The Twins surprisingly tore down at the trade deadline, but they still have plenty of talent left on the roster.
The Minnesota Twins are entering a rebuild stage, or at least that’s what the move they made at the deadline imply. A team that entered August six games under .500 and 12 back in the division made the understandable decision to sell, but they sold much more than most people expected. They traded a whopping ten players from their MLB roster, half of whom are controllable beyond 2025. Minnesota decided to cut ties with SS Carlos Correa with over three years left on his contract, and they ostensibly sold high on RPs Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, Brock Stewart, and Louie Varland.
There is, unfortunately, a clear off-the-field reason why the Twins are cutting payroll. The franchise is currently up for sale, and cleaner books for the future are more appealing to potential buyers. Perhaps more crucially, the franchise is more than $400 million in debt, so pinching pennies really does mean more to this ownership group than others.
With such a drastic roster overhaul in the span of one day and an uncertain organizational future, the Twins sure seem like they are tearing things down. But the makeup of the remaining players on the roster doesn’t lend itself to a full tank job. With a few stars and a number of interesting young players, the Twins could quickly turn things around if they so choose. But if they want to rebuild, there are two recent cautionary tales that show how misguided organizational decisions can send a team down the wrong path. Instead of getting closer to contention, owners and front offices can potentially push teams further from the playoffs.
An Immediate Teardown
The Twins had a winning record last year and made the playoffs the year before that, just as the Oakland A’s made the playoffs in 2020, missed out with a winning record in 2021, and then tore down entering 2022. In the early months of that year, with an impetus to cut payroll, the A’s traded away 3B Matt Chapman, SP Chris Bassitt, 1B Matt Olson, and SP Sean Manaea. Three and a half years later, the only impactful player they got back from all those major trades is C Shea Langeliers. Most of the prospects aren’t even in the organization anymore.
Due to losing all that talent, the 2022 Athletics immediately fell the bottom, and they are only now starting to dig themselves out of a rebuild so painful they are moving cities twice. Their young players leading the way were first-round picks from all those last-place finishes. But the point still stands that the A’s front office failed to execute a significant aspect of rebuilding. They tore down immediately but didn’t find any pieces right away to help them rebuild.
What the Twins must prevent is wasting all the trades they just made and could still make this coming winter. I am already skeptical of that since I don’t think they got fair value back in most of those deals. Such a drastic shift in organizational strategy leaves little time to plan, and I worry that the Twins did not think through their moves enough. It is possible they received some impactful players, but waiting to trade their guys with team control would have given the front office more time to prepare. Plus, they held onto their most valuable chip in SP Joe Ryan. If the Twins are tearing down, why is he still on the roster?
Half Measures
That brings us to the other current example, the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cards were surprisingly bad in 2023 and then decent in 2024. Entering this season, PBO John Mozeliak said the team would focus more on player development, and he would retire at the end of 2025. That sounds like the start of a rebuild, but, uh…the roster is very similar to last season, and the Cardinals are .500. They are not tearing down or pushing to make the playoffs. Many people have said the worst place for a team to be is the middle, and that’s where St. Louis is.
A big part of that is their stars on big contracts did not waive their no-trade clauses. The Cardinals still employ SP Sonny Gray, 3B Nolan Arenado, and 1B Willson Contreras. Their salaries are still on the books, and they didn’t improve the farm system. With a number of solid young position players around, this team is simply too good to lose a lot. The front office should have traded other players or turned around and added in the winter.
The Twins might be in a similar spot, as OF Byron Buxton already confirmed he won’t waive his no-trade clause. SP Pablo Lopez has a long-term contract, as well. With a Cy Young candidate and some talent in the lineup, the Twins could still be competitive in 2026, whether management wants them to be or not. If PBO Derek Falvey doesn’t want to fully tear down, then he should realize that adding to the roster would actually be a wiser decision.
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