The Twins are one of several "bubble" teams around the league who likely don't know yet whether they'll buy, sell, or do some combination of both prior to the July 31 trade deadline. It's been a season of peaks and valleys for a Twins club that started 4-11 before rallying with a 13-game winning streak and then floundering through a 9-18 June not long after losing their ace for upwards of three months.
Minnesota is a fascinating team to watch, as the Twins would have some very interesting rentals if they opt to sell but also have a deep and talented farm system if they decide to push for contention. They're four games out of a Wild Card spot and open the second half with series against the Rockies, Dodgers and Nationals. All of the uncertainty with regard to the deadline comes against a backdrop of an ownership group that has cut payroll over the past 24 months as they explore a potential sale of the team.
Record: 47-49 (Playoff probability 23.6%, per FanGraphs)
Other series entries available here.
Buy Mode
Potential needs: Starting pitching, backup catcher, another bat, another reliever
Through early June, the Twins ranked among the game's best pitching staffs. Minnesota pitchers led the majors in walk rate, K-BB%, fWAR and SIERA while ranking top-five in strikeout rate, ERA and FIP. Top starter Pablo Lopez went down with a strained teres major muscle on June 3, and the pitching staff quickly began to unravel. Prospect Zebby Matthews hit the injured list just days after Lopez, though he's expected back shortly after the All-Star Break. Steady veteran Bailey Ober ran into catastrophic home run troubles while trying to pitch through a hip injury before finally landing on the injured list. Several short starts from the rotation snowballed and took a toll on the bullpen.
Joe Ryan is leading the Twins' staff in the absence of Lopez and Ober. Prospect David Festa has had a pair of awful starts (eight runs apiece) and seven decent ones otherwise. Fifth starter Chris Paddack has struggled. Simeon Woods Richardson was optioned after a poor stretch earlier this season but has provided a much-needed quality stretch over his past six starts: 30 2/3 innings, 1.47 ERA. He's down to a 3.95 ERA on the season (albeit with a 4.40 FIP and 4.65 SIERA).
The Twins could still use some more stability in the rotation. Paddack hasn't performed well and is a free agent at season's end. Festa and Matthews were top-100 prospects before debuting but have been inconsistent. Lopez and Ober are injured. Even Ryan, the current staff leader, missed the final two months of the 2024 season due to injury. Minnesota isn't likely to acquire anyone with a particularly lofty salary -- not amid a potential sale of the team and on the heels of an offseason punctuated by payroll limitations -- but there are still options to consider.
Unlock Subscriber-Exclusive Articles Like This One With a Trade Rumors Front Office Subscription
- Access weekly subscriber-only articles by Tim Dierkes, Steve Adams, and Anthony Franco.
- Join exclusive weekly live chats with Anthony.
- Remove ads and support our writers.
- Access GM-caliber tools like our MLB Contract Tracker
If you are under .500 at this point in the season, you should not be a buyer.
What if they go on another 10+ game winning streak? Happened in Paul Molitor’s second to last year. They sold and ended the year in the playoffs.
You send out a cat in a Hummer.
Losing to Colorado is a step closer to selling. It’s likely a mediocre team will get the 3rd AL wildcard, which can be an effective tease even for those hovering +\- a few games from .500
2006 – the Twins entered September 9.5 behind Detroit in the division.
By proxy, no team is never really out of it.
This Twins team doesn’t appear to be that Twins team, but there are reasons I mostly don’t bet on day to day sports and root for my team to win every game. Because it’s fun.🚬👴🚬
“What if a mouse drives”…Thanks for saying that. I’ve been saying the same thing for over a decade now.
Mice are known to favor the Kia brand and getting ahold of a Sedona would be child’s play for any streetwise mouse.
Baseball needs to start taking this issue seriously and develop a contingency plan, just in case this were to happen.
It’s good to know that other people are vigilant and totally aware of the longterm ramifications of mice in Sedonas potentially infiltrating and invading a baseball game.
MLB f
I for one am ecstatic that the masses are finally becoming aware of this issue.
“Sorento Felix” has been terrorizing George Steinbrenner Field in Florida for what seems like years.
Trade anybody. It’s not like this team will ever win a WS again anyway.
Anybody?? I would prefer if we kept Joe Ryan, Jax and Duran since they all have 2.5+ more years of control. All of the impending free agents should be for sale though: Bader, France, Coloumbe, Castro, Paddack & Vasquez.