One Intriguing Shortstop Trade Target for the Twins

[Cody Christie]

The Twins may need to look to the trade market after losing out on the top free-agent options. One shortstop is drawing interest from multiple teams, and he is an intriguing option.

Image courtesy of David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

 

Baltimore surprised many by finishing the 2022 season with an above .500 record. The Orioles were the only American League team with a winning record that failed to make the playoffs. It felt like the Orioles were in a perpetual rebuild, but multiple years of high draft picks seem to be paying dividends. Now, Baltimore may be looking to capitalize on their momentum and put itself in contention for multiple years. 

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports that multiple front offices have inquired about the availability of shortstop Jorge Mateo. He points to the Twins, Braves, Red Sox, and Dodgers as all teams that lost their starting shortstop this winter. Baltimore has multiple young infielders and other prospects close to the big-league level, making Mateo expendable if the right deal is on the table. 

The Yankees originally signed Mateo in January 2012 out of the Dominican Republic. He spent his first six seasons in the Yankees organization before being traded to the Oakland Athletics as part of the Sonny Gray trade. Mateo never broke through with the A’s before Oakland traded him to the Padres in 2020 for a player to be named later. His big-league debut came during the COVID-shortened season in San Diego, where he hit .154/.185/.269 (.454) in 22 games.   

Mateo saw limited action with the Padres, and the team placed him on waivers during the 2021 campaign. Baltimore claimed him, and he slid into an everyday role with the club. Last season, Mateo hit .221/.267/.379 (.646) with 25 doubles, seven triples, and 13 home runs. His 81 OPS+ is below league average, but he has other skills that make him an intriguing trade target. He led the AL with 35 steals last season and ranks in the 99th percentile for sprint speed. MLB is switching to bigger bases and limiting pick-off attempts, which can help players like Mateo be even more aggressive on the base paths. 

Defensively, Mateo is an elite shortstop that ranks among baseball’s best defenders. He ranked in the 97th percentile for outs above average and was a top-five shortstop according to Defensive Runs Saved. Mateo (7.8 SDI) also finished second to Houston’s Jeremy Pena (8.1 SDI) in SABR’s Defensive Index. Kyle Farmer currently projects as Minnesota’s Opening Day shortstop and posted a -2.0 SDI in 2022. Limiting defensive shifts next season will also mean that strong defensive players have an opportunity to provide more value to their teams. He also has experience playing all three outfield positions along with second and third base. That versatility can help him fit into a different role if Minnesota wants to use Royce Lewis at shortstop when he is healthy.  

Mateo didn’t debut until age 25 because he bounced around to different organizations and took time to develop. He is entering his first year in the arbitration process and projects to make under $2 million. His skill set would also keep his value down through the arbitration process, so he should remain relatively affordable during his three remaining years of team control. 

So, what can Mateo provide the Twins? His 3.4 WAR in 2022 would have ranked fourth on the Twins behind Carlos Correa, Luis Arraez, and Byron Buxton. He would be a clear defensive upgrade over Farmer, even if Farmer provides slightly more value at the plate. As Minnesota saw last year, it is important to have depth at multiple positions when injuries inevitably strike. Mateo can provide depth and be an affordable infielder for multiple seasons. However, the Twins might not want to leave shortstop open for when Lewis returns in the season’s second half. 

Should the Twins target Mateo? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

 

 

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[EGFTShaw]

Never say Never, but at what cost would Mateo elicit? 

[Fat Calvin]

Nah, focus on pitching and a right handed power hitting outfielder.

[nicksaviking]

No, why? This isn't 1985, shortstops are not supposed to be offensive blackholes any longer. Mateo, Kiner-Falefa, I wish people would stop talking about trading assets for these bat-less options. Are these guys supposed to be stop gaps? Or long term players? Because why would you trade prospects for a stop gap and why would anyone want a guy who can't hit to be the long term answer?

Lots of people THINK they want a guy with a stud glove, offense be damned, but after two months of failing to bring runners home, the whole state is calling for Andrelton Simmons and Pedro Florimon to be replaced.

[chpettit19]

I'm with @nicksaviking on this one. What's the point of bringing in any of these no hit shortstops people are throwing around? I want nothing to do with Mateo, Andrus, Iglesias, etc. Bring in a real shortstop or quit wasting resources on them.

[rv78]

I can see this happening. The Twins love to bring in players that can play defense and NOT hit. It would be a perfect addition to go with the other black holes in the lineup with Kepler and Gallo.

[terrydactyls]

15 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

No, why? This isn't 1985, shortstops are not supposed to be offensive blackholes any longer. Mateo, Kiner-Falefa, I wish people would stop talking about trading assets for these bat-less options. Are these guys supposed to be stop gaps? Or long term players? Because why would you trade prospects for a stop gap and why would anyone want a guy who can't hit to be the long term answer?

Lots of people THINK they want a guy with a stud glove, offense be damned, but after two months of failing to bring runners home, the whole state is calling for Andrelton Simmons and Pedro Florimon to be replaced.

The Twins should re-sign Sano and put him at SS?  Gets them a power RH bat and a SS.  Defense doesn't matter!!!

[tony&rodney]

The Twins, at this point, should neither sign a shortstop nor trade any potentially useful players for one. Farmer is more than adequate until Royce Lewis can return from injury or someone else takes the position. If the Twins can pick up Mateo for Trevor Megill, fine. Let the younger guys play. 

Is it possible that Dansby Swanson was the best choice long term?

[Doctor Gast]

1 hour ago, terrydactyls said:

The Twins should re-sign Sano and put him at SS?  Gets them a power RH bat and a SS.  Defense doesn't matter!!!

SP, catching, SS & CF, the priority is what they do on the field not their bat. That being said I think we can do better than Mateo. Where we can still have the defense yet gain on the bat.

[baul0010]

1 hour ago, chpettit19 said:

I'm with @nicksaviking on this one. What's the point of bringing in any of these no hit shortstops people are throwing around? I want nothing to do with Mateo, Andrus, Iglesias, etc. Bring in a real shortstop or quit wasting resources on them.

We better be prepared for some extremely low scoring games.  Between Gallo's strikeouts, our catchers not hitting, and a Farmer/Mateo platoon, we could be seeing the bottom on the lineup produce very little.  

[RJA]

Let's stop the dumpster diving articles :).  

[RochesterDave]

The Orioles are my 2nd fav team and I have seen a lot of Mateo. He is an absolutely dynamic SS with some pop (13. HRs) and a terrific base runner with elite speed.  He would be a terrific fit for the Twins , but based on the Jorge Lopez trade last year , I would be hesitant that Mike Elias would pick Falvine’s pocket again .  

[Mike Sixel]

Why would they give up prospects for a guy they hope Lewis replaces in three months? I don't understand this at all. 

[LA VIkes Fan]

1 hour ago, tony&rodney said:

The Twins, at this point, should neither sign a shortstop nor trade any potentially useful players for one. Farmer is more than adequate until Royce Lewis can return from injury or someone else takes the position. If the Twins can pick up Mateo for Trevor Megill, fine. Let the younger guys play. 

Is it possible that Dansby Swanson was the best choice long term?

I would add Nick Gordon to the mix of a player who gets some run at SS in the first half of 2023. Now that Correa is gone, the pivot should be to letting the young guys play in April, May and June to see what we have. 

[chpettit19]

1 hour ago, baul0010 said:

We better be prepared for some extremely low scoring games.  Between Gallo's strikeouts, our catchers not hitting, and a Farmer/Mateo platoon, we could be seeing the bottom on the lineup produce very little.  

I do not have high expectations for this lineup. I've been saying most of the winter that the cries for "more pitching! more pitching!" are too strong, and they have every bit as much a need for more offense. I have high hopes for Kirilloff, Larnach, Miranda, Lewis, etc. if they can all stay healthy, but at this point Miranda is the only one I trust to stay healthy and he'd be more of a 5/6 hole hitter in my lineup.

At this point, in my opinion, the Twins need to be looking to acquire above average talent only. That's why I have no desire to have them trade for Mateo or sign any remaining free agents. They have a 40-man full of guys who could be league average players, but almost no stars. Stars win. Bring in stars or roll with what you have and see if any of the young guys can be stars. Even though I hate that that means they're slicing the payroll way down.

[Mike Sixel]

1 minute ago, chpettit19 said:

I do not have high expectations for this lineup. I've been saying most of the winter that the cries for "more pitching! more pitching!" are too strong, and they have every bit as much a need for more offense. I have high hopes for Kirilloff, Larnach, Miranda, Lewis, etc. if they can all stay healthy, but at this point Miranda is the only one I trust to stay healthy and he'd be more of a 5/6 hole hitter in my lineup.

At this point, in my opinion, the Twins need to be looking to acquire above average talent only. That's why I have no desire to have them trade for Mateo or sign any remaining free agents. They have a 40-man full of guys who could be league average players, but almost no stars. Stars win. Bring in stars or roll with what you have and see if any of the young guys can be stars. Even though I hate that that means they're slicing the payroll way down.

100% this

[USAFChief]

I'm not intrigued  

[CRF]

I've read a lot of opinions that feel Lewis is going to come back good as ever, mid 2023 season, just waltz right into the SS job, and make us forget all about Correa. I think we should pump the brakes on that a little bit and just wait and see what happens. Obviously, that would be great, but I sure wouldn't bet on it at this point. We really haven't seen that much of him at the major league level, and although he looked pretty good when he played last season, I think it's extremely early to be counting on him for that. He's also had two serious knee surgeries. Maybe he has issues with the knee when he comes back? Maybe he loses some speed/range/etc? Maybe it affects him at the plate? Who knows if he even does come back next season? Stranger things have certainly happened. My point is...I don't know if we can count on him for 2023 or not just yet. I'll believe it when I see it.  

[Mike Sixel]

1 minute ago, CRF said:

I've read a lot of opinions that feel Lewis is going to come back good as ever, mid 2023 season, just waltz right into the SS job, and make us forget all about Correa. I think we should pump the brakes on that a little bit and just wait and see what happens. Obviously, that would be great, but I sure wouldn't bet on it at this point. We really haven't seen that much of him at the major league level, and although he looked pretty good when he played last season, I think it's extremely early to be counting on him for that. He's also had two serious knee surgeries. Maybe he has issues with the knee when he comes back? Maybe he loses some speed/range/etc? Maybe it affects him at the plate? Who knows if he even does come back next season? Stranger things have certainly happened. My point is...I don't know if we can count on him for 2023 or not just yet. I'll believe it when I see it.  

I'm not counting on it working. I'm also not giving up prospects in case it doesn't work. That's what I'm saying. Just how many prospects cam a low spending team give up? 

[miracleb]

high strikeout guy who doesn't get on base......probably not a fit unless TonynRodney is correct and we only have to give up Megill.  He and Joey Gallo back to back in the line up would have me looking for Seinfeld reruns......

[tony&rodney]

We try to be positive about the prospects and younger players and hope our core is healthy quite a bit. Then there are times many people are critical because of disappointment or different expectations. This is all part of being a fan.

We hope that Jeffers can improve and Vasquez has a good year. We hope Kirilloff is fine and can play a solid 1st base and hit a load of line drives. We hope Polanco can deliver his odd year excellence full time. We hope that Miranda hits and shows that 3rd base is easy. We hope someone (Farmer, Martin, Gordon, Lee, Lewis) takes adequate care of shortstop. We hope Gallo and Kepler are relevant. We hope that Larnach, Wallner, and Gordon all prove their worth as MLB players. We hope that Buxton is healthy all year and wins an MVP. Lastly, we hope our pitching staff gives our offense an opportunity to grow up.

That is a lot of hope but it is what the plan is for 2023.

[Minderbinder]

Oh yeah!  The Orioles just finished robbing us for Lopez, let's go do it again.

[High heat]

I like that he is a good fielding SS who has great speed and a bit of power.  With the larger bases and the shift ban the Offensive game in baseball is going to change dramatically in the next few years.  
 

The question is what would he cost in terms of prospects?  
 

But with his versatility and team control I’d guess Baltimore will be asking for some decent prospects in return. 

[Chaz1966]

At what point did the thought of not using Polanco to fill some time at SS  when necessary happen? I know, I know, his defensive numbers at short aren't the best, but I'm only talking about filling in when needed. We have options at SS if it's only to get us to either Lewis or Lee, and if Polanco has to play short then Arraez plays 2b. There aren't anymore Correa's out there folks, so lets stop throwing prospects away for stop gap crap.

Sign Eovaldi and  a RP, and if you want then buy a right handed stick, but enough of these crap SS.

 

[Richie the Rally Goat]

Mateo would be a great guy to snag off the waiver wire, and waive him again to sneak him through to the Saints as Farmer insurance.

The Twins should not give up resources to acquire Mateo unless it’s another PTNBL/Cash deal.

[jorgenswest]

Guillorme from the Mets is stuck behind Lindor and Correa. He gets on base and has shown an average glove. He also bats left handed in a platoon fit with Farmer. Intrigue is too strong but I would be more interested in Guillorme as a fit for the Twins.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

@Cody Christie you said “intriguing”

[h2oface]

Maybe Pedro Floriman is available?

[h2oface]

11 hours ago, CRF said:

I've read a lot of opinions that feel Lewis is going to come back good as ever, mid 2023 season, just waltz right into the SS job, and make us forget all about Correa. I think we should pump the brakes on that a little bit and just wait and see what happens. Obviously, that would be great, but I sure wouldn't bet on it at this point. We really haven't seen that much of him at the major league level, and although he looked pretty good when he played last season, I think it's extremely early to be counting on him for that. He's also had two serious knee surgeries. Maybe he has issues with the knee when he comes back? Maybe he loses some speed/range/etc? Maybe it affects him at the plate? Who knows if he even does come back next season? Stranger things have certainly happened. My point is...I don't know if we can count on him for 2023 or not just yet. I'll believe it when I see it.  

Jeremy Peña was a question mark last year. I think it safe to say, Houston doesn’t miss Correa at all. 

[Karbo]

Mateo is an interesting idea, but the cost is what? I agree with others and would say no to a deal that requires any top prospects.