So far, the Minnesota Twins have committed something like
$30 million in 2020 contracts to three players this offseason. Two pitchers and
a backup catch mean the 26-man roster is quickly closing in on finality. At
this point, there’s nothing left but the big bang.
Jake Odorizzi returning to the Twins was a great
development. A longer-term deal is probably better than the qualifying offer
situation, but it’s negligible nonetheless. Michael Pineda is a guy that made
sense to QO, and instead Minnesota’s front office gets him on a two-year deal
for less than the one-year tag. Alex Avila replaces Jason Castro as the backup
catcher, and he provides a logical platoon partner for star starter Mitch Garver.
Although Odorizzi and Pineda are returning talents, their
abilities represent some of the best on the market. Disappointment in the lack
of a new name doesn’t hold much weight when the accomplishment of high-quality
assets is the goal. Avila isn’t flashy, but it’s a pretty lofty expectation for
catcher number two being able to accomplish that. In the moves they've made this
front office has gotten the job done and nailed each and every acquisition.
Now comes the big wave.
At this point the Twins have something just shy of $100
million committed to 2019. Needing to push the payroll to no less than $135
million, there’s a significant chunk of change yet to be doled out. A reliever
and corner infielder seem to still be on the docket, but it’s that key starter
still twisting in the wind that has everyone wondering. Maybe it’s Madison
Bumgarner or maybe it’s Hyun Jin Ryu, but no matter who it is, a fat check is
getting cut.
I still think that the Twins are best served by both paying and
trading for starters. The latter isn’t going to jump the bottom line much given
the goal should be a level of youth and team control, which generally has a
muted price tag. No one has ever gotten more in a free agent deal from
Minnesota than Ervin Santana’s 4/$54 million in 2014, but both the total and
AAV should be blitzed by in the immediate future.
There has been somewhat of a back to front way about attacking
this offseason cycle from Derek Falvey and Thad Levine. They’ve shored up the
holes with some of the lesser coveted assets, and now they can focus solely on
positioning of the big guns. It seems to be only a matter of time before it
happens, but the reality of when and not if has started to sink in.
Expect the Twins to land a player with an AAV of $15-20
million yet, and another $15-20 million split on the final assets to follow. It’s
been fun seeing clubs cut checks before Christmas, and just maybe we’ll get
back to the days of the Winter Meetings being some sort of exciting frenzy.
We’ll have to wait a bit longer to see how and what all
transpires, but the monumental move looks to be on the horizon.
