Per MLB trade rumors. Sounds like Twins are a strong possibility.

 

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2013/12/cafardo-on-1.html

Edited December 30, 201312 yr by Parker Hageman
Link added.

Ervin or Johan? Where did you see that? In his Sunday column Cafardo speculated that Johan might like to return to the Twins because his home is at Fort Myers, but that's about all the noise from the Johan Santana front. I think that MLBTR may have picked that up as well.

Johan. You're probably right. MLBTR probably picked it up from Cafardo.

hardballtalk posted an article on Johan about 6 hours ago. I think there is a very solid chance that the twins are the team that sign Johan.

That would surprise me a little bit, as the Twins have Nolasco, Hughes, Pelfrey & Coreia already slated in the starting rotation.

 

Not a lot of extra room.

 

That said, if Johan can make a comeback I'd love to see it happen with the Twins.

If its a minor league deal, I don't see how it would be a bad thing for the Twins. Give him time to get healthy and ready in the minors and when someone at the ML level breaks down or flames out, give him a shot, if he's ready. Similar to the Rich Harden deal last year.

It would be a great story for sure if he could come back but I think the probabilities of Johan coming back are very, very small.

hardballtalk posted an article on Johan about 6 hours ago. I think there is a very solid chance that the twins are the team that sign Johan.

 

 

They picked the same Cafardo piece in Boston Globe the MLBTR picked. Like MLBTR their info is second hand. Here is what Cafardo writes about Johan (from the linked above article) :

 

Johan Santana, LHP, free agent — Santana is getting closer to making a decision on a minor league deal with a team. There’s been some speculation about the Twins since Santana still resides in Fort Myers, Fla., where the Twins have spring training. The Red Sox, who also train in Fort Myers, passed. But a small-market team such as the Astros could also have some interest. Santana is just trying to get back pitching and prove himself again.

 

Apparently at some point the "closeR" became "close" in both of those second hand sources. I don't even think that he threw off a mound this off-season, FWIW.

 

I'd love it if the Twins sign him to MiLB and he certainly will put some rear ends on seats. Why not. But, I just don't think that anything is happening in 2013... Per Doogie (within the last week or so), the Twins have not made an offer. Earlier in the off-season it was reported out of NY that Santana was looking for a MLB. I suspect that nobody is thinking of that, so he might have changed his mind.

There's no negative in a minor league deal. I would be shocked if he pitches by June, and the Twins can now be patient with him. Santana knows that the Twins will take care of him and be completely patient. If he's great, great. If he's hurt (most likely), they lose nothing, just like the Harden deal.

I'm guessing it's a minor league deal where he can exercise some sort of opt out if he's still in the minors after a certain date. That type of deal is likely all he's going to get, and I'm perfectly fine with him returning to Minnesota to try it out.

Milb contact, probably with incentives, and rehab as long as he needs. Even if not ready until the second half of the season, it's a safe and very low risk option, even if it goes nowhere.

 

Ive been liking this idea for some time now, and not because he's a former Twins great. Even if he makes it back, I'm sure we've probably seen the last of his real greatness. But he's experienced, hard working, LH, and always kept himself in good shape. The kind of flyer that seems to pay off for a playe or two every year, and he could be that guy. He's not the kind of guy to necessarily bet against.

Would love to see him back. The Twins are the perfect team for him right now.

Do it! As others have said, he'd be an option for some depth later in the season and nothing hurt. Worst case, his shoulder is done and he gets to retire as a Twin.

That would surprise me a little bit, as the Twins have Nolasco, Hughes, Pelfrey & Coreia already slated in the starting rotation.

 

Not a lot of extra room.

 

That said, if Johan can make a comeback I'd love to see it happen with the Twins.

 

It's like the Harden signing. He'll need to get into pitching shape in the minors. He's a long shot to ever pitch again. He was the first to come back from this surgery and compete. He would be the first to ever pitch again after having it twice.

Yes, it's just like the Harden signing, and will most likely have the same result. Still, the chance for him to have one last bow before his many, many fan here would make the signing well worth it.

Obviously I would love this move. It would be really nice to see him come back and put together 3-4 solid (but not great) seasons, that way he would bolster his chances on making the hall of fame.

Worst case scenario, there is a retirement ceremony around July or August where everyone wants tickets to say goodbye to Johan. Probably draw more tickets than the All-Star game.

I like the idea, he's probably done, but if there's even a chance he's not, he has more potential than any of the MLB signings the Twins have made.

 

Still, the rumor a month ago was that Santana was going to have some kind of showcase in January. If he's close to signing, there will be no showcase. If the showcase has been scrapped doesn't that indicate either his confidence in an impressive showing is low or his estimation for his return was greatly overestimated?

If we sign Santana I'd like there to be some kind of handshake agreement that if the comeback attempt is derailed or not possible that he comes aboard as a minor league pitching instructor to teach our young guys how to throw a proper change up.

If we sign Santana I'd like there to be some kind of handshake agreement that if the comeback attempt is derailed or not possible that he comes aboard as a minor league pitching instructor to teach our young guys how to throw a proper change up.

 

While that is a nice sentiment, we already have the guy who taught Santana his change-up (Cuellar).

It is wishful thinking for Bobby Cuellar to teach all minor leaguers to throw a change up. Santana's success and work ethic rubbed off on others when he was here, I imagine those same attributes could help him be a successful coach for our young pitchers.

A more recent MLBTR post on the subject indicates the Twins haven't made an offer, whereas other teams have offered minor league spots.

 

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2013/12/quick-hits-defenses-twins-santana.html

 

If indeed Santana is "close" to signing with someone, the Twins would be long shots according to this POV. Fortunately, as mentioned elsewhere, the rumor process may have garbled what "close" actually means in his case.

If we sign Santana I'd like there to be some kind of handshake agreement that if the comeback attempt is derailed or not possible that he comes aboard as a minor league pitching instructor to teach our young guys how to throw a proper change up.

 

Why would he do that? I can think of 150 million reasons why he wouldn't do it.

A more recent MLBTR post on the subject indicates the Twins haven't made an offer, whereas other teams have offered minor league spots.

 

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2013/12/quick-hits-defenses-twins-santana.html

 

If indeed Santana is "close" to signing with someone, the Twins would be long shots according to this POV. Fortunately, as mentioned elsewhere, the rumor process may have garbled what "close" actually means in his case.

 

Not to mention that both the local and national media's guestimation of who the Twins are "close" to has been wildly inaccurate. Pretty sure the Twins have been "close" to signing Arroyo since early November all while the Nolasco and Hughes signings came to light with only previous guesses and assumptions.

Sounds like Santana maybe be joining the Twins! I heard this on KFAN.

The byline was DEC 29, 2013. Sometimes players sign one-day contracts in order to retire from a specific team.