As the first day of Spring Training draws closer, the Minnesota Twins have remained largely dormant in making significant moves. The only considerable news this offseason has been the potential sale of the franchise but the suggestion of a postseason star could change things in the coming weeks.
On Monday, Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter created his second version of all MLB team's Opening Day starters. For the Twins, he included left-handed pitcher José Quintana as the No. 4 pitcher in the Twins starting rotation.
Quintana, who will be 36 next season, started 31 games for the New York Mets last season and finished with a 10-10 record. After an injury-filled 2023 season, Quintana bounced back to throw 170.1 innings that featured 135 strikeouts, a 3.75 ERA, and a 105 ERA+. He also posted a 3.14 ERA win three postseason starts to help lead the Mets to the National League Championship Series.
Jose Quintana gives the Twins a much-needed left-handed starter
Acquiring Quintana makes sense for the Twins since Minnesota needs a left-handed starting pitcher for 2025. Brett Headrick and Kody Funderburk are the only two southpaw pitchers on the 40-man rosters. Quintana, according to Reuter, "would bring some balance to a staff of right-handers." Last season, Steven Okert was the only left-handed pitcher for the Twins to start one game.
In addition, Quintana won't be an expensive free-agent contract signing, given his age. FanGraphs's projected value for Quintana was approximately $8.4 million dollars.
By signing Quintana, it would all but end Chris Paddack's tenure in the Twin Cities as the right-hander enters the last year of his contract. Since acquiring Paddack in 2022, he's missed time due to Tommy John surgery and dead arm fatigue. Quintana’s 2.5 bWAR outclassed Paddack’s 0.4 bWAR, so Quintana would be an upgrade as a backend Twins starter.
One downside to signing Quintana is that it might block starting opportunities for up-and-comers David Festa, Zebby Mathews, and Marco Raya. Then again, if Quintana were to sign a one-year contract, it would not cost the Twins a hefty sum to release him.
It's been a begrudgingly quiet offseason for Twins fans, and signing Quintana won't get Twins fans to jam-pack Target Field in early April. However, the positives outweigh the negatives when it comes to acquiring Quintana. Quintana fills that left-handed starter's need for the Twins, and he is an inexpensive free agent for a team that won't have an exorbitant payroll.