For the first time since 2009, Max Kepler is going to be wearing a uniform that doesn't belong to the Minnesota Twins.
Kepler became a free agent this winter but it appeared well before then that his time with the team had come to an end. Rumors swirled last winter that the Twins could trade him to try and land some starting pitching help but that never happened, and instead we all got to see one last rodeo with the longest tenured players in the clubhouse.
He didn't make his MLB debut until 2015 but Kepler signed with the Twins six years prior as an international prospect out of Germany. That was the start of an incredible journey, one that saw Kepler turn into a fan favorite and flash some serious potential as a regular piece of Minnesota's lineup.
It's a journey that comes to an end, but it's not the final chapter. Kepler bided his time for a few months and has finally found a new home.
Max Kepler agrees to a one-year deal with the Phillies
According to Todd Zolecki and MLB.com's Mark Feinsand, Kepler's career is going to continue with the Philadelphia Phillies. Nothing is official yet, but we're in the crossing t's and dotting i's phase with the formality of a physical one-year deal.
Sources telling @feinsand and me that the #Phillies and OF Max Kepler are working on a one-year deal, pending a physical. Kepler, 31, has spent entire 10-year career with the Twins.
— Todd Zolecki (@ToddZolecki) December 20, 2024
It's going to be so weird seeing Kepler in a different uniform, but it's a deal that makes sense for everyone involved.
Kepler is going to be 32-years-old when Opening Day rolls around but showed last season that he still has gas left in the tank. He was impossibly bad at the start of the season, hitting .025 before getting placed on the IL, but bounced back to hit .417 to close out April. In May he had a .819 OPS and slashed .320/.374/.387 in July, which was a throwback to 2019 when he showed insane levels of promise.
He never fully delivered on that, but now Kepler lands with the Phillies in a depth role where he can have a nice impact on a World Series contender. It has the potential to be a perfect fit, and at $10 million it's hard to argue he didn't come out pretty well on his own end.
Signing with Philly is also better than what the alternative could have been, as the Guardians were listed as a potential landing spot last month. That would have been a nightmare scenario, and while watching Kepler sign elsewhere stinks it at least puts him in a place where he can succeed and Twins fans don't have to feel dirty about it.
As for the Twins, the post-Kepler era will be a fast moving one. Minnesota has never been short on outfield prospects, which is the case heading into Spring Training. Much like what we saw last year in the infield with a logjam that led to a Jorge Polanco trade, there's a few directions the team can go rather than paying Kepler to return.
Top prospect Emmanuel Rodriguez is expected to compete for a roster spot and the Twins have Matt Wallner, Trevor Larnach, and Austin Martin who can platoon in right if needed. There's also the potential for Luke Keaschall to make his MLB debut this year as well.
Ideally the Twins sign a right-handed hitting outfielder to replace Kepler, but asking the team to spend is a foolish expectation. Perhaps Justin Ishbia will purchase the team in time to make some moves, but in the meantime Minnesota at least has some interesting options to replace Kepler now that he's officially found a new home.
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