Minnesota Twins: Ranking the Top 10 MiLB Free Agents we should re-sign

The Minnesota Twins enter the 2021 offseason with a few major free agents hitting the market in Andrelton Simmons, Michael Pineda, and Alex Colomé with John Gant joining them. There’s uncertainty over whether or not they’ll be back, but what often isn’t talked about is the minor league free agents.

Several solid Minnesota Twins minor leaguers opted for free agency.

Guys like Rob Refsnyder, Juan Minaya, and Luke Farrell all played big roles on the 2021 team as minor league free agents, and Minaya re-signed with the Twins before. Today we got a list of the Twins’ new minor league free agents:

The list also included RHP Zaquiel Puentes, RHP Orlando Rodriguez, RHP Bobby Milacki, RHP Breckin Williams, RHP Carlos Suniaga, RHP Jonathan Cheshire,  RHP Matt Mullenbach, RHP Eiker Huizi, RHP Jose Brito, LHP Chris Nunn, LHP Sean Gilmartin, LHP Tyler Watson, LHP Samuel Perez, 1B Tomas Telis, 2B Sherman Johnson, 2B Tzu-Wei Lin, 2B D.J. Burt, 3B Drew Maggi, 3B Damek Tomscha, OF BJ Boyd, OF Rob Refsnyder, OF Trey Cabbage, OF Leobaldo Cabrera, OF Aaron Whitefield, and OF Justin Washington.

Forty Minnesota Twins minor leaguers elected free agency ahead of 2022. We rank the best.

That’s a lot of names, and several of them you probably haven’t heard of, but there are a few that the Twins should do their best to bring back into the fold for 2022. To help slim down the list, we ranked the 10 best players in the group that the Twins should bring back for next season.

Top Minnesota Twins MiLB Free Agents to Re-Sign: No. 10-8

No. 10: Tzu-Wei Lin (SS/2B/OF)

2021 Stats to Remember: 7 G, .269/.367/.308, 1 XBH, 4 RBI, 3 SB (Triple-AAA)

Yes, Tzu-Wei Lin did miss almost all of the 2021 season due to injuries. Yes, he wasn’t exceptionally good when he played. The Twins still are incredibly thin at shortstop though, so signing Lin to another minor league deal would be a good move for depth.

No. 9: Eiker Huizi (RHP)

2021 Stats to Remember: 2.79 ERA, 1.241 WHIP, 17-8 K-BB ratio in 19.1 IP (Rookie Ball)

Still just 21 years old, Eiker Huizi had a quietly solid season in Rookie Ball last year. Playing in Rookie Ball at 21 isn’t great, but reaching a deal to bring him back for next year would allow Huizi to prove 2021 wasn’t just a flash in the pan.

No. 8: Samuel Perez (LHP)

2021 Stats to Remember: 1.45 ERA, 0.911 WHIP, 39-5 K-BB ratio in 37.1 IP (Rookie Ball)

Samuel Perez is slightly older than Huizi, but he had far better numbers and is a left-handed reliever. It makes a good deal of sense for the Twins to bring him back and allow him to build off of a very good stretch from 2018-2021, especially for a Single-A bullpen.

Top Minnesota Twins MiLB Free Agents to Re-Sign: No. 7-4

No. 7: Aaron Whitefield (OF)

2021 Stats to Remember: .257/.327/.353, 6 HR, 58 RBI, 36 SB in 111 G (Double-AA)

Aaron Whitefield made the opening day roster in 2020 for his speed alone, but his struggles with hitting the ball have remained. Hopefully he’ll be back again, as his speed could be a nice boost to a playoff roster.

No. 6: Tomas Telis (C/1B)

2021 Stats to Remember: .296/.340/.418, 12 HR, 50 RBI, 5 SB in 101 G (Triple-AAA)

As I talked about earlier this week, the Twins are very thin behind the plate. Bringing back Tomas Telis, the man who has been near the top of the Minnesota Twins’ organizational catching depth chart would provide far more stability in case of injury.

No. 5: Erik Manoah Jr. (RHP)

2021 Stats to Remember: 2.57 ERA, 0.976, 60-14 K-BB ratio in 42 IP (Double-AA and Triple-AAA)

The 26 year-old had an up and down year in the minors, struggling at Triple-AAA after killing the lower levels. As I’ve said before though, the Twins need more relief pitching, so keeping him around seems beneficial for the team.

No. 4: Drew Maggi (2B/SS/3B)

2021 Stats to Remember: .252/.354/.456, 16 HR, 50 RBI, 12 SB in 95 G (Triple-AAA)

Drew Maggi was extremely popular with Twins fans after his stellar season in Triple-AAA in St. Paul, but it makes sense Maggi wanted to leave. The Twins didn’t have a real ability to get him playing time at the major league level, so he was kind of shifted and stuck, but his talent is clearly present.