While finding the top trades in Minnesota Twins history, we also took a look at the worst trades, and today we rank them all in one place.
As good as some of the Minnesota Twins trades have been, the Twins have also been taken advantage of several times, giving up great players for low-value assets. We took a look into the ten worst deals the Twins have made.
Again, this is also in terms of WAR, so there are several trades that brought back unlikable players but didn’t quite make this list. We’ve followed the same rules throughout our trade series, and we’ll continue using those rules here:
For a trade to make this list, the Twins need to come out ahead in terms of WAR. Once we’ve gone over the top deal for every year, we will rank them to find out the top trade the Twins ever made. This is just for the players involved in the specific trade, nothing after.
*The WAR numbers are for the team they joined next.*
Minnesota Twins Dishonorable Mentions
The Trade: Minnesota Twins trade OF Tom Brunansky (2.7 WAR) to the St. Louis Cardinals for 2B Tom Herr (1.5 WAR) .
Year: 1988
Result: -1.2 WAR
Analysis: In terms of WAR, this isn’t even one of the 25 worst trades in team history. Brunansky didn’t play all that well in his two years in St. Louis, while Herr actually was a statistically okay player during his 86 games in Minnesota.
That being said, you don’t trade away a fan favorite for a player from the team you just beat in the World Series. Fans hated Herr and still do, while Brunansky is always thought of highly to this day. Because of this, bringing in the locker room cancer lands an honorable mention spot on this list (it would be higher if this list wasn’t based on WAR).
The Trade: Minnesota Twins trade 2B Bernie Allen (5.6) and P Camilo Pascual (3.6) to the Washington Senators for P Ron Kline (0.5).
Year: 1966
Result: -8.7 WAR
Analysis: In 1966, the Twins had a really good lineup and several very good starting pitchers. The thought process behind this trade was simple: Give up an aging Twins Hall of Famer in Pascual and an underperforming second baseman for a good reliever. Makes sense, right?
It didn’t work out. Kline played one season in Minnesota before being traded away, while Pasucal had some left in the tank and Allen turned it around in Washington. Losing two decent players for a pitcher who only pitched 71.2 innings is a really disappointing deal.