scheduled to be the team’s top four starters. Other pitchers like Josh Winder, Bailey Ober, and Chris Paddack will return from injury, making Bundy less of a necessity. Bundy has improved in the season’s second half, but it seems unlikely for the team to pick up his option. Twins Likely Choice: Pay the Buyout What would your decision be on the team’s contract options? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

Previous Hitters of the Month: April: Christian Encarnacion-Strand May: Spencer Steer June: Matt Wallner July: Keep Reading Honorable Mention III: Miguel Sanó; St. Paul Saints & FCL Twins Yes, that Miguel Sano. The one you know and perhaps love. Contrary to popular belief, he does count as a Minor League hitter this month, considering he spent almost the entire month of July in an extended rehab assignment in St. Paul. Prior to his move to the 60-Day IL earlier this week, Sanó seemed ready for his return to the big stage, batting .348/.423/.826 (1.249). Although Sanó struck out 10 times in his 23 at-bats in St. Paul, he put his power on display through three home runs and two doubles. He displayed similar numbers as an FCL Twin, hitting two homers in five games. It's likely that Sanó took his last at-bat as a Twin this month, so let's end this one on a sentimental and much happier note. Honorable Mention II: Yunior Severino; Cedar Rapids Kernels This 22-year-old former Braves prospect didn’t crack the top 20 of our Top Prospects Ranking but his performance did not go unnoticed in July. Severino led the Kernels in home runs with seven and RBI with 23, while batting .303/.446/.682 (1.128). Severino also took a page out of the aforementioned Arraez’ book, drawing almost as many walks than strikeouts (13 BB, 17 SO). As a bonus, he also contributed two doubles and one triple this month. There is no hotter player on the Kernels than Severino. If he can stay healthy, keep your eyes on this switch hitter as another prospect to watch. Honorable Mention I: Chris Williams; Wichita Wind Surge In the year of the long ball, no one did it better this July than catcher Chris Williams. Williams is another non-ranked prospect who had a career month. He led the Wind Surge in homers by hitting 11 in 23 games. Although offense often plays second fiddle to defense for catchers, Williams has defied the norm, hitting .306/.423/.729 (1.152) throughout the month. With the Twins’ need for catching depth, we could see Williams in the big leagues sooner than many other prospects if he can continue producing at this rate offensively. Minor League Hitter of the Month: Christian Encarnacion-Strand; Cedar Rapids Kernels, Wichita Wind Surge Alexa, play a sad song for us as we walk through this one. Although Christian Encarnacion-Strand was promoted mid-month from the Kernels to the Wichita Wind Surge, his hot streak moved with him across the country. This is a repeat win for Encarnacion-Strand, who was also our Minor League Hitter of the Month in April. Encarnacion-Strand’s performances for both teams didn’t go unseen. He was included this week in the Tyler Mahle trade with the Reds. The Twins will be missing out on his raw power and incredible talent and ability to get on base. In Cedar Rapids, Encarnacion-Strand batted .320/.452/.800 with one stolen base. He also drew five walks and hit three home runs in seven games. The 22-year-old was also the Kernels’ OPS leader this month prior to his promotion. As mentioned, his offensive prowess did not stop there. In fact, Encarnacion-Strand somehow surpassed his previous performance after his promotion. In his fourth game with Wichita, Encarnacion-Strand became the first player in Wind Surge history to hit for the cycle. In his 12 games in Wichita, Encarnacion-Strand batted .327/.375/.692 (1.067) with five home runs, besting even his previous performance in Cedar Rapids. According to CBS News, he has been at least 60% better than the average hitter in wRC+ in every league he has ever played in, further marking the loss in prospect depth with his departure. He will be joined by another former Hitter of the Month, Spencer Steer, and Steven Hajjar in the Reds organization. This top prospect will be missed greatly. Share your thoughts on the Hitter of the Month as well as the Honorable Mentions. Who was missed? How would your ranking go for top hitters in July?

Although this is trade deadline season, roster decisions aren’t just going to be made from the perspective of adding talent. Derek Falvey and Thad Levine will be tasked with figuring out which players make sense on the active roster now, and who they see as needing to be a part of the future. Considering three external options and one internal, which of the four following scenarios winds up being the most seismic move made in Twins Territory over the next week? 1. Miguel Sano gets DFA’d Having last played on April 30 and then undergoing knee surgery, Sano has found himself working his way back yet again. He began a rehab assignment on July 4 and posted a very strong 1.217 OPS across 12 games in his 20 allowable days. The biggest detractor for any team being interested in acquiring Sano is the correlation between production and pay. He’s still owed something north of $6 million combining the duration of this season and his buyout. Minnesota could swallow some of that when trying to find a trade partner, but he could also be a candidate to be DFA’d. Sano has had ups and downs in a Twins uniform, but leaving in a season having played less than 25 games and with a sub .500 OPS would be about as low as it gets. 2. A Frontline Starter is Acquired Fans have been clamoring since the offseason for Minnesota to acquire top-tier pitching. Sonny Gray qualified as that when the front office flipped former first-round pick Chase Petty. It’s clear that this rotation could use someone of equal or similar-ilk when looking towards the Postseason. There are not exactly that many names out there to be had, but this group would look like a deal for Frankie Montas, a pact for Luis Castillo, acquiring Tyler Mahle, or potentially netting Blake Snell. There are other starters that will be moved, but it’s hard to come up with many more names that will reach this level. 3. High-Leverage Relief is Grabbed Alongside a starter, Minnesota absolutely needs help in the bullpen. It’s been one of the worst units in the league for significant stretches this season, and outside of Jhoan Duran, the group has largely been shuffling deck chairs. It’s good that Tyler Duffey seems to have turned a corner, and maybe someone else emerges down the stretch, but it’s hard to view Jorge Alcala as a potential to return prominently at this point. A reliever in this category would be along the lines of Pirates All-Star David Bednar or Rockies closer Daniel Bard. If the Twins are going to be serious about the bullpen, they need a mate for Duran and someone that can confidently eat outs in the late innings. 4. Shock the Lineup With a Bat Arguably one of the hottest and coldest things for Rocco Baldelli’s club this season has been the lineup and run production. The worst position on the roster offensively has been behind the plate, and that was before Ryan Jeffers suffered a two-month injury. There aren't a ton of places for the Twins to prioritize a bat, but a backstop could be it. Willson Contreras is all but certain to be moved by the Cubs, and although it’s a luxury, man would that elevate Minnesota on both sides of the ball. Bovada also tabbed Minnesota as favorites to acquire the Nationals Jose Bell, which would be an odd fit, but he’s certainly been great this season. Which of these scenarios would be most surprising to you? Which one seems most likely?