Twins avoided a massive mistake by not trading for Yusei Kikuchi

If the Minnesota Twins were going to make a trade before the deadline passed on Tuesday afternoon, it seemed like Yusei Kikuchi was the player they'd land.

That won't be happening. On Monday the Houston Astros acquired Kikuchi, ending Minnesota's pursuit but giving fans a reason to be thankful the Twins sat the sweepstakes out.

It was rumored that the Twins were among four teams bidding for Kikuchi, with the Astros being joined alongside the Padres and Dodgers. Los Angeles dipped into its farm system to trade for Michael Kopech while the Padres remain on the prowl for pitching help.

Houston, meanwhile, won the Kikuchi bidding war but at a cost that Minnesota would have been foolish to try and match, and ultimately look smart for not paying.

Twins refusing to overpay for Yusei Kikuchi might be the smartest move the team makes

Houston gave up an absolute haul to get ahead of Minnesota, San Diego, and Los Angeles. The Astros sent pitcher Jake Bloss, outfielder Joey Loperfido, and infielder Will Wagner to Toronto, which is a total fleecing by the Blue Jays.

Fangraphs had Bloss and Loperfido as Houston's No. 2 and No. 3 prospects earlier this season, while Wager was a Top 30 prospect in the Astros' farm system according to MLB Pipeline.

That's a price the Twins were wise to stay away from.

Minnesota has one of the most talented farm systems in baseball right now, boasting six Top 100 prospects with almost all of them quicky rising through the ranks. Walker Jenkins is the No. 5 prospect in all of baseball and was just promoted to High Single-A, while Zebby Matthews was called up to Double-A after an incredible start to his season. Luke Keaschall and Emmanuel Rodriguez are both stars on the rise, while David Festa has already made his debut along with Brooks Lee.

At least two of those guys would have been in a similar package for Kikuchi had the Twins tried to win the bidding war. While Kikuchi was no doubt a fit that helped make the starting rotation better, parting ways with even one of those prospects would have been a tough sell.

Fans desperately want Minnesota to be buyers at the deadline, but not at the sort of price Houston paid. Folding when the front office did on the Kikuchi bidding war might end up being the smartest move the team makes.

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