As the Minnesota Twins begin Spring Training, all eyes are squarely focused on top prospect Brooks Lee.
Until Walker Jenkins was drafted last year, Lee was far and away the Twins No. 1 prospect, and he's still the No. 18 overall prospect in all of baseball according to MLB Pipeline. At every single turn he's exceeded expectations, to the point where he's on a fast track to potentially being part of the Opening Day lineup next month.
A lot still needs to happen before we get to that point, but the fact that we're even discussing it is an endorsement of how great he's been. There are high hopes for Lee, so much so that the Twins made the preemptive move of trading All-Star second baseman Jorge Polanco to massage a logjam of talent at second base -- headlined by Lee.
It turns out that Polanco might not be the ony player the Twins trade due to the ascension of Lee to the majors.
Brooks Lee getting called up might create trade opportunities for starting pitching
MLB Network's Jon Morosi followed up his recent report that Lee is nearing his MLB debut, but threw an extra twist into the situation. Morosi mused that the arrival of Lee could help the Twins flip a position player for some pitching help.
"I'm a little bit worried about the Twins' rotation, but the fact that Lee is close to being major league ready, as told me, is a very promising development and it could even create some different options for the Twins to move a position player in a trade to bulk up their starting rotation," Morosi said.
#MLBNHotStove reacts to Twins President of Baseball Ops. Derek Falvey saying that Brooks Lee is "getting close to being Major League ready." pic.twitter.com/VPp4Q60Mle
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) February 21, 2024
It's a nice thought, but we've already been down this road.
Minnesota crossed this bridge with Jorge Polanco, who was traded to Seattle for a package that included starting pitcher Anthony DeSclafani. Polanco was the big trade chip the Twins were teasing all winter as being someone who would bring back some pitching help, and that currency has been spent.
It's possible that the Twins do use Lee's arrival in the majors to trade another positional player but it's hard to see the return topping what Polanco netted. The other question is who would the Twins trade because of Lee getting called up?
Lee's eventual arrival is partially what fueled -- and justified -- trading Polanco, and things seem to be pretty settled after that. Edouard Julien can play first if needed, Austin Martin is depth behind Byron Buxton in center, and Yunior Severino might not get called up until 2025.
Trading Polanco took care of the logjam Minnesota had in the infield. Lee getting called up doesn't instantly make someone expendable, let alone someone who would net some serious starting pitching help.