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At this point the Minnesota Twins are undoubtedly amping up their efforts to acquire big league assets for the stretch run and Postseason. I've been on record multiple times suggesting I'd like to see at least to moves made, and a starter coming more as a luxury. Unless the starting pitcher is under team control, go big on expiring relief help and call it a day. The most realistic name I'm intrigued by in that vein is Marcus Stroman. So, how does Derek Falvey pry him away from the Toronto Blue Jays? Although the idea of acquiring Stroman is significantly more enticing than grabbing a rental like Madison Bumgarner, the cost will also represent a more substantial amount. I'd hope that Minnesota could go into talks with the idea that Royce Lewis, Alex Kirilloff, and Brusdar Graterol are all off limits. Understanding that may not be completely realistic we'll progress with two different possibilities. Option A: Minnesota Twins acquire SP Marcus Stroman and RP Ken Giles. Toronto Blue Jays acquire OF Brent Rooker, SS Wander Javier, RHP Jorge Alcala, and OF Akil Baddoo Something like this is where Minnesota should want to be. I'm not certain that this will be enough for Toronto to pull the trigger, but there's two legitimate top 10 prospects from a very good system included here. Trevor Larnach could be swapped out for Rooker depending on preference, and any number of similar prospects could be had in the place of Baddoo. Hanging on to the top trio will cost more bodies, and there would likely be a larger premium placed on the secondary additions in this case. Option B: Minnesota Twins acquire SP Marcus Stroman and RP Ken Giles. Toronto Blue Jays acquire RHP Brusdar Graterol, INF Travis Blankenhorn, and RHP Edwar Colina. If Minnesota is willing to part with any bit of that top trio then it should be the only player in their top 10 necessary of inclusion. Graterol could draw skepticism from opposing teams as he's currently dealing with a shoulder injury, and there still remains a possibility he winds up in the bullpen. I'd hesitate a significant amount if the ask is to swap him out for Kirilloff, but that could be the cost of doing business. Reality is that the Twins haven't had a perfect storm like this in quite some time. This club needs a big boost down for the stretch run, and they are well positioned to make serious Postseason noise. On top of that, they have legitimate openings going into next season and a controllable starter like Stroman isn't just a short term play. Signing big ticket free agents hasn't always been the optimal path to roster construction, and it's one the Twins have avoided as recent as this season. There will be a 40 man roster crunch coming, and a 25 man shakedown beyond that. Hording prospects is a good thing, but realizing some are best utilized as moveable assets, and which ones specifically, is part of what makes a good front office. Things are about to get very interesting in Twins Territory over the next few weeks. Whether on the field or in the back office, you won't want to look away. For more from Off The Baggy, click here. Follow @tlschwerz

From 2014 through 2017, Ken Giles was one of the most dominant relievers in major league baseball, pitching for both the Philadelphia Phillies and the Houston Astros. Now pitching for the Toronto Blue Jays, the 28-year-old right-hander might be the perfect addition to the backend of a Twins bullpen that is in need of a shutdown arm or two.Some of you might remember during that great postseason run by the 2017 Astros, one piece that wasn’t firing for them was the backend of their bullpen. A big part of this was due to the fall of Ken Giles, who was rocked for 10 runs on 12 hits and five walks in 7 2/3 innings pitched in the 2017 postseason. Those struggles carried over into 2018, and led to the Astros decision to demote him to AAA before ultimately trading him to the Blue Jays in part of the package that sent Roberto Osuna to the Astros. Giles didn’t have a lot more success with the Blue Jays than he did the Astros, and finished 2018 with a 4.65 ERA. However, it wasn’t all bad in 2018, as Giles did have a much better 3.08 FIP, that was aided in part by his extremely low walk rate of just 3.3 percent. Now in 2019, Ken Giles seems to have regained the form that helped him become the dominant backend of the bullpen reliever that he was during his first four seasons as a big leaguer. Among qualified relievers, only Ryan Pressly, Brad Hand, and Shane Greene have a better ERA this season than Giles’ 1.08. Some of the more in-depth metrics support that this is the real Ken Giles, and that 2018 was more of a fluke/bad luck season. In addition to his 1.08 ERA, Giles sports a 1.17 FIP, which is topped by only Kirby Yates’ 1.14 FIP among qualified relievers. If you look at the Statcast metrics over at Baseball Savant, it backs up the case that Giles is back to his dominant form even more. So far this season, Giles has allowed opposing hitters to hit at a .207 clip, compared to his expected batting average allowed of .188. Giles has also been better from an expected wOBA perspective, as Giles .247 wOBA allowed is actually slightly higher than his .243 xwOBA. A big part of Giles' success has come from regaining his ability to strike people out. During his dominant stretch from 2014 to 2017, Giles struck out 33.7 percent of opposing hitters (which ranked 9th among all relievers with at least 100 IP over that time). In 2018, that number fell to just 25 percent. However, in 2019, Giles has gotten his strikeout rate back up to 42.4 percent, which ranks third among qualified relievers this season. A big part of this can be explained by Giles getting back to using his slider more often. Here is a graph showing Giles' slider usage rate over the past few seasons. Download attachment: Ken Giles Slider Pitch Percent.png (Chart via Baseball Savant) As we can see, Giles threw his slider far less often in 2018 than he had been previously, which could help explain his dip in performance. In 2019, Giles’ slider usage is back up to 49 percent, which is the highest rate of his career. It becomes even more clear that this has had an impact when we look at the next chart that shows us just how much better Giles is with his slider than his fastball. Download attachment: Ken Giles wOBA by Pitch Type.png (Chart via Baseball Savant) A big part of what makes Ken Giles slider so effective is how often he gets opposing hitters to swing and miss at the pitch. So far this year, opposing hitters are whiffing at 61 percent of Giles' sliders that they swing at. That is the highest rate of any pitcher who has thrown at least 100 breaking balls this season. It is also apparent that Giles started throwing his sinker again in 2018, but he is still rarely using it (under four percent of the time) so I wouldn’t put much stock in that pitch for now. One concern the Twins could have for Giles is regarding his health, as he was placed on the IL last week with elbow inflammation, but he was reinstated onto the active roster on Thursday, so they will have some time to evaluate if he is truly healthy before they are forced to make a decision on him. Giles is currently making $6.3M in his second year of arbitration and will be under team control through the 2020 season if the Twins were to trade for him. If you are wondering what it would take to pry Giles away from the Blue Jays, I assume they will be demanding a package in return that is similar to what the Twins received in the Ryan Pressly trade with the Astros a year ago. See Also Sam Dyson, RHP, Giants Brad Hand, LHP, Indians Oliver Perez, LHP Cleveland Robert Stephenson, RHP, Reds John Gant, RHP, Cardinals Alex Colome, RHP, White Sox Seth Lugo, RHP, Mets Greg Holland, RHP, Diamondbacks Sean Doolittle, LHP, Nationals Kirby Yates, RHP, Padres 10 Relievers Minnesota Could Target Click here to view the article

It’s early May but we’re well beyond the point of still categorizing the results as being reflective of a small sample size. Right now, the Twins own the best record in baseball, the lineup has thump throughout, and the pitching staff is performing at a clip few could’ve seen coming. As good teams do, and Minnesota has not recently been in position to experience, adding big league talent for the stretch run is a must. Derek Falvey and Thad Levine will have options, but where do they turn?Looking at how well the lineup has performed, and the depth that should be available to keep a long and dismal slump at bay, pitching is where Minnesota can look to improve. The starting rotation went into the year with a clear ace, but the performances from Martin Perez and Jake Odorizzi have been a welcomed addition. Michael Pineda doesn’t look like a great bet at this point however, and the 5th turn in the rotation could be expanded upon. In the bullpen Minnesota left themselves open to plenty of criticism. Banking on unknown commodities such as Matt Magill and Ryne Harper, while hanging onto a miscast starter in Adalberto Mejia, there was plenty to worry about. The back end of the pen has been solid, and really the group has stayed afloat. Bringing in a high-level arm that can push everyone down a notch would only strengthen the unit. On the starting front, here’s who some of those names may be: Marcus Stroman- Blue Jays 28 years old FA 2021 I’ve been crushing on Stroman’s numbers for years now. He’s routinely put up better peripherals than the ERA suggests, and he’s a guy that’s previously performed at a very high level. Under team control for another season he won’t come cheap, but it’d be in the Blue Jays best interests to move him sooner rather than later. On the season he owns a 2.96 ERA with a 3.09 FIP. His ERA+ sits at 145, or exactly where it was when he finished 8th in Cy Young voting during 2017. Madison Bumgarner- Giants 29 years old FA 2020 It’s crazy to think Bumgarner is just 29 (almost 30) given how long he’s been around. He’s approaching 2,000 big league innings but pitched at least 200 innings every year from 2011-2016. The velocity has remained consistent over the past four seasons, and his track record speaks for itself. The Giants ace is amid his best season since 2016 and would slot in nicely behind Jose Berrios. Given his impending free agency, this could be a situation in which the Twins operate on a try before you buy model. Miguel Sano to the National League is questionable, but a straight up swap may be enticing for Minnesota. Mike Minor- Rangers 31 years old FA 2021 The least of the options on this list, Minor has plenty of intrigue in his own right. He’s coming off a mediocre 2018, but his 2019 has seen a nice resurgence. Minor has jumped his whiff rate roughly 2% from 2018, and it’s come on the heels of a career high in changeup usage. Being under team control for another year, he’ll cost a bit more than his numbers may warrant, but as a stabilizing force to round out the rotation he has some appeal. Relief help has some interesting names as well: Craig Kimbrel- 31 years old Unsigned At this point Kimbrel won’t be signed until after the June amateur draft. Without being tied to pick compensation, he may find suitors offering both long-term and one-year pacts. Kimbrel is arguably the best closer in the game, and while he’ll need some ramp up time, he’s coming off a 2.74 ERA and 13.9 K/9 season. Sure, he had some blowups in the postseason, and if you’d like to nitpick, there’re warts here. At the end of the day though, this is an elite talent that costs a team nothing but cash to acquire. Ken Giles- Blue Jays 28 years old FA 2021 Here’s another guy from Toronto and still under team control for another season. Giles comes with personality questions, as the Houston Astros shipped him out growing tired of his inconsistencies on and off the mound. He’s already on his third big league team, and despite being ultra-talented, he’s proven to be expandable. If that can be vetted out, the Blue Jays are offering a reliever with a 1.65 ERA 1.79 FIP, and 13.8 K/9. Walks have never been much of a problem, strikeouts are aplenty, and velocity is through the roof. He can operate as a closer or setup man, and that would give the Twins some flexibility. Sean Doolittle- Nationals 32 years old FA 2020 ($6.5MM team option) An unexpected name on this list given where the Nationals assumed they’d be this season. The reality is that Davey Martinez hasn’t done well taking over for Dusty Baker, and the team is a mess. For the opposition, a guy like Doolittle becoming available would be a massive boost. He’s been one of the best relievers in baseball for nearly a decade, and his numbers in 2019 are equally eye-popping. A lefty with strong strikeout stuff, he’s not a platoon pitcher, and Baldelli could use another Taylor Rogers type in relief. When it comes to execution on any deals they’ll do, the Twins have some very different options to consider. Miguel Sano could establish himself as an expandable, and valuable piece. They have prospect capital behind the untouchables of Royce Lewis, Alex Kirilloff, and Brusdar Graterol. There’s also no reason to believe this club is cash poor, and simply doling out money is a possibility as well. If it’s up to me, I’d prefer to see Minnesota land a starter they believe can help them in 2019 and beyond. Someone that slides in at the middle of the rotation or higher, and will be around for another run, is a guy I’d give up some pieces for. In relief, choosing the cash route on Kimbrel makes the most sense. I’m not sure you want to part with assets in both areas, but it depends on the names you’d have to give up. We’re at least a month out from some of these deals potentially coming to fruition, but you can bet plans are in place to make sure the decision is a clear one when the time comes. Click here to view the article