Minnesota Twins: Three recently non-tendered players of interest
Which recently non-tendered players could help the Minnesota Twins? These three could.
Nearly 60 new players joined the free agent pool on Wednesday evening after being non-tendered by their respective ballclubs, hopefully jump-starting what has been a quiet offseason to date. A few of these new free agents may be of interest to the Minnesota Twins as they look to fill a few holes in their roster.
As expected, outfielder Eddie Rosario was not tendered a contract due to his expected $10 million salary in 2021 through arbitration, but he wasn’t the only one. Surprisingly, reliever Matt Wisler was also non-tendered after an impressive 2020 campaign.
Are any of these recently non-tendered players possible fits for the Minnesota Twins? With a need for backend starters to fill out their starting rotation, bullpen help after the departures of Wisler and Trevor May (signed with Mets), a utility option for depth, and possibly a DH with the Twins and Nelson Cruz yet to budge on a deal, there are a few names who stick out as possible fits.
Here are three non-tendered players the Minnesota Twins should target.
RHP Archie Bradley
Just about every team is likely to be interested in Archie Bradley, but with a need for a late-inning arm, the Minnesota Twins should already be on the phone with his agent.
The 28-year-old split his time in 2020 with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Cincinnati Reds, going 2-0 with six saves, a 2.95 ERA and just three walks in 18.1 innings. He didn’t walk a single batter in his 7.2 innings with the Reds to close out 2020.
Bradley was Arizona’s closer in 2019, saving 18 games and striking out a career-high 27.4% of hitters. He would be a solid upgrade to Minnesota’s bullpen and help ease the sting from losing Wisler and May.
Since transitioning to a full-time relief role in 2017, Bradley was been worth 4.2 Wins Above Replacement and routinely posted high groundball numbers while keeping the ball in the yard.
At 28 and with his track record of success, Bradley could be a long-term fit for the Twins at a reasonable price tag, allowing Minnesota to spend bigger money elsewhere, whether it’s to bring back Nelson Cruz or acquire another high-impact bat.
The Minnesota Twins need back end of the rotation help.
The top three spots in the Minnesota Twins rotation is set, and very solid. With Cy Young finalist Kenta Maeda, Jose Berrios, and Michael Pineda claiming three-fifths of the rotation, the last two spots are up for grabs.
There are a handful of low-cost veteran free agents available on the market, but with Drew Smyly receiving a one-year/$11 million deal from Atlanta, the market for these types of arms may be more aggressive than originally thought.
Among the list of recently non-tendered players, the Twins could look into former Chicago White Sox first-round pick, Carlos Rodon.
While Rodon has yet to live up to his pre-draft hype, and very likely never will, pre-injury Carlos Rodon showed solid numbers in Chicago to be a backend of the rotation type starter.
He’s still just 28 and while Rodon has logged just north of 40 innings over the last two seasons, his wipeout slider is still intact and he saw a slight tick up in his fastball velocity, which dipped considerably in 2019.
A full offseason and another year removed from Tommy John surgery, along with a change of scenery, could be enough to aide Rodon in a rebound year in 2021 and provide a team like the Minnesota Twins a very cheap, low-risk, moderately decent-reward option.
With COVID behind him, Ryne Stanek is a bounceback reliever candidate who can help the Minnesota Twins.
With a number of intriguing bullpen arms being non-tendered and the Minnesota Twins in need of more than one reliever, let’s take a look at another interesting option, former Tampa Bay Rays and Miami Marlins reliever Ryne Stanek.
The 6’4″, 225-pound reliever owns a career strikeout rate just south of 30% and is similar to the fastball/slider reliever type Minnesota loves to employ.
Last season in Miami was a down year for Stanek, meaning he can likely be had a pretty low cost, but he’s a solid bounce-back candidate.
In just 10 innings last season, Stanek gave up eight runs on 11 hits and eight walks, but he did strikeout 11 hitters.
But those numbers may just be a blip. Stanek missed an entire month after contracting COVID-19 and did experience symptoms that left him feeling “weak” and “sluggish” for a few weeks. It’s safe to say that Stanek never had an opportunity to settle in and go at it with full strength in Miami.
That may also contribute to his big dip in velocity. Stanek’s fastball averaged just under 96 mph last season, a pitch that normally sits around 98 mph.
If his fastball velocity can bounce back after a full recovery from COVID and an offseason of rest, it will once again be a solid pitch to pair with his slider, which has produced a whiff rate of 48% and 45% in each of the last two seasons (2018-2019).
Someone will take a flyer on Matt Wisler. dark. Next
A number of quality free agents joined the market this week at the non-tender deadline, leaving the Minnesota Twins with a few intriguing options to take a look at and possibly fill a few voids in their roster.