With the summer beginning to warm up, so to do the opinions. It's only early June, but still, everyone is trying to formally assess their team, because decisions are being made. It's really just baked into the season, and not a fault of overzealous fans and sports writers, but even though we are getting into the summer heat only now in the northern US, we are also in All Star Voting season, and beginning to look ahead to the trade deadline.
The initial discussion is a pretty easy solution for the Twins. There are really only two players to consider for the all star game this year - Ryan Jeffers, who may not make it because Salvador Perez and Adley Rutschman will get spots, and Joe Ryan, who would be the third Twins starting pitcher to make the all star game in the last two years, which is fairly incredible. After that, the next best option is Griffin Jax, which is probably a good lesson in why the Twins don't feel like they are having a good season, even as they are better than their 2023 selves. Carlos Correa is simply too unpopular, and Royce Lewis has only been involved in just over a dozen games.
This is a tough thing for the Twins, though. It's really hard to figure how good the Twins actually are on an individual level. This isn't a "small sample size" thing either. Minnesota as a baseball playing environment fundamentally changes as the year goes on. Outdoor games through May are a pretty inhibitive offensive environment, and it get's a heck of a lot better when summer rolls around. But it's decision time now!
Especially after last year, and despite the positive results, it's important for the fans and the team to know that there is support. Sure, the Twins might not be able to really ratchet up payroll (though I believe they will at the deadline) but they could still make moves that improve the team for the home stretch. Of late, the offense seems to be a bit better calibrated (so long as the Twins aren't playing the Yankees) and the pitching has been rougher around the edges. Do you look at the longer season sample, or this last burst of action when making a move?
I've long insisted that I don't think the Twins thought they would be challenged this year, and as a result, overplayed the television situation. Now that they find themselves in a stickier spot than they expected. The team is better than they were at this point last year, but they have also had better luck in the health department. While the atmospheric issues are going to become more favorable for the offense, the internal talent is going to remain about the same.
The Twins bet on Kyle Farmer and Willi Castro to be the utility man, with Farmer struggling mightily, and Castro becoming the life of the party once again. There were concerns about first base initially, but Alex Kirilloff was sent down and Jose Miranda is getting quality run. Carlos Santana has also turned into the reliable offensive presence the team hoped for when they signed him. I think offensively, the greatest need is to supplant Farmer (or Manuel Margot, I guess) and get better from the right side of the plate.
It would always be nice to add more pitching, but deadline trades in that department have been an unmitigated disaster for this front office. What was the best deadline trade the Twins made a for a pitcher? Was it Sergio Romo? I think it might be. The Twins could use another pitcher, especially if Pablo Lopez doesn't go on a heater to end the year like he did last year, but, and this isn't a money thing, I don't see the Twins making a significant pitching move at the deadline this year. We'll see Randy Dobnak back in the big leagues before that happens.
The problem at the center of all these decisions remains the same. It's hard to say what this Twins team is yet. We've only seen them in a couple of summer like games. Will the offense click on it's own, and will the Twins believe that it can keep it up when it starts cooling off outside in October? It's hard to decide right now, but you better believe people are looking for decisions.
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