3 moves Twins still need to make before Opening Day 2024
There are still a few pretty important things the Twins need to figure out in Spring Training.
It's been a long and slow winter for the Minnesota Twins, but things are finally starting to cook on the hot stove. Not only that, but Spring Training is nearly here which means Opening Day is right around the corner.
Minnesota has been busy recently, trading Jorge Polanco and signing Carlos Santana but work on the roster should hardly be finished getting worked on. Before the Twins think about seriously contending for a World Series, the team needs to make sure the roster is in proper shape to win the AL Central -- something that the lack of movement this winter suggests might not be as easy as it seems.
The Twins are still the best team in the division heading into Spring Training, but we've seen how violatile the Central has been in the past. Minnesota has good pieces in place, but there are still a few things that need to happen to make sure everything is truly in order.
3 moves Twins still need to make before Opening Day
Add platoon depth behind Matt Wallner and Max Kepler
So much has been made about what the situation out in centerfield will be that the corners have been a little neglected. Max Kepler was regularly mentioned alongside Jorge Polanco in trade rumors, but after the market settled and the Twins didn't get involved in free agency, moving him felt a bit shortsighted.
Who plays right field if Kepler isn't there? Furthermore, even with Kepler on the roster who is platooning behind him? The same cane be said over in left field, where right now it's just Matt Wallner and a bunch of question marks behind him. Getting depth behind Byron Buxton is something the Twins need to figure out, but the same goes for making sure there's a good platoon behind Kepler and Wallner.
Minnesota can go about filling in those blanks a few different ways. The easiest and most logical might be to look at what the team has in-house before going shopping for any additions. Willi Castro and Nick Gordon were tendered by the Twins back in November, and they could combine to form a platoon. Having Kyle Farmer back takes some of the pressure off Castro and Gordon needing to factor into the infield situation, as is the expected arrival of Brooks Lee at some point this season.
Lee getting called up could complicate things, though, as he's not on the 40-man roster yet and a corresponding move would need to be made. Could that end up being Castro or Gordon?
Trevor Larnach is also a possibility, as he looked to be a potential everyday left fielder before Wallner edged him out. Larnach was on the roster bubble last spring and it appears he'll be there again but he presents another option to platoon without the Twins needing to add someone.
If free agency is the route the team decides to go, adding someone like Enrique Hernandez or Adam Duvall -- players who can play all outfield positions -- seems like a Twins-y move. The hangup there is that it would cost money the team might be unwilling to add to the payroll and would also mean DFA'ing someone to make room on the 40-man roster.
One way or another, though, the Twins need to figure out what the depth situation behind Kepler and Wallner is before Opening Day arrives.
Sign a right-handed hitting outfielder
Let's keep picking at that outfield thread for another moment, because there's a second bullet point to addressing needs there. Finding depth behind Buxton, Kepler, and Wallner is crucial but so is making sure whoever the team adds is a right-handed hitter. Minnesota has been on the prowl for that since the trade deadline last year but has yet to fill the void.
If the Twins are going to add platoon depth, it can't be another lefty.
Adam Duvall and Tommy Pham appear to be the two best options remaining in free agency who fit the bill. Both players have been linked to the Twins recently, which is an encouraging sign.
Duvall was with Boston last season and ended up slashing .247/.303/.531 with 21 homers with 58 RBIs in 92 games. He has experience playing in center but is probably best suited for a corner outfield role. Pham was linked to the Twins ahead of the trade deadline last August, but he ended up going to Arizona where he helped the Diamondbacks reach the World Series.
Pham slashed .259/.331/.456 against lefties with 28 extra base hits and 15 home runs over the last two seasons. He didn't just play the field in Arizona, he spent time at DH as well which adds an extra wrinkle to what he could bring to the Twins.
Finding some platoon depth behind Kepler and Wallner might be something the Twins can do internally, but they lack right-handed hitting options and need to figure out how to rectify that.
Call up Austin Martin
Brooks Lee has been getting hyped up as the next big Twins call-up, but there's someone ahead of him in the pecking order who could have an even bigger impact. Austin Martin needs to be a part of the plans for Opening Day and it's going to be a massively important spring for him down in Fort Myers.
Martin has been sort of overlooked in the prospect discussions lately, perhaps because there seems to be fewer ways he misses the 26-man roster than ways he makes it. He fills an immediate need providing depth behind Byron Buxton in centerfield and can platoon in the infield as well.
What needs to happen first, though, is the Twins committing to him being a part of the plan for Opening Day. Even if he struggles a bit in Spring Training, Martin feels like the sort of linchpin player who deserves a shot to see if he can figure it out once the season starts. Minnesota can't shy away from getting him time in the Majors, otherwise what's the point?
In addition to playing behind Buxton, Martin adds depth behind Royce Lewis and Carlos Correa. That's three of the most valuable players on the roster he'd be platooning with which is a big deal. We're also assuming a lot by taking Buxton at his word that he'll be healthy, and we've seen too many times that even starting the year healthy doesn't mean he'll make it the whole way through.
Martin was a top prospect acquisition from Toronto as part of the Jose Berrios trade back in 2021, but we've yet to see him in the Majors. Injuries have played a part in stunting his development, but the Twins need to commit to him without cutting bait at the first sign of potential struggle.
Call him up, find a 26-man roster spot for him, and see if Martin has what it takes to deliver on the promise he had when the Twins landed him.
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