Thad Levine and Derek Falvey finally popped the champagne to start the Twins free agency party by signing shortstop Andrelton Simmons to a one-year $10.5 million deal Wednesday evening. It was the type of deal myself and many others were waiting for. Simmons is a defensive genius and a solid hitter to boot, so, as long as he stays healthy, he’ll be a huge upgrade as the Twins’ everyday shortstop.

Two weeks ago, I wrote an article that ranked a few of the Twins’ offseason targets on the “Fun Meter” and I didn’t talk about Simmons, but, if I had, he would’ve fared rather well. “Simba” is a defensive highlight machine. He’s got quick feet and a long, lanky frame that give him nearly boundless range. And, his immensely skilled hands and cannon for an arm mean that no bad hop is really all that bad and no throw is too hard to make. Even beyond the physical stuff, though, Simmons’ instincts and hustle allow him to confuse and confound baserunners and make plays that no other shortstop even considers. Just watch.

As you can probably tell, I’m fairly excited about what Andrelton Simmons in a Twins jersey will look like, but this move wasn’t just made to increase the Twins’ representation on SportsCenter’s Top 10; it makes baseball and money sense, too. Simmons’ one-year $10.5 million deal is perfect for this mid-pandemic free agency period. In a time when money is a bit of a concern across professional sports, the Twins got a top-quality shortstop without making any long-term commitment. If Simmons is the player we all hope and expect him to be, the front office can work on bringing him back for 2022, but if he’s not, they can move on and he’s off the books after only a year. There’s no long-term money risk. The Twins have had success with this low-risk approach before, with Nelson Cruz being a guy that worked out and Logan Morrison being a guy they were glad to move on from.

The Simmons move is interesting for another reason, though – Simmons is a very different player than the free agents this front office regime has signed so far. In their time leading the club, Levine and Falvey’s big non-pitcher signings have been Morrison, Cruz, and, of course, Josh Donaldson. Those guys – all big, burly sluggers – show the commitment this front office duo has to playing modern-day baseball, where launch angle, exit velocity, and ultimately homerun hitting is put at a premium. That effort has paid off, as the Twins are now a power-hitting team, and a record-breaking one at that. But Simmons is a different type of player with a completely different skill set. Those guys bring brawn and brute force. Simmons brings dynamism and nuance. Those guys create runs (well Morrison didn’t), Simmons saves them. Players like Simmons still have a place in modern baseball – and there are stats to prove it – but this signing marks a break in the trend from the Twins’ front-office shot callers.

And that, in itself, is kind of fun. Not too long ago, the Twins were anything but a power team and, with very few long balls to get excited about, Twins fans learned to appreciate the little things. Defense, hustle, and contact hitting were the Twins’ bread and butter and guys like Jason Bartlett, Alexi Casilla, and even Darin Mastroianni were some of the most likable players on their teams (What’s that? I was the only guy who liked Mastroianni? Oh, okay.). By no means do I want to go back to those days, but to have Simmons, a guy who does all the “little piranha” things, but at a superstar level, is going to be great to watch.

Homerun hitters are good fun, but baseball needs action in the field and on the basepaths. Those Twins teams of yesteryear, even when they weren’t good, always had that. Now, Simmons, who can make a special play out of nothing, is bringing it back to Minnesota.