ESPN's David Schoenfield provided full-season grades for every MLB team in a piece published Wednesday morning. Believe it or not, the Twins passed... but not by much.
Schoenfield gave the Twins a C-minus grade for the season, which seems more than fair. All things considered, the Twins surpassed expectations by a bit this year, winning 75 games before their final series of the season against the Texas Rangers at Target Field. However, a sub-80-win season shouldn't be something to celebrate, especially for a team with an owner who said he intends for the team to be competitive this season and bought before the trade deadline.
As Schoenfield noted, the Twins' Opening Day payroll (roughly $104.7 million) was their lowest since 2014. It was far lower than the $154 million payroll from the 2023 team that defeated the Toronto Blue Jays in the American League Wild Card round, marking the organization's first postseason series victory in 21 years. For that reason, the organization doesn't deserve a great grade. The only reason the Twins passed with a C-minus is that they finished with more wins than most expected.
Also, it could've been a very different story for Minnesota if the club had Byron Buxton, Joe Ryan and Pablo López healthy all season. Unfortunately, Buxton missed significant time with a hip issue that will require offseason surgery, Ryan missed roughly a month with a glute strain and struggled significantly in the second half, and López missed the entire season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Those three players are arguably the team's biggest stars.
There is promising signs for Twins' future despite poor season
Despite the Twins' season, there are reasons to be optimistic about the future of the organization. Walker Jenkins is finally heating up. Kaelen Culpepper and Emmanuel Rodriguez have shown flashes of brilliance at the plate. Luke Keaschall has been an amazing leadoff hitter. Taj Bradley is a stud on the mound. There are also other promising prospects in the organization, such as Vahn Lackey and Marek Houston.
Still, the Twins' ownership needs to give the front office the go-ahead to make more impactful moves this offseason to prove they really care about winning. Acquiring Dean Kremer, Jeff Hoffman, A.J. Minter and Tommy Nance before the trade deadline is a step in the right direction, even if those moves weren't enough to reach the postseason this year. Now, the front office needs to make even more moves this offseason to rebuild confidence within the fanbase. Luckily, the Twins have Hoffman, Kremer and Nance back next season, and the only real key players the team will likely lose to free agency this offseason are Ryan Jeffers and Josh Bell. Now spend, Pohlads!
Add us as a preferred source on Google