Will Smith
Finalizing the going “all-in” conversation we started on the last slide, the Twins would have been wise to throw everything they had at acquiring Will Smith from the San Francisco Giants. Although Hayes’ report stated that the conversations the Twins had regarding Madison Bumgarner and Smith led to the acquisition of Dyson, it’s not like the Twins didn’t have the ammunition to get it done.
Even with the top three prospects (Lewis, Kirilloff and Brusdar Graterol) off the table, there was still other prospects that garnered buzz. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported that teams were interested in Larnach. Brent Rooker has 14 HR at Triple-A Rochester. Jordan Balazovic just pitched in the futures game. There were pieces here to make a deal.
If the Twins wanted to make an impact move, it would have been to go all in and give the Giants a package they couldn’t refuse for Smith from the get-go. As our negotiations with Around The Foghorn showed, there were ways to get a deal done for a closer that has racked up 26 saves this season and has a 12.7 K/9 ratio.
By adding Smith, the Twins could have swung something for Dyson as well and used Taylor Rogers in an Andrew Miller role circa 2016 in Cleveland’s run to the World Series. They could have still added Romo from the Marlins and had a bullpen that could keep up with their hot offense.
Instead, the front office was about as indecisive as someone in a McDonald’s drive-thru and now, Twins fans will have to cross their fingers and hope for the best.