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The Padres made a splash on the final day of MLB's Winter Meetings by signing Xander Bogaerts. So, why can't the Twins spend like the Padres? The answer is complicated. Image courtesy of Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports Fans of every MLB team want their franchise to spend more money. It is one of the most straightforward solutions to improve a team because increasing payroll allows clubs to add the best free agents. However, spending more money is no guarantee of success. Plenty of small market teams are annual contenders because of their player development and smart front offices. The Twins and the Padres take different approaches to create their 26-man roster, so why are these clubs so different? Payroll Comparison Last season, the Padres had a payroll of $214 million, with three players making more than $16 million. Minnesota's payroll was $72 million less than the Padres, with Carlos Correa accounting for 24.7% of the team's $142 million payroll. San Diego has Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. signed to contracts worth over $300 million. Yu Darvish and Wil Myers are making $20 million or more in 2022. Currently, the Padres only trail the Mets and Yankees for the highest projected payroll for the 2023 campaign. Market Size Compared to other MLB teams, the Padres are a clear mid-market team, which is one reason San Diego is down to one professional sports team. MLB's three largest markets (New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago) all have multiple MLB franchises The San Diego metropolitan area, and the Minneapolis-Saint Paul markets are similar in population. It seems logical that both teams can spend similar amounts on payroll, but that isn't the case. TV Deals One of the club's most significant revenue sources is its TV deal. Minnesota is entering the final year of a 12-year, $480 million deal that pays the club around $40 million annually. In 2012, the Padres signed a 20-year deal for $1.2 to 1.5 billion, putting the average annual payments to the club in the $50-$75 million range. The Padres also have a 20% equity share in the network broadcasting their games, which means the club can earn more revenue as more fans watch games. Minnesota's expiring TV deal will be interesting to watch over the next year. Will the club be able to spend more in 2023 and beyond because of increased revenue from a new deal? AL Central Comparison Minnesota is in one of baseball's weakest divisions, and the club has a higher payroll than every team in the division besides Chicago. Last week, Ted Schwerzler discussed that the Twins' payroll should be closer to $160 million than $140 million. Cleveland easily won the AL Central last season with a payroll below $70 million. Some expect the Guardians' payroll to increase as a new ownership group gains more say in the team's spending. Detroit has also shown a willingness to spend when the club is in contention. There are similarities between San Diego and Minnesota regarding market size, but the Padres have continually outspent the Twins. Rosters are incomplete for the 2023 season, but it seems unlikely for the Twins to get anywhere near the $235 million projected for the Padres. Minnesota's TV deal is hampering some of its revenues, but they are spending more than enough to be competitive in the AL Central. Should the Twins spend similarly to the Padres? Will a new TV deal help the team's willingness to spend? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. View full article

Update: It appears that the Padres will be also landing Yu Darvish from the Cubs. While that takes a target away from the Twins, they have less competition on the Reds front. Arms like Joe Musgrove and Jon Gray also remain enticing. Late on Sunday night the market for starting pitching pursuits took a drastic change. After the Tampa Bay Rays had announced they’d make Blake Snell available, the San Diego Padres decided to cap off their Christmas weekend with a blockbuster trade. This provides a blueprint for the Minnesota Twins, and also removes some potential competition. Thus far during the offseason things have been quit from the Derek Falvey and Thad Levine camp. Minnesota has made a few smaller moves on the reliever front, but they have not addressed their rotation or lineup. For what seems like weeks we’ve now heard about the Twins being a team potential waiting in the weeds and ready to strike. One big name discussed has been that of Marcus Semien, but it remains true that starting pitching is a must. You can probably bet on veteran Rich Hill not being a guy brought back for 2021, and while Jake Odorizzi looks like one of the best arms not named Trevor Bauer, he will have some options. For Minnesota, sustainability could be the key and finding a trade partner with an arm having some team control could be as enticing as anything. Although it’s not known to what extent Minnesota may have been intrigued by Snell, the reality is he’s a good pitcher and was available. At the very least that made the two organizations a match. Following that logic, the Cubs and Yu Darvish as well as the Reds and their arms Luis Castillo or Sonny Gray could all be fits. Darvish comes with the hefty price tag, while both Gray and Castillo are more affordable options that should command a premium in prospect capital. It’s fine to still call this relatively early in the offseason, but the reality is that we’re over the halfway point. Despite the fact that Rob Manfred still hasn’t solidified the 2021 Major League Baseball schedule and we still have no idea what the exact set of rules are going to be, time is not waiting, and Spring Training will soon be around the corner. Minnesota’s front office hasn’t been afraid of being a last-minute suitor, but getting guys acclimate could hold some weight given how the Lance Lynn and Logan Morrison moves ultimately worked out. When the Padres decided to spring for Snell with a package centered around their second-best pitching prospect, they effectively took themselves out of any discussion regarding another deal. The money is still there for them to target Trevor Bauer, but they don’t seem likely to move Mackenzie Gore or C.J. Abrams, so swapping for another top arm would be difficult. This benefits the Twins as it’s one less club vying for the same prizes. Given the organization he played for it was probably a near-guarantee that Snell would be moved. I think Chicago still flips Darvish, but Jed Hoyer will want to get his first big move right. Castillo and Gray don’t necessarily need to be shipped out, but Cincinnati appears intent on tearing it down after a one-year run at going for it. Asking Minnesota to be engaged on all of those fronts is hardly a leap. It’s not yet clear where the Twins will turn, but I’d bet a decent amount that they have plenty of irons in the fire, and it’s clear there’s a decent amount of smoke. Having a better bargaining position than they did yesterday, and also a representative idea of a framework, Falvey and Levine have more clarity now than they may have a few days ago. For more from Off The Baggy, click here. Follow @tlschwerz

Last night Fernando Tatis Jr. got a grooved fastball in a 3-0 count and sent it into orbit. The San Diego Padres were already up seven late in the game, and with the bases loaded, his grand slam put it way out of reach. Texas Rangers manager Chris Woodward, he of the crotchety old age of 44, took exception to it. Woodward told reporters after the game, "I didn't like it personally. You're up by 7 in the 8th inning, it's typically not a good time 3-0. It's kind of the way we were all raised in the game. But ... the norms are being challenged." He literally was asking for his opponent to quit playing. After Major League Baseball marketed their young talent wonderfully during the 2019 season with the slogan “Let the kids play” this is where we’re at. I have no problem with baseball having unwritten rules. I think there’s a certain level of affection I have reserved specifically for the nuances in the sport. By and large though, the vast majority of said unwritten rules are dated and should be re-evaluated. Retaliation in the form of beanballs has long been silly. Bunting late in a game solely to break up a no-hit bid is one I think should draw some ire. If a pitcher wants to get on you for walking unnecessarily over his mound, so be it. Suggesting there’s counts in which the pitcher should know what the batter is doing though, and even further, completely expecting them to give up, is not a good look. More often than not a 3-0 count results in a take due to the game scenario. Unless the pitch is absolutely grooved, that’s not a situation in which you want to miss and make an out. If a pitcher is going to throw a get-me-over fastball though, by all means the batter should be locked in and ready to ride it into orbit. When Fernando Tatis Jr. did just that, his own manager Jayce Tingler missed the mark in defending him. Instead of noting that there was a sign missed, he simply could’ve said that he put a great swing on the pitch. Sure, missing signs is suboptimal, but that’s not the talking point in that specific spot. It’s like the basketball coach wanting the guard to work the offense, but he steps back and drains a three, which then causes exhale anyways. There were takes all over the place in the wake of Tatis’ performance. Many of them correctly called out Woodward as off base and old school. Former Twins pitcher Phil Hughes chimed in comparing the situation to that of a football team taking a knee. The difference between all of those types of comparisons however is that baseball is the lone sport not dictated by time. When you’re up against a clock, strategy involved suggests killing the seconds and minutes in order to get you closer to victory. Baseball has outs, 27 of them, all finite. The only strategy when it comes to results in baseball is scoring more than the opposition before your self-inflicted missed opportunities run out. If you want to be mad at a guy for swinging 3-0 at a bad pitch and giving up an opportunity to get on base, so be it. If you want to get mad at a guy for putting the ball in the seats, under any circumstances, by all means hop aboard the leather and ride it right on outta here. For more from Off The Baggy, click here. Follow @tlschwerz

This week represents a critical juncture for the return of Major League Baseball in 2020. It also represents another very critical time and it’s one that comes with a much more somber tone. On May 31, the payments made to minor leaguers will run out. Then what?In a normal season finances aren’t great for the future players of Major League Baseball. They are paid pennies on the dollar and make substantially less than minimum wage over the course of a full year. During spring training, they go unpaid, and the only financial help they get equates to little more than meal money. Earlier in the development of this global pandemic teams around the league negotiated to pay something like $400 per week to each minor league player. That money was always tied to a date as a deadline, and it’s now less than a week away. Once May 31 hits there are no more guarantees in place. In fact, we already know that the upcoming amateur draft is being shortened to just five rounds, which furthers the plan to scrap something like 40 affiliated teams. While the casual assumption is that big bonuses are paid out to all draft picks and everyone is capable of supporting themselves on their journey, it’s hardly a thought rooted in reality. It’s a very small percentage of players that receive hefty bonuses, and there are plenty of guys on top prospect lists that are simply looking to make ends meet. Without some sort of a renegotiated agreement minor league players will essentially go a year and a half without receiving a “real” paycheck. Obviously, the above assumption is working out of the premise that we won’t have minor league baseball in 2020. While it’s been shot down that the season will be cancelled, I think we can all agree that it’s going to be dramatically altered. With major league teams trending towards an extended taxi squad, we’re probably looking at something where just a few players not on the 40-man roster end up being utilized. Given the logistics of playing fanless games across the country in smaller locales at ballparks that are traditionally lightly manned, it’s an uphill battle that doesn’t seem worth fighting. A developmental league of sorts makes a ton of sense. Having minor league players housed at their spring training facilities and then playing what would amount to intrasquad games could certainly work. Not having a full year of development would no doubt hamper even the best of prospects. Asking guys to get work in without competition doesn’t seem like a beneficial path either. Contractually obligated to their parent clubs, minor leaguers face the reality of being virtually unemployable in the general workforce. Not only is unemployment through the roof with many businesses on hold, but it’s really only gig work that lends itself to accepting a schedule that could drastically change at a moment’s notice. There’s no denying that the grind through minor league baseball is not for the faint of heart. There’s a substantial percentage of the population that will never make it. Weeding out talent on the basis of economic malpractice doesn’t seem like an intelligent path to take, however. Should nothing be done, the futures of major league clubs across the sport will be forever impacted. Even if the finances are set in order, the havoc wreaked by this pandemic on the lifeblood of big league baseball is going to have ripple effects well into the future. We have already seen some clubs take a stand and commit to their future. The San Diego Padres are the most exemplary model of this as they’ll stand by their employees and players through this storm. On the other end of the spectrum the Oakland Athletics and their billionaire owner John Fisher will cease payments to players on May 31, also holding them to their contracts making the ineligible for unemployment and not able to seek opportunity within another organization. Franchises are cutting ties with massive amounts of players right now, and it seems that Major League Baseball will be granted its wish to downsize the pipeline to the majors. No matter when baseball returns, and what the optics of the Major League discussions look like, it’s these minor leaguers that are constantly hung out to dry. UPDATE: The Minnesota Twins organization is stepping up once again. They've built a strong system and infrastructure by going about things the right way since instituting a new front office. They've invested so much, and to turn from it now would be tough to swallow. Good on this organization. Huge nugget from Twins Daily's own here as well. Despite other organizations releasing 30 or more minor leaguers in the past few days, all Twins players will be retained for the time being. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook, or email — Follow Ted Schwerzler on Twitter here Click here to view the article

Although we have grown accustomed to slower offseason activity when it comes to Major League Baseball free agency, that doesn't make the reality any more exciting. Sure, the Minnesota Twins have spent $30 million already in retaining Nelson Cruz and Jake Odorizzi, but the true free agents are still out there. Before adding new talent to Twins Territory the franchise gave fans something else they've been clamoring for over the past few years; the baby blue's. In 2020 Majestic is being replaced as the official Major League Baseball jersey provider. Initially Under Armour was set to take over the contract, but that deal fell through and now the Maryland based company has a whole different set of problems on their hands. At any rate, it's always been Nike that has pushed the boundaries and set the standard in trends. Before Minnesota made any moves, we got to see this in action. First up it was the San Diego Padres unveiling some new threads. Brown has made cameo appearances on their Swinging Friars jerseys for some time, but it is in 2020 that we'll see it in full force. I remember seeing these come across my timeline on Twitter and thinking that Nike was making a very nice first step. When news leaked that the Milwaukee Brewers would be going back to the ball-in-glove logo for the 2020 season it only made sense there'd be a new configuration. I'm a big fan of the alternate logo as well, depicting an "M" within the state of Wisconsin outline. The absolute highlight of that reveal though was the navy blue offering that set the stage ablaze. Not to be outdone by their eastern neighbors, the Minnesota Twins have decided to bring back the baby blue alternates for the upcoming season. Arguably the most-talked about jersey, and the one reminiscent of everyone from Kirby Puckett to Kent Hrberk, they'll be worn early and often in the upcoming season. Officially a home and road alternate, there is no stipulations as to where the new uniforms can be donned. On top of the colorway itself, the Twins are including patches on both sleeves. Minnie and Paul return to the jersey, as well as a 60 year anniversary logo. Both are very well done and should provide some added flair to a product that will likely fly off the shelves at 1 Twins Way. Although the cream alternates were a fan favorite as well, there's nothing more Minnesota Twins baseball than the baby blues. There has been a slight amount of pushback regarding the chest Swoosh, as opposed to the sleeve Majestic logo. As someone generally opposed to jersey advertisements, this seems hollow at best. The Swoosh is both iconic and aesthetically pleasing. Nike has and will continue to put the right foot forward when it comes to brand design, and there's certainly a company in New York (Hi, Topps!) that will enjoy another uniform patch. I don't think Nike will be controlling the Pohlad's pocketbook any time soon, but here's to hoping the jerseys are just the first of many new additions to debut at Target Field in the year ahead. For more from Off The Baggy, click here. Follow @tlschwerz

The Minnesota Twins had a day off on Monday. Some of the players went to the Minnesota Vikings season opener. Hopefully all of them got some quality rest. The Twins now have 19 games in the next 20 days. And that's assuming there isn't a Game 163, which the Twins have a bit of experience with. Let's take a look at the Twins' opponents over these final 19 games.The Twins have just one off-day (on Monday, September 25th) remaining. Other than that, it's full-steam ahead toward the regular season's finish line. There remain high hopes among players and fans alike that the season will continue beyond the regular season's final regularly scheduled day (Sunday, October 1st). The opponents over the final 19 games comprise an interesting mix of teams. There are a couple of teams playing out the string. There is one team that pretty much never loses. And there is one team that the Twins have some hopes of catching before the end of the season, likely in an attempt to get to play them one more time. Here is a quick look at the remaining opponents on the Twins: San Diego Padres (September 12-13): The Twins played two games in San Diego earlier in the season, and now they will play their final interleague games, starting tonight. The Padres are 65-79 on the season. However, the team just came off of a series in which they won two out of three against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The weekend before, they won three out of four against the Los Angeles Dodgers, starting their losing streak. In between, they lost three out of four to the St. Louis Cardinals. Toronto Blue Jays (September 14-17): The Twins will play four games at home this weekend against the Blue Jays, a team that has had their number in recent years, but the Twins won two out of three in Toronto in late August. The Blue Jays beat Baltimore on Monday, and before that they won two out of three against the Tigers. Before that, they lost two out of three to the Red Sox. New York Yankees (September 18-20): The Twins will travel to the Bronx to take on the team they are chasing for the top wild card position. They are currently four games behind the Yankees for that spot, but that could be different in a week. This is a good Yankees team, but it isn't your older brother's Yankees. Derek Jeter isn't going to walk through that door. Jorge Posada and Bernie Williams aren't going to walk through that door. And if they did... Well, they're still a very good team, obviously, illustrated by being 13 games over .500. They beat Tampa Bay last night. Before that they won two out of three games in September series against the Rangers, the Orioles and the Red Sox (technology and all). Detroit Tigers (September 21-24 (away), September 29-October 1 (Target Field): The Twins and Tigers will play seven times down the stretch. That should be a good thing for the Twins. The Tigers are currently 60-83 and challenging the Chicago White Sox for the cellar in the AL Central. Of course, the White Sox were trying to be bad this year (acquiring tons of top prospects along the way). The Tigers have traded some of their players, like JD Martinez and more recently, Justin Verlander. Victor Martinez is out for the year. These can be tough games though. This month, the Tigers have lost all five games they've played against Cleveland, and by a combined score of 5-40. They lost two out of three to Toronto this weekend, but before that, they won two out of three against the Royals. Cleveland (September 26-28): I mean... wow! They are now 88-56 on the season and currently have won 19 games in a row, one short of the record. They are 13.5 games ahead of the Twins. Their Magic Number to win the division is down to six. It is very likely that they will clinch the division this sometime this weekend which will make these late-season games against the Twins pretty meaningless, but they are very likely to be very meaningful for the Twins. In this 19-game winning steak, they are 5-0 against Detroit, 3-0 against Baltimore, 4-0 against the White Sox, 3-0 against the Royals, 3-0 against the Yankees, and 1-0 against the Red Sox. Their last loss came to the Red Sox on August 23rd. So there you have it, the schedule the rest of the way for the Twins. Here is a quick look at the current standings in the American League Wild Card: Here are the upcoming schedules for the Twins Wild Card competition: Los Angeles Angels (19 games) 3 vs Houston 3 vs Texas 3 vs Cleveland 3 @ Houston 4 @ Chicago White Sox 3 vs Seattle Texas Rangers (19 games) 3 vs Seattle 3 @ Angels 3 @ Seattle 3 @ Oakland 3 vs Houston 4 vs Oakland Kansas City Royals (19 games) 2 vs White Sox 4 @ Cleveland 3 @ Toronto 3 @ White Sox 1 @ NY Yankees 3 vs Detroit 3 vs Arizona Seattle Mariners (18 games) 3 @ Texas 3 @ Houston 3 vs Texas 3 vs Cleveland 3 @ Oakland 3 @ Angels Baltimore Orioles (18 games) 2 @ Toronto 4 @ NY Yankees 3 vs Boston 4 vs Tampa Bay 2 @ Pittsburgh 3 @ Tampa Bay Tampa Bay Rays (17 games) 2 vs NY Yankees 3 vs Boston 2 vs Cubs 4 @ Baltimore 3 @ NY Yankees 3 vs Baltimore There you have it. It's going to be a fun, interesting final three weeks... Click here to view the article

Has anyone seen Eddie Rosario’s shoes? Because there’s a fair chance he left them at home plate when he won the game with a mighty swing against Padres reliever Phil Maton on Wednesday night at Target Field. The Twins spent nine innings trying to scratch across more than one run against Padres starter Dinelson Lamet and his cohorts, but a solid effort from the youngster and a puzzling array of bunts left them coming up short. That is, until Rosario stepped up to the plate against Maton with Joe Mauer on first base. With two outs after Brian Dozier took a called third strike and Jorge Polanco popped foul to third — sandwiched around the Mauer single — Rosario stepped to the plate and did some, well, un-Rosario-like things. Rosario took the first two pitches from the Padres reliever. That’s something Rosario and hitting coaches James Rowson and Rudy Hernandez have been working on this season — with wonderful results — and it paid off with a 2-0 count. Rowson told Zone Coverage earlier this season that, even despite Rosario’s improved discipline, he wanted the free-swinging slugger to stay in ‘hunt’ mode. Well, consider Maton’s 2-0 offering — a 93 mph fastball middle-in — the prey, as Rosario uncoiled, elevated and about 20 seconds later celebrated with gumballs in his face and fireworks all over the place. Manager Paul Molitor was almost stunned speechless as he collected his thoughts during his postgame press conference. “I don’t know how to explain sometimes when you come off a game last night, and all the sudden runs become hard to come by, even when you have good opportunities,” Molitor said. “It just had that feel when it’s 1-0 and you miss out on a couple chances to add one. You hope you can hold on, but Hedges got a hold of an offspeed pitch to get them even, and we had to scramble.” Please click through to Zone Coverage here to read the full story.

It’s sunny, hazy and extremely warm as the Minnesota Twins prepare to try take a two-game sweep against the visiting San Diego Padres at Target Field. It’ll be a pair of electric righties doing battle, as the Twins send Ervin Santana to the bump while the Padres will counter with Dinelson Lamet. Manager Paul Molitor is not expecting any kind of bleed from Tuesday night’s 16-0 win into Wednesday’s game, but he also doesn’t expect that facing a distinctly different pitcher will matter too much, either. “You never assume it’ll carry over,” Molitor said. “We — somewhat ironically — just had a game similar to that one on the last homestand, and we came back the next day and were a bit challenged offensively. The Royals ended up winning the game after that 17-0 game.” Molitor said the team had a nice celebration after the game for Niko Goodrum’s first MLB hit and Gabriel Moya’s first MLB appearance, but it’s time to turn the page heading into Wednesday’s game. “Today’s a new day,” Molitor said. “There’s a good pitcher on the mound for the Padres, and Ervin is hopefully going to give us a chance like he almost always does, and we can find a way to complete the two-game sweep.” The Twins have also set up their rotation for the upcoming series against the Blue Jays, and it’ll be as follows: Thursday – Jose Berrios Friday – Bartolo Colon (on Big Sexy night, no less) Saturday – Adalberto Mejia Sunday – Kyle Gibson “I wanted to keep Jose and Colon on their regular turns,” Molitor said. “That was something I thought made sense, given the fact that they’ve both thrown the ball well. With Mejia, he’s done some good things for us this year. His rehab has been efficient. He’s proven that he’s ready to come back and hopefully help us. And (Saturday) is really the first day that I need to slot someone in without (Aaron) Slegers being in the rotation.” Miguel Sano again took early batting practice for the Twins, but didn’t do much running around, Molitor said. “I think he was a little sore from the work yesterday,” Molitor said, so the team opted to give him a day off from that. Sano is making progress, Molitor noted, but there’s still no timeline and his return is not what the manager would term as “imminent.” To that end, it feels like he’s at least a week away. “We’re just hoping each day that we get a little bit closer,” Molitor said. Please click through to read this article in full on Zone Coverage here.

It’s sunny and very, very warm as the Twins begin the second part of their home-and-home series with the Padres. The Twins split the first half of the series on Aug. 1-2 with Jhoulys Chacin outdueling Jose Berrios in the first game and Ervin Santana beating Luis Perdomo in the second game. This time, it’ll be the red-hot Kyle Gibson (5.19 ERA, 4.86 FIP in 135.1 innings) getting ready to take on left-hander Travis Wood (6.00 ERA, 5.29 FIP in 81 innings between Kansas City and San Diego). More on that in a bit. There was a new face in the Twins clubhouse before the game, as left-handed reliever Gabriel Moya has joined the team after a strong stretch run with the Southern League co-champion Chattanooga Lookouts. To make room for Moya on the 40-man roster, the Twins designated infielder Engelb Vielma for assignment. Moya was very excited in the clubhouse, and smiled when the name Jeff Bajenaru was brought up. “Oh yeah, he’s been my pitching coach for three years in the minors,” Moya said. It was Bajenaru who tweeted that on Monday that Moya called him crying to tell him he was headed to Target Field. Please click through to Zone Coverage here to read this article in full!

I’ve mentioned Brad Hand as a trade target for the Minnesota Twins in two previous blogs, and now that we know the Twins’ surprising performance has Thad Levine targeting trades for long-term assets prior to the July 31 trade deadline, it seems Brad Hand is the Twins’ perfect trade target. Here are the reasons: This was originally published at FoulPlaybyPlay.com, a community of foul-mouthed, sports broadcasters providing uncensored, commercial-free play-by-play and color commentary during select games. Follow us @FoulPlaybyPlay. The Twins need relievers Tyler Duffey and Taylor Rogers have worked out nicely in high-leverage situations, and the Twins have struck gold with closer Brandon Kintzler. But Kintzler’s a free agent at the end of the season, and is likely trade bait. Glen Perkins has a team option for 2018 that won’t be picked up, and while the Twins expect to get Trevor May back next year, they have no idea what to expect from him after Tommy John surgery (his recovery from which he’s documenting at MLBTradeRumors.com). Hand has the stuff to close, and the Twins could trade Kintzler and transition to Hand without damaging their chances to contend this season. Depending on who they give up, they could actually improve their chances. Plus, Perkins won’t have to pitch in high-leverage situations upon his return. Hand’s controllable Hand won’t be a free agent until 2020, and while he’ll make more in arbitration next year than the $1.375 million he’s making this year, he’s still a steal given his .984 WHIP this season. Hand’s really good Hand not only limits runners on the bases, but he misses a lot of bats. His K/9 (10.8) is down slightly from last year (11.2), but his K:BB ratio is better this year (4.25) than last (3.08). Hand’s affordable Glen Perkins will make $6.5 million this year. Hand will be lucky to make half that next season. The Twins' budget of $108 million is one of the highest in Minnesota's history, too. Hand won’t cost the Twins a ton of prospects, either. While he’s one of the top relievers on the trading block, he’s not a closer and won’t command a return like Aroldis Chapman or Andrew Miller did. The trade market is also deep with relievers, so the Twins could probably part with a pair of prospects that are a few years away from contributing at the major league level. Hand’s local Hand attended Chaska High School in Chaska, Minnesota. While the local talent angle was taken by Levine’s predecessor, Terry Ryan (Joe Mauer, Glen Perkins, Caleb Thielbar, Cole DeVries, Pat Neshek, Michael Restovich, Terry Steinbach and Paul Molitor all graduated from Minnesota high schools), Andy MacPhail seemed to make it work (Kent Hrbeck, Jack Morris and Dave Winfield). Plus, fans love cheering for locals. The Twins have what the Padres need We all know the Padres have a giant hole at shortstop, but the Twins shouldn’t move Nick Gordon to get Hand. They don’t have to, either, as the Padres are fielding two outfielders 22 or under -- Manuel Margot and Allen Cordoba. I don’t know if that means the Padres would be interested in Eddie Rosario or Eduardo Escobar, but if they are, that might be a deal the Twins could make with Zach Granite knocking down the door to the majors with his bat. The Padres need help at the lower levels of the minors, too. Shortstop Javier Guerra (22) has struggled at high-A this season and last, as has outfielder Taylor Kohlwey (22) this year. And Peter Van Gansen (23) might not make it out of high-A, so there are some holes in San Diego’s lower affiliates that could be filled by Twins talent like Jermaine Palacios or Max Murphy. My guess is the Padres feel they’re probably three or more years away from contending, so a couple of 20-year-old prospects with high upside might be a perfect fit. Twins fans might not like the idea of letting go of a young player with promise, but that’s what you have to give up to get someone who’s good right now and will be good for quite some time.