The Minnesota Twins may be sitting in a spot nobody expected them to occupy back in the spring, and that has created a tricky call as the trade deadline approaches.
As of July 2, Minnesota is 42-46, only 4.5 games back in the AL Central and 2.5 games out of a Wild Card position. That puts the Twins in an unusual lane: not a clear buyer, not an obvious seller, but a team with just enough life to make the next month matter a great deal.
That’s why David Schoenfield of ESPN is floating an unexpected idea. Instead of tearing things down, he thinks the Twins should be prepared to add if they remain in the race.
“Minnesota Twins: Trade for Kirby Yates/Brooks Raley,” Schoenfield writes. "... If the Twins are close in the division race, they should go for it and add."
The names he points to are both bullpen pieces. Yates, who pitches for the Los Angeles Angels, and Raley of the New York Mets are veteran relievers on cheap, expiring contracts - the kind of short-term help that fits a club trying to stay afloat without making a long-term commitment.
That makes sense given Minnesota’s biggest weakness. The Twins’ bullpen ranks 29th in ERA, and if they’re going to make a push, relief help would be the cleanest way to strengthen the roster.
There’s still a very real path the other way, too. If July goes sideways, Minnesota could pivot into seller mode and move players such as Joe Ryan and Byron Buxton, just as the club did a year ago.
But if the Twins hang around the postseason picture - especially if they stay within reach of the AL Central lead by the August 3 deadline - Schoenfield believes they should buy instead of sell.
For a team that was projected to be near the bottom of the league before the season, that would be a notable turn. And with several teams surely watching Minnesota’s trade chips, the Twins’ next month could shape the rest of the deadline market as well.
In Other News...
Twins Farm Gets One Needed Boost Amid Another Concerning Update
The Twins farm system got a little healthier in one spot and a little thinner in another, a familiar tradeoff at this time of year. Christian Becerra was back on the mound for High-A Cedar Rapids after a stint on the 7-day injured list, while the broader minor league picture also brought a few encouraging signs across the organization, including another strong day from St. Pauls offense and some useful innings from pitchers trying to steady their seasons.
Kaelen Culpeppers addition to the Futures Game roster added a brighter note to the systems midseason outlook, giving Minnesota another prospect to track on a bigger stage. But the update also came with a setback elsewhere in the pipeline, a reminder that depth in the minors can change quickly even when one player is moving back into the mix and another is earning a spotlight. [Read more 🡒]
Twins May Finally Have A Real Opening For Kendry Rojas
Kendry Rojas has given the Twins enough to dream on since arriving from Toronto, even if the picture is still blurry. The left-hander brings real velocity and a slider that can miss bats, but the command has not always matched the stuff, which is why Minnesota has been shuttling him through a hybrid mix of starting and relieving without settling on a firm lane.
Now the Twins have to decide whether the best path for Rojas is to keep stretching him out or narrow the job and let the arsenal play up in shorter bursts. Louis Varland has become the obvious reference point from the same trade, and that kind of bullpen conversion is at least on the table as Minnesota weighs what Rojas can be long term. [Read more 🡒]
Two Unexpected Twins Could Be In Real Deadline Danger
The Twins have spent much of the season in that uneasy middle ground where neither path is fully closed off. At 42-46, they are still close enough to the playoff race to justify staying patient, but not so far ahead that the front office can ignore the possibility of shifting directions if the next few weeks go sideways.
If Minnesota does end up leaning toward a sell-off, two unexpected names could surface in the conversation: Kody Clemens and Ryan Kreidler. Both have been useful this year and bring the kind of defensive flexibility teams like to target at the deadline, which makes them more than simple depth pieces even with years of control still attached. For a club trying to balance the present against its next wave of talent, that kind of value can become hard to overlook. [Read more 🡒]