2019 Twins Trade Deadline Review: Bolstering the Bomba Squad

[Cody Christie]

The 2019 Twins roster was firing on all cylinders, so the trade deadline offered the team an opportunity to supplement the roster. How would the acquired players help the Bomba Squad?

Derek Falvey and Thad Levine took over Minnesota's baseball operations department leading into the 2017 season. Each season has taken on a different feel, but they have a track record of making moves at the trade deadline. This series will look back at each trade deadline under this regime.

With the 2019 trade deadline approaching, the Twins were in a much different situation than the previous year as the club won over 100 games. At the 2018 deadline, Minnesota cleaned house and made multiple moves that still impact the 2022 roster. Many fans wanted the Twins to acquire a frontline starting pitcher, but few starters were moved at the deadline. This left Minnesota with holes in the bullpen that needed to be addressed.

Trade 1 (July 27, 2019)
Twins Receive: P Sergio Romo, P Chris Vallimont
Marlins Receive: 1B/DH Lewin Diaz
Sergio Romo brought new energy to the Twins clubhouse and veteran leadership to the bullpen. He had been a critical component of three World Championship teams in San Francisco. He posted a 3.18 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP down the stretch while posting a 10.7 K/9. Minnesota liked him so much they brought him back for the 2020 season, where he was a key part of the bullpen that won a second straight AL Central title. 

Chris Vallimont topped out at Double-A in the Twins' system, and Baltimore claimed him off waivers in May. Lewin Diaz had put himself back on the prospect map leading into the deadline, but he's struggled to stick at the big-league level. In 57 games, he has a 60 OPS+ with 50 strikeouts and 16 extra-base hits. 

Trade 2 (July 31, 2019)
Twins Receive: P Sam Dyson
Giants Receive: P Prelander Berroa, P Kai-Wei Teng, OF Jaylin Davis
Sam Dyson was having a solid season as a reliever for the Giants before the Twins snagged him in a last-minute deal. Dyson had posted a 2.47 ERA with 0.90 WHIP in 49 appearances. Things didn't go as smoothly after he joined the Twins, as he allowed nine earned runs in 11 1/3 innings. Dyson went on the IL twice with the Twins and revealed he had been pitching through discomfort since mid-July. Minnesota even asked the Giants if they knew about the injury at the time of the trade. MLB also began investigating Dyson in 2019 after an ex-girlfriend accused him of multiple forms of domestic violence. MLB suspended Dyson for the 2021 season, but he hasn't appeared in a game since 2019. 

Prelander Berroa is at High-A in the Mariners organization, with a 2.42 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP in 12 starts. He's over a year younger than the competition, so he still has a chance to continue developing. Kai-Wei Teng has a 4.96 ERA, and a 1.51 WHIP in 18 Double-A starts in the Giants organization. Jaylin Davis has played 28 big-league games with the Giants and Red Sox. For his career, he has a 40 OPS+ with three extra-base hits in 67 at-bats. 

The 2019 trade deadline might be similar to what will occur in 2022. It would be great for the team to acquire a frontline starter, but this front office hasn't been willing to pay the high price in the past. Minnesota will likely find multiple bullpen pieces to add to the mix, and hopefully, the results are closer to Romo than Dyson. 

What do you remember most about the 2019 trade deadline? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. 

OTHER POSTS IN THE SERIES
-2017 Trade Deadline
-2018 Trade Deadline

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[USAFChief]

What I remember: They dipped their toes in the water rather than dive in, despite having a team everyone here seems to be waiting for.

What I don't remember is any of the minor leaguers traded away.

I also remember Zac Gallen, Marcus Stroman, Zach Grienke, Trevor Bauer, and Tanner Roark getting moved. There was starting pitching available. 

[Danchat]

23 hours ago, USAFChief said:

What I remember: They dipped their toes on the water rather than dive in, despite having a team everyone here seems to be waiting for.

What I don't remember is any of the minor leaguers traded away.

I also remember Zac Gallen, Marcus Stroman, Zach Grienke, Trevor Bauer, and Tanner Roark getting moved. There was starting pitching available. 

Diaz was considered to be a top 20 prospect here IIRC, but the other three were mostly just wildcards. Davis was tearing up AAA (hitting .300 with 35 HRs!), so trading him did tick off some fans here, but it seemed the Twins knew that was a mirage, since he's been unable to get out of AAA the 3 years since. 

If they're going to acquire rentals, then moving prospects the caliber of these guys is totally fine to me. Maybe we could do the old trade and extend trick that worked well for Arizona when they got Eddie Escobar and the Astros when they traded for Pressly. My goal would be don't give up on the 2022 season, but don't ship off any top prospects unless the acquisition comes with more team control.

[puckstopper1]

The Dyson injury / failure was a kick to the gut for the team and the fans.  If he would have been the reliever he was earlier in the season, *maybe* the Twins would have one at least one playoff game... ?

[ashbury]

1 hour ago, puckstopper1 said:

The Dyson injury / failure was a kick to the gut for the team and the fans.  If he would have been the reliever he was earlier in the season, *maybe* the Twins would have one at least one playoff game... ?

Thanks for making me revisit those box scores.    Mariano Rivera or Goose Gossage covering an inning or two to finish things out would not have altered the trajectories of any of those games.

[USAFChief]

16 minutes ago, ashbury said:

Thanks for making me revisit those box scores.    Mariano Rivera or Goose Gossage covering an inning or two to finish things out would not have altered the trajectories of any of those games.

But Maybe not starting Randy Dobnak would have.

[ashbury]

1 hour ago, USAFChief said:

But Maybe not starting Randy Dobnak would have.

I was replying to the Dyson Debacle.  Would you have started a healthy Big Red in place of Randy?

[chpettit19]

1 hour ago, USAFChief said:

But Maybe not starting Randy Dobnak would have.

Dobnak started because Pineda cheated. Not that they didn't need to add more arms, but if we're being honest here there were some second half events that changed that team drastically going into the playoffs.

[USAFChief]

3 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

Dobnak started because Pineda cheated. Not that they didn't need to add more arms, but if we're being honest here there were some second half events that changed that team drastically going into the playoffs.

I would say the always transient nature of an MLB team is yet another reason to add when you have a chance. 

Your rotation (or pen, or lineup) in July isn't guaranteed to be there in October. Dobnak started because that's all they had left. 

[chpettit19]

7 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

I would say the always transient nature of an MLB team is yet another reason to add when you have a chance. 

Your rotation (or pen, or lineup) in July isn't guaranteed to be there in October. Dobnak started because that's all they had left. 

I'm with ya. They should've added more that year, and they need to add this year. I think the goal every year should be to have 26 playoff worthy guys on your roster after the deadline with some prospects in the wings to fill in any holes that pop up as the last 2 months play out. The Twins tend to be happy with like 12 playoff worthy guys on the roster after the deadline.

[Rosterman]

Dyson should've been a stuf, but...well, we all know the story.

 

He is still out there, having a decent season in Mexico. How about a second chance, Twins?

[old nurse]

9 hours ago, Danchat said:

Diaz was considered to be a top 20 prospect here IIRC, but the other three were mostly just wildcards. Davis was tearing up AAA (hitting .300 with 35 HRs!), so trading him did tick off some fans here, but it seemed the Twins knew that was a mirage, since he's been unable to get out of AAA the 3 years since. 

If they're going to acquire rentals, then moving prospects the caliber of these guys is totally fine to me. Maybe we could do the old trade and extend trick that worked well for Arizona when they got Eddie Escobar and the Astros when they traded for Presley. My goal would be don't give up on the 2022 season, but don't ship off any top prospects unless the acquisition comes with more team control.

Diaz was 41 on fangraphs pre season ranking

[old nurse]

9 hours ago, USAFChief said:

What I remember: They dipped their toes in the water rather than dive in, despite having a team everyone here seems to be waiting for.

What I don't remember is any of the minor leaguers traded away.

I also remember Zac Gallen, Marcus Stroman, Zach Grienke, Trevor Bauer, and Tanner Roark getting moved. There was starting pitching available. 

Gallon was traded for a shortstop of the future. That would be the equivalent of  Lewis.

Stroman was traded for a recent first round and second round pitcher. The Twins didn’t have that. At the time their 2 best pitching prospects were Balazovic and Graterol

Bauer was a personality mess then.

Tanner Roark had less than a league average ERA. Better than Gibson, but not really going to change the outcome of the playoffs