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After coming up short in their quest to sign Yu Darvish, the Twins were forced to turn their focus toward other pitchers on the free agent and trade markets in order to fill out their rotation. They have since added two starting pitchers, by taking a flyer on Anibal Sanchez, and making a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays for Jake Odorizzi. Theses moves added just under $9M to the Twins 2018 payroll, bringing the total to roughly $118M. However, it is reasonable to assume that if the Twins were willing to offer Yu Darvish a $20M+ per year deal, they might have more money available to make another addition to the rotation.If the Twins were to make another move, many would assume it would be one of Jake Arrieta, Alex Cobb or Lance Lynn. According to a source close to Jon Heyman, he believes that Lance Lynn is a “pitcher of interest” for the Twins, and that he is favored by the Twins among the top three. The addition of Lance Lynn could be the move that takes the Twins rotation from one filled with question marks, to one with solidified depth. Right now, the Twins rotation to start the season would be Jose Berrios, Jake Odorizzi, Kyle Gibson, Alberto Mejia, and one of Phil Hughes, Tyler Duffey or Anibal Sanchez. Adding Lynn would give the Twins five starters that they can trust in their rotation until Ervin Santana returns, and provide added depth if one of the other starters goes down with an injury during the season. Lance Lynn had a strong performance in 2017, posting a 3.43 ERA (4.75 xFIP) over 186.1 innings, after coming back from Tommy John surgery. However, the inflated xFIP, along with a career low .244 BABIP last season cause some hesitation in thinking that Lynn will be able to replicate those numbers again in 2018. Another area of concern for Lance Lynn is his fastball velocity. Lynn is a pitcher who relies heavily on his four-seam, two-seam and cut fastballs, and last year he saw his average fastball velocity drop from the 92.4 MPH it was at in 2015, before his Tommy John surgery, down to 91.3 MPH. A 1.1 MPH drop may not sound like a lot, but when a pitcher is already throwing in the low 90’s every MPH is critical, and if that number were to drop any lower it could be detrimental for Lynn. There is one bright spot for Lynn coming off of 2017, and that was his 0.304 xwOBA. This ranked 45th amongst the 118 pitchers who threw at least 2,000 pitches last season. This suggests that Lynn was a slightly above average starting pitcher last season, and backs up his 3.43 ERA a lot better than his other peripheral metrics do. So, if the Twins really do have aspirations of signing Lance Lynn, what would it take to get him? At the beginning of the offseason MLB Trade Rumors predicted that Lance Lynn would receive an offer of 4-years and $56M. Given the way the market has panned out this winter, it might be easy to assume that Lynn would receive an offer south of that mark. However, unlike Darvish, I don’t think there will be too big of a drop from this price, if there is one at all. A big reason for this being that earlier in the offseason Tyler Chatwood signed a 3-year $38M deal with the Cubs. Given that Chatwood was considered to be a step down from Lynn entering this offseason, it would be hard to believe that Lynn would accept a deal that is equal to or less than that of Chatwood’s. If this is the case, it doesn’t leave the Twins a lot of wiggle room with either years or dollars for them to come down from the 4-years and $56M projection. Additionally, Lance Lynn received a qualifying offer from the Cardinals. If the Twins were to sign Lynn they would have to give up their third highest pick in the 2018 First Year Player Draft (75th overall). Though, unlike previous years under the old CBA, the Twins would have had to give up their top unprotected pick (20th overall). So, by comparison, giving up the 75th pick in the draft for an established major league pitcher isn’t a terrible trade-off, but it is still a factor that the Twins front office will need to take into consideration before making an offer for Lynn. Personally, I would like to see the Twins add another piece to their rotation, but the addition of Lance Lynn, or Cobb and Arrieta for that matter, seems a bit risky to me. If they are able to swoop in and get Lynn at an absolute bargain, I think they should make the move, otherwise they might be better off staying put, and look to invest more money into free agency next offseason. Click here to view the article

It's starting to sound like for the Twins to land one of top free agent pitchers still available, the player would need to accept a deal for less value than the qualifying offers he rejected. Believe it or not, this move is actually not unprecedented. Let’s take a look back at the times that this has happened.The qualifying offer came into existence at the start of the 2012-13 offseason. Its purpose was to grant compensation, in the form of a draft pick, to MLB teams that lost a key player in free agency. Since its inception, 73 players have been extended a qualifying offer and only five have accepted the deal. The primary reason for this being that teams try to avoid extending a player a qualifying offer if they think it will be accepted. Among those players who rejected a qualifying offer this winter are Jake Arrieta, Lance Lynn and Alex Cobb. At the onset of the offseason, it seemed like a no-brainer that these players would receive deals that would easily exceed that of the qualifying offer. However, as the season draws near, there is a chance that one of these players may accept a one-year deal for potentially less than the $17.4M that they each turned down, in an opportunity to prove himself again and re-enter the market again next winter. Let's take a look back at the history of players who accepted deals at a lesser value than the qualifying offers they originally rejected. Nelson Cruz – 2013 Offer Rejected: one-year, $14.1M (TEX) Signed For: one-year, $8M (BAL) Nelson Cruz was a dominant offensive threat for the Texas Rangers in his time there. During his first three seasons in Texas, 2008-10, he collected 9.7 fWAR in just 267 games, a 5.9 fWAR pace per 162 games played. However, this production fell off in his final three years with the team, where he had a mere 3.7 fWAR over 392 games, a 1.5 fWAR pace per 162 games played. Still, Cruz’s reputation preceded him, and caused him to receive a qualifying offer from the Rangers. When he hit free agency, what MLB teams saw was a three year track record of underwhelming success from a one-dimensional player. This gave the Orioles ad opportunity to take a flyer on Cruz. The move could not have panned out better for them, as Cruz hit for a .271/.333/.525 slash line, along with an MLB leading 40 home runs. Stephen Drew – 2013 Offer Rejected: one-year, $14.1M (BOS) Signed For: one-year, $10M (BOS) Stephen Drew was coming off of a career year in 2013, where he produced as an above average bat along with league-average defense at shortstop. Unlike today, players with those two skills were few and far between just five years ago. Despite this, MLB teams saw right through the aging shortstop, who had a very inconsistent career up to that point. Drew’s offense in 2013 was carried largely on the weight of his .320 BABIP, a full 30 points higher than his career average. Drew didn’t end up signing with a team until May of the following season, where he re-signed with the Red Sox for $4M less than the offer that he rejected from them just six months earlier. It turns out that MLB GMs were right to be skeptical of Stephen Drew, as he has been nothing more than a replacement level player in the four years since. Kendrys Morales – 2013 Offer Rejected: one-year, $14.1M (SEA) Signed For: one-year, $12M (MIN) The Twins’ signing of Kendrys Morales in June of 2014 was maybe the most unique of all these signings. The reason for this being that Morales didn’t sign with the Twins until June of 2014, after the First Year Player Draft. This meant that even though Morales rejected his qualifying offer, the Twins didn’t have to give up a draft pick to sign him. That was perhaps the only good take away from the Kendrys Morales signing, as he slashed a mere .234/.259/.325 with just one home run over 39 games in a Twins uniform. He was then dealt back to the Mariners before the trade deadline in exchange for Stephen Pryor, a minor league pitcher who has been out of baseball since the Twins released him after the 2015 season. Ian Desmond – 2015 Offer Rejected: one-year, $15.8M (WAS) Signed For: one-year, $8M (TEX) Ian Desmond’s career got off to a good start with the Washington Nationals. During his time there, Desmond was a shortstop mostly known for his bat, though he still provided manageable defense at short. When Desmond hit free agency, however, he was coming off of a down season offensively (83 wRC+), and there were questions about his ability to stay at short. Desmond wound up moving to the outfield, and as a result his value plummeted. Much like Nelson Cruz, signing a one-year deal paid off well for Desmond, as he had a bounce back season with the Rangers, hitting for a 106 wRC+ on his way to a 3.3 fWAR season. Dexter Fowler – 2015 Offer Rejected: one-year, $15.8M (CHC) Signed For: one-year, $13M (CHC) The drama of where Dexter Fowler would sign led all the way up to the start of spring training, where it appeared as though he had a deal locked up with Baltimore, before reversing course and re-signing with the Cubs. Fowler is yet another player on this list who benefited greatly from signing a one-year bounce back deal. That 2016 was undoubtedly the best season of Fowler’s career, both offensively and defensively. Not only did he have a career high .367 wOBA, but it was also the only season in his career when his defense wasn’t terrible in center. For a player whose DRS (Defensive Runs Saved) usually sits somewhere between -10 and -20, the +1 number that he posted in 2016 was a welcome surprise for the Cubs. Hisashi Iwakuma – 2015 Offer Rejected: one-year, $15.8M (SEA) Signed For: one-year, $12M (SEA) Hisashi Iwakuma, the first and only pitcher on this list, re-signed with the Seattle Mariners in December of 2015, just over a month after he rejected a qualifying offer from the team. The deal did include two vesting options, and had the potential to reach as high as $39M with incentives. Iwakuma was able to hit the first vesting option, along with an incentive bonus, so the deal ending up being for two-years and $27.5M. It was still a very team-friendly deal, as the vesting options took most of the risk out of the contract. Only $12M was guaranteed. Howie Kendrick – 2015 Offer Rejected: one-year, $15.8M (LAD) Signed For: two-years, $20M (LAD) The final player on this list is also the only player who actually signed a deal with more guaranteed money than the qualifying offer that he rejected. The reason I'm including Howie Kendrick on this list is the one-year, $15.8M deal he rejected is a much better offer than the two-year, $20M deal he ultimately accepted. Kendrick ended up getting traded twice during the course of his two-year contract. First from the Dodger to the Phillies, and then from the Phillies to the Nationals. After having an okay year in 2016, Kendrick had a strong performance in 2017, putting up 1.6 fWAR despite only playing 91 games due to injury. As you can see, signing a player who rejected a qualifying offer to a one-year deal is well within the realm of possibilities. This might be an especially attractive idea for pitchers with injury concerns, such as Lynn and Cobb. They may be struggling to get quality long-term offers right now, given question marks around them, but another year of health and production could dramatically change their market if they're willing to accept a one-year offer. Click here to view the article

It’s been another painfully quiet week for the free agent market, with Yu Darvish at the center of another series of rumors. Last week I wrote about how the top free agent options stack up by various rate stats, and it was clear by those metrics that Darvish stands well above the rest of the free agent pack – and well ahead of any of the pitchers currently slotted into the Twins rotation. But just how much might one of the “Big Four” impact the Twins’ projections for 2018? That is where we’ll turn our attention for Part II of “By The Numbers.”To start, let’s look at where the Twins currently stand by the one major projection system that’s been fully public so far. On FanGraphs you’ll find an early look at their projected standings for 2018 based on the Steamer projection system. FanGraphs writers have cautioned that their projected standings will be updated sometime in March to incorporate ZiPS, so expect these estimates to change, but Steamer currently projects the Twins to finish at 80-82, or 12 games behind Cleveland in the AL Central and 9 games behind the Yankees and Angels, who are projected about even for both wild cards. Even if an AL Central teeming with 90-loss teams gifts the Twins a few extra wins in the Wild Card race, Steamer seems to think the Twins have a ways yet to go to catch up with the Yankees and Angels after their aggressive offseasons. So how did the free agents stack up with the Twins’ candidates in 2017, and what do the major projections systems expect from them in 2018? Let’s take a look: Download attachment: FASP1.png Download attachment: FASP2.png *As mentioned above, FanGraphs hasn’t yet released their formal “Depth Chart” projections, which aggregate ZiPS and Steamer and prorate for the FanGraphs staff’s playing time projections, so I’ve calculated the Depth Chart projections manually based on FanGraphs’ methodology and the ZiPS projections that have been released so far. Jake Arrieta’s ZiPS projections have not been released, so his Depth Chart projection is based only on Steamer. Unsurprisingly, Steamer and ZiPS both project Yu Darvish to lead the pack in 2018, but what is a bit surprising is by how much the projections see him outperforming the rest of the field. If you look at the aggregated rankings, he is projected to outperform Jake Arrieta and Jose Berrios (ranked 2 and 3 above) by more than a win and to outperform every other free agent starters by at least two wins. Maybe more surprising is that the aggregated projections do not project Lance Lynn or Alex Cobb as clear improvements over Kyle Gibson as the third starter and or even anything more than a slight improvement over Adalberto Mejia as the fourth starter. Of course, the Twins will eventually need a fifth starter, and signing Jaime Garcia or even Chris Tillman could likely help avoid a replacement-level solution (see: Phil Hughes) every fifth day until top pitching prospects Stephen Gonsalves and Fernando Romero prove they’re ready for the show. Do these projections change your opinions of any of the free agent starters? Who would you have the Twins sign? Click here to view the article

This offseason free agents across Major League Baseball have felt a squeeze of sorts. Now into February, more than 50 quality big leaguers still remain out in the cold with respect to playing destinations for the upcoming season. While I will always argue in favor of millionaire players over billionaire owners, the complaints of the job seekers seem to be somewhat shallow given the current marketplace.Looking at the list of the top 25 free agents for 2018 from MLB.com, only four of the top 10 players available have been inked to deals. Shohei Ohtani chose the Los Angeles Angels in a deal that was never going to reflect true market value. Wade Davis inked the largest relief contract ever with the Rockies, Jay Bruce rejoined the Mets, and Lorenzo Cain entered the National League with the Milwaukee Brewers. However, the battle cry continues to be that money is scarce on the market, and players demand better. In a tweet from agent Brody Van Wagenen, threats regarding a strike were made, and indications of former $200 million and $300 million deals were alluded to. It's absolutely fair on one hand to see players band together; being represented by a union, that's what should take place. That being said, the threat of a strike while failing to realize market indications seems somewhat like misplaced frustration. First and foremost, a strike would effectively squash all positive momentum the sport has, which is currently experiencing popularity at its peak. The players stand to gain nothing in the long run from a strike, and comparing the current landscape to that of 1994 couldn't be further from level ground. The second part of the equation however, is what both market factors and available commodities are telling us. There're two real situations at play this offseason in my mind. Situation number one is that the crop of free agents is, for lack of better descriptors, rather week. Jay Bruce was a top ten name, Yu Darvish is truly the only ace, and as good as he is, J.D. Martinez as a true designated hitter becomes a top three get (this coming from someone who genuinely supports the DH, and believes it ought to be universal). No doubt owners have revenues to disperse, but there is a lack of players worthy of the funds to be allocated, in a sense. The second situation is that the impending free agent class represents one of the greatest to ever hit the open market. Brian Dozier, Josh Donaldson, Manny Machado, Charlie Blackmon, Byrce Harper, A.J. Pollock, and Andrew McCutchen highlight the bats. On the mound, names like Gio Gonzalez, Clayton Kershaw (likely), Dallas Keuchel, Klevin Herrera, Craig Kimbrel, and Zach Britton all get the engine running. As harsh of a reality as it may be, the money allocated for those players should be significantly more than what's currently available. I'm absolutely in favor of a player being paid whatever they can get, and your worth as far as a contract goes should be whatever someone is willing to pay you. However, it seems that agents are overreaching while players are lulled into a false sense of reality. When it comes to a free market structure, it's generally the market that dictates valuations. One player commanding an unrealistic amount would effectively throw off the valuations surrounding the entirety of a current class or one in the future. We have heard reports of Darvish seeking something north of seven years and $175 million, while someone like Hosmer has been reported to have seven year deals on the table, but holding out for eight. There've been notes reporting Martinez is looking for $200 million, and Arrieta could be commanding as much. Sure, given the current availability of free agents, those numbers might not be ridiculous in a vacuum. The problem however, is that organizations are trying to create a culture of consistent winning. By offering Martinez $200m or Hosmer eight years, the correct structure of a Machado or Harper deal becomes $600m or 15 years. At some point, there has to be reality to the sliding scale matching talent or return, with valuation. Throw into the equation that front offices are also now more intelligent than ever before. Analytics may not have entirely taken over the on-field product, but you can bet that algorithms are run for virtually every dollar amount thrown into a discussion. No longer does a team want to get stuck paying Albert Pujols $240m over 10 years, while he limps through two-thirds of the deal. The Zack Greinke's and Giancarlo Stanton's over the world make the money easier to wrap your head around given the age factor (similar to what Machado and Harper will experience), but massive paydays spread across significant time commitments for players into their 30's has long been a negative proposition. At the end of the day, I expect a dam to break, and it's the players that probably need to do some budging. Sure, there's absolutely money to be spent, and the sport should continue to foster payroll growth. What can't happen however, is for talent to hold money hostage until market inefficiencies are forced. The future viability of contracts relies upon a level of consistency year over year. Baseball being an uncapped sport leads to an interesting economic study created entirely by its own doing. The sport needs Darvish and Hosmer thrilling fans, but it also needs them doing it in a scenario that makes sense for future markets as well. We may have had one of the most boring off-seasons in recent memory, but there's a time crunch coming, and the craziness could just be about to start. Originally posted at Off The Baggy. Click here to view the article

This offseason free agents across Major League Baseball have felt a squeeze of sorts. Now into February, more than 50 quality big leaguers still remain out in the cold with respect to playing destinations for the upcoming season. While I will always argue in favor of millionaire players over billionaire owners, the complaints of the job seekers seem to be somewhat shallow given the current marketplace. Looking at the list of the top 25 free agents for 2018 from MLB.com, only four of the top 10 players available have been inked to deals. Shohei Ohtani chose the Los Angeles Angels in a deal that was never going to reflect true market value. Wade Davis inked the largest relief contract ever with the Rockies, Jay Bruce rejoined the Mets, and Lorenzo Cain entered the National League with the Milwaukee Brewers. However, the battle cry continues to be that money is scarce on the market, and players demand better. In a tweet from agent Brody Van Wagenen, threats regarding a strike were made, and indications of former $200 million and $300 million deals were alluded to. It's absolutely fair on one hand to see players band together; being represented by a union, that's what should take place. That being said, the threat of a strike while failing to realize market indications seems somewhat like misplaced frustration. First and foremost, a strike would effectively squash all positive momentum the sport has, which is currently experiencing popularity at its peak. The players stand to gain nothing in the long run from a strike, and comparing the current landscape to that of 1994 couldn't be further from level ground. The second part of the equation however, is what both market factors and available commodities are telling us. There's two real situations at play this offseason in my mind. Situation number one is that the crop of free agents is, for lack of better descriptors, rather week. Jay Bruce was a top ten name, Yu Darvish is truly the only ace, and as good as he is, J.D. Martinez as a true designated hitter becomes a top three get (this coming from someone who genuinely supports the DH, and believes it ought to be universal). No doubt owners have revenues to disperse, but there's a lack of players worthy of the funds to be allocated in a sense. The second situation is that the impending free agent class represents one of the greatest to ever hit the open market. Brian Dozier, Josh Donaldson, Manny Machado, Charlie Blackmon, Byrce Harper, A.J. Pollock, and Andrew McCutchen highlight the bats. On the mound, names like Gio Gonzalez, Clayton Kershaw (likely), Dallas Keuchel, Klevin Herrera, Craig Kimbrel, and Zach Britton all get the engine running. As harsh of a reality as it may be, the money allocated for those players should be significantly more than what's currently available. I'm absolutely in favor of a player being paid whatever they can get, and your worth as far as a contract goes should be whatever someone is willing to pay you. However, it seems that agents are overreaching while players are lulled into a false sense of reality. When it comes to a free market structure, it's generally the market that dictates valuations. One player commanding an unrealistic amount would effectively throw off the valuations surrounding the entirety of a current class or one in the future. We have heard reports of Darvish seeking something north of seven years and $175 million, while someone like Hosmer has been reported to have seven year deals on the table, but holding out for eight. There's been notes reporting Martinez is looking for $200 million, and Arrieta could be commanding equally as much. Sure, given the current availability of free agents, those numbers might not be ridiculous in a vacuum. The problem however, is that organizations are trying to create a culture of consistent winning. By offering Martinez $200m or Hosmer eight years, the correct structure of a Machado or Harper deal becomes $600m or 15 years. At some point, there has to be reality to the sliding scale matching talent or return, with valuation. Throw into the equation that front offices are also now more intelligent than ever before. Analytics may not have entirely taken over the on field product, but you can bet that algorithms are ran for virtually every dollar amount thrown into a discussion. No longer does a team want to get stuck paying Albert Pujols $240m over 10 years, while he limps through two-thirds of the deal. The Zack Greinke's and Giancarlo Stanton's over the world make the money easier to wrap your head around given the age factor (similar to what Machado and Harper will experience), but massive paydays spread across significant time commitments for players into their 30's has long been a negative proposition. At the end of the day, I expect a dam to break, and it's the players that probably need to do some budging. Sure, there's absolutely money to be spent, and the sport should continue to foster payroll growth. What can't happen however, is for talent to hold money hostage until market inefficiencies are forced. The future viability of contracts relies upon a level of consistency year over year. Baseball being an uncapped sport leads to an interesting economic study created entirely by its own doing. The sport needs Darvish and Hosmer thrilling fans, but it also needs them doing it in a scenario that makes sense for future markets as well. We may have had one of the most boring off-seasons in recent memory, but there's a time crunch coming, and the craziness could just be about to start. For more from Off The Baggy, click here. Follow @tlschwerz

The Gophers are (correction, were) in the Big Dance, the Wild are Stanley Cup contenders, even the Timberwolves are fighting for a playoff berth and 35,000 fans recently attended the first Major League Soccer game in Minnesota. The Twins, meanwhile, have averaged 94 losses the past six seasons, haven't won a single playoff game since 2004 and are expected to post another losing record in the season ahead. Opening Day is right around the corner, and they're essentially an afterthought in the Minnesota sports scene.Something drastic will need to be done in order to keep this team relevant. The front office turnover made some waves, but it was followed by a typically quiet offseason for the Twins. To be fair, with a free agent pitching class "headlined" by Rich Hill and Ivan Nova, this wasn't the winter to make a huge signing. Next offseason it'll be a different story, however, and the Twins should be in a great position to make a big splash. Can't imagine the Pohlad's approving a marquee signing? Well, they have very little money tied up beyond 2018, so there should be plenty of room in the budget. The only guys signed through the 2019 season are Phil Hughes ($13.2M), Jason Castro ($8M) and ByungHo Park ($3M). So without further ado, let's play my favorite game: Spend the Pohlad Family's Money! MLB Trade Rumors released its top 10 free agents for the 2017-18 off season this week, and the class looks to be flush with starting pitching. The list is topped by Jake Arrieta, Yu Darvish, Johnny Cueto and Masahiro Tanaka. It's worth noting that both Cueto and Tanaka would have to opt out of their current contracts to become free agents, and it's possible between now and then one of those top guys signs an extension. None of those big four free agents has even turned 32 yet, with 28-year-old Tanaka being the youngest. Arrieta was a Cy Young winner in 2015 and both Darvish (2013) and Cueto (2014) have a runner-up finish for the award. I'm drooling just at the thought of any one of these guys in a Twins jersey, but each of them will command a hefty salary and all have some questions to answer in 2017. Arrieta looked human from June on last season, posting a 4.05 ERA, then had a 3.63 ERA in the playoffs. There are some durability concerns with both of the Japanese imports, but at least we know Darvish's UCL has been repaired. Tanaka had an elbow injury in 2014, but he elected to forego surgery. Seems to have worked out for him, but that arm could be a ticking time bomb. Cueto has been a workhorse, but his underwhelming run with Kansas City in 2015 may cause AL teams to shy away. But even beyond that impressive foursome, is yet another group of less tantalizing, yet still intriguing names. Chris Tillman, Micheal Pineda and Alex Cobb are among that next tier, and could dramatically improve their stock this season. Here's a quick look at the numbers: LAST THREE SEASONS Arrieta: 2.42 ERA, 2.72 FIP, 9.15 K/9, 2.55 BB/9 Darvish: 3.20 ERA, 2.94 FIP, 11.55 K/9, 2.94 BB/9 Cueto: 2.80 ERA, 3.26 FIP, 8.21 K/9, 2.08 BB/9 Tanaka: 3.12 ERA, 3.53 FIP, 8.18 K/9, 1.54 BB/9 Tillman: 3.99 ERA, 4.22 FIP, 6.68 K/9, 3.19 BB/9 Pineda: 4.10 ERA, 3.42 FIP, 9.20 K/9, 1.77 BB/9 Cobb: 3.54 ERA, 3.51 FIP, 7.88 K/9, 2.58 BB/9 Assuming the 2017 Twins put the worst season in franchise history behind them and look to be playoff contenders in 2018, which of these guys would you prefer? Would you pay top dollar, or wait out the market to see if there's a bargain? Or do you avoid free agency all together? Is it too early to be speculating on such things? Absolutely, but c'mon, let's have some fun. The guy I'd personally most like to see would be Darvish, and perhaps having Thad Levine around could be helpful in landing the strikeout machine. Levine was with the Rangers when they signed Darvish out of Japan, so he likely knows a thing or two about what makes the big righty tick. Even if the Twins can scrounge up the $150 or so million it'll cost to sign one of the top flight guys like Darvish, will they even want to come to Minnesota, or take less to play for a World Series contender? That's where Derek Falvey is going to have to earn his salary. Between now and next winter, he will need to get the franchise in good enough shape to be able to convincingly tell free agents "this team will be in the playoffs next season." The front office was apparently unable to deliver that message to Mike Napoli, who took less money and a shorter commitment to play for the Rangers. Continuing failure to attract free agents is going to result in a continuing failure to attract fan interest. Click here to view the article