2019 MLB Season: Rating the AL Central general managers
By Bill Felber
2019 MLB Season: The AL Central’s best GM
Thad Levine (Derek Falvey), Minnesota Twins
With the exception of Atlanta’s Alex Anthopoulos, Levine played a larger role in his team’s success this season than any GM in MLB.
In concert with Twins chief baseball officer Derek Falvey, his maneuvering since the conclusion of the 2018 season added 11.5 games of talent to the Twins roster. Minnesota qualified for post-season play by a margin of eight games. It is no great stretch to argue that Levine and Falvey manipulated the Twins into the playoffs.
The most significant chunk of that improvement lay in their decision to tie up budding star Jorge Polanco via a deal guaranteeing Polanco $22 million through 2023 with additional options for two additional seasons. Polanco returned the favor with a .295 average and +3.5 WAA.
The free-agent signing of Nelson Cruz got a lot more attention, particularly when Cruz went on a home run binge that only stopped at 41. Cruz was worth another 2.6 WAA.
Overall, Levine and Falvey signed or re-signed 11 players during the 2019 MLB season, and four of them returned a value in excess of +1.0 WAA.
Although the performance of Minnesota’s rookie class was not sensational, as a group it required less of a learning curve than is normally the case. The average impact of a major league rookie class is roughly -1.0 WAA – call it a natural learning curve – but Levine’s Twins produced a half-game of positive value for their new team.
The best was probably utility player Luis Arreaz, whose .334 average translated to a +0.6 WAA while he shifted across virtually every position on the field.
Levine and Falvey also displayed a discerning ear for when to say farewell. He detached nine players from the 2018 roster who landed with different teams either through trades, sales or via free agency. Not a single one of the nine produced any positive value for their new teams.
Short-term acquisitions: -0.7
Short-term trade losses: +1.5
Short-term free agent signings: +7.4
Short-term free agent losses: +2.8
Short-term rookie production: +0.5
Short-term total: +11.5