The Minnesota Twins made some big moves ahead of the trade deadline. Most wouldn't deem them blockbuster deals, except possibly the Jeff Hoffman trade, but they all certainly improved the club. In addition to acquiring Hoffman, a late-inning right-handed reliever, from the Toronto Blue Jays for a prospect package highlighted by top pitching prospect Dasan Hill, the Twins acquired left-handed reliever A.J. Minter from the New York Mets, right-handed starting pitcher Dean Kremer from the Baltimore Orioles and right-handed reliever Tommy Nance from the Blue Jays.
According to The Minnesota Star Tribune's Bobby Nightengale, there were several other big-name players the Twins were interested in before the deadline, but deals obviously never got done. Most notably, Minnesota "checked on the availability" of Los Angeles Angels shortstop Zach Neto, a 25-year-old who is under team control through the 2029 season.
Per Nightengale, the Twins had "multiple check-ins" with Los Angeles about Neto, but a deal never got close to being done because the Angels wanted a package headlined by Walker Jenkins, Minnesota's top prospect.
The Twins could have been tempted to part ways with Jenkins for Neto, who has already been worth 14.3 bWAR in his 481-game career. However, the Angels likely would've wanted even more than Jenkins to make a Neto trade happen, which would've been too steep a price to pay for the Twins. Even if the Twins could've dealt Jenkins for Neto straight up, the organization likely views the top prospect as untouchable, and for good reason.
Twins' top prospect Walker Jenkins should be in majors soon
FanGraphs has Jenkins, 21, ranked at the Twins' No. 1 overall prospect and MLB's No. 4. Jenkins, the fifth overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, has slashed .277/.374/.455 across 56 games with Triple-A St. Paul this season. He has the ability to hit for both contact and power and is an above-average defender and runner. There's a strong possibility he will be in the majors before the end of the season. General manager Jeremy Zoll made the right decision by not dealing Jenkins to the Angels for Neto.
Nightengale also reported that the Twins were talking to the Blue Jays about veteran right-handed starting pitcher Kevin Gausman. Toronto ended up dealing Gausman, who is set to be a free agent at the end of the season, to the Chicago Cubs for two prospects, who now rank No. 17 and No. 20 in Toronto's system. Minnesota also talked to the Angels about right-handed starting pitcher José Soriano, who is under team control through 2028. Los Angeles later traded Soriano to Toronto for a package headlined by top prospect Arjun Nimmala.
Soriano likely would've been too expensive for the Twins, just as a Neto deal would've been. I would've liked to see the Twins acquire Gausman for a similar package to what the Cubs gave up, but Minnesota still addressed its biggest needs at the deadline by improving the bullpen and adding starting pitching depth. The offense has struggled a bit lately, but with Kaelen Culpepper up and Jenkins likely nearing his debut, it can be improved internally.
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