The Latest on the Minnesota Twins Free Agency Rumors

Free agency options for the Minnesota Twins have dwindled over the past three weeks as every high-profile position player and starting pitcher has left the free agent board, often at shockingly high prices. However, even though all of the high-profile arms are gone, decent options remain in free agency this offseason. We're going to run through some of the remaining names.

Nathan Eovaldi
Hands down the best-remaining starting pitcher on the free agent market, Eovaldi has built a surprisingly low amount of steam on the rumor mill. Despite a five-man rotation already being penciled in, the Minnesota Twins still appear to be a potential suitor. Eovaldi's medicals may scare some teams away from the long-time Red Sox starter, who will play his age-33 season in 2023.

Despite a down season, Eovaldi would make an excellent addition to the rotation as a potential #2 starter if he can stay on the field. Health, of course, is a big question for the Twins, who were burned tremendously by pitching injuries in 2022. Also, the Qualifying Offer attached to Eovaldi means it would cost the Twins a draft pick if they sign him. Is it a gamble they’ll see as worthwhile on a pitcher who would likely become a top 5 contract given out in Twins free agent history?

Regarding the remaining pool of free-agent starting pitchers, there hasn’t been much smoke in the Twins. Likely, they aren't as interested in signing depth pieces for the rotation as they have been in recent years, given the current 1-5 and the depth of arms in the high minor leagues.

Brandon Drury
Also noted by local reporter Darren Wolfson is an increase in interest among free agent Brandon Drury, who had a career season in 2022.

Drury’s market was slow for the past month but may be building in recent days. A third baseman primarily, Drury has played a bit of corner outfield, and the Twins would undoubtedly benefit from another right-handed bat with some thump. Drury’s 123 wRC+ would have ranked 5th in 2022 behind Luis Arraez, and his 28 homers would have tied Byron Buxton for the lead. He may not slot in at a particular position every day, but his bat would be a welcome addition.

AJ Pollock
After the more prominent names signed with other teams, Pollock has recently been linked to the Twins. With an already full outfield that will likely lead to a trade, the Twins appear to be searching for another right-handed bat capable of holding down an outfield spot.

For a good reason, Pollock has not been mentioned much so far this winter. At 34, he had what can only be described as a lost season as he posted his first below-league-average batting line since 2016 and battled injuries throughout. It’s not exciting, but it’s one of the few options the Twins have left to add a right-handed outfielder. Even last season, Pollock was 61% above league average against left-handed pitching. With Gallo, Gordon, Larnach, Kirilloff, Kepler (at this point), etc., the Twins could set themselves up with platoons in both corner spots to try to make up for the offense lost in the departure of Carlos Correa.

Craig Kimbrel & Zach Britton
Finally, on the free agent reliever side, the market has been quiet since big names such as Kenley Jansen and David Robertson have signed. Many potentially impactful options remain, though many come with their fair share of question marks. Could the Twins meaningfully dip their toes in the free agent relief market despite their history of reluctance to do so? They certainly have the payroll space.

Household names such as Kimbrel could make sense, as although he had a down year by his standards in 2022, the Twins could take a gamble with multiple arms, such as Jorge Alcala, being question marks. Adding Kimbrel in a position where he doesn’t have to close or even set up on day one could offer the Twins some insurance if one of their high-leverage arms misses time or struggles. The same goes for lefty Zach Britton who’s coming off an injury but has long been a reliable back-end reliever. There hasn’t been much development in the market either. They could also turn their eyes to Matt Moore, who had a resurgent season in Texas, posting a sub-2.00 ERA in 74 innings. It’s likely with this tier of reliever that, we won’t hear much momentum on deals until they’re just about wrapped up.

The Minnesota Twins trade market is likely to get rolling soon, though, for a team that rarely leaks information, we’re left with little more speculation on what it could entail. Still, with about $24m to spend to get to the 2022 level of payroll, we will likely see this gap closed across the next few weeks through free agency. Even though it won’t be spent on Carlos Correa or a similar level player, it should be fascinating to see what the rest of the winter has in store for Twins fans.