jcphitman

I look at it this way. The Twins could have traded a draft pick for Arrieta, Cobb, or Lynn. All in their 30’s and all requiring three plus year commitments a higher overall price. Instead, they dealt for two years of a pitcher in his late 20’s and can separate with him before his age 30 at a two year max commitment at a reduced price vs. signing a FA unless they want to extend it longer. The draft is growing in popularity. More picks mean more money and more opportunities for the FO to bring in their hand picked players. The prospect we gave up while good is from a spot of strength and an international signing from a past FO group. I know there are much more statistics to compare. I’m choosing the financial approach with this one. Archer would have been the ideal target, but the Rays have to agree to trade him. If they trade him, good luck selling 5,000 seats per game. They need to retain some sort of selling point to their dwindling fan base. Maybe the Twins can blow them away with another offer for Archer, but it does appear they’ve made their move for the rotation.

A few thoughts from last year when Hughes signed and now this year. Last Year: 1. In 2012 offseason, I remember TR saying the Twins has offers out, but nobody wanted to take their money. Many of us were skeptical. Last year, I think it proved to be a moot point at both Hughes and Nolasco took their money. 2. I think Hughes saw something here. The Twins most likely sold him on the future and their pitcher's park. He also saw the team was willing to guarantee him a 3 year deal for pretty good money (under market value, but good) for the season he just had. He saw security and took it. 3. The Twins saw something in Hughes. One has to remember he's pitched his entire career in the American League. That's valuable to the Twins. They hedged their bet on FA last year by signing a career NL SP. They were able to get an AL SP here who was still in his 20's and under reasonable terms for more than just a year on a rebound. It clearly paid off for both sides. This Year: 1. Hughes experienced the losing, but saw a light. He saw the Twins are trying. He saw the team wanted to give him every opportunity to succeed and rewarded them. He also saw the loyalty. People knock the Twins for their loyalty, but it paid off in this one. I saw a tweet that Hughes was impressed with the way the team was going and very happy with the recent signings (ie - Santana). The tweet said he was more than happy to extend his deal in Minnesota. He's not under the spotlight as he was in NY and he's growing with a young team. 2. The Twins saw a pitcher who had success in the AL before have a career year with them last year. They felt comfortable knowing Hughes had the AL track record, was young, and they could lock up for a good chunk of time under a reasonable extension. The Twins also saw a pitcher who has been to the playoffs and won a World Series. It all fits well as they have someone established to hopefully pitch well and show the young guys the was as they come up. All in all, a very fair deal on both sides. Hughes gets long term security on a team that has the pieces in place to become successful and also a place he's clearly comfortable being in. The Twins get what appears to be a good SP in his prime who hopefully can have success long term as they keep climbing. Both sides loyal to each other. Best of all, this sends a message to players out there. It shows FA's that players DO want the Twins' money and this is as good of a market as any to sign with and play for. I'm sure many players around the league and their agents are looking at Minnesota as a good place to play. They have seen the Twins finally step up willing to pay to bring in talent and treat that talent with a lot of respect. That will help us in the future as we continue getting better and start needing final pieces here and there to make a good run.

This was a great article! Nick, thanks for writing. Very good perspective. It would be hard to blame the Twins if they didn't add a pitcher. They have enough money involved in who is on the roster. I think they will probably add someone anyway (not a top name as discussed in the article ... someone who might be coming off an injury). I could also see them trying to sell off Pelf to a team that doesn't get the arm they want or a team that needs a pitcher on the back end. We'll see what happens. If there is a lack of activity on the pitching front, this will be the reason why.