Who should the Minnesota Twins move to free up 40-man space?
Guys with trade value
Kyle Gibson
So, of course, this would be the toughest decision to make as far as trading away after his late-season surge, but the reality is that Gibson will be earning roughly $5M in arbitration in 2018. After back to back seasons of a 5.07 ERA, Gibson may not have tremendous trade value, but his end of season run was noticed around the league, and if the Twins are able to get a solid #3 signed or acquired rather than getting a top of the rotation starter, it may make sense to send Gibson elsewhere to bring in prospects and to clear the salary to allow for a move for a more consistent inning-eating option in the middle of the rotation.
Pressly has the type of stuff that you would think would lead to a stud reliever. Pressly averages mid-90s with his fastball and pairs that with a hard slider in the upper 80s and spike curve that comes in low-80s. However, he seems to struggle to truly generate the sort of dominant numbers that you would expect from that pitch combination, especially in swing and miss, where he had his best season in 2017 with a 24.2% rate.
Pressly has the type of stuff that if he was still pre-arb would be worth giving a shot to figure it out for $600K, but he will make between $1.5-2M this year in arbitration, and with the collection of power arms ready for a role in the minor leagues, it doesn’t make sense to hold onto him. However, Pressly does have some trade value, as he was inquired on in July, per discussion with a scout sent to watch Pressly near the deadline for that purpose from another organization. He may not bring back an elite return, but getting a flyer prospect in the low minors in exchange for Pressly would be an excellent example of developing talent to the point of generating return.
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Then again, if the Minnesota Twins can spin the season that Robbie Grossman had at the plate in 2017 into a legitimate tradeable asset, that would be the ultimate in creating value. Grossman is eligible for arbitration this offseason, and he’s currently projected to make between $2-3M after a solid season as the primary designated hitter for the Twins this season.
Over the last two seasons with the Twins, Grossman has hit .262/.372/.409 with an average of 20 doubles, 10 home runs, and a 61/88 BB/K ratio. Those aren’t exceptional numbers, but for a 9th hitter in a lineup, it’s a quality hitter to have, especially as Grossman is a better base runner than he is a base stealer, so the quality on base percentage allows for Grossman to positively affect the team by putting a consistent threat to score on the bases.
Next: Twins top 100 prospects complete list
So what do you think? Who on this list should be moved? Who should be off limits? Comment below!