3 Twins players we’ll be glad are gone in 2024 and 2 we wish stayed
The Minnesota Twins found themselves in an interesting position as the offseason progressed. The lineup and defense hasn't changed much, aside from a trade that sent Jorge Polanco away, and it hasn't really needed to change much. The rest of the AL Central — specifically, the Tigers and Royals — scrambled in their additions to both their hitting and pitching staffs during the offseason, but the Twins had the luxury of being the best team in the AL Central by some margin in 2023, with a healthy mix of veterans and talented young up-and-comers.
However, they did see eight players leave in free agency, which inevitably informed the shape of the Twins' offseason. Ultimately, this group consisted of four position players and four pitchers, a mix of players they maybe should've considered DFA'ing during the season and of players they should've fought harder to keep.
3 Twins players we’ll be glad are gone in 2024
Joey Gallo
There are players who immediately strike fear into the hearts of fans for all the wrong reasons, and the Twins mercifully said goodbye to one in free agency this year. However, when Joey Gallo came to Minnesota on a one-year, $11 million contract, the mood was actually sort of optimistic. He'd done better with the Dodgers at the tail end of the 2022 season than he had with New York for a season and some change, and it seemed that maybe all he needed was to get away from a merciless Yankees fanbase that had taken to booing him at every game.
But Gallo's 2023 season with the Twins was still mostly a bust. He's in the Max Muncy/Kyle Schwarber camp distinguished by low batting averages and high home run counts, but Muncy and Schwarber were sitting at 36 and 47 homers on the year with better averages than Gallo (.212 and .197), while Gallo had 21 and a .177 mark on the season. His season also ended early in September with a foot contusion.
He signed with the Nationals for a steep pay cut in free agency — one year, $5 million — so he's in DC striking fear into the hearts of poor Nats fans who just want to see their team break fifth place, and Twins fans shouldn't be sad he's gone.