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Time is running out for the Twins to add to the team's 2023 roster. So, do any of the top remaining free agents fit with the Twins? Image courtesy of Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports Ranking free agents can be a challenging exercise, especially at this point in the off-season when many of the top names are off the board. On Sunday, MLB Trade Rumors updated their list of the best remaining free agents at each position, which includes some players that are potential fits for the Twins. Here is a rundown of that list and how each player fits with Minnesota's 2023 roster. Starting Pitcher: Johnny Cueto Minnesota showed some interest in Cueto last winter but went in a different direction to sign Chris Archer. At the time, the Twins wanted someone ready to jump into the rotation, and Cueto didn't make an appearance until May 16. In 2022, he made 25 starts for the White Sox and posted a 3.35 ERA with a 1.23 WHIP. There are rumors the Twins might be interested in Michael Wacha, who would be the next best free-agent starter. Teams can never have too much starting pitching, but the club's younger arms offer more upside. Relief Pitcher: Andrew Chafin The Twins have done little to add to the bullpen, and a few reliable relievers are left on the market. Chafin is intriguing because he is left-handed, and Minnesota's only lefty relievers are Caleb Thielbar and Jovani Moran. He posted a 10.5 K/9 last season with a 2.83 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. He's shown the ability to be effective against righties and lefties, which should secure him a late-inning role with a contending club. Former Twin Michael Fulmer is the best right-handed reliever, and that move makes sense for Minnesota if Chafin signs elsewhere. Catcher: Gary Sanchez Catcher was one of Minnesota's most significant needs this winter, but the club already signed Christian Vazquez to a multi-year deal. The Twins saw plenty of Sanchez during the 2022 campaign, and the team was looking for a better defensive option. It seems highly unlikely for Sanchez to be back in a Twins uniform. First Base: Trey Mancini Last week, I wrote about Mancini being a target for the Twins because he gets some time in the outfield and bats right-handed. However, he posted reverse splits last season, so he might not be the best candidate for this role. Minnesota likely has enough options for first base, with Luis Arraez and Alex Kirilloff getting most of the reps and other players filling in as needed. Signing Mancini makes more sense if the Twins traded any of their other first-base options. Second Base: Josh Harrison Harrison posted a 94 OPS+ in 119 games for the White Sox last season while providing plenty of value on the defensive side. He can fill a veteran utility player role, especially since he ranked in the 84th percentile for Outs Above Average. Minnesota's second base depth chart is already full with Jorge Polanco, Luis Arraez, and Edouard Julien. Shortstop: Elvis Andrus Obviously, Carlos Correa is not officially signed with the New York Mets, and MLBTR was assuming his deal will have a pen to paper. Andrus might be a slight upgrade over current Twins shortstop Kyle Farmer, but they offer similar overall value. Andrus likely wants to play for a team where he will get regular playing time, and the Twins might not be that place for him. Minnesota can add him as another infield option if his market continues to be cold, but that seems unlikely. Third Base: Brian Anderson Earlier this winter, the Twins traded Gio Urshela to open up a regular third base job for Jose Miranda. Anderson's defense declined at third base last season, and he's averaged a 90 OPS+ over the last two seasons. He has some experience in the outfield, so the Twins may be interested in him being a right-handed bench bat. Corner Outfield: Jurickson Profar Besides Correa, Profar is the best free agent left on the market. Last season, he hit .243/.331/.391 (.723) with a 111 OPS+ and a career-high 36 doubles. Profar could fit with the Twins because he is a switch hitter and played exclusively in left field last season. Minnesota has Byron Buxton and Joey Gallo penciled into two outfield spots, while Profar could occupy left. It seems more likely for the Twins to use other internal options in the outfield, with the club already having too many corner outfield options. Center Field: Albert Almora Almora is tremendous as a defensive center fielder, but he is substantially below average at the plate. The Twins hope to have Byron Buxton start more than 51 games in center this year. Also, Gilberto Celestino has plenty of upside, even though he still needs to put it all together at the big-league level. Almora isn't signing with the Twins. Designated Hitter: Nelson Cruz Twins fans can dream of Cruz returning to the middle of the team's line-up, but he isn't the same hitter he was two years ago. In 2022, he hit .234/.313/.337 (.651) with a 90 OPS+. He's also entering his age 42 season, so there are no guarantees he will rediscover his swing. Cruz had plenty of memorable moments for the Twins, but the club was lucky to move on from him. Which of these players is the best fit with the Twins? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. View full article

To this point, the Minnesota Twins’ off-season has not gone as some had hoped, leading fans to chalk it up as a major dud. I, on the other hand, view it simply as incomplete. The current makeup of the roster is bursting at the seams with potential, and there are still enough moves the Twins can make to transform this promising roster into a contender in the AL Central. Here are a few moves I could see the Twins plausibly acting on to achieve that goal. Sign a Right-Handed Outfielder It seems as though the Twins currently possess every left-handed outfielder that has ever played the game. With Gallo, Kepler, Larnach, Kirilloff, and Wallner all taking their cuts from the left side of the plate, the Twins could use a little pop from the right side. Trey Mancini is one right handed option that fits the Twins’ current roster very well. Mancini is only 30 years old and has five seasons of solid production at the plate. He went through a tough time at the plate after being traded to the Astros last year, but I choose to look at the whole body of work rather than the final 51 games he played in Houston. Mancini’s bat is the appeal here, but he has experience playing outfield as well as first base, a position where the Twins don’t currently have a permanent solution. The Twins have money to spend, and signing Mancini would give them a guy they can plug into a corner outfield spot, first base, or DH to add a plus bat to the lineup. There are other options on the free agent market that would fill this need, but Mancini is the one I like best. Bolster the Rotation If you thought signing Gallo was the beginning of the end for Max Kepler in Minnesota, signing Mancini would surely be the straw that broke the camel’s back. In a scenario where the Twins do sign Mancini, they now have too many cooks in the outfield, and unfortunately, Kepler is the odd man out. As noted in my last blog post, I am very high on Pablo Lopez as a potential target for the Twins, and the Marlins are reportedly looking for MLB-ready bats, particularly outfielders. Kepler isn’t enough to get Lopez on his own, but they could package him with either a top 5 prospect or Luis Arraez. Another way they could try to complete a deal would be to take on Jorge Soler’s contract. This method would dip into their spending over the next few years but would allow them to hang onto their top prospects and Luis Arraez. The two teams have been reported to be in ongoing trade talks, so it remains to be seen how this plays out, but Pablo Lopez would be a massive addition to a frequently injured rotation. If the Twins elect not to trade for a front of the rotation guy, they must sign a back of the rotation insurance piece. Four of the five rotation pieces penciled in either struggled to stay healthy last year or didn't play at all due to injury. Adding a guy like Michael Wacha would prevent the Twins from having to rush young prospects the way they did last year with Josh Winder and Louie Varland. Both Varland and Winder showed promise in their big league debuts, but both guys could use a bit more time in the minors before being rotational MLB pitchers. Sure Up the Bullpen 2022 was a year of highs and lows for the Minnesota Twins bullpen. The emergence of Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran as dominant pieces at the back end of the bullpen was riveting, while Emilio Pagan and Jorge Lopez left a sour taste in many fans’ mouths. The Twins should see the return of Jorge Alcala in 2023. Although there is no guarantee Alcala will return to the form he was when he was the favorite to win the closer job after the Taylor Rogers trade, he should still be a viable piece for the Twins to use. Jorge Lopez walks too many batters, but I still believe in the elite stuff, and his dominant first half of 2022 with the Orioles is impossible to ignore. There may even be hope that Pagan can be a decent middle reliever if he continues to develop his splitter. As a unit, the group is solid, but with the rotation’s inability to pitch deep into games, they could use one more reliable arm. Michael Fulmer would be a familiar name the Twins could bring back for a modest price. Another name I like if the Twins are in the market for a lefty reliever is Andrew Chafin, who had a 3.06 FIP and fanned 67 batters over 57.1 IP last season with the Detroit Tigers. Chafin is left-handed compared to Fulmer’s right-handedness, so it would be up to the Twins to decide which is a bigger need and what would be a better fit. At this point in the off-season, even though things may seem all doom and gloom, there are still moves left for the Twins to make. They have a young, promising roster, money to spend, and bats they should be willing to trade to upgrade the team as a whole. The three potential moves highlighted above could put a nice touch on an otherwise uneventful off-season and, in my opinion, would make the Twins contenders in the AL Central. What are your thoughts? What’s a move you want the Twins to make before Spring Training? Let me know! As always, Go, Twins!

Minnesota’s roster is full of corner outfield options, but most of those players are left-handed. Can the team find a way to upgrade the outfield with a veteran bat? Image courtesy of Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports Over the last two seasons, the Twins have used Kyle Garlick as the team’s primary right-handed hitting outfielder. He has hit .233/.283/.446 (.728) with a 103 OPS+ in 102 games. Garlick performed even better when put into favorable match-ups. Against left-handed pitching, he posted an .805 OPS with seven extra-base hits in 74 at-bats last season. Garlick has dealt with injuries over the last two seasons, so multiple free-agent outfielders might be an upgrade in the outfield. AJ Pollock 2022 Stats: .245/.292/.389 (.681), 26 2B, 14 HR, 91 OPS+, 138 G Pollock has been a strong offensive player with a career 113 OPS+, including a 133 OPS+ from 2020-21. Most of his defensive innings have come in center field, but he has shifted to left field in recent years. Byron Buxton and Joey Gallo are penciled in as the team’s starters in center field and right field, which could allow Pollock to slide into left field. Even in an offensive down year, he dominated lefties with a .935 OPS and 20 extra-base hits in 126 at-bats. The Twins have three young outfielders projected to get significant playing time this season, so Pollock would have to agree to a backup role. Andrew McCutchen 2022 Stats: .237/.316/.384 (.700), 25 2B, 17 HR, 99 OPS+, 134 G McCutchen is well known as a five-time All-Star and a former NL MVP, but he hasn’t been that caliber of player in multiple seasons. He spent 2022 with the Milwaukee Brewers and finished with an OPS+ below 100 for the first time in his career. Over 60% of his starts came as a designated hitter, and the Twins like to be able to rotate players through that role. For this reason, he might make him less of a fit for the club. His OPS (.738) was 53 points higher when facing left-handed pitching. His veteran presence would be a welcome addition to the clubhouse, but he might need to be willing to take on a lesser role on the field. Trey Mancini 2022 Stats: .239/.319/.391 (.710), 23 2B, 18 HR, 101 OPS+, 143 G Mancini started the 2022 season strongly with a 113 OPS+ in 92 games for the Orioles. The Astros acquired him for their World Series run, but he struggled after the deal. In 51 games, he hit .176/.258/.364 (.622) with seven doubles and eight home runs. Houston used him sparingly in the postseason as he went 1-for-21 (.048 BA) with eight strikeouts. Last season, Mancini had reverse splits with an OPS that was 88 points lower against lefties. He has posted almost identical splits against righties (.786 OPS) and lefties (.790 OPS) for his career. Mancini had a solid start to the 2022 season, so a team adding him will be looking for him to return to his previous form. Entering the offseason, I planned a perfect offseason for the Twins, and little has gone favorably for the club. One of the pieces of that plan was to add a right-handed power bat to the bench. I identified Mancini as a target for the team, and he might have the highest upside. However, McCutchen and Pollock can provide an upgrade compared to Garlick if put into the right situation. Do any of these players make sense for the Twins? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. View full article

There are roughly seven weeks until the trade deadline, and plenty of names will start being tossed around in the rumor mill. Here are three players whose stock has risen recently and how they fit with the Twins. The players mentioned below are on non-contending teams, which are expected to be active at the deadline. As the August 2 trade deadline approaches, expect multiple trade targets tied to the Twins. Luis Castillo, RHP, Reds Twins fans have been calling for the Twins to trade for Luis Castillo since last winter, but he will be one of the most sought-after arms heading into the deadline. Minnesota completed the Sonny Gray trade with Cinncinatti, so the two front offices are familiar with one another. Sometimes that helps to make more significant trades come to fruition. Unlike the last trade that was a one-for-one deal, a Castillo trade will likely take multiple prospects, especially since he has one last arbitration-eligible season in 2023. Recent Hot Streak: Castillo began the year on the IL, which may have hurt his potential trade value. However, he has rounded back into form over his last five starts. In 29 1/3 innings, he has allowed eight earned runs (2.45 ERA) and averaged nearly six innings per outing. Opponents have hit .214/.279/.304 (.582) while striking out in 26.8% of their at-bats. Castillo would bolster nearly any team's playoff rotation. Willson Contreras, C, Cubs Minnesota has two capable big-league catchers on the roster, but a catching upgrade might help improve the entire line-up. Ryan Jeffers has struggled this season, and Willson Contreras would be a significant upgrade behind the plate. The Cubs traded away many of their core players last year, and Contreras is one of the last remaining pieces from their 2016 World Series run. FanGraphs has him ranked as the catcher with the highest WAR total in 2022. He is a free agent at the season's end, so plenty of teams will be in the market for the two-time All-Star. Recent Hot Streak: Contreras posted a .781 OPS through the season's first month, which isn't terrible. However, his bat started to heat up when the calendar turned to May. Over his last 33 games, he is hitting .279/.420/.550 (.970), including four doubles and eight home runs. At this point, he may be baseball's best offensive catcher. Trey Mancini, 1B, Orioles First base is an interesting position for the Twins. Luis Arraez has been getting most of the starts at the position, but the team can also add Alex Kirilloff and Miguel Sano back to the roster in the coming weeks. Trey Mancini can play first base or either corner outfield spot, but the Twins have depth at those positions. MLB.com identified him as a potential fit for the Twins, but it is hard to envision him fitting into the current line-up unless injuries became a concern. His current contract includes a $10 million mutual option for 2023 with a $250,000 buyout, so he doesn't have to serve strictly as a rental player for a team acquiring him. Recent Hot Streak: Mancini posted a .590 OPS through the season's first month, but he has recently heated up. Over his last 38 games, he is hitting .326/.424/.482 (.907) with five doubles and five home runs. FanGraphs ranks Minnesota's first base production in the bottom six of the American League. Mancini fits the prototypical first baseman role if the front office wants to address this position. Which player(s) do you feel like would be the best fit for the Twins before the trade deadline? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. View full article

Since Opening Day, Twins fans have spent a lot of time agonizing over the loss of Akil Baddoo in the Rule 5 draft. However, the Twins lost two players in December’s Rule 5 draft, and when the Baltimore Orioles come to Target Field today, reliever Tyler Wells will be a part of their bullpen. Following a series against the Nationals, the Baltimore Orioles flew to Minnesota where they will take on the Twins in a three game series starting tonight. The teams enter the series with an identical 17-29 record. For one member of the Orioles bullpen, the experience will be very special. Right-hander Tyler Wells said this afternoon, “I’m looking forward to moving forward. Even right now, playing the Twins, it’s kind of like a homecoming. It’s a bittersweet thing because I have a lot of friends over there. It’s going to be great to see them, but I’m also looking forward to competing against them.” The Twins drafted Tyler Wells in the 15th round of the 2016 draft out of Cal State-San Bernadino. The Twins scouts saw him and determined they definitely wanted to draft him. Deron Johnson, who was the Twins Scouting Director in 2016, told Twins Daily that he had traveled with Twins area scout and now West Coast Supervisor Elliot Strankman. “Elliot and I were going to see a junior college kid at another college. He said, ‘Hey, I like this reliever at Sonoma State. Let’s go see him on the way there.’ So we go there and they’re playing Cal State-San Bernadino. We see this big giant on the mound throwing up to 94 with a nice breaking ball. John Leavitt, our area scout, had him in (his reports), but he wasn’t a guy for me to see. We just stopped in there on a whim. John had seen him, but he hadn’t seen him throwing that hard. We just kind of had him on our radar after that. We didn’t hide him out, but we didn’t show a lot of interest. We knew there were two other clubs that had interest in him. We targeted him in the draft and thought, let’s not lose this guy.” Wells was the 2018 Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year. Between High-A Ft. Myers and Double-A Chattanooga, he went 10-6 with a 2.56 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP. He also had 121 strikeouts and just 31 walks over 119 1/3 innings. Unfortunately, the next spring training, he felt a pop in his elbow and ultimately had Tommy John surgery which cost him the 2019 season. He would have likely been rehab to come back sometime during the 2020 season, but as we all know, there was no 2020 season. And most likely, that is why the Twins decided not to add him to their 40 man roster in November. The Orioles took Wells with their second round Rule 5 pick. But even then, it didn’t necessarily mean that the Twins would lose him long term. Wells had to make the Orioles big-league roster out of spring training and still has to stay on the big-league roster throughout the entire 2021 season or be offered back to the Twins. Earlier in the Rule 5 draft, Wells’ good friend and fellow 2016 draft pick Akil Baddoo was selected by the Tigers. “We went through Tommy John surgery together and through that whole rehab process. We got pretty close. I was unbelievably happy for him. I hope he continues to absolutely rake and hope to see him up in Detroit.” Wells reported to Sarasota for his first major-league spring training. Wells pitched nine innings over five appearances. He gave up six hits, walked three and struck out 12 batters. He pitched well. Wells said this afternoon, “It was a lot of fun. A lot of the guys were super nice. It took a little time to get my feet wet, to understand how everything is going, how to go about my business. A lot of learning experiences. Got acquainted with a lot of the guys. As I continued to pitch, I learned more about myself and how my arm was feeling. I had an uptick in stuff from before I had Tommy John surgery. Everything went really, really well.” The Orioles decided to keep him on their roster for Opening Day. Getting the news was something that Wells will never forget. “I got called into the manager’s office on the last day of cuts. The GM and the manager are there. The first thing they said to me was ‘You ever been to Boston?’ Wells responded, “Nope.” They said, ‘Would you like to go?” Wells noted, “Obviously right then, I knew I made the team. It was an incredible moment.” On April 4th, the Orioles had an 11-3 lead over the Red Sox heading to the bottom of the ninth. Tyler Wells found himself jogging in from the Fenway Park bullpen to make his big-league debut. He gave up one hit, and he walked one, but he got three outs without allowing a run to end the game. “We were winning by a substantial amount, so they brought me in for the ninth and I got to finish the game. I ran out there and about halfway to the mound, I lost feeling in my feet. I started thinking I’ve got to remember how to do this pitching thing real quick.” In addition, he noted that the Red Sox fans in the right field corner were chanting his name. When he was warming up, fans were razzing him. “Wells… why are you not playing basketball? You should be playing tight end for the Patriots. Why are you even here?” Wells thought those aren’t even insults. “They were compliments. I appreciate that. I was keeping a straight face the whole time, and they liked that I didn’t even blink an eye. So they started chanting ‘Ty-Ler-Wells! Ty-Ler-Wells!’ as I was entering the game.” Since then, he has pitched in four more games against the Red Sox. His second MLB appearance came at Yankees Stadium. Primarily, he has pitched in low-leverage situations. He has completed two innings in seven of his 12 outings. Wells said, “The coaches have been pretty open about my situation. As a rookie, it’s low-leverage situations. I’m starting to get more comfortable in going in and hold games, certainly building more confidence in myself to be able to do that. I think that getting more innings as of late is really helping with that. I’m mostly a two-inning game. They try to bring me in and hold the game. I think they do have a lot of confidence in me doing that. I’m trying to help the team out as much as I can. Trying to help the bullpen as much as I can. Right now, they just want me to get more comfortable.” Overall, he has pitched in 12 games. He has a 5.14 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. In 21 innings, he has given up 16 hits, walked seven and struck out 26 batters (11.1 K/9). One issue he has had is giving up home runs. He has already given up six homers (to Enrique Hernandez, JD Martinez, Jed Lowrie, Clint Frazier, Xander Bogaerts and Mike Zunino). This will not be Wells' first trip to Target Field. He’s been there one other time, but “not for the reasons I wanted to be. With my injury, I had to see the team doctor and got to attend a game.” On Monday night, the Twins will face left-hander John Means. As a rookie in 2019, he was the Orioles representative at the All Star game. In 2021, he has become a legitimate star. To this point, he is 4-0 with a 1.70 ERA and a 0.75 ERA. Means is a guy that Wells has talked to and learned from already. “He’s been a guy that I’ve looked up to a lot. Very level headed. That is really what makes him so go. He’s level headed because of the experiences he’s been through. He considered retiring in 2018. He ended up making his major-league debut that year. Baseball is already difficult enough, and when he got the opportunity, he didn’t waste it. He’s a great leader in the clubhouse. For me, personally, I talked to him a lot in spring training. I’ve talked to him throughout the course of the season so far. He provides a lot of insights to the pitching, the lifestyle, how to take care of yourself. He’s been a huge help for, but he takes the stuff that he tells me and he applies it. Everything he tells me, he does. He doesn’t get too up or too down. He’s just cruising.” Another teammate that Wells really admires is Trey Mancini. As you know, the O’s first baseman first baseman missed the 2020 season fighting colon cancer. He has returned this year, and through 46 games, he is hitting .280/.352/.520 (.872) with 12 doubles, ten homers and a league-leading 41 RBI. Wells says, “You aren’t going to find a lot of better people in baseball than him. He’s such a down-to-earth guy. He’s another leader in our clubhouse. The word to describe him is ‘Incredible!’ He’s pushed. He’s fought. And I think you see a lot of that in his game. He’s continued to push himself and I’m so happy for him. He’s a phenomenal human being. He does everything with a purpose. He’s so resilient. It’s very inspiring, not just for me, but for the entire team, the entire league.” Hopefully Tyler Wells will be able to make an appearance this week on the Target Field mound. One of his best friends from the Twins organization is Twins star rookie Alex Kirilloff. “AK and I have the same type of conversation every week or two. We’ll see what’s going on in our lives. I keep up with him on how his daughter is doing, and see how his wife and the rest of his family are doing. We don’t really talk a lot about baseball, just about life and how things are going. It’s cool to take a step back and realize this game has brought a lot of great people into your life. It’s such a cool thing to see him grow into a bigger person, beyond just baseball. I’m looking forward to reconnecting to him.” He pointed out the the Orioles just finished a series with the Washington Nationals. He had forgotten that another former Twins minor leaguer Sam Clay is working out of the Nationals bullpen this season. He said it was nice to reconnect with him as well. Wells has been teammates with Luis Arraez, Cody Stashak and others. Wells is good friends with Travis Blankenhorn and Aaron Whitefield who are close to Trevor Larnach so he has had a chance to get to know him as well. “It’s going to be hard, with Arraez and AK, as soon as I see them walking into the box, it’ll be hard not to smile at them. It’s cool. It’s a lot of fun. It’s going to up the ante. It’s going to make you want to perform better, and I think it’s going to do the same for those guys. It’s a lot of friendly competition.” Wells noted, “It’s awesome to be able to come back and see everybody. I think that’s what I’m looking forward to most. Baseball is still baseball. I have a job to do. I still compete. It doesn’t matter what stadium it’s in. It’s game time. You lock it in. You go out there and do your thing. I don’t think it’s so much the place as it is the people.” Wells’ goal for the rest of the 2021 season may seem simple, but it’s important. “Stay healthy! That’s the big one because after not pitching for two years and coming from AA straight to the big leagues, it’s certainly a jump, but at the same time, you’re getting more intense innings. You have 162 games a year. You want to stay healthy, and that’s my #1 goal this year. I’d like to avoid any IL stints. And, on top of that, Win some ball games. I want to compete for the team and help the team win. If they ever need a guy, I want to be that guy.” Akil Baddoo understandably caught our attention early in the season when he got off to a fast start, and hit a grand slam, and a triple, and had a walkoff single against the Twins in the season’s first week. But the Twins lost two players in this past Rule 5 draft and both are finding means of success in their rookie big league seasons. View full article