The Twins have outrighted right-hander José De León and outfielder Andrew Stevenson, per the transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates both players were removed from the 40-man roster after passing through waivers unclaimed.
Stevenson, 29, signed a minor league deal with the Twins in March and was selected to the roster in September. He had a strong performance in Triple-A, hitting .317/.394/.522 while stealing 44 bases. He got into 25 games at the big league level down the stretch but hit just .189/.250/.216 in those, though he did add another four steals.
Any of the 30 other clubs could have added Stevenson via a waiver claim but he’s out of options, meaning he would need an active roster spot going forward as well. It seems none of them were willing to do so and he passed through waivers unclaimed. Since he has been previously outrighted in his career, he has the right to reject this assignment and elect free agency. His strong season at the Triple-A level will surely be enough to get him another minor league deal this winter.
De León, 31, was once considered one of the best prospects in the league but has been repeatedly setback by injuries. He tossed 17 1/3 innings for the Twins this year but required Tommy John surgery in June. It was the second such procedure of his career, the first coming back in 2018. He spent the latter months of the 2023 campaign on the 60-day injured list and will likely miss most of the 2024 season as well.
The righty would have been eligible for arbitration for the first time this winter but the Twins have removed him from the roster instead and the 29 other clubs passed on the chance to grab him, which is understandable given that he won’t be able to provide much in the upcoming season. Since he has over three years of major league service time, he has the right to elect free agency. Based on his prospect pedigree, he should be able to land a minor league somewhere, perhaps of the two-year variety since his 2024 is up in the air right now.
Seems like a couple no brainers.
Luplow, Henriquez, Gordon, Moran and Ortega are probable DFA’s as well.
Nick Gordon is too versatile to DFA. He can play both outfield and all infield positions but 1st and catcher. Before the injuries if this year he was solid.
Moran also has too much potential to DFA. Control is a problem but he has had success at the MLB level and I believe he will be kept.
Wouldn’t have to DFA him. There’d be a market for Gordon.
How you view Gordon vs. how Falvey’s front office has viewed Gordon are two different things. Falvey hasn’t valued Gordon much previously and his terrible start at the plate this year isn’t likely going to get him a lot of leash.
Not sure how much trade value Gordon really has to be honest. Last year’s 1.6 fWAR, 1.8 bWAR near full season might have gotten him to the point where a team will kick back a #10-20 prospect despite his terrible 2023, but value is always more influenced by recent play.
Call the White Sox, they’re always looking for waiver pickups