Twins Will Reportedly Buy Before MLB Trade Deadline, Well… Maybe Just Rent
The Minnesota Twins will play their 50th game of the 2024 MLB season on Friday. At 26-23, they sit 6.5 games behind the Cleveland Guardians in the American League Central, but if the season ended today, they’d sneak into the AL postseason bracket as the final Wildcard team.
But, the season does not end today. On the contrary, it will not end for another 112 games, after today. So, the question becomes, how are the Twins going to improve their roster between now and then, so they can catch the Guardians? Or, at the least, remain atop the AL Wildcard race?
Minnesota Twins will be buyers at the MLB Trade Deadline
Former MLB general manager (now one of the most plugged-in MLB insiders in the business), Jim Bowden (The Athletic), has good news for fans in Minnesota, CONFIDENTLY noting that the Twins WILL be buyers before the trade deadline, not sellers.
The Twins are going to be buyers at the deadline and not sellers. They need to get Royce Lewis back from the IL, have Byron Buxton stay healthy and keep Carlos Correa healthy as well. Then they need more consistency from their younger hitters such as Alex Kirilloff and Edouard Julien. They could use another hitter and more starting pitching depth for the rest of the way. I still view them as a legitimate contender in the AL Central.
Jim Bowden – The Athletic
Well, the July trade deadline is creeping closer and, soon enough, we will start to see teams across the league start to wheel and deal. While it’s nice to hear Jim so confidently proclaim the Twins as buyers, many fans are (rightfully) skeptical.
Remember, this is the same organization that, following their most successful season in two decades, decided to cut payroll by $30 million during the winter. Why should we believe that the Pohlads will loosen their wallets now?
Well… maybe just Pete Alonso renters
I don’t have that answer, but Bowden brought more proof that the Twins will buy at the deadline, linking them to New York Mets 1st baseman slugger, Pete Alonso, the 29-year-old 3x All-Star and 2x Home Run Derby champ. There’s one caveat, though. Pete isn’t really up for sale. He’s up for rent.
Any team interested in trading for Alonso will understand he’s just a “rental” for the rest of the season and probably will re-sign with the Mets in the offseason. Teams where Alonso could fit include the Astros, Mariners, Guardians, Twins and even the cross-town Yankees.
Jim Bowden – The Athletic
I expect the Minnesota Twins to be linked to a lot of trade block 1st basemen over the next month or two, if they really are going to be buyers. They need to add pop to their lineup and that’s the best place to do it. Adding a guy like Alonso would allow way more flexibility with the lineup.
But mostly, he would add pop that we haven’t seen in this market since Nelson Cruz left… arguably longer. Alonso has produced over 100 RBI in three of his four full MLB seasons, including 118 last year and 131 the season prior. He hit 53 home runs as a rookie in 2019 (.941 OPS) and 40+ in each of the last two seasons.
He’s never had an OPS lower than .817 and over half of his young career he’s carried an OPS over .860. The worst season of his career was in 2021, when he managed just 94 RBI, 37 homers and a .869 OPS.
| Year | Age | Tm | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | OPS+ | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 24 | NYM | 161 | 693 | 597 | 103 | 155 | 30 | 2 | 53 | 120 | 1 | 72 | 183 | .260 | .358 | .583 | .941 | 147 | AS,MVP-7,RoY-1 |
| 2020 | 25 | NYM | 57 | 239 | 208 | 31 | 48 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 35 | 1 | 24 | 61 | .231 | .326 | .490 | .817 | 122 | |
| 2021 | 26 | NYM | 152 | 637 | 561 | 81 | 147 | 27 | 3 | 37 | 94 | 3 | 60 | 127 | .262 | .344 | .519 | .863 | 133 | |
| 2022 | 27 | NYM | 160 | 685 | 597 | 95 | 162 | 27 | 0 | 40 | 131 | 5 | 67 | 128 | .271 | .352 | .518 | .869 | 146 | AS,MVP-8 |
| 2023 | 28 | NYM | 154 | 658 | 568 | 92 | 123 | 21 | 2 | 46 | 118 | 4 | 65 | 151 | .217 | .318 | .504 | .821 | 124 | AS,MVP-17 |
| 2024 | 29 | NYM | 49 | 214 | 191 | 28 | 45 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 24 | 1 | 19 | 41 | .236 | .313 | .466 | .779 | 127 | |
| Career | 6 Yrs | Mets | 733 | 3126 | 2722 | 430 | 680 | 122 | 7 | 203 | 522 | 15 | 307 | 691 | .250 | .340 | .524 | .863 | 136 |
But… Pete is having the worst season of his career (.236 BA, .779 OPS) and the Twins would have to be willing to part with one of their top-5 prospects, to have any chance at actually landing a guy who is practically guaranteed to sign back with the Mets in the offseason.
A slow-moving free agent market meant that really good players were available deep into the offseason at a fraction of their value but, even after they made most of their TV money back thanks to signing a 1-year TV deal with the Bally Sports devil, and the Pohlads said no.
So, why would they say yes now, even if they only have to pay half of Pete Alonso’s contract (probably about ~$10M) of these contracts? I’ll believe it when I see it.
