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It seems like a minor trade, and it probably is in the big picture, but when the White Sox acquired 3B Brett Lawrie from the Oakland A’s on Wednesday, it spoke volumes to me. How does that trade alter my opinion on the Twins trading Trevor Plouffe? Well, you’ll just have to read on to find out.It was another trade that went through at baseball’s Winter Meetings. Some transactions are big. Others, not so much. But when I saw that the Oakland A’s had traded third baseman Brett Lawrie to the White Sox in exchange for RHP JB Wendelken and LH Zach Erwin, I thought it was a bit noteworthy. I did a little research, checking out the two prospects that the A’s will receive from Chicago, and it speaks volumes to why Terry Ryan has been so adamant on not trading Trevor Plouffe. JB Wendelken is a 22-year-old right-handed pitcher. He was originally drafted by the Red Sox, but he went to the White Sox during the 2013 season. He was given an opportunity to start at High-A in 2014, but he went 7-10 with a 5.26 ERA in 27 starts. So, this year, he was moved to the bullpen and did well in AA but struggled in AAA. That’s solid for a 22-year-old. He’s a solid relief pitcher prospect, but he’s certainly not considered a top prospect. Zach Erwin was the White Sox fourth-round pick in 2015 out of Clemson. He’s got some projectability and had a nice pro debut. Between rookie league ball and Low A, he went 2-2 with a 1.34 ERA in 40.1 innings. He walked seven and struck out 30. He is also not a top prospect. Both of these guys are OK prospects, but they’re not going to pitch in the big leagues any time soon, and their upsides are considered marginal. So, what does this have to do with the Twins? Well, we entered the offseason thinking – maybe even assuming – that Terry Ryan would trade Trevor Plouffe. In the last two weeks, he has been adamant about the Twins having no plans to trade Plouffe. He said it at Byung Ho Park’s press conference, and he has reiterated it to the media gathered in Nashville this week. Maybe it was just me, but even with him saying that so strongly, I was about 50-50 on whether or not the Twins would trade their talented third baseman. After seeing what the A’s got for Lawrie, it’s pretty clear that Ryan likely didn’t get much more offered in his discussions. Do I think Trevor Plouffe is better than Brett Lawrie? Yes. No question. However, Lawrie is three-and-a-half years younger. He’s still just 25 for another month. That likely matters in trade discussion. Of course, I don’t have any information on what discussions went like when Terry Ryan took those phone calls from other GMs asking about Plouffe. We don’t know what range of player/prospect was being offered. However, I think we can make some legitimate assumptions based on what Billy Beane got from the White Sox for Brett Lawrie. As we have said all along, the Twins do not have to trade Plouffe. Miguel Sano can play in the outfield. It’ll take some learning and adjustments, but he can do it, at least for the short term. Plouffe will only make between $7.5 and $8 million in 2016 which is not an issue for the Twins’ budget. He’s got another year of arbitration-eligibility next offseason. Who knows? Maybe I’ll post this article and an hour later the Twins will have traded Plouffe. But, although I get the desire for Sano to play third base, his natural position, if the Twins only acquire a package similar to the Lawrie package, I would be very disappointed. Click here to view the article