It isn’t much to go on, but longtime MLB insider Bob Nightengale reported in his Monday column that the Minnesota Twins could use their surplus of position player depth to trade for pitching this offseason.
“The Minnesota Twins, who are losing free agent pitchers Sonny Gray and Kenta Maeda, are planning to use their position player depth to acquire arms in trades. They also have interest in free agent center fielder Kevin Kiermaier,” Nightengale wrote.
If it’s true that the Twins are interested in Kiermaier, that could mean the Twins don’t plan on bringing back center fielder Michael A. Taylor, who is an unrestricted free agent. By the numbers, Taylor and Kiermaier and very similar, though Taylor produced more power while Kiermaier hit for contact.
Kiermaier in 2023: .265/.322/.419 with eight homers, 36 RBI and 14 stolen bases in 129 games and 409 plate appearances. He had a 21.1% strikeout rate. He’s also a three-time recipient of a Gold Glove.
Taylor in 2023: .220/.278/.442 with 20 homers, 58 RBI and 13 stolen bases in 129 games and 388 plate appearances. Taylor had a 33.5% strikeout rate. He won his only Gold Glove award in 2021.
The Twins have said they hope Byron Buxton will be able to play center field in 2024. Buxton is entering the second year of his seven-year, $100 million contract. He did not play in the outfield this past season due to knee problems and injuries limited him to 85 games and he had just one at-bat in the playoffs.
As for pitching, there’s one name that pops off the page as a potential trade candidate this winter: Tyler Glasnow, who posted a 3.53 ERA in 21 starts. He struck out 12.2 batters per nine innings (162 strikeouts in 120 innings), which is just shy of Spencer Strider’s MLB best 13.55 strikeouts per nine innings.
The Tampa Bay right-hander is owed $25 million 2024 and is eligible for free agency in 2025, so if the Twins were to trade for him they’d likely need to have an assurance that he’d sign an extension.
Corbin Burnes is another high-end starter who could be traded. Like Glasnow, he has just one year of team control before he’s eligible to test free agency after the 2024 season. He’s been one of baseball’s best pitchers since becoming a full-time starter for the Brewers in 2021. In 2023 he posted a 3.32 ERA and earned a third straight trip to the All-Star Game.
If the Twins want to look at division rivals for a trade, they can peek at Cleveland for Shane Bieber or look to Chicago for Dylan Cease. That said, an intra-division trade seems less likely.
Those are the high-end names that will draw attention. There are other names out there that won’t create hype, so don’t get your hopes up that Minnesota has something up its sleeve to add an ace to the starting staff.
Who could the Twins trade for pitching? If we’re talking position players, two names that jump off the page include outfielder Max Kepler and infielder Jorge Polanco. The Twins picked up their 2023 options, but without long-term contracts they are obvious trade candidates.
Minnesota is going to have a log jam in the outfield if they don’t move one or multiple players who are good enough to compete for at-bats next season, including Matt Wallner, Trevor Larnach, Willi Castro and Austin Martin.
Royce Lewis, Carlos Correa, Eddy Julien/Jorge Polanco and Alex Kirilloff (pending shoulder surgery recovery) are the Twins’ likely starting infielders next season. But the depth behind them is loaded with players who are on the cusp of being MLB ready, including star shortstop prospect Brooks Lee and second/third baseman Yunior Severino, who hit .320 in 33 games at Triple-A St. Paul and smashed 35 homers in 120 games between Double-A and Triple-A last summer.
Meanwhile, if Gray and Maeda aren’t back with the Twins in 2024, the current starting staff would include Pablo Lopez, Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober. Louie Varland, who pitched out of the bullpen late in the season and the playoffs, is another option in the 2024 starting rotation.
Prospect depth includes Simeon Woods Richardson, who spent 2023 at Triple-A St. Paul and finished with a 4.91 ERA in 24 games. David Festa climbed his way from Double-A to Triple-A but only had three starts with the Saints, so he may need more grooming before getting the call to the big leagues.
The Twins certainly have work to do this offseason if they hope the starting staff will be as good as it was in 2023.
