Minnesota Twins: Trade Rumors as the Deadline Looms

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The Minnesota Twins look to be sellers at the trade deadline as a once-promising season has been anything but.

Following a Wild Card berth during the 2017 season, the Minnesota Twins felt good heading into the off season. Paul Molitor and company were confident they could repeat their success in 2018. The Twins made a number of moves in the off season to try and shore up their ranks. They threw a ton of money at the pitching staff. Among the off season moves saw Lance Lynn and Jake Odorizzi joining the team in starting roles to compliment 2017 All Star Ervin Santana. They also brought in closer Fernando Rodney and relievers Addison Reed and Zach Duke.

In the field, the Twins were excited to have Brian Dozier and his bat back. Eduardo Escobar finished 2017 on a high note as did Byron Buxton and All Star Miguel Sano. The Twins were looking to capitalize on the momentum and were optimistic that their new pieces would only add to their success. Then the season started.

Optimism quickly turned to disappointment as the Twins’ playoff chances took hit after hit.

Buxton has spent more time on the Disabled List than off of it this season. He has spent a good portion of his time in the minors when he has been healthy. He’s currently in Rochester, rehabbing a broken hand. Which came after a fractured toe, which came after migraines. Here’s to hoping that Buxton can rebound and get healthy. The Twins could use the human highlight reel in center.

It has been much the same with Sano. He struggled mightily in Minneapolis, prompting Molly to send him all the way down to Single A Fort Meyers. Now that he’s had some time to get things back in order, Sano is back in Rochester and will hopefully rejoin the Twins soon.

Starter Ervin Santana started the season on the Disabled List with a broken finger. His first game back was just last night against the Blue Jays where he looked nervous initially, but settled down in a hurry. He went five solid innings and allowed 3 hits.

Phil Hughes is a story all his own this season. After fighting through bicep tendinitis and thoracic outlet syndrome for several seasons, Hughes earned a spot in the starting rotation. After 2 starts, 7 appearances and a 6.75 ERA, the Twins cut their losses. They designated Hughes for assignment, later trading him to San Diego for cash and a draft pick. The Twins, who paid dearly for Hughes, have had a revolving door in their rotation for much of the season.

Now, we’re in late July and the team has struggled. The Twins are 2nd in the AL Central, which isn’t saying much. There’s a chance they could catch Cleveland, but it’s unlikely. They’re 13.5 games back from Seattle, who holds the 2nd Wild Card spot. Which brings us to trade talk.

Brian Dozier

The most obvious name that has come up time and time again is Brian Dozier. Dozier is having another solid season. He is hitting .225 with 16 home runs and 51 RBI on the season. He is his usual consistent self at second base and has been a bright spot for the Minnesota Twins in recent years.

In 2016, he hit a monstrous 42 home runs and had 99 runs batted in. Somehow, he got left off the All Star roster that season. He’s on pace for as many runs batted in this season but his home run tally is much lower.

Dozier has spent his entire career with the Twins, which is rumored to be one reason why they haven’t traded him before now. Minnesota has consistently shown that they value their “home town” guys. Much like Joe Mauer, Dozier has been loyal to the organization and its fans, making him not only a fan favorite, but a favorite of ownership. Dozier has been speculated to be on the trading block almost every season in recent memory, but so far he’s been able to avoid being sent elsewhere.

Popular speculation is that Dozier is headed to Milwaukee. This makes sense considering their situation at second base. Jonathan Villar has been sent to the DL with a right thumb sprain and was really the best option for the Brewers at the position. Dozier would be an upgrade even if Villar was healthy. He has a better bat and is better defensively.

The Brewers don’t have much in the way of pitching, which is what the Twins presumably will want in a trade, but they do have a few young prospects that the Twins could parlay later this season or in the offseason for help in the pen.

Eduardo Escobar

Eduardo Escobar is another Twin whose name has been floated in trade talks. Escobar is doing nothing but pushing his trade stock higher and higher as he’s in the midst of a career season. He leads the league in doubles with 36 and has 14 home runs and 60 runs batted in. He has a .275/.336/.511 slash line and he’s versatile. He can play short, third or second base and he’s good at all of them. If the Twins are going to move him, this is definitely the season to do so.

Escobar has been linked to the Brewers along with Dozier. In fact, some speculate the Minnesota Twins might do a package deal for both players. It would definitely be in their best interest to do so. Dozier is 31 and Escobar is 29. They are both at the peaks of their career and would be a definite upgrade to a Brewers team that has struggled at the middle infield positions this season.

Milwaukee has also struggled to score runs at times this year and with Dozier’s OPS at .718 and Escobar’s at a staggering .852, there is potential for the Brewers to break open the second half of the season behind their bats. Besides, when your third baseman is known as the “Mayor of Ding Dong City”, aren’t you due for an upgrade?!

Another landing place for Escobar has been speculated to be Philly. After losing out on the Manny Machado sweepstakes to the Dodgers, the Phillies are looking to firm up their infield. They’re also looking for a big bat to help them into a potential post season run. Escobar does both of these at a massively discounted price compared to what Machado went for. It also gives the Phillies some flexibility to play with their infield heading into fall.

Kyle Gibson

Kyle Gibson is a name that hasn’t been thrown around much in trade talks. He has never put up All Star quality numbers. In fact, he’s been mediocre at best as a starter. A solid enough guy every fifth day and probably super nice judging by his picture, but not scary good. Except this season, he’s quietly putting together the best stuff he’s ever had.

His ERA is 3.42, which is a full point lower than it ever has been. He’s already struck out 126 batters which is more than he fanned all of last season. In 2015 he struck out 145 and he’s well on track to blow past that number. Last night, he went 8 beautiful innings against a very dangerous Boston Red Sox team. He allowed only 3 hits and one run leading to 4 wins in a row for the Minnesota Twins.

Gibson is one player that I can make an argument both for and against trading. On one hand, Gibson is having the best season of his career. He’s 30 years old, which means he still has some time left to improve even more.

His career has been, to this point at least, injury free. The Twins would no doubt get maximum return for him if they pulled the trigger and traded him now. Gibson also has one more year left on his contract which makes him more valuable than a short-term rental.

The case against trading Gibson also hinges on his contract. If he truly has turned a corner and is able to replicate his stuff next season, he could be a very valuable piece to the Twins’ rotation.

With Santana hopefully back to his old form, Gibson could suddenly find himself as a serviceable second day starter. It’s an intriguing question for Paul Molitor and the front office. We’ll see how much they want to gamble in the next few days.

A few more names

The Minnesota Twins have no shortage of trade bait. The problem is, most of the names that should have been great, just haven’t been. Lance Lynn has had a disappointing season to say the least. His ERA is up to 5.23 and his WHIP is 1.66. As a Cardinal, his ERA was only 3.38.

Lynn could be traded simply because he’s Lance Lynn and he has proven to be the guy you want on the mound in the past. He definitely hasn’t been that this season, but a new uniform and new surroundings could do wonders for the guy.

Jake Odorizzi is another starter who had the potential to do great things in Minnesota and hasn’t quite panned out. Odorizzi is another player who has shown historical success with the Rays and he is under contract through next season. I can’t see another team taking a flyer on him before the deadline, but maybe if he turns it on in the second half, he could be a valuable asset before the waiver deadline in August.

If the Minnesota Twins are patient (which they’ve been known to be to a fault at times) Odorizzi could be extremely valuable alongside Santana and Gibson next year. Paired with some of the minor league prospects, the starting rotation in Minnesota could actually be something to look forward to next year.

More from Puckett's Pond

Fernando Rodney is an interesting situation. He is entering free agency after this season. He’s had an excellent year so there’s no reason to think teams wouldn’t be in the market for him. His personality makes him a fan favorite, which is something small market teams need, and he appears to be a decent guy in the locker room.

At the same time, teams in playoff contention will sell their grandma for a good closer. And Rodney is a good closer. The Minnesota Twins could get more than he’s probably worth if they do it right. Personally, I’d like to see him shooting arrows at Target Field for a few more seasons, but I don’t think Thad Levine is going to ask me what my opinion is.

Ervin Santana is the last wild card in play. He’s had one start this season. It was a good start, but it’s still only one. As recently as yesterday there were rumors that the Yankees were interested in Santana. With their signing of JA Happ from the Blue Jays, that now looks unlikely.

Of course, the Yankees have snatched up free agents like they’re in a dollar store with $50.00 in their pocket, so anything is possible. Santana should get the ball on Monday for the Minnesota Twins, which is the day before the trade deadline. Baseball is a finicky mistress, if a pitcher gets hurt getting out of bed or slices their hand open on a can lid, Santana could very well be in play if he has another solid outing

Next. Getting to know Twins prospect Victor Heredia. dark

The deadline is 4 days from now. I’m sure in those 4 days there will be speculation, conjecture, guess work, mystery teams and who knows what else. For now, the Twins are on a winning streak so let’s sit back and enjoy this version of the Twins until we can’t anymore.

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