Minnesota Twins: Ranking the 5 Most Valuable Trade Chips to Move
By Otto Johnson
It’s becoming clearer and clearer as the season wears on that the Minnesota Twins aren’t going to be competitive in 2021. Too many injuries have piled up and truly awful seasons from key members of the team have left this team twelve games under .500. Though Kenta Maeda and Byron Buxton are both on their way back, the team may be too far gone.
With that in mind, it’s time to look at players the team should move. The trade deadline is still a couple months away, but this team needs to think about the future, whether that be 2022 or beyond. With valuable trade assets, the team could be served well by moving players early.
The Minnesota Twins would benefit greatly from moving on from some current members of the roster.
Here’s the thing though: the Twins’ two most valuable assets are Jose Berrios and Byron Buxton. Both players are scheduled to become free agents in 2023 and both have been talked about as potential trade targets for contenders. Both would bring back at least one Top 100 prospect if traded right now.
Here’s the thing though. Neither should be moved. The 2022 season should hold better injury luck, and top prospects like Alex Kirilloff and Trevor Larnach should be holding down starting spots to begin the season. Without any additions or significant subtractions, here’s what the lineup could look like next year:
- C: Mitch Garver/Ryan Jeffers
- 1B: Alex Kirilloff
- 2B: Luis Arraez/Nick Gordon
- SS: Jorge Polanco
- 3B: Josh Donaldson
- LF: Trevor Larnach
- CF: Byron Buxton
- RF: Max Kepler
- DH: Miguel Sano
That’s a pretty good lineup if Kirilloff, Larnach, and Gordon improve at least a decent amount. I expect the team will add more pieces too, but that doesn’t mean they can’t clear out a little bit of roster clutter right now. To help make it easier, we ranked five most valuable players the team should move, starting with the least valuable.
These players won’t be Berrios or Buxton, and they won’t be players with almost zero value, like Miguel Sano or Willians Astudillo. It’s strictly players a contender could use and the team won’t need in 2022. Let’s get to it.