The Minnesota Twins may not be acting like sellers this summer, but Joe Ryan’s name keeps hanging over the deadline anyway.
Minnesota sits just 4.0 games out of the AL Central and 1.5 games back in the AL Wild Card, so a full teardown doesn’t fit the current picture. Still, the buzz around Ryan and Byron Buxton hasn’t gone away, and if the Twins stumble badly in July, Ryan could suddenly become one of the biggest names moved before the August 3 trade deadline.
That’s where MLB insider Robert Murray of Fansided.com comes in. Murray says the Twins could land an “absolute haul” if they decide to deal Ryan.
"Ryan, 30, has 1.5 years left on his contract and considering his performance this season - a 3.36 ERA and 122 strikeouts in 104.1 innings - the Twins could get an absolute haul in return," Murray writes.
And that’s the appeal for Minnesota. Ryan isn’t just a rental arm with a short shelf life. He’s 30, under team control through the 2027 season, and coming off an All-Star level run last year while matching that standard again this season with a 3.36 ERA in 19 starts.
If a contender gets desperate enough, the return could be too good to ignore. Murray points to teams like the Atlanta Braves or Chicago Cubs as possible suitors that might be willing to put together a package the Twins would have to seriously weigh, even if they’re still in the race.
There’s also the bigger-picture wrinkle: with a potential lockout looming next year, moving Ryan now could make more sense than waiting.
For the Twins, the decision is simple on paper and complicated in practice. They don’t have to trade him. But if they do, the expectation is clear - it should take a fantastic package to pry him away.
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