The Minnesota Twins collapsed at the end of the 2024 season. They went 9-18 in September, falling out of the American League Wild Card race and making way for the Detroit Tigers. Despite that, they did not add enough in free agency to make a significant push in an improving AL Central. Before the offseason ends for good, the Twins should trade for Yankees starter Marcus Stroman.
After a tough first season with the Yankees, Stroman was a part of trade rumors all offseason. Because of that, he did not show up to the first two days of spring training. He did finally appear on Friday, telling reporters he was a starter and would not pitch out of the bullpen. He has a contract reason to refuse the bullpen, as an innings-based vesting option that could give him another year for $18 million. The Twins can give him a spot in their rotation and give up very little to do it.
At the top of the rotation, the Twins have Chris Paddack and Pablo Lopez. But beyond that, they do not have enough MLB-caliber pitchers to compete in the American League Central. They would not have to part with a high-quality prospect to land Stroman if they take on his whole salary.
Despite not being one of the three teams who made the playoffs from the Central, the Twins still have a great chance of making the postseason. They have elite offense from Carlos Correa and Royce Lewis, when healthy, and have solid bullpen arms. But without starting pitchers, the other Central teams will dominate them all year.
Stroman’s bad season with the Yankees was partly because of the bad defense behind him. If he went to Minnesota, he would have a stronger infield behind him, and his numbers would improve.
What would the Twins have to give up for Marcus Stroman?
The deal would be simple if the Twins were willing to take on all of Stroman’s $18.5 million salary. They could trade a journeyman minor-leaguer to the Yankees to get him off the books. By trading Stroman, New York would be able to swing a deal for Nolan Arenado, which fills a desperate need.
The only thing the Yankees are looking for in the trade market is an infielder. After Gleyber Torres left for the Tigers, manager Aaron Boone announced that Jazz Chisholm Jr would move to second base. That opens up third base for an outside option like Arenado or an internal option like Oswaldo Cabrera or DJ LeMahieu. If they wanted to finish their offseason trading in just one move, Minnesota would not be the team to do it with.
The Twins have a lot of high-value players playing infield positions that they should be unwilling to trade. Royce Lewis is their third baseman and rookie Brooks Lee is slated to be their second baseman. Both of those players are former first-round picks and Lewis has shown incredible promise. So if the Yankees are looking for their final infielder back for Stroman, the Twins won’t be the team.
But the Yankees should not be prioritizing that in a Stroman trade. They must find the best suitor and one that takes the most amount of money in the deal. If that is the Twins, he would be a perfect fit into their rotation and help them in a tight division race. But the Twins have not added much this offseason because of financial and ownership issues.
If this deal happens, it should go down before spring training games start this month. The Twins need Stroman ready to go for opening day and bringing him in now would be the best way to make sure he is.
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