MLB insider lists Twins as 'best fit' for free agent Yankees outfielder

With the World Series about to get underway, the Minnesota Twins are at home still trying to sift through the rubble of their season. There's not other way to describe what happened over the last month than to deem it a total train-wreck, as the Twins cratered do hard it sunk their near-90 percent chance of making the postseason.

That's all in the past now, but what happened should help guide the team's offseason plan moving forward. We still don't know how much the payroll will be in 2025, although the Pohlads have been rather terse when asked about it. That suggests another cheap winter of pinching pennies, but a smart ownership group would want to invest in the team to up its value after putting it up for sale.

Even if that's not a motivating factor, the Twins have obvious holes on the roster that a competent organization would want to fill regardless of financial constraints. Free agency is set to open after the World Series ends, and when it does Minnesota is already being named in a handful of interesting rumors that fans are hoping come true.

Twins listed as a 'best team fit' for Alex Verdugo in free agency

In his list of the Top 45 free agents set to hit the market, The Athletic's Jim Bowden named the Twins as a 'best fit' for Alex Verdugo. Bowden also lists the Yankees, Mariners, and Athletics as other potential fits in free agency.

One obvious obstacle in any rumor that pops up about the Twins is how little the Pohlads seem interested in investing in the roster. That's where things get interesting with Bowden's prediction, though. He thinks a deal with Verdugo could be in the same ballpark as what Manuel Margot was paid last season, although there are some notable strings attached to that comparison.

While Bowden thinks Verdugo could be had for two years and $19 million, it's important to remember that the Twins barely paid any of Margot's salary last season. When Minnesota acquired him from the Dodgers, one of the key pieces of the deal was that Los Angeles was helping offset the cost which mean the Twins were only on the hook for about $4 million of Margot's contract.

Landing Verdugo would help improve the outfield situation rather significantly. By all accounts he's well-liked in the Yankees clubhouse and had that same energy while with the Red Sox. On the field he hit .233/.291/.356, which was down from where he was with Boston but he's averaging around 13 home runs over the last four seasons.

That's power the Twins could very much use in their lineup, and he'd fit right into an outfield rotation alongside guys like Byron Buxton, Matt Wallner, and potentially Emmanuel Rodriguez. The big question looming over everything is whether ownership will actually spend, which is an anxiety that has weighed down excitement around the team for four decades.

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