Twins haven't closed the door on re-signing Carlos Santana to replace Alex Kirilloff

It's going to be an interesting offseason for the Minnesota Twins, a team that needs to find ways to improve its roster but doesn't have a lot of wiggle room in the payroll. After slashing payroll last winter by $30 million, the Twins aren't expected to add much money to the budget, which is something Derek Falvey as admitted will force the front office to 'get creative'.

One of the areas the team will need to do that is at first base. Alex Kirilloff's stunning retirement decision has vacated a spot in the infield with no clear or obvious successor.

There's a chance the Twins stick with an internal option, something that would align with the edict to not add to the payroll. Edouard Julien and Jose Miranda are both reportedly in consideration to fill the role, but so too is Gold Glove winner and Silver Slugger Award nominee Carlos Santana.

Twins reportedly haven't ruled out bringing back Carlos Santana

According to Bobby Nightengale from Star Tribune, the Twins aren't ruling out bringing back Carlos Santana on a new contract. That comes straight from Derek Falvey, who caveated such a move would require a trade to clear roster space.

This is how Minnesota landed Santana last winter, using money freed up by dumping Jorge Polanco's salary to sign him. It was a $5.25 million deal that ended up paying off in the end, even if it wasn't as explosive as the team was hoping.

Santana hit .238/.328/.420 last season, which was good enough to get nominated for a Silver Slugger Award but it was his glove that ended up paying off just as much. For the first time in his career, Santana won a Gold Glove, posting a 14 OAA, which was seven times better than Ryan Mountcastle who was also a finalist this year.

The issue with potentially bringing back Santana is that not only is there the potential for regression but he'll turn 39-years-old next season. Minnesota doesn't typically run back veteran signings, but there's not a lot of options on the market that fit the team's narrow criteria.

Another roster dump being needed to make room for Santana would likely mean the Twins trading away Willi Castro, Chris Paddack, or Christian Vázquez to save money. It's not exactly an ideal way to try and build a winning roster -- or in this case run the same one back -- but it might be the only way the team can make moves this offseason without money to spend.

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