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RHP Dennis Santana, Texas Rangers
Dennis Santana, 26, is enjoying a breakout season for the Rangers. Traded at the 2021 deadline, Santana had posted a horrifying 6.42 ERA in 40 2/3 innings as a member of the Dodgers. They DFA’ed him and then dealt him to Texas, where he’s finally learned to harness his now upper-90s fastball. Santana, 26, owns a 2.41 ERA in 33 2/3 innings, mostly setting up for a solid Rangers bullpen. Santana’s walk rate is below 7%, a career-low, and he’s throwing harder than ever. Santana is a master at limiting hard contact and has yet to allow a homer in 2022.
Santana has held righties to a measly .190 average and .476 OPS. Lefties haven’t fared much better, hitting .182 with a .510 OPS. Working primarily with a mid-90s turbo sinker and a hard, swing-and-miss slider, Santana induces a ton of groundballs. He just turned 26 and is under team control through 2025. The Rangers have expressed a desire to hold onto their young players, but if the right package of prospects comes along, it’s unlikely they’d cling too hard to the flier they took on Santana last summer.
RHP Tanner Rainey, Washington Nationals
Things haven’t gone well for the Nationals. They’re likely to sell, and it’s fair to wonder when they’ll compete again. Their current closer, Tanner Rainey, seems like a prime trade candidate. Rainey, 29, started his season with eight scoreless outings. He’s allowed 11 runs in 20 innings since, coughing up five homers in the process. The surface numbers don’t pop out for Rainey, who owns a 5.52 career ERA, but there are reasons for hope. His fastball averages just under 97 MPH with a high spin rate, and righties have whiffed on 56% of swings on his slider. His stuff is nasty, evidenced by nearly 13 strikeouts per nine innings in his career.
Rainey is under team control through 2025, so if the Twins can help clean up his 11% walk rate, there’s long-term value here. He has closing experience, is right-handed, and would fit nicely alongside Jhoan Duran. Rainey isn’t a surefire bet to pay off, and his results are lukewarm, but he has a great arm and would likely cost less than Santana or someone like Jorge López. The question is whether he can be trusted more than Tyler Duffey or Trevor Megill. Even if the answer is no, the Twins could use any bullpen help they can get.
RHP Alexis Díaz, Cincinnati Reds
Drafted in the 12th round in 2015, Alexis Díaz settled into a relief role in the Reds’ Minor League system, working his way up to a set-up role in the 2022 Major League bullpen. Díaz, 25, has a 2.32 ERA on the season, holding opponents to a .506 OPS in 31 innings. He’s walked too many, but Díaz is a prototypical late-inning reliever, just like his brother Edwin. Díaz throws a mid-90s fastball with a great slider. and right-handed hitters are 5-for-52 (.096) with one extra-base hit against him.
The Twins and Reds worked out a trade post-lockout, and rumors are that the sides have been in contact about Luis Castillo. Díaz is a rookie and under control through 2027, so the Reds may be disinclined to trade him now. It’s fun to dream of a scenario where the Twins acquire Castillo and Díaz in the same deal, bolstering two units at once. That trade would likely cost multiple top prospects, especially since Castillo is one of the only frontline starters known to be available.
The Bottom Line
The most likely route for the Twins is a trade or two for a rental reliever. It may benefit them, though, to explore deals for players under contract beyond 2022. The bullpen picture is murky, and controllable relievers could give the Twins the luxury of keeping Matt Canterino, Josh Winder, and other top-pitching prospects as starters. Of course, that could come at a more significant cost.
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