Out of nowhere, the Twins announced yesterday that they're parting ways with president Derek Falvey. Executive chair Tom Pohlad will temporarily lead the business department, and general manager Jeremy Zoll will be the Twins' head of baseball operations for now. While it makes sense for Minnesota to part ways with its long-tenured executive, the timing of the announcement made it a complete shock, as pitchers and catchers are reporting to spring training on February 12. Not to mention, Falvey was one of the main speakers at last weekend's media luncheon during TwinsFest.
With that said, let's dive into two moves Falvey made that sealed his fate with the Twins, and two moves he made that he deserves credit for.
2 fate-sealing moves Derek Falvey made for Twins
Letting Sonny Gray walk in free agency without adding another star starting pitcher
The 2023 season was a magical one for the Twins. Although it ended in a loss to the Houston Astros in the American League Division Series, optimism for the 2024 season was high among Twins Territory, as Minnesota's 2023 Wild Card Series victory against the Toronto Blue Jays marked the Twins' first playoff series win in 21 years.
One of the main reasons for the Twins' success in 2023 was Sonny Gray's superb season in which he posted a career-best 5.6 bWAR along with an outstanding 2.79 ERA, 183 strikeouts and 55 walks in 184 innings across 32 starts en route to finishing second in American League Cy Young voting behind New York Yankees righty Gerrit Cole. Gray had a rough outing in Game 3 of the 2023 ALDS, but he played a vital role in the Twins' WC series win, pitching five scoreless innings during the second and final game of the series against Toronto.
Gray became a free agent after the 2023 season. And rather than re-signing the righty, the Twins let him walk in free agency, and he signed a three-year, $75 million deal with the St. Louis Cardinals. Gray hasn't performed as well as he did with the Twins for the Cardinals, but he's still been a solid pitcher over the past two years (4.07 ERA in 347 innings) and would've made the Twins a better team if they brought him back. The Twins' decision to let Gray walk would've been fine if they'd signed or traded for another starting pitcher, which they didn't. Instead, they essentially replaced him with Chris Paddack, who returned from injury after missing most of the 2023 campaign. Paddack struggled significantly with the Twins in 2024 and 2025, posting just 1.2 bWAR in 38 starts before being dealt to the Detroit Tigers at the 2025 trade deadline.
2025 trade deadline fire sale that included Carlos Correa, Jhoan Durán
A lot of the Twins' moves at the 2025 trade deadline made sense. It was obvious the Twins wouldn't make the postseason, so moving on from players on expiring contracts such as Harrison Bader, Danny Coulombe, Willi Castro, Ty France and Chris Paddack made sense. It even made some sense to move on from relievers Durán, Griffin Jax, Louis Varland and Brock Stewart, as relievers are easier to replace than position players and starting pitchers. Still, trading all four of those relievers may not have been the best move, as the Twins' bullpen now has a lot of questions surrounding it.
Trading Correa to the Astros was purely a salary dump, however. It made some sense to trade Correa, but the Twins still would've held onto him if they weren't in such a poor financial situation and if Correa hadn't requested a trade due to the direction the organization was headed.
Overall, the trade deadline fire sale was likely the final nail in the coffin for Falvey. Sure, some of those moves may have come at the advice of Joe Pohlad, but Falvey likely still had a lot to do with the moves.
2 moves Derek Falvey made for Twins that deserve credit
Trading designated hitter Nelson Cruz to Tampa Bay Rays for starting pitcher Joe Ryan
During the 2018-19 offseason, the Twins signed designated hitter Nelson Cruz to a one-year, $14 million deal with a $12 million club option for 2020 that Minnesota exercised. After the 2020 season, Cruz re-signed with the Twins on a one-year, $13 million contract.
Cruz was amazing at the plate during his time with the Twins, posting 8.3 bWAR and a .304/.386/.598 (162 OPS+) slash line with 76 homers and 191 RBI in 258 games. After he posted a .907 OPS through 85 games in 2021, Cruz was dealt to the Tampa Bay Rays for right-handed pitchers Joe Ryan and Drew Strotman.
The trade turned out to be an absolute steal for the Twins. Cruz posted an average .725 OPS in 55 regular-season games for the Rays, and he struggled mightily during the 2021 playoffs for Tampa Bay, going 3-for-17 as the Rays lost in the ALDS to the Boston Red Sox.
Meanwhile, Ryan went on to become one of the best starting pitchers in baseball after being traded to the Twins. In 115 starts across parts of five seasons with Minnesota, Ryan has posted 11 bWAR and a 3.79 ERA with 719 strikeouts over 641 1/3 innings. He represented the Twins in the All-Star Game last season and will pitch for Team USA during the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
Extending star center fielder Byron Buxton
With Falvey in charge, the Twins signed Buxton to a seven-year, $100 million extension during the 2021-22 offseason. Even though he has missed a lot of time due to injuries since signing the extension, Buxton has been more than worth the $100 million, and he still has three years of control remaining.
Per FanGraphs, Buxton has already provided the Twins with $101.1 million in value since signing the extension. Therefore, even if he regresses during the next three seasons, he has already been worth the contract.