The MLB trade deadline may have seen a major twist on Monday night when Arizona Diamondbacks' All-Star third baseman Eugenio Suárez took a fastball off his right index finger. X-rays taken after the game were negative, but Suárez was not in the Diamondbacks' starting lineup for their game against the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday night. As a seller, the Minnesota Twins may be loosely connected to what happens with Suárez.
First and foremost, if Suárez's injury takes him off the trade market, teams in need of a third baseman may be scrambling for an alternative. Especially when you consider that the New York Yankees have already traded for Ryan McMahon and Amed Rosario.
With Willi Castro as a trade chip, the Twins are holding onto someone who many teams may pivot to if they aren't able to land Suárez. One of those teams is the Seattle Mariners, who have kept in contact with the Twins about a potential trade involving Castro. Daniel Kramer of MLB.com mentioned that the Mariners' interest in Castro dates back to this offseason.
"Willi Castro is Minnesota’s clearest position-player fit for Seattle -- a utility man who switch-hits, precisely the type of skill set that this front office covets -- and the Mariners have indeed made calls inquiring on the veteran’s availability, a league source said. The Mariners also pursued Castro last offseason but the Twins were not in sell mode."
Twins get unexpected boost from Mariners’ sudden Willi Castro interest
One day after trading Chris Paddack to the Detroit Tigers, the Twins certainly are in sell mode and are expected to move rental players like Castro. Kramer also notes that the Mariners have an interest in Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax.
Castro won't fetch the Twins the same return that Suárez will for the Diamondbacks, but Minnesota's front office is in an ideal spot. Teams may not want to meet the Diamondbacks' price for Suárez, and that certainly will create leverage for the Twins as they look to trade Casto before Thursday's deadline.