Welcome Back! The Twins were pretty busy this offseason and if you weren’t there to follow it everyday, you might have missed something. Today, we’ll take a look at the key losses for the Twins this season and it’ll be followed up with the key additions tomorrow.
Joe Nathan
New Team: Texas Rangers
Joe Nathan is the Twins all-time saves leader and while he struggled to return to form after missing the 2010 season with injury, he was still one of the only solid bullpen options for the Twins last season. Nathan chose to go to Texas because he feels it provides him with best chance to win and he’s chasing that elusive World Series ring, seeing as it is the latter part of his career.
Michael Cuddyer
New Team: Colorado Rockies
Michael Cuddyer was the Twins only All-Star in 2012. He has been an important part of the Twins organization for the past ten years. Losing Cuddyer was definitely a blow to most Twins fans, but hope springs eternal. Cuddyer is on the back end of his career, being 32, and the Twins were unwilling to pay the $10.5 million dollars required to keep him.
Jason Kubel
New Team: Arizona Diamondbacks
Jason Kubel has been very important to the Twins in the past few years. While he’s provided some great moments over the last three years (Grand Slam off Rivera?), the Twins decided it was best to move on. The Arizona Diamondbacks liked what they saw and offered Kubel a two year, $15 million dollar contract for his services.
José Mijares
New Team: Kansas City Royals
Normally, José Mijares wouldn’t warrant a mention in a significant losses column, but Mijares had been a pretty good relief pitcher for the past three seasons. Mijares struggled a bit last season and the Twins decided to move on, so Mijares joined the Kansas City Royals. I was surprised the Twins were so quick to move on from Mijares considering how thin the bullpen was last year and with the loss of Nathan this year.
Jim Thome
New Team: Philadelphia Phillies
I know Jim Thome did not finish the season with the team, but he’s such a fan favorite an update should be included. Thome signed a one-year deal with the Phillies. Thome, like Nathan, is chasing a World Series ring. Thome is five home-runs away away from seventh on the all-time home-run list. If the Twins don’t happen to win the World Series this year, I’d love to see Thome get a ring. Thome is truly one of the greats.
Check back tomorrow to see how the Twins are planning on replacing the massive holes left by some of these guys. Check back often for everything Twins as the summer heats up.