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Now, to be clear: this plan is designed to make the Twins credible postseason contenders, not World Series favorites. I'm not of the mind that they should go "all in" and trade premium future capital for the sake of a short-term push, because I don't think they're at a point of overall team quality where it makes sense to significantly sacrifice the future.
With that said, opportunities like this are not guaranteed to come along often, and when you find yourself in this position you've got to take a shot. I think these moves would help the Twins address their key weaknesses in a meaningful way and set themselves up for postseason success without selling the farm.
Here are five completely speculative ideas for hypothetical trades:
Acquire SP Noah Syndergaard from Angels for INF Keoni Cavaco and LHP Devin Smeltzer
I'll be honest: I have no idea what it'll take to get Syndergaard. He'll have a market, for sure, but he's nowhere near the top of the value chart among available starters. Having signed a one-year, $21 million deal with the Angels during the offseason, he's due about $7 million in the final two months, and a free agent in waiting.
Syndergaard has been solid this season, but far from his electric pre-surgery norm. His velocity hasn't fully returned since 2020 Tommy John surgery and his strikeouts are way down. In some ways, you're betting on him clicking down the stretch, kind of like Justin Verlander did in 2017.
Is it likely? No, especially to that extent. But even if he stays the current course Syndergaard is a solid pitcher – a clear upgrade over anyone in the Twins rotation not named Gray or Ryan – and a respectable postseason option. And the cost can't be that high.
Like I said, I have no idea what a realistic return for Syndergaard looks like, but the one suggested above feels plausible. The Angels get back 2019's #13 overall draft pick in Cavaco, who has struggled early in the minors but is still only 21 and showing signs of breaking through at Single-A. The Angels are likely familiar with SoCal native and former prep star. Smeltzer adds a bit of floor to the ceiling-focused deal for LA – a solid MLB starter or swing man with three years of team control remaining.
If this package proves to be too light, I'm okay giving up a bit more. I really want Syndergaard on the Twins, and this feels like a once-in-a-lifetime chance to make that happen..
Acquire RP Daniel Bard from Rockies for LHP Cade Povich
David Robertson is the biggest prize among deadline relief rentals, and that means someone's gonna have to grossly overpay for him. That might also be true of Bard, who's probably the second-best closer among impending free agents, but less so. As great as he was in the first half for Colorado, Bard can't escape the shadow of his track record, which includes a seven-year break from the major leagues after he got the yips in his late 20s and lost the strike zone.
That history is out of sight, with Bard back to dominating this year behind triple-digit heat ... but it's not out of mind. Last year he posted a 5.21 ERA out of the Rockies bullpen with the same top-notch fastball velo. He's the definition of a volatile asset. And giving up Povich – a third-rounder from last year's draft, averaging 12.1 K/9 at High-A ball and Twins Daily's #10-ranked prospect in the organization – for such a volatile short-term asset is a tough pill to swallow. But with the competition for back-end bullpen arms, it may take something like that.
It's worth it to get the high-impact late-inning weapon that the Twins need to protect and complement Jhoan Duran. But I'm not stopping there.
Acquire RP Matt Moore from Rangers for INF Edouard Julien and RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long
The Rangers hit gold on their spring signing of Moore to a minor-league deal, seeing him blossom in a full-time relief role with a 1.61 ERA, 2.57 FIP, and 10.1 K/9 rate in 44 ⅔ innings through 33 appearances.
Just like with Bard, the Twins would be buying high on a veteran impending free agent with a wobbly track record, but as in that case, the metrics fully back up his excellence up to this point. The lefty Moore has been extremely effective, and could bring much-needed length to a bullpen that's been leaned on heavily. Moore has recorded more than three outs in more than half of his appearances for Texas (17) including two full innings in 13 of them.
Julien and Gipson-Long are both intriguing players having good seasons in the 15-20 range of Minnesota's top prospect list. The Rangers would likely be very happy to get this kind of future capital in exchange for a flier they snagged on a minor-league deal.
Acquire LHP Rich Hill from Red Sox for 1B Miguel Sano
Okay, I'm trying to think creatively with this shot in the dark. The Twins are clearly ready to move on from Sano, so I tried to figure out a scenario where trading him might be remotely plausible. I can't see anyone giving up a prospect for him, but this feels like kind of a "why not" move for both sides.
The slumping Red Sox – now in last place! – are longshots to make the playoffs. They need a huge spark to go on a run and overcome the many other wild-card contenders in the American League. They're not going to get that from Hill, a back-of-rotation starter who's currently rehabbing from a knee injury and expected to return in early August. But let's say Sano hits a couple homers over the next week and inspires some small belief that he could come in and bang the ball over the Green Monster for a couple months. The Twins pay off half of Sano's remaining ~$5M commitment so the money is basically a wash.
Hill is not an ace that's going to turn around the staff's fortunes or anything, but he could be useful for the Twins down the stretch and into the playoffs. He's pitched reasonably well this year (102 ERA+, 1.29 WHIP in 70.2 IP) and has familiarity here from the 2020 season. The 42-year-old would probably appreciate the opportunity to go to a more legitimate contender for what might be his last chance for a championship run.
Acquire C Kurt Suzuki, Tucker Barnhart, Austin Hedges, or otherwise for PTBNL
The Twins need a dependable veteran catcher to bridge the gap until Ryan Jeffers returns. The above are examples of of no-hit, glove-first guys who are impending free agents on teams going nowhere. They'll be available for nothing of consequence, so I don't even feel the need to hypothesize a return, but it's definitely something they need to get done.
The End Result
By carrying out the plan above, the Twins would address three key needs -- the rotation, the bullpen, and backup catcher -- without giving up any truly indispensable prospects, although they would be parting with a quantity of good young talent.
Syndergaard joins Gray and Ryan atop the rotation to form a viable postseason core. Hill could become part of that picture if he throws well, otherwise simply provides some innings down the stretch. Bard and Moore power up the bullpen significantly, pushing Griffin Jax and Caleb Thielbar into seventh-inning roles, and the rest of the questionables (Tyler Duffey, Emilio Pagan, Joe Smith, etc.) into lower-leverage middle relief or possibly even DFAs.
You can quibble with the specifics, but the overarching thought is that the Twins avoid giving up critical assets by aiming lower than the top names on the market (but not much lower) and not targeting additional years of team control. For me, that's the perfect deadline approach.
What are your thoughts on this plan? Are the prices I've laid out too light? Too steep? What would you do? Sound off in the comments!
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