The Twins are about to wrap up the month of May and the team finds itself in first place in the AL Central heading into June.
Right now, Minnesota has a solid one-two punch in Ervin Santana and Jose Berrios but the back end of the rotation has been mostly a punching bag.
If Minnesota is serious about being contenders they’ll need to make a move for a quality starting pitcher. Here’s a list of players they can target by the July 31 trade deadline.
1. Jose Quintana
The Chicago White Sox are still hovering around .500 but starting pitcher Jose Quintana is considered as a valuable trade chip for this summer. Quintana has a career ERA of 3.49 in seven seasons but he’s off to a slower start this season as his ERA is north of four.
But that could be the Twins’ benefit as his trade value may not cost as high as it should. Even with the down this season, Quintana is striking out more batters than he ever has, which is something Minnesota’s rotation desperately needs.
2. Anyone from Tampa Bay
Tampa is one-game over .500 as of May 30 but it looks like they’ll have an uphill battle in the AL East. Currently the Rays have four starters who are all pitching very well.
- Jake Odorizzi, 3.14 ERA
- Matt Andriese, 3.24 ERA
- Chris Archer, 3.61 ERA
- Alex Cobb, 3.67. ERA
Andriese and Odorizzi wouldn’t cost as much as Archer and Cobb who are No. 1 or 2 starters on most teams. That said, the Twins would have a better rotation with any of these four.
Sonny Gray
Okay, this would be the big one. Gray will probably be the hottest commodity this summer for any team that’s a buyer. He battled injuries last year that lingered into 2017 but he’s finally healthy.
From 2013-2015 Gray had an ERA of 2.88 and struck out 419 batters in nearly 500 innings of work. He also wont’t be a free agent until the 2020.
Who would they give up?
Good question. The Twins have a solid pool of prospects with Nick Gordon, Tyler Jay, LaMonte Wade all having phenomenal seasons.
It’s unlikely Minnesota would trade an everyday player but guys like Eduardo Escobar, Kennys Vargas and possibly Eddie Rosario could also be included in a trade.
